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Sermon #1058

If Any Man Thirst

A Sermon on John 1:16

Originally preached May 17, 1964

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Scripture

John 1:16 ESV KJV
For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. (ESV)

Sermon Description

Who is the Holy Spirit? Why does he matter for the life of a Christian? In this sermon on John 1:16 titled “If Any Man Thirst,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones deeply looks into God’s Word to see how the Holy Spirit brings new life and changing power to the Christian life. The Holy Spirit was active throughout the lives of the Old Testament saints and without the work of the Holy Spirit, no one can be saved and brought to a true knowledge of God. Nevertheless, in the new covenant the Holy Spirit has been poured out upon those that believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ. This new power that the Holy Spirit grants is the source of the Christian life; it allows Christians to flee from sin and to grow in holiness. Moralistic teaching and practices cannot bring lasting change because true change is a supernatural act of God.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost marks the beginning of a new era.
  2. The Holy Spirit could not come in fullness until Jesus completed his work of salvation and was glorified.
  3. The Holy Spirit was present and active in the Old Testament but not in the same fullness as after Pentecost.
  4. The difference between the Old Testament and New Testament is like the difference between a child and an adult. The Holy Spirit was given in greater fullness and power after Jesus' work was done.
  5. We should not judge ourselves by the standard of the Old Testament saints but by the standard of Pentecost and after.
  6. Two characteristics of the new era are inwardness ("out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water") and abundance ("rivers of living water").
  7. The abundance is of forgiveness, assurance, rest, peace, light/knowledge, life, joy, power, hope.
  8. The only hope for the church is that Christians become an exultant, overflowing people. This will draw others to the faith.
  9. To have this abundance, we must listen to Jesus' invitation ("if any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink"), experience thirst for it, and keep coming to Jesus in faith until we have it.
  10. We must go on believing in and seeking Jesus until we know we have this life within, more than enough, overflowing.

The Book of John

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.