Heritage Baptist Church of Frankfort IL

Paul starts this section of his letter to the Corinthians with a statement of being prepared to battle. Paul was being questioned by some in the congregation about his Gospel qualifications for ministry. Paul declares that he is ready to tear down the strongholds of the false apostles and teachers that have crept into the congregation at Corinth.

John includes two stories about the resurrection that confirm two things. First confirmation was that there was an empty tomb. Second confirmation was that someone had seen the risen Christ.

Pilate had to make decisions about the person of Jesus Christ. Was He a king? Was He God? Pilate faced these questions that every human being must grapple with. A failure to accept the truth will lead to tragic decisions.

Paul gives instructions to the church for the collection and sending of their offering to Jerusalem. By his instructions Paul leaves the church an example of how to make the gathering and distributing of offerings honest. Churches want to be above reproach when it comes to the collecting, counting, and distributing of funds.

The crucifixion for many believers can be a too familiar event. They don't pay attention to the details because they have heard it so many times. John give us a view of the cross that reminds the believer that His work of salvation was finished.

The Apostle starts a section in which he challenges the gather offerings for the church at Jerusalem. The Corinthians had promised before to start the process. Now Paul moves them along to reflect the grace given to them by showing that grace to others.

Jesus' arrest leads to a series of trials and interrogations. John only considers the interrogation of Annas when dealing with the religious trials. At the same time John gives the interrogation in the courtyard of Peter. While Jesus is faithfully facing His death, Peter fails to stand against the lowliest elements of society. John goes back and forth between the two men. The Lord restores Peter later but this story highlights the faithfulness of Jesus and the oft failure of His followers.

Arrests are often chaotic and the one arrested has no real control over what happens. John records Jesus' arrest, but notes that Jesus is the one who controls His arrest. As revealed in the story, He is God and only allows what He has determined.

This familiar passage is often ignored by preachers, because everyone seems to have some knowledge of the story. However, it is important for believers to look at this passage with new eyes. We can often miss the details and ignore the reason the story was given in the Scripture.

This is the Day that the Lord hath made was a prophesy. Many individuals quote this verse daily to remind themselves to rejoice. However, this verse was speaking of the Day of Jesus' resurrection. His resurrection gives us reason to rejoice.

Mark's account of the Triumphal Entry of Christ is different than the other Gospels. It records the fullest statement of the crowds. It also records that Jesus did not clear out the Temple on the day of His entry. All of the details point to the fact that though Jesus had this great entry, he still had work and service still to do before His true triumph.

In Jesus' prayer before the events of the Crucifixion, He took time to pray for Himself, the apostles, and then, at the end, for future believers. His desire was believers to be unified, glorify Him, and display His love to all.

These seven directions lay out a framework for battling sins with which you struggle. This framework can be used for both "acceptable" sins or sin habits you cannot break.

Paul's harsh letter to the Corinthians had it's intended effect. He desired for them to challenge a sinning brother. They had not done it until they received his letter. Their response to Paul's challenge is a model of true repentance.

Jesus was leaving the disciples. He had been with them full-time for several years. Before He goes, He prays for their protection as they are left in a world that hates God and thus hates His followers.

The believer is not left to battle sin alone. The Holy Spirit does many things to help the believer to leave or overcome sin.

This passage has been a comfort for believers throughout the years. Jesus prays for His glorification, His apostles, and His future followers. In this passage Jesus prays to be glorified on the cross and eventually in heaven. His glorification will display the Father for many to see. Ultimately by His glorification many will believe.

In battling sin, the believer must first recognize the salvation that he or she has been given. The forgiveness at salvation is something that God extends throughout life. A believer must realize that God forgives sin and will help us battle sin.

In Jesus' last discussion with his disciples, he reminds that that the event of the cross is going to change everything. Before the cross the disciples were still confused and immature. After the cross their relationship with God will be strengthened by Christ's work.

Paul ends his defense of his gospel ministry by challenging the Corinthians. He wants them to live a clear testimony for the gospel. Some had not complete severed ties with their former religious practices and organizations. Their failure was hindering others vision of who God was.

Sin is like cancer. Our whole nature is permeated by sin. In certain places it looks to be dormant but in other areas is causing destruction. Sin that is left unhindered will eventually impact the whole of a person and has the ability to infect other people.

Paul in this passage commends his ministry of the gospel. The items he highlights are not what the world would expect from a successful ministry. Paul recognized that gospel ministry was difficult but worth the effort.

Jesus need to go away. His work would be moved forward by the Holy Spirit. He would do a work of conviction in the world, a guidance into stating the truth for the Apostles, and a strengthening for believers.

Society at large has chosen to ignore sin. Even in churches sin is a delicate topic. In churches that talk about sin, they often refer to sins outside the church. The church needs a reminder that sin is an expression of the rebelliousness of the heart.

After His encouraging discussion of the true vine, Jesus now warns His followers that the world will hate them. Just as believers will be identified by their love, the world will be identified by its hate. They hated Christ, and His followers will experience the same.

All believers are saints. This means that we have been called from sin to serve God. The believer has a responsibility to live and look like a saint.

Paul went through much during his ministry. He suffered greatly. However, he was able to function as a Christian because he looked forward to eternity. He serves as a pattern for believers today as they go through difficulties. The believer needs to be focused on eternity

Jesus previously talked about the believers connection to the vine. Jesus as the vine can bring life to many areas in believers' lives. He can bring forth fruit in believers that evidence a relationship with Him.

The believer has no fear of being separated from God. He has begun a good work in us. He is looking to display His love by getting us to heaven and finishing His good work.

Jesus is the one who gives life. An individual not attached to Him does not have life. A believer remains connected to Jesus and finds strength especially by remaining in the words which Jesus spoke. A believer will display fruit from his or her connection to Jesus.

As human beings we think of ourselves as strong and impressive. However, the Scriptures remind us that we are like clay pots that are fractured, chipped, and near breaking. The gospel of Christ shines every greater when it is seen contained in earthen vessels.

Jesus upcoming departure upset His disciples. He gave them several items to help them once He was gone. The most important was the Holy Spirit who would come alongside them and be in them to help them.

The Gospel ministry must be boldly given. It is something that has greater glory than anything that the Old Covenant could accomplish. Moses displayed God's glory but its power was temporary, while the Gospel has glory for eternity.

Jesus had a few hours left with His disciples before His death. He begins to give a series of reminders and instructions. The disciples, however, get stuck on Jesus' departure. In response Jesus gave some of the most comforting statements about heaven and how to get there.

This sermon gives one point on the importance of living life now in faith toward God, because we will affect generations following.After that, three points are given to serve as a guide to compare characters in the Bible. These points will help individuals to see if comparison of Biblical characters is legitimate.

Jesus used an obvious illustration to the get the attention of His disciples. These disciples had argued over who was greatest in the kingdom. Jesus showed them that the greatest in the kingdom is a servant who is willing to wash the feet of others. Jesus grabbed the attention of His disciples so that he could teach them necessary things before He died. He also wanted to warn the one disciple who still had not come to faith in Him.

In comparison to Lot, Abraham's life present challenges for the believer to pursue. His life reminds us of the need for fellowship with and worship of God.

Jesus was approached by Greeks at the feast. The interest in Jesus had moved from Jews to the world. The hour had come for the Lord to be lifted up on the cross. His cross death is central for every human being. Either they will be saved in looking to the cross or judged for ignoring Jesus' words and works.

Often after salvation Christians still work as if God's favor rests on how closely they follow the Law. They forget the grace of God in Christ at salvation continues all throughout life. God is lavish in His grace. Christians need to enjoy God's grace in living life.

The stories of the Old Testament can admonish modern believers. The stories of Lot warn believers to keep away from certain thoughts and attitudes.

Four groups of individuals are found in this passage of John. Two groups honor Jesus with the greatest praise. The other two groups reflect a heart that does not believe in Jesus. They are using him or abusing him. In the end hopefully out of a heart of faith we honor the one who is supreme.

This last sign in John's Gospel was recorded to point future readers to the truth that Jesus was God. Only God can give life and raise the dead to life. Jesus' challenge from this miracle is "Believeth thou this?"