In John 12, you see this incredible story of multiple characters. Of them, only one stands out as faithful, Mary. Mary is worried about, “The presence of God.” She desires to be in the presence of Jesus, growing in love with Jesus, listening to Jesus, being taught by Jesus, enjoying Jesus. She’s in the living room enjoying God, while Martha’s in the kitchen not enjoying the presence of God, but preparing presents for God. Meanwhile, Lazarus is simply just reclining at the table doing nothing while Judas is pretending to be spiritual for the purpose of personal gain.
But Mary worries about her relationship with Jesus. “Did I get my time with Jesus? Did I sit at his feet? Did I listen? Did I learn? Was I humble? Was I teachable? How’s my relationship with Jesus?”
So where do you land? Do you work real hard like Martha but you neglect to see the presence of God? Have you experienced the power of Christ in your life yet still sit around and expect the world to revolve around your needs while you recline at the table? Do you play games like Judas and use the gospel of Jesus Christ as a means of personal gain? Or are you like Mary? Who wants nothing else but the presence of God. Who wants nothing more than to sit at his feet and to worship him and to sacrifice for him and to love him and to see his face?
St. Augustine once preached a sermon in which he proposed a kind of self test to see if we truly love the presence of God: He said suppose God proposed to you a deal and said I will give you anything you want. You can possess the whole world. Nothing will be impossible for you. Nothing will be a sin, nothing forbidden. You will never die, never have pain, never have anything you do not want and always have anything you do want. Except for just one thing. You will never see my face and never experience my presence.
Augustine closed with this question: Did a chill rise in your hearts, when you heard the words “you will never see my face and never experience my presents”? If so, that chill is the most precious thing in you and it is a pure love for God.
Showing posts with label gospel of john. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gospel of john. Show all posts
Unexplainable Explanation: John 9
Gospel of John
John Chapter 9
Unexplainable Explanation
We are a society that doesn't do well without explanations. We want explanations, we need explanations and we thrive off of explanations. And not just any explanations, but we need “GOOD” explanations. If we're honest, the problem with Christianity is that so much of what we believe is completely unexplainable.
Sure we can do our best to theoretically and philosophically explain doctrines. Of course we can do a solid job at apologetically and intellectually arguing a position. At times, we can even use science, archeology and history to fight for a specific biblical position. But honestly, at the end of the day...much of Christianity is unexplainable. Therefore, as believers and followers of Jesus, what do we do with our faith when it seems to be completely unexplainable and completely undeniable at the same time?
Discussion Questions:
John Chapter 9
Unexplainable Explanation
We are a society that doesn't do well without explanations. We want explanations, we need explanations and we thrive off of explanations. And not just any explanations, but we need “GOOD” explanations. If we're honest, the problem with Christianity is that so much of what we believe is completely unexplainable.
Sure we can do our best to theoretically and philosophically explain doctrines. Of course we can do a solid job at apologetically and intellectually arguing a position. At times, we can even use science, archeology and history to fight for a specific biblical position. But honestly, at the end of the day...much of Christianity is unexplainable. Therefore, as believers and followers of Jesus, what do we do with our faith when it seems to be completely unexplainable and completely undeniable at the same time?
Discussion Questions:
- What about Christianity do you find unexplainable?
- What about Christianity do you find undeniable?
- What is the difference between those who see and those who are blind; Spiritually?
- How do you reconcile the unexplainable and the undeniable when it comes to Christianity?
How can we know who Jesus truly is?
Apostle John goes out of his way all throughout his gospel to tell us how people responded to Jesus. He doesn’t only tell us what Jesus says and does, but also what peoples reactions were to the things that He says and does. All throughout his ministry, Jesus said outrageous things that everyone who knew of Christ, met Christ or heard Him teach; had an opinion about him. In John 7, you see multiple different responses to Jesus. Some hated him, some thought he was a criminal, some thought he was brilliant, others though he was a miracle worker, and a select few believed he was God in the flesh. But, how does one know? How do we know the truth about who Jesus really was behind all of the opinions and claims that others has about him?
In John 7:17 Jesus tells us that there is a way to know. "If anyones will is to do Gods will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority." The way to know whether or not Jesus is truly who he says he is (God in the flesh, sent from heaven, to pay the penalty for sin.) is to have a willingness to do the will of God. In other words, in order to know that Jesus is the truth, it requires you seeking after him as the truth. Not just with your mind, but also with your actions. Jesus is saying that when you seek me with your mind, and your actions, you will find me. If you only seek Jesus with your mind, you'll become at best an Intellectual. If you only seek Jesus with your actions, you'll become at best a Religious Moralist. But when you seek Him with your mind and actions, your eyes will be open to how truly glorious He actually is.
In John 7:17 Jesus tells us that there is a way to know. "If anyones will is to do Gods will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority." The way to know whether or not Jesus is truly who he says he is (God in the flesh, sent from heaven, to pay the penalty for sin.) is to have a willingness to do the will of God. In other words, in order to know that Jesus is the truth, it requires you seeking after him as the truth. Not just with your mind, but also with your actions. Jesus is saying that when you seek me with your mind, and your actions, you will find me. If you only seek Jesus with your mind, you'll become at best an Intellectual. If you only seek Jesus with your actions, you'll become at best a Religious Moralist. But when you seek Him with your mind and actions, your eyes will be open to how truly glorious He actually is.
Unity among Netcast Church.
Over the past few weeks I have had numerous conversations with numerous pastors of churches in numerous different stages of life and ministry. Among some of the conversations that I was having, the idea of having a united leadership team kept coming up. Because of that, along with a few personal reasons, I wanted to share this.
The number one priority of the enemy is to bring division. Since he cannot bring division between God's people and God himself, the next best thing is to bring division among the bride of Christ, more specifically its leadership. This can be created in numerous ways. Sexual sin, financial scandals, pride, etc…. But in my experience, this disunity starts in very subtle ways and eventually snowballs out of control. Because of that, I feel this is important for all of our partners / leaders to wrestle with this.
It is vital that we continue to fight for unity among ourselves. With the nature of how our culture typically communicates through occasional meetings and email we will have to work extra hard to fight for this. To add to the chaos, we have an incredible church, full of very gifted people with strong leadership capabilities. And, many of us are wired very different. If we are not careful, the strong personalities we have and our unique individual wiring will cause us to see our differences as hindrances rather than strengths. This is the first tactic the enemy uses in bring division. For the sake of the gospel, we have to remember how the enemy attacks and fight together for purity, humility and love of one another.
Here are 6 guidelines for us to think through as a church. I didn't come up with these, but am using them to guide my thoughts.
1. Let’s avoid gossiping.
The New Testament warns against gossiping. Gossiping is anytime we talk about one another to someone other than that person. Gossip is talking without the motive of seeking to be corrected ourselves and united to the person we are talking about. Among us, there should never be any gossip. Never!! The mission is too big and a local church is to fragile. All of us should search our hearts and repent of this sin immediately if necessary. If your brother has sinned against you, annoys you, bothers you, frustrates you, etc…Go directly to him / her and nobody else.
2. Let’s identify evidences of grace in each other and speak them to each other and about each other.
This is such a powerful opportunity for encouragement. It is so easy to get frustrated in church world. The bible calls us family, and we all know that families fight. However, for every negative thing we see in one anothers lives there should be 10 things that we see that is evidence of God's grace in their life. We have got to check our hearts and ask the question “why is it so easy to see the negatives yet so difficult to see God's grace.” Fight to see the evidence of Gods grace in our lives. Beg God to show you that in one another and pray fervently for a deep love for one another. Outside of God's miraculous grace, this cannot be obtained.
3. Let’s speak criticism directly to each other if we feel the need to speak to others about it.
Criticism is necessary. We all must get better at what we do. Whether it is parenting, the way we speak to one another, spiritual disciplines, our commitment levels, gifts and talents, etc...we should all desire to get better at what we do. And, the primary way we get better is when we can lovingly come along side of one another and offer helpful critique. Lets always fight for unity by speaking critique to one another as a means of encouragement. Hold one another accountable to this. Go directly to one another, and don't wait to do this. Do this personally and never offer criticism through email or text. Unity is to valuable and fragile, therefore we must handle it with care.
4. Let’s look for, and assume, the best motive in the others viewpoint, especially when we disagree.
In such a technological world, most of us are typically behind a computer when conversing. The downfall with that is it's nearly impossible to know a persons motive since you can't see body language or hear tone. Especially when we disagree. We have always got to assume the best of one another. This is not an option, this is the only option. Every great relationship is built on trust. Not just trust that we will do what we say, but trust even when we don't come through for one another. Here are some questions to ponder...How have we lacked trust lately? Who do I not trust and do they know that I don't trust them? Is my lack of trust, my issue or theirs? How have I assumed the worse?
5. Let's think often of the magnificent things we hold in common.
For every difference we have, we have 100 things in common. We all love Jesus. We all love the bride of Christ. We all love Netcast and want to see this local body flourish. We all love one another. We all are committed to a vision and mission....and the list can go on. Always remember that there is much more commonality to celebrate than there is differences to point out. How often do you just praise Jesus for how He has unified our church? I pray that we grow in this area.
6. Let’s be more amazed that we are forgiven than that we are right.
Let’s shape our relationships by the gospel. I want to fight for righteousness rather than fight to be right. In church world, this may be our biggest temptation. There are seldom times where there will be one “right” way to do something. In actuality, there are multiple of ways to do the things that we do together as a team. As Netcast grows and our influence grows, our tendency will be to fight to be right, and in the process neglect our desire for righteousness. Because of that, I am calling us to out-do one another with honor. As we fight to out-do one another in honor, our pride is crushed, humility is birthed and Jesus can continue to anoint and bless our lives and ministries.
All of you are like family to me. I pray that God gives us a special unity. Join me in fighting for this through prayer and dedication. It is our spiritual act of worship. Worship well Netcast!!
- Pastor Matt
The number one priority of the enemy is to bring division. Since he cannot bring division between God's people and God himself, the next best thing is to bring division among the bride of Christ, more specifically its leadership. This can be created in numerous ways. Sexual sin, financial scandals, pride, etc…. But in my experience, this disunity starts in very subtle ways and eventually snowballs out of control. Because of that, I feel this is important for all of our partners / leaders to wrestle with this.
It is vital that we continue to fight for unity among ourselves. With the nature of how our culture typically communicates through occasional meetings and email we will have to work extra hard to fight for this. To add to the chaos, we have an incredible church, full of very gifted people with strong leadership capabilities. And, many of us are wired very different. If we are not careful, the strong personalities we have and our unique individual wiring will cause us to see our differences as hindrances rather than strengths. This is the first tactic the enemy uses in bring division. For the sake of the gospel, we have to remember how the enemy attacks and fight together for purity, humility and love of one another.
Here are 6 guidelines for us to think through as a church. I didn't come up with these, but am using them to guide my thoughts.
1. Let’s avoid gossiping.
The New Testament warns against gossiping. Gossiping is anytime we talk about one another to someone other than that person. Gossip is talking without the motive of seeking to be corrected ourselves and united to the person we are talking about. Among us, there should never be any gossip. Never!! The mission is too big and a local church is to fragile. All of us should search our hearts and repent of this sin immediately if necessary. If your brother has sinned against you, annoys you, bothers you, frustrates you, etc…Go directly to him / her and nobody else.
2. Let’s identify evidences of grace in each other and speak them to each other and about each other.
This is such a powerful opportunity for encouragement. It is so easy to get frustrated in church world. The bible calls us family, and we all know that families fight. However, for every negative thing we see in one anothers lives there should be 10 things that we see that is evidence of God's grace in their life. We have got to check our hearts and ask the question “why is it so easy to see the negatives yet so difficult to see God's grace.” Fight to see the evidence of Gods grace in our lives. Beg God to show you that in one another and pray fervently for a deep love for one another. Outside of God's miraculous grace, this cannot be obtained.
3. Let’s speak criticism directly to each other if we feel the need to speak to others about it.
Criticism is necessary. We all must get better at what we do. Whether it is parenting, the way we speak to one another, spiritual disciplines, our commitment levels, gifts and talents, etc...we should all desire to get better at what we do. And, the primary way we get better is when we can lovingly come along side of one another and offer helpful critique. Lets always fight for unity by speaking critique to one another as a means of encouragement. Hold one another accountable to this. Go directly to one another, and don't wait to do this. Do this personally and never offer criticism through email or text. Unity is to valuable and fragile, therefore we must handle it with care.
4. Let’s look for, and assume, the best motive in the others viewpoint, especially when we disagree.
In such a technological world, most of us are typically behind a computer when conversing. The downfall with that is it's nearly impossible to know a persons motive since you can't see body language or hear tone. Especially when we disagree. We have always got to assume the best of one another. This is not an option, this is the only option. Every great relationship is built on trust. Not just trust that we will do what we say, but trust even when we don't come through for one another. Here are some questions to ponder...How have we lacked trust lately? Who do I not trust and do they know that I don't trust them? Is my lack of trust, my issue or theirs? How have I assumed the worse?
5. Let's think often of the magnificent things we hold in common.
For every difference we have, we have 100 things in common. We all love Jesus. We all love the bride of Christ. We all love Netcast and want to see this local body flourish. We all love one another. We all are committed to a vision and mission....and the list can go on. Always remember that there is much more commonality to celebrate than there is differences to point out. How often do you just praise Jesus for how He has unified our church? I pray that we grow in this area.
6. Let’s be more amazed that we are forgiven than that we are right.
Let’s shape our relationships by the gospel. I want to fight for righteousness rather than fight to be right. In church world, this may be our biggest temptation. There are seldom times where there will be one “right” way to do something. In actuality, there are multiple of ways to do the things that we do together as a team. As Netcast grows and our influence grows, our tendency will be to fight to be right, and in the process neglect our desire for righteousness. Because of that, I am calling us to out-do one another with honor. As we fight to out-do one another in honor, our pride is crushed, humility is birthed and Jesus can continue to anoint and bless our lives and ministries.
All of you are like family to me. I pray that God gives us a special unity. Join me in fighting for this through prayer and dedication. It is our spiritual act of worship. Worship well Netcast!!
- Pastor Matt
Jesus: Outrageous Claims
Of all the things that Jesus said during his 3 years of ministry on earth, nothing is as outrageous as his claims to deity. Here in John 5:1-24 we get our first glimpse of Jesus speaking as one who is equal with God. As a matter of fact, He was so persistent in his claims that the Jewish leaders went from persecuting him for his words to scheming on how to kill him. Beyond his claims to being one with God, he also claimed that whatever our view is of him, that is our view of God. In other words, unless we honor Jesus, we cannot honor God. This would be an outrageous claim if this were not true.
However, not only did Christ claim these things but he also proved it. He proved it through his power which he showed in his miracles. He proved it with his wisdom which showed his remarkable knowledge. And he showed it through his resurrection and assention which proved that he had power over life and death.
As outrageous as his claims were, they proved to be true. He is exactly who he claimed to be; God incarnate, the Messiah, the 2nd person in the trinity.
The Cycle of Belief
John 4:43-54
In the world that we live in, God has ordained certain laws and principles that exist regardless of our beliefs. The cycle principle simply says that in life there are series of events that come full circle and repeat itself. This is seen in depression; where depression will lead to fatigue which leads to isolation which turns into deeper depression. We also see this is addiction. When we are addicted to something we abuse it which leads to shame which leads to craving which leads to using again. Cycles can be a viscous thing and there are tons of them. Poverty leads to a lack of education which leads to limited job opportunities which leads back to poverty. Giving your body away sexually leads to feelings of guilt or shame which leads to the need to be loved which leads back to giving away your body as a way of attempting to feel loved. The cycle continues to go around until there is some sort of drastic event that stops it.
There is however a beautiful cycle that God has put into place as a means of increasing our faith and belief in Jesus. In this John 4 we see this cycle taking place in the life of the official who's son was on the verge of dying. Jesus takes this man from a place of shallow belief, to simple obedience, which leads to a greater life which then leads to deeper belief. In other words there is a cycle of belief that says belief in Jesus that leads to obedience to Jesus, leads to a life full of Jesus which then increases our belief in Jesus. Then the cycle starts over again as our belief, obedience and joy continue to grow.
This is exactly the cycle that God uses in our sanctification. Belief leads to obedience which leads to greater life which leads to greater belief. That greater belief then leads to greater obedience which leads to even greater life which further increases our belief. Its a beautiful cycle. Jump on board....
In the world that we live in, God has ordained certain laws and principles that exist regardless of our beliefs. The cycle principle simply says that in life there are series of events that come full circle and repeat itself. This is seen in depression; where depression will lead to fatigue which leads to isolation which turns into deeper depression. We also see this is addiction. When we are addicted to something we abuse it which leads to shame which leads to craving which leads to using again. Cycles can be a viscous thing and there are tons of them. Poverty leads to a lack of education which leads to limited job opportunities which leads back to poverty. Giving your body away sexually leads to feelings of guilt or shame which leads to the need to be loved which leads back to giving away your body as a way of attempting to feel loved. The cycle continues to go around until there is some sort of drastic event that stops it.
There is however a beautiful cycle that God has put into place as a means of increasing our faith and belief in Jesus. In this John 4 we see this cycle taking place in the life of the official who's son was on the verge of dying. Jesus takes this man from a place of shallow belief, to simple obedience, which leads to a greater life which then leads to deeper belief. In other words there is a cycle of belief that says belief in Jesus that leads to obedience to Jesus, leads to a life full of Jesus which then increases our belief in Jesus. Then the cycle starts over again as our belief, obedience and joy continue to grow.
This is exactly the cycle that God uses in our sanctification. Belief leads to obedience which leads to greater life which leads to greater belief. That greater belief then leads to greater obedience which leads to even greater life which further increases our belief. Its a beautiful cycle. Jump on board....
John 3:22-36 Unity and Obedience
Envy is everywhere you look. It’s when you see someone in the workplace get the promotion that you wanted. It’s when you see someone win the lottery and you didn't. Its when you see the married couple that is so cute but your marriage is struggling. Its when you're in the slow lane and people are zipping by you. Its anytime you fail to rejoice with someone because you want what they have. Envy always causes dis-unity, and the disunity caused by envy is always sin.
This is the exact temptation that John the Baptist was confronted with in this text. A Jew has tried to pin John the Baptist against Jesus because all of John’s followers were leaving him and flocking to Christ. At one point John the Baptist was the most influential person in his region and now he is becoming a “nobody,” except Jesus' cousin. That said, John shows incredible humility as he continues to rejoice in Christ's rising influence and his declining influence. For John the Baptist, life wasn't about winning a popularity competition or trying to win "Pastor of the Year". For John, life was about making Jesus the Hero. John was more interested in being faithful than being famous.
Later in the text, there is an odd turn as John the gospel writer talks about the relationship between belief and obedience.
Scripture is clear that It is impossible for a person to consistently act in a way that is contradictory to the belief that they hold in their heart. Anyone who calls them-self a Christian but is able to continue deliberately sinning with no remorse or repentance may find that Jesus will tell them that He does not know them as His followers or as having been under His blood covering. True repentance comes to our life by the Holy Spirit convicting us of our sins and us then changing our daily life so that we no longer commit those sins. When we do sin there should be a heart-held grief that causes us to repent of the sin and try to change our life so that we can be free of the sin in the future. When we love God, our relationship with Him makes us want to please and obey Him. Therefore, we show our love for God by living our life in a way that is pleasing to Him, through our obedience to His instructions for our life.
You Must Be Born Again. - John 3:1-15
Although we rarely talk about or think about death, most of us are pretty sure that we will live somewhere forever when we die. I say that because that's what most statistics say we believe. The vast majority of the Western world believes in a heaven and most of the Eastern world believes in some sort of re-incarnation where we come back as something else or someone else. The common denominator in the Western world and the Eastern world is this...both the Western world and Easter world believe pretty much the same thing. How you live on this side of life, determines what you get on that side of life.
Nicodemus had amazing credentials. He was talented, a good communicator, generous, religious he knew the bible, he had a ferocious prayer life and millions of good deeds. Beyond that he also had humility and a respect for Jesus. If anyone on the earth had an argument for getting into heaven, it was this guy. All of that said, Jesus totally overlooks all of Nicodemus's credentials and tells him that it's not enough, be must be "Born Again."
Being "Born Again" is not something that you can do yourself. It's not a list of deeds that we can accumulate and hand in to receive "New Birth"; rather it is a work of God. Saying we're born again does not make us born again again, just as much as saying someone is a millionaire makes them a millionaire.
So, how does someone become "Born Again"? Jesus answers this for us in John 3:13-15. In these verses, Jesus compares his death on the cross to an event that happened in the Old Testament. In Numbers 21, God punished Israel for their complaining by sending venomous serpents to attack them. Then, to build their faith, God told Moses to make a golden serpent and lift it up. As people would look at that serpent, they would be miraculously healed. In the same way, we have a poison called sin. Christ tells us that as we look at the cross and believe that the penalty for sin was paid for by Christ on the cross; that "believing" is how one experiences a New Birth. Its not what we do, it's seeing and believing what has been done for us that gives us eternal life. Its not paying for all of our bad deeds that gets us eternal life, its seeing and believing in the one who had the riches to pay for our bad deeds. Jesus Christ our Lord.
Nicodemus had amazing credentials. He was talented, a good communicator, generous, religious he knew the bible, he had a ferocious prayer life and millions of good deeds. Beyond that he also had humility and a respect for Jesus. If anyone on the earth had an argument for getting into heaven, it was this guy. All of that said, Jesus totally overlooks all of Nicodemus's credentials and tells him that it's not enough, be must be "Born Again."
Being "Born Again" is not something that you can do yourself. It's not a list of deeds that we can accumulate and hand in to receive "New Birth"; rather it is a work of God. Saying we're born again does not make us born again again, just as much as saying someone is a millionaire makes them a millionaire.
So, how does someone become "Born Again"? Jesus answers this for us in John 3:13-15. In these verses, Jesus compares his death on the cross to an event that happened in the Old Testament. In Numbers 21, God punished Israel for their complaining by sending venomous serpents to attack them. Then, to build their faith, God told Moses to make a golden serpent and lift it up. As people would look at that serpent, they would be miraculously healed. In the same way, we have a poison called sin. Christ tells us that as we look at the cross and believe that the penalty for sin was paid for by Christ on the cross; that "believing" is how one experiences a New Birth. Its not what we do, it's seeing and believing what has been done for us that gives us eternal life. Its not paying for all of our bad deeds that gets us eternal life, its seeing and believing in the one who had the riches to pay for our bad deeds. Jesus Christ our Lord.
John 2:23-25; 3:16-21 Exposed yet Loved.
There are two types of people in the world. Some of us are bent towards transparency and others of us tend to be more reserved. Neither one is better than the other; each is simply different.
Typically the reason some are transparent is because we want to be loved. As a human being, we want people to know us, to care about us, to think highly of us, to love us. And usually our motivation for being transparent is to be loved. In our minds, if people know us they'd love us. In the same way, others are reserved for similar motives. They too want to be loved, they think that because they are reserved and people know all the “good” things about them but not the "bad", that they'll be respected and it will be easier for people to love them. Regardless of whether you tend to be more reserved or more transparent, the fact is, love is at the root of your motives.
The problem with this is "Omniscience" is a characteristic of God. Omniscience simply means that God knows all things. God knows everything there is to know about everything. There is nothing that God ceases to know, nor will there ever be anything ever discovered that God himself did not decide in his knowledge to create. He himself created knowledge. Further than that, He knows you! No person is excluded from his knowledge, and no part of our life is excluded from his knowledge. He knows everybody, and everything about everybody.
This is scary if we are honest with ourself. When it becomes personal we are forced to realize that we may have succeeded in hiding something our entire life, but we have not hidden it from Jesus. The person who matters most knows most. The person whose judgment about us is most important, knows all about us.
Yet, in all of Christ's knowledge He does not hate us, rather he loves us. He willingly goes to the cross for us. He sacrificially provides a way for the unlovable to be loved. For God so loved the world, that he sent Jesus to die for us to provide a way for belief and everlasting life with Him in glory. Praise His Name!!
John 2:12-22 Biblical Reconstruction
Many of us walk into church with different preconceived thoughts and views on Christianity. Historically, it has been the responsibility of the church to train and equip believers in the scriptures so that the bible defines our views, rather than the things that our world would teach us or even our experiences. In this text of the Gospel of John, we are really challenged to re-look at the way we view certain things in our lives. Three of those things are Jesus, Worship and the Church.
Biblical Jesus
For a long time, the church has portrayed Jesus as a gentle hippie who most men would rather make fun or than worship. In John 2, this is not gentle Jesus. Did Jesus have a gentle side? Absolutely. Was Jesus compassionate? Absolutely. Did Jesus love children? Absolutely. But....Lets not exalt Jesus as the LAMB of God but neglect to recognize him as the LION of Judah. Jesus came in meekness and humility; but he also came as a ferocious rebel in his culture who was determined to die for sin, live perfectly and advance the kingdom of God. He endured pain, suffering and death...willingly!! When he comes back, Revelations says that he will come on a horse with fire in his eyes, a sword in his mouth, his name on his calf and he will trample over all his enemies. Therefore, He aught to be worshipped as King.
Biblical Worship
In John 2, the religious leaders had become money hungry and greedy, while the believers became lazy in their giving. Because of this, the temple had become a marketplace where people would sell sacrifices at inflated prices. In turn, the church became less about worshipping God, and more about making money to sustain itself and bring wealth and power to its leaders. The church is not a business, it is a people and place of worship. The church is when we gather and bring our sin, praise, giftedness, hurts, minds and our money; and we offer it to Jesus for the joy of our own hearts and the advancement of his Kingdom.
Biblical Church
In John 2, The temple was where the Presence of God dwelt. If you wanted to be close to God, you went to the temple. If you wanted to worship, you went to the temple. If you wanted to have Kingdom generosity, you brought your tithe to the temple. If you wanted your sin forgiven, you would sacrifice at the temple. The temple was where you had to go to be with God. When Jesus says, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it.” he's saying, "No longer does the presence of God dwell in the temple, but the presence of God is among you." Today, through the death, burial and resurrection; Christ sends the Holy Spirit to dwell in every single believer. Paul says, “Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.” So, the church is no longer confined to a building, but to the believer. Therefore, where we go, the kingdom goes.
John 2:1-11 Do whatever he tells you to do.
Most of modern evangelicalism has a problem when it comes to seeing Jesus do miracles in the scriptures. Typically we don't know what to make of them. Should we try and over spiritualize them to make sense of it? Should we try to find some hidden meaning in it or some sort of moralistic teaching? Or should we just throw it out all together and not wrestle with it at all?
In most biblical circles, and even many seminaries, people are trained to break their hermeneutical understandings in order to try and over spiritualize the miraculous. The problem with that is first, the bible doesn't give us the freedom to do that. And Second, if we can fully explain and interpret the miraculous, it ceases to actually be miraculous.
In the case where Jesus turns water into wine, we see the foundation of being witness to the miraculous. Jesus told a couple of servants to do something, and they did it. And in doing so, they saw a miraculous work of God. At the wedding, Jesus' mother very clearly tells the servants to "do whatever he (Jesus) tells you to do." and in their obedience to Jesus, those servants had the opportunity to witness Jesus's first miracle. The same truth is for us today. As we hear the voice of God; whether it be through His Word, through the community of believers, or even supernatural revelation. When we hear His voice and are obedient and courageous in doing what he says; we have the awesome opportunity to see His wonderful hand at work. “Don't be just a hearer of the word, be a doer of the word.”
John 1:19-34 Be Great
I would argue that the majority of us want to be great, whether great academically, or great in a sport, or great in a profession, or a great husband or father or business owner, or whatever your thing is. I think it is safe to say that most of us want to be great. Now outside these four walls “greatness” is typically defined by how much money you make, or the car you drive, or the letters you have before your name. But I don’t think thats how the scriptures would define greatness. As a matter of fact, if that is greatness than Jesus himself and John the baptist especially would not be considered great.
In Matthew 11, Jesus says that the greatest man to ever be born of a women was John the Baptist. How can that be? He was a man of poor dress, no home, a horrible diet and yet, no man has even been greater.
In John 1, you see the key to this staggering statement as John the Baptist is confronted by the religious leaders of his day. They ask him; "who are you?" and his response is truly great to all biblical standards. I essence, he tells them, "I am nobody." He doesn't go through his resume of great successes or his accolades or his moral and spiritual achievements; he simply says "I'm nobody, simply a voice preparing the way for the Lord."
We all have a voice, but for John, its almost like he is saying that his message and his identity are one in the same. In other words, He's saying. “My whole life shouts: prepare the way for the Lord!” Everything in his being screamed, "Follow Christ, Delight in Christ, Look to Christ." And….The bible calls that GREAT!!
- Sinfully defined: Greatness is individuals motivated by self-interests, self indulgences, and a false sense of self sufficiency and self ambition for the purpose of self glorification.
- Biblically defined: True greatness is when we humble ourselves and leverage our influence for the purpose of serving others and pointing people to the Glory of God.
I encourage us all to be great, pursue greatness. Be great worshippers, great spouses, great parents, great students, great staff members or business owners. Be great. But find that greatness by pursuing greatness by humbling yourself and pointing people to that which is Greatest!! Jesus Christ.
Lastly, we need to answer the question "How?" How does one pursue greatness? how does one pursue humility? How do I practically apply this?
The answer is found in cross. John Stott says it the best…...
John 1:1-18 (Sermon Recap: Get LIfe)
Everyone wants a better life. In 2010 Americans spent $14 billion in the self-help industry. We try weight loss programs, self help books, personal coaches and even stress management programs. Every infomercial we turn on, every commercial we watch and every ad we see is just another marketing tool that promises us some sort of false hope to a better life.
But nothing seems to work…..Debt is at an all time high. Depression is at an all time high. Loneliness is at an all time high. Violence and Sex Trafficking are at an all time high. This year Americans will spend more money on anti-depressant medications and in the porn industry than revenue generated in the NFL, NBA and MLB combined. Everywhere we look to find life, it seems to only suck the life out of us. Our Jobs typically stress us out. There seems to never be enough money. Sex doesn't give what it promises to give. Marriages and relationships seem to be up one day and down the next.
What is the answer?
There is one main reason why the apostle John wrote his gospel. John 20:30-31
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
This text clearly states that true life, abundant life, a blessed life, a joyful life can only be found through belief in Jesus Christ. Its a pretty bold statement, but all the evidence points to it being true. And, if life is found in Jesus alone, than trying to find life in anything other than Jesus leads to death.
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