THE LIVING WORD TRANSCRIPT<br><br>

PROGRAM AIR DATE: 2-4-18<br><br>



LESSON TITLE: “THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON”<br><br>



WELCOME<br><br>

      TODAY WE ARE BLESSED WITH A WONDERFUL GIFT FROM GOD, THE BIBLE. THIS BOOK IS GOD'S LIVING WORD. IN ITS PAGES, WE ARE TOLD “FOR THE WORD OF GOD IS LIVING AND POWERFUL AND SHARPER THAN ANY TWO-EDGED SWORD.” IT IS IN THIS BOOK OF BOOKS THAT WE FIND THE ANSWERS TO ALL OF MAN'S QUESTIONS AND NEEDS. THIS MORNING YOUR AREA CHURCHES OF CHRIST WELCOME YOU TO A PROGRAM COMMITTED TO THAT PERFECT LAW OF LIBERTY AS WE PRESENT THE LIVING WORD. NOW HERE IS YOUR HOST, RAY SULLINS.<br><br>

      GOOD MORNING! THANKS FOR JOINING US THIS MORNING IN THIS SERVICE OF GOD. THE LIVING WORD PROGRAM IS COMMITTED TO PROCLAIMING THE SIMPLE TRUTH OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST WHICH IS CONFIRMED FOR US IN THE BIBLE. I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE YOUR BIBLE’S HANDY AND I HOPE YOU ARE READY TO WORSHIP GOD TOGETHER AS WE SING PRAISES TO HIS NAME AND STUDY FROM HIS WONDROUS WORD. NOW LET’S BEGIN BY TALKING TO OUR FATHER IN PRAYER! <br><br>

      PRAYER: OUR GOD AND FATHER IN HEAVEN, WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS DAY AND THE GREAT BLESSING OF LIFE, THE PRIVILEGE THAT WE HAVE TO BE CALLED YOUR CHILDREN. AND FATHER, AS YOUR CHILDREN WE KNOW THAT EVERYTHING WE HAVE IS FROM YOU.  ALL GOOD SPIRITUAL THINGS, ALL GOOD PHYSICAL THINGS COME FROM YOU AND YOU ALONE AND WE THANK YOU FATHER. WE THANK YOU MOST OF ALL FOR THE GREAT GIFT OF JESUS WHICH ALLOWS US NOT ONLY TO BE YOUR CHILDREN NOW AND TO BE BLESSED IN THIS LIFE BUT ULTIMATELY BLESSED ETERNALLY IN THE LIFE TO COME. HELP US TO DO ALL IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH THIS DAY AS YOU COMMAND. IN JESUS NAME WE PRAY, AMEN. <br><br>

      IT’S NOW TIME TO JOIN IN OUR SONGS OF PRAISE AS WE TOGETHER SING THE FIRST HYMN OF THE MORNING. WON’T YOU JOIN IN WITH THE CONGREGATION AT THIS TIME AS WE SING, “WHEN WE ALL GET TO HEAVEN.”  <br><br>







      DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS<br><br>

      READ WITH ME THIS MORNING A TEXT FOUND IN JOB 28, BEGINNING IN VERSE 12! THERE IT SAYS, “BUT WHERE CAN WISDOM BE FOUND? AND WHERE IS THE PLACE OF UNDERSTANDING?  MAN DOES NOT KNOW ITS VALUE, NOR IS IT FOUND IN THE LAND OF THE LIVING. THE DEEP SAYS, 'IT IS NOT IN ME'; AND THE SEA SAYS, 'IT IS NOT WITH ME.' IT CANNOT BE PURCHASED FOR GOLD, NOR CAN SILVER BE WEIGHED FOR ITS PRICE. IT CANNOT BE VALUED IN THE GOLD OF OPHIR, IN PRECIOUS ONYX OR SAPPHIRE. NEITHER GOLD NOR CRYSTAL CAN EQUAL IT, NOR CAN IT BE EXCHANGED FOR JEWELRY OF FINE GOLD. NO MENTION SHALL BE MADE OF CORAL OR QUARTZ, FOR THE PRICE OF WISDOM IS ABOVE RUBIES. THE TOPAZ OF ETHIOPIA CANNOT EQUAL IT, NOR CAN IT BE VALUED IN PURE GOLD. "FROM WHERE THEN DOES WISDOM COME? AND WHERE IS THE PLACE OF UNDERSTANDING? IT IS HIDDEN FROM THE EYES OF ALL LIVING, AND CONCEALED FROM THE BIRDS OF THE AIR. DESTRUCTION AND DEATH SAY, 'WE HAVE HEARD A REPORT ABOUT IT WITH OUR EARS.' GOD UNDERSTANDS ITS WAY, AND HE KNOWS ITS PLACE.“ <br><br>

      JOB HERE IS DEALING WITH THE GREAT TOPIC OF WISDOM. JOB, A MAN WHO KNEW GOD AND HIS WILL AND WHO OBEYED IT IN PROSPERITY AND IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY. NOTICE WHAT THIS GREAT MAN OF GOD SUMMARIZED WISDOM AS.  HE STATES THAT TRUE WISDOM IS HARD FOR MERE MAN TO COMPREHEND, BECAUSE OF ITS GREAT VALUE AND WORTH. THEN HE GOES ON TO COMPARE IT TO ALL THE GREAT PRECIOUS STONES OF THIS EARTH, TO SHOW ITS GREAT VALUE IN THE EYES OF GOD!  

      THEN THE QUESTION IS ASKED, “SO WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?” THE ANSWER IS OBVIOUSLY GOD. THE REASON THAT PROPER WISDOM IS SO GREAT IS BECAUSE IT IS FOUNDED IN THE CREATOR HIMSELF!<br><br>

      THAT’S WHY PAUL AND OTHER WRITERS SPEND SUCH A GREAT DEAL OF TIME TALKING ABOUT THE NEED TO HAVE A GODLY WISDOM. IN JAMES 3, AND VERSE 13, WE SEE ANOTHER GREAT DISCUSSION ON WISDOM. THERE JAMES BEGINS COMPARING THE WISDOM OF THE WORLD AND THE WISDOM OF GOD, CLEARLY SHOWING THAT THE ONLY WISDOM THAT WILL BENEFIT US AND WHICH IS TRULY WORTH HAVING IS THAT OF GOD. SO CONSIDER TODAY, WHAT TYPE OF WISDOM ARE YOU STRIVING FOR IN THIS WORLD, GODLY OR FLESHLY? ONLY ONE WILL BRING TRUE HAPPINESS AND ETERNAL LIFE!  <br><br>   

      THIS MORNING, I AM EXCITED TO HAVE A NEW GUEST SPEAKER WITH US WHO IS THE MINISTER FOR THE OMAHA CHURCH OF CHRIST IN OMAHA, ARKANSAS. I’M EXCITED BECAUSE THIS SPEAKER IS MY SON, TREY SULLINS. THIS IS HIS FIRST TIME TO JOIN US AND WE THANK HIM FOR BEING WITH US TO LEAD US IN OUR THOUGHTS FROM GOD’S WORD. I KNOW WE WILL ALL BE ENCOURAGED BY HIS MESSAGE FROM THE BIBLE! <br><br> 

      TODAY WE WILL CONTINUE WITH OUR SERIES ON JESUS WHICH IS ENTITLED, “IN THE BEGINNING WAS…!” OUR SPECIFIC TOPIC TODAY IS, “THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON.” SO, PLEASE CONTINUE WITH US THIS MORNING, AND AFTER OUR NEXT SONG TOGETHER BROTHER TREY WILL RETURN WITH OUR STUDY FROM GOD’S WORD. THE NAME OF OUR NEXT HYMN IS, “I’LL FLY AWAY!”<br><br>

      

      LESSON<br><br>

      TREY SULLINS<br><br>

      GOOD MORNING AND THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR WORSHIP AND STUDY. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN GOD? NOW CERTAINLY YOU CAN LOOK THROUGHOUT THE CREATION AND CONSIDER ALL THE THINGS THAT WE CAN SEE OUT IN THE WORLD AND YOU CAN KNOW THAT GOD EXISTS. FOR EXAMPLE, THINK ABOUT YOUR OWN BODY EVEN AT THIS HOUR. HOW THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT SYSTEMS WORKING WITHIN YOU ALL AT ONCE THAT SIMPLY HAD TO HAVE BEEN DESIGNED TO EXIST. BUT HAVE YOU EVER SEEN GOD WITH YOUR OWN TWO EYES? NOT SEEN PROOF OF GOD. CERTAINLY SUCH A SIGHT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT IS REALLY AWESOME! IMAGINE SEEING A GOD WHO IS ALL-POWERFUL! IMAGINE SEEING THE GOD WHO CREATED ALL THINGS! IT WOULD BE A WONDERFUL THING BUT AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD ALSO BE VERY FRIGHTENING. CONSIDER HOW GOD HAS AUTHORITY OVER ALL OF US AND EVEN CONTROLS OUR JUDGMENT WHEN THAT TIME COMES, IF WE SO LIVE THIS WAY OR THAT WAY. <br><br>

      BUT OVER IN FIRST OR RATHER THE BOOK OF JOHN IN CHAPTER 1, IF YOU'LL LOOK WITH ME THERE TO VERSE 18 IT BEGINS BY TALKING ABOUT THIS CONCEPT OF SEEING GOD. THAT'S JOHN CHAPTER 1 AND IN VERSE 18. THE BIBLE THERE SAYS, “NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD AT ANY TIME. THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO IS IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER, HE HAS DECLARED HIM.” NOW THIS STATEMENT TO BEGIN WITH IS THAT NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD AT ANY TIME. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THIS IDEA OF NO ONE SEEING GOD, WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT IS THAT NO ONE, ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE VERY BEGINNING, HAS SEEN GOD'S TRUE FORM, HIS TRUE EXISTENCE AS HE REALLY IS. NOW SOME PEOPLE ASK, ‘DIDN'T PEOPLE SEE JESUS CHRIST?’ FIRST CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 15 VERSES 1 TO 11 TELLS US THAT VERY MANY PEOPLE SAW JESUS CHRIST. EVEN AFTER HIS CRUCIFIXION PEOPLE SAW HIM. PEOPLE ALSO SAW, FOR EXAMPLE, IN EXODUS IN CHAPTER 40 VERSE 34 TELLS US ABOUT HOW THE GLORY OF THE LORD CAME DOWN AND FILLED THE TABERNACLE THERE. SO MUCH SO THAT MOSES COULDN'T EVEN ENTER IT. NOW OF COURSE THESE WERE VISIONS OR REPRESENTATIONS OF GOD. WE MIGHT CALL THEM MANIFESTATIONS BUT THEY WEREN'T REALLY THE TRUE FORM OR THE TRUE EXISTENCE OF GOD. YOU CAN ALSO THINK ABOUT AS WELL SOME EXAMPLES LIKE THE BURNING BUSH THERE WITH MOSES AND HOW MOSES WAS HEARING A VOICE COMING FROM THAT BUSH AND THAT BUSH WAS EVEN ON FIRE YET NOT BEING CONSUMED. BUT IT WASN'T GOD. THAT WASN'T THE TRUE FORM OR THE TRUE PRESENCE OF GOD. THAT WAS A SIGN BY GOD SHOWING MOSES, ‘HERE I AM, COME LOOK AT THIS.’ YOU CAN ALSO THINK ABOUT THE CLOUD BY DAY OR THE PILLAR OF FIRE BY NIGHT. SUCH AN EXAMPLE IS ALSO OF THE SAME CATEGORY, SIMPLY A MANIFESTATION. A WAY FOR GOD TO SHOW HIS PEOPLE I AM HERE. I AM WITH YOU. THIS IS MY POWER AND THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO. SIMPLY A MANIFESTATION OF GOD. JOHN CHAPTER 1 VERSE 18 THOUGH ISN'T TALKING ABOUT A MANIFESTATION OF GOD. IT'S TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE ACTUALLY SEEING GOD, SEEING THE REAL FORM, SEEING THE TRUENESS OF GOD. AND CERTAINLY, AS THE BIBLE JUST TOLD US, THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANYONE TO HAVE DONE SO. <br><br>

      IF YOU LOOK OVER THERE INTO EXODUS CHAPTER 33, IN EXODUS CHAPTER 33 AND IN VERSE 20, THERE IN A CONVERSATION BETWEEN MOSES AND GOD. MOSES ASKED GOD FOR A SIGN, SOME WAY TO KNOW THAT THEY ARE STILL IN THE GRACE OF GOD. AND GOD'S RESPONSE WAS THAT HE WOULD SHOW HIM THE SIGN BUT THAT HE WOULDN'T SHOW HIM THE FULLNESS. THERE IN EXODUS 33 AND IN VERSE 20 THE BIBLE SAYS, “BUT HE SAID, ‘YOU CANNOT SEE MY FACE; FOR NO MAN SHALL SEE ME, AND LIVE.’” GOD SPEAKING THERE TELLING MOSES YOU CANNOT SEE THE FULLNESS OF ME. YOU CANNOT SEE MY TRUE FORM OR MY TRUE EXISTENCE. NOW THE PHRASE THERE THE FACE IS OF COURSE NOT TALKING ABOUT A FACE LIKE WE MIGHT HAVE BECAUSE GOD IS A SPIRITUAL BEING AND NOT A PHYSICAL ONE. BUT IT'S TALKING ABOUT THAT FULLNESS, THE COMPLETENESS OF GOD. AND YOU NOTICE ALSO IT SAYS THAT IF MOSES WAS TO SEE HIM, THAT HE WOULD DIE. SO THIS TELLS US SOMETHING ABOUT SEEING THE TRUE FORM OF GOD AS PHYSICAL BEINGS, AS BEINGS THAT WERE CREATED BY GOD AND ARE STILL IN THIS PHYSICAL EARTHLY FORM. WE CANNOT SEE GOD FOR WHATEVER REASON HE DOES NOT ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN. WE CANNOT SEE HIS TRUE FORM. <br><br>

      BACK THERE TO JOHN CHAPTER 1 AND IN VERSE 18 THINKING ABOUT NOW SEEING GOD WE MOVE ON WITH THE POINT THAT IS BEING MADE BY THE TEXT. JOHN CHAPTER 1 VERSE 18 THERE FOLLOWS THROUGH BY SAYING, “THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO IS IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER, HAS DECLARED HIM.” NEXT WE MOVE ON TO THINK ABOUT THAT PHRASE, “THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON.” NOW THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON IS A STATEMENT THAT TELLS US OF THE GREAT UNIQUENESS OF CHRIST AND TELLS US REALLY HOW SPECIAL JESUS CHRIST REALLY IS. YOU CAN CONSIDER THE WORD BEGOTTEN MEANS THAT SOMEONE IS OF SOMEONE ELSE. FOR EXAMPLE YOUR CHILDREN ARE BEGOTTEN BY YOU. THEY ARE YOUR CHILDREN. YOU CAN ALSO THINK ABOUT HOW IT SAYS ONLY BEGOTTEN. THIS TELLS US THAT JESUS CHRIST IS ALONE IN HIS CATEGORY, HE IS THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE BEEN BEGOTTEN OF GOD IN SUCH A WAY. THE ONLY ONE THAT IS TO HAVE COME FROM HEAVEN TO THIS EARTH AS GOD SO COMMANDED IN SUCH A WAY. IN HEBREWS CHAPTER 1, WE READ ABOUT THIS VERY THING. IF YOU'LL LOOK THERE TO HEBREWS CHAPTER 1 VERSES FIVE THROUGH SIX TO BEGIN WILL TELL US ABOUT THIS. THAT SPECIAL AND ONLY BEGOTTEN NATURE OF JESUS CHRIST. IT SAYS, “FOR TO WHICH OF THE ANGELS DID HE EVER SAY: ‘YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU?’ AND AGAIN: ‘I WILL BE TO HIM A FATHER, AND HE SHALL BE TO ME A SON.’” BUT THEN AGAIN, “BUT WHEN HE AGAIN BRINGS THE FIRST BORN OF THE WORLD, HE SAYS: ‘LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.’” DID YOU NOTICE THE PREEMINENCE THERE MENTIONED BY THAT VERSE? HOW HE IS THE ONLY BEGOTTEN? IT'S MENTIONING HOW THOUGH THERE ARE MANY OTHER ANGELS, MANY OTHER SPIRITUAL BEINGS THAT WE FIND THROUGHOUT THE BIBLE, THERE ARE NO OTHERS THAT ARE MENTIONED IN SUCH A WAY. NO OTHERS THAT ARE THE ONLY BEGOTTEN. NO OTHER TO WHICH GOD HIMSELF, GOD THE FATHER SAYS, THIS IS MY SON. JESUS CHRIST IS THE ONLY ONE. IF YOU LOOK THERE ALSO TO VERSE EIGHT, THE BIBLE SAYS IN HEBREWS CHAPTER 1 VERSE EIGHT, “BUT TO THE SON HE SAYS: ‘YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER; A SCEPTER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS IS THE SCEPTER OF YOUR KINGDOM.’” CONSIDER WITH ME HOW THROUGHOUT HISTORY AND EVEN TODAY WE STILL DO THESE INHERITANCES. NOW PEOPLE WILL, AT NEAR THE END OF THEIR LIFE, START TO DETERMINE WHERE MY STUFF IS GOING. WHO'S GOING TO GET THIS AND WHO'S GOING TO GET THAT AND THOSE PEOPLE AFTERWARDS WILL INHERIT THESE ITEMS. BUT WITH JESUS CHRIST, DID YOU NOTICE HOW HE IS THE ONLY ONE, THE ONLY SON TO RECEIVE THAT AUTHORITY FROM THE FATHER? THE ONLY ONE! DID YOU NOTICE THERE IN VERSE EIGHT HOW IT SAYS THE SCEPTER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS IS THE SCEPTER OF THE KINGDOM? IT'S TALKING ABOUT THE AUTHORITY, THE POWER. HOW HE IS THE ONLY SON TO RECEIVE THAT AUTHORITY. IT'S NOT BEING DIVIDED UP AMONGST OTHER SONS OR DAUGHTERS OF GOD THE FATHER BUT ONLY JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, ONLY GOD THE SON. CONSIDER ALSO JOHN CHAPTER 3 VERSE 16. PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS BIBLE VERSES THAT YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT. HOW IT SAYS, “FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON.” IN OTHER WORDS, THAT SON, THAT IS THE ONLY OF HIS KIND, THE ONLY ONE TO EXIST AS HE IS. WE CAN ALSO THINK ABOUT THAT ONLY BEGOTTEN NATURE AS HE IS THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE COME FROM HEAVEN, SENT BY GOD, TO THIS EARTH AND THEN RETURNED TO IT. SUCH AN EXAMPLE OF HOW UNIQUE HE IS TRULY SHOWS HOW SPECIAL AND HOW GREAT HE SHOULD BE IN OUR MINDS. <br><br>

      AS WE KEEP THINKING ABOUT THIS IDEA OF THE ONLY BEGOTTEN, THE NEXT PHRASE THERE IN JOHN CHAPTER 1 AND VERSE 18 IS THAT HE IS IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER. IT SAYS, “THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO IS IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER.” NOW THIS STATEMENT SHOWS US THE LOVE AND THE CLOSE RELATIONSHIP THAT IS BETWEEN GOD THE FATHER AND GOD THE SON. YOU MIGHT ALSO HAVE PEOPLE TODAY TELL US OR ASK THE QUESTION MAYBE, ‘WELL, IF JESUS CHRIST IS REAL, WHERE IS HE RIGHT NOW? HOW COME HE'S NOT HERE TELLING ME WHAT TO DO OR SHOWING ME WHERE TO GO?’ WELL, TEXTS LIKE THIS IN JOHN 1:18, AS WELL AS OTHERS SUCH AS COLOSSIANS CHAPTER 3 AND IN VERSE 1, SHOW US THAT JESUS CHRIST IS BACK IN HEAVEN WITH THE FATHER. YOU SEE, JESUS CAME TO THIS EARTH WITH A MISSION, A MISSION TO TEACH AND SAVE THE LOST, EVEN AS JOHN CHAPTER 3 VERSE 16 TELLS US. BUT WHEN HE COMPLETED THE MISSION HE LEFT US THE WILL OF GOD. HE LEFT US THE VERY WORDS OF GOD PRESENT RIGHT HERE WITHIN THE NEW TESTAMENT THAT WE SHOULD FOLLOW. LEAVING THIS EARTH TO GO BACK UP AND NOW HE REMAINS WITH THE FATHER AT HIS RIGHT HAND AND IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER AS IT TELLS US EVEN IN THIS VERSE. BUT YOU CAN ALSO IMAGINE THE LOVE FELT THERE IN THAT STATEMENT IN THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER. PERHAPS YOU HAVE A CHILD OR MAYBE YOU'VE HELD SOMEONE ELSE'S CHILD BEFORE BUT CAN YOU REMEMBER, MAYBE IN YOUR'RE HOLDING THAT CHILD CLOSE TO YOUR BODY AND YOU'RE HOLDING THEM AND LOOKING AT THEM AND YOU FEEL THAT BOND, THAT CONNECTION BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU. YOU FEEL LOVE. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT'S BEING REPRESENTED HERE. JESUS CHRIST IS NOW CLOSE TO GOD THE FATHER. THEY ARE TOGETHER ONCE AGAIN IN HEAVEN. AND ONCE AGAIN SHARING THAT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ONE ANOTHER. YOU CAN SEE LOVE THERE. NOW ALSO FACTOR IN THAT HE IS THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, HE IS ESPECIALLY LOVE, THE ONLY ONE LOVED IN SUCH A WAY AS THE SON OF GOD BEING GOD HIMSELF. IT IS A TRULY SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP. <br><br>

      NOW, YOU MIGHT ALSO THINK ABOUT HOW THAT THE END OF THIS PASSAGE IT TELLS US THAT HE HAS DECLARED HIM. NOW, THIS STATEMENT THAT HE HAS DECLARED HIM SHOWS US ONE THING. AND IF YOU FOLLOW THROUGH ALL OF THE TEXTS AND THE BEGINNING, THE VERSE THERE TELLS US, THAT NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD AT ANY TIME. IT KEEPS GOING TO SAY THAT THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON IS WITH THE FATHER. IN OTHER WORDS, HE HAS SEEN GOD. SO NO MAN THAT IS JUST A MAN, NO WOMAN THAT IS JUST A WOMAN, NO HUMAN BEING HAS EVER SEEN GOD. YET JESUS CHRIST WHO CAME TO THIS EARTH AS A MAN HE SAW GOD. <br><br>

      FINALLY, THERE WE CAN THINK ABOUT EVEN MATTHEW CHAPTER 3 VERSE 16 AND 17. IT SHOWS US THAT WHEN AFTER JESUS WAS BAPTIZED GOD SAYS THIS IS MY BELOVED SON. IN OTHER WORDS, THIS IS THE SON THAT I LOVE AND WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED. THAT LAST PART OF THE VERSE STILL TELLS US THAT HE HAS DECLARED HIM. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THIS IDEA THAT HE HAS DECLARED HIM IT BRINGS A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT TO US. BECAUSE HERE WE HAVE A HUMAN RACE THAT HAS NEVER SEEN GOD BEFORE. AND NOW JESUS CHRIST HAS SEEN GOD, HAS SEEN US, AND IS CURRENTLY AGAIN WITH GOD. SO IF YOU WANTED TO HEAR A MESSAGE ABOUT GOD, YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT WHO GOD WAS, WHO WOULD YOU LISTEN TO? JESUS CHRIST, THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE SEEN GOD. <br><br>

      CONSIDER WITH ME ALSO IN HEBREWS CHAPTER 1 AND IN VERSE THREE. HEBREWS CHAPTER 1 AND VERSE THREE, AS WE ALREADY READ JUST A LITTLE BIT AGO TALKING ABOUT THE PREEMINENCE OF CHRIST ABOVE ALL THE OTHER SPIRITUAL BEINGS, HEBREWS 1 AND VERSE THREE TELLS US ABOUT ONE WAY IN WHICH JESUS CHRIST DECLARES GOD TO THE WORLD. IT SAYS IN THAT TEXT, “WHO BEING THE BRIGHTNESS OF HIS GLORY AND THE EXPRESS IMAGE OF HIS PERSON, UPHOLDING ALL THINGS BY THE WORD OF HIS POWER, WHEN HE HAD BY HIMSELF PURGED OUR SINS, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE MAJESTY ON HIGH.” DID YOU NOTICE THAT FIRST PART OF THE VERSE THERE? IT SAYS THE EXPRESS IMAGE OF HIS GLORY OR OF HIS PERSON RATHER. THE EXPRESS IMAGE MEANS THAT JUST THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS CHRIST SHOWS THAT GOD IS REAL. NOW YOU CAN CONSIDER THIS AS YOU THINK ABOUT ALL THE DIFFERENT TEXTS THAT WE HAVE ABOUT JESUS' LIFE, THE THINGS THAT HE DID. DO YOU REMEMBER AS HE WAS GOING AROUND AND TEACHING PEOPLE AND EVEN PERFORMING ALL THESE MIRACLES THAT HE DID, HE NEVER ONCE DID ANY OF IT OF HIS OWN. HE NEVER ONCE DID ANY OF IT FOR HIMSELF IT WOULD SEEM. AT TIMES JESUS EVEN SAID, “IF MY KINGDOM WERE OF THIS WORLD, I WOULD GO IN TAKE IT.” IN OTHER WORDS, JESUS DID EVERYTHING FOR GOD THE FATHER NOT FOR HIMSELF. HE DID NOT PERFORM HIS ACTIONS FOR HIS OWN GAIN. BUT THAT IMAGE, IF YOU WERE TO SEE JESUS CHRIST WHEN HE WAS ON THIS EARTH, YOU WEREN'T LOOKING AT JUST ANOTHER MAN WHO WAS LIVING AND WORKING AND DOING THE THINGS THAT WE DO, YOU WERE LOOKING UPON THE CHARACTER AND THE ACTIONS OF GOD HIMSELF. SUCH A SIGHT AGAIN WOULD BE TRULY AMAZING AND YOU CAN OBVIOUSLY KNOW THAT IS A MANIFESTATION AND A TRUE FORM OF GOD ON THIS EARTH. <br><br>

      BUT CONSIDER ALSO THE FACT THAT JESUS CHRIST SHOWED FORTH GOD IN HIS WORDS. IN JOHN CHAPTER 12 IN VERSE 49 JESUS THROUGH HIS OWN WORDS TELLS US ABOUT THIS VERY THING. THAT'S IN JOHN CHAPTER 12 AND VERSE 49. THE BIBLE THERE SAYS, “‘FOR I HAVE NOT SPOKEN ON MY OWN AUTHORITY; BUT THE FATHER WHO SENT ME GAVE A COMMAND, WHAT I SHOULD SAY AND WHAT I SHOULD SPEAK.’” JESUS IS SAYING THERE THAT WHEN I CAME AND WHEN I'M SPEAKING YOU ALL THESE THINGS, I'M NOT SPEAKING OF MY OWN. I'M SPEAKING WHAT GOD TOLD ME TO SPEAK, WHAT GOD THE FATHER GAVE TO ME TO TELL ALL OF YOU. SO NOT ONLY DID HIS LIFE DECLARE GOD AND DECLARE HIS EXISTENCE AND DECLARE WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD BE FOLLOWING AND DOING BUT HIS WORDS ALSO DECLARED THOSE THINGS AND DECLARED TO PEOPLE HOW THEY SHOULD LIVE. OF COURSE, WITHOUT THE WORDS OF JESUS CHRIST HOW WOULD WE KNOW WHAT WE ARE TO DO TODAY? WE WOULDN'T HAVE THE BIBLE IF JESUS HADN'T OF TOLD MAN WHAT TO DO. AND IF THE HOLY SPIRIT HAD NOT DIRECTED THOSE PEOPLE, THE APOSTLES AND OTHERS TO WRITE DOWN THE WILL AND THE WORDS OF JESUS CHRIST FOR US TODAY. YOU SEE, JESUS’ WORDS DECLARE GOD. <br><br>

      NOW IF YOU GO BACK TO JOHN CHAPTER 1 AND VERSE 18 AND PUT ALL OF THIS IN PERSPECTIVE AND PUT IT ALL TOGETHER AS WE'VE LOOKED AT IT NOW. NOBODY HAS SEEN GOD AND ONLY JESUS CHRIST HAS SEEN GOD AND IS STILL CURRENTLY WITH GOD. HE HAS TOLD US WHAT WE ARE TO DO IN ORDER TO BE HIS PEOPLE. HE HAS DECLARED GOD TO US SO NOW IT'S OUR TURN. MAKE THE APPLICATION. EXAMINE YOUR LIFE AND THINK, ‘HAVE YOU DONE WHAT GOD WANTS YOU TO DO?’ HAVE YOU HEEDED THAT DECLARATION THAT GOD SO TOLD US TO FOLLOW? OF COURSE, BY LOOKING INTO ALL THOSE WORDS OF JESUS, WE CAN SEE EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THAT GOD WANTS US TO DO AND EXACTLY HOW IT IS THAT GOD WANTS US TO BEHAVE. NOW, OF COURSE WE HAVE TO DO THAT VERY THING THOUGH. DIG INTO THE SCRIPTURES! DIG INTO THE WORD! AND FOLLOW IT! FOLLOW WHAT HE WANTS OF US AND FOLLOW THOSE COMMANDS! TAKE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE TEXT OF JOHN CHAPTER 3 VERSE 16 AS WE ALREADY SPOKE ABOUT IT. HE SAYS HE SENT HIS SON TO SAVE THE WORLD. <br><br>

      ARE YOU IN THAT CATEGORY OF THOSE WHO ARE SAVED IN THE WORLD? DO YOU WANT TO BE IN THAT CATEGORY OF THOSE WHO ARE SAVED BY THE WORLD? OF COURSE THAT CAN ONLY COME THROUGH OBEDIENCE OF THAT DECLARATION THAT JESUS CHRIST GAVE US. NOW FINALLY THINK ABOUT IT THIS WAY: IF NOBODY ON THIS EARTH HAS SEEN GOD, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE GOD SOMEDAY IN HEAVEN. THE WAY THAT WE DO THAT IS BY FOLLOWING HIS WILL AND DOING WHAT HE WANTS OF US. WILL YOU MAKE THAT OPPORTUNITY? WILL YOU MAKE THAT CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE TO OBEY?

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CLOSING COMMENTS<br><br>

      WHAT A WONDROUS TIME WE HAVE HAD TOGETHER IN PARTICIPATING IN THE THINGS OF GOD. I HOPE WE ALL HAVE BEEN ENCOURAGED THROUGH OUR TIME SPENT TOGETHER. PLEASE REMEMBER, YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US EVERY SUNDAY MORNING AT 7:30, AS WE COMMIT OURSELVES TO THIS SERVICE OF GOD.

      NOW LET ME ASK IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT TODAY’S LESSON? MAYBE, YOU WOULD LIKE A FREE TRANSCRIPT OR A FREE CASSETTE TAPE OF THIS PROGRAM? POSSIBLY, WE COULD ASSIST YOU WITH FREE BIBLE MATERIALS OR FREE BIBLE CORRESPONDENCE COURSES? NO MATTER WHAT YOUR NEED IS, PLEASE CONTACT US AT THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS:  <br><br>

The Living Word

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      AS CHRISTIANS, MAY WE UNDERSTAND AND PROCLAIM THE FACT THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD AND THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON OF GOD! THERE IS NO OTHERS SON AS UNIQUE OR SPECIAL AT JESUS CHRIST FOR HE WAS NO ONLY GOD’S SON, BUT HE IS ALSO GOD HIMSELF. THANKS BE TO GOD FOR OUR JESUS!

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