Robert Veira - Sunday, February 9, 2020

Family Bible Hour featuring Robert Veira speaking about how Jesus is both the way to God, and the way to eternal life.

Transcription:

I can hear myself really clear, which is good. You guys can turn me down, you feel free. Okay. Um, so I had my notes out and I still have them up? Good. All right.

Thank you. Sorry about that. Anyway, good morning, like I said before, it's glad to be able to attend the full morning service this morning. There are a few thoughts that are put out that were appropriate for what I'm going to be talking about this this evening. To this morning, excuse me. So if I had to give him a title for the message I'm going to speak on I would call it I am the way now. When I last spoke, which was Wednesday evening, I spoke on john 14:6, where our Lord says that he is the way, the truth and the life. Now that that time I communicated and I've communicated after that as well, I want to speak further on each aspect of that first three aspects where Jesus says I am the way I am the truth, and I'm the life. So saying that, uh today I'm going to be talking about the first part of that verse, the first aspect where Jesus says I am the way. So today we're going to be going through what that means when Jesus says I am the way, and specifically how he is the way to the Father.

That's important to talk about this, not only because it's a concept of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So we should strive to learn more about our our Lord, according to His Word. But also, it's important because it's a question that pops up to every single person from time to time, whether they're cognizant of it or not, which is: what's the way to God? What's the way to heaven than the kindof general question? So, that question, you could put that in your mind as well. I hope to answer today or at least partially answer. Because I'm only going through one aspect of how Jesus The way the truth and the life. 

So I hope to speak—when I speak again—and I hope to speak on how Jesus is the truth and how he's the life. Anyway, in addition to that, as we navigate through scripture today, I will attempt to hit on the following points to explain what I mean, when I, what it means in this verse of Jesus being the way and specifically These are two points. 

The first one is, how he is the way. So how he is the way and the other one is how he's the only way to the Father. So those are two points that sound similar, but when I go through it, I will, you'll see that there they are, they do differ in a way so it's hopefully I'm not over talking about over myself, again and again. But that's not always a bad thing as well. Anyway, let's continue on. 

Let's go to John 14. And I'm going to read we're going to read john 14:6, but just for to establish context. I'm going to start from verse one.

So I'm reading from the nasb. Usually I have my n KJV. New King James Bible, but I must have misplaced it. So I've been using the NASB for the last couple days. So I know Trent likes the NASB. So I don't mind it as well. It's a good translation.

Anyway, we're going to be read from that point. So start from john chapter 14, verse one, do not let your heart be troubled, believe in God, believe also in me, in my Father's house are many dwelling places. If it were not, so I would have told you for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there you may be also and you know the way where I'm going. Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you're going. How do we know the way Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father, but through me. 

So establish context of immediately what happens before John 14:6. This part of the Scripture here is part of a few chapters in John called the, the upper room discourse, which is a set of verses that showing Jesus having a having close fellowship with his disciples and teaching them on various topics, such as, how to be a servant, certainly about the Holy Spirit. In one chapter he talks about, fellowship with God, in addition to fellowship with each other. And certainly immediately before this, he talks about with Peter about loving him.

But immediately before this, Jesus had said, I'm going away, I'm going to be a, I'm going to go back to the Father and the way that we're talking about He does that as part of what we're going to be talking about today. So, because they're kind of afraid, they're like, Oh, Jesus going away, we want to be with him. You know, Jesus then starts with Don't let your Don't let your heart be troubled, believe in God believe also in me. So he's comforting them, and let them know he's going to go prepare a place for them, provide for them, and then he'll come and return and, and take take income and getting take them unto himself. 

But the interesting thing is, then Thomas here, says, We don't know where you're going, and how do we know the way which is funny because he kind of told them for a few times. And so maybe he didn't understand what Jesus was saying at this point in time. But that leads us to what we're going to be talking about. Now Jesus says, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life no one comes to the Father but through me. Now, when Jesus says I am the way are we supposed to take that? 

Well, one way we can take that is When Jesus says he is the way, we certainly can look just through the scripture here, like this immediate context and what's going to happen after this. And we can say, the first point for how he is the way is, he is the way to salvation.

Now, I say that because, you know right after this, this is immediately before the crucifixion, so not too long after the Jesus goes through the upper room discourse and teaches these last couple things to His disciples, as when he goes through the whole process of being betrayed. Although he had already been betrayed already, immediately before, but going to suffer and bleed and die on the cross for our sins, going into the tomb for three days, rising again being resurrected. 

So that whole journey that Christ had to go through to pay for the sins of the world. So that we could be saved that we put our faith and trust in Christ that is, that is one thing I should point out first, that Christ He is the way to salvation. And one verse to drive that point home is a few, a few from a few chapters before this. 

So for turn to to John chapter 10, verse nine. And John, Chapter 10, verse nine says, I am the door, if anyone enters through me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find a pasture. Now, this is a this is something that Jesus said earlier on, before the upper room discourse. And it shows shows you how an example of how Jesus is the way to salvation, that he is the door the door. It's very, it's very fitting in this illustration, when Christ talks about himself in this context here, how he is the door, and so he is the way the way into salvation.

So another thing to point out here is, it says, If anyone enters through me, so it's not just for the Jews, not just for the Gentiles is for everyone. Christ is the way for everyone to, to have salvation, salvation from the penalty of sin and the power of sin as well as we will kind of go through later as well. So I just that's what that's one thing I want to mention about that. So Jesus is the way to salvation. 

Now, the next thing that I we could say here from John 14:6 about how talking about how Jesus is the way how he's how he is the way is. The next point is he is the way to God's favor to access God's favor. And to show that let's turn to Romans chapter five.

So Romans chapter five and verse two. Let's start from verse one just to complete the thought, therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith and to this grace by which we stand. And we exalt and hope of the glory of God. So another way to say way is to provide access to, right? So because of what Christ did, because Christ thrown down and die on the cross for our sins, after we get saved, we have because of through Christ, we have access to God's favor and to that we did not have access to before as unbelievers. So you know, that the and all that that entails all that it gives us And also that goes with that as well.

Because we have God's grace, you know, we have peace, we have peace through God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We, we no longer are enemies to God are the righteous demand that God had the payment for sin has been satisfied. And if we put our faith and trust in Lord Jesus Christ, Not only are we saved, but we have peace with God. So like I said, the he is the way or access to God's favor, Jesus is. 

Another point to mention about how he is the way what that means is, he is the way or access into God's presence. Now, before Christ's death, you know, access into God's presence wasn't immediately available in the Old Covenant. If you look in the Old Testament, when the you had the temple that was set up, or even before that attempt that was set up, before they actually have Like a physical temple, and they had a part of all that that was called the Holy of Holies. And that's where God was. And no one was allowed in there except for the priest and is only once a year the priests go in and make an atonement for the people. And even then the atonement was only like a, it wasn't something that would last, you know, forever, and then cleanse the conscience of anyone, it just kind of covered over the sin, because they had to do it year, year, year in and year, every year, once a year. So where I'm getting at so that that's what the that's what was before Christ's death, and Hebrews nine, 9:8 helps to communicate that point that I'm making here.

So Hebrews 9:8 says, The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way to the holy place had not yet been disclosed while the tabernacle is still standing, such as a piece of the whole passage there. But, you know, before Christ's death, we didn't have that kind of Have that close access with God, we had to have some kind of mediator who was the high priest or at least the Jewish people, when they would be observing the like how to make an atonement for sacrifices for their sins. That's that's what, that's what God was symbolizing here. But the good news is after Christ's death after a sacrifice, access was open to everyone. And this is the important part in Christ. In Christ, we we are able to have close access that to be into God's presence. 

If you go further, in Hebrews to Hebrews chapter nine, verses 19 through 22. This shows what I mean. Therefore, Brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place, by the blood of Jesus by new and living way, which he inaugurated for us through the veil, that is his flesh. And since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near the sincere heart full of full assurance of faith. Having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

So as it says here, we have full confidence to enter the Holy of Holies to, to have that close personal relationship with God. It's not like before where we're kind of standing away our sin keeps us far away from God, because Christ took the sins of the world upon himself and paid for them. And as Christians if we've put our faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation, we've been made righteous through Christ, our sins have been wiped away, a clean slate. So because of that we are able as JP said this morning, because Christ was our propitiation, our atoning sacrifice, we're able to, you know, offer our, our prayers of sacrifice in the morning service, and elsewhere to God because we can in Christ, so That's something that's a very important that helps to that. It's a very good point how to drive home, how Christ has. He is the way into God's presence, he's provided us access to that. And that's something that we should be thankful for. And just remember on a continual basis. 

Another verse that kind of mentions how we've, you know, been brought near to God through Christ is from Ephesians 2:11 through 13. Therefore, remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh called the uncircumcision, but what is called the circumcision which is made in the flesh by hands, remember that you are at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once a far off had been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Again, we've been brought near, we were once a far off we we're strangers, aliens, enemies even to God, but because of what Christ did, because we've accepted his, what he's done for us, we have a close relationship with God, we're able to boldly approach the throne of grace to find help in our time of need, as it says, In Hebrews. So that's something that another point that what Christ has done for us how he is the way what he's provided us what the way he is, how he is the way what he's given us access to. So that is those are some of the points that I've I found that want to point out so far about how he is the way.

Now, there's the later part of the verse first 40, john 14:6, the last part that says no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. And that, that that leads us to talk about the next point about how Jesus is the way. What I what do we mean? What does that mean? How he is the only way to the Father. Now, let's talk about that. Let's start in Ephesians, two. Ephesians two. Now this verse here, Ephesians chapter two, verse 18.

It says, For through him We both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now Jesus here, he himself said in john 14:6, Jesus Himself said that he is only way to the Father. So we have that point here where the God himself has said, I am the way I'm the only way to the Father. So that is one way where we can say, okay, that's that that's He is the only way to the Father. That's That's how he is, because God himself has said it. And then we have here in a Ephesians as well, another verse where Paul here is talking about how we have access to the Father, through the Spirit. 

So you can also can read to show how we have access to the Father to the Holy Spirit. And as we if you read further and John 14, you read how the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus and Jesus reveals the Father. So we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us if we have if we've come to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, so because of that, we certainly have access to the Father. Because we have the spirit and us. And then another point I want to say, and it's in addition to Christ Himself saying it, and then having the spirit which enables us to have access to the Father through Christ is if you turn the Acts chapter four.

And this would answer the question here of or start the conversation of, is there any, Can you find salvation Anything else? The answer that this first would give us is no. 

So we turn to Acts chapter four, verse 12, it says, and their salvation and no one else, for there is no other name under heaven, that has been given among men, by which we have set which we must be saved.

So there's, there's Plenty of there's plenty of things you can give out there that people can give out there in the world. You can say, okay, you must believe in this or you must believe in this person. But the Word of God is pretty clear here, where it says salvation if you want it to how God salvation works. salvation from the penalty, and from the penalty of sin from the power of sin.

There's no other, no other name under heaven, by which we must be saved. That name is Jesus Christ. And even says it in verse 10, right before Let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ, the naturing, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead by this name, this man stands here before you in good health, so but that's the name that went first 12 is referring to it's talking about Jesus Christ. Now with all these things, known about this You might ask. And this first kind of answered this, the verses have here kind of answers this. 

But you may someone may ask the question, if they didn't completely understand did Jesus have to be the only way. Could God have provided some other way. But God have decided there's someone else. So there's something else or, you know, did Jesus have to be the only way to the Father, the only way to salvation? The only way to all these other things that I've mentioned so far this morning? Yes. 

Now why is that the case? Well, first, you can attack that question by saying, why did why did we have to have a propitiation Why did we have to have a way to the Father? Well, if you go back in Genesis, you see the fall of man, you see that? There's Adam and Eve, they lived in paradise. Everything was good. You might even say it was there was perfection at that time. Adam and Eve fell. That was when you see the man falling, they ate of the fruit, they disobeyed God. And that is the time where men fell. And that is some time where from then on out according to God's word.

All men were born sinners from then on out and all men were were sinners. So, throughout all that, after that, you know, God raises up his special people, the Israelites, and he's shown them through, not only through them, but yet primarily through them. How much how helps how serious that God takes sin. And also but he starts to point towards a savior, even from the very beginning someone that would come and have to die and die for the sins of the world. Now that we we see here, and we've come to find out that that person is no one else other than Lord Jesus Christ. That was the fulfillment of prophecy. That was the fulfillment of the symbols that you would see back in the Old Testament, where you only had one man, a priest, the high priest could go on, and go on to the Holy of Holies once a year, and give a sacrifice for all the people. And even that symbol wasn't good enough, right? 

It was a symbol that was a defficient symbol. The priest himself as it says, In Hebrews, priest himself, was sinful and had to give offer for his own sins as well. So he wasn't a sinless priest, and they had to do it over and over again year after year. But thankfully, we found we got a savior, a better High Priest, Jesus Christ, one who was sinless one who because you send my could be the one to give the sacrifice and he could enter the Holy of Holies before we are able to and because he was worthy us deserving of it and he provided a sacrifice that not only cleanse sin the cleanse the conscience our conscience as well. Because it cleanse sin forever for good. 

Christ's death Christ sacrifice was good enough to to to was good enough to cleanse our sins for forever. He was a propitiation he was the atoning sacrifice Christ was Christ's sacrifice his death on the cross satisfied God's righteous demand for punishment for sin. Because of that, we should be as we do, we should be thanking God every day for the salvation that we have in Jesus Christ. Now, I'll talk What I just said of why to why we need to Christ to die for us why Jesus had to be the only way you could also look into Christ Himself and He was in the garden. You know, as a point to say that Christ had to be the one he had to be that he was the only way of the Father and it had to be that way. You know, what Christ said, My God, my God, why is that forsaken me? 

If If he hadn't been forsaken, and what would he have a, Would he have asked before, in the garden of Gethsemane, if there's another way apart from the cross, to let this cup pass from me. You know, of course, God, there was no other no one else to take the cup. Christ had to be one the bear the sins of the world. So Christ's asking that question, of course, there was an obvious answer. You know, Christ was under a lot of pressure he's he knew he was going to have to do. But he still went through it anyway. 

We serve a savior who, as it says in Hebrews. Well, we start from Hebrews 12 verse one. Therefore since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising and the shame and I sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who has endured such hostility by sinners against himself so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. 

So, thankful that we serve a Savior, who, even though he could see how hard it was, he also saw the joy that was set before him he was willing to endure the the the shame, the sort, suffering, the torture, that he'd have to go through for the sins of the world.

Christ and he had to do it. Even though he's talking to the Father here in the garden, you know, Christ knew what he had to do. And you had, because of that you can see, not another proof that we have, That's how, that's why Jesus had to be the only way, because of because of what God demanded.

And because God had shown through throughout history, this is what was going to happen. And even when Jesus was going through it, and he asked that question, you know, the answer was still, yes, this has to be done, has to be done through you.

So, with all these things, you know, there's the question, what is the way? That we could say it from the beginning? And the answer, of course, is still, Jesus is the way Jesus is. I'll go through it some other time about how Jesus the truth and the life, but Jesus is the only way. You know, we've just gone through that. 

And how is Jesus the way? Well, actually, there's a question I wanted to ask before that, or tell you, to kind of go through. Now that we know Jesus is the way, if someone asks the question, "what is the way?" And this is this what I thought of saying at the beginning, but I'll say at the end for you. The world may answer that question in a few ways. They may just say in general, you know, and I've heard this before, so I can say this for truth. The other things may be kind of conjecture from what people may say. But I've heard people say, "Oh, you know, you just do good works, you kind of just live the the best way you can. That's good enough." You know, other people may say, "Well just be an adherent to some religion, like Buddhism, Hinduism. New age spirituality." If you if you don't believe in God, you may just say, "it doesn't really matter." Or you may say, "Well, God is actually, I'm actually God." So we just have to be the best person or "God is some other God, that's not of the Word of God here, the Christian Bible here." And then some people may say, "all those sound good, believe what you want. Those are all kind of valid." 

We've gone through here today. And we've started to show you Although not the full picture, but part of the picture about how the answer that Is "No, there's not multiple ways. You can't get to God by being good. You can't get to God by following some other God by, you know, doing whatever." God has a specific answer to that question. The question is the way to the Father, the way to God is through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only way. That's a song I forget the how the song goes. But you know, the simple truth, Jesus is the way and he's the only way to God.

He is the way to, through him. He's the way to salvation. He's the way to God's favor. And these are practical things after you get saved. He's the way into God's presence. He is the only way to the Father.

As I said before, there is no other way to salvation to anyone, but in Christ, and that's something that we need to make sure that we just continuously understand but also, we're, our, preaching to those who don't know Christ, or if any of you don't know Christ. That's one thing that you need to understand. You need to understand that the Bible is very clear. Whether you choose to believe it or not, the Bible's clear. 

Going through the good news, the gospel, to reiterate what I've just said before, it kind of goes through how, because Jesus is the way. Now that you know that Jesus is the way, I want to go through the gospel message again, which I've kind of, if you could understand my stuttering around a bit today, everyone in the world from the day you're born as a sinner, Romans 3:23 says, For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. There's no one here that was born, there's no human in history, other than Jesus Christ that if they don't have God, when they, when they're born, they're born with sin, without sin. Jesus is the only one I was born without sin, that was born after the after the fall.

So we all fall short of the glory of God. There's no way for us to pay for our sins that we've had against God because of the sins that we have. we've committed and that we're born with a sinful nature. We are separated from God. And there's this gulf between us and God. And there's no way for us in and of ourselves to cross it or to complete it. Wrong Romans 6:23 says, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Now with that bad news, there comes good news. Jesus himself came down to the earth was born a baby, lived on the earth, had His earthly ministry went to the cross. died for you and me. died, rose again. And he's at he's at the right hand of father making intercession for us because of what Christ did because of a sacrifice, because he was he died, spared and rose again. Our sins have been paid for the we don't have to if we believe in what Christ did believe in who he is, then we don't have to worry we can have peace of God, we can you know, our slate can be wiped clean for so to speak.

Now when I say I talk about faith, the faith that you have to have in Christ, the best way to put it What that means is from Romans 10, nine and 10, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised from the dead, you will be saved. For with the hearts one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made on to salvation. Now, immediately before that verse in Romans 10, it talks about, uses some phrases like, like not bringing Christ down from above or bring them up from below. And that comes from Deuteronomy 30. And that's kind of talking about how it's talking about the righteousness of faith, like what does it say?

And God's message is very clear.

That's what those, that, those words are saying before this here, God's message is very clear. And all you have to do is you have to confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead. So you have to acknowledge and believe the person and work of Jesus Christ, you have to believe that Jesus Christ is God. He's the Son of God. And that he that he died and he rose again, you have to believe that happened. You have to believe that that was sufficient enough to pay for your sins. If you don't think you're a sinner, then that's a problem. You have to know that you're a sinner, and or that you know that you need saving. And then you have to believe in what God promised and what he sent his word to happen. That was true, that He sent His Son Jesus Christ down to die on the cross, for your sins and for mine, and that he rose again and he's alive. 

We don't serve Of Savior that's dead, right? We don't serve someone that died and then never came back. We actually serve a risen Savior, who's making intercession for us on the right hand father. So if you believe those things, then you'll be saved from the penalty of sin and the power of sin. And you'll be made righteous before God, and this is all in Christ. And this is all true and necessary, and helps to drive home the fact of life I original point of this message, which is Jesus is the way. He says the way of the father. He's the only way to the Father. 

And I ask that you accept what God has said about his son and your need for him today before it's too late. Hell is a very real thing. A lot of times in church, they don't want you or a church as of today, they don't want you to talk about hell, but hell is real. And I don't want anybody to go there. I thankfully am not going there because I put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save my soul as he did. So I ask that you accept him today. And if you already have accepted Him, they keep thanking him day in and day out for what he's done. And just remember that Jesus Christ is the way. Thank you.