to first John towards the back of your Bible and I apologize for those of you who showed up to church tonight having not eaten dinner yet because my opening illustration for tonight's sermon will be in first John chapter 1 verses 1 and 2 but my opening illustration is about in and out burger and in honor of opening up with an illustration about in and out burger I had to just I had to have in and out for dinner.

So I had had myself a couple of burgers before earlier tonight but nonetheless you guys I tend to think I don't know if you agree I think most of you agree that in and out burger happens to just be the best burger chain on God's green earth for a variety of reasons and most of us have been to in and out probably more times than we can even count myself included.

I don't even know if I had to put a number on it I have no idea what that number would be but it's been a lot but we have experienced first hand how amazing it truly is but unfortunately I'm sure there's some of our online viewers tonight maybe even some of you here who have yet to experience in and out maybe for those who are online you live in an area where there's just you know your state doesn't have one your area doesn't have one but here's the thing about in and out.

I can talk your ear off all day all night about how good it really is about how good a fresh double double is I can tell you all about how in and out only uses the freshest the best ingredients to make their product.

I can tell you about the history and the origins of the company but it is not until you go to in and out.

You purchase a double double or cheeseburger if you for whatever reason like less meat and cheese but it's not until you go and make that purchase and you sink your teeth into that juicy burger and you let that goodness just overwhelm your taste buds.

It's not until you do that that you will have experience in and out first hand and the title of our message tonight is first hand.

Growing up I heard all about the Grand Canyon from my textbooks in reading I knew people who went to the Grand Canyon fellow friends and I you know I believe them that it was it was grand it was a Grand Canyon.

But it wasn't until a handful years ago now that I went to the Grand Canyon and I stood at that railing and I overlooked that magnificent canyon it wasn't until I went there and experienced it first hand it wasn't until I did that that I was able to grasp truly how incredible it was.

We've likely all been told at some point in our lives regarding some place or something that you've got to go experience it for yourself.

And the same concept is true of our relationship with the Lord.

He wants you to experience him first hand and we're going to talk about what that means tonight tonight we're going to learn of how John tells the readers of his first epistle about the first hand experience that he had with Christ with the word of life.

We'll also learn how though you and I we can't quite have that same physical experience that John got to have with Jesus we can still have a deep and intimate experience with God because of what Christ has done for us and the presence of the Holy Spirit in us.

Because of these things we can know God.

So John first John chapter one you should be open there in your Bibles you can look to the screens it's just two verses tonight so you'll just just stay seated I'm going to read both of them but you can look to the screens to fall along or look down in your Bibles.

John writes that which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes which we have looked upon and our hands have handled concerning the word of life the life was manifested and we have seen and bear witness and declared to you that eternal life which was with the father and was manifested to us.

Would you join me in prayer.

Heavenly father we pray that you would exalt yourself in this place tonight.

God that you would be high and lifted up in our hearts.

Jesus that you would be great in this place.

Lord that we would know your Holy Spirit Lord and know how he wants to work in our lives.

God I pray tonight that we would truly have a jaw dropping sense of wonder for the gospel.

...