From the MLJ Archive

John 1:50-51 — Why did Jesus live and die as a man here on earth? In this sermon on John 1:50–51 titled “The Ladder,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains that according to the Scriptures, it was for the salvation of sinners. Jesus alone serves as the ladder that connects God and humanity. This is accomplished by His death, burial, and resurrection, wherein He redeems all who repent and believe in Him. It is in Christ that the person and power of God the Father is revealed to humanity. Without grace, sinners cannot know God or love Him. Furthermore, Jesus fulfills the righteous requirements of the law by granting true righteousness and holiness to His chosen people. Christians are then freed from the wrath and condemnation of God. In the gospel, Jesus died in the place of sinful people so that they could live as children of God and inheritors of all the blessings of God. They are then able to overcome the schemes of Satan, who is the enemy of God, and continually opposes the gospel and the mission of the church. In Christ Jesus, God has given Christians the power to overcome sin, flesh, temptation, the world, and the devil. While all are powerless on their own, the gospel of Jesus Christ is able to overcome all sin and evil in the world.

John 1:50-51 — What does it mean that Jesus is the head of new humanity? In this sermon on John 1:50–51 titled “The Head of the New Humanity,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches on the great truth that Jesus is the new Adam who has come to restore humanity to fellowship with God. Just as all of humanity fell into sin because of Adam, now all who believe in Jesus are made a part of the new humanity. This is why Jesus tells the disciples that He is the Son of Man. Jesus is the new and better man. Jesus Christ is the only way for fallen sinners to be restored with God; He is the only way to the Father. The gospels are clear that Jesus as the Son of Man means that He is for all of humanity, not only the Jews. But this also means that Jesus is the only way to God. God has appointed no other means of salvation than through His Son. There is no message more important than the message of the gospel. All are in dire need to be saved from their sins, and it is only Jesus that can fill this need. Jesus alone is the new and better man.

John 1:5-46 — What does it mean to taste and see the fruit of new life? In this sermon on John 1:45–46 titled “Taste and See,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches on what it means to know Christ and believe in His message. Many oppose Christianity because they say it asks people to abandon all reason and evidence and make a blind commitment. But this is all wrong, as Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains, because Christianity is a faith based in what God has done in time and history. It is faith grounded in the real person of Jesus Christ who came and died for sinners. When humankind abandons their pride and comes before God, they find that Christianity is a religion about relationship with God. It is about the God who loves His sinful creatures enough to send His own Son to die for them. All are called to believe in Christ and to repent of their sins; this is the only way to salvation and peace with God. This sermon brings the greatest message: the message of Christ. It calls all to believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ and to come to know the Creator and Lord.

John 1:5-46 — Many believe Christianity is merely another political viewpoint or just another lifestyle option. In this sermon on John 1:5–46 titled “Face to Face with Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states that this is a complete misunderstanding of christianity. While there are many moral philosophies that seek to make the world a better place through education and political lobbying organizations, these fail to bring true change to the human heart. The heart of Christianity is Jesus Christ who was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and died a sinner’s death on the cross, later to be raised from the grave. All this was foretold in the law of Moses and the prophets. When Jesus came, those who knew the Scriptures recognized Him as the long-awaited Messiah who would deliver Israel and bring about the kingdom of God. Those who reject God and Jesus Christ do not do so because they are rational and unbiased, for there is evidence of the identity of Christ in Scripture. They do so because they are sinners blinded by darkness. It is only by the grace of God that this blindness can be dispelled.

John 1:17 — Why is the world as it is and what can one do about it all? Only the Bible can help with the answer, as it accounts for who God is and what He has done. Thankfully, while everything else leads to greater despair, Christians have the Bible to turn to in times of trouble and turmoil. The apostle John says, “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” In this sermon on John 1:17 titled “In the Beginning was the Word,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones asserts that this is the announcement of all Christianity. He contrasts how the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Christianity is not a teaching or point of view as if it was something to be given. Christianity is essentially the person of Christ Himself. Dr. Lloyd-Jones turns to the introductory phrase in John’s gospel which says, “In the beginning was the Word.” Jesus, “the Word,” expresses and reflects perfectly the mind of God. He is a perfect and complete revelation of the almighty and eternal God. The Word was made flesh. He was born as a man with human nature and came in the likeness of sinful flesh, yet the world moves on as if it never happened. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ and it is to Him alone that one turns.

John 1:17 — In this sermon on John 1:17 titled “The Answer to the World’s Problems,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones argues for the contemporary answers of the Christian gospel to the common problems of humanity. Why listen to this message of the gospel? It is God’s message. The world is waiting for a message, but there is not much confidence or satisfaction in the conferences of people. Learn of the origin of the world’s problems and the sin that makes all people fools. “The real and only reason to be afraid of death is that to which death leads.” People fear this life, but what about the next life to come? No one should be afraid of people, but of God who can destroy both body and soul. God, who is eternal and all powerful, has given the law, revealing certain things about Himself and humanity’s sin against God. Humanity is polluted and finds prayer a hard task; not only do they sin, but they want to sin. God hates sin, but offers grace upon grace at Calvary: “Grace is undeserved favor...it’s the very thing you and I need.”

1 Timothy 1:15 — The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ was continuously on the lips of the Apostle Paul. He repeats it over and over again in his letters. Why did the early church continue repeating the good news? Why is the gospel so glorious to the Christian that it dominates their existence? In this Christmas message, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones looks at the result of the gospel. Seeing what the gospel brings causes better understanding of why the good news is wonderful. Moreover, as taught by Dr. Lloyd-Jones in this sermon, a Christian properly responds to the gospel by receiving it gladly, yielding to its teaching, and being gripped by its message. It is clear, he says, that anyone who has found the gospel “worthy of all acceptance” will live a life of faithfulness to the Christ who came into this world to save people from their sin. Listen to Dr. Lloyd-Jones’s message on 1 Timothy 1:15 and hear why the gospel ends in a person being entirely changed.

Luke 24:45-47 — The central message to the Christian faith has been a matter of confusion from its very inception. Think of the disciples becoming troubled over Jesus’s teaching about His death and the mocking of both Jews and Greeks as the early church preached about the death and resurrection of the Messiah. Consider further modern men and women redefining the Christian faith through denial of the necessity of atonement for sin and the bodily resurrection of Christ. Confusion about the gospel of Jesus Christ is pervasive throughout the history of the church. Why does every generation object to the gospel and can anyone have a true understanding of the cross? In this sermon on Luke 24:45–47 titled “He Opened Their Understanding,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones tackles these questions and others in this message. Listen as he answers popular objections to human sin, the wrath of God, and the justice of God. Find encouragement as Dr. Lloyd-Jones calls believers to remain faithful to the gospel message which is rooted in the Old Testament Scriptures. Find out why the Lord Jesus Christ Himself said His death for sin was essential. If ever there was a time to make the primary matters of Christianity clear, it is today. Dr. Lloyd-Jones cuts through the confusion and gets to the heart of the gospel in this exposition of Scripture.

Luke 23:27-31 — In Luke’s account of Christ’s journey to the cross, he includes the last public teaching of Jesus. In the midst of pain and suffering as he trudges along the road to face crucifixion, Jesus turns to the women who are following Him and admonishes them to weep for themselves, not for Him. His instruction is startling since He is on His way to die. In this sermon on Luke 23:27–31 titled “Think, Weep, Repent,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones calls attention to the compassion Christ had for these women that caused Him to stop along His road toward death. He also calls the listener to pay careful attention to the content of Christ’s teaching: weeping for Him is a thoughtless act for He was going to His death on behalf of sinful humankind and would be raised in glory three days later. Christ instructs the women to weep not for Him, but for themselves because of their ignorance of who He is and what He is accomplishing. As Dr. Lloyd-Jones expounds on the content of Christ’s final teaching, he applies this message to the modern listener with a somber warning: “Have you wept over your sin and ignorance? Have you prayed for eyes to behold the love and justice of God displayed on the cross?” He encourages approaching the cross and death of Christ with thoughtfulness and contemplation, with weeping over sin and ignorance.

Luke 21:34-36 — How will this world come to an end? The Bible teaches that Jesus will return in glory to judge the earth and consummate all things. Jesus tells that no one will know the day or the hour of His coming, and for this reason Christians are to be ever faithful and vigilant, called to be holy. However, some have ignored this teaching and attempt to predict when Jesus will return. This leads to speculation and creates division in the church. In this sermon on Luke 21:34–36 titled “The End of the World,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones says that the biblical answer is to trust that Jesus will be faithful to His word to return and complete the salvation of all believers. The church is to look to Christ to make the world new at His coming and set all things right. This is the hope amidst the many trials and hardships that come from living in a fallen world. All are beset by the schemes of the devil from the outside and from sinful desires within. This is why Christians ought not to trust in themselves, but only in Christ Jesus. At His coming He will judge the whole world in righteousness and truth. Those who are still in sin and rebellion will be condemned, but those that believe are saved through His righteousness.