1 John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;”
This sermon from American Pastor J.D. Montieth explores the Apostle John’s first epistle in a series titled Am I Born of God. This sermon, the first in the series, 1 John 1:1-4, opens with the introduction of the epistle: “What is remarkable about this verse is that in a book that details what is necessary to gain fellowship with the Father and the Son, and a book which was written to confirm if a man has eternal life or not, that the emphasis is directly centered upon the personal, albeit spiritual, relationship the apostle John had with Jesus Christ. It is thus He, Whom John hopes to expose the world to, and He, Whom John knows, holds the key to gaining the eternal life of God. Ultimately, Christ is the Word of life, that manifested form of God, Who leads to life. The reason that John gives Jesus Christ this title is because through Him God’s knowledge of the way to gain eternal life is revealed. As the Word, Christ is God’s revelation to man, revealing also God’s path to heaven.
“The reason that a man is saved by Christ, is because He is the living Word of God. Ultimately, to hold Christ as Lord is to obey all of God’s commandments. So that where previously through the Mosaic Law obedience to the Law is what was purposed to lead men to life, now the lordship of God’s Son is how men can eternally be saved.
“Because God has given His Son authority over all things, to be saved men must agree with God’s transfer of divine authority to Christ, and subsequently make Him their Lord and Master of their life. Thus, by accepting the Word, and yielding fully to Christ’s present heavenly authority, this is viewed by God as subjection to His will for man. Christ’s lordship over a man’s life takes the place of needing to obey every commandment of God, which was necessary in the Old Testament in order to be saved, which in fact is impossible simply because of man’s weak fleshly ability to keep divine law.
“The Lord’s predestination of His people, is what makes Christ’s salvation so secure. This was the Son of God’s purpose in coming into the world, to save those purposed by God for heaven, and it has been proven to be astoundingly successful.
“There is but one door, one access point, where sinners like ourselves can find hope of heaven, and it is through the very One sent by God to reveal God’s spiritual and eternal life more fully to the world. That which a man has, he can give. Jesus as the Son of Man, and Son of God, can therefore give God’s eternal life to as many make Him their Lord.
“A man’s labor, therefore, should not merely be regulated to feeding his body and the desires it produces, but rather should be primarily directed towards that spiritual labor which leads to the saving of the soul. It is this meat which is a knowledge of the Son of God and a pursuit of the higher spiritual realm that provides the opportunity for everlasting life.
(I John 5:12) “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” On this one single maxim, is contained the entire Christian gospel. If this were believed and relied upon, then very little else would be needed to be preached in attempting to bring others to salvation. It is also this question which all who profess to believe in Jesus, need to ask themselves, “Do I hold true belief in the Son of God in my heart, or do I merely know Christ’s name in my mind?”
“Joy is, therefore, a spiritual fruit which is produced in a person’s heart, whenever faith is present, and confidence and trust in God is held. He, therefore, who genuinely exercises faith, will experience joy in his soul, a spiritual joy that proves not only the existence of a heavenly Father, but also the true nature and disposition of heaven itself. Teaching us that heaven is not a gloomy, nor oppressive habitation, but rather is a place of supreme happiness, freedom, and delight. Spiritual joy is an element of the nature of God, and it is what all of heaven reflects. By believing on the Son of God, men can experience a portion of that joy, which will be their full possession when received into heaven.”
Broadcast live on 12/11/2022