Greg Laurie - How to Not Be Born Again (08/08/2017)
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Pastor Greg Laurie shares how Jesus is eternally God the Word who became flesh, using John 1 to show we're not born again by family heritage, personal will, or human effort—but only by receiving Christ. He urges everyone to believe in Jesus for true life and forgiveness, especially before communion.
Opening Prayer and Church Family News
Father, we're glad to be here tonight to look at Your Word and to learn more about Jesus. So we pray that as we open Scripture, You'll open our eyes and open our hearts. And that we will grow deeper in our love for Him as we learn more about His love for us. As Your Word says, we love Him because He first loved us. So, bless this time we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.
You can all be seated. Well, hello, everybody. Hello. Okay. Hey, a couple of things I wanted to mention. Number one, Tim and Stephanie Harding—Tim's a pastor at the church here. You see him here all the time. He's the big muscular guy with tattoos. He kind of looks like a Maui from the film, right? But his tattoos don't talk, I don't think, last time I checked. But I'm talking about the film Moana, forget it. Okay, so, they have a little boy named Trent. And Trent just had open heart surgery. And it was completely successful and he's doing great. So here's a picture of little Trent. Look at that little guy. That's where they did the surgery, right down the middle. We went and prayed with the little guy there in the hospital. Literally, he was so brave and the surgery went very well. And so, just pray for a complete recovery. And you'll see him around church here with his brothers, Stefan and Dylan, and his mom and dad, Stephanie and Tim. So, thank God for answered prayers, right? Especially when it's with our children.
Immediately following the service tonight, we're going to have a time of communion. So that's something to look forward to.
Announcement About the New Book on Steve McQueen
Finally, you probably heard me talk a little bit about a new book that I have written called Steve McQueen, The Salvation of an American Icon. Well, this book is not coming out for a while, but we have advanced copies here tonight. And I'm going to be signing them after this service. Now, you might wonder, Greg, why are you writing a book about Steve McQueen? Very good question. This is unlike any book I've ever written. Believe it or not, I've written 70 books. I never said people read them. I said I wrote them, okay? But this book stands apart.
And the way it all started was last year at our Harvest Crusade, I used an illustration of the transformation of Steve McQueen and how he found Christ toward the end of his life. And it got me really curious to know the rest of the story. So I started contacting people that knew him and learning more about it. And as I delved into his life, I was really amazed to find that his childhood and my childhood were almost identical. I didn't know that about him. Both of us had alcoholic mothers that were married and divorced many times. Both of us had stepfathers who were abusive. Both of us went searching for our biological father that we never knew. Both of us ended up in a reform school of some type. He was in the Chino Boys' home and I was in the Southern California Military Academy.
Surprising Facts from Steve McQueen's Life
And so as I began to discover his story, I thought, I'm going to write a book about this, but I'm not going to do it alone. So I enlisted the help of a guy named Marshall Terrell, who's also a co-author of this book. He's written five books on Steve McQueen. So he knows this story well for all the details. But I sort of weave my story around Steve's story. And it helps me to write with a certain degree of empathy.
Here's five factoids I discovered about McQueen that are pretty surprising. Number one, he had an alcoholic mother and never knew his biological father. That's number one. Number two, he literally ran away from home when he was a little boy and joined the circus. Who does that? He actually did that. Number three, he was arrested later and actually worked on a chain gang. Okay, who does that? Steve McQueen.
He was also an invited guest to the home of Sharon Tate on the night that the Manson murders took place. He agreed to go. He was close friends with one of the people there, Jay Sebring, who was a hairdresser and cut Steve's hair. And he was on his way there in a last-minute decision. He didn't go. And then he later found out he was on Manson's hit list.
And then the last factoid, he became a Christian toward the end of his life. Now, the king of cool, the man's man, the number one movie star in the world, saw his need for Jesus. It's an amazing story. We're working on a film as well. So I'm very excited about this book. And it's the best book I've ever written, probably because I had someone help me write it, who's a real writer. But I think people have told me this, and you'll have to discover for yourself, but they said once they started, they couldn't stop reading it. It's a fascinating story. And nobody else has this book right now, but you can get a copy after the service, and I'd be happy to sign it.
Introducing the Gospel of John Series – Life
All right, well, let's grab our Bibles, and we're going to turn to the Gospel of John. This series, and the title of this series is called Life. Life, because this Gospel is all about life. It's about this life on earth, and it's about the afterlife as well.
And here's the title for my message, How Not to Be Born Again. Now, I didn't make a mistake. That is actually the title, How Not to Be Born Again. I'll explain why I chose that title in a few moments. But John chapter 1 is where we're going to begin. Next Thursday, we'll be in John chapter 2, which is logical, isn't it? After John 1, we have John 2. And my son Jonathan's going to be helping me teach this series. So he's going to teach next Thursday night on John 2. So, and then we'll kind of be trading back and forth a bit.
But I love this Gospel, and I love to study the story of Jesus.
A Funny Story About Looking Like Jesus
A number of years ago, I went to a mental institution. Maybe I should explain. Not as a patient. I was there as a visitor. In fact, I was going to pray for someone that requested a pastor. And so I'm there with a fellow pastor, and we meet a patient in the institution. And my friend says to this guy, Have you ever met Jesus Christ personally? And this guy, without missing a beat, turns to me, and shakes my hand and says, Jesus, it's good to meet you.
Now, why did he do that? Because I looked exactly like this. Look up on the screen. This is what I look like. I was 21 years old. Check out that Hawaiian shirt. I don't know what I was thinking there. It's quite interesting, really. And so I looked like that. So no, you know, he didn't know. He thought my friend brought Jesus into the mental institution. So that's good with that photo. We can move that now. Okay, so.
But I mean, isn't that what we would all like to do? And by the way, coming back to that story, he starts shaking my hand. He says, Jesus, it's good to meet you. I said, no, no, no. My name is Greg. I'm not Jesus. But wouldn't we just love to shake His hand? I mean, to actually see Him face to face.
The Unique Focus of John's Gospel
If you could pick any other time in history to live, would you pick 2,000 years ago? So you could walk the streets with Jesus and talk to Jesus and hear the voice of Jesus. I mean, think about the impact He has had on the world. More books have been written about Jesus Christ than any other person who's ever lived.
But I was with my grandson, Christopher, the other day. And I have some old typewriters in my office. They don't work. They're on my shelf. They're more for decoration. But he really was fascinated by it. And so I took it down and I set it in front of him. He just starts typing away. Like he really knows what he's doing. Clackety-clackety-clack. And so I said, Christopher, are you writing a book? He said, no. I said, well, if you wrote a book, what would you write it about? And he's still typing the whole time, typing. I mean, he says, Jesus? Well, that's a great answer for a four-year-old. You'd write about Jesus, what would you say? He said, I don't know. And he just kept typing. But I love that. That it's in his little heart. I'd write a book about Jesus.
More books have been written about Him. More songs have been written about Jesus Christ. More art has been produced depicting Christ than any person who has ever lived. You know, I never get tired of talking about Jesus. Do you? Do you ever get tired of hearing about Jesus? You know, when you come to church, I want to look at something that Jesus said, oh, no, not Jesus again. No, it's the opposite, right? Oh, yes. I want to know what Jesus has to say.
Paul's Purpose – Knowing Christ
As the Apostle Paul said in Philippians, a book we just completed, he said his determined purpose in life in Philippians 3:10 was to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and participate in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death. And by the way, that should be the goal of every Christian, to know Jesus, to spend your time learning about Jesus and more to the point, becoming like Jesus.
Now, I want to look in the days ahead in the Gospel of John at the birth, the life, the ministry, the miracles, the teachings, of course, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is found in the Gospel of John.
Why John's Gospel Stands Apart from the Others
Now, over the years, I've taught through all the Gospels, of course, and each Gospel has its own unique perspective. It's sort of like taking photos of something from different angles. Each Gospel gives us a different angle. One Gospel is not better than another. They're just different from each other. One is not more insightful. It's just different insights, all pictures of Jesus.
Take the Gospel of Matthew, for instance. Jesus is presented as the Messiah of Israel. It was written 30 years after His death and resurrection. And Matthew is showing that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah with 129 quotations from the Old Testament. That's unique to Matthew's Gospel. There's some other things in his Gospel that we don't find in the others, like the story of the wise men and the nativity story, as well as the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount is only in Matthew's Gospel.
Then there's the Gospel of Mark. By the way, that was the first of the four Gospels that was written. Some believe it was actually dictated by Peter to Mark. We don't know for sure about that. But Mark's Gospel almost... He almost writes like a reporter. There's a breathless quality. There's like movement in it. One of Mark's favorite words is immediately. In fact, he uses it 42 times. So he has Jesus in movement, Jesus doing things. It's sort of like the Gospel for people with ADD. I don't know. But it's a fast-paced Gospel, a shorter Gospel, 16 chapters in total.
Then there's the Gospel of Luke. And again, really unique. By the way, Luke was not one of the apostles. He was not an eyewitness of the life and ministry of Christ. In fact, he came back and interviewed the people that were involved in the story. And Luke was a physician by trade, an educated man. He also was something of a poet. The way that Luke writes in his particular version of the Nativity story is the one we usually hear quoted around Christmas time. Just such... It's stated so beautifully. But he was a stickler for details. And so he probably interviewed Mary, the mother of our Lord, and Simon Peter and the other disciples. And he has some unique features as well, like the two disciples on the Emmaus Road that's only found in the Gospel of Luke. As is the story of the prodigal son. One of the best known stories in the Bible. That's only in the Gospel of Luke.
John Focuses on the Meaning of Jesus' Life
Well, that brings us to the Gospel of John. There's no nativity story in John's Gospel. And by that I mean the story of the birth of Christ. There's no genealogy in John like there is in Matthew and Luke. In fact, 90% of the material found in the Gospel of John is found nowhere else. While other Gospels focus on key events in the life of Christ, John focuses on the meaning of them. Let me say that again. While other Gospels focus on key events in the life of Christ, John focuses on the meaning of them.
In fact, many of the great I am statements of Jesus are found only in the Gospel of John. Well, we read Jesus saying, I am the bread of life. I am the good Shepherd, John chapter 10. I am the resurrection and the life. And he that believes in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And of course, the very familiar John 14:6. I am the way, the truth, and the life. And no man comes to the Father but by Me.
John's Purpose in Writing His Gospel
So why did John write his gospel? Well, for starters, he was an eyewitness of the ministry of our Lord. And he was sort of in the inside circle. Remember how Jesus would take Peter, James, and John with Him on special occasions. They were there when the daughter of Jairus was raised from the dead. They were there when Jesus was transfigured with Moses on one side and Elijah on the other. Peter, James, and John were there in the Garden of Gethsemane where Christ's, what is it, were great drops of blood. And Dr. Luke points that out uniquely. And being a physician, maybe he is describing a medical condition known as hematidrosis. That when a patient is under extreme stress, they can actually have perspiration mixed with blood.
So these guys saw a lot of things that the others did not see. And John often describes himself as the apostle that Jesus loved. Now that almost sounds arrogant. Like, oh, I was the guy He loved. Well, actually, I don't think it's arrogant at all. I think it would be arrogant if he said he was the apostle who loved Jesus. Now, he didn't boast of his love for Christ. He boasted of Christ's love for him.
And in fact, John was very insightful. John seemed to pick up on things that the others would often miss. After Christ was risen from the dead and was standing on the shore with some fish that He had cooked for the boys for breakfast, He called to them and it was John, the perceptive one, who said, it's the Lord. Peter was like, what? John was like, it's Jesus.
After Christ had risen and the tomb was empty, John and Peter came to see the empty tomb. Peter was trying to figure out what it meant and went away with a certain degree of skepticism. John looked in, saw, and believed. That was John. Very insightful guy.
But why did he write this gospel? He actually tells us in John 20:31. He said, these things were written that non-believers might believe. These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.
Whenever I talk to someone who says they want to start reading the Bible, you might be surprised to find I don't say start in Genesis. Not that it's a bad thing to start in Genesis. But I often tell them to start in the Gospel of John. And the reason I say that is because it was specifically written so a non-believer could believe. So I think it's a great place for a person to start. And of course, a great place for anyone to start who wants to read through the Bible. And I'll tell them to pray something along the lines of, say to God, if You're real, make Yourself real to me as I read this gospel.
In 21 chapters, John proves that Jesus is the Son of God who should be followed. Number two, John's gospel was written that we as believers might experience more of His life in us. Let me say that again. Again, John's gospel was written that we as believers might experience more of His life in us. Because he says that believing, you may have life in His name. So John wrote the gospel for those who already believe. Because the word that he uses there for believing speaks of a continual action. In other words, John is saying the more we believe, the more life we will experience. Thus, John wrote to convince the skeptic, but also to convince the believer in the commitment they've already made.
John 1 – The Eternal Word Who Is God
So, the gospel of John and the way it begins is amazing. Because he goes way back before the little town of Bethlehem. He goes way back before Mary and Joseph. He goes way back even before the Garden of Eden. He goes back to the solar system. He goes back to the beginning of the beginning. So that's where we're going to start. John chapter 1, starting in verse 1. We'll read verses 1 to 5.
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 that life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
So, we'll stop there. Now, this is interesting because there's not a definite article before the word beginning. Meaning you cannot pinpoint this moment in time where there was a beginning. So, really, when he says the beginning, we don't even know where that starts. But John is taking us back to eternity past, further back than the human mind can imagine.
Point 1 – Jesus Is God
And that brings me to my first point about Jesus. If you're taking notes. And here it is. Jesus is God. Jesus is God. That's a really important thing to understand and believe for a Christian. Jesus is God. Before there was a world, before there was planets, before there was light or darkness, before there was matter, before anything else, there was the Godhead, and there was Jesus. Jesus Christ, co-equal, co-eternal, co-existent with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
The Word was with God. The Word was God. Jesus was deity in diapers, if you will. He did not become identical to us, but He did become identified with us. In fact, He could not have been any more identified with us than He was. It was total identification without a loss of identity on His part.
Jesus is God. That, by the way, is an essential for Christians. There's no wiggle room here. If you don't believe Jesus is God, to be blunt, you can't be a Christian. Because who is He? Just a great man? A prophet? A guru? What? Jesus claimed to be God. And for us to be genuine Christians, we must believe that He is God.
Jesus was fully God. But just as true as that is, this is also true. Jesus was fully man. How is that possible? I'm not really sure. But He was fully God, and He was fully man. And verse 14 says, The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
I mean, think about it. Jesus Christ, who had neither beginning nor end, who has always existed, came to this earth as a living, breathing human being. He who was larger than life. He who created the solar system became an embryo. He went from the throne of heaven to a feeding trough. That's effectively where He was born there in that manger or that cave. He went from the presence of angels to a cave filled with animals.
I think it's hard for us to wrap our mind around the idea of deity and humanity and one person. Well, a good example of this would be Jesus crossing the Sea of Galilee. He was tired from a day of ministry and fell asleep. And a radical storm came, pitching the boat back and forth. And they were waking Him up, saying, Lord, save us, or we will die. So what could be more human than falling asleep? Right? But then what could be more as an illustration of deity than the fact that He stood up after they woke Him up and calmed the storm? Probably because He wanted to go back to His nap again. You know, wake up. Lord, wake up. We're going to perish. Oh, whatever. Okay. Peace be still.
So here's the storm. Stops. He goes back downstairs. I don't know if that happened. But that was deity on display. That He could speak to a storm. And by the way, the phrase that's used there in the original language is, Peace be muzzle. As though He was talking to a wild animal. I think He was talking to the spirit behind that storm in this particular instance, which was the devil.
Again, what could be more human than His crucifixion and death? To see Him beaten. He bled real blood. He felt real pain. He experienced real thirst as He hung on the cross. But what could be more divine than the veil in the temple ripping from top to bottom, and an earthquake and a darkness covering the land as He bore the sin of the world?
Look at Jesus to Know What God Is Like
Well, so I think people try to wrap their minds around God. It's not an easy thing to do. They consider His attributes. That God is omniscient. That God is omnipotent. That God is omnipresent. That God is sovereign. That God is righteous. And God is holy. And those things are all true. But if you really want to know what God is like, just look at Jesus. That's it. What's God like? Look at Jesus. What does God think of children? Look at Jesus. Taking the children into His arms and blessing them. What does God think about that? Look at Jesus. He is God among us. Basically, He was God with skin on. God had a face.
Jesus became one of us without ceasing to be Himself. Jesus became human without ceasing to be God. And the Bible is clear in pointing out that Christ always was God Himself.
In fact, before the creation of the universe, Jesus was there. Notice verse 1. The Word was with God. He was with God. And that can be translated, the Word was continually toward God. So what that implies is a closeness among the Trinity. It implies a closeness between Father and Son being face to face. It's hard for us to fathom how close the Father and the Son were. But the preposition with implies nearness, along with a sense of movement toward God. So if you're really close to someone, you might lean on them, right? It's relationship. It's intimacy. And that is the idea that's being implied here.
In fact, Jesus said, I always do the things that please the Father. Who could say that? But Jesus. I don't even know if He could say that for five minutes of my life. Much less all of my life. But Jesus said, Oh, I always do the things that please the Father.
And then in John 17, which really would be the technical Lord's Prayer. You know, we say the Lord's Prayer is, Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. And nowhere in the Bible does it call that the Lord's Prayer. If we wanted to be accurate, it should be called the Disciples Prayer. Because it's a prayer only we would pray. Christ would never pray that prayer. He gave it in response to the request, Lord, teach us to pray. Because Jesus would never say, Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Forgive us our sin. You see, He wouldn't ask for the forgiveness of sin. And that's a good prayer for us to pray. But if you want to read the Lord's Prayer, read John chapter 17. Where that's the prayer only Jesus could pray. And He said to His Father, there in John 17, Oh, Father, glorify Me with Your own self, with the glory which I had with You before the world began.
Jesus as Creator and the Trinity in Creation
And you know, Jesus, as a member of the Trinity, was hands-on at the creation of everything. Verse 3 says, All things were made through Him. Without Him, nothing was made that was made. So that verse is telling us that Christ is the Creator. In fact, Colossians 1:16 says, For by Him, all things were created. Things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities, all things were created by Him and for Him.
Okay? So you're saying, No, wait, wait. I'm confused. Because I read in Genesis 1:1 that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now you're telling me, Jesus created the heavens and the earth. So who created it? God the Father or God the Son? Okay, you ready for the answer? Write this down. The Holy Spirit did it. What? Now you're really confusing me.
Okay, simple answer. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit all participated in the creation of all things. Because in Genesis 1 we read, 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. And God said, Let there be light. And there was light. So Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all played a part. The whole Trinity was working.
Here's another interesting thing about the Trinity. Genesis 1:26 has the Father saying, Let us make man in our image and in our likeness. So who was God talking to? Angels? I don't think so. Are you made in the likeness of an angel? Sometimes we'll say of someone, Oh, she's just like an angel. Well, no, angels are created beings. So it wasn't angels. So I believe it was the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit having a conversation.
And then in Genesis 3:22 we read, Behold, man has become as one of us. And then it says, Let us go down. And then in Genesis 1:27 we read, God created man in His own image. So the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit in a way we can never wrap our minds around are having a conversation about us.
So coming back to my main point, Jesus was and is God. And if you don't believe that, Houston, we have a problem.
Cults and Religions That Deny Jesus Is God
Most cult groups deny the deity of Christ. And when I say deity, I mean His divinity or saying He's God. In fact, if you want to find out where a religious group is at, just cut to the chase and say, Who do you think Jesus Christ was? If they say He was a mere messenger or a prophet or one of many sons of God, that is the wrong answer. The only correct answer is Jesus is the only Son of God who lived a perfect, sinless life. He was God in human form.
For instance, Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe Jesus was God. So when you're down at the mall and you see those friendly looking people behind the table and it says JW, they don't believe Jesus is God. You see? And that's a big deal because you cannot have a relationship with the Father if you don't believe this. Jesus Himself said, in fact, in John's Gospel, unless you believe that I am (a claim to deity), you will die in your sins.
Buddhists believe Jesus was a good teacher, but He was less important in their estimation than the Buddha. Hindus believe that Jesus was one of many incarnations or sons of God. They specifically teach Christ was not the Son of God. He was no more divine than any other man and they also teach Jesus did not die for the sin of humanity.
Muslims believe Jesus Christ was only a man. He was a prophet, they will acknowledge, equal to Adam, Noah, or Abraham, all of whom are below Mohammed in importance. Okay? So don't tell me all religions teach the same thing. So when someone says that, it's their way of saying, I'm an idiot and I don't know what I'm talking about. Seriously.
All religions teach the same thing. I have a sticker in my car, coexist, okay? It's on my Prius and I'm getting Kale for lunch. Okay, wait, hold on. I'm all for coexisting and I like Kale and Priuses get great mileage. But, and I want to coexist. You know, I think Christians are the most tolerant people on the face of the earth. You know, we're often described as intolerant, unloving, bigoted, nothing can be further from the truth. I find the most intolerant people are the ones that talk about tolerance the most. Because they will not tolerate anyone who dares to say, I believe the Bible is the Word of God. They'll accept everything but that. And so that's where the intolerant says, you know, we're tolerant. But at the same time, we have our beliefs based on Scripture and on what Christ Himself said. And so all religions do not teach the same thing. Religions cancel each other out so you have to pick the one you believe.
The Bible teaches that Jesus was the God-Man who spoke everything into existence. Hebrews 1:2 says, He has spoken by His Son by whom He made the world.
God's Power and Care for Us
Now scientists tell us there are 100 billion stars in the average galaxy and there are at least 100 million galaxies in known space. How they come up with this, I have no idea. But as they come up with more powerful telescopes and peer deeper into space, they see more and more and they're finally figuring out God knew what He was talking about. When He said that the stars were like the sands of the sea.
You know, there was a time historically when they thought they could actually count the stars. 1, 2, 3 Oh, I've got to start over again. 1, 2 Yeah, well now we know that's virtually impossible. Einstein believed that if we scanned with our telescopes we have only scanned one billionth of theoretical space. That means that there is something like 10 octillion stars in space.
So, what is octillion? Okay, so here's how it works. A thousand thousands is a million. Right? A thousand millions is a billion. A thousand billions is a trillion. A thousand trillions is a quadrillion. A thousand quadrillions is a quintillion. A thousand quintillions is a sextillion. Has nothing to do with sex. Don't get excited. Three people just woke up. Sex? In stars? Go back to sleep. Okay. A thousand sextillions is a septillion. And 1,000 septillions is an octillion. So 10 octillions is 10 with 27 zeros. So here it is on the screen. It's a lot of zeros.
Okay. So you say, well, why are you telling us this? Well, if Einstein's right, and there may be more than this even, but let's just say he's right. He's a pretty smart guy. Just remember this. God made it all. Your Father in heaven made all of those things. So I think when you have a problem, God can handle it.
You know, sometimes we'll say, oh, we have this crisis and we've tried everything. And all we can do now is pray. Pray. Oh, you mean pray to the almighty God that created all these things? Yeah. I think that's the first thing you ought to be doing. What an insult to God to not realize His power. That He wants to display in your life. We're told in Matthew 19:26, with God, all things are possible.
So we sometimes fail to see how much God loves us and how interested He is. Now, look, if God made all these things, and He was just this all-powerful God, and He didn't care about me, that would be amazing. But He cares about me. Remember, Jesus was God among us. And Jesus said, fear not, little flock. It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Don't you love that verse? Fear not, little flock.
So, first of all, He reminds us that He's our Shepherd. Fear not, little flock. He'll take care of you. If you go astray, He'll bring you back again. If you break your leg, He'll mend it for you. And it's your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. He's not just your Shepherd, He's also your king, who's in control, and He's all-powerful. But then, the king, who is your Shepherd, cares about you personally, because He says to you, fear not, little flock.
I heard the story about a man who was a friend of Henry Ford. You've heard of Henry Ford, right? Founder of the Ford Motor Company. And he had a friend named Charles Steinmetz. And Steinmetz was a mechanical genius who was said to be able to build the engine of a car in his mind. And if it broke down, he could fix it in his mind.
So, one day, the assembly line at Ford broke down in the plant. And none of Ford's men could fix it. So, they called old Charlie Steinmetz and said, check this out. He tinkered for a few minutes, threw the switch, and it started running again. A few days later, he sent his bill for $10,000. So, Ford wrote back. It said, now, Charlie, this seems like a pretty high bill for just spending a few moments to repair this. And then Charlie said, okay, here's how the bill breaks down. Tinkering $10, knowing where to tinker, $9,990. See, that was Charlie's skill set. He knew where to tinker. He knew what to do.
So, when things are breaking down in life, you serve the God who knows where to tinker. He knows where to work. He knows what to fix. He knows what's troubling you. Right now, you come to this service, or you're watching or listening, and you have a burden on your heart, and you're overwhelmed by it. Your God knows about it. Your God cares about it. And your God is more than able to help you with it. And so, this is the God that we're talking about.
Point 3 – The Light Shines in the Darkness
Point number three. God, who became a man, shined His light on humanity. Look at verse four. 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.
I don't know about you, but before I was a Christian, I thought man was basically good. And that's why I was so confused about life. Because in the 17 years of my life on earth, I'd seen so many bad things. I'd seen things no young boy should ever see. I was exposed to the worst underbelly of people and things they did. And I thought, well, if man's basically good, why do people do such awful things? And when I became a Christian, and I realized man was not basically good, but he was sinful, everything started making sense, right? And this is clearly what the Bible teaches.
Because despite all of our advances, technological advances, scientific advances, and we can point to all these things, yet how much have we really changed? We've made no progress whatsoever in the basic ills of the human condition. Crime, violence, war, injustice, racism.
We just saw this horrible terrorist attack in Manchester, England, that appears to have been targeted toward young girls that were fans of the singer Ariana Grande. And one of the young girls who I think was seven years old. I mean, who does something like that? It is so wicked. And I think President Trump was right when he said that this is a struggle between good and evil. Because this is evil. And when you say something like that, it freaks some people out. Who are you to say it's evil? Well, I'm saying it's evil because the Bible gives us absolutes. It gives us truth. And it shows us error. And it shows us how to live. And it's just denial of this that has resulted in so many of the social ills in our country today.
Look at the breakdown in America. If we would just get back to what God said in His Word and how to live our lives, things would change overnight. But we disregard these things. We even mock these things. We even persecute people that believe these things. I'm not saying we do as Christians, but others do in our country.
Look at verse five. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. The word comprehend can be translated understood or overcome. In other words, those who live in darkness don't get you as a Christian. All right? So you can try to be the nicest Christian person who ever lived. You tip generously. You always have a smile on your face. When the parking lot is full, and there's a space, and you're pulling in, and someone else wants it, you give them the space. You say, God bless you as they pull in. You pray for them as they go into the mall. You always have a kind thing to say. You share your lunch with people. You just do every nice thing a person can do. And you do it in the name of Jesus. And people still don't get you. Why? Because the darkness cannot comprehend the light.
Now I'm not suggesting we just abandon all these ideas and just go be mean and forget about it. We should seek to be godly, loving, caring people. Listen, if you want to win some, be winsome. You know, so be a loving person. Be a caring person. And having said all that, there's nothing you can say to help a non-believer figure you out. Because the Bible says the natural man or the non-believing man or woman does not understand the things of God. Neither can they know them because they're spiritually discerned.
So you say, what do I do? What do you do? You just keep living a godly life and pray for them. Because one day the light can go on for them. And their eyes are open. Remember when it happened to you? I used to look at Christians like they were crazy people. I thought, why would anybody live that way? Why would anybody act that way? What is wrong with these people? And then one day I just for a moment tried a new thought on for size. And the thought was, what if they're right and I'm wrong? What if God can be known? I thought, no, there's no way. I quickly dismissed it. But after a little time examining them more, I thought, I actually think that is true. And then, of course, when I believed in Jesus, it was true. And then some.
But you need to pray for people because the darkness cannot comprehend the light. I know it's hard because, you know, we want people to believe, but there's nothing you're going to do that's going to make them believe. So just keep living your life as a follower of Christ and keep shining that light. And actually, it's that very friction that can ultimately result in conversion.
Jesus said, you think that I've come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, rather a division and a sword for a man will be divided against the members of his own family. You're going, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. What? Jesus, you know, you have a lamb wrapped around your neck and you're flashing a peace sign. What's this business about a sword and division? That's Jesus.
Because when a person believes in Jesus, let's take a family, for instance. Maybe you're all non-believers. And every Christmas, you just get drunk and you do it on New Year's and you get together and there are a lot of, you know, off-color jokes and that's your weird, crazy, icky family. And then you become a Christian. And in their estimation, you're ruining all their fun. You don't have to say anything. You just show up on Thanksgiving and their reaction is, here we go. Here we go. You did nothing. You walked in the room. Here we go. Hey, how's everyone doing? Ah, hypocrite. Fine. Hypocrite. I bought the Turkey. Yeah, whatever. Hypocrite.
See, it's just a, it's a mindset. And now division is in your family. They'll even say, man, we used to get along and we used to have fun together and now you want to pray before the meal and Jesus this and Jesus that. You've wrecked our family. No, you haven't. Now, this is where the division comes in. It's the division that brings unity. Say, now I've lost you. I don't know what that means.
Okay. See, you had kind of this false peace and false unity around evil things. But you came and sort of brought a division and now there's a tension. So that friction continues and time goes by. But then one of your relatives has a crisis. Their child is sick. And guess who they call? Mm-hmm. They don't want the drunks now. Well, they want the Christians. Uh, would you come down to the hospital and pray for my son? And you say, absolutely. And now their heart begins to soften a little bit. And now they're open. And now they come to church with you. And now they've accepted Christ. Now it's two. It's two of you. And so, yeah, there was a division. But this is the division that brings unity. Now it's three. Now it's four. Oh, watch out. Now the whole family has come to Christ. And it's a whole new life. That's what happens.
But maybe you're in the early stages of the tension part, right? You're thinking, this is not working well. It's working just fine if you'll leave it in God's hands. Your job is to be a good example, be a loving person. When the opportunity is right, share gospel truth. But you don't have to preach a sermon every time you see them, okay? Once you've preached your sermon, you can now live your sermon and pray for wisdom on what to say and when to say it.
The True Light That Lights Every Man
Verse 9, this is the true light that gives light to every man coming into this world. Now this is important because this verse is sometimes misunderstood. Sometimes I've heard it stated as follows. Well, there's a light in man. We all have the inner light. And that inner light is in every person and we need to discover the inner light and the inner Christ. And then we need to go to hot yoga together. I don't know, just that.
Someone told me today, I couldn't believe this. They said, I'm gonna go do yoga with goats. I'm not making this. Don't they poop a lot? I mean, I don't know. I said, no, but it's just being with the animals and the goats. I'm like, okay, have fun with those goats.
But that's not what this verse is saying. It's not saying we all have an inner light. It's not speaking the light in man. It's talking about God's light shining on man. And there's a big difference.
Now, it is true that God has placed eternity in the heart of people. We're told that in Scripture. What that simply means is there is a sense in every man and woman that there's something more in life. And that's why we go on a search in life. But it's a search that hopefully will lead us to Christ. And the Bible tells us that we have a sense of conscience inside of us. In the book of Romans, it says our conscience will accuse or excuse us. Romans also tells us we have the testimony of nature all around us.
But ultimately, verse nine, this true light gives light to every man. So, when you run into people that say, you know what? I'm seeking the truth. And I want to know the truth. Here's my thought. If they really wanna know the truth, they'll find their way to Jesus.
So if they say, I wanna know the truth and I'm seeking truth. Hey, that's awesome. I know some truth. I have some truth right here. Jesus said, I'm gonna put that thing away. Put what? Put the Bible away. I don't believe in that, you bigoted, narrow... Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Thought you were seeking truth. I am. Put it away. Don't hold it up like that. Put it away. See, they're not seeking truth. If they were seeking truth, they'd at least give a fair hearing to the Bible. But to reject it out of hand shows they're not seeking the truth.
If a person is really seeking the truth and seeking God, they will find their way to Jesus. You say, but Greg, how do you know that? Because God says in Jeremiah 29:13, if you seek Me, you will find Me when you search for Me with all of your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord.
How Not to Be Born Again – The Conclusion
So now let's wrap this message up. I gave it the very odd title, How Not to Be Born Again. Okay, so let's conclude now with how not to be born again, because we conclude with three ways in which you cannot become a child of God. And it's found right here in verses 12 to 13.
As many as received Him, He gave them the right to become children of God to those who believe in His name, who are born not of blood, you might underline that, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Okay, so here's how not to be born again. You cannot be born again of blood. What does that mean? It means if you're born into a Christian family, you're not automatically a Christian. Ah, some people don't know this, by the way. You know, you say, are you a Christian? My great-grandfather was a preacher. So? Well, there's some Christian blood somewhere, I think. I don't know. Or even my parents are Christians. And they took me to church. That's great. Thank God for a godly heritage. Thank God for parents that took you to church. But it's not by blood. You're not born a Christian. You may be born into a Christian family, but the only way to be a Christian is being born again. Right? Jesus said you must be born again. Born all over again. Born from above, technically.
Nor is it the will of the flesh. A new birth into God's family doesn't come to you just deciding it. Now, there is an act of your will where you choose to believe in Jesus. But you can't just say, from now on, I'm a Christian, and just sort of do Christian-y things without Christ.
Let me illustrate. Let's say you said, I am now a surfer. And I am a surfer because I bought a surfboard. And you know, people, when they buy surfboards and want to learn to surf, they always buy the wrong board to start with. They buy some short little performance board and, you know, and they get their little wetsuit and they've got the right wax and they've got the stickers on the car and they can't get up on their board and they get discouraged so they hang it on their wall and that's the end. Right? Or maybe you go down to the beach and you're there with your board and you're checking out the waves, but the thing is you never go out. So you're not really a surfer, but you have a surfboard, you have board shorts, you have wax, you have a wetsuit, but you don't surf. You're not a surfer. You're a poser. Or maybe you're smart because there's 15 great white sharks out there right now. Then there's that.
To be a surfer, even if you're not a great surfer, and I'm not a great surfer, but you have to surf. And to be a good surfer, you have to surf a lot. So to be a Christian, you have to come humbly before God and admit your sinfulness and turn from those sins and embrace Christ as your Savior and Lord.
Nor is it from the will of man. It's not from the will of man. It's not just determination. Someone can't do it for you. I can't make you a Christian. I can't say on the count of three, you're a Christian. A priest can't give you a sacrament and say, therefore your sins are forgiven. Or anybody else. No one can do this. It's not the will of man. Someone can't do this for you. Only God can do this for you.
Okay, that's how not to become a Christian. So how do I become a Christian? Verse 12, for as many as received Him, He gave them the right to become children of God. So it's not by descent, it's not by desire, and it's not by determination. So how is one born into God's family? By receiving Christ.
Not following a bunch of rules. From now on, I'm going to read the Bible. That's good. Do that. I'm going to go to church. That's good too. Do that as well. But it starts with saying, God, I'm a sinner. Jesus, come into my life. Forgive me of all of my sin. And then you read your Bible. Then you go to church. Then you do the things a growing Christian needs to know. You just receive Him.
And this is not complex, by the way. It's just so simple a child can understand. You know, if you walk up to a child and say, here, I got this for you. It's a toy. Oh, they get that really well. They'll grab that toy and they'll start playing with it. They might say thank you. But they receive the gift. And that's what God says to us. Here's the gift. You can have it right now. Forgiveness of all of your sin. Just believe in Jesus. And say, I want that gift. And the moment you receive it, it's yours. And you're born again. And you're a child of God.
You say, well, how long does this take? Years? Months? Weeks? No, it doesn't even take hours. It can happen, I don't know, in seconds. It can happen in a flash. Just immediately. In fact, listening to this message, it may have already happened to you. You came in here as a non-believer and I don't know what took place or what was said or when it transpired. But just somewhere during the course of this service, you believe. Just like that. You just went, uh, I believe this. And it's hard to explain, isn't it? But it's like the lights went up.
Now, when the lights go on and you realize something is true that doesn't make you a believer, you have to act on it. Because the Bible describes conversion as having your eyes opened and then you turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. So it's possible to have your eyes open and not respond appropriately. Because we've all met people that will say, I actually believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God and God the Son. I actually believe the Bible is the Word of God. I actually believe there's a heaven and there's a hell. I believe all those things, but I don't want to follow Jesus right now. So their eyes were open, but they haven't turned from darkness to light.
And that's a really important thing to do. Let me restate that. That is the most important thing you can do. There's no more important decision. And that's especially true as we come now to the communion table.
You say, Greg, is this like an invisible table? I don't see it. It's in the back, okay? So we'll bring the elements to you. But in a moment we're going to serve you the bread symbolizing the broken body of Jesus and the cup symbolizing His shed blood.
You might say, this is good. A little ritual will do me good here. A little Christian ritual. You know what? If you're not a Christian, this little ritual won't do you any good. In fact, I'll take it a step further. You don't want to receive communion if you're not a Christian.
See, but why? Because 1 Corinthians 11 says, if you eat this bread or drink the cup of the Lord without honoring the body of Christ, you're eating and drinking God's judgment on yourself. You say, what does that mean? It means if I hold in my hand the bread, which does not turn into the body of Christ. That's not biblical. There's no such thing as transubstantiation. It's still bread. And when you put it in your mouth, it will be bread. It's bread. But it's a symbol of His body. And when you drink of the cup, it will not turn to blood. It won't become the blood of Christ. But it is a picture or a symbol of the blood of Christ.
So for me to take these elements and receive them and not really believe in the one they represent is really an insult to God. That's why you don't want to do it. Just don't do it. Just let it pass and say, I'm not there yet. But the best idea would be to believe in Jesus and then receive that bread and drink of that cup. And then it's a wonderful way to express your love for Him as you think about His awesome love for you and laying His life down for you on the cross 2,000 years ago.
Look, Jesus Christ is ready to forgive you of your sin. You say you're seeking truth? The truth is here right now. It's Christ who's alive, who rose from the grave and is with us in this place. And He is standing at the door of your life. And He is knocking. And He's saying if you'll hear His voice and open the door, He'll come in.
Only you can do this. Remember, you're not born again by blood. Meaning you're not born into a Christian family making you a Christian. You have to be born again when you say, all right Lord, I get this now. I want You as my Savior. I want You as my Lord. I want You as my friend. I want this relationship that can happen for you right here, right now.
Invitation and Closing Prayer
We're going to pray. And I'm going to extend an invitation for you to believe in Jesus. And if you've not made this commitment, if you've not asked Him in your life, respond right now.
Okay? Let's all pray. Everyone bowing your head. Father, thank You for loving us so much that You sent Jesus to die on the cross in our place. Lord Jesus, thank You for coming and dying, laying Your life down for us. Because You love us. And I pray for everyone here and everyone listening who does not yet know You. Help them to see their need for You. And help them to come to You now. We pray that Your Holy Spirit will convict and convince those that do not believe to believe.
Now when our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed, and we're praying. How many of you would say tonight, hey, I want Jesus. I want my sin forgiven. I want to go to heaven when I die. I want to be born all over again. I want this relationship with God you've been talking about. If you want your sin forgiven, if you want Christ to come into your life, if you want to know that you'll go to heaven when I die, wherever you are, would you lift your hand up and I'll pray for you. Raise your hand up and I'll pray for you right now. Raise it up wherever you are. God bless you. Anybody else? God bless you. Raise your hand up higher where I can see it, please. God bless you too. Yes. Anybody else? You want Jesus to come into your life. You want Him to forgive you of your sin. Raise your hand up. I want to pray for you right now. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. Amen. God bless you too. Anybody else? There might be a few more. This is a decision only you can make. Someone else can't make it for you. You want His forgiveness. Maybe you've fallen away from the Lord. You want to come back to Him again. This would be a great time to do that. God bless you. Anybody else? Raise your hand now. God bless each one of you.
Alright, every one of you that have raised your hand, I'd like you to stand to your feet and I'm going to lead you in a prayer. Just stand up. Every one of you that raised your hand saying you want Jesus or you want to make this recommitment to Christ, just stand up and we're going to pray together. Stand up wherever you are. God bless you. Even if you did not raise your hand but you want Jesus in your life tonight, stand up and we'll pray together. Then we'll receive communion. You'll have your first communion as a Christian. It'll be amazing. Anybody else? Stand now. Even if you did not raise your hand, you want to get right with God. You want to know God personally. You want to go to heaven when you die. Stand up and I'll lead you in a prayer. God bless you. I'm going to wait one more moment. Anybody else? Stand now. Anybody else? God bless you too.
All right. All right. You that are standing, pray this prayer out loud after me. Again, as I pray, pray this prayer out loud after me. Pray this right now.
Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner, but I know You're the Savior who died on the cross for me and rose again from the dead. Jesus, come into my life. Be my Savior. Be my Lord. Be my God. And be my friend. I choose to follow You now, Jesus. In Your mighty name I pray. Amen.