Friends, Some of you have asked what happened to the past two weeks of sermons. In way of explanation, I preach from an outline that I do. When I put a sermon in manuscript form as I have tried to do for the e-mail version, it sometimes takes anywhere from 1-3 hours as I try to recall what I said and often add things that I think that I should have said. The past two weeks have been hectic in pace for me and I was unable to sit down and do much else on the computer besides answer correspondence and send on some of the neat things that people send to me that I think you might like to see as well. If you would like those sermons in their draft state, please let me know and I will send them to you that way. I am sorry that you were disappointed but at the same time gratified that you missed them and wanted them.

I have outlined a sketch of the sermons for the next year and they will all be from the Gospel of John. There will be a variety of different styles of sermons with a goal of revealing Jesus to us as John saw Him and His ministry. My first audience is always myself and I am looking forward to the challenge and the blessing of study and meditation on the Gospel of John. I hope that they will be beneficial to you as well.  This week's sermon is going to be preached as dialogue between the congregation, myself and , hopefully as we submit ourselves, with the Holy Spirit as well.

Please make the Gospel of John a book that you read over and over this year as we go through it together. I am going to ask the congregation this morning to respond to the various names, titles, descriptive words and phrases that John used to reveal Jesus and His ministry to us. As always, if you have any responses, questions or observations that you would like to share with me concerning the sermons, I will be delighted to correspond with you concerning them.

Thank you for being a part of my life. Each of you on my mailing list have had a part of the development and continued development of the person that I am becoming on my way to eternity.

Your Brother In Jesus, ><> Gary the Kins, son of Verle, grandson of Arthur, defender of the faith.

The Name of Jesus

John 1-4

' And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12

Found numerous times and diverse ways in the New Testament is name of Jesus, found as His name, Thy name, the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus.

" Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed upon Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knew should bow... and that every tongue should that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father." Philippians 2:9-11

" 'And you shall call His name Jesus for it is He Who will save His people from their sins. " Matthew 1:21 Greek - Jesus Hebrew - Joshua = Yahweh is Salvation

Who is Jesus? Sharing time: Think about one of the descriptive phrases, title, words or names used to describe Him by the authors of our Bible. What does this involve and how does it affect you?

Phrase: I am the Vine and you are the Branches.

Title: Christ, Emmanuel

Word: Prophet

Name: Jesus, Son of God

Those are my examples. What are your favorites?

Purpose of the Gospels - " ... these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name. "       John 20:31

John reveals different aspects of the name of Jesus which express our Lord's mission to mankind.

The causative affect of understanding is belief which leads us to a full life here and eternal life hereafter.

Proverb: " It takes years to build a good name but only one foolish moment to lose it. "

A name and deeds are inseparable.

Deeds build a name.

Reputation is connected with our name.

ie How many girls do you know named Jezebel? .... boys named Judas?

Let's examine the first four chapters of the Gospel of John together to discover the Lord's mission " seeking and saving the lost " and find our place in it.

As I unveil my discoveries from this Gospel, I want you to share with me what these expressions, names, phrases, and words mean to you and how they help you understand that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God so that you can cling to the promise of having life in His name.

I. Jesus Is The Word - John 1:1

II. Jesus Is God - John 1:1

III. Jesus Is Creator - John 1:2

IV. Jesus Is Life - John 1:4

V. Jesus Is The Light - John 1:4

VI. Jesus Is Man - John 1:14, 31

VII. Jesus Is The Only-Begotten Son of God - John 1:18, 3:16

VIII. Jesus Is The Lamb of God - John 1:29

IX. Jesus Is Rabbi - John 1:38

X. Jesus Is King - John 1:49

XI. Jesus Is A Miracle Worker - John 2, 4, 6

John 2 - Converted the simple molecular structure of water into the far more complex molecular structure of wine.

John 4 - With His word uttered ten miles from the scene, Jesus instantly reversed the decay process restoring to full vigor and activity the cellular structure being destroyed by a mortal illness.

John 6 - In an unknown manner multiplied limited resources ( five loaves and two fish) into a surplus that fed 5,000 hungry men and their families.

John 6 - Created an antigravitational force of an unknown nature that

enabled Him to walk calmly on the surface of an angry sea during a storm.

John 11 - Jesus called into the mouth of an open grave and brought life from beyond the veil of death to His friend Lazarus and cells and functions instantly restructured after four days of purification and his spirit recalled again to its tabernacle. God In You - David Jeremiah

XII. Jesus Is The Baptizer - John 3

Water - Act of obedience, birthright of entrance into the Kingdom - 3:22

Spirit - Animation by the Life-giver into the spiritually dead come alive - John 3:5

Fire - Activation of the death sentence after the judgement ( Matthew 3:11,12)

XIII. Jesus Is .....

Fill in as you read the rest of this Gospel over the course of the year.

Jesus came to offer Himself as a sacrifice for sin and took your place on the cross which is the penalty for sin - death.

This decision is one that only you can make.

God has no grandchildren

The only question that remains is this, What will you do with Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God?

" You can't see the beauty of a soul until you see the Son shine through. " Ruth Ann Kins  ( Ruth shared this with me on the way home from church last week as an observation that came to her as she heard the sermon last week, "The Testing Time."