“Sin No More”

John 5:10-16

Sin No More.

A.     The Religionist.

1.       Dead Religion Trying To Meet the World’s Need (v.10-13).

a)        A Religion of Legalism (v.10b)

1)        They were more concerned with the man who was violating the Sabbath than with the man who was suffering.

b)        A Religion Ignorant of True Authority (v.11)

1)        They Should Have Known that the Power of God Healed the Man.

(a)      They cared little about the Power of God, but only about their religious practices & that they were not violated.

c)        A Religion Blind To Love and Good (v.12-13)

1)        They Did Not See the good that was done.

(a)      Note the question of the Jews: It was not, “Who is the man who has healed and helped you so much?” but, “Who is the man that broke the religious law?”

1.         They did not see the good that had been done.

a.         They saw only that their position and security was threatened and that someone had more power and influence and was doing more good than they were.

2)        Jesus Puts To Shame the Ruler of the Synagogue (Luke 13:10-17).

B.     Jesus and the Man After His Healing.

1.       The Lord Cares For the Man’s Soul (v.13-14)

a)        Jesus Came Looking For Him.

1)        Jesus Came To “seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

(a)      Nothing At All Was Said in Respect To A Change In His Spiritual Condition.

1.         It is possible to experience and exciting miracle and still not be saved.

a.         Nowhere in the text is it stated that Jesus said “your sins are forgiven.”

2.       A Picture of the Believer’s Responsibility (v.13-14)

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a)        To Worship in the Temple (v.14a)

1)        The Man was Found in the Temple Worshipping and Giving Thanks to God.

(a)      Hebrews 10:24-25 – not forsaking the assembling of ourselves

(b)      1 Chronicles 16:29 – giving glory to Him, bringing an offering, coming before Him

(c)      Psalm 23:6 – dwelling in the house of the Lord

(d)      Psalm 84:2, 10 – soul longing for God, heart and flesh cry out, better is one day in His courts

(e)      Psalm 100:4 – enter His gates with thanksgiving & praise, be thankful & bless Him.   

b)        To Make Every Effort To Grow (2 Peter 1:5; Philippians 2:12-13)

1)        The New Living Translation

So make every effort to apply the benefits of these promises to your life. Then your faith will produce a life of moral excellence. A life of moral excellence leads to knowing God better. 6 Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. 7 Godliness leads to love for other Christians, and finally you will grow to have genuine love for everyone. 8 The more you grow like this, the more you will become productive and useful in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But those who fail to develop these virtues are blind or, at least, very shortsighted. They have already forgotten that God has cleansed them from their old life of sin.

10 So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Doing this, you will never stumble or fall away. 11 And God will open wide the gates of heaven for you to enter into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

In connection with the parable of the ten minas, I once read an impressive comment: Every servant is given, at the beginning of his spiritual life, an equal measure of spiritual resource. The difference in our spiritual lives is not to be found in an unequal measure of God’s grace and power. The difference is in the way people use what they are given. One mina was given to each servant. Several used these minas well—one even increased his tenfold. But one servant had made no effort to increase his measure. He had wrapped it up in a piece of cloth and kept it hidden. The difference between the two servants was in their diligence.

      The one man determined to “make every effort” to add to his faith. The other simply tried to keep what he had. He did nothing to increase it. Are we “making every effort” to make the most of God’s divine resources, of His “very great and precious promises,” of “the divine nature” within us?

c)        To Remember his Healing (v.14b)

1)        We Should Never Forget What God has Done

1.         2 Peter 1:9 – in our salvation

2.         Deuteronomy 4:9-24 – idolatry

3.         8:1-20 – the command to remember the Lord    

C.     Coming To Grips With Sin. 

1.       To Sin No More.

a)        Sin no more, lest a worse thing happen to you (5:14)

1)        The warning was that his sickness for 38 years was no comparison to the doom of hell.

(a)      Jesus is interested not merely in healing a person’s body. Far more important is the healing of his soul from sin.

(b)      The “something worse” that can happen doubtless refers to the judgment of God.

(c)      Sin does have its consequences (Galatians 6:7-8)

2.       Coming To Grips with Sin.

a)        The Gospel Presentation

1)        Repentance that Leads to Salvation.

(a)      Some say that salvation is only the granting of eternal life, not necessarily the liberation of a sinner from the bondage of his iniquity. 

(b)      Telling people that God loves them and has a wonderful plan for their lives is only half the truth.  God hates sin and will punish unrepentant sinners with eternal torment. 

(c)      No gospel presentation is complete if it avoids or conceals those facts.  Any message that fails to define and confront the severity of personal sin is a deficient gospel. 

(d)      And any “salvation” that does not alter a lifestyle of sin and transform the heart of the sinner is not the salvation that God’s Word speaks of.

2)        Sin is the Issue

(a)      Sin is not a marginal issue as far as salvation is concerned; it is the issue. 

(b)      In fact, the distinctive element of the Christian message is the power of Jesus Christ to forgive and conquer our sin.

(c)      No message that excludes it can claim to be the gospel according to Jesus. 

(d)      To think that a person can encounter the holy God of Scripture and be saved without also coming to grips with the enormity of sin and longing to turn from it is completely wrong. 

There were those in the Bible who had an overwhelming sense of their sin when they met God. 

·        Peter, seeing Jesus for who he was, said, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" (Luke 5:8).

·        Paul wrote, “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1:15).

·        Job whom God identified Himself as a righteous man (Job 1:1, 8) said after seeing, Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:6 NKJV)

·        Isaiah, seeing God, grasped, "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts." (Isaiah 6:5 NKJV)

Jesus came to expose us all as sinners.  This is why His message was so penetrating, so forceful. 

It tore self-righteousness away and exposed our evil hearts, so that we might see ourselves as sinners. 

3.       Dealing With Sin

a)        Steps To Dealing With Sin

1)        Fearing God—Having a Healthy & A Holy Fear of God. 

(a)      Deal With Sin Before It Happens (Daniel 1:9); “Daniel purposed in his heart”

(b)      All Genuine Wisdom Starts with Fearing God (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10)

1.         God is the Object of Fear—Not Man

a.         Isaiah 8:13 – Let Him be your fear, & let Him be your dread

b.         Luke 12:5 cf. Matthew 10:28 – God has the power to cast into hell.

(c)      When You Fear God you Will Also Fear Sin –Prov.16:6

1.         Joseph (Gen.39:1-9; 42:18)

(d)      Fearing God Will Lead to the Obedience of God

1.         Examples of Those who had a Fear of God That Led to the Obedience of God.

a.         Noah (Gen.6:8-9, 22; Heb11:7)

b.         Midwives in Egypt refused to take the lives of Hebrew children (Ex.1:15-21); they obeyed God rather than men (Acts 5:29)

c.         Christians (Acts 9:23-31)

d.         The thief on the cross (Luke 23:32-43 cf. Matt.27:44; Mk.15:32; )

2)        Consider the Outcome of Your Sin (Isaiah 1:3)

3)        Guard Your Minds (Proverbs 4:23; 23:7; Psalm 101:3)

4)        Select Your Companions Well (Proverbs 13:20; 1 Corinthians 15:33; James 4:4)

(a)      You should seek friends that will stir you up about prayer, Bible study, etc…

5)        Control Your Lusts (2 Timothy 2:22; 1 Peter 2:11; 1 Timothy 4:12)

6)        Continual Habitual Communion with the Lord (Galatians 2:20; Philippians 1:21; 3:10)

4.       People persecute Jesus today & seek to kill Him (John 5:16 cf. Saul Acts 9)