Grace Bible Church
Basic Training in Doctrine
Guest Speaker: Pastor Joe Sugrue
Tuesday,
January 12, 2010
GEN 1:3-4
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
“of the world” – kosmos, the Satanic organization. The word simply means organization, something that is well organised. It is generally used for the world because of the various laws by which the world operates, and so on.
The unbeliever is sitting in Satan’s world and he lives in darkness. Christ Himself was hanging in darkness when He was bearing our sins – Matthew 27:45,46.
Walking in darkness is a picture of the believer operating under the power of the old sin nature.
“he who follows me” – present active participle of akolouthon. The word means to follow, but more than that. It means to come after, to go along with a plan. It means more than just simply get in line.
He is also the light of the world because He sets the pattern for the plan, and the pattern for God’s plan is grace. Grace excludes human good, human works.
“he who follows me” – present active participle of akolouthon. The participle here indicates a precedence. The present tense is a dramatic present and it means to actually get into the plan of God.
“the light of life” – the life is eternal life, the light of life is the ministry of the Holy Spirit throwing light on your very own plan.
Deut 19:15
A single witness shall not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed.
When God the second person and God the first person witness that is an air-tight case.
Jesus says that He Himself is the first witness. “Jesus answered” – aorist passive indicative of apokrinomai [apo = preposition of ultimate source; krinomai = passive of the verb to judge].
A deponent verb is a verb which is passive in morphology but active in meaning. What does this mean? It means that Jesus received information, He had Bible doctrine, and therefore He gives it out.
“for I know” – oida = inherent knowledge, something that is definitely known. It refers to doctrine in the soul.
He knows where He came from – He knows His origin is heaven and that the Father sent Him.
“and where I am going,” huperago = to go under the authority of, to operate under a plan.
Jesus says, ‘My witness is true because I am operating under the specific authority of God.’ This means that He understands in detail the purpose for the incarnation.
They are totally unfamiliar with the plan of God. This is the number one problem with the human race – ignorance of God which results in arrogant self-absorption.
Because they are psuchikos – 1 Corinthians 2:14, the natural [psuchikos] man, the soulish man that cannot understand the things of God.
Ignorance results in arrogance and arrogance results in judging – krino = to condemn or to evaluate and in context they are condemning their own Messiah.
Christ states that He judges no one. But you again have to be careful of the context. Christ will evaluate everyone, but He will not condemn anyone.
He is evaluating the Pharisees here because He knows they have nothing by way of understanding grace but they are filled up with mental attitude sins, especially jealousy and hatred.
He doesn’t use the ordinary word for true, He uses alethenos which means genuine, accurate, trustworthy.
There are two reliable witnesses, God the Father and God the Son.
“Where is your Father?” Notice that they said “where” rather than “who.” They understood His implication, His remarks, that He was saying that God was His Father.
“You neither know me” – the first witness; “nor my Father” – the second witness. Therefore they will not accept the testimony of God the first person and God the second person.
If they are ever going to know the Father they must believe in Jesus Christ.
Matt 26:59-60
Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death; and they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward,
But just like they get it wrong then they get it wrong now, because there are two witnesses to the truth that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God.
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
Matt 27:45-46
Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ” Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? “that is,” My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? “
Luke 1:78-79
Because of the tender mercy of our God,With which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us,
To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”