Real Life Radio

Jack Hibbs: Listen, you’re going to go to heaven because Jesus did it all, and all to Him you owe. By nothing else, it’s grace. Grace and a gift are synonymous—the same thing. It’s not earned; it’s given freely.

David J: This is Real Life. Welcome to Real Life Radio with Pastor Jack Hibbs. I’m David J. Thanking you for joining us today as we listen, learn, and are challenged by God’s Word, the Bible.

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On today’s edition of Real Life Radio, Pastor Jack begins a new series called The Life and Times of Jesus Christ and a message titled "Christ and Eternity." This is a series about who Jesus really is—not the Jesus of popular opinion, but the Jesus of the Bible, God Himself who was sent into our world. We’ll begin where He began, before time itself ever was.

We live in a generation that prides itself on knowing more than anybody in the past, yet we have less and less of the truth coming to light. The world is uninformed about who Jesus really is, and sadly, so much of the church is too. But knowing Him changes everything. Today, Pastor Jack teaches us that Jesus is over all things, holding the whole creation together by the power of His Word. The same Lord who named the stars and orchestrates the heavens is the one who governs every moment of our lives. Isn’t that great news? In his message called "Christ and Eternity," here's pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs.

Jack Hibbs: John chapter 8, verse 56. This is all introductory, so hang on to your seats. John 8:56: Jesus responded to the Pharisees and He said, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day." What a radical statement. "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad." Then the Jews said to Him, "You’re not yet even 50 years old. How is it that you said you’ve seen Abraham?" And Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am."

Listen, Abraham rejoiced to see His day. Think for a moment: when did Abraham see the day of Jesus Christ? How did Abraham see Jesus? Well, at least on one occasion, remember when Abraham was sitting on the side of the hill and his nephew Lot was living down in Sodom and Gomorrah, down there near the end of the Dead Sea? Abraham was there, and two angels and the Lord came walking up.

Abraham perceived that this one was the Lord. As the two angels—it’s kind of eerie—the two angels peeled off and went down into Sodom and Gomorrah because they had work to do. You know the story. It says that the Lord sat there with Abraham, and Abraham had Sarah make them dinner. As they’re talking, Abraham says, "Lord, will you destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if there’s 50 people?" The Lord says, "No, I’m not going to destroy it if there’s 50 righteous people. No, I won't do it."

Abraham, being the good father of the Jews that he is, says, "How about 45? How about 45?" The Lord says, "No, I won't destroy the city and the place for 45 righteous people that are there." "Lord, don't be angry with me, but how about 30?" "No, I won't destroy the place even if there’s 30 righteous." Abraham says, "Well, how about 20?" He just begins to whittle the Lord down, trying to figure out where.

It’s interesting, if you read the story carefully there in Genesis, it stops at 10. "Will you destroy the city for 10?" Now, 10 is the number for a synagogue, for a place of worship. 10 is also the amount of people, if you count them, who made the exit with Lot. Interesting. Abraham must have known that Lot had 10 relatives in that city, and he was interceding for them. Very, very important.

So Jesus says to the Pharisees, "Abraham saw my day, and he was glad." It could also be a reference to Abraham’s encounter with Melchizedek, which is a theophany, a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. But Jesus is the one in that portion of John chapter 8 that says, "I am." Listen, you and I don’t get what that means. It would be equivalent today for someone to stand up and say, "I am God."

I saw a man on TV utter a heretical declaration. I thought God was going to kill him on the spot. I am not kidding. This man is very well known. I hope none of you watch him, but he’s very well known on TV. He has a ministry that’s titled by his name—the Blankety-Blank Ministries—with a big logo behind his head. He’s about five feet tall, a little tiny guy, real squinty little eyes. He’s got perfectly combed hair. His wife is often on the program. He has a daily teaching program.

He stood up there and he said, "I am God, just as Jesus is. I am." I thought my TV was going to blow up. That’s blasphemy. He invoked the word, the name *ego eimi* in Greek, which is a title reserved for God alone. Only God is the *ego eimi*. Jesus says, "I am, *ego eimi*," which is this: "I am the only one. I am the self-existent one. I am the cause. I am the originator. I have no beginning. I have no end. I am pre-existent. I am before all things."

When somebody spouts off "I am," like Shirley MacLaine says "I am," people better know what they’re talking about because that is the ultimate form of blasphemy. I am the self-contained, existent one. Before anything was, I was there and I have been. I am the creator, sustainer, orchestrator of it all. Jesus said that. People say, "Well, Jesus never claimed to be God." He certainly did.

People who don’t know their Bible just don’t know that when He says "I am," He invoked the name that was found in Exodus chapter 3, verse 14. When Moses said, "When I go back to the children of Israel, whom shall I say sent me?" God said to Moses, "You go back and tell them that 'I AM' sent you. You tell them 'I AM' has sent you."

In Hebrew, it is not the Greek word *ego eimi*, of course not. It’s in Hebrew. It’s the word *Hayah*, and it means to always have been existing, to be the one who orchestrates, the one who supplies all of your needs, the beacon, the source, the truth, the strength, the one. "You go back, Moses, and you tell them 'the I AM' sent you." Jesus, in Israel nearly 2,000 years ago, told those religious hierarchies, "Listen, I am."

If you doubt if they understood what He said, it says there that they picked up stones to kill Him. They knew exactly what He was saying. It was for that reason, by the way, that they got their gears going to plan His death. Remember why those people wanted to kill Jesus? It’s because they believed He committed blasphemy. That’s why they killed Him. Did you know that?

That’s why Rome said, "We don’t even see any reason why we should kill Him," and Israel said, "For blasphemy! He’s claiming to be God." That’s why Jesus was killed. Jesus couldn’t say, "I’m sorry." He couldn’t say, "Please forgive me." It’s truth. We’ll see more on this this morning as we look. Jesus announced His own origins when He said, "I am."

The pre-existence of Jesus Christ. He appears in the Bible in the Old Testament as the Angel of the Lord. He appears to Joshua in chapter 5, verse 13 as the Captain of the Lord’s Host. And He appears in the Bible as the Lord Himself. Very, very important. In Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6—am I going too fast? I’m so excited about this series.

In Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6, the Bible says there: "For unto us a child is born, and a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders, and His name will be called Wonderful." Listen, everybody, His name shall be called Counselor. Go to Him first. Mighty God—that’s rather clear. Everlasting Father—that’s not so clear in English. In the Hebrew, it’s Father or Governor of Time. Interesting. And then finally, Isaiah 9:6, the Prince of Peace. That’s very clear, and we understand who He is.

Let’s look at this point that we’re talking about this morning, that Jesus was before all things. Look with me as we consider this: that He’s before the spiritual creation. This is a wild concept. Listen to this: that He’s before the spiritual creation. What do we mean by that? Well, the Bible teaches first of all that God is spirit. Jesus Christ in His eternalness was spirit until Mary had a little lamb—until Mary gave birth to Jesus, He was spirit.

God is spirit. When Christ became human flesh, He was to be that way from that moment on forevermore. Do you know right now that Jesus Christ is 100% God and 100% man right now on the throne room of heaven? Isn’t that wild? It’s wild. So look at this: before the spiritual creation ever was, Jesus was before that. It means this: that He orchestrated and created the spiritual realm.

I’m not saying that God created God; God can’t be created. I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about what has come out from Him. Jesus has created. Example: it’s going to click right now when I say this. Jesus, the Bible says, has created all principalities and powers, whether they be thrones or dominions, above the earth or under the earth—that is the spiritual world. Jesus has created it. Angels? Jesus has created them.

Jot it down if you would: Colossians chapter 1, verse 14. In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of His sins. Does anybody wonder who that is? It’s obvious. Who is it? Who is this? Oh, you guys, are you guys sleeping? It’s Jesus. Let’s keep reading. Verse 15: He is the image of the invisible God. By the way, the word image means the exact copy of God in flesh. He is the image of the invisible God. Jesus is the image of the invisible God, now made public.

The firstborn over all creation. This doesn't mean that Jesus was the first born. It means that Jesus is the preeminent one. He’s the number one, like a son in the Jewish culture has the birthright order. The firstborn son has everything. Jesus has everything. For by Him were all things created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible things—we have no problem with that; we understand that—and invisible things. Oh, atoms, protons, electrons, the invisible world. Spirit things. Whether they be thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers, all things were created through Him and for Him.

Now, this is elementary Christianity. Jesus Christ is the Creator. Not only did He create everything, quite frankly, He created them for Himself. He liked it. Jack, are you suggesting then that Genesis 1:1 is about Jesus Christ? Absolutely. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. According to Colossians chapter 1, verses 14 through 16, who is that God who created the heavens and the earth? Jesus Christ.

Let’s put it this way: in the Trinity of God, in the Godhead, as our theme verse is in Colossians 2:9, Jesus Christ is the general contractor. He’s the carpenter. He builds worlds and all that is in them. Isn’t that fun? Isn’t that exciting? That’s Jesus, the one and only.

David J: You’re listening to Real Life with Pastor Jack Hibbs. To learn more about this ministry or to catch up on some previous episodes, go to jackhibbs.com. That’s jackhibbs.com. And now, let’s get back to today’s message. Once again, here's Pastor Jack.

Jack Hibbs: In Nehemiah chapter 9, verse 6, an often hidden verse: "And the host of heaven worships you." The host of heaven is a reference to the angels of God. Jesus Christ created them. Very, very important. Jesus created them. The second thing that we see here is that Jesus is before the spiritual purpose of all things. He’s before the spiritual purpose of things. Not only did He create the spiritual realm—the angelic host and all—but also the spiritual purpose for their very existence.

Meaning this: that in God’s foreknowledge—and Christ has foreknowledge, and we’ll talk more about His limitations when we talk about His incarnation, which by the way were willful; that’s to follow later on—but concerning the spiritual purpose of His work, the Lord knew all things. He knew—and this blows my mind—He knew exactly how not only the spiritual realm that He had created would go, but also the physical realm that He had created. He knew where they would go.

Example: what I mean by that is He created even this wonderful, His most precious created angel in the universe. You know his name? Name’s Lucifer, son of the morning. The most awesome angel ever created. But in God’s creation, He instilled within the angelic host a free will. And Lucifer exercised that free will, the Bible says, and said in Isaiah chapter 14 and Ezekiel chapter 28, "I will be like God. I will have a throne like Him, I will have a universe like Him, I will have servants like Him, I will have my position just like God has His. I will be as God."

Ever hear that? Sounds a little familiar to the Garden of Eden doctrine, doesn't it? "I will be as God." And God said, "You will not be as me." He says you will be cast down. Why? For it says, "In the day that pride was found in your heart, you sinned, you anointed cherub who covereth." That means he had the top dog, if I can put it that way, position. Lucifer was number one, the big kahuna of heaven, when it came to leading all service and worship to God. Every angel had to go through Lucifer. But because of his pride, he sinned.

In that spiritual creation, the Bible tells us in the book of Revelation, one-third of the angelic host was deceived by Satan and judged. But concerning the spiritual creation, consider this: that we as human beings, the Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, that we are both—or I should say in all—body, soul, and spirit. We are a trichotomy. As a human, we have a body—that’s obvious. We have a soul—that’s our thinking and our emotions. And we have our spirit—and that’s who we really are.

And by the way, that’s the portion that needs to be born again. Everything else needs to be redeemed, but the spirit needs to be born. So in God’s foreknowledge, He knew that before He ever created the world—listen to this—He knew that we were going to have a very, very bad beginning in the Garden of Eden. Did you know that? He knew that before He ever created the garden. So you might say, "Well, why didn't He just not create it?" Because—jot it down, here's your answer. Somebody knocks on your door, or maybe you’re witnessing to some friends and they say, "Oh yeah? Well, if your God is so loving, then why did He let the Garden of Eden thing happen anyway?"

Well, the Bible tells you in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 7 through 9. It says there that in the ages to come, He might show the exceeding riches of His grace. That’s what’s on display: His grace. In His kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, not of works so that no man could boast.

Listen, you’re going to go to heaven because Jesus did it all, and all to Him you owe. And by nothing else, it’s grace. Grace and a gift are synonymous—same thing. It’s not earned; it’s given freely. If you earn, if you attach any workmanship to what Christ has done, you have to cut the word grace right out of your Bible. There are a lot of people who shun the word grace today because it’s so ill-represented in the Christian witness, and it’s true. It is ill-represented.

There are uninformed people who are either not Christians or Christians who are very, very uninformed and ignorant, where they’ll say, "Well, I can sin, God’s grace will cover me." You can't think that way. As a true Christian, you can't think that way at all. But there will be people who will say that. Well, the fact is, God’s grace is so wonderful, it’s so free, it’s so powerful that it causes us to be converted as we come to Him and we say, "Lord, I’m going to put my faith in your wonderful greatness."

And even that faith that He gives us is not of ourselves. And we cannot work our way into heaven. If anyone ever attaches anything to God’s grace and acceptance of the sinner before God, it is blasphemous. It is an affront to God’s work of salvation on the cross. You cannot be saved only after you have done all that you can. It is by grace or it’s not at all. Do you understand that? That’s why we can't wait to sing Him praise songs. You know what I mean? That’s why we can't wait to lift our hands. Think about the wonderful truth of God’s grace in our lives.

In 1 John 3:8, the Bible says, "For this purpose the Son of God has been revealed to mankind: that He might destroy the works of the devil." Hey, that’s the spiritual creation and the spiritual purpose all in one verse right there. The spiritual creation and the spiritual purpose. In Revelation 19:10, I want to give you this verse because God knows all things. Jesus knows all things. It says, "Worship God," says the angel to John, "for the testimony of Jesus, the declaration, the message of Jesus is this: is the spirit of prophecy." God knows all. Jesus knows all. So it’s so very, very important.

Let’s look at our second point this morning. We go from this to: Jesus is over all things. He governs or is over all things. Our second point. What we want to see right here is very important. We see that He’s over the physical creation. In Hebrews chapter 1, verse 1 through 3, it says, "God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds."

That’s pretty clear. "Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding"—gotta circle that word—"all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins." By the way, it’s past tense in the Greek. Sins have been taken care of, all done for all time. He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. Jesus is overseer of the physical creation. He made it, and it says here that it’s held together by Him, that He upholds it.

This is wild. Creation is accredited to Jesus. We saw that in Genesis 1:1, but in Colossians 1:17, the Bible says, "And in Him all things consist." This is Jesus. He is literally the atomic glue that has never been found in the study of astronomy or astrophysics or the study of physics itself. How is it that all things, be it microscopic or just universal, are held together?

Did you know it’s a mystery to this hour? Right now, to this hour, we don’t know why in an atom there is the orbiting and the holding together with there as the orbits are taking place around that nucleus. No one on earth—no one—has ever been able to determine how is it that those little things keep their orbit at a certain distance and don’t collide into each other and are so wonderfully ordered, and they don’t fly apart?

It’s a mystery that they don’t fly apart. Did you know that if we were to reduce this pulpit, it would be a little speck of dust on the platform here if we were to remove all the space between the physical matter that’s here? You are looking at it, your eyeballs see wood. But there is more space between the wood than there is wood. That’s a scientific fact. Well, you look and you go, "I don’t believe what you just said because all I see is wood." I know that’s all you see, but there is more what you can't see than what you can see.

Isn't that weird? And if you were to remove the space of what’s between these wood molecules, this pulpit would be about a quarter of an inch tall. And I would be very small. Isn't that a wild thing? He is over all of these little atoms. He holds them together. Who does? Jesus. He’s the atomic glue. Who says? Bible says, God says.

David J: Pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs here on Real Life Radio and his message called "Christ and Eternity." Thanks for being with us today. You know, this message is part of Pastor Jack’s new series called The Life and Times of Jesus Christ. It’s a series about the real Jesus of the Bible, God in the flesh, and why knowing Him more deeply changes everything. And we’ll continue on the next edition of Real Life Radio.

America’s founding wasn't just political; it was biblical. In the American story, the beginnings, Tim and David Barton uncover the scripture-anchored principles that shaped this nation from day one. It’s the history they don't teach anymore, and the history every American needs to know. Give a gift to Real Life and receive the book, plus a free kids' guide for America’s 250th birthday. And check out our Faith and Freedom collection: bold apparel to wear in celebration of America. Visit jackhibbs.com or call 877-777-2346.

Hey, thank you again so much for listening. And if you’d like to hear or see more of what we do here, you can always go to jackhibbs.com for all the latest on what’s going on with this ministry. And please, if you’re ever in the Southern California area, come see us at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills. We’d love to see you there in person. It has been so good to be with you today, and I pray you find yourself in the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. See you on the next episode.

This program is made possible by the generous contributions of you, our listeners. Visit us at jackhibbs.com—that’s jackhibbs.com. Until next time, Pastor Jack Hibbs and all of us here at Real Life Radio wish for you solid and steady growth in Christ and in His Word. We’ll see you next time here on Real Life Radio.