The Victorious Christian Life
Preparing For Jesus • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 108 viewsThere’s hope for us. Planning for next year isn’t off the table. Setting goals and trying to win at life is still a good idea. But what covid has shown us, is that winning at life may not be what it seems. in the Scriptures, Jesus teaches what living a victorious Christian life ought to look like.
Notes
Transcript
Step 1: The Preachers Text
Step 1: The Preachers Text
Well, we made it. It’s the last Sunday of the year. And what a year it has been. Are you looking forward to the New Year? Every year I make goals, I usually come a bit short on a few but this year.. hahaha this year? Goals..? Well, goals took a back seat.
I have tried to prepare for next year, I’ve honestly taken a good run at it. Now and again and, much like the writing of this sermon, setting goals for next year has felt a little like preparing to give myself stitches. Thinking about what I want to accomplish in this life in the next week, month and year hasn’t been as exciting. The coronavirus, not matter how you feel about it, has shown us a fatal flaw, though we desire to control our life and sometimes the lives of others, we can’t. All our planning and all our power put down by a microscopic virus.
What a great start to a sermon eh?
There’s hope for us. Planning for next year isn’t off the table. Setting goals and trying to win at life is still a good idea. But what covid has shown us, is that winning at life may not be what it seems. in the Scriptures, Jesus teaches what living a victorious Christian life ought to look like.
There is a story in gscripture about a church in turkey that has come to mind now and again. John, the Prophet, wrote about it in the book of Revelation, the very last book in your bible. This church was in an affluent city, with two sister cities nearby, think of it like a tri-cities of New Testament Turkey. Near modern day Pamukale, there were three cities. Heiropolis, Colossae and Laodicea.
In Revelation 3:14, John wrote down a vision he received and gave the letter to the church in laodicea. If you don’t yet have your bible, I want to give you a minute to go get it… gather your kids around it, and open to Revelation 3:14.
This is the word of God. The letter to the church in laodicea.
“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.
“ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”
This is the Word of God, it’s absolutely true and it has been given to us in love. If you have your bible open to Revelation 3, just leave it open as I’ll be referring to it now and again.
Step 2: What Must We Do?
Step 2: What Must We Do?
There’s a lot we can learn from this passage and others today. But I want to show you one thing in particular.
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
Where does he do this? Well I want to show you, but before we do that, I want to give a few narration notes for you.
First, As you dig deep in your faith, and read the scriptures, it’s important that you read each book as it was meant to be read. Let me explain. Has anyone in your family ever been lets say… angry with you because they misread your text?
Yes, I had a bad experience with that. Whats that? Yes, I had a bad experience.
The reason and the way something is written determines the meaning in this case and in many others. We don’t read car manuals like fiction novels and we don’t read Revelation like Proverbs. They are different styles of forms of literature.
Second, Revelation is the MOST hyperlinked book of the bible. It is connected to everything else and you can’t understand one part without understanding the whole
Last note and we’ll dig in, Richard Bauckam said,
This is important!
“In a sense, the whole book is about the way the Christians of the seven churches may, by being victorious with the specific situations of their own churches, enter the new Jerusalem.”
Let’s go back to our passage, often I have heard this interpreted this as either being for Jesus or against him. i.e. being Hot or Cold for Jesus and that we just need to let him into our hearts. But that IS NOT what this is saying.
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change their ways and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change their ways and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
So what’s all this hot and cold about then?
In ancient times due to a lack of technologies like refrigeration etc. hot water and cold water was hard to come by and so the ancients revered hot and cold water as VERY USEFUL.
Leon Morris states this in his commentary on the book:
“The deeds of this church are summed up in the accusation you are neither cold nor hot. The imagery may be derived from the water-supply of the city which appears to have been drawn from hot springs at some distance, so that it arrived at the city lukewarm. This forms a contrast with the hot springs at nearby Hierapolis and the cold, refreshing water at Colosse. ‘Hot water heals, cold water refreshes, but lukewarm water is useless for either purpose, and can serve only as an emetic.’”
And so we see that it was Jesus disgust with christians who are given the Amen (the truth) as he calls himself and do nothing with him. They are neither healing nor are they refreshing their fellow man. The laodiceans were warped by their culture and chasing after idols. They were in danger of syncretism. The affluent world they lived in was forming their desires away from God and it was showing up in their lack of care for others.
Their blessings of wealth and prosperity had become their hearts desire. Their, quite literal, materialism had tempted their hearts to love the gift and not the giver.
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.
This warning is IMPORTANT for us today.
Step 4: Why Can’t We Do It?
Step 4: Why Can’t We Do It?
I have seen this in my own life. When what I can and can’t afford becomes the thing on which my mind dwells I have started slipping down the slope. My affections start turning to prominence and prosperity and away from others, away from the greatest gift I have ever received, away from The Amen, away from the truth, away from Christ.
I was talking with Pastor David about some challenges I’ve been facing and he shot me a text, a quote from a book, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?
“Aren’t you, like me, hoping that some person, thing, or event will come along to give you that final feeling of inner well-being you desire? Don’t you often hope: ‘May this book, idea, course, trip, job, country, or relationship fulfill my deepest desire.’ But as long as you are waiting for that mysterious moment, you will go on running helter-skelter, always anxious and restless always lustful and angry, never fully satisfied. You know that this is the compulsiveness that keeps us going and busy but at the same time makes us wonder whether we are getting anywhere in the long run. This is the way to spiritual burnout. This is the way to spiritual death.” Henri Nouwen
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change their ways and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
Big Idea: Jesus is warning the church in Laodicea to change their ways and He counselling them to live a victorious Christian life.
Isn’t control is the default mode of the human heart? When we only know the story of the gospel we continue to live as if we are saved by our works, by what we have, by what we do. When we continue to base our standing on spiritual and moral performance it leads us to spiritual deadness.”
Step 3: But God Made A Way
Step 3: But God Made A Way
Transition statement: It wasn’t too late for the Laodiceans and it isn’t too late for you and for me.
Listen to what Christ says,
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”
Although it is sometimes hard to for us to believe, it IS whatever we do to the least that we do to Christ. Christ is speaking, yes metaphorically, I knock on the door that I may come in and you may know me and I know you. But he is also saying, I am all around you in the faces of others. And how you treat them is how you treat me.
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
Listen to what Bonhoeffer wrote in a sermon he gave for Christmas one year:
“Jesus stands at the door knocking (Rev. 3:20). In total reality, he comes in the form of the beggar, of the dissolute human child in ragged clothes, asking for help. He confronts you in every person that you meet. As long as there are people, Christ will walk the earth as your neighbor, as the one through whom God calls you, speaks to you, makes demands on you. That is the great seriousness and great blessedness of the Advent message. Christ is standing at the door; he lives in the form of a human being among us. Do you want to close the door or open it?”
In Christmas season we wait. We wait for Jesus to come again, and we wait with eagerness. Not as the laodiceans did, we must not get caught up with the materialism that is all around us. We must not forget to see the Imago Dei in the stranger walking by or store clerk. We must love those as we love Christ. Winning at life isn’t what it seems. Winning may mean giving our best away to others.
As we wait, we ought to be a people of healing for others and a people of refreshing for others. And all of this is only possible because of the Spirit of God living within us. Maybe you don’t feel like you can be a healing person, a refreshing person, you’re running on empty and you barely hanging on. If you’re listening to me now or weeks from now in your car. God is with you. You may have kids crying around you, maybe you have a spouse who is pushing you away but you need to know that Jesus’ invitation to the Laodicean church extends to me and to you. It is for us. We can change. We can be zealous for good works.
Open the door to your heart and let him in. Then out of your heart will rivers of living water. Waters of refreshing, waters of healing. Alone, we can only be generous as we have resource, but with Jesus we have an unending resource love. An unending ability to show grace. On your own you can be kind until you are fed-up and have nothing left. But Jesus people have a wealth of forgiveness for those who have trespassed against them.
By yourself you are limited.
You may think you have a great wealth of forgiveness stored up. You may think on your that you are generous but don’t be fooled.
"How many of you, though you are evil, will give your child some food when he asks. So then how much more will your father in heaven give good gifts to his children.”
And God, who has given us the greatest gift of His son. Extends His very Life to us. And We can participate with Him in his work. This year, I want to invite you to open the door for Christ. There’s a few people I want to encourage to prayer. Those who are following Jesus and those who want to follow Jesus.
If you want to follow Jesus. and you want to receive the greatest gift I want to pray with you. By praying this way and living according to the scriptures you are called a child of God. If you would like to do that with me. You can repeat this prayer under your breath.
Jesus, I confess // That you are // The son of God // That you gave your life // On the cross // For my sin // That you are living // In resurrection power // I choose to follow you // All the days // Of my life // And I will live // With you forever.
If you are following Jesus. Ask yourself, what can I do to serve the lord?
it might be loving your family by cleaning your kitchen. Serving the lord is worship, it is mission, but it is not only church-work.It might be Commit to worshipping God each day as you walk your dog and care for one of His creatures.How might you help the poor?How could you those in need?
Ask the Lord in prayer, What are three things I can do Lord? How can I serve your kingdom purposes in my life?
Ask him. Then wait… give space for him to speak to you. And then plan to do it.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Jesus, the way the truth and life we pray that you would lead us to live victorious christian lives. That we would Love God with our whole heart, mind and strength. That we would love our neighbours as ourselves. Teach us to live in your ways and follow you teaching. Help us as we plan for the year ahead. Thank you for today. In your name we pray amen.