Series: John
Title: Grace to Unbelieving Believers
Text: John 2: 22-25
Date: Dec 27, 2020
Place: SGBC, NJ
John 2: 23: Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day,
many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. 24: But
Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, 25: And
needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.
The Lord Jesus knows the heart in all men. He does not need that two or three witnesses
should testify concerning a man. The
Lord Jesus is God—all-knowing—he knows my heart and your heart. He knows exactly what you are thinking right
this minute.
Hebrews 4:12: [he is]…is a discerner of the thoughts and intents
of the heart. 13: Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in
his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with
whom we have to do.
Romans 2:16: [in the day of judgment] God
shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
He knew these only believed
because they saw the miracles which he did.
He knew they were spiritually dead, their minds were enmity against him. So he did not commit himself to them. Also, he knew the hearts of the rulers who
mocked him, thinking he meant he would raise the temple-building. The fact Christ knows the heart of all men
terrifies unbelievers—it should. But it
is a great comfort to believers. Here is
why. Notice, after speaking of raising
himself from the dead:
John 2: 22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his
disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the
scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.
He knew these true disciples did not believe he would die and rise again. Yet, he committed himself to them and
continued to teach them because they were his.
What a blessing! Though our Lord
and Savior knows our unbelief and our sin, he knows those that are his. He knew these were true disciples. He found them dead in sins like the rest, fallen
sons of Adam. But they were chosen of
God and precious. These were his elect
for whom he shed his precious blood. He had
given them life and faith. They genuinely
believed on him. What a blessing! Christ said, “I know my sheep.” His grace and knowledge are particular and
saving. God the Father chose them and gave them to Christ before the foundation
of the world. Christ knows his sheep
2 Timothy 2: 19: The
foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that
are his
Subject: Grace to Unbelieving Believers
Proposition: The Lord Jesus is gracious to those
he has given faith despite how little we know and despite our unbelief.
WE KNOW IN PART
As sanctified believers, taught of God our
Father, we know extraordinarily little. They
were regenerated by the Holy Spirit like all must be. They had the unction and knew all things. They knew and believed Christ to be their All
and in all. And Christ knew their heart
of faith. They believed Christ to be their
Life, their only Righteousness. And Christ knew their heart of faith. They believe Christ was their only Provider, their
only Sustainer. He is the power of God
by whom we are kept—of his fulness have all we received grace for grace. Their only Holiness and acceptance with
God was Christ. And he knew their heart
of faith. He gave it.
John 6: 68: Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go?
thou hast the words of eternal life. 69: And we believe and are sure that thou
art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
Brethren, salvation is not in what we know or how much we know but WHO. God makes us know some vital truths. He makes us know we are sinners—depraved—with
no ability to save ourselves or even contribute to our salvation. He makes us know God must do all the saving. Salvation is not by our will or our works. Salvation is of the Lord: from election, to redemption,
to regeneration, to preservation, to glorification. So God makes us know Christ is all our
salvation. In our text, the word believe
is commit. To believe is to personally
commit all to Christ, in spirit and in truth, casting all care on him to save
us. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY SALVATION IS TO
BE KNOWN OF GOD OUR SAVIOR!
Though they knew and believed on the Savior,
they knew extraordinarily little. We who
believe know extraordinarily little.
1 Corinthians
13:12 For now we see through a glass,
darkly;…now I know in part…
Our Savior taught them plainly that he would be crucified and rise again
Matthew 20: 17: And Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve
disciples apart in the way, and said unto them, 18: Behold, we go up to
Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto
the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, 19: And shall deliver him to
the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third
day he shall rise again.
But they were full of pre-judice. They had prejudged based on wrong
understanding of scripture and fleshly understanding and ideals they conceived
in their minds. So they were convinced
that Christ would establish a temporal, earthly kingdom.
Therefore, they could not receive his word
and believe that this One who had power to work such mighty miracles would die
a shameful death on the cross. From
beginning to end, they thought Christ would restore the kingdom in the earth and
reign in earthly Jerusalem. So when the Lord was crucified and buried, things did not come to pass
according to their preconceived ideal, their hope was dashed.
How we are so like the disciples! Our flesh greatly hinders us. We have our preconceived
ideals based on false assumptions and carnal reason. Then we are devastated when God does not
bring our ideal to pass. We must be taught of God by divine revelation
and be made to believe on Christ and trust that God’s Way is the Way.
OUR GRACIOUS LORD AND SAVIOR
In light of their unbelief think how
gracious, longsuffering, patient, and forbearing Christ is with us. He knew they did not believe his word
concerning his death and resurrection.
But oh how gracious our Lord is to us even in the face of how little we
know and believe.
We see his grace toward us despite our ignorance. Grace is given to unworthiness. We are
not only unworthy, we are full of demerit; not only undeserving but deserving hell.
Yet, the Father chose whom he would by
free grace—salvation is by his calling, not by our works. Therefore, when we fell in Adam, his love toward
us did not change. Likewise, when we are
full of ignorance, his grace toward us does not change. The Lord Jesus is ever gracious to his feeble,
weak saints.
Psalms 106:43:
Many times…they provoked [him] with their counsel, and were brought low for
their iniquity. 44: Nevertheless he regarded their affliction, when he heard
their cry: 45 And he remembered for them his covenant, and repented according
to the multitude of his mercies.
We see our Redeemer’s longsuffering patience. They did not understand and receive his word. Still he was longsuffering and patient and
taught them over and over. And he does
so with us.
John 14: 4: And
whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 5: Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we
know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6: Jesus saith unto
him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but
by me.
John 16: 16: A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a
little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father. 17: Then said some
of his disciples among themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A little
while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me:
and, Because I go to the Father?
John 16: 28: I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world:
again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. 29: His disciples said unto
him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30: Now are we
sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask
thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God. 31: Jesus answered
them, Do ye now believe? 32: Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye
shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I
am not alone, because the Father is with me. 33: These things I have spoken
unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation:
but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Before our Lord we are little children. You know far more than a little child. How do you deal with the little child? That is how our Savior deals with us. We see
when a little child is doing something incorrectly or that it is going to have
to be undone or redone. Sometimes we
correct them. Sometimes we let them do
it just to teach them. I watched one of
the little ones take all the hymn books out of the back of the pew. He was so serious. Then I suggested we put them all back. He did it with the same serious intent. To that little fellow he had done something needful
and showed me how well he could do it.
Before Christ, that is us when are doing things
we think is so important, yes, things that are important. But how little we know compared to our all-knowing
God. How often we do things wrong. But before God we are little children and he
remembers that we are but dust. We need
to remember that about our own selves and about our brethren. We need to remember how he deals with us who
know so little and sin so often. It is
partly what our Lord meant when he said we must become as little children. We must be as teachable as little children before
him and as harmless as little children toward one another.
We see Christ’s love and care for his people. In the hour when he faced his greatest sorrow our Saviours
heart was on us! He was teaching his
disciples, comforting them, when he faced bearing the sin of his people and
being forsaken of God on the cross. Yet,
as he taught them, they continued to be so full of misunderstanding and doubt
and unbelief. But how loving and caring
he was in the face of their unbelief. Oh, let us thank God, Christ overrules our
unbelief! Oh, let us thank God that our
Redeemer is faithful to us when we are not faithful to him! (2 Timothy 2:13). Where
sin abounds, His grace much more abounds!
2 Timothy 2:13: If we
believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
We see his wisdom in instructing his
children according to our need. He could
have made them believe but he did not because they could not bear it at the
time. Certain scriptures had to be
fulfilled which involved Christ being smitten in place of his people and the
sheep being scattered. So for reasons
known only to God he did not teach them some of the things that he taught them
after the cross. Listen to how the Lord
dealt in patience prior to going to the cross.
John 16:12: I have yet many things to say
unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of
truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of
himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew
you things to come. 14: He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and
shall shew [it] unto you. 1: All things that the Father hath are mine:
therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you.”
He would not press upon them what he had not
yet prepared them to receive. He waited
until the time appointed. What an example for us to follow! We need discernment
and wisdom to know, not only the word suitable to speak, but the wisdom to know
the season. So we must wait upon the
Lord. We must wait until Christ has
prepared the heart. He must break up the
fallow ground. He must give us a broken
and contrite heart to receive his instruction and to receive our brethren with a
humble spirit.
Not
only does he prepare us to receive his teaching, also, he must prepare us after
he has taught us. Paul would not have been
able to bear the abundance of revelation Christ gave him. It would have lifted Paul up in pride. So the Lord gave him a thorn in the flesh “lest
he be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations.” Brethren, we should expect that the Lord will
patiently wait, that he knows what each needs to keep us at his feet and that
our gracious, all-wise Redeemer will teach us.
The thorns our Redeemer gives are not punishment to his people; they are
tender mercies to keep us from falling away, to keep us looking only to him.
We see Christ’s faithfulness. He went to the cross and redeemed his elect and
made us righteous in him exactly as he said he would. Then he came to his disciples and taught them
that he is, indeed, risen. And then
Christ gave them faith to believe. But
even then it was all of Christ’s grace and power to make them believe because
they were still full of unbelief. He first appeared to Mary Magdalene and she came and told them he was
risen
Mark 16: 11: And
they, when they heard he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.
Even John, who was so attentive to Christ,
did not know and understand the scripture until after:
John 20:8: Then went
in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and
believed. 9: For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he
must rise again from the dead.
If John remained ignorant
of this truth after hearing Christ preach for three years, none of us should be
surprised to find a fellow believer slow to believe certain doctrine.
Christ appeared to Cleophas and the other disciple on the road to Emmaus
but they did not know him—they said, “Have you not heard?”
Luke 24: 20: And how the chief
priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have
crucified him. 21: But we trusted that it had been he which should have
redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these
things were done….25: Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to
believe all that the prophets have spoken: 26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these
things, and to enter into his glory? 27: And beginning at Moses and all the
prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
himself. [then he opened their understanding.]
They went and told the others.
Mark 16: 12: After that he
appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the
country. 13: And they went and told it
unto the residue: neither believed they them.
But Christ appeared and opened their
understanding. Thomas said, “I will not believe unless I touch his wounds!” Oh, consider this gracious longsuffering and
tenderness. Christ said, “Reach hither thy finger Thomas and touch me!”
In the family of God there are dispositions
and temperaments like in an earthly family.
Christ knew the tender heart of the woman who broke open the box of
ointment and he knew Peter’s temperament.
They were so different. Each of
his people are redeemed, justified, and sanctified. Each believer is washed in the blood of
Christ. All live in the Spirit and seek the glory of God by the grace and power
of God. But all are different and gifted
with different measures of grace. But Christ
knows each of his sheep and will not allow us to be tempted above that we are
able. He knows what we need to be taught. He knows when best to teach us. And our all-powerful Head is faithful to do
so. He prepares our hearts to receive
his word.
If we will remember this, it will save us
much trouble and prevent much unkindness.
Knowing Christ is Wisdom who knows the heart of each of his redeemed and
knowing that Christ alone can teach us, we ought never judge one another
harshly. We ought never doubt a brother’s
faith simply because they do not know or see or feel or react as we do.
Another thing to remember is that our Lord
has not prepared us for things that he has not brought us to face. A brother may have a negative reaction to the
trial that you are in in while you bear it patiently. It is because the Lord has not prepared your
brother for the trial that the Lord has sent to you. Usually, the Lord is using the trial that he
has sent to you to prepare your brother.
He is working all things together for good to them that love God to them
who are the called according to his purpose.
Amazing Wisdom is our God! In the
Lord’s time, when he sees fit that your brother must bear a similar trial, the
Lord will have given grace and prepared him beforehand so that he has grace sufficient
for the hour. And he gives more grace
for the hour! He told Peter, “What I
do now thou knowest not; but thou shalt know hereafter.”
Remember, when we do not see the Lord working,
he is working for us! When we think He
has forsaken us, Christ is with us! When
we think he has loaded us with trouble, he has loaded us with mercy! In his time he will make each of his saints
know and believe on him and rejoice that he did it the way he did it. When Jesus was “glorified” the Holy Spirit guided
them into all truth, THEN “remembered they that these things were written of
him; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.”
It is a great comfort to a believer that the
Lord knows our heart. He knows our true
motive. He gave it. He put the love in the heart that he
created. The Lord knew Peter’s heart of love
even when Peter’s flesh made him appear to others to have fallen away. I am afraid we would have judged after carnal
sight and thought Peter had denied the faith.
But Christ prayed for Peter and for that one reason his faith did not
fail. The whole time Peter denied the
Lord and left the place the Lord told him to wait and went back fishing—the Lord
knew the heart of love that the Lord had created within Peter. So after the Lord sufficiently proved that
Peter had no strength in his flesh then the Lord appeared and made Peter
acknowledge that the Lord knew his heart.
He made Peter acknowledge that the Lord knew his heart to remind him, and
us, that only the Lord knows the heart in his people.
John 21:15: So
when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas,
lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that
I love thee [three times until Peter
said]…Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith
unto him, Feed my sheep.
Amen!