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Sermon #5408

Let a Man Examine Himself

A Sermon on John 2:23-25

Originally preached Jan. 13, 1957

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Scripture

John 2:23-25 ESV KJV
Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for …

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Sermon Description

In his sermon on “Let a Man Examine Himself,” from John 2:23–25, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones tackles the important topic of unbelief. How does unbelief come about, and how does Jesus respond? He offers an explanation to Christ’s actions. In the passage, Jesus performs miracles and many of the crowd believed in His name, but Christ did not give Himself to them, for He knew their hearts. Why did Christ reject them? Dr. Lloyd-Jones points to their unbelief. The people who gathered believed in His miracles, but they did not believe in His teaching. In many ways, they resembled Nicodemus. The Pharisee approached Jesus at night, wondering why He was able to perform such signs and miracles. Dr. Lloyd-Jones says that Nicodemus wasn’t interested in Jesus’s teaching, and that is why he never understood. The proper approach to Christ is like that of the disciples. Dr. Lloyd-Jones says all should mimic the disciples’ desire to know God. They saw Christ’s miracles, but also wanted to know where He was staying so they could listen and understand. This is the kind of belief God is interested in, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says. These are the people who will understand God’s love, and His Son’s redemptive sacrifice on the cross.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The passage from John 2:23-25 shows the possibility of false belief and the danger of it. Many believed in Jesus when they saw his miracles but Jesus did not commit himself to them.

  2. The characteristics of false belief are:

  3. Only a general interest in Jesus, attracted to his personality and miracles but not his teaching.

  4. Interested in phenomena and experiences, not truth or doctrine.

  5. Not humbled or repentant, trusting in their own understanding.

  6. A false belief is useless. It does not matter if we are interested in Jesus if he is not interested in us. Jesus did not commit himself to those in John 2 because he knew what was in them.

  7. We can know Jesus is interested in us if:

  8. He disturbs and deals with our lives, not leaving us alone.

  9. We feel drawn and led by him, sensing his presence.

  10. We become aware of our sin and dependence on him.

  11. We find peace, joy, and assurance in him.

  12. Many will claim to have done things in Jesus' name but he will say "I never knew you; depart from me." We cannot fool Jesus, he knows what is in us.

  13. Have you ever been afraid Jesus is not interested in you? If not, he likely never has been. We must realize our utter helplessness without him.

  14. To enter the kingdom of God we must be born again, of water (repentance) and the Spirit (rebirth by God's Spirit). A mere belief in or admiration of Jesus is not enough.

  15. We must go to Jesus, tell him we don't know if he's interested in us, and cry out for him to make it certain. He will not reject us.

Sermon Q&A

Understanding Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Teaching on False Belief vs. True Faith

What is the significance of Jesus not committing himself to those who believed in his name in John 2:23-25?

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, this passage reveals a startling truth: people can believe in Jesus in some sense yet not truly belong to him. Jesus did not commit himself to these people "because he knew all men and needed not that any should testify of men, for he knew what was in men." This shows there's a possibility of a false belief that appears genuine but is rejected by Christ himself. The Lord can see through our outward profession to what truly lies in our hearts.

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones differentiate between false belief and true saving faith?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies several key characteristics of false belief:

  1. It involves merely a general interest in Christ - being attracted to his personality or character without true commitment
  2. It focuses on phenomena and miracles rather than his teaching and doctrine
  3. It lacks humility - people trust their own understanding rather than being broken by awareness of sin
  4. The person remains unchanged inwardly - there is no new birth or transformation

True faith, by contrast, involves being born again, having a complete revolution in one's heart, and experiencing Christ's ongoing interest in and work upon one's soul.

What does it mean that Jesus "knew what was in men"?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that Jesus has perfect knowledge of human hearts. "He doesn't pay attention to letters of testimonial or of recommendation... he says, 'I don't need it. I know. I see. I know all.'" Christ can see through our outward professions and appearances to discern our true spiritual condition. This penetrating knowledge means we cannot fool him as we might fool others or even ourselves. He reads us "like an open book" and knows whether our faith is genuine or merely superficial.

How can someone know if Christ is truly interested in them?

According to Lloyd-Jones, we can know Christ is interested in us when:

  1. He disturbs our life and won't leave us alone
  2. We feel drawn by him and led by him
  3. We develop a sense of dependence upon him and his work
  4. We experience conviction of sin and awareness of our need
  5. We find peace and rest through understanding his death for our sins
  6. We gain assurance of his presence that cannot be separated from us

If Christ is not interested in someone, he simply leaves them to themselves, and they only think about him when they choose to.

What is the meaning of being "born again" as explained to Nicodemus?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones interprets Jesus' words about being "born of water and of the Spirit" to mean:

  1. Water represents repentance (John's baptism was a baptism of repentance)
  2. Spirit represents the divine work of regeneration

Being born again is not about advancing from where we are to where Christ is, but experiencing "an entire and a complete change." It requires "a new heart, an entire revolution in the center of our being." This transformation can only be accomplished by the Spirit of God, not by human effort or admiration of Christ. It involves recognizing one's sinfulness and complete dependence on Christ's blood for cleansing.

Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones consider this teaching so urgent for his listeners?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes this message because:

  1. We are "standing between life and death" and face eternity
  2. Death can come unexpectedly at any age
  3. Many people falsely assume they are in God's kingdom when they are not
  4. A false belief will be exposed on Judgment Day when Christ says "I never knew you"
  5. The consequences are eternal - either glory with Christ or misery and wretchedness

He urges his listeners to examine themselves honestly and, if uncertain, to "go to him... fly to him. Tell him that you don't know, that you're not sure. Ask him to make it certain."

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.