03.30.2014 John 15-17 How to be IN the World and not OF the World

03.30.2014 from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

How to be in the world, but not OF the world.

Jesus talks about this 3 times in chapters 15, 16, 17

John 15:18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.

It is inevitable – if you are a Christ-follower, the world will hate you – culture will not like that you are a follower of Christ. It may happen in a workplace or at school – eventually it may happen in our nation. The important thing – see it as a natural thing – even a good thing – if the rejection is based on our faith in Christ and our proclamation of Him. If it is that we believe, live, and proclaim the gospel message – that is a good thing. If it is because you are rude and hypocritical, that is a bad thing!

The source of the conflict should be the theology – your belief in Jesus – what Jesus did and Who He claimed to be.

John 15:20 Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’[b] If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21 They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 Whoever hates me hates my Father as well. 24 If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25 But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated me without reason.’[c]

He keeps saying – it is not because of you – but because of Me – you are My representatives to them.

Think about all the works Jesus did – He healed people – turned water into wine – and yet, they hated Him! Why? Those works/miracles/signs are tied to the proclamation of Who He is.

John 1 says He is God, was God, and revealed God – He has made Him known. If you know Me, you know what the Father is like – I and the Father are one.

The central controlling sin in the human race is the rejection of how God reveals Himself – D.A. Carson

Adam and Eve did not like the way God revealed Himself – they wanted more – they rejected God. What people don't like – what Jesus is like – the TRUTH behind the revelation of WHO Jesus is.

Jesus came and bore witness.

There is a little book out there – They Love Jesus but Hate the Church – People see Christians who don't act like they should act – When they say they love Jesus – I think they love a certain concept of Who Jesus is. They love the Jesus who says, Love your neighbor – and the Jesus who tells the story of the Good Samaritan – but they don't like when He says- Take up your cross and follow Me! He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. God demands our all.

When we live our lives fully engaged in the way Jesus calls us to live – our value system, practices and priorities will be really different from the world.

John 16:1 “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. 3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.

Look at this – they will hate you, thinking they are doing the right thing. The people who persecuted Jesus believed Him to be a blasphemer. I don't know that we see this today – but I think that people will think that they have the moral high-ground! I think that is what we see today. They view Christians who are trying to live faithfully for God as hypocrites. If you proclaim the truths about Christ – there is only one way – that – people stir – they don't like to hear that! That is what Jesus was saying to the Jews. I am the good shepherd, the gate, the door, the way, the truth, the life.

They thought the way was Abraham, or Moses, or David – and so for these people, He is going after what is most important to them - “It doesn't get you there – it doesn't work.” - in our culture – it is being a good person in society – it doesn't work. Jesus says – I am the only way – you must come to faith in Me! It feels harsh! Think when He was saying it to these folks – they weren't the ones running around doing drugs – He was talking to the righteous religious leaders – imagine it! When you say these things – you may be rejected. And obviously, we don't want to do this in rude ways – that is just as bad as the other side of things. At some point – we must take them to the cross and say – only one has died for your sins and the only way to life is through faith in Jesus. That is the only way.

First – Conflict with the world is theological – what we believe about God and salvation – but those beliefs will also generate issues that cause us to be rejected by the world and culture. I think there are several to look at – issues that the world tends to take out and say – this is a problem – but they are also issues where we tend to conform. First – the area of morality – we are given a different morality to olive by. We first think of sexual morality – but it goes beyond that – integrity – doing life right. The gospel calls us to a different standard. Culture is not in favor of God's standard of morality. When we are called to live differently – we say – these issues are out of bounds – issues of morality – and the wold says – no they're not!

But in the church – in the practice of morality – studies show there is not a lot of difference – because we tend to conform and allow our morality to be shaped by our culture, not the word of God.

Second – Greed – Morality is fine – greed, not so much. Materialism – consumerism – in this we conform – we think if we tithe and budget that we are not materialistic conformists. It is so easy to conform to consumer lifestyle in this country – and it is just as evil as morality.

Third – Violence

Hopefully there are not a lot of violent criminals in the Christian community – but how many of us watch violent entertainment. Do you not think that it does not permeate and influence real violence – there is something wrong. In a lot of ways, we conform – as a church – in those areas.

John 17:14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by[d] the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

Doug Brown had this passage in the mens' time – and I think we find false solutions to these problems. First – we become isolationists – and build Christian ghettos and put walls up that we never leave – that goes against our mission to the world – so we can't live behind walls.

Doug said – we need to infiltrate and influence, without conforming.

I was talking to a Pastor-friend – He has a bible study with a group of guys every Saturday – and there was a group of bikers who were always there – so he asked them what they were doing – and they were a biking club. Over the years, I have married, buried and baptized some of these guys. We need to infiltrate, not isolate.

We think we need to fix culture. We get involved in political campaigns, social change, and all kinds of things. Those things are great to be involved with – but that is not our mission, changing culture. Our mission is to bring others to a saving relationship with Christ. This is not so we can live comfortably in our culture. Don't get comfortable in it.

“When you read passages like this – there is no doubt, we are to be a subversive presence in the social order”

Do you see yourself as someone who is subversive? Do you see yourself as an agent of change? To rearrange?

“We must say and emphatic no and an emphatic yes to the world!” No, in no way will it influence me – and Yes, I will influence it.

“The main political task of the church is to set forth a people who see clearly the cost of discipleship and are willing to pay the price”

The goal is to create a community of people who follow Jesus wholly – that is where we offer our best to the world.

The true solution is found in 17 -

I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by[d] the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

We need to be sanctified – set apart – distinct and different when it comes to areas of holiness, right living, right-actions – we need to be different in those things than the world.

We are to be sent -

We are different in our character, integrity and faith – we are sanctified, set apart – but to engage the world in missions.

Does the world hate us because of Christ, or because of our politics?

I think you can guess which one is right.

Do they hate our witness, or our arrogance and self-righteousness?

Do they hate us because of our biblical behavior, or because of our hypocrisy?

Do they hate us for our love for others or because we categorize people?

Let's pray.