BE LIKE JESUS- Living OUT THE ONE ANOTHER COMMANDS (Series Wrap up)

INTRODUCTION

This morning we are wrapping up our 20 week series through our church Covenant which is bathed with the One Another Commands Jesus Gave us as his church.

Simply put a church covenant is a promise that we make to the Lord and to One another to live our lives in accordance with Gods Word.

Its not an extra set of rules to keep us holy or to make us look more spiritual to the world.

Our church covenant is promise to Guard our own hearts from sin, and to use our gifts to build up the body of Christ together.

Look with me again at our Church Covenant.

( Insert Slides)

There is a reason why our commitment to one another includes so many One another commands. Because that’s how God intends His church to live.

Christian, to put it simply, You are called to live your life as a visible example of Jesus as you serve the Church and walk in the World.

Listen to What Gods word says....

Romans 14:8 ESV

8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.

Galatians 2:20 ESV

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

2 Corinthians 5:15 ESV

15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

Ephesians 5:1–2 ESV

1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

God wants you To Live a life that Reflects Jesus to the World around you.

He wants you to live like Jesus- To represent Christ in this world.

He wants His church to live out the One anothers in their lives

Our text this morning is a very simple verse but one that every Christian should evaluate their faith upon

The Apostle John wrote in 1 John 2:6,

1 John 2:6 (ESV)

6 whoever says he abides in God ought to walk in the same way in which Jesus walked.”

The point is simple- If your claim to being a Christian is true, than your life will look like Jesus to those around you.

Why , Because thats who God has made you to be through New Life in Jesus.

This morning I want us to look at what it means to live your life like Jesus.

Point # 1 to Live like Jesus Means that we must look like Jesus

I. Look Like Jesus (Character)

Christians to look like Jesus means that your life is saturated with the character of Christ.

A Man’s Character is The moral and ethical compass that produce his true nature and the values he holds for his life,

and all of his thoughts words and actions are the fruit of His Character.

Why? Because Character Is what motivates everything we do.

Luke 6:45 (ESV)r

45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

Christian, When people think of you what words would they use to describe your Character?

Does your character look like Jesus or does it still look like the world That God redeemed you from.

The Character of the ungodly is self seeking, self gratifying, and self glorifying. - and these selfish desires come out in the way he speaks to others , the way he acts towards others, and the way he thinks of others.

Brothers and sister You have been called out of this futile way of thinking, You have been given new life and knew character- the character of the One who saved you- Jesus Christ,

The Bible has no shortage of passages that tell us what it looks like for a believer to have the character of Christ in them

Colossians 3:12 (ESV)

12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

Philippians 4:8 ESV

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

To live like Jesus means that you look like Jesus in your character ,

it means that your actions and thoughts and speech are flowing from a heart that has been saturated with character of Jesus Christ.

It means that when others describe you they use the words that describe the character of Jesus Christ,

compassionate , kind, humble, meek, and patient, Just , pure Truthful, and loving,

Brothers and sisters, the foundation to living a life that reflects Jesus and is to have the character of Christ flowing our hearts .

Transition: Now that we understand the important foundation of looking like Jesus, let's move on to the next point -To be Like Jesus we need to act like Jesus.

II. Act Like Jesus (Actions)

Your actions should reflect the actions of Christ

Look again at 1John 2:61

1 John 2:6 ESV

6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

The Word Christian means - A Christ Follower,

So John is simply giving us the logical definition of a Christian ..

If you claim to be a Christ follower than you should act like the one you say you are following.

Illustration: Have you ever played the game follow the leader?

Its quite simple -the entire point of the game is to do exactly what the leader is doing.

If he runs you run after him,

If he touches his head you touch your head in the same way.

THATS what it looks like to act like Jesus -

You live your life mimicking the life he lived.

some of you may be thinking “there is no way i could ever be just like Jesus” “There is no way I could ever die for the sins of the world “

but Christians, we can live our lives with the same purpose and goal that Jesus had on earth.

In john 6:38 where Jesus tells us his ultimate reason why He came to Earth

John 6:38 (ESV)

38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.

Jesus’s purpose was to live his life for the will of God the Father.

So What is the Will of the Father?

Isaiah 43:7 (ESV)

7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

God’s desire is to share himself with mankind, so that they will proclaim the glories of His perfect name forever

Jesus came to make the name of God Great.

He did the will of the father-

He came to earth to redeem lost mankind back to God so that they could live with the father in Heaven for ever.

So that God could share himself with mankind

Jesus tells us How he accomplished this goal

Mark 10:45 ESV

45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Luke 19:10 ESV

10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

John 12:46 ESV

46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.

2 Peter 3:9 ESV

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Jesus lived his life to serve others, to seek and save the lost ,ALL so that He could redeem mankind back to God, ...all for God’s own Glory.

Christians we have the same purpose ---- to live our lives for the glory of God

and the way that we accomplish this is by acting like Jesus.

Live your life the way that Jesus lived,

-He humbled himself and washed the disciples' feet, when no Jewish man would ever stood- so low

-He took time to stop on the road to heal the sick, when everyone else would have just moved on by,

-He cared for hurting people like the leapers and the paralyzed man at Bethesda, - the People nobody else thought were worth it.

- He willingly served those HE knew would nail him to the cross..

He met the needs of others so that he could point them to The Father

When we live our lives like Jesus- serving others and pointing them to the Savior, God the father is glorified.

Transition: To live like Jesus means that we first must think like Jesus and then act like Jesus,

but let's not forget the impact of our words when it comes to living like Christ - our final point this morning is this… To Be Like Jesus we must

III. Speak Like Jesus (Speech)

Our Actions matter but if our words dont match the testimony of Christ is useless.

A. The Method of our speech matters

Christian- the way you speak and communicate with others Matters.

The World is listening to what you say and how you say it,

Do you understand that as a Christian the way you speak to others will either turn people to Jesus or they will drive them away.

The apostle James said

James 3:8–10 ESV

8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.

Our words have the power to build up or tear down.

Our words either point people to JEsus or turn them away.

Christian the way you speak matters, because your words have the power to change lives for the glory of God

Not only does the method matter but your message matters

B The Message of our speech Matters

To be like Jesus, our speech should mimic the words of Jesus

Use your words to Build up the Body of Christ

Christ used his words to impart spiritual good to His folllowers - thats the example we are to follow

Eph. 4:29 tells us what our speech should look like in the church

Ephesians 4:29 (ESV)

29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Our words should build up the body and not tear it down.

When we speak to one another in the church it should be for their spiritual good.

encourage one another with your words, Show Grace to one another with your words

show compassion towards one another with your words,

show kindness to one another with your words

show loving

show Patience...

Do you get the point? when we speak to one another it ought to be the character of Christ flowing through us for the spiritual good of each other.

When it comes to The message that Jesus proclaimed to the world - IT was the gospel-

and Like Paul Said to the church in 1 Cor. 1 ...

WE PREACH CHRIST CRUCIFIED

Brothers and sisters we have a message to share!

To the World our Messages is THE GOOD NEWS THAT GOD LOVES Them!!!

Do you know the gospel message this morning?

It’s the greatest message mankind could ever share with someone else.

Do you know that the God of the Universe Loves You and wants to spend an eternity with you in His perfect Kingdom.?

If you have never heard the gospel message that God loves I want to share it with you this morning.

If you have, dont tune out- But tune in because this is the message of Christ that we desperately need to share with our community and the world

BRIDGE TO ETERNAL LIFE

You

Imagine that you are standing on one side of a cliff, and there is a big seperation from the otherwise where God is standing.

Isaiah 59:2 (ESV)

2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.

God- Read Romans 6:23

Romans 6:23 (ESV)

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Wages

Ask What is a wage?- Is something you earn because of what you have done.

Its what you deserve for the actions you did

Sin

How do you define what sin is?

Sin: Anything we say think or do that is not pleasing to God. It is rebellion against God and His ways

Death

Death: means seperation

The soul from the Body is physical death

The Spirit from God is spiritual death.

Because of our sin our payment we deserve is seperation from God

Hebrews 9:11 (ESV)

11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation)

We are all going to die and face the judgment for our sins.

IF you were to stand before God today Would you be innocent of all sin or guilty.

You see the reality is that none of us will stand innocent- We have all sinned and will all stand in judgement for that sin.

BUT

This word Brings us Hope _ it Changes everything

THE GIFT

Give illustration of a gift vs wages.

a gift is free -something we don’t earn

A wage is something we earn for what we did.

OF GOD

God offers you a gift

He wants to give you something you have not earned

Understand that God is perfect and He loves you and wants to give you a free gift

Look at what this gift is in John 3:16

John 3:16 (ESV)

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

ETERNAL LIFE

GOD GAVE US THE GIFT OF ETERNAL LIFE THROUGH HIS SON JESUS

Eternal life is the opposite of death- death is desperation from God , Life is an eternity with God.

There is going to be a real heaven and a real Hell

Heaven is a perfect place described with no sin, no sorrow, now pain, no death, and no injustice

Hell is an eternal lake of fire meant to punish those who are eternally paying for their sin.

BUT God offers you a gift that you cannot earn , because of his perfect love for you.

So what is this gift that brings eternal life?

JESUS CHRIST- THE CROSS

His ONLY SON- in fact Himself, God gives you himself in the form of Jesus to pay your wages of sin, to take your debt you owe upon himself.

Jesus is the Bridge that takes us from death to life- He is the way of salvation, He is the only path fro mankind to be restored back to God

And by doing this he creates a bridge that mankind can now cross into Gods eternal kingdom.

Next Slide. John 14:6

John 14:6 (ESV)

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 5:24 (ESV)

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

Believe in Jesus

Because of Jesus can now cross from death to life because of what Jesus did for you on that cross.

The Bible says that in order to go from death to life you must Believe that Jesus died in your place for your sins. That he paid the wages of yoru sin in full.

Friends if you have never accepted this gospel message in your life- I ask you this simple question? Would you like to ask Jesus to take you from death to life today? DOnt wait confess your sinfulness to God and Believe in Jesus for your salvation

Christian, to live like Jesus means that

You use your words to build up the body of Christ

and to Proclaim JESUS CHRIST CRUCIFIED To THE WORLD

Bring it Home:

Let’s Bring this back to Our Church Covenant.

Remember the first paragraph?

•Having been brought by divine Grace to repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and having been baptized by immersion on the basis of our faith, by the aid of the Holy Spirit we now joyfully covenant with God and with one another.

the church covenant is not a set of rules to keep us holy- It is a reminder to help us live the life God has called us to be as His church.

It is a promise to one another to not let each other fall into sin. Ita a promise to do our part int he church using the gifts God has given each of us to use,

Its a commitment to build up the body of Christ through our serving, or worship and our giving.

And its a promise we make to one another, the Lord and to ourselves to live a life that proclaims Jesus in the church and to the World.

I believe, that IF we want to be be a church that God is pleased with,

We must be a church that thinks Like Jesus

We must be a church that Acts like Jesus

And we must a be a church that speaks like Jesus-

Building up one another

and proclaiming the gospel with everyone who will listen.

Making and Equipping followers of Jesus requires each of us to live like Jesus.

Pray