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Subject 17 : JESUS CHRIST and JOHN THE BAPTIST
[17-5] Let Us Gladly Enjoy The Glory of God (John 1:1-14)
(John 1:1-14)
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The Gospel of John, the three Books of 1, 2, and 3 John, and the Book of Revelation are the Scriptures written by the Apostle John. Through these Scriptures, we can see what the faith of the Apostle John was like, and also what the faith of the disciples of Jesus was like. The Apostle John believed that Jesus was the very God who created the whole universe and us humans, and that God was his Savior and the Savior of all mankind. We must also have this kind of faith.
Some people believe that the Bible was written by men, so they deny its genuineness and truthfulness. But the men who wrote the Bible are not its authors but writers, and as such, they only transcribed the Word of God. Combing both Old and New Testaments together, there are around 3,800 instances in which the expression “God said” is used in the Bible. It is testified throughout the Bible that the Scripture writers did not write their own experiences or thoughts, but they transcribed what God said and wrote down what He told them to write. The Bible was written over an extended period of time of about 1,600 years, starting from 1500 BC, which is around 3,500 years ago, until 100 AD. Around 40 Scripture writers wrote the Bible in diverse places including the Sinai Peninsula, Israel, Babylon, various regions in Asia Minor, Rome, small Mediterranean islands, and so forth. The class backgrounds of the Scripture writers are also diverse, ranging from scholars, prophets, generals, kings, farmers, fishermen, a physician, a tax collector, and others. But in this world, there is only one volume written by all these people from diverse backgrounds over a very long period of time, and it is the Bible.
What is even more amazing is that despite the fact the Bible was recorded by such diverse people over such an extended period, its content is consistently centered on Jesus. This proves that the Bible is the Word of God that God has given us, and that it is the Truth written by His servants in both the Old and New Testaments. In other words, the Bible is not some words of men written according to their own will, but it is the Word of God delivered to us by the hands of men inspired by the Holy Spirit. It’s absolutely indispensable for us to understand clearly how the Bible was written, and believe that this Word of the Scriptures is the God-spoken Word delivered to us. True faith in God begins when we believe that all the Words written in the Bible is the Word of God.
Jesus Created the Heavens and the Earth
In today’s Scripture passage, the Apostle John is speaking by faith, citing the Word of God from Genesis chapter one. He is speaking about the fundamental essence of Jesus Christ. “He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (John 1:2-3). From the very beginning, the very moment that God the Father decided to create this universe, Jesus Christ His Son Himself was already the Creator. This passage declared by the Apostle John makes it clear that Jesus was God Himself from the beginning. That’s why he said that there was nothing that came into existence spontaneously without Jesus. In other words, while Jesus Christ is the Savior for us, because He is God Himself, He is also the Creator who made the universe and everything in it. When the world was created, it came into being exactly according to what the Creator, Jesus Christ who is God Himself, said.
Let’s turn to Genesis 1:1-5 here. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:1-5). This is how Jesus created the heavens and the earth. The universe did not come into existence spontaneously as commonly thought and posited by the theory of evolution, but it was made by the mighty Word of Jesus Christ.
The theory of evolution is a hypothetical notion positing that a single cell spontaneously came into being one day and gradually became a life form over a long period of time. But how can life spring forth suddenly and spontaneously like this out of nothing? Only God can create life.
Let’s go back to Genesis 1:2. Before God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. The “Spirit of God” here refers to none other than the Holy Spirit. It means that as the heart of every sinner was formless and there was nothing but only confusion and disorder, the Holy Spirit could not descend on it yet.
God Shines the Light of Life on This Chaotic World
It’s written, “Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good” (Genesis 1:3-4). Although this passage explains the formation of the universe and its result, it also implies that Jesus Christ would come to this earth to save you and me from the sins of the world. In the beginning, Jesus Christ shone the light of blessings on this earth that was prevailed only by darkness. Light came into being at His single utterance alone, commanding to let there be light in the chaotic world.
The formless and void earth here refers to the very planet Earth on which you and I are living. Spiritually speaking, it also refers to your heart and mine. It means that from the moment we were born in this world, our hearts were without form, void, and profoundly dark. In other words, we were all born as sinners. Although our Lord created this beautiful universe, the human heart became confused and empty because of Satan. The universe had no stars, and there was nothing on this planet Earth—no plants, no trees, no fruits, nothing. Only complete darkness and confusion pervaded. This darkness refers to the heart of everyone who is born as a sinful descendant of Adam. The human heart and this world were prevailed by confusion and darkness, but when God said, “Let there be light,” the light of salvation could come into the heart of man, and God saw that this light was good.
God divided the light from the darkness, calling the light day and the darkness night, and as the evening and the morning came, it was the first day. God the Father took a total of six days to create this universe, and throughout this time and in all His work, He did it with His Son Jesus Christ. This Jesus Christ is the very One who came to this earth as a Man to save you and me from the sins of the world: He accepted our sins on His body by being baptized by John the Baptist, bore the condemnation of our sins in our place, rose from the dead again, and has thereby illuminated our hearts with the true light of salvation. Through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, Jesus Christ has made us His believers God’s people. He created the heavens and the earth and He has saved us as well. He is the King of kings and the Savior to us. It is by Jesus Christ that this world has been saved from sin.
You Must Have the Right Faith, Knowing That Jesus Is God Himself
You and I must not think of this Jesus Christ as the same creature as us. Nor should we even compare Him to such sages as Buddha, Confucius, Mencius, or Socrates who lived in this world only for a short while. It is absolutely indispensable for you to realize and believe that Jesus Christ is the very God who created this universe and all things in it. He who created you and me, who made us to be born from the womb of our mothers and grow, who rules over our life and death, who is the Alpha and the Omega, who has given us the blessings of the remission of sins, and who has allowed us to enjoy everlasting happiness in Heaven—He is none other than Jesus, who is God Himself. Our faith must be founded on the proper recognition that the Lord is God Himself who rules over man’s blessings and curses.
The Apostle John’s faith was such that he understood and believed in Jesus Christ properly. He believed that Jesus Christ was with God the Father from the beginning, that this universe and all things were created through Jesus, and that all sinners could receive the remission of sin by believing in Him who came by the water and the Spirit. This faith of the Apostle John is absolutely indispensable for you and me today also. Jesus Christ is the very God who created the universe and all things, and He is your Master and mine. You have to grasp clearly here that it is Jesus Christ who brought everyone to be born on this earth. You must also believe that for your sake, He took upon Himself your sins by being baptized by John the Baptist, died on the Cross, rose from the dead again, and has thereby remitted away your sins. To know and believe that Jesus Christ is both the Creator and the Savior of mankind is what true faith is all about. That is how we should understand who the Lord is, and that is how we should believe in Him with all our hearts.
There have been many sages on this earth. Some of them had great visions, and not a few of them even laid down their own lives to fulfill their noble ideals. However, these people were not divine, nor were they saviors. No matter how great their achievement might have been, in the end, they were mere creatures in God’s eyes made by Him, and they did not bring any fundamental benefits to our souls. It may be that they brought some temporal satisfaction to the people in the world, but they failed to bring the everlasting blessings of salvation. Nor were they able to give us the glorious riches of the Kingdom of Heaven. The Apostle John clearly shows that Jesus Christ is the only Savior of mankind. Jesus Christ made the world, and there is nothing that was made without Him. The Bible has once again shown us that the most fitting faith for us is to know and believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior.
Who Created This Universe and All Things?
Who made you and me, conceived us in the womb of our mothers and made us to be born in this world, grew us and rules over our next lives? Who has given us the blessings of salvation and determines our future? It is Jesus. It is Jesus Christ the very Savior of mankind. The name Jesus Christ means the Savior and the King of kings. It is Jesus Christ who is the Lord and King of the entire universe and all its hosts. He is the only God who has blotted out all our sins and transgressions and given us the life of the flesh and the everlasting life of the soul. We must recognize Jesus Christ as the God of creation and the Savior of mankind, and we must believe so.
The Apostle John knew and believed that Jesus Christ was God Himself, and the Savior and Son of God. Do we also believe like this? If you didn’t know that Jesus Christ is the only Creator and the Savior, then even from now on you have to grasp this and believe so. Not just you, but everyone around the world must realize this. The Apostle John said in John 1:4, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” When God said to let there be light in the dark world, this light came into existence and the mysterious work of life arose on this planet. If the Sun were to disappear and there were no more light, every living thing will die not long after darkness descends. You may then ask, “Can’t the deep sea creatures live without light?” No, that is not the case. Those creatures cannot survive without the food chain of the broader ecosystem that is sustained by solar energy. All these creatures would not have come into existence were it not for the Word of Jesus Christ. Where darkness recedes at the command of the Word of Jesus Christ, new life is born, but where the light of Jesus Christ recedes and only darkness remains, there is nothing but death waiting.
So when Jesus Christ, God Himself, made the universe and all its hosts, He commanded to let there be light, and light indeed appeared out of darkness and new life was born by this blessing. Just as Jesus Christ gave new life to where there was only darkness by making light, so has He given us the gospel of the water and the Spirit and thus enabled us to receive our true salvation. Like this, while the light that God made in Genesis refers to the first light created at the foundation of the world, it also refers to the light of salvation that we have received by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Do You Know the Real Purpose for Which the Bible Was Written?
Although the Bible actually contains historical facts and scientific truths, these are not its central themes. The real purpose for which the Bible was written is to point out your soul’s sins, to explain the gospel Word of the water and the Spirit, and to thus bring true salvation to those who believe in the Truth and make them God’s people. It’s written, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:5). Jesus spoke the Truth yesterday, He is speaking it today, and He will continue speaking it in the future. Yet despite this, many people still do not really know God properly. They trail off with buts and ifs, saying, “Well, there clearly is God, but, . . .” They know that there is a Creator, but they cannot believe in Him, nor accept the Truth that He has given them. They do this even though Jesus Christ is alive, shining the gospel light of salvation and ruling over the entire natural order of things. It’s only because God is maintaining the natural provision and order that everything in the universe exists and is alive. Yet many people do not know who this God is, and exactly what their relationship with God is. So not only are they still unable to comprehend the Truth of salvation that came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, but they even try to judge God based on their own human thoughts, saying that everything began from water.
However, my fellow believers, the truth of salvation Jesus Christ has given is very clear. All things came from Jesus Christ, and all things must return to the Maker at the end, to be saved or judged by Him, and be blessed or cursed by Him. But people do not realize this. They have no idea just how great the salvation of the gospel of the water and the Spirit fulfilled by Jesus is, how this love has already been bestowed on us in abundance through this gospel Truth, and how Christ has saved us and clothed us in His love. So it was necessary that there be some teachers who could teach the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit to those who did not know it. Moses heard the voice of God and was raised by God, and he taught God’s Truth to the people of Israel. Likewise, we also needed such a teacher.
Six months before Jesus was born on this earth, God the Father had first sent a man named John the Baptist so people could realize through John the Baptist who Jesus Christ was, and what He had done for them. Even though we were ignorant of Jesus Christ who is God Himself, through John the Baptist’s testimony, we came to comprehend the Truth, realizing, “Ah, that is who Jesus Christ is! These are the things that He did on this earth. So He has revealed God’s love and mercy, and He has brought salvation to all those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.”
John the Baptist, a Man Sent from God
It’s written in John 1:6-7, “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.” As you know, the Apostle John and John the Baptist are two different people with the same name. As we see that the Scripture writer Mark’s name was also John (Acts 12:12), John was a very common name in those days. It’s fairly common for different people to have the same name, such as John, Robert, Jane, and so on. Although they both had the same name, the Bible calls the former John the Baptist because he is the one who baptized Jesus. Other than sharing the same name, John the Baptist is not the same person as the Apostle John, who was called by Jesus Christ to be one of His disciples and bore witness of the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
It was said, “This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light” (John 1:7). John the Baptist was sent to this earth before Jesus and bore witness of the Light. What does this Light mean? Just as sunlight is indispensable for every living thing to grow, Jesus Christ is the very Light that rules over every life and saves everyone. John the Baptist’s role was to bear witness of this Light. Although Jesus Christ is fundamentally God Himself, He personally came to this earth and blotted out all sins for you and me who are living in sin. As Jesus Christ accepted all our sins once for all through His baptism and died on the Cross in our place for these sins, He is the Light that has given us new life. John the Baptist’s role was to bear witness of this ministry of Jesus. He bore witness of all the work of salvation fulfilled by Jesus Christ, testifying how He took upon Himself all sins through His baptism, and how He died on the Cross while shouldering these sins. Like this, even though we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, we can never have true faith if we set aside the role of John the Baptist.
However, many people mistakenly think that John the Baptist is a failure. They think, “Well, he just came six months earlier than Jesus Christ.” But with this kind of thinking you cannot properly meet Jesus Christ who came by the water and the Spirit. To properly believe in Jesus Christ who came by the water and the Spirit, you must listen to the testimony of baptism witnessed by John the Baptist. If this testimony is right, then you must believe it. Like this, John the Baptist is an extremely important figure. The Apostle John who wrote the Gospel of John was also able to know who Jesus Christ was thanks to the witness testified by John the Baptist. He was able to realize that Jesus Christ was the Messiah that his people had been waiting for, and he was also able to comprehend the true meaning of the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross. Given the fact even the Apostle John, a disciple of Jesus, met Jesus and came to believe in Him through the testimony of John the Baptist, how much more important is this testimony for you and me? If we ignore the role of the John the Baptist, it is simply impossible for you and me to meet the Lord who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Without believing in the witness of baptism that John the Baptist bore, salvation is even more impossible to reach than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle and the rich to enter the Kingdom of God. Anyone who does not believe in the testimony of John the Baptist cannot encounter the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
John the Baptist Bore Witness of the Light
Who is this Light? It is Jesus Christ who came by the water and the Spirit. Who is the true Light of salvation for your soul? Again, it is Jesus Christ who came by the water and the Spirit. It is this Jesus Christ whom John the Baptist bore witness. However, the people of Israel at that time did not believe this. Even though the world was made by Jesus, His people did not receive Him when He came to this earth. Even though they had been waiting for the Messiah, when the Savior Jesus actually came, they did not believe Him, for they did not recognize Him. John the Baptist had testified to them, “None other than He is the Lamb of God. He is the Son of God who took our sins like the sacrificial lamb of the Old Testament, blotted them out, and thus made us God’s people and fulfilled the Kingdom of God. He is the Savior of mankind. He is the Messiah whom you’ve been waiting. He is Abraham’s descendant who came through the tribe of Judah, one of Jacob’s twelve sons. He is the King who is to come in His time.”
But despite this, the people of Israel still did not believe. Why did they not believe then? They did not believe because they judged Jesus in carnal terms only with their human eyes. Like a root out of dry ground, there was little attractive in Jesus’ outside appearance. Jesus was described like a root out of dry ground (Isaiah 53:2). What then, would have been His outside appearance? First, He must have been tall, and second, He must have been extremely thin. When you look at some paintings of Jesus Christ being interrogated in Pilate’s court, you will be amazed at just how emaciated His face looks. Someone who is so skeletal that there is nothing attractive in outside appearance—this is who Jesus was.
Born in Bethlehem as prophesied and raised in Nazareth, Jesus took upon the sins of mankind once for all by being baptized by John the Baptist at the age of 30 to fulfill all the righteousness of God according to the Word.
However, the people of Israel did not believe in Jesus. They didn’t believe even though John the Baptist bore witness to them, testifying, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) Jesus had come to this earth personally, yet the people of Israel, His own people, did not receive Him.
However, the Apostle John continued on to say, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13). This passage is one of the favorite Bible verses that Christians memorize. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). John the Baptist bore witness that Jesus Christ, the Light, came to this earth, bore all our sins once for all by being baptized, carried all your worldly sins and mine to the Cross, was crucified, shed His lifeblood, rose from the dead again, and has thereby saved us from all the sins of the world. The Apostle John also said that to those who receive into their hearts Jesus Christ who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, God has given them the right to become His children. In other words, God the Father has given such rights to those who believe in Jesus Christ who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
We must believe that the Lord is not just the Savior of the nation of Israel, but He is the Savior of the entire human race. John the Baptist bore witness of the baptism of Jesus Christ, His blood on the Cross, His death, and His resurrection. Therefore, by faith, everyone in this world must accept them into their heart. The right to become God’s children is given to all those who believe in Jesus Christ, who was crucified while shouldering the sins of the world that He bore through His baptism. We must therefore accept this true Light of salvation.
Jesus Christ accepted your sins and mine by being baptized by John the Baptist. The baptism of Jesus described in Matthew 3:13-17 is what moved your sins to Jesus Christ, and He carried these sins to the Cross. You must realize and believe that in order to take on your sins, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River before being crucified. It was after Jesus shouldered the sins of the world by being baptized that He shed His precious blood on the Cross and rose from the dead again, thus bearing the condemnation of all your sins in your place. So you can reach your salvation only if you believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, that Christ has saved you in this way. You must receive Jesus Christ, the Light of salvation, into your heart with a proper understanding of the gospel of the water and the Spirit. You must accept Him into your heart. Remember that it is those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit to whom God gives the right to become His children.
Have You Received Jesus Christ as Your Savior?
Do you believe with your heart that Jesus is indeed the King of kings and your Savior? He is simultaneously our King and our Prophet, and at the same time the High Priest of the Kingdom of Heaven as well. The Lord came to this earth incarnated in the flesh of man, bore the sins of mankind, not on some sacrificial animal, but on His own body, died on the Cross, rose from the dead again, and has thereby become our true Savior. He has become the Savior of all those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. To those who believe, the Lord has given the right to become God’s children. I believe in this Truth. Do you also believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit? Have you accepted the gospel of the water and the Spirit into your heart?
Who then are those that wholeheartedly accept the gospel of the water and the Spirit? People who receive this gospel into their hearts are those who admit right away the corruption of their own thoughts and accept the infallible Word of Jesus Christ. We must believe that Jesus Christ has saved us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit by coming to this earth; that He is God Himself and the Lord of life who created the universe and all its hosts; that He conceived us in the womb of our mothers and made us be born on this earth, and that He has delivered us from death by bearing our sins through the baptism He received from John the Baptist and dying on the Cross. If anyone doesn’t acknowledge this, or doesn’t yearn for it wholeheartedly, then he does not believe in the Truth. Such people just listen with their ears and see with their eyes, never with their hearts.
If you still cannot believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit even though it is so unambiguously clear, then you have a huge problem. These people cannot obtain the washing of sin from God, and therefore they will be cursed. Does anyone among you think that being cursed by God is no big deal? In the English language, one of the worst profanities is to say, “God damn so-and-so.” What hope would anyone have if he were to be cursed by God? He has no hope. Someone who is cursed by God is a wretched man who can no longer live in this world. Everyone needs to be blessed by God to live. Sometimes you may be hated by others, but you will never go to hell because of this. However, if you are cursed by God, then you will be so wretched that life in this world will be unbearable.
If you are hated by man because of God, then this hatred will return to you as blessings, but if you are praised by man and hated by God, then you will head straight to your own destruction. Do you want to be cursed and lose whatever little you have now? If this is not what you want, then you must believe in the God-spoken gospel Word of the water and the Spirit. You must believe with all your heart that Jesus Christ the Light loves you, and that He has saved you from all your sins. You can be blessed only if you accept and believe in this Word of Truth, that Jesus Christ who made the universe and all its hosts, and who is your Lord, is the Messiah who has saved you.
The Bible says, “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). What about you then? Have you really received the right to become God’s child through the gospel of the water and the Spirit? God will give you this right as soon as you believe in the gospel Word of the water and the Spirit with your heart. Anyone who believes in the salvation of Jesus Christ, His power, and His love is made a child of God. It is by the power of the gospel of the water and the Spirit that one becomes God’s child. If one has become God’s child by faith, then he has the authority of God. Even in the secular world, the children of the powerful are elevated to enjoy considerable privileges. Given the fact that God is our Father, would there be any right that’s beyond our enjoyment? Of course not! So it’s extremely important for you to receive Jesus.
Whom have you received? Whom have you really received in joy? If a stranger visits you, would you receive this person gladly? No, you wouldn’t. But if one of your acquaintances visits you, wouldn’t you receive him with open arms? Of course you would. Jesus has blotted out your sins with the gospel of the water and the Spirit and made you God’s child so that you would receive both heavenly and earthly blessings. Won’t you then accept this Jesus? Is there then any reason for you to hesitate to receive Jesus Christ into your heart, when He is God Himself who loves you? I admonish you all to receive Jesus Christ in joy through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, by believing in this gospel.
Manage Your Life Together with Jesus Christ
While some people in this world understand Jesus properly and receive Him gladly through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, there also are many people who have no interest at all in this Truth and don’t accept Jesus. There is a proverb in Korea that goes, “The salt on a kitchen table tastes salty only when it’s actually used in cooking.” Likewise, when you hear the Word of God saying that Jesus has blotted out our sins for us with the gospel of the water and the Spirit and enabled us to become God’s children, you must bring this Word into your heart and believe in it. Jesus Christ has given you all the blessings of both this earth and Heaven, but it is only when you recognize Him as your Savior and accept Him into your heart that these blessings are really made yours. If you don’t receive Him into your heart, you can never receive these blessings.
To illustrate, let’s imagine that someone is defending his castle all by himself. When the invaders come, there is no way he can thwart them if they are stronger than him, no matter hard how he may try. He will ultimately be thrown out of the castle, lose everything, and face personal destruction. Like this, we shouldn’t manage our lives all by ourselves. Instead, we should manage our lives together with Jesus Christ. To do so, we must accept Him into our hearts.
It’s not the ignorant people who believe in Jesus Christ. On the contrary, it is the wise and smart people who believe in Jesus. So I admonish all of you to believe in the baptism of Jesus Christ and His blood on the Cross, to believe that He is God Himself and your Savior, and to thus truly accept Him into your heart. Remember that God’s everlasting blessings are waiting before you, if only you would accept Christ into your heart. Anyone who doesn’t believe so is a fool.
The ancient Inca Empire is famous for its abundant gold and silver holdings. Gold and silver were so plentiful that the Europeans were awestruck when they first came across the empire. Yet despite boasting a rich culture, when the Spanish invaded the Inca Empire, it crumbled before only 200 troops. Because the Incans had never been in contact with Western civilization, they were fascinated by the Spaniards, and they also welcomed them with open arms. In their travel through the Inca Empire the Spaniards saw how the empire was filled with so much gold, silver, and other precious jewels. It was quite natural for their hearts to turn greedy. Even though the Inca Empire was a highly advanced civilization, it ultimately fell apart before the firepower of the Spaniards. This was the result of the Incans’ failure to appreciate the value of gold and make it theirs, even though it was so priceless. Gold is nothing more than a useless stone if you don’t know its true value. Even if you have enough gold to live the rest of your life in luxury, if you don’t know its value, it’s all useless.
What will happen if you neglect your gold, not realizing its preciousness? You will end up losing it all to your enemy. You wouldn’t want to be cursed and perish because of your ignorance, unable to even distinguish friendly troops from enemy troops just like the Incans were not able to discern their enemies from their friends. You must remember that if you don’t cherish your own soul, and you don’t realize what a precious jewel of life Jesus Christ’s gospel of the water and the Spirit is, then you would be embarking on the way of destruction just like the Inca Empire that disappeared from the face of the earth despite boasting a highly advanced civilization.
To save you from sin, Jesus Christ came to this earth incarnated in the flesh of man, took upon Himself all your sins by being baptized by John, died on the Cross, rose from the dead, and has thereby become your true Savior. If, in spite of this, you neither believe in nor accept into your heart Jesus Christ, who is granting so many benefits to your soul, and you instead just stare at Him as if He had no relevance to your life, then far from being blessed, you will only be cursed. You have to realize who really is standing on your side, and you have to open your heart to your ally who is there to help you. If you accept just anyone, then you may find out suddenly that he has turned into your enemy, drawing his sword against you and robbing you of everything. Those who don’t believe in God are like a brood of vipers. What about you then? Have you really become a child of the Kingdom of God by wholeheartedly believing in Jesus? It’s absolutely indispensable for you to realize that all those who don’t believe in God are your enemies, and that while you should preach the Word to them and wait for them, you should never mingle with them.
While preaching the Word of God, I am sometimes provoked to righteous anger by the fact that there are so many Christian leaders on this earth who don’t believe in God. These people boast about their educational credentials, social status, and worldly privileges, but do they have any idea that all such acts will rot away in the end, and that they are just filthy trash in God’s sight? My fellow believers, knowing and believing in Jesus Christ is the noblest thing that man can do. Without even knowing Jesus’ gospel of the water and the Spirit, what can anyone possibly brag about? Boasting of worldly powers without knowing Jesus is nothing more than a completely foolish act.
My fellow believers, believing in Jesus Christ does not simply mean recognizing and accepting Him as the Savior just to obtain earthly blessings. The only way for us to receive the remission of sin and become God’s children is accepting Jesus Christ, who came to us by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, as our Savior. Those whose prayers are answered on this earth are only those who believe in Jesus Christ’s gospel of the water and the Spirit. Only they can receive the God-given blessings and find His grace and glory. Those who have received Jesus into their hearts are those who know and believe that Jesus Christ, who came to us by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, is the One who gives us salvation. We must now realize this Truth and accept Jesus the Supreme Being into our hearts.
The right to become God’s children is not something that is obtained by the bloodline of the flesh. Nor it is attained by provoking human emotions. Neither is it received from the religious tradition of a family, nor by saying, “Since my parents believe, so do I believe in Jesus also.” The Bible says that God’s children are those who have been born again not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man (John 1:13), but by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit (John 3:5).
You shouldn’t believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit for someone else’s sake, but you must believe in it out of your own volition. You can’t just say, “Alright, I’ll also believe just for you. My household is Christian, and so it’s impossible for me not to believe in Jesus. So, not to be in discord with our family members, I`ll also believe in Jesus and attend church.” Rather, you should believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit with your heart, out of your own willingness. It should be out of your own volition when you believe that Jesus, who came by the water and the Spirit, is your Savior.
Those Who Are Born Again of Water and the Spirit Will Enjoy Glory with God
That one is born of God means the following: God the Father loved the world so much that He sent His Son to this earth, and through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, He has saved you and me from the sins of the world; and when you believe in this Jesus Christ who came from God the Father as your Savior, you are born again as a child of God. That is how you are blessed by God. Jesus Christ had promised that He would come to this earth as a woman’s descendant and become our Savior (Genesis 3:15). According to this promise, He indeed came to this earth and fulfilled all His promised Word.
That Jesus was thus born of God means that He is God Incarnate. In other words, the holy God was born on this earth incarnated in the flesh of man. From the Word of God, we have met this Jesus Christ, and we have come to realize that He is indeed the Son of God, and also that through His Son, God the Father has given you and me the gift of salvation to become His children. All these things have come about because of the gospel of the water and the Spirit that has saved you and me. Through His Word, God has enables us to know that this salvation is not false, but the real Truth, and He has enabled us to believe in it.
I cannot preach anything else other than the gospel of the water and the Spirit. What would be the whole point if I were speaking of something that is not true as I stand before you now? If this were what I am doing, there would be no hour that’s as meaningless and accursed as this hour. You may then say, “Get off the pulpit! Stop preaching now! I can do a better job if I were standing behind the pulpit!” If I were preaching something else other than the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit, you would all be able to say this to me.
My fellow believers, you are experts at everything except for the Word of God. Each of you is an expert at something, from housekeeping to academia, arts, philosophy, education, car repairing, and so on. Like this, we all are experts at some secular fields, but what is most important is that we have to become experts of faith who listen to and believe in God’s Word, which has come by the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
I hope and pray that you would all thus accept the gospel of the water and the Spirit into your heart in joy, receive God’s blessings in joy, live in joy, and then stand before God on the last day. Let us, in short, receive the washing of sin and gladly enjoy the glory of God in our lives. Let us receive the blessings of salvation that have come by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Do you believe in this gospel, my fellow believers? Placing my faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, I give all my thanks to God.
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