Knowing Jesus

Introduction

Introduce self

Dismiss Children

Thankful for Craig bringing the message last week.

Have you ever heard terms used in Christianity that don’t make sense or have to be explained to someone outside of Christian culture?

Most of you have been here long enough to hear me use the term Christianese before. I use it to describe phrases or words that are found in scripture that do not make sense to a person that has not grown up in a Christian environment.

One of my favorites comes from the OT book of Job, Satan is speaking to God and say s

Job 1:10 “10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.”

That phrase “hedge about him” can often bee used in prayer or a statement seeking for God to put a “hedge of protection” around someone. It’s meant to convey spiritual and physical protection from evil. Not a bad statement but again, Christianese.

Others include what we talked about two weeks ago, tithe. Travelling mercies. Fellowship is anothter. Most people call it hanging out. I do understand with study into the word translateed fellowship, contribution, and communion in the Bible: koy-nohn-ee'-ah, there is an deeper meaning to Christian fellowship but still…Christianese.

One of the other words that is very common in Christianity that actually can be easily explained by using more modern vernacular is the word Discipleship.

The defintion of the word is

Discipleship defined: the condition or situation of being a disciple, a follower, or a student of some philosophy, especially a follower of Christ

It’s derived from the term disciple that was used to describe the 12 and was an ancient term used to describe anyone that was a follower of something. So you can be a discipl of Christ, you could be a disciple of Jordan peterson, etc.

Some of you parents are disciples of bluey right now and that’s a whole other thing

We often say it means to be a follower of Jesus however it has a deeper meaning than just following. I can follow the car in front of me but not be a disciple of the driver.

I read an article recently that said

“A disciple is fundamentally a student; a disciple is a follower. Sometimes we use the word—and I really like this word—an “apprentice,” an apprentice of Jesus.

A disciple includes the idea of being a learner who sits under a teacher or teaching, and the goal is that they become like the teacher—that they embody (literally, physically in their bodies) the teaching of that teacher (in this case, of course, Christ).”

If you are following along with by scanning the qr code you will find a link to the article that you should read after church...

(Put this in nucleus, but not on the slides) https://www.logos.com/grow/what-is-disciple/#:~:text=We%20see%20it%20in%20Matthew,rest%20of%20the%20New%20Testament.

An apprentice of Jesus. Because when you are an apprentice you are doing more than just learning about the one you following, you are seeking to become like them.

Which is why today we are beginning our series title Apprentice of Jesus. We are going to spend a few weeks look at what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus.

Today we are going to see how to go from a Christian that knows about Jesus to a Christian that lives with Jesus.

Character- A believer in Jesus trying to grow by learning without action

If you are familiar with the military, especially the enlisted side of life, there is usually a good joke or two someone has about a boot Lt.

Or in construction, if you have the guy who just got hired as your boss that hasn’t worked on a cconstruction site a day in his life but got a degree.

In ministry, we have the same thoughts towards a bible college grad. They usually have it all figured out.

Do you know what I’m talking about here? Raise your hand if you’ve exprienced someone with a lot of education but not aa lot of wisdom.

Alright.

Where did they get their education from?

reading books, writting papers, and maybe having to give public address to regurgitate something they read.

But what about that guy on the construcction site that never went to school but he’s been in the business for 30 years.

The 1st sargeant or Seargants Major that has been in the military 20 or more years with no college degree?

that man in the church who never went to Bible college but has been living for Jesus for all of his life?

How did they get so good at what they do? How did they become the man or woman they are? it wasn’t by getting an education and learning, while those things aren’t bad, it was by living in it.

I’m afraid many of us look at Christianity and our development as followers or apprentices of Jesus as how much bible knoweldge we can gain and retain.

However, you ccan know a lot of what a book says and not understand how to actualyl live any of it.

Problem- Learning and not living doesn’t result in growth

If all we are doing is learning the truth but not living it, then what are we really doing?

James said that you will know our faith, not by how much we know, but by our works.

it was the Pharisees and Saducees of the day that were so educated in the Jewish law that they couldn’t accept Jesus as the Messiah. It was the uneducated fisherman that chose to follow Him and become a fisher of men.

And when Jesus took them he didn’t just sit them down in neat rows with pen and paper to ttake notes, recite verses, and pass tests or earn badges.

Jesus said “follow me” Those men walked with him, lived with him, and didn’t just hear what He said, they lived like He lived.

When we concentrate on learning more than living, we find ourselves lacking in our spiritual maturity.

We have to see that learning can be a catalyst for growth but without living what is learned growth doesn’t happen.

Agitated- You can know a lot but not see any difference if your not trying to live it out.

James 4:17 “17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

Spending a lot of time learning about the bible and about God not living with Him in being involved in your daily life will lead you to religion not relationship

Religion is about tradition, it’s about doing things that appear spiritual but are done without heart or purpose. It’s when what is known in the head is disconnected from what’s happening in the heart.

Paul wrote about what takes place when we fill ourselves with knowledge

1 Cor 8:1 “1 Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.”

It puffs up but love builds up.

Love doesn’t happen apart from knowledge of scripture, it should happen because of your knowledge of God scripture.

Don’t think I’m telling you that knowing things about scripture is bad. I’m telling you that if all you do is learn the bible but never apply it you will not see life change.

If you read that having sex outside of marriage is wrong and choose to engage in it, no growth.

IF you read that your words should be full of grace and seasoned with salt and choose to curse and swear and insult others, no growth.

If you read that you should go to people who have offended you instead of talking to people about them but choose to allow bitterness to arise in your heart, no growth.

it’s this type of person that says they are following Jesus in word but not in life and leads thtose who don’t know Jesus to say Christians are hypocrites. We aren’t doing God, the gospel, or anyone any favors by willingly living in opposition to the truth of scripture.

We end up hurting people around us, the cause of Christ, and ourselves.

Solution- Choose to learn a little and apply a lot

What do we do? how do we keep from knowing so much and not living much?

I believe the choice we should make is to learn a little and apply alot.

Do you remember the 5th grade science experiment everyone did?

Mine was mold on bread and I put no effort into it…it was terrible.

the cool kids though, they did volcanoes.

I’ve always wanted to be a cool kid so today..I’m making a volcano

I’ve got water, baking soda, vinegar, and dish soap.

Remember a little earlier I said that We have to see that learning can be a catalyst for growth but without living what is learned growth doesn’t happen.

I’ve learned that mixing these elements together should lead to reaction.

I’ve gathred them all together, I know their greek, hebrew, and latin names, I’ve studied the root meaning of their names, and know the exact chemicles comprised of all of them.

I know the perfect mixture to create an amazing explosion…but the explosion ins’t happening because I know so much.

Young people, listen to me on this one, you have been through a kids program where you learned alot, memorized verses, and are in or going into a youth group where Craig is teaching much about scripture.

If you take all of that in and never live it out with your friends now, or in your family, there is no wonder you graduate high school and don’t have a relationship witth Jesus. You just know about Him, but you hven’t lived with Him to know Him.

It’s like knowing you have a mom and dad but not having a relationship with them.

All of us can learn from this little experiment.

Once we gather the knowledge we have to apply it.

Mix chemicals together....

What’s the best and most biblical way to make that happen?

Guide-Jesus, Christian that is further along

Choose to let Jesus be your guide and find a person that is further along in their Christian walk than you are and ask them to help you grow.

A couple weeks ago God brought someone to our church that had been having a rough time. Experiencing divorce and seeking to grow through that.

I got to spend over an hour with this person and as I heard their story I told them “I can be your friend, I can be your pastor, however I don’t know if I’m the best person to walk right beside you in this.”

Why? I’ve never been through a divorce. It’s hard for me to understand the toll that can take on a person. However I know a couple epople that love Jesus and have been. They are living their lives for Christ now and when I contacted them both about the situation they said “tell the person to call me and I’d be happy to walk with them”

Now they are going to be able to teach Him about Jesus while showing Him how they live for Jesus with a deep connection. they can…forgive the cliche Christian term, do life together.

Journey- Faith will take you places you haven’t been, have you do things you wouldn’t normally do, and say things you wouldn’t normally say

That’s what Jesus did with the disciples.

that’s the model he gave us to follow as we live and lead others to Him.

Mark 1:16-17 “16 Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. 17 And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.”

It’s not unreasonable to believe that Jesus was dressed in some way or had interacted outside of the words we have hear that would have indicated he was a rabbi or teacher of some sorts.

During this time to be a disciple or apprentice of someone you had to go to them and ask them. It was strange for Jesus to ask them to follow after Him.

Notice how Jesus invited them to. He met them where they were. He didn’t say “become something your not and start following me”

He used the trade that they had been living for their life to relate to them and invite them into a relationship with Him.

This is the beginning of a 3-3.5 year journey of faith and learning that would radically change the lives of these fishermen from galilee.

What was that journey made up of?

Times of teaching.

Look what the first thing Jesus did with his disciples was

Mark 1:21-22 “21 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. 22 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.”

He spent time expounding on the scriptures. And this wasn’t the only time Jesus was in a synagogue or around crowds listening to him teach from scrolls.

They heard what he said and were taken back. He wasn’t just reading the scroll, He was speaking with authority about what it said. He was the living Word not just living the Word, and could speak with a conviction the pharisees could not.

Jesus taught the disciples and others often. We have the few chapters of the sermon on the mount where you have the popular beatitudes given. Blessed are the poor, the meek, the lowly in spirit.

Jesus taught them through parable like the lost coin, the lost sheep, the servants with the talents, and others.

However that’s not all He did. He lived in such a way for them to model and then at some point in their time with Him…he sent them out

Luke 9:1-2 “1 Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. 2 And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.”

He gave them the knowledge and then told them to go live it. Go out into the world and do what I have showed you to do.

Then a few verses later they come back

Luke 9:10-11 “10 And the apostles, when they were returned, told him all that they had done. And he took them, and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.”

They went out and lived what Jesus had taught and modeled for them resulting in what? Peple turning to Jesus and seeking Him out.

Nothing has changed ladies and gentlemen. If we are follwers of Jesus then we are not just learners of Jesus words we are walkers of Jesus’ way.

We are apprentices to his life not just his lessons. spiritual maturity isn’t the ability to regurgitate bible stories, or have fancy degrees from bible colleges or universities, if it was then you wouldn’t ahve highly intelligent men falling from grace. Which we can all fall victim to however it’s a lot less likely if we are living what we know and not just storing it up. Remember, we are made to pour not store.

the problem is that most of us haven’t lived like Christ in some areas and have to go against our natural inclination to do so. This leads to us taking steps of faith.

Because it is faith that leads to growth. Trusting God with the outcome becuase we are obeying His Word even when we don’t know what the outcome will be.

Resolution- A life lived well for Christ

When we choose to live by faith because of what we have learned we are able to have a life well lived for Christ.

The servant who was told well done is not the one who kept everything to himself but the open who took what was given and used it.

If you are a follower of Jesus you have been given a great gift, you have been given a wonderful opportunity, not to just know facts about the God of the universe but to know Him intimately. That will only come as you live for him and are able to trust Him more because you see Him be true to His Word.

Impact- More Christians actively loving the individuals around them, transformed homes and communities

You can choose to continue to learn much about God and not really apply it. you can choose to do what some say and go “deep” in scripture, which isn’t a bad thing in it’s proper form, however either of those without a choice to live what you learn, is really useless time studying.

That’s what the pharisee’s did…they knew alot and didn’t like how other people lived or did things. They were full of knowledge, they held onto heir traditions and methods and were unable to rejoice over the Messiah that had come and what he was going to do becuase they chose learning over living.

If you continue to seek to learn about Jesus but not to live for Jesus you will find yourself full of knowledge that puffs up but absent of love.

If you choose to learn about Jesus, live with Jesus, and live for Jesus in what you know and grow in that you you will find yourself with love, grace, mercy, and more as a result.

Has your christian life been about what you learn and not how you live? Do you come to church becuase it’s something you do or becuase you use it for what it should be? the place you come to be not just be refreshed but also rfresh others becaue your worship and your yielding to the Holy Spirit thorugh the preaching of His Word is just an overflow of the daily relationship you have with Christ?

Time of Response