(John) Christ's Confessed Deity — Willie Mullan

Again, tonight, the John's Gospel, and we're at chapter ten. Now, we're starting at verse thirty this evening, and we're going down to the end of the chapter. Verse thirty reads like this, I and my Father are one.

Christ’s Confessed Deity

And I'm calling this this evening, Christ's Confessed Deity. You see, I spoke to you last week and pointed out that the word my is in italics. And I think it's very necessary to see this, because I believe, as many other scholars believe, that the verse should read like this, I and the Father are one.

You see, when Christ uses the word my Father, in every other portion of the Gospels, he always speaks of the servant of Jehovah. You see, the very first Dutchman of Christ, recorded, is this one. When Joseph and Mary came seeking for him, when they had lost him, you remember he responded by saying, which he not that I must be about my Father's business.

And he's speaking of the servant of Jehovah. Almost his last words were, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And again, it's the cry of the servant who is the sacrifice. But on this occasion, he's not speaking of the servant of Jehovah, he's speaking of the co-equal of Jehovah.

Other ways he couldn't have put the I first, could he? He said, I am the Father. And if he's not speaking of the co-equal of God, I think it's very bad manners to put the I first. But here we have the co-equal and the co-eternal one, saying, I am the Father.

You see, it's God the Father and God the Son here that's brought into the picture, and we're calling this the concept deity of Christ. Then we shall go on from there to look at the Jews reveal the prophecy.

The Jews’ Hostility to Christ’s Deity

The moment this tremendous statement that we'll look at in detail in a moment was made, that as he once said, then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Oh, when you see men with their arms filled with stones, and their hearts filled with murder, and their heads filled with envy, surely we're about looking at the prophecy against a wonderful person like Christ.

Surely this is the prophecy. And then we shall go on from there to look at this supposed blasphemy. Some people don't understand the meaning of verse thirty, certainly the Jews did. Because at the end of verse thirty-three they said, we're stoning thee for blasphemy, because that thou being a man makest thyself God.

Oh, they understood all right. It's the Jehovah's Witnesses don't understand verse thirty, certainly the Jews did. Oh yes, they understood what he was talking about. Thou being a man makest thyself God.

This is the supposed blasphemy. We'll look at that in detail in a moment or two. Then we shall move on from there to Christ's affirmed surety. You see, he spoke to them very gently about their laws, and that it was written in their law, I said, God said, ye are gods.

You see, he called them gods unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken. Such a beautiful phrase. How wonderful our Lord Jesus Christ gave us this word. He was absolutely sure, you might remember, that the scripture, and when he put that word in, he was embracing the prophets, and the law, and the Psalms, all the Old Testament that they had just then.

He said the scripture cannot be broken. My, the modernists would need to sit at a street and learn, but they're too slow. Then we shall take time to look at this phrase tonight, verse thirty-six, say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified.

And we want to look at Christ's sanctified capacity. Then we shall go on to look at the works, his ability, and we'll end with this phrase that the people beyond Jordan said, John did no medical, but all things that John spake of this man were true.

Christ's attested honesty. There are these verses before you. Christ confessed deity. The Jews revealed depravity. Christ supposed blasphemy. Christ affirmed surety. Christ sanctified capacity. Christ displayed ability.

And Christ's attested honesty. See, now there are the bones. But the bones are no use. We need to put the beef on the bones. So let's really tackle this portion bit by bit. The Lord Jesus is speaking here in verse thirty, and notice that he puts the I first.

If you were speaking about your Father, you would say my Father and I. But he said I and the Father are one. Not only do we get co-equality here, and not only do we see unity in the one, but we are gazing now at Christ confessing his own deity.

Yes, he is confessing that he's God. He's just saying I, God the Son, and God the Father. Now, I want you to get this one mess, and there are great arguments about this. You know, he's not talking like a Unitarian.

There are quite a number in the land of those who have again embraced Unitarianism. They call it one mess. Oh, I know. He spoke as a Trinitarian, and I'm perfectly sure that the Bible teaches the Trinity all right.

The Trinity and the Distinction of Persons

When our Lord Jesus was being baptized, just as he came up out of the water, and there he is. There's a voice, a spirit from heaven. And don't try to tell me he was acting like a ventriloquist, because he's on the bank.

And the Father is speaking from heaven. In between comes the Spirit, like a dove. And you've got Father, Son, and Holy Spirit there. I was talking to one of these fellows who believes that Jesus is the Father and the Spirit, and he doesn't believe in Trinity.

He said they're one. And here's a little verse that I've turned him to, and I'd like you to have a look at. It's in 2 John. Do you know 1st, 2nd, 3rd John? Well, just 2nd John will do you this time. On writing unto the elect lady, and here's what he said in 2 John, verse 9, just the one chapter.

He said, Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. And I said to him, Could you tell me what the word both means?

And I would want to know again if both means one. My dear friends, of course there is one God, but there is a plurality of persons taught in the book. In the beginning was the Word. And if you want to go down John's gospel and find out who the Word was, you go down to verse 14.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father. The Word was the only begotten of the Father. Here's the first verse again. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.

While Hendrickson translated the actual Greek, the Word was face to face with God. Yes, of course, there are personalities in the Godhead, but we're not after that so much tonight. We're just getting a hold of this, that Christ is confessing His deity here.

I and the Father are one. One what? One in purpose. One in power. Why, the thing follows what we were at last week. Watch this. Go back a couple of verses. See, verse 28 is talking about the sheep. I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hands.

My Father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hands. I and the Father are one in this purpose. We'll keep the sheep. I'm happy I'm here. They're one in power.

Personality. Both, understand, but one in power. But the thing that touched the Jews was this. When he said, I am the Father, when he placed himself right there, they knew exactly what he meant. My sitting in the place of God, God the Son, of course.

And so when this deity was confessed, then the Jews took up spoons again to stone him. My dear friends, I think that this is one of the saddest, one of the most sorrowful things in the whole book. And I'd like you to get the hold of it.

Remember, the man who took up the stones, the man that you're watching now with stones in their hands, ready to stone the most tender-hearted soul that ever walked the broad eagles of earth, the most pure man that ever breathed.

Remember, the hands that took up the stones were religious hands, proud of things they were, men steeped in religion. And I believe this, you know, with all my heart. If you preach the way Christ preached, and if you walk the way Christ walked, and if you work the way Christ worked, the dead, empty, formal religionists around you will throw stones.

And if you're going to live for God, suddenly, in Christ, shall suffer persecution. The old, dead, hypocritical, pharisaical, dead formalists around you will throw stones. But I think that he spoke to them very wonderfully, although the stones were in their hands.

Christ’s Claim and the Charge of Blasphemy

Look at verse 32. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I told you from my Father. For which of those works do ye stone me? Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy, because that thou being a man makest thyself God.

You see, they were so darkened in their understanding, and so vain in their imagination, so blinded by the God of this world, that even the moral glory of Christ was veiled before. And, you know, he just looked at them and said, For which of the good works do ye stone me?

And they come out with a supposed blasphemy. Now let me put it to you like this. If Jesus Christ, who was born in Bethlehem of the Virgin, if Jesus Christ was not God, then the Jews were right. My dear friend, if Jesus Christ was not God, then this phrase, I am the Father of one, is most decidedly blasphemy.

Most decidedly. And remember, to let men fall down and worship him, as he did on many occasions, is again to make him a deceiver. But there are no questions about it. Jesus Christ was God. I have no hesitation at all.

Praise the Lord for this tremendous fact. You know, a Russell Light looked at me once when I said, Jesus Christ was God. And she said, God can't die. I said, is that any stopping there? He put in a full stop there.

I said, God can't sleep. And he slept in the hangar part of the boat. And God can't be weary. And he was weary sitting on the well. Of course, God can't die, and God can't sleep, and God can't be weary.

But God manifest in flesh can, other than manifest in flesh. And God manifest in flesh can die, and did die. That is when we take the cup and break the bread. He was what we say. As often as you take, as often as you eat this bread, and drink this cup, now watch it, ye do so the Lord's death.

That's what the book says. When he hung in yon cross, with his hair matted with sweat, and his face battered beyond recognition, and his bones pulled out of joint, and his back furrowed with the Roman lock, what a spectacle.

Paul penned these words. If the princes of this world had known, they would not have crucified Christ, the Lord of glory. The Lord of glory. God manifest in flesh. Oh, don't only that as the theologians.

Let's stand just for a moment at the cross, poor we measurable things of the dust, sinners of the deepest heart, and remember that God's lovely Son. You know what the old missionary said? If Jesus Christ be God, and died for me, there is no sacrifice too great for me to make for him.

Let's get the hold of the back page. My firmly supposed blasphemy. Was he really God? Let's move on. I think this is a tremendous answer that's being made now. Verse 34, Jesus answered them, Is it not written in you, Lord?

I said, You are God. And you know that's in Psalm 82. Let's have a look at the Psalm just for a moment. It's the 82nd Psalm, and it's very wonderful to notice this. The Lord knew the book, didn't he? And remember, even as a man he had to learn.

Now, we're after the 82nd Psalm, verse 1, God standeth in the congregation of the mighty. I think the congregation of the mighty just then was the whole nation of Israel, the judges among the gods. And I believe the gods, on this occasion, is a word given to the judges in Israel.

You see, when Moses took the whole nation upon his shoulders, he thought the weight would be too much, and you remember judges were appointed. And as they stood in the gate and had the particular cases, they gave the judgment.

And here, just because they speak to the nation in the word of God given to them by God, they're called gods. And God's speaking to them now, how long will you judge unjustly and accept the persons of the wicked, defend the poor and fatherless, do justice to the afflicted and needy, deliver the poor and needy, rid them out of the hand of the wicked.

They know not, neither will they understand, they walk on in darkness, all the foundations of earth, of the earth are out of course. I have said, ye are gods, and all of you are children of the Messiah.

You see, this word was applied to the judges in Israel. And as they stood there to give judgment, and the word of God came through them, as these particular needy folks stood before them. God said, I have said, ye are gods.

And our Lord Jesus, you know, remembered this time, as he did all the others. And now on this occasion, he's turning them back and here's what he's saying to them. Let's get back to John 10, verse 34.

Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, ye are gods, if he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came? And the scriptures were kind of broken. Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world, thou blest famous, because I said, I am the Son of God.

Oh, they got it all right, you know, when he said, I am the Father. They knew that he was talking about God the Son. They knew he was making himself God. And now he's just putting it up to them. He's saying this to them.

He's saying, you know, you're inconsistent. You never fell out with God when he called the judges an Israel God. And some of them were unjust, but you haven't found any fault with me. And yet now you pick up stones to stone me.

Why, he was driving home their inconsistency and his eternality. And it was very wonderfully done. But you know how many of us here, when we are placed in the tight corner by the enemy, could go to Psalm 82 and bring out something.

Just very many of us. When the devil came to chasten in the wilderness, do you remember the answer? Three times, H is written, H is written, H is written. And he got the three portions from the book of Deuteronomy and how many of us know the very chapter of the Deuteronomy.

Always you will find this, that our wonderful Lord, when the lion was roaring and the enemy was near and they were trying to beset him round about, could put his hand into the book and from some seemingly unknown portion bring out the very thing that won the day.

And let me tell you this, he's only putting his finger on one word in Psalm 82, it's the word God. And the boys that don't believe in candlelight and verbal inspiration are going to be in a fix in a minute.

He's just picking out one word. He says, you know that word God is in Psalm 82 and you never troubled about it. Get out now. Friends, thank God he left this on record. This scripture, thank God he left that on record, the whole of the Old Testament, yes Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, and so on, right through to Malachi, the whole of the Old Testament, our blessed, wonderful Lord said, cannot be broken.

My friends,.

The moderates would need to sit down at the feet of Jesus and learn all they can.

That this is indeed the infallible, inspired, impregnable, unchangeable, eternal work of the living God. Don't ever forget it either. But he did two things in the argument. What's this? First of all, he said to them, is it not written in your law, I said ye are God?

He called them God, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world. We want to have a look at this sanctification that became Christ even before he came into the world.

Sanctification as Separation and Consecration

You know, I believe that in our country today there is more nonsense about sanctification than any other subject that I know of. I'm sure of it. Supposing I were to go round each one of you now and say, what do you think the sanctification means?

Oh, you just turn it over in your mind. What do you think it means? Because if you're thinking that it means the second blessing just now, then Christ got it before he came. Because he was sanctified before he was sent.

I know people in the country who preach that sanctification means the eradication of the old nature. Is this what happened to Christ before he came? Well, you can't make it mean one thing one day, you know, and make it mean another thing another day.

Or otherwise language is no use. I had a schoolmaster who came into the back room one night. He was in the ridge. I had said something like what I'm saying now. And he came in the ridge and said to me, you know right well that sanctification means the second blessing.

I know nothing of the kind I said. And here's a wee verse that I turn them to. And you just have a look at it. And don't forget it after you do look at it and remember it again. It's just like Christ.

It's the word of God. And it's handed to Brooklyn. Look at it. It's 1 Corinthians and it's chapter 7. 1 Corinthians chapter 7 and it says verse 14. Look carefully. For the unbelieving husband sanctified by the wife and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband.

So I simply asked the schoolmaster, has the unbelieving husband got the second blessing? Now you wouldn't need very much intelligence to answer the question, would you? And he just knew exactly where he was.

You see, first of all we see that this book talks about Christ being sanctified before he came. And this book talks about an unbelieving husband being sanctified. We've got to be very careful what we say about sanctification.

Because just whatever you're going to make at least you have got it. Now just in case you misunderstand me, don't go out of the place saying, if you had an experience that brought you nearer to the Lord, I'm not talking about your experience.

I'm talking about the doctrine of sanctification. I'm not talking... I knew a whole lot of old dead budgers could do with some sort of an experience. I do. Now let's get the whole thing correct and then you'll not blame me for something I didn't say.

My dear friends, many a man and woman has got gloriously saved and for years only lived a sort of half-hearted, carnal existence and came to the place where they surrendered all to God and began to live.

Well, if you got there, God bless you. Who could be talking about that? But don't start to make that a doctrine. That's your experience. Don't drive it into something that it doesn't apply to. Keep it out of it.

We'll deal with sanctification now because our blessed Lord would sanctify and the unbelieving husband would sanctify and the word sanctify might mean something that will fit into both of them. And if you'd like me to take it further, I'll show you something more.

All right, come on. We'll start and then we'll finish. First Corinthians, and we're at the first chapter and we're at the first verse. Paul called to be in a gospel of Jesus Christ through the will of God and shall see these, our brothers, unto the church of God which is at thorns to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus.

That's what he's writing to. He's writing to people that are sanctified. All right, if you think they've got the second blessing, have a look at how they're living in the third chapter, will you? See chapter three?

See verse one. And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual but as unto carnal. Even as unto babes in Christ, I have fed you with milk and not with meat. For hitherto you were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able, for ye are yet carnal.

For whereas there is among you envy and strife and division, are ye not carnal and what of men? Yet these carnal Christians, this carnal child is called sanctified in the first verse. Is that right? He's writing to these people who were sanctified.

All right now, we've got problems on our hands now. The blessed Lord was sanctified before He came. The unbelieving husband got sanctified by the believing wife. The carnal Corinthians were sanctified according to the first verse.

Friends, you know, this is a wonderful subject. Don't, don't just try to twist the word of God. This word, sanctified, or sanctification, it has a root meaning that can never at any time be changed. And the root meaning just means this.

Sanctified means to be set apart. And sanctification means separation. So what do you see? Do you see the Lord before He came? He's the eternal Father. That's what He's getting at here. And before He came, He was set apart by the power for a certain purpose.

Aye, before He came. Now what's your wording? We're at John 10 again. I want you to get this because this is very important. Now watch it. Verse 35, If He called them gods unto whom the word of God came, I'm descriptive, I'm a bit broken.

Say ye of Him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world. Now I want you to notice who did the sanctifying. Did you notice that? The Father. But you see, there are some exclusive brethren and they don't believe in the eternal sanctity.

And they would try to put me in a corner sometimes to prove that Christ was the eternal Son. They believe that the sonship begun at Bethlehem. Well, I'll prove the opposite. It's just nothing. Who sanctified?

The Father. When? Before He came into the world. Before He was sent. The Father set Him apart. Now wait a minute. Do you know there couldn't be the Father without the Son? You see, the moment you got married you didn't become a father.

Your fatherhood just runs along as far as the sonship or the childship in your family. The day the wee fellow was born you became the father. They are both running equal on the same length of time. And if the Father would set Him apart He must have been the Son.

So He was the Son before He came. I'm sure your book taught you long ago that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. But wait a minute. The Father set Him apart. For what? For what? We'll go to 1 Peter.

Christ Foreordained as the Lamb and Savior

1 Peter. I think this is a lovely one. Just for the sake of time, verse 18. For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things of silver and gold from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ as of the Lamb without blemish and without spot who verily was foreordained before Christ the foundation of the world by way of that yonder before the hills in order to receive His frame in yon chanceled chamber of eternity the power and the power to be the Lamb.

You also thought, you know my dear friend God had the whole thing cut and dried before He ever promised a Savior to Adam in Eden He had a Lamb prepared in the Eden above. Oh, it was no afterthought. You see, He was foreordained to be the Lamb.

The eternal chancel took place and the Father said You, the eternal Son you are after God and you have to become the sacrifice to deal with sin to meet the requirements of this Holy Throne and you have to so satisfy us that you will be raised the third day to be the Savior.

Of all who will believe.

Wonderful story, isn't it? Yes, the Father set Him apart to be the Lamb. All right, let's go further. We're going back to Titus and we're at the first chapter of Titus. This is a lovely one. Titus, chapter 1, verse 1.

Paul. It thrills me every time I see this man writing these letters in the New Testament. No poopish nonsense here. This Paul. Not the very Reverend Gregory this or that or the other, no, no. This Paul.

You can see his humility. Our servant of God. You can see his honesty. An apostle Jesus Christ, you can see his authority. According to the faith of God's elect. Don't you know God's elect need to have faith?

Lovely rephrase in there, mind you. The faith of God's elect on the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness. Yes, if we are the servants of God and if we've got any gift if we're the elect through faith.

You know, we need to be practicing things down here. Godliness. They're all tied up together. What's this? In hope of eternal life. Of that kind of life promised before the world began. Who did he promise it to?

Who did he promise it to? Well, if he promised it before the world began he didn't promise it to man anyway. Is that right? My dear friend, he promised it to the eternal son. Is that, you know, if you become the lamb and finish the work and rise again from the dead I'll make you the life giver and you can only get life eternal in Christ.

Is that right? He can give you life. He can give you life. Don't let them block you. Jesus alone is the giver. You can only get life. And he that hath the Son hath life. And he that hath not the Son he can be sprinkled or baptized by immersion or stuck in any creed but he hasn't got life.

You can't get life without Christ. God promised this before the world began. Do you see this? God set him apart. Yes, to be the lamb. God set him apart to be the life giver to get eternal life in Christ.

But watch again without Ephesians now after the first chapter verse 3, just to get the connection. Ephesians, chapter 1, verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in Christ according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world.

I want you to get this. You know, when God, the great Trinity in the eternal past in the council chambers of eternity when he took this thing over and planned it all out the eternal Son by the eternal Father was set apart to be the lamb and when he would finish the work and be brought back from the dead he would be the life giver but he was not only set apart to be the lamb and the life giver he would go on up back to the fruit as the Lord of the elect set apart before the foundation of the world as the Lord of the elect.

By the word of a chosen in him before the foundation of the world he was set apart.

In case you are worrying about the other few cases watch this. When Paul went into Canaan and will say he's preaching to a village there are only twenty houses and he stands out in the middle of the street and he preaches this great message that God's Son came to be the lamb and rose again as the life giver and he'll be the Lord of all who really trust in him.

Supposing a wee woman at the end of the street that's the Christ that was preached. You see all the rest of the houses in the village. Well her house is different from theirs. Now there's a wee woman in there that knows the Lord and her husband is different from all the other husbands.

You see her husband is set apart because there's light in the house now and he's set apart from the rest of the village and the unbelieving husband is set apart. You see these Corinthians. Well the moment they trusted the Lord Jesus and ventured their all upon his atoning blood they were set apart of the sheep of the great shepherds.

But the trouble is they were living carnal lives but nevertheless through faith and the sacrifice.

They were set apart for God.

And the only sanctification that I know for the day in which we're living is found in John 17 and in verse 17. And if you don't know it, here it is. Christ is praying, we'll come to it in a night or two.

And he cries, sanctify them. None of you would love to be sanctified without the truth. When we preach believer's baptism you dodge it. What's up with you, are you afraid of the word? Well then don't talk about holiness.

Just give it up. Why you conflict about talking about sanctification and holiness. Well I'll tell you how you'll get sanctified through opinion to the book. And you know when the Lord talks to some of you boys that are stuck in some of these secret clubs about coming out and being separate and touching not the unclean thing.

You dodge it, don't you? Go home and sleep all of the night you're stuck in it. And the Lord is saying come out and touch not the unclean thing. May God set you apart for himself through his words. But I want you to get this.

Let's get back to John 10. John 10. I think this is lovely. How the Lord Jesus puts it to them. He says, verse 36 say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and then sent into the world. He was set apart of the Lamb of the life given of the Lord of the elect before he ever stepped out of the ivory towers of the tomb.

And then when the fullness of the time was done he came into the world. I think it's beautiful. My, he's got a good argument. Now he says, you fellows you didn't object to God calling your own fellows God.

How can you say of the one whom the Father set apart and then sent into the world. How blasphemous.

You know, he's tying them up, isn't he? Yes, and then he went just a little bit further. He said this, verse 37. I do not the works of my Father. Believe me not. But if I do though ye believe not me believe the works that ye may know and believe that the Father is in me and I in him.

You know, he's going from the group to his position. And now he's going to vindicate everything by the very works that were accomplished. My, he can just look at them full in the face. Didn't he give sight to the blind.

Didn't he cleanse the leper. Didn't he raise the dead. He said, just have a look at the works. And if you can't believe me believe the works. And you know, the moment that he quoted the book and showed his position and produced the works.

My, they were in a very tight corner and they did what they always do. They're going to faint. Now watch verse 39. Therefore they sought again petition. My, can't you see the depravity. Oh, this sinful heart that dwells in every human breast.

My, there's that carnality in man that is enmity against God. And how the book hath produced this conscience and poverty of all who still resist God.

And it does, you know we're no better than they were. My, they thought they'd take him again. Look this way. Verse 40.

And they went away and went away again. And he went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John had first baptized. And there he abode. And many resorted unto him and said John did no miracle. Isn't that a lovely way of saying you know, miracles were not necessary to accredit the prophets.

They were not the credentials of the prophets. There were a lot of people, you know. And if he didn't do something spectacular my, you wouldn't be anybody at all. Let me tell you that John was the last of the Old Testament prophets.

And our Lord Jesus Christ said there was not a greater born among women. And our Lord Jesus Christ in his own word revealed that John was filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb. But he did no miracle.