Introduction

How do we decide what's true?

I don't mean in a big philosophical way

I just mean in a get reaction day to day way

how do we decide what the truth is

when we're bombarded with information

when we're scrolling through our Facebook news feeds

and articles pop up when friends send us

and suggest links of videos to watch

how do we decide in all of that what's true?

I'm gonna say that there's two ways

at least that we use

that's more of a knee jerk reaction

in making judgments

about the things that people tell us

The first way we decide what is true

the first one is this

unwittingly perhaps without even think about it

thinking about it we make a judgment based on who it is

that's providing the information

whether that's the friend who sharing it

and thought we have about them

or the actual source of the news or the article

or whatever it is we'll already have an idea

and a picture of who they are

and if we like them then we tend to trust them

and if we dislike them then we tend to distrust them

if it's from a new source

that we accept as being legitimate and honest

then we won't ask many questions

but on the other hand

if it's from a source that we distrust

that we dislike we still won't ask the questions

we'll just decide straight away that it isn't true

the second way is a lot like that

and it has to do more with content of the message

the content of the article

of the video that we're watching

The second way we decide what is true

the second way is whether we like what's being said

does it line up with

stuff that we already think is true

does it line up with something that we want to be true

we're more inclined to believe things

that we want to be true

than we are inclined to believe things that are

difficult to accept

or are expecting us to change the way we see the world

and ourselves and our place in it

see truth isn't nearly as objective

as we like to think it is

each and every day

we make judgments about whether we're gonna accept

suit in claims suit in statements

not by assessing the validity of those statements

but just by looking at who said it

and whether we like what they have to say

and my

3) Why people tend to reject the truth of the Bible

my worry I think that's the right way to describe it

my worry is that

far too many people have rejected the Bible

have rejected

the things that it says about Jesus Christ

because they've heard statements like this

the Bible is too old to be trustworthy

all the Bible that we have now has been edited

and fiddled with and doctored

too much for us to even know

what the people who originally wrote it wrote

or the Bible has been put together by a group

a sinister group

of old white men in a room to manipulate people

my worry is that we believed all sorts of statements

either because they've come from a source

who we naturally are inclined to trust

or simply because they

present us with a view of the world

a view of the Bible

that we're quite happy to carry on with

that it's much easier to distrust the Bible

than it is to explore it to engage with it

to read it to investigate it ourselves

to find out whether it's true

now the Bible is an incredibly varied book

and it would take far too long for me to

to go into the various reasons why we can trust it

over the next couple of weeks

we're gonna be looking

specifically at the gospel of John

one part of the New Testament

which is as close to a biography of Jesus's life

as you're ever gonna get

in it John makes this claim

I've written these things

so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah

the son of God and that by believing

you may have life in his name

I've written these things that you may believe

and instantly

that sets alarm bells off in people's minds

that sends them to the places

perhaps your places you would go to

as a reason and excuse to reject the Bible out of hand

completely

you see John

that's why I can't trust what you've written

you've written it thousands of years ago

what's in the Bible now

I'm not sure is what you ever wrote

and anyway you have clearly

clearly got an agenda

do you expect me to believe a single word that you

written

I think John clearly does expect us to believe

and I think it's reasonable to believe

what John has written

not because those objections aren't important

but even spending a few more months thinking about them

considering them

we see that they're not really objections

to what John has written

or the Bible in general at all

let's face them one by one

1.      The Bible is too old to be true

the first objection that it's just too old

John's gospel um

was written nearly 2,000 years ago

there are portions of the Bible

which are significantly older than that

and so our inclinations to say it's too old

it can't be trusted it can't be reliable

but

stop and think about what we're saying when we do that

we're saying that the age of something

determines whether it's true or not

that somehow

something could have been true a long time ago

but that truth decays over time

flip it on his head

and you see how really ridiculous that statement is

that because something is new

it must be true we know that's not the case

in any way

how old is too old

something that's five minutes too old

course not something that's five days too old

probably not but what about five months

five years five decades

five centuries you see

it's it's arbitrary where we draw the line in the sand

over what we would trust

if it was based purely alone on age

the idea that we can't trust the Bible

just because it's old simply doesn't make sense

that anybody was willing to stop and to think about it

2.      It’s been meddled with

the second objection is that it's been meddled with

interfered with has been chopped and changed

and added to and taken away from over the years

really

has it when

by who

in what way

you know one of the fascinating things about the Bible

is that it is the most scrutinized

piece of literature in human history

it's been poked it's been prodded

it's been investigated

it's been questioned and interrogated

more than any other book in history

and it still remains standing

more work has been done researching the authenticity

the originality of the biblical text

than any other book and scholars

almost universally accept it to be a true

and accurate reflection

of what was written down in the first place

and they do that in a really interesting way

it might not sound convincing to begin with

but it really is

they do it

because of how many copies we have of documents

like John's Gospel

now it is fair to say

we do not have the original document written by John

but we have scores and scores and scores of copies

let me help you to understand why that's important

I got notes with me

here today notes to help me stay on track

um and just so you know

there's about a thousand to 1,500 words in those notes

now imagine

I asked everyone who was watching this to copy down

by hand those notes

we collect at the end maybe 100

150 um versions of my notes and truth be told

none of them would be 100% correct

if you're writing is anything like mine

you misspell words

you put punctuation in the wrong places

heaven forbid even whole paragraphs

might be missed out by people who are rushing

but here's the really amazing thing

is that your mistakes and my mistakes

and the mistakes of the person next to you

they wouldn't all be made in the same place

actually all of our mistakes would be easily spotted

by looking at all of the other copies

if you grabbed all those copies together

and decided to burn my original set of notes

you'd still be able to reproduce

with 99.9% accuracy and certainty

a representation of what was originally written

so the idea that it's been fiddled with

the idea that it's been meddled with

that doesn't stand up to scrutiny either

3.      It’s pushing its own agenda

Well what about that last objection then

that you can't trust it

because it was written with such an obvious agenda?

I think there's a sense in which we're right to be

suspicious

there's a sense in which we're right to be skeptical

of people who twist truth

in order to accumulate wealth

power and authority

our society is full of examples of men and women

who have been economical with the truth

or of told bold faced

bare faced lies in order to fatten their bank accounts

or to tighten their grip on authority

we should be

sometimes suspicious of people who have an agenda

but when we stop when we consider

what is the agenda of someone like John

who brought this account of Jesus's life

or the other people

who contributed to the New Testament

and the rest of the Bible

what do we suppose that they were after wealth

power fame

recognition reputation

privilege honour

once again history does not bear witness

to those things being the case

almost to a man the people who ruled the New Testament

suffered greatly for sharing the good news about Jesus

they were vilified they were um scorned

they were abused they were beaten

they were chased out of time

an awful lot of them were executed

for sticking to their story

the idea that they did it in order to accumulate wealth

or power or whatever

really doesn't hold water

because what they had was taken away

they suffered and were persecuted for what they wrote

and what they said

So what is the agenda?

because I think the agenda is really important

John says this: “these things that I have written

so that you may believe

believe that Jesus is the Messiah”

… the rescuer that he is the son of God

God made flesh …

“and that by believing you may have life in his name”

see John's agenda is that we would believe

and that we would have life

let me give you another example

of a content that was created

with a very specific agenda

that really proves that having that agenda

shouldn't undermine the message at all

when I was growing up I remember late October

early November there would be a series of adverts

that would always come on TV

there would be adverts featuring families out on a dark

winters nights

and fireworks exploding overhead

and wouldn't you know what

there was always one dumb kid

who would take off his mitten

reach out and grab a sparkler by the wrong end

quickly the advert would pan to a NE

where distraught family

were dealing with the serious burns

the injuries

that the firework had inflicted on this child

etched in my brain those adverts are

by the way I still can't go near a sparkler

I still don't like being in the same room as a sparkler

now clearly the makers of those adverts had an agenda

and the agenda was we wanted to keep you

we want to keep your family

we want to keep children in our country safe

when it comes to Bonfire Night

knowing that they have that agenda

doesn't in any way

undermine the truthfulness or the validity

or the impact that those adverts have had

or should have and I'd argue exactly the same with John

and his record of Jesus's life ministry miracles

teachings comings going death resurrection

we're fortunate to know

exactly what John wants us to do with it

he wants us to believe and he wants us to find life

and that doesn't undermine

that doesn't invalidate anything that he writes does it?!

Conclusion – John’s agenda: so you might have life in His Name

So let's think about that agenda then

let's think about what John expects to happen

if you and I read his gospel

we read his account of who Jesus is

and what he has done

he expects us to believe and he expects us to find life

I genuinely believe that

if you take the time to read John Gospel

you'll see how massive a claim that is

we think of life maybe simply in terms of being alive

but life is a massive theme

the sort of life that Jesus is described as bringing

is more than just existence

it's flourishing it's full

it's lasting in a way that very often

we don't see or expect life to be

um

put it this way

imagine a desert

it's dry it's desolate

it's dead

it's just a wild wilderness where nothing can live

but it does exist it's there

now when you introduce a source of water

a spring stream a little pool and a puddle

what happens in that dead and dry place

life appears life actually flourishes

plants and palm trees and then animals all the sudden

there's this source of life

in the middle of dryness and death

and it couldn't exist without the water

and it wouldn't exist if the water was taken away

this is what John is suggesting

Jesus is to us

not just one who points us in the direction of life

not even just one who is like a doorman or a gatekeeper

who says here's life and I'll let you in

but the very source of life itself

you may have life in his name

and and the thing is

we actually agree with John if we're honest

that there is more to life than we often accept

than we often acknowledge

that's why we have phrases

when we're relaxing on holiday

or attacking into a fine meal

phrases like this is the life

because we know that something different is happening

we know that there are qualities and levels of living

and life

that's why we pursue various things

in order to find life and to maintain life

at the moment

some people might think that face masks are life

and no doubt for some in our community

they will

literally be the difference between life and death

for others as lockdown restrictions have been lifted

trips to the beach have become life

especially as we

we see some of the natural beauty and wonder around us

and glorious weather and we see it with fresh eyes

having not experienced it for so long

for some people relationships are life

and we can certainly feel like death has come on us

when relationships end for other people

financial security that's life

just having that worry that burden taken away

at last we can breathe and we can experience things

now I'm not saying those things are bad

in fact I go as far as to say those things are good

those things are great

but it's like being in that desert place

sitting under the shade of the palm tree

enjoying a cool set from the

from the the pond that's gathered there and thinking

these things are life

these things are gifts

that come from the source of life

from the spring that has sprung up

that is watering that place

take the spring away and those things will certainly go

without the springs we couldn't have those things

and John says that is who Jesus is

he is the source of life

not to play down the other things

the good things that we have in this world

but that without the source

we are really not living life at all

the amazing thing about the life that Jesus came

to give us is that it's a life that doesn't run out

when we search for life elsewhere

it's always life that's limited

it's life with an expiration date

but here John is pointing us to one whose final miracle

final act was rising from death

was defeating death you'll find life in John's Gospel

in so many weird and wonderful places

but none more surprising than the burial chamber

of Jesus of Nazareth

because it didn't remain a burial chamber

it became a

a testament to the fact that he is the source of life

able even to defeat death

that's the sort of life that John is saying

if we let our guards down

don't dismiss the Bible of what he has written

for all these false reasons

but come

and listen to his eyewitness accounts of who Jesus is

what he said and what he did

that we would find that sort of life

death conquering life life without an expiration date

life that truly satisfies

that

that's another trueism about the world that we live in

when we find that sensation of life in something

it runs out or we realize it's not quite enough

it doesn't quite satisfy us enough

it doesn't quench our thirst or or seeciate our hunger

John says the life that Jesus came to give

the life that we find when we come to him that's

that's a life that really satisfies

he says it's a life that's abundant

that's more than we could ever hope or dream or imagine

I don't know about you but I do hope

I do dream I do imagine

I do fantasize about holidays in various places

of having gizmos and gadgets in my life and my home

John says

the life Jesus and the life that I have come to give

you is above and beyond all your wildest expectations

and dreams and it's eternal

it's a it's a life that lasts on and on and on

John's offer is not to settle for anything else

then I guess John's offer

John's kindness to us

is to record all the things that he does about Jesus

so that we don't need to keep on being dry and dead

and desolate and

and wild like that desert

but that we can come to see and recognize

and have Jesus that

that spring of life that watering life

that brings with it fullness and lushness

even in a dry and a desolate place

problem is I think that for most of us

we settle for the dry we settle for the desolate

or in the midst of that that

when a thorny cactus

breathes its way out of the deadness

and the dryness

we cling on to that as if that is the life that we need

I deliberately use that picture

mind you because it's like grabbing hold of a cactus

it's sharp it's painful

it's ultimately disappointing

and it and it won't really do anything for us

no we have Jesus

a spring of life in the midst of death

sometimes though

life can still feel like death

even when you have Jesus there's no denying that

that life now in this world is hard

it's disappointing it's frustrating

it's full of worries and anxieties and cares

but I think here's another wonderful offer from Jesus

that if we fix our eyes on him

if we continue to see him

to focus on him

we'll see and we will experience true and abundant life

as Christians one of the mistakes we can make

is to take our eyes off Jesus

as if we're at the edge of that oasis in the desert

and we turn around in the other direction

and all we can see for miles and miles and miles

as far as the shimmering horizon

is more dryness and death and desolation

and we ask where

where is this life that you promised Jesus

and it's it's just there

he hasn't gone he hasn't run out

the life hasn't turned into death

we've just turned our gaze away from it

and John says not just come and believe

but keep coming keep seeing

keep believing and keep on enjoying life

in Jesus's name

Prayer

Let me pray for us to finish

Lord God

we thank you for that life that Jesus has brought

we thank you for that life that Jesus is

look I'll be thank you for people like John

who saw and understood exactly who Jesus was

and why what he was doing was so important

and took the time and the energy

and was willing to sacrifice

in order to share that with us

so that we could come and we could see

and we could experience

Lord we admit that we are a thirsty sun scorched

parched people in the midst of that desert

that dryness that desolation

Lord we need the life that Jesus brings

help us to see that life

help us to move towards that life

and help us to remain there in that life

Lord I got God

I thank you

for the things that spring up because of that water

for the palm trees for the

for the soft lush

green grass

I pray that we would be people who enjoy those

and are thankful for those

but Lord

help us not to be people who fix our eyes on those

who give thanks for those

and not for the spring of life that is sprung up

help us to be truly thankful

appreciative

filled with joy and love for Jesus

who's in whose name we have true and lasting life.

Amen.