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“The Word became flesh” then so that He might be made flesh in us now (John 1:14).  The Son of God became “Emmanuel” (God with us) so that He might be “God with us” here-and-now. “Jesus … has risen” (Matthew 28:5-6) – so that, as the living Christ, He might live in us. Our faith is grounded in the great facts of the Gospel: The Word became flesh, Jesus has risen. The Saviour was born for us. He lived for us. He died for us. He rose for us. All that He has done for us must become a powerful reality in us . This is the work of the Holy Spirit. ‘For us’ – we must never forget this. We do not jump straight to ‘In us.’ To those who speak of a inner spirituality which is not grounded in the historical reality of the great events of the Gospel, the Word of God says, “Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God” (1 John 4:2-3)...

“We wish to see Jesus… The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified… I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself…  although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him… they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” ( John 12:21 , 23 , 32 , 37-43 ). When we say, “We want to see Jesus”, we are led by the Holy Spirit to the Cross of Christ. In the Cross of Christ, we see love that appeals to all people, calling them to come to the Saviour and receive His salvation. Sadly, there are many who refuse to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. There are some who find themselves drawn to the Saviour. They “believe in Him” but  “they do not confess Him” because “they love the praise of men more than the praise of God.” What are we to say when the love that makes its appeal to all is rejected by many? – “Not everyone has faith, but the Lord is faithful” ( 2 Thessalonians 3:2-3 ). Wh...

“Now you’re in a painful situation. But I will see you again. Then you will be happy, and no one will take that happiness away from you” (John 16:22). Where does happiness come from? Is it something that we reach out for and grasp? or Is it something that’s given to us? Our happiness comes to us from our Lord.  

Salvation and service * Salvation leads to service. Those who have been saved by the Lord are to serve Him. * Service arises out of salvation. When we serve the Lord, we must never forget that we have been saved by Him. * What God must do for us – He must save : “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17). * What we must do for God – We must serve: “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8).

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew (from above), he cannot see the Kingdom of God” ( John 3:3 ). (1) The absolute need of the new birth – because of sin ( Romans 3:23 ); (2) The Gospel basis for the new birth is the death of Christ for us ( Titus 3:3-7 ). (3) The indispensable condition for the new birth is personal faith in Christ ( John 1:12-13 ). (4) The spiritual character of the new birth – by the Spirit through the Word ( 1 Peter 1:23-25 ); (5) The spiritual benefits of the new birth:      (a) a child of God ( Galatians 4:4-6 );      (b) a new creation ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 );      (c) partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1;3-4);      (d) sharing in Christ’s victory ( 1 John 5:4-5 );      (e) eternal life ( 1 John 5:11-12 ).

Jesus calls us to follow Him. Are you and I following Him? or Have we settled for something less? When we speak about church membership, we must ask ourselves, "Where does Jesus fit in? Is He at the centre of our life? or Has He been sidelined, while we settle for something less than following Him?" Let's think about church membership. What does it mean to us? (1) There is the church member who joined the church because thus is what other people were doing at the time. It was never really anything to do with following Jesus. It was more about following the crowd. When the crowd drifts away from the church, so does this kind of church member. How different is the true disciple who says, "If no one joins me, still I will follow. (2) There is the church member who joined the church because he was interested in the activities associated with the church. This kind of church member is a great enthusiast for his own particular organization, but he shows no enthusias...

We're going to look at the Lord Jesus in two very different situations. We will see two sides of Him - two sides which belong together. In John 2:1-11, we see Him at a wedding, celebrating with the newly-weds, sharing with them in their happiness. In John 2:12-16, we see Him as the religious reformer, strenuously defending the purity of worship in God's House. These two sides of the Lord Jesus show us something about the purpose of life. The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins with question, "What is man's chief end (purpose)?" The answer is given, "Man's chief end (purpose) is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." Glorifying God and enjoying God - the two belong together. In the Christian life, there is both privilege and responsibility - the privilege of being a Christian and the responsibility of being a Christian. In John 2, we learn about the joy of being a Christian and the seriousness of being a Christian. We learn th...

John 1:1-34 We thank You, Lord, for Your Son, Jesus - "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). What a wonderful thing this - it's the great exchange: Jesus has taken our sin, and we receive His salvation. John 1:35-2:25 Help us, Lord, to look beyond what we are right now. Help us to catch a glimpse of what You want us to become. How are we to become what You want us to be? Your divine power is far more important than our human effort. We don't change ourselves. We are changed by You - changed by Your love, changed by Your power. John 3:1-36 Where does our salvation come from? Does it come from ourselves? Does it begin with "I"? No! It comes from You. It begins with You - "God so loved the world ... " (John 3:16). John 4:1-42 We thank You, Lord, for Your great love. You bring us out of our bondage to sin. You bring us into the joy of Your salvation. Your love reaches down to us. Your love brings us to Jesus. He...

We wonder, "Where have we come from? Where are we going to?" Jesus says, "I know where I came from, and where I'm going" (John 8:14). Show us, Lord Jesus, Your eternal love - the love that calls out to us from the beginning, the love that calls us on to the end, the love that calls out to us from Your eternal glory, the love that calls us on to Your eternal glory.

When you're at a crossroads, it's so important that you make the right decision. Once you've made the right decision, it's so important that you keep on heading in the right direction. Some people tell us that there are many ways to God and many ways to heaven. This is not what Jesus tells us. What does Jesus say to us? - He says, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No-one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). Jesus says, "I am the door; if any one enters by Me, he will be saved" (John 10:9). How does Jesus open the door to heaven for us? He says, "I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for us" (John 10:11). It's through His death on the Cross that Jesus opens the door to heaven. What is heaven? We speak about going up to heaven when our life on earth is over. We can also speak of heaven coming down to us while we are still here on earth - "Heaven came down and glory filled...

"The Light shines in the dark, and the dark has never extinguished it" (John 1:5). Jesus is the Light of the world. We are to be like John, who said, "Make the way for the Lord straight" (John 1:23). Like John, we are to say, "Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). When we are faithful, we will see others being brought to the Saviour. At the beginning of their faith, they will be filled with the joy of the Lord. Like Jesus, we must teach them that there is greater joy, still to come: "You will see the sky open and God's angels going up and coming down to the Son of Man" (John 1:51).

John 12:1-11 Mary was the sister of "Lazarus ... whom Jesus raised from the dead" (John 12:1; John 11:2). The anointing of Jesus came after the raising of Lazarus. The Lord Jesus had raised Mary's brother from the dead. Only Jesus could have done this for her. Only Jesus had done this for her. in view of this remarkable act of divine power and love, Mary now had a sense of inestimable debt.  She felt that she owed her all to Jesus.  * She had been in the darkness of sorrow, and Jesus brought her the light of life.  * She had been in the pit of deep despair, and Jesus brought her into new hope.  * She had been in the depths of grief, and Jesus brought her unspeakable joy. To the man who does not understand the grace of God (Judas Iscariot), her action seems very strange. To the Man who embodies the grace of God (Jesus), her action is seen as a deeply spiritual response to the grace of God. If there's one word that describes Mary's act, it is this wor...

Read the words of John 3:16 and Romans 10:9. Put your name into these great verses. Make it personal – Jesus is my Saviour. Jesus is my Lord.

We look at the first seven chapters of John's Gospel. Our seven words are (1) Who; (2) What; (3) Wind; (4) Worship; (5) Wholeness; (6) Word; (7) Witness. (1) Who is Jesus? Chapter 1: (a) the Word (v. 1); (b ) God (v. 1); (c) the life (v. 4); (d) the light of men (v 4 ) and the true light (v. 9); (e) the only begotten Son (v. 18) or the Son of God (vs, 34, 49); (f) the Lamb of God (vs. 29, 36); (g) Master (v. 38); (h) the Messiah or the Christ (v. 41); (i) the King of Israel (v. 49); (j) the Son of Man (v.51). We focus our attention on another description of Jesus - "this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit" (v.33). This is based on the Spirit's descending, like a dove, to abide on Jesus (vs.32-33). (2) What kind of Spirit does Jesus baptize us with? What kind of Spirit does He pour out upon us? What kind of Spirit does He give to us to live in us? Chapter 2: The Holy Spirit is "the Spirit of Jesus ( Acts 16:7 ), "the Spirit of Christ" ( ...