[0:00] John chapter 6 and verse 27. Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you.
[0:21] For him hath God the Father sealed. For him hath God the Father sealed.
[0:42] And as we had occasion to mention that Sabbath, the word sealed in the scriptures used with a variety of distinct but related meanings.
[1:05] And we read of the church being sealed. And we have to listen to the Ephesians in the first chapter.
[1:19] We read that after that they believed they were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.
[1:34] We read of various seals in the Old and the New Testaments. But here the precise meaning would seem to be that God the Father set the mark of his approval on his Son.
[2:00] when Christ says that he was sealed by God the Father he thereby produces his credentials.
[2:19] this was to inform and to confirm those who heard him that he was no imponder that he was no pretender that he was what he confessed or professed to be.
[2:47] there is an indirect reference at least here to the humiliation of Christ.
[3:00] We might well ask the question why was a seal necessary? Why was it necessary that God should seal his eye?
[3:17] where the necessity arises from his condition and state of humiliation.
[3:33] There was the possibility that he would not be recognized and that possibility belongs to Christ's humiliation.
[3:52] There is no possibility in heaven that Christ should not be recognized for what he is. there this glory fills with celestial light the realms of bliss.
[4:14] There is no need for the sun to shine in it for the glory of God God does lighten it and the last is the light thereof.
[4:28] But in his humiliation there was not only the possibility of his being unrecognized the possibility of his being capable for being one altogether like the rest of mankind but it was impossible that he should be recognized apart from the seal of the past.
[5:06] there is a further reference and this is at least indirectly connected with the humiliation of Christ that God is the supreme and the ultimate judge of all.
[5:26] Christ in his humiliation according to the parents of the covenant of redemption was dependent upon the father's testimony concerning it did not matter what others thought of him.
[5:58] It did not even matter the witness that what he did what he performed the witness it bore to him if we separate this from the testimony of the father everything becomes done for we must not remember there are hard miracles as well as true ones the Pharisees were not wrong when they thought that the Elizabeth could perform miracles they were not wrong they were of course entirely wrong in thinking in thinking and in saying that it was true the elders that Christ performed miracles but there was no wrong in thinking that the chief of the devils could perform miracles we have that in various parts of scripture but especially in the book of the revelation we read of the false prophet the false one we read of him making cry to come down from heaven causing cry to come down from heaven and that was not as a mere display of unusual power what does it mean by fire coming down from heaven well the fire coming down from heaven is as we have occasion to see and was more than once is the sign of the divine approval it was the sign that came down from heaven which showed the divine approval in acceptance of man's sacrifice or man's gift now the false prophet can give many indications miracles of divine approval but they are all false of course nevertheless the fact of false miracles is put large on the page of scripture so when Christ says that he is willing to be judged by his words he does not merely mean the works in and of themselves he draws attention to these works as the sign of the divine approval in other words as being part of the sealing of God's past now the question and the discussion here is the means of life the question basically is this how can man live how can he live that is to say how can he live unto God life how can he have a God word life that is the question seek not or labor not for to meet that perisher but for that which endureth unto everlasting life life it is the meat and the life how is this possible though Christ says it is the son of man who gives you this bread that you may live live and not die but he gives you this bread as the one healed by the past and there is implied in that that this is the reason in part of this why he came down from heaven why he appeared among men why he humbled himself and was found in fashion as a man and being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself he came that there might be life sustenance that men in other words might live eternally that they might have everlasting life the meat that endureth and true life everlasting now the salaman gives this that this is of such importance of such momentum that there must be the highest certification the highest truth the clearest evidence that it is he who gives life another now it is in order to meet that demand that he says him has got the father he did this is the father's device this is the father's method of giving life to men he is the ultimate judge it is he to whom we must look hence we find
[12:51] Christ himself saying like this he who believeth or he who receiveth me and believeth on him who sent me has ever got life but the point we mentioned in last further in closing what it is how Christ becomes the bread of life to the individual soul and we said that only as the seal of the father is the son and be the bread of life to men never come to this people we may remind ourselves first of this if we are to live if we are to process ever last with life we must possess it and have it in and through
[14:08] Christ because there is no other life but then if we are to possess this life if we are to partake of life that our soul may live ever last not merely be in existence but live live have ever last in life if we are to do this if we are to partake of Christ in this way we must know him as the one sealed by the by he gives life because him hath got the father sealed now the first essential although it does not belong primarily to the seal as it is here used the first essential in discernment in what lies in the sealing of the heart is this that we should know that he is the equal of the father but we should know that he is the brightness of the father's glory and the express image of his purpose some commentators indeed place the seal in that very fact that he is the brightness of the father's glory and the express image of his that is true but in view of the context we do not take it that that is what the seal means here nevertheless in order to be acquainted with the seal the seal of the father we must know
[16:13] Christ as the greatness of the past he holds them for his glory and he express image of his passion for the father would seal none of it sealing among other things is an act of wisdom and the seal in the last analysis was to authenticate documents and writings the seal was to show that what it was attached to was real not serious true and not false but then when I came attached the seal to a certain argument it meant that the king approved of what was in it and the approval of what had to do with the contents of the document the seal was to show that the document carried the approver of the one who had attached the seal to it now
[17:39] I'm worried of God and have the seal in the sun when we consider this as an act of wisdom not exclusively as but certainly as so important the divine wisdom we ask the question who would God see on whom would he set this sign of his approval surely there is something here to consider in regard to the one who is saved now it is in this connection we take it that we read of Christ being the elect of us chosen of God he is chosen to be and to do something but then the fact that he is chosen compels us to think that he is chosen for a reason it is
[19:01] God who chooses it and then he is chosen of God and precious precious he is chosen because he is precious he doesn't become precious by being chosen see the priest and in the old economy when they were made priest they had to be honored because of their office and so on down through the ages certain offices demand certain honor but God knows that those who fulfill the office are high and not worthy of order but that is not the case he is chosen to a high and exalted office chosen a high priest chosen prophet and king of the church but don't you see he honors the office the office doesn't compare any honor upon him it is he who exalts the office when he is chosen of
[20:29] God he is chosen because he is precious now see the difference between the election of Christ in that sense and the election of the church Christ is chosen because he is precious the church is not chosen because they precious that is intrinsically so they are chosen to be made friends they are chosen as lying in sin and iniquity they are chosen as those who are in a state of draft a state of the divine displeasure the children of one even as others but it is this choosing or this election that's going to make them to be them something precious because thou wast precious in my sight thou hast received honor not precious in themselves potentially precious they are chosen in
[22:03] Christ they are chosen in Christ he is already precious they are chosen in him he is sealed he is set apart he carries the mark of the divine approval because he is worthy he is picked he is in himself intrinsically glorious and he is so in his midst of humiliation as well as his midst of exorption he expressed image and there was never a time when he wasn't there he was always the breakfast of the father glory now to see this to see it for our service is the first step in his being unto us the bread of life the man that does not perish that which endures unto life ever last but then there is not only his intrinsic excellence the eternal dignity of his person there is also the seal of
[23:42] God's approval in the work given him to do and what is this work well in the text and context we may answer that question thus his work is to give himself as the meat and the drink of people that is what he goes on to explain after this the breath that I gave is my flesh the drink that I gave is my blood he came to do this work to give himself that he might be the life of those who were dead remember this is how this lives of himself in one place says the son of man did not come to be ministered unto he didn't come but he might be served he came to minister he came to serve he came to do our work and to give his life a ransom for men he came to give his life a ransom for men no this is his work and where is the seal of
[25:25] God to ask it is on him every step of the way it is made known in exceptional circumstances in a way more clearly than it is made known in other circumstances there is first of all in connection with this seal the voice of heaven this is my son the beloved in whom I am well pleased in whom I am well pleased now that testimony goes much further than to say that God was pleased with what the son wasn't doing it doesn't include that but if that is what were meant we think the form of the testimony would be this this is my beloved son with whom
[26:41] I am well pleased but it is in whom I am well pleased it is not merely and it is not primarily that I am pleased with what he's doing but I have eternal unchanging unchanging delight in himself in himself this is a testimony to the peculiar love of the father to the son not a son among sons but the only God son of God the only begotten in whom
[27:45] I am that's the divine I am comprehending within itself the past the present and the future it is the eternal unchanging testimony of the past I am well pleased with him the infinitude of the power of delight rested rests and shall rest upon him world with a rest and he as the only begotten son is capable shall we say capable of absorbing the infinite love of the heart this person is sufficiently immense he as the infinite one can receive the infinitude of the heart of delight further more he can reciprocate he gives back to the heart without measure that which the heart gives him without measure the delight the love of the persons of the
[29:32] God is born witness to here and by the heart the sealing of the heart I am well pleased I show me that in that comment that is the word used for that but what is it well surely in the detonator of the testimony it says this question as if God have said if I am well pleased in him what about you I am well pleased in him what about you that is implied or can be legitimately inferred from
[30:43] God's test I am well pleased you agree and when shall one agree when he hears in his in most soul the testimony of the past this was not a secret testament there were those who heard yes you say but there were those who didn't hear it that's quite true but there were those who heard it and when did they hear it well John at least heard it at his baptism but when this testimony was repeated on the mouth of the secret agent how does Peter describe this experience this testimony we heard when we went with it on the holy mouth that again invites a question have we been with it on the holy mouth have we heard the testimony of the heart been shot has it been transfigured before us he is to the natural mind as I wrote out of my ground he has no form not humbling us he has no attraction but when he is transfigured not of course that anything happens to him no but when he is transfigured in old new unestimation there is inseparable from that transfiguration the voice of heaven this is my beloved son in whom
[32:53] I am well pleased and there is also the response the response to the divine testimony the response of the heart is and always must be when he is transfigured when he is testified to by the path there is the response of the heart the one my beloved that is what the church says I am my beloved and my beloved is mine there is the response it may be very weak it may be in accents that the soul itself may not be able to identify clearly but in connection with the healing of the son as the bread of life that came down from him there is always the response of the soul my beloved this is my son the beloved that's the way it is written this is my son beloved and the response would be this is my savior beloved him hath
[34:34] God have seen not to have that closed a seal was for public inspection the seal was set on a document or whatever it was set on in order to be known and read now the seal of the father on the son is to be known and read the seal but there is another part which is openly displayed as the seal of the father which had not at this moment actually taken place that in you of the son giving his life for the world his flesh his blood there is this part of the seal that he is declared to be the son of
[35:34] God with power through the spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead and this also in the individual case we might say this is the finishing passion through the sealing of the heart his resurrection from the dead he is declared to be the son of God with power but what the inward testimony to the resurrection from the dead well in knowing the Christ in being enlightened to know and to commit ourselves to him there is this fact that he is a living
[36:38] Christ he is the resurrected one and he lives in the power of an endless life death has no more dominion over this as the bread of life which the father gives the bread which is Christ and which Christ himself gives this bread of life this living bread my father gives you the true bread but he also refers to himself as the living bread that came down from heaven and in order that he must be living bread he died but he also rose again from the dead the third day he sitteth at the right hand of
[37:47] God the power and he is there as the bread of life him hath God the Father seen declared him to be what he was and it is he who gives it is he who is this bread of life now the peculiarity of the distinctive characteristic of this bread is if one eats it once he shag never die he cannot die and to eat it as we read further down here is to believe honestly to be satisfied with him and with him own to rest in him as wisdom our righteousness our sanctification our redemption
[39:03] God my God I will be exorce God my that we say much very feeble but in the very nature of him there is that there is that personal appropriating of God provided that belongs to the very nature of him although the comfortable persuasion of it belongs to the assurance of him yes he who is satisfied with who rests in the son as is poor is all and in all is he who eats the flesh and drinks the blood of the son of man and that one shall live forever he shall never die labor for the meat that endure unto everlasting life which the son of man shall give for him has
[40:25] God the father he that the fact the fact of history the divine purpose a fact in the history of redemption but it is also a fact in the history of the redeemed soul it's a fact of experience him has got the father seen he has pointed out has impressed upon the soul has been the father to promise that life must be given to the that the church might live and in living glory my God this then is the work of one's life this is what is said before us the true labor or the labor for that which is true why do you spend money for that which is not bread that's the anguish of the prophet as he used his own generation and as he used the word of mankind generally considered why do you spend money for that which is not bread and use labor for that which satisfies not oh the folly of it yet the wickedness of it have been diligently yesterday and deed that which is true and let you sold in that itself in happiness in happiness in the wealth of
[42:19] God's provision in his son this is the fact that you so delighted have in this in what God has accomplished in what God presents in what God commands that you so delight in and then we shall never die it satisfies it satisfies the whole man it is a feast of hard things of hard things full of marrow of wine on the knees well retired and all this is in committing the soul as it is unto Christ Jesus knowing him as the one shield of the power and therefore bringing forth the response he is able to take that which
[43:27] I committed to him against that he let him oh lord bless us bless us with the spiritual knowledge which thou only canst give bless us with the witness of the spirit to Christ the witness that he bears when he glorifies Christ he shall glorify me he shall receive of mine and show it unto you oh may this be true of may he be glorified in us and we can never know what that means until thou wilt be pleased in mercy to work it in us it is something we cannot conceive any any idea of unless and until thou wilt work it in us oh lord be merciful to us remember us we besiege of the according to the wisdom of thy grace take away of water thoroughly i
[44:47] You