My Life Verse Series

“MY LIFE VERSE” John 3:30

FBCF – 3/19/23

Jon Daniels

INTRO – Have you ever thought about having a “life verse” – a verse that the Lord has used in your life in a strong way to give you direction or comfort or clarity in your life? Texted several of my pastor & minister friends to see if they had a life verse. So interesting & encouraging to see some of their responses:

- Scott Carter – 1 John 3:1 – “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”

- Chip Stevens, FBC, Jxn – 2 Chronicles 16:9 – “For the eyes of the Lord move to & fro throughout the whole earth, that He may strongly support those whose hearts are completely His…”

- Ron Mumbower – Isaiah 57:14 – “Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.”

- Becky Brown – Luke 12:48 – “To whom much is given, much is required.”

- Bill Elliff – Acts 20:24 – “I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.”

- Josh Braddy, Broadmoor BC – John 10:10 – “I have come that they might have life & have it more abundantly.”

- Mark Sandifer – Proverbs 3:5-6

- Cindy Sansing – Habakkuk 2:2-3 – “Then the Lord replied: ‘Write down the revelation & make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end & will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come & will not delay.’”

- Michael Nanney – Luke 10:19 – “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”

- Matt Hines – James 1:2-3 – “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

EXPLANATION – John 3:30

John 3:30, the sermon text for today & our memory verse right now, is my life verse. I really can’t remember exactly when I chose that verse as my life verse. I do remember a pastor teaching on it at one time & it spoke to my heart. So, I decided to start looking for a life verse & landed on John 3:30. I’ve always been a fan of John the Baptist. As a kid, thought it was cool that he was a Baptist & I was a Baptist. I didn’t know that he wasn’t really a Southern Baptist church member or a part of the Southern Baptist denomination (or any other Baptist denomination for that matter), but still thought it was cool. He wasn’t John the Methodist or John the Presbyterian or John the Episcopalian. He was John the Baptist! And that ended up being my CB handle! And he’s the one who actually said the words, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

We talk a lot about making much of Jesus around here. And we strive really hard to truly do that in all we do as a church.

- “Take It to the Town” - 7 people saved last year - 7 people saved this past Wed night

If there was anyone in the NT who made much of Jesus, it was John the Baptist. In fact, that was the entire reason for his life. Isaiah prophesied about J the B in Isaiah 40 as John said in v. 23. And I would submit to you that John 3:30 was purpose for living - HIS life verse.

APPLICATION – Having a life verse helps you make much of Jesus.

Question: Why have a life verse?

- It plainly shows your priority – Glorify God in all we say & do. Zeroes us in on this. Cuts through all the other distractions that vie for our attention & voices that scream for our attention.

- It places you in the proper position – Position of humility w/ Jesus on the throne of your life – Bowing low before Him – “Jesus you are LORD of my life, KING of my life, the BOSS of my life!”

- It points others to Jesus – Point away from ourselves & point to HIM.

4 Characteristics of a Life Verse:

LOVE – Jesus made it abundantly clear to us that our lives as His followers MUST be characterized by love.

- Love the Lord your God – Love others – Matthew 22:37-39