Dan Lee
John 17:22-26, For Love and Glory (Part-2)

Jesus prays regarding two kinds of glory. He speaks of glory in the present age for His people’s sanctification. God’s elect grow in conformity to Him as they behold His glory in Christ. Jesus also prays for future glory, that His people behold His full, divine, eternal glory in heaven. We are to behold the glory of God now for our sanctification and the glory of God in the future for our glorification.

Dan Lee
John 17:22-26, For Love and Glory

Jesus concludes His prayer with love and glory. Love is the focus of this sermon. The Lord prays that we would come to experientially know (taste) of the Father’s special love. This is the special love of the Father like His love toward His only begotten Son. Like that love, the Father loved His elect from eternity past and “in love predestined us to adoption as sons.” This is the love which Jesus wants us to savor. May the Holy Spirit reveal to us more and more of this awesome love of God.

Dan Lee
John 17:20-23, Salvation Blessing for the World

Jesus’ prayer reflects the heart of God that seeks salvation blessing for the world. Jesus sees the church as the vehicle by which the elect of God worldwide will come to faith in Him unto salvation. In this first installment on a two part sermon, we explore the facets of the church, our mission, our godliness, and the special love of God toward the elect (next sermon).

Dan Lee
John 17:14-19, A Dangerous Mission

Jesus’ prayer for His disciples is undergirded by the reality of a dangerous mission. He knows we will be hated by the world and targeted by the Devil. As such, we will need divine protection. Hence, He prays, “Keep them from the evil one.” Moreover, we will need to live holy lives if we are to make any meaningful impact for the gospel that reconciles and restored sinners to the holy and righteous Father. Our own lives would have to be sanctified in order for us to be useful to the Lord in leading the rest of His elect to this salvation. Therefore, the Lord prays, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.” The word of God that has regenerated us is the same word that will sanctify our lives. May the Holy Spirit through His word evermore conform us to Christ that we would be like Him on earth and make disciples for His honor and glory.

Dan Lee
John 17:9-13, For the Joy of God's Elect

Jesus’ first petition for His disciples is found in these verses. Jesus prays that the Father would keep them in His name. Jesus prays for a special people, His disciples and He does so because He was about to physically leave His disciples. What He would no longer be able to do in His physical absence, He asks the Father to accomplish. May the Lord grant to us a greater work of His Spirit to draw us to walk in Jesus’ ways and thus live with His joy evermore in our hearts.

John 16:7-9, The Conviction of the Holy Spirit: Regarding Sin

Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit will bring conviction of sin upon the world. This is a boon for disciples show understand the Lord’s purpose for His world in this age. May we all have hearts that are in tune with the mission of our Lord that we be disciples and make disciples. Given the context in which Jesus spoke, He narrows the conviction for sin to the sin of unbelief. Unbelief is a serious matter in the sight of God, but there is great hope for those whom the Spirit convicts.

John 16:5-7, Jesus Promises the Helper

Jesus promises the Helper. To be without help is not what Jesus planned for His disciples. These whom He loved, shepherded, and guarded throughout His ministry years will not be left alone to fend for themselves. The Lord has been and continues to be their good shepherd. There are implications for us as to how Jesus has dealt with His disciples. He cares for us the same way. He sees our sorrows and He ensures that no suffering is for naught. He has sent His Holy Spirit (the “Alongsider”) to give us all that we need to fulfill the will of God for us in this age. This study kicks off another study on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit.

John 16:1-4, Jesus Our Guardian

The main idea of John 16 is best captured in the identity of Jesus as our Guardian. This idea is seen in vv 1-15 in that Jesus guards us from stumbling (vv 1-4a), from helplessness (vv 4b-11), and from ignorance (vv 12-15). In this first installment of our studies from John 16, we see how Jesus guards His disciples with His prescience (or foreknowledge) of their future persecution. Moreover, we see how Jesus also foretold us of the more general trials of life for His people (“tribulation” or “affliction” of 16:33). Amid all the trials of life, Jesus guards us from the greatest danger, the danger of falling away. He preserves His own to the very and He does so through means.

Isaiah 8:11-20, Stand Firm (Part 2)

We must stand firm on the word of God. The temptation to become like the world in what we say, what we fear, and what we hear are immense. The LORD speaks to Isaiah, the believers of his generation, and to us, to take this matter seriously and to not waver in our commitment and faithfulness to the word of God. The Holy Spirit’s aid is available to all who would humbly hear, believe, and abide in His truth. May the Lord heighten our spiritual alertness this year to stand up and stand firm on the word of God and be the influence we ought to be in this dark and dying world.

Isaiah 8:11-20, Stand Firm (Part 1)

The LORD knew that Isaiah would face the temptation to conform to the unbelieving world around him. Therefore, He spoke to exhort and admonish the prophet to resist conformity and to stand firm on the revelation He had given him. There is a wonderful lesson for us as we embark upon the New Year. We, too, must resist conformity to the world and remain faithful and steadfast in our commitment to the word of God. Stand firm on the word of God is the encouragement that we find in verses 11-15 and 19-20.

Isaiah 8:11-20, Stand Up

God made Isaiah and his sons into a witness for Him. They along with their God-given unique and prophetic names became the living testimony of the veracity of God’s word. Whom has God ordained to be the witnesses for His word in this day and age? This is the question we ponder in our study of Isaiah 8. May the Lord raise up a people to hold up and give testimony to His word for our generation.

Isaiah 9:1-7, Immanuel Has Come

God came down to earth in the person of Jesus. This is the stupendous message of Christmas according to Isaiah. This is the human ruler who is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Eternal Father, and the Prince of Peace, who comes to deal with the root problem of all our ills at His first coming, then comes again in the future to bring about the fullness of salvation at His second coming.