Message Notes The Power of Everyone Part Four

Transcription

1 Loving God! Loving People! Loving Life! Message Notes The Power of Everyone Part Four LIFE CHURCH Smyrna Sunday, July 5, :30am Pastor Shell Osbon Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. (NKJV) 1. The Power of Everyone Denying t Denying means withholding something from or refusing to grant a request of. Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself... (NKJV) Philippians 2:4-5 4 Don t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. (NLT) 1 Thessalonians 5:15 See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. (NLT) Galatians 5: All that the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. 15 But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves. (CEV) 2. The Power of Everyone Dying t Dying means ceasing to live; approaching death; expiring. Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross... (NKJV) Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me... (NKJV) Galatians 5:24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. (NLT) 1 Corinthians 15:31b I die daily. (NKJV) 1 Peter 2:24a Christ carried the burden of our sins. He was nailed to the cross, so that we would stop sinning and start living right. (CEV) Psalm 69:9 My love for Your house burns in me like a fire. (CEV) Psalm 92:13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. (NKJV) 3. The Power of Everyone Following t Following means walking behind so that the other person can lead the way. Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. (NKJV) 1 John 2:3-4 3 We can be sure that we know Him if we obey His commandments. 4 If someone claims, I know God, but doesn t obey God s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. (NLT) John 8:12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, I am the light of the world. If you follow Me, you won t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life. (NLT) 1 John 1:7 If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. (NKJV) John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. (NKJV) Matthew 9:9 As Jesus was walking along, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector s booth. Follow Me and be My disciple, Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed Him. (NLT) The big idea: The power of everyone denying, dying and following would be absolutely amazing!

2 part four Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. (NKJV) 1

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4 1. The Power of Everyone Denying Denying means withholding something from or refusing to grant a request of. Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself... (NKJV) If you are going to follow Jesus then there will be times when you have to deny yourself some of the things that you might otherwise insist upon having or doing. 3

5 Matthew Henry: If self-denial be a hard lesson, and against the grain to flesh and blood, it is no more than what our Master learned and practised before us and for us, both for our redemption and for our instruction... Philippians 2:4-5 4 Don t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. (NLT) Denying yourself will cause you to pay attention to what others are experiencing and needing. 4

6 1 Thessalonians 5:15 See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. (NLT) Denying yourself will cause you to drive differently on I-285 and to treat people better in every way! Galatians 5: All that the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. 15 But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you better watch out or you will destroy yourselves. (CEV) Denying yourself will cause you to stop mistreating people regardless of how they treat you, how they vote, how they live or what they believe. Period. 5

7 2. The Power of Everyone Dying Dying means ceasing to live; approaching death; expiring. Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross... (NKJV) In the days of Jesus, there was no more painful manner of death than that of dying on the cross. 6

8 Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me... (NKJV) Dying to yourself is the only way that you will ever fully experience the power of Christ living within you. Jim Elliot: He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. 7

9 Galatians 5:24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. (NLT) The cross of Jesus Christ is still strong enough to hold all of your sins so that you might live in freedom. 1 Corinthians 15:31b I die daily. (NKJV) The problem with our sinful nature is that it s really hard to kill so we have to crucify it daily. 8

10 1 Peter 2:24a Christ carried the burden of our sins. He was nailed to the cross, so that we would stop sinning and start living right. (CEV) Before asking you to die to yourself, Jesus died for you so that you could start living for Him. 3. The Power of Everyone Following Following means walking behind so that the other person can lead the way. 9

11 Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. (NKJV) Following Jesus means that you let Him lead you because, after all, He knows where you need to go and He s not about to start following you! John Ortberg: People have a crying need to find a way to follow Jesus that is not mechanical or legalistic. 10

12 1 John 2:3-4 3 We can be sure that we know Him if we obey His commandments. 4 If someone claims, I know God, but doesn t obey God s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. (NLT) The truest litmus test of being a follower of Jesus Christ is seen by how you live your life in relationship to obeying the Word of God. John 8:12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, I am the light of the world. If you follow Me, you won t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life. (NLT) Following Jesus will keep you in the light and out of the darkness. 11

13 Rick Warren: People aren t turned off to Jesus, they re just tired of Christians who don t really follow Him. 1 John 1:7 If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. (NKJV) Following Jesus means you can have a relationship with Him, with other people and be forgiven of all your sins, too! 12

14 John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. (NKJV) Following Jesus means you listen to what He says. Erwin McManus: To follow Jesus is to enter the unknown and to exchange certainty for confidence in Him. 13

15 Matthew 9:9 As Jesus was walking along, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector s booth. Follow Me and be My disciple, Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed Him. (NLT) Following Jesus is a prerequisite for being one of His disciples. Shell Osbon: You cannot follow Jesus by living your life in neutral. 14

16 The power of everyone denying, dying and following would be absolutely amazing! Tell somebody what God is doing in your life Tell somebody what God is doing in your church Tell somebody that God loves them 15

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