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PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD

Ian Barlow

This week what has been brought specially before us is the greatness and glory and uniqueness of the One whom we preach in the glad tidings. I suppose the whole of scripture, in one sense, speaks of that glorious One. We could have read from the Old Testament. How many beautiful scriptures there are there speaking of the Lord Jesus and could speak of no other. We were reminded of one this past week, “His name is called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace”, Isa. 9: 6. Of whom else could that be said? There is only one glorious Person of whom that could be said. No one else could claim any of those titles, could claim even one of them, but think of the Lord Jesus, the One in whom every title there is perfectly seen.

We could have read in the other gospels of what God says of Jesus. Think of that voice out of heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son”, Matt 3: 17. In one sense that is what is most important, what God thinks of Jesus, His beloved Son, in whom He has found His delight. Again the voice later on out of the cloud saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight: hear him”, Matt. 17: 5. We could have read those scriptures which speak alone of Jesus, for this could speak of no other. We were reminded in the gospel last week of the uniqueness of that glorious One, He was unique in His birth, unique in His death. Oh the glory that marks Him! That is the One whom God is presenting in the glad tidings as the only Saviour for men, the One in whom He has found His delight.

However, I read these verses in John’s gospel because they all speak of the Lord Jesus – they could speak of no other than the One who bears that Name – but they were all spoken by persons of like passions as ourselves. One has to be careful because the first is said by John the Baptist, and the Lord Jesus says of John the Baptist, “Verily I say to you, that there Is not arisen among the born of women a greater than John the Baptist” (Matt 11: 11). We have all come as born of woman, however, the Lord Jesus thus draws attention to him. When John the Baptist sees Jesus coming to him he says, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” – One who takes away the sin of the world. Possibly I am speaking to those who are believers who have put their faith and trust in the Saviour, but what it is to see Him thus! The One who has borne the judgment due to sin, who has gone into death to remove any barrier there is between a soul and God. Every believer stands before God through the efficacy of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Elsewhere it says, “he is the propitiation for our sins; not for ours alone, but also for the whole world”, 1 John 2: 2. Think of John seeing the Lord Jesus and exclaiming, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”. It could draw attention only to One, no other could bear that title or effect that work. He alone has done that for God, the One who John refers to here as the Lamb of God. Think of what that involved; it meant that He came into this scene as a babe in Bethlehem’s manger, how He moved down here amongst men, the One who conveyed the heart of God towards them. We had a sense of that this morning, that God delighted to make His heart known to men, and it involved the in-coming of Jesus, God come so near, the Lamb of God. One who has come so near, nearer He could not come. I often think of that hymn:

Sinner, see thy God beside thee,

In a servant’s form come near,

Sitting, walking, talking with thee!

Sinai’s mount no longer fear. (Hymn 112)

“Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”, but can you say He has taken away my sin? He has died for you, whoever you are, whatever you have done, however old, however young you may be. He has gone that way to take away the judgment which is rightly due to you and me, to take it upon Himself; “God commends his love to us, in that, we being still sinners, Christ has died for us”, Rom. 5: 8. What a wonderful thing it is that we can preach a work that is certain and sure, because it is centred in this glorious Person. Think of Him moved among men, showing grace, thus displaying God’s heart of love, and expressing divine compassion. Think of the feelings of the Lord Jesus as He moved down here, seeing what havoc sin and sins had wrought on every hand. He was there the sinless One, the perfect One. It was right at the beginning of the Lord’s service here that the voice out of heaven came and declared “This is my beloved Son in whom I have found my delight”. We are not told very much about those earlier years, but we get a glimpse when the Lord Jesus says, “did ye not know that I ought to be occupied in my Father’s business?”, Luke 2: 49. That is what He came for. It says elsewhere, “Lo, I come in the roll of the book it is written of me to do, O God, thy will”, Heb. 10: 7. Think of the One who came here to do no other will, the One who came here to do the will of God and fulfilled it perfectly, everything that God had desired to see in man was found alone in Jesus. How God finds His full delight in Jesus. We sang that in the hymn:

God has full delight in Jesus (Hymn 219)

Have you found your delight in Him too? God has full delight in Him, He has perfectly satisfied God, He is presented as Saviour that we might find our satisfaction in Him too. It meant that He went that way of suffering, went the way of shame. Think of what men did to Jesus. Yet on the one hand He says, “I lay down my life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me” (John 10: 17,18), the perfect sacrifice. On the other hand there is man’s responsibility in what he did to Jesus. At the end of John’s gospel we have the witness, Pilate says when He is falsely accused and brought before him, “I find no fault whatever in him”, John 18: 38. The chief priests and the officers cried, “Crucify, crucify him” (John 19: 6). Think of the hatred of the world against Jesus. That is still the same today, but again Pilate says, “I find no fault in him”. That could only be said of the Lord Jesus, the One in whom there was no fault for He who knew not sin was made sin for us. Think of Him there nailed to a cross, placed in the middle, crucified along with two malefactors, one on this side and one on that: He must be the one who was in the middle. One of the malefactors said of Him, “this man has done nothing amiss”, Luke 23: 41. It could only said of Jesus, that glorious One. However, think of Him hanging there, of what He took, that judgment that was due to me from a holy and righteous God was borne by Jesus; God’s full wrath against sin. How we get so accustomed to sin! We live in a world that is full of it, we find it within and we find it around, but think of God’s holy wrath against sin. The hymn says:

God could not pass he sinner by,

Justice demands that he should die (Hymn 357)

The Lord Jesus, the spotless, sinless One who took that judgment upon Himself and bore God’s wrath against sin. Mr. Darby says as to Him, death was death, man’s utter weakness, Satan’s extreme power, and God’s just vengeance. Think of what was arrayed against Jesus at that time, the hatred of the world, the power of Satan and the wrath of God, all borne by Him. What a glorious man! He bore my sins. Are you able to say that, that He bore your sins? He bore the sins of all who trust Him in His body on the tree, that God’s judgment should be exhausted. The Lord Jesus had to go that way that sins and sin should be utterly dealt with. The veil of the temple was rent and poor needy sinners like you and me could come to Him because He was fully satisfied with the work of Jesus.

He hung there and shed His precious blood for “without blood-shedding, there is no remission”, Heb. 9: 22. That precious blood has been shed, that precious blood which cleanses us from every sin. How great these things are for our hearts to lay hold of, that the Saviour shed His precious blood that we might be free, that God might establish a righteous basis to bless and to remove every barrier between Himself and Man. It is God’s appreciation of that precious blood. May our appreciation of it grow, but it is God’s appreciation of it, “when I see the blood, I will pass over you”, Exod 12: 13. The Saviour has borne our sins in His body on the tree and died: He shed His precious blood that we might be washed, that we may be able to stand before God in the worth of that beloved One and therefore have peace with God. How great, how glorious the glad tidings are. God has done everything from His own side, He has provided this glorious, unique One, the One who is beyond compare.

He not only shed His precious blood but He lay in death, He went that way vicariously, that the man that sinned should be removed forever from God’s sight. Three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, that not only sins and sin should be dealt with, but the man that sinned should be removed for ever from God’s sight. That glorious One was raised up from among the dead by the glory of the Father. It also says that it was not possible that He should be held by its power. He by going into death slew the power of death. There was only one glorious Man who could accomplish it to God’s full satisfaction that people might be able to have peace with God, have liberty, freedom. Men think they are free at the present time, but they are really captive to sin. There is only one way of freedom and that is by putting our trust and faith in this glorious One.

In John 4, the scripture is well known – the woman of John 4 is often referred to – she had had to do with Jesus for herself. That is essential in the glad tidings that we are to have to do with Jesus for ourselves, each one individually has to do with that glorious One. He spoke to her of the most wonderful things, a woman who was to the world of no account, but she had a need and the Lord Jesus had the answer to her need. A woman who had come to that well, time after time but found no abiding satisfaction, met Jesus and found satisfaction in Him. She says in that verse, “Come, see a man who told me all things I had ever done”. That could be no other, there is no other man who could tell you all things that you had ever done, One who knows you through and through, One who knows you intimately, knows all about you. She says, “Come, see a man who told me all things I had ever done: is not he the Christ?”. I suppose when that woman realised that and who it was, it would have caused repentance in her own heart. That is needed. A hymn says, repentance only God requires from man, and faith in Christ His well beloved Son. What it is to know that there is One who knows all about you. He knows your need, He knows your longings, He knows whether you are satisfied because there is no lasting satisfaction apart from Himself. That is God’s anointed One, the One in whom God has full delight. She came to an appreciation of that glorious One. We are to come to an appreciation as knowing our sins are forgiven because of His work, as knowing Him as the One who is the source of satisfaction; surely our hearts would have a greater appreciation of Him and His glorious worth.

In chapter 6, the Lord Jesus had questioned the twelve as to whether they also would go away. Others had gone away, but the Lord Jesus questioned them and Peter answers him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast words of life eternal”. What it is to have life eternal! Where is that found? It is found only in One glorious Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. It says, “I am come that they might have life, and might have it abundantly”, John 10: 10. People are seeking for life at the present time, and I challenge myself, where do I find my life? It is a sobering fact that everything here is marked and bounded by death. Everything that people naturally find their lives in, all that is so near to our own hearts is all bounded by death and decay, and is uncertain, unsure and unsettled. We live in that sort of world because it is marked by death on every hand, but what it is to come to know the One who can give life eternal.

Life is found alone in Jesus (Hymn 266)

The hymn writer says, it is found there alone, in Him is life. Have you found your life in Jesus? The gospel is preached that we may be saved from our sins in having to do with the Lord Jesus, coming to repentance and putting our faith and trust in Him that we may find in Him, life eternal. That is God’s desire. It says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal”, John 3: 15. God has nothing less in mind for His creature, for God wants to bless men, wherever they have been, whatever state they are in, God’s desires are towards men in blessing that persons may have life eternal. It would be a wonderful thing to echo the words that Peter answers here, “Lord, to whom shall we go?”; he had come to it that there was no one else. There is only one Name given amongst men whereby we must be saved (see Acts 4: 12). Peter had come to it here, “Lord, to whom shall we go?” – do you know anyone else to go to? No. The only answer is to go to Jesus, everything is found in Him.

Chapter 10 says, “And many came to him, and said, John did no sign; but all things which John said of this man were true”. Again that could be said of no one else. It is wonderful to read through the scriptures and see the things which could be said of Jesus alone and no one else. That marks Him out in His glorious uniqueness as the One beyond compare. It says, “but all things which John said of this man were true. And many believed on him there”. That is the intent of the glad tidings that persons should believe on Him. You can go back and read what John the Baptist spoke of as to the Lord Jesus; only a little is recorded in John’s gospel, however the testimony of these persons was that, “all things which John said of this man were true”. Elsewhere it says He does all things well (see Mark 7: 37), that could not be said of any man either. Go through the scriptures and see things that could only be said of Jesus and could be said of no one else. It brings out His glorious uniqueness, perfection and glory.

The Spirit would attract our hearts to these things. God has given His beloved Son, the One in whom He has found full delight and His desire is that we may find full delight in Him as the One who has taken upon Himself what lay upon us, the One in whom life is, and He has given too of His own blest Spirit that we may know it and so that our hearts may be attracted to this glorious One. Do you know what it is to have the Spirit of God? It says, “how much rather shall the Father who is of heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”, Luke 11: 13. The Spirit has come, the Lord Jesus having been glorified, “For God has made him, this Jesus whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ”, Acts 2: 36. Think of that present position of exaltation and as a result of Him being glorified the Spirit is here at the present time. The One who is spoken of as the, “earnest of our inheritance” (Eph. 1: 14), the One who would attract our hearts into these things, the One who would make these things good in our own hearts that we may find life abundantly and life eternal in Jesus, the One who would speak to us of all the great and glorious blessings that God has bestowed upon us in His beloved Son, for everything is in Him. Everything for God’s glory is secured in Jesus, everything for our blessing is secured in that same One too. What a Man! Glorious Man, Son of God, Son of Man, how great a Person He is. May our hearts, by the Spirit’s power, be led in a greater way that He may mean more to us, may have a greater part in each of our lives here, that there may be more for God’s glory and for His testimony in the present time. John tells us why he wrote his gospel at the end, “these are written that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing ye might have life in his name”, John 20: 31. The Spirit’s power is here that we may know these things that they may be good in our own hearts and that there may be more for God’s glory and His praise. May it be so, for His Name’s sake.

ST ALBANS

11 January 2004

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