March 2011 Sermon

March, 2011 Sermon by Pastor JR. Fields

Text taken from John 12:20-21 "And there came certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus"

People marveled at the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. They called it a sign, a wonder, and many people began to believe on Jesus because of this miracle. His popularity became so widespread that the Pharisees plotted to kill Lazarus again. Because of this Resurrection, many Jews turned to Jesus.

A few days before the Passover meal they heard that this man Jesus was coming Jerusalem. They ran ahead of Him and began to lay the branches of a palm tree down. They shouted, “Hosanna, here comes the King of Kings. He was riding a donkey, but he is still king.” So, they prepared the way for Jesus to make a triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. While He was there the people wanted to know more about Jesus, so, in great numbers they followed Him.

The Greeks were some among the followers. They went to Philip and said, “We would see Jesus.”

Many people are serving the Lord, but they have never encountered the Lord! These people were inquisitive. They wondered about Him but they had never fully encountered Him.

If the death angel were to come, would we see Jesus? If I should drop dead today would I have my house in order? I could leave my wife an insurance policy, make sure I have everything done-up before I left, but if I do not see Jesus on the other side of eternity, my life has been a waste. I want to look upon His face and I want to sing the Lord’s Amazing Grace, forever.

The Greek went to Philip and both Philip and Andrew went to Jesus. This is what Jesus said, “The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.” The question you might ask is, “What does this mean?”

The hour means that the time was coming when Jesus would go through the mocking, scourging, the beating, rejection, and humiliation. He would go to the cross to die. Arise in three days…I am talking about the Jesus that when the stone was rolled back He walked away. If you want to see this Jesus here is how you must do it.

Verse 24---Verily, Verily, I say unto you…When Jesus said verily He meant, tighten-up ‘cause something good is about to happen. ---Verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground, and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

This verse refers to every man, woman, and child. We are that corn of wheat and unless we are willing to die, you will never see Jesus. This means to die to your old sinful nature, this also means you will have to give up some of your stuff and surrender totally to Him. Sometimes my old carnal nature will rise up, I don’t like that, and I know my Savior doesn’t like it either. However, on occasions that will happen.

I am not too attached to this shell I live in. There is nothing too attractive about it. It doesn’t matter because with Christ we will have a new body. Jesus said. “He that loveth his life shall lose it.” If you love this life so much that you cannot lay it down, you will not see Jesus. If you try to hold on to the temporary things of this life, you will never see Jesus. If you are trying to hold on to houses, land, cars, all trivial things, you will never see Jesus.

To follow Jesus doesn’t mean you must give up everything you have, but you must be willing too if Jesus calls for you to.

Isn’t it kind of strange how Jesus explains this…He says, “If you love it you will lose it, but if you hate it you will keep it.” If you cannot give up the stuff of your life, you will never hear Him say,
“Come into the joys of thy heart.”

Here is what I am saying ----There was a rich young ruler who ask Jesus this, “Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said, “Have you kept the commandments?”

“Yes,” said the Young Ruler. “I have done well and I am a religious person.”

Jesus said, “You are right, you are religious, but you are lacking in one thing. You have a lot of stuff.

You have many possessions, land, and wealth. You must go and sell all that you possess and give the money to the poor.” To borrow a phrase from Paul Harvey, “You know the rest of the story…”The Young ruler sadly walked away. He would not give up his wealth.

The point is this…When you come to Christ; you must be willing to give up it all, not that Christ may ask you to, but that you are willing to give it all. Jesus will never leave you destitute, and you will not have to sleep out on the ground to prove to Jesus that you are sincere. Actually, when you stop to think about it, we don’t own anything …God already owns all that we have. Even if you do have that house and car paid for, what does death do for you? After you are gone, someone else will live in the house and drive the car. Do you have the desire to say, “Jesus, it’s all yours?” Take my life and everything that I own and use it for your good…I am all Yours, Lord.” Which life do you love more, this life or the one Jesus has promised? If it is this life, then you will never see Jesus.