Sunday, April 7, 2024 PM

Most of which you already know, and yet I'm going to remind you of them again, just like Peter did, he told his fellow believers that he was going to continue to remind them of these things, so that even after he was gone, they would remember them.

Now I don't know if you're going to remember what I'm going to tell you tonight after I'm gone or not, but you're going to get it anyway. First, let's see, we'll start here. It's a good starting place.

What do you think? And we'll expand upon this, okay? We're moving right along here. It's important, right? Excellent. Regarding who God is, there are three essentials that pertain to our salvation. I want to look at those tonight.

The Three Essentials: Life, Light, and Love

These are essential to the plan of salvation that God has for us. They all come from the Bible. They're all scriptural. As a matter of fact, they all say God is, okay? The first one is life. God is life.

John 5, 26. You want a scripture? John 5, 26. Jesus says of his Father, the Father has life in himself. The Father has life in himself. The second one is light. 1 John 5. This is the message that we heard from him, and declare unto you that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

Now this light, okay? When the Bible speaks of light, often it speaks metaphorically, and it speaks of revelation. It speaks of enlightenment. It speaks of conveying knowledge, or truth, or understanding.

Okay? You know, it's just like, you know, when you finally figure something out, you know, and a little light bulb goes off. You know what I'm saying? Likewise, if you're going to do anything, okay, you're going to have to have some light to do it.

If you're going to study, if you're going to read, you know, you just need light, and God is the source of that. He gives it away, you know, from the very beginning, right? Let there be light, and there was light.

And this is, you know, that would, you could, you know, what is that light? It wasn't sunlight, you know, that was not until day four. Okay? Some people say, well, that pertains to the, you know, the electromagnetic spectrum that goes through the air, you know, so we can talk on our cell phones.

Maybe, I don't know. All I know is, before he said that, it was dark. Okay? Darkness was over the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters, and God said, let there be light, and there was light.

The word is powerful. The word is powerful. The Bible says God is light. The Bible says God is life. It's what theologians call aseity, and Kyle gave us a discourse on that one Wednesday night, not too long ago, right?

Aseity. God is light. God is light. And God is love. 1 John 4, 7 and 8. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God. And whoever loves has been born of God, and knows God. And whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

These are the three essentials, okay? The three essentials that pertain to our salvation that God gives to us through his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, okay? These are given to us through the Son, from God.

John 5, 26. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. Again, John 5, 26. Same place as this one. The Father has life in himself. He has granted the Son also to have life in himself.

This is an eternal grant. The Trinity is not an idle thing, okay? It is an active God, and the Father is continually giving life to the Son forever, okay? It's an eternal life, an eternal gift, an eternal grant.

You know, there's a lot that goes on in the Trinity that we don't have any idea about, but there's a little bit that goes on that we have a little clue about. Okay? We'll get to another one in a minute, okay?

But, God is life, and this life is eternal life. It doesn't have a beginning, it doesn't have an end, it's always been. God is. It goes along with his name. What was the name that he gave Moses? Who shall I say sent me?

I am. See, that's just another way of saying God is. You know, I almost think to myself, you know, could you ever say that God was? No. Could you ever say that God, you know, will be? No. He just is. God is always.

That's life. And this life is in his Son. Okay, look at 1 John chapter 5, verse 11 and 12. This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life. And this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life.

Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. Now you can see very clearly here how this pertains to salvation. God is life, and he gives us this life through his Son. And whoever has the Son has life.

There is life in the Son. There is life in God. God is life. Okay, and then God is light. He reveals himself. We could know nothing about God unless he reveals himself. And how does he do that? Okay, he does that through his Son.

This is 1 John 5, 11 and 12. Life in the Son. Whoever has the Son has life and light. Okay, how does light come to us? 2 Corinthians 4, 6. The God who said, let there be light, has shown in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

That's 2 Corinthians 4, 6. Okay, now do you see that? Light comes to the believer through Christ, from the very same God who said, let there be light. He comes to us through the face of Jesus Christ. Okay, through the Son.

That's 2 Corinthians 4, 6. You see, when Jesus came, when the Son came, he came to show us who God is. Go back to John chapter 17. When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come.

Glorify your Son, that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. You see, he gives this eternal life. He gives this eternal life.

And this is eternal life. That they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. You see, this eternal life that comes, also comes with light, with knowledge. The eternal life that we have, okay, comes with the knowledge, okay, of who God is.

And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God. And how do we know this God? Jesus reveals who he is. The Son reveals the Father. He came to show us who the Father is. You go just a little further, okay.

I glorified you on earth, that as I shined or shone forth who you are, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

Okay, this is pre-creation, okay. Verse 6 I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Okay, do you see it? I have manifested your name. I have brought the light of who you are to these that you have given me.

And if we skip down to verse, let's see, I think that is 26. 17, 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.

Again, do you see, he continues to shine the light of who God is by making known to them his name. He came to show us who God is. All that he said, he heard from the Father. All that he did, he learned from the Father, or brought from the Father.

And he did it so well, okay. I mean, that was his desire, to do the Father's will, okay, to say the Father's words. And he did it so well that he could say, if you have seen me, you have seen the Father.

You see, that's how well the revelation of Christ is to us as to who God is. Look at, back up a couple of verses, 24 Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

Now, I've got a question for you. What was God doing before the foundation of the world? The Father was loving the Son. That's what it says, right? Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

Hope you see that, okay. Within the Trinity, okay, God the Father is loving God the Son. Before the foundation of the world, okay, before God was creator, he was Father, loving the Son. The Trinity is active, okay.

God Is Love in the Sending of the Son

Next, okay, next, God is love. God is love. Turn back to 1 John, chapter 4. I'll start again at verse 7. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this, the love of God was made manifest among us. In other words, how did the love of God get to us? Okay. In this, starting at verse 9, in this, the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.

Again, you know, not only does the Son bring love and light, he brings life. In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us. I want you to see this. No man has ever seen God. If we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected or completed in us.

You see, the love of God comes to us through his Son, and as we love one another, that love passes through to one another. The love from God comes through Jesus to us to one another. That's how God's love is completed or perfected in us.

Now, if we don't love, just a few verses before that, it says, if we don't love, we don't know God. Right? That's what he says. Anyone who does not love, does not know God, because God is love. There's a difference between this love that God gives us through his Son that comes to us and goes through to one another.

There's a difference between this kind of love. Just like there's a difference between God's life and life that has a beginning and an end. The life that he brings is eternal, and the love that he brings is different than the love that we have in this world.

This love in this world, I like to describe it as the love that's after. It desires to get something that it wants. That's the love that this world has. What can I get? Who can I get? But the love that God has for us is a love that gives.

I like this very simple illustration of the love of God. It's the love that gives. Go back to John 3 .16. You all know that, right? The love that God has, the love that God gives, is a love that gives.

It's almost time to finish, so I want you to get the point of this whole thing. There is a point. John 3 .16, God so loved that he gave. Mark 10 .45, Jesus says, I came not to be served, but to serve and to give my life a ransom for many.

That's the gospel right here. That's the light of the gospel. We are so blessed that God opens his word to us, shines his light upon it so that we can see it, comprehend it, bring it in, and make it a part of us, and give us his life, light, and love.

And the point. God is this. It comes to us through his son. And if that's the case, then I want you to see that what God does is gives us himself. You see that? What does he give us? Himself. Don't misunderstand me.

It does come through his son, but don't forget, he is the son. One more thing you might think about. When we talk about the Trinity, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. The Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God.

Now, think about this. That means, in a very simple way, whatever the Father does, God does. Whatever the Son does, God does. Whatever the Spirit does, God does. And so, as God gives us himself, we get all three, right?

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But that's the point. He gives us himself. He gives us himself. He doesn't give us things. He doesn't give us words. He gives us himself. His life. The revelation of himself.

His love. And what can separate us from the love of God? You know, Romans 8. And the prayer in Ephesians chapter 3 that Paul offers us. I'll finish with that, okay? Ephesians 3, starting at verse 17. I'll leave that in closing, okay?

Let's pray. Father, I thank you and I praise you for your great love for us. That you have given us your very self. Something that we can contemplate on, meditate on. Just what does it mean that you have given us your very self?

What does it mean in our lives? And how can we come to know your love in a deeper way? Your Son in a deeper way? How can we serve you with a greater diligence? How can we work in your kingdom to build it and to accomplish your will?

Father, how good you are to us. And we just thank you and praise you for your Son, the Lord Jesus. In his name we pray. Amen.