1 00:00:00,200 --> 00:00:03,700 Name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. 2 00:00:08,100 --> 00:00:13,100 Indeed, we have heard a lot of testimonies and testimonials in our 3 00:00:13,100 --> 00:00:13,700 lives. 4 00:00:13,700 --> 00:00:18,100 When it comes to how God has changed the lives of many people, we hear 5 00:00:18,100 --> 00:00:20,700 this in sports, lay people 6 00:00:20,700 --> 00:00:23,100 perhaps in our church, we hear it all over the place. 7 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:26,300 And then we hear of, I guess 8 00:00:26,300 --> 00:00:32,700 fake testimonies, you know, how really denying Jesus Christ that he is 9 00:00:32,700 --> 00:00:36,000 the Son of God. We hear all out of this fake news 10 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:37,600 that's going on about this these days. 11 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:43,000 As many people like the cessation have left the church. 12 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:46,500 Because they believe they can pick themselves up by their own 13 00:00:46,500 --> 00:00:46,900 bootstraps. 14 00:00:46,900 --> 00:00:48,800 They don't need God. 15 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:53,100 Our they look at God, kind of like food or anything else a new 16 00:00:53,100 --> 00:00:55,500 computer and then when it's over with, I don't need God 17 00:00:55,500 --> 00:00:58,100 we just kind of pitch him away, but I'll bring them back when I think I 18 00:00:58,100 --> 00:00:58,500 need him. 19 00:01:00,300 --> 00:01:01,300 But the truth be told. 20 00:01:03,100 --> 00:01:08,500 While we have heard and seen a lot of testimonies of men and women some 21 00:01:08,500 --> 00:01:13,400 good, some beneficial many not many just faking it out. 22 00:01:13,400 --> 00:01:16,000 Yeah God he is really not. Jesus isn't God 23 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:21,300 he's not really what he says he is. 24 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:28,600 The testimony of God as I have learned in my life and your life is 25 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:30,000 really greater. 26 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:33,000 This is the greater testimony. 27 00:01:34,300 --> 00:01:39,700 For this is the testimony that God has testified concerning his Son. 28 00:01:41,200 --> 00:01:46,400 You know, the Lord God, he's a good teacher, he keeps things simple, 29 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:50,700 he doesn't really get terribly complex about this. 30 00:01:50,700 --> 00:01:52,800 He doesn't use complicated 31 00:01:52,800 --> 00:01:53,000 rhetoric. 32 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:58,300 He doesn't sort of polish things up, so that we feel warm and fuzzy 33 00:01:58,300 --> 00:02:02,100 about all the things that he's telling us here in the scriptures. 34 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:06,200 But he takes us back to the basics here in 1st 35 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:08,000 John. By grace through faith 36 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:10,900 that Jesus is the Son of God. 37 00:02:10,900 --> 00:02:12,400 He is the Christ. 38 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:14,300 He is Incarnate, God 39 00:02:15,300 --> 00:02:18,600 And he really teaches us to stick to the basics. 40 00:02:21,100 --> 00:02:25,600 This is kind of what people out in the parish need to hear more of, in 41 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:30,500 the teaching of the basics of what God has to say and what he 42 00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:31,500 continues to do. 43 00:02:31,500 --> 00:02:37,200 And certainly we here at Concordia Seminary obviously, we like to kind 44 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:37,900 of keep it simple. However as 45 00:02:39,100 --> 00:02:44,500 simple as we like to keep the gospel message with all of you know try 46 00:02:44,500 --> 00:02:49,200 to flower up the language, make it with lots of stories, it really don't 47 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:52,100 rely to the text but we have certain things, we have to say. 48 00:02:53,700 --> 00:02:56,100 The Lord doesn't mixes metaphors. 49 00:02:56,100 --> 00:02:58,000 He doesn't mix his language on this. 50 00:02:58,000 --> 00:02:59,400 He doesn't mix his words. 51 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:01,300 He gets down to brass tacks of 52 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:04,400 his incarnate mission. 53 00:03:05,300 --> 00:03:12,200 And so he says, Whoever has the Son of God, Jesus the Christ has 54 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:12,700 eternal life. 55 00:03:12,700 --> 00:03:18,000 Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have eternal life. 56 00:03:19,300 --> 00:03:24,200 And so he really takes us back to the very beginning back to Genesis, 57 00:03:24,200 --> 00:03:26,000 all the way up through Revelation. 58 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:31,800 Be thou faithful unto death and I will give you the Crown of Life, 59 00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:32,900 God's gifts of Grace. 60 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:40,700 You believe, you believe by faith goes faith comes by hearing and 61 00:03:40,700 --> 00:03:42,000 hearing by the word of Christ. 62 00:03:44,900 --> 00:03:48,800 You believe by grace through faith that you alone, you have this 63 00:03:48,800 --> 00:03:53,100 testimony in yourselves. This to me looking at this text is so so 64 00:03:53,100 --> 00:03:57,800 important to living the life of Christ in this world. 65 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:05,300 Whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony in himself. 66 00:04:09,400 --> 00:04:12,800 Yeah, and then Satan comes popping along 67 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:17,800 and he don't whisper he kind of yells at us. 68 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:20,100 Did God really say? 69 00:04:21,800 --> 00:04:22,700 Did he really say? 70 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:28,400 That he gives you eternal life by his son's death and resurrection? 71 00:04:30,100 --> 00:04:34,000 Because to most people today, that I'm hearing, even, that doesn't 72 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:34,800 make a lot of sense. 73 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:37,900 How can this man 74 00:04:37,900 --> 00:04:44,500 Jesus suffer, die and lay in this cold, dark damp, tomb for three 75 00:04:44,500 --> 00:04:47,400 days and three nights and be raised for the forgiveness of our sins? 76 00:04:50,100 --> 00:04:56,200 And so people begin to ask questions, we can answer the questions, 77 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:57,500 God's word is truth. 78 00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:02,300 But they come very much like the people at John's time. 79 00:05:03,100 --> 00:05:08,600 Cessationist to remove themselves believing that they are saved by 80 00:05:08,600 --> 00:05:09,400 their works. 81 00:05:10,900 --> 00:05:12,800 Not by the righteousness of God in Christ that 82 00:05:12,800 --> 00:05:14,100 he gives to us. 83 00:05:16,500 --> 00:05:21,400 And so we find people today, fleeing creation, and tthis fleeing 84 00:05:21,400 --> 00:05:22,100 creation 85 00:05:22,100 --> 00:05:23,100 they flee redemption. 86 00:05:23,100 --> 00:05:24,500 They flee the work of the Holy Spirit. 87 00:05:24,500 --> 00:05:29,300 They flee marriage, they flee what it means to be a man and woman. 88 00:05:33,300 --> 00:05:37,400 And I hear, just got a phone call not two days ago from a pastor. 89 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:40,600 I don't know what to do about some of these issues that are going on 90 00:05:40,600 --> 00:05:42,400 in the world regarding human sexuality. 91 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:48,100 I keep hearing from people in the pew, you know, your times are 92 00:05:48,100 --> 00:05:48,800 changing. 93 00:05:49,900 --> 00:05:50,400 Really. 94 00:05:51,700 --> 00:05:54,300 I don't believe God's word has changed. 95 00:05:54,300 --> 00:05:56,300 It is the same yesterday today 96 00:05:56,300 --> 00:05:58,400 and tomorrow, he is the Alpha and Omega. 97 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:04,900 He has not changed, but we like to change his word to fit our view of 98 00:06:04,900 --> 00:06:06,100 life in general. 99 00:06:08,300 --> 00:06:09,600 Did God really say 100 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:13,300 that he made you from old world monkeys? 101 00:06:13,300 --> 00:06:18,300 I heard this from some of my relatives. Young kids 8 & 9 getting 102 00:06:18,300 --> 00:06:21,000 this in school and then they tell me. 103 00:06:26,700 --> 00:06:30,800 Hey papa Bob, I didn't know that I came from an old world monkeys, the ones 104 00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:31,900 without the tails. 105 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:37,800 Indeed, we only need God when we need God. 106 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:42,200 That's kind of how life tends to be for so many people. 107 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:50,700 Where a lot of these people in today's culture are seceding from their 108 00:06:50,700 --> 00:06:51,600 worship and faith 109 00:06:53,000 --> 00:06:57,500 believing, they can do things on their own with power and greed, and 110 00:06:57,500 --> 00:07:02,200 avarice and all kinds of other things because things are changing. 111 00:07:05,800 --> 00:07:10,900 Whoever does not believe that God has made him is a liar. 112 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:17,000 Cuz he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne witness to 113 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:19,000 concerning his son. 114 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:26,400 That Jesus is the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah incarnate. Christ who is 115 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:28,500 the Son of God, must suffer die 116 00:07:28,500 --> 00:07:32,000 and be raised on the third day for the forgiveness of our sins. 117 00:07:34,300 --> 00:07:39,400 And so we have the Lord God himself keeping this very simple for us. 118 00:07:39,400 --> 00:07:40,500 This is God's testimony. 119 00:07:40,500 --> 00:07:46,000 This is the testimony that is greater than any testimony that men or 120 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:46,700 women can give. 121 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:51,600 For whoever has the Son has life. 122 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:57,100 Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 123 00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:01,800 And you believe, I believe 124 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:07,200 that the Incarnate God is Jesus Christ 125 00:08:08,100 --> 00:08:12,300 the Son of God. And believing in your heart by faith alone 126 00:08:13,800 --> 00:08:15,900 you and I have eternal life. 127 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,600 You know, the older I get in the whiter 128 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:21,000 my hair gets whiter and whiter. 129 00:08:23,200 --> 00:08:26,200 I love these texts that talk about the end times. 130 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:32,000 That talk about the greatest celebration of all is the resurrection to 131 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:34,100 eternal life, to be with Jesus 132 00:08:34,100 --> 00:08:39,400 the Son of God in heaven, on this new Heaven and this new Earth. 133 00:08:41,100 --> 00:08:44,800 This is God's Gift of grace to you and to me. 134 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:51,600 And so we have confidence and trust in the Christ Jesus that hears our 135 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:57,100 prayers and answers them according to his will just like Isaiah says, 136 00:08:57,100 --> 00:09:03,000 in chapter 65 verse 24 before they call, I answer. 137 00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:06,500 and while they pray, I listen. 138 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:11,600 Indeed, We Have Heard lots of testimonies in our lives. 139 00:09:11,600 --> 00:09:13,200 A lot of testimonials. 140 00:09:13,200 --> 00:09:15,500 Some pretty neat right and beneficial. 141 00:09:16,700 --> 00:09:20,500 But we also hear the testimonies that Jesus Christ is not the Son of 142 00:09:20,500 --> 00:09:20,700 God. 143 00:09:22,500 --> 00:09:23,200 That God 144 00:09:23,200 --> 00:09:25,400 incarnate didn't really exist. 145 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:27,500 This is all a fairytale. 146 00:09:30,700 --> 00:09:36,600 But you see the testimony of God is greater than all testimonies of 147 00:09:36,600 --> 00:09:37,100 men. 148 00:09:39,700 --> 00:09:41,900 For this is the testimony that God 149 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:48,200 has testified concerning his Son, whoever believes in the Son of God 150 00:09:48,200 --> 00:09:51,200 has the testimony in himself. 151 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:54,500 And this is the testimony that 152 00:09:55,700 --> 00:09:58,200 God gave us eternal life. 153 00:09:59,900 --> 00:10:02,900 And this life is in his Son. 154 00:10:04,100 --> 00:10:11,100 This is the Lord God unifying message for all believers in the 155 00:10:11,100 --> 00:10:11,700 incarnate 156 00:10:11,700 --> 00:10:14,100 God Jesus Christ, the Son of God, 157 00:10:15,400 --> 00:10:16,700 And this is you 158 00:10:17,900 --> 00:10:18,900 and this is me. 159 00:10:20,400 --> 00:10:24,100 So, we praise God from whom all blessings flow. 160 00:10:24,100 --> 00:10:25,900 Amen. 161 00:10:25,900 --> 00:10:28,400 The peace of God, that surpasses all understanding. 162 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:31,400 Keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.