John 3:17-21

[0:00] John chapter 3. Leading up to this. The first chapter of John.

[0:10] We're introduced to Jesus Christ.! I've stumbled all over it.

[0:33] For whatever reason. But that's okay. But we're introduced to Jesus Christ being the Word. And being the Word from eternity past. On into eternity present. And far on into eternity future.

[0:46] He is the eternal Word of God. And we read on further down in John chapter 1. Where the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we read that Jesus Christ came into His own.

[0:58] And His own received Him not. And we continue on in John chapter 1. We see where John the Baptist. Denies that He is the Christ. That John the Baptist is the Christ.

[1:09] But he sees Christ coming down the river bank. And he says behold the Lamb which taketh away the sin of the world. And we get to the latter parts of that.

[1:21] And on into chapter 2. We see Jesus Christ performing His first miracle. In John's gospel at the wedding of Cana. We see just all kinds of things happening throughout scripture.

[1:37] John chapter 1. Back to John chapter 1. We see Andrew and Peter called as disciples. Then we see Philip and a man named Bartholomew. Or Nathanael I'm sorry.

[1:49] Called as disciples. And I say it that way because you don't read about Nathanael in the synoptic gospel. You only read about Nathanael in the gospel of John. But you read about a man in the synoptics called Bartholomew.

[2:02] And so it's assumed and rightfully so that Bartholomew and Nathanael are the same person. But John calls him by a different name for whatever reason in his gospel.

[2:15] And that's fine. But we see the calling of a few of the disciples. Again we see the miracle of the turning water into wine. The marriage in Cana in chapter 2.

[2:28] And then of course that all brings us to chapter 3. Chapter 3 we're probably very well familiar with. This is a midnight conversation.

[2:40] It's a night time conversation with a man named Nicodemus. A Pharisee. And Christ. He comes to Christ. And he says we know.

[2:51] We know thou art a teacher come from God. And I believe that Nicodemus was sincere in saying that. Some people will say that he was being facetious when he said that. I don't think that he was.

[3:02] I think that he was sincere when he said. When he said we know that thou art a teacher come from God. And of course Christ begins telling Nicodemus some things that kind of confuses Nicodemus.

[3:14] But he tells him twice. In the same dialogue. He says you must be born again. He tells him you must be born again. He tells him that which is born of the flesh is flesh.

[3:25] That which is born of the spirit is spirit. And he tells him marvel not that I said unto thee that you must be born again. And of course Nicodemus asks the question in all this.

[3:36] How can a man be born again? How can he be born twice? Can he crawl back into his mother's womb when he is old? And of course this shows that he is not understanding what Jesus is saying.

[3:49] But Jesus tells him after all this. He says art thou a teacher in Israel? And you don't understand these things. That I'm speaking to you.

[4:00] In other words what Jesus was saying to him. Should have been simple for him to understand. But yet it wasn't for Nicodemus. Although he was a Pharisee. Although he knew the scriptures.

[4:11] He knew the Old Testament scriptures frontwards and backwards. And sideways and upside down. I don't know which way you could think of. Nicodemus knew those scriptures. And he was a teacher of the Jewish people.

[4:22] And yet he did not understand what Christ was saying about the spiritual things. And Christ tells him. He says you know. If I tell you about these natural things.

[4:33] You're not understanding. How in the world would you understand? If I tell you of spiritual things. And then that of course brings us. With a few extra verses there.

[4:44] Jesus gets into. How as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. So should the son of man be lifted up. And then of course we have. John 3.16 For God so loved the world.

[4:56] He gave his only begotten son. That whosoever believes in him should not perish. But have everlasting life. And that's a wonderful verse. And I'm thankful for that verse. But.

[5:07] People tend to forget. John 17 through 21. And that's what we're going to get into tonight. He's already spoken. John 3.16 He's already explained.

[5:18] That God sent his son into the world. That God so loved the world. That he done this. And that whosoever believeth. Should not perish. But have everlasting life. Now Jesus gets into.

[5:30] The light. And what the light does. And what it exposes. And what it does to men. What it does to some men. As opposed to other men. That's what we're going to get into.

[5:41] This evening. So with all that. Being said. John chapter 3. Beginning at verse 17. Says. For God sent not his son into the world. To condemn the world. But that the world through him.

[5:53] Might be saved. He that believeth on him. Is not condemned. That he that believeth not. Is condemned already. Because he hath not believed. In the name. Of the only begotten son.

[6:05] Of God. And this is the condemnation. That light is come into the world. And men love darkness. Rather than light. Because their deeds were evil.

[6:16] For everyone that doeth evil. Hateth light. Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth. Cometh to the light. That his deeds may be made manifest.

[6:28] That they are wrought. In God. Verse 17 again. Christ says. For God sent not his son into the world. To condemn the world. But that the world through him.

[6:40] Might be saved. And I'll tell you now. There are people out there. Right now. That will take. John chapter 3 and verse 17. And they will twist it. All sorts of ways. And they will say.

[6:51] See. I can do whatever I want. I can do it whenever I want. With whomever I want. Because Christ came into the world. To save sinners. Christ came not to condemn me.

[7:03] He came to save me. And people. But people. Don't read verses 18 through 21. They leave it there. At verse 17. And again it says.

[7:14] For God sent. Not his son. Into the world folks. Those first few words there. For God sent. Those are amazing words. This tells us. Right now. That before.

[7:25] Before Bethlehem. Before Christ was ever born of a virgin. Before there was ever. A cross. That was planted. In Jerusalem's soil. Before the foundation of the world.

[7:36] Was ever laid. Before there was ever a Jerusalem. Before there was ever a Rome. Before there was ever any of this. There was a decree of mercy. That came from the council. Of heaven.

[7:47] God sent. His son. Into the world. Jesus Christ. Did not just wonder. Into history. He did not just wonder aimlessly. Into the lives of men.

[7:57] God sent his son. Into the world. And why did he send his son. Into the world. Christ tells us. For God sent not his son. Into the world. To condemn the world.

[8:07] But that the world through him. Might be saved. God sent his son. Into the world. In order that the world through him. Might be saved. He did not send Jesus Christ.

[8:18] To condemn the world. Folks. Christ did not come. To show us that we were lost. Christ did not come. To make us lost. Condemnation was already there. Judgment had already been pronounced.

[8:30] We were already lost. Individuals. Everyone. That had been born. Since Adam and Eve. It was a lost person. Sin crept in. In the garden. With the fall.

[8:41] Of mankind. And it has ever been that way. Since then. And Jesus Christ. Was sent in the world. By almighty God. Not to condemn the world. Because the condemnation.

[8:53] Was already there. But he came. That through him. Not by Muhammad. Not by Allah. Not by any other God. Not by any other man. Not by Joseph Smith.

[9:03] Or by anyone else. But through Jesus Christ. That the world. Might be saved. And I praise God. For his perfect plan. Of salvation. I praise God.

[9:15] That even before. We were beings. Even before the world. Was here. God knew. We would rebel against him. And even with that knowledge. He still.

[9:25] Decreed. To make a way. That we could be reconciled. Under him. Hallelujah. God sent. He sent. His son. And his son.

[9:37] Came willingly. Into the world. We know. From the pages of scripture. Christ could have put an end to it. At any time. That he wanted to. Christ could have been born. He could have lived through his youth.

[9:48] He could have lived through his adolescence. He could have went on into his adult years. According to the gospel of Luke. At the beginning. About the age of 30. That Christ had grown in stature.

[9:58] He had grown in his wisdom. And this is when his earthly ministry began. But Christ could have stepped out into this ministry. And he could have said. Uh uh. I'm not doing this. Not for these people.

[10:09] Not for these fools. Not for these unbelievers. Not for these wicked. Not for these prostitutes. Not for these drunkards. I will not do it. But Christ didn't do that. Christ didn't do that.

[10:21] He came to save me. He came to save me. From my sin. And he came to save you. From your sin. And God. The father. Sent God. The son. Into the world.

[10:32] That we might be saved. Through him. Hallelujah. Praise God. What a plan. You and I. If we had made that plan. What would we have done?

[10:42] Well. I want to do this. And I want to do that. And I want to put this much money in the plate. And I want to sing this many songs. And I want to memorize this many verses out of scripture.

[10:54] And that would do it. Oh folks. That's not atonement at all. That's our own works. And our own works are worthless. As far as salvation goes. Now. Once salvation has occurred.

[11:05] Once we have been saved. By the only begotten son. Of the father. We should want to do those things. We should want to memorize the word of God. We should want to sing the songs of Zion. We should want to fellowship with the saints.

[11:18] We should want all of these things. But that is not a way into salvation. The only way. Into salvation. Is through the shed blood. Of Jesus Christ. When he said in John 19.

[11:30] It is finished. And he was talking about the work of salvation. It was complete. The blood had been shed. The atonement had been made. And the way had been opened. For anyone to repent of their sin.

[11:42] Repent of their unbelief. Come unto the Father. Through faith in Jesus Christ the Son. And receive reconciliation with the Father. Hallelujah. But it amazes me.

[11:52] It amazes me. For God sent. For God sent. Not his Son into the world. To condemn the world. But that the world through him might be saved.

[12:04] God sent. God gave the very best that he had. For you. A wretched sinner. And for me. A wretched sinner. Jesus came.

[12:15] For that purpose. Verse 18. He that believeth on him. Is not condemned. But he that believeth not. Is condemned already. Because he hath not believed.

[12:27] In the name. Of the only begotten Son. Of God. Folks. This is. There is. No other scripture. That. Conveys.

[12:37] The importance of faith. More than this verse here does. He that believeth. Folks. Don't get any plainer than that. He that believeth. Not he that.

[12:48] As I said before. Donates the most money to the church. Not he. That sings the most songs. Not he that smiles the most. Not he that shakes the most hands.

[13:00] He that believeth. Amen. He that believeth. It says. He that believeth on him. Is not condemned. Praise God. There is no condemnation. To be found in me.

[13:11] Hallelujah. For Romans 8 and 1. That says. There is no condemnation. To them that be. In Christ. Jesus. There is no condemnation. To be found in me. Hey. When the sinner gets saved.

[13:23] When someone comes to the cross. In faith. And repentance. And they receive salvation. There is a devil. That is struck in heaven. There is a verdict. That is made.

[13:33] And that verdict. Is no condemnation. Praise God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. And it's at the moment. Of salvation. It's at the moment. Of salvation.

[13:44] I preach the funeral. Just a few hours ago. And I told them. While I was preaching at that funeral. Praise God. Praise God. That it is not. After 20 or 30 or 40 or 50 years.

[13:57] Of proving yourself to God. It is at the moment. That we are saved. It is at the moment. That we are saved. I'm not saying. That once you are saved.

[14:08] That it's going to be easy. I'm not saying. That once you are saved. You will have no works. James says. Shoot me thy face without thy works. I will shoot thee my face by my works. There will be works. In the life of a Christian.

[14:19] There will be good works. There will be works. Under righteousness. In the life of a believer. In Jesus Christ. Hallelujah. But. He says.

[14:30] He that believeth on him. Is not condemned. I believe. I believe on the cross of this scripture. I believe on the cross. Of the Bible.

[14:40] Do you believe in the same cross that I do? Do you believe in this cross. That is speaking these words. To this Pharisee. 2,000 years ago. Let me tell you something now.

[14:52] These words. That he is speaking now. Ring just as true. In 2026. As they did 2,000 years ago. When Jesus Christ was speaking them. To a Pharisee.

[15:03] Named Nicodemus. They are just as true. And they are just as relevant. As they were then. He that believeth on him. Is not condemned. Praise God. But he that believeth not.

[15:15] Is condemned. Already. He that believeth not. Folks. It's a belief thing. It's a faith thing. Where is your faith? We've all got faith.

[15:26] The question is. Where do you put that faith? Paul. Writing to the Romans. Speaks of. The measure. Of faith. Not a measure. Because that would. Insinuate.

[15:37] That we each get. A different measure. Your measure might be bigger than mine. But he talks about. The measure. Of faith. The question is. Where are we putting that faith? Have we put it in God?

[15:48] Have we put it in Christ? Have we put it in the hope. Of the death. The burial. And the resurrection. Of Jesus Christ. Or is it in ourselves? Is it in our family? Is it in our children? Is it in our church?

[15:59] Is it in our pastor? Where is your faith? Amen. That's the question. It needs to be in Christ. And Christ alone for salvation. For only He can give salvation.

[16:10] I said it many times. Only He who is life. Can impart life. And I will stick to those words. He that believes on Him. Is not condemned. Praise God. That's me. Is it you?

[16:21] Is it you? But He that believeth not. Is condemned. Already. Again in verse 17. For God sent not His Son into the world.

[16:31] To condemn the world. But that the world through Him. Might be saved. The condemnation already existed. He is condemned already. Who does not believe. In the name of Jesus Christ.

[16:43] He is condemned already. Who does not believe. In the name of the Son of God. And if you claim to believe. In the name of Jesus Christ. You are not only believing. In that name. Whether you call Him Jesus Christ.

[16:56] Whether you call Him Jesus Christ. Or any other name. Around the world over. In whatever language. You want to refer to Jesus Christ. You are not only claiming His name.

[17:06] You are claiming His power. You are claiming His works. You are claiming His gospel. You are claiming His holiness. You are claiming His righteousness. If you are claiming. The name of Jesus Christ.

[17:18] Many people want to say. I believe in Jesus. I believe in Jesus. How much of Jesus do they believe in? He that does not believe. He that believeth not.

[17:30] Is condemned already. And He tells us why. Because. Because He hath not believed. In the name. Of the only begotten. Son of God.

[17:41] Do you believe in that name tonight? Do you believe in the name of Jesus Christ? Do you believe in His power? Do you believe in His power to save? Do you believe in the gospel? Which is the power of God. To save?

[17:53] Or do you just believe? Yes. There was a fine teacher. 2,000 years ago. A wonderful rabbi. By the name of Jesus Christ. Folks. He was so much more than that.

[18:05] As the scripture here says. He was the only begotten Son. Of God. Now. I am a son of God. If you are born again. You are a son. Or you are a daughter.

[18:15] Of God. But Christ is the only begotten. Son. Of God. I am a son. Through adoption. You are a son or a daughter.

[18:26] Through adoption. You and I. I've said it in a lot of congregations. Especially right here in this area. I don't see one Jew sitting in here.

[18:37] I don't see anybody with a Jewish lineage. To amount to anything. You might be one or two. Or maybe five percent. But. I don't see a true blue Jew. Sitting in here.

[18:48] You and I. Are sons and daughters. Of the most high king. Because he has adopted us. Into his family. He has grafted us in. Through the wild. But folks. I praise God.

[18:59] That the scripture teaches. That the sons and the daughters. That are adopted. Have just as much power. They have just as much authority. And we have just as much salvation. As any other.

[19:09] We have just as much right. To the throne of God. To make petitions. And to make supplications. Known unto God. As any other does. Praise God.

[19:22] Again. He that believeth not. Is condemned already. Not. Christ came. To condemn him. Remember that. Remember that. In verse 17. Christ.

[19:33] The son. The son was not sent into the world. By God. To condemn the world. He was condemned already. And his belief. Shows. Or his unbelief. I'm sorry. Shows.

[19:44] That he is condemned already. Because he hath not believed in the name. Of the only begotten son of God. Verse 19. And this is the condemnation. Folks. This is where our ears. Should perk up.

[19:55] This is where we should pay attention. And this is what should cause us to tremble. Even if you're born again. This should cause us to tremble. Christ saying. This is the condemnation.

[20:07] He is naming it. What is the condemnation? This is the condemnation. That light is coming into the world. Folks. That is not the condemnation. That was blessing.

[20:17] And that was grace. That light came into the world. The condemnation though. This is the condemnation. That light has come into the world. And men love darkness.

[20:28] Rather than light. Because their deeds. Were evil. Men love darkness. Rather than light. That is the condemnation. And that shows. That they were condemned already.

[20:39] That shows. That they were already. In a helpless state. Folks. And that includes. All of us. I was in a helpless state. I was unable. That's.

[20:50] That's. How much of total depravity. I believe in. Is. I was unable. To save. Myself. I was unable. To do anything. For myself.

[21:01] And folks. If that is not totally depraved. I don't know what is. Amen. I was unable. I was unable. To do anything. I was unable. To cry out to God. Enough times. I was unable. Enough. To pray.

[21:11] Enough times. I was unable. Enough. To attend church. Enough times. But Christ. And his work. That. Is what God. Is pleased with.

[21:22] And that is what is sufficient. For salvation. And to believe in the name of Jesus Christ. Is to believe in the work. Of Jesus Christ. Again. Verse 19. And this is the condemnation.

[21:35] The condemnation. That light. Has come into. The world. Again folks. That wasn't the condemnation. The condemnation is. And men love darkness. Rather than light. Right. Men love.

[21:46] The folks. Not only. Not only. Do men. Sin. But they desire to sin. Right. That's their want.

[21:56] Is to sin. Men love darkness. Rather than light. The light. Had come into the world. You read in John chapter 1. That. That. That. That. When Jesus Christ.

[22:06] Came into the world. That. That. His life. Was the light. Of men. The life of Jesus Christ. Was the light of men. The world over. But men. Hate the light.

[22:17] Men would rather have darkness. Than light. Why? Because their deeds. Are evil. Amen. And because. There's some cover. In the darkness. Yeah. But the light. Exposes that.

[22:29] The light. Exposes their evil deeds. The light. Exposes their motives. The light. Exposes everything. And that's. Why they hate it. The light. It completely.

[22:41] It can. Completely. Disrupts. Everything. That's going on. In the darkness. All of us. Should be. Very well. Familiar. With this. This whole.

[22:51] Situation. Going on. With the Epstein files. Right now. Amen. Men love darkness. Rather than light. Let me tell you something. Right now. You go to the DOJ's website.

[23:02] And you think you're getting the full story. You are a gullible. Sorry. Human being. There is stuff. That will remain. In that darkness. Until. The end of days.

[23:12] Right. But folks. It is not hidden from God. God knows all about it. God knows every evil deed. He knows every evil work. He knows everyone that has done it.

[23:22] And he knows. Any. Anyone. If anyone. If anyone. Has repented. Of any of those deeds. Yeah. God knows about it all. Men love darkness.

[23:34] Rather than light. Why wasn't this brought out. 20 years ago. I'll tell you why. Because they didn't advertise it. Why? Because their deeds were evil. And they knew that their deeds were evil. Why do so many.

[23:44] Why do so many. Sinners. Why do so many sinners. Keep their sin. Under cloak of darkness. Why is there so much trouble. In the middle of the night. Because there is darkness.

[23:55] Folks. You read it. In this exact same gospel. John chapter 13. I believe it's verse 30. When Judas Iscariot. Left the upper room. John writes. And it was not. When he left the upper room.

[24:07] To go and betray. Our savior. John said. It was not. And that wasn't just to give a time stamp. In the scripture. That was to show. A spiritual state.

[24:18] Of a man. Judas Iscariot. That had left. The fellowship. Of the other 11 disciples. He had left them. And went to betray. Our lord. Amen.

[24:28] And it was not. Right. It was not. His deeds were evil. And they were covered. By the cloak of nigh. Now. We know.

[24:39] What the condemnation is. We know. Why men are condemned. Because they've been condemned. From the very get go. From. From the very first sin. Of the garden. And men's deeds.

[24:50] Are evil. Says in verse 20. For everyone. That doeth evil. Hateth the light. Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds. Should be reproved.

[25:01] For everyone. Not just for most. Right. Not just for most. For everyone. That doeth. That word doeth.

[25:11] That's important. That's perfect tense. They continually do evil. Yeah. They perpetually. Do evil. Y'all have heard me say it before.

[25:22] They go to bed at night. Thinking about the evil. That they had done. Throughout the day. They wake up in the morning. Thinking about the evil. That they're going to accomplish. Throughout the day. They go throughout the day. Accomplishing that evil. They have supper that evening.

[25:34] Thinking about that evil. Thinking about what evil. They're going to do. In the evening. And they go to bed that night. Thinking about the evil. They had done. And what they're going to do. In the morning. That's all they know. I've said it thousands of times.

[25:45] Heathens know nothing more. Than how to be heathens. And pagans know nothing more. Than how to be pagans. That's why. It should not surprise us. This whole Epstein thing.

[25:56] That's going on right now. It shouldn't surprise us. Right. Because he's. The people involved in that. Are pagans. And heathens. And they practice pagan. And heathen things.

[26:07] Read about the cultures. In the Old Testament. The cultures that God plainly told. The nation Israel. To stay away from. He said you don't marry them. You don't give your daughters. Over to them to marry. And boys.

[26:18] You don't marry their daughters. Into your families. Why? Because their culture. Will bleed into the culture. I've given you. Their religion. Will bleed into the religion. That I've given you. Their gods.

[26:29] Will take over your lives. And you'll go whoring. After their gods. That's why. Yeah. But the deeds of man are evil. And that's why man loves darkness. Rather than light.

[26:40] For everyone that doeth evil. Perfect tense. Hateth. Perfect tense. The light. We can.

[26:50] Man that continually does evil. Continually hates. The light. Not just mildly dislikes. No. And not as indifferent to the light. He hates the light.

[27:02] Why does he hate the light? Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds. Should be reproved. Folks. Reproof. Is a blessing from God. Reproof.

[27:13] Is nothing more than grace. Amen. When we are reproved. By God. When we are rebuked. By God. That is a blessing of grace. From above. Love. But the scripture here says.

[27:25] For everyone that doeth evil. Hateth life. Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds. Should be reproved. Folks. The heart. The human heart. Left to itself.

[27:36] Prefers. Concealment. It prefers. To stay in the dark. Left by itself. And left to itself. But a heart. That is touched. By the grace of God.

[27:47] A heart. That has been. When God. Has taken out. The stony heart. As he talks about. In the book of Ezekiel. And he places. A heart of flesh. In someone. That has received. Salvation.

[27:59] That heart. Is turned to the light. That heart. Is drawn. To the light. That heart. Has no problem. With the light. It has no problem. With rebuke. It has no problem. With reproof.

[28:10] It wants those things. As much as they hurt. Sometimes. Yeah. Praise God. I don't look. To get chastised. By God. I don't try. To get chastised. By God.

[28:20] But when God. Chastises me. It reminds me. That I am his. It reminds me. That I am his. And that he cares. About me. And that he cares. About what I am doing. Hallelujah.

[28:31] Ain't no different. Than when I was a kid. I would argue. That when I was a young man. But I look back now. At some of the rear end. Whoopings I got. As a child. And I thank God. That I got them.

[28:42] I thank God. That I got them. And praise God. I could have used a few more. But that's a whole other story. For everyone that doeth evil. Hateth the light. Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds. Should be reproofed.

[28:53] Folks. It has been that way. Since the fall. You read in Genesis 3. When Eve saw the tree. She saw that it was good for food. She took of the fruit.

[29:04] And she invited Adam to do so. And we all know the account. Adam partook of it. And God came down. And God comes walking through the garden. And what does it say?

[29:14] It says Adam and Eve hid amongst the trees of the garden. And they tried to hide themselves. And then Adam says. Or God says to Adam. Where art thou?

[29:25] And Adam says. I heard you coming. And I was afraid. Because I was naked. And God. And I can't help but wonder if God wasn't being somewhat sarcastic when He said it.

[29:37] God says. Who told you you were naked? Who told you? But they knew. They knew that they had sin. And they tried to hide it. And they tried not only to hide amongst the trees of the garden.

[29:49] They tried to sew aprons of fig leaves. Folks. That would not do it. It had to be the way that God prescribed. And God killed an innocent animal.

[30:00] And God took the skin of that innocent animal. And He made them. Or He made them plodly to cover their sin. And to cover their nakedness. Amen. It must be a way.

[30:11] Of God. In order for our sin to be covered. In order for our sin to be washed away. It must be God's way. The fig leaves didn't do it. The trees didn't do it. And folks.

[30:22] Our own righteousness does not do it. But the righteousness of Christ. Which is what? I will be clothed in when I stand at the judgment seat of Christ. When I stand before God.

[30:35] At the judgment seat. For Paul wrote. We must all stand at the judgment seat of Christ. And we must all give an account. For what we have done in these bodies. Whether it be good or bad. But when I stand there.

[30:47] I'll have some to account for. Mind you. I'll have some to account for. But I will be there in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And not because I did anything. But because He did it all.

[30:59] He did it all. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light. Neither cometh to the light. Lest his deeds should be reproved. They don't come to the light. Because they want their deeds to stay in the darkness.

[31:14] Verse 21. But He that doeth truth. Cometh to the light. That his deeds may be made manifest. That they are wrought in God.

[31:25] Again. There's some importance here. But He that doeth. Perfect tense. He that doeth. Truth. Continually does truth.

[31:36] Now. That's not to say that we get born again. And we never sin again. That's contrary to what Scripture teaches us. Amen. That's contrary to what Paul wrote.

[31:46] Contrary to some of the things Jesus said. Contrary to some of the things Peter said. We do not live perfect sinless lives once we are born again. But. There's a difference.

[31:58] The man who has not been touched by grace. The man who has not received grace from God. He hates the light. He doesn't want to go to the light.

[32:09] Wants nothing to do with the light. He avoids Scripture. Scripture. He avoids the church. He avoids preaching. He avoids the light. He avoids Jesus Christ. Lest His deeds should be reproved.

[32:23] But He. He that doeth truth. Cometh to the light. Folks. Before you were saved. Did you have any desire to come to the light?

[32:34] Did you have any desire to come to Christ before you were saved? No. No. No. The Bible plainly tells us. Old Testament. And it's quoted in the New Testament.

[32:46] There are none that seeketh after righteousness. None of us seek after God as a lost individual. That's why I have such a problem with these seeker sensitive churches.

[32:57] They change their programs. They change the music. They change the stage. They take the pulpits out. They do this. And they do that.

[33:08] You walk into most of them. And it looks like you're going more to a heavy metal concert than it does you're going to worship God. Amen. But they're seeker sensitive. They're trying to draw in the world.

[33:19] Let me tell you something now. You draw the world into the church of God. The world will infiltrate the church of God. And before you know it, you are whoring after the world's idols.

[33:29] And you're going after the things of the world. We've all seen it. We've seen churches that are turned like that. Same preachers that once stood against sin.

[33:42] Preachers that would once name sin. They've turned soft. They've turned soft with the Word of God. They've turned soft with the congregations. They say, well, maybe God will allow a little bit of this or that.

[33:53] No! Amen. God does not overlook sin. And He does not sweep it under the rug. Men that had some convictions once upon a time.

[34:05] But they saw their numbers going down. And they saw the offerings going down. They said, we've got to do something to get more people in here. And they made these seeker sensitive movements. And that got people in.

[34:17] A bunch of lost people. Taking over the church. Singing in the choir. Being deacons. Being Sunday school teachers. And not knowing a thing about God. Not knowing a thing about salvation.

[34:31] Those are the ones that are in the dark. And they don't come to the light. And bless God in those situations, more often than not, the light is never presented to them. Through the preaching. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light.

[34:44] We come to the light. Why? Because the light is what exposes what we need. We need cleansing. We need help.

[34:54] We need nourishment. We need all these things. Folks, light is a life-giving thing. And mind you, light is not a concept. Light is a person according to the Scripture that we are reading here.

[35:08] It is in the person of Jesus Christ. But he that doeth truth. We do truth. We cometh to the light.

[35:18] That his deeds may be made manifest. They may be made obvious. We come to the light. That our deeds. Now folks, what kind of deeds are we talking about?

[35:29] We're talking about righteous deeds. We're talking about deeds that born-again children of God should be doing in their lives. That those deeds may be made manifest. That they are wrought.

[35:41] That they are worked. In God. Those that come to the light. Those that voluntarily come to the light. Are those that have been touched by the grace of God.

[35:53] And those that have been saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. And those that come to the light. Again here in this verse. That his deeds may be made manifest. That they are wrought in God.

[36:05] If we come to the light. It is evidence that God has been working in our lives. Just as. Just as in the first couple of verses that we read tonight.

[36:16] He that believeth on him. He that believeth on him is not condemned. But he that believeth not is condemned already. He that shows that there is no belief on Jesus Christ.

[36:28] They are condemned already. But down here in verse 21. It says that his deeds may be manifest. That they are wrought in God. When we come to the light. And those deeds are made manifest. And it shows that they are wrought in God.

[36:41] It shows that God is already working in us. God is working not only in us. He is working through us. He is working with us. And he is doing it all for his glory.

[36:51] He is doing it for your good. He is doing it for my good. But ultimately. He is doing it for his own glory. So the question tonight.

[37:03] And I will be done. One. What Christ have you believed? Two. Have you believed in Christ? Do you believe.

[37:15] That God sent not his son in the world. To condemn the world. But that the world through him might be saved. Praise God for that. Praise God for verse 17. Because if Christ had come.

[37:29] To condemn the world. That would be double condemnation. But that's not why he came. He came to show us our need. And he came to save us.

[37:39] He didn't come to make us lost. He came to save us from a lost state. But again in verse 18. He that believes on him is not condemned. But he that believeth not is condemned already.

[37:50] Because he hath not believed. In the name of the only begotten Son of God. Have you truly believed? That's the question. Have you truly believed?

[38:00] In the only begotten Son of God. In his name. In his power. In his works. In his death. His burial. His resurrection. Which is the gospel according to 1 Corinthians 15.

[38:11] Verses 1-4. Do you believe in that? Can I tell you now. You continue there in 1 Corinthians 15. And Paul makes it very plain. That if Christ is not raised.

[38:24] We're hopeless. We are hopeless. Our faith is in vain. And this preaching is in vain. Is what Paul says. But Christ is raised. I've never been to Jerusalem.

[38:36] I've never seen the stone that was rolled away. I've never seen the empty tomb. But I know that the Spirit of God came to me one day. And showed me my state.

[38:48] And showed me I was lost. And He showed me that Christ is the Savior. And He saved my soul. I don't have to go there to see those things. To have faith in the only begotten Son of God.

[39:01] And nor do you. Do you believe? Do you believe? God bless you all. That's the message for this evening.