The Nail Everything Hangs On - Part A

Something you noticed about the gospel of John. When John writes his gospel doesn't pull any punches. He doesn't like weight give all the good stuff at the end. There's a few stories about Jesus and really is. He comes right basically says okay you know Jesus Christ is God human body weekend division. You're probably familiar with the phrase the quirks of what exactly is across well it's something that is of vital, basic, decisive, or pivotal point, so keeping that in mind, it's easy to see why John Jesus Christ really is the crux of the crux of everything the connection Skip I think examines why that's the case, what is it about Jesus that makes himself to well everything will find out in just a moment going on in the connect was Skip resource Center this month. Rotate around crucial moments in decisions where everything changes, and pivot points here.

Skip, I think in this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while if need be.

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The future and moving to a new location, or job. This package includes a personal message of direction on each topic from scant point package is, I think you when you get $50 or more to this teaching ministry by calling 892 1888 working online securely connectwithskip.com/offer. We hope will help us take our messages into the top 20 population centers in our country that's our vision for the coming year we help us make it happen. Please call 892 1888, or give online securely connectwithskip.com/offer. Thank you for partnering with us. John chapter 3 examined verses 31 through 36. By that spot skip.

Isaac begins her study with a little family walk inside my mother-in-law's home work less understand why moment you walk inside right in her living room is an interesting picture part of the family family heirloom that was passed down but it is an original charcoal drawing of Madonna and signed by Pablo Picasso and original because and it is hanging on the wall by a single male. All of that history all of that value by a single nail so valuable but so vulnerable.

Likewise, I had a friend who was at the New York Metropolitan Museum a few years back and he was taken to the level below the street level to a showing of artistry from Max Beckman who was a German expressionist and there was one particular picture that was very, very costly, the curator throughout the price of $28 million because it was the picture that adult Hitler had taken and hung in his own home.

My friend looked closer and once again this particular painting. Unlike the rest of the museum pieces that are on wires are attached some other way was hanging on the wall by a single nail know what those situations have done. We Christians likewise do because we hang everything all of our present beliefs. All of our future hopes on one single male, the person of Jesus Christ. We put all our eggs in that basket we say our family, our fortune, our future, all of that is going to be tied and hung on the one one person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

There's probably no better. Paragraph that illustrates that than the one were about to read John chapter 3, beginning in verse 31 what John does is show us why Jesus is so unique why he is so singular why he is the bottom line, the irreducible minimum, the ultimate reality than nail, by which everything hangs up. As for reasons he gives for that one is his origin. He came from heaven and produces proclamation what he proclaimed it to our world or disclosed or preached or declared to our world. Number three is his dominion. He dominates the whole universe and number four is reception he determines our destiny. Verse 31 begins. He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all and what he has seen and heard that he testifies, and no one receives his testimony. He who has received his testimony has certified that God is true for he whom God has sent speaks the words of God for God does not give the spirit by measure. The father loves the son and is given all things into his hand. He who believes in the son has everlasting life. Hugh does not believe the son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. Another there is some disagreement about these verses there. There's those who think John the Baptist is speaking that he has been speaking previously in the previous paragraph in verse 30 says he must increase, I must decrease. And then John the Baptist keeps talking to verse 36 there are others who believe that this is not John the Baptist speaking but this is John the apostle, the author of the book who is writing his own editorial comments and that's what I believe here's the problem we have. And here's why there's an argument in the original. There's no punctuation marks, so translators have made their own call as to which is which. Some translations like mine put quotation marks around it as if to say, I believe John the Baptist spoke these words, but because of this style and the grammar that does not sound like John the Baptist but reads just like John's other writings like first John second John third John and some of the own comments that he writes in the Gospel of John. Those in that style is exactly like this style so what I think is this verse 30 ends what John the Baptist has to say in the Gospel of John. That's his final word. He must increase, I must decrease. Now John the apostle, the author writes his own editorial comments as to why John and everyone else must decrease in Christ must increase.

Here is why John says Jesus is so unique. Here is why so many in these three chapters have believed in him. Here is why Jesus Christ is the ultimate nail, by which we hang everything on and furthermore, in a practical note verse 16. Here's why you should believe in him which is very practical. He is this he is that he is there to see is that therefore believe in him is very very practical. I was reading how that when NASA was first sending American astronauts in the space. They quickly discovered that the ballpoint pen does not work at zero gravity, and so America spent the next 10 years and millions of dollars to make a pen that will work at zero gravity upside down underwater and extreme temperatures up to 300°C on any surface, including glass 10 years and millions and millions of dollars. You know, the Russians did use the pencil.

Not now. That's practical why spent all of the money and effort and time making a pen when you can just use a pencil make sense what sort of what John is concluding chapter 3 with no use putting all of your energy and effort in hanging your life and trusting any thing else then this one nail and that is Christ gives us the reasons for that one. He descended from heaven, that's his origin. Verse 31 he who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. So unlike John the Baptist and unlike all of the other human prophets who have come before Jesus hometown was heaven, not Bethlehem heaven. Jesus Christ was the only person who lived before he was born if you were to talk to somebody and say they tell me a little bit about you where you from the mic to come from Florida or Wisconsin or North Dakota or Colorado will so how did you get to New Mexico tell me a little bit about your family history. Well my mom and my dad. They got married in Colorado. They moved to Santa Fe and then a story like that you might have a story like no matching the conversation with Jesus. So are you from Nazareth before that Bethlehem, but before that I lived in heaven and I was there for eons and eons and heard angels every day and every night. By the way, I along with my father and the Holy Spirit we created everything he who is from above is above all, something you've noticed about the Gospel of John. So far, when John writes his gospel he doesn't pull any punches. He doesn't like wait and give all the good stuff at the end. As I got is, here's a few stories about Jesus and then at the annotated who he really is. He comes right out of the chute and basically says, okay, just so you know Jesus Christ is God in a human body right that's all he begins in the beginning was the word the word was with God and the Word was God. You go down a few verses verse 14 and the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, verse 31 is essentially saying the same thing. He who is from above is above all and then at the end of that same verse he who comes from heaven is above all he wants you to know his origin is not an earthly origin. It's a heavenly origin. That's really came from three came from.

I discovered something interesting in my study.

Not only does John emphasize this but Jesus himself very often wants to underscore that his origin is from heaven.

He says it a lot.

So many places we can chase them all down this morning but I wanted to be a sampling turn with me to John chapter 6 John chapter 6 is a long chapter, Jesus is speaking and most of it would just follow a few of these verse 32 then Jesus said to them, most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my father gives the true bread from heaven for the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Verse 38 for I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. Verse 50. This is the bread which comes down from heaven that one may eat of it and not die.

I am the living bread which came down from heaven.

If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever in the bread that I shall give is my flesh, which I give for the life of the world.

Verse 58 this is the bread which came down from heaven so why is Jesus Christ the mail by which you can hang everything and everyone on because unlike anyone else, his origin is heavenly. This is the nail that won't break it's eternal it's origin is not earthly but heaven. It's an important truth so important that our church fathers whenever they would get together and write creeds about what's important to believe in. They brought this out.

Most famous perhaps is the Nicene Creed written in 325 A.D. at the Council of Nicaea. Here's a portion we believe in one God the father, the Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth of all that is seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only son of God, eternally begotten of the father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being the one substance with the father.

Through him all things were made for us and for our salvation he came down from heaven questioned why did he come down from heaven to come down from heaven to give us a cool winter holiday we get a few days off of work.

Every year, no do you come down from heaven to give us a nice wonderful example in some teachings of the people as they read can better their own lives. No, the angel told Mary exactly why he came. You will call his name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sin. That's why he came so I John the Baptist says look, the Lamb of God, the Lamb is a sacrificial animal to atone for sins. Mary had a Little Lamb. The Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world thought that Jesus Christ was the only person who was ever born in this world with the distinct purpose to die.

Every parent that holds the baby doesn't think that way. Every parent thinks my child is been a live and who will he marry her. Where will she go to school or or what will this child become all of those plans God's plan for his son was the death of a cross because it would save his people from their sins is a little poem that simple short but sums it up. Babies hands in Bethlehem were small and softly curled but held within their dimpled grasp the hopes of all the world, all the world could hang upon that one nail because of his origin from heaven. Second reason is because of his proclamation, he declared truth to our world.

Now watch this verse 32 and what he has seen and heard that he testifies or speaks, and no one has received his testimony. He who has received his testimony has certified that God is true, just like Jesus was from heaven.

So to his testimony was from heaven. That's why his testimony.

His words are superior to everyone else's words, if you're wondering, that's the whole concept behind red letter Bibles. These are the words of Christ, his words are more important than anybody's words, even more than Moses, even more than Jeremiah more than Isaiah more than Abraham is not that they were inspired by God by the Holy Spirit, but what they wrote what they said was secondhand testimony what Jesus speaks his first hand. He was there he was in heaven and from heaven at the full knowledge and full grasp of everything and so when he testifies he was there. He'd seen and heard it and you get that sense when you read the New Testament right classic case Jesus is have a conversation will actually argument they started the Pharisees come to him and is what they said. Moses commanded us to give a certificate of divorce to our lives if we wanted a bailout. Jesus said because of the hardness of your heart, Moses permitted you to divorce under certain circumstances, and he said this, but from the beginning it was not so in the beginning he points out that God said for this manner reason a man leave his father and mother join his wife and become one flesh. So here is Jesus appealing to them because now from the beginning.

That's not how was your heart knows that he was at the beginning he was there. Later on when he says, as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be at the coming of the Son of Man for the days of Noah. They were eating and drinking and marrying and giving in marriage, until Noah went into the ark, he is speaking from first-hand knowledge. He was there when he speaks of Abraham he says is much they can bring up Abraham and he says I want to know something before Abraham was, I am in it. He said Abraham rejoiced to see my day and he saw it and he was glad first hand testimony first hand knowledge when he speaks of the Old Testament or creation, or heaven is not as you read it in a book he was there and so he is from above, and his testimony is also from above and therefore superior in what he proclaims. It's based on what he is seen and what he is or not theoretical not secondhand first-hand experience. So here's an obvious question.

If God is speaking to the world through his son. How come nobody is listening must be frustrating. I heard the story of the man went to his doctor to get his hearing checked having problems with the doctor examined him, pulled out his hearing aid immediately. His hearing got better.

He been wearing it in the wrong year for 20 years. Frustrating.

Liberating, I suppose, but you notice like when you talk to somebody and they're looking at you and their nodding with you, but they are not even close to that conversation. There are a million miles.

When is that whatever frustrating is it.

So imagine how God must feel because of situations like verse 32 and no one receives his testimony no one receives is that now that is. That's a hyperbole it's a literary hyperbole. The general rule is most of the people of the world do not listen to Christ testimony that mean that nobody does. Because verse 33 says they do.

He who has received his testimony has certified that God is true. All I love that little phrase God is true you can you can believe the testimony of Jesus and anybody who receives that testifies. God is true. Say God is true. Every now and then somebody will come along and say well it just doesn't work for me. III can't turn from that sin. I cannot try didn't work for me. I can't do it on codependent. I can't rejoice evermore. I can't be happy to know I've been scarred as a child I can't be wholly out of the Bible says that in work for me.

I can't. I married your creepy husband I can do really anything in spiritual sense. I can't I can't I can't. Says God is true. In Romans three verse four. It's even more emphatic. Let God be true and every man, liar, will God says rejoice evermore God says be holy, for I am holy God says let this mind be in you which is in Christ Jesus. God says be thankful for everything so a person says I can't can't I can't I say you're a liar. Let God be true because here's the deal. God doesn't give us a commandment without the power to do the command. His commandments are his enablement if he says rejoice evermore. It's because he knows he'll give you the power to rejoice evermore can be done. God's truth are so many reasons Jesus truly is the crux of the matter, yet it's so common for people today to spend a lot of time discussing who Jesus really is such a shame because the Bible named John in particular tells us exactly who we so the real question is how do we respond to what were all out of time for today but before we go if you want a copy of today's study. It's available on CD for just four dollars plus shipping. When you contact us at 1-800-922-1888 when you visit connectwithskip.com or write to us at PO Box 95707, Albuquerque, NM 87199 continue to examine what Jesus truly is the crux of the matter in our next study. So hope you have some time to join right here and connect with Skip care division presentation of connection