By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at / Published Life BPC 8 am service, 2004-02-29

Text: John 17:3

The topic of our Gospel Sunday message this morning is 'Christ or Religion?' Perhaps you may be wondering what kind of question this is. It may seem somewhat incomplete. What is really being asked in this question? Well, the question is actually all about the way we can know God and reach Him. 

From time immemorial, man's greatest quest throughout all the ages has been to find the God who created him. Man knows deep in his heart that in finding God he will also find the true meaning to life. Only by finding God can a person find the ultimate purpose for his human existence in this world and find peace for his troubled soul. This quest for God is how religion actually began - with man's search for God. In all the efforts made by man to know God, all the various religions of the world have come into being. 

The primitive tribes sought to know God in the form of idols that were carved out of stone or wood. Some thought they could find God by looking at the stars, the moon and the sun. Others thought they could find God by looking within themselves. Many ancient sages and philosophers thus sought to know God by spending time in regorious exercises of self-denial, thinking and solitary meditation. As time went on, religion became more and more elaborate. Ornate places of worship were built for people to come and seek God. Books were written to preserve what was believed about God and how man can reach Him. Special religious rites and ceremonies were used to offer up gifts and sacrifices to God. Sometimes, even human lives were offered as sacrifices!

But all these man-made religions have failed to provide man with the right knowledge of the Living and True God. Instead of doing this, their teachings have made their own gods after their own image - gods that are made in the likeness of mortal men. And instead of bringing man closer to God and into harmony with God, man-made religions have only brought hatred and strife among men because of disagreements on the right knowledge of God. 

After so many centuries of man-made religion, the question still remains: 'Can God be known?' The answer to this question is positively yes, but not by our own searching. Our own efforts will lead nowhere. God Himself must take the initiative to reveal His being to men. And He has done this in three ways:

First, through the wonders of Creation, Second, through His Word, the Bible, and Third, through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us consider each of these in detail: First, God has revealed Himself to us in:

I. Knowing God through His Work of Creation

There are so many things in the world around us that remind us of the greatness of God's creation - the sunshine, the rain, the animals and birds. Those who who visit the zoo or go on hikes through our nature reserves will discover how marvellous God's creation is. Those who have visited places like Taman Negara in Malaysia and other national parks overseas are bound to testify of the beauty of the mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, and even the wild life that is found there. One brother in our church I know went on a mountain climbing expedition of Mount Kenya in Africa and brought back wonderful pictures of nature's beauty that he took on the mountain. 

Whenever we admire the beauty of nature all around us, we should be impressed with the message about God that they proclaim to us. The Bible tells us in Psalm 19:1 'The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handywork.'

In Romans 1:20 the Bible also says: 'For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead'. In other words we actually can arrive at certain truths about God by a careful study of the marvels of His creation: From looking at the heavens and the earth we know that there is a God. God exists. We can also know that He must be a great God. If the sun is very bright, its Creator must surely be brighter and greater than the sun. The sun gives us warmth and its energy gives life to plants and ultimately all living things. God too must be life-giving and good.

But God cannot be fully known by pure sight and reason alone and there are definite limits to what we can know about God through studying His creation alone. That is why many scientists end up as agnostics - they believe God exists, but that He cannot be fully known at all. So by looking at nature or creation we know something of God's greatness and handiwork, but as to His full character we are still in the dark. God must communicate this knowledge to men.

The Almighty God must convey His thoughts and intentions and purposes to men. Only then can we know God more intelligently, not just as a distant impersonal creator, but as a person. We ask then, has God actually communicated with men? Indeed He has:

B. Knowing God through His Written Word

God has communicated with men through selected individuals called prophets. The prophets wrote down the words of God with the authoritative declaration, 'Thus saith the Lord.' (i.e. This is what God has said.) And the written record of these communications which the prophets received from God is now available to all of us in this Book - the Bible. 

In II Timothy 3:16, God's Word itself says, 'All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and in profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness' The Bible is the only book in the world that can give us a true and accurate account of God, of His doings, His dealings with men in history and His purpose in creation. It also tells us of God's plan for man, and what He requires of us, for He is the Lord and the Creator who has given us this opportunity to live in His world. We should therefore read it constantly, daily, meditatively, humbly and with an open and submissive mind, in order to receive what God want us to know about Himself.

But there is something that is even better than any verbal communication or book, that will enable us to know God. It is a personal acquaintance and fellowship with God Himself in person. We will know a person, not just with our mind but also with our heart, only when we are able to walk and talk with him. Then our knowledge of him will have warmth, intimacy and depth. But how can we know God in person?

C. Knowing God through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ

When the Lord Jesus came into this world, the revelation of God became full and complete. Through Jesus, man can now know God more intimately and perfectly, in the best possible way. And there can be no further revelation of God after this final one. If there is, then Jesus would no longer be perfect. 

The Bible says this in Hebrews 1:1-3 - 'God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; Who being the brightness of His glory, and the expres3 image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;'. 

Jesus Christ is really God Himself who came into this world as a man. Jesus declared this to Thomas, His disciple, in John 14:7-11 - 'If ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also: and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him. Philip saith unto Him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? he that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works' sake.'

In Jesus Christ, we see God taking the initiative to reveal Himself fully to men, so that men might be able to know God. Look at John 1:17,18 'For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.' Jesus reveals all the attributes of the God the Father to us: His holiness, love, and mercy.

And this act of revealing Himself through Jesus was an act of great condescension for Him. Jesus had to pay a tremendous price in order to be born into this world. In order to become an ordinary creature like us, He had to submit Himself to being limited by time and space. He had to temporarily lay aside His unlimited powers and unlimited knowledge as God. He had to condescend to living in alien environment and live on earth as a humble servant.

Those of use who have lived overseas before may be able to understand what this is like. When you have to leave the comfort of your homeland and live in a different land, with different people and a different culture. You have to get used to many alien customs, and eat alien food. Some of you may have had problems adjusting to life in a foreign land.

And this is what God Himself did, when He condescended to live in this world as a man. What He did involved untold sacrifice and humiliation for Himself.

And to make matters even harder, Jesus had to endure living in a world that is full of sin and wickedness. That is a most difficult thing to do, because God is absolutely holy and pure and cannot tolerate even the slightest sin. It's different for us, because we are all sinners and we are so used to living in a sinful environment. We don't really feel too upset to be surrounded by a world of sin, since we ourselves are sinners. But to Jesus Christ, every single moment of living in this sinful world was most difficult and unpleasant.

And at the end of His earthly existence, Jesus even had to submit Himself to being victimized by man's sin. He experienced the agony of dying a most painful death. The Bible describes this by saying that He 'made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.' (Philippians 2:7,8)

Dear friends, no one has ever condescended to do as much as Jesus did when He was born into this world. No one ever had to go through such a great degree of discomfort and endurance. And you know, He could easily have said to Himself, 'Why should I bother to go through all this?' He could easily have remained as He had been from eternity and never become a man like us.

But why then, did He do it? What was it that moved the all-mighty, all-powerful God come down to our level as a man among us? It was His Great Love for us that made Him do it. One Bible verse that is my favorite is John 3:16, because it tells us about what God had done in His love for us. 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.' (Let us all read it together!)

Dear friends, God loved us so much that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus to save us. Why do we need to be saved? From the beginning God had created man to enjoy intimate fellowship with Him. But this was all spoiled by the most unfortunate thing that happened: Man chose to sin and corrupted himself, and thus separated himself from God. The Bible tells us that 'all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.' (Romans 3:23)

Everyone who has ever lived and who lives today is a sinner in God's sight. And because of sin, all are doomed to die not only physically, but also eternally, in a place of unbearable torment called Hell. And no one is able to deliver himself or herself from facing this terrible end. People have tried everythingto deliver themselves - they have tried to do good works; they have tried to seek knowledge and wisdom. 

They have also tried to follow all the strict rules of religion and perform acts of penance and charity. But none of these things have helped at all to deal with sin and bring man back to God. The problem of sin still remains. Sin is like a stubborn stain that cannot be removed.

So here we all are, dear friends, doomed to die an eternal death because of our sins, and yet totally unable to save ourselves from that in any way. Is there any way at all to save us? The wonderful news is that there is a way we can be saved. God Himself provided that way to save us. He did this by coming into this world as Jesus Christ. Then He removed our sins by one single, final act of dying on the cross for us. The Bible says, 'But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.' (Romans 5:8)

Dear friends, God wants you to know that He loves sinners like you and me so much, that He sent Jesus to earth to die for our sins. And only Jesus alone can save you and bring you back to God. There is no one else who can save you because no one else was God Himself in the flesh. 

Look at John 14:6 - 'Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.' You cannot be saved by being born into a good family or a Christian family. You cannot be saved by coming to church regularly. You cannot be saved by doing good works, or by donating a lot of your money to charity, because Jesus said, 'no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.' Our text in John 17:3 'And this is life eternal that they may know Thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.'

Only Jesus saves! And if you will turn to Him now for salvation, He will save you. Listen to what Jesus said, 'Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls' (Matthew 11:28-30)

When you come to Jesus for salvation He promises to give you this wonderful rest. And the Bible tells us that you will also find peace in Him, and joy in Him, a joy that goes on forever and ever. When you receive Jesus Christ into your life, you will be restored back to fellowship with God: The fellowship that God originally created you for. That wonderful fellowship begins right here on earth when you are saved, and it continues even after you die, for at the point of death you will immediately go to be with God in His home in heaven. 

Now this fellowship and joy can be yours. You can have it right now if you will turn away from your sins and personally ask Jesus Christ to save you. The Bible says, 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.' (Acts 16:31) So dear friends we now come to the important question, that is: Will you turn to Jesus Christ right now?

There was once a man who heard essentially the same message you heard today, but somehow he did not take it seriously. His family however, believed in Christ and they all lived in a place where there was plenty of snow in winter time. On one Christmas Eve night, the man's family went to church to celebrate Christ's birth. But the man did not want to go with them and so he stayed at home. 

He wanted to enjoy reading a book by the warm fireside of his home. A short while after his family left, the man heard some strange noises coming from outside his home. He went to the window to look outside. And in the evening light he could see a few birds huddled together in the snow. Apparently these birds had failed to migrate to warmer lands. Now they were caught in the bitter cold of winter and were slowly dying in the snow.

When the man saw this pitiful sight, his heart melted and he felt great compassion for them. 'There must be some way I can help them' he thought to himself. And then he had an idea: 'I will get them to come into my home where they will be warm.' So he put on his warm clothes and went outside to bring the birds into his house. But when the birds saw him coming they were afraid of him and moved quickly away from him. He could not get a single pigeon to go into the house. Then he had another idea: 'I'll throw bread crumbs to them and use this to lead them into my house.' So he went in and got the bread crumbs and soon he was outside again, hoping that it would work. But as he threw the bread crumbs near the birds they sank into the snow and the birds were not able to get them. He was disappointed but he did not give up. He tried some other ways to get them in, but each time it with the same result: the birds did not come into the house.

Finally, after he failed so many times and was exhausted, he looked at the birds still huddled in the snow and dying, and he wept with frustration. And he said to himself, 'If only; If only I could become one of them just for a while. If only I could be a pigeon, I would be able to tell them that they can be saved from dying and bring them into the house.' Just at that moment the man heard the church bells ringing. And then he realised what the message of Gospel was all about. It is about a God who loved a dying world so much that He actually became a man in order that He might save people from sin and bring them with Him to heaven.

As the man now understood the Gospel, he knelt down in the snow and prayed, 'O God, how foolish I have been to have rejected You all this time. Thank You for becoming a man, like me, to save me from dying in my sins. I now believe in You, Lord Jesus, please save me, and when the time comes for me to die, bring me into the warmth of Your heavenly home.'

Dear friends, all heaven rejoiced that day with that man, because he had been saved. How about you? Will all heaven also rejoice with you today for your salvation? Will you come to the Lord Jesus Christ now, without any more delay and ask Him to deliver you?

Christ Himself said: 'All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will by no means cast out....Come to me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.'

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