Intro: Many of us as believers can take a test and answer yes to questions like, did Jesus die for your sins, did he rise from the dead, is Jesus coming back to earth? Pastor and author Bruce Larson says that he grew up saying yes to these types of biblical doctrines. But eventually he sensed that God was asking him some new questions:
1. Will you trust Me with your life, yes or no?
2. Will you entrust yourself to My church family, yes or no?
3. Will you serve Me by getting involved with others, yes or no? Only when Larson said yes to these questions did God become real in his life. (From our Daily Bread)
Jesus does not merely want us to say yes to Biblical information. He wants us to say yes to Him! The will of God has always been for us to say yes to God. Adam and Eve said no to God when they said yes to Satan. Involved in saying yes to Jesus is saying no to the world system controlled by Satan.
I. God’s primary will is for you to know Him
John 17.3 “This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ.”
It is from a conversation with His father that Jesus defines for us eternal life. The ultimate will for the individual is found not in simple yes to Bible truths but yes to the person the Bible truths reveal.
Psalm 9:10 “Those who know Your name trust in You because You have not abandoned
those who seek You, Yahweh.”
Eternal life is knowing, communicating with, serving, enjoying, and finding satisfaction in the one true living God.
A) Life is an active relationship
Immanuel God with us real life is revealed as an endeavor and not an event. It is a journey not a destination. Jesus says is you love me keep my commandments. How do we actively spend time on Jesus? Prayer – communication. This prayer that defines eternal life is a conversation between Jesus and His Father for the disciples benefit. The Bible shows us more about God’s will and His person. If we give up many of the empty activities we use anesthetic to deaden our empty lives we would have more time to learn who Jesus is. Trust is active obedience. We interact with and invest in the church, people, missions, ministries because we trust Jesus. Obedience is trust in action. It takes work, sacrifice, forgiveness etc.
B) Life is an abundant relationship
John 10:10 “A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.”
Our heavenly father never meant for life to be a burden to endure. We are called to enjoy discovering living with Him and with others.
There is a lie perpetuated by false teachers today that the abundant relationship with Jesus and others is easy and always fun. That is not true because it happens in a universe and world system that is broken. Dad’s are absentee or abusive because of sin and separation. Spouses cheat because of an emptiness that is filled with wrong relationships. Church’s split because we think life is supposed to be easy mode.
Do you realize you came to know Jesus by grace, you will continue to know Jesus more by grace and the only way you can call others to Jesus is by grace!
Remember that you were dead in trespasses and sin so the only way to have active relationship and abundant life and relationship is for Jesus to raise you from the dead.
There are four falsehoods to gaining a full life examples, encouragement, environment, education. Those may cause life to grow but they don’t plant it in you.
II. God’s will for you is to be healed
Why do we need Jehovah Rophi, the Lord our Healer? Because the devastating disease of sin brings death to us. The principles revealed in the Bible reveal God’s great care for our mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Jesus alludes to this every time he offers us His peace.
John 14.27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful.”
Jesus uses a word that means peace of mind, it was a common Jewish farewell. In the Hebraisitic sense it carried the idea of health or welfare of the individual.
The great physician wants to be active in healing our thinking, our emotions, and our desires and decisions. This is not the absence of difficulty. It is instead the acceptance of God’s control and desire to make us whole.
God gets glory from Jesus’ activity revealed in your life as you walk in wholeness with God and others. It is the changed lives of believers empowered by the Holy Spirit that witnesses to the saving, healing power of Jesus. Lazarus was the witness and the evidence of Jesus’ power. Lazarus was dead. Jesus came and spoke his name and Lazarus came alive from the dead. God desires to heal you so He can demonstrate His power through your changed life. Remember this life is all about His glory. Whole people are the most powerful witness of Jesus. Peter was on the journey of wholeness when he no longer ran from those who challenged his faith in Jesus.
III. God’s will for you is for you to be in community
Acts 2.44 “All the believers kept meeting together, and they shared everything with each other.”
Hebrews 10:24-25 “We must also consider how to encourage each other to show love and to do good things We should not stop gathering together with other believers, as some of you are doing. Instead, we must continue to encourage each other even more as we see the day of the Lord coming.
A) Identity of the community
Those that were believers knew it and those that were not recognized the difference in their lives. The community of believers is to be just that. The early believers were baptized to show it was not of their own work but God’s work of grace.
B) Commitment of the community
The early believers were completely committed and surrendered to Jesus and each other. God’s will is for us to be completely surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus and to the local body of believers we are joined with. It takes sacrifice of time, energy, and resources to remain surrendered to Jesus and His church. God’s will is for us to see that we are all integral to the health of the community of Christ. The community is absolutely necessary to our health and growth in Christ. Why is the community so important?
1) Accountability
2) Encouragement
3) Edification
C) Unity of the community
During Jesus life before the Holy Spirit was given to live in them the apostles/disciples were competitive and argued who was the greatest and would have the most authority. After Pentacost and the Holy Spirits coming they were united for the common goal of finishing Jesus’ work of sharing the gospel to the world. There was and is no place for the Lone Ranger mentality. We are living in a very individualistic selfish age what God wants to reveal to the world is that He is alive in His church. That happens as we obey His will for community. Family we have some issues of community that only the wholeness of Jesus will solve.
IV. God’s will for you is for you to find meaning in life
What is the meaning of life? Did you know the Bible answers this question?
Ecclesiastes 12:13 “After having heard it all, this is the conclusion: Fear God, and keep his commands, because this applies to everyone.”
Colossians 1:13 “He created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. Whether they are kings or lords, rulers or powers- everything has been created through him and for him.”
A) Remember this is all about Jesus
When we forget it is about Jesus and His name and reputation we lose focus on our mission. Our mission is never to make people comfortable. In fact if I read most of the teachers and profits of the New and Old Testaments their messages made for some wiggling among the congregation. What should be different if we believe that all things are for Him? Attitudes, relationships, forgiveness, bitterness we can go on and on.
B) Remember this is all about others
Philippians 2:1-4 “If then there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, 2 fulfill my joy by thinking the same way, having the same love, sharing the same feelings, focusing on one goal. 3 Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”
What is the one goal? It is the glory of Christ!! We see that God through Jesus Christ gets the most glory when people know Him (are saved), are healed or changed in their life and lifestyle and can put aside different ideas, different opinions, different backgrounds to be part of a community that is more concerned with Jesus and others than themselves
Conclusion: This is what Jesus meant they will know you are my disciples in that you have love one for another. John 13:35. God’s foremost will is for you to be saved to have an ongoing relationship with Him. A necessary part of that is to be healed to the point you can journey with others in what we call community.
Why is it so important to be part of a small group either Sunday morning or throughout the week?
Community
Accountability
Encouragement
Love as an attitude and action
God’s will is for Christ to be formed in you and you to be formed into an integral part of the community of believers called His body and bride.
