Jesus cried out to the crowd, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. He called his true followers to receive “rivers of living water” in their hearts through believing in him. Someday the Lord will sort out the wheat from the tares (Matt. 13:24-43) and the good fish from the bad fish (Matt. 13:48). But until then, he continues to call us out from the crowd. We are called to be set apart, and God provides opportunities for us to stand up for Christ. 

 Nicodemus was the most unlikely of true followers. His peer group was Jesus’ staunchest critics and opponents. He first came to Jesus by night, yet now he is confronting his peers in defense of Jesus. He is a true follower, evidenced by his burial of Christ (Jn. 19:39). Jesus calls to us the same way he called to Nicodemus: Come out from the crowd!

 Take-Home Message: Jesus calls his followers out of the crowd.

 Jesus’ Offer (37-39).

 The People’s Response (40-52).

• The Convinced (40-41a).
• The Skeptic and the Hostile (41b-44).
  
  
  • Generational Questions 
• Baby Boomers (1946-64) – What is true?
• Gen X (1965-80) – What is real?
• Gen Y (1981-96) – What is good?
• Gen Z (1997-2012) – What is beautiful?

§  Answering the skeptic and the hostile: Share the gospel of rescue and renewal.

• The Amazed (45-46).
• The Authorities (47-49).
• The Follower (50-52).

 Message: Rivers of Living Water

 Scripture: John 7:37-52

There was significant confusion and division surrounding Jesus in his day. Questions about his identity swirled through the streets of Jerusalem, and an underlying fear of the religious establishment filled many of the people. Perhaps the greatest fear of all was that of the religious leaders who felt threatened by Jesus. Yet God’s concrete plan for our redemption through Christ shines through the midst of it all. This reminds us that the confusion and division of this present age cannot shake the sure plan of God formed before the foundation of the world.

 Take-Home Message: In a confused world, God’s plan remains concrete.

 God’s Concrete Plan

• Jesus came from His Father in Heaven (25-29).

• Implications of Christ’s Eternal Existence
• Jesus has profound depth.
• Jesus has endless wisdom.
• Jesus has infinite supply.

• Jesus returned to His Father in Heaven (30-34).

• Jesus reached us alongside His Father in Heaven (35-36).

Message: God’s Concrete Plan

Scripture: John 7:25-36\

Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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Jesus said, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” But how? The average adult makes over 30,000 decisions each day, many of which feel overwhelming. Yet Jesus knew the secret to right judgment: submission to His Father. Jesus waited on His Father’s timing, witnessed with His Father’s authority, and judged with His Father’s righteousness. Jesus never made a sinful decision, so we can look to Him for wisdom in every decision we make. “For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.” (Jn 5:22-23)

 Take-Home Message: I learn right judgment by looking to the Righteous Judge. 

 Jesus and His Father’s Timing(1-9).

• Jesus and His Father’s Authority (10-18).
• Jesus and His Father’s Righteousness (19-24).

 How do I judge rightly?

• Commit to God’s timeline.
• Prioritize God’s approval.
• Pursue God’s wisdom.
• Do not judge by appearances.

 Message: Judge Rightly

 Scripture: John 7:1-24

The Holy Spirit clearly says that in the last days some will leave the faith (1 Tim. 4:1). Tragically, there are many in church who have the appearance of being a follower, yet do not truly belong to Jesus. After one of Jesus’ most difficult teachings, “many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” When many leave, Jesus asks us what he asked the Twelve, "You don’t want to go away too, do you?”

 Take-Home Message: Stay.

 Stay when the Word challenges you (60-62). 

 §  Why do followers leave?

o   Offended by the Word.

 Stay when many leave (63-66).

 §  Why do followers leave?

o   Offended by the Word

o   Unbelief

o   They’ve never truly come to know Jesus

 Stay and truly know Jesus (67-71).

§  How do I stay?

o   Receive the Word. 

o   Believe in Jesus.

o   Come to know Jesus.

·         

Message: When Followers Leave

Scripture: John 6:60-71

Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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Whenever we turn on the tv or scroll social media, we see celebrities who embody the American dream, yet whose lives come crashing down. This shouldn’t surprise us, because Jesus makes it clear that the American dream, and every other path apart from him, lead only to emptiness. The Bread of Life discourse shows us our inability to provide life for ourselves and God’s victory over that inability. We can spend all our years searching for life, but only Jesus has it. Jesus says to us and to all, “Eat, drink, and live!”

 Take-Home Message: The Bread of Life prevails over my inability to find life.

 The Bread of Life overcomes my familiarity (41-46).

 Overcoming the danger of familiarity: 

• Choose thankfulness over skepticism.
• Choose “so that” over “rather than.”

 The Bread of Life pays for my penalty (47-51).

 The Bread of Life invites me to feed freely (52-59). 

 What does Jesus mean by “eat his flesh and drink his blood”?

• A personal receiving of Christ and His Work
• A personal abiding in Christ and His Work

 Message: I Am the Bread of Life: Part 2

 Scripture: John 6:41-59

 Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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We’ve never had more, and yet never had less. We live with a greater abundance of food and resources than perhaps any society in world history. Yet many say, “I just feel so empty.” In Jesus’ day, people had this same longing for sustained spiritual sustenance. Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst (John 6:35).

 Take-Home Message: My emptiness is forever filled by the Bread of Life.

 The Bread of Life offers me a sustained satisfaction (22-29).

 How do I live a sustainable spiritual life?

1.      Direct your energy toward eternal purposes (27).

2.      Doing flows from believing (28-29).

 The Bread of Life offers me a saving trust (30-36).

• How do I trust in Christ?

1.      Trust in Christ is about believing before seeing (30).

2.      Trust in Christ is about leaving before receiving (35).

 Faith:

Forsaking 
All 

I

Take

Him

The Bread of Life offers me a secure relationship (37-40).

Message:  I Am the Bread of Life

Scripture: John 6:22-40

Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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It’s not that our problems are too big, it’s that our view of Christ is too small. The title “Christ” reminds us of Jesus’ Lordship and power. He is “God with us”, but he is also the transcendent King of kings and Lord of lords. When facing the greatest obstacles that life throws at us, we can look to our King who is greater than our enemy. We can say with the Psalmist: I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken (Ps. 16:8).

 Take-Home Message: My confidence is anchored in Christ’s control.

 Because Christ is in control, I need not be anxious (1-9).

• Overcoming anxiety… 
• Focus on the One who is with you.
• Focus on what you do have.

 Because Christ is in control, I enjoy his abundance (10-15).

• How do I enjoy his abundance?
• 1. You can have as much of Him as you want!
• 2. Jesus withdraws from us when we try to control him.

 Because Christ is in control, I need not be afraid (16-21).

 Message: Christ is in Control

 Scripture: John 6:1-21

 Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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Take-Home Message: Jesus is my only option for abundant life.

Without my only Lens, I cannot see reality (39-40). 

• With Jesus, we can see reality about… 
  • Ourselves
     
    • Others 
    • The World 
    • The Bible 
    • Our purpose  
• Without my only Love, I seek the wrong glory (41-44). 
• Without my only Lord, I hope in the wrong authority (45-47). 
• How do I keep Jesus in his proper place?
   
  • Jesus is my lens 
  • Jesus is my love 
  • Jesus is my authority 
  • Jesus is my life

Message: The Only Option

Scripture: John 5:39-47

Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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We live in a very “this or that” culture. Coke or Pepsi. Nike or Adidas.

Iowa or Iowa State. You have to pick a side. But when it comes to the

topic of religion, we can tend to get a bit squirmish. John 5:30-38 is in

our Bibles to let us know clearly and plainly that we cannot play this

game with Jesus. He has clearly revealed who He is and we must

weigh the testimonies of the witnesses He lays out for us in these

verses. If we do not embrace Jesus, we are rejecting Him, and by

doing that, we are rejecting God Himself.

Big Idea: If I reject Jesus, I reject God.

To embrace Jesus as the Son of God, I must…

- Accept His relationship with the Father (30-32)

- Receive the messenger sent before Him (33-35)

- Believe the testimonies about Him (36-38)

Message: Rejecting Jesus

Scripture: John 5:30-38

Simple. Authentic. Jesus.

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• Baptism= acknowledgment that we are sinners and that our only hope is Jesus!
   
  • Remember this as we look at our passage of scripture for today. 
• John 5:25-29
   
  • Truly, truly I say to you, an hour is coming, and now is here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For the Father has life in Himself, and so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and He has given Him authority to execute judgement, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this. For an hour is coming when all who ae in the tombs will hear His voice and come out. Those who have done good, to the resurrection of life. And those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgement.

• In this passage two different judgments are being rendered:
   
  • Judgement 1 (John 5:25)
     
    • “Those who are dead and hear the voice of the Son of God will live!”
       
      • This judgement is occurring even today… right now! 
    • 
      
      • WE are DEAD in sin, and are given new life when we receive the truth of the gospel.
• Judgement 2- (John 5:28-29)
   
  • This is a future judgement… the final judgment.
     
    • Those who do “good” will not be judge. Those who do evil… WILL!
• Jesus is NOT talking about “work’s righteousness”!
   
  • Remember what baptism means: we are all sinners. Our only HOPE is Christ!
     
    • The “good” Jesus is referring too here, is the hearing and receiving of the gospel.
  •  
    • The “bad” is NOT hearing and receiving…

Remember the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31-46)
 

• • One group did indeed, do “good” things, while the other did not. But “why”?
     
    • The group who did “good”, did it out of gratitude, knowing that their HOPE was not in themselves, but in the goodness of the King 

Message: Two Judgements

Scripture: John 5:25-29