1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,000 Now let's open to the text that I referred to a moment ago, Matthew chapter 3, where 2 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:16,440 we'll be looking at the last part of this chapter. When we think of the majesty of Jesus 3 00:00:16,440 --> 00:00:27,160 Christ, some of his names come to mind immediately as expressing the grandeur of who he is. I 4 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:38,880 believe such is the case with this title, the Son of God. About 27 AD there was a report 5 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:48,080 that came to the populated areas of Judea that a rather strange looking and acting man 6 00:00:48,080 --> 00:00:55,280 was out in the wilderness near the Jordan River, whose name was John. He was a man who 7 00:00:55,280 --> 00:01:03,160 was just about 30 years of age, and he was calling the nation to repent, for the kingdom 8 00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:13,600 of God was at hand, he said. He debated with the religious leaders regarding who he was. 9 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:21,960 He debated with them regarding the spiritual preparation that the nation needed. He knew 10 00:01:21,960 --> 00:01:30,800 his role. He was the one that Isaiah, 700 years before his lifetime, had predicted would 11 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:41,020 come. The one who would prepare the way for the Lord. It says in verse 13, then Jesus 12 00:01:41,020 --> 00:01:50,440 arrived from Galilee at the Jordan coming to John to be baptized by him. But John tried 13 00:01:50,440 --> 00:01:58,120 to prevent him, saying, I have need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me? But 14 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:04,680 Jesus answering said to him, permit it at this time, for in this way it is fitting for 15 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:15,160 us to fulfill all righteousness. The Lord Jesus Christ was not a sinner in need of repentance, 16 00:02:15,160 --> 00:02:22,680 and he desired this baptism of John so that he might identify with sinners who need to 17 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:29,560 repent, and so that he might ultimately go to the cross and pay the price for that sin, 18 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:38,600 and then be able to provide righteousness that sinners needed. After being baptized, 19 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:45,080 Jesus went up immediately from the water, and behold the heavens were opened, and he 20 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:52,840 saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and coming upon him, and behold a voice out 21 00:02:52,840 --> 00:03:02,040 of the heavens saying, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And so the 22 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:08,600 Father spoke from heaven, giving public witness to the identity of the one being baptized 23 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:17,160 in the Jordan, and affirming his pleasure in this one being baptized. Once again at 24 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:23,680 his transfiguration, the Father spoke from heaven, giving similar testimony, and adding 25 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:32,400 on that occasion, listen to him. Peter was one of the three disciples with Jesus on the 26 00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:41,100 mountain, and later as he remembered that occasion, he penned these words, when he received 27 00:03:41,100 --> 00:03:47,720 honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to him by the 28 00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:56,120 majestic glory, this is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased. And Peter continues, 29 00:03:56,120 --> 00:04:03,880 we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. 30 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:12,320 This is my beloved Son, the Father said, of Jesus Christ. There are two adjectives that 31 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:21,480 are used in the gospels to describe the majesty of the Son of God. One of them is used primarily 32 00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:27,420 in the synoptic gospels, that is Matthew, Mark, and Luke. They're called synoptic because 33 00:04:27,420 --> 00:04:34,560 basically they approach the life of Christ the same way, many parallel passages in those 34 00:04:34,560 --> 00:04:45,800 gospels, each taking, however, a unique approach. In the synoptic gospels, the adjective beloved 35 00:04:45,800 --> 00:04:53,400 is used of the Son of God, this is my beloved Son, all of the gospels say. That word expresses 36 00:04:53,400 --> 00:05:02,680 the abiding affection of the Father for his Son. John, however, prefers another adjective 37 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:13,240 in his gospel. It is the adjective begotten, or only begotten as it is in some translations. 38 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:21,400 We see this, for example, in John chapter 1 and verse 14, where it says, and the word 39 00:05:21,400 --> 00:05:29,640 became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from 40 00:05:29,640 --> 00:05:35,480 the Father, full of grace and truth. And in verse 18 it says, no man has seen God at any 41 00:05:35,480 --> 00:05:43,760 time, the only begotten God, or some manuscripts say, the only begotten Son who is in the bosom 42 00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:51,920 of the Father, he has explained him. And three other times in his writings, John uses this 43 00:05:51,920 --> 00:06:01,880 term to describe the Son of God, the only begotten Son of God. He uses it, for example, 44 00:06:01,880 --> 00:06:07,640 in that familiar verse to most of us, John 3.16, for God so loved the world that he gave 45 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:21,140 his only begotten Son. That word means, literally, his unique Son, his one of a kind Son. It 46 00:06:21,140 --> 00:06:29,640 has nothing to do with generation, everything to do with relationship and existence. In 47 00:06:29,640 --> 00:06:36,320 other words, he is expressing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God in a unique sense. In order 48 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:45,800 to underscore that, John does not ever call us who are saved the sons of God. The Apostle 49 00:06:45,800 --> 00:06:53,280 Paul enjoyed using that term, but John, rather, used the term the children of God, because 50 00:06:53,280 --> 00:07:00,960 he wanted to reserve the name Son for Jesus, because he understood the uniqueness of Jesus 51 00:07:00,960 --> 00:07:09,000 as the Son of God, the only begotten, one of a kind Son of God. The majesty of Jesus 52 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:18,160 Christ is revealed in his identity as the beloved and only begotten Son of God. As we 53 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:22,520 think about that truth, I'd like to approach it from three different aspects. First of 54 00:07:22,520 --> 00:07:27,840 all, let's understand that His Majesty as the Son of God is expressed over and over 55 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:35,800 again. It is expressed. It is witnessed to by a number of different groups. For example, 56 00:07:35,800 --> 00:07:41,880 it is witnessed to by the angels. The angel, for example, that came to Mary and announced 57 00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:46,920 to her what was going to take place, said, That holy thing which shall be born of thee 58 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:54,880 shall be called, what? The Son of God. And so the angels gave witness to the fact that 59 00:07:54,880 --> 00:08:02,080 He is the Son of God. We have already seen in Matthew chapter 3 that the Father Himself 60 00:08:02,080 --> 00:08:11,520 from heaven spoke and gave witness regarding Jesus Christ, this is my beloved Son. Likewise, 61 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:17,680 John the Baptist in his own witness regarding Jesus said the same thing. As he reflected 62 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:24,920 upon the baptism, he gave his testimony as the Apostle John records it in the Gospel 63 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:31,160 of John chapter 1. I'd like you to look at that, verse 29 in John 1, where it says, The 64 00:08:31,160 --> 00:08:38,800 next day he, John the Baptist, saw Jesus coming to him and said, Behold, the Lamb of God who 65 00:08:38,800 --> 00:08:46,000 takes away the sin of the world. This is he, on behalf of whom I said, After me comes a 66 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:55,400 man who has a higher rank than I, for he existed before me. And I did not recognize him, but 67 00:08:55,400 --> 00:09:02,080 in order that he might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water. And John bore witness 68 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:09,600 saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon 69 00:09:09,600 --> 00:09:15,600 Him. And I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, He 70 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:22,580 upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the one who baptizes 71 00:09:22,580 --> 00:09:30,520 in the Holy Spirit. And John says, And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the 72 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:37,760 Son of God. And so we see the third witness comes from John the Baptist himself, This 73 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:46,180 is the Son of God, this one that I baptize in the Jordan River. Likewise, the demons 74 00:09:46,180 --> 00:09:54,960 and the devil gave witness that Jesus was the Son of God. Though they did not want to, 75 00:09:54,960 --> 00:10:00,760 though they did not worship Him, reluctantly nonetheless they had to admit that this one 76 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:07,560 is the Son of God. Immediately after His baptism, Jesus was driven by the Spirit out into the 77 00:10:07,560 --> 00:10:15,920 wilderness, there to be tempted by the devil. And twice in those temptations, the devil 78 00:10:15,920 --> 00:10:23,160 said to Him, If you are the Son of God, then do this. Now when he said if, the devil was 79 00:10:23,160 --> 00:10:33,360 not doubting, he was saying, Since you are the Son of God, then prove it. He was challenging 80 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:42,020 Jesus to show forth who He was in a way that was outside the plan of the Father, and thus 81 00:10:42,020 --> 00:10:48,800 be disobedient. So understand when he said if, he wasn't doubting, he was simply affirming, 82 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:56,400 Since you are the Son of God. Likewise, when Jesus would deliver demoniacs from their evil 83 00:10:56,400 --> 00:11:01,880 possession, it was not unusual for the demons to speak to Him and to say, We know who you 84 00:11:01,880 --> 00:11:09,440 are, that you are the Holy One, the Son of God. And sometimes Jesus forbid them to speak 85 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:16,720 any more about that, because it was not time for people yet to understand fully His identity. 86 00:11:16,720 --> 00:11:27,440 The demons, the devil, they all give credence to this claim that He is the Son of God. We 87 00:11:27,440 --> 00:11:33,600 see another witness in His disciples, going back to Matthew chapter 14. We see the first 88 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:46,240 time that the disciples used this term of Him. The disciples were alone in a boat. They 89 00:11:46,240 --> 00:11:56,480 were in the midst of the Sea of Galilee when a terrible storm came, and they saw Jesus 90 00:11:56,480 --> 00:12:02,720 walking upon the sea. Although at first they didn't recognize that it was He, they thought 91 00:12:02,720 --> 00:12:09,880 it was a spirit. But Jesus spoke to them on that occasion, and He said to them, Take courage, 92 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:17,900 it is I, do not be afraid. And Peter said, Lord, if it's really you, then let me come 93 00:12:17,900 --> 00:12:23,000 to you on the water. I don't know about you, but I think I would have said, Lord, if it's 94 00:12:23,000 --> 00:12:31,840 really you, come on over here. But Peter said, Let me come to you. And Jesus said, Come on. 95 00:12:31,840 --> 00:12:38,680 And the faith of this man was put to the test, and he stepped out of the boat onto the water. 96 00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:44,640 And he walked on the water. Jesus wasn't the only one who walked on the water. So did Peter. 97 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:49,560 Except he began to sink, probably because John was in the boat and said, Look out, Peter, 98 00:12:49,560 --> 00:12:55,440 here comes a big wave. And he got his eyes off the Lord. And he cried out to the Lord 99 00:12:55,440 --> 00:13:01,680 for help, and Jesus took him by the hand and got into the boat with them. The wind stopped, 100 00:13:01,680 --> 00:13:06,320 and it says in verse 33, And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, You are 101 00:13:06,320 --> 00:13:14,280 certainly God's Son. Now, though this was an expression that came from their hearts, 102 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:21,000 it seems to have been a shallow one, one that Jesus recognized that was not fully mature 103 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:28,200 yet. And so He kept working with them. And then in chapter 16, He asked them the question, 104 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:35,400 Who do people say that I am? And it is Peter who answers and says in verse 16, Thou art 105 00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:43,680 the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus responded and said, Simon, you are blessed, 106 00:13:43,680 --> 00:13:47,960 because this has not been revealed to you by flesh and blood, not from yourself even, 107 00:13:47,960 --> 00:13:53,440 but my Father in heaven is the one who has given you insight to understand who I am. 108 00:13:53,440 --> 00:13:57,720 And so the disciples witnessed to the fact that He is the Son of God. His majesty was 109 00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:06,720 expressed by the angels, expressed by the Father, expressed by the forerunner, John 110 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:15,560 the Baptist, expressed by Satan and the demons, expressed by the disciples. And we see in 111 00:14:15,560 --> 00:14:23,160 Matthew chapter 27, it was further expressed by the enemies of Jesus. For the centurion 112 00:14:23,160 --> 00:14:32,080 who was responsible for the crucifixion, when he saw the earthquake and the things that 113 00:14:32,080 --> 00:14:38,280 were happening in conjunction with the death of Christ, this brave, courageous soldier 114 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:44,680 became very frightened. And in verse 54, His response to it all was this, truly this was 115 00:14:44,680 --> 00:14:53,080 the Son of God. And so even the very one who was responsible for putting Jesus on the cross, 116 00:14:53,080 --> 00:15:01,280 that soldier who then stood guard with his soldiers over the cross scene, that soldier 117 00:15:01,280 --> 00:15:07,780 responded by saying, truly this was the Son of God. But there is one more who gave witness 118 00:15:07,780 --> 00:15:14,120 that He was the Son of God, and that is Jesus Himself. And we see this so clearly in John 119 00:15:14,120 --> 00:15:22,400 chapter 10. The majesty of Jesus Christ as the Son of God is expressed by at least seven 120 00:15:22,400 --> 00:15:30,560 witnesses. And I close this portion of the message by pointing to Jesus' testimony himself. 121 00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:36,840 Where in verse 36, Jesus, in speaking to the Jewish leaders who were wanting to stone Him 122 00:15:36,840 --> 00:15:42,040 because He claimed to be equal with God, said to them, Do you say of Him whom the Father 123 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:49,360 sanctified and sent into the world, You are blaspheming because I said, I am the Son of 124 00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:58,640 God? Now you noticed in the context of His response to them, He quotes Himself as having 125 00:15:58,640 --> 00:16:08,600 said, I am the Son of God. He does not deny that. He affirms on this occasion that in 126 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:15,240 fact that's who He was, that's what He claimed to be and who He claimed to be. And so we 127 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:22,120 see His majesty as the Son of God expressed over and over again. But there's a second 128 00:16:22,120 --> 00:16:27,720 aspect we need to talk about and that is His majesty as the Son of God explained. Because 129 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:33,920 what does it mean when we say He is the Son of God? Two ladies came to my door a few weeks 130 00:16:33,920 --> 00:16:40,960 ago carrying their bags of magazines who said they believed He was the Son of God too, but 131 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:45,600 they believed something radically different than I do and we quickly came to understand 132 00:16:45,600 --> 00:16:54,560 that at my door as we had our conversation that morning. What does it mean when we say 133 00:16:54,560 --> 00:17:01,680 that He is the Son of God? Well, it does not mean that He became the Son of God at some 134 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:14,520 point as they would teach. It does not mean that He became the Son of God at the incarnation. 135 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:19,440 There are those who say that Jesus became the Son of God when He was born in Bethlehem. 136 00:17:19,440 --> 00:17:27,280 Isn't that what Isaiah said when he said a son is given? A child is born, a son is given? 137 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:32,280 Well Isaiah did say that, but when he said a child is born he was talking about Bethlehem. 138 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:40,080 When he said a son is given he was talking about Calvary. Jesus did not become the Son 139 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:48,680 of God at the incarnation. He did not become the Son of God at the baptism. Yes, the Father 140 00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:53,520 spoke from heaven on that occasion acknowledging who He was, but that does not mean that He 141 00:17:53,520 --> 00:18:01,440 became the Son of God then. He did not become the Son of God at His resurrection. 142 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:06,160 Declared to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, writes Paul 143 00:18:06,160 --> 00:18:12,320 in Romans 1. But Paul was not saying He became the Son of God at His resurrection. He was 144 00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:20,600 saying it authenticated, it demonstrated who He was, that He was the Son of God when He 145 00:18:20,600 --> 00:18:30,600 was raised from the dead. You see the Son of God eternally existed as God the Son in 146 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:37,720 relation to the Father and to the Holy Spirit being one in essence. When we speak of Him 147 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:43,440 as being the Son of God we are not saying He is the Son merely as a title or that He 148 00:18:43,440 --> 00:18:51,040 is the Son by virtue of an office. When we use the term Son of God we are speaking about 149 00:18:51,040 --> 00:19:01,240 relationship. It is an expression of His oneness with the Father and with the Spirit. He is 150 00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:07,280 not the Son in the sense of being inferior to the Father either. He is in subjection 151 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:14,720 to the Father in order to carry out the plan of redemption, but He is not secondary as 152 00:19:14,720 --> 00:19:22,640 though He is less in deity. Our problems really with the terms Father and Son go to the root 153 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:32,240 of our cultural understanding of those terms. The Occidental idea of Father and Son are 154 00:19:32,240 --> 00:19:41,080 these. The Father is the source. He is the one who is superior. The Son is dependent 155 00:19:41,080 --> 00:19:48,240 and subordinate to the Father. But that is not the idea in the Semitic mind or the Oriental 156 00:19:48,240 --> 00:20:01,080 mind. The terms Father and Son to those people mean likeness, sameness of nature, equality, 157 00:20:01,080 --> 00:20:09,360 and I don't need to remind you that the Bible is written from the Oriental perspective. 158 00:20:09,360 --> 00:20:14,800 We in our Occidental, our Western way of looking at things, need to be careful that we don't 159 00:20:14,800 --> 00:20:21,120 bring our culture to the Bible and throw it upon it as we seek to interpret its meaning. 160 00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:26,980 We have to understand the culture in which the Bible was written. So the terms Father 161 00:20:26,980 --> 00:20:39,040 and Son refer to sameness, to equality, to sharing the same nature, to likeness. Actually, 162 00:20:39,040 --> 00:20:45,160 the Bible speaks of five sonships that belong to Jesus Christ. Let me just list them for 163 00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:52,080 you. He is called in the first place the Son of Man or the Son of Adam. We see this in 164 00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:58,960 a number of places. This was the favorite term of Jesus for himself, the Son of Man. 165 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:06,600 It relates him to genuine humanity for the purpose of redemption. Secondly, he is the 166 00:21:06,600 --> 00:21:15,680 Son of Abraham. We see this name of him in Matthew chapter 1, his genealogy. This title 167 00:21:15,680 --> 00:21:22,800 relates him to the covenant with Abraham and to his seed. Thirdly, Jesus is called the 168 00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:33,240 Son of David. Matthew 21 verse 9, other places. Hosanna to the Son of David, the crowds cried. 169 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:40,800 This title relates him to the royal line over Israel. A fourth sonship is that he is the 170 00:21:40,800 --> 00:21:48,520 Son of Mary. He is called that in Matthew 1, 25. That relates him to the incarnation 171 00:21:48,520 --> 00:21:54,800 accomplished by the virgin birth. And then the fifth sonship is this one that we're looking 172 00:21:54,800 --> 00:22:01,840 at this morning, the Son of God. When we think of the sonship of Jesus Christ in this final 173 00:22:01,840 --> 00:22:08,920 sense as the Son of God, there are at least two ideas that we need to keep in mind. We 174 00:22:08,920 --> 00:22:15,280 need to understand that it involves relationship to the Father. That's the first thing. What 175 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:23,400 is that relationship? Well, it is an eternal distinction of personality from the Father. 176 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:33,600 That's part of it. The Father is not the Son, and the Son is not the Father. There is a 177 00:22:33,600 --> 00:22:40,240 distinction between them. And so as he is called the Son of God, that's part of what 178 00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:49,440 it's speaking of, that distinction in the relationship to the Father. It also means 179 00:22:49,440 --> 00:22:58,040 that he had an eternal pre-existence with the Father. In other words, he had no beginning. 180 00:22:58,040 --> 00:23:11,040 The Son always was, just as the Father always was. It means that he is of the same essence 181 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:18,720 or the same substance as the Father. He partakes of the same nature. He does the same works. 182 00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:26,560 He possesses the same attributes. He claims equal honor with the Father. So all of those 183 00:23:26,560 --> 00:23:34,960 ideas are wrapped up in the Son of God with respect to his relationship to the Father. 184 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:43,240 But it's a term that also involves his obedience to the Father. Not only is there a distinction 185 00:23:43,240 --> 00:23:48,600 of persons, there is the Father and there is the Son, there is a distinction of roles 186 00:23:48,600 --> 00:23:57,240 for them in the majesty and the mystery of the Godhead. The Father has a role to fulfill. 187 00:23:57,240 --> 00:24:04,240 The Son has a role to fulfill, as does the Spirit. And for the purpose of redemption, 188 00:24:04,240 --> 00:24:13,360 the Son is in fact subordinate to the Father as he carries out the will of God. And his 189 00:24:13,360 --> 00:24:21,920 obedience, his subjection to the Father is perfectly displayed in his suffering and his 190 00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:27,280 death on the cross, according to Philippians chapter 2. 191 00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:31,800 And so as we think of this wonderful title, the Son of God, that expresses the majesty 192 00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:37,000 of Jesus Christ, keep in mind that it talks about his relationship to the Father and his 193 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:46,000 obedience to the Father. Those are the two key thoughts in that title, that name. 194 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:50,920 We want to look at this from a third and final aspect, and that is we want to expand upon 195 00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:58,000 the bit. The majesty of Jesus Christ as the Son of God expanded. I want to enlarge upon 196 00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:03,880 this theme as we consider the work that he came to do as the Son of God. 197 00:25:03,880 --> 00:25:11,200 Now I've already read John 1.18. I hope that you remember that verse. It's the one back 198 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:19,000 in the Gospel of John that said, he is the only begotten God, or as some translations 199 00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:28,240 say the only begotten Son. Hendrickson, a commentator writing on this particular phrase, says, the 200 00:25:28,240 --> 00:25:34,360 reading the only begotten God instead of the only begotten Son is supported by the best 201 00:25:34,360 --> 00:25:42,360 and oldest manuscripts. That's his opinion. Since the concept God implies eternity, it 202 00:25:42,360 --> 00:25:51,200 is evident that the expression the only begotten God must refer to Christ's Trinitarian sonship. 203 00:25:51,200 --> 00:25:58,160 All other types of sonship imply a beginning in time, irreconcilable with the idea of deity. 204 00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:05,800 Besides, the added clause, who lies upon the Father's breast, indicates a relation of 205 00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:16,600 abiding closeness between the Father God and the Son God. Because Jesus Christ is the Son, 206 00:26:16,600 --> 00:26:21,480 in the highest sense of the term, he knows the Father thoroughly. Therefore it is he 207 00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:27,280 who made him known. As the Son of God came into the world in the 208 00:26:27,280 --> 00:26:33,880 first place, he came to reveal the nature of God. That is the heart of this term that 209 00:26:33,880 --> 00:26:41,760 we looked at last Christmas season. Logos, the word, was John and Joyce using especially 210 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:50,400 in this prologue to his Gospel. In the beginning was the word. The word was with God. The word 211 00:26:50,400 --> 00:27:03,280 was God. That title, logos, or word, means the expression of a thought. In other words, 212 00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:12,200 Jesus Christ is the full expression of God's thoughts toward us. It doesn't mean that 213 00:27:12,200 --> 00:27:19,440 everything that might be known about God is revealed to us. For there are many things 214 00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:26,200 about God that we do not know, and in our finite state we cannot know. But all that 215 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:37,280 we need to know about God is expressed to us in the word. The only begotten Son who 216 00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:47,920 has fully led the Father out into view so that we can see what God is like. That is 217 00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:57,760 His Majesty, my friend. Because you see, He stands alone. He stands unique in all of the 218 00:27:57,760 --> 00:28:06,240 population of the world, past, present, and future, as the revealer of God. There have 219 00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:13,000 been those who have spoken on God's behalf as prophets. There have been those whom God 220 00:28:13,000 --> 00:28:21,960 has used to write His word in this book for us. But it is the Son who uniquely, fully 221 00:28:21,960 --> 00:28:32,180 expounds what God is like to us. What is God like? Look at the life of Jesus and find out. 222 00:28:32,180 --> 00:28:42,240 See how He lived. See how He responded to people. See what He had to say. And you find 223 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:50,160 out exactly what God is like. God spoke in many ways and in bits and pieces, here and 224 00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:59,280 there in times past, says the writer of Hebrews. But in these last days He has spoken to us 225 00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:08,000 by His Son. And after that, you might put an exclamation point in your mind, because 226 00:29:08,000 --> 00:29:16,340 it means that all that God is going to say has been said in Jesus Christ. The majesty 227 00:29:16,340 --> 00:29:24,680 of Jesus Christ as the Son of God is that He is the revealer of the nature of the Father 228 00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:33,160 to us, so that we know what God is like. A second work that He came to do as the Son 229 00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:41,160 of God is to destroy the works of the devil. Turn back now to the first epistle of John, 230 00:29:41,160 --> 00:29:59,920 1 John chapter 3. John says in verse 8, the one who practices sin is of the devil. For 231 00:29:59,920 --> 00:30:08,920 the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that 232 00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:16,760 He might destroy the works of the devil. As the Son of God, He came into the world to 233 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:25,080 destroy the works of the devil. In the context here, that means sin. Jesus Christ came to 234 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:31,800 deal with sin. He did that by going to the cross and paying the redemption price for 235 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:41,760 it. He did it by coming as the Son of God who was made the judge, who one day will judge 236 00:30:41,760 --> 00:30:51,640 all sin. That He came to destroy the works of the devil includes the idea of judgment. 237 00:30:51,640 --> 00:31:01,560 And upon those who continue in the devil's works in sins. This does not mean that Christians 238 00:31:01,560 --> 00:31:08,520 never sin, but what this says is those who practice sin as a way of life, prove that 239 00:31:08,520 --> 00:31:18,200 they're of the devil, because they have His nature and they do what He does. But it's 240 00:31:18,200 --> 00:31:23,000 for that very reason that the Son of God came into the world to destroy the works of the 241 00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:34,240 devil. Why was it that Satan desired to cut off the birth of Jesus Christ? Why was it 242 00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:40,200 that he sought to tempt Him to disobey God? Why was it that he sought in some way to keep 243 00:31:40,200 --> 00:31:46,160 Him from the cross? It was because he knew that as the Son of God, He came into the world 244 00:31:46,160 --> 00:31:58,400 to deal with Him, and Satan didn't want to be dealt with. As important as the cross work 245 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:07,760 was the victory at the temptation. I have heard that from the mouth of a demon myself 246 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:15,120 on a tape recording in which a preacher was speaking with a demon that was possessing 247 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:24,560 a woman back in the early 60s. And in the course of this conversation it came out, although 248 00:32:24,560 --> 00:32:33,720 demons lie very easily, that it came out that the defeat that this demon looked back to 249 00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:42,880 was at the temptation. When Jesus successfully said no to Satan three times, and this demon 250 00:32:42,880 --> 00:32:52,000 wept bitter tears as he conversed with this preacher before being cast out over the temptation 251 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:59,560 and the fact that the devil was not able to cause Jesus to succumb at that point. I think 252 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:09,280 we underestimate the importance of the temptation of Jesus Christ. For when he said no, no, 253 00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:19,800 no to Satan, he broke the back of the devil. The beginning of the end had come. It was 254 00:33:19,800 --> 00:33:28,720 three years before he would go to the cross, and there once and for all deal with Satan. 255 00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:38,600 But it began at the temptation. The course was determined at that point. He came to destroy 256 00:33:38,600 --> 00:33:44,000 the works of the devil, and only he could do that on our behalf. There is not a man 257 00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:50,120 or woman in all of the world who could deal with the devil. We are all victims of his 258 00:33:50,120 --> 00:33:56,720 by our birth as sinners into the world. But the majesty of the Son of God is that he came 259 00:33:56,720 --> 00:34:02,440 into the world to destroy the works of the devil. And though Satan is still at work today 260 00:34:02,440 --> 00:34:09,080 in our world, there is a day coming, and he knows it well, when he will be finally dealt 261 00:34:09,080 --> 00:34:17,600 with and the judgment that has already been spoken upon him will be carried out. And he 262 00:34:17,600 --> 00:34:25,560 will no longer be free, but will be punished in the lake of fire forever and ever. The 263 00:34:25,560 --> 00:34:30,560 Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. He came also to fill the throne of 264 00:34:30,560 --> 00:34:40,640 David. We see this in Luke 1 verses 32 and 33, John 1, 49 and other places. He came to 265 00:34:40,640 --> 00:34:49,920 fill the throne of David. The promises of God to David for an eternal kingdom of David's 266 00:34:49,920 --> 00:34:57,880 dynasty will be found fulfilled when the Son of God reigns. And since we're here in 1 267 00:34:57,880 --> 00:35:03,360 John, look in chapter 4 verse 9, where we see that he came as the Son of God to save 268 00:35:03,360 --> 00:35:09,040 the people of God, by this the love of God was manifested in us that God has sent his 269 00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:14,960 only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through him. Look over in chapter 270 00:35:14,960 --> 00:35:21,240 5 and verse 9. If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater, for the 271 00:35:21,240 --> 00:35:28,800 witness of God is this, that he has borne witness concerning his Son. The one who believes 272 00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:34,940 in the Son of God has the witness in himself. The one who does not believe God has made 273 00:35:34,940 --> 00:35:41,040 him a liar because he has not believed in the witness that God has borne concerning 274 00:35:41,040 --> 00:35:48,080 his Son. And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life and this life is 275 00:35:48,080 --> 00:35:55,960 in his Son. He who has the Son has the life. He who does not have the Son of God does not 276 00:35:55,960 --> 00:36:01,360 have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son 277 00:36:01,360 --> 00:36:07,480 of God in order that you may know that you have eternal life. 278 00:36:07,480 --> 00:36:16,640 Jesus Christ is the beloved and only begotten Son of God. He is worthy of our worship and 279 00:36:16,640 --> 00:36:25,920 our faith. And those who refuse to believe to worship will one day stand before him as 280 00:36:25,920 --> 00:36:33,160 the Son of God and as judge. However, those who believe have already passed, the Bible 281 00:36:33,160 --> 00:36:42,520 says, from death to life. Those who believe have already escaped judgment. In order to 282 00:36:42,520 --> 00:36:50,680 be saved, in order to go to heaven, in order to have sins forgiven, one must believe that 283 00:36:50,680 --> 00:37:00,840 Jesus Christ is the Son of God in this unique and biblical sense that we've talked about 284 00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:07,920 this morning. Beware of any teaching that impugns the Son of God. Any doctrine that 285 00:37:07,920 --> 00:37:16,360 says he is less than deity is the spirit of Antichrist and it damns the souls of those 286 00:37:16,360 --> 00:37:21,400 who accept it. As I talked with those two ladies a few weeks ago, I pled with them to 287 00:37:21,400 --> 00:37:28,800 repent of their doctrine. I pled with them to turn away from their denial that Jesus 288 00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:33,680 Christ is Jehovah God come in the flesh and I warned them of the eternal fire which is 289 00:37:33,680 --> 00:37:41,760 to come, which they also deny conveniently. But friend, it is true, anyone who turns from 290 00:37:41,760 --> 00:37:50,320 the Son of God turns to a hopeless, Christless eternity. Is your faith in the Son of God 291 00:37:50,320 --> 00:38:02,200 today? God is jealous of his Son's unique person. Is your faith in him as the beloved 292 00:38:02,200 --> 00:38:12,240 and only begotten Son of God? Let's bow together. Are you saved, my friend? The Bible says, 293 00:38:12,240 --> 00:38:17,760 he who has the Son has the life. He who does not have the Son of God does not have eternal 294 00:38:17,760 --> 00:38:24,920 life. You either have the Son and therefore have life, or you do not have the Son of God 295 00:38:24,920 --> 00:38:38,720 and you do not have life. Are you saved? Have you believed in a saving way upon Jesus Christ? 296 00:38:38,720 --> 00:38:44,720 Understood that he is God come in the flesh who died for your sins and rose again? Is 297 00:38:44,720 --> 00:38:51,960 your faith solely relying upon what he did for you? Have you put away your own empty, 298 00:38:51,960 --> 00:39:04,040 worthless works to trust in him? The opportunity is there for you today to believe on him. 299 00:39:04,040 --> 00:39:13,040 If you believe on him, the Son of God, you can know that you have eternal life. I pray 300 00:39:13,040 --> 00:39:20,120 that right now in the quietness of these moments, if you've never trusted him, you will. Let's 301 00:39:20,120 --> 00:39:24,600 sing together this familiar verse. 302 00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:42,160 And when I think that God his Son not sparing Sent him to die, I scarce can take it in 303 00:39:42,160 --> 00:40:01,680 That on the cross my burden gladly bearing He bled and died to take away my sin 304 00:40:01,680 --> 00:40:25,600 Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art 305 00:40:25,600 --> 00:40:51,080 Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee How great thou art, how great thou art 306 00:40:51,080 --> 00:41:21,000 Our Savior, God to thee. 307 00:41:22,080 --> 00:41:29,800 We sing, How great thou art. And we worship you, Lord Jesus, in your majesty as the Son 308 00:41:29,800 --> 00:41:38,880 of God. And we witness, as did the witnesses that we saw in Scripture today, that truly 309 00:41:38,880 --> 00:41:48,960 you are the Son of God, our Savior. And you have right claim to our lives. And we give 310 00:41:48,960 --> 00:42:01,640 ourselves to you in faith and for service. So use us this week. May we be faithful emissaries 311 00:42:01,640 --> 00:42:19,240 of the Son of God. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. God bless you.