SF130 - WHAT HAPPENS WHEN JESUS COMES TO TOWN (John 2 13)
SF130
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN JESUS COMES TO TOWN
JOH 2:13 (12‑25)
INTRODUCTION
Perceptions Of Jesus
Babe in the manger
Resurrected Lord
Coming King
Cleansing Prophet
1A. CLEANSING COMES
1B. The Need For Cleansing
1C. God's Temple has been defiled (vv. 13‑14)
(1 Corinthians 3:16‑17) Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? {17} If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
(1 Corinthians 6:19) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;
Phsical defiliement
Emotional (soul) defilement
Spiritual defilement
2C. God's testimony has been defamed
Court of the Gentiles ‑ purpose was evangelistic
Promoted anything but worship of God
2B. The Nature Of Cleansing
1C. Complete (v.15)
Jesus did not allow any offensive element to stay
2C. Consistent (v. 15)
He treated every offender the same
3C. Careful (v. 16)
Jesus did not destroy people to clean God's Temple
4C. Constructive (v.17)
Jesus accomplished what was best for all concerned
3B. The Natural Result Of Cleansing
Everyone focused on Jesus (v.17‑18)
A CLEAN WASH‑‑A CLEANER SOUL
One day when F. B. Meyer was calling on his parishioners, he stopped at the home of a woman who took in washing to make a living. He arrived just as she finished hanging a number of sheets on the clothesline in her backyard. Impressed by their whiteness, he congratulated her on the excellent work she had done. "I have never seen such an absolutely spotless wash!" he exclaimed. She accepted her pastor's kind words and invited him in for a cup of tea.
Says Meyer, "As we sat and talked, drinking our steaming beverage, the sky clouded over and large flakes of snow began to fall. When I left the house, a blanket of sparkling crystals covered the trees, bushes, and yard. Thoughtlessly I commented to the lady, 'Your sheets don't look quite as clean as they did before.' 'Ah,' she said, 'the washing is still the same, but what can stand against the Almighty's purity?'"
2A. CONFLICT FOLLOWS
1B. The Issue ‑ Authority (v.18)
Jesus will be Lord of All or Not Lord at All
2B. The Request ‑ Sign (vv. 18)
1C. Reveals a selfish motive
2C. Reveals a shallow faith
3B. The Answer ‑ Resurrection (vv.19‑22)
THE RESURRECTION REALITY
An agnostic professor once said to a little girl who believed in the Lord Jesus, "There have been many who have claimed to be Christ. How can you be sure who told the truth? Which one do you believe?" Without hesitation the youngster replied, "I believe in the One who rose from the dead!"
3A. COMMITMENT QUESTIONED
1B. Question Of Faulty Faith (v.23)
1C. Based on physical evidence ‑ not spiritual truth
(Hebrews 11:1) Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
2C. Based on performance ‑ not a person
(Hebrews 11:6) And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
3C. Based on feelings ‑ not facts
(Romans 10:17) Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
VISION AND PROVISION
A rather simple and uneducated minister, while preaching to a handful of folks one day, pointed to his Bible and declared, "Brethren, whatever the Lord tells me in this Book I'll do! In fact," he continued, "if He ordered me to jump through a brick wall 2 feet thick, I'd attempt it. You see," he explained, "going through it is God's responsibility; jumping at it is mine!" He was right!
2B. Question Of Total Trust
1C. What Jesus withheld ‑ Himself (v. 24)
entrust = pisteuo, from to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), by impl. to entrust ‑ same word translated "believe" in v.23.
2C. Why Jesus withheld it ‑ He knew their hearts (vv. 24b, 25)
3C. Can Jesus entrust Himself to you?
APPLICATION
TELL HIM SO
C. H. Spurgeon told about the deep love and devotion French soldiers had for their leader Napoleon. He noted that it was not at all unusual for a mortally wounded soldier to raise himself up on one elbow and give a final cheer to his revered General. And if by chance the dying man saw Napoleon nearby, he would, with his final breath, shout, "Vive l'Emprereur!"
Perhaps one of the most eloquent expressions of all, however, came from the lips of a soldier who had been shot in the chest. As the surgeon was attempting to remove the bullet, the suffering man was heard to whisper, "If you go much deeper, Doctor, you'll come to the Emperor!" Spurgeon commented, "He had him on his heart."
If a man as notorious as Napoleon could be the object of such undying devotion, how much more Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord!
Do You Really Want Jesus To Come To YourTown?
Submit To His Cleansing
Surrender To His Authority
Solidify Your Commitment