Practical Benefits of Seeing Jesus in the Word
Sunday, 18 September 2022
These are notes on the sermon, Practical Benefits of Seeing Jesus in the Word , preached by Pastor Joseph Prince on Sunday, 18 September 2022, at The Star Performing Arts Centre, Singapore. We hope these sermon notes will be an encouragement to you!
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Pastor Prince starts the service by sharing a word in season that God has for us. The word he received was “one place,” the same word used in Acts 2:1 which says: “On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place.”
In these post-pandemic times, God wants us to prioritize gathering together in the church, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together (Heb. 10:25). There is power when we gather together! The gifts of the Holy Spirit come upon us in a corporate setting (1. Cor 12:8). Where God’s people dwell, there He commands His life. The church is where the dew of heaven and the anointing of God are found (Ps. 133).
There is safety when believers dwell together. The church is where we receive correction and experience the goodness of God that leads us to repentance! In contrast, when we isolate ourselves, we put ourselves in a position where the enemy can harm us. An example would be the Gadarene demoniac who lived in isolation and constantly cut himself (Mark 5:5). Self-harm is not just a psychological problem but something caused by the powers of darkness. For those who are struggling with thoughts of self-harm, know that you are precious to God. The Good Shepherd will leave his flock of ninety-nine just to look for you (Matt. 18:12–14). Don’t isolate yourself. We are not meant to function alone. We are part of a flock! Prioritize gathering in church and not forsake the assembling of ourselves.
“For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”
—Romans 15:4 NKJV
“For whatever things were written before” — This refers to the Old Testament. While the entire Bible is written for our learning, Paul was referring to the Old Testament when he wrote this letter to the believers in Rome.
“Hope” — Usually when we say things such as, “I hope so,” our use of the word “hope” connotes uncertainty and doubt. But Bible hope is different. The Greek translation of this word is “elpis,” which refers to a positive, confident, and joyful expectation of good in your future. This is how we are to live!
What thoughts have you been occupied with? Do you see good in your future? Or are you filled with worrisome and negative thoughts because of all that has been happening in the world (e.g. war, unstable financial situations, and recession)? If we are preoccupied with such negative thoughts and live without hope, we can find ourselves in a place of depression. While depression has different forms, it stems from a lack of hope.
Some of us might be plagued with fears about the future, worries about our children, and concerns about our health. The more we are filled with such worrisome thoughts, the more we see bleakness and darkness in our future. But God wants us to be anchored in hope, and we can find hope in the Word of God.
“And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
—Galatians 3:29 NKJV
Since we are in Christ, we are Abraham’s seed and will be blessed just as he was! For those worried about the upcoming recession, we can find hope when we read about how Abraham and Issac flourished even during times of famine (Gen. 26:12). While we are not exempted from the troubles in this world, we can hold on to the promise that we will flourish even in these trying times!
The first key to studying the Bible is to look for Jesus in the Word. When you find Jesus, you will find yourself because you are in Him!
It is our benefit to know who Christ is, what He has, and what He possesses. Because we are joint-heirs with Jesus (Rom. 8:17), whatever that we see Him have in the Bible, we also receive!
“But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.”
—1 Corinthians 1:30 KJV
Christ is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. He is made unto us these things for our profit.
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.”
—2 Peter 1:2–3 NKJV
“knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” — The Greek translation of the word “knowledge” is “epignōsis,” which is a singular noun. This means that the knowledge referred to here is of one person, Jesus, who is God and our Lord.
Seeing Jesus in the Word multiples to you favor for good success
“Grace and peace be multiplied” — When we see Jesus in the Word, grace is multiplied to us. Grace refers to unearned, undeserved, unmerited favor. When we receive God’s favor, good things happen to us! This is independent of our abilities or intellect.
Sometimes, we grow in knowledge because we have been taught by our parents or our teachers in school. But sometimes, we have knowledge because God drops/gifts it to us. An example of this would be the artisan Bezalel, who was commissioned to build the tabernacle of Moses. The Bible tells us that Bezalel was filled with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship (Exod. 31:3). In the same way, God can fill us with His gifts!
Seeing Jesus in the Word multiples to you emotional wellbeing and physical health
“Grace and peace be multiplied” — We also receive peace in a multiplied manner when we see Jesus in the Word. The Hebrew translation for the word “peace” is “shalom.” This peace is an aggressive peace that guards our hearts and minds against worries, fears, cares, anxiety, and apprehensions. Aside from mental and emotional peace, “shalom” also refers to wholeness and health.
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.”
—2 Peter 1:2–3 NKJV
“knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” — The Greek translation for the word “knowledge” is “epignōsis,” which refers to precise and full knowledge. This knowledge is something that can only come from God.
“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church. . .”
—Matthew 16:15–18 NKJV
“for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you” — “Flesh and blood” here refers to Peter and his natural wisdom. Peter had a revelation of Jesus, but this revelation came from God. When we read the Bible, we should not just look to grow in knowledge, but ask God for revelation. Knowledge can puff us up and make us proud, but God’s revelations humble us. Receiving revelation does not mean receiving a new doctrine, but it means God shedding light on what is already present in His Word through the Holy Spirit.
“on this rock I will build My church” — There is a belief that “this rock” Jesus was referring to was Peter, whose name means “rock.” However, in the Greek, these two words for “rock” are different words. The rock Jesus was referring to, on which He would build His church, is the revelation of who He is (the Christ, the Son of the living God).
Nevertheless, Peter did become solid like a rock after receiving this revelation of Jesus. Likewise, we too can become rock-solid like Peter when we receive revelations of Jesus, and we can be unshakable in trying times!
The revelation of Jesus gives us multiplied grace and peace. When we find ourselves dejected because of the darkness we see in the world, we ought to spend time in the Word. While listening to sermons on Sunday is good, it is not enough.
“But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”
—Matthew 4:4 NKJV
We cannot find sustenance in bread (material things) alone. We have to depend on the Word of God. And just like how we eat bread every day, we are to go to God daily!
See Jesus in the Word. Jesus is all throughout the Bible. An example of this would be the story of Abraham sacrificing his son Isaac in Genesis 22.
“Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
—Genesis 22:2 NKJV
These were the instructions that Abraham received from God. However, at this point in time, Abraham had two sons: Ishmael and Isaac. This shows us that when God said, “Your only son,” he was referring to Isaac as a picture of His only begotten Son, Jesus.
“land of Moriah” — The highest point of Mount Moriah is likely to be Calvary, where Jesus was crucified.
As Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac, God said:
“. . . Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son.”
—Genesis 22:12–13 NKJV
“Abraham lifted his eyes and looked . . . a ram caught in a thicket by its horns” — It is likely that Abraham had a vision of Jesus when this happened. In John 8:56, Jesus said: “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” It was likely that what Abraham saw when he turned to look at the ram was a vision of Jesus on the cross.
It is important that the ram was caught in the thicket by its horns because sacrificial lambs offered to God have to be without blemish. If the ram had been caught in the thicket by its wool, it would have been lacerated, making it blemished and unsuitable to be used as a sacrifice.
As this ram had horns, we know it was mature. Since it was mature, it is unlikely that it would have just plunged into the thicket. Instead, it did so on purpose and wanted to be caught. This is a picture of how our Lord Jesus laid down His life for us voluntarily. And just like the unblemished ram, He is the offering without blemish.
Pastor Prince shares his personal experience of how his daughter, Jessica, received healing as he spent time reading the Word. When Jessica was a child, she fell sick and Pastor Prince became really worried. In his state of desperation, he decided to read the Bible. As he read about Abraham’s offering in Genesis 22, he began to see how the story was about God giving up His only Son for us. As he immersed himself in reading about God’s love for Jesus, he realized that Jessica had stopped crying from her pain and was healed! The very thing that Pastor Prince had been trying to get (healing for his daughter by praying and commanding God’s healing over her) came supernaturally as he focused on Jesus. This shows us that seeing Jesus in the Word can bring practical results in our lives!
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.”
—2 Peter 1:2–3 NKJV
“has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” — The knowledge of our Lord Jesus does not only lead to godliness, but it also brings us life. This includes healing, provision, and supply, which are all matters of life!
“all things” — God has given us richly all things to enjoy (1 Tim. 6:17)! The Bible tells us that we need not worry about what we are going to eat and what we are going to wear. These represent earthly and material things. While these things are important, Matthew 6:33 tells us that when we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, these things will be added to us!
“through the knowledge of Him” — When we see Jesus in the Word, we have multiplied favor, shalom peace, wellbeing, wholeness, and life. “Shalom” also means prosperity. These things are added to us when we grow in our knowledge of Jesus.
Jesus is present all throughout the Bible. In fact, He is present even in the first verse of the Bible.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
—Genesis 1:1 NKJV
In Hebrew, this translates to: “bereshit bara Elohim et hashamayim ve'et ha'aretz.” There are seven words in this verse. The middle word (sandwiched by three words on each side) is אֵת which is aleph tav, the signature of Jesus in the Old Testament! The seven words in this verse are similar to the seven branches of the menorah, with the center branch representing Jesus.
We can also see Jesus in the first word of Genesis 1:1. The phrase “In the beginning” is “bereshit” in Hebrew, which is written as בְּרֵאשִׁית. When broken down, בְּרֵא (“bar”) means “son,” while שִׁית (“resit”) means “brought forth.” This means that the Son brought forth the heavens and the earth!
We can see Jesus throughout the Old Testament.
One way to discern pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament is to notice similarities between His life and the lives of Old Testament characters.
Jesus revealed in the life of Joseph
Joseph is a type of Christ. Just like how Joseph was sold by his brothers (Gen. 37:12–36), Jesus was sold by Judas for thirty pieces of silver. When Joseph met his brothers many years later, they did not recognize him (Gen. 42:8). Similarly, during Jesus’ first coming, the children of Israel were blind to him and did not see Him as their Savior. Instead, they rejected him just like how Joseph’s brothers did. It was only during their second meeting that Joseph revealed himself to his brothers (Gen. 45:3). During this time, Joseph was supplying grain and food to the children of Israel during a time of great famine. Likewise, Jesus will reveal Himself to Israel in the Second Coming, and in the meantime, He has been the Bread of Life.
Jesus revealed in the story of David
We can see many parallels between David and Jesus. The first example is the story of David and Goliath. After David killed Goliath, he took Goliath’s head all the way to Jerusalem. It is interesting to note here that there was no logical reason as to why David would have taken Goliath’s head to Jerusalem, especially when it was miles away from the battlefield of Elah and was inhabited by the Jebusites at that time. David must have acted based on what God told him to do. In fact, the place where David buried the head of Goliath was likely to be Calvary, where Jesus was crucified. Calvary is also known as the place of the skull, most probably because of the skull of Goliath which was buried there!
In this story, David conquered Goliath, the enemy. When we compare this to the life of Jesus, we can see the similarity in Jesus conquering the enemy Satan as promised in Genesis 3:15 where it says: “. . . And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” The Seed here refers to Jesus. When Jesus was crucified at Calvary, He conquered and “bruised the head” of a greater Goliath—Satan.
Another highlight of David’s life was how a group of men who were distressed, in debt, and discontented (also famously known as the 3D army), followed him around during his time in the wilderness (1 Sam. 22:2). As these men followed David around, they became mighty men and soldiers! Today, our Lord Jesus is still being rejected by the world, depicted by David’s rejection in the wilderness. Just like the 3D army followed David around and became mighty men, we too become strengthened when we continue to follow Jesus. Not only are we strengthened when we follow Jesus, but those who continue with Him have a table in heaven specially prepared for us by the Lord (Luke 22:28–30)!
Another way to discern pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament is to look at the great feats of heroes of faith and notice how Jesus is still greater.
Seeing Jesus in the story of Samson (Judges 16)
Judges 16 records the story of Samson’s death and how he killed more enemies in his death than he had killed in his life (Judges 16: 26–30). In contrast, our Lord Jesus’ death at the cross saved more people than He had saved and healed in His life on earth!
There are many types and shadows of Christ hidden in the Bible. We can find Jesus when we take time to study, compare, and contrast these stories with our Lord Jesus’ life!
A principle on how to read the Bible such that it feeds and nourishes you is to look for sweetness in God’s Word.
The first mention of the word “sweet” is in Exodus 15, when God turned the bitter waters of Marah into sweet waters for the children of Israel in the wilderness. It was also at the same time and place that God said: “I am the Lord who heals you.” The first mention of sweetness is related to healing. Today, we receive healing when we taste the sweetness of God’s Word!
“Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll. And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I ate, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness.”
—Ezekiel 3:1-3 NKJV
“Eat this scroll” — This refers to God’s Word. Just like Ezekiel, we are to “eat” God’s Word, which means to find enjoyment and nourishment by meditating on Scripture.
“honey in sweetness” — The words that God wants us to receive in the Bible are sweet like honey. While there might be judgment in the Old Testament, we can see God’s mercy at the same time. The more we study God’s mercy, the more we taste the sweetness of His Word!
“Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste.”
—Song of Songs 2:3 NKJV
“his fruit is sweet” — This refers to God’s Word, which is sweet!
“sit in his shade” — This refers to us taking time to sit at the Lord’s feet to receive from Him.
The Bible is filled with pleasant words, which are sweet to our soul and bring health to us (Prov. 16:24). In the times we are currently living in, there is a lot of bitterness, sadness, lack, fear of recession, and brokenness. In these trying times, we can find true satisfaction, sweetness, and encouragement in the Word of God.
Pastor Prince ends with a prayer for us to see Jesus in the Word:
“I pray in Jesus’ name, Father, that You give to each and every one under the sound of my voice the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, that when they open up the Scriptures, Father, they will see Christ and wondrous things out of Your Word. I pray, Father, that they’ll not get technical and fall under the law in the superficial reading of your Word, but that they’ll see the gospel in every word. I pray You’ll give them the grace, Lord, to know when to compare and when to contrast, and see Jesus. Thank You, Father. May these people be just like the Emmaus Road couple and end up with warm hearts, Lord, all throughout this week. Thank You, Father. Grant them this, I pray, in the name of the Lord Jesus.”
“Heavenly Father, I thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ. He died on that cross for all my sins and He bore not only my sins but all my diseases and all my pains. And on the third day, You raised Him from the dead. And You raised Him from the dead because You have declared me righteous in Your eyes. Thank You, Father. Jesus Christ is my Lord now and forever. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
“Heavenly Father, I ask in the name of the Lord Jesus, that even as they’ve received the Scriptures that were shared just now, hope has arisen for their future. The long distant future as well as the immediate future of this week. And I pray in Jesus' name, Lord, the things that they're confident for, believing You for—whether it's for their children, whether it's for their studies, whether it's for a breakthrough in their career or ministry, whether it is overcoming a bad habit—I pray that this week, You will cause it to happen, Lord. Amen. Expedite the manifestation of Your miracle in their lives, in the name of Jesus. For those who are troubled about some symptom in their body, bring them to a place of rest as You remove that symptom with all its root causes, Lord. And Father, I pray in Jesus' name that You will cause your people to be in great shalom. First in their spirits and then in their minds, in their thought life, in their soul realm, in all their emotions, as well as in health. May they experience shalom health and wholeness in their bodies throughout this week. And Father, keep them safe in Your love in Your bosom throughout this week. Help them to be conscious when the enemy gives them distractions. Help them, especially at that time, to be conscious that You love them and that Jesus died for them. In Jesus’ name. God bless you.”
God has given us a simple way to receive the tangible blessings and breakthroughs He has promised us in His Word, including good success in our careers, provision in times of lack, peace in our relationships, healing for any physical condition, and well-being for our minds and emotions.
The way to experience these practical benefits in our lives is by growing in the knowledge of Jesus.
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness . . .”
—2 Peter 1:2–3 NKJV
The more we grow in the knowledge of Jesus, the more grace and peace are multiplied to us. This grace and peace powerfully and practically bless “all things that pertain to life”! This includes the area or situation you are concerned about, whether it is your physical or mental health, your relationships, or your finances.
The best place to discover more about Jesus is in the Bible. Every passage of Scripture is meant to show you more about Him.
This week, spend time in the Word to see Jesus and find out more about Him. You can also make time to gather in fellowship with your brothers and sisters in Christ to read and talk about God’s Word together! The more you grow in your knowledge of Jesus as you see Him more in the Scriptures, the more grace and peace will be multiplied to you and affect every area of your life!
We hope these sermon notes blessed you! If they did, we encourage you to get the sermon and allow the Lord to speak to you personally as you watch or listen to it.
© Copyright JosephPrince.com 2022
These sermon notes were taken by volunteers during the service. They are not a verbatim representation of the sermon.
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