The Village Church
The Gospel in Context - Audio
Thank you Please pray with me Father, this is what we need is more than a word from you the word It would speak to where we are in life And I pray that your spirit would come and take what is preach and apply to our hearts And as I pray often and every week and every day boy that this is not about Alex This is not about me. This is not my church. This is not mine But it's yours It belongs to you I'm just on the shepherd to the ship And I pray spirit that you will move my pride myself focus out of the way And bring all glory to my God and King And Christ in my pray I was taken out of context You have heard many people make that argument, right? When they have called out on things they have said or written they say I've been taken out of context You see it with movie stars professional athletes politicians Those who are in positions of power whenever they're called out I Was taken out of context. I didn't that's not what I meant for some That claim is legitimate for others. It's just an excuse not to own them to what they said or did for what they said or written Have you made that argument Have you taken someone out of context? What about the Bible? What if the Bible made that claim? What if the Bible came to you and said You just took me out of context Would it be legitimate? I think so This argument can also be made by the gospel That in our lives Then the way we live and the way we think We all have taken the gospel out of context What I mean, what do I mean by that? I mean we have a tendency to add stress and hardship to already hard Christian life By kicking to the curb the things that the gospel really wants to produce in our heart Because some of the things we want the gospel to do it ain't gonna do It's just ain't gonna do But we run out for those things and when we do that we take the gospel out of context So in your life Is the gospel in context? If it's not no need to worry John has a word for us this morning from the Lord To help us put the gospel back in its proper pace back in its proper place in our life He does this by giving us a little test It's what I call the the GAT The gospel awareness test to see where you are this morning This test would allow us to self-examine our understanding In a real sense, you know John wants us to check the pulse of our understanding To make sure We're breathing properly the aim of the test is to give you assurance It's to give you confidence that you are a child of God So if you have your Bibles Open them to first John chapter 2 beginning in verse 3 First John chapter 2 beginning with verse 3 And by this we know we have come to know him If we keep his commandments Whoever says I know him but does not keep his commandments as a liar and the truth is not in him But whoever keeps his word in him truly the love of God is perfected By this we know that we are in him Whoever says he abyses in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked Beloved I'm writing to you. No new commandment But an old command that you have from the beginning the old commandment is the word that you have heard At the same time it is a new commandment that I'm writing to you Which is true in him and in you because the darkness is passing away in the true light is already shining Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness Whoever loves his brother abyses in the light and in him there is no cause for stumbling But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness Walks in darkness. It does not know where he is going because the darkness is blind his eyes It's just a word of our God Seeing and understanding the gospel in its proper context This is what the gospel awareness test helps us to do And for John The first context of the gospel is to know him To know Jesus How do we know if we have come to know him verse three says by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands I know what you're thinking You're saying to yourself How is it that John calls me out for taking the gospel out of context when he does the same thing? Are we not saved by grace? Well, are we Are we saved by grace? Saved by grace through faith not a result of works, but a gift of God John is not taking the gospel out of context Well, he's he's not talking about the means of salvation But he's talking about What the gospel produces in us when we are saved It produces us in us a desire to live by God's word a Desire to keep his commands. You see obedience doesn't save you But it gives evidence that you are saved to know Jesus You means you're in a personal relationship that transforms you from the inside out To keep his commandments is not perfection. No one's perfect only Jesus was perfect, but it's an overflow of your heart To strive to the best of your ability to live your life according to God's word Even though you weak and even though you fail and sometimes you fell off then in a lot But you can still have that desire to live for God So John - he he drives his point home more by giving us an illustration two examples one negative one positive In verses four and five he says whoever says I know him But does not keep his commands is a liar and the truth is not in him But whoever keeps his word in him truly the love of God is perfected Have you noticed something about John even when we first started in first John? He doesn't hold back He doesn't dip his words and chocolate so they are nicely received So he doesn't offend He's to the point point blank. He's black and white. No shades are great. You see to this or is that? It can't be in between According to John You know, it's amazing how how God can use your kids to reveal a lot of things that's in your own heart You can catch a child doing something wrong You catch them and they have that and when they see you looking at them that face of conviction They have that face of conviction if your parent you can't have that look When you catch them Doing something wrong The face of conviction because they know what they just did was wrong So you talked to the kid you set them down you're explaining to them what you did was wrong Why it's wrong and then they give you that nod that they understand. Do you understand? And then minutes later they're doing the same thing and Then you said pull my hair out because you wonder in my making progress with this kid Lord This child is so inconsistent and so are you and so am I inconsistent All of us are All Christians are inconsistent in their life And here in this text John is calling out those who are inconsistent with no conviction Who care very little about making progress in that Christian journey? This is the person who says I know him but does not keep his commands inconsistent with no conviction if this is you then you are a liar and the truth is not in you now my words Don't get mad with me. I'm just a messenger God's word You see to keep his commandments And implies more than just obedience more than just a call to obey and a response to obey It also implies you have value for his commandments You actually take a possession of him. They become part of you part of your life Do you throw away things that you truly value? Look at your life Do you take out to the trash can things that you truly value? Do you if we truly value something you keep it you treasure it you hold on to it You see this means It comes to God's commands. They have to have a priority in your life That this can't be something you have in passing They have to be part of you They should be in your heart You shall teach them diligently to your children When you lie down and when you rise you should talk about them You should write them on the door posters of your house and your gates You should bind them as a sign on your hands. It should be frontless between your eyes You shall allow this word to correct you. You should read it. You should memorize them You should allow them to rebuke you to challenge you to encourage you the Psalmist says I have stored your word in my heart. Why that I might not sin against you This is what it means for the truth to be in you That it has it has a power over you you value it and when it's in you this way, it changes you It gives you a desire to better live for God The person who Strive to keep God's commands. He doesn't he doesn't see them as a list of dudes. I don't he doesn't see God's word There's a there's a list so you can't do this. You can't do that. He sees God's commands as God's word to him Whoever keeps his word you see the John's play here Whoever keeps his word in him truly the love of God is perfected The word has become the standard by which you base your whole existence Your life your values your politics your job your family your resources Your stuff your time your relationships should all be shaped by God's word Is it is that true in my life is it true in your life? This is the measuring stick by which we measure our life The Word of God It has to be a mighty way that overtakes your life. It's like a person standing in the rain Face up hands out the rain is all over that body and if you are a believer God's word should be ran all over your life and you should enjoy it. You should just stand like this father Let it rain Let your word rain all over my being all over my circumstances all over who I am Is that you? Is that me? Do I really want his word to rain all over my life? His word is wisdom His word is guidance his word is a counselor His word is his fatherly instruction to you It is a graceful garland on your head appended on your neck. Do you understand what I'm saying? Do you do I? The summon says again I will run out of your commandments when you enlarge my heart I will run after your commandments when you enlarge my heart is your heart being enlarged More toward the God in his word and when it is you will run after them both You will you can't help but to One Christian said that one Christian said first John is the most convicting book in the Bible and if you truly know Jesus Then your inconsistency convicts you Does it condemn you but it does convict you when you're inconsistent? Do you know why? The child has a face of conviction when the parent catches them doing something wrong You know why that is? Because the child wants to please the parent because the child loves the parent in return That's why You want to please what you love John says whoever keeps his commandments whoever keeps his word and him the love of God is truly perfected What does that mean? It means you are growing in your love for God Not just God's love for you, but you actually love him in return And it is seen in your desire to please him not to earn his favor Not to earn his attention But you really want to live a life that is pleasing to your father because you love him in Return because he first loved you Jesus says if you love me You will keep my commands. Whoever doesn't love me will not keep my word And talking about perfection we're talking about a simple desire to live a life pleasing to God Do we have it and that's straight from the horse's mouth do you really love him? Do I really love him when we look over our life? Examining our life the things we do things we value the things that shape of the things that we're in the chain Is there really a love for God there? I've said this before and this is true of my life as well that we love Jesus for all lesson We profess and we love this world for more than we ever admit We do and that's the truth if we look at our life so now The gospel awareness test it shows us that to know God means you keep his word You can you keep his word because you want to please him you want to please him because you love him Because you want to love him in return that is the God's win context. It produces a greater love for God in us In return we actually with want to pursue a relationship with God a healthy relationship This is not one-sided, but it's two-sided that we love God in return return we were we pursue God in relationship We take ownership of our relationship with him and then the reality is that Jesus isn't going to come down and say Alex You need to spend time with me. You need to pray to me He's not going to come down and do that. He's already told me I need to do that in this word. Am I listening to it? Am I listening to it? So the test is not over John goes father So he moves to the next context and that is knowing him that is being in him The context of being in him. How do we know if we are in him? Now this we know that we are in him Whoever says he abysing him ought to walk in the same way in which he won't Who this was referring to it's the son of school answer is Jesus We are to live in the same way that Jesus lived. He is our example our model we compare our life to his life He is our measuring stick We are to mirror him and everything this means that no other person and no other thing Should be your measuring stick You shouldn't compare yourself to your neighbor your co-worker other family members We shouldn't compare ourselves to other churches For what they're doing my problem. I compare myself to other church planners I feel like they're better than me because I don't look like them And something's wrong Jesus is our mirror Jesus is our example and you model your life after him and no one else We should be coming more like Jesus and everything. We should be looking like Jesus in every area of our life First John 1 5 says that God is light God is light and we know if you read through the gospel John that John says that Jesus is the light that came into the world to enlighten all men He is the light of men. He says Jesus says I am the light of the world Whoever follows me were not walking darkness, but we have the light of life He has come into this world as a light that whoever believes in him may not remain in darkness This is our Savior. He came to the world to save the world He said I did not come into world to be served but to serve and give my life as a ransom to many Jesus truly served other people. He watched the disciples dirty feet Jesus God Watch the disciples dirty feet. He spent time with sinners prostitutes tax collectors the unlovable the outcast He was merciful. He was compassionate and he called out those who needed to be humble Jesus said he always does the things that are what? pleasing to the Father Jesus Submitted himself to the will of God even to the point of death and the cross You see the walk of Jesus is the way of the cross self-sacrifice self the now and love and if we abide in him then we too We'll walk by way of the cross self sacrifice self the now and love One pastor said to walk as Jesus walk. It's not by rules But by the example it is to follow him to be his disciple and says the discipleship is personal active and costly We like those other two, but we don't like the third one now costly a Few months ago by key to now were introduced to a contractor by one of her friends and He's a nice guy We've met with him on a couple occasions and we want to get some things done around the house So he will come over and talk to us and give us advice We asked him a lot different products and he give us I guess his expert advice advice You know, but he always had a favorite saying that he would tell us when we start talking about stuff He will always say miss Waikita pretty calls Pretty calls It costs money To make a kitchen look like the ones in the TV or in the magazine And to look like Jesus keep in mind pretty cost Because he's pretty and if you're gonna look like him, it's gonna cost Where's it gonna cost you? It's gonna cost you your affection. It's gonna cost you your lawtease It's gonna cost you your allegiance. It's gonna cost you your time It's gonna cost you your life. It's gonna cost you your resources all those things go to Jesus That's where it's gonna cost you Do you feel it? If you don't feel it, there's something's wrong Where does it costen you to look like Jesus because you can't look like Jesus and look like Satan - Warren is gonna be growing and the other is gonna be dying Which one is it? Remember what Jesus says. He is the light of the world He is the light of the world and John 1236 he says while you have the light believe in the light that you may become sons of light and In john 9 he says as long as I am in the world. I am the light of the world I check this out here in Matthew 5 In the in the beatitudes. This is what he says You are the light of the world a city on the hill. It cannot be hidden Nardo people people do not lie to lamp and put it on the basket But on the standing it gives light to all in the house in the same way Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good words and give glory To your father who is in heaven Wow Do you understand what should be happening in your life as The people of God reflect the light of Christ in their lives that actually become the light of the world He said as long as I'm in the world. I'm the light of the world. He's not in the world right now We're in the wall and in return. We are the light that people should see We are the light of the world and when they see us that you see Jesus in us in every area of our life is that true? In your life Are you the light in your neighborhood? Are you the light on your job? Are you a light in your family? Are you the city on the hill? And when people see you they see Jesus, but what are you? Are you a light to your enemies? You see The church is the light of this world We are it's in this word And what does that mean? What does that mean? It means the government is not the light Republicans are not the light Democrats is not the light liberals are not the light Conservatives are not the light the tea party is not the light the black panther party is not the light the old Staff is not the light the NAACP is not the light. There's only one light in this world and it's us Do you believe that? And so that means? None of those things should be shaping who you are you should be shaping them Because you are the light. We are the game changers. We are the broader Christ And are we ready to change things? Am I ready? It's the church the people of God think like that and live like that our light We should use it as a weapon of good and not evil a weapon to reconcile and unite not a weapon to investigate and divide we need to get on board realize who team are we on? Who's agenda are we pushing we push the gospel agenda? That's who we push That's what we do. Is that true of your life? It's true of my life. Where are you? Where are you? A friend of mine named Michael Jones He gave a wonderful charge for me for my ordination service back in November 2008 He gave me three charges That I should care with me throughout my ministry and my friend Miss Mandy Goodson made this for me. So I won't ever forget it and I hang in my office and The first charge he says I Need to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus. That's what the glasses represent And he said the second charges Don't make room for Jesus and my wife in the suitcase No, just don't just make room for them. They have to have better priority than that and the third charge was to be the moon Be the moon If you know anything about the moon, you know the moon does not have a light of its own it reflects the light of the Sun And as a believer, we don't have a lot of our own. We'll reflect the light of Christ in our life Be the moon in any and everything you do throughout your life Reflect his light wherever you go and whatever you do and let it shine and let it shine and let it shine So that when people see your life, they don't get glory to you. They get glory to your father in heaven That's what they do That's what they do This now leads us to The final contents of the gospel We talked about the contents of knowing him the contents of being in him and not a final context look at verse 7 Beloved I'm writing to you. Know new command But an old command that you heard from the beginning the old command means the word that you heard at the same time in this new Commandment that I'm writing to you, which is true in him. That's Jesus and then you because the darkness is passing away In the true light is already shining This old commandment This is John again his play on words You know commandments guys words same thing is here command guys word He's saying the old commandment is the word you heard from the beginning. So what is it? What is it? Where this is old commandment? It's love love How often we forget about that little full of the word in our christian journey love Love is the final context of the gospel. It is the old commandment that existed in the old tests and even before Jesus Jesus came God the people God will call to love Do the run of me six five says you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and with all your might Leviticus 1918 says you shall love your neighbor as your Self who is your neighbor is everybody including your enemies all the God's word and law of commandments depend on those two things That's what Jesus. That's what Jesus said and the gospel Matthew When that when the Lord you came up to Jesus and said Teacher which is the greatest commandments in the law? Jesus said you should love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your might With all your soul. This is the great and first commandment and the second is like it You should love your neighbor as yourself on these two commandments depends all the law in the prophets And Paul the Romans 13 says oh No one anything except to love For the one who loves who feels the law for the commandments you should not commit murder You should not commit adultery. You should not steal you should not covet any other commandment or summed up in this One word you shall love your neighbor as Yourself love. There's no love. There's no wrong to his neighbor that for love is the fulfillment of the law That's the command That's God's word Is that true in our life? He also says this commandment is also new How is it new? In the gospel of John when Jesus is in the upper room of his disciples He says a new command. I give you that is to love one another how Just as I have loved you. You are also to love one another by this People would know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another How did you just love others? He loved them with a sacrificial love That's how he loved them Pastor Tim Keller says that Christ's love was a love demonstrated to his enemies to turn enemies into friends And to restore them to the glory of their humanity You see that Christ's love turned his enemies into his friends sacrificial love John says that the darkness is passing away in the true light is already shining This means the light of Jesus is progressively advancing in the world and the darkness is progressively passing away And if we are the moon That reflects that light of Jesus then the reflection shines brightest when we truly love people That's when it shines its brightest Now when we think we got everything right not when we think all our theology is right or we doing all this right But when we are actually loving people well the light shines brightest How are you doing? Do you use your light to love others or to tear them down? verse 9 says Whoever says he's in the light And hates his brother It's still in darkness Whoever loves his brother buys in the light and him there is no cause for stumbling But whoever hates his brothers in darkness and walks in darkness and does not know where he is going because the darkness has Blinded his eyes Here's the gospel in contents. It produces love for God and a love for your neighbor That's the gospel if that ain't happening to you then you ain't growing You got to be loving people better Loving your enemies better Loving those that you don't like better That's what we should pray for Love our love in our neighbor's proof that we love God Love here and love here has to be happening at the same time Where there is lack of love? There's hate Who are the people you love that you just don't like? We all have them Who are the people you love that you're jealous of we have those two? Is it a parent? Is it a classmate? Is it a sibling? Is it an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend? Who is it? Is it a particular group of people? To be in the light is to love and if you don't you're walking in darkness You see what John he communicates to us here is that that love and hate you know it affects you It affects you whoever loves his brother buys in the light it in him There's no cause for stumbling because he himself is being changed by the light. That's why he doesn't stumble. He sees clearly in particularly You should be growing and seeing people clearly In order not to sin against them in order to love them despite their flaws A Palmer says the light and man is darkness until it is born by love Now I know it ain't easy to love people and I'm not sitting here saying it is it's hard But if I'm a believer if I'm a believer and I claim to know Jesus then my dislike My hatred and my prejudice towards other people should be changing because of what the gospel is doing in my heart You know what else it means? It means I don't see people based on cultural stereotypes or false assumptions. I See them in light of God's word What is shaping the way you see people? What has shaped the way you see the head was it has it been history? We all know history about one sided. You don't have to be a sign of history to know that. Is it cultural stereotypes? Is it false assumptions? Is it the media? What's shaping the way you see other people because you've been shaped by something? Is it been changed? Is it been challenged by the word of God? It has to? You have to be growing in that it'll cause on the other side of the track is that if you have Unrepentant hatred and prejudice in your heart it reveals that you're still in the darkness. You're walking blindly This means our view of the people are not being shaped by God's word. You are allowing stereotypes media movies history false assumptions in your own prejudice to shape the way you see the other people And God has called his people to be better than that hatred Prejudice destruction or perspective for others Not only that if you don't ever deal with it. You continue to fall deeper down the whole deeper down the rabbit hole I Used to hate my dad why cuz he really wasn't there for me. It wasn't until I became a believer That I was able to see him clearly Will I mean my dad? I realized I was angry with my dad Because he wasn't there. He didn't come to me in my football games He wasn't involved as I want him to be involved then when I became a believer God showed me him. I saw him What did I see? He never had a dad either He never had anyone come to his games either. He never had anyone tell him he was proud of him either And so what I learned is that me and my dad are in the same boat We're learning how to be men together. And so I was able to forgive him For that. That's what I mean by seeing people clearly seeing people differently that you're able to forgive Those who have hurt you we understand that One Christian says We do not first misjudge people and hate them as a result Our view of them is already soured by a hatred of them You understand what he's saying them? We don't first misjudge people and then hate them as a result Our view of them is already soured by hatred and prejudice It's already show about soured by that It is love which sees straight thanks clearly It is love that makes us a balance in our outlook Judgment and conduct toward other people If you really don't love others And strive to love others you're going to continue in prejudice and hatred and distrust This liking them with no understanding you're going to be unbalanced in your view of other people All these things that I've said this morning, that's the gospel in context Putting it back to what God wants it to be. That's love for God. That's knowing God living for him That's love for him and love for our neighbor That heals our dislike and hatred and prejudice of them that those things should be happening in your heart in my heart If it's not we need to go do business with God when we're done here and repent Not saying this. I preach these things to you because your sins are forgiven not to beat you up Not to make you live in guilt But because you are forgiven in Christ's sake because you do know him who is from the beginning I preach these things to you because you have overcome the evil one because you know the Father I Preach these things to you because you are strong in a word of God abysing you I Preach these things to myself and to you Because I love each and every one of you and I want you to continue to walk well Fight well in the gospel to have its proper context in your life, and it's loving God and loving your neighbor Everything that you do Bible studies reading Church life should be pushing you toward those two things if it's not Then you need to ask yourself some questions. Let us pray I know father that love for God and love for others it sounds so simple so easy But it's not easy It's not easy goes sin still remains in us That does it that's what that prevents it from being easy to really love you and to love others And so we pray that that your spirit father can't forget about him For he lives in us if we are believer And I pray to you spirit that you will bring the gospel to his proper context in our life But you would give us the power and the ability to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves That you will be working in us mightily That we will be growing more and more into the light and the darkness in us will be passing away progressively Lord And then when people see us they see Jesus And now our light was shine. It would be the city on the hill And then when people see us they would give glory to our Father who is in heaven I pray for all this in your son's name Amen.