Sunday
Morning Bible Study
September
2, 2012
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?
This is a book
about Real Issues
What’s real?
What’s the truth?
We’ve been addressing issues like:
Who is God?
What is He really like?
What is a Christian?
What is a Christian really like?
We are going to talk about some real issues this morning…
I don’t know if you’ve thought about this much, but the world that we live in is
a pretty messed up place.
Think about some of the things that have happened in our nation, just this
year.
July 20 - Aurora
Colorado Shooting at the movie theater, killing 12 and injuring 58
August 5 – six
people are killed at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin
Tuesday,
December 11 - Mall shooting in Portland kills two
Wednesday,
December 12 - CSUF lockdown due to armed robbery suspects
Friday,
December 14 - Newtown
Connecticut shootings, 27 children and adults killed. 18 of the dead were first graders, ages 6 and
7.
The President gave an excellent statement to the nation on Friday. You can see how deeply moved he was by this
event.
Play
“President’s statement”
clip.
Let’s pray for
the folks in Newtown.
Sometimes people ask difficult questions at times like these.
They ask, “How
could a loving God allow such a thing to happen?”
I have a news flash.
God didn’t do
these things.
A young man was responsible for the tragedy in Connecticut. He may have been mentally ill. He could have possibly been demon possessed.
But God didn’t do this.
God has chosen
for the time being to allow men to have free will – to give men a choice of how they will
live their lives and who they will chose to follow.
The Bible is filled with references
to the choices God puts before us.
Joshua said,
(Jos 24:15 NKJV) …choose
for yourselves this day whom you will serve … But as for me and my house, we
will serve the Lord.”
Elijah challenged the people to make a choice between following God or
following Baal:
(1 Ki 18:21 NKJV) … “How long
will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord
is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.”
The apostles told the people they needed to make a choice to turn from
their sins and follow God:
(Ac 3:19 NKJV) Repent
therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of
refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
God’s desire is that people would choose to follow Him, love Him, and do
the right things.
But if God made
men follow Him, there would be no love involved.
True
love requires a choice – a choice to choose the one you love. If there’s no choice, we are just robots, not
lovers.
If you ever have a doubt of what kind of evil men are capable of, you
should no longer have any doubts.
How do we cope
with things like these shootings?
Do we enact gun
control legislation?
I imagine in our church we would have people line up on both sides of that
issue. Some of you will lean towards thinking that outlawing guns will
reduce violence like this. Others of you
will lean towards thinking that if the teachers had been carrying firearms, the
fellow would have been stopped quicker.
Do we provide
better mental health services?
I’m sure our society could use a lot more mental health services.
I think that
what our nation needs is to wake up and realize that our greatest need is for God.
We have worked overtime to cut the mention of God out of our society, and I
think we are seeing the results of a godless society, a society that no longer
has an anchor of knowing what is right and what is wrong.
I think that
it’s an interesting coincidence that the passage we come to this morning on our
journey through 1John talks about what overcomes the “world”.
5:4-5 Overcoming
the world
:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory
that has overcome the world— our faith.
:4 is born – gennao –
to be born
Perfect passive participle
:4 overcomes – nikao
– to conquer; to carry off the victory, come off victorious
Present active indicative
(1 Jn 2:13 NKJV) I write to you,
fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I write
to you, young men, Because you have overcome the wicked one. I write to you,
little children, Because you have known the Father.
(Re 12:11 NKJV) And they overcame him by the blood of
the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives
to the death.
:4 victory – nike –
victory
:4 has overcome – nikao
– to conquer; to carry off the victory, come off victorious
Aorist active participle
:4 faith – pistis –
conviction of the truth of anything, belief
:4 whatever is born
of God
We touched on this last week as one of John’s “reality checks”. This is one of the characteristics of those
who have been “born again”,
those who claim to have had a spiritual birth from God.
The characteristic of someone who is born again is that they have
experienced a victory over the “world”.
:4 overcomes the
world
overcomes
– nikao – to conquer; come off
victorious
The Greeks had
a “goddess” named “Nike” (nee-kay), known by the Romans as “Victoria”. She had wings and flew around battlefields
rewarding the victors with glory and fame.
We have a shoe
company that tells us to “Just Do It”.
Our particular word is used four times in our short passage, three times as
“overcome” and once as “victory”.
the world
– kosmos – the world; the inhabitants
of the earth; the evil system ruled by Satan
It’s that last part that we’re concerned about. It’s this world “system” that Satan uses to
tempt us and discourage us.
John has already told us that this world system appeals to our sin nature
by using things like “lust” and “pride”.
(1 Jn 2:16 NKJV) For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust
of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.
The
lust of the flesh – the things that appeal to our sin nature like the
immorality we see portrayed
in the media we watch.
The
lust of the eyes – the push of Madison Avenue that tells us we won’t be
happy unless we have “more stuff”, something particularly strong around Christmas time.
Play
“Customer
is King” clip.
The
pride of life – the desire to be famous or powerful, the idea that I need more of
“me”.
As we’ve all seen
this week, the “world” can be a pretty scary place.
There is plenty of evil around to be afraid of.
And there are plenty of temptations around to lead us astray.
How does a believer “overcome” the world?
:4 our faith
Lesson
Trusting the unseen
faith – pistis – conviction of the truth of
anything, belief
The author of Hebrews gives us a fuller definition
(Heb 11:1 NKJV) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen.
The word for “substance” could also be translated “confidence”.
Faith is being “confident” in something that is still in
the future, considering something to be of “substance”, even though you don’t
have it yet.
The word for “evidence” can also be translated “conviction”.
Faith is having a “conviction” about something, even
though you can’t see it. It’s
considering something to be equal to “overwhelming evidence”, even when there
are a few pieces missing.
When
you were a kid, you might have had a “wish list” for Christmas.
If there was only one thing that you really, really
wanted, and your parents promised that they’d get it for you, you would be excited come
Christmas morning because you were sure you would get it – that’s “faith”.
The Bible says that faith is very important when it comes to our
relationship with God.
(Heb 11:6 NKJV) But
without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to
God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who
diligently seek Him.
For you to see God’s fullest work in your life, you are
going to need to “trust” Him.
When He asks you to do something, you need to trust that
He knows what He’s doing, and so you will obey Him.
Sometimes we
misunderstand faith by thinking it is some sort of “magic dust” that makes all
our prayers come true.
Kind of like Peter Pan teaching Wendy to “fly”
Play
“We Can Fly” clip from
Peter Pan.
We think of faith that way because of verses like:
(Mt 21:22 NKJV) And whatever things you ask in
prayer, believing, you will receive.”
Where I think we’ve gone wrong with this verse is in
thinking that if we have enough of our “magic dust” we somehow convince God to
do what we want Him to do.
But “faith” is about our trusting our lives to God,
trusting in Him who is unseen. When our
lives are squarely in His hands, we learn to pray for the right things.
Lesson
Faith’s implications
How does “faith” help us overcome this world?
Trusting an unseen God
I may not understand the circumstances around me, but I can still count on
God.
(Ps 46:1–2 NKJV) —1 God is
our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will
not fear, Even though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried
into the midst of the sea;
It’s a faith that looks to Jesus and His example, when things are down and
times are tough, even though I don’t see Him.
(Heb 12:1–2 NKJV) Therefore
we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay
aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us
run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and
finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured
the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God.
Not trusting this world
This “world”
around us is very visible.
Back in the 70’s we used to watch “The Flip Wilson Show”,
and Flip had a famous line, “What you see is what you get”.
Play
“Flip Wilson” clip
We need to be
careful about counting on the “seen” and learn to trust more in the “unseen”
“What you see” is not necessarily what you want to be
trusting.
Counting on an unseen future
There is a better world coming – heaven. That’s what we
are living for and counting on.
The book of Revelation contains seven letters from Jesus to the churches in
Asia. To each church, Jesus gives a
promise to the “overcomers”. Look at
some of these promises and notice how they are all aimed at the future:
(Re 2:7 NKJV) To him who
overcomes I will give to
eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.
(Re 2:11
NKJV) He
who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.” ’
(Re 2:17
NKJV) To
him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give
him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows
except him who receives it.” ’
(Re 2:26
NKJV) And
he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power
over the nations—
(Re 3:5 NKJV)
He
who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his
name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and
before His angels.
(Re 3:12 NKJV) He who
overcomes, I will make him
a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more… I will
write on him the name of My God
and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of
heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.
(Re 3:21 NKJV) To him who
overcomes I will grant to
sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father
on His throne.
Overcomers are characterized by their “faith”, by their trusting in
something they don’t see, by counting on something in the future that hasn’t
yet happened.
They will be rewarded, but the reward is in the future.
How is the future going to turn out? When I’m trusting in Jesus, it will turn out
just fine.
:5 Who is he who
overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
:5 who overcomes – nikao
– to conquer; to carry off the victory, come off victorious
Present active participle
:5 who believes – pisteuo
– to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in
Present active participle
:5 he who believes
that Jesus is the Son of God
It’s not some sort of vague faith, some kind of “wishful thinking” that
gives us victory, but more specifically our faith in Jesus as the Son of God.
Lesson
Trusting Jesus
Ultimate victory comes from counting on Jesus.
John told us earlier,
(1 Jn 4:4 NKJV) You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is
greater than he who is in the world.
Who is in us? God is in us. And He has overcome the world.
(Jn 16:33 NKJV) These
things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you
will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
It starts with
our salvation, learning to trust that Jesus will pay for our sins.
The Bible tells us that our sins are the thing that separates us from God.
(Is 59:1–2 NKJV) —1 Behold,
the Lord’s hand is not shortened,
That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you
from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He
will not hear.
God did something to take care of our sins, He sent His Son Jesus to pay the penalty for our
sins by dying on the cross.
And all we have to do is to believe to find God’s forgiveness.
(Jn 3:16 NKJV) For God so
loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in
Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
It could be that you’ve never taken that first step of
trusting Jesus. In a few minutes I’m
going to give you an opportunity to take that first, simple step.
Trusting Jesus is also about: Growing in faith.
Trusting in Jesus for my salvation is a first step.
God wants my faith to grow from there.
Overcoming the world is a lifelong process. It’s conquering one challenge after another.
On Thursday nights, we’ve been looking at the life of Elijah.
For
some people, when they hear the name “Elijah”, they think of the prophet who
called fire down from heaven.
Elijah set up a prayer challenge between he and the prophets
of the false gods. They would set up two
altars on top of a mountain, and both call on their “gods”. The god that answered with fire – sending
fire to consume the sacrifices – would be the true God.
(1 Ki 18:36–39 NKJV) —36 And it
came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening
sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am
Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 37 Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may
know that You are the Lord
God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” 38 Then the fire of
the Lord fell and consumed the
burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the
water that was in the trench. 39 Now when all the people saw it,
they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord,
He is God! The Lord, He is
God!”
You might look at that as the ultimate “victory” over the
world.
But
before Elijah was at the place where he was a part of this amazing
miracle, there was a time of drought and famine in the land.
Elijah spent three and a half years learning to trust God.
When
he lived by the brook Cherith, he was out in the middle of nowhere, drinking
water from the little stream, and depending on ravens to drop food off every
day.
Ravens are very selfish creatures. They don’t like to share.
But Elijah learned to trust God, and God provided for his
needs.
Then
he moved to live in the town of Zarephath, where a widow woman let him
rent a room.
God did an amazing miracle, miraculously using a little
jar of flour and a jar of oil to keep producing food to sustain Elijah, this
woman, and her son for many days.
When
the widow woman’s son died, Elijah learned another huge faith lesson and the
young boy was raised from the dead.
And
then Elijah was ready for the biggest test of his life – challenging the
850 false prophets to a prayer challenge and calling down fire from heaven.
But you see a growth in Elijah’s walk during 3 ½ years.
Did you notice how Jesus helped her take steps along the
way to trust Him more?
The trick is to keep growing in trust. Don’t just quit. Trust Him in the situation you’re in.
Are you ready
to take a step and trust Him?