Sermon Notes: Why Follow Jesus
June 26, 2006 by cavman
if you want to listen to this sermon, it’s now on Sermon Cloud.
Intro: We follow people, period. Celebrities, musicians, authors, teams/athletes, professors. Magazines, websites, shows etc. help us stay up to date. We dress, talk, & vote like them!
Big Idea: Jesus is perfect & perfectly willing to help.
Context: Writing to a Jewish audience, Matthew is proving that Jesus is the true son of Abraham and David through whom God will fulfill all the promises given to them. After a miraculous, prophecy-fulfilling birth Jesus was affirmed to be God’s much loved and delighted in Son. He must be tested before His ministry.
I. Jesus didn’t have a perfect life.
- He was a blue-collar kid who mourned the loss of those He loved.
- He was tested to prove He was the Son of God, Abraham & David (Mt. 1:1).
- Jesus was tempted, just like us. What can we learn from this?
- Temptation is not accidental- but appointed by God (led by the Spirit, Heb. 4).
- Temptation reveals who you are under pressure. Ill. Fighting with the copier
- Temptation is painful because we’re put to the test or tried to reveal quality. Ill. PSAT
- Temptation is on-going for a follower of Jesus. Satan returned to test Jesus.
- Temptations are Shortcuts: seeking blessing without God, faith and obedience.
- Abraham & David tried to fulfill God’s promises in their own power.
- Shortcuts are a means to MY prosperity, protection or power.
- Athletes =>steroids. Enron=> cook books. Parents =>stop the crying. Students => tech
- The world is upside down, and all its conventional wisdom leads us astray.
- Jesus talks about everyday stuff- the stuff we face & He faced stuff just like it.
- The Sermon on the Mount: temptations we face at home, school, work, playground.
Transition: Jesus was a man just like us; He understands our circumstances perfectly.
II. Jesus practiced what He preached perfectly.
- Adam and Eve failed the test in the Garden. Israel failed the test in the wilderness.
- We fail the test each and every day. Ill. I wouldn’t make it 40 days w/out food.
- Jesus was tempted, but still was without sin. He didn’t have to learn from mistakes.
- Jesus resisted by seeking the Father’s glory first.
- Jesus resisted by living for more than just Himself. Ill. Cinderella Man vs. Baer
- Loving God’s Word is better than prosperity. Ill. Cinderella Man (stolen food)
- Loving God-given limits is better than unnecessary risk. Ill. Rock climbing/MI:II
- Loving God Himself is better than power.
Transition: Jesus experienced temptation just like us, but obeyed perfectly.
III. Jesus is perfectly able & willing to provide grace.
- Jesus obeyed; meriting grace for us. Sinners, we receive the benefits of His obedience!
- Jesus suffered the penalty for our disobedience on the Cross.
- Jesus sits upon the throne of grace, offering grace to us (Heb 4).
- Tempted: ask for grace! Grace empowers you to walk obediently (Matthew 16).
- Afflicted: ask for grace! Grace empowers you to persevere in hardship.
- Guilty: ask for mercy! Mercy removes our guilt, so we can still right with God.
Conclusion: There are too many voices telling us what to do. They want us to follow them, do life their way. But their way is marked by failure and sin. Jesus blazed a trail of perfect obedience in the midst of imperfect circumstances. Jesus doesn’t want you to buy his tapes and books. He is perfectly willing & able to give you the grace and mercy you need to follow Him in your imperfect circumstances.
