God’s Living Word

Why the World Needs Jesus

Study Series on the Awesome Words of Almighty God

John 1:1-23

 

Pastor Craig Ledbetter

DATE: 14 September, 2008 AM

PLACE: Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland

www.biblebc.com

 

I.        Introduction (John 1:1-3)

 

A.      New Series this month: On the Awesome Words of Almighty God

 

1.       Last week we learned just a small bit about God’s Perfect Word – Why the World Needs the Bible. Get a copy of the DVD if you can!

2.       God’s Living Word – Why the World Does not Know the Real Jesus Christ

3.       God’s Visible Word – Why the World Needs The Christian

4.       How to Learn and Live by the Word of God – a very practical lesson for all Christians!

 

B.      Unlike other books, Bible believers read the Bible through again and again. They sometimes spend hours meditating upon a single passage, a single verse, a single phrase, or a single word. They thrill at discoveries within its pages more than men have thrilled at great discoveries of oil or precious metals! I wonder why?

C.      The Word of God, the Holy Bible remains the number one best seller in the world, year after year. It amounts to over 6 billion copies printed just since 1815. It has been printed, in whole or in part, in over two thousand different languages and dialects. When it is translated into a new tongue the waiting recipients are almost delirious with joy. How can you explain such popularity for so ancient a volume?

D.      It is simply because of the material in the Bible – the greatest Book ever written! Of its divine library of 66 books, there is history, biography, poetry, proverbial sayings (true sayings), hymns (songs), laws about governing and morality, parables (stories that teach truth), riddles, mysteries, allegories (symbolic language), prophecies, records of birth, and death, adventure, food recipes, blessings, cursings, and all other forms of human expression!

E.       It this Book of 1189 chapters there are scientific descriptions of the universe, of genetics, and of the heart and mind! There are 1,500 predictions of future events, with over half of them already fulfilled! There are astounding stories of harrowing escapes, murders, miracles, disappearances, famines, and world empires. There are life stories about kings and queens, shepherds and giants, prophets and wizards, sailors and centurions, lawyers and scribes, demons and pigs, poor and rich, attacking bears and killer lions. The list continues with earthquakes and hurricanes, asteroids and brimstone, slavery and freedom, manna and lambs. What an amazing Book!

F.       But more than all, this Book of books talks about JESUS!

G.      One word – a name! The sweetest name on earth! Jesus!

H.      This Book of books is not about religion, or philosophy, or mysteries, or prayers or theological debates… it’s clearly, and only about Jesus!

I.        He was not a good man – He is the perfect Man! He was not a good example – He is the ONLY true example of good! He was not a prophet, He is God!

J.        Why does this world need the Living Word of God?

 

II.      Message - Why does this world need the Living Word of God?

 

A.      Because there are a lot of Counterfeits - Other Jesus’ (Luke 21:8)!

 

1.       The original counterfeit (Isaiah 14:12-15; 2Cor 11:13-14) – wanted to be God! Failed!

2.       FALSE Jesus’, false Spirits, and false Gospels were big problems in the first century, and they are even bigger today (2Cor 11:2-4)

 

a.       Look at the phrase “another Jesus, who we have not preached.”  This is not the Jesus of the Scripture, but another Jesus that the whole world discovers through false revelations: i.e., the gospel of Judas, the DaVinci Code, the Secret, the visions of Bernadette, and on goes the list!

b.       So many people are being deceived into praying to angels, and listening to what the Bible calls, “seducing spirits”

c.        And to this day, with all the churches, and all the religions, most people believe a false gospel – a feel good gospel – a damning gospel, because it is not Christ Jesus’ one and only Gospel!

d.       We need to establish the foundation for our beliefs. OUR foundation is the Word of God – the written, testable, provable word of almighty God!  Otherwise, it is simply my beliefs compared with their beliefs and everyman will “stick to his guns” in the final analysis.  We must have a common ground to base our beliefs upon or there is not solitary Truth.

e.        Any variations from the Bible’s words AT ALL, are a fraud! (Galatians 1:6-9)

f.        Modern churches are filled with false ideas and teachings about Jesus that people think are right…

 

1)       Many worship a piece of bread in the Roman Catholic mass.

2)       The Mormon a “Jesus” who was a polygamist and the brother of Lucifer.

3)       The modern liberals worship a Jesus who was not born of a virgin, and who did no miracles

4)       The majority of our generation worship a “loving” Jesus who would never send anyone to Hell. A nice Jesus who just loves everybody!

5)       The rich worship a Prosperity Jesus who was wealthy himself, and only wants to “bless you!”. Well, He didn’t bless the apostle Paul very much, or Peter, or any New Testament Christian for that matter – that is, if you read your Bible!

6)       There are those that worship a Laughing Jesus who "slays" people with his spirit and causes them to laugh uncontrollably and to stagger like drunk men in church.

7)       Many people worship a “Self-esteem Jesus” who never called man a sinner and who came merely to build up his own self image and help people discover themselves.

8)       The frustrated and downtrodden of the world worship a Revolutionary Jesus who was the founder of Liberation Theology and taught that people should riot and overthrow governments to bring in the kingdom of God.

9)       These are just a few of the false christs in the world today. And what’s funny, they are the Jesus’ that get all the worship – and not the Jesus of the Bible!

 

3.       Beware of those who refuse to expose false christs and false gospels. It is impossible to love the true Jesus without hating the false ones. "For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in (keeps believing) the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son" (2 John 7-9).

 

B.      Because Only the Real Jesus Saves!

 

1.       John 14:6

2.       Rom 10:1-4

3.       Acts 4:12

4.       Acts 5:42

5.       Acts 8:5

6.       Acts 17:3

7.       1Cor 1:17-19; 21-24

 

C.      Identifying the Real “McCoy” – How do we find the real Jesus? (Jn 9:35-37)

 

1.       How do we find the real Jesus?

 

a.       Has to perfectly match the written word

b.       All its prophecies, all its expectations

 

2.       He had to be there at the beginning of time (Genesis 1:1-3; John 17:5). Mohammed is a late comer. Ghandi doesn’t qualify. Shiva is a joke. Mary wasn’t there, and neither was Peter. Only Jesus qualifies!

3.       He has to only use the word (Matthew 8:8) – not His own wisdom, or His own ideas

 

a.       Most people add or take away things from the Bible that they think might be offensive, or too complex – not Jesus!

b.       Jesus NEVER questioned the word of God, never doubted it, never corrected it!

c.        He didn’t use smokescreens, and magic tricks to fake His way out of tough questions and tough problems

d.       The Bible, God’s Holy Word was what he used to answer every question, and every problem

 

4.       He had to submit to the word (John 5:39)

 

a.       He asked all people to check Him out, to see if He matches what the written word said he would be

b.       He told them to search, and study – not to close their minds, but open them, and see if He was who God said he would be

 

5.       He had to truly LIVE the word (Matthew 4:4) – obeying it perfectly

 

a.       From His birth – a virgin birth just as predicted by God 700 years earlier

b.       Obeyed absolutely every commandment of God – not just the ten

c.        To Him, the Bible was more important than food, than troubles, than loneliness, than problems!

d.       If there was anything that was outstanding about Jesus Christ, it was the fact that every second of every day, He was living out the promises and prophecies of the perfect word of God!

e.        He spoke it, prayed it, believed it, loved it, preached it!

f.        Proved that it was all anyone needed to live by

g.        Proved that the word of God was true from start to finish

h.       Proved that God could be completely trusted

 

6.       He had to fulfil the word (Mark 14:49) – perfectly!

7.       Only Jesus of Nazareth matched those prophecies and expectations perfectly!

8.       So, according to God, Jesus is God, the Word (John 1:1-3)

 

a.       He is not another God, but God Himself!

b.       He, as God Became Flesh, and lived HERE, for 33 ½ years (Jn 1:14)

c.        Even though Rejected, despised, crucified, and buried… He lives!

d.       He IS, and ever shall be the Living Word of God

e.        That is Jesus!

f.        You still doubt it? Listen to 1John 5:7!

g.        Still not sure? Listen to Revelation 19:11-13

 

D.      Why the World Does NOT Want the Real Jesus (John 1:9-12)!

 

1.       He is more than a religion.

 

a.       People allow that there are different religions, and different ways that people worship and seek after God

b.       But Jesus came along and said there was no other way to God, no other way to worship God, no other way to even know God, than through HIM (John 14:6)

 

2.       He cannot change (Hebrews 13:8)

 

a.       He does not change with time; He does not adjust according to the culture or the opinions of the masses – He is always the Same – you cannot improve on the Perfect Word!

b.       THAT makes people furious! All other religions have their “traditions” but people don’t actually believe all the traditional stuff these days – only the stuff that is politically acceptable

c.        Not with Jesus

 

3.       He exposes us for what we are (John 8:45)

 

a.       No matter how religious – we are hypocrites, sinners, lost

b.       No matter how lost – we are salvageable

 

4.       He only wants to save us – nothing more (Luke 5:31,32; 19:10)

 

a.       People want a Genie, an Army General, a Banker, an Educator, a Self-Esteem Motivator, a lover, a Servant

b.       But Jesus only wants to be, and only ever will be the Saviour of your soul!

 

E.       Why the World Desperately Needs Jesus (Acts 26:13-18) – Why the world needs The True Jesus…

 

1.       Because we are blind and lost without Him – no matter how hard we may try to be good, and try to do right, and try to say our prayers! According to God, we are blind!

2.       Because we are enslaved by sin AND Satan – in bondage. Some to drugs, others to pride! Some to depression, some to the love of money! Some to drink, and others to religious traditions! Satan rules this world, and believe it or not, he rules ALL religions! All religions enslave their people! Only Jesus makes us free!

3.       Because we are doomed to an eternity in hell unless we repent and believe ONLY on the Lord Jesus Christ to save us from our sins! Do you have a problem with that/ Jesus proved that the Bible’s message is absolutely true, and that he is the Saviour from such a place as hell!

4.       That’s why the ONLY message preached that made any difference was the Gospel about Jesus Christ!

 


III.   Conclusion

 

A.      This Book of books is all about JESUS! The sweetest name on earth!

 

1.       This Book of books is not about religion, or philosophy, or mysteries, or prayers or theological debates… it’s clearly, and only about Jesus!

2.       He was not a good man – He is the perfect Man! He was not a good example – He is the ONLY true example of good! He was not a prophet, He is God!

 

B.      The World Desperately Needs Jesus – Why? Why does this world need the Living Word of God?

 

1.       Because there are a lot of counterfeits - Other Jesus’ (Luke 21:8)!

2.       Because Only the Real Jesus Saves!

C.      How will they find the Real Jesus?

 

1.       Has to perfectly match the written word

2.       All its prophecies, all its expectations

3.       Only Jesus of Nazareth matches those prophecies and expectations perfectly

4.       So, according to God, Jesus is God, the Word

5.       But, they are not going to know the real Jesus without the true Bible

6.       And they are not going to ever open a Bible, or hear its words without you and me taking it to them, and opening it up and showing them from its precious pages, the awesome promises and clear declaration that Jesus is the only way

 

D.      Do you have the Real Living Jesus? Does He have YOU?