The Witness To The Revelation Of Jesus Christ

Jesus the Messiah,the Lord:The Witness of John the Baptist,1:19-28

¹⁹And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
   ²⁰And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
   ²¹And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
   ²²Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
   ²³He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.
   ²⁴And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.
   ²⁵And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?
   ²⁶John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
   ²⁷He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.

   ²⁸These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

  1*  (1:19) Introduction: The witness of John the Baptist is a dynamic example for every servant of God.John was questioned by the religionist who were very suspicious of him.These were fact finders sent from Jersalem,the headquarters of Jewish religion.

    Thought 1. Too often we are suspicious of and question those who seem different from us. Many times those who are serious about there walk with the Lord are often challenged by those who have there own agenda's.You will find the closer one gets to the Lord,the more opposition he is met with by others who claim the same faith.

2*(1:20-22) Minister,Humility: The messenger was a man who knew who he was.Others questioned who he was ,but not John.He knew God had sent him into the world with a specific ministry.He was from God,called and commissioned by God, therefore,He knew exactly who he was and what he was doing.John was not Elijah,John was not that prophet,Jeremiah or Isaiah.John was not the light ,but he was to bear witness to the light.

    Thought 1. The lesson is clear,The servants,minister,or layman of God must not,claim to be Christ or any other great prophet,pretent to be any other great man of God,seek recognition,assume some honor that don't belong to him,allow God's power upon his life and ministry to turn his head toward , pride, thinking more highly of himself than he ought to.

3* (1:23-24) Jesus Christ,Messiah-John the Baptist,Forerunner:The messenger was only a voice, only a forerunner for the Lord.Why was it necessary for the messiah to have a forerunner?Why did John have to run ahead of Christ crying "prepare,make straight the way of the Lord?"People needed their concept of the Messiah straightened out.

1)Few had ever seen "the seed" promised to Adam and Abraham as referring to the Messiah. They interpeted the seed as the nation Israel,as all circumcised Jews."We are Abraham's seed" as they told Christ.Few saw the Messiah as the seed in whom all the promises to Abraham were fulfilled. 

2)The Jews saw the Messiah primarily as the Son of David: David had liberated and led their nation to it's highest peak,so they saw the Messiah following in David's footsteps.One who was going to liberate them from their enemies and restore the nation to great glory.The Jews saw themselves as the subjects of the Messiah's salvation(Deliverance),and saw all other people (gentiles)as the subject of the Messiah's judgment.The people needed their religion straighten out,and John the forerunner had to begin cracking through the crust of these errors.Salvation was not a national thing,institutional thing,or even a religious thing,is was and is a personal matter, a spiritual matter of the heart and life.A man has to personally want forgiveness of sins and then repent and be baptized if he wished to be saved.This was and still is the message of the Messiah.

   Thought 1. The same can be said of men today.Many need their concept of the Messiah straightened out.Some don't know Christ as the promised seed.Some think they are special and priviledged of God, blind to their sins and need for personal salvation.Many need to simply hear the plain truth about the Messiah and His purpose for dying on the cross.

   Thought 2. The mesenger of God is only a voice,only a forerunner for the Lord.He must speak up for the Lord,he must be a clear voice with a clear message.

4* (1:25-26) Baptism,John The Baptist,Baptism of: the mesenger was a baptizer.John as asked why he baptized.a) His baptism shocked the Jewish nation,for Jews were never baptized.Baptism was for non-Jewish persons who were converted to the Jewish faith.It was for all the uncleaned who needed to be cleaned to be acceptable to God,and the Jews felt they were  acceptable to God in any matter because they were of the seed of Abraham.The old testament prophets had cried to Israel to wash themselves and be cleansed of their filthiness.John used baptism to show that a man was turning from his sins and turning to God,seeking forgiveness of sins.

   Thought 1. Baptism is critical.the believer is to be baptized, but he is to be baptized because he is truly repenting and sincerely turning to God.

5* (1:27) Servant,Humility: The messenger of God was an unworthy servant.John proclaimed and confessed that Jesus was prefered before him,John said he wasn't worthy to even unloose the shoe latchet of Jesus sandals.The same confession of unworthiness must be made by every servant of God.

6* (1:28) John the Baptist , Minister :The messenger was a man who brought honor to a place. A servant of God who is faithful in his witness and ministry(like John) will bring honor to a place.In God's eyes a place is honored because believers are there(Genesis 18:16)

The Witness to the Revelation of Jesus Christ

Jesus the word made flesh:The third Witness of John the Apostle, 1:14-18

¹⁴And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
   ¹⁵John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.
   ¹⁶And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.
   ¹⁷For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
   ¹⁸No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Introduction: "The word was made flesh", God's Son,the Lord Jesus Christ,was made flesh and blood;He became man.No greater message could ever be proclaimed to man.

1)Christ became flesh (vs.14)
2) Proof 1: Christ dwelt visibly among us(vs.14)
3) Proof 2:John the Baptist bore witness of the superiority(vs.15)
4) Proof 3: men have received the fullness and grace of Christ (vs 16-17)
5) Proof 4: God has revealed Himself through Christ (vs.18)

Jesus Christ,Incarnation: Christ became flesh.The incarnation did take place.The Son of God was actually made flesh.He came to earth in the person of Jesus Christ. There is no doubt about John's meaning here.The word flesh(sarx) is the same word that Paul used to describe man' nature with all of it's weakness and tendency to sin.This is a staggering thought.Jesus is God,fully God,yet Jesus Christ is man, fully man.The word beheld(theasthai) means actually seeing with th ehuman eye.There is no room whatsoever for saying that God's becoming a man was merely a vision of some man's mind or imagination.John was saying that he and others actually saw the word made flesh.Jesus Christ was beyond question God Himself who became man,who partook of the very same flesh as all other men.

The flesh is corruptible
a)The flesh is tainted,debased,ruined,and depraved by sin.There is a seed of corruption within the human flesh.Christ became flesh to counteract the corruption of flesh.

The second proof is John the Baptist. He, too bore witness of the incarnation.
The third proof is the fullness and grace of Christ which was given to us.Genuine believers can testify to this.

The forth proof is Christ,God's Son.He alone has seen God.No man has seen God at anytime;However Jesus Christ is the only begotten of the Father,He comes from the very bossom of the Father,and He came to reveal and proclaim the Father.

Jesus is the Word of God made flesh,only the word of God can save man.By his spoken word we have faith,as faith comes by hearing.His written word is good for doctrine,reproof,correction and instruction in righteousness that the man of God might be thoughly furnished unto every good work.And Jesus His living word, our revelation as to th ewill and purpose of God.Even though he was wrapped in the flesh of man ,he was still God's word,and he died in the flesh that we might be able to live in the spirit.

The Witness to the Revelation of Jesus Christ

Jesus the light of men: The second witness of John the Apostle

⁹That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
   ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
   ¹¹He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
   ¹²But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
   ¹³Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

(1:9-13) Introduction:the world is in a desperate straits.It is full of darkness,the darkness of sin and despair,of sickness and death,of corruption and hell.The darkness looms over the whole world.This is the problem dealt with in the present passage.There is hope in Jesus Christ,for Christ is the true Light, and light dispels darkness.

1)Christ is the light(vs9)
2)Christ was tragically rejected by the world(vss 10-11)
3)Christ was wonderfully received by some(vss12-13)

1)-(1:9) Jesus Christ,Light; Mission: Christ was the true light."other men may claim to be lights, claiming they can lead men to the truth.Some may claim they can reveal God and his truths to men. They may claim to be able to show the nature,meaning,and destinity of other things.To guide men out of darkness of sin,shame, doubt,despair,to be able to eliminate the darkness entirely.

However,such are false lights.Their claims are only ideas in their minds,fictitus ideas,and counterfit claims.The true light is Jesus Christ,Christ alone is the light of the world.The misson of Christ is to give light to men.There is the light of the gospel,Christ has now come a light into this dark world,that whosoever believeth on him should not abide in darkness.There is the light of the spirit, both the guiding and convicting power of the spirit.Then there is the light of Christ himself; he is the savior of the world,now every man can see truth;you can reject it but you can see it.

2) (1:10-11) Jesus Christ-Rejection:Christ was tragically rejected by the world.Christ was in the world,he had made the world, and He loved and cared deeply for the world;therefore, He was actively working to help the world and its people from the very beginning.Christ gave the light of order,and purpose,he gave the light of living to a dark world yet the world would not receive the light.Even those of us who profess to be his often time reject the light as we choose to walk and live in darkness.We reject Him in our daily lives,with our actions, thoughts, words, deeds and how we often treat one another.Jesus died to unite all man and to reconcile him to God,yet many still because of rejection walk in darkness.

3) (1:12-13) Jesus Christ,Accepted;Salvation:Christ was wonderfully received by some persons.Not everyone rejected Christ,most did,but few received Him.How men receive Christ,"they believe on His name".The result of receiving Christ, A person is given the power to become a son of God.When a person receives Christ as Lord,Christ gives that person the power to become something he is not,A child of God.This is a result of a new birth,not of flesh and blood or the will of man,but a spiritual birth that can only come from God.

³Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

 ⁵Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

   ⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

The Witness to the Revelation of Jesus Christ

Jesus the Light of the World :The special witness of John the Baptist (John 1:6-8)
   
   ⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
   ⁷The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
   ⁸He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

Introduction:

 There was one person who was a very special witness to Christ,John the Baptist. John's sole purpose on earth was to witness and to bear testimony to the Light of the world.His purpose stands as a dynamic example for every believer,The purpose of every believer is to bear the same witness as John: Jesus Christ is the light of the world.

1) John was a man sent from God (vs.6)
2) John was a man sent on a very special mission (vs.7)
3) John was a great man but he was not the Light (vs.8)

[1]
(1:6) John the Baptist-commission:a man sent from God.(note 3 points)

    a) The man "was a man" and only a man who was born like any other man.
    b) The man ,however,was "sent from God",and he was sent on a very special mission.We to who have been called of God out of the darkness into his marvelous light,are also sent on a special mission. We too are to bear witness to the light.We were saved to go tell others about the saving power of Jesus Christ.
     c) The man was named John.His name means gracious.He was sent forth with a message that match His message.God's grace is now to enter the scene of world history. prepare ye the way of the Lord, who is the embodiment of God's glorious grace.

[2]
(1:7)Mission-Witnessing: a man with a mission(2 points)

   a) The man came to bear witness of the Light.He was sent with a very specific message,and that message was to proclaim the Light,Christ Himself.The servant of God is not left to come up with his/her own message.He does not depend on his own reasoning,thoughts or ideals.His message is Christ the light of the world. God's only message to a dying world.
   b) The purpose of the man's message is clearly stated:that all men,through Christ,might believe.His purpose was not to start a movement, his purpose was to lead men to believe in the Light.He witnessed and proclaimed the Light that all man might believe.He was sent to focus on people and to lead them to believe in Christ Jesus.
***The servant of God has one primary purpose: to lead men to believe in Christ Jesus,the Light of the world.His purpose is to lead men to believe in Christ Jesus.Everything else is method not purpose.Men have too often confused purpose with method,and the result has been that millions haven't been reached, and thousands are being decieved by confusing methods of religion with the purpose of God:which is the salvation of man through the belief in his Son.

[3]
(1:8) Humility-Ministers:a man who was great,but he was not the Light.John the Baptist was great, Jesus Himself said "Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist".But he was not the Light,he was to bear witness to the Light.We are not the Light,it is not important that the world knows we are saved,what is important is that the world believes there is a Savior.John's humility is and example to be followed by all servants of God.For we must decrease while Christ increase.It is not about us and in our witness we must get out of the way so others can see Christ,so they can see the light to which we bear witness.

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We must realize that we all were saved for one purpose,to lead others to Jesus Christ.Some lead through the preaching of the word,some by teaching and even others through pastoring.But we all are suppose to lead the lost by walking in a manner worthy of the name by which we bear.

The Witness to the Revelation of Jesus Christ , John 1:1-51 (got jesus bible study lesson)

John 1
   1)In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
   2)The same was in the beginning with God.
   3)All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
   4)In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
   5)And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.



 A) Jesus the Living Word: The first witness of John the Apostle, 1:1-5

• (John 1:1-5) Introduction: this passage is one of the summits of scripture.In fact, it probably reaches the highest of human thought.What is the thought that reaches the height of human concepts? It is this Jesus Christ, the son of God is..........

             1) The word of God
             2) The creator of Life
             3) The very Being and Essence of Life

  These three truths have to be deeply thought about to understand their meaning.A quick reading of this passage leaves a person disinterested, not even close to understanding what is being said.However, the importance of the truth lie at the very foundation of life.They cannot be overstated, for they determine a man's destiny.If Jesus Christ is the word of God, then men must hear and understand that word or else be lost forever in ignorance of God himself.


Through the scriptures we will see that:   1) Christ is eternal (vs.1-2)  2) Christ is the creator(vs.3)  3)Christ is life (vs.4-5)

[1]  (1:1-2) Jesus Christ,Son of God-Eternal-Preexistent-Revelation:Christ is eternal.Note three profound statements made about Christ, the Word.
         a. Christ was preexistent.This means He was there before creation.He always existed.
              1)" In the beginning" does not mean from the beginning.Jesus Christ was already there.He did not become;He was not created;He never had a beginning.He "was in the beginning with God"( see John17:5,8:58)
         

                          The testimony of John was that Jesus Christ was the word, the one who always existed. He is the Son of the living God.
           b. Christ was coexistent.He was and is face-to -face with God forever.Jesus Christ (the Word) was both with God and acting with God. He was "with God" : by God's side, acting, living,and moving in the closest of relationships.Christ had the ideal and perfect relationship with God the Father.Their life together-their relationship, communion, fellowship, and connection- was the perfect eternal bond.This is exacttly what is said:"The same was in the beginning with God"(vs.2)

           c. John did not say that "the Word"was the God. He says "the Word" was God. John was saying that "the Word,"  Jesus Christ.......Is the very nature and character of God the Father; is a distinct person from God the Father, but he is the very being essence(perfection) of God the Father.

 [2] (1:3) Jesus Christ, Creator:Christ is the creator.
         a)All things, means every detail of creation- not creation as a whole,but every single detail.Each element and thing,each being and person-whether material or spiritual,angelic or human,has come into being by Christ.
         b) The words were made, came into being.Nothing was existing, no substance, no matter whatsoever.Matter is not eternal.God did not take something outside of himself,something less than perfect(evil) and create the world. Christ, the word, took nothing but his will and power; and He spoke the Word and created every single thing out of nothing.
         c) Christ was the one who created all things- one by one.Among the God head, He was the active Agent,the person who made all things.Creation was his function and work.(see col.1:16)

  [3] (1:4-5) Jesus Christ, Life-Light :Christ is life
         a) Christ is the source of light. "The Life [Christ] was the light of men" From the very beginning man was to know that life,to know God personally and intimately.The knowledge of the life of Christ was to be the light of men, the beam that was to give real life to man, both abundant and eternal, and infuse energy and motivation into man so that he might walk and live as he should.The life [Christ] was to be the light of man's purpose,meaning and significance upon earth.

         b) Christ is the answer to darkness.Christ life did shine in the darkness.Since man had brought darkness into the world(by sin)the life of Christ was the light of man,the beam that showed man the way ,truth, and the life.He show man the way God intended for him to live. He showed man the truth of life, that is the truth about God and man and the truth about the world of man.Christ showed man the life, that is how to save his life and avoid the things that can cause him to stumble and lose his life.Christ's life (the light) cannot be over come.