Title: Stop Being So Competitive - Enjoy Your Life

Series: Discovering The Real Jesus

Key Text: John 3:22-32



Key Message:

Many people go through their lives comparing themselves with others and competing with those around them. And it can all cause great unhappiness and heartache.

Unfortunately, churches and denominations and ministries have also been known to compete with one another. Even real disciples in a cell group or team of 12 can be guilty of self-promotion and rivalry.

There were three occasions in the gospels when Jesus’ team of 12 disciples had an argument. They are mentioned in Mark 9:30-41, Luke 9:43-50 and Matthew 18:1-5. Each time the issue was the same: “Who is the greatest?”

In John 3: 22-26, we see that the disciples of John the Baptist had the same competitive attitudes. John’s followers had been used to great crowds coming to hear him. Now the multitudes were flocking to Jesus and they were envious of his success. They said as the message version puts it ‘He’s now competing with us….everyone is going to him instead of us.’

They got very upset that they didn’t now have the same position of importance that they once had and they wanted John the Baptist to do something about it. Sort out this leader who seems to be the new authority!

But instead of sympathising with them John taught them a much more Godly way to react. His response also shows us also how to overcome such a competitive and jealous spirit.



Recognize The Blessing Of God On Others (John 3:27; Ephesians 4:11-13; Mark 9:38-39)

Be Happy Being You (John 3:28-29)

Die To Your Ego (John 3:30)

Focus More And More On Jesus (John 3:30,32-36)

Apply

John was telling them to recognise that Jesus was a gift from heaven who was simply exercising the gifts that God had given Him. He was only giving out in ministry what He had received from God.

Conflict often happens when people will not recognise what is godly and good in others. They would rather demonise people than accept that a person has actually been given anointing and gifting from God.

We should recognise and thank God for all in the church of Christ locally, nationally and globally who has received gifting and anointing from heaven. And we should be quick to spot the good in others in your own family and church family.

Are you happy to have the same attitude as John the Baptist. Are you ok like Joseph in the Old Testament to serve faithfully in a prison as well as a palace? Are you content to be a team player no matter how talented you may be?

Can you just relax and be you and enjoy being who you uniquely are and be happy with what God has given you to do?

John the Baptist is saying my life isn’t about me, but it’s all about lifting up Jesus in my life. For as Verse 31 says: The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all.

So here then is our greatest challenge: to put Jesus at the centre of our lives and to let his light and his love shine out to the world in our words and actions and relationships.

In the end everything comes down to this ‘He must become greater; I must become less.’ Let’s pray.



Ministry: we start life as a Christian when we stop living our way and put Jesus first in our lives. Prayer:

Lord Jesus thank you that you are the Son of God and Saviour of the world. Please forgive me when I have focused on me and left you out. Please forgive me for my sins and help me to always follow you. Amen.

Also, I would like to pray for those of you who have struggled with competitiveness and jealousy. You need to recognise this and repent of this and get it uprooted once and for all from your life. You may need the Lord to show you why you are like this and whether you need to forgive anyone and receive a healing in your heart. Just take a moment to confess this to the Lord and ask him to help you as you decide to change.

Heavenly Father, please help all those who have become jealous and who may also have suffered because of jealousy and competitiveness. Please help them to put you first in their lives, to die to their ego and to decide to build others up. Holy Spirit come and remove what is toxic in their hearts and fill them with your love for them and a new love for others.

We ask all this in the name of the King of love, our great shepherd and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Key Message:
Right now, our world needs a whole lot of love. War with all its hatreds and savagery has once more erupted in Europe. Nations are in turmoil and fear wondering what comes next. In many places racism and anti-Semitism are at record levels. For millions of people, both older and younger and including many trying to recover from the negative effects of Covid, the world right now can appear a very cold, dark and frightening place.
Love is what countless people are looking for. All this shows us why we need the only love that can truly change the world and that love is the love of God that every Christian must experience and communicate in word and actions. John 3:16 sums up the heart of Christianity and shows us why we can be confident that God is not against or is out to get us. Rather he is for us and wants to show us His love. God has not given up on our world and neither must we.

1. The greatness of God’s love (John 3:16; 1 John 3:1; Ephesians 3:18)
2. The gift of God’s love (John 3:16-17; John 2:29; 1 John 4:10; Romans 5:7-8)
3. The guarantee of God’s love (John 3:19; John 11:25-26)


Apply
God’s love is an overflowing and abundant love. 1 John 3:1 says: ‘how great is the love that the Father lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God.
He loves people of every race, nation and ethnic group throughout all generations.
The good news of Christianity is a universal declaration of love for all people everywhere. It's not just a white man's religion or a message for the weak or certain respectable church people.
It is for men and women and yes also for those who identify as gay or transgender. It is for single and married. It is for young and old. It is for black and brown and white and olive skinned. God’s love is for Jews and Gentiles. It is for people of every class, colour, culture, country and continent.
Let me ask you this, have you ever felt the tender love of God like this? Do you really know how much Jesus has done for you? Do you wonder how he could love you a sinner, condemned, unclean? Do you marvel at his mercy? Wow the great hymns through the ages are full of this revelation.
When you commit your life to Jesus, you need have no more fear of condemnation and death. For Jesus promised in John 11:25/26: I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in Me, will live even though he die and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.
So how do you receive this guarantee of eternal life? Simply, by believing that Jesus is who He said He is, the son of God who lived the perfect life, who died as the world’s Saviour from sin and who has conquered death through His resurrection.
To believe in him means more than just believing in your head. It means fully trusting him, to put your full weight on him and not on anything else like your own goodness. It means having full confidence in Jesus to forgive you, free you and give you fullness of life.
And this offer is available to anyone…. whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.


Ministry:
New Christians: Well maybe like the bishop that Billy Graham met you may know about Jesus and his love but do you know Him? If you want to then pray a simple prayer from your heart and pray with me.
Lord Jesus, I do believe that you are the Son of God and Saviour of all. Please forgive me for all my sins and make me clean through your blood which you shed for me. Fill me with your love and give me the strength to follow you. Amen….
Well this is how to start a new life with Jesus. You can grow in your faith as you read your Bible and pray. Also tell people about Jesus and become part of a Christian church that can help you. make sure they have your details so that they know how to keep in contact with you and also please feel free to contact us.
Christians: If you are already a Christian, take a moment to ask the Lord to give you a new revelation of the cross and His great love for you.
Receive his mercy, thank God for his mercy and share his mercy to as many people as you can. Let’s pray..
Father thank you for your great love, for all you give to us, especially Jesus and for the guarantee of eternal life. Please send your Holy Spirit now to warm our hearts, to comfort us when are worried and fearful and to let us live in your presence now and always. We ask all this in the name of Jesus. Amen….God bless you

In the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus, who later became very committed to Jesus, we see some important points about being born again. In the encounter, we see that Nicodemus is a member of the Jewish ruling council, a man who usually would’ve been approached for knowledge or advice. Instead, we see the Nicodemus acknowledges that Jesus is from God. Jesus then goes on to explain that no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. Nicodemus exclaims as to how this can be possible; how can someone be born again when they are old? Jesus responds saying that someone must be born of water and spirit to enter the kingdom of God.

1. The necessity of being born again (John 3:5; Ephesians 2:1)
2. The possibility of being born again (John 3:5-6; Ezekiel 36:25-27; 2 Corinthians 5:17)
3. Let Jesus bring about change (John 3: 3-5; Numbers 21:4-9; Numbers 24:14)

Apply:-

Do you know what it means to be born again? Jesus said the only way to enter the kingdom of God is to be born again. Have you experienced this new birth? Being born again is the only way that you can get into the kingdom of God. Jesus could not have been clearer in his words to Nicodemus. John 3:5 says “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” Then he added in another verse ‘You must be born again.’ In other words, being born again is a necessity not an option. You MUST be. In other words, you can’t get yourself into the kingdom of God by your own efforts just like you can’t give birth to yourself physically.

Now this was a big challenge to someone like Nicodemus. He is described in the passage as ‘a ruler of the Jews.’ He was a member of the Sanhedrin; that’s the Supreme Court of Israel. They were wealthy, influential, scholars, from prominent families. So, Nicodemus was a very elite man who should have been an expert in theology.

But Jesus gets right down to basics with him. It doesn’t matter what your background is or how much Bible you know or even whether you are living as a good person. The big issue is this: have you been born again?
That’s a very important question especially for people who have been in church for a long time. You may know about Jesus, but do you know Jesus.

Have you received the life of Jesus in you? Maybe, like many people today, you can’t believe that you could ever really change, but God is able to make us clean and give us a soft new heart and a new spirit.
The possibility of new birth means that you never have to be a fatalist, things can change. God can do the impossible in your life. It’s not something we do. We can respond to the Holy Spirit. We do have to open the door! Becoming a Christian and being born again calls for simple trust and simple faith.

In verses 14-15 Jesus speaks of how we can receive new life when we believe that he died for our sins on the cross. Jesus actually refers to the sins of Israel recorded in Numbers 21:4-9 when God’s people were bitten by serpents and died. God told Moses to make a bronze serpent and hold it up on a staff. Whoever looked upon the bronze serpent was healed from the judgment and, rather than dying, lived.

Here in verse 14 Jesus makes the connection: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent so that others could look upon it and live, so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that whoever looks upon Him will live.”
That’s the simplicity of the gospel, the good news of Jesus, that when you Focus all your hope and faith on Jesus Christ, and believe in your heart, that on the Cross he paid the price for your sin…then you will live…then you will go from death to life, from darkness into light, and you will be made new…you will be born again!

Prayer:-

Heavenly father thank you for sending your only son Jesus to save us from our sins and give us new life with you. today please send the Holy Spirit to change my heart. Come now that I may feel your presence and know that I am born again. I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The miracle that John records in John 2:1-11 is one of the most unusual miracles in the ministry of Jesus, a miracle which nobody was expecting. Jesus turning water into wine at a wedding was very different to His many healing miracles and it shows how God wants to bless us in the everyday experiences of life in ways we never thought possible.

Jesus turning six large stone jars of water, each able to hold 20 to 30 gallons, into fine wine is not something you would expect anyone to do and certainly not a religious leader. But Jesus was not a typical religious leader who was stern and strict. He was totally against negative religion. Of course, the Bible makes it clear that drinking too much is a great danger and often it is best to avoid alcohol altogether, especially if it has brought damage to your life. But the Bible also says that ‘wine gladdens the heart of man’ and Jesus clearly would have brought great joy to many people through this miracle. This first miracle of Jesus shows how we all can experience the blessings of God in our lives.

1. Invite Jesus into every part of your life (John 2:1-2; John 4:14; John 7:37; John 14:6)
2. Do whatever Jesus says (John 2:5; Luke 23:34)
3. Let Jesus bring about change
4. Jesus can make things get better and better (John 2:10; Psalm 23:6)

Apply

Have you invited Jesus into every part of your life? The best foundation for any marriage and any life is when you invite Jesus to be with you (John 2:1-2). Today many people leave Jesus out of their lives. It was the famous Russian writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn who said ‘people in the west have forgotten God.’ Today many people, especially young people, are searching for direction and satisfaction. But that can only be found in Jesus (John 4:14; John 7:37; John 14:6). Whether is it is a thirst for love, or a thirst for meaning or hope, Jesus Christ is key to satisfying the deepest thirsts of the human heart. You can receive these blessings when you simply pray and invite Jesus into every area of your life, including your marriage. This is how you open yourself up to new and unexpected blessings in your life.

Are you obedient to do whatever Jesus says? Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to Jesus to share that the wine was about to run out. She was confident that Jesus could deal with this problem, but she didn’t know how. But she knew how to access some answers (John 2:5). The best advice for all of us is to just do whatever Jesus tells us. To have the Maker’s blessing on marriage, it is important to follow the Maker’s Instructions. In other words, just do what the Bible says. Don’t go your own way and do your own thing. Just follow the example and teachings of Jesus. Firstly by being loving: we are to love as Christ loved. That’s true in marriage and for every relationship. Love means being patient, kind, understanding, protective, trusting and honouring. Love is more than just words, it is about our actions of doing all we can to bless others, starting in marriages and families. Jesus showed His great love for the world by sacrificing His life and dying on the Cross to save us from our sins. We should also follow Jesus by forgiving (Luke 23:34). Forgiveness is one of the biggest secrets to experiencing God’s blessings in our lives. We have to learn not to harbour grudges, bitterness and resentment but to be quick to forgive one another. Maybe today there is someone that you need to forgive so that you can be freed to enjoy God’s blessings. Also, we need to learn to do what God says by being faithful. A husband and wife are to be faithful with their words, bodies, attitudes and affections ‘as long as they both shall live.’ Just as a marriage grows when each partner can truly trust one another, so too relationships in a family or church or business or society will become stronger when we are truly loyal to one another. So blessings come when we invite Jesus into every area of our lives, when we do what He says.

Are you willing to let Jesus bring about change in your life? The same Jesus who changed the water into wine can also bring great changes in our lives. He can change a hard heart to a soft heart, change a sinful heart into a cleansed heart and change a broken heart into a healed heart. To believe in change when you have experienced sadness and pain in your life may not seem possible. It’s easy to think ‘this is the way I am, this is the way things are, nothing is ever going to change.’ But change can happen. God can bring about big changes in your life that you cannot do by yourself.

Do you believe that with Jesus, your life will get better and better? One of the greatest blessings of being a Christian is that every day you can know more of God's blessings (John 2:10). As it says in the Old Testament book of Lamentations: His compassions never fail, they are new every morning; great is His faithfulness. With Jesus your marriage can get better and better and your life can get better and better (Psalm 23:6). So, get ready to enjoy many unexpected blessings in your life.

Many people are familiar with Jesus as a great public teacher who spoke to multitudes and worked many miracles. Yet it was what happened away from the crowds that was so important in the ministry and purpose of Jesus. Jesus was very intentional in focussing His time and energy on developing a small group of true followers who would carry on His work and become the foundation of a world changing movement. Over a period of three years Jesus constantly taught and corrected them and shaped their thinking, their attitudes, the way they perceived themselves and how they should act and react in different circumstances.

The great growth of the first century church was a result of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the high-quality disciples that Jesus had worked so patiently to produce. If we want to see strong Christians and churches in our world, we must also make it our priority to find and form committed disciples of Jesus. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said ‘Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ’. Real Christianity is so different from just going to church. Instead every Christian must be trained to faithfully follow Jesus in every area of our Christian faith and in every part of everyday living. And in turn every trained disciple has the potential to train others to train others in an ever-increasing circle of influence in every nation and generation.

In John 1:35-51 where Jesus chose the first of His team of 12 disciples, we see some important lessons about choosing disciples who have the potential to change the world.

1. Jesus chose disciples who understood who He was (John 1:36-37,41,45,49)
2. Jesus called disciples who wanted to be with Him (John 1:38-39; John 1:11-13)
3. Jesus called disciples who were willing to share the good news (John 1:41; 44-46)
4. Jesus called disciples who decided to follow and be formed by Him (John 1:43,50-51)

Apply

Have you personally had a revelation of who Jesus is? The disciples were so excited about discovering Jesus (John 1:36-37,41,45,49). Each of these disciples came to have their own revelation of who Jesus really was. They perceived that He was the sacrificial lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world. They understood that Jesus was not just a religious teacher or miracle worker but the promised Messiah, the King of Israel and saviour of all. To grow as disciples, we too must also begin with a revelation of who Jesus really is. We need to understand who Jesus is for ourselves. It is not enough for us to hear about Jesus, we need to know Him in a personal way. It’s not enough to grow up in church or even to know the teachings of the Bible - every disciple needs to have that revelation for themselves. There are many ways that we can come to this revelation of Jesus. Sometimes it is through pain or trouble which causes us to seek God. Or it may be through contact with a Christian friend or that we get this revelation just through reading part of the Bible like this book of John. What is so important though is that we come to see who Jesus really is.

Do you sincerely want to spend time with Jesus? And do you want to be trained as a disciple? Jesus began to develop a relationship with His future disciples when He saw that they were sincere and serious about being with Him (John 1:38-39). He asked them what they wanted and when He saw that they wanted to spend time with Him to learn more, He made time for them. Jesus will never barge His way into your life, but He offers us the opportunity to come to Him and when we do, He will respond to us (John 1:11-13). We show our desire to know God when we seriously read the Bible to know more about Him and take time to pray to Him. And when we seek Him like this, we will always find Him. For He always responds to the responsive. Also if we want to be developed and trained as disciples we must want to be with proven Christian leaders. We must show that we want to spend time with them. We must tell them that we are ready to listen and to learn.

Have you shared the good news of Jesus with others? Do you do this regularly, as part of your daily lifestyle? It is interesting to see that Jesus didn’t recruit His team of 12 all on His own. The group grew as some disciples brought others to meet with Him. First we see that Peter, who was the spokesman for the disciples on the day of Pentecost, was introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew (John 1:41). Then we read how Nathanael became a disciple through his link with Philip (John 1:44-46). Here we see how two disciples brought two more disciples into the group. And this is usually the way people come to Christ: through a family member or friend sharing what they have discovered with others and telling them to come and find out for themselves. Discipleship development is always outgoing not inward looking. Our calling is to share the good news of Jesus with others. Our small cell groups will grow when we all play our part to bring others to Jesus and to the church. The phrase 'where there is team there is conquest' shows that it’s not all down to one person, we need to work together unitedly.

Have you decided to follow Jesus and be formed by Him? In John 1:43 Jesus said ‘follow me’. This was an instruction, not a request. For the disciples to grow they needed to change from going their own way and doing their own thing. They needed to make a decision to follow Jesus. We have to each decide whether we are going to seriously follow Jesus or just live our lives our own way. Being a disciple of Jesus is not about Him going with you, it’s about you going with Him. Have you made this decision? Have you said in the words of the old song: ‘I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back'? From the moment we decide to follow Jesus, a whole new world opens up to us. Nathanael was amazed that Jesus had spotted him sitting under a fig tree even when he had no previous contact with Jesus. But Jesus told him 'You will see greater things than that' (John 1:50-51). Today everything can change for you when you decide that you will fully commit your life to Jesus and to be trained as His disciple.