But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name, which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Amen. You may be seated. What a blessing it is that the true light has come into the world, that Jesus Christ was so sent by our Heavenly Father to come under great humiliation to live amongst a people here on this earth, a people who are wicked and filled with sin and undeserving people, wretched people. But He came for our sakes. living a perfect righteous life according to the law, without sin, dying a perfect wrath, satisfying substitutionary death on the cross for all who would believe on him. The scripture says, for he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. And as we now prepare our hearts for the Lord's Supper to come to the king's table, as we've heard. It's necessary for us to study our Savior, Jesus Christ, and all the benefits that he has gained for his bride, the church, through his death. And in particular, to consider this morning one of those benefits and the importance of our adoption into the family of God, and thus then enabled to come by that adoption to his table. Look at our passage, verse 12. It says, but as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. And that verse communicates wondrous truths for our help today. Oftentimes when we think of adoption, We think predominantly of the Father. And we ought to think, of course, of the Father. And yet this is only due to our ignorance of His Word and the great truths communicated about the work of redemption in Jesus Christ. But before we get to adoption in John 1, 12, we start with justification, because justification is also in verse 12. What is justification, but what is communicated here? As many as received him, even to them that believe on his name. Have you received Jesus Christ? Have you believed on his name? There is in the gospel a pleading with each and every one of you, each and every one of you who are sinners in the side of a holy God, and that's everyone. Apart from Christ Jesus, we know Christ says you can do nothing, we can do nothing. You're under the curse of the law, under the curse of the covenant of works, right? When we go to Romans and Jehovah through Paul is speaking of all people's Jews and Gentiles. He says in chapter three, most of you, a lot of you know this very well. There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They're all gone out of the way, they're together become unprofitable. There is none that doeth good, no, not even one. Their throat is an open sepulcher. And it continues there. That all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That all of us here have sinned against a holy God. Who is Jehovah and the condemnation, then the punishment for such sin, just one of those sins, all of the guilt from that one sin. And hit all of those sins from the very beginning. We heard yesterday evening from Genesis. Die, die. The die die. But what great promises we have, what great promises are freely offered to each and every one of you that though you are a sinner, there is freely offered to you today in Jesus Christ alone, salvation, to be delivered from the condemnation that your sin and your guilt grants to you. Forever and ever, you can be saved from eternal destruction and everlasting condemnation There is salvation offered to you today from the eternal curses that you have earned and what you are owed for your sin, for your life, what you have owed, what you're owed, for that is death, the pains of hell forever. That's what you've worked for with all of your sins and thought, word, and deed, and yet in Christ alone, by faith alone, You're offered salvation to be delivered from that death, to be delivered from that condemnation and granted life, life in Jesus Christ. But you must, verse 12, believe. You must believe on his name, the name of which there's no name, no other name under heaven by which we must be saved among men, the name of Jesus. Which means, of course, Savior, salvation, only salvation in Him. And sinner, you must be saved today, not tomorrow, not next month, not next year, not on your deathbed. But today, children, today must be the day you come to Jesus Christ and believe on His name, that He alone can save you from all of your sins. Children, today you must be saved from your sins. Otherwise you will perish forever. Now we heard last evening, you don't want to perish. You don't want unending punishments. Do you like disciplined children when your father disciplines you? No, you don't. You don't want unending punishments forever and ever and ever and ever and it never ends. You want life forever. You want those blessed memories like you have with your family around the dinner table and the fun times you have. You want those kind of thoughts. You want that kind of experience. And when we think of the gospel in Jesus Christ, you do not want wrath forever. You want life forever. You want feasting with Jesus, your Savior, your Redeemer, your King. And you want to feast with God's people forever. You want all your tears wiped away, don't you? You want all your pains to be taken away as well. You don't want death. You've seen death perhaps. You've gone to funerals. You've seen dead bodies, some of you. And parents encourage you to take children to see such dead bodies, cold, lifeless. You don't want more sorrow. You don't want more crying. The only way you can have life and not death. It's through the way, the truth, and the life, which is Jesus Christ. And in His name you must believe, but you cannot, children, and that includes all of us, of course, you cannot, children, believe just the facts of the gospel. Children, listen, look up here. You cannot believe just the facts of the gospel. That's not what he says when he says, you must believe in me. Yes, Jesus is the Messiah. Yes, Jesus lived a perfect righteous life. Yes, Jesus died on the cross for his people's sins and rose from the grave on the third day. Some of you might say, I believe in Jesus. Children, some of you might say, I believe in Jesus. But all you do is believe the facts of the gospel. All you do is believe, yes, Jesus died on the cross. And if that's it, then you're still in your sins. And the path you are on is that eternal damnation forever and ever. Notice verse 12. The believing that he's speaking about is a receiving. There's a receiving in the believing. You receive something. It's not just concerning believing truths about Jesus, about what he did for some random people group. No, to be saved from your sins, that isn't justification. To be made right in the sight of God, for you to be made right in the sight of God, for your sins to be covered, you must receive Jesus Christ. You must receive Him, and that means you must receive Him as your Savior. Not just that He is the Savior, but is He your Savior? Is He your Savior? You must trust with all of your heart in Jesus as your Savior, who saves you from your sin. Your sin. But you also must receive Jesus as your Lord. and your king. And so turning from your sin to King Jesus and trusting in him and committing your ways to him, submitting to him in all things. That's what receiving by faith Jesus is unto salvation. And so today, children, today, trust in Jesus as your Savior and your Lord. That's what it means to believe on the name of Jesus Christ. All of you here today must trust in Jesus as your Lord and your Savior from your sins. Your sins. But be warned, verse 13, that in order to believe and trust in Jesus alone for your salvation, you must receive a new heart. You're not justified, you're not saved from your sins because of your parents. It's nothing to do with your blood or who you were born to. It's not based upon the desires of your flesh or anyone else's desires. that you receive a new heart in order to believe and trust in Jesus and thus be justified or made right in God's sight and saved from your sins. It's not the will of the flesh or the will of man, but of God. You must be born of God. You must be born from above, not of your mother, but of God. Those born of their mothers alone are born dead in their trespasses and sins. Ephesians 2, and you hath he quickened. Who were dead in trespasses and sins were in time past. He walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lust of our flesh. fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, love those words, but God. God hath quickened. God makes your heart alive. God changes your heart and your desires. And it goes on, and the Lord tells us that you must believe then, and trust in Jesus, then this is the gift of God. All right, Ephesians 2, it's the gift of God. We heard, I think it was last evening, John 6, we're told, faith is a work of God in you. This is of God in Jesus Christ. Do you believe? Today must be the day of salvation for you. This must be the day of salvation to come and receive Jesus and believe on his name, that you by the great judge of all who will judge the quick and the dead. As he declared you not guilty. Has he declared you not guilty? In Christ, his son. Has he declared you righteous in Christ? Are you justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone? You know what justification in Christ grants you? You're granted citizenship in the kingdom of God. That's what we've sort of been learning about a little bit here in the last two evenings. Citizenship in the kingdom of God, wow. What a blessing. That is why when the John, the forerunner, John the Baptist came and preached, he said, Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is near. Is that hand. Turn from your sins today and turn unto the Lord of the kingdom, Jesus Christ. Because the kingdom is at hand. And when Jesus then came preaching the same gospel message, He preached what repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Today is the day you must repent. Today is the day you must trust in Christ turning from your sins and come into the kingdom of heaven, because this is there's a there's a hurry, a hurriedness about it. You have to do it because the kingdom is at hand. It's near. And so you must repent and come into the kingdom. Now you must believe on Christ. But now what is true? Christ is now having gone to the cross, risen from the dead. He's now ascended and he's exalted to the throne. And so now the message is what? Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is here today. The kingdom of heaven is here because Christ reigns as our mediatorial king. Praise the Lord. The same message, the same baptism, the same gospel. Repent ye and believe the gospel. And when you believe and are justified, you're made right in God's sight, you're brought into the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord. And you're made citizens. And what a blessing that alone is in itself, that Jesus Christ, through his sacrifice and his life, his exaltation to the throne, made us citizens of his kingdom, securing our justification, securing our citizenship through his resurrection from the dead. And what benefits have we being made citizens of the kingdom We have in Christ our king, a great defender. Praise the Lord. He's our rock, he's our strong tower, our fortress, those verses in the Psalms we often hang upon when things are going terribly bad. He shields us under the cover of his wings. That's Christ, our mediatorial king. If we search the scriptures, we would find that he fights for us, a great warrior. And what a blessing that He rules over us as King. He speaks and we hear His word, and we are kept from sin by His word. His law is perfect. His judgments are good. His word is forever settled in heaven, right? His law guides our steps as a light unto our path, and we could go on and on, but what else did Christ's perfect sacrifice on the cross gain for us who believe and who receive Him? Adoption. Verse 12. But as many as received him. To them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. To them gave He power to become sons of God. We think of Galatians 4. But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because He are sons, God has sent forth His Spirit, the Spirit of His Son, into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant but a son. And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. You cannot take this power to yourself. You cannot adopt yourself. That would make no sense, right? How can you adopt yourself? Or make yourself a son of God? You cannot. Adoption is something legal, like justification. It's a judicial act. Our court system, flawed as it is, still shows this truth forth. Adoption does not occur in one's heart. It occurs in the courtroom of Jehovah. It is through the sacrifice of Christ alone, his death on the cross, that gives us the right. Jesus, the only begotten Son of the Father, by virtue of our marrying Jesus Christ, the bridegroom, we, the church, the bride, that we are united unto Jesus, It's only through Jesus that we stand now related to God, the Father, our Father. What is it in Ephesians that in Christ we are predestinated to adoption? Having predestinated us unto adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will. that if you're justified by faith, you are received into the family of God. Jesus, as the God-man, is the firstborn among many brethren, and we are who believe the many brethren. The Son of God became a Son of Man, that the sons and daughters of men might become the sons and daughters of God. How can you be a child of God? How can you be adopted by the Father, or Galatians 3 tells us? For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. 1 John 5 says, whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. And everyone that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. Unless you have a living faith in Jesus Christ, then there is no sonship. No adoption for you and God. Never forget this, beloved, to talk of God being men's father and men being God's children while they do not believe on the Son of God, Jesus Christ, is contrary to scripture. You're not a child of God if you have no faith in Jesus. Do you believe, children, do you believe, any others here, do you believe on Jesus Christ for your salvation? When in verse 12 it says that Jesus gave power to become sons of God, what that means is that Jesus has gained for you, through His sacrifice, the right and privilege of being sons of God. To all who believe and trust in Jesus for their life, through His sacrifice, you're adopted. And this legal action of the Father declares, and He constitutes us as His children. But instead of gaining us a legal status of righteous in Christ and being made citizens of the kingdom that we have in justification, we're given a new relational status as members of God's family. Before we were part of the cursed, wicked family with our father, who is Satan, the great deceiver, but now the family of God in Christ. Now, beloved, you need to see something vital concerning the privileges and the rights of being sons of God through Christ's sacrifice, that by the grace of our God in and for his only son, Jesus Christ, we are made partakers of the grace of adoption. By which we enjoy the liberties and the privileges of the children of God. We can go through a few of them. That his name is upon us. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. And now that name is upon us, his people. Romans 8, verse 15, we receive the spirit of adoption and are enabled to cry, Abba, Father. And that does not mean Daddy, it means Father. Do not make light of Jesus and how he prayed, thinking he was a little child crying out to the Father. But we are now in Him and able to cry out, Abba, Father, for ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. Ephesians 3, we have access to the throne of grace with boldness, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by faith in Him. We are pitied the compassion and mercy of our father as Psalm 103. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. We are protected, Proverbs 14. In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence and his children shall have a place of refuge. We're protected. We're also provided for, Matthew 6. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? And we're chastened by our Father, Hebrews 12. For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. We are never cast off, Lamentations 3, for the Lord will not cast us off forever. We are sealed unto the day of redemption, Ephesians 4, and grieved not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. We inherit the promises, Hebrews 6, that ye be not slothful but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises, who inherits the sons of God. And we are heirs of eternal salvation. 1 Peter 1, he hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you. Those are just a few of the privileges and blessings of being adopted children of God. What a blessing that we're given a new heart, a new nature, and as we're adopted, that we begin to think and feel and desire and act like God's children rather than the devil's children. But as we prepare ourselves to come to the Lord's table, have you ever pondered, what is it that has granted me this right and this privilege to come to the king's table? Of course we would answer, Jesus Christ gave me this right and privilege to come to the king's table. He gave it to me by his great sacrifice for my sins, his bloodshed and his body given over for me, for all who believe. And justification, right? You're made what? You're made citizens of the kingdom. And when we think about worship, it's sort of like the wondrous picture in Psalm 84. For a day and night courts is better than a thousand. I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. All right, each of us, to be willing to sacrifice all just to be a doorkeeper in the house and the presence of Jehovah, even if we're a little further away. Think of the future when churches are full, according to the promise of Christ. There's standing room only. There won't be spaces in the pews. There'll only be standing room. Praise the Lord. But think of that time that we'd be just perhaps at the door, maybe out there in the foyer, trying to peer in. just to see, just to hear Jesus speak amongst the great crowds of God's people who have gathered to come and worship Him. We'd rather be there at the door peering in, just being able to hear Him than in our homes with the wicked out there, for great will be their destruction. And what a great Savior we have, that's what we get if we are to make the analogy with justification. And that's not bad at all to be citizens of the kingdom. And when the king comes by in his chariot among the multitudes, and we're in the back standing on our tippy toes, just trying to see him as he passes by. Just to get a glimpse of our savior, the king. What a great privilege to be in his kingdom and to serve the kingdom and receive the benefits of being in the kingdom. But beloved, that's justification. Adoption brings us all the way to Jesus, right where we can lay upon his bosom. Praise the Lord. That's what adoption does. It brings us all the way to the king's table, because now we're sons and daughters of God. Right? And Saul, again, we heard it a couple nights ago, when Saul was grumbling about David and what offense was brought to Saul because David wasn't there, because David feared for his life. Jonathan, Saul's son. He had an automatic place at the table because he was Saul's son. When we are brought into the family of God, you're sons of God, you're sons of the king. You aren't merely a citizen in a kingdom in which you're just a little peon nobody on the outskirts by the gates. You're adopted into the very family of the king. You're princes and princesses of the king, and he invites you to his table every day. Not as an outsider, but as one of the family. You belong there, children of God, Christians. That's where you belong. to be at the table of the king. And we read about Mephibosheth and 2 Samuel 9, which is a great picture of the gospel. We'll read it again, but not the full part of it. Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was come unto David, he fell on his face and did reverence. And David said, Mephibosheth. And he answered, behold thy servant. And David said unto him, fear not, For I will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father, and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. And he bowed himself and said, What is thy servant that thou shouldst look upon such a dead dog as I am? And the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him, I have given unto thy master's son all that pertain to Saul and to all his house, Thou, therefore, and thy sons and thy servants shall till the land for him, and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have food to eat. But Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread always at my table. Now Ziba had 15 sons and 20 servants. Then said Ziba unto the king, according to all that my lord the king hath commanded his servants, so shall thy servant do. As for Mephibosheth, said the king, he shall eat at my table as one of the king's sons. As for Mephibosheth, said the king, he shall eat at my table as one of the king's sons. What a great honor for Mephibosheth. to sit and eat at the king's table as son of the king. Even though he knew he was completely undeserving, a dead dog, he called himself right. Always he will eat at the king's table as one of the kings. So you see, the great picture should be fairly easy to see their salvation in Christ and the great right and privilege that we have as sons and daughters through adoption, through adoption and coming to the table of the Lord and the Lord's Supper to partake of that forever feast, then also in glory at the Lord's table. This is the honor that Christ places upon the supper when he invites us to eat with him at his table. Now, the questions we need to really ask today are concerning the promises of the Lord, which we can then discern if we are sons of God and daughters of God or not. John 11. Verse 25, Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. Do you believe and trust Christ Jesus as your Savior and your Lord? If you do, then you are a son of God, a daughter of God, and you're invited to the king's table. 1 John 2 verse 29 promises, if ye know that he is righteous, ye know that everyone that doeth righteousness is born of him. Do you desire holiness? Do you desire holiness? Do you see holiness in your life? Do you love righteousness and hate sin? If you do, and you are sons of God and invited to the king's table, Second Corinthians five or 17, therefore, of any man being Christ, he's a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. Is the old put away? Is it continuing to be put away and the new put on? Are you a new creature having been born again? If you see the evidence of it and you are sons of God and invited to the king's table, 1 John 5 verse 6, this is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the spirit that beareth witness, because the spirit is truth. Do you see, when you go through the truths of scripture, do you see that you're convicted of the truths of scripture, that they are absolutely true? Because he speaks. And those truths prompt you then and move you to believe and to action and to teach it to others. If you do, then you're sons of God and you're invited to the king's table. Galatians 5 verse 22, but the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such things there is no law. Do you see that fruit in your life in some measure Even if it's a little, do you see it there truly? If you do, then you're sons of God and you're invited to the king's table. Romans 7 verse 23, but I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. Like Paul, do you see the battle waging in your flesh? that there is a warfare going on because of your sin, and you hate that sin because you're sons of God. And you love righteousness, and yet you keep on sinning, and you hate that about yourself. But you love your Savior, and you love righteousness, and you see as those many failures that Christ is victorious a little bit more every day over your sin. And now he's completely victorious. guaranteed and seal forever. If you do, then you are sons of God and invited to the king's table. Does the spirit testify with your spirit that you're sons of God? That is, do you see what the scriptures state is true of all believers as we've been doing? And do you see the evidences of what is said is true of all of God's children? And do you see it in your life? and your sons of God, and invited to the king's table. Romans 8, are you led by the Holy Spirit? Do you pray? Do you cry out to the Father in heaven in prayer? And your children of God adopted. And if children, Romans says, then heirs, heirs of God, and join heirs with Christ. If so, be that we suffer with them, that we may also be glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Praise the Lord for Jesus Christ and his sacrifice that we are made children of God, heirs, adopted, and we have a permanent seat at the king's table. But if your answers to those questions today were no, I don't see that. You see none of those evidences. Then you're not it. You're not adopted. You're not a child of God. You have no seat at the king's table, and you do not even have a place in the kingdom as a citizen. You can't even be there at the gates peering in. And you're called today as one who is outside the turn unto Jesus Christ from your sins. Oh, wretched sinner, come to Jesus. Come to Jesus. And believe with all of your heart and all of your soul that you're that sinner that Jesus died for. Come and follow him, and he says, what did he say? I will give you rest. Turn today because this could be your last day. No other opportunity after this. You could breathe your last reading fellowship meal after this. You could breathe your last and die right here. Today's the day, therefore, to come unto Christ for life. Jesus says, I'm the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. But if you come to Jesus from your sins, trusting in his sacrifice on the cross, yes, you too, Christian, coming from your sins, turning to Christ who died on the cross for your sins, trusting in that sacrifice for you, and you will be brought into the family of God, and you'll always have a seat at the king's table. What an offer that is. What an offer that is to each and every one of us. You know, most of us would probably take a doorkeeper at the Lord's house, right? Peering in just to hear. but heirs of God, a seat at the king's table, what an offer that is. You're not gonna get a better offer than this. Come. You're weak and you're burdened, come. Praise the Lord that Jesus says that he will give you rest, even eternal rest. Children, you too, come this day to Christ the king. Today must be the day that you bow the knee to him. Do not wait any longer. Let's pray. Gracious Father, we thank you for your word. We're thankful that you are a gracious savior who has shown us mercy and shown us such great love in coming and dying for our sins on the cursed tree. How much greater can we praise you that you're now exalted, seated on the throne, ruling over all nations, head of the church, the firstborn among many brethren. And we look and hope to see the completion of that great multitude in the future. We pray that everyone here would be of that multitude lest they be judged forever and ever. So bring them to Christ your Son. Use even now as we prepare coming to the Lord's Supper, use even these visible means to break these who have not turned unto you that you would heal them by your grace. Father, we're thankful that you grant us citizenship in your kingdom, but all the way, you also grant us by adoption all the way to the throne, all the way to the table of the king, to be in his presence always. Praise the Lord. We ask that you would help us now. Weak as we are, as we come to your table, bless your people. We pray in Jesus' name, amen. Beloved, as we come to the supper of our Lord, it is the duty of the church through the under shepherds of Christ under his authority to warn you that if you do not trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation, if you're living an ungodly disobedient life, you've not repented of your sins, you should not partake of this Lord's Supper, lest you eat and drink condemnation upon yourselves. The Lord's Supper is for repentant and believing sinners. who are not worthy of themselves. But after examining themselves and seeking reconciliation with their brothers, coming, confessing Christ as their Savior, are made worthy to come by Christ. The ignorant, scandalous, profane, or any that are living in open sin and offense against their own knowledge Our conscience must not presume to come to Christ's holy table, lest you eat and drink unworthily. But all of you who have a sense of burden concerning your sins, have a true fear of God's wrath, and a desire to increase in faith and strength in Christ, then with your weak and weary souls, you are to come unto the Lord's table. It's for these reasons why only those who have previously met with the elders, who are under shepherds of Christ Jesus, who is king and head of the church, only they are approved, who are approved, can come to this table and partake of this supper. That only they may come and must come and be seated here.