1 John 2:12-13
12 I am writing to you, little children,
since your sins have been forgiven
on account of his name.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you have come to know
the one who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have conquered the evil one.[1]
----------------------------
One Thing…

• I want to teach you one thing today.
• Don’t believe a word I say.
• This is something that I was not taught at OBU.
• I never heard in seminary.
• I did not learn this until I was 36 years old.

1 John 2:13
I am writing to you, young men, because you have conquered (had victory over) the evil one.
- Now let’s break this down…
 

• We are amid horror flicks at Halloween time.
• There is not a single reference from Romans to Revelation about casting out demons.
• Christians are not to spend their lives casting out demons.
• Instead, we are to present the Gospel to people that they may believe and be delivered from the influence of the evil one.
• All who are in Christ have the ability overcome the evil one.

 
- 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. And may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.[2]

• Paul indicates that we are 3 parts: spirit, soul and body.
• Body – “Body” obviously describes a person's physical being.
• Our physical being here on earth… originally came from dust and will return to dust.
• Your body is not going into eternity.
• This includes your brain (hard drive…memories)
• Our physical bodies are temporary and not redeemed.
• Not made perfect.

 

• Soul – (psychē) is the life force that all living things possess and that distinguishes them from the inanimate or the dead.
• The word is used of life itself, as the seat of internal thoughts, desires, and emotions, or of that aspect of life that survives physical death.
• Mind, will, emotions (personality). It makes each individual unique.
• The soul is eternal. (Luke 16 – Abraham & Lazarus on one side and the rich man on the other side)
• If the soul is eternal (out lasts the body) it must be redeemed. When is it redeemed?
• I have been given the mind of Christ. (1 Cor 2:16)

 

• Spirit – (pneuma) refers to the “breath” characteristic of life.
• It is roughly synonymous with “soul,” and like soul it sometimes is paired with “flesh” or “body” to sum up the entirety of a living being.
• In one Pauline context, (1 Cor 2:14–15). The “spiritual” (pneumatikos) person is one enabled to commune with the divine.
• The “natural” (psuchikos) person lives apart from the knowledge and power of God (cf. 1 Cor 15:42–46).
• The key distinction here is relational.
• Paul was not describing the human person as a three-part conglomerate but as a being with material and nonmaterial existence who may or may not be spiritually enlivened in relation to God.[3]

 

• It is our connection to God. We are born with a dead spirit… (from the seed of Adam).
• Galatians 2:19-20 – For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.[4]
• 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come! 18 Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 19 That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us.
• 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.” 21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.[5]

 

• My spirit has been made alive in Christ and He in me.
• My spirit has been redeemed.
• This is who I am now… not what I do.

 
This is how the evil one works…
Romans 7:14-20 - For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold as a slave under sin. 15 For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 So now I am no longer the one doing it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. 19 For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, I am no longer the one that does it, but it is the sin that lives in me.[6]
 
- The evil one is constantly sending thoughts to our flesh brain.
- How does He do this? (application)
 - Family, friends, etc.
 - Social Networking
 - News
 - Entertainment
 - Society
 - Senses – Visual (hearing – words)
 - Flesh patterns in the brain
 
- What does it look like?
 - Perfect pictures… perfect FB & IG posts
 - Beauty & Fashion – Self-esteem and self-worth
 - Self Care – You can do it!
 - Addictions
 - Chemical imbalance
 - Fear – Personal threads and profiles
    -   Quit believing everything you read and hear.

• Times have changed since the internet.
• Conspiracies unproven
• The researchers found that overall, people were motivated to believe in conspiracy theories by a need to understand and feel safe in their environment and a need to feel like the community they identify with is superior to others.
• Elvis is dead, Kennedy was shot by Oswald and the Astros cheated.

 
We must be able to discern what truth really is.

• If we can’t determine the truth, then we must learn to trust the only Truth.
• I don’t know when we are going to Israel… but I am hopeful that we are still going.
• Whatever that looks like, I trust Him.
• I have in the past… He hasn’t failed me yet… and He never will.

 
If the evil one is here to destroy me… either through my choices or other’s choices… I must know the game.

• Not every thought that enters my head is truth.
• I must filter thoughts in my brain through my “mind of Christ”.

1 Corinthians 2:10-16 - Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, since the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except his spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who comes from God, so that we may understand what has been freely given to us by God. 13 We also speak these things, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people. 14 But the person without the Spirit does not receive what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated spiritually. 15 The spiritual person, however, can evaluate everything, and yet he himself cannot be evaluated by anyone. 16 For
who has known the Lord’s mind,
that he may instruct him? (Isaiah 40:13)
But we have the mind of Christ.[7]
 
- We make a choice… walk by the flesh… or Spirit.
 
Here is a good example of what I am talking about.
- What we have been taught vs. what the Bible says.
- This is what it sounds like…


Flesh says, “I am a sinner”.
1 Timothy 1:15 - This saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them.[8]
 
Spirit says…

• John 1:12 - I am a child of God (Romans 8:16).
• John 15:15 - I am Christ's friend.
• John 15:16 - I am chosen and appointed by Christ to bear His fruit.
• Romans 3:24 - I have been justified and redeemed.
• Romans 6:7 - I have been freed from sin's power over me.
• Romans 8:1 - I am forever free from condemnation.
• Romans 8:17 - I am an heir of God and fellow heir with Christ.
• Romans 11:16 - I am holy.
• Romans 15:7 - Christ has accepted me.
• 1 Corinthians 1:2 - I have been sanctified.
• 1 Corinthians 2:12 - I have received the Spirit of God into my life that I might know the things freely given to me by God.
• 1 Corinthians 6:17 - I am joined to the Lord and am one spirit with Him.
• 2 Corinthians 1:21 - I have been established in Christ and anointed by God.
• Galatians 2:4 - I have liberty in Christ Jesus.
• Ephesians 1:1 - I am a saint (1 Corinthians 1:2; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:2).
• Ephesians 1:3 - I am blessed with every spiritual blessing.
• Ephesians 2:5 - I have been made alive together with Christ.
• Ephesians 2:10 - I am God's workmanship, created in Christ to do His work that He planned beforehand that I should do.
• Ephesians 2:18 - I have direct access to God through the Spirit.
• Ephesians 3:12 - I may approach God with boldness and confidence.
• Philippians 4:7 - His peace guards my heart and my mind.
• Philippians 4:19 - God will supply all my needs.
• Colossians 1:27 - Christ Himself is in me.
• Colossians 2:10 - I have been made complete in Christ.
• Colossians 3:4 - Christ is now my life.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:5 - I am a child of light and not of darkness.
• 2 Timothy 1:7 - I have been given a spirit of power, love, and discipline.
• Hebrews 2:11 - Because I am sanctified and am one with Christ, He is not ashamed to call me His.
• Hebrews 4:16 - I may come boldly before the throne of God to receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
• Hebrews 10:14 – I have been perfected by His one offering.
• 1 John 3:1 - God has bestowed a great love on me and called me His child.
• 1 John 4:15 - God is in me, and I am in God.

 
1 John 2:12
12 I am writing to you, little children,
since your sins have been forgiven
on account of his name.
13 … I am writing to you, young men,
because you have conquered the evil one.[9]
 
We traveled from the simplest of things of our faith (forgiveness) to one of the least understood issues of the Scripture (being victorious over the evil one).

[1] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Martin, D. M. (1995). 1, 2 Thessalonians (Vol. 33, p. 189). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[8] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Christian Standard Bible. 2020. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

• I don’t get frustrated… it is what it is…
• I just teach

 

• What is milk and what is meat?

THE PROBLEM OF IMMATURITY
HEBREWS 5
11 We have a great deal to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. 12 Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food. 13 Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. 14 But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil.[1]
 
WARNING AGAINST FALLING AWAY
HEBREWS 6
1 Therefore, let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ and go on to maturity,

• We are encouraged to grow spiritually
• This confirms the author wrote this book to believers.

1. not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works,

       - Romans 6:14 - For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under the law but under grace.[2]
- Temple sacrifices were under the Law.
- Temple sacrifices were their own dead works.
- We are saved by faith alone.

1. faith in God,

• Where does faith come from?
• Romans 12:3 - 3 For by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one.[3]
• They wanted to walk away from their faith and come back to it later after the persecutions had ended.
• You don’t have the ability to put faith on and off.

1. 2 teaching about ritual washings,

• 1 Peter 3:21 - 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you (not as the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a good conscience toward God) through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, [4]
• This is about publicly severing the ties between Judaism and Christianity. It would become public.
• It will free them up from guilt.

1. laying on of hands,

• Still practicing Law by deciding who was to be commissioned to do certain acts.
• Move beyond this…

1. the resurrection of the dead,

• Sadducees did not believe in resurrections.
• Obviously, Jesus had been resurrected.
• Move on…

1. and eternal judgment.

• God will judge every person without Christ.
• John 3:36 - The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who rejects the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.[5]
• The everyday question… “How can God let people go to hell?” – Free will because He allows us to love.

3 And we will do this if God permits.

• Believers have a choice to continue in their daily ruts or move on.
• It will be God who permits to do so through the grace he supplies.
• I am a testament of that… and so are you…
• Look back at the past… where you have come from.
• Meat…
• Eternal security… can you lose your salvation?
• Keep in historical context.
• It is obvious these next verses are to believers.
• Why would they be receiving persecution if they were not true believers?

4 For it is impossible to renew to repentance those who were once enlightened (believers), who tasted
(consumed versus touching, smelling, seeing)

• Hebrews 2:9 – Jesus tasted death.

the heavenly gift, who shared in the Holy Spirit, (only believers did this)5 who tasted God’s good word (rhema… not logos… it had been revealed to them) and the powers of the coming age (end times – Millennium, when believers reign with Christ), 6 and who have fallen away. This is because, to their own harm, they are recrucifying the Son of God and holding him up to contempt.

• Can a believer walk away from their salvation/justification and come back to it later to be reattached?
• Hebrews 10:10 - By this will, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.[6]
• Hypothetical
• They had to choose to walk on in maturity or die physically.
• Think for just a second…
• How many sins must someone do to walk away from their salvation? One? 100?
• How long after someone sins do they have to wait to be forgiven of that sin? 2-3 days? Until people quit thinking about it?
• If you can never feel secure about your salvation, you will never experience peace in this journey.
• Those who are not sure… have to work hard to “persevere”.
• Those who are secure knows that “perseverance” is trusting the Father who is responsible for keeping us “saved”. It ain’t on me!

 

1. John 1:12 - I am a child of God.
2. John 15:15 - I am Christ's friend.
3. Romans 5:1 - I have been justified (completely forgiven and made righteous) and am at peace with God.
4. Romans 8:17 - I am an heir of God and fellow heir with Christ.
5. 1 Corinthians 1:30 - I have been placed in Christ by God's doing; Christ is now my wisdom from God, my righteousness, my sanctification, and my redemption.
6. 1 Corinthians 6:17 - I am joined to the Lord and am one spirit with Him.
7. 1 Corinthians 12:27 - I am a member of Christ's body (Ephesians 5:30).
8. Ephesians 1:4 - I was chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blame before Him.
9. Philippians 3:20 - I am a citizen of heaven.
10. Colossians 2:10 - I have been made complete in Christ.

7 For the ground that drinks the rain that often falls on it and that produces vegetation useful to those for whom it is cultivated receives a blessing from God. 8 But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is worthless and about to be cursed, and at the end will be burned.

• This is about works… not salvation.
• The subject matter is the ground and the vegetation/thistles are the byproduct.
• What is burnt? The byproduct. The works. Not the ground. Not the believer.
• Believers will be judged with fire at the Judgment Seat… but it will be their works that are burned.
• 2 Corinthians 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may be repaid for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. [7]
• 1 Corinthians 3:13 - each one’s work will become obvious. For the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire; the fire will test the quality of each one’s work.[8]
• If the Hebrew Christians walked on in maturity, they would receive rewards.
• If the Hebrew Christians returned to Jerusalem to practice sacrifices they would be physically consumed by fire by Titus and the Romans... but still had their salvation intact.

9 Even though we are speaking this way, dearly loved friends, in your case we are confident of things that are better (confident they will produce good fruit) and that pertain to salvation. (confirms to believers)

• He is confident they will walk in their identity if they choose to mature.

10 For God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you demonstrated for his name by serving the saints—and by continuing to serve them. 11 Now we desire each of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the full assurance of your hope until the end, 12 so that you won’t become lazy but will be imitators of those who inherit the promises through faith and perseverance.

• This is just total encouragement for them to walk on as they already have.
• Look back at how you already persevered.

 
INHERITING THE PROMISE
13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself: 14 I will indeed bless you, and I will greatly multiply you. (Genesis 22:17)

• Abraham lived a life of faith based upon the promises of a Messiah.
• You live in that promise after the Messiah. Forgiven.

15 And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham obtained the promise.

• This promise to Abraham was unconditional.
• He would not nullify His promise.
• Abraham waited 25 years for Isaac.
• Abraham is the father of the Jewish Nation that has been multiplied over the years.
• Jesus was born a Jew as promised.
• All who believe in Jesus are grafted in (Rom 4:13)

16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute.

• God could swear by no one greater than Him.

17 Because God wanted to show his unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.

• Jesus is our hope… our anchor.

19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain. 20 Jesus has entered there on our behalf as a forerunner, because he has become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.[9]

• The Temple is no longer needed.
• Jesus has walked behind the veil in heaven for us.
• We are now that Temple.
• Our high priest, resides inside of us.
• We walk daily knowing Jesus is the forerunner.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 5:11–14). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Ro 6:14). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Ro 12:3). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (1 Pe 3:21). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Jn 3:36). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 10:10). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 5:10). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[8] Christian Standard Bible (1 Co 3:13). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 6:1–20). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.

Ephesians 1:18-19
18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the mighty working of his strength.[1]

• Power – dunamus – dynamite

GOD’S POWER IN CHRIST
EPHESIANS 1
20 He exercised this power in Christ by raising him from the dead

• “exercised” – energized
• Computer gets bogged down… run updates… refresh.
• The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 8:11)
• God’s power enables us to use God’s strength & wealth.
• You will never experience the power of His resurrection in the daily affairs of life until you know him intimately.
• Authority and power for victorious living come only through knowing Him and living by His very life.

and seating him at his right hand in the heavens--

• He is sitting… It is done!
• Chapter 2 gets even better!

21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

• His power will supersede anything ever created.

22 And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church,

• Jesus supplies the very life of the church.
• We live by His life!

23 which is his body,

• Christ being the head and the believers being His body.

the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

• The fullness of the deity of resides in us.
• When we learn to walk in the Spirit, we walk in this fullness.
• The Gospels display the power of the Father working through the Son.
• Acts displays the power of the Father working through the Spirit in the form of believers.

 
FROM DEATH TO LIFE
EPHESIANS 2
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins

• Spiritually dead…
• Can’t communicate with God
• Unable to understand and appreciate spiritual things.
• God is Spirit and we have no spiritual life
• Spirit is dead in relation to God
• Sin (acts) is a result of your natural behavior
• trespasses = deviate from righteousness
• sin = miss the mark

2 in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world,

• “world” – this evil age
• the world’s system of values and perspective of things
• Satan has power in this system

according to the ruler of the power of the air,

• Ruler = prince, chief of the atmosphere
• We are in a battle and natural tendency is to protect our child.
• There is only one way to protect your child…
• 1) Know Jesus 2) Trust Him.
• 1 Peter 5:8 – Roaring lion (Simba-pounce)
• 2 Cor 11:14 – Angel of light

the spirit now working in the disobedient.

• spirit – way of thinking.

3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires,

• * Beware of sinful nature in NIV84 & NLT.
• The flesh refers to that fallen nature that we were born with, that wants to control the body and the mind and make us disobey God.[2]
• This is the state in which bad habit patterns get lodged in the brain (flesh)

carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts (mind),

• Unregenerate man – soul & spirit are not redeemed at this point.
• Soul being mind, will & emotions.

and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.

• It is our nature that condemns us.
• Since we have not been saved by our good works, we cannot be lost by our bad works.[3]
• Answer the baby question (2 Sam 12:23)

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,

• This is God’s true nature
• Love is one of God’s intrinsic attributes, but when this love is related to sinners, it becomes grace and mercy.[4]

5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!

• “Us” being the believers (church)
• We received eternal life… no beginning or end… no timeline… freedom.
• Grace - 1) God’s unmerited favor
•            2) God’s ability in you on a daily basis

6 He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,

• God has no timeline… He sees us there now
• If you see yourself in the flesh and here on earth rather than in the Spirit hanging out with the Father… you  never win the battle that is going on here on earth.
• You presently have access to all that is God’s
• A.W. Tozer - Earth may have been good enough for that creature who was created from the dust and clay, but it is not good enough for the living soul who is redeemed by royal blood!

Earth was fit and proper to be the eternal dwelling place for that creature who was made by God’s hand, but it is not appropriate nor sufficient to be the eternal dwelling place of that redeemed being who is begotten of the Holy Spirit. Every born-again Christian has been lifted up—lifted up from the level of the fallen Adamic race to the heavenly plane of the unfallen and victorious Christ. He belongs up there!
7 so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

• What are His immeasurable riches?

8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift--

• Salvation comes through faith alone
• The division is what is the word “this” in reference to… salvation or faith. (Just another distraction).

9 not from works, so that no one can boast.

• Not as a result of man’s efforts
• The Law confirmed this
• Who has to perform at Christmas to receive their gifts?
• This is what Santa teaches! Naughty or nice?

10 For we are his workmanship,
 -    creation = workmanship, masterpiece

•  It is God’s work that saved us (through the cross)

created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.[5]

• good works being the natural byproduct of our salvation.
• this is Christ working through us… not us trying to imitate Christ through working hard.
• Paul viewed this as his life “in Christ”

 

• GO back to Verse 2:7
• 7 so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
• In the midst of yesterday’s grief for Officer Noah Shahnavaz… we heard how he lived his life for Jesus.
• He was serving the city of Elwood only through his desire to serve the Lord.
• The Lord was working through Noah.
• It’s as if the Lord was saying to Noah and even to you sitting here in this very room…
• “You’re so good… I made you good… I love you… I know you’re restricted in your flesh… It’s gonna be OK… This is not what I intended for you… you’re already in heaven with me. Look…
• Look… stay focused on me… I truly love you!”

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Eph 1:18–19). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 18). Victor Books.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 19). Victor Books.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 19). Victor Books.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Eph 1:20–2:10). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.

Review:

• 3 weeks ago we talked about the division in the church based upon who was better and how the Spirit keeps us all on the same level through humbleness.
• And last week we talked about the divisiveness between the world and those who had the Spirit of God in them.
• Both of them having to do with Spirit being the difference maker in the division.

 
THE PROBLEM OF IMMATURITY
1 CORINTHIANS 3
1 For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ. 2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready, 3 because you are still worldly (sarks). For since there is envy and strife, among you, are you not worldly and behaving like mere humans? 4 For whenever someone says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not acting like mere humans?

• Paul calls them out for their behavior.
• Carnal Christian vs Spiritual Christian (the church likes to focus on behavior)
• Paul is talking to the Church and they are choosing to split over “spiritual things”
• Two different diets (more like a scale)
• “Milk” those who are interested in participating based upon their own desires and what they will receive.
• “Meat” those who choose to participate in how the can help the community.
• Believers can still walk “according to their flesh”
• I (Rusty) am not the “magical” link to a person eating “meat”. Nor was Paul.
• But… I can see one’s participation in ministry (not just Sundays) as it directly correlates with their spiritual walk.
• You stop showing up here on Sundays is an indicator something is changing in your life.
• It is not about coming here and being fed the Word on Sundays.
• It is directly related to how the Spirit is working in you and you choosing to listen or not.
• When you start letting worldly agendas influence your choices, you will get derailed on this walk.
• Your walk is what is evident to others.
• You can walk “according to the flesh” for a season and it is going to cause a series of consequences for you.
• Then you will “call a friend” for help
• This is all Paul is trying to clarify with the Church at Corinth.

 
THE ROLE OF GOD’S SERVANTS
5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So, then, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s coworkers.

• Paul & Apollos have roles (calling) but they are not what matters.
• It is God that grows the believer
• The pressure is off of me.
• Neither am I competing with any other teacher in Leavener.
• Leavener is the local church and is a field that ought to bear fruit. (not should)
• The task of the ministry is the sowing of the seed, the cultivating of the soil, the watering of the plants, and the harvesting of the fruit.[1]
• Wash, rinse and repeat.
• The unifying factor in this ministry is that we each play a part.
• Paul planted, Apollos watered, others harvested.
• For the last 10 days, this community has ministered to my friend Derek… (Ryan, Luke, Troy, Ed, Danny, Mike, Trish, Keith, Big John, Tim, Wednesday Night Students… and Michelle)
• See the diversity in ministry… yet unified in purpose?
• At the same time, there is humbleness because even though these people were used by God, they would take no credit for work done in Derek’s life this past week. That was God alone.

You are God’s field, (total transition here) God’s building. 10 According to God’s grace that was given to me, I have laid a foundation as a skilled master builder, and another builds on it. But each one is to be careful how he builds on it. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than what has been laid down. That foundation is Jesus Christ.

• The foundation has to be Jesus.

12 If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13 each one’s work will become obvious. For the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire; the fire will test the quality of each one’s work. 14 If anyone’s work that he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will experience loss, but he himself will be saved—but only as through fire.

• Judgment Seat of Christ

16 Don’t you yourselves (The Church as a whole) know that you are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God lives in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, and that is what you are.

• The world depends on promotion, prestige, and the influence of money and important people.
• The church depends on prayer, the power of the Spirit, humility, sacrifice, and service.
• The church that imitates the world may seem to succeed in time, but it will turn to ashes in eternity.
• The church in the Book of Acts had none of the “secrets of success” that seem to be important today.
• They owned no property; they had no influence in government; they had no treasury (“Silver and gold have I none,” said Peter); their leaders were ordinary men without special education in the accepted schools; they held no attendance promos; they brought in no celebrities; and yet they turned the world upside down![2]
• We have to move from the mindset that the institutional church is the foundation of Christianity.
• The quarantine was a magnifying glass for this litmus test.
• It’s not about Sundays at Pinheads or any other place.
• It’s about being a light in a dark, dark, dark world.
• It’s the difference between being selfish and selfless.
• The foundation is Jesus Christ who came to set an example… we build on that… not our own abilities and desires.

 
THE FOLLY OF HUMAN WISDOM
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become a fool so that he can become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, since it is written, He catches the wise in their craftiness; (Job 5:13 – One of Jobs friends who was not speaking truth to Job all the time.)

• Worldly wisdom is different than spiritual wisdom.
• How are you going to know the difference if you don’t know the Father?

20 and again, The Lord knows that the reasonings of the wise are futile. (Psalm 94:11) 21 So let no one boast in human leaders, for everything is yours--22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come—everything is yours, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.[3]

• The members of the Corinthian church were glorying in men, and this was wrong.
• They were comparing men (1 Cor. 4:6) and dividing the church by such carnal deeds.
• Had they been seeking to glorify God alone, there would have been harmony in the assembly.[4]
• You have to come to the realization that you already have everything in Christ.
• You belong to Christ… not any other man.
• Everything is already yours.

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, pp. 578–579). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 581). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (1 Co 3:1–23). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 581). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

50 AD
Crisis in the Jewish Churches of Palestine

• In Palestine, the dispersed Jewish believers are suffering persecution from unconverted Jews and Gentiles in their cities.
• They are particularly being oppressed by the affluent.
• The limited agricultural land cannot support a growing population. So those deprived of land are forced to become hired laborers.
• As a result, rich landowners are robbing some Christians of their land.
• Some are being hauled into court by wealthy men who scorn their faith.
• At the same time, the influx of Hellenistic goods is causing a class of wealthy merchants to emerge.
• Consequently, some of the Christians are seeking opportunity to become wealthy as traders.
• Those in the church who are wealthy are being shown undue favoritism because the poor are afraid of offending them.
• In addition, the Jewish Christians hear vague rumors about the council in Jerusalem.
• They hear that the Gentiles and the Jews have positioned themselves against the Law of Moses, under the influence of Paul of Tarsus.
• They hear a very corrupted version of Paul’s teaching.
• They are told that Paul is preaching that good works have nothing to do with salvation.
• Believing that this is now the position of the Twelve, some of the Jewish Christians begin to live loose and worldly lives.
• They are hurting one another with uncontrolled and critical speech, discriminating against the poor, and giving preferential treatment to the rich.
• Some of the worldly believers are ambitious to be teachers.
• There is also sickness in the churches.
• The crisis reaches the ears of James (the Lord’s half-brother), and he is burdened to address it.[1]

James 1
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ:
Which James is this?

• James, the son of Zebedee and brother of John. He was one of the most prominent to bear the name. He was a fisherman called by Christ to follow and become a disciple (Matt. 4:17–22). He and his brother John were nicknamed by Christ “sons of thunder” because of their impulsiveness (Mark 3:17; Luke 9:51–56). James was the first of the disciples to give his life for Christ. He was killed by Herod in 44AD (Acts 12:1–2).
• James, the son of Alphaeus. He was another of the disciples (Matt. 10:3; Acts 1:13), but very little is known about him. Matthew (Levi) is also identified as “the son of Alphaeus” (Mark 2:14), and some students conjecture that the two men might have been brothers. There is no indication that this James wrote the letter we are about to study.
• James, the father of Judas the disciple. He is an even more obscure man (Luke 6:16, where “brother” ought to be “father”). This Judas was called “the son of James” to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot.
• James, the brother of our Lord. He seems to be the most likely candidate for author of this letter. He does not identify himself in this way; humbly, he calls himself “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
• What qualified James to write such a letter was not his physical relationship to Jesus but his spiritual relationship.[2]
• That Jesus had brothers and sisters is stated in Matthew 13:55–56 and Mark 6:3, and one of His brothers was named James. (By “brother,” of course, I mean half-brother. Joseph was not our Lord’s father since He was conceived by the Holy Spirit of God.)[3]​
• James and the other brothers did not believe in Jesus during His earthly ministry (Mark 3:31–35; John 7:1–5).
• Yet we find our Lord’s brethren in the Upper Room praying with the disciples (Acts 1:14).
• What effected the change from unbelief to faith? First Corinthians 15:7 indicates that Jesus appeared to James after His resurrection!
• This convinced James that Jesus truly was the Savior, and he, in turn, shared this knowledge about Jesus to the other brothers.[4]

 

• This letter is attributed to James, the half-brother of Jesus –
• Mark 6:3 - Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they were offended by him.[5]
• Galatians 1:19 - But I didn’t see any of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.[6]
• James had a different mission than Paul. Whereas Paul was considered to be a church planter in the Gentile regions, James was ministering to the Christian Jews that were scattered outside of Palestine.

 

• In Acts the brothers of Jesus were among the disciples awaiting the Spirit at Pentecost (1:14).
• When Peter was delivered from prison, he requested that this James be alerted (12:2–17).
• James became dominant in the Jerusalem church in Acts.
• He seems to be chief among the elders in Jerusalem at the first council of the church (Acts 15:12–21).
• At his initiative the letter to the Gentile Christians was drafted (Acts 15:23–29).
• By taking Paul’s side in the controversy, James thwarted the Judaizing opinions prevalent in the Jerusalem church.
• Indeed, James is shown as Paul’s ally here and was among the elders who affirmed the results of Paul’s last missionary journey (Acts 21:18–19).
• The problem of Paul’s apparent “law-breaking,” however, was broached by James, not as something James believed but what others believed who were zealous for the law. This conservative movement was threatening the unity of the church.
• The accounts in Acts show James’s prominence in the early church and his fascinating and positive relationship with Paul.
• The situation at Galatia was tense, but nothing in the story should be taken to imply a rift between Paul and James or the Jerusalem church.[7]
• There were many Christian Jews in Jerusalem who still held to the Old Testament Law (Acts 21:20).
• The temple and its services were still in operation, and the full light of the Gospel of God’s grace had not yet dawned.
• We who have read Romans, Galatians, and Hebrews might be prone to judge these early believers; but we must not.
• They were saved people, but they were still in the shadows of the Law, moving out into the bright light of God’s grace.
• While there may have been differences in degrees of spiritual knowledge and experience, there was no competition between Paul and those who directed the Jerusalem church (Gal. 2:1–10).
• We have no record in the Bible, but tradition tells us that James was martyred in 62AD.[8]
• The story is that the Pharisees in Jerusalem so hated James’ testimony for Christ that they had him cast down from the temple and then beaten to death with clubs.
• The story also relates that James died, as did his Savior, praying for his murderers, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”[9]
• All of these problems had a common cause: spiritual immaturity.[10]

Imperatives of James:

1. We must be born again
2. We must examine ourselves with God’s Word
3. We must choose to walk by the Spirit (obey)
4. We must be prepared for trials & suffering

We must measure our spiritual maturity through the Word of God.
 
James 1
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ:

• Since an attitude of service is what distinguishes biblical leadership, there is no contradiction between service and leadership.[11]

To the twelve tribes dispersed abroad.
Greetings.

• The Dispersion – “scattering of seeds”
• When the Jewish believers were scattered in that first wave of persecution (Acts 8:1, 4), it was really the sowing of seed in many places; and much of that seed bore fruit (Acts 11:19ff).
• Acts 8:1-3 1 Saul agreed with putting him to death. On that day a severe persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the land of Judea and Samaria. 2 Devout men buried Stephen and mourned deeply over him. 3 Saul, however, was ravaging the church. He would enter house after house, drag off men and women, and put them in prison.[12]
• Christian Jews scattered throughout the Roman Empire would have needs and problems of their own.
• Being Jews, they would be rejected by the Gentiles; and being Christian Jews, they would be rejected by their own countrymen.[13]

 

• There are four essentials for victory in trials:
  1) A joyful attitude
  2) An understanding mind
  3) A surrendered will
  4) A heart that wants to believe.[14]

TRIALS AND MATURITY
2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials,

• Trials are coming…
• John 16:33 – 33 “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” [15]
• I’ve got news for you: Satan fights us, the world opposes us, and this makes for a life of battle.[16]
• James did not say that a believer should be joyous for the trials but in the trials.[17]
• If we value comfort more than character, then trials will upset us.
• If we value the material and physical more than the spiritual, we will not be able to “count it all joy.”
• If we live only for the present and forget the future, then trials will make us bitter, not better.[18]

 
3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

• Romans 5:3-5 - 3 And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, 4 endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. 5 This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. [19]

4 And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.

• (A surrendered will)
• “Mature” (teleioi), often translated “perfect” or “finished,” is coupled with “complete” (holoklēroi, from holos, “whole,” and klēros, “part”) to give the idea of perfected all over or fully developed in every part.[20]
• God wants to make us patient because that is the key to every other blessing.
• The little child who does not learn patience will not learn much of anything else.
• When the believer learns to wait on the Lord, then God can do great things for him.
• Abraham ran ahead of the Lord, married Hagar, and brought great sorrow into his home (Gen. 16).
• Moses ran ahead of God, murdered a man, and had to spend forty years with the sheep to learn patience (Ex. 2:11ff).
• Peter almost killed a man in his impatience [21]
  
  
• In dealing with crisis… I have discovered that urgency is not always the answer.
• I am not the answer to your problem. We may help you with a solution, but I am never the answer to your problem.

Call me… but know that your faith is being tested and you grow in maturity and wisdom through your patience.

[1] Viola, Frank. (2004). The Untold Story of the New Testament Church. (p.87). Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers.
[2] Moo, D. J. (2000). The letter of James (p. 48). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 335). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 335). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Mk 6:3). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ga 1:19). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Richardson, K. A. (1997). James (Vol. 36, p. 41). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[8] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 335). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[9] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 335). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[10] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 336). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[11] Richardson, K. A. (1997). James (Vol. 36, p. 53). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[12] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ac 8:1–3). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[13] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 335). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[14] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 337). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[15] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 16:33). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[16] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 338). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[17] Blue, J. R. (1985). James. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 820). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[18] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 338). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[19] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 5:3–5). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[20] Blue, J. R. (1985). James. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 821). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[21] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 339). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

​Throughout scripture there is the implication our bodies are temporary dwelling place and referred to as tents. 
 
 If I were to build a bare-bones tent today, it would include 4 corner stakes and a middle post.  If I were going to offer YOU some views on the journey of life in Christ, I would use those 5 points as a great starting place.
 
A post in the middle of a tent helps prevent things from collapsing on top of you.  Have you ever felt like the world is collapsing on top of you? A center post offers support against the worries of the world.
 
That center post is an unwavering God who loves you more than you will ever understand.  
 
HE IS ABLE TO DO EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY BEYOND ALL YOU CAN THINK OR IMAGINE.
 

• He IS - tell them I AM sent you
  • He is and has always been
  • He lives in the present tense
  • There is none greater than Him
• He’s Able
  • He can handle whatever falls on your situation
  • Nothing is able to separate us from the love of Christ
  • You are not able
• Exceeding, Abundantly, Beyond
  • Huge possibilities
  • My cup overflows - accepted
• All you can think or imagine!
  
  

Stake 1 -  1 John 2:12 Little children KNOW their sins are forgiven

• Followers of Jesus live in a state of forgiveness - It is finished
• You don’t need to ask for forgiveness of your sins as the blood of Christ did it!
• The object of life in Christ is not sin avoidance, it is knowing and listening to Jesus!

 
Stake 2 - 1 John 2:13 Young men have overcome the evil one

• Have you ever been overcome by the evil one?

Victory over the evil one is the result of knowing what the battle is!

• ‘It’ is the deal -  Romans 7:17, 20 has the word ‘It’
  • No longer am I the one doing ‘it’
  • Have you seen that little word?
  • What do you suppose ‘it’ refers to?
  • No longer am I the one creating ungodly thoughts
    • Ungodly thoughts are not as obvious as they may seem
    • I need to do more
    • I am not good
    • I am a failure
    • I need to quit having these thoughts
    • Others similar ungodly thoughts
• Take every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus 2 Cor 10.15
• I believe you have 3 sources of thoughts
  • Mind of Christ 1 Corinthians 2:16
  • Senses combined with memories
  • Sin

Stake 3 - 1 John 2:14 Fathers know God

• God longs for your attention
• Be in awe of God, you will not be ashamed
• Suppose you begin to believe He is ABLE...
• Rest in your soul is result of knowing Him

Stake 4 - 1 John 5:11-13 You may KNOW you have eternal life A covenant is not a contract Two become one and all is eaches All through scripture, covenants are described - you are in a covenant with God It is sealed by blood These verses say you may ‘know’ you have eternal life There is a peace knowing you are eternally protected by God If you are wondering whether you have eternal life, track me, Rusty, Matt or any number of the regulars around here down and they can show you in scripture…. 

John 15
6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

• 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 - 12 If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13 each one’s work will become obvious. For the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire; the fire will test the quality of each one’s work. 14 If anyone’s work that he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will experience loss, but he himself will be saved—but only as through fire.[1]
• Judgment Seat of Christ – Is for believers and is a judgment of their works based upon done by self or “in Christ”.

It’s the fruit that burns… not the believer

• Romans 14:23 - …everything that is not from faith is sin. [2]
• Romans 8:1 - Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus,[3]
• Will our selfish works even be in heaven because they are sin? Or will they be listed without any penalty?

 
7 If you remain (abide) in me and my words remain (abide) in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you.

• Abide – Live my life by another source.
• It means to keep in fellowship with Christ so that His life can work in and through us to produce fruit.[4]
• Describe what living by faith looks like for me.
• This is what we hear… “This abiding relationship is natural to the branch and the vine, but it must be cultivated in the Christian life. It is not automatic. Abiding in Christ demands worship, meditation on God’s Word, prayer, sacrifice, and service—but what a joyful experience it is! Once you have begun to cultivate this deeper communion with Christ, you have no desire to return to the shallow life of the careless Christian.”[5]
• This is not about memorizing the Word of God… This is about knowing your Father so well that you know what His will is for your life and it greatly impacts how you communicate with Him.
• This is not a formula for getting what you want.
• This is the result of knowing the Father.
• 1 John 2:13-14 – 1) Children understand forgiveness, 2) young men understand how to overcome the evil one and 3) the fathers know the One who is from the beginning.
• There is an intimacy with the Creator.

8 My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be my disciples.

• How is fruit born through our lives?
• Father through the Son through our lives (while we rest).
• Who produces the fruit? The gardener through the vine through the branch.
• You can think you do a lot but hopefully it is the Father doing it through you.
• Yield to His life and much fruit will be produced and God is glorified.
• It is impossible in the flesh but only works in the Spirit.
• Many of these things could be counterfeited by the flesh, but the deception would eventually be detected, for real spiritual fruit has in it the seeds for more fruit.
• Man-made results are dead and cannot reproduce themselves, but Spirit-produced fruit will go on reproducing from one life to another.
• There will be fruit—more fruit—much fruit.[6]

 
CHRISTLIKE LOVE
9 “As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.

• To the 11 disciples.
• There is only 1 way to do this… yield their life to another.
• Christ’s love becomes their love for each other.
• Unity – You will never see unity in the Church (body of Christ) until they learn to live their life by another.
• When we have been opposed, hated, belittled, even irritated by others… we are given a free pass.
• This is our thinking in the flesh.
• Christ says, love them as I have loved you.
• I know you can’t do it… you’ve already proved that.
• So yield your life to me and I will do it for you.
• Remain (abide) in me and I will do it for you.
• I got you!

10 If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

• What are his commandments?
• Love the Jesus and others – I John 3:23
• Do you view this as a command (as you were probably taught… so as to control your behavior)?
• Or do you see this the result of abiding in Christ?
• Jesus perfected the Law…
• Did he do this in His own strength to prove His obedience to the Father?
• Or was Jesus obedient as a result of abiding with His Father’s love?
• You always start with intimacy…
• Out of intimacy comes obedience.
• We are taught to start with obedience.
• I’m convinced that I can have a lot of sad breakfast with men and women who have entered into difficult circumstances.
• But my response to each person will always be the same.
• Get to know the Father.
• This is trusting that God’s Word will be true.

11 “I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.
12 “This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends.

• What is a friend?
• It is not accountability partner.
• It is knowing the other person so well that you don’t have to ask them the personal questions.
• Who were Jesus’ friends?
• Not only the disciples (and us), but also the Father and the Spirit.
• No greater love was ever displayed than what Jesus did for us at the cross.

14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. [7]
Believe in Jesus’s name and love others.

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (1 Co 3:12–15). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 14:23). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 8:1). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 355). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[5] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 355). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[6] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 356). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[7] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 15:1–14). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

John 9 – the blind Jewish man has been excommunicated by the Pharisees and Jesus went to find Him. Jesus was revealed to the seeing man and believed… by faith… receiving salvation.

• Just last night I received a text from someone showing me their friends letter of excommunication in the next month from a local church.
  
  

John 10:1-21
1 “Truly I tell you, anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the gate but climbs in some other way is a thief and a robber.

• Shepherd – Any kind of leader (Political or Spiritual)
• Jesus is now speaking about the Pharisees who excommunicated the healed Jewish man.
• They are the thieves.
• They are communicating a false message.
• Picture of Russian Jesus
• The difference is this… The Pharisees believe the entrance to the pen was through the oral law.
• Jesus lived under the written Law.
• The Pharisees added so much to the Gospel that it became “religious”

2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.

• Shepherd’s pen was typically a stall area that was attached to a dwelling (home).
• Sometimes the pens were shared and between two homes.
• But there was only ONE door.

3 The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

• He calls each by name… and they knew their shepherd.
• The Shepherd leads them in and out of the pen.
• Jesus… my Shepherd leads me out of error.

4 When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they know his voice.

• How many voices do you have in your head?
• Where do your thoughts come from?
• 1. 5 Senses – Past experiences stored in your brain.
• 2. Power of Sin that dwells in our flesh (Romans 5:17 - 17 So now I am no longer the one doing it, but it is sin living in me.[1])
• 3. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead.

5 They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t know the voice of strangers.”

• Illustration of a blindfolded teen listening for her father.

6 Jesus gave them this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.
 - Parable

• Someone please tell me why Jesus is speaking in parables.

7 Jesus said again, “Truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.

• This is the 3rd time Jesus referred to Himself as “I AM”

8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the gate. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture.

• “THE” good shepherd – Jesus
• “A” shepherd – of Leavener
• You are not my flock
• Look higher than me
• Saved from hell… saved from condemnation… saved from these earthly bodies… saved from sin…

10 A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

• Who is this thief? – The Pharisees… but ultimately it is satan
• John 8:44 - because he is a liar and the father of lies.[2]
• Anyone that adds to the Gospel.
• I did Officer Ron Shephard’s graveside last Saturday and everyone was standing around the plot.
• I had the ear of the Mayor and the Fishers leadership.
• I had no time to teach an “explained” Gospel.
• I simply stated that Ron believed in God/Jesus and that was all that mattered.
• Immediately, POS kicked in and started reminding me of all the other saints there and did I explain the Gospel “well enough”.
• It can’t get any simpler than “believe in Jesus”.
• You don’t need all the religion.
• But watch this… I am crazy enough to believe Jesus’ next statement.

I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.

•  Once believed that Jesus promised me a “good life”
• I would be void of suffering.
• But I have come to understand
• Colossians 3:4 - 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.[3]
• Galatians 2:20-21 - 20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing. [4]
• It’s not about my circumstances… it is about Christ living in me.
• Jesus came to give me His life.
• How much of Christ’s life do I have? An abundance. A full life… 100%
• Romans 5:10 - 10 For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled (past tense) to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be (present/future) saved by his life.[5]
• What does that look like for you?

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. 13 This happens because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care about the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 But I have other sheep that are not from this sheep pen; I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd.

• The Gentiles and the Jews as one.

17 This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
19 Again the Jews were divided because of these words. 20 Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and he’s crazy. Why do you listen to him?” 21 Others were saying, “These aren’t the words of someone who is demon-possessed. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”[6]

• Interview with Michelle Hernandez

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 7:17). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 8:44). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Col 3:4). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ga 2:20–21). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 5:10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 10:1–21). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.