Authentic Christianity #17: He Came to Stay

Have you ever wondered whether Jesus is truly present today, not just a figure from history, but someone you can actually know and experience right now? In this message from 1 John 5:20, we explore what John means when he says the Son of God "has come" and why the original Greek puts that verb in the present tense. Jesus didn't come and leave. He came to stay.

Through this passage, we discover two life-changing truths: that Christ's presence gives us a deeper understanding of who God is, and that it gives us a place to truly belong. If you've ever felt like you didn't quite fit in this world, this message is for you.

Whether you've followed Jesus for decades or you're still figuring out what you believe, you're invited to move beyond knowing about him, and into knowing him personally.

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With this morning's messages entitled He Came to Stay and we're going to be looking at John first John chapter five, verse 20. He came to say he came to stay. Heavenly father, Lord, as we look at your word this morning, I pray, father, that we would be able with our with the eyes and ears of our spirit, see and know and experience you in such a way that that that we too would be witnesses of your reality. Just like, those who saw you here in your historical appearance among us. Lord, you did not leave us, but you remained with us through your spirit. And we pray, father, that that our confidence in you would be not a result of trusting in somebody that we believe in, but by our own firsthand experience. In Christ's name we pray. Amen. First John, chapter five, verse 20. We know beginning at verse 20. We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true, and we may wait, and we may be in him who is true. Even the Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. So we see here to begin with that it says, The Son of God has come. Well, when we say the Son of God has come to, do we mean that he came and then he left and he's not here anymore? Or do we mean something different? Do we mean that he came and he's still here, that he came to stay? Matthew concludes his gospel account with these words. Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. The name Emmanuel that we apply to Christ is God with us. And our Christian testimony is that God is came and he still is here with us. The theme of this morning's message is this, we know also that the Son of God has come. Now, I have, changed that word has to is because of the actual grammar in the Greek text. But before I, explain that, let me just say this, that when we look at the word also, we know also, this word right here also, refers back to what we were discussing last week. Last week, it was talking about a certain kind of knowledge that we have, the knowledge that is, translated with the Greek word oita, that is experiential knowledge. And last week it said we know that we are the children of God. We have experiential knowledge of being God's children. And this week it says we know also that Christ has come. We explained last week that Oita is experiential knowledge through perception and ganas go is knowing the kind of knowing that develops through learning. Both Greek words are used together in this text. In fact, there are three words that are very similar. In verse 20 here we'll be looking at them. One is, Oita, the other is a ganas go. And the third is Diokno. We, we will be looking at how closely related those three words are. Oita and ganas go both translated to know and, Daniel translated understanding. So we know also we know also from last week we know that we are children of God. But this week we know also that, that Christ has come. Now, how can we know that? How can we know that Christ has come? In fact, as you look at the grammar of this text, it says really the best way to translate it would be Christ is come. Although that wouldn't be correct English grammar. So we say Christ has come, but the word here, come is in the present tense, active voice. So, John is saying Christ is come. Now he's talking to an audience like us, an audience that has been removed from the time of Christ. People who didn't witnesses witnessed Christ's, life and ministry here. People that, came into the Christian faith after, Christ, ascension into heaven. And so when he says that Christ is come, that he is present with you, even now, he's not talking to other apostles who actually, witnessed the historical life and ministry of Christ here. He's talking to people like us. Disciples that are removed from that historical event. And here he affirms to his readers that you can know, Oya. You can have you have a personal knowledge or experience that Christ is here, that Christ is come, that Christ is present, that that you know, that he's here. Well, That's true for his his readers and that's true for us. Through faith, we can enter into a real experience with Jesus, because he is here, because he came and because he is still here. You think you're going to leave here this morning with the testimony that I experienced Christ today in church, that I not only heard about Jesus, but I had a sense of his presence with me. We can have that. We can have that because he is here. He is come. And even though this is grammatically incorrect to say he has come, it reflects the text better than than saying he has come. Now, I cannot know the writer of this letter like I can know Jesus. I can't know the Apostle Paul. Even though I'm reading his work because he's not here. The Apostle Paul came and he went, and he's not in this room, but the one he's writing about is here. He's here. And he's available for me to know personally, because Jesus is God's son and has come and is come. He is presently here. Now, one thing I noticed over the years is when we have visiting missionaries come and they come and they speak to us, I notice that there are certain, people among you that are always anxious to get to know and experience, those missionaries and the ones that, come up afterwards and spend time with maybe go out to lunch with the missionaries that we have here, have a completely different knowledge of that person than maybe the video that we show or something about their bio and their ministry and what they're doing. And there's something different about, being with somebody personally that increases their actual knowledge of them than just hearing about them. It is it is that kind of knowledge that we're talking about here. We can study theology and know all about Christ, and that's a good thing to do. But we can be with him and know him in a in a more direct way. Also, we can learn a great deal about Christ through theology, but it isn't the same as, learning about him by being with him, which, according to this passage, we have the continuous present, active opportunity to experience Christ through his spirit. And so I just say this morning, and I hope you say with me, welcome, Lord. Welcome, Lord. Welcome. I we want to be with you. We want you to be with us. We want to enjoy the pleasure of your personality, the purity of your goodness, the practical radiance of your leadership. We want to enjoy you. We want to have time with you. We want to spend time with the eternal One. We know that you have time for us. You're eternal and we want to make time for you. Welcome, Lord. Welcome, Jesus. Welcome, Holy spirit. Lord, show yourself to us as we humbly seek an audience with him and say, Jesus, I would like to be with you. I'd like to be with you. I recognize that I can be with you because of the cross. What happened when Christ died for our sins? That barrier between God and man was, removed. The temple, the curtain in the temple was ripped. And through Christ, we can all enter into and experientially be in the presence of our living God. We can invite him in and enjoy his peace and his delight in the transforming power of his, of his truth and his mercy. Enables us to stand before him unashamed. We can find the relief and the safety and the delight that comes from knowing him when we experience him. The question of is he real? Is is absurd. Is asking the question, is John McPherson real? When he's sitting right there when we're experiencing Christ? Personally, that question like, is he real is an absurd question. Like, are these chairs real? Of course they're real. They're right there. Jesus is real. And there's nothing more confirming of that reality than than the fact that he's alive and with us. And we can experience him, and know him as a person. The theme this morning is, again, Jesus came to stay. And point number one is that his being here gives us understanding. Let me, read into, verse 20 just a little bit further here, and it says, Let me go back in case you're writing notes here. My my wife admonishes me for not leaving that up long enough. His being here gives us understanding. Point number one. And, verse 20 says this are the first, two thirds of verse 20 say this. We know also that the Son of God has come and he has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true. And, in this passage, we see, the three versions of the same concept here know, understand and know. And as I explained, the two words for know are different words. One is, an increasing, knowledge of him, like the, like we would increase in our learning in school. And the other is an experiential knowing him by, perceiving him face to face. And we go like this. We start out with experience. Either we and we, we end up that way or that, that knowing that he has come, that, experience gives us understanding. That experience, shows us, enlightens us, gives us the ability to perceive him so that we might continue to grow and develop in our knowledge of him as we discover him more and more, as our knowledge, develops, we develop as we spend time with him and as we perceive him, our knowledge of him develops and we develop. We develop, by knowing him. Second Peter chapter one, verse three. And following is, if you know me is perhaps my favorite verse. Maybe one of my favorite. It's hard to say favorite verse, but this is one I probably, think about more than any other because it seems so, contrary to the way my earthly mind. Thanks. But it says his divine power, referring to God, has given us everything we need for life and for godliness, for a good life. Well, that's what I would like. Everything for life and for a good life. He's given it to me. So that's what I want. I want everything I need. Don't we all want everything we need? Well, he says he's given us everything we need for life and for a godly life or a good life. Through what? Through the knowledge of him who has called us by his goodness and grace. So he's given us everything we need through something that doesn't weigh anything, through knowledge, through an increased understanding of Jesus Himself. And here we have a picture of the process of increasing or developing our understanding and knowledge of him. As our knowledge of Christ becomes complete, we become filled with what we need for life and for a good life. Christ is knowable. But I don't recommend a middle man. I recommend that we know him personally face to face. Sometimes people think of the role of the pastor or the priest is like a middleman or intercessor or some kind of intermediary. But I want you to know that, as a pastor, my job isn't so much to teach you what Jesus is like than it is to introduce you to him so that you might find out yourself, because he's a lot better at revealing himself than I am. All of my information would be secondhand, and it isn't as good as, having a first hand, relationship with him. Think about it this way. If I, imagine you're back in your single days for this, for the sake of this illustration. And I were setting you up on a blind date, and you started wanting to know all about the date that I was going to set you up with. And you'd want to know about that person. And I would tell you about that person, not so that you could know that person through me, but so that you could decide whether or not you wanted to go on the date. And, hopefully I would do a good enough job of, portraying that person as a desirable person to be with that, you would want to go on the date and find out for yourself what that person is like. That's what I see my role as a pastor is that I could tell people enough about Jesus that would make them want to meet him, be with him, spend time with him. John says in his first chapter of his gospel, when describing the nature and personality of Christ, that he's full of grace and truth, that he's full of truth, but he's also full of love. He's full of, what's right and what's true. He's full of what is what is orderly and correct. But he's also full of mercy. He's full of love. He's full of grace. There's a there's a there's a, a completeness in him, where there's no hiding from him in his truth. But there's no shame in him through his mercy. There is both the power of his love and the power of his righteousness both together. And it's a it's a it's a great person and a wondrous personality. If we want to live in a make believe world of sin and denial, then, Jesus isn't someone I would recommend that you would want to meet. But if you want to live in a world of truth, health, and transformation, Jesus is somebody that you need to get to know. We need to get to know. I know that I'm speaking to people who already know him, but, we need to get to know him. Jesus is the one that we want to meet. We want to be with that. We find, a release and a and a and a real relief and a forgiveness and a strength and transformation. He came to. He came to stay. He didn't just come to leave, but he came to say stay. To serve the lost, to raise the dead into eternal life. But for those who prefer darkness and would rather be lost, they probably ought to avoid, meeting Jesus because, they aren't going to be able to remain in the dark with him. And they're not going to be able to remain lost with him. If if you love darkness, then Jesus probably isn't the guy that you want to hang out with. He came here full of grace and truth, who lights the way of our deliverance and our understanding. So, here we are. Jesus came to stay. And point number one is, his being here gives us understanding. And point number two is his being here gives us. Oh, I should have put a place, gives us a place to belong. Oh, it's on my notes correctly. Somebody ought already read these things for me. Let me read, again, verse 20. His being here gives us a place to belong. So I've highlighted here the words for know and understanding with the yellow and then the transitional word here, so that with green, and then the point of the text here, in terms of our belonging, I've highlighted in red. So as you, as we follow along in this verse, you can, you can kind of follow along the, the logic of the verse here itself. We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. So the two purposes of this understanding is so that we may know him who is true, and the second purpose is, and we are in him who is true even in his son, Jesus Christ. So we have an experience of him, and our knowledge is developed through knowing him. And then that increases in our understanding, which leads to an increased development of our ongoing, knowledge of him, developing knowledge of him. So that we, among other things, would be in him, that we would belong to him, that would be part of him. We belong in Jesus. And again, this the grammar here, we are in him is a present tense, active voice. Our place is in God's Son, the eternal living Word of God. We need to find where we belong. We all need to find where we belong. And in Christ we have a place of belonging. Before I was a Christian, I had a sense that many of you may have too, although no one knew. I felt this way because I never told anybody. I felt like I didn't fit, I felt like I didn't belong, and my feeling didn't really fit my external reality because I had a lot of friends and I was having a lot of fun, and there wasn't any sense in which, I was no one would look at me and go, boy, that guy's a misfit. But I felt like a misfit. I felt like I didn't fit in this world, and it was because this world just didn't seem comfortable. It didn't seem like home. It didn't seem like, there was what I was looking for here, even though I seem to have, plenty enough of what it was offering. And when I came to Christ, I left this world behind. Hopefully more each day. And for a time, I was pretty lonely, even though I, came to Christ and I felt, for the first time, like, I fit in. I didn't fit in very well with the Christian community, because I was still too early to be, fit in well with the Christians my age. And I was too a definitely too Christian to fit in with my worldly friends. I remember, I was attending Cal Poly and, one guy at a Christian club, came up to me and he started jamming me up because I had cigarets in my pocket. And so I offered him one. I didn't change that fast. He came up later and he started bugging me because I wasn't carrying a Bible to class, and he didn't know me very well. So I stopped going to that group, and I started going to, Hebrew Christian group. And I went up to the guy who's a leader and said, look, pal, I'm not a Jew, but I want to learn. And if you just let me sit in the back and listen, I'd be glad to. I want to learn. And he goes, okay, so, they left me alone. I sat in the back of that Bible study for the rest of that year and learned about Christ and, was developing in Christ and slowly was becoming domesticated enough to, fit in in Christian circles. But that whole time, I felt like I had found my home, even though all of my Christian friends were probably in their 50s. I attended a prayer group with, people that were mostly around my parents age. But, even though I, kind of forfeited friends for a time, I found a place in Christ. I found where I belonged. And when we find where we belong. And when we find that we belong in God, in his truth and in his mercy, we discover one thing about our home. And that's that. It is an eternal place. It's a we find a place that we belong forever and ever and ever that has no limits, both vertically or horizontally. Jesus Came to Stay is our theme this morning. And point number one is that Jesus being here gives us understanding. And point number two is his being here gives us a place to belong. I'd like to conclude this morning by reading John 14 verses 16 through 18. John 14, beginning at verse, must be 16, beginning at verse 16. And I will ask the father, and he will give you another counselor to be with you forever. The spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. And I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. Heavenly father, Lord, we bow down before you this morning. And we thank you that you are here. Father, move in our hearts to take the time to stand in line and maybe wait for you to, you know, like we might with a missionary or somebody else. Help us find a place. And in this day, we'll we'll wait on you. We'll wait on you, and we'll search you out. I remember years ago, father, you showing me that, you're waiting on people who will wait on you. And you showed me that so many people will wait for three minutes when you're coming in four minutes. Are there wait for five minutes when you're coming in six minutes? And, Lord, we just pray that you'd give us the patience to wait on you until we realize that you are with us. You promise to be with us and to never leave us. And we believe that Lord, help us to experience you, with you this day experience have a knowledge of you through, through experiencing. You're living, person. In Christ name we pray. Amen.