The Wow and Woe of Worship

Please note this is part of the series “The Power of the Cross” which can be obtained free from CTA.

(The outline is mine.)

Luke 5:1 – 11

The Wow and Woe of Worship

Imagine the sights and sounds of what is happening in this story. The sounds of the water as it splashes on a beach. The smell of old boats and nets being washed. Watch the exhausted fishermen, backs bent with the disappointment of a fish-less night.

Into all of this steps Jesus and interrupts a perfectly good pity party.

A. Personal disappointment and perceived failure are God’s interruptions.

1. Fishing then was strenuous...

a. It involved boats, casting heavy wet nets, serious competition with others.

b. It involved “toiled all night” [v 5] and high maintenance “washing their nets.” [v 2]

c. This was commercial fishing... so if no fish, no pay.... no food.

2. Personal disappointment and perceived failure are times when God has our attention.

a. Jesus just gets in the boat... doesn’t ask permission.

b. Personal reflection on my disappointment over “alter calls” here.

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, [29] for our "God is a consuming fire.” [Hebrews 12:28 – 29]

B. When God interrupts our lives, God is requiring a response.

1. [v 3c] “And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.”

a. Peter hears what Jesus is saying.

b. Some bond of trust must have developed in listening to Jesus because he is willing to “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” [v 4]

2. Peter’s response: we are tired, we came back empty, BUT...

a. KJV: “Nevertheless.” Peter is willing to do this because Jesus told him to do it.

b. This is a huge act of faith.

3. But Jesus does something special that gets Peter’s attention.

a. Jesus almost breaks the nets and sinks the boat. [vv 6 – 7]

b. This is the “moment of wow” were Peter is amazed, immediately followed by a “moment of woe” when Peter confesses his sinfulness.

“Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” [v 8b ESV]

C. This seems to be the pattern when God shows up.

1. Isaiah 6:5 “Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” [NIV]

a. The word “woe” is a “passionate cry of grief or despair” [Brown-Driver-Briggs]

b. It is the word use to signify being under God’s curse.

2. Here is a holy God, showing up in His glory... verses an unholy human.

a. Doesn’t matter who you are: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” [Romans 2:23 NIV]

b. That is the “moment of woe.” That point were we, looking at the cross, realize what our sins cost Jesus.

Imagine if you were swamped with the memory and realization of every sin you have committed. Your reaction would be the same as Isaiah’s and Peter’s: overwhelming guilt and enormous fear.

3. Why?

a. Because you have been in contact with a holy God.

b. BOTH Peter and Isaiah met God in the everyday ordinary grind of life. FACT: God is found in all things as all times.

c. And that requires a response.

D. The purity of God’s holiness and the dirt of our sinfulness and up to “grace.”

1. Jesus got Peter’s attention with a “wow.” Peter made the leap to “woe.” But Jesus was not finished there.

a. “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” [v 10b ESV]

b. Wow to woe to wow.

2. What is the effect of what is happening?

a. When we humble ourselves and confess our sin... we are cleansed.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” [1 John 1:9 ESV]

b. We are then commissioned by God.

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” [Acts 1:8 ESV]

c. Then we are irreversibly changed.

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. [2] Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” [Romans 12:1 – 2]

3. Maybe we do not respond to God because:

a. We don’t want anyone to know we are in need of forgiveness. (“Duh”)

b. We are afraid to say yes to anything/everything God asks of us. (Such as being His witnesses.)

c. We are not willing to be transformed... we are comfortable with the status quo...

Invitation:

1. Come to the alter and experience the woe of your condition.

2. Commit yourself as a “living sacrifice” and experience the wow of God’s wonderful grace.

3. Compelled by a joy that overshadows all sorrows and fear, live out God’s wonderful grace for all to see!

New Year's Dare

Isaiah 55:6 – 11

New Year’s Dare

“I resolve to let God be right, about everything.”

 

I.         The problem:

 

            A.        We like to be right. We resist the possibility we might not be right!

 

                        1.         How often to you admit to being wrong? (Seldom...) When do you admit to being wrong? (When forced with unpleasant consequences...)

 

                        2.         How often do you just give up the disagreement because the other person is resisting/being stubborn?

 

            B.        How many of us have the life skills and grace to ADMIT we are not right and ACCEPT responsibility?

 

                        1.         As children we are “forced” to comply with authority and those who hold power over us.

 

                        2.         We are trained to resist... “Passive-Aggressive”

 

II.       Reality [vv 8 – 9]

 

            A.        God is not like us.

 

                        1.         God does not think like us or behave like us.

 

                        2.         God’s thoughts and ways are “light years” ahead of ours.

“For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.” [1 Corinthians 1:25]

Our limited mind gets it backwards.

“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” [1 Corinthians 2:14]

Here’s the reality:

“For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He catches the wise in their craftiness [20] and again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” [1 Corinthians 3:19 – 20]

This is the consequence of our thinking: We make our own “god.”

“Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools [23] and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.” [Romans 1:22 – 23]

[Even Christians make their own version of “god” when we make God think and behave like us, or how we want God to think and behave.]

 

            B.        Hard reality, but true:

 

                        1.         The difference between God and humanity is GREATER than the difference between humanity and any animal.

 

                        2.         In other words,

 

                                    a.         What God says is right, true, and correct; even/especially if we don’t understand it.

 

                                    b.         What God does is righteous, holy, and loving; even/especially if we don’t like it.

 

III.      Objection!

Why do BAD things happen to good/innocent people?

 

            A.        There are five possible ways for bad things to happen:

 

                        1.         Natural disaster (tsunami).

 

                        2.         Accident (car accident).

 

                        3.         Self-inflicted (smoking/second hand smoke).

  

                        4.         Momentary lapse/insanity (“Santa slayings”).

 

                        5.         Pre-meditated/Planned evil. (September 11)

 

            B.        Possible views:

 

                        1.         The “deist” view thinks God set things in motion but is not personally involved.

 

                                    a.         Argument: There are spiritual laws/principles that cannot be violated. (Like the physical laws.)

 

                                    b.         Answer: yes but they can be come a “White Tiger.”

(Ill.) In India there was a “fakar” who went from town to town “creating” gold in boiling pot of mixed things. Someone would ask him how he did it... for a big price he would give them the “formula” and say, “it only works if, when you do this and say these words, you do NOT think of a white tiger.” The “formula” never worked. He would be arrested and tried but never convicted because in his defense he would ask... “did you think of a white tiger?”

A “White Tiger” is a condition to be met that automatically nullifies the possibility.

Example of a “White Tiger:” A radio evangelist once announced: “If you believe, God will put the keys to a new Cadillac into the hands of an angel and send those keys to you right away. But if you doubt for an instant, those keys are gone.”

 

                        2.         The “determinist” believes God pre-determined every action and behavior in the universe.

“If there is one single molecule in this universe running around loose, totally free of God’s sovereignty, then we have no guarantee that a single promise of God will ever be fulfilled. Perhaps that one maverick molecule will lay waste all the grand and glorious plans that God has made and promised to us... our maverick molecule could change the course of all redemptive history. Maybe that one molecule will be the thing that prevents Christ from coming.” [R. C. Sproul “Chosen by God” pp. 26 – 27]

[Response: This seems to be a very weak concept of God and an attempt to explain the chaos caused by sin... If God were sovereign: Then maverick molecules, sinful people, or even defiant armies would NOT prevent anything God wants to accomplish, any time God wants to accomplish it. “Now He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else – not only in this world but also in the world to come.” (Ephesians 1:21)]

 

                                    a.         Some will suggest it this is accurate then God is the source of all evil if God predetermined or even allowed evil/bad.

 

                                    b.         Some will suggest that if God is not capable of stopping evil/bad then God is weak, and not God.

 

                        3.         A Biblical model.

 

                                    a.         God works with humans on four different levels.

 

                                                1.)       Eternal destiny (salvation/grace).

“He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son and forgave our sins.” [Ephesians 1:7 NLT]

 

                                                2.)       “Big Picture” history (Messiah, Revelation).

“And this is the plan: At the right time He will bring everything together under the authority of Christ – everything in heaven and on earth.” [Ephesians 1:10 NLT]

 

                                                3.)       Groups (nations, churches)

“God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, He identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirt in, whom He promised long ago. [Ephesians 1:12 – 13 NLT]

 

                                                4.)       Individuals.

“God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.” [Ephesians 2:8 – 9 NLT]

 

                                    b.         There is a hierarchy.

 

                                                1.)       An individual will suffer or benefit what the group suffers or benefits. [see Matthew 5:45b] We do not completely control our own destiny.

 

                                                2.)       The group fits into the ultimate plan, purpose, and flow of history. The group does not necessarily control its own destiny.

 

                                                3.)       The individual has “free will” to react and interact with circumstances, life, others, and God. (You cannot control your circumstances but you control your reactions.)

Ravi Zacharius: “sanctity of free will” What we struggle with is that the sanctify of free will appears to be godless chaos from our limited perspective.

 

IV.      Back to reality

 

            A.        God does not abandon us to the chaos of sin, even if we do not understand God or the chaos.

 

                        1.         God has given us the Bible [vv 10 – 11]

 

                                    a.         The Bible has a PURPOSE.

 

                                    b.         The Bible reveals God’s PLAN.

 

                        2.         God has given us an invitation:

 

                                    a.         [v 6] Seek and call on God. This will require energy and time.

 

                                    b.         [v 7] Forsake wicked ways and unrighteous thoughts. This will require discipline.

 

                                    c.         [v 8] Turn to God. This will require humility.

 

            B.        What skills are we going to need? [“Trust”]

 

                        1.         We are going to have learn “historical remembering” (v emotional remembering).

“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. [4] Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.” [Psalm 51:3 – 4]

 

                                    a.         When we take things personally/emotionally we resist.

“When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. [4] For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. [Psalm 32:3 – 4]

                                    b.         When we step outside our emotional resistance we have a chance to hear God.

“Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD – and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” [Psalm 32:5]

 

                        2.         We will have to be courageous.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. [24] See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” [Psalm 139:23 – 24]

 

                                    a.         Do what is right, even when everyone around you is not...

 

                                    b.         Do what is right, even if we gravitate toward what is comfortable.

 

                        3.         Keep in step with the Holy Spirit.

“Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” [Galatians 5:25]

 

                                    a.         To do this, we will have to hear and listen (obey)

 

                                    b.         To do this, we will have to be consistent reading the Bible.

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This it the way, walk in it.

Isaiah 30:19 – 22

This is the way, walk in it”

Israel’s Problem:

 

            1.         They were STUBBORN.

“Woe to the obstinate children,” [Isaiah 30:1a]

 

                        a.         The word translated “obstinate” literally means “unmanageable” [BDB]

 

                        b.         In other words, they had willfully chosen to NOT be lead.

[Ill. The TV show “The Apprentice.” Strategies to be “unmanageable” and not get caught or the blame... “Passive – Aggressive” is one way to be unmanagable.]

 

            2.         The made PLANS WITHOUT GOD.

“...to those who carry out plans that are not mine...” [Isaiah 30:1b]

 

                        a.         The plans made did not include God.

“In the school of church growth, there is no room for the Holy Spirit.” [Dr. George Hunter III]

 

                        b.         Here is a test: If you can accomplish it with your own strength, understand it with your own mind, resource it with your own labor.... It’s not from God.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” [Isaiah 55:9]

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; [6] in all your ways SUBMIT him, and he will make your paths straight.” [Proverbs 3:5 – 6 TNIV]

 

            3.         They made ALLIANCES.

“forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit” [Isaiah 30:1c]

 

                        a.         Resources their plans...

 

                        b.         Fuel their unmanageable disposition.

[This was a political problem... in psychology there are “enablers” who in some form help the bad behavior. One way to “enable” is to keep silent.]

 

            4.         The COMPOUNDED SIN.

“heaping sin upon sin.” [Isaiah 30:1d]

 

                        a.         Sin is addictive and blinding.

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. [“desperately wicked” KJV] Who can understand it?” [Jeremiah 17:9]

 

                        b.         In other words, “you can’t change.” It is willful and habitual.

“Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression.” [Psalm 19:13]

RESULT: “This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.” [Isaiah 30:15]

*****The natural human tendency is the habit of NOT listening to God.*****

God’s solution to our habit of NOT listening is GRACE and COMPASSION.

“Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you...” [Isaiah 30:18a]

 

            1.         This is the “grace” and “mercy” complex.

 

                        a.         Grace is getting what we do NOT deserve.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

 

                        b.         Mercy is NOT getting what we deserve.

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” [Psalm 103:10]

 

            2.         Patience to God means something different than it means to us.

 

                        a.         Patient is not inactivity.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9]

“But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” [Isaiah 40:31]

 

                        b.         Patience implies we have a choice of destiny.

“But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...” [Joshua 24:15]

“For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do--living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.” [1 Peter 4:3]

Why then do we behave the way we do?

 

            1.         Being SELFISH is easier.

 

                        a.         If all we have to consider is our own self, our self-interests, our self-wants... it’s simpler than having to consider others.

 

                        b.         We want to do what we want to do, when we want to do it, the way we want. It is the willfulness of a child. (“Woe to the obstinate children,” [Isaiah 30:1a])

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.” [Romans 1:21]

 

            2.         Being IGNORANT is easier.

 

                        a.         Knowledge implies responsibility or a call to action. Neither are comfortable.

“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. [20] Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. [21] But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.” [John 3:19 – 21]

 

                        b.         If we KNOW God is right... the we are faced with the choice of allowing God to be right about everything and follow God’s directions.

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it.” [Isaiah 30:21]

“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. [25] Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” [Galatians 5:24 – 25]

 

            3.         Being NEGLECTFUL is natural.

“We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. [2] For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, [3] how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. [4] God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” [Hebrews2:1 – 5]

 

                        a.         Spiritual drifting, it is a slow, casual, movement away from God’s truth. It is the systematic (deliberate or otherwise) deafness we develop.

 

                        b.         Another sure sign of spiritual neglect is the ignorance and non-exercise of spiritual gifts. (We are going to be talking about this early next year.)

 

            4.         God meets these with “adversity” [literally “narrow” “tight”] and “affliction” [oppression, distress, and pressure]

 

                        a.         When God narrows our choices or makes us feel like we have no choices (as opposed to us feeling comfortably in control) then we had better be listening.

 

                        b.         God wants the best for us.

“This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.” [Isaiah 30:15]

What do we need to do about this?

 

            1.         Pray for God to give us a new heart.

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” [Ezekiel 36:36]

 

                        a.         Everything reflects relationship with God.

 

                        b.         If you can live our lives without God, you are in serious trouble.

“You say, `I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. . . . [20] Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” [Revelation 3:17, 20]

 

            2.         Deal with your idols.

“Then you will defile your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, "Away with you!” [Isaiah 30:22]

 

                        a.         Maybe you are “unmanageable.”

 

                        b.         Maybe you have no place for God in your plans.

 

                        c.         Maybe you have acquired the necessary resources to put God on a shelf.

 

                        d.         Maybe you willfully add sin to sin.

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One Sermon

Acts 16:30

One time, one sermon.

Question: What would you say to a person if you knew you could only talk to them once about God?

 

1.         There is one true God.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” [Genesis 1:1]

 

            a.         God is God for all people at all times.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. . . . Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” [Psalm 19:1, 4]

 

            b.        God is commonly misunderstood and unknown. God (“God the Father”) is revealed through Jesus (“God the Son”) who created this world and who lived on earth to teach us about God’s (“God the Father”) grace and truth.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] He (Jesus) was with God in the beginning. [3] Through him (Jesus) all things were made; without him (Jesus) nothing was made that has been made. [4] In him (Jesus) was life, and that life was the light of men. [5] The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. . . . [14] The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

 

2.         God knows all about you. You must face God in Judgment. (That’s truth.)

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” [Hebrews 4:13]

“So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.” [Romans 14:12]

 

            a.         God thinks differently than we do. We think we are good. God sees the truth.

“He said to them, "You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.” [Luke 15:16]

 

            b.        Think about all the war, the crime, the hatred, the greed. Where does it come from? It’s who we are and what we do. That’s called “sin.”

“There is no one righteous, not even one; [11] there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. [12] All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. [13] Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. [14] Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. [15] Their feet are swift to shed blood; [16] ruin and misery mark their ways, [17] and the way of peace they do not know. [18] There is no fear of God before their eyes. . . . [23] for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” [Romans 3:10 – 17, 23]

 

3.         This behavior earns painful eternal consequences.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” [Romans 6:23]

 

            a.         The result of sin and judgment against us is an eternal lake of fire:

“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. [13] The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades (hell) gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. [14] Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. [15] If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” [Revelation 20:12 – 15]

 

            b.        Jesus described this place as “torment” and “agony in this fire” without pity.

“In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. [24] So he called to him, `Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.” [Luke 16:23 – 24]

 

            c.         Our effort does not come close to helping us.

“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” [Isaiah 64:6]

 

4.         God has another idea. It’s called “grace” which is doing something for us because God wants to not because we earn it or deserve it.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” [John 3:6]

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” [Luke 19:10]

 

            a.         Sin makes us powerless but God’s love is more powerful than our sin.

“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. [7] Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. [8] But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” [Romans 5:6 – 8]

 

            b.        God exchanged all our guilt and sin for Jesus’ righteousness.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

 

            c.         Jesus is the only way to be saved from our current condition and our future judgment.

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” [Acts 4:12]

 

5.         What must you do?

 

            a.         Admit you are a sinner. This is called “repentance.”

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9]

“Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?” [Romans 2:4]

 

                        1.)       This means admitting your sin and your need. Jesus said:

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” [Luke 5:32]

 

                        2.)       God forgives and cleans us when we admit our sin.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” [1 John 1:9]

 

            b.        Believe in who Jesus is and what Jesus did for you.

“All the prophets testify about him (Jesus) that everyone who believes in him (Jesus) receives forgiveness of sins through his (Jesus) name.” [Acts 10:43]

“They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household.” [Acts 16:31]

“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” [John 20:31]

 

            c.         Choose to follow Jesus.

“Yet to all who received him (Jesus), to those who believed in his name, he (Jesus) gave the right to become children of God.” [John 1:12]

                        1.)       This means an attitude change and causes us to live for the will of God.

“Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. [2] As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. [3] For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do--living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.” [1 Peter 4:1]

 

                        2.)       We are healed from the damage and desire for sin and want to live for righteousness.

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” [1 Peter 2:4]

 

6.         So, why am I doing this? Three reasons.

 

            a.         Jesus told those who choose to follow Him to talk about repentance and forgiveness of sins.

“Repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his (Jesus) name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. [48] You are witnesses of these things.” [Luke 24:47 – 48]

 

            b.        Because there is no other way.

“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” [1 John 5:12]

 

            c.         To offer you eternal life or encourage you if you already have it.

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” [1 John 5:13]

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