Are You Ready For Jesus? Series

ARE YOU READY FOR JESUS?

John 1:19-34

S: Celebrate Jesus

Th: Readiness

Pr: We need to be ready for Jesus.

?: What? What do we need to be ready for?

KW: Questions (challenges)

TS: There are three questions that challenge our

readiness for Jesus’ impact on our lives.

The _____ question is…

I. ARE YOU READY TO HEAR THE WORD?

II. ARE YOU READY TO CHANGE?

III. ARE YOU READY FOR THE LAMB?

RMBC 1/16/00 AM

INTRODUCTION:

ILL Notebook: Preparation (neckties)

A man is crawling through the Sahara desert when another man riding on a camel approaches him. As the rider approaches, the crawling man whispers through his parched lips, “Water…please…can you give…water…” “I’m sorry,” replies the man on the camel, “I don’t have any water with me. But I’d be delighted to sell you a necktie.” “Necktie?” whispers the man. “I need water!” “They’re only four dollars apiece.” “I need water.” “Okay, okay, two for seven dollars.” “Please! I need water!” the man exclaims. “I don’t have any water, all I have are ties,” replies the salesman, as he heads off into the distance. By now the man has lost all track of time, crawling through the desert seemingly for days. Finally, nearly dead, with clothes tattered and skin peeling under the relentless sun, he comes upon a restaurant. Summoning his last bit of strength, he staggers to the door and confronts the headwaiter. “Water…can I get…water?” the dying man pleads. “I’m sorry, sir. Neckties required.”

Well…

Are you prepared for what is coming?

Of course, I am not speaking of needing a necktie.

I am speaking of being prepared for our 50-Day Adventure that will officially begin next Sunday.

Next Sunday, our series begins on the theme “Celebrate Jesus: Discover What Makes Him Attractive to So Many People.”

In your mailbox today, you not only received a large copy of our theme verse for the year, but also a smaller card with Mark 1:35 on it.

This is our memory verse for next week.

So come knowing it, not because you are going to be tested on it, but because God instructs to know His Word in our heart.

Now…if you have already obtained your journal, or you intend to today, there is a pre-adventure study for next Saturday.

We want you to be prepared, because we believe God is going to do something very special among us, and we don’t want you to miss it.

The more of us that are wholeheartedly and enthusiastically involved, the more powerful the movement of God is going to be in our midst.

Are you prepared for what is coming?

TRANSITION:

ILL Internet—Stedman (Billy Graham)

A remarkable religious phenomenon broke out in the United States in the year 1948. It started in a tent near the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, under the preaching of a young evangelist by the name of Billy Graham. The crowds were a little sparse in that tent at first, but as the preaching went on they began to grow. Finally certain rather prominent Hollywood celebrities came to the meetings and were converted. At first, as often happens with gatherings of that sort, the press totally ignored them. But when some of the well-known names of Hollywood became involved, the media began to take an interest in what was happening. Eventually reporters were sent to investigate and to interview this rather strange young preacher, who dressed in pistachio-colored suits, wore flaming red ties, spoke with a pronounced Southern accent, and yet had incredible appeal to the masses. It was evident that God was doing something there. That was the beginning of Billy Graham’s career. As news of those meetings spread across the country, other cities invited him to come and preach. He went on to Boston, where all of New England seemed to turn out to hear him. Thus began the great crusades that swept across America in the latter part of the ’40’s and have continued until today even as his physical condition has deteriorated. People still come to see what makes Billy Graham so passionate about this thing called Christianity.

Much earlier in the history of man, there is an interesting parallel.

1. John the Baptist started a phenomenon whose legacy continues until today.

As it was with Billy the Baptist in 1948, so it was with John the Baptist in the late ’20’s of the first century.

He, too, was a young man, in his early 30s, six months older than Jesus.

He, too, dressed rather strangely, even for that day.

He did not wear green suits, but he did wear an unconventional garment of camel’s hair.

He also ate an unorthodox diet of grasshoppers and wild honey.

There was not a bit of an appearance of prestige about him.

Yet, he had a message.