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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to John's Gospel, John chapter 17. John 17, we find ourselves in 
Jesus' high priestly prayer. After the upper room discourse, 
he then goes to pray. And on the heels of this will 
be Gethsemane. So remember the hour is upon 
him. There's not a lot of time that transpires between chapters 
16 and 18. as it takes us some time to move our way through 
this passage, nevertheless, remember at verse one of chapter 18, when 
Jesus had spoken these words. So it is upon him that hour that 
had been first introduced in John two, and then spoken of 
several times along the way, the death, the resurrection, 
and the ascension of our Lord Jesus. That's the particular 
context that we find him in here in his prayer. Well, this morning 
we're going to look at verses 6 to 11a. I'll explain why we 
cut it off there, but I want to read from verses 6 to 19. So John 17, beginning in verse 
6, I have manifested your name to the men whom you have given 
me out of the world. They were yours, you gave them 
to me, and they have kept your word. Now they have known that 
all things which you have given me are from you. For I have given 
to them the words which you have given me, and they have received 
them, and have known surely that I came forth from you, and that 
they have believed that you sent me. "'I pray for them. "'I do not pray for the world, 
"'but for those whom you have given me, "'for they are yours. 
"'And all mine are yours, and yours are mine, "'and I am glorified 
in them. "'Now I am no longer in the world, 
"'but these are in the world, and I come to you. "'Holy Father, 
keep through your name "'those whom you have given me, "'that 
they may be one as we are. "'While I was with them in the 
world, "'I kept them in your name. Those whom you gave me 
I have kept, and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, 
that the scripture might be fulfilled. But now I come to you, that these 
things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled 
in themselves. I have given them your word, 
and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, 
just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that you should 
take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from 
the evil one. They are not of the world, just 
as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by your truth. 
Your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, 
I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes, I 
sanctify myself that they also may be sanctified by the truth. 
Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for this beautiful day. We thank you that 
you have brought us together, first and foremost by your sovereign 
grace, through blood atonement by our Savior King, that you 
have saved us and given us a desire for public worship. And secondarily, 
you've blessed us with the privilege and the liberty to live in a 
place where we can gather, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
on your day to praise and worship you. We pray that Your Holy Spirit 
would be upon us as we consider this passage of Holy Scripture, 
that we would stand and marvel at the glory of the Savior King 
who intercedes for His people, that You would indeed open hearts 
to receive the truth for any that are dead in their trespasses 
and sins. May they see in Jesus Christ 
a sufficient High Priest, one who is able to save to the uttermost 
all who draw nigh to the Father through Him. We ask that you 
would forgive us now for all sin and all transgression and 
unrighteousness. And we pray this through Jesus 
Christ, our Lord. Amen. Well, as I said, we have 
this situation where Jesus is going to the cross. He knows 
it. He's spoken of it many times. As we're reminded by Mark, it 
wasn't something confined to just one particular instance, 
but all throughout his ministry to the disciples, he mentioned 
the reality that he must go to Jerusalem, and we'll see that 
take place as we move through John's gospel. But remember, 
here we have the high priestly prayer, and essentially Jesus 
prays for himself in verses 1 to 5. He prays for the apostles 
in verses 6 to 19, and then for all believers in verses 20 to 
26. Now, the reason we cut off the 
exposition this morning at 11a is simply because in verses 6 
to 11a, he gives the reason or the rationale for his prayer 
on their behalf. And then in 11b to verse 19, 
the petitions proper. He prays for their protection 
and he prays for their sanctification. So what we have in 6 to 11a is 
the rationale or the reason for his prayer. And then in 11b, 
we have the prayer for protection. and then in verses 17 to 19, 
the prayer for their sanctification. So that's the structure. And 
then in verses 20 and following, he prays for all believers that 
will come out of darkness into marvelous light through the ministry 
of the apostles throughout the end or until the end of the age. 
So I want to look at three things as we consider this brief section. First, the objects of his intercession, 
who it is, that he's praying for. Secondly, the focus of his 
intercession. And then thirdly, the reason 
for his intercession. Intercession simply means going 
to God on behalf of another. And this is fitting for a priest. 
Remember that the two-fold function of a priest is sacrifice and 
intercession. Sacrifice and prayer. Sacrifice, 
the blood atonement necessary to make peace with God, has been 
rendered, from our vantage point, has been rendered by our Lord 
Jesus Christ, but then interceding, He prays for His people. So in 
terms of the objects of his intercession, you see that in verses 6 to 8. 
I think there's three characteristics of these men. First, the disciples 
are given to him in verse 6, the disciples are taught by him 
in verse 7, and the disciples are obedient to him in verse 
8. So these are the objects of his intercession. He'll make 
it clear in verse 9, I do not pray for the world, rather he 
prays for these whom the Father had given to him out of the world. Notice in verse 6, he says, I 
have manifested your name. which was always the purpose 
and the function of the Son of God who took on our humanity. 
In John 1.1, in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with 
God, and the Word was God. John 1.14, the Word became flesh 
and dwelt among us. John 1.18, no one has seen God 
at any time, but the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the 
Father, has what? has declared Him. John 14.6, 
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the 
Father except through me. John 14.9, if you have seen me, 
you have seen the Father. So the great revelatory act of 
the Son of God who took on our humanity was to manifest God's 
name. And by name here, he doesn't 
simply mean one particular name, God or Yahweh. But by name, it 
represents God's being. It represents his perfections. 
It represents his works. In other words, all that God 
is, is summarized in that language of name. And so Jesus comes to 
manifest that name to these disciples and thus to declare the glory 
of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So after having 
mentioned this manifestation of the name of the Father, note 
then the givenness of these men. Verse 6, I have manifested your 
name to the men whom you have given me out of the world. They 
were yours, you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. The men given by God the Father 
to the Son are what we call the elect. And Jesus, in John's gospel, 
has already highlighted this reality. Turn back to John 6, 
specifically in verse 44. John 6 in verse 44. No one can 
come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I 
will raise him up at the last day. Jesus speaks the words of 
sovereign grace. Jesus speaks the word concerning 
God's predestinating grace. God is sovereign in the matter 
of salvation. It doesn't depend upon Him who 
wills or upon Him who runs, but upon God who shows mercy. And 
blessed be God, He does show mercy. And so Jesus makes this 
unequivocal statement, no one can come to me unless the Father 
who sent me draws him effectually by the power of the Spirit, according 
to the preaching of the gospel. Turn over back to John 17. Jesus mentions the elect. In 
the opening of his prayer, with reference to petitions for himself, 
John 17, 1, Jesus spoke these words, lifted up his eyes to 
heaven, and said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your son, 
that your son may glorify you, as you have given him authority 
over all flesh. So God, or Jesus rather, has 
authority over all flesh, as the mediator of the new covenant. 
He is the head over all things to the church. And in verse 2 
he goes on to say that he should give eternal life to as many 
as you have given him. Paul obviously picks this up 
in many places in his epistles, but turn to Ephesians chapter 
1. Ephesians chapter 1. The reality is that Jesus prays 
for these men because these men have been given by the Father 
to the Son for the purpose of redemption. And in Ephesians 
chapter one at verse three, Paul writes, blessed be the God and 
father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every 
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Our brother 
Ed, who by the way, everybody loved Ed. Ed was a wonderful 
breath of fresh air, probably even more so for you guys last 
week, was a great, great encouragement to meet brother Ed. And he preached 
from this section last Sunday night. But notice what Paul does. 
who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly 
places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation 
of the world. That. Notice, He doesn't choose 
us in Him before the foundation of the world because He chose 
us in Him before the foundation of the world because we're holy 
and without blame. No, that's not why. We are chosen 
by God that we might become holy and without blame as a result 
of blood atonement. Notice, he says at the end of 
verse four, and without blame before him, and then in verse 
five, in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus 
Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 
to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he made us 
accepted in the beloved. As John Gilwell says, election 
does not find men in Christ, but puts them there. This is 
what Jesus is saying. I pray for these men. Why? Because 
in sovereign grace, the Father gave them to the Son. In what 
we call eternally, the covenant of redemption. And then we see 
it in history, the covenant of grace, where the Son takes on 
our humanity to save His people from their sins. His people are 
His people, not because of their free will, not because of their 
good works, not because of their merit, but because of God in 
His mercy. Because God chose us in Him before 
the foundation of the world. Because God in love, having predestinated 
us unto adoption as sons, election does not find men in Christ, 
but rather it puts them there. So back to our text, this is 
one of the reasons why Jesus, as the mediator, remember he's 
praying according to his humanity, as God he has prayed unto, as 
man he prays. And he realizes, and he understands, 
and he's conscious of the fact that he's praying for these men 
because the Father had given them to him in this particular 
work of redemption. Then notice secondly, he speaks 
concerning the fact that the disciples are taught by him. 
Look at verse seven in our passage. So verse six, I have manifested 
your name to the men whom you have given me out of the world. 
They were yours. You gave them to me and they 
have kept your word. Verse seven, now they have known 
that all things which you have given me are from you. Brethren, 
this is great. As we've gone through the upper 
room, we've seen that the disciples weren't always 100% sure of everything 
that Jesus said. But what Jesus does here is that 
he recognizes that they have come a long way. They've come 
a long way in terms of their understanding of the truth. And 
this is a great contrast to the unbelieving Jews in the first 
century. Again, notice what he says in 
verse 7, and think of the contrast that we've seen. Notice back in John's gospel 
in John chapter 8. You can turn there. John chapter 
8. We have a disputation by our 
Lord with the religious leadership in Israel in this first century 
situation. Notice the contrast with the 
disciples. The disciples know that whatever 
Jesus speaks has been given to him by the father. That wasn't 
the case with the unbelieving Jews. Notice in chapter eight 
at verse 48, then the Jews answered and said to him, do we not say 
rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon? That wasn't 
a reception of Jesus. That wasn't a recognition that 
Jesus' words were the words of the father. In fact, they continually 
upbraid him. If you go back in context, notice 
in verse 41, Jesus indicts them, you do the deeds of your father. 
If you were really of Abraham, you wouldn't want to kill me. 
If you were really of Abraham, you wouldn't want to destroy 
me. Abraham was all about the seed, which is the Lord Jesus 
Christ. Know what they respond when he 
says that. Then they said to him, we were 
not born of fornication. We have one father, God. The 
implication being, perhaps subtly by inference, that Jesus was 
born of fornication. That Jesus' situation, with reference 
to the Virgin Mary, was very suspicious after all. And we 
were not born that way. We were not born of fornication 
like you were. So there is this controversy 
going on, which is announced in the prologue. He comes to 
his own, and his own do not receive him. He comes to his own covenant 
people, wherein the promises of God have been given throughout 
the Psalter, throughout the prophets, throughout the law itself. And 
yet when he comes, he has no form or no comeliness. He has 
nothing attractive about it that we should esteem him. In fact, 
he's a man of sorrows, and he's acquainted with grief. So that 
he's able to highlight that the disciples have understood the 
Word is a blessed testimony to the graciousness of God Almighty. 
Turn back to Matthew's gospel to see a similar sort of a confrontation 
with the religious leaders in the first century. Notice in 
Matthew chapter 12. Matthew chapter 12. So the disciples 
are given to him, verse six, the disciples are taught by him 
in verse seven, in contrast with the unbelieving Jews. Notice 
in John 12, I'm sorry, Matthew 12 at verse 22. Then one was 
brought to him who was demon possessed, blind and mute, and 
he healed him so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 
And all the multitudes were amazed and said, could this be the son 
of David? It's a beautiful declaration, 
isn't it? What do you think caused them 
to reflect this way? Oh, I don't know. The entirety 
of the Old Testament? The announcement that the Messiah 
would come from David? The Vitic Covenant in 2 Samuel 
chapter 7? The reminder in Psalm 89 and 
Psalm 132, the identification from the house of David, Messiah 
would come and exercise his power and his glory and his majesty 
and would save his people from their sins. There was this messianic 
expectation. They see the powerful works of 
our Lord Jesus, so they start to scratch their heads and say, 
wait a minute, is this the son of David? Is this the time that 
we've been waiting for? Is this the time that was testified 
in the Old Testament Scriptures? Is this what was prophesied and 
promised to us? So they are thinking correctly, 
at least the crowd, but then notice in verse 24, Now, when 
the Pharisees heard it, they said, this fellow does not cast 
out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. So they 
predicate this wonderful work of our Lord Jesus to the Lord 
of Flies himself. And so when Jesus says concerning 
his disciples, he says, now they have known that all things which 
you have given me are from you. This is a wonderful testimony, 
and this is indicative of the people of God. They are given 
to the Son by the Father. They are taught by the Son, having 
received these things from the Father. And He speaks these words 
and does the works that are from the Father, which indicates to 
them something unique about His person, and we see that in verse 
8. So the disciples are obedient 
to Him. Notice in verse 8, For I have 
given to them the words which you have given Me, and they have 
received them, and have known surely that I came forth from 
you, and they have believed that you sent Me. Now, I want to spend 
a little bit of time here. There's three things we should 
observe here. First, the revelation of the 
Word by our Lord to these men. Secondly, the reception of the 
Word by these men with reference to our Lord. And then the recognition 
of the mission of the Son. This is one of Jesus' main emphases 
with reference to this particular section. Go back to John 16 and 
verse 28. I came forth from the father 
and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and 
go to the father. They understood the coming into 
the world part. They understood the incarnation. They saw his flesh. They were 
able to touch him, they ate with him, they saw him suffer, they 
saw him bleed, they saw him die. What they're learning is something 
concerning his nature, that he is God from God, light from light, 
true God from true God, begotten not made, one in being with the 
essence of the Father. So back to John 17 in verse eight, 
note the revelation of The word, I have given them the words which 
you have given me. This is a recurring theme in 
John's gospel. Jesus speaks about his word as 
not being his own, but received from the father. It doesn't show 
a separation. It doesn't show some sort of 
antipathy between them. It shows absolute harmony. It 
shows essential unity. It is a recurring theme in this 
gospel. As well, there's an emphasis 
here on his mediatorship. How do we enter into the presence 
of a holy God? We do so through mediation. We 
do so through blood atonement, through the forgiveness of sins. 
We do so through Christ our Lord. Again, John 14, six. I am the 
way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except 
through me. Turn back again to Matthew's 
gospel in Matthew chapter 11, just to see the exclusivity of 
the mediation that our Lord Jesus provides in terms of access to 
the Father. We know that wonderfully familiar 
passage of scripture in verse 28 in Matthew 11, come to me, 
all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and 
lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For 
my yoke is easy and my burden is light. I just wanna stop here 
for just a moment and say, if you're not a believer in Jesus 
Christ this morning, listen to what he says here. Listen to 
this, if we can call it an invitation. It's not an invitation like I 
might make to you to meet me for coffee at the loose caboose. The invitation of Christ comes 
with the command and authority of Christ. When Jesus stands 
outside the gravesite of Lazarus and says, come forth, not just 
an invitation, but Christ has the authority to enable compliance 
to that particular command. But I want you, if you're not 
a Christian here this morning, listen to what Jesus says here 
in verse 28. Come to me, all you who labor 
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Now, the labor 
there isn't you had a 60-hour work week and your dog tired. The heavy laden there isn't, 
you know, we're living in a time where the economy seems so unsure. 
That's a heavy ladenness in its own right. But what he is speaking 
about here is the burden of sin. It's the burden of a conscience 
that is at odds with the living God. It's the burden of understanding 
at some point in your heart, in the secret place of your heart, 
that God is angry with the wicked every day, and that I'm wicked, 
and therefore, that's not a good situation for one to find themselves 
in. Like what John Owen says, when 
there's tempests and thunderings and lightnings, it's not that 
men are afraid by that display in nature, but rather they're 
afraid by the reality that God is nigh and that He is a consuming 
fire. If your conscience is sullied 
by sin, as it is outside of Jesus Christ, and you're somewhat aware 
of that, listen to the Savior King when he says, come to me, 
all you who are weary and heavy laden, and note the blessed promise 
of the text. I will give you rest. He doesn't 
say, I will start to implement a plan or procedure to see that 
eventually you get rest. No, you come to the Savior, you 
get rest. You believe the gospel, you get 
rest. When Jesus says to Matthew, come 
follow me, and Matthew follows him, Matthew is now in a state 
of rest. Paul on the road to Damascus, 
when he comes face to face with the blessed Lord Jesus, and Jesus 
saves him, what does Paul immediately have? He has rest. Come to me, Jesus says, all you 
who are weary and heavy laden, and I will rest thee. I will 
forgive thee. I will give you a righteousness 
by which you can enter into the presence of the Father. You will 
get everything in Christ. You get everything guaranteed 
by Christ. Now, the way that he can make 
such a blessed promise in verse 28 is because of the truths of 
verses 25 to 27. See, I could go stand downtown 
in Chilliwack and hold out my arms. and wear a long robe, and 
say to all passersby, come to me, all you who are weary and 
heavy laden, and I will give you rest. But I can't do that. I don't have the qualifications 
for that. I don't have the suitability 
for that. I don't have the equipment for 
that. I can't do it. I mean, I might look benevolent. I might look crazy, too. But 
with reference to Jesus, why can he say what he says in verses 
28 to 30? It's the truths of verses 25 
to 27. It's the foundation of gospel 
rest, not the ingenuity of man, not the wisdom of man, not the 
good works of man. not the free will of man, but 
the free grace and the power and the authority of Almighty 
God, who demonstrates His sovereignty in the salvation of dead sinners. 
To verse 25, I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that 
you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and 
have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed 
good in your sight, It was well-pleasing in your sight. That's what he 
is saying. The hiding of gospel truth from 
some, termed here the wise and the prudent, and the revelation 
of gospel truth to the babes, that's according to God's sovereignty. Now, before it rises up and you 
say, well, that doesn't seem fair that he actually hides gospel 
truth. It's not fair. It's just. It 
is righteous. It is just with God to show forth 
to His chosen vessels the glory of gospel truth. But to those 
who are impenitent, to those who are rebellious, to those 
who are sinful, it is just and right to God, or for God, to 
hide those truths from them. It's an act, rather, of penal 
justice. And then notice what he says 
in verse 27. All things have been delivered 
to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. 
Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son and the One to 
whom the Son wills to reveal Him. So verses 28 to 30 have 
their blessed foundation in the glory of God's absolute sovereignty, 
the fact that He gives some to the Son. the fact that the Son 
sheds His blood for those some, the fact that those some are 
the ones that the Holy Spirit opens their eyes and hearts such 
that they can see their sin, see their need for the Savior, 
and the grace is given to them by the Spirit to believe on the 
Lord Jesus Christ and to repent. So back to 17.8, this is a recurring 
theme of Jesus' mediation in this gospel. But before we move 
on to the reception and how they receive it, look back again at 
verse eight. Matthew Paul had a very interesting 
statement I wanna just explore a little bit. Notice in verse 
eight, it says, for I have given to them the words which you have 
given me and they have received them and have known surely that 
I came forth from you and they have believed that you sent me. 
First part, for I have given to them the words which you have 
given me. I have given to them the words 
which you have given to me. As I said, Matthew Poole has 
a very curious, and I think a very excellent observation, that there 
is a pattern here for gospel preachers. There is a pattern 
here for ministers of that Word. Notice, Jesus receives from the 
Father, and Jesus declares that to the disciples. Jesus doesn't 
receive it from the Father and say, well, I think this will 
offend them. I don't think they'll like that. Certainly our culture is against 
these. So I'm going to just whittle 
it down as I see fit, let it come through this particular 
sieve, and then give them what I think. No, that's not what 
Jesus does. What Jesus receives from the 
Father, Jesus gives to the disciples. So what's the obvious application 
for preachers of God's Word? Listen to Poole. He justifies 
himself, Jesus, that he had not delivered anything to them but 
what he had from his father, thereby teaching all those who 
claim the name of his ministers what is their duty, specifically 
to give to their hearers no word but what God hath given them. 
If Christ confined his discourses to words which his father had 
given him, certainly we ought to do so also. We are not to 
speak what we wish, nor what men would have us. We are tied 
up to God's word. Now, that seems to be quite obvious. That seems to be quite evident. Ministers of the word should 
be what? They should be ministers of the 
word. But I don't know that it's that 
obvious. Why is it that we have churches 
that somehow think it's okay to violate and transgress God's 
holy law? Why is it such a difficulty today 
for some churches, I'm not saying all, but for some churches to 
condemn what God clearly condemns in scripture? I mean, abortion, 
that's not something up for grabs. That's not just, oh, they're 
the right wing church there that's opposing abortion. No, it's the 
sixth commandment or sodomy. Why is it that some churches 
are okay with sodomy? When the 7th commandment, generally, 
and Leviticus 18, and Romans 1, and 1 Timothy 1, and 1 Corinthians 
6 clearly and unequivocally condemn sodomy. Why is it that there 
is such a hesitance to do what God calls pastors to do? It's to preach the Word. Don't 
you remember Paul's last commandment, the last formal commandment to 
the church of the Lord Jesus? In 2 Timothy 4, he says to Timothy, 
preach the Word. Be ready in season and out of 
season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with 
all longsuffering and teaching. And he gives two reasons why. 
For the time will come when men will no longer endure sound doctrine. They're going to just say, no, 
we don't want that sound doctrine. So we're going to find teachers 
that upbraid the truth of God's word. And we're going to collect 
them so that they can tickle our ears. What's Paul's response? Preach the word. But Paul, they're 
gonna not want it, preach the word. Paul, they're gonna despise 
it and find preachers that are gonna tell them what they wanna 
hear. What do I do? Preach the word. That's always the job for 
the preacher of the word. It's like plumb the toilet, fix 
the light if you're an electrician, drive the truck if you're a trucker. Prosecute the case if you're 
a judge or a lawyer. You get that? What's the function 
of gospel ministry? It is the ministry of the gospel. It is the proclamation of truth. 
And if Jesus says, I took what you gave me and I declared it 
to you, that's why we see them, these apostles, take that deposit 
of truth and go out and preach it to the then known world. They 
don't pare it off. They don't make it a bit more 
palatable. This is the Roman empire. They're not into the 
biblical sexual ethics. They're not into the kinds of 
ways that we esteem human life. They're not into the kind... 
It doesn't matter what they're into. They need to be into the 
truth of God's Word so that they'll see their sin and cry out for 
God's Savior. And as believers, they then need, 
by the Spirit, a definition or a pattern for life as a believer. So it's not the case that the 
Christian pastor or preacher of God's word is to make it palatable 
or to make us more culturally relevant. I actually think that 
when we try to be culturally relevant, we are being practically 
irrelevant. Do you know what every culture 
at every step of the way in history needs? They don't need hipster 
pastors with jeans in their holes, or holes in their jeans rather, 
and hands in their pockets. They certainly don't need entertainment. I mean, of all the ways to go 
after this culture, entertainment? We are the most entertained culture 
that has ever lived on the face of the earth. And for a church 
to put down her Bible and pick up whatever it is she's gonna 
do to entertain them, it makes her irrelevant. What every culture 
needs is the gospel of our salvation. I don't care what the problems 
are. I don't care what the excesses are. I don't care what their 
cultural milieu teaches. They need the truth of God's 
holy word. You want to maintain relevance 
as the church? Just do what the church is supposed 
to do. Preach the word. Be ready in season and out of 
season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with 
all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when men 
will not endure sound doctrine." So we don't compromise. We don't 
say, well, we'll put down our sound doctrine. We'll come over 
there and tickle your ears and try to bring you back to the 
fold. No, we preach the truth. That's what Paul said. And the 
second reason he gives is for the time of my departure is at 
hand. Paul understood that what was 
going on in that first century context in the Roman Empire necessitated 
a parting charge from him to Timothy on the main focus of 
the Christian ministry. Preach the word. Do it because 
culture is defecting. Do it because the apostle is 
departing. And he wants to pass that baton 
on to faithful men who will be able to teach others as well. So back to our text, Jesus speaks 
concerning their reception of the word. Notice in verse eight. So he says, for I have given 
to them the words which you have given to me and they have received 
them and have known surely that I came forth from you and they 
have believed that you sent me. That last bit in verse eight 
basically defines what it means to receive. How do we receive 
the word? By believing that word. They believed that word, thus 
they had received that word. Our confession talks about salvation 
by grace or justification by faith. Faith rests and receives, 
or receives rather and rests upon our Lord Jesus Christ. That's a metaphorical use for 
the act of faith, the instrumentality of faith. So when Jesus speaks 
of them receiving those words, it's not in their hand, It's 
in their hearts through faith and their minds through faith. 
They have appropriated it as was specified by God. So the reception of that word 
is by faith. The reception of that word is 
by sovereign grace. You can go back to John 1, John 
1, a passage I've alluded to in the prologue. Much of the 
prologue comes out practically later in the gospel of John. Notice in John 1, verses 12 and 
13, John 1, verses 12 and 13, but 
as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children 
of God, to those who believe in his name. So notice the language, 
as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children 
of God. That word received, I think, is being used in the same way, 
but those who believe, those who believe Jesus, they become 
children of God. Well, how do they get to that 
point? How do we get to the point where we are called the receivers 
of God's Word? How do we get to that point where 
we are the believers in the gospel of our Lord Jesus? I mean, if 
you just took verse 12 out and stripped it from its context, 
you didn't have a Romans 9, you didn't have an Ephesians 1, you 
didn't have a John 6, You didn't have the law in the Old Testament, 
the books of Moses. You didn't have the prophets. 
You didn't have the Psalms. You get my point. If you didn't 
have the rest of the Bible, and you just yank verse 12 out, you 
might think that man has it in him to receive. Man has it in 
him to make that first sort of movement. But that's not what 
John says. Notice in verse 13. who are born 
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will 
of man, but of God. So they receive or believe that 
word by God's will. Just like we see throughout scripture 
and its emphases on the reality that man is dead in his trespasses 
and sins. And should man be awakened such 
that he receives the grace of God, it must come from God. And 
so our Lord Jesus, when he mentions this concerning the disciples, 
they have received that word that I received from my father. 
They have done it by the grace of God. This is in a fulfillment 
of the prophecy of God. In John 6, verse 45, Isaiah 54, 
13 is quoted. All your children shall be taught 
by the Lord. It's similar to that scene when 
they come into the region of Caesarea Philippi in Matthew 
chapter 16. And Jesus says, who do men say 
that I, the son of man am? And they say, well, some say 
Jeremiah, some say one of the prophets, some say John the Baptist. And then he says, but who do 
you say that I am? And Simon Peter confesses, thou art the 
Christ, the son of the living God. What does Jesus do? Does 
Jesus say, man, Peter, you've been following my instruction. 
You get a gold star for Sunday school class. You've shown yourself 
far brighter than the rest of these dolts. No, he doesn't do 
that. He says, blessed art thou Simon 
bar Jonah for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but 
my father who is in heaven. How do dead sinners get to the 
place of receiving God's Word? It's by the power of the Spirit 
of the living God. They must be born again. And back to our text, and I think 
we'll end here, because I don't want to dive into this next section 
and leave us with a bunch of questions concerning connections 
for next week. But notice in verse eight, and 
this is a good place to conclude, because I think it does show 
us where the disciples have come in their understanding of our 
Savior. So verse eight, for I have given 
to them the words which you have given me and they have received 
them and have known surely that I came forth from you and they 
have believed that you sent me. The disciples knew that Jesus 
had come into this world in the incarnation that he was from 
the father. They knew it by his words and 
his works, right? In fact, a non-disciple, Nicodemus, 
comes to him by night, which I think became a disciple. We 
see him favorably at the end of John's Gospel, along with 
Joseph of Arimathea. But he comes by night and says, 
teacher, we know that you're from God, because nobody could 
do what you're doing unless they'd been from God. So I'd argue that 
what the disciples are cognizant of here is, of course, the reality 
of Jesus according to his humanity as he moved among them, as he 
spoke to them, as he did these mighty works in their area. But I think they're making that 
step forward to understand that He is God from God, that He is 
light from light, that He is true God from true God, that 
He is begotten, not made, that He is one in being with the Father. Notice what Jesus says. First 
look back in 1628. I came forth from the Father 
and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and 
go to the Father. Verse 29, his disciples said 
to him, see now you are speaking plainly and using no figure of 
speech. Now we are sure that you know all things and have 
no need that anyone should question you. By this we believe that 
you came forth from God. Now brethren, I'm not suggesting 
at this point they had a full on Nicene Sort of a description 
of Christology. But they're getting it. They're 
not contrary to it. They're not opposed to it. They're 
understanding that it's not just by works and words that Jesus 
has demonstrated the Son of God, but it's also by nature. He is 
one with the Father in a way that creatures cannot be. He 
is one with the Father only in the way that a triune God can 
be. So they're feeling their way. 
Jesus commends them on this and the full understanding or discovery 
of it is going to be on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit 
comes and everything is clarified for them. and such that Peter 
can say, therefore know assuredly that this Jesus, whom you crucified, 
God has made both Lord and Christ. He is the Psalm 110 one man. He is the blessed God of heaven 
and earth. He is the Lord of glory. He is 
one with the Father and the Spirit. The Father is unbegotten, the 
Son is begotten by the Father and the Spirit proceeds from 
the Father and the Son. So Jesus basically is able to 
look at the very apex of their faith in terms of the fact that 
he has come from the Father. Thus underscoring something that 
John wants to get along with all throughout his gospel is 
the understanding of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 
The understanding that in this living and true God, in this 
infinite and divine being, there are three persons or subsistences, 
each having the same essence, the essence undivided. The distinction rather comes 
from the Father is unbegotten, the Son is begotten by the Father, 
and the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Brethren, 
that's what Jesus has been teaching. And that leads us to a practical 
conclusion with reference to the believer. If Jesus spent 
so much time teaching his disciples to prepare them to go out and 
to turn the world upside down for his name on theology, then 
it ought not to be just something we kind of hit on once in a while 
on a given day in a calendar year. It ought to be the backbone 
of preaching. It ought to be undergirding everything 
we preach. Sound theology is what it's all 
about. Look at 17.3. This is eternal 
life. That they may be a better them? 
No, that they may know thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ 
whom thou hast sent. The sum and substance, the essence 
of eternal life, when we get to heaven, it's not gonna be 
those gates of pearl, it's not gonna be those streets of gold, 
it's gonna be the presence and communion with the glory of God 
Almighty. That's what it's all about. That's what man's chief end is, 
to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. So brethren, as I mentioned 
earlier, the proclamation of the truth is the proclamation 
of the truth, and much of that truth concerns who is God. One living and true God who exists 
eternally as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And I want to end 
with a reminder to any unbelievers here. I don't do this to pick 
on unbelievers. All of us were unbelievers at 
one time. What distinguishes that? We got 
wise, we got smart, we got better. No, God in his mercy reached 
down, pulled us out of the grave, gave us the graces of faith and 
repentance, and showed us the glory of his son. And if he did 
that with the likes of us, He can do that with the likes of 
you as well. So the emphasis, as we turn to 
the book of Acts, we won't do that now, is to know this fact, 
that the Lord Jesus Christ, by His life, death, and resurrection, 
is the only Savior for sinners. There's no other name given under 
heaven by which we must be saved. It is Jesus Christ and Jesus 
Christ alone. The response to that is faith. The response to that is belief. The response to that is to receive 
the promise of God. Isn't that a wonderful way of 
salvation? Jesus doesn't say, I want you 
to go fix your burden, fix your heavy ladenness, fix your filth, 
clean it all up, and then when you're nice and polished, come 
back to me. No. Jesus is in the business. That's his function. That's the 
job. That's what Jesus is all about. 
To receive sinners to himself, to cleanse them in his own precious 
blood, and to give them a robe of righteousness such that they 
can enter into the presence of his Father. That is everlasting 
life. That is what John wants from 
all of you with reference to his main purpose in his gospel. 
John 20, 30, and 31, many other things Jesus did, did many other 
things. But these signs are written so 
that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the 
living God, and that believing in his name, you may have eternal 
life. Don't turn a deaf ear to that. 
Don't resist that. Don't reject that. Understand 
that burdened, weary, heavy laden sinners find rest in a glorious 
Savior. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for your word. We thank you for its clarity. 
We thank you that it sets forth such a wonderful Savior. and 
that it shows such glorious grace. We thank you for your mercies 
to us. We know that there is mercy to 
be had for others, and we pray that you'd open hearts and receive 
unto yourself sinners for whom Jesus died. May he bless the 
word as it goes forth throughout this world, and may it go forth 
conquering and to conquer. And we pray this in Jesus' name. 
Amen. Well, please stand with me