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Nobleton Community Church
February 4, 2024
text. I John 2:1-11; I Peter 2:2-21
Pastor Paul V Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

John told us in chapter one that what they had heard, seen, and touched was what they as apostles of Jesus were proclaiming as the Gospel message. They were doing it so that we could have fellowship with each other as fellow believers. Then he says that their fellowship was with God and that if we claim to have fellowship with him we must not walk in darkness, otherwise we are lying when we say that we have fellowship with God. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. Because when we sin he will forgive it, if we confess it. (I John 1:9) 

Then to make sure that this gospel truth of knowing that through Jesus Christ and because of his shed blood we have forgiveness of sin, was not stressed as a license for sinning, he takes the other seemingly paradoxical position of saying he is writing to us so that we don’t sin. 

Far from tolerating sin, he says “I would have you aim at being sinless. Let it be deliberately set before you as your fixed and settled purpose that you are not to sin. Not merely that you are to sin as little as you can, but that you are not to sin at all. Absolute holiness is to be your standard for it is God’s standard, and as a Christian, you are in him. 

Now we may acknowledge a sinless ideal and our obligation to it, but often times this acknowledgment is accompanied by some sort of reserve or qualification. You do not really mean to be altogether without sin; but only so far as your own ability to keep from sinning goes, (but oh yes, we say, aided by the Holy Spirit.) 

The problem is, in regards to a specific temptation you do not really mean not to sin, in it, but only not to sin in it more than you can help. In other words, I’ll try to do what the Lord wants, but I know I’ll fail. And I know how I’ll fail. But is that, however, a really honest determination on your part not to sin? I don’t think so!

But John is showing us throughout this book that we are to be actively resisting sin and following after holiness, after the light, obeying him. No, whoever claims to live in him, must walk as Jesus walked. 

The other verse that that was read I Peter 2:21;  Peter says to this you were allied, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should FOLLOW IN HIS STEPS.  

There was a book written in 1897 by Charles Sheldon entitled “In His Steps,” based on this passage. In more recent years it has been reprinted and even a movie was made about it.  The main theme was about what would Jesus do if he saw a down-and-out person –out of work and dressed shabbily.    (This book is available on Amazon) There were bumper stickers, some years ago, and teenagers wore bracelets with the initials W.W.J.D. These are still available if one would like to have them.  The story presents a church and pastor who makes the commitment to always ask this question. We read about the blessings that came on each one as they obeyed Christ. 

For us let’s consider what it means to LIVE IN HIM. 

To understand this verse we need to study the use of the word translated “to live in him”. To walk as Christ walked is essential to our abiding in God. Not merely being in God as we have it in verse 5, but being in him permanently; continuing or abiding in him –living in him. Jesus tells us; “if you obey my commands, you will remain (abide) in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 

So if we would abide in God as he did, we must walk as he walked, keeping the Father’s commandments as he kept them. Thus this verse fits into those that go before, and complete, so far, the apostle’s description at the divine fellowship, viewed as a fellowship of holy light, and transforming, obedient knowledge.

To live in Him means to abide, to stay, to remain, all part of the verb to live, but implies more than position. When used of remaining or staying in a home in also implies fellowship, communion, dependence harmony, and friendship. It is used in a number of Gospel passages   
Matt. 10:11 Jesus told his disciples to stay at the house of the person who receives them until they leave the village 
Matt.  26:36 When Jesus prayed in Gethsemane he asked the three disciples who were with him, “Stay here and keep watch with me.” 
Luke 1:56   Mary went to see Elizabeth and stayed with her 
Luke 19:5 Jesus told Zacchaeus—-” come down immediately, I must stay at your house today. 
Luke 8:27   The demonized man called Legion, lived or stayed among the tombes. 
John 1:39,40  Two of Jesus’ disciples asked him where are you staying?   Jesus told them; “come and see” 

These instances could be multiplied. To abide in the Lord Jesus means to STAY with him. Jesus therefore implies not only position but also relationship.—-  staying, living, (abiding)   But it literally means to “walk around  It came to mean the manner of life of the person–so now let’s consider; THE MANNER THAT JESUS WALKED AND LIVED

Walk here means to conduct one’s self, to order one’s behavior, after that of Christ. 

All things to him were of God (II Corinthians 5:17-18 Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.  All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.  After we are new creatures we are given the ministry of reconciliation. That is; telling people how they can be reconciled to God through Christ— this is witnessing. 

Phil 2:5-11 OUR ATTITUDE SHOULD BE THE SAME AS CHRIST.   To walk in this respect as Christ walked, abiding in god as he did is to be “emptied of self.” Of we walk with 

Him we ought to walk in love as he walked, a walk of active benevolence A man approved of god, who went about doing good because he walked in love.  But he also walked in the power of the Holy Spirit and so should we. He did the will of his Father and was obedient to him and so should we. He glorified God, and so should we.  

Are we really in Jesus Christ and is he in us?
Do we walk as he walked?
Do we live as he lived? In Adam, all died, even so, in Christ shall we all be made alive,

We are to follow in his steps. We are to do what He would do, in every situation.

[Bread and water don’t sound appetizing,
but it will after listening to your new Health Coach]

Nobleton Community Church
February 4, 2024
text: Isaiah 55:1-9; John 6:35; John 4: 13-15
Reverend Paul V Lehmann

Listen to the audio here

Many health insurance providers are now supplying patients with opportunities for some personal “health coaching.” Isaiah offers the same kind of spiritual health advice to the people of God.
 
It’s no secret that we are becoming a nation full of unhealthy people. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than a third (35.7%) of Americans are obese. Carrying an unhealthy weight leads to all kinds of related conditions like heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer — in other words, most of the leading causes of death. In 2008, the medical costs related to obesity in the United States were estimated at $147 billion, or $1,492 more per obese person than a person of normal weight. And yet, despite the constant warnings in the media and the pleading of doctors, obesity rates continue to rise. In 2000, no state had an obesity prevalence over 30 percent, while in 2010, 12 states exceeded that threshold. It’s fairly clear that people aren’t generally good at doing what’s best for their own health.
 
Some health insurance companies have decided to take another approach, however. Rather than merely continuing to pay the mounting costs, these companies in partnership with doctors and nurses are attempting to help people manage their health, not only through massive doses of information but also through the personal attention of a “health coach.”
The truth is, of course, that it’s hard for us to make changes in our lives strictly by our own willpower. The spirit may be willing, after all, but the flesh is weak. Twinkies taste better than tofu, and sometimes we need a partner to remind us to not eat more than one or two cookies, or take an extra piece of pie.
 
Health coaches aren’t exactly like football or basketball coaches with all the yelling, whistles, and drills for endurance, but their technique can be no less effective. Years ago, II coached two basketball teams because I had two of my grandkids on them. Joseph and Zachariah.  When I coach, I don’t like to give the boys drills just for the sake of a drill, but ones that can translate for them into game situations. That way everything they are learning is applicable when they are playing another team. It is the same way with our spiritual conditioning and practice.
 
All we need is someone to remind us that we don’t have to live this way and that better and healthier lives are ahead if we’re willing to put in the hard work of taking charge of our own health
 
John Wooden, legendary coach of UCLA’s men’s basketball team from 1945 to 1975, is well-remembered for his pithy sayings that inspired his players to excel off the court as well as on. More than many coaches, Wooden saw his responsibility as developing more than just muscles, coordination, and game-day strategy. He saw himself as molding the whole person. Here are a few John Wooden gems:
“Failure is not fatal but failure to change might be.”
“Talent is God-given; be humble. Fame is man-given; be thankful. Conceit is self-given; be careful.”
“Don’t beat yourself. That’s the worst kind of defeat you’ll ever suffer.”
“Learn as if you were to live forever; live as if you were to die tomorrow.”
 
We can then see how this helps us in our daily walk when we are faced with real-life problems. It just takes someone like a coach to help us.
As we’re going to see, that someone is God.
 
Having a partner on the way is always better, since, as the writer of Ecclesiastes puts it, “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up the other; but woe to one who is alone and falls and does not have another to help” (4:9-10). Then at the end of verse 12, we read; “a cord of three strands is not quickly broken” referring to the extra help of God. Just as we must include God in marriages, we shouldn’t hesitate to ask Him to help us (like a health coach) to eat right.
 
The presence of a health coach, even if he or she is only on the other end of a phone line, can make a huge difference in the life of someone who’s struggling physically.
One recent study by The New England Journal of Medicine revealed that patients with health coaches were able to lose five times more weight than those who tried to lose it on their own. You want to make changes in your health? Get a coach!
 
How does the “health coach” idea work? Here’s an example at least at one health insurance Company: Each year, the patient fills out an online health assessment based on an annual physical, including blood work. The company provides an incentive for people to get the exam and fill out the assessment by lowering deductibles for those who do so. The patient fills out the online form using the data from the exam. Any red flag numbers that come up are brought to the patient’s attention and he or she is then offered the services of a “health coach,” usually a registered nurse, who will be in contact with the patient by phone to help the patient manage the problem and make changes.
 
The health coach talks with the patient to understand his or her condition and then helps the patient set goals for living a healthier lifestyle and/or managing a chronic disease like asthma or diabetes or a host of other conditions. The health coach checks in with the patient on a regular basis, offering tips and encouragement for maintaining better health through things like nutrition counseling, weight-loss strategies, how to take medication effectively and advising about appropriate exercises. The patient isn’t required to have a health coach or listen to his or her advice, but for those who want to find a way out of their current health situation, the coaches are a valuable resource.
 
What’s true for our bodies also seems to hold true for our spiritual lives, which makes sense because, as the Bible teaches us, the two are linked. Health coaching for the soul is as helpful and necessary as the coaching one might get from an insurance company, except in the case of spiritual coaching we’re not trying to cut down, but rather trying to fill up on God’s spirit and provision for our lives.
 
Water is important in this week’s text:
God speaks to the exiled people of Judah through the prophet Isaiah in a way that sounds a lot like a health coach calling a suffering patient. God is advising them on strategies that will restore their spiritual health and relationships with God as he prepares to lead them back from exile in Babylon. The people have long been dehydrated and starving as a consequence of their sin and banishment to a foreign land. Now God gives them some nutrition counseling about how to be nourished again.
 
“Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters,” the Coach begins. In chapter 8, God tells Isaiah that one of the reasons that the people’s health is so bad is that they refused to drink “the waters of Shiloah” (8:5) — a reference to a canal along the eastern slope of Jerusalem that some scholars have connected to the Pool of Siloam (John 9:7). These waters seem to represent the sustaining strength of God for his people, but they rejected it and chose to run thirsty. As a result, all they would receive is the “mighty flood” of foreign invasion instead (8:7). And yet, as God promised to Noah during another catastrophic flood, God would still sustain and be with them (54:9-10). God now invites his thirsty people to “come to the waters” and drink deeply, once again, of God’s love for them.
 
Spiritual dryness can become a chronic condition for the people of God if they do not come to the “living water” and drink deeply on a regular basis (John 4:10).  Jesus told the Samaritan woman that he would give her this living water. She was all for this, because she thought he was talking about water for her physical body, and this sounded like a good deal. She wouldn’t get thirsty again, and wouldn’t have to keep coming to the well to draw water anymore. She totally missed his comment about whoever drinks of this water—that is the water from a well like this one will be thirsty again, but the water that He would give her would become in her a spring of water, welling up to eternal life. Somehow she missed the fact that He was talking about spiritual water.
 
As any health coach will tell you, drinking at least eight, 8-ounce glasses of water a day will benefit you a great deal. Actually, it is recommended that men drink 125 ounces a day, and women 91 ounces.
Regular and sustained disciplines of prayer and engagement with God’s word will also sustain the thirsty soul. God invites us, as he invited the people of Judah, to come and drink deeply and be refreshed by his love and his promises.
Then, not only is water important, but also our Diet:
The Health Coach then goes on to talk about diet. Obesity is most prevalent among the poor because unhealthy, processed foods are cheaper and easier to prepare. Maybe you are like me, and think when you hear reports on the News about all these people who are obese,— that’s not me. I’m not obese. I don’t weigh 300 or 400 pounds. When you look at the weight charts, it is annoying how they calculate what you should weigh. For someone like me who is 6’ tall, they used to say I should weigh 168 lbs. Twice in my life since high school, I have weighed that, and I look like I just came out of a concentration camp. Maybe because I have a “large frame” –I look thin at 190 lbs. It is interesting that they have now changed the chart so that the accepted weight for a man 6’ tall is now 199 pounds. (I guess because Americans are getting bigger, and it is more accepted to be big).  Now granted I have 38 lbs to lose to get to that. Anyway, my problem Jeannene keeps reminding me, is my diet. Also of course I must exercise and walk. I must change my diet and get serious about eating healthy or nothing will change.
 
Now spiritually speaking, God urges people to get off the fast, cheap and easy spiritual diet and instead come to the free and abundant banquet he offers through his grace. This isn’t food you have to work to be able to afford, but rather the gift of a gracious host (55:1). Indeed, the Health Coach identifies the problem with the people’s health: They are spending their money on cheap, undernourished alternatives. Also, they are working hard to sustain a spiritual diet that won’t satisfy them (55: verse 2).
 
Historically speaking, the Assyrian invasion (a precursor to the Babylonians,) led the people to hard times when there was plenty of milk and honey, but little else (7:22-24). Spiritually speaking, in chapter 55, they were nearly starving on the diet of slavery in Babylon when the Health Coach says to them, “Listen carefully to me and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food” (55:2). That “food” is the richness of God’s own word and promise based on God’s covenant with David (55:3). As rain comes to the earth and brings forth seeds that lead to bread, so God’s word goes out and sustains his people if only they will come and eat. It’s a word that is never “empty” but always accomplishes God’s purpose
 (55:10-11).
 
Bread, if it is the right kind, can be healthy too:
God urges us to change our diets, too. So much of our diet, both physically and spiritually, comes packaged as sugary-sweet and enticing fat grams and calories, whether it’s on the shelf at the grocery store, or the virtual store. We grow fatter, dumber and sadder the more we consume the junk of our culture. God, the ultimate Health Coach, urges us instead to fill up on bread that sustains — The Bread of Life, as Jesus called himself in John 6, the manna from God that is there to nourish us daily. That bread enables us not only to be healthy but to help others as well as assist spiritual health coaches. Jesus once said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work” (John 4:34). We should embrace the same diet!
 
If we’re going to make that change, however, we know that we will do better if we don’t try to make it on our own. We need our fellow Christians to help us in community, and we need to embrace God’s offer to coach us through prayer as we make the change:
 
“Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near …” (55:6).
 
God is, after all, the expert whose “thoughts are not [our] thoughts, nor are [our] ways [his] ways” (55:8). If we’re going to be healthy Christians, we need a Coach who knows the best way to make us whole!
 ••••
Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but Thou art mighty;
Hold me with Thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more

Nobleton Community Church
January 28, 2024
Text: Galatians 6:1-10
Reverend Paul V Lehmann

Listen to the audio here

We have a great promise in verse 9. I would like to focus our attention on this verse from the passage that Roxie read this morning.
The reason that some people don’t see results or “reap a harvest” in their lives, is because they “give up.” Things just get too hard. The trials are too much to bear. The reason they get this bad, is because they are trying to succeed in their own strength. We all at some time of other have been guilty of this. When we recognize that we have blown it, or we have failed to do what God wants us to do, we must “persevere” and keep going, but with His Power.

It’s said that Walt Disney’s request for a loan was rejected by 301 banks before he finally got a yes. Yet he built the world’s most famous theme park. So, this year let’s remember some things.

1. Perseverance turns adversity into advancement.

At a sales convention the manager said to 2,000 of his firm’s sales force, “Did the Wright brothers quit?” “No” they responded. “Did Charles Lindbergh quit?” “No” they shouted. “Did Lance Armstrong quit?” “No” they responded. “Did Thorndike Mckester quit?
There was a long, confused silence. Then a salesperson shouted, “Who in the world is Thorndike Mckester? Nobody’s ever heard of him.” The sales manager snapped back, “Of course you haven’t—that’s because he quit!” As you have heard perhaps before –said by some coaches—Quitters never win and winners never quit.

Paul writes, “Everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News.” (Philippians 1:12 NLT). Paul didn’t give up—he rose up! How did he do it? He found the benefit to him personally that comes from every trial. One Christian author writes: “Today we’re obsessed with speed, but God is more interested in strength and stability. One Christian author writes; “Today we’re obsessed with speed, but God is more interested in strength and stability. We want the quick fix, the shortcut, the on-the-spot solution. We want a sermon, a seminar or an experience that will instantly resolve all problems, remove all temptation and release us from all spiritual growing pains. But real maturity is quite is never the result of a single experience, no matter how powerful or moving.” Growth is gradual. We read in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that; our lives gradually become” brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him.”

“WE WILL REAP A HARVEST IF WE DON’T GIVE UP”

Every time I say we will—–you repeat together…Reap a harvest if we don’t give up.

Observe more things about perseverance.

2. Perseverance means stopping not because you’re tired, but because the task is done.

Diplomat Robert Strauss quipped, “Success is like wrestling a 1000 pound gorilla. You don’t quit when you are tired—you quit when the gorilla is tired.” When you’re fresh, excited and energetic you work at a task with vigor. Only when you become weary do you need perseverance. The Apostle Paul recognized this when he said: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time—

“WE WILL REAP A HARVEST IF WE DON’T GIVE UP”

Fatigue and discouragement are not reasons to quit, they’re reasons to draw close to God, rely on our character and keep going. We underestimate what it takes to succeed. When we haven’t counted the cost we approach challenges with mere interest; what’s required is total commitment!

3. Perseverance doesn’t demand more than we have, but all that we have.

Author Frank Tyger observed, “In every triumph, there is a lot of try.”
We read that most millionaires who haven’t inherited their money, failed at least once, maybe even went bankrupt before they were successful.
But perseverance means more than just trying or working hard. Perseverance is an investment. It’s a willingness to bind yourself, emotionally, intellectually, physically and spiritually to an idea, purpose or task until it has been completed. Perseverance demands a lot, but here’s the good news: everything you give is an investment in yourself. Each time you do the right thing—seek God, work hard, treat others with respect, learn and grow—you invest in yourself. To do these things every day takes perseverance, but if you do them your success is guaranteed.

“WE WILL REAP A HARVEST IF WE DON’T GIVE UP”

Perseverance is a trait that can be cultivated, and the initial step to cultivating it is to eliminate two of its greatest enemies. These are:

1. A lifestyle of giving up. 

A little boy was promised an ice cream cone if he was good while accompanying his grandfather on some errands. The longer they were gone the more difficult the boy was finding it to be good. “How much longer will it be? he asked. “Not too long,” replied the grandfather, “we’ve just got one more stop to make.” “I don’t know if I can make it, Grandpa,” the little boy said, “I can be good, I just can’t be good enough long enough.” As children we can get away with that, but not as mature people, and certainly not if we expect to succeed in what God’s called us to do. Then the other thing that we need to eliminate is:

2. A wrong belief that life should be easy.

Paul told Timothy he must “endure hardness, as a good soldier.”
(2 Timothy 2:3) Having the right expectations is half the battle. Clinical psychologist John C. Norcross found the great characteristic that distinguishes those who reach their goals from those who don’t ––it is expectation! Both types of people experience the same amount of failure during the first month they strive for their goals. But members of the successful group don’t expect to succeed right away; they view their failures as a reason to re-commit and re-focus on their goals with more determination. Norcross say, “those who were unsuccessful say a relapse is evidence they can’t do it. They are the ones who have a wrong belief that life should be easy.” Bottom line: “We give great honor to those who endure under suffering.” (we read in James 5: 11)

“WE WILL REAP A HARVEST IF WE DON’T GIVE UP”

Then the next enemy of perseverance you’ll have to defeat each day of this year is:
3.Lack of resiliency

Harvard professor George Vaillant identifies resiliency as a significant characteristic of people who navigate the different seasons of life from birth to old age. In his book Aging Well he writes, “Resilient people are like a twig with a fresh, green, living core. When twisted out of shape the twig bends but it doesn’t break; instead it springs back and continues growing.” That’s an excellent description of perseverance. We must not become dry, brittle and inflexible. We must draw on God’s grace and endeavor to bounce back no matter how we feel.
The fourth enemy of perseverance that must be defeated is:

4.) Lack of vision.

Everything that’s created is actually created twice. First it’s created mentally, then it’s created physically. And where does our creativity come from? God, our Creator, who made us in His likeness
(Gen. 1:27). A God-given vision will keep you moving forward when nothing else will. The lack of one will stop you dead in your tracks. Or at the very least, will encourage the status quo and eventually there is a plateau, and no progress is made. This is true of our own personal life, and also for the church.

5.) Lack of purpose.

Rich Demoss remarked, “Persistence is stubbornness with a purpose.” It’s very difficult to develop persistence when you lack a sense of purpose. Conversely, when you have a passionate sense of purpose, energy rises, obstacles become incidental and perseverance wins out.

When we know what God wants us to do, we must not give up when we know that what we are doing is good. Let’s not get tired of doing it. Verse 9 could be read this way: “Don’t let evil get the best of you….Don’t let the bad circumstances wear you down and wear you out….Don’t give in to the evil that intends to defeat you….”

A world champion boxer years ago put it this way: “Champions aren’t made in the gyms, they are made from something they have deep inside them—a desire, a dream, a vision. They have last-minute stamina. They have to be a little faster and they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.

Do exactly what the Holy Spirit impresses you to do. Once you obey His leading, you must then use your God-given authority and command Satan to take his hands off your finances (if that is the problem), or your family, (if you see them struggling, perhaps physically) Boldly declare by faith for this year, that: God’s blessings are yours. You have every right to expect God’s blessings to come pouring into your life!

“WE WILL REAP A HARVEST IF WE DON’T GIVE UP”

Nobleton Community Church
December 31, 2023
Reverend Paul V Lehmann

Listen to the audio here

Nobleton Community Church
December 10, 2023
Text:John 14:18-27 Verse 27
Pastor Paul

Peace I leave with you: my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

This promise of the Savior sank into his people’s hearts. From the first, inward peace, peace of conscience and of spirit, was valued as among the choicest possessions of the members of Christ’s Church. They gave their children names such as Irenaeus and Irene, which signify simply “peace.” In the course of their communion services it was their custom to greet one another with the salutation, “Peace be with you!” In the catacombs of Rome may still be read on many a Christian’s tomb the brief but touching inscription, “In pace” (Latin for (“In peace”). So in doing so they valued the gift and legacy of their beloved Lord.

I. THERE IS IN HUMAN LIFE MUCH THAT IS FITTED TO DISTURB AND TO DESTROY PEACE.

The short answer to the question: “Why don’t we have peace?—is SIN

1. Looking back to the past, many are troubled at the retrospect of their own errors, follies, and sins.
2. Looking round upon the present, many cannot fail to discern in their actual circumstances occasions of distress and alarm.
3. Looking forward to the future, anxious minds are perturbed by forebodings and fears.

II. THE WORLD IS POWERLESS TO IMPART OR TO RESTORE PEACE TO THE TROUBLED HEART. The consolations of the world are delusive, its promises deceptive.

1. There may well be here a reference to the ordinary greetings of the East. “Peace!” is the common salutation, and has been from time immemorial. Like all such greetings, it often was and is altogether thoughtless and insincere. Our Lord’s “peace” is something quite different.
2. But there is a deeper reference. to the pretense of peace as given by the world, to which no reality corresponds. The world says, “Peace, peace; when there is no peace.” Superficial, deceptive, and utterly false, is that insensibility to terrible realities. The world thinks: “Can’t we all just get along.?” What people mean when they say that, or at least think that is: “Why can’t you just believe and think like I do”. The fact is no one thinks or acts the same. We have personalities that are different and that affects the way we act. We have different backgrounds, cultural influences, and beliefs that are different so that also affects the way we act. For the Christian and Jewish people: we have the Bible which also should affect how we think, believe, and act. It used to be that universities encouraged different discussions and viewpoints about many things, but today, there are no discussions of different opinions. If you don’t agree with the professor’s, opinion, or the prevailing, progressive, liberal opinion, you are put down even shouted down, censored, and not allowed to even respond on written essays and papers with your opinion if it doesn’t correspond with what is being taught, Especially if you expect to receive a passing grade, let alone an A.

There is anything but peace on college campuses today, and the true feelings of others outside of the college scene is also coming to light with statements and rhetoric of antisemitism. There are very vocal opinions expressed that call for a cease fire; for Israel to stop their attacks on “Palestine.” In reality, Israel is defending herself because of the attacks by Hamas. We won’t get into all that is being said— I believe you are aware of what is going on. All of this reflects attitudes of what constitutes PEACE.

We are told in Psalm 122:6 “Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem”

This prayer for peace is talking about security within the walls of Jerusalem. This is an Old Testament understanding of PEACE. However, we should continue to pray for Israel to have this peace. But the New Testament understanding of PEACE that Jesus talks about is a spiritual PEACE WITH GOD. Blessed are the peacemakers. Those who aren’t prone to violence. Those who don’t try to take revenge. When Jesus came to Jerusalem, just before he was arrested. He wept over Jerusalem. In Luke 19:42 we read: “ If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—-but now it is hidden from your eyes.” Here he is talking about individual and collective peace given to believers in Him. The nation of Israel always had individual believers who put their faith and trust in God, they consisted of a faithful remnant, which continued through the centuries, before and after the coming of Jesus. It is still true today that Messianic Jews, who have put their faith and trust in Jesus, understand how doing that reconciles them to God, and brings them PEACE with him.

III. CHRIST’S PEACE, AND HIS ALONE, IS VALID AND LASTING.

1. This is spiritual peace. It is not to be supposed that the Christian is exempt from the cares and the calamities of life, that outward circumstances and human society are all to combine in order for his preservation from the troubles which are incidental to human life. But there may be calm within even while the storm rages without. The heart may be so free from fear.
2. This peace proceeds from the restoration of right relations between us and God. It is peace of conscience, the substitution of harmony with the government and the will of God for that state of discord which is the experience of our nature that is alienated from the eternal Ruler of all. To be right with God is the first condition of human peace. Such concord it is the work of the Redeemer to bring about.
3. This peace is both a bequest and a gift of Christ. It is a legacy, because it was dependent upon the Lord’s departure, and the subsequent establishment of a spiritual dispensation. It is a gift, because apart from the Savior’s provision there was no means by which this blessing might be secured and enjoyed. The peace in question is not to be earned by any effort or sacrifice of ours; it is the bestowment of the infinite love and grace of the Divine Mediator.
4. This gift is essentially what Jesus had, and He is the one who bestows it. The peace which he enjoys he also imparts. That peace which flows from obedience and submission to the Divine will, was naturally the proper possession of the Son of God; and it is that same peace which Jesus conveys to the heart that trusts and rests in him.
5. The peace of Christ is all-sufficient. In plenitude and in perpetuity. His peace alone allows us to be reconciled to God. His peace alone provides forgiveness for our sins. His peace alone is the only hope for the world to find PEACE.

“The world can neither give nor take away God’s peace,

Nor can they comprehend,

The peace of God which Christ has brought –

The peace which knows no end.”

When we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone to save us from our sin, he gives us peace with God, which escapes us when we seek peace in any other way but through Jesus.

If you are enslaved by fear; Trust in Christ and have peace

Are you apprehensive about serving the Lord, and doing what he has called you to do?—Trust in Christ and you will have peace.

Do you feel alone?–, Trust in Christ and you will never feel alone. He has promised to be with us always and forever and give us peace.

The Old Testament followers of God, longed for PEACE. Many missed their opportunity to have peace when Jesus was on this earth, but before he ascended into heaven, he told his disciples and us, that we don’t have to be troubled and we don’t have to be afraid.

Jesus promised a Helper, Counselor, and Advocate,–the Holy Spirit. And he left them PEACE.. WHY DON’T WE HAVE PEACE?

Because we haven’t received the Prince of Peace into our lives, or we have accepted him as our Savior, but we haven’t allowed the Holy Spirit, to give us peace, because we haven’t trusted him to take us through all circumstances. Our enemy Satan, wants us to allow sin to go unconfessed, and unforgiven (that’s what happens when we don’t ask the Lord to forgive us). May we respond to Jesus and receive his peace in our hearts today

Nobleton Community Church
October 1, 2023
Text: Matthew 12:22-37
Pastor Paul

After Jesus delivered the man who was blind and mute from the demons that were demonizing him, and the man was healed and restored to health, the people were saying; “Could this be the Son of David?” That would be the Messiah. They were acquainted with Isaiah 35:4-5. In this Messianic passage verse 4 we read; “…he will come to save you, then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.

The Pharisees refuse to see it.

The common people see the true meaning of scripture, because the are not approaching it with pride, fearful of what they will lose if Jesus is truly the Messiah.

They will lose their power and control over the people. The explanation of the Pharisees is: “He does this miracle in the power of Beelzebub (the prince of devils).This was the attitude of the Jewish leaders in Jesus’ day. Unfortunately, this is the attitude of Rabbis and Jewish leaders today too. There is a Rabbi in Brooklyn, New York who is convinced that the evidence shows that Jesus Christ of Nazareth was their Messiah, but he says he will never declare it because he has too much to lose. His position and reputation in the Jewish community is at stake. In Jesus’ time there was only one Phaisee we are told about, who was willing to risk his reputation in order to learn more about what Jesus was teaching. Well, not too willing, because he came to Jesus at night, probably because he didn’t want anyone to see him, but at least he came. We read in John 3:1-21 the account of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus. When Jesus told him that he had to be born again, he was confused. He said how can a man who is old be born again. How can I enter again into my mother’s womb. Jesus was astonished, and said to him. You are a leader in Israel and you don’t understand about spiritual things. When the wind blows you can hear it blow, and even see movement on the leaves in the tree, but you can’t see where the wind is coming from nor where it is going, spiritually speaking. Nicodemus was open to hearing these things that he had never heard before. We don’t know for sure, if he received Christ into his life, but the indication here is that he did. John 19:36-41, we read that he is the one who helped Joseph of Arimathea to get permission from Pilate to take Jesus down from the cross and place him in his tomb.

The other Pharisees refused to see it, just like a lot of people today who refuse to receive Jesus into their lives.

Jesus responds by saying to them: “You charge me with casting out demons by the prince of demons; have you not eyes with which to see that when I cast out demons it is a proof that I have already laid my conquering hand upon the master of demons; that instead of working by his power I am working as the result of having overcome his power, that I have entered into the house of the strong man and bound him and therefore am able to enter his house? “

The picture of the strong man is taken from Isaiah 49:24-26. We read: “Can plunder be taken from warriors, or captives rescued from the fierce? Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce; I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save… “

The binding of the strong one was brought out by the perfection of Christ. Not merely by virtue of the death of Jesus, but by the virtue of his pure humanity (his sinlessness) he was able to bind the strong one, and so was able to enter his house, (so to speak), and carry off his possessions.” As man, he overcame the enemy in personal temptation, bound him, because he didn’t ever sin. And so he was able to invade Satan’s territory.

God’s children who have entered into his victory by the cross, also know something of what it is to bind the strong one.

We have his authority as believers, (as we talked about last week). His cross is the force that sets us free to “enter the house” of the so-called strong one -Satan, and rescue souls, (ourselves included).

WE CAN HAVE VICTORY OVER SATAN

There is no addiction that people get bound by, that Jesus can’t bring deliverance.

JESUS SAYS IN VERSE 30; “HE WHO IS NOT WITH ME IS AGAINST ME, AND HE WHO DOES NOT GATHER WITH ME SCATTERS.”

What is he saying? The truth is that Jesus was antagonistic to everything Satan did or tried to do. Both when Jesus walked this earth, and also today. He had cast the demon out of a man, and so had gathered him back into a unified and balanced life. He had gathered him back to his family, and to the family of God. It was Satan that had scattered.

A distinction must be made between good and evil in all logical thinking. The Pharisees were tying to confuse the issue—to confuse the people

Jesus, the one who proclaimed that the main meaning of his mission, the main reason he had come was to seek and to save the lost. (he declared this in verse 32. Then he says;

Blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. This is the passage that is referred to as the UNPARDONABLE SIN.

What is being said here, and what is not being said? What has to happen before this sin is committed?

He is saying that there is and attitude of the heart that results in hopelessness or indifference

Usually the hopeless feeling is not valid, but often indifference may mean that a person has rejected Christ so long that they are no longer convicted of sin by the Holy Spirit and therefore may not be able to respond to Christ.

We must understand this in order to not put any untrue emphasis on these words, and also in order that we may not minimize their terrible meaning. We are in danger of making both these mistakes.

These words are a warning not a sentence. We shouldn’t assume that the Pharisees had committed the unpardonable sin, but they had come close. Not all the Pharisees were against Jesus. In John 3 we see the account of Nicodemus who came to Jesus by night, (probably because he didn’t want to deal with is colleagues and their anger or ridicule.) Nicodemus has and open heart, but lacked understanding about the new birth.

This is true of a lot of people today. A person may be very “religious” like the Pharisees, but not have a personal relationship with God. They may have never been born of the Spirit like Jesus is talking about. They have never been born again.

NOW WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE WARNING IN THIS PASSAGE?

Jesus is teaching that in the casting out of the demons, it is only by the Spirit of God. Otherwise they are working against themselves. By saying that he did this by the power of Satan, they were denying that it was done by the Spirit of God or by God’s power. This meant that they were refusing the Kingdom of God. In the presence of the demonstration of this power of that Kingdom, they were refusing it. This is why we must be careful about some of the things we see in other peoples lives or ministry, that we automatically think it is of Satin, when it is outside of our experience. This may be assigning something done by the Holy Spirit to Satan. That can be the sin against the Hooy Spirit which has no forgiveness if it be ultimately and finally persisted in.

1) The sin against the Holy Spirit is the ultimate refusal to believe on the testimony of the Spirit concerning Jesus Christ.

2) The sin against the Holy Spirit is only committed by someone who persistently refuses the convicting power of the Spirt to draw them to Christ.

If you have ever worried about it being too late for you, that you can’t be saved, or that God has given up on you, then you haven’t committed the unpardonable sin!

Verse 34 has some harsh words for those who would continually resist the Spirit —He called the Pharisees a “brood of vipers.” A nest of venomous snakes, a metaphor for someone who is treacherous. He says;

“You who are evil, how can you say anything that is good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”

Verse 36 says; “But I tell you that man will have to give account on the day of judgment, for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”.

Let’s repent of words that come out of our mouth that doesn’t glorify Jesus Christ. They may not be blasphemy, but if your life style is to forever turn you back on the conviction by the Holy Spirit, and His drawing you back to himself, someday your heart could be hardened so much that you are no longer convicted about what you say or what you do. “Repent” turn around today, (that’s what the word means). Don’t continue to reject him and his kingdom. Don’t reject him as your King, as your Lord in your heart. Let him have control. Listen to the Holy Spirit when he speaks to you.

It is impossible to be neutral about Jesus Christ. Anyone who is not actively following him has chosen to reject him. Any person who tries to stay neutral in the struggle against good and evil, is choosing to be separated from God, who alone is good.

To refuse to follow Christ is to choose to be on Satan’s team .

CHOOSE JESUS