#435 The Jesus Trip, Behave Yourself

#435 The Jesus Trip, Behave Yourself
By: D. Karl Thomas

(Sermon notes & PowerPoint links at the bottom of the page)

John 1:12-14, 17-18 “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God … 

…So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son …  From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. … 

… For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.” 

Cognitive neuroscientist Tali Sharot “Most of us go through life with a selective ear for the news we take in. We hear the good more than the bad, the flattering more than the insulting. And we update our beliefs in a way that reflects that bias.” 

Dr. Caroline Leaf (Switch On Your Brain) “The good news is we are wired for love, which means all our mental circuitry is wired only for the positive, and we have a natural optimism bias wired into us … fear is a learned response.”

*************   PICTURE   My Self Image!  *********************** 

2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
Fear is learned behaviour. It is not in your original design.
You were designed to respond to good news not threats and warnings! 

*************    Graph — Ability to learn from good and bad news  ******************* 

“The difference between what we are doing and what we are capable of doing would solve most of the worlds problems.”    Mahatma Ghandi 

Stanford News  Jan 31,2013   “Giving test subjects Superman-like flight in a virtual reality simulator makes them more likely to exhibit altruistic behavior in real life, Stanford researchers find.”  BY BJORN CAREY 

Titus 1:1-2 “…I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives. This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God—who does not lie—promised them before the world began.” 

Paul sent Titus to establish the church in Crete. Set up leadership and ground them in the Gospel of Grace!    Titus 1:10 “For there are many rebellious people who engage in useless talk and deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation.” 

Titus 1:12-14 “Even one of their own men, a prophet from Crete, has said about them, ‘The people of Crete are all liars, cruel animals, and lazy gluttons.’ This is true. So reprimand them sternly to make them strong in the faith. They must stop listening to Jewish myths and the commands of people who have turned away from the truth.” 

Titus 3:3-8 “Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other.  But— …

“…When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. …  

… He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. … 

… This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone.” 

Titus 2:11-15  “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, … 

… looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, … 

…zealous for good works. Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.” Grace creates the new you.   Free gift that can’t be ruined!
Grace instructs us for life.      Enable right behaviour! 

1 John 3:1-3 “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God; … 

… and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”
Authentic behaviour flows from IDENTITY!!! 

“Any attempt to live by faith beyond what you absolutely know to be true is presumption … We cannot consistently behave in a way that is inconsistent with how we perceive ourselves.”   Niel Anderson 

Tom Asacker  “Information doesn’t move us. Desire moves us.  And desire is ignited and grows around  our most potent, personal truth: Our identity.  The stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. Who we think we are is why we do what we do.” 

Ephesians 4:23-24 “Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.”
New season – new clothing … my old clothes just don’t fit.

The Jesus Trip, Behave Yourself, Sermon Notes to print, PDF

The Jesus Trip, Behave Yourself, PowerPoint Slides, PDF

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