‘Discipleship’ in ‘the School of Christ’.

Please, open your Bibles to ‘the Gospel of John’. 

“THE NATURE OF THE DIVINE LIFE”

“I came that they might have Life...”. (John 10:10)  
 
We come back to ‘the Gospel by John’, for we have seen that this is ‘the Gospel of Spiritual Education’. 

The others are largely a matter of ‘History’ - ‘the History of the Earthly Life, Work and Teaching of the Lord Jesus’, but ‘the Gospel by John’ is ‘the Spiritual Life and Interpretation of Christ in Person’. 

Do you notice how ‘the Gospel’ begins? 

It begins with these words: “In him was Life; and the Life was the Light of men”. (John 1:4) 

The main part of ‘the Gospel’ ends with these words: “Many other signs therefore did Jesus in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God;  and that believing you may have Life in His Name”. (John 20:30,31)

(We want to notice that ‘Chapter 21’ is something added on afterward - it is quite clear that ‘John’ intended to finish with these words). 

‘The Gospel’ begins with: “In Him was Life”.  
 
It ends with: “That you may have Life”. 

‘The main Gospel’ comprises ‘20 Chapters’, and halfway  through 20 is 10.  
 
In ‘Chapter 10, verse 10’ we have: “I came that they might have Life”.

The beginning: “In Him was Life”; - the middle: “I came that they might have Life”; - the end: “Believing, you may have Life”. 

Notice: in that one word “Life” we have the full answer to our question: Why did ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’ come into this world? 

We want to see ‘one’ or ‘two things’: -

1.) All ‘the Teaching and Works of the Lord Jesus’ related to this thing that ‘He’ called Life. 

All ‘His Teaching and all His Works’ were in relation to Life.  
 
2.) The ‘second thing’ to notice is this: -

‘The Lord Jesus’ demonstrated that to possess this ‘Life’ is a ‘Miracle’, and showed that it is impossible to have it without a ‘Miracle’. 

To come to be possessed by this ‘Life’ is something ‘Super-natural’.

3.) And the ‘third thing’ we have to notice is: -

It is revealed by ‘the Word of God’ that the possessing of this ‘Life’ is the basis of all ‘God’s Works’. 

Listen, ‘He’ can do nothing in us until we have this ‘Life’. 

‘He’ has to stand back and say: ‘I’ can do nothing until ‘I’ have ‘My Life’ in you.  
 
‘His Life’ in us is the basis of all ‘His Work’. 

So now we are going to look at this ‘Gospel by John’ to instruct us in this ‘matter of Life’. 

Notice again what it says in ‘Chapter 20’: “Many other signs therefore did Jesus in the presence of His disciples”. 

Notice: ‘in the presence of His disciples’. 

‘John’ said, in effect: ‘all these signs that Jesus did He did in the presence of His disciples’. 

That was because it was ‘His disciples’ whom ‘He’ was ‘teaching’. 

They were ‘the ones’ who had to learn ‘the meaning of these things’ because they had to carry on ‘His Work’.  
 
And so we can take it that ‘Jesus’ never performed a ‘Miracle’ unless ‘His disciples’ were there. 

If there was some ‘great Work’ to be done, ‘He’ looked around to see if ‘the disciples’ were there.

‘He’ was not just doing these things for the benefit of ‘the multitude’, although they may have had some benefit, as in the case of ‘the feeding of the five thousand’, but these things were for ‘the Education of the disciples’. 

‘The Lord Jesus’ was most careful that they came to understand ‘the meaning’ of what ‘He’ was doing.

We are going to see how important that is. 

I do hope that when I use that word ‘disciple’ you are not thinking now back ‘two thousand years’! 

I trust that the majority of us here, if not all, are ‘disciples’: those who are ‘learning Christ’.  
 
Just as ‘the chief business’ of ‘the disciples’ in those days was to ‘learn Christ’ so it is ‘our chief business’ today. 

There is no other reason for my coming here, and there should be no other reason for your coming here than that of ‘learning Christ’. 

The most important thing for Christians is to ‘learn Christ’. 

Now, we turn once more to those ‘two verses’ at the end of ‘Chapter 20, verses 30 and 31’, and I want you to underline ‘three words’: - in “many other signs did Jesus” underline the word Signs.  

In “these are written that you may believe” underline the word Believe. 

And in “that believing you may have Life in His Name” underline the word Life. 

Signs - Believe - Life. 	

Firstly: ‘Signs’. - 

Notice: ‘the whole of this Gospel’ is summed up in those ‘three words’, and we are going to look at them for a few moments. 

The whole of the teaching of ‘the Gospel by John’ is gathered around ‘seven Signs’ and they were ‘seven’ especially selected ‘Signs’. 

‘John’ says: “many other signs did Jesus”, and that if they were all written “even the world itself would not contain the books”. (John 21:25)  
 
There must have been many more ‘Signs’, but ‘John’ has selected ‘seven’ and has gathered the whole of this matter of ‘learning Christ’ into them. 

As you may know, there are several words used for ‘Miracles’ in ‘the New Testament’. 

In some places they are called ‘Wonders’, and that conveys the idea of something quite unusual, extra-ordinary, a ‘wonderful thing’. 

In other places they are called ‘Powers’, which conveys the idea of Spiritual, Super-natural ‘Energy’. 

In other places they are called ‘Paradoxes’, which, as you know, is a ‘contradiction’. 

They are called ‘Paradoxes’ because they were something which contradicted ‘the natural order of things’. 

But the ‘fourth word’ for ‘Miracles’ is this one which ‘John’ always chose and is his favorite word for them.   

He always called them ‘Signs’, which meant that these ‘Works’ indicated something more than themselves. 

‘The Work’ was not just something in itself: there was a ‘meaning’ behind it.  

It signified something. 

There was ‘the actual Work’, but it had a ‘Spiritual meaning’ and was a ‘Sign’ of something more. 

That is ‘John’s word’ for ‘Miracle’. 

We leave that for ‘the moment’ - we are going to take it up again. 

The ‘second word’: ‘Believe’. -

This is ‘the key word’ to the whole of ‘the Gospel by John’ and occurs ‘ninety-eight times’ in it. 

Everything in this ‘Gospel’ gathers around that word: “that you may believe”. 

But what does the word ‘believe’ mean? 

It means ‘two things’, which are in ‘the word’ itself. 

It means the acknowledgement of ‘the Truth’, that is ‘the reaction’ which says: ‘that is true’, or ‘He is true’, I believe ‘He is true’. 

But it means more than that. 

‘The word’ in ‘the Greek’ means: ‘believing that it is true’, you commit yourself to ‘the One’ who says it. (‘the Amplified’ has it; ‘trust in’, ‘cling to’, ‘adhere to’.)

‘John’ puts that in ‘another way’ in one place: “As many as received Him”. (John 1:12)  
 
Listen, that is only ‘another way’ of saying ‘they committed themselves to Him’. 

‘Believing’ is not only a ‘mental thing’: it is ‘the committing of the Life’ to ‘the One’ whom you believe. 

“...Blessed and happy and to be envied are those who have never seen Me and yet have believed and adhered to and trusted and relied on Me”. (John 20:29; Amplified)

That is what ‘the New Testament’ means by believing on ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’. 

“That believing...” that is, ‘committing yourself’ to ‘the Lord Jesus’, “you may have Life...”.  

When we continue next Sunday, Lord willing, we shall take up the ‘third word’, summing up ‘the whole Gospel by John’, it being the word ‘Life’.  

Continuing where we left off last Sunday we now shall consider the word ‘Life’. 

You will remember that ‘Signs’ - ‘Believe’ - ‘Life’, are ‘the three words’ which sum up ‘the whole Gospel by John’.  

The word ‘Life’, brings us to ‘the main object’ of our consideration. 

‘The Signs’ were ‘the instruments’ used by ‘the Lord Jesus’; - ‘the Believing’ was ‘the reaction of man’ to ‘the Signs’; - and ‘the Life’ was ‘the result’ of their ‘reaction’. 

They committed themselves, and they received ‘Life’.  

Let us look at this ‘Life’.

What is it? - What is its ‘nature’ and what does it mean? 

I do not think it is necessary to remind you that this is a ‘kind of Life’ that no one has who does not possess ‘the Lord Jesus’. 

“And this is that testimony (that evidence): God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who possesses the Son has that life; he who does not possess the Son of God does not have that life”. (1.John 5:11-12; Amplified) 

The very ‘word’ that is used for ‘Life’ here is different from other words for ‘life’. 

This is not ‘animal’ or ‘human life’, but ‘Divine Life’, ‘the Life’ which is in ‘God’ alone. 

It is a ‘Life’ which is different from every other ‘kind of life’ because it has a different ‘nature’ in it. 

Every ‘kind of life’ has its ‘own nature’, and ‘Divine Life’ has ‘Divine Nature’ in it. 

‘Peter’ speaks about being made “Partakers of the Divine nature” (2.Pet.1:4), and with this ‘Life’, ‘the very Nature of God’ is implanted in us. - ‘Think of it’!  

It is a different ‘Nature’ from our own ‘nature’.   

I often refer to it as an “Otherness”. 

We are going also to see how that is. 

But, remember - ”In Him was Life”. (John 1:4) 

Is ‘He’ different ‘in Nature’ from other men? 

Everyone can see that ‘He’ is different from other men in ‘His very nature’, and the difference is made by this ‘Life’ that is in ‘Him’. 

Oh, yes, this ‘Life’ brings with it a ‘new’ and ‘different consciousness’.  

Look at ‘the Lord Jesus’! 

What was ‘His real Consciousness’? 

This was a thing about which ‘He’ was always speaking, and it was so very evident in ‘His case’. 

‘He’ said: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30); - “I do always the things that are pleasing to Him (the Father)” (John 8:29); - “The works that I do in my Father’s Name”. (John 10:25) 

Oh, this word ‘Father’ in ‘John’s Gospel’! 

‘The Consciousness’ of ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’ every day was of ‘His Union with His Father’, ‘the Oneness’ that existed between ‘Them’: “As you, Father, are in Me, and I in You”. (John 17:21) 

‘The consciousness’ of ‘the Lord Jesus’ was of ‘the very closest Union’, actually ‘Oneness’ with ‘God as His Father’, and that was because ‘the very Life of God was in Him’. 

‘His Life’ was a ‘God-conscious Life’; but ‘God-consciousness’ in the sense of ‘perfect Oneness’. 

And that is what it means to have this ‘Life’. 

‘Man’ never had that. 

‘The Lord Jesus’ came to bring it in ‘His own Person’: not to talk about ‘Oneness with God’, but to live out a life of ‘Oneness with God’ and to bring ‘His Disciples’ into the same ‘Oneness’. 

“I came that they might have Life” - in other words: ‘I’ am come that they may have ‘the same Consciousness of God’ as ‘Father’ that ‘I’ have, and that they may have ‘the same  
Nature’ in them as ‘I’ have; - (not ‘Deity’, but ‘Nature’).

This ‘Life’ means another thing. 

‘Life’ must always ‘grow’. 

Of course, we know that very well! 

Whatever ‘kind of life’ it is, if it is really ‘life’ it must grow. 

You know that in your ‘garden’, and it is true in ‘human beings’. 

‘The Law of Life’ is constant ‘development’.  

That was true of ‘the Lord Jesus’. 

It is said of ‘Him’ that ‘He’ was made “Perfect through Sufferings” (Heb. 2:10) and that word ‘perfect’ means ‘complete’.   
 
‘He’ was made ‘complete’, ‘full-grown’, through ‘sufferings’ -  “though He was a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered”. (Heb. 5:8)  
 
‘The Lord Jesus’ was growing by ‘the Power’ of this ‘Life’ in ‘Him’, and if we possess this ‘Life’ we should ‘grow’. 

‘Paul’ says: “that we may be no longer children...but...may grow up in all things”. (Eph. 4:14,15) 

“Until we all attain...unto a fullgrown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ”. (Eph. 4:13)   

And so, to possess this ‘Life’ really means that we ought to be growing, and if we are not there is something wrong with us.

Now notice these ‘things’: a different ‘nature’, a different ‘consciousness’, a different ‘relationship’, and a constant ‘growth’. 

Do you see, how these things are illustrated in this Gospel?

For instance, ‘Nicodemus’ came to ‘the Lord Jesus’ by night.

Now let us think of ‘Nicodemus’ as being a perfectly ‘honest man’. 

Of course, a great many things have been said about him which are not to ‘his credit’, but I believe that he was a very ‘sincere man’. 

He came and he called ‘the Lord Jesus’ ‘Teacher’ - “We know that You are a Teacher come from God”. (John 3:2)   

What did he come to ‘the Lord Jesus’ about? 

Evidently he had come to talk about ‘the Kingdom of God’, because ‘the Lord Jesus’ read his thought. 

‘He’ knew that ‘Nicodemus’ was interested in ‘the Kingdom of God’, but ‘He’ said to him, in other words: you will never get into ‘the Kingdom of God’ unless you have ‘God’s Life’. 

You and ‘I’ cannot even talk about ‘the Kingdom of God’ because we have not the same ‘Life’. 

How do you get this ‘Life’? 

“You must be born from above”, and if you have never been born you are not ‘alive’. 

And so it is quite clear that ‘Nicodemus’ had not ‘the Nature’ of ‘the Kingdom of God’ because he had not ‘the Life’. 

For any of us to get into ‘the Kingdom of God’ we have to receive ‘the Life of God’, which is ‘His very Nature’. 

Then we said it is a different ‘consciousness’. 

How beautifully this is illustrated by ‘the Woman of Samaria’! 

‘Poor Woman’, she wanted to know ‘the Secret of Life’. 

She had missed it, had tried to find it, but had never done so. 

Hers was only a ‘poor existence’! 

‘The Lord Jesus’ began to speak to her about ‘Life’ and said, in effect: “the water that I give you will be living water in you, is springing up into Eternal Life”. 

When you have ‘the Life’ that ‘I’ can give you, or that is in ‘Me’, then you will find that ‘Secret of Life’. 

What about this matter of a ‘new consciousness’? 

A whole section of ‘John’s Gospel’ is taken up with this. 

On one side stands ‘the Lord Jesus’ alone: on the other are ‘the Jewish leaders’. 

They are in two different worlds and do not understand one another - at least, ‘the Jewish leaders’ do not understand ‘the Lord Jesus’. 

How different they are! 

‘The Lord Jesus’ puts ‘His Finger’ upon the very point of the difference - ‘He’ speaks of ‘God’ as ‘His Father’. 

‘He’ says to them: you just do not know ‘the Father’...“You are of your father the devil” (John 8:44)...‘I come from above’ - ‘God is my Father’. 

‘He’ had ‘the Consciousness of God’ as ‘His Father’ and they had no such ‘Consciousness’, and ‘the reason’ was that they had not this ‘Life’ in them. 

Then what about this matter of constant ‘development’?  

There is a very beautiful illustration of this in ‘John’s Gospel’ in ‘Chapter 12’, were ‘the Lord’ says: “Except a grain of wheat fall into the earth and die, it abides by itself alone:”...by itself alone...“but if it die, it bears much fruit”. (John 12:24) 

‘The new Life’ that comes in ‘Resurrection’ means that that seed is multiplied a hundredfold. 

There is no end to ‘the development’ of it, once ‘Resurrection  Life’ comes into it. 

There is constant development by ‘the Power of this New Life’, and that is a ‘Law of Life’.

All these things are meant to be true of you and of me, for this is what it means to have this ‘New Life’. 

I trust that what we have been able to say makes ‘very real’ this ‘wonderful thing’ that ‘Jesus Christ’ came into ‘the world’ to give to us. 

In his letter ‘John’ said: “He that has the Son has the Life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the Life”. (1.John 5:12)

If we have ‘the Lord Jesus’ then we have this ‘Life’, and what this ‘Life’ is in all these ‘respects’ is supposed to be true of us. 

That is ‘the Miracle of Eternal Life’. 

May that be true of every one of us!

We have ‘the Son’ and we have ‘the Life’; we know that we have ‘the Life’ and that, as we said, we are having it more ‘abundently’, meaning that ‘the Life’ has to grow forever.