I AM - THE WAY, THE TRUTH, THE LIFE

Richard Hardy

I AM • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

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INTRO

So far - bread of life, light of the world, the door/gate, the good shepherd, resurrection and the life,

Today we are going to talk about his 6th I AM statement — the way the truth the life

Why are we doing this?

Broadly: I have watched many people stumble around in their faith because somehow they want to believe the Jesus is who they need him to be vs Jesus being everything we need. They want Him to be a Santa Claus of sort where we list out our desires and what makes us feel good and His duty is to fill those. However, the opposite is true. Jesus is who He says He is NOT who we think He is… so it is important that we explore that.

I heard a popular TV preacher and some famous celebrities talk about there being many paths. It is very important that we recognize that there is nothing further from the truth. There is one way to heaven — Jesus. There is only one truth that will set us free — Jesus. There is only one way to experience true Joy, true peace, true hope and that only as a picture of the glory that is coming and will last forever — Jesus

Set the Stage

Last dinner with Jesus before he was arrested.

The disciples had left everything to follow Him and now Jesus was saying He was leaving.

Today we discuss a promise that if we grasp it and believe it to be true, it will guide us through this life, set us free, and bring us to a better life.

The Promise

Do not let your hearts be troubled

Don’t let your hearts be troubled

The final dinner and not a good one.

In chapters 13-17 we have Jesus’s final statements the the ones he shared the most of His time with....

foot washing

Judas outed as a betrayer

Jesus saying I’m leaving and you can’t fallow (for now)

Jesus predicting Peter’s betrayal.

The disciples had left everything to to follow Jesus and now Jesus was saying He was leaving.

Jesus is seeking to calm the disciples and give them hope.

You believe in God, Believe also in me.

2 commands

Believe in God.. the men knew the prophecies concerning Jesus and that He was the fulfillment and he was saying Believe in the Father (concerning Jesus)

Believe in me

another command - to trust that despite the fact that things might not seem right, there is good things coming.

My Father’s house has many rooms, if it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if you I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.

Good things - not its a house its His home - intimate.

And if you I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.

In Genesis we see Adam and Eve walking the the Garden -

Faith Builders

Questions that challenge our faith.

John 13:36 ESV

Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.”

jn 13:

- Peter - Where are you going?

Jesus responds only by saying where I’m going, you cant go - for now.

Some times we don’t know what the plan is.

We are to trust

John 13:37 - Why can’t I follow?

Most of us would like to say that about following Him - till the day I die I will follow.

Jesus basically says, “I like your tenacity, but you are going to fail.

Our consistent failures are horribly discouraging

There is room - despite the fact that you may fail.

How can we know the way?

Jesus wants us to trust him despite the fact that we don’t really know how to fulfill the plan He has for us or sometimes what that plan even is.

Jesus - way, truth, life.

Way - we do not have to worry about the plan or what it is… Jesus is the plan..

Truth - - Hold to my teaching. “Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

free from sin

free from the penalty of sin

free from everything that holds us down from being everything we are created to be.

Life.

we went over this with lazarus — Jesus is the life. For eternity and right now. I came so the you might have life, and more abundantly. ()

Don’t worry about the how - just worry about the who — follow, entrust, believe in Jesus.

It is exclusive.

Fresh Start - The Word

Richard Hardy / General

2 Timothy 3:1–17

We Live in Troubled Times.

There was once a time when I could say the Bible … and it carried weight.

Today, it seems no one cares

More than that, It seems like a major motivation of the church these days is to, “make people feel good.” rather than teach what God’s word says.

Or whats worse, they preach in such a way that it may simply entertain rather that teach and grow people to lead Holy lives.

I watched a presentation by a mentalist the other day that he literally said He was going to use the sabe terminology that some bombastic preachers use to make people feel healed, faint, etc. You know it worked. but here is the problem. They might have felt good, but did they leave free from sin and the wages of it. Did they leave holier than when they got there? Obviously not. Why? The word of God was not being preached… it was a show.

Why Am I Teaching This?

Originally, I wanted to have a dissertation on why the word of God is the word of God. I wanted to convince you that as Psalm 119 says, Thy word is light to our path and a lamp to our feet. But I am teaching a group of people that are called to help equip the Body of Christ be healthy. I am speaking to a group of people that want to be equipped for ministry. So I am coming at this from that angle.

If I can do one thing tonight it would be to firm up the idea that if you are going to minister the Word of God is an absolute MUST. Everything else is desperately lacking.

We Live in Troubled Times.

2 Timothy 3:1–9 ESV

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

A couple weeks ago I preached about the blind man that received his sight after Jesus rubbed mud in his eyes and told him to wash. Eventually, he had a conversation with Jesus and worshipped Him as the Son of Man. Can I propose to you that the miracles, the healings, even the helpful hands don’t really mean much if we can’t give people the gospel from the word?

On top of that, I have watched flash in the pans after flash in the pan. They draw people. They demonstrate their charisma. They sprinkle in some of the blessing verses, but they put flash and comfort way above simply teaching the word as it was written. And here is the worst part.. eventually as verse 9 says, their folly becomes plain. They end up ruined and they damage those around them.

There is one thing thing that really could have helped them. Study the word. Do what it says. Teach others to do the same.

1 Timothy 4:1–5 ESV

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.

Living it is a help

2 Timothy 3:10–13 ESV

You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

1. Be and example - a mentor. and have someone(s) to live it out with. We talked about that last week

every other direction is the wrong direction

2. There are fakers - they are being deceiving, and they are being deceived.

The Most Important Thing

1. Continue - staying power that transcends your personal experiences

a. Learned-put things in there, it requires opening the book.

i. Joshua chapter 1 - Meditate on it day and night

b. FIRMLY believe

i. Convinced

ii. I WILL NOT LET GO.

2. Two sources

a. People who taught you - they taught him the word.

b. Sacred Writings from childhood.

3. Wise for salvation through faith in Christ.

Romans 10:13–15 ESV

Everything else brings bondage

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

John 1:1–4 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Word! Huh? What is it Good For?

1. Breathed out by God… He is the source.

2. 4 Purposed listed here.

a. Profitable for teaching - it is the source of teaching.

Everything else brings death.

b. Reproof. (useful as evidence, and refuting error)

c. Correction (reformation of manners) If you want to see someone change - they need the Word. It (not us) points to correct attitudes and behaviors.

No man comes to the Father but through Jesus.

d. Training in righteousness. (teaching the practices of a right life.)

Equip

Philip - show me.

Isn’t this what we are here for? Don’t we want to be the best Christians we can be? Don’t we want to help others do the same? Well this is it. Last week we talked about one of the foundational stones - fellowship. The reason why fellowship is so important is because we get to live out the word and help others do the same. We equip one another through his Word.

as humans we want proof. We want the miracle. The problem is the pursuit of the extra ordinary distracts us from our savior.

The plea is to believe.

God has done great things - things that should prove He is who He says he is.

Miracle Makers

John 14:12–13 ESV

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

jn 14:12

Anything in His name.

Not name it claim it.

According to His Name - which is his purpose. - His goals.

His goal - that we are with Him in paradise.

CONCLUSION

Let us believe him and put prayer and action to our belief and watch what His name will do through us.

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