Jesus - Obedience

Good Morning… Welcome to New Hope…Happy New Year!

Today as we launch into 2020, we also launch a new series… WHO DO YOU SAY I AM? And here’s the premise… If the goal is to be a disciple & disciple maker (New Hope Mission - disciples making disciples), and being a disciple is becoming more like Jesus, our desire over the next several weeks is to explore the nature of Jesus. Because if we learn, understand, and apply who Jesus is and how he lived, we can become more like Him by applying these characteristics in our lives.

Based on an exchange between Jesus & his disciples found in Matthew 16. Jesus asked them, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

Their response… “Well, some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

And then Jesus asked them, “But who do you say I am?”

And it’s the question we will continue to ask throughout this series as we learn who Jesus is.

For those of you who are parents, let me ask you if you’ve ever had one of these conversations with your children.

You walk by your child’s room one morning and notice that you can’t see the floor or bed in their room, so you ask your son or daughter to clean up their room. Like any good child, they get right on it and clean it up immediately…right! So then you have the next conversation that goes like this…You get a little elevated and mention it again that the room isn’t cleaned up. But this time your child looks at you with this perplexed look. They can’t understand why you are agitated. Like, why would you be upset? So the next conversation goes like this… I would have to get elevated if you would have listened to me in the first place and done what I asked you to do.

And so we get to one of the most basic, most fundamental, most important of all qualities needed in a parent/child relationship - OBEDIENCE!

Several years ago when we were still parents of just one child, my wife used to look at our child and OBEY! Some of our friends used to harass her over that one, but it worked at the time.

Several years ago when we

But moms & dads (adults) aren’t off the hook with this obedience thing. It goes way back & we will begin this morning with God’s message for the nation of Israel

- God commands obedience

So it begins with God’s command of obedience, but we want to look at what the scriptures say about the obedience of Jesus.

Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God— as is written about me in the Scriptures.’

8Therefore, be careful to obey every command I am giving you today, so you may have strength to go in and take over the land you are about to enter.

9If you obey, you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord swore to give to your ancestors and to you, their descendants—a land flowing with milk and honey!

10For the land you are about to enter and take over is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, where you planted your seed and made irrigation ditches with your foot as in a vegetable garden.

11Rather, the land you will soon take over is a land of hills and valleys with plenty of rain—

12a land that the Lord your God cares for. He watches over it thro

13“If you carefully obey the commands I am giving you today, and if you love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart and soul,

14then he will send the rains in their proper seasons—the early and late rains—so you can bring in your harvests of grain, new wine, and olive oil.

(NLT)

I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it.

Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God— as is written about me in the Scriptures.’

but I will do what the Father requires of me, so that the world will know that I love the Father.

7Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God— as is written about me in the Scriptures.’ ”

1If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world.

Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.

31but I will do what the Father requires of me, so that the world will know that I love the Father. Come, let’s be going.

49I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it.

Jesus fully obeyed His Father, even when it hurt

Jesus honors the authority of His Father through complete obedience.

2You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God:

Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.

3Your towns and your fields will be blessed.

8Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.

he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

4Your children and your crops will be blessed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed.

Jesus fully obeyed His Father, even when it hurt

8he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

5Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be blessed.

Jesus’ obedience brought eternal benefits

Jesus’ obedience brings eternal benefits for humanity.

(NLT)

6Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be blessed.

9Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.

10May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

11Give us today the food we need,

12and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

13And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.

Jesus tells us how we should pray / think / live

Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

50Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

Obedience is more than following rules, it’s a condition of our relationship with Him.

So we’re trying to answer the first question of HOW to be a disciple (duplicate the character of Jesus)

But the second question is just as important. How do we duplicate the character of Jesus? Answer - Obey. How do we do that? We are obedient to God’s Word!

I think it’s simpler than we think.

Students - how can you practice obedience & become more like Jesus?

Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. 2“Honor your father and mother.”

1Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do.

says, “A wise child accepts a parent’s discipline.” God’s design is for children to learn to honor and obey their parents as they grow up so that they can live wisely. As they learn respect at home, they will respect others appropriately when they leave the home.

2“Honor your father and mother.” This is the first commandment with a promise:

What can God do with one act of obedience?

tells us that Even young Jesus, though he was the Son of God, obeyed His earthly parents and as a result grew in wisdom.

Parents have a responsibility as well.

says, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord.”

While we’re talking about family...

Husbands & wives - tells us, “And further, submit to one another our of reverence to Christ. For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her...”

Ok… I’m not a student; I’m not a parent; I’m not married… How about me?

Ok, you asked for it. How about being obedient in our

Faith - (ESV) according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith

Gossip - (NLT) If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.

26but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— Heart

26If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. Talents

Gifts - (NLT) In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Heart

6In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.

7If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.

Giving - (NLT) Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. 7You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” 8And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.

Talents

6Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.

8If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. Finances

Finances

Meeting this week with a couple

7You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”

Body

8And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. Body

Work - (NLT) Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

(NLT) Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.

23Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

3Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.

What can God do with one act of obedience?

What can God do with one act of obedience?

This is interesting… Two separate conversations this week; two different people who probably don’t even know one another in this church; Both of them said the same thing in just a few different words - obedience to Jesus isn’t just a 10% proposition, it’s 100%

Invite Isaiah & family for Baptism

1st service Baptism

(NLT) 13Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. 14But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?” 15But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him.

13Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John.

14But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?”

15But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him.