Fan or Follower

Melissa Hodder

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p 6do.not.replyYour Stella and Dot Pay Portal prepaid card has shipped - Your Stella and Dot Pay Portal prepaid card has shipped Dear Melissa, Your requested prepaid card has been shipped! Since your card is already on its way to you, please be advised that your cardholder Sep 6Allison Carl, Stell.Join Thursday night's Starlights New Stylist Training - ‌ Join tomorrow night's New Stylist Training Call! Whenever one surveys our Stylist Community to ask their top reasons for loving their life as a Stylist, words like these are repeatedly shared.... Sep 5Christine Turner | .Introducing the 12 Days of Stella-Book to Win $hopping $prees!! - 12 Days of STELLA Booking Incentive! Team Sapphires BIGGEST Incentive of the Year is here with $1200+ in CASH GIVEAWAYS & PRODUCT from your Sapphires Leadership Team! While September 4th isn't Sep 4Julie Benton - Stel.Gem Fatales - Best of the Best all team recognition newsletter - What an amazing August! SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 Hello Melissa, I'm delighted to send you our "best of the best" monthly newsletter for the entire Gem Fatales team. Be inspired, be motivated and Sep 4notificationsWelcome Melissa to Stella and Dot Pay Portal - Welcome Melissa to Stella and Dot Pay Portal Dear Melissa, A new account has been registered for you by your organization on Stella and Dot Pay Portal, a global payment solution. PLEASE NOTE: THIS Sep 4Christine Turner, S.Welcome to the Future of Fashion! Here's Your Next Steps... - You don't want to miss this. Hello Melissa! Welcome to the Future of Fashion! I'm so excited to have you join us as a Stella & Dot stylist and welcome you to "Team Sapphire"! We Sep 3Microsoft Office 365Important news about your Office 365 subscription - You're about to get even more out of Office 365 We're making an update to your subscription so you can use Office on all your devices. With your current Office 365 Personal subscription, you Sep 2Team BeachbodyThese hot summer deals end tomorrow! Save up to $24 / Les soldes d'été se terminent demain ! Économisez jusqu'à $ 24 Sep 2Stella & DotHi Melissa, welcome to your first day as a Stella & Dot Stylist - Here's everything you need to get started Click here to view email in browser. Shop Stella & Dot hi Melissa, Welcome to your first day as a Stella & Dot Stylist! get it, girl! Welcome to Aug 31Allison Carl, Stell.Big Team Incentive Coming Soon! - ‌ The most wonderful time of the year is getting closer! Hello Melissa, I am kicking off my morning with some excitement and some coffee! What are you up to? Focusing on a strong end to August? Winding Aug 31AppleYour receipt from Apple. - Receipt APPLE ID michaela.hodder@hotmail.com BILLED TO Store Credit Melissa Hodder 10 John Cabot Street Churchill Falls, NL A0R 1A0 CAN DATE Aug 30, 2018 ORDER ID MN2Y7TF09T DOCUMENT NO. 192224669532 Aug 30billingRecurring payments notification for Office 365 Personal - Hello Melissa Hodder, Your Office 365 Personal subscription is scheduled for recurring payments, on September-28-18. Please retain a copy of this message for your records. Here is a description of the Aug 28Becky HigginsInspiration for YOU as the kids head back to school! - View this email in your browser VISIT OUR WEBSITE | ENJOY THE BLOG | SHOP Teacher Gift Ideas from ShopBeckyHiggins.com FUN FACT: Our kids have been back to school for a few weeks now and (gasp!) I Aug 27Team BeachbodyMore hot summer deals are here! Save up to $24 until Labour Day - Deals on our most popular fitness and nutrition programs and products View Online Shop Shakeology Beachbody Challenge Beachbody On Demand Coach Deals on our most popular fitness and nutrition programs Aug 20iCloudYou’re out of iCloud storage. - Get more space to keep everything safely stored. Hello Melissa, You've used all of your 5 GB of free iCloud storage. All the photos, videos, and documents you've stored in iCloud will stay safe Aug 19Becky HigginsCandid. Transparent. Honest. - View this email in your browser VISIT OUR WEBSITE | ENJOY THE BLOG | SHOP I'm not popping in your inbox today to show you a new product, point you to the blog, or tell you about some news. Today is Aug 15DropboxDownload the Dropbox desktop app - Download the desktop app to get the most out of your Dropbox Our apps for Windows and Mac adds a Dropbox folder to your computer that works just like any other folder, but

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Follower vs. Fan, Part 2

Text:

3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus

who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came

to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a

teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform

the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the

kingdom of God unless they are born again.[a]”

Introduction

In my last message I talked about who a true disciple is-a follower of

Christ, a learner, an apprentice. We talked about how there are many

people in the church who claim to be Christians but in their daily walk

they are really just more of a fan of Jesus rather than follower.

We also learned how fans of Jesus walk away from Him when

commitment becomes costly and how Jesus wasn’t concerned with the

size of the crowd of fans who followed Him physically; He was more

concerned about those who were committed to following Him

spiritually.

This morning, I want to ask the question that I asked last

week: When you evaluate your personal life, would you say you are

more of a true committed follower of Jesus or more like a curious

fan? Be honest with yourself!

This morning, I want us to look at the life of a Pharisee, a man called

Nicodemus. He is only mentioned three different times in the NT and

only in the Gospel of John, but the story we read in between the

lines speaks volumes of his life and tells if he was just a curious fan

or a committed follower.

I. Fan vs. Follower:

Nicodemus at first was just a fan of Jesus, but he wasn’t just any

fan. He was a well-respected Pharisee. He was a member of the

Ruling Council called the Sanhedrin; they were a group of seventy men

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who were the religious rulers and teachers of their day.

There is something here in between the lines of scripture I want us to

pick up on and it is the fact that we see Nicodemus is ready to take his

relationship to the next level of discipleship. However, this is not going

to be easy considering who he is-a Pharisee.

If Nicodemus comes out in the open and states he is a follower of

Jesus there is much to lose. What would people think of a religious

leader of the Sanhedrin now a follower of a carpenter from Nazareth?

Nicodemus could lose his position on the Sanhedrin, he would lose all

respect of the people and he would lose his esteemed reputation.

It’s like that old saying, “To come to Jesus will cost you nothing,

to serve Jesus will cost you something, but to follow Jesus will

cost you everything.”

By Nicodemus being a secret admirer, a secret fan, didn’t cost him

anything, but to become a committed follower of Jesus came with

great cost-it always does! And this is why Christians today reflect that

of a fan more so than a follower-their walk with God comes at no cost.

From Nicodemus becoming a fan to being a follower meant he was

going to have to go from having a religion to having a relationship.

II. Religion vs. Relationship:

Nicodemus was a Pharisee and they were very religious. So religious

Jesus condemned them and their practices in (read- ,

15, 16, 23, 25, 27, 29, 33), called the seven woes chapter.

Seven Woes on the Teachers of the Law

and the Pharisees

13 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in

people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let

those enter who are trying to. [14] [a]

15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single

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convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them

twice as much a child of hell as you are.

16 “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by

the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the

gold of the temple is bound by that oath.’ 17 You blind fools!

Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the

gold sacred? 18 You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar,

it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the

altar is bound by that oath.’ 19 You blind men! Which is

greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?

20 Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it

and by everything on it. 21 And anyone who swears by the

temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22 And

anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and

by the one who sits on it.

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and

cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters

of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have

practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You

blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but

inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind

Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and

then the outside also will be clean.

27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look

beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the

bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same

way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but

on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

29 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you

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hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate

the graves of the righteous. 30 And you say, ‘If we had lived

in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part

with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you

testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of

those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead, then, and

complete what your ancestors started!

33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape

being condemned to hell?

Just like Nicodemus, we have our religion today as well. I believe this

is where the church today is more like fans than followers. Many

claiming to be Christian love Jesus but are not ready and willing to

give up everything to follow Him. As Jesus said these type of people

honor Him more with their lips than their hearts ().

Nicodemus finds himself at a crisis of belief moment. This is the

moment when you realize your beliefs must take the next step of faith.

You must decide what you truly believe about God.

Reality is setting in on Nicodemus and he realizes what he believes

about Jesus is now affecting his level of commitment to Jesus.

There is no way we can come to Jesus and stay the same, believe the

same, and live the same. To be a follower means we must lose and be

willing to give everything up () and that can mean our

religion.

If to become a true committed follower of Jesus required you to leave

your job could you? Could you lose the security of your salary and take

less and follow Jesus? If to become a true committed follower of Jesus

required you to leave a wrong relationship could you? Could you leave

a wrong love relationship, a wrong friend relationship? If to become a

true committed follower of Jesus required you to give everything to

the poor and follow Him on the mission field could you? Would

you? Don’t answer yes unless you truly mean it; it might be the Lord’s

will call on you to keep those words.

I believe these are great questions but the greatest question to ask

our self is this: What have I lost to follow Jesus? What have I given

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up and sacrificed to follow Jesus? Fans of Jesus have religion,

followers of Jesus have a relationship that will follow Him wherever He

leads.

From Nicodemus becoming a fan to being a follower meant he was

going to have to go from having a religion to having a

relationship. This meant he is going to have to change his life from

night to day.

III. Night vs. Day: (vv. 2, 19-21)

In (v.2) we see Nicodemus coming to Jesus at night. Why at night

when he had many opportunities to come during the day? Could it be

that Nicodemus wanted uninterrupted conversation time with

Jesus? Could it be Nicodemus didn’t want to bother Jesus when He

was most busy?

However, I believe the real answer is Nicodemus came to Jesus at

night because there was much for him to lose if anyone found out. It’s

like Joseph of Arimathea we read about in ().

At night no one would see Nicodemus and he wouldn’t have to face

any possible embarrassment or tough questions from the Jews. Going

at night cost him something. Coming to Jesus at night as a secret

disciple means we don’t have to change our life or run the risk of

losing something.

For Nicodemus to come to Jesus during the day meant it would cost

him his position, cost him respect from the other religious leaders, cost

him his livelihood and possible relationships (v.21).

This is why fans cannot be followers. Fans who are secret disciples are

happy to follow Jesus as long as it doesn’t require any significant

changes or causes them to give up their worldliness.

Most of us don’t mind if our relationship with Jesus causes us to make

some minor changes and adjustments, just as long as we don’t have

to turn our lives upside down and completely change.

Fans of Jesus don’t mind a little touch-up work, but Jesus wants

complete renovation. Fans of Jesus don’t mind a little tune-up, but

Jesus wants a complete overhaul. Fans of Jesus don’t mind a little

make-up, but Jesus wants complete makeover (-14a).

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What I want us to understand is the fact that you and I cannot be

secret disciples, secret followers of Jesus, without that decision

affecting our life. Following Jesus is going to cost us-this is what

separates fans from followers, from religion from relationship, and

from night to day!

From Nicodemus becoming a fan to being a follower meant he was

going to have to go from having a religion to having a relationship,

from changing his life from night to day, and this leads him to making

a decision or a commitment.

IV. Decision vs. Commitment: (vv. 3, 10-18)

Nicodemus has come to the point where he is ready to make a

decision to follow Jesus but Jesus gets right down to the point and tells

Him to do so you must be born again and that requires a commitment- a complete change in belief and behavior.

Jesus tells him (read- vv. 10-18) the truth between a decision to

believe and a commitment to follow.

10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not

understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of

what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still

you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to

you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will

you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever

gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—

the Son of Man.[a] 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the

wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,[b] 15 that

everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”[c]

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only

Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have

eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to

condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever

does not believe stands condemned already because they

have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

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There is a difference between these two. Many people have made

decisions to believe in Jesus without ever making a commitment to

follow Him. This is what’s wrong in our church culture today.

When we decide to believe in Jesus without making a commitment to

follow Him, we become nothing more than fans.

Imagine going to a wedding and watching a groom make a decision to

marry his bride. He speaks the words “I do” and goes through the

ceremony. Now imagine, if in the next week you saw this newly

married man having an affair with another woman secretly? Did this

groom make a decision to marry his bride? Yes. But did this groom

make a commitment to marry this bride? No.

The church is filled with people who have made decisions for Jesus but

not commitments. They may have walked an aisle, said a prayer,

even been baptized, go to S.S. or church, but there is still an

adulterous affair going on with the world.

When we live like this we are no more than just a fan and not a true

follower. Jesus doesn’t want fans, He wants followers-disciples who

have counted the cost.

For example the three men in (read- ).

57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I

will follow you wherever you go.”

58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests,

but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”

But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but

you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me

go back and say goodbye to my family.”

62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and

looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Three men who made bold decisions to follow Jesus but when the cost

was laid out they failed to make a commitment to Him. Notice what

📷Fan or follower Part 2.pdfPage 5 of 8

John 3:16 NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Hebrews: An Introduction and Commentary (i) Exhortations Affecting Social Life (13:1–3)

The reference to some who have entertained angels unawares (found only here in the New Testament) seems to be an allusion to the incident recorded in Genesis 18–19, in which Abraham offered hospitality to the mysterious visitors, who turned out to be angels.

What is love?

Love Chapter

1 Corinthians 13 NLT

If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing. Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless. When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

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