JESUS IS LIFE

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 14:6

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." John 11:25

"Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father." John 10:17-18

We are finding some great Bible truths in John 14:6. One of the great truths in this wonderful verse is the fact that John 14:6 is always present truths. John 14:6 is past truth, present truth, and it will always be future truth. That is because Jesus is the GREAT I AM! Let us look now at three eternal truths in this month’s sermon. First, Jesus is the source of life. Secondly, Jesus is abundant life and thirdly, Jesus is the resurrection and the life. The Lord Jesus Christ came to this world as the God/man. He came as Savior and life giver. Because of His Divinity, because He was very God, as well as very man, Jesus is life. Jesus declared, "...I am the resurrection and the LIFE..." John 11:25. In Christ is life, original, not borrowed, and not derived. "He that hath the son hath life." I John 5:12. To know Jesus in a personal relationship is to have life.

The work of the church, the main priority of the Christian should be to share the gospel and help others know the love and forgiveness found in God’s grace.

Mildred L. Dillon wrote:

I wish you knew my Jesus

and loved Him as I do,

For if you knew my Jesus,

Then you would love Him too.

He gave His life at Calvary,

The sacrifice for you;

If you receive my Jesus,

Then you will love Him too.

The Holy Scriptures teach us that before His death on Mount Calvary, Jesus raised three people from the dead. He gave three dead people their lives back, He reaised them from the dead. At His resurrection, He resurrected a number of people from their graves. He had already raised a young girl, a young man, and Lazarus.

"And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his ressurrection, and went into the holy city, and appreared unto many." Matthew 27:52-53. He raised three from among the dead. They all died again, but He resurrected many and they did not die again. The many resurrected were the first fruits. They were presented to all of heaven setting froth the great fact that Jesus is the source of life and that all the Universe could see that the Sacrifice for sin was accepted.

Now, friend, we cannot make too much of the true gospel, the death, bruial, and resurrection of our Lord, but if we are not careful we will make too little of His blessed resurrection.

1. Jesus declared Himself to be the life:

"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." I John 5:11-12

"Jesus said unto her, (Martha) I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:" John 11:25

"By His Word and His works He declared Himslef the Author of the resurrection. He who Himself was soon to die upon the cross stood with the keys of death, a conqueror of the grave, and asserted His right and power to give eternal life." Desire of Ages, p. 530, E.G. White

2. Jesus domonstrated that He is life:

In raising the dead, in feeding the 5,000 men besides the women and children, and in turning the water into wine, He gave undisputable evidence that He is life.

3. Jesus direct statement that He is life:

No one can rightly know me without knowing the Father, because I and the Father are one. John 14:10-11

John Wesley wrote, "All praise to the Lamb, accepted I am, through faith in the Savior’s adorable name; In Him I confide His blood is applied; For me He has suffered, for me He has died."

Jesus, the Lamb who died for us, gives us eternal life. The One who saves is also the Shepherd who lives to guide and lead us. He is eternal. He has always been.

"...I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10

This verse shows us that Christ came to give us life and that we might have it more abundantly. The truth of this verse goes deeper than just the surface. Friend, Christ did not come to be only a teacher of a new morality, or a good example of holiness and self-denial; or a founder of new ceremonies. The Scribes and Pharisees had already given the people many rules, ordinances, and ceremonies.

By Moses came laws and many rules, ceremonies, and examples. By the Lord Jesus Christ came grace, mercy, peace, and eternal life. The way of Life in a Savior was well known to Abraham, Moses, and David etc. A Redeemer and a Sacrifice was the hope of all God’s children from Abel down to John the Baptist. And now through the gospel, Jesus has come and fulfilled their hopes as well as ours. Life and immortality were brought into full light by the gospel.

John 10:10 - a present tense verse:

1. I am come - always true - always present

2. That they might have life

3. That they might have it more abundantly

"To the believer, Christ is the resurrection and the life. In our Savior the life that was lost through sin is restored; for He has life in Himself to quicken whom He will. He is invested with the right to give immortality. The life that He laid down in humanity, He takes up again, and gives to humanity. "I am come," He said, "that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." "Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day." John 10:10; 4:14; 6:54." Desire of Ages, pp.786-787, E. G. White.

Why Jesus came: There are three things about the coming of Jesus the first time that I want us to bring into focus. In John 10, we see a number of things, but the following three are the outstanding themes of the chapter, the portion of scripture we call the Shepherd and sheep chapter.

1. Jesus came to give life to the sheep, the children of God. "...I am come that they might have life..." John 10:10

2. Jesus came to give His life. "I am the good Shepherd; the good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep." John 10:11. The work of every good shepherd is to go through storms, hazards of all kinds and the fighting off of the wild beast of the wilderness in order to secure and safeguard his sheep. Friends, Jesus, our good Shepherd, our great Shepherd and soon to appear Chief Shepherd gave His life for the sheep.

3. The thief comes in startling contrast to the good Shepherd. "The thief cometh not, but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..." John 10:10. Those whom they steal are those deceived sheep and their love, loyalty, and service are stolen from the good Shepherd. The thief kills and destroys spiritually. Because you see the thief is a murderer of souls.

The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The thief does not own the sheep. The hireling does not own the sheep, but rather is paid to care for the sheep. The hireling sees the wolf coming which is threatening and puts the sheep in danger, but seeing the sheep in danger, the hireling will leave the sheep.

Let us look now at the third part of our sermon for this month.

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life..." John 11:25

"Christ declared to His hearers that if there were no resurrection of the dead, the Scriptures which they professed to believe would be of no avail. He said, "But touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." God counts the things that are not as though they were. He sees the end from the beginning, and beholds the result of His work as though it were now accomplished. The precious dead, from Adam down to the last saint who dies, will hear the voice of the Son of God, and will come forth from the grave to immortal life. God will be their God, and they shall be His people. There will be a close and tender relationship between God and the risen saint. This condition, which is anticipated in His purpose, He beholds as if it were already existing. The dead live unto Him." Desire of Ages, p.606, E. G. White.

Christ is the WAY for a very important and significant reason. Because we see in our sermon that He is the way to life and that is the purpose of His coming. He came to give life, immortality, eternal life without end.

SOCRATES was a great philosopher who believed and taught that knowledge was a virtue. Our Lord Jesus Christ never believed that; neither did He teach such philosophy. Men, to our Lord, were not only spiritually blind, but sick; not only in error, but dead in sin; and He must therefor, give them health as well as light and life as well as truth. So, to know Christ as the great I AM, as the WAY, as the Truth is not enough; we must find Him as the LIFE. The way is the way to life in God’s eternal plan. All the person and works of Christ are directed to this end. E. Stanley Jones in his book, The Christ of the Mount, page 107 said, "Jesus is not just a window. He is the SUN shinning into all other windows." Jesus is LIFE.

Thou art the WAY!

All ways are thorny mazes without Thee;

Where hearts are pierced, and thoughts all aimless stray:

In Thee the heart stands firm, the life moves free;

Thou art the Way.

Thou art the Truth!

Questions the ages break against in vain

Confront the spirit in its untried youth;

It starves, while sifting poison from the grain:

Thou art the Truth!

Thou art the Life!

All ways without Thee are paths that end in death;

All life without Thee with death harvest rife;

All truths dry bones, disjoined, and void of breath:

Thou art our Life!

-Elizabeth R. Charles

(Attention Pam Francisco)

P.O. Box 1417

Fort Worth, TX 76101

or Email Pam by Clicking the Email Button Below.