If you want to know God you have to get to know Jesus, because in Jesus God has made himself known. This message was given on December 4, 2016 at New City Church in Calgary by Pastor John Ferguson. For more info, please visit: www.newcitychurch.ca

1. The Gospel of John 1:1-18
When God Moved
into the
Neighbourhood

2. DISHWALLA
“Counting Blue Cars”

3. Must of been mid afternoon as I could tell
by how far the child’s shadow stretched out.
And he walked with a purpose
in his sneakers down the street.

4. He had many questions like children often do.
He said, “Tell me all your thoughts on God,
and tell me am I very far.”

5. What if we could go
to the Source
ourselves, or better
yet, what if the
Source came to us
?

6. The Gospel of John 1:1-18
When God Moved
into the
Neighbourhood

7. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
Word was with God, and the Word was
God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through him, and
without him was not any thing made that
was made. 4 In him was life, and the life
was the light of men. 5 The light shines in
the darkness, but the darkness has not

8. …overcome it.
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
name was John. 7 He came as a witness,
to bear witness about the light, that all
might believe through him. 8 He was not
the light, but came to bear witness about
the light. 9 The true light, which enlightens
everyone, was coming into the world.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose

9. 10 He was in the world, and the world
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
was made through him, yet the world did
not know him. 11 He came to his own,
but his own people did not receive him.
12 But to all who did receive him, who
believed in his name, he gave the right to
become children of God, 13 who were
born not of blood nor of the will of the

10. …flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
14 And the word became flesh and dwelt
among us, and we have seen his glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore wit-
ness about him, and cried out, “This was
he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after
me ranks before me, because he was

11. …before me.’”) 16 And from his fulness,
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
we have all received, grace upon grace.
17 For the law was given through Moses;
grace and truth came through Jesus
Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the
only God, who is at the Father’s side, he
has made him known.

12. Leader: This is the Word of the Lord.
Unison: Thanks be to God!

13. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
Word was with God, and the Word was
God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

14. “In the beginning, God created
the heavens and the earth.”
~ Genesis 1:1 ~

15. “This book is about the Creator
God acting in a new way within
his much-beloved creation. It is
about the way in which the long
story which began in Genesis
reached the climax the Creator
had always intended…. In
Genesis 1, the climax is the
creation of humans.… In John
1, the climax is the arrival of a
human being….”

16. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
Word was with God, and the Word was
God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

17. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
Word was with God, and the Word was
God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through him, and
without him was not any thing made that
was made.

18. “He is the image of the
invisible God, the firstborn
of all creation. For by him all
things were created, in
heaven and on earth, visible
and invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or
rulers or authorities—all
things were created through
him and for him. And he is
before all things, and in him
all things hold together.”
~ The Apostle Paul in
Colossians 1:15-17

19. The Gospel of John 1:1-18
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt
among us, and we have seen his glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.

20. “The Word became
flesh and blood,
and moved into the
neighbourhood.”

21. “No other religion—whether secularism, Greco-
Roman paganism, Eastern religion, Judaism or
Islam—believes God became breakable or had a
body. Eastern religion believes the physical is
illusion. Greco-Romans believe
the physical is bad. Judaism
and Islam don’t believe God
would do such a thing as
live in the flesh.”
~ Tim Keller, Pastor & Author
Redeemer NYC

22. Veiled in flesh the *Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
**Pleased as man with men to dwell
Jesus our Emmanuel
** “Pleased with us in flesh to dwell”
* The Divine Nature / The Supreme Being

23. The Gospel of John 1:1-18
18 No one has ever seen God; the only
God, who is at the Father’s side, he has
made him known.

24. Exegesis
ex·e·ge·sis
“to draw out the meaning”
“to explain something accurately”

25. “Let not your hearts be
troubled. Believe in
God; believe also in me.
In my Father’s house are
many rooms. If it were
not so, would I have told
you that I go to prepare
a place for you…? ~ The Gospel of John 14

26. “And if I go and prepare
a place for you, I will
come again and will take
you to myself, that where
I am you may be also.
And you know the way
to where I am going.”
~ The Gospel of John 14

27. Thomas said to him,
“Lord, we do not
know where you are
going. How can we
know the way?
~ The Gospel of John 14

28. “Jesus said to him, “I
am the way, the truth,
and the life. No one
comes to the Father
except through me. If
you had known me,
you would have known
my Father also…. ~ The Gospel of John 14

29. “‘From now on you do
know him and have
seen him.” Philip said
to him, ‘Lord show us
the Father, and it is
enough for us.’
~ The Gospel of John 14

30. Jesus said to him,
‘Have I been with you
so long, and you still do
not know me Philip?
Whoever has seen me
has seen the Father.”
~ The Gospel of John 14

31. ?If Jesus is the best
explanation / evidence of
who God is, then what
would that mean for you?

32. 10 He was in the world, and the world
The Gospel of John 1:1-18
was made through him, yet the world did
not know him. 11 He came to his own,
but his own people did not receive him.

33. For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only Son,
that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have
eternal life. For God did not
send his Son into the world
to condemn the world, but in
order that the world might
be saved through him.
~ The Apostle John
in the Gospel of John 3:16-19

34. Whoever believes in him is
not condemned, but whoever
does not believe is condemn-
ed already, because he has
not believed in the name of
the only Son of God. And this
is the judgment: the light has
come into the world, and
people loved the darkness
rather than the light because
their works were evil.
~ The Apostle John
in the Gospel of John 3:16-19

35. The Gospel of John 1:1-18
12 But to all who did receive him, who
believed in his name, he gave the right to
become children of God….

36. “See what kind of love
the Father has given to
us, that we should be
called children of God.”
~ The Apostle John
in 1 John 3

37. If you want to know God
you have to get to know Jesus,
because in Jesus God
has made himself known.

38. The Christmas story
is about Him!

39. “Now Jesus did many
other signs in the presence
of his disciples, which are
not written in this book; but
these are written so that
you may believe that
Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God, and that by
believing you may have life
in his name.”
~ The Apostle John in
the Gospel of John 20:30-31

40. The Christmas story
includes us!

41. “God is love. In this the love
of God was manifest among
us, that God sent his son
into the world, that we might
live through him…. We have
seen and testify that the
Father has sent his Son to
be the Saviour of the
world… So we have come to
know and believe the love
that God has for us….”
~ The Apostle John
in 1 John 4:8ff

42. This Christmas may
you get to know Jesus,
because in Jesus
God has made himself known.

43. other images used for educational purpose
http://rockpublication.com/diswalla.jpg
Shutterstock
ShutterStock Image ID: 234554776
image credits