 The title of our sermon this morning is Liars Judge the Lord of Truth. Liars Judge the Lord of Truth. And we're in part two as we're working through this text, John chapter 18 verses 28 through 38. Now in John chapter 18, the Lord Jesus Christ to give us a setting here, the Lord Jesus Christ goes out with his disciples from the city of Jerusalem. Over the Kidron ravine he ascends the Mount of Olives and he enters the Garden of Gethsemane. Now there in the Garden, the Lord Jesus Christ is betrayed into the hands of lawless men by Judas. He's arrested, he's bound, he's led away to stand trial before the Jewish leaders. Peter said that he had committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth, and yet the intentions of these wicked leaders from the beginning was to put him to death. That intention was clearly stated in John chapter 11 after the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Now he first appears before Annas, then he appears before Caiaphas, who was described as the high priest that year, and he had never been charged. The proceedings themselves were in complete defiance of Jewish law, and yet before the night was through, he would stand before the Sanhedrin, judged guilty of blasphemy and sentenced to death. The Jews were prohibited by Roman law from putting anyone to death without Roman approval, and they led Jesus away then to the Roman Praetorium in verse 28 to stand trial before Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea. We see then as we come to John chapter 18 now a convergence or a clash of worldly authorities. The kings of the earth, Psalm 2 says, have set themselves, the rulers have taken counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed. Each one of them pursuing their own sinful, wicked, selfish, prideful agendas. Worldly authorities, religious authorities, jockeying and scrambling for power that ultimately belongs to none of them. And all of this now as we go through the chapter we have to understand is a picture of the lawlessness of men and the degree to which sinful, godless people, the lengths to which they will go to suppress the truth in their unrighteousness. They plot, they lie, they manipulate, they bribe, they extort, they trump up charges, they seek out false witnesses and all done according to verse 28 with a defiled heart and a depraved veneer of religiosity. These were obsessively religious people and these obsessively religious people are crying out for his blood. Pilate ultimately doesn't have the integrity and doesn't have the backbone to stand in their way. And both he and the Jews will bear responsibility for murdering the Lord Jesus Christ here. Now the midst of all the lies, in the midst of all the manipulation, in great contrast against the black backdrop of all their wickedness and all their sin stands the sinless and blameless and spotless Son of God. Worthy of all honor, worthy of all praise, worthy of all majesty and glory and yet here despised, humiliated, mocked, beaten, spit upon, scourged, and finally crucified. This is a picture of man's depravity. And it's also a picture of the glory of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth. Now that truth, incidentally, he says, is why he came. As he stands before Pilate in verse 37, he says to Pilate, You rightly say that I am a king. For this cause I was born and for this cause I've come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. And everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. He is the king of kings, amen. He is the Lord of lords who came into this lying deceitful world to proclaim the truth. Now that contrast between the lies of this world and the Lord of truth, the truth of God in Christ, is a primary theme woven throughout the very fabric of this passage. The Holy Spirit through the pen of John intends for us to see that contrast, to consider that contrast. So as we consider point two then on your notes in your bulletin, the Lord of truth in verses 32 through 38. Now as we work through these verses, I want you to see four characteristics of the truth. Four points regarding the truth that we can learn from our passage. The first of those four is this, the truth doesn't come from you. To many in our day and age that would surprise them to know that the truth doesn't come from you. It doesn't originate within your heart. It doesn't originate within your head. Truth is not what you make it. It's not what you feel it to be. It doesn't vary from person to person based on what someone believes. Something isn't true simply because it's true to you. It's either true or it's false. Truth exists outside of you. Truth has been determined and it has been determined without you, without your help. Truth is absolute. There is such a thing as absolute truth. In John chapter 18, the Jews have their own agenda, right? Rather than pursue the truth, weigh the evidence, seek understanding, they lie and they manipulate and they bribe and they murder to pursue what's best for them. To pursue their own interests, their own desires. Pilate has his own agenda. The Romans have their own agenda. The people in the crowd who will cry out for blood, they have their own agenda. Meanwhile, all the while, the truth has already been determined. The truth has already been decreed. It is working out exactly according to plan, according to the truth. Look at verse 31. They want to put Jesus to death and Pilate essentially gives them permission. He says in verse 31, Pilate said to them, you take him, you judge him according to your law. Now the reason, the reason that the Jews said to him, it is not lawful for us to put anyone to death. Look at verse 32. Is so that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which he spoke, signifying by what death he would die. Now make the connection with me, right? In the middle of all the chaos, in the midst of all these competing agendas, everyone doing what is right in their own eyes, God is behind it all. And God providentially working all things toward their intended ends according to his sovereign decree. The Jews, the Jews could have skirted Roman law. The Jews could have, as they had done to Stephen in Acts chapter 7, the Jews could have stoned the Lord Jesus Christ to death. That would have been expected for someone accused of blasphemy. It was stated in their own law that someone accused of blasphemy would be to put to death by stoning. Now Pilate here is essentially giving them permission to go and do it in verse 31. But the Jews are going to press for this Roman approval. They're going to press for crucifixion. On their part, they want him to be seen as cursed. Deuteronomy has said that cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree. On Pilate's part, in order to quell civil unrest, to quell the disruption, and to keep his job, Pilate would eventually consent to the Lord's death and send them to be crucified. The people, the people on their part, incited by the Jewish leaders, they have their own reasons to cry out for his crucifixion. Ultimately, Jesus Christ will be crucified. Why? Why is that? According to verse 32, because behind it all, behind it all, the Jews aren't determining the truth. Pilate isn't the arbiter of truth. Truth isn't determined by mob majority. Truth has been determined already. All of this came about exactly according to the perfect plans and purposes of Almighty God. Verse 32, that the saying of Jesus Christ might be fulfilled, which he spoke signifying by what death he would die. John, or Jesus had made it clear in John chapter 12, signifying by what death he would die. That he would not be cast down and stoned to death, but that he would be raised up, like the serpent in the wilderness, right? That he would be raised up and be crucified. Having been raised up, that he would draw all kinds of people to himself, people out of every tribe, every tongue, every people, every nation. And because he declared it, it is true. Because he declared it, it's true. If the Jews had stoned the Lord, and think with me, if they had succeeded in killing him, one of the many times that they had attempted to kill him before, if Pilate had not ordered his death, if Pilate had not consented to his crucifixion, then the Word of God is not true. Jesus Christ is not the Son of God, and our faith is in vain. You can go home today and live your life as you see fit, eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die, right? But all of this, all of this must happen. And it must happen exactly as the Lord Jesus Christ has said that it would happen, He's not sovereign. Truth does not reside with you. It originates with God, and God ordains all things that come to pass. Let me give you an example. Let me give you an example. Truth, truth doesn't come from science. Truth does not come from science. Science is not a determiner of truth. Science is not a source of truth. At best, science is a created order revealer of truth. The heavens declare the glory of God, the psalmist says. The firmament shows his handiwork. Paul essentially says in Romans 1, What may be known of God? What may be known of God has been revealed or manifested to us. His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made. His invisible attributes, even his eternal Godhead, understood by the things that are made. So where do our natural laws come from? Our natural laws created by God to reveal a God of order, the God of the universe. What is the source of all the order in our universe? Who determined the speed of light? Who made E to equal MC squared? Who did that? God did that. When you make science, not a revealer of truth, but when you make science the source or the determiner of truth, Paul says in Romans 1 that you change the glory of the incorruptible God into something that looks like it was made by man. And you end up worshiping and serving the creation rather than the Creator who is blessed forever. Truth is not determined by science. Truth is not determined by psychology. Truth is not determined by philosophy. Contrary to what Disney continuously indoctrines people with, you don't find truth by pursuing your own heart. You think about it, atheistic. Atheistic scientists are like ants in an ant farm. They sit there in their glass-enclosed ant farm, the sand around them. And the atheistic ant scientist says to himself, everything we see here has come from nothing. The sand must be eternal. And God asked Job in chapter 38, where were you, Job, when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. He asked Job, where is the way to the dwelling of light and darkness? Where is its place? That you may take it to its territory. That you may know its paths to its home. Job, do you know it because you were born then? Or because the number of your days is great? God sits in the heavens and he laughs. Holds them in derision. The Big Bang, right? Darwinian evolution. Do you know it because you were born then? Or because the number of your days is great? Worldly wisdom. What about professing Christians that deny a literal six-day creation? Do you know it because you were born then? Or because the number of your days is great? Since when is science a source of truth? It is a revealer of truth. Science is not the source of truth. Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 40. The source of truth is God Almighty. And what we know of this world is revealed to us and is to reveal Him in His glory. Isaiah chapter 40. And look down beginning at verse 6. Who is the source of truth? Where does truth come from? In Isaiah chapter 40 verse 6, the voice said, he said, cry out. And he said, what shall I cry? Cry this. All flesh is grass. All its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades because the breath of the Lord blows upon it. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades. But the word of our God, the truth of our God stands forever. You are a wisp. You are a vapor. What is this life? What is man? That God is even mindful of him. But the truth of God remains forever. O Zion verse 9, you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain of Jerusalem. You who bring good tidings, lift up your voice with strength. Lift it up. Be not afraid. Say to the cities of Judah, behold your God. Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand and his arm shall rule for him. Behold, his reward is with him and his work before him. He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will gather the lambs with his arm. He will carry them in his bosom and gently lead those who are with young. Look at verse 12, who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, measured heaven with a span and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure. Wade the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance. Have you done that? Lord, who has directed the spirit of the Lord or as his counselor has taught him with whom did he take counsel and who instructed him and taught him in the path of justice. Who taught him knowledge and showed him the way of understanding? God is almighty, omniscient. Look down at verse 21. Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? From the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth. Its inhabitants are like grasshoppers who stretch out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes to nothing. He makes the judges of the earth useless. Look at Isaiah chapter 41 and drop down to verse 21. These worldly usurpers those that believe they have knowledge of these things. Verse 21, present your case, says the Lord. Bring forth your strong reasons, says the king of Jacob. Let them bring forth and show us what will happen. Let them show the former things, what they were, that we may consider them and know the latter end of them or declare to us the things to come. I understand in this that God is mocking worldly wisdom, mocking the foolishness of this world. Show the things that are to come here after verse 23 that we may know that you are God's. Incidentally, one of the indications that God is God and that God is the source of all truth is that God knows the end from the beginning. That God has determined all things that come to pass and he knows the future. Incidentally, one of the qualifications of a true prophet is that that true prophet is speaking for God and speaks the truth from God 100% unfailingly, 100% accurately, 100% of the time. And so these lying prophets today that say they have a word from God and that word doesn't come true, God says in Deuteronomy, they should die. They are liars. God is true. He says in verse 25 Look at verse or chapter 42 Isaiah chapter 42 and drop down to verse 5 I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people as a light to the Gentiles to open blind eyes to bring prisoners from the prison those who sit in darkness from the prison house I am the Lord that is my name my glory I will not give to another nor my praise to carved images behold the former things have come to pass and new things I declare before they spring forth I tell you of them look at chapter 43 and drop down to verse 8 and God says again mocking worldly wisdom here bring out the blind people 43 verse 8 bring out the blind people who have eyes bring out the blind people who have eyes and the death who have ears bring out those people who think they understand and they don't bring out those that say they know the truth when they don't know the truth let all the nations verse 9 be gathered together let all of them be gathered together let the people be assembled who among them can declare this and show us former things let them bring out their witnesses that they may be justified or let them hear and say it is truth you are my witnesses says the lord and my servant whom I have chosen that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he before me there was no god formed nor shall there be after me I even I am the lord besides me there is no savior I have declared I have saved I have proclaimed there was no foreign god among you therefore you are my witnesses says the lord that I am god indeed before the day was I am he there is no one who can deliver out of my hand I work and who will reverse it look at Isaiah 44 just crushing testimony through the scroll of Isaiah here about who god is god as the source of truth god the source of all knowledge god the source of all understanding look at Isaiah 44 and drop down to verse 24 thus says the lord and he who formed you from the womb you were created amen you were made you were formed in the womb by god I am the lord who makes all things who stretches out the heavens all alone who spreads abroad the earth by myself who frustrates the signs of the babblers and drives diviners mad who turns wise men backward and makes their knowledge foolishness he continues to do this today right in the face of this world's wisdom where is the wise of this world the scribe who confirms the word of his servant performs the counsel of his messengers who says to Jerusalem you shall be inhabited to the cities of Judah you shall be built and I will raise up her waste places who says to the deep be dry and I will dry your rivers who says of Cyrus he is my shepherd before Cyrus was even a flicker in anyone's imagination he names him by name and he shall perform all my pleasure saying to Jerusalem you shall be built and to the temple your foundation shall be laid look at Isaiah 46 look at verse 8 remember this the lord says show yourselves men recall to mind oh you transgressors remember the former things of old for I am god and there is no other I am god and there is none like me one of the characteristics is verse 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things that are not yet done saying my counsel shall stand and I will do all my pleasure truth does not originate with you truth is not grounded in human opinion truth is not based on how you feel how you think or how much you think you know man did not create himself man not creating himself did not create or come up with his own morality and although man constantly tries to change that to allow for his own wicked desires truth comes from outside you and you are subject you and I are subject to that truth there is an objective objective basis there is an objective source where is that source God and God is the source of truth now what does that what does that mean we think through applications of all this right our understanding of these things here's what it means means you don't get to pick what gender you are God has decided what gender you are you don't get to decide that it's okay to quote unquote love someone of the same gender God has decided that is immoral that is wickedness in his sight you don't get to think that lusting after that girl in your heart looking at that filth on the internet is okay you don't get to think that because God has already determined that that is sexual immorality God has said that it is adultery God has said that sexually immoral people have their place in the part of their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone truth doesn't come from you truth doesn't come from you and the truth that doesn't come from you originates the truth originates with God and you are accountable to it you are subject to it truth secondly doesn't come from this world truth doesn't come from you secondly truth doesn't come from this world look it back at John chapter 18 and look beginning at verse 33 pilot then enter the praetorium again now and he calls Jesus to himself he said to him are you the king of the Jews pilot verse 33 goes back into the praetorium he calls Jesus asks him this question are you the king of the Jews literally in the Greek the word order the question begins with you you pilot says you are the king of the Jews that's obvious that this was the charge that was brought forth by the Jewish leaders they charged him with blasphemy but when it gets to pilot the charge is different pilot wouldn't have done anything about a charge of blasphemy he wasn't going to handle a theological question of the Jews the Jews now are bringing Jesus to pilot with the intention of having him executed and so the Jews manipulate pilot with a charge here of sedition or insurrection Luke records in Luke chapter 23 verse 2 says they began to accuse him saying we found this fellow perverting the nation sedition forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar and saying that he himself is Christ the king they painted Jesus Christ as a revolutionary as an insurrectionist so it's most likely then if you consider verse 33 it's most likely that pilot's question here is highly sarcastic pilot is shocked if you imagine the scene right Jesus is standing there before him disheveled he's bound having been handed over by his own people his face is already battered he's already been struck his face is swelling now he's already been cut there's spattered dried blood and spit on him he's obviously destitute, obviously poor and so to pilot standing before pilot here this is not a dangerous revolutionary he doesn't see him as a God essentially says you're the one who has everybody so worked up you a criminal in the eyes of your own people you're the one that came riding into town at the beginning of the week of the shouts of Hosanna this is absurd you are the king of the Jews that's the idea of what's going on here with pilot's question Isaiah affirms this doesn't he describes Jesus as having no form of unity that we should desire him he's despised, he's rejected of men you are king of the Jews pilot asks at any point in this process Jesus could command a halt to the whole ordeal right he could call down 12 legions of angels he could call down fire from out of heaven I am the king Jesus could say and judge there and then the Jews judge pilot judge the world but he doesn't do that he doesn't come to get out of this he hasn't come this time to judge the world he's come at this time to lay down his life for those that would repent and believe in the gospel he's certainly the king but not in the way that any of these wicked men could have imagined that truth that understanding is not of this world that truth is spiritually discerned so Jesus answers him then in verse 34 are you speaking for yourself about this or did others tell you this concerning me in other words is that your understanding pilot or did you simply get that from my enemies do you believe pilot that I'm a king now pilot's hard hearted sarcasm is confirmed in his answer pilot answered indignantly right contemptuously a Jew is essentially what pilot said your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you betrayed you to me what have you done pilot's answer in verse 35 reveals the contempt that he has for the Jews am I a Jew do you think I care in the slightest what you people think about anything pilot is saying or what authority structures you put in place I'm the real authority here you've obviously angered them your own people your own leaders have delivered you or betrayed you over to me what have you done pilot asks so the Lord answers in verse 36 answer very interesting my kingdom is not of this world it is other worldly if my kingdom were of this world my servants would fight so that I should not be delivered to the Jews but now my kingdom is not from here through this answer Jesus is communicating a truth to pilot he's also communicating a truth that is true for us today this is the way that things really are pilot not as you see them to be not as they appear to you to be but this is the way that things really are there is a truth far beyond what you perceive Jesus certainly doesn't look the part Jesus doesn't come at the command of an army pilot would have known about his rebuke of Peter in the garden for pulling his sword cutting off Malchus' ear pilot would have heard about Jesus healing Malchus' ear he would have heard about the Lord offering himself up to be arrested offering himself up to be bound but Jesus Christ has come to fight his way into a kingdom he has come to win for himself at the cross of people to sacrifice himself for them in death to take upon himself their sin to take upon himself the wrath that is reserved for them and then to gather his own from the four corners of the earth to gather those into his kingdom that belong there those who will repent, those who will believe those who will turn from their sin to trust him alone the truth of that exists outside of this world you can't find it through natural revelation you can't find it by looking at the stars looking at creation by looking at science the truth of this exists beyond the understanding of pilot my kingdom not of this world it's beyond the understanding of the Jews who right now are wrapped up murderously in false religion seeking to establish their own righteousness they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God they are blinded this truth must be supernaturally revealed and here's the truth one, we've established that truth doesn't come from you truth doesn't come from pilot truth isn't established by these lying Pharisees truth isn't arrived at through multitudes of false witnesses through the centuries that make claims about the way that they think something should be truth isn't determined by any of that, truth is determined by the one who is standing before pilot secondly, truth doesn't ultimately come from this world that which is naturally revealed through creation is not sufficient that which you naturally think in that brain tissue between your ears is not sufficient that which you think in your heart which the bible describes as desperately wicked and deceitful above all things is not sufficient my kingdom, the kingdom of truth is not of this world Jesus said this world functions according to a determined truth, a truth that has already been determined the word there for world is cosmos, it means created order it means orderly, well ordered it's talking about the created order this world was created to reveal truth to a degree in the created order that we see but this created world is not the source or the determiner or the arbiter of truth all of this creation operates within a system of truth that has been determined that means there's truth outside of what you see outside of what you hear outside of what you taste what you feel and that truth that truth must be supernaturally revealed to you the fullness of that truth isn't attainable through what you see what you think, what you think you know it must be revealed not of this world will not get you there there is a world there is a realm beyond this one if you look at the end of that verse not from here that word literally means realm not from this realm it must be supernaturally revealed so as Pilate stood there picture the scene right as Pilate stood there he represented the Roman government that presented Caesar as a god and presented a pantheon of gods that were supernaturally revealed to the Romans no there were figments of men's imaginations invented out of thin air by the wicked whims and imaginations of men Paul had come across a circumstance very similar in Acts chapter 17 turn to Acts 17 with me Paul had come across that kind of worldly paganism on Mars Hill in Athens as he preached to the pagan Greeks there in Acts chapter 17 and look beginning at verse 22 so Paul in Athens in the midst of the Areopagus he stood and said verse 22 men of Athens I perceive in all things you are very religious for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship all of these pagan idols he says I even found an altar with this inscription to the unknown god therefore the one whom you worship without knowing him I proclaim to you God who made the world and everything in it since he is lord of heaven and earth does not dwell in temples made with hands nor is he worshiped with men's hands as though he needed anything since he gives to all life and breath and all things and he is made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings so that they should seek the Lord you are created to glorify God when Adam fell in the Garden of Eden you fell in Adam all those who are born on earth are born in Adam you are born in sin David said in sin my mother conceived me from that point in time you having sinned in Adam will either glorify God in your damnation as punishment for your sin or you will glorify God by turning from your sin seeking him in Christ the one who is delivered over for your transgressions you will glorify God by turning from your sin and worshiping him you should seek the Lord verse 27 in the hope that you might grope for him and find him though he is not far from each one of us you are hearing his word preach this morning the Bible in your hands he is not far from you for in him verse 28 it is in him not in science not in psychology not in the philosophies of this world not in yourself not in your family not in school, not in your career in him we live and move and have our being as also some of your poets have said for we are also his offspring therefore verse 29 since we are the offspring of God we ought not to think of the divine nature that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone something shaped by art or man's devising truly these times of ignorance God overlooked but now commands all men everywhere to repent to turn from your sin repentance doesn't merely mean asking for forgiveness you can't simply ask for forgiveness asking for forgiveness is meaningless apart from genuine repentance if I came up to you and slugged you in the arm and I said please forgive me and maybe you being a charitable person might say oh I forgive you so then I slug you in the arm again and I say please forgive me and you being loving and somewhat patient say I forgive you so I slug you in the arm again eventually what are you going to say to me listen if you were really sorry you would stop slugging me in the arm you cannot presume to live in your sin and just think that God is going to wipe your sin under the rug and just willingly forgive you you must turn from living life for yourself you must turn from your sin and you must trust Christ sell out for Christ live wholeheartedly for him you must repent and God commands verse 30 he commands all men everywhere to repent because verse 31 he has appointed a day on which he will judge this world in righteousness by the man who is standing before pilot being judged by wicked men by the man whom he has ordained and he has given assurance of this to all by what by raising him from the dead our Lord has been raised from the dead Buddha has not been raised from the dead Muhammad is dead Krishna is dead our Lord has been raised from the dead God has given proof that you will stand before him in judgment you will be accountable to the truth of God and the proof that you will stand before him in judgment and be held accountable for how you live according to that truth the proof of that is that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead the truth is not of this world and you will never come to the truth apart from the one who is truth the kingdom over which Jesus rules and reigns is not on a mere natural level it's not merely carnal it's spiritual the kingdoms of this world are led by finite men and he is infinite his kingdom is unchanging the kingdoms of this world are often unjust they're cruel they're inconsistent they're weak they're vacillating our kingdom here is weak and vacillating and unjust the kingdoms of this world have boundaries they have limitations they come and go where is the Roman empire today it's gone his kingdom is eternal it lasts forever the kingdoms of this world are ravaged by sin and sin has and will at last bring down every one of the kingdoms of this world including our own his kingdom is perfect not admitting anything that defiles the only kingdom that will last is the one where our perfect god rules and reigns where there is no sin the only way to come to that truth the only way to come to that kingdom is by pursuing the revelation of it in the way the truth and the life and that revealed by the spirit of god through the word of god 3 that truth isn't spread by force back in john chapter 18 verse 36 it isn't spread by force it's not propagated at the point of a sword he says if my kingdom were of this world my servants would fight so that I should not be delivered to the jews but now my kingdom is not from here that kingdom is not a political force it's not a military force it's not a natural force the kingdom of god is spread built super intended not by natural means not by human means you can't persuade your way in you can't persuade others in you can't market it you can't advertise it you can't manipulate it forward jesus says if my kingdom were of this world my servants would fight what does that say about islam everywhere that islam is it is a ravaging despicable chaos it's pressed forward at the point of a sword everywhere that islam is it's a disruption jesus says my kingdom is not of this world if my kingdom were of this world my servants would fight so how is this truth then revealed how is the truth revealed how is his kingdom pressed forward into this dark world it's preached through the gospel of jesus christ and that preaching is by god's grace redemptive jesus says unless a man is born again he will not see the kingdom of heaven unless a man is born again all this would have been enormously important to make clear regarding jesus christ to a jewish audience right if his claims were to be believed by a jewish audience his kingship would have to be clarified we can see an example of this in colossians 1 turn there with me quickly his kingship would have to be clarified in colossians 1 paul says in verse 13 that he the lord jesus christ has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the son of his love in whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins he is the image of the invisible god the first born over all creation for by him all things were created that are in heaven that are on the earth invisible and invisible all things were created through him and for him and he is before all things and in him all things consist he is the head of the body the church who is the beginning the first born from the dead that in all things he may have the preeminence so what's the difference this kingdom is described here by paul and colossians 1 it's not pressed forward by military force what's the difference between all of this evidence all of this kingdom talk what's the difference between all of that evidence in the ears of his disciples who believe and in the ears of pilot who's obviously hard hearted in the ears of the jews who are obviously hard hearted maybe in your ears this morning if you're sitting there hard hearted what's the difference that brothers and sisters in this church have sold out for christ lost family lost jobs preached and have lost spouses have left this world who go out bearing the reproach of christ to preach the gospel why would a genuine christian do that and why would all other false pretender christians stay at home why is it that this world that doesn't believe why is that look at it with me at matthew 13 matthew 13 what's the difference here if you're here this morning to this point maybe you've not turned from your sin maybe this just sounds like a bunch of nonsense to you you don't get it you've never repented you don't follow christ you live life for yourself and you know it you're in your sin you recognize that why is it that all that evidence falls on your death ears falls and bounces off your heart your concrete heart but to others it penetrates their heart turns them from their sin revels glories in christ why is that look at matthew 13 on the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea great multitudes were gathered together to him so that he got into a boat and he sat and the whole multitude stood on the shore and he spoke many things to them in a parable in parables saying behold a sower went out to sow and as he sowed some seed fell by the wayside and the birds came and devoured them I want to explain this as we're going through sowing the word of god the message the proclamation of the kingdom the gospel of our lord jesus christ he's preaching the gospel and as he sows seed sows the gospel you go out and you preach the gospel you preach the gospel to every creature you preach the gospel without favoritism without partiality you just preach the gospel and people are going to respond in various ways here's how they're going to respond verse 4 as he sowed some seed fell by the wayside the birds came and devoured them he would later say that those birds represent satan the evil one comes and devours that seed so that you will not hear 5. some fell on stony places where they did not have much earth and they immediately sprang up they immediately looked like a christian but because they had no depth of earth when the sun was up they were scorched because they had no root they withered away they went out from us because they were not of us verse 7 some fell among thorns the thorns the cares of this world persecution the cares of this world sprang up and choked out the seed verse 8 but others fell on good ground yielded a crop some 100 fold some 60 some 30 he who has ears to hear let him hear don't harden your heart listen to what the word of god says verse 10 the disciples came and said to him why do you speak to them in parables he answered and said to them verse 11 because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom but to them it has not been given did you hear what the lord says it's been given to them to know but at this point to you it has not been given for whoever has to him more will be given and he will have an abundance but whoever does not have even what he has will be taken away from him therefore I speak to them in parables because seeing they do not see hearing they do not hear nor do they understand in other words I speak to them in parables because although they have eyes to see they refuse to see although they have ears to hear they refuse to hear you have a heart but to this point because your heart has been crusted over concrete reinforced around your heart you reject the lord jesus christ you reject the truth of god you reject the truth of his kingdom you reject his right to rule and reign and you insist on living for yourself and ruling and reigning in your own life and because you do that because you are hard hearted having eyes to see you do not see having ears to hear you do not hear and that's why he preaches in parables in them verse 14 the prophecy of isiah is fulfilled which says hearing you will hear and shall not understand seeing you will see and not perceive the hearts of this people have grown dull their ears are hard of hearing their eyes they have closed lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears lest they should understand with their hearts and turn so that I should heal them listen the lord says verse 16 your eyes for they see your ears for they hear brother and sister blessed are you if you hear if you understand if you turn from your sin and sell out for christ blessed are you because your eyes have seen your ears have heard I say to you verse 17 assuredly many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see and did not see it and hear what you hear and did not hear it to some to others it has not been granted it is to he who has ears to hear if you will sit here this morning and you will harden your heart to the truth if you will sit here this morning and you will stop your ears to the truth if you will put your hands over your eyes and refuse to see the truth if you will sit here and in your heart argue with the lord jesus christ if you will sit here in rebellion against his word if you will sit here like pilot who cried out for his blood if you will sit here like that in the presence of the lord jesus christ at the preaching of his word hard hearted refusing to hear refusing to see and it has not been granted to you and you will die in your sins and you will perish in hell turn from your sin if you think you already know the truth if you think you got all this figured out that's your opinion right where did that come from and spoon fed it to you it's your own thought your own opinion you are blind to the truth and listen what's really frightening is that he will judicially in judgment against you keep you in your blindness until finally you die and go to hell it is hidden from those that harden their hearts Acts chapter 16 verse 14 talks about Lydia and there it's recorded that God opened the heart of Lydia to understand those things spoken of by Paul if you are here and you have eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart that desires to turn from your sin a heart that desires to live for the lord jesus christ live for the one who made you who gave you breath unload the weight of all that wicked iniquity right the lord jesus christ offer the gospel to you come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and i will give you rest take my yoke upon you learn from me cry out to him now acknowledge the truth turn from your sin be converted that your sins may be blotted out truth doesn't come from you truth doesn't come from this world truth isn't spread by force lastly truth is found only in jesus christ back in john chapter 18 verse 37 pilot therefore said to him are you a king then literally so then you are a king pilot said to him verse 37 jesus answered you say rightly that i am a king for this cause i was born and for this cause i have come into the world that i should bear witness to the truth everyone who is of the truth hears my voice you hear that right pilot didn't pilot didn't do you hear it pilot didn't hear it do you hear it everyone who is of the truth in other words born of god everyone who is of god everyone who is of the truth hears my voice there is no truth that exists outside the lord jesus christ there is no guru somewhere you can go and speak to to find it you are not going to get it in any other religion all the religions of this world are the religions of men nothing in science will reveal any truth that is in contradiction to her apart from the lord jesus christ who created it the knowledge of him is where you will find the truth and the truth will set you free for this cause i was born the lord said to be the king you rightly say that i am a king for this cause i was born which he was born into the world the very purpose for why he has come to bear witness to the truth to gather everyone that hears his voice the very purpose for which he has come is to be king god has spoken to us in his son the lord jesus christ he has spoken to us in his son the lord jesus christ jesus christ gave his word to the apostles the spirit of god by the spirit of god inspired moved by the spirit of god men wrote down the scriptures and we have now the word of god it attests to us that it is the word of god it attests to us that it is a sure and perfect revelation of the lord jesus christ who is the truth to reject this truth is to reject your only hope this culture is constantly assaulting constantly assailing that truth and this truth the word of god revelation of god and lord jesus christ has withstood that assault has withstood that scrutiny for millennia christ is the only truth that we can present to our own hearts that is redemptive the only truth that we can present to this depraved culture what should we do in light of this truth turn to hebrus chapter 12 hebrus chapter 12 what are we to do brothers and sisters if you're here today and you're lost you're in your sin you know it don't harden your heart don't turn from the lord's grace and mercy his offer to you today turn from your sin and follow christ turn from your sin and follow christ to you my brothers and sisters we've turned we've left this world to follow him what are we to do hebrus 12 verse 1 therefore brother sister we also since we're surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses brothers and sisters who have gone before us many who have died for the faith those that have run their race now i out for us to run ours right we're surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses what does he say let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us not just the sin right certainly lay aside the sin we're to turn from our sin and no one can rightly profess to be a christian that has not turned from their sin turn from your sin lay aside the sin but what does he say let us lay aside every weight everything that hinders put it down lay aside every weight lay aside the sin that so easily ensnares us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us looking unto Jesus christ the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the jews endured pilot endured the humiliation endured the scourge endured the cross despising the shame and now is sat down at the right hand of the throne of god put down everything that keeps you from running when you get up in the morning your feet hit the ground say i want to run i want to run today for the lord jesus christ i want to run and drop everything push everything out of the way that keeps you from running or we love you we praise you we worship you we thank you god thank you for this testimony of our lord jesus christ thank you for his example the multifaceted diamond that magnificently shines before the heinous and wicked backdrop of sin i pray that lord for those here that don't know you that you would give them eyes to see god give them ears to hear or break their heart over their sin show them their rebellion show them their helplessness apart from cry i pray they don't get a minute of sleep i pray they fear getting in the car i pray they fear some disease there are a thousand ways we can be taken out of this world i pray that you wouldn't give them any rest lord until they turn from their sin to put their faith and trust in you alone for my brothers and sisters lord i pray that considering all that christ has done that we would lay aside every weight that we would lay aside that sin that so easily ensnares us that we would run that we would run run all the way to glory for your everlasting praise and worship we pray these things in the name of our blessed god and savior the lord jesus christ amen