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Sermon #101 — JohnÕs Gospel
Title: ÒNo Greater LoveÓ
Text: John 15:13 Date: Sunday Morning — December 5, 2010 Tape: John #101 Subject: The Vine and the Branches Reading: John 15:1-27
John 15:1-27
1 ¦ I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. 2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every [branch] that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5 I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast [them] into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. 8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
9 ¦ As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. 10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my FatherÕs commandments, and abide in his love. 11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and [that] your joy might be full. 12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and [that] your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17 These things I command you, that ye love one another.
18 ¦ If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before [it hated] you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my nameÕs sake, because they know not him that sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. 23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 25 But [this cometh to pass], that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
26 ¦ But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: 27 And ye also shall bear witness,
because ye have been with me from the beginning.
The whole purpose of our Savior in this chapter is to assure believing sinners of his great love. Every word, every phrase, every illustration is intended to assure us of his love, that we may continually live in the confidence of his love. á He begins the chapter by telling us that he is the true Vine and we are the branches, assuring us of our union with him. á Then, he tells us that the One who takes care of the vineyard of grace is God, his Father and our Father, saying, — ÒMy Father is the Husbandman.Ó á In verse 9 our Savior assures us of his great love for us, with these sweet words:— ÒAs the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you.Ó á His next word is — ÒContinue ye in my love.Ó That is to say, ÒNow, go on living in the confident assurance of my love, ever trusting me.Ó
I want us to meditate on the greatness of his love, as it is described for us in verse 13.
(John 15:13) Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Proposition: There is truly no greater love than the love of our blessed Savior for us! — Because of his great love for us, without any compulsion, except the compulsion of his love, the Son of God freely laid down his life for us!
He not only came down from heaven, and laid aside his glory and royal majesty, but he laid down his life for us. Nothing is dearer to a man than his life. That is his all. He who gives his life gives everything. But our LordÕs life was not the common life of a common man. — His was the life of a man who is himself God. It was the Lord of glory, the Prince of life, who was crucified and slain in our place upon the cursed tree.
Voluntary Sacrifice
His life was not taken from him. He laid down his life and freely gave his life for us, in our room and stead, as a ransom for us, because he loved us. The Lord of Glory laid down his life for us who were his enemies, because he had from eternity called us his friends and was determined make us his friends. He laid down his life, the Son of God voluntarily died for us, because of his great love for usÉ
Being our Surety and Substitute, standing in our place, he took our sins to be his own, and was made sin for us. Bearing our sins in his own body on the tree, our Lord Jesus bore the curse of the law, sustained his FatherÕs wrath, and all the punishment due to our sin. He willingly suffered the painful, shameful, ignominious death of the cross, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.
This he did for us when we were sinners, without strength, his implacable enemies, and enmity itself to him. And by the blood of his cross, he has reconciled us unto himself, because he chose us for his friends. He pitched his heart upon us from eternity and resolved to make us his friends. And now, by the regenerating grace and saving power of his Spirit he has made us his friends forever.
Greater Love
Here, our blessed Savior tells us that his love, which caused him to lay down his life for us, is greater than any love known to man. The Son of God, our all-glorious, ever-gracious Christ, laid down his life for his enemies, without any selfish motive, freely and voluntarily. Men may and do die for men, but only because they cannot avoid it, or because they look upon the one for whom they die as being worthy of their sacrifice, or even because they desire the praise and applause of others, as being great, self-sacrificing heroes. But our LordÕs sacrificial obedience unto death, even the death of the cross was the free, voluntary sacrifice of our loving and lovely Surety and Substitute (Romans 5:6-8).
(Romans 5:6-8) For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. (7) For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. (8) But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Willing Bondslave
We have a clear, instructive picture of our LordÕs obedience unto death as our Substitute in Exodus 21:1-6.
(Exodus 21:1-6) Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them. (2) If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. (3) If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. (4) If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. (5) And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: (6) Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and he shall serve him for ever.
That is exactly what the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did for us in the covenant of grace. Christ became JehovahÕs voluntary Servant that he might redeem and save his people by his free obedience to God as our Substitute. This is what our blessed Savior says of himself, as he describes himself in Isaiah 50:5-7 and as he describes his work in John 10:16-18.
(Isaiah 50:5-7) The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. (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. (7) For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
(John 10:16-18) And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. (17) Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. (18) No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
Nothing To You
The death of our Lord Jesus Christ is the most wonderful, astounding, magnificent event in the history of the universe. Nothing that is, has been, or shall hereafter be can be compared to it. Yet, as he was suffering the wrath of God, bearing the sins of his people, dying as the voluntary Substitute for guilty, hell-deserving, hell-bent sinners such as we are, we hear the Son of God expressing the most woeful, unexplainable lamentation imaginable (Lamentations 1:12-14).
(Lamentations 1:12) Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.
13 From above hath he sent fire into my bones, and it prevaileth against them: he hath spread a net for my feet, he hath turned me back: he hath made me desolate [and] faint all the day. 14 The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are wreathed, [and] come up upon my neck: he hath made my strength to fall, the Lord hath delivered me into [their] hands, [from whom] I am not able to rise up.Ó
When I hear those words falling from the lips of the Son of God, as he hangs upon the cursed tree, I simply cannot avoid asking a question. Of whom does the bleeding Lamb of God speak these words? To whom is the death of Christ meaningless and insignificant?
1. Nothing in all the universe is more wonderful and magnificent in the eyes of God than the death of his dear Son. The Savior himself declares, ÒTherefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life!Ó
2. The angels of heaven ever look into the mystery and wonder of redemption by the blood of Christ with astonishment.
Illustration: The Cherubim Facing the Mercy-Seat
3. GodÕs servants, faithful gospel preachers are so overwhelmed with the wonders of redemption and the glory of the Redeemer that they never cease to study, glory in, and preach the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(Isaiah 6:1-7) ÒIn the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. 2 Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. 3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, [is] the LORD of hosts: the whole earth [is] full of his glory. 4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.Ó Ò5 ¦ Then said I, Woe [is] me! for I am undone; because I [am] a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts. 6 Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, [which] he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: 7 And he laid [it] upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.Ó
(Galatians 6:14) But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.
(1 Corinthians 2:2) For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
4. Redeemed sinners on the earth cherish nothing, delight in nothing, marvel at nothing, like we do the death of our Lord Jesus Christ for us.
(Galatians 2:20) I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
(1 John 3:16) Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
(1 John 4:10) Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
5. The ransomed in glory appear to think of nothing and speak of nothing except the dying love of the Lamb in the midst of the throne.
(Revelation 5:9-12) And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; (10) And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. (11) And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; (12) Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
6. Hell itself looks upon the death of Christ as a wonderful, unexplainable, mysterious thing. I am certain that this is one thing that Satan himself did not understand: — that Christ would triumph over him and crush his head by his death upon the cross! Else he would never have put it into the heart of Judas to betray the Master.
7. Yet, there are some to whom our darling Savior speaks, as it were with astonishment, to whom his death is meaningless, insignificant, nothing!
(Lamentations 1:12) Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.
Who are these people to whom the death of Christ is nothing? Who is it that thinks little of the sin-atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ? Our Lord is here addressing himself to everyone who passes by him, passes by his sacrifice, passes by his death as the sinnersÕ Substitute.
á O unbelieving, Christless soul, it is you! á O cold, calculating, heartless, preacher, you who pass by the crucified Christ and take to your lips meaningless, insignificant things, it is you! — Church Incorporation — Abortion — Politics! — Every sermon ought to be prepared and preached as if the preacher knew that all who hear him are on the brink of eternity. — Any sermon that does not have Christ crucified for its beginning, its middle, and its end is a mistake in its conception and a crime in its execution! á Christ crucified is mundane, meaningless and insignificant only to unregenerate, unbelieving souls.
It is my heartÕs prayer that before you leave this building, the death of our Lord Jesus Christ will be the most important thing in all the world to you. I pray that you and I may become totally consumed with the crucified Christ, that our hearts, our lives, every fiber of our souls may be constantly dominated by the death of Christ as our sin-atoning Savior. To that end, I ask your attention, as I endeavor to show you something of our SaviorÕs great, astonishing love.
Our Lord Jesus Christ declares plainly that his death at Calvary was the free, voluntary act of his own obedience to his FatherÕs will, by which he won his FatherÕs love as a man, as our Mediator and Surety (John 10:17-18).
(John 10:17-18) Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. (18) No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
Surely, such a sacrifice of love ought to win our love to him!
Divisions: Let me show you three things from these words which fell from him of whom it is written, Ògrace is poured into thy lips.Ó
1. The Fathers Commandment 2. The SonÕs Obedience 3. The FatherÕs Love to the Son
THE FATHERÕs Command
The Lord Jesus Christ speaks of himself (in John 10) not as the eternal Son of God, but as the Good Shepherd, the Mediator, the Surety of his people. He says, ÒThis commandment have I received of my Father.Ó With those words he declares that his death as our Substitute was arranged by God before the world began (Psalm 40:7; Hebrews 10:7-10).
(Psalms 40:7) Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me.
(Hebrews 10:7-10) Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. (8) Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; (9) Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. (10) By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
The death of Christ was not accomplished by the arrangement of men, or by the arrangement of hell, but by the arrangement of the Triune God (Acts 2:23; 1 Peter 1:18-20).
(Acts 2:23) Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.
(1 Peter 1:18-20) Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; (19) But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (20) Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.
The death of Christ at Calvary was accomplished byÉ
(John 3:16) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
(Romans 5:6-8) For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. (7) For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. (8) But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
ChristÕs Obedience
(John 10:17-18) I lay down my life, that I might take it again. (18) No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
The Lord Jesus Christ laid down his life voluntarily, as an act of free obedience to his Father. No man forced him to die. God the Father did not compel him to die, or take his life from him. Oh, No! Our Savior died voluntarily, by his own will.
Illustration: Abraham and Isaac (Genesis 22:8)
(Genesis 22:6-8) And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. (7) And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? (8) And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
Our RedeemerÕs death was accomplished by his own will. — ÒHe poured out his soul unto death!Ó
It is true that Òit pleased the Father to bruise him.Ó The Father cried, ÒAwake, O sword, against One that is my fellow. Smite and slay the Shepherd!Ó But Christ took the cup of wrath in his own hands. The Son of God fell willingly upon the sword of justice. Our Savior died by his own will!
Illustration: ÒWhom seek ye?Ó (John 18)
(Romans 14:9) For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
(Philippians 2:5-11) Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (6) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: (7) But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: (8) And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (9) Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: (10) That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; (11) And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
THE FATHERÕS LOVE FOR HIS SON
Look back at John 10 again. Our Savior says, ÒTherefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life.Ó I know of nothing in heaven or earth so sweet to meditate upon and so impossible to preach about as the FatherÕs love for his darling, dying Son. Hear it again. — ÒTherefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life.Ó
á The Father loved him for the loveliness of his Godhead. á The Father loved him for the beauty of his holy humanity. á The Father loved him because he laid down his life for us! á The Father loved him as the glorious, effectual, saving Mediator of his people.
God himself never saw anything in all the world so lovely, so infinitely worthy of his love, admiration, and honor, as the death of his dear Son upon the cursed tree for his people. — ÒHerein is love!Ó
ÒMuch we talk of JesusÕ blood; But how littleÕs understood! Of His sufferings, so intense, Angels have no perfect sense!
Who can rightly comprehend Their beginning, or their end? ÔTis to God, and God alone, That their weight is fully known.
See the suffering Son of God Panting, groaning, sweating blood! — Boundless depths of love divine! Jesus, what a love was Thine!
Though the wonders Thou hast done Are as yet so little known Here we fix, and comfort take: Jesus died for sinnersÕ sake!Ó — Joseph Hart
Because of this great act of love, because of this great act of ChristÕs free obedience to the Father as our Surety, the Father has given his Son everything!
(Isaiah 53:4-12) Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. (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. (6) All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (7) He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. (8) He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. (9) And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. (10) Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (11) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (12) Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
(John 3:35) The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
(John 17:2) As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
Application
Let us learn from these words of our Lord and Savior thatÉ
1. Though GodÕs child may suffer greatly in this world, often carrying a heavy cross and having the FatherÕs face hidden from him, yet he is still the darling object of his FatherÕs love. — Never did the Father more fully love his Son than when he was heaping upon him the fury of his wrath!
2. God honors those who honor his Son. — The only way a sinner can honor the Son of God is to trust him.
3. The only way of access to God is Christ.
4. Our only worthiness of the FatherÕs love and approval is Christ.
(John 17:22-26) And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: (23) I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. (24) Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. (25) O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me. (26) And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.
5. God, the Triune Jehovah, loves us! — O how he loves us! á God the Father gave his Son to die for us! á God the Son laid down his life for us. á God the Spirit now sprinkles us with the blood of Christ and declares us — ÒRedeemed!Ó
(1 Corinthians 6:19-20) Ye are not your own? (20) For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Illustration: ÒMy Daddy loved me and gave his life for me.Ó
6. If our Savior so loved us, how we ought to love him! — ÒWe love him because he first loved us!Ó
(Psalms 116:1-19) ÒI love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice [and] my supplications. 2 Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon [him] as long as I live. 3 The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. 4 Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. 5 Gracious [is] the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God [is] merciful. 6 The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me. 7 Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee. 8 For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, [and] my feet from falling. 9 I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.Ó
Ò10 ¦ I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted: 11 I said in my haste, All men [are] liars. 12 What shall I render unto the LORD [for] all his benefits toward me? 13 I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. 14 I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people. 15 Precious in the sight of the LORD [is] the death of his saints. 16 O LORD, truly I [am] thy servant; I [am] thy servant, [and] the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds. 17 I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD. 18 I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people, 19 In the courts of the LORDÕS house, in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.Ó
7. If our Savior so loved us, how we ought to love one another (1 John 3:16-17).
(1 John 3:16-17) Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. (17) But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
Amen.
Don Fortner
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