FBCWest 551 | Finding Faith
Recorded On: 04/16/2023
Bulletin
Hymn #109 “Blessed Redeemer”
SCRIPTURE READING – Job 19:23 - 27
Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
OFFERTORY PRAYER
OFFERTORY MUSIC – Pru Hungate
Praise and Worship
“Great Are You Lord”
“Way Maker”
“Overcome”
Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“Finding Faith”
“Living Hope”
Benediction “There Is Freedom”
Sermon Notes
Luke 18:1 – 7 Jesus’ parable concerning prayer
Luke 18:8 Jesus asks will He find faith when He returns
Hebrews 11:1 – 3 Tells us what faith is
Hebrews 11:6 Without faith it is impossible to please God
John 20:30 & 31 Why John wrote his gospel
Scritpures
Transcript of Service
Today, we're starting a new series. When I'm getting close to, by close I mean. Months away from concluding. The series that. I'm on. I begin to think about what series that I ought to do. And I usually try to think of. The situation of our congregation and in the world and those types of things to to. To match what I believe is needed for us. And UM. I thought that it was would be good for us to study the the Gospel of John. And part of the reason is that I believe that well, you know, we recently Hebrews and job and then a series on not bowing to me. I think it's good to. To go back to the Gospels. The writings of Paul and others are, or excellent writings, and they're good commentaries. I think we should go back to to our Lord and hear what he has to say and what he does. And so I think it's it's profitable for us to do that. And John is oftentimes used for those. Or New Believers or whatever.
And and we're recommended for that. And so that was what I had intended to do. It doesn't happen frequently, but it's it's it's not. A common occurrence that sometimes God's spirit speaks to my spirit. And he. Spoke to me. A question that Jesus. That said, and it's one of those situations where it's not a common verse that I contemplated or consider the parable that it comes from or at at the end of it, there's something that I well know and and that preached on or whatever. But it's funny. This particular verse is not one of those verses that. I studied think about, contemplate, whatever it's not. Like you know. You shall love one another as I have loved you. It's it's one of those. And so all this sudden, this verse which was not. And the fourth thought of my mind. Not this all of a sudden this verse, this statement that Jesus said hit me. And so I'm. Going to throw you. A little curve, and even though we're starting. The study of the Book of John. I want you to turn your Bibles to Luke. Chapter 15. Because this. Statement by the Lord that I felt was to me and not pepperoni pizza. That it changed my motivation and purpose for going through this study. And so in loop 15. Over verse one it says. Not he that being Jesus was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not lose heart. Now the context of this as Jesus had just talked to them and answered their questions about his second coming, about his return to the Earth, and he had described a number of things that would be and so. He follows up this discussion of his return with with what he's going to tell. Them as a parable. Saying in a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect men.
There was a widow in that city and she kept coming to him saying give me legal protection from my opponent. Obviously she was poor because she could have hired a lawyer, a scribe. But she kept coming to the judge himself, and for a while he was unwilling. But afterwards he said to himself, even though I do not fear God nor respect men yet, because this widow bothers me, I will give her her legal protection otherwise by continuing coming, she will wear me out. So it is that even unrighteous people who don't care about God's will and don't care about what men think will give in because they're tired of hearing the same thing over and over and fine. They just say I don't care what's right. I don't care what's wrong. Just don't bother me anymore. Where he. Goes I I. I got better things to do with my day than listen to this lady, so I'll just give her what she. Wants and so I can live my life. And the Lord said. To hear what the unrighteous judge said. Now, will not God bring about just as far as elect if Friday, him day and night? And will he delay long over them? But I want you to notice when he summit, he's saying a couple things. One is that God will bring about justice. And he will not long delay. He didn't say he wouldn't delay. He just said that the delay would not be long. I tell you that he will bring about justice for them quickly. Will be saying even though it may appear to take some time and even though you may think it's being delayed once it starts, just this will happen rapidly. Now here's the verse. Here's the statement that. His his spirit hold my spirit. When the son of man comes. Where we find faith. On the year. When that hit me like a ton of brick. As you just kind of assume. So I decided. For me personally. What if the Lord delayed? And I was allowed alive when that happened. And he comes. I want to be the one who finds faith. And in addition to that, I want those people who are in my ministry, whether you're sitting here or watching on various social ministries to have faith and that faith be here when Jesus comes. And so that the answer would be so when the son of man comes, will he find faith on the earth?
We can say, yeah, me. You can find me and I'll be here. Now unfortunately. We parents and church has done a lousy job. Because oftentimes our children will go away to college. And because we've not taught them properly and challenged them and had them think about their faith and the scriptures that when they go to college and hear all of the contrary. And I won't even call it evidence. Garbage as it is. They then surrender and give up their faith, whatever that amount was. Because obviously. They're college professors and their friends no more than they did, and therefore, obviously. God's not who God. So I want to turn that around. I want us to say I'm sitting my feet now. I understand. That I have been saved by grace through faith. And that not of myself. It is a gift of God. So my statement here is not Lord, I'm better than this. No, Lord, give me your gift and give it to me in abundance that I might no matter what the situation, no matter what the circumstance, no matter how far I feel that I'm not getting justice and it's delayed that I'm going to be here trusting you no matter. And so the purpose of. Of this. Is for us to go on a journey. To find. And grow faith. Now as a. Temple of this. I'm going to talk about two movies that are. Only the. The first movie I want to talk. About is finding Nemo. Little animated movie. Where Nemo gets lost. And his friend Dora wants to find him. Now, Dora has two major problem. Problem #1. The ocean is a vast place to. Try to find your friend and on top of that the world is even bigger. Now for us, we're fortunate because when we're going to search for faith. We can find it in the script. And John will be a narrow path for us to initially investigate and find faith. The second problem that Dora had. Is the former we believers have. You've seen the movie. You might know what I'm talking. Dora had the memory of a goldfish. She could think of things and remember things for about four seconds and after that. What was I saying? What was I doing? Now why is that?
Because you take a look at the Scriptures and it seems that God's people have amnesia. God will do 10 miracles to set them from Egypt and free them that they've been crying out. For 400 years. And they crossed the Red Sea, which is a pretty neat trick. And of itself, they're led by a pillar of fire and a pillar of, and they're blowing through, and he's giving them mana, and he's giving them water. And what do they say we should go back to Egypt, we're going to die. They don't remember who God is and does. They have amnesia, and so I understand because the scripture tells us about how if you pass out seed, if certain, whatever, that the Saint will come and try to gobble it up. So what we need to do is not what people say is. Like, well, I read the Bible once. Is we have amnesia. We have a goldfish memory. So we need to read the scriptures over and. Over and over. So that our goldfish memory. Will sustain us. The second movie I want to talk about totally different. Saving Private Ryan. Now they it was a true based on a true story that basically. Private Ryan was a member of a number of sons. Through all of his other brothers died during the war. And the government and the Defense Department felt that it was unfair to ask their that family to risk the loss of another child, the last child. And so they sent a platoon of men to find Private Ryan. Now the problem with this is it wasn't like we said, OK, we're going to go on a day trip. And we're going to go to Los Angeles and we're going to try to find him now. They're in the middle of a war. In the middle of a combat zone. And what they have is his name and Rank, Private Ryan, and an approximate place where his unit is. But they have to have extreme risk to save him. And they're in danger, risking their lives to save private, right? Now I'm going to tell you, as we search for and find faith. It's a dangerous trend. Because there are those.
Who don't want us to find it? First of all, our enemy. Peyton and his followers. Our culture doesn't want us to find it. Oftentimes, sometimes our own family don't want us to find it. Because then if. We find it and we change all of a sudden they need to change. So it's a they they don't want us and so they will ridicule us. They will pass us aside. They will not talk to, they will do a number of things. To prevent us from finding it. But the difference between the movie Saving Private Ryan. And us. Is that they were going to save Private Ryan. We're going to find faith to save us. The journey is not to save somebody else. The journey is. To save us. Because we are in need of faith. That shows us.
Are great. Right.
And so that is going to be the journey that we're going to take through the Gospel of John. But I'm not going to go to John yet. Want to go to Hebrews? Because we need to know what we're looking for. Finding Nemo. Dora knew her friend. He knew what. I'm sorry, I I messed up. OK, I'm it's been a long time since I've seen the movie, OK? And I'm an old guy and I don't remember things. And so, Dory, yeah, you're right. So Dory knew better friend. At least I got the title character. Right. Nemo knew what he looked like. And so she could. Find him with all the other fish. Saving Private Ryan, they knew his. Idle Rank, a name and whatever, and so they could find him. The problem with. Current Christianity. Is nobody defines faith properly. You see, you will hear in music and in a lot of churches. If you just believe for it. And it'll happen. You just believe hard enough. It will happen. That's not belief. That's. I can believe. As hard as I want. That I'm 25 years old and I look better than Brad Pitt or George Clooney on. Their best day. Reality is, I won't, no matter how. Much I believe.
Because I'm a lot older than 25. I want to say my the best days are behind me because some of my pictures as a young man, I think I look. A little better now, but. I don't look like Brad Pitt or George Clooney on their best days. But I will believe because God said so. That there will come a time that I will bear. In the image of Christ. Not that I have to believe hard enough. I just have to believe him. And that's different. So in Hebrews it tells us now faith is the assurance of things hoped for. The convictions of things not seen. You see, it is what we're hope because God says I'm going to do this. I'm going to promise this. So when Abraham, who was Abram at the time, was told that he would have. Children that if you could count the number of stars in the sky, that would be his descendants and didn't have a single kid he believed God. We believe God because God said so, not because he was hoping hard enough before God said so. So it's this. Assurance of things before the convictions of things is not I hope, I hope. I hope he's convinced because God has said so. Or buy it. Men of of all gain approval. And so this has always been God's plan for us to respond in faith. And faith is not assumption. Faith is responding to the word of God. By faith, we understand that the world were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. So again, Faith says, why is it that we believe that when God spoke the world and the universe came into existence as Genesis says so? Now I know that there are scientists and whatever say that it took billions of years. For all this to happen. There is evidence. That God's word is correct and they're wrong. But I want to believe God. It seems there. And so by faith, because God said I made everything even out of nothing. The fancy word is ex media. You know through Latin. For you ex Nelia Don made it out of nothing.
Because he said so. But here's and without faith. It is impossible to please him. For he who comes to God, must believe that he is. How many times have? Well, if there is a God. If there is a God, then you're not believing there is a God. So there's a two prong. You must believe that God is. And that he is a rewarder of those who seek him. So here's the great thing on our quest and our desire to find faith and to increase it and to. Commit to it and keep it. God will reward you for the. So we're now going to go. For the reason I decided to use John. And that is this. This is found in John Chapter 20, almost at the very end of his. Therefore, many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples. Which are not written in this book. We are told. In other writings that. And said that if they were able to write everything down that Jesus said and did, the libraries couldn't hold. Jesus was on this wall for about. 33 1/2 years. He publicly had ministry of about 33 1/2. He also existed before. He said a lot of stuff. And did a lot of stuff that aren't reported. Matthew and Mark and Luke have some things that John doesn't have and and that's why they're called this synaptic gospels. A lot of what they have has similar John goes entirely and and gives us some new and different. This so therefore many other signs, Jesus also performed in the presence of disciples which are not read. Into this book. These have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ. The son of God. And that believing you may have life. In his name. You see, John tells us at the end. Why? He wrote the God. He wants us to believe. He wants us to believe. That Jesus Christ is the son of God. And by believing that, we will then have life eternal life in his name. You see our. Journey is not like a treasure hunt to say.
Oh no. And then at the end you go. OK, now I have a gift for a A. White elephant gift? Who cares? This journey, this finding, faith. Has value. It's called eternal life. It's called assurance. When things are difficult and it seems that you are going to. The word of God tells us. And nothing separates us from the from his love. We believe that because he said so. He didn't say it. It would be assumption. So John saying I'm writing this book that you might believe who Jesus is. And that is if you will, the beginning of faith. We must know who the son of God is. We're going to go through John, and we're going to take a look at just who Jesus is, just what other people said about him, just what Jesus said about him, what Jesus did and didn't do, so that we might hopefully come to the conclusion. But John wants us to. That we believe that Jesus. Didn't just live. That Jesus wasn't just a good teacher. That it just wasn't a prophet. But that he was. And is the son of God. I hope. You come on this journey with me. With eagerness. That you don't wait until I read the next verses in this. But did she search the other? And you search the old test. You search the writings of Paul and Peter and of the writer of Hebrews. Oh Jesus. And so. This journey that I'm proposing, everyone can come. You're not a believer. I hope you come with me. If you are. A backslider. I hope you come with. If you are one who is just barely holding on to your faith. I hope you come with. And if you're 1. Who is strong in the Lord? Y
ou have a faith greater than a mustard seed. You'll come along with. So that we will have that faith. So that if we are alive or if our children or grandchildren or great great grandchildren or whoever. When Jesus returned. The answer to his question will the son of man find faith? On the earth. The answer will be. Yes, Lord.
Here I am.
And all God's people said.