Jesus in the Tough Stuff 03
January 23, 2022

Be in the World, But Not of It

Romans 12:1-5 (NLT)

Jesus in the Tough Stuff 03 | Mick Veach | Lead Pastor | first aired on 01.23.2022

I. Read Scripture:

12 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. —Romans 12:1-5

A. Review

  • Jesus is in our marriages if we allow him

B. Today, we are facing some of the most challenging issues and we need to ask the question how would Jesus respond to the moment that we find ourselves?

C. Paul gives us a command in Romans 12 on how we should respond:

  1. V.1—It begins by offering our bodies as living sacrifices

    a. Not our will but his will be done
    b. Do life His way is our act of worship

  2. V.2—Don’t be conform to the pattern of this world

    a. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind
    b. You will know His will if you do this

D. Pray and obey these verses every day and regardless of our challenges, Jesus will grant us the “how to live”

E. The Disciples practiced these truths and stood firm until the end. They obviously faced tough stuff

  1. The authorities persecuted them and hated them
  2. They were faithful to the end
  3. They kept the main thing the main thing

F. he Disciples’ deaths are a powerful testimony to us today

  1. Matthew suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia, killed by a sword.
  2. Mark died in Alexandria, Egypt, after being dragged by horses through the streets until he was dead.
  3. Luke was hanged in Greece as a result of his tremendous preaching to the lost.
  4. John faced martyrdom when he was boiled in a huge basin of boiling oil during a wave of persecution in Rome. He was survived and was sentenced to the mines on the prison island of Patmos.
  5. Peter was crucified upside down on a X shaped cross.
  6. James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem and was thrown over a hundred feet down the southeast pinnacle of the Temple when he refused to deny his faith in Jesus. He did not die from the fall and then was clubbed to death.
  7. James, son of Zebedee was beheaded in Jerusalem.
  8. Bartholomew was whipped to death in Armenia
  9. Andrew was crucified on an X cross in Greece.
  10. Thomas was stabbed with a spear in India
  11. Jude was killed by arrows when he refused to deny his faith
  12. Matthias was stoned and beheaded
  13. Paul was tortured and then beheaded by Nero in Rome.

G. Hebrews 11 says the following about them and us

  1. They were aliens and strangers passing through this land
  2. The world was not worthy of them
  3. Jesus was in PRESENT in their tough stuff…


II. Jesus in our tough stuff today

A. Allow Jesus to

your

  1. Question—How would Jesus speak into today’s world of politics?

a. Do Not be divided as a church over politics (John 17:21—May they be one …)
b. Do Not put your politics above the kingdom

  1. Mark 12:17—Give to Caesar the :33–things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.
  2. Matthew 6:33—Seek first the kingdom of God…

c. Do Not allow COVID, Vaccinations and Masks to stop your fellowship with those who disagree with you
d. Be more passionate about the True King and His kingdom

Key Point: Matthew 24:35—Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away

B. Allow Jesus to

us in our

  1. Rev.7:9 is our goal NOW

  2. Micah 6:8—Act just and to love mercy and walk humbly with your God

    • Biblical Justice is for everyone
  3. We celebrate our different cultures

    • Learn from one another
  4. Do not allow the secular intellectuals to dictate how the church navigates

    • CRT is a secular attempt to deal with injustice
    • It has divided us more than helped us

Key Point—Learn to walk in someone else’s shoes

C. Allow Jesus to

your use

  1. This tool has great power and is being used to manipulate us and divide us

  2. It is feeding our mental health issues

    • We need down time to reflect and think
  3. Acknowledge the addiction

    • Renounce the stronghold
  4. Put accountability in your life on this area

  5. Romans 12:2—Renew your mind with Truth

    • Phil 4:8—Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Key Point—Surrender your device to Jesus

D.

Jesus’ teaching on

  1. This is the church’s greatest challenge in the days ahead

  2. Dr. Preston says the following concerning this issue

    • It is a primary issue not a secondary issue
  3. Marriage in scripture is described as one flesh union between sexually different persons

    • Gen 2:18-24
    • Matthew 19:3-5
  4. Whenever same sex relations are mentioned, they are condemned and considered sexually immoral

    a. Lev. 18, Ro. 1, I Cor 6:9, I Tim 1:10
    b. Scripture is remarkably uniform and consistent in what says about same sex relationships.
    c. No verse can be found that says something positive about same sex relation.

  5. Historically in the church globally there has been agreement on this issue.

    • It has been only the last 20 years that the church has begun to condone it.

Key Point—We will love everyone and yet hold onto the biblical basis of truth

III. Call to Action

1. Accept Biblical Truth
2. Align our lives with the mission of Jesus
3. Live in unity with one another in community
4. Love Jesus more as persecution is upon us

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