The Good News

The Good News

# Reason for this study- “You can’t have grace if you haven’t heard where we came from, then we’re saved from the wrath of God.”

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

• Since we understand the bad news, we realize that everyone has sinned, no one has been perfect except for Jesus Christ. 

Romans 3:24-25 “And are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.”

• God gave us Jesus Christ as a gift. The greatest gift ever. He gave us his only son who lived a perfect life, took our sin, and died for those who believe in him! There is no better gift! (John 3:16-18, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4) 
• Jesus’s blood was shed on the cross so that we may live! (Romans 5:9)
• God did this because he loves us even though his people are going in the wrong direction (Romans 5:9)... So this shows us his righteousness; because of Christ, and if we believe, God passes over our sins.

Romans 3:28 “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”

• You cannot be saved by works. You can only be saved through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Romans 4:4 “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.”

• For those who do good works, they are expected to do these works as they claim they are Christian. It is our duty as Christians to do good works for His name and not our own.

Romans 4:13 “For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.”

• Abraham gained his righteousness from God just through faith in God. He didn’t have to do anything physical but to show God his faith and trust in him. (Story on Abraham sacrificing his son Isaac as proof of faith- Genesis 22)

Romans 4:15 “For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.” 

• The law brings wrath on those who think they obey it. It is impossible to live perfectly under the law. If you believe that you are living under the law, then you are being justified by works. Like you are saving yourself. However if there wasn’t a law in place there would be no reason for transgression- breaking the law. So then there would be no point of a savior!

Romans 4:16 “That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring--not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all...”

• By having faith in Jesus, God guarantees his grace to us. The promise of God is that if we have faith in Jesus, God will give us grace. (John 3:16, 2 Peter 1:2, James 4:6, Romans 3:24, John 1:17)

Romans 4: 24 “... but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.”

• commenting on verses 20-23... saying “it was counted to him” was not just a word of God for Abraham, but also for those who believe and have faith in Jesus, who died for our sins and was raised as proof to everyone that Jesus is Lord (1 John 4:14).
• If Jesus didn’t raise from the dead, then Christianity would be a hoax and we would not have salvation.

Romans 5: 6 “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.”

• Saying that we were weak (read the bad news and you know we were weak) or lacking moral strength which pins us just like the ungodly. So Christ died for us to give us strength. 

Romans 5: 7-8 “For one will scarcely die for a righteous person-- though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-- but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

• As humans, one may die for a morally good person. But God’s love is completely different. God didn’t die for morally good people. Instead he died for everyone who is unrighteous. 

Romans 5: 1-2 “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin shall still live in it?”

• Just because we asked Jesus to take control of our life and are considered free from sin doesn’t mean we can continue in sin because our sin is forgiven (Hebrews 3:14, 2 John 1:9, Romans 11:22).

Romans 6: 6-7 “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.” 

• Our sin was crucified on the cross like Christ was crucified. Therefor we are dead to sin. Not physically dead but our old self, old ways, old lifestyle, etc. are dead. When the Holy Spirit came into our heart, we were swept clean. 
• We are also no longer slaves to sin, sin does not control us. So we leave our old sinful ways - Romans 6:11-23

Romans 6: 24 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

• Sin leads to hell, but thanks to God he gave us a “free gift” which is eternal life for those who have faith in Him.

Romans 8: 1-2 “There is therefor now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”

Romans 8: 31 “What then shall we say to those things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

• Therefor we should not be afraid or ashamed of anything because we are guaranteed life and no one can take that away. (John 10:28)
• check romans 8:38-39

Romans 8: 38-39 “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord.”

• Simple... God loves us :) and if we truly believe in Him, then nothing can separate us from His love

***Romans 10: 9-10 “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” 

• When we bow down and repent our sins and confess with our mouth, then we will be saved. 
• We must also believe in our heart and not just give a soft fluffy “im sorry God” and get rid of our guilt, we must bow down and repent our sin because we now understand that we offended God in our past. We ask for forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
• This is the key to being saved. True repentance and faith in our loving God

Romans 10: 12-13 “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

• It doesn’t matter what our ethnic background is, who we are, or what we have done in the past. There is only one God and he is the God of all. If we believe in Him we will be saved.

** So after we repent of our sins, and ask for forgiveness and pray for Jesus to come take over our lives... where do we go from here? Well check out Romans 12- 15! Gives us clear instructions on what we are to do as Christians. I hope that you have made that decision and if you have and are struggling in faith, its time to ask for forgiveness and forget about the past. We only have one life, don’t make that mistake. 

Song of the Day! Click here --> Strong Tower- Kutless

The Bad News

Our Salvation

Romans: The Bad News- Recognizing our sin- Written by Paul

• The process of human thinking- How it all starts:

Romans 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”

-Ungodliness: not accepting God or a particular religious doctrine; irreligious; atheistic (dictionary.com)

-Unrighteousness: sinful; wicked 

• Paul has started by explaining everyone has sinned (also see Rom. 3:23)
• All sinners suppress or keep the truth from being known. No one wants to hear they are sinners and destined for hell. So people suppress the truth so the issue never comes up.
• However even though God’s “eternal power and divine nature” are invisible we are without excuse from knowing his existence because of the creation of the world and “things that have been made” (Rom 1:20)

Romans 1:21 “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

• Ever since the creation of Adam and Eve we knew a higher being existed. 
• Our main purpose in life is to worship and glorify Him (Isaiah 43:6-7), however we missed the mark and became “futile” (purposeless) in our thinking.
• With “futile” thinking, we have no purpose in what we do, so we fled from the light of God. We are left with a “darkened” heart.

Romans 1: 22-23 “Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

• We pretend like we know what we are doing and why we are here and because of this we give up God for worldly things that God created such as “mortal man (famous people, anyone we strive to be like) and birds and animals and creeping things (false idols or Gods humans worship like in tribes, etc.)- “because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever!” (Romans 1:25)
• We do this all the time, wanting to be like MJ, Tiger Woods, Carrie Underwood, etc. These are mortal people that give us no promises or sense of security. Instead of following God we break his first commandment! (Exodus 20 1-17 and 22-23).

Romans 1:29-32 “They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” 

• I think you get the idea. We are a sinful being. Thus God has every right to condemn us (“those who practice such things deserve to die”- sent to hell). 
• God has every right to send us to hell because we chose to worship the world instead of Him

Romans 2:1-3 “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, everyone of you who judges. For in passing judgement on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. Do you suppose, O man-- you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself-- that you will escape the judgement of God?”

• Anyone who judges another is just “condemning” themselves because we who judge are acting as if we haven’t done those same sins as the person we are judging. A.K.A. Hypocrisy (John 8:1-12, Matthew 7:5)
• We all fall short (Romans 3:23) so we are a sinful people. Since we are not perfect (Jesus) we have no right to judge another.

Romans 2: 9-11 “There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality.” 

• Anyone who goes against God’s commands does evil, no matter who you are or where you are from. Therefore “God shows no partiality.” (Amos 3:2)
• Do not get fooled when the scripture here says “but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good.” Paul is talking about those who do good in faith by what Christ did for us on the cross. This “good” is proof of genuine faith (Galatians 5:6, James 2:14-26)

Romans 2: 14-15 “For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them...”

• Saying that those who do not know God’s law live by a moral code somehow given to them; so God’s law is written on their hearts without them knowing Him. This is where our morals come from when we were a non-believer (gentile).
• ex.) Obeying our parents, doing good deeds, abstaining from sex, etc. People still do these things even though they are non-believers

Romans 2: 23-24 “You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. For, as it is written, ‘The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because off you.’”

• We who call ourselves Christians and proclaim the Lord’s name can dishonor God because we break his law (Look at verses 17-22). If we proclaim his name and still live in satan’s lie, we are dishonoring God. 
• If we live immoral lives and claim his name, then non-believers see this and they are pushed away. ex.) if you are leading someone to Christ, and then they see you out drunk and acting like a fool, that person would be hurt and frustrated that they listened to a hypocrite and they may talk with others about Christians in a bad way.

Romans 2: 25 “For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision.” 

• Before Christ was born, circumcision was God’s physical sign of righteousness with Abraham for his faith (Genesis 17: 9-14). 
• If we are physically circumcised and we obey the law, then all is good. However we are sinners and if we do not have the holy spirit in our hearts, we break the law. So no matter if we are physically circumcised or not, we are condemned. A.k.a. “your circumcision becomes uncircumcision.” 
• Circumcision to the Christian is being circumcised in the heart; meaning we uphold God’s law and we trust in Him, living according to his purpose. (We have received the Holy Spirit. Romans 2: 29)

Romans 2: 29 “But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.” 

• The true mark of a Christian is not the physical mark of the body (circumcision) but of the regenerating of the heart through the Holy Spirit.
• We are not Christian just because someone tells us we are. Only God can save us and no man can save us. (John 5: 41-44, 1 Corinthians 4: 1-5)

Romans 3: 5 “But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? By no means! For then how could God judge the world?"

• How can we show the glory of God through sin? It is impossible because God is perfect. It would be a sin for us to show his Glory by doing what is wrong. 
• If we are showing God’s righteousness by doing what is wrong, how can He then judge us? It wouldn’t make sense. Ex. If you kill someone and then say, Judge Matthews is a righteous judge who demands justice, how could he/she set you free?

Romans 3: 9 “What then? Are we jews and better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin...”

• No matter what race, religion, etc. we are all charged under sin in Gods eyes. (Romans 3: 10-19) 

Romans 3: 19-20 “Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.”

• We now understand that we are all under the law and because we all have the law in us, we all will be judged by God.
• If we did good works according to the law, we think we are good morally. However we are not justified in God’s sight because we do not have the spirit in us (Isaiah 64:6).
• We are not justified because the law shows us that we are unrighteous. If the law showed us that we are righteous, then there would be no purpose for Jesus (Galatians 2:21).

This is all bad news that is very hard and convicting to us…It shows us how weak we are. But thank the Lord for the Good News! coming up next blog post :)


Song of the Day! Click- Forgiveness, Toby Mac ft. Lecrae

Luke- The Forerunner of Christ (Luke 1)

Luke- The Forerunner of Christ

Intro

- The people in Luke did not believe

- Even the witnesses that saw Christ do miracles 

- Luke was able to take us back further than any other Gospel, maybe b/c of more first hand accounts

- It was a distinct time in history

    - Herod was a brutal ruler; his people hated him

    - Herod made times tough for his people

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- Zechariah is chosen by lot to serve in the most holy place v. 8-9

    -this was a high honor to burn incense to God

- Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous people before God

    -However there were without a child 

    -v. 13- they are praying for a son

    -to be childless, it was considered to be a punishment by society

        - viewed as being unrighteous b/c something was wrong with their life (not the case with these guys)

    -However Zechariah and Elizabeth still worshiped God

**This is a note worthy time for God to enter

-v.11 An angel of the Lord appears to all of them who were praying and burning incense

    - In Zechariah's case, he never would have thought to see an angel (given his circumstance with being childless)

    - He was not prepared for this, he was confused and scared (v. 12)

    - Probably thinking, is God here to Judge? scary moment

    - v. 19 the Angel is Gabriel 

    - Zechariah became "mute" ; did not talk about seeing Gabriel 

        -odd b/c wouldn't anyone want to tell this amazing story?

    - The Angel says do not be afraid, and that Zechariah's prayers will be answered! And that their child's name will be John

    - John the Baptist (v. 13-17) God is setting him apart to be great!

    - He will be filled with the Holy Spirit in his mother's womb (v. 15)

    - This is the only case in the bible for infant conversion (child is saved)

    -First thing John is going to do, illicit repentance (v. 16)

- Now a days- we preach repentance!

    -This started with John, right here! pretty cool

    - v. 17 This will start the passing on of repentance to the fathers of children once again

        -all this was not happening in Israel in this time

        -John was going to prepare these peoples' hearts for the Lord (v. 17)

- v. 20 Gabriel says I am to speak to you and you will say nothing

    - Now we know why he remained mute 

    - The people in the temple would not have believed Zechariah so the Lord made him mute

-v. 80 John lived in the desert for many years until he was ready to spread the good news

*** Today's worship song! Whom Chall I Fear? - Chris Tomlin (Click Here)

Apostasy - Hebrews 5+6

Paths of Apostasy Hebrews 5-6

Apostasy- The abandonment or renunciation of a religious or political belief.

• The root of apostasy is in us all

1. Dullness

• Many will turn away after confessing Jesus is Lord
• It takes doing nothing to fall down this path
• Every believer goes through a season of apostasy

• Hebrews 5:11 Says we have become dull in our hearing

• This is a warning so to the Hebrews that they have become dull and sluggish which is step 1 to apostasy
• This dullness must be dealt with
• The Hebrews here have gone backwards in their faith without knowing it
• v. 14 The spiritually mature have their discernment trained and sharp
• Path to sluggishness, leading to bigger sin
• When we become sluggish, we start to not care if we sin anymore

2. Complacency 

• staying neutral with no spiritual growth and no back sliding; comfortable where you are as a “Christian”
• Also puts you on the path of apostasy
• You will ruin yourself unless you seek more wisdom, without more wisdom we get comfortable in our sin
• If your are complacent, you are excusing the need for growth and obedience

• Instead you look for emotional conformation- you feel forgiven
• We listen to our heart

• Bad move; our heart is corrupt with no biblical assurance

3. Apostasy (Hebrews 6:4-8)

• Once you are at this point, there is no way to restore repentance
• v.6 shows is one who experiences the truth and tastes salvation, then falls away
• Once you get to this dullness and and accept sin after hearing and experiencing His love, what is left? Nothing. There is no where else to go. Repentance is impossible v. 4-6

**We must consider long and hard our relationship with Christ

• The path to Christ:

*diligence with no dullness

*Hebrews 6:9-12* 

• The author of Hebrews was simply warning them of their dullness out of love
• This warning was to drive them (us) back to assurance of salvation (assurance of their faith)
• The author was pointing the Hebrews to the power of God

- We need to repent of of negligence 

*Nothing can separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:35)

*** Song of the day. This was Marissa and my wedding song... enjoy : ) Click Here 10,000 Reasons by Matt Redman

Anthropology- The Study of Man

Study of Man- Anthropology 

- Created to fellowship with God permanently 
- There are 7.1 billion human beings on earth

Man- The most significant creature:
1. In order, man is the climax and end of six days of preparatory creating
    - Genesis 1 :14,20,24,26

2. God's expression for making man is unique


3. Man alone is described as having been created in the image of God
    - Genesis 1:26 -no other being is made in the image of God


4. Man is created in dominion over creation
    -Gen. 1:26; 28-29
    -Gen. 2:18 - God shows Adam all the other creatures first before he jumps the gun and makes Eve
    - God calls the human race Man
    - He appoints man to have dominion over all creation and now Adam is giving these creatures names- an example of authority


5. Genesis 2 is a unique amplification on Humanity

6. Man is distinguished from animals in a very special way in Genesis 2; he is their ruler, he receives the breath of God into their nostrils
    - spiritual comprehension of God and his moral law (Job 32:8)
    - gives man conscience (Proverbs 20:27)
    - no other animals have these


7. God gives man the capacity of rational speech 
    - no other animal has rational speech

8. God enters into covenant with man

Psalm 8- More praise for God who created us to rule over earth
    - God made us an incredible being!
    - Ecclesiastes 3:11 - "He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end."
Implications of Anthropology
1. Every human being bears God's image
    -emotional and relational aspect of man and his dominion
    -each human being has intrinsic value
    -priority of people- more important to learn an individual , expressing care, working, etc.


2. Only humans bear God's image


3. You are uniquely created for God's glory
    -Genesis 1: 26-30 God said "let us" us being the trinity
    -Isaiah 43:7 "everyone who is called by my name,    whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”
    -1 Cor. 10:31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
    -Humans will even judge angels, we were created very unique 
    - MORE than any other creature, we have the capacity to glorify God


4. Disease, deformity, developmental delays, and death are not a part of being human, but of being cursed
    - Ecclesiastes 7:29 "See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes."

5. Learn your place as creature


6. Scripture is sufficient for your immaterial needs


7. As the image of God is renewed in us, we ought to see that image in our marriages and relationships

*** Song of the day: Awake My Soul ft. Lecrae

Identity Crisis

First Baptist Dandridge TN

Identity Crisis 

Read Mark 5:1-20 (Liberation from Legions)

• This is the story of the Gerosene Man
• This story is about isolation
• The Gerosene man was alone and out of control
• Everyone of us is under spiritual attack like this man
• Even if on the outside we look fine, on the inside we can look like this man
• V.6 Legion was known as a sinful name
• What name do we identify ourselves with? 
• When people hear your name do they identify it with sin? Like Legion?
• Jesus then sends the demons to the pigs- the pigs dive off the cliff into the ocean (v. 11-13)
• This is Jesus shining light on the darkness that us around (Legions being dark)
• The Gerosene man’s life is changed! (v.15)
• What happens overall? 
• 2 Major Points:

       

1. The man is saved and has peace

2. Jesus’s saving grace is advanced in the region (Like how we should evangelize) 

** This is a great story of Jesus’s saving grace! We all have inner demons that can only be sent out with His saving grace. What a great story! Jesus is Love! (John 3:16)

*** Song of the Day! Jam this song out where you are sitting! Might Just Save Your Life- Brandon Heath

Notes on the Book of Ruth

Church Notes on Ruth

Grace Immanuel Bible Church

Story of Perseverance

(Read the Book of Ruth before going over these notes!)

-Introduction

• Through many tribulations we must enter the Kingdom of God
• All of our testing, suffering, etc. are part of God’s plan for us (James 1:2-4)

Book of Ruth

• Trusting God even on bad days

• Having complete trust in the God we serve

• V. 1-5 Naomi is in a desperate state (She is having a tough time)

7 Providential set backs for Naomi

1. Naomi is in the most corrupt spiritual time/era 

2. There was a famine in the land (no economy) 

3. Naomi and family leave Bethlehem and go to Moab- a rough place

4. Naomi’s husband dies, leaving her 2 kids

                -Now Naomi is a widow in a foreign country

5. Naomi’s sons took Moabite women for their wives (pagan wives) 

6. They lived in Moab for 10 years

- In these 10 years, Naomi has 0 grand children

7. Both of Naomi’s kids die

- The first 5 verses show the grief and loss that Naomi experiences

- Because of this Naomi wants to be called Mara (meaning unpleasant/bitter)                                                                     

- Even when God has dealt us difficult trials, we still need to trust fully in Him

• After v. 6 you can see God’s smiling face

• Ruth trusts in Naomi, who trusts in God
• Throughout the book God takes care of Ruth
• Boaz supplies for Ruth and Naomi/ God uses Boaz to take care of Ruth and Naomi

• There are more complications that Ruth faces but God is still in control

• Complications with being redeemed
• Just like us! We face many complications but God is always in control!

• Ruth has a baby boy! Which means... Naomi finally has a grand child named Obed

• Obed is the father of Jesse, who is the father of David! V. 13-22

** Its easy to trust in God when the everything is going your way... But when things go south do we still fully trust in Him? Naomi ultimately still kept the faith and she was rewarded with Obed

Here is the song of the day! Its upbeat and fitting to these notes to get your day started! Click here: Lose Myself- TobyMac

Luke 4 Continued...

Calvary Church Sermon 10/12/13

-Jesus is now "more powerful" than before (v.14 he came back with the power of the spirit)
    - This time he faced trials and didn't back down, and people have noticed!
    (a report about him went out v.14)
    - Now we see what he was meant to do
    -v.16 Jesus goes to Nazareth to read on the sabbath, which was Jesus custom
        + What is our custom? Do we go tho church every week? Bible studies? etc.
        + Its about coming to Church for others, not just ourselves (Hebrews 10:24-25)
        + Going outside our comfort zones
        ** Its time to close the book of our past and open the book of our present/future (The Bible)

        + Just like Jesus after he faces His temptations 
            - v. 18-21 New chapter in Jesus's life
            - Now Jesus's #1 objective is to preach the Gospel
- Just like Jesus we are to evangelize the poor
    - not poor in $ but poor as in anyone who recognizes their sin
    - 1 Corinthians 1:20-25 It doesn't take signs and miracles to make someone believe... just open your mouth
- Isaiah 5- Prophet Isaiah is saying Woe to many evil things
    - How many of us stand up for what Jesus preaches?
    - We are too scared to say something to offend someone
    - As a result there are horrible things that happen
    - Sin becomes so binding we cant even live freely
** When Jesus shines his light on us to shine on others, we feel free, we can finally see our sin, the light shows everything
- v.22-30 Even Jesus was rejected and threatened
    - But we cannot let those who don't believe change the way we believe

Click this link for today's song of the day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZFN8TBfgNU

Facing Temptation

                                                     Luke 4:1-13

Temptation

- Where the spirit will lead you won’t be the easiest/most comfortable 

• Hebrews 4:15 Jesus was tempted jus like we are everyday, so He is able to identify with His people- However Jesus remained sinless.
• Jesus is a redeemer
• In Luke, God is showing us how to face temptation and win

1. The word of God works the will of God

• In the first temptation, Jesus is tempted with food; a normal natural appetite 
• Jesus was fasting 40 days; The Devil was tempting Jesus to turn a stone into bread

• After 39 days of not eating, your body starts to eat itself.
• Jesus is probably suffering from serious hunger pangs and is on the verge of starving to death

• Our timing is a lack of trust of God. If we want something, we want it sooner and in our way
• Everything/occasion is a lesson from God
• God always provides a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13)

*Jesus responds to this temptation of a physical need with a spiritual truth! (Psalm 119:9-11)

2. What you worship is what you become

• Next, Jesus is tempted with more power (Luke 4:5-8)
• John 12-31 Jesus is given the power

• The prince of the power of the air= Satan- has control over non-believers
• So Satan is tempting Jesus with more power- Just like any famous/popular person. Like rockstars, athletes, actors, etc. want more and more and are never satisfied

• However Jesus responds- tells Satan to get behind him as if to show that the Lord is first and Satan needs to take a back seat. Jesus worships God alone.
• What do you worship? Yourself? TV? Sports? Wife? 

• Psalm 115:8 you are what you worship

1. Grace is for falling, not for jumping

• Satan tells Jesus to jump off the pinnacle of the temple
• Satan now uses scripture (Psalm 91) to tempt Jesus and uses it out of context

• There are so many doctrines that use scripture out of context 
• That’s why the Bible is a love book and not a law book
• If we use it as a law book then we take it out of context.

• Psalm 106:15- Israelites begging for meat b/c they are sick of manna (even though God is providing for them they still are not satisfied)
• God will give you your way but the consequence will be great

* Final note- When you are led with the spirit, you can use it as a weapon against the devil.