Text: John 14:22-31, Title: You Shall Overcome!, Date/Place: NRBC, 6/23/13, AM
A. Opening illustration: moving Tombstone, when they are giving up, going home, get to the train station, and turn around and start taken it back and taking names, even letting one go back to tell the rest they’re coming
B. Background to passage: In the middle of his teaching on the Holy Spirit, out advocate that will abide forever within us, He give them a few truths that will also help them overcome the rocky road before them.
C. Main thought: We will look at three powerful truths that will help you become an overcomer!
A. Jesus has left you peace (v. 27)
1. I know that I have said it a lot, but remember their scenario: within a few hours their lives were about to be turned upside. The worldly peace is built upon an absence of turmoil or hardship or pain. But the peace that Jesus speaks of, His peace, actually is the peace that preserves through the worst suffering in life. It is the peace that allows disciples of Christ to watch all that they have invested their lives into for the last three years be ripped out from under them, imprisoned, falsely accused, wrongly convicted, overly sentenced, viciously beaten, humiliatingly slain before their eyes. But He says, don’t be shaken or stirred up or unsettled, or cowardly, I am giving and leaving, present tense, ongoing peace. Remember that this is in the context of giving the Spirit, another Jesus, to them, who would dwell within. The Spirit would be the reservoir and producer of this peace.
2. John 16:33, Phil 4:6-7, Col 3:15,
3. Illustration: We can sing, peace in the valley for me, it is well with my soul, blessed be your Name on the road marked with suffering, though there’s pain in the offering blessed be your name, we shall overcome,
4. As a believer, this peace is yours. You must realize that you have it. This is not the power of positive thinking junk or your best life now. This is what Jesus says He is leaving you in the ministry of the Holy Spirit. And it is living and active in your life! He has left it with you! Pastor, I don’t feel that. When trouble comes, I fall apart. Or when trouble comes, peace leaves. Then you are relying on the peace of the world that is fleeting and based on your circumstances. We have two kinds of eyes: eyes of the head and eyes of the heart. We default to eyes of the head, and allow the eyes of the heart of get blurred. If your eyes and happiness are fixed upon the things of this world for your stability and happiness, when those things leave, so will your happiness and joy and stability. That’s why I must remind you that these things are not your treasures! They are not your foundation! They are temporary, hollow, husks and ashes, and they will disappoint you, and will not provide peace. And we ALL struggle here! You are in a war to fight for peace and for fixing your eyes on the Giver of the only peace that sails through raging seas and crushing weights. The greatest weapons in our war, which are empowered by the Holy Spirit I might add, are the intake and hearing of the Word of God and the passionate experience the presence of God in worship. Let your heart not be trouble though, because…
B. Jesus has all power over satan (v. 30)
1. Jesus says that the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing on me. Literally He says that he has no claim on me. He means that he has no power over me. How could he, as one commentator put it, Jesus has lived a sinless life and He is not of this world? So how could he have any claim over Him. Again in v. 29 He reminds them that He is telling them in advance that they might believe. But this is why they don’t have to be afraid! He knew the guards were coming, knew Judas was leading them. He could have at any point during the trial said what was needed to get himself out of the charges. He could have changed the minds of any leaders at any time. He could have slipped away. He could have removed all authority. He could have come down from the cross, and so on and so forth.
2. John 12:31, 16:11,
3. Illustration: I’m At Your Mercy lyrics,
4. In the context of the gift of the Spirit, the One who is another comforter, another Jesus, you have all power over satan. Sure, trials may come, heartache may come, loss may come, satan may be used of God to accomplish His will and bring about His purposes, but we are not under His authority. He has no claim on you because you have overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of the Lord. Every charge leveled against those who have been justified by faith in Christ has been wiped out and nailed to the cross. There is no condemnation for those in Christ. Satan cannot bring up any sin. He cannot make you sin. “The devil made me do it” is a lie. If you fall to his schemes it’s because you choose it, choose not to prep. Consider yourself, render your members, become a slave to Him, renounce, obey…
C. Jesus has fulfilled all the Father’s commands (v. 31)
1. As I mentioned earlier, one of the reasons that satan had no legal claim upon the Son of God was that the Father had given Him a command, and He was going to keep it. So Jesus’ freedom from satan in part was predicated on His obedience, and yet ours is not predicated on our obedience, but on Jesus’ obedience too. Ours is an alien righteousness. Aren’t you glad that we don’t have to rely on our own obedience for our freedom from satan?
2. 2 Cor 5:21, 1 John 4:10
3. Illustration:
4. So how do this help us overcome? It will keep you from having to live a perfect, rule-based, earn your own way, pay God back, good deed type of faith. You can live in freedom with a Savior who has earned your righteousness. So in a trial, when you fail, know that He didn’t, and you have His righteousness on your account. You can live in thanksgiving. Another reason that the obedience of Christ can help you overcome is that you can trust is the wisdom of God. Even though the awful death of Jesus didn’t look like a great plan by their estimation, we know that it was the wisest of all plans. We know that scriptures testify to the inscrutable counsels of the Lord. Whatever is going on in your life that is beyond your control, is subject to the wisdom of God. You can take comfort and allow that to help you overcome circumstances plaguing you. You can also allow the sovereignty of God to be a point of overcoming grace related suffering and pain. Jesus had been given all authority. This was a plan designed from before the foundation of the world, and came as no surprise to Christ. You can know that God is working out his design in your pain because Jesus fulfilled every command then and fulfills every command now; every desire then and every desire now. Fulfilling this command (going to the cross) assures you of God’s love for you; “God demonstrates His love for us, for while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” & “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” So when you begin to question the love, or sovereignty, or control, or plan, or wisdom of God because you are suffering so intensely, remember the cross, and the obedience of Christ following the commands of the Father who commanded the bruising of His Son for the saving of His enemies.
A. Closing illustration:
B. Recap
C. Invitation to commitment
Additional Notes
● Is Christ Exalted, Magnified, Honored, and Glorified?
