By the power and influence of the Hold Spirit, there is testimony of the pre-born Savior’s identity from John the Baptist, Elizabeth, and Mary herself. All of these take the focus away from themselves and onto Christ.

After the death of Lazarus, Jesus interacts with Martha and Mary, dealing with the finality of death as the result of sin. In these interactions, we see clearly the deity of Christ in His claim to be the exclusive source of life, as well as His humanity in His real emotion and indignation toward death, an enemy.

10 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

John 9:34-41

As we reach the story of John’s gospel of Jesus healing a man born blind, we see again and again Jesus establishing authority. This man was born blind and encountered Jesus according to the definite sovereign plan of God, which reminds us of God’s definite purpose in healing the spiritual blindness of all of His people, bringing them into the light of salvation.

• Being in Christ demonstrates the depth of His love, amazing grace, and transforming power
• Being in Christ is seen in our faithfulness, fruitfulness, and fervor

• God’s judgment is real
• The Gospel requires sincerity and integrity
• Expect a lot of push-back
• It is Jesus’ love that motivates and moves us to be faithful

Preaching the true gospel will be met with negative response, and we are called to pay the price of preaching boldly. However, Paul reassured the Christian that anything we endure in this life is dwarfed by the reward promised to God’s people. It is worth it to live faithfully.

The Tough Questions

Session Three

Islam

Miracles

The Problem of Evil

As faithful Christians, we must not put up with anything that is false or deceitful, but rather, we owe the world a bold, faithful, and full proclamation of the gospel, which God has prepared us for.

Authentic, Christ-centered ministry is epitomized in Paul’s work - and yet, he was still slandered and doubted. Paul pursues the Christians in Corinth, not by boasting of himself, but by appealing to their own lives. The transformation by the Holy Spirit in these individuals validated Paul’s ministry - and so it is for all ministers of God’s Word.

The first part of our summer series “Faithful.” Christ Jesus has won victory for every single Christian, and He continues His mercy by using us to do His work in the world. Because of Christ’s faithfulness, we are now acceptable and pleasing before the Father, and all the world ought to see that - whether they embrace the gospel or continue to reject it.

Every Christian Does Apologetics

How to Rock Someone’s Worldview

Session One

What is Apologetics?

Apologetics Goes Hand in Hand With the Gospel

The Spirit of Apologetics

The Use / Limitations of Evidence (Facts)

No Neutrality

The Heart of the Problem - Sin

Take Every Thought Captive to the Obedience of Christ

Three Key Intellectual Sins to Take Notice of

and Lovingly Point Out

Arbitrary

Inconsistency

Preconditions for an Argument (Preconditions of Intelligibility)

Every Christian struggles at times with assurance; in John 8, Jesus teaches us that we can be certain of our salvation. We are called to abide in Christ, to be absolutely anchored in him alone. When we do this, we are freed from the enslavement and guilt of sin. So we must examine ourselves; do we manifest the obedience, repentance, and freedom that accompany abiding in Christ.

At the end of Jesus’ time at the Feast of Booths in John 7, he makes it clear that the feast, and everything it pointed to, were fulfilled in him. He shows himself to be the only source of true life, deliverance, and salvation, and the call to all people is to trust in him alone.

As we continue our series through John, we see Jesus again and again establishing his authority, not by man or by other teachers, but by who he is - the Son of God. His teachings are perfect, originating from Heaven itself. And he doesn’t stop with simply establishing his authority, but he exposes the sinful hearts of the false teachers. We are called to discern every teaching according to its consistency with God’s Word.

The reason why Jesus was rejected as the Messiah is because he did not meet the personal and political expectations of many in his day, and this is still the case for many people today. His victory is not what we expect: it came through submission the the Father’s will and death on a cross. When we look for Jesus to be a king we of our own cause, we will be let down; he deals with the root of every issue: the human heart.

John chapter 6 comes to a close with this bold teaching of Jesus: He is the only one who is sufficient, who meets all of our needs, and who must fill us completely. And unless he calls us, we cannot come.

As we look through John chapter 6, we see Jesus claim to be the exclusive savior, the only one who can truly satisfy us. The only thing that gives true assurance is faith in Jesus Christ.

When Jesus establishes who he is, he does so on the authority of the Old Testament Scripture. As we look at some of the Old Testament, it is clear that all of it points to Christ; however, in order to see it and truly put faith in Christ, the sinful heart must first be changed. The Bible must shape our worldview, not the other way around.

John 5:1-17 demonstrates to us two flavors of unbelief with which we are familiar. With the healed invalid, we see someone so near the truth, but lukewarm to it, with no conviction or true faith. The Pharisees demonstrate a legalism that seeks to work so hard at getting to God, that it results in pride, and a rejection of God. As Christians, we rest in the grace of God in fulfilling the law for us, and we do not back down from confrontation or opposition.

Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, fulfilling a 700 year old prophecy, should give us great confidence in God’s perfect sovereignty, and also is a beautiful reminder of God’s promise of hope in the midst of judgment.

In a more detailed look at Jesus’ encounter with the Woman at the well, we see several key characteristics of the gospel. It is the only offer of life and it confronts us in our sin. However, it also goes on to pay the price for our sin, and even changes our lives.

Christianity challenges our natural ideas of success and gain - consistent Christian living must result in our decrease. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we must be made nothing, so that people would see not us, but Christ in us.

In our sin and in our pride, we would like to think that we have some part in our salvation.  Jesus teaches that the opposite is true - being born again is all of grace and is all of God.  We don't have the power to win souls for Christ.  The Lord saves whom He will, but as Christians we must proclaim the Gospel as He gives us opportunity, we must pray for the lost, and we must place our confidence in Jesus Christ to change hearts as only He is able to do. 

There are a number of misconceptions about miracles, which typically come in two extremes: embarrassment over affirming miracles, or downplaying their majesty. Miracles are a direct act of God in the natural world, essential to the Christian faith, which serve to validate the message of redemption.

John the Baptist’s testimony regarding Christ ought to be ours. We humbly tell others about Christ, tell about the work of Christ, and point people away from ourselves, that they may follow Jesus.

At the incarnation God the Son truly, fully put on humanity. He identified with us completely, withstood every temptation perfectly, and bore the punishment, as a man, for us. This is why He is the only means of our salvation.

The prologue to the Gospel of John is packed with so much depth; we get the deity of Christ, the Trinity, and we see the only way to salvation: God Himself coming to His people.

The Christian faith is one that calls for continual, daily self sacrifice; because of our sinfulness, we try to find ways around this sacrifice and hold onto something other than Christ. Instead of being a living sacrifice in the service of Christ, we shift the focus and serve ourselves.

As Christians living under a secular government, we are called to be model citizens and obedient to our leaders, in order that our light may shine for Christ. However, there are certain circumstances which require confronting the government when it uses its power for explicitly sinful ends.

As God’s Image bearers and creatures in His world, all people keep a day of rest. However, the world twists this and uses that day to enjoy whatever their god is. As Christians, we should look forward to the Sabbath and delight in a full day resting in the Lord.

Sabbath worship and rest is a permanent fixture, established at creation, and applies to everybody. It reflects the finished work of Christ, and for believers, it looks forward to our eternal rest in God’s presence. As Christians, we need to seriously consider our attitude towards this day.

Work is another institution which God ordained at creation, and it is good and glorifying to Him. However, like with all other things, we twist it in our sinfulness.

We live in an age where individualism is exalted, which leads to serious division, even within the church. As Christians, we are defined by the salvation we share in Christ, and therefore, regardless of our backgrounds, we are united, one body, sharing the same Spirit, to the glory of God.

In our day, everybody has their own subjective idea of justice, but apart from God, this will only result in partiality and injustice. Only God is righteous and just, and therefore His is the only standard.

A continuation through Ecclesiastes, we look at the futility and inability of worldly things to give us hope and meaning, and also the subtle rebellion of pinning our hopes on ourselves and our possessions.

The book of Ecclesiastes reveals that no matter what you own, accomplish or experience, apart from a saving knowledge of Christ, there is no fulfillment.