How does the Bible identify Christians? There are marks or behavioral traits that identified the followers of Jesus.
We have been looking at these marks: Brotherly love (John 12:35) By this people will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.
As individuals, what we do or choose not to do sends messages to people regarding our passion, values and commitment.
This is why we read in the Bible we must be careful how we live. Ephe.5:15 Be very careful, then how you live-not as unwise but wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
The Bible highlights marks or signs that identify those who were true followers of Jesus. The first one we talked about two weeks ago is brotherly love, love among your church family. Jesus said the world will know you are my disciples if you love one another.
It’s been 15 years since life in America changed; some of you still remember what you were doing when you saw or heard the news that our country was under attack. This event hit us to the core, it affected our economy, travel, security infrastructure; it created a lot of changes in the way we do life in our nation and how we look at the world in general. Things have never been the same. Sometimes you are hit with situations that shake you at the core of your existence; you may not even know how you will be able to move forward in life. Where do you run? To whom do you turn? What do you do when you feel hopeless, defenseless?
The word Christian has lost its true biblical meaning; there are lots of people who claim to be Christians today and they have no idea what it means to be a Biblical Christian or may be ignorant of whom were called Christians in the Bible. In a world of political correctness and relativism is hard to distinguish true Christians from nominal Christians or Christians by name.
We have spent two weeks looking at the Great Commission on Matt.28:18-20. Jesus’ command to his followers to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching everything he had commanded. Last week we talked about the responsibility of every disciple of Jesus to learn the Word of God in order to teach others. The Great Commission is the mission of every follower of Jesus; we are to multiply ourselves as we make disciples of all ethnic groups on this planet.
Last week we talked about the Great Commission, the mission Jesus left to his followers-to go and make disciples of all nations. We find these instructions on Matt. 28:18-20. Last week we learned that this mission is global because it includes all nations on earth. Jesus wants his disciples to make disciples of all ethnic groups on earth. All people matter to God.
WE discussed the fact that every disciple in the Bible was baptized. Jesus commanded to baptize those who were to follow him as disciples. It was a great joy last week when right after the service, we have two believers of Jesus committed to be baptized. It was a great Sunday for the kingdom of God when people commit to doing what Jesus commanded.
Last week we started the Sunday school class with the question, what comes to mind when you hear or read the Great Commission. We at SICC are committed to the Great Commission. What does that actually mean?
The Great Commission found in the Bible in Matt.28:19-20 is Jesus’ final instructions to his disciples before he went back to heaven. It is the last command Jesus gave his followers. It is the mission Jesus left for those who are his disciples.
The story of the preacher and the man: “Son you need to join the Lord’s army.” “I am in the Lord’s army already pastor” said the man. “Why do I only see you in church twice a year?” “Oh, I belong to the secret service.”
The majority of us are familiar with the term undercover cop or agent. One whose main purpose blend in while hiding his true identity. Undercover: done or working in a secret way in order to catch criminals or collect information.
As followers of Jesus we need to be acquainted with the gospel; we need to know what it is and what it isn’t. In a shifting culture, it’s imperative that Jesus followers know the content of gospel; a word that appears over 75 times in the NT. For some people when they hear the word gospel, they think of a type of music. When we read in the NT about the gospel, it never refers to a musical genre. The gospel was the reason many Christians died in the first and 2nd century.
We everything that is going on in our world today, wars, hate, discrimination, etc. It’s evident more and more that our world needs Jesus, his touch, his love and compassion in order for it to eliminate hate and animosity from our midst. Think about it, if we treated each other the Jesus way this world would be better. People who came in contact with Jesus were never the same; their lives were transformed. We need transformation in our lives, but we are seeking in the wrong places.
There is a phrase people like to throw out very loosely. “Only God can judge me” When people say this, this only partially true because in saying it, you ignore the great deal of judgment that takes place around you. The place where you live have authority figures who will judge your behavior; at work they will evaluate your effort and dedication (employee of the month) that is a judgment call;
Some of us love watching movies, there are different genres of movies: drama, comedy, action, horror, science fiction, etc. The Bible has different genres as well and within these genres you find, drama, comedy, action, horror, romance, etc. I love those movies that have a hero who comes and saves the day. People like Braveheart, Jack Bauer; Jason Bourne. Detective John Mclean among others.
