B.A.S.I.C.
Becoming A Servant In Christ
Introduction-
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
I want to be up front and honest about what I am seeing with believers that I have been in contact with lately.
After talking to a women that wanted me to marry them....but not want anything to do with the church after the wedding, to believers that have not grasped some of the basic tenements of the Christian faith. I am not even talking about just Nazarene beliefs, I am talking about Christian bare bone beliefs about salvation. I have decided that I will address some basic beliefs.
1 Corinthians 1:18-26 (paraphrased)
Apostle Paul is telling us that the cross is to those that are perishing is foolishness.
They don’t want to bother with it.
They laugh at it.
They are not willing to make changes in their life.
They think if they do accept it , it will be latter rather than sooner.
He tells us that some smart people have thought their way right out of their relationship with Christ. The stumbling block is that it is too easy.
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, the intelligence of the intellect, I will frustrate.”
Am I saying that intelligent people can’t come to Christ? No In fact, just the opposite.
They say that faith is blind, but it is not stupid.
Apostle Paul addresses some issues of our faith because even after a few years of Jesus being gone, they began to miss out on what it is to be a disciple of Christ, and the fact that a disciple of Christ has a changed life, it may be gradual, but it is a changed life.
Matthew 4:18-20:
Jesus calling his first disciples. He is calling Peter and Andrew, he is approaching them at their work place and tells them to “follow me” He tells fisherman that they will now also be fishers of men. The Bible says “At once” they left their nets and followed. (V21) Jesus approaching James and John- “Immediately” they left the boat and followed. Jesus.
As he calls us to follow Him, He requires that we immediately respond and follow him.
We see that there is a cost of following Jesus.
A teacher of the law says to Jesus “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” After trying to convince Jesus he had other things to do first, Jesus tells him to let the dead bury the dead. Let all the others things wait.
I am looking for those that will follow me and put me first in their lives. Jesus makes a direct statement, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.”
There is no room for fence huggers.
A man comes up to Jesus and asks “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life? Jesus replies “Obey the commandments” He says that he does that, what does he lack? Jesus tells him to go sell all his possessions, give to the poor, then follow me.
What do we see here?
We see Jesus demands something from us if we are going to be followers of Christ.
There is lip service. That is the one that says it with his mouth, but his life does not show it.
There are those that have different lives, one at church, with their church family. Then separate lives with those outside the church.
I believe the Bible to be 100 percent true.
I believe the Bible to give us everything we need to know to be saved from our sins.
I believe it tells us how to live a victorious lives.
It tells us about being filled with the Holy Spirit, and the importance of being filled.
It tells us as believers we should have a heart for the lost and that we have a responsibility to bring light to a dying world.
There is only one way to get to heaven, it is through Jesus Christ.
No Jesus, no heaven, no exceptions.
Like I said last week, it is not about being good, it is about Jesus dealing with the sin in our lives.
God is a holy God, he cannot tolerate sin in heaven. There will be no sin in heaven. Jesus is not covering for sin like Old testament animals were. He is the sacrificial sin offering that was acceptable to God for each one of us.
Weather we accept that gift is up to each one of us. I cannot candy coat it. You accept His gift and you live for Him, there should be a change in your life. You cannot accept and be with Jesus and not have change.
Then you can be assured of heaven. That is a promise of God.
At any point you decide that you no longer want the gift and reject or give back that gift- you have walked out of the grace and mercy of God and again stand before God without Jesus Christ as your savior. You are safe in the hand of the Lord, but you always have a choice weather you want to walk out of it. That is your choice
He who has a ear, let him hear
Jesus addressed the Pharisees, the ones that put on a good show.
“These people honor me with their lips, bu they are far from me, they worship in vain, their teachings are but rules taught by me”
When you love Jesus, it’s not about the rules you have to live by, it is about your heart and wanting to please Jesus.
Matthew 24:12
“Because of the increase of wickedness the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved”
I don’t care how you read that, and what commentary you are looking at, Jesus is saying people will grow cold and that the ones that endure to the end will be saved.
It tells us once we are saved, we cannot live like the devil and expect the rewards of heaven.
It tells us that growing cold toward the things of God and flirting with the things of the world is dangerous for our souls.
It tells us people will turn away from the faith and betray their relationship with Jesus Christ.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and body.
You cannot do that without giving Jesus your all.
Jesus will not accept ½ your mind.
Jesus will not accept ½ your heart.
And I’m telling you that you cannot make heaven with1/2 your soul.
No one knows the time of Jesus return (except the Father)
He says to keep watch.
Be ready for His return.
He will come unexpected.
So what is the answer to be a disciple of Christ.
Love the Lord God- God knows where you are at. With all your heart, soul, and with all your mind.
“That your faith not rest in man’s wisdom, but on God’s power” (2:5)
I. Heart
The condition of your heart affects your whole life
For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
If you want to clean up your life, we must start with our heart. The only one that can clean up a heart is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only one who can take a sinful, deceitful, hardened heart and change it.
We can do a lot of things, but we cannot change our heart without God doing it.
“Saved by grace”- means, not what we do but what the grace of God does working in our lives.
It is amazing, a person, who was saved by grace, pulled right out of the depths of hell by a loving God sometimes forgets where they came from and looks down on someone on that same destructive road.
If you have accepted Christ, there should be a change. We should be striving to be more Christlike, more of wanting to please Jesus Christ.
There has to be a change
Some people know about God, about what Jesus Christ did, heard the Christmas story.
They say they gave their heart, but they keep everything else.
No heart change, no attitude change, no thinking change.
II. Mind
Jesus says;
“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and always bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” 2Cor. 10:5
Question
Does getting rid of God work?
The world is doing everything they can to get God out of everything .
As a believer, we should be trying to put God into everything in our lives.
Phil 2:5
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.”
What mind?
The renewing mind that is being renewed, refreshed, by the Spirit of the Living God
Rom 12:2
“ And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.”
Other religions try to brain wash you, take you captive,
Jesus came to set the captive free.
Hebrews 8:10
“I will put my law in their minds so they will understand them, and I will write them on their hearts so they will obey them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
Closing:
Just like the sermon title- BASIC- Becoming a servant in Christ.
Requires a heart change and a mind change.
Different attitude and different priorities.
Confess with your mouth and believe in your heart.
Confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord in your life. There will be change.
“Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, he who seeks, finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”
No one who does not love Jesus will be in heaven. You didn’t love him here on earth, you won’t have Him for eternity.
Feed your faith and doubts will starve to death
Prov. 4:23
“Above all else, guard your heart. For it is the wellspring of life.”
Altar Call:
