Ye will not come to me that ye might have life

Sermon notes from 24 March 2017

John 4 verses 24 - 26, 39 - 40, 46 - 47

"Ye will not come to me that ye might have life."

An absence of life.  Jesus was speaking to men who were offended by Christ - verse 18.  They were out to kill him.  They were very much alive physically but spiritually dead in their trespasses and sin.  We are all different in nature.  When you see a child running about we say he is full of life.  Physically that is.  Spiritually we are all born dead in sin, can do nothing to deliver ourselves.  Paul in Ephesians 2 says "and you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this word, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience."  John 3 verse 36 "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that beleilveth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him."  The difference between saved and not.  Those who have receied Christ as Saviour hath life but if you have not Christ you are dead spiritually before God.  2 Corinthians 5 verse 15 "And that he died for all that they which live shold not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again."  The word dead means separation from God and without hope.  "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." Isaiah 59 verse 2  We are not on that road to heaven.  Without spiritual life no-one can get into heaven.  Heaven`s door will be closed.  Never been born of the Spirit of God, will never walk those streets of heaven, in that place where there will be no more sickness.  I`m sure everyone of us wants to be in heaven at the end of life`s journey.  You need to have life.  "Except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3 verse 3)  We do not know when we are going to leave this world, called out of the world - "Be ye also ready for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man will come." (Matthew 24 verse 44)  Our position at the end of life will mean we finish up separated from God and in hell itself.  In Luke 16 we read of the rich man who finished up in a lost eternity.  He had all his feelings about him and he had his memories.  He could remember he had 5 brothers and that Lazarus lay at his gate every day.  He could remember a few verses of scripture, he remembered Abraham, knew something of prayer and that he didn`t have life eternal.  Do you have life in the full sense?  The life of Christ within your heart.  I`m not asking if you go to church, say a prayer, never have done anyone any harm but you are without this life.  "ye will not come to me that ye might have life."  He wants to give you life and invites you to come to him.

The availability of life.  It was available to these people in the person of Christ.  Life is not found in a place, not found in a church, not found in a message but found in a man Christ Jesus.  John 14 verse 6 "I am the way, the truth and the life."  Life is found in the person of the Lord Jesus.  He is not just a mere man.  He is God manifested in the flesh.  From verses 19 to the end of the chapter we read the words of Christ.  He is declaring himself to be equal with God.  He is witnessed by the Spirit, then of John, then of his works and finally the Father and the scriptures.  Eternal life is found in a person.  "I am come that ye might have life and you might have life abundantly." (John 10 verse 10)  He is not out to spoil your life.  He is come to give you life worth living for.  "There is none other name given among men whereby we might be saved." (Acts 4 verse 12)  It is given through life.  You have to have something to put your faith in.  There are people who have faith in a church.  Others have faith in their own efforts.  Good faith.  It is not the amount of faith you have but who your faith is in.  Faith must have an object.  Saving faith is found in the person of the Lord.  "I know in whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him." (2 Timothy 1 verse 12)  Faith has to be exercised.  It is one thing to believe in the heart but another to believe it in the mind.  You might sit here believing in your heart that Jesus is able to save, that he wants to save but have you ever trusted?  Have you ever put your life into his hands?  He is the potter and we are the clay.  He didn`t discard me, he moulded me and continually moulds my life every day.  Faith has got to be exercised.  We have got to have an object.  This faith is available because of a finished work.  It is only because of what Christ has accomplished on Calavary.  The price has been paid and paid in full.  "It is finished".  That is what it means.  He was able to cry those words on Calavary because the price has been paid and paid in full.  The invitation goes out "come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11 verse 28)  Life is available because of a finished work and a person.  Life is available to all.  "Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved."  The invitation is for the whosoever.  It is free and it is found through faith in the finished work of Christ on Calvary.

The assurance of life.  You can have everlasting life, something that is real and can be possesssed the moment you trust the Lord.  It is given to you by the Spirit of God.  "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." 1 John 5 verses 12 and 13  God says it in his word and I stand on the promises of his word alone.  God says if I receive his son I will receive life.  When God says something he means it.  You can rely on it.  Jesus says you believe man but you still do not believe God.  We can believe friends and neighbours but yet when it comes to spiritual things we question God.  Is God`s word not enough for you?  You can have assurance of life, depending on the word of Jesus Christ.  "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlsting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." John 5 verse 24.  The moment you believe you pass from death unto life.  That is the whole idea of the gospel - believing on the Lord.

The abandoning of life.  It is quite possible there are those God is reaching out in love to, I want to give you life, to bless you, make you ready for heaven.  He is offering you life in all its fulness but maybe you are going out saying no.  That is abandoning life.  These men were offered the same opportunity.  They were being afforded these things.  We know if we come to the Lord we would have life in all its fulness.  God has given us opportunity after opportunity.  Opportunities come and go.  It needs to be grasped.  God has extended the day of grace.  Given you another opportunity. Will you accept life from his hands.  Romans 6 verse 23 "the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life."  God asks you to come and receive it.