Book: John
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JOHN 5:33-39; 15:16

"THE WITNESSES"

Intro: One vital truth men need to know to be saved. Jesus Christ is the Son of God the
       Savior of the World. "In the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses..."

I. JOHN'S WITNESS.
        A. "There is one coming after me..."
        B. "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world."
                1. Why would he call Him the Lamb of God?
                2. How was He to take away the sin of the world?
        C. He must increase, I must decrease.

II. THE WITNESS OF HIS WORKS. 36.
        A. Nicodemus recognized this witness "We know thou art a teacher come from God, for
           no man can do the works thou doest except God be..."
        B. Jesus again appealed to His works as proof of His deity when Philip said: "show 
           us the Father..."
        C. His miracles involving natural elements.
                1. Water into wine.
                2. Walking on the water.
                3. Multiplying the loves and fish.
                4. Calming the storm.
        D. The healings wrought.
                1. When John from prison questioned.
                2. The lame, blind, deaf, infirmed, withered.
                3. The dead brought back to life.
        E. The forgiving of sins.
        F. His death and resurrection.

III. THE FATHER VS. 37.
        A. At baptism "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased."
        B. At transfiguration "This is my beloved Son, hear Him."

IV. THE WITNESS OF THE SCRIPTURES.
        1. To be born in Bethlehem 5:2 Micah 1-280,000.
        2. Mal. 3:   A messenger before Him 1-1000.
        3. Riding on Donkey Zech. 9:9 1-100.
        4. Zech. 13  Betrayed by friend wounded in hands 1-1,000.
        5. Betrayal money to be used to buy Potters field. 1-100,000. Zech. 11.
        6. Betrayal price 30 pieces of silver, 1-1,000.
        7. Isa. 53:7 Make no defense. 1-1,000.
        8. Hands and feet pierced  Ps. 22:16 1-1,000.
                Chances 1-1028 - Pop. 88 billion  1-10.
                a. Silver dollars cover state of Texas 2 ft. deep.
                        8. more prophesies 1-10- Ball with center at earth extend to 30 times
                           further than sun.
                        48 prophesies 10/157 Electrons.
                        500 balls per minute could make them for 6, billion years 10 billion
                        times.
        9. By Him, God's righteous servant, shall many be justified or made righteous.

V. THE TESTIMONY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
        A. That's what is happening right now inside you mind.
                1. Wouldn't you like to have a new start?
                        a. Have your sins all forgiven?
                        b. Have peace with God?
                2. Why not just submit your life to Jesus Christ today.

John 5:39-46                   Search the Scriptures
Intro. Jesus is speaking of the witnesses to His divine origin. He said if
       I witness of myself, you will not receive it, but John
       witnessed of Me, and My works witness of Me, and the Father
       witnessed of Me, and the scriptures witness of Me.

I. You do search the scriptures for in them you think that you have
   eternal life, but they testify of Me.
        A. This book we call the Bible is all about Jesus Christ.
                1. You can find Him in every page.
                2. Jesus declared that they testified of Him.
                3. When He joined the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
                   He began at Moses and in all the prophets he expounded
                   unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
                   Himself.
                4. Later He said to all the disciples,
LUK 24:44   These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet
                   with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were
                   written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and
                   [in] the psalms, concerning me.
                5. Back in chapter 1 of John when Philip found Nathanael
                   he said, "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law,
                   and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth."
        B. He is the heart and theme of the book, it was written about
           Him. "Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me,
           to do Thy will O God."
        C. Jesus is the chief subject of prophecy. Rev. 19:10 "For the
           testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
                1. Peter speaks of his being an eyewitness of the glory of
                   Christ at His transfiguration, but he then declares,
                   "We have a more sure word of prophecy."
                2. The prophecies center around the first and second
                   coming of Jesus.
        D. In verse 46 Jesus said, "For if you would have believed Moses,
           you would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me."


II. There were over three hundred prophecies to guide the people in the
    recognition of the true Messiah. Things about His birth, birthplace,
    childhood, ministry, rejection and death and resurrection.
         A. Isaiah 7:14 gave to us the mode of His birth. "I will give you
            a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son
            and call His name Immanuel, which means God with us."
        B. Micah 5:2 Tells us His birthplace.
MIC 5:2     But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among
            the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth
            unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
            [have been] from of old, from everlasting.
        C. Jeremiah 31:15 speaks of the mothers weeping for their children
           that were slain at His birth.
        D. Hosea 11:1 Speaks of the flight of His parents to Egypt.
        E. Isaiah 61 speaks of His ministry.
ISA 61:1    The spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath
            anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
            sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty
            to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that
            are] bound;
ISA 61:2    To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.
        F. Zechariah 9:9 speaks of His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey.
ZEC 9:9     Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of
            Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just,
            and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
            a colt the foal of an ass.
        G. Daniel 9 tells the day He will come.
DNL 9:24    Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
            city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
            and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
            everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and
            prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
DNL 9:25    Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of
            the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the
            Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore
            and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall,
            even in troublous times.
DNL 9:26    And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
            but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall
            come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
            thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war
            desolations are determined.
        H. Isaiah 53:3 tells us He would be despised and rejected of men.
ISA 53:3    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
            acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces 
            from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
        I. Psalm 118 speaks of the leaders refusing Him.
PSA 118:22  The stone [which] the builders refused is become the head
            [stone] of the corner.
        J. Zechariah 11:12 predicted His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver.
ZEC 11:12   And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price;
            and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty 
            [pieces] of silver.
ZEC 11:13   And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly
            price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
            [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house
            of the LORD.
        K. Isaiah 50:6 speaks of His being scourged.
ISA 50:6    I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that
            plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and
            spitting.
ISA 53:4    Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet
            we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
ISA 53:5    But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised
            for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon
            him; and with his stripes we are healed.
        L. Psalm 22:18 tells us of the casting of lots for His robe.
PSA 22:18   They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my
            vesture.
        M. Psalm 22:16 speaks of the piercing of His hands and feet.
PSA 22:16   For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have
            enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
        N. Isaiah 53:12 tells us that He would be numbered with the
           transgressors in His death.
        O. Isaiah 53:9 speaks of His burial with the rich.
        P. Amos 8:9 tells of the sun turning dark on a clear day at noon.

III. What are the chance factors of one man fulfilling these predictions.
        A. More that one in 5X10 to the 59th power.
                1. This number is so great that if you had this many
                   silver dollars you would be very rich.
                2. But if you decided to make silver balls out of them the
                   size of the sun which is 1,200,000 times larger than
                   our earth 865,000 miles in diameter. You could make 10
                   to the 28 power balls the size of our Sun.
                3. Or to put it another way. Our sun is an average size
                   star in our milky way galaxy. It is estimated that
                   there are one hundred million stars in our galaxy. If
                   you decided to count the stars in our galaxy, if you
                   counted at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take you
                   750 years counting day and night.
                4. It is estimated that there are 2 trillion galaxies in
                   the universe, each containing 100,000,000 stars. If you
                   had 5X10 to the 59th power silver dollars, you could
                   make all the stars in the Universe out of silver
                   dollars, and you could actually make it 200,000 over.
        B. That is just considering the few prophecies, you must remember
           that there are over 300. No wonder Peter said, "We have the
           more sure word of prophecy.

IV. "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
        A. They knew the scriptures and they studied the scriptures.
                1. The wise men who followed the star that they knew was
                   announcing the birth of the king of Israel, they came
                           Herod and asked where He was who was born King
                   of the Jews and Herod inquired of the Jews where the
                   Messiah was to be born, and they responded Bethlehem.
                   They knew the scriptures.
                2. This shows that knowing the scriptures is not
                   sufficient to receive the gift of eternal life.
                3. Believing in God, believing in the Messiah has given a
                   lot of people a false security concerning their
                   salvation.
        B. Jesus said, "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
                1. Eternal life does not come by knowing the Bible, it
                   comes by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord.
                2. The real question today is not do you know Jesus, but
                   is Jesus the Lord of your life?
                3. Would you say that Jesus is truly Lord of your life? Do
                   you seek His guidance for every issue?
                4. Jesus said that not all those who say Lord, Lord are
                   going to enter the Kingdom of heaven, but those that
                   did the will of the Father.
                        a. Not saying Lord, Lord is sufficient.
                        b. You must be doing the will of the Father.
                5. I fear that many of you who hear my voice week after
                   week, and have learned the scriptures, are relying on
                   faithful attendance on Sunday morning, and your
                   knowledge of the scriptures that you have gained for
                   your salvation.
                        a. Knowing the scriptures does not save you.
                        b. You must come to Jesus and submit your life to
                           Him in order to have eternal life.
                6. In looking at the chance factors of one man fulfilling
                   the predictions concerning the Messiah may convince you
                   that Jesus is the Messiah, but being convinced does not
                   save you.
                7. Jesus in your life is not a weekly thing, it is a daily
                   thing, more, an hourly thing, more, a moment by moment
                   thing. You must yield your life to Him.
John 5:39-46                   Search the Scriptures
Intro. Jesus is speaking of the witnesses to His divine origin. He said if
       I witness of myself, you will not receive it, but John
       witnessed of Me, and My works witness of Me, and the Father
       witnessed of Me, and the scriptures witness of Me.

I. You do search the scriptures for in them you think that you have
   eternal life, but they testify of Me.
        A. This book we call the Bible is all about Jesus Christ.
                1. You can find Him in every page.
                2. Jesus declared that they testified of Him.
                3. When He joined the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
                   He began at Moses and in all the prophets he expounded
                   unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
                   Himself.
                4. Later He said to all the disciples,
LUK 24:44   These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet
                   with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were
                   written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and
                   [in] the psalms, concerning me.
                5. Back in chapter 1 of John when Philip found Nathanael
                   he said, "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law,
                   and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth."
        B. He is the heart and theme of the book, it was written about
           Him. "Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me,
           to do Thy will O God."
        C. Jesus is the chief subject of prophecy. Rev. 19:10 "For the
           testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
                1. Peter speaks of his being an eyewitness of the glory of
                   Christ at His transfiguration, but he then declares,
                   "We have a more sure word of prophecy."
                2. The prophecies center around the first and second
                   coming of Jesus.
        D. In verse 46 Jesus said, "For if you would have believed Moses,
           you would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me."


II. There were over three hundred prophecies to guide the people in the
    recognition of the true Messiah. Things about His birth, birthplace,
    childhood, ministry, rejection and death and resurrection.
         A. Isaiah 7:14 gave to us the mode of His birth. "I will give you
            a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son
            and call His name Immanuel, which means God with us."
        B. Micah 5:2 Tells us His birthplace.
MIC 5:2     But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among
            the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth
            unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
            [have been] from of old, from everlasting.
        C. Jeremiah 31:15 speaks of the mothers weeping for their children
           that were slain at His birth.
        D. Hosea 11:1 Speaks of the flight of His parents to Egypt.
        E. Isaiah 61 speaks of His ministry.
ISA 61:1    The spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath
            anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
            sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty
            to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that
            are] bound;
ISA 61:2    To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.
        F. Zechariah 9:9 speaks of His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey.
ZEC 9:9     Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of
            Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just,
            and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
            a colt the foal of an ass.
        G. Daniel 9 tells the day He will come.
DNL 9:24    Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
            city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
            and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
            everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and
            prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
DNL 9:25    Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of
            the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the
            Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore
            and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall,
            even in troublous times.
DNL 9:26    And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
            but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall
            come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
            thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war
            desolations are determined.
        H. Isaiah 53:3 tells us He would be despised and rejected of men.
ISA 53:3    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
            acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces 
            from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
        I. Psalm 118 speaks of the leaders refusing Him.
PSA 118:22  The stone [which] the builders refused is become the head
            [stone] of the corner.
        J. Zechariah 11:12 predicted His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver.
ZEC 11:12   And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price;
            and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty 
            [pieces] of silver.
ZEC 11:13   And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly
            price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
            [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house
            of the LORD.
        K. Isaiah 50:6 speaks of His being scourged.
ISA 50:6    I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that
            plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and
            spitting.
ISA 53:4    Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet
            we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
ISA 53:5    But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised
            for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon
            him; and with his stripes we are healed.
        L. Psalm 22:18 tells us of the casting of lots for His robe.
PSA 22:18   They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my
            vesture.
        M. Psalm 22:16 speaks of the piercing of His hands and feet.
PSA 22:16   For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have
            enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
        N. Isaiah 53:12 tells us that He would be numbered with the
           transgressors in His death.
        O. Isaiah 53:9 speaks of His burial with the rich.
        P. Amos 8:9 tells of the sun turning dark on a clear day at noon.

III. What are the chance factors of one man fulfilling these predictions.
        A. More that one in 5X10 to the 59th power.
                1. This number is so great that if you had this many
                   silver dollars you would be very rich.
                2. But if you decided to make silver balls out of them the
                   size of the sun which is 1,200,000 times larger than
                   our earth 865,000 miles in diameter. You could make 10
                   to the 28 power balls the size of our Sun.
                3. Or to put it another way. Our sun is an average size
                   star in our milky way galaxy. It is estimated that
                   there are one hundred million stars in our galaxy. If
                   you decided to count the stars in our galaxy, if you
                   counted at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take you
                   750 years counting day and night.
                4. It is estimated that there are 2 trillion galaxies in
                   the universe, each containing 100,000,000 stars. If you
                   had 5X10 to the 59th power silver dollars, you could
                   make all the stars in the Universe out of silver
                   dollars, and you could actually make it 200,000 over.
        B. That is just considering the few prophecies, you must remember
           that there are over 300. No wonder Peter said, "We have the
           more sure word of prophecy.

IV. "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
        A. They knew the scriptures and they studied the scriptures.
                1. The wise men who followed the star that they knew was
                   announcing the birth of the king of Israel, they came
                           Herod and asked where He was who was born King
                   of the Jews and Herod inquired of the Jews where the
                   Messiah was to be born, and they responded Bethlehem.
                   They knew the scriptures.
                2. This shows that knowing the scriptures is not
                   sufficient to receive the gift of eternal life.
                3. Believing in God, believing in the Messiah has given a
                   lot of people a false security concerning their
                   salvation.
        B. Jesus said, "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
                1. Eternal life does not come by knowing the Bible, it
                   comes by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord.
                2. The real question today is not do you know Jesus, but
                   is Jesus the Lord of your life?
                3. Would you say that Jesus is truly Lord of your life? Do
                   you seek His guidance for every issue?
                4. Jesus said that not all those who say Lord, Lord are
                   going to enter the Kingdom of heaven, but those that
                   did the will of the Father.
                        a. Not saying Lord, Lord is sufficient.
                        b. You must be doing the will of the Father.
                5. I fear that many of you who hear my voice week after
                   week, and have learned the scriptures, are relying on
                   faithful attendance on Sunday morning, and your
                   knowledge of the scriptures that you have gained for
                   your salvation.
                        a. Knowing the scriptures does not save you.
                        b. You must come to Jesus and submit your life to
                           Him in order to have eternal life.
                6. In looking at the chance factors of one man fulfilling
                   the predictions concerning the Messiah may convince you
                   that Jesus is the Messiah, but being convinced does not
                   save you.
                7. Jesus in your life is not a weekly thing, it is a daily
                   thing, more, an hourly thing, more, a moment by moment
                   thing. You must yield your life to Him.
John 5:39-46                   Search the Scriptures
Intro. Jesus is speaking of the witnesses to His divine origin. He said if
       I witness of myself, you will not receive it, but John
       witnessed of Me, and My works witness of Me, and the Father
       witnessed of Me, and the scriptures witness of Me.

I. You do search the scriptures for in them you think that you have
   eternal life, but they testify of Me.
        A. This book we call the Bible is all about Jesus Christ.
                1. You can find Him in every page.
                2. Jesus declared that they testified of Him.
                3. When He joined the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
                   He began at Moses and in all the prophets he expounded
                   unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
                   Himself.
                4. Later He said to all the disciples,
LUK 24:44   These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet
                   with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were
                   written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and
                   [in] the psalms, concerning me.
                5. Back in chapter 1 of John when Philip found Nathanael
                   he said, "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law,
                   and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth."
        B. He is the heart and theme of the book, it was written about
           Him. "Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me,
           to do Thy will O God."
        C. Jesus is the chief subject of prophecy. Rev. 19:10 "For the
           testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
                1. Peter speaks of his being an eyewitness of the glory of
                   Christ at His transfiguration, but he then declares,
                   "We have a more sure word of prophecy."
                2. The prophecies center around the first and second
                   coming of Jesus.
        D. In verse 46 Jesus said, "For if you would have believed Moses,
           you would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me."


II. There were over three hundred prophecies to guide the people in the
    recognition of the true Messiah. Things about His birth, birthplace,
    childhood, ministry, rejection and death and resurrection.
         A. Isaiah 7:14 gave to us the mode of His birth. "I will give you
            a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son
            and call His name Immanuel, which means God with us."
        B. Micah 5:2 Tells us His birthplace.
MIC 5:2     But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among
            the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth
            unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
            [have been] from of old, from everlasting.
        C. Jeremiah 31:15 speaks of the mothers weeping for their children
           that were slain at His birth.
        D. Hosea 11:1 Speaks of the flight of His parents to Egypt.
        E. Isaiah 61 speaks of His ministry.
ISA 61:1    The spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath
            anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
            sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty
            to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that
            are] bound;
ISA 61:2    To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.
        F. Zechariah 9:9 speaks of His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey.
ZEC 9:9     Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of
            Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just,
            and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
            a colt the foal of an ass.
        G. Daniel 9 tells the day He will come.
DNL 9:24    Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
            city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
            and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
            everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and
            prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
DNL 9:25    Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of
            the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the
            Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore
            and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall,
            even in troublous times.
DNL 9:26    And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
            but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall
            come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
            thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war
            desolations are determined.
        H. Isaiah 53:3 tells us He would be despised and rejected of men.
ISA 53:3    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
            acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces 
            from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
        I. Psalm 118 speaks of the leaders refusing Him.
PSA 118:22  The stone [which] the builders refused is become the head
            [stone] of the corner.
        J. Zechariah 11:12 predicted His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver.
ZEC 11:12   And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price;
            and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty 
            [pieces] of silver.
ZEC 11:13   And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly
            price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
            [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house
            of the LORD.
        K. Isaiah 50:6 speaks of His being scourged.
ISA 50:6    I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that
            plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and
            spitting.
ISA 53:4    Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet
            we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
ISA 53:5    But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised
            for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon
            him; and with his stripes we are healed.
        L. Psalm 22:18 tells us of the casting of lots for His robe.
PSA 22:18   They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my
            vesture.
        M. Psalm 22:16 speaks of the piercing of His hands and feet.
PSA 22:16   For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have
            enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
        N. Isaiah 53:12 tells us that He would be numbered with the
           transgressors in His death.
        O. Isaiah 53:9 speaks of His burial with the rich.
        P. Amos 8:9 tells of the sun turning dark on a clear day at noon.

III. What are the chance factors of one man fulfilling these predictions.
        A. More that one in 5X10 to the 59th power.
                1. This number is so great that if you had this many
                   silver dollars you would be very rich.
                2. But if you decided to make silver balls out of them the
                   size of the sun which is 1,200,000 times larger than
                   our earth 865,000 miles in diameter. You could make 10
                   to the 28 power balls the size of our Sun.
                3. Or to put it another way. Our sun is an average size
                   star in our milky way galaxy. It is estimated that
                   there are one hundred million stars in our galaxy. If
                   you decided to count the stars in our galaxy, if you
                   counted at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take you
                   750 years counting day and night.
                4. It is estimated that there are 2 trillion galaxies in
                   the universe, each containing 100,000,000 stars. If you
                   had 5X10 to the 59th power silver dollars, you could
                   make all the stars in the Universe out of silver
                   dollars, and you could actually make it 200,000 over.
        B. That is just considering the few prophecies, you must remember
           that there are over 300. No wonder Peter said, "We have the
           more sure word of prophecy.

IV. "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
        A. They knew the scriptures and they studied the scriptures.
                1. The wise men who followed the star that they knew was
                   announcing the birth of the king of Israel, they came
                           Herod and asked where He was who was born King
                   of the Jews and Herod inquired of the Jews where the
                   Messiah was to be born, and they responded Bethlehem.
                   They knew the scriptures.
                2. This shows that knowing the scriptures is not
                   sufficient to receive the gift of eternal life.
                3. Believing in God, believing in the Messiah has given a
                   lot of people a false security concerning their
                   salvation.
        B. Jesus said, "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
                1. Eternal life does not come by knowing the Bible, it
                   comes by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord.
                2. The real question today is not do you know Jesus, but
                   is Jesus the Lord of your life?
                3. Would you say that Jesus is truly Lord of your life? Do
                   you seek His guidance for every issue?
                4. Jesus said that not all those who say Lord, Lord are
                   going to enter the Kingdom of heaven, but those that
                   did the will of the Father.
                        a. Not saying Lord, Lord is sufficient.
                        b. You must be doing the will of the Father.
                5. I fear that many of you who hear my voice week after
                   week, and have learned the scriptures, are relying on
                   faithful attendance on Sunday morning, and your
                   knowledge of the scriptures that you have gained for
                   your salvation.
                        a. Knowing the scriptures does not save you.
                        b. You must come to Jesus and submit your life to
                           Him in order to have eternal life.
                6. In looking at the chance factors of one man fulfilling
                   the predictions concerning the Messiah may convince you
                   that Jesus is the Messiah, but being convinced does not
                   save you.
                7. Jesus in your life is not a weekly thing, it is a daily
                   thing, more, an hourly thing, more, a moment by moment
                   thing. You must yield your life to Him.
John 5:39-46                   Search the Scriptures
Intro. Jesus is speaking of the witnesses to His divine origin. He said if
       I witness of myself, you will not receive it, but John
       witnessed of Me, and My works witness of Me, and the Father
       witnessed of Me, and the scriptures witness of Me.

I. You do search the scriptures for in them you think that you have
   eternal life, but they testify of Me.
        A. This book we call the Bible is all about Jesus Christ.
                1. You can find Him in every page.
                2. Jesus declared that they testified of Him.
                3. When He joined the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
                   He began at Moses and in all the prophets he expounded
                   unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
                   Himself.
                4. Later He said to all the disciples,
LUK 24:44   These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet
                   with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were
                   written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and
                   [in] the psalms, concerning me.
                5. Back in chapter 1 of John when Philip found Nathanael
                   he said, "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law,
                   and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth."
        B. He is the heart and theme of the book, it was written about
           Him. "Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me,
           to do Thy will O God."
        C. Jesus is the chief subject of prophecy. Rev. 19:10 "For the
           testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
                1. Peter speaks of his being an eyewitness of the glory of
                   Christ at His transfiguration, but he then declares,
                   "We have a more sure word of prophecy."
                2. The prophecies center around the first and second
                   coming of Jesus.
        D. In verse 46 Jesus said, "For if you would have believed Moses,
           you would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me."


II. There were over three hundred prophecies to guide the people in the
    recognition of the true Messiah. Things about His birth, birthplace,
    childhood, ministry, rejection and death and resurrection.
         A. Isaiah 7:14 gave to us the mode of His birth. "I will give you
            a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son
            and call His name Immanuel, which means God with us."
        B. Micah 5:2 Tells us His birthplace.
MIC 5:2     But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among
            the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth
            unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
            [have been] from of old, from everlasting.
        C. Jeremiah 31:15 speaks of the mothers weeping for their children
           that were slain at His birth.
        D. Hosea 11:1 Speaks of the flight of His parents to Egypt.
        E. Isaiah 61 speaks of His ministry.
ISA 61:1    The spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath
            anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
            sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty
            to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that
            are] bound;
ISA 61:2    To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.
        F. Zechariah 9:9 speaks of His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey.
ZEC 9:9     Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of
            Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just,
            and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
            a colt the foal of an ass.
        G. Daniel 9 tells the day He will come.
DNL 9:24    Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
            city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
            and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
            everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and
            prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
DNL 9:25    Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of
            the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the
            Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore
            and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall,
            even in troublous times.
DNL 9:26    And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
            but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall
            come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
            thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war
            desolations are determined.
        H. Isaiah 53:3 tells us He would be despised and rejected of men.
ISA 53:3    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
            acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces 
            from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
        I. Psalm 118 speaks of the leaders refusing Him.
PSA 118:22  The stone [which] the builders refused is become the head
            [stone] of the corner.
        J. Zechariah 11:12 predicted His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver.
ZEC 11:12   And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price;
            and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty 
            [pieces] of silver.
ZEC 11:13   And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly
            price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
            [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house
            of the LORD.
        K. Isaiah 50:6 speaks of His being scourged.
ISA 50:6    I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that
            plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and
            spitting.
ISA 53:4    Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet
            we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
ISA 53:5    But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised
            for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon
            him; and with his stripes we are healed.
        L. Psalm 22:18 tells us of the casting of lots for His robe.
PSA 22:18   They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my
            vesture.
        M. Psalm 22:16 speaks of the piercing of His hands and feet.
PSA 22:16   For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have
            enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
        N. Isaiah 53:12 tells us that He would be numbered with the
           transgressors in His death.
        O. Isaiah 53:9 speaks of His burial with the rich.
        P. Amos 8:9 tells of the sun turning dark on a clear day at noon.

III. What are the chance factors of one man fulfilling these predictions.
        A. More that one in 5X10 to the 59th power.
                1. This number is so great that if you had this many
                   silver dollars you would be very rich.
                2. But if you decided to make silver balls out of them the
                   size of the sun which is 1,200,000 times larger than
                   our earth 865,000 miles in diameter. You could make 10
                   to the 28 power balls the size of our Sun.
                3. Or to put it another way. Our sun is an average size
                   star in our milky way galaxy. It is estimated that
                   there are one hundred million stars in our galaxy. If
                   you decided to count the stars in our galaxy, if you
                   counted at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take you
                   750 years counting day and night.
                4. It is estimated that there are 2 trillion galaxies in
                   the universe, each containing 100,000,000 stars. If you
                   had 5X10 to the 59th power silver dollars, you could
                   make all the stars in the Universe out of silver
                   dollars, and you could actually make it 200,000 over.
        B. That is just considering the few prophecies, you must remember
           that there are over 300. No wonder Peter said, "We have the
           more sure word of prophecy.

IV. "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
        A. They knew the scriptures and they studied the scriptures.
                1. The wise men who followed the star that they knew was
                   announcing the birth of the king of Israel, they came
                           Herod and asked where He was who was born King
                   of the Jews and Herod inquired of the Jews where the
                   Messiah was to be born, and they responded Bethlehem.
                   They knew the scriptures.
                2. This shows that knowing the scriptures is not
                   sufficient to receive the gift of eternal life.
                3. Believing in God, believing in the Messiah has given a
                   lot of people a false security concerning their
                   salvation.
        B. Jesus said, "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
                1. Eternal life does not come by knowing the Bible, it
                   comes by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord.
                2. The real question today is not do you know Jesus, but
                   is Jesus the Lord of your life?
                3. Would you say that Jesus is truly Lord of your life? Do
                   you seek His guidance for every issue?
                4. Jesus said that not all those who say Lord, Lord are
                   going to enter the Kingdom of heaven, but those that
                   did the will of the Father.
                        a. Not saying Lord, Lord is sufficient.
                        b. You must be doing the will of the Father.
                5. I fear that many of you who hear my voice week after
                   week, and have learned the scriptures, are relying on
                   faithful attendance on Sunday morning, and your
                   knowledge of the scriptures that you have gained for
                   your salvation.
                        a. Knowing the scriptures does not save you.
                        b. You must come to Jesus and submit your life to
                           Him in order to have eternal life.
                6. In looking at the chance factors of one man fulfilling
                   the predictions concerning the Messiah may convince you
                   that Jesus is the Messiah, but being convinced does not
                   save you.
                7. Jesus in your life is not a weekly thing, it is a daily
                   thing, more, an hourly thing, more, a moment by moment
                   thing. You must yield your life to Him.
John 5:39-46                   Search the Scriptures
Intro. Jesus is speaking of the witnesses to His divine origin. He said if
       I witness of myself, you will not receive it, but John
       witnessed of Me, and My works witness of Me, and the Father
       witnessed of Me, and the scriptures witness of Me.

I. You do search the scriptures for in them you think that you have
   eternal life, but they testify of Me.
        A. This book we call the Bible is all about Jesus Christ.
                1. You can find Him in every page.
                2. Jesus declared that they testified of Him.
                3. When He joined the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
                   He began at Moses and in all the prophets he expounded
                   unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
                   Himself.
                4. Later He said to all the disciples,
LUK 24:44   These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet
                   with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were
                   written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and
                   [in] the psalms, concerning me.
                5. Back in chapter 1 of John when Philip found Nathanael
                   he said, "We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law,
                   and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth."
        B. He is the heart and theme of the book, it was written about
           Him. "Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me,
           to do Thy will O God."
        C. Jesus is the chief subject of prophecy. Rev. 19:10 "For the
           testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
                1. Peter speaks of his being an eyewitness of the glory of
                   Christ at His transfiguration, but he then declares,
                   "We have a more sure word of prophecy."
                2. The prophecies center around the first and second
                   coming of Jesus.
        D. In verse 46 Jesus said, "For if you would have believed Moses,
           you would have believed Me, for he wrote of Me."


II. There were over three hundred prophecies to guide the people in the
    recognition of the true Messiah. Things about His birth, birthplace,
    childhood, ministry, rejection and death and resurrection.
         A. Isaiah 7:14 gave to us the mode of His birth. "I will give you
            a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son
            and call His name Immanuel, which means God with us."
        B. Micah 5:2 Tells us His birthplace.
MIC 5:2     But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among
            the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth
            unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
            [have been] from of old, from everlasting.
        C. Jeremiah 31:15 speaks of the mothers weeping for their children
           that were slain at His birth.
        D. Hosea 11:1 Speaks of the flight of His parents to Egypt.
        E. Isaiah 61 speaks of His ministry.
ISA 61:1    The spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath
            anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath
            sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty
            to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that
            are] bound;
ISA 61:2    To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.
        F. Zechariah 9:9 speaks of His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey.
ZEC 9:9     Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of
            Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just,
            and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
            a colt the foal of an ass.
        G. Daniel 9 tells the day He will come.
DNL 9:24    Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
            city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
            and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
            everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and
            prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
DNL 9:25    Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of
            the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the
            Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore
            and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall,
            even in troublous times.
DNL 9:26    And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
            but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall
            come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
            thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war
            desolations are determined.
        H. Isaiah 53:3 tells us He would be despised and rejected of men.
ISA 53:3    He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
            acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces 
            from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
        I. Psalm 118 speaks of the leaders refusing Him.
PSA 118:22  The stone [which] the builders refused is become the head
            [stone] of the corner.
        J. Zechariah 11:12 predicted His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver.
ZEC 11:12   And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price;
            and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty 
            [pieces] of silver.
ZEC 11:13   And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly
            price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
            [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house
            of the LORD.
        K. Isaiah 50:6 speaks of His being scourged.
ISA 50:6    I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that
            plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and
            spitting.
ISA 53:4    Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet
            we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
ISA 53:5    But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised
            for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon
            him; and with his stripes we are healed.
        L. Psalm 22:18 tells us of the casting of lots for His robe.
PSA 22:18   They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my
            vesture.
        M. Psalm 22:16 speaks of the piercing of His hands and feet.
PSA 22:16   For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have
            enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
        N. Isaiah 53:12 tells us that He would be numbered with the
           transgressors in His death.
        O. Isaiah 53:9 speaks of His burial with the rich.
        P. Amos 8:9 tells of the sun turning dark on a clear day at noon.

III. What are the chance factors of one man fulfilling these predictions.
        A. More that one in 5X10 to the 59th power.
                1. This number is so great that if you had this many
                   silver dollars you would be very rich.
                2. But if you decided to make silver balls out of them the
                   size of the sun which is 1,200,000 times larger than
                   our earth 865,000 miles in diameter. You could make 10
                   to the 28 power balls the size of our Sun.
                3. Or to put it another way. Our sun is an average size
                   star in our milky way galaxy. It is estimated that
                   there are one hundred million stars in our galaxy. If
                   you decided to count the stars in our galaxy, if you
                   counted at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take you
                   750 years counting day and night.
                4. It is estimated that there are 2 trillion galaxies in
                   the universe, each containing 100,000,000 stars. If you
                   had 5X10 to the 59th power silver dollars, you could
                   make all the stars in the Universe out of silver
                   dollars, and you could actually make it 200,000 over.
        B. That is just considering the few prophecies, you must remember
           that there are over 300. No wonder Peter said, "We have the
           more sure word of prophecy.

IV. "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
        A. They knew the scriptures and they studied the scriptures.
                1. The wise men who followed the star that they knew was
                   announcing the birth of the king of Israel, they came
                           Herod and asked where He was who was born King
                   of the Jews and Herod inquired of the Jews where the
                   Messiah was to be born, and they responded Bethlehem.
                   They knew the scriptures.
                2. This shows that knowing the scriptures is not
                   sufficient to receive the gift of eternal life.
                3. Believing in God, believing in the Messiah has given a
                   lot of people a false security concerning their
                   salvation.
        B. Jesus said, "You will not come to Me that you might have life."
                1. Eternal life does not come by knowing the Bible, it
                   comes by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord.
                2. The real question today is not do you know Jesus, but
                   is Jesus the Lord of your life?
                3. Would you say that Jesus is truly Lord of your life? Do
                   you seek His guidance for every issue?
                4. Jesus said that not all those who say Lord, Lord are
                   going to enter the Kingdom of heaven, but those that
                   did the will of the Father.
                        a. Not saying Lord, Lord is sufficient.
                        b. You must be doing the will of the Father.
                5. I fear that many of you who hear my voice week after
                   week, and have learned the scriptures, are relying on
                   faithful attendance on Sunday morning, and your
                   knowledge of the scriptures that you have gained for
                   your salvation.
                        a. Knowing the scriptures does not save you.
                        b. You must come to Jesus and submit your life to
                           Him in order to have eternal life.
                6. In looking at the chance factors of one man fulfilling
                   the predictions concerning the Messiah may convince you
                   that Jesus is the Messiah, but being convinced does not
                   save you.
                7. Jesus in your life is not a weekly thing, it is a daily
                   thing, more, an hourly thing, more, a moment by moment
                   thing. You must yield your life to Him.