Jesus had a lot on His shoulders, and yet He always seems to at peace. He was never in a hurry, I can’t find anywhere where it looks like He was rushing anywhere. He handles the most difficult situations in the most amazing ways. So today, we are going to look at His life as model for handling stress.

1. Know who you are.

Stress happens when you are trying to be someone that you aren’t. Trying to fit in, compromising your beliefs, not being settled in the person God made you to be. If you don’t know who you are in Christ, other people will try and make you into what they think you should be.

Jesus had no doubt about who He was, and because of that He was able to approach situations without all the stress. For example:

John 13:3-5 (NIV)
3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

2. Know what you’re living for.

Jesus demonstrated this in:

John 5:30 (NIV)
30 By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.

The truth is you can’t please everybody.

3. Know your calling.

Know what God has called you to do. God put you on this earth to fulfill a certain job, a certain task.

John 8:14 (NIV)
14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going.

Ephesians 4:1 (NIV)
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.

So what do you do? It means each day you ask yourself while you’re starting to do stuff, is this what I’m called to do? Is what I’m doing right now moving me toward my calling? If it is you do it. If it’s not moving you toward your calling, don’t do it.

4. Concentrate on what is important

Don’t get distracted by trivia. Let me tell you something, a little secret I’ve learned as a pastor. If the Evil One can’t get you to be bad, he’ll get you to be busy.

Jesus knew what was important and that was got His focus, or concentration

Luke 9:51 (TLB)
51 As the time drew near for his return to heaven, he moved steadily onward toward Jerusalem with an iron will.

Luke 9:62 (TLB)
62 But Jesus told him, “Anyone who lets himself be distracted from the work I plan for him is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

5. Spend time with God

This is one of the most important elements of reducing stress. Instead of just trying to plan out your day and get it done, start by hanging out with God and seeing what His plans for you are.

Mark 1:35 (NIV)
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

6. Take time to rest, recreate and recharge.

This is so important it made it into the top ten. A Sabbath. A break. Time to kick back. Rest, recreate and recharge.

Exodus 20:8-10 (NIV)
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.

If you’re too busy to take your vacation time you’re too busy. If you’re too busy to pray, you’re too busy. And if you’re too busy to relax, you’re too busy.

7. Salvation (The ultimate stress reliever)

The one that Jesus made possible for us at the cross.

Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

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Jesus is our model for life and ministry. Following Jesus requires movement. You have to move forward, you have to have an active faith.

Mark 16:15 (NIV)
15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.

When Jesus said this to His disciples, there were no ocean crossing vessels, no planes, trains or automobiles. No Internet, Facebook, Google or Twitter or cell phones, but Jesus commissioned His disciples to go and tell.

2 Chronicles 16:9a (NIV)
9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

God is looking for people with committed hearts. Hearts like Jesus. How do we develop a heart like Jesus?

1. We have to care about what Jesus cares about

Ephesians 5:2 (NIV)
2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

What does Jesus care about?

a. He cares about the world

John 3:16 (NIV)
16 “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.

b. He cares about the church

Ephesians 5:25 (NIV)
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her

2. We have to value the things that Jesus values

a. Relationships

Jesus cares about relationship with God and with others

Matthew 22:37-40 (NIV)
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

3. We need to get angry over the things Jesus gets angry over

Ephesians 4:26 (NIV)
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,

Not a selfish self-righteous anger, but a righteous anger based on the hurts and suffering of others.

Jesus never got angry with unbelievers. He got angry with the religious leaders. With people who said one thing and lived another. Some people don’t realize that Jesus was a real man. He was a carpenter. He went in and cleansed the temple of the corrupt religious people who had turned the temple into a flea market twice, turning over their tables, driving out their livestock with a whip. Sometimes people have an image of some kind of sissy Jesus. Harmless in a stain free white robe, or their picture of Jesus is as a baby or as dead on a cross. He is none of those things. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who defeated sin and death and the evil one.

His anger lead to action and change.

4. We have to sacrifice for the things that Jesus sacrificed for

Mark 8:35 (NIV)
35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.

Here’s the amazing thing: if we will change our perspective from living for ourselves to living for Jesus, your joy meter is going to go off the charts. Why? Because God has wired the universe that the more we become like him – giving, generous, unselfish – the happier we get.

If we try and find and define life the way our culture does, we will never find life. If we give our lives to Him, we will experience life the way God intends us to. Follow Jesus, follow His example, follow the model He has set, and find life.

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John 3:1-17 (NIV)
1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.” 3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” 4 “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” 9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. 10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven–the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “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. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

John 3:1

Enter Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a religious leader as well as a political leader.

These “leaders’ sat in Moses seat over the people of Israel.
At this time in Israel’s history they were operating under the rule of the Romans. The Romans collected taxes and garrisoned armies in the countries they occupied, but they allowed those countries to continue to self-govern over most areas.

Nicodemus was a very powerful person. His standing as a political leader meant that he would be backed by Rome, and he was also a recognized interpreter of the Law.

John 3:2

While Nicodemus recognized that Jesus had come from God, he comes at night so as not to be seen as making any sort of public recognition of Jesus.

John 3:3

Jesus jump start the conversation by telling Nicodemus that no one could even see the Kingdom of God unless they are born again.

John 3:4

Nicodemus can’t grasp the strange concept and asks Jesus for clarification by basically saying “What in the world are you talking about”?

John 3:5-15

Jesus response to Nicodemus demonstrates that the revelation of grace and truth that Jesus brings is not foreign to the Old Testament, and that as “Israel’s Teacher”. Nicodemus should not be surprised by them. Consider some of these Old Testament verses:

Jeremiah 31:31-33 (NIV)
31 “The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

Ezekiel 11:19 (NIV)
19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV)
26 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.

These passages talk about a new birth and so the idea had been around a long time. But Nicodemus did not seem to know about this idea, all he knew about was the Law.

His concept of God was faulty because he missed the grace of God, which tells us about the amazing love of God for us in spite of our failures and sin.

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John 2:1-25 (NIV)
1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” 4 “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” 11 This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him. 12 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days. 13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” 18 Then the Jews demanded of him, “What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 The Jews replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken. 23 Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name. 24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. 25 He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.

Jesus first miracle (John used the word “signs” to point to their significance, the miracles were a sign that Jesus was the Messiah) was very private, only the disciples who had already been called (it is possible that Matthew was not there which would explain why this miracle was not recorded in the Synoptic gospels), Jesus mother, and some servants knew. It was enough for the disciples who were present to put their faith in Him.

John 2:1

The third day is probably a reference to three days after the calling of Philip and Nathanael.

John 2:2-3

Wedding feasts often lasted seven days. They took place after the groom had returned for the bride and taken her back to his home or his father’s house.

When the wine runs out, Mary looks to Jesus to see if there is anything He can do. Because verse 11 tells us that this is Jesus first miracle, it is unlikely that Mary was expecting one.

John 2:4-10

If the master of the banquet had seen that the water that had been used came from the purification jars (water which was used for the ceremonial cleansing before and after meals) he, or any other Religious Jew would never have drank from it.

This is a contrast between the old religious way of doing things (rules and regulations) and how Jesus would come and do things.

The fact that this wine was the best (normally the best wine was served first and then the wine that wasn’t so good) is another picture of the message that Jesus was bringing about the Kingdom of God was an advance over the rules and regulations of the Pharisees. God had kept the best until NOW.

John 2:11

John refers to this miracle as a revealing of His glory. In the OT Moses had turned water into blood which was a picture of judgment. Here, at the beginning of Christ’s ministry, water is turned to wine, a picture of the joy He provides by the Spirit. As the Creator, the fermentation process happens over time, in this situation, He just did the transformation immediately, and His ministry would be one of transformation.

John 2:12-17

Jesus cleanses the temple. The synoptic gospels record Jesus cleansing the temple at the end of His ministry. Here John records a cleansing at the beginning of His ministry. The most likely answer is that there were two cleansings. This first cleansing is most likely a fulfillment of Malachi 3:1-3

Malachi 3:1-3 (NIV)
1 “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,

In verse 17 the disciples are reminded of Psalm 69:9 which says

Psalms 69:9 (NIV)
9 for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.

John 2:18-22

The authorities want proof of His authority to challenge the existing order, but He answers them by talking about His death and resurrection which they don’t understand. His disciples will connect the dots after the fact.

John 2:23-25

Jesus does other miraculous sings while He was there in Jerusalem during the Passover feast, which John does not describe, but many people believed in His name. These people, believed He was doing miraculous signs from God, but they did not see Him as the Messiah and put their faith in Him the way the disciple had.

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Last week we started this series by talking about Jesus coming to His hometown after His first year of ministry and being the guest speaker at His hometown synagogue. He read from the scroll of Isaiah and we said that there were five types of people that Jesus came for.

The Poor
The Brokenhearted
The Imprisoned
The Blind
The Oppressed

This week we are going to talk about how He ministered to these groups and how He wants us to minister to them as well. He is our model for life and ministry.

In John 13:15 Jesus said, “I have given you an example to follow. Now do as I have dome for you”. (This is as He washed His disciples feet, but it was even bigger than just that moment. His entire ministry modeled what He wanted and wants His disciples to do.

1. Preach Good News

For the poor He came to preach Good News. He wants us to do the same. What is the good news? You are not an accident. God created you because He wants to have an eternal relationship with you. Jesus is the answer to all of our problems. You don’t have to earn your way to heaven. You can be forgiven, set free, delivered. He Has a purpose for your life. How? Love people well and if the opportunity arises, tell your story.

2. Comfort the Brokenhearted

Everybody has experience a broken heart. How? Open your eyes and look around you. Broken hearted people are everywhere. Pray for them, encourage them, look for ways to show them kindness.

3. Proclaim Freedom

Proclaim freedom for those who feel imprisoned. Let’s look at this another way. Have you ever heard anyone say “I feel trapped?” That is a prison and God has come to proclaim freedom for trapped people. People trapped in addictions, abusive situations, finances, health, and all sort of circumstances. As we said last week, perhaps the biggest trap of al is “fear”. How do we help people overcome their fears? How do we overcome our own fears?

Practice the presence of Christ.

1 John 4:18 (NIV)
18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

So we work on our relationship with God. We talk to Him, we start praying about our decisions, we make time for Him in our lives. We realize that He is with us and that no matter what happens, He is with us for ever. IN His presence, there is no room for fear.

And there is something else, we need to move against the fear, and that is called faith. You deal with the things you are afraid of. You open the door of the closet and the boogey man isn’t as big as you thought he was. The fear is always worse than the reality. The fear of failure is worse that failure. Failure is no big deal. You just get up and start over. The fear of rejection is worse than rejection. The fear of embarrassment is worse than embarrassment. The fear is always worse than reality.

4. Recovery of Sight

We need to be willing to speak the truth in love, to offer insight. When you see someone in a bad situation, someone messing up their lives, you need to look for ways to speak into in love. Not in judgment, but in love.

This is often the hardest thing to do but it is the most loving thing to do. You will speak the truth to people you love.

Love helps the blind to see by telling them the truth.

5. Release the Oppressed

We need to care for the people who are overlooked. Who are unable to fend for themselves. And, perhaps the biggest oppression is on those people who don’t yet know Jesus. We need to be aware of our calling as ambassadors for Christ and make sure we don’t fall into the “it’s all about me” perspective of life.

Let me close with the words of the Apostle Paul:

1 Corinthians 9:19-24 (NIV)
19 Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

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After Jesus is baptized, (which He models for us, Jesus was dedicated as a baby and baptized as an adult), for about a year, Jesus goes around healing, doing miracles, teaching. After a year of very successful ministry He goes to his hometown in Nazareth. The people have heard about all the things He has done in Jerusalem and all over Israel is coming back and He is going to go to His own synagogue.
That’s where we pick up the story in Luke 4. It says

Luke 4:14-16 (NIV)
14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15 He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read.

Jesus went to church every week.

Jesus is at His home synagogue and He is the guest speaker. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah – Isaiah is a book in the Old Testament – was handed to him. Unrolling it, Jesus goes to chapter 61:1-2 and reads a prophecy saying the Messiah, the Savior of the world, is coming one day. It had been written hundreds of years earlier. This event continues in Luke 4:17-19

Luke 4:17-19 (NIV)
17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

He says the Messiah is coming to do five things. Then it says

Luke 4:20a (NIV)
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down.

Why did he sit down? Because in those days the teachers sat down and everybody in worship stood while he taught. Sometimes people ask me why I sit when I preach. I show them this verse and then I ask them the same question.

Jesus rolls up the scroll. He sits down. The verse goes on:

Luke 4:20-21 (NIV)
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Try and imagine the shock that runs through the synagogue. He stands up and reads the most popular passage about the coming of the Messiah, and them He sits down and says, “That’s Me”!

What I want to do today is talk about the types of people Jesus came to help. Then, next week we will talk about what He did to help them and we will then look at how He wants us to do the same. He modeled life and ministry for us.

1. The poor.

There are actually different types of poverty.

Material poverty. Lack of money.

Moral poverty. Lack of Integrity.

Spiritual poverty. Lack of Jesus in your life.

2. The brokenhearted.

The phrase “broken heart,” comes from the Bible. In Psalm 69:20 where David says this “Scorn has broken my heart.” That’s the first use of the idea “broken heart.” It comes from the Bible.

What causes broken hearts? Let me give you a few examples.

Disappointment.

Rejection.

Resentment.

3. The imprisoned.

There are a lot of types of prisons including actual jails and prisons, but here are a few more.

Addictions

Secrets

Fear

4. The blind.

Physical

Relational

Spiritual

Closing our eyes to the goodness of God. Not realizing our need for a Savior.

5. The oppressed.

Political oppression.

Political oppression is real. Around the world there are over 35 million people living in refugee camps because they have been politically oppressed.

Cultural Oppression

Right now in the world there are twenty-seven million people living as slaves. There are more people enslaved today than there were a hundred fifty years ago in the Civil War. The number one cause of this slavery is sex trade. This is happening because of cultural oppression. Cultural oppression doesn’t come from the government. But it comes from the cultures that we live in.

Spiritual oppression

What is spiritual oppression? When you feel pressured, when you feel oppressed, when you feel pressed on, when you feel stressed out, you’re at the end of your rope, you’re ready to throw in the towel, you want to give it all up, you’re ready to hang it up, you’re ready to chuck it all – that’s called spiritual oppression.

Jesus said these are the kind of people that I came for.

The last phrase on the outline is “The Year of Jubilee”. I want to close by talking about this for a minute. The year of Jubilee or the Lord’s favor is a law that God created in the nation of Israel.

Every seven days take a day off. Sabbath.

Every seven years, take a Sabbath year to give the land a break.

After every seven sabbatical years (7 x 7 = 49 years) so the fiftieth year have a year of Jubilee.

In the Year of Jubilee four things were supposed to happen:

1. Every debt completely canceled

2. Every one in debtors prison is set free

3. Every indentured servant is let go

4. All land returns to its original owner.

Why did God make up this year of the Lord’s favor for Israel?

So they would never forget what God had done for them. They were slaves and God had set them free and He wanted them to do that for others. They had no land and so he gave them land and wanted them to remember what that was like.

He also wanted people to realize that you don’t really own anything. It’s all on loan to you. You didn’t bring anything into this world. You’re not taking anything out of this world. What you have right now is not really your stuff. It’s just on loan to you from God for whatever your life span is.

Perhaps even more interesting, is that we can’t find evidence of Israel ever obeying the Year of Jubilee.

This refusal which is brought on by selfishness is one of the reasons that Israel ended up in slavery again at the hands of the Babylonians. While they were in captivity in Babylon Isaiah writes the passage we started the message with. God is going to send a Savior, the Messiah will come and He’s going to preach good news to the poor and he’s going to heal the brokenhearted and he’s going to proclaim freedom to the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind and he’s going to release the oppressed and he’s going to forgive all of the debts and all of your sins just like the Year of Jubilee was supposed to.”

That was the passage that Jesus read in his hometown. He said the year of Jubilee when everybody’s sin is wiped out and everybody’s debt is wiped out and he said, That’s Me.

John 1:1-51 (NIV)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 6 There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God– 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 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. 15 John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’” 16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known. 19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Christ.” 21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’” 24 Now some Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.” 35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and spent that day with him. It was about the tenth hour. 40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter). 43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote–Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. 47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” 49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” 50 Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

The gospel of John is different from Matthew, Mark, and Luke in a number of ways. John speaks more clearly than any other of the deity of Christ. It was the last of the gospels to be written, almost 40 years after the end of Jesus life on earth. Whereas Matthew, Mark, and Luke, (THE Synoptic Gospels) were all written to specific cultural groups, (like Mark to the Romans) John was written as more of a universal Gospel, to all people of all times. John’s purpose is to unveil the Man, Jesus, and to reveal Him as God.

In the opening chapters of John we will be introduced to four people. They are John the Baptist, Nathanael, Nicodemus, and the “woman at the well.”

“John was Jesus’ forerunner, sent to prepare Israel for His coming. Nathanael represented the godly Israelite who responded at the very first evidence that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Nicodemus represented the religious leaders who realized from Christ’s miracles that Jesus is “a Teacher . . . come from God,” but whose spiritual blindness kept them from understanding the true message of the Old Testament, and whose spiritual deadness made them antagonistic to the Son of God. The woman at the well represents the myriad of human beings outside the chosen people who, when they meet Jesus, put their confidence in Israel’s Saviour.”

John 1:1-18

The Word. This title, “the Word,” teaches that Jesus is now, and always has been, the One through whom God expresses Himself. But how did God express Himself in history past, even before the Incarnation?

In Creation John 1:3 The planet and all that He put on it

In life John 1:4 Living creatures including us made in His image

In light John 1:5 Light represents holiness, righteousness, good. In contrast, darkness as a moral term represents evil, all those warped and twisted ways in which sin had perverted the good in man, and brought pain to individuals and society. “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.”
There is a moral awareness planted deep in the heart of every person.

Then, finally, the Word became flesh. “The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”
How is grace portrayed in John? The Creator of the universe entered the world He had made and made a way through the Cross for us to have life.

John 1:19-51

There is a pattern revealed in these verses that is often followed in the rest of his Gospel. Both John the Baptist and Nathanael have some type of small personal miracle or revelation followed by a short discourse that causes them to fully believe in Jesus the Christ.

With John the Baptist, it is a dove and the voice of God. With Nathanael it is Jesus telling Him he was under a fig tree.

Even though they both had very strong preconceived ideas about Messiah, (John the Baptist talked about the stern judgments that Messiah would execute, and yet here was the gentle cousin he had known throughout his youth. Nathanael knew that Messiah would come from somewhere other than Nazareth) these personal miraculous encounters with Jesus caused each of these men to immediately recognized the hand of God and they set aside their preconceived notions, to submit to the authority of Jesus.

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This series has been about learning and growing in God’s love. We have said that it is faith expressing itself through love counts, it is what really matters. Along the way we have also said that since love is a choice, a decision, a commitment, that we can practice love and get better at it. That we can learn to love extravagantly like God does. As we have talked about some of the various facets of love, we have given you some practical ways to try and do more than just talk about love, but begin to practice real love.

We talked about kindness being connected to the eyes, (sensitivity) and to the ears (sympathy). That we need to learn to see what was happening with people and that we need to learn to be better listeners. Then we talked about

Love doesn’t envy

1. Stop comparing yourself to others
2. Start enjoying God’s grace to others.
3. Be grateful for what you do have.
4. Trust God even when life seems unfair
5. Keep focused on God’s will for you

Love is not proud

1. Practice putting others first
2. Practice learning from others
3. Practice admitting when you are wrong (Hold the buts)
4. Practice surrendering your will to His will

Love is not rude

1. Learn to listen
2. Keep your promises
3. Be willing to serve
4. See people the way that God sees them

Love is not easily angered

1. Break your Pattern of anger
2. Worry less, pray more
3. Snack and a Nap
4. Reconsider Your Expectations

Let’s talk today about why it so important to get a hold of the idea that it is really love that matters most.

Jesus told a story about this. In Luke 12, Jesus says,

Luke 12:16-21 (CEV)
16 So Jesus told them this story: A rich man’s farm produced a big crop, 17 and he said to himself, “What can I do? I don’t have a place large enough to store everything.” 18 Later, he said, “Now I know what I’ll do. I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones, where I can store all my grain and other goods. 19 Then I’ll say to myself, ‘You have stored up enough good things to last for years to come. Live it up! Eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.’ ” 20 But God said to him, “You fool! Tonight you will die. Then who will get what you have stored up?” 21 “This is what happens to people who store up everything for themselves, but are poor in the sight of God.”

Growing in God’s love helps us to realize that it is not all about us. In the illustration that Jesus gives us we see a man who only thought of himself. It didn’t occur to him that maybe God was blessing him so he could be a blessing to other people. He just thinks that it is all about him and he will just keep the focus on himself and God says ” “You re missing what matters most in life.”

So what does matter most to God? We looked at this verse in the first week of the series.

Galatians 5:6 (NIV)
6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. How important is getting this figured out? Here are some of the things that happen if we don’t.

1. Nothing I say will matter.

1 Corinthians 13:1 (NIV)
1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

Words without love are just noise. If you don’t practice real love, then what you say doesn’t make any difference. Words without love are empty.

2. Nothing I know will matter.

1 Corinthians 13:2a (NIV)
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, ….but have not love, I am nothing.

Brilliance without love equals zero.

We live in a world where knowledge is exploding. We are smarter than we’ve ever been before than any other generation. But we still have the same old problems – war, terrorism, crime, abuse, prejudice, hatred, violence. Why? Because what the world needs is not more knowledge; it needs more love.

3. Nothing I believe will matter.

1 Corinthians 13:2b (NIV)
and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

Yes but I believe in Jesus. The ultimate issue is not whether you believe in Him, it is whether you love Him.

Remember, Love God and love others.

1 John 4:20-21 (MSG)
20 If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? 21 The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.

4. Nothing I give will matter.

1 Corinthians 13:3 (NIV)
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Giving is not necessarily always loving. Some people give just in order to get back. That’s not love. Some people give out of guilt, trying to make up for something they did in the past. Some people give to control other people. You can give for a lot of wrong motives, and the Bible says if I’m not doing this in love, none of my giving counts.

5. Nothing I accomplish will matter.

1 Corinthians 13:3 in The Message paraphrase says, “No matter what I say or what I believe or what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.”

The Bible says — God says –relationships are more important than accomplishments. Life is about relationships not accomplishments.

Let’s summarize it like this. We can have the eloquence of of a great speaker, the knowledge of a, Albert Einstein, the faith of a miracle worker, the generosity of a philanthropist, the achievements of a superstar, but if I don’t have love in my heart, it doesn’t count. The only thing that matters to God is do I love Him and do I love other people?

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Anybody here ever been angry?

Love is not easily angered.

What does that mean?

It doesn’t say don’t get angry. There is an appropriate anger for situations that are absolutely wrong. It says don’t be easily angered. How can we practice not being easily angered?

1. Break your Pattern of anger

Did you ever see the movie, “What About Bob”? It is one of my favorites. During the course of the movie Richard Dreyfuss keeps getting angrier and angrier until he finally just loses it.

Proverbs 29:11 (NIV)
11 A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.

Does this mean I’m supposed to pretend I’m not angry? No, keeping yourself under control, doesn’t mean that you just stuff your anger, or pretend it isn’t there, it means you need to learn how to handle it appropriately.

Ephesians 4:26-27 (NIV)
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold.

Circle “do not sin.” That means sometimes you need to wait until you have cooled down a little to have a conversation. If you talk right away when you’re feeling that intense anger, you’re going to say the wrong things.

2. Don’t hang out with angry people

Proverbs 22:24-25 (MSG)
24 Don’t hang out with angry people; don’t keep company with hotheads. 25 Bad temper is contagious— don’t get infected.

Others’ anger can easily infect you. At its core, anger is an emotion that seeks to correct wrong. When you feel angry, you feel wronged. That’s why there’s a good kind of anger. There’s some genuine wrongs in this world that need to be corrected.

There are people in your life who cause you to become angrier. I found this happening to me when I had the News Channels on all the time. I would be getting angry about stuff that I had never even thought about.

3. Worry less, pray more

Because our worries and anxieties often take us down a road that lead us straight to anger. Anger and anxiety are closely connected.

Psalms 37:8 (TLB)
8 Stop your anger! Turn off your wrath. Don’t fret and worry–it only leads to harm.

When you are feeling angry, ask yourself, “What am I worried about? What am I anxious about?” It will often help you to break through. Once you have figured out what you are really worried about, then you can pray.

Philippians 4:6 (NIV)
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

4. Snack and a Nap

1 Kings 19:5 (NIV)
5 Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.”

This is one of my personal “theologies”. Lot’s of things in life look better after a snack and a nap. A great example of this is found in 1 Kings 19. Elijah has just battled against 450 false prophets on a mountain. 450 false prophets against Elijah, the true prophet of God. You could call that a bad prophet margin.

God shows up in a big way and Elijah is victorious over the false prophets. The next day Queen Jezebel says, “This isn’t over yet! I’m still after you.” Elijah has a meltdown. He goes ballistic. He runs as fast as he can to the other end of the country, all the way to the other end of Israel he keeps giving the same “Poor Me!” speech to God. “I’m the only one left. You’ve only got me, and look what You’re doing to me.” If you hear yourself continuing to give the same Poor Me speech, it’s a pretty good indication that you’re too tired. Or that you need something to eat.

Lay down and rest. Get up and eat. That’s one of the most important things you and I can do to break through the anger in our lives.

5. Reconsider Your Expectations

Proverbs 4:23 (NCV)
23 Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life.

We have expectations of what’s going to happen. When those expectations don’t match reality, the further apart those are, the angrier we become.

How do you reconsider your expectations?

Philippians 4:8 (TLB)
8 And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.

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Love is not rude. Love is respectful.

1 Peter 2:17 (NIV)
17 Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

Last week we had dinner with my daughter Sarah and my son in law Paul at their house, and we talked about the discussion I had with Paul before they started dating. I explained to him in detail my thoughts on what love being respectful looked like.

What is Respect?

Respect is showing value and honor to others by our actions.

An illustration about respect:

Luke 7:36-50 (NIV)
36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38 and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is–that she is a sinner.” 40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,” he said. 41 “Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. 44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven–for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.” 48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” 50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

In this story there are four things I want to look at about showing respect.

1. Learn to listen

We talked about how important listening is when we talked about being kind, but it is worth a reminder as we talk about respect. Jesus was such a good listener that he was able to hear the woman without her ever speaking a word, and he was able to know Simon’s thoughts. That is some amazing listening.

Listening often goes beyond what people are saying, it’s seeing what’s in their eyes, it’s feeling what’s in their hearts. The woman was speaking loudly to Jesus through her tears and her actions. She had a message, and it seems if Jesus were the only one who was listening.

Listening makes people feel respected.

2 Corinthians 7:15 (NLT)
15 Now he cares for you more than ever when he remembers the way you listened to him and welcomed him with such respect and deep concern.

2. Keep your promises

In this encounter, Jesus tells the woman her sins are forgiven and Jesus keeps His promises. Do you keep your promises? If you say you are going to do something, do you do it?

Proverbs 25:14 (TEV)
14 People who promise things that they never give are like clouds and wind that bring no rain.

Matthew 5:37a (NIV)
37 Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’;

3. Be willing to serve

The woman in this story is an amazing picture of someone who is willing to serve.

Service is about doing our best for others. And yet we often hold back because we are worried about our position. What would people think if I did that. I am better than that. Someone else should take care of that.

John 13:3-5 (NIV)
3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

4. See people the way that God sees them

Romans 12:16 (MSG)
16 Get along with each other; don’t be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don’t be the great somebody.

Don’t allow yourself to make people just part of the scenery and machinery of your life. Take time to stop and look!

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