Sermon Tone Analysis

Good morning.

Happy Father’s Day to all the Dad’s.

A day you can remember your Dad, and perhaps Grand Dad, step dad, or other Father figure… to appreciate the good things.

It’s also a Day for those who are Dads or Grandpa’s to enjoy and celebrate their unique role- and ponder the unique opportunity it is to invest deeply into someone you love, and to make a useful positive contribution to their lives.

So let’s have all the Dad’s, Grand Dad’s, Step Dad’s and especially any men here who have lost a child to stand up.

Let’s give them a round of applause and appreciation.

Synopsis: It’s hard to overcome the world.

And surprising that the secret to overcoming the world is our faith.

Doesn’t our faith seem weak at times.

Maybe it’s not about us at all.

But the quality of the one we have put our faith in.

And that secret is what makes all the difference.

Overcome the World

Introduction - DEVELOP AN INTRO.... maybe Cypress needs to know something about you...

I’ll just tell you right up front… the point of this chapter and today’s message is Encouragement to Overcome.

To say “You can do it!”

and also to explain how.

You can overcome the world.

You can overcome the world?

How?

Our text today, 1 John 5:1-21.

Hook with Illustration:

Now, you may have noticed this piece of wood up here today.

This is a 10’ piece of 4x4 lumber.

And here next to the 4x4 is a stack of heavy weights.

We’re gonna name these sand bags in a moment - for now let’s just call them all life’s weight.

Because for a moment, I want to describe a problem.

DEVELOP THIS DESCRIPTION _ CREATING THE CONTEXT… THERE IS NO REASON TO LISTEN YET… NO PROBLEM… NO FOUNDATION…

Belief

I want to begin with a verse in the center of our passage today

1 John 5:4b “This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith.”

Faith

Hmm.

This sounds like something we could almost market.

Man, this sounds like a theme song.

I think we could develop a whole empire on this motif.

It sounds like this… “When you wish on a star, makes no difference who you are, anything your hearth desires will come to you” … well then I had to look up the lyrics…

When you wish upon a star

Makes no difference who you are

Anything your heart desires will come to you

If your heart is in your dream

No request is too extreme

When you wish upon a star

As dreamers do

Fate is kind

She brings to those who love

The sweet fulfillment of their secret longing

read from other copy...

This sounds like a book I saw on the recommended reads list.

This sounds like that facebook banner

You know I typed in “Believe in Yourself to Google and in .59

seconds it offered me about 231,000,000 results.

It offered me one site with 532 quotes about believing in myself.

So what we have so far is far too inadequate.

Because the whole world it seems has taken that little piece right out of 1 John 5 verse 4, and ran with it.

But I’m suggesting that where we put our faith changes everything.

And “spoiler alert” we will see that “whom we put our faith in” changes everything.

Illustration on Leverage the point: We can leverage faith - but it’s all about where you place your faith

Put the blocks on the platform

Fear Failure Lust Pride Loss

Red: Me- My Education

Yellow: My Logic/Reason

Green: My Strength

Orange: My Income

Blue Faith in God -

What happens when we are trying to lift all the weights under my skill sets.

How are we going to lift life’s heavy problems.

What happens when life’s weights are more than you can lift.

And the world’s values and it’s system is closing in on you, boxing you in?

How do I overcome?

How can I win?

Does the Bible really say, faith?

What does the Bible say?

Let’s look up 1 John 5 and read all of verse 4

“Whatever has been born of God conquers the world”, and then “This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith”

so there’s a qualifier here, that whatever has been born of God conquers the world.

And then...

Faith - what does that mean?

Verse 5 makes it clear, the faith that Jesus is the Son of God.

How does it become the leverage that helps us overcome the world?

Because that believing changes your heart, with that kind of faith, you become one who is born of Him.

Transition:

I believe that in this text we are encouraged to overcome this world by giving a clear description of this New LIFE in Him (5:1-5) and an explanation that gives us the assurance that this NEW LIFE is yours (5:6-13).

And finally we are pointed to How this LIFE is NEW LIFE of faith is sustained / exercised / leveraged so that we can be Victorious in the NEW LIFE.

You can do it!

You can overcome!

I want to help us put this talk about faith into it’s context.

So we need to go to the text and read from Chapter 4 verse 20

Book:

A clear description of this LIFE (5:1-5)

Now I called this a clear picture of LIFE in Christ.

And truly this is beautiful.

You could take each line and learn so much, each adds to this picture of Life In Jesus.

But it’s also very well…

Have you ever played pinball?

1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves the one born of Him.

2 This is how we know that we love God’s children when we love God and obey His commands.

3 For this is what love for God is: to keep His commands.

Now His commands are not a burden, 4 because whatever has been born of God conquers the world.

This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith.