DIGGING DEEP NO. 917 – January 11, 2021 THE SON OF GOD IS HERE (PART 4) Jh.1: 43- 51.

In this first chapter, John recorded seven names and titles of Jesus that identify Him as eternal God.

1. The Word – When King Solomon dedicated the temple, he asked a question “But will God indeed dwell on the earth?” 1Kgs.8: 27. God’s glory had dwelt in the tabernacle Ex.40: 34, and in the temple 1Kgs.8: 10- 11, but that glory had departed from disobedient Israel Ezek.11: 22- 23. Then a marvelous thing happened; the glory of God came to His people in the person of His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is “God’s Word” to reveal His heart and mind to us Jh.1: 1- 3; 14: 9. 

2. The Light – life is a key theme in John’s gospel. What are the essentials for human life? There are at least four. Light (If the sun went out, everything would die), air, water, and food. Jesus is all of these. He is the light of life and the light of the world Jh.8: 12, He is the Sun of righteousness Mal.4: 2. God is light 1Jh.1: 5, while Satan is “the power of darkness” Lk.22: 53. People love either the light or the darkness, and this love controls their actions Jh.3: 16- 19. Those who believe on Christ are the children of light Jh.12: 35- 36.

3. The Son of God – John had the special privilege of introducing Jesus to the nation of Israel. He also had the difficult task of preparing the nation to receive their Messiah. God is invisible 1Tim.1: 17; Heb.11: 27. Man can see God revealed in nature Ps.19: 1- 6; Rom.1: 20, and man can see His mighty works in history, but he cannot see God Himself. Jesus Christ reveals God to us for He is the image of the invisible God Col.1: 15 and the express image of His person Heb.1: 3. Jesus Christ explains God to us and interprets Him for us. We simply cannot understand God apart from knowing His Son, Jesus Christ.

4. The Lamb of God – In one sense the message of the Bible can be summed up in this title “Lamb of God”. The question in the Old Testament is “Where is the lamb?” Gen.22: 7. In the four gospels, the emphasis is “Behold the Lamb of God”. After you have given your life to Jesus, you can sing with the heavenly choir “Worthy is the Lamb of God” Rev.5: 12. 

5. The Messiah – The two disciples of John who followed Jesus were John, the writer of the gospel, and Andrew. John the Baptist was happy when people left him to follow Jesus, because his ministry focused on Jesus Jh.3: 30. Andrew and John trusted Christ through the faithful preaching of John the Baptist. Peter and James came to Christ because of the compassionate personal work of their brothers. Later on, Jesus would win Philip personally, and then Philip would witness to Nathanael and bring him to Jesus. Each man’s experience is different because God uses various means to bring sinners to the Savior.

6. The King of Israel – Jh.1: 43- 49 Jesus called Phillip personally and Phillip trusted Him and followed Him. Phillip proved his faith by seeking to share it with his friend Nathanael. The Bible suggests that at least seven of our Lord’s disciples were fishermen including Nathanael Jh.21: 2. Fishermen are courageous and stick to the job, no matter how difficult it may be. Nathanael started out a doubter; he did not believe that anything worthwhile could come out of Nazareth. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but He grew up in Nazareth and bore that stigma Matt.2: 19- 23. To be called a Nazarene meant to be looked down on and rejected Acts.24: 5. When Nathanael came to Jesus; he discovered that the Lord already knew all about him. When Jesus revealed His knowledge of Nathanael, where he had been, and what he had been doing, this was enough to convince the man that Jesus indeed was the Son of God, the King of Israel. His experience was like that of the Samaritan woman at the well Jh.4: 25- 26. When Phillip witnessed to Nathanael, the evidence he gave was Moses and the prophets Jh.1: 45. Perhaps Jesus gave Phillip a quick course in the Old Testament messianic prophecies, as He did with the Emmaus disciples Lk.24: 13- 14 & 25- 26. It is always good to tie our personal witness to the Word of God. At one point in the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, the crowds wanted to make Jesus king, but He refused them Jh.6: 15. He did present Himself as King Jh.12: 12- 15, and He affirmed to Pilate that He was born a King Jh.18: 33- 37. It is generally believed among Bible scholars that Nathanael and Bartholomew are the same person. John never mentioned Bartholomew in his gospel, but the other three writers name Bartholomew and not Nathanael Matt.10: 2- 4; Mk.3: 13- 19; Lk.6: 13- 16.

7. The Son of Man – Jh.1: 50- 51 “Son of Man” was one of our Lord’s favorite titles for Himself; it is used eighty-three times in the Gospels and at least thirteen times in John. The title speaks of both the deity and humanity of Jesus Dan.7: 13- 14; Matt: 26: 64. As Son of Man, Jesus is the living link between heaven and earth Jh.1: 51. Christ is God’s ladder between heaven and earth Jh.14: 6. often in the Gospel, you will find Jesus reminding people that He came down from heaven.