Who Jesus is

In your Bibles, turn to the book of John, John 1.

You keep your finger there because that's not going to be

on the screen. Everything else is going to be

on the screen, but keep your finger on John 1.

And Kevin, come and join me here, buddy.

Come and join me. Where's that microphone?

Geez, guys. Oh, yes, I tell you, if you want

to catch Christmas, just walk next to this.

OK, Kev, I want to say you're an absolute delight.

Kevin and his wife Lynette is, is somewhat one of our life

group leaders that we have. They've been serving Jesus

faithfully to, to together with their kids.

They're a blessing to this community.

And he just brings joy. Whenever I see this man, he

brings joy. He brings joy next to the

baptism pool. And by the way, if you feel you

want to get baptized, the baptism pools open.

We can do it afterwards. So, Keith, why don't you pray

for us, buddy? Why don't you pray for us?

Thank you. Thank you, Eugene.

OK. Morning through CI Merry

Christmas and Father God, we thank you.

Lord, we thank you for this day. We thank you that you saved,

sent your son to us to save us, Father, to lift us up to be with

us that we can have ever, ever lost in life.

We just pray for this lounge, Father, we pray for these

people, be with them, let the Holy Spirit go through them and

just lead them through life. And we just pray for Eugene and

his family and just everybody here and just pray this in Jesus

mighty name. Amen.

Amen. Amen.

Thank you, Kevin. God bless you, buddy.

Good. So if you're anything like my

wife, you would love Nativity scenes.

She is absolutely crazy about nativity scenes.

So we've got one-on-one little one on our piano at home.

And if we walk the shops and, or if we go to Lawley St. you've

got to take pictures at Nativity scenes.

She absolutely loves it. We've been married for 25 years

this year. And when my kids were small,

Jessie and Jayden, we used to have these nativity plays

during, oh, Christmas Eve. You familiar with that?

Yeah, some of you might have, might have gone through the

experience. And, you know, then one plays

Mary, 1 plays Joseph, 1 plays the the little Jesus in the

Manger. And, and nobody wants to be the

donkey or the cow, but they want to be the star or the wise men.

And you know, it's much laughter because not in any way does it

come out like the narrative of the story.

They all put their own feel to it or how they know it it should

have gone or would have gone and how they would have done it.

And it's much laughter. But then our kids grew older

and, and, and now it's not just a nativity scene.

It is actually who is Jesus. You see, it wasn't always a

nativity scene. And then we would read the Bible

and then we would pray. Then we would sometimes sing

Silent Night. I love you.

Thank goodness nobody else was there to listen.

You'll, you'll make money. You'll sell earplugs by the

thousands. Don't want to hear me sing and

but but you know what? It's all good to know to read

how Jesus came and it's all valued guys that I don't want to

take away this morning in any sense.

In fact, I want to magnify that little baby Jesus, want to

magnify him. I don't take a one bit away from

him this morning. But it's so much more than just

a baby in a Manger. It's the Son of God.

Whoa, it's the Son of God. You know, and we would sit

around and we would say, what does Jesus mean to you and who

is Jesus to you? And we'll have some of these

discussions, and that's what we're going to talk about this

morning. Who is Jesus?

Matthew once says this, you can follow on screen.

It says she will give birth to a son.

You are to give him the name Jesus because he will save his

people from their sin. Do you know what the name Jesus

means? God saves friends over this

planet. The whole world, virtually the

whole world came to a stencil today because of our Savior,

whether they believe it or not, history changed.

You get before Christ and you get after Christ.

Because of this, calendars changed because of our Saviour.

You know Jesus. Everywhere with the name Jesus

will be spoken today. Every time you hear Jesus, it's

declaring God saves and they don't even know it.

They were you on your lounge declared Jesus saves or God

save. Just say Jesus's name.

God saves, God saves. So it says she will give birth

to a son and you will give him the name Jesus because he will

save his people from their sin. But you know what friends, my

favorite book in the Bible we're allowed to have favorite books.

Hey, my favorite book in the Bible is the book of John.

I absolutely love the book of John.

John is a way of announcing the birth of Christ in a way that no

other gospel announces it. Listen to what he says and if

you have your Bibles that's what I want you to turn to John One

verse one says in the beginning was the word capital letter and

the word capital letter was God and the word was with God.

The word was God and the word was God with God in the

beginning through him all things were made.

Without him nothing was made that has been made in him was

life and that life was the light of all mankind.

Jump to verse 14. The word capital Word, same word

speaking about became flesh and made his dwelling among us

beautiful. That is John's way of saying a

child will be born. Well, I don't know about you

friends. When my kids were born, I didn't

say the word became flesh. I said my son was born and I was

proud of him and I said my daughter was born.

And you said your son was born. You didn't say the word become

flesh. There's only one word that

became flesh, it's Jesus Christ. He was before he was a baby in a

Manger. Jesus was friends, everything.

You just go and read Genesis 1 and you will see God spoke the

word and what happened? It happened.

It was created. Nothing you and I were created.

Adam and Eve was created, the sea, the fish, every single

thing was created through the word that Jesus, that God spoke,

and that Word is what became flesh.

He was timeless, He was spaceless, and he came into our

world bound by time down, bound by space, confined the human

flesh. Wow.

So that baby that was lying in the Manger was still God, but he

was fully man. And you know what?

He had to restrain himself. He had the ability to do

miracles. He had the ability to do signs

and wonders. I mean, he was 11 years old.

He was preaching in the temple, teaching the people.

He had to restrain himself. Why?

Because we'll read later on in John two, it says that my time

has not yet come. Friends, if you miss God's

timing because you feel something is with inside you and

just you just want to break out and you don't restrain yourself,

the Son of God had to restrain himself.

He had to live within the limitations because he was fully

manned. He had to go through everything

that you and I are going through.

The Word became flesh in 2016. It changed the way I read read

the Bible or I read the Bible because it wasn't a service like

this where Rory got up and he went through from the 1 John 1

up to John 21 on what Jesus is in each one of those chapters.

And it changed the way I read God's Word.

That's what I'm going to share with you this morning.

It's very good and well for us to know that Jesus came, but who

he is, it's another story. Who is he?

Well, in John One, he's the Lamb of God.

You see, in Genesis 22 we read of one man for one lamb.

You know these things. One man for one lamb in Exodus 1

lamb for one family, in Leviticus 1 lamb for one nation,

in Isaiah 1 lamb for for many. And in the book of John 1, lamb

for the whole world, never to die again.

You know what, friends? All the lambs that came before

Jesus. All the lambs couldn't do what

Jesus did. It had to happen every year.

But when Jesus came, he paid the price once and for all.

If you want to know what it is to be saved, just run to the

lamb. We've got a saying of saying you

run through the church. When you run through the church,

you'll meet the Lamb of God who paid the ultimate price.

In John 2 is the miracle worker. Jesus restrained himself and

when when Mary said to him, his mom said to him at this wedding,

he said they have no more wine. She said, woman, my hour has not

yet come. See, He always added in him to

do miracles. Mary didn't see one miracle

because the Bible says that was the first miracle.

And why did Jesus do the miracle at a wedding?

Because he loves marriages. He loves covenant.

He loves marriages, flurries. And you know what?

He will give everything to save your marriage.

Or are your marriage in tatters this morning?

Go to John 2. Jesus can save your marriage.

In John 3, Jesus came as the great teacher.

He, he taught Nicodemus and he got saved.

In John Four, He came as the great evangelist.

He met the Samaritan woman at the well and he told her her

whole life story and he said to her, you had five aspens and the

man that you're currently staying with is not your

husband. And through that she believed in

him. She ran to Samaria.

She told everybody in Samaria. The whole town ran out.

Jesus told him about himself and many believed friends.

He's the evangelist. He can use your story.

He knows your story like he knew that lady's story.

He knows your story. What's your story this morning?

Jesus can change your story. He changed the whole town story

through one lady. Ladies, you are significant, you

are precious, you are beautiful. God's given you a story.

Don't live under the words of man that spoke evil over you.

Live under the words of a heavenly Father that loves you.

You'll change your story. In John 5, Jesus came as the

doctor, the great physician. How do you say that?

Physician, physician, physician. I don't want to embarrass him,

but we've got Simeon week after week after week doing the AV

behind the the screen. One of the best surgeons that I

know, cardiologist that I've known.

Oncologist, cardiologist. Thank you, Clint.

I just gave him more than one. Yeah, he's got more than 1°

serving us faithfully beyond the soundest that you and I can see

the words and know how to worship Jesus.

But during the day, he's a man with skillful hands.

Jesus is a man with skillful hands.

He can save you out of your illness.

He can heal you, Petty where you are on your bed at this moment,

Elna, where you're on your bed at this moment battling cancer,

Jesus can heal you. If you're trusting Jesus today,

Jesus can heal you. He's the great doctor.

And John 6 is the bread of life and John 7 is the water of life.

If you're in the desert, friends, you're going to need

water. Water first.

But there comes to the point where you're going to need

bread. I'm telling you, water is not

going to be enough. You're going to need bread.

Jesus is both. If you're in the desert, you

come to Jesus. He'll give you the water that

you need. He'll give you the bread that

you'll eat. He'll take you out of the

desert. Just eat of him, drink of him.

Come to Jesus. Friends, in John 7, John 8,

thank you real. In John 8, He came as the

defender of the week. You know a lady was caught in

adultery and brought to Jesus and when he saw her he bent

down. He wrote in the sand and my NIV

Bible said he straightened up. And he said if anyone of you

have have have have no sin, throw the first stone.

And he bent down and he wrote in the sand again.

And the Bible says he straightened out and there was

nobody. They left from the oldest to the

youngest. And Jesus says, don't they

accuse you? Didn't they condemn?

You said no one condemned me, Sir says neither do I go and sin

no more. Did you fall in adultery this

year? Were you unfaithful?

Were you accused? Were you the victim of adultery?

Then Jesus bends down this morning and he said, I was born

in a major. I'm yet to save you.

I've been down to straighten you up.

You don't have to walk buckled over.

You came in over crooked staircase this morning.

You don't know the story, but the staircase that you came

through is a crooked staircase because this place is not built

for perfect people. They built for broken people

like you and I. And when we come out here,

you'll receive a cappuccino or a or a hot chocolate with your

name on the cup because your name is important.

It doesn't just say Buddy says Charles says Belinda says James

has your name on that cup because Jesus calls you by name

this morning. And he says straight to that.

Got a plan and purpose for you? That's John 8.

Where are we? John 9?

He came as the light of the world.

And in John 10, in the light of the world, you, you don't, just

don't live in darkness, friends, run to Jesus.

He'll draw you out of your dark place.

And in John 10, He came as the He came as the Good Shepherd,

that little baby, Good Shepherd. Good Shepherd.

What does a shepherd do? A shepherd lays down his life

for his sheep. The Bible says, I know my sheep

and they know my voice. You know what a shepherd does?

A shepherd loves people and manages resources.

What does a manager do? He manages people and he loves

resources. The Bible's upside down.

He turns it upside down. He says love people, manage

resources and I'll look after you if you love resources, you

walk over people no good. Follow me.

I lay my life down for the sheep.

That's what Jesus did my friends.

That's what he did love people, manage resources.

John 11. He came as the the resurrection

and the life he said to Lazarus come forth.

Did you have words over your life spoken prophetic words

that's dormant or died? Did you have, do you have dreams

that's died? Jesus says this morning, he says

come forth, come forth. Those dreams, those dreams,

Christian Ellen, those dreams over your life, Jesus says come

forth, come forth, Kevin, people may laugh at you, buddy.

Jesus got a plan and purpose for you and your family.

Come forth, come forth, come forth.

John 12 Jesus came as the king and in John 13 Jesus came as the

servant. You see scripture clarify

scripture. So John 12 and John 13 clarifies

John 10 what it means to be a shepherd.

Yes, he came as a king, but he washed his disciples feet.

Do you know a king that washed feet?

Oh, she's I think if Solar Ramapazzo walks in here and he

says I'm just here, I'm arrived with a bucket, I'm going to wash

your feet. You'll say what?

Sorry, Sir, what did Jesus do? Washed feet came to serve

ladies. Life down for us friends.

John 14. Ah, I've got a favorite book in

the Bible and I've got a favorite chapter in the Bible.

Chapter 14 changed my life 2005 I'll never forget it.

First time I walk into Glen Ridge, I heard Rory speaking on

the Father of God. Go boy Key.

I don't know if you heard the story, but it changed my life.

It's all about the Father. John 14 It came as the consoler,

the only way to the Father. And it starts like this.

Don't let your hearts be troubled.

It's a command. It's not a suggestion.

Don't let your hearts be troubled.

Gloria, it's so good to see you this morning.

Don't let your heart be troubled.

Don't God's looking after you. God will take care of you.

You're a praying mom and I want to thank you today.

Gloria, thank you so much for praying for Clint and Ellen.

I'm telling you, if it wasn't for your praise, I don't think

we would have been friends. Your praise are keeping this man

strong. Jesus loves you.

He'll be your husband. Your husband was a dear man.

Jesus comes to this this morning and he says I bring my father.

He'll be your husband. He'll be your Aspen.

Jesus says don't let your heart be troubled, full stop.

You know what I do, friends? I make a list of what troubles

my heart and what I can do do about.

I do something about it. What I can't do about I give it

to Jesus. Then it says in my father's

house, there's many rooms. If that were not so, would I

have told you that I'm going to prepare a place for you?

And if I've gone to prepare a place for you, I'm coming back

to fetch you and take you to where I am.

So So this morning, friends, I yes, I had the privilege of a

pastor phoning me this week said to me, Eugene, I'm down and out

decades in church. I don't know where to turn to.

You're sitting here this morning.

I want to tell you, Jesus went to prepare a place for us in

heaven where we cannot go, and then He's coming to fetch us and

take us to where He is. If Jesus can do it where we

cannot go, He can do it here on earth for you.

He can prepare a place for you. He can prepare a people for you,

ready to receive you. While He prepares your heart to

receive the people that you're going to.

Jesus can prepare a place for you our Father art in heaven,

hallowed be your name, your Kingdom come, your will be done

as it is in heaven. Let it be on earth.

If you lost your job this year, Jesus can prepare a place for

you. Go to John 14.

Just go to John 14. Further, it says this says you

know, you know the you know the way to the place where I'm

going. Thomas said to him, Lord, we

don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?

Jesus answered, I am the way, the truth and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through me.

If you really know me, you will know my Father as well from now

on. You do know him and have seen

him. Philip said.

Lord show us the Father and that'll be enough.

That verse changed my life in 2005.

Friends, you can ask my wife. Our destination of Christianity

is not heaven. Our destination of Christianity

is a relationship with a Father. God so loved his the world that

he gave his only Son because he's longing to for a

relationship with you and me. We will end up in heaven, but

our destination is the Father. John 15, amazing.

John 15, He is the true vine. Just stay plugged in him in.

John 16, He's the giver of the Holy Spirit.

And I've never seen an illustration so well about the

Holy Spirit than the illustration that Rory gave us a

couple of months ago. Ricky, why don't you show us

that clip quickly, please? Volume.

Volume. But most of you are scared of

the spirit and push away the spirit and so Christianity is

hard. So I'm going to get my 2

preaching buddies to do a hammering competition.

Come here, big boys. 4 nails each and a hammer.

He's already telling you what to.

Do. Yeah, yeah.

Probably he must let me win. 4 nails, 4 nails.

You got four and a hammer. You can check his on the bluff.

That's hors d'oeuvres. OK on three we start nailing

them 123 Hard, hard, hard. Yeah, yeah, not very straight,

but they keep going a bit harder, faster.

Give up smoking. Give up quickly.

Give up quickly. Pornography.

Pornography. Stop your pornography.

Yeah. Come on, give it.

You preach better than your nail, Bruce.

Come now, let's look at your dad's remarkably poor work.

Come now, stand there. One of them's gone through.

How's it look if you 2 can just hold that for me?

Put up bromance chapter 8 to me please.

Therefore, there's now no condemnation for those who are

in Christ Jesus, because Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit

Numa. What kind of drill is that?

The Numa of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

We do not live according to the sinful nature, but according to

the say Numa. But those who live in accordance

with the have their mindset on what the next verse please.

The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the.

Christianity by the power of God.

Christianity by human effort. Wow.

Want to say, say, I only want to say this.

You battling with alcoholism, you battling with pornography,

or you battling with substance abuse, or you battle with a bad

temper and you don't know how to handle it, or you depressed.

You just sit like this. You close your eyes, You say I

am the righteousness of Christ. You say, Holy Spirit, fool me

and the Holy Spirit will fill you and you'll set you free.

Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, declares the Lord.

That's what the Holy Spirit does, friends, not by human

effort. John 17, He is the great

intercessor. Jesus is interceding for us.

John 18 He's the model sufferer. Whatever you ever going to go

through or ever been through, Jesus has carried that on the

cross. He's been through every single

thing. John 19 He's the uplifted

Saviour, Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.

If you lift him up, he'll lift you up.

If you lift him up, he will lift you up.

Just lift him up. And in John 20, he's the

Conqueror over death. Friends, here's the beautiful

thing. The same man John that wrote the

same man John that wrote this book, the book of John and wrote

about the the word became flesh in John 1 is the same John that

joke Revelation one. Let's see what Revelation One

says about Jesus. This is the risen Jesus, the

Conqueror over death, says I turned around, he heard a

trumpet sound behind him and a voice like a trumpet sound and

he turned around to see what it is and it says this.

I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me and when

I turned I saw 7 golden lampstands and among the

lampstands was someone like a Son of Man.

That is Jesus, dressed in a robe, reaching down to his feet

and with a golden sash around his chest that speaks of high

priestly clothing. Friends, he's the highest

priest. The hair on his head was white

like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire.

If Jesus's eyes look at us, he'll burn away all Chaffee in

our hearts. Friends, everything that drains

us, he'll burn it away. His feet were like bronze

glowing in the furnace and the and his voice was like the sound

of rushing waters. In his right hand he held the

seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp double

edged sword. His face was like the sun

shining in all his brilliance. When I saw him, that's John

speaking. When I saw him in this vision, I

fell at these feet as though I was dead in awe of our King.

That's the Jesus of John 1. Then he placed his right hand on

me and said, Do not be afraid. I'm the first and the last.

I'm the living one. I was dead and now look, I'm

alive forever and ever and all the keys of death and hate.

Friends, Jesus is at the right hand of the Father.

That is who he is. He's interceding for us.

He's suffered for us. Why?

Because in John 21, it says he's the restorer of broken people,

unqualified people like you and I.

He restored Peter. None of us denied him.

Peter denied him, but he restored him.

Friends, Merry Christmas. May you remember who Jesus is.

May you remember who he is, what he came, what he did for us.

May you look at the baby in the in the Manger with different

eyes. From now on, you've got a

bookmark. That bookmark is a gift to you

because because Jesus wants us to know who he is.

Start by the book of John and you'll find Jesus on every

single page in not only in the book of John, but in every

single page in the Bible. The Old Testament points to him

and the New Testament tells us of him.

Go and learn about Jesus. God bless you.