04/01/07
The Final Public Ministry - Jn 12
We are going to see in this passage encounters between the Lord and four different groups of people. For the most part, the people who observed the Lord in this chapter got it wrong, all but a very few. The same is true today – most get it wrong when it comes to Jesus Christ. They don’t understand him and receive nothing from him. You need to be sure that you are getting the right perspective on the Lord Jesus Christ.
I am going away - Jn 13.1-14.14
The Lord’s going away is necessary for the disciple’s going ahead.
I Send another Comforter - Jn 14.15-16.33
The provision of God for the inadequacy of believing men is the constant indwelling of the infinite Spirit.
04/04/07
The High Priestly Prayer - Jn 17
The prayer we have in Jn 17 is the most extended prayer of the Lord in the Bible. It is a remarkable window into heaven, giving us a glimpse of the communication between Father and Son. But the prayer in Jn 17 is not purely the interpersonal communication within the Godhead – especially during the Lord’s earthly ministry, but to some extent ever afterward, I think, the Lord Jesus communicates with the Father from a human perspective. This prayer is the prayer of a man [a perfect man, a God-man, but still a man] to God. It is therefore very instructive for us.
04/08/07 [Easter Sunday]
Behold the Lamb of God (2) - Jn 18-19
In the first Behold the Lamb, we looked at Christ through the eyes of sympathetic witnesses. In this Behold the Lamb, we will look at Christ through the eyes of mostly unsympathetic men. They see merely a man. We will see much more than a man. The abused man who hung on the cross of Calvary is the precious Lamb of God, slain for the sins of the world.
He is not here! - Jn 20-21
John 20 is the resurrection chapter. The whole emphasis is believing the message John is giving. John 21 offers more proof, but it is more about what we do next – believe, yes, but now serve.
The New Commandment Applied - 1 Jn 1-3
The light that should dominate the Christian life comes from one source, but we think of it in several different locations. First is the light that comes from God. God is light. The second source in our minds is the word of God, which of course comes from God also. The word is light. In particular the light in which we are exhorted to walk in 1 Jn is the new commandment: love one another.
04/11/07
Certainty in the Confession of Christ - 1 Jn 4-5
Another major theme in 1 John is knowledge. From knowledge comes certainty. If we have the knowledge of the truth and we walk in the truth and live the truth, we will develop spiritual certainties about certain things. Genuine Christian experience produces spiritual certainty and stability.
04/15/07
Watch yourselves, watch your church - 2 Jn, 3 Jn
I have given our message this title: Watch yourselves, watch your church The ‘watch yourselves’ part comes from 2 Jn. The ‘watch your church’ part from 3 Jn. I am going to set our theme from 2 Jn, making much of the theme of truth, then point to three ways this theme is applied to three individuals in 3 Jn. Christian love is practiced in the sphere of discerning truth – it is bounded by truth and practiced in truth among lovers of the truth.
The Revelation of Jesus Christ - Rev 1
The book of Revelation is the Lord’s last love letter to his church, intended to instruct present saints for life in this age and future saints for enduring the trials to come.
The Lord in the Midst of the Candlesticks - Rev 2-3
It is better to think of these seven churches as typical of the kinds of churches that exist at any time. Some are well thought of by the Lord, some are poorly thought of, others are in the middle somewhere. When we look at these chapters we should be asking the question, 'What does the Lord think of me? What does the Lord think of my church?' The Lord’s overview of the church should stir us to conviction, correction, and continuation [in the work of the Lord].
04/18/07
The Scene in Heaven - Rev 4-5
The prospect of heaven calls forth the complete surrender of the person in abject devotion and worship to the One who alone is worthy.
04/22/07
The Scroll Unsealed - Rev 6-8
Our subject matter for today is mostly judgement. So how can we make this relevant to us? I think we need to look into these chapters and see what the chapters say about God and also look to see what the chapters say about man. What do these chapters reveal concerning the relationship between God and man and how should we live now as a result? Failing human beings must yield to the will and way of the sovereign God.
Three Woes - Rev 9-11
Judgement intensifies as the tribulation progresses. The last three trumpets are called the three 'woes'. Woe to the world and to the enemies of God means glory and blessing for the saints.
The Great Antagonists of Israel - Rev 12-13
Chapters 12 and 13 are primarily explanatory – they explain what the conflict of the Tribulation is all about. In these parenthetical chapters, we are going to see the three great antagonists of Israel during the Great Tribulation, fully revealed in their persons and in their fury against God and God’s people. The antagonists of Israel are the antagonists of man, intent on drawing men’s worship away from God and to Satan.
04/25/07
Anticipation of the End - Rev 14-15
In this section, the Lord himself is giving a preview of the final days of the tribulation, an anticipatory vision anticipating the anticipatory vision that pictures the final consummation of all things. It ought to stir us up to be in prayer for the lost, to be witnesses to the lost, to point them to God as their great Sovereign, and to Christ as their great Saviour. The judgement of sinners and victory of saints is assured by God’s repetitive revelation: does the love of Christ constrain you to tell men?
04/29/07
The Great Harvest - Rev 16-19
The picture we are given in the earth of the harvest is that of a vine ready to harvest – a vine where the grapes are in prime condition, ready and bursting for the harvest (Rev 14.18). God’s final answer to sin is judgement. It is much better for man to judge himself, turn to Christ, and thus be received into glory before judgement to come.
The Time of the End - Rev 20
Human history does not simply conclude with a great ‘NO!’ by God against sin and sinners. Besides saying NO, by bringing the kingdoms of men to an end, God will also say YES by bringing a perfect kingdom to men. The purpose of God’s YES is to demonstrate to the utmost the righteousness and justice of God’s final NO to sin.
The New Jerusalem - Rev 21-22
In our passage today we will find six new things. Each of them represents something that is new in quality, fresh, vital, alive, not necessarily brand new, but renewed. The New Creation restores all that was lost in the fall — at great cost.
In my messages from Revelation, I repeated this quotation from my notes in a Bible class taught by the late Jesse Boyd at BJU. The quotation captures exactly the right approach to the book of Revelation (and the entire Bible).
The Golden Rule of Interpretation:
"When the plain sense of Scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at its primary, ordinary, usual, literal meaning unless the facts of the immediate context studied in the light of related passages and axiomatic and fundamental truths indicate clearly otherwise." DAVID L. COOPER [New Testament Prophecy classroom notes taken by Don Johnson of a lecture by Jesse Boyd, circa 1977.]
This series had tremendous impact on my life, and the life of our church. I am working on getting the audio onto a DVD along with the sermon and Bible Study notes. I can make this available to anyone for the cost of mailing (anticipated readiness in the fall). Write me at dcsj AT telus DOT net if you are interested.
I would encourage anyone who has not done so to make a project of reading the Bible in chronological order. It will open up the Scriptures to you in ways you never saw before.
Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3
2 comments:
That is great (that you have posted the rest of your series), Bro. Don. Looking forward to reading the rest of your series.
Were these notes based on the sermons (or sermon outlines), or were these notes first? I noticed that the last few Hebrews studies were much shorter - didn't seem to be fleshed out as much. Still was blessed by reading them, but noticed the difference.
God bless.
Hi Jerry,
What we have here are the notes I took into the pulpit. There are a few spots where I had very little time to prepare, so the notes were shorter. I also prepared study guides for the passages. They were handed out each week, basically a verse by verse commentary on the New Testament. Having prepared those notes in such detail, I found that I was able to give reasonably good messages even with sparse notes. Usually I try to plan out everything I intend to say in the notes.
Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3
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