Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20060528.htm

JOHN: TRUSTING JESUS AS MESSIAH AND GOD
Part XXXIX: Enjoying God's Parenting In An Evil, Perilous World
B. Part II - Living Above Being Swamped By Evil, John 15:1-17

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

It seems easy to wilt under the power of evil in the world today:

(1) Materialism is a huge blight: last Tuesday's issue of The New York Times, p. A1 reported that electronic data with the Social Security numbers of nearly 26.5 million military veterans was stolen. This worries officials as identity thieves can make big money from it!

(2) Substance abuse, not only of alcohol or drugs, but of unhealthy foods, is a very big problem: Eve Winer wrote to the Editor of that paper (Ibid., p. A24), responding to Nicholas D. Kristof's May 21 article, "Killer Girl Scouts" that had complained about the trans fats in Girl Scout cookies. Eve added that "sugar, refined flour and empty calories" lace this nationally consumed food, feeding the "obesity of our population". Yet, she closed: "Who can resist a cute young girl?"

(3) Blasphemy is even the rage: after last Sunday's sermon on The Da Vinci Code and its popular, blasphemous counter of Jesus' deity, I was handed an ad about James Tabor's, The Jesus Dynasty that claims that neither Jesus nor His disciples ever believed He was God!

(4) Twisted morals is often the norm: a full page ad in the same paper (p. A11) criticized three evangelical leaders for opposing stem cell research on human embryos. These studies involve the death of human embryos, so evil is blatantly called good and good evil!

(5) Egotism is a huge blight: the May 19 issue of this paper ran an article on "Road Rage", and even "small towns like Maplewood, N. J." are afflicted by it as the town's "online forum is rife with postings by citizens who feel terrorized by aggressive drivers," (a letter to the Editor by Richard Kessler and Debbie Ferraro, Ibid., 5/23/06, p. A24)!

(6) Irresponsible leadership plagues our land: Raymond Seed, engineering prof at the University of California at Berkeley and leading author of a report by 36 engineers and disaster experts on the Hurricane Katrina tragedy in New Orleans claimed in that report: "'People didn't die because the storm was bigger than the system could handle, and people didn't die because the levees were overtopped. People died because mistakes were made and because safety was exchanged for efficiency and reduced cost.'" (Ibid., the editorial "Tumbling Down")

So, in view of the POWER of evil in our world today, how may we live without feeling negatively swamped by it all?!

(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )

Need: "In view of the POWER of evil's influence in our world, how may we live above its influence without feeling swamped by it all?!"
  1. Jesus knew His disciples would be vulnerable to harm from the power of evil in the world, so He revealed God's parental oversight:
    1. Jesus knew His men would be prone to spiritual disillusionment by Judas' Satan-led betrayal: though claiming His giving His sop to Judas identified Judas as His betrayer, the other disciples were so naive about such depravity they did not perceive what He meant, 13:21-30!
    2. Jesus knew His disciples would be prone to sin due to pressure of the world's evil influence: He said Peter would deny Him (Jn. 13:37-38), and John 18:1-3, 24-27 reveals this sin would be fueled by Peter's fear of influential people who had plotted with Judas to destroy Jesus!
    3. Thus, Jesus revealed God's parental oversight of His disciples:
      1. In John 13:33, He called them "little children", i.e., "teknia," "a diminutive expression [of] . . . affection . . . like a father to his little children;" strikingly, this term appears only here in all of the Gospels, Leon Morris, John (NICNT), p. 632, ftn. 67.
      2. Later in that conversation, Jesus said He would not leave His men "as orphans," ['orphanous] (John 14:18; U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966 ed., p. 388; Arndt & Ging., Grk.-Engl. Lex. of N. T., 1967, p. 586).
  2. That Divine Parental Oversight is taught in John 13:33-17:26, and we view that PART where God is seen to equip us to live RIGHTLY though FACING the POWER of the WORLD'S EVIL (as follows):
    1. Jesus revealed He embodied what His disciples were helpless to do in living rightly in face of the world's STRONG evil, John 15:1a:
      1. Jesus claimed He was "the true vine" opposite the "false" vine of Isaiah 5:1-30 where Israel was "planted" by God to produce "good fruit" of righteousness though it yielded only "wild grapes" of sin!
      2. The sins named in that Isaiah 5 context were STRONG evils in Israel that we have illustrated also exist in our nation today:
        1. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of materialistic land grabbing (Isaiah 5:8-10) like today's stealing of personal data of millions of military veterans for the sake of unjust gain!
        2. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of substance abuse (5:11f) like today's massive abuse of alcohol, drug and unhealthy foods!
        3. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of faithless blasphemy as some dared God to judge them for their idolatry, Isaiah 5:18-19! This sin recalls today's The Da Vinci Code that popularly blasphemes Christ, daring God to judge its sinfulness!
        4. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of twisted morality where people called evil good and good evil, Isaiah 5:20. This is like the full page ad that brazenly calls the death of human embryos for stem cell research good while belittling those who oppose it!
        5. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of egotism, Isaiah 5:21, the problem reflected in road rage even in small towns in America.
        6. Isaiah exposed Israel's "wild grapes" of drunken and thus irresponsible leaders who distorted justice, Isaiah 5:22-23. This sin is like the irresponsible leadership that produced the needless deaths of thousands in the flood of New Orleans.
      3. Thus, as the TRUE "vine", Jesus would equip His men to live ABOVE the materialism, substance abuse, blasphemy, twisted morals , egotism and irresponsible leadership of the world, 15:1!
    2. The WAY this would all occur is revealed in John 15:1-17 as follows:
      1. Jesus' disciples were to "remain" in Christ like a branch needs to "remain" in its grape vine, and thus live righteously, John 15:4-5.
      2. This "remaining" activity is explained in the context to be one's heeding and applying God's Word in his life, John 15:3, 7a.
      3. Failure to heed and apply God's Word conversely makes him yield "wild grapes" of the world's evils that lead to destruction, Jn. 15:6.
      4. However, by depending on Scripture and applying it in life, one lives righteously, and God answers his prayers of needs, Jn. 15:7b.
      5. Consequently, a believer who thus heeds and applies God's Word sees his prayers answered to his great joy, John 15:10-11, 12-16.
      6. [The main command of Scripture is that the believer love his fellow believers in Christ, John 15:12, 17 with Matthew 22:36-40].
Application: If we feel "swamped" by the world's STRONG evils of materialism, substance abuse, blasphemy, twisted morality, egotism or irresponsible leadership, (1) we must trust in Christ to BECOME a child of God (John 1:11-13) and come under God's Parental Oversight (John 13:33-14:26). Then, (2) CONSTANTLY heed and apply SCRIPTURE in LIFE, (3) and find God's thereupon guiding us to love fellow believers and gain great answers to prayer to our great joy, John 15:1-17!

Lesson: Living OPTIMISTICALLY above the STRONG and UNNERVING evils of the world comes by a BELIEVER'S DEPENDING on a CONSTANT INTAKE and USE of SCRIPTURE in his LIFE. This practice leads to his loving fellow believers, gaining answers to prayer and resulting great joy as God signals he is living rightly, cf. 1 John 3:22; 1:4!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 God has provided the illustrations of this sermon in a wonderful way due to the application of this message (as follows):

(1) In the introduction, we noted twisted morals is a powerful evil in our world, and I cited a full page ad in the May 23, 2006 issue of The New York Times, p. A11 as a case in point. This ad, sponsored by The Campaign to Defend the Constitution (DefCon), counters 3 key evangelical leaders who oppose stem cell research on human embryos.

I must admit that, at first glance, I found the ad to be depressing due to the power of its evil! Yet, recalling what Scripture says, the ad's error and futility became apparent to my relief as follows: (a) The ad ends with these words: "We believe our elected leaders put their hand on a Bible to swear to uphold the Constitution. Not the other way around." (b) Now, in conceding their leaders should "put their hand on a Bible to swear", the Bible reveals DefCon makes itself affirm what the Bible teaches, for the Bible at Hebrews 6:16 NIV claims: "Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument." (c) Well, the BIBLE reveals a human embryo is a person at conception, for Psalm 51:5 claims one is guilty of sin as a person at conception! (d) The Bible then reveals that killing a human embryo for stem cell research is murder in Genesis 9:6, so DefCon's ad in the May 23, 2006 issue of The New York Times is as morally twisted as it is hopelessly self-contradictory!

(2) Then, as I typed up the first draft of this sermon's notes last Tuesday morning, I did not have what I felt was adequate illustration material for the introduction and conclusion pages, so I said to myself, "Don, just let the Lord provide it!", giving God time to help me out!

Well, as I then drove from the office to pick up my wife at her place of employment, she for the FIRST time EVER brought home a copy of The New York Times, the May 23rd issue that her boss had discarded, which issue contained nearly all the information I've used in the introduction and conclusion pages in this sermon! God had thus given me cause not only for relief at seeing the futility of the DefCon ad by way of focusing on Scripture, but cause for added great joy at the thoroughness of His provision of illustrations for this message!

May we KEEP HEEDING and APPLYING SCRIPTURE in LIFE to live ABOVE feeling swamped by the world's great evil!