Back to the School of Faith, Pt4: The Death of Jesus

October 7, 2018                        NOTES NOT EDITED

Back to the School of Faith, Pt4:  The Death of Jesus Christ

Romans 6:1-14

SIS:  The unique death of Jesus Christ provides eternal life for all those who accept Him as the Lord and Savior.

Experts that don’t have much else to do, I suspect, have determined that about 100 billion people have lived and died since Modern Man appeared.  Just over 7 billion are alive today.  That means that 93% of all people ever born, are dead, with only about 7% carrying on the tradition.  In other words, being dead is much more common than being alive.  There’s nothing particularly unique about the event we call, “death.”

It took all of human history up to 1804 for the world's population to reach 1 billion.  The next billion came only 100 years later, in 1927. And after that, the rate of growth accelerated, 3 billion in 1959 (32yrs.), 4 billion 1974 (15 yrs.), 5 billion 1987 (13yrs), 6 billion 1999 (12yrs), and by 2011 it hit 7 billion (12 yrs.). We're adding a billion people to the population about every 12 years.

 It is clear that the growth rate of the world population is staggering:  a billion more every decade or so.  Yet, in all of human history, from Adam until our present day, one thing has not changed—the death rate.  The death rate remains steady at 100%.  Every person born, dies.  As a human event, nothing is particularly unique about death.

Death is not unique in any way, except the death of one Person—Jesus Christ.  The Death of Jesus Christ is so significant it split human history into two halves:  B.C., or Before Christ, and A.D. In the Year of Our Lord.  Before Christ; After Christ.  No death has been more significant than the death of Jesus Christ, because Jesus’ death was unique in every way.  In philosophy, the Death of Jesus Christ would be referred to as sui generas, or “one of a kind.”

The Death of Jesus is unique in at least 4 significant ways:  it was uniquely prophesied; it was uniquely executed; it was uniquely powerful, and it is uniquely applies.

Let’s read about the death of Jesus Christ.  Rom. 6:1-14.

As we heard the message in song earlier, Jesus was “Born to Die.”  Everybody dies as a consequence of Adam’s sin, but the death of Jesus was unique in that it reversed the consequence of sin.  There are for unique aspects in regard to the death of Jesus.  It was uniquely prophesied, it was uniquely executed, it was uniquely powerful, and it must be uniquely applied. 

1.  First, the Death of Jesus was Uniquely Prophesied

From before there was even time or space, the death of Jesus had been prophesied.  John tells us that Jesus was the “Lamb of God slain before the foundations of the world.” (Rev. 13:8).  The very first Book of the Bible prophesied the death of Jesus (Gen. 3:15):  He [Jesus] will strike your head, and you will strike his heel [a reference to the Devil’s work in the execution of Jesus].

As I said earlier, every person that is born WILL die, but only one Person was born for the unique purpose of dying.  For mortal man, death is a consequence of sin.  For the Son of Man, Jesus, the prophets declared the death of Jesus was not a consequence, but part of a foreordained plan.  As the song we heard earlier stated, Jesus “knew He was born to die.”

Many deaths were foretold by the prophets.  Aaron’s death was foretold (Num. 20:24).  Also, the deaths of Saul and his sons was foretold (1Sam. 28:19).  The prophets foretold the deaths of many people. The prophetic knowledge about these deaths were unique, but the fact these people died was not unique.  It was different with Jesus.  Over 28 prophesies related to the death of Jesus were fulfilled on crucifixion day.  The death of Jesus was not just foretold, it was foreordained for a formidable purpose—the salvation of mankind.

Prophesies identify, without any possible doubt, that Jesus was Who He said He was—Almighty God, the Messiah.  It would have been impossible for anyone else in history to fulfill these 28 prophesies.  The odds are simply astronomical.  For example, the odds of being struck by lightning in a year = 7 x 10⁵ or 1 in 700,000;  Becoming president = 1 x 10⁷ or 1 in 10,000,000; A meteorite landing on your house = 1.8 x 10¹⁴ or 1 in 180,000,000,000,000.  The odds of one man, Jesus, fulfilling just eight of the 28 prophesies related to His death alone has be calculated as:  for simplicity sake 2.8 x 10²⁸ or 2.8 in 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!  The death of Jesus was uniquely prophesied to show He, Himself, was uniquely God.

The Death of Jesus was uniquely prophesied because Jesus was unique among all who would ever be born of a woman.  The prophesies related to Jesus’ death (as with His birth and life) establish His unique identity as the God-Man, or Messiah.  The prophetic voices declare Jesus to be God Almighty, the Second Person of the Trinity.  The only Person worthy to be a sacrifice, once for all, for the sins of all mankind.

2.  Second, the Death of Jesus was Uniquely Executed

The fact that Jesus was crucified is not, in itself, unique.  Many criminals met this horrible fate at the hands of the Romans.  There are ancient records showing that up to 1000 people were crucified by Rome at one time.  Also, Rome was not the first, or the only empire to use crucifixion.  So, crucifixion itself did not make the death of Jesus unique.  There are, however, a couple of unique circumstances involving the execution of Jesus that are important to note.

1. For one, the mock trial in which Jesus was falsely accused is important to note because it demonstrates that Jesus was the “Spotless Lamb” spoken of in the Scriptures, “without any blemish at all.”  Jesus lived a completely sinless life and therefore died as a completely unblemished sacrifice for sin—the requirement for Jesus’s death to be a substitutionary payment for our sin.  We will look at this more in a moment.

2.  Second, consider the horrible cruelty of the death of Jesus.  This demonstrates that absolute depravity of man.  All crucifixions were cruel, but there seems to be even a deeper depravity exposed in the treatment of Jesus.  Covering him with a toga and beating him, pulling out his beard, spitting on him, and the crown of thorns all indicate a unique hatred of Jesus—beyond just the scorn shown to garden variety enemies of Rome.  Sin is an ugly thing-a far greater travesty against a Holy God than man commonly assesses.

3.  Third, consider the absolute certainty of the death of Jesus.  He did not merely “appear” to be dead as some have alleged.  As the Munchkins in Munchkin Land sang of the Wicked Witch when Dorothy’s house fell on her, she was morally, ethic'lly, spiritually, physically, positively, absolutely, undeniably and reliably Dead.  The final conclusion by the Coroner of Munchkin Land: “As Coroner I must aver, I thoroughly examined her. And she's not only merely dead, she's really most sincerely dead!”  The spear in the side indicates that Jesus had actually died of a “ruptured heart,” hence the blood and water from the spear wound.  The death Jesus died was complete and certifiable as any death any man ever died.

4.  Fourth, the execution of Christ’s crucifixion was unique in its brevity.  As a normal course, victims would take three or four days to slowly suffocate.  On occasion, whether for mercy or expediency, the Roman soldiers would break the legs of the victims.  Yet, they did not break the legs of Jesus.  When they came to Him, had already released His own spirit back to heaven.  Nobody took His life, He gave it willingly.

5.  Fifth, of course, there were some unique happenings associated with the death of Jesus--the sky turned black; the temple veil was torn from top to bottom; and, people came out of their graves, to name a few.

The execution of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ had more than few unique features.  His death was uniquely executed.

3.  The Death of Jesus was Uniquely Powerful (1Cor. 15:)

Jesus did not merely die, but by His death, death died.  While Jesus was, borrowing the Munchkin’s coroner’s words, “not merely dead but really most sincerely dead,” His death was not final.  Jesus died as a man but rose as God in the most powerful event in human history since the creation—the resurrection.  Jesus, by His death as God, the Son, absolutely demolished any power death had over mankind.  This is why Paul would declare (1Cor. 15:54-57):

⁵⁴ When this corruptible is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up  in victory. ⁵⁵ Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?  ⁵⁶ Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin  is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

The death of Jesus “swallowed up” the power that death once held over mankind.  Jesus paid in full the debt of sin mankind owed under the Law in order to fully reconcile the elect unto God.  In one fell swoop, Jesus overpowered death.

The resurrection is the crowning jewel of God’s plan of redemption.  The cross and the resurrection must be viewed as two parts of one single story.  On the cross, as verified by the resurrection, Jesus fulfilled what was prophesied in Gen. 3:15: 

He [Jesus] will crush your head [the Devil], and you [the Devil] will strike his heel [Jesus].  This happened on the cross. 

Because of the unique power of the death of Jesus, physical and spiritual death no longer has the inevitable sting of “finality.”  Without the death of Jesus, the epitaph written on everyone’s tombstone would be:  IN HELL FOREVER.  The death of Jesus makes it possible for any man, woman, or child to change what is written on our tombstone to:  IN HEAVEN FOREVERY.  Jesus made it possible for any person—man, woman, or child—to rewrite what would be said of them after they die.  Death no longer has the sharp edge of finality and pain.  The “sting” is gone.

In 1867, Alfred Nobel, the Swedish chemist, awoke and read the daily paper.  When he glanced at the obituary he was shocked to read this entry:  “Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, who died yesterday, devised a way for more people to be killed in a war than was ever possible before.  As a result, he died a rich man.”  Alfred Nobel was both shocked and grieved.  Shocked, because he was not in fact dead.  It was his older brother who had died.  He was grieved because he did not want to be remembered for becoming wealthy by developing a means to kill people more effectively.  So, Nobel, intitiated the Nobel Prize—an award for scientists and writers who foster peace.  Nobel said this about a person’s life and death, “Every man ought to have the chance to correct his [obituary] in midstream and write a new one.”

The uniquely powerful death of Jesus Christ allows a person to do exactly what Nobel did, only with regard to eternity as well as life here and now.  The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ overpowers the grip of finality that death held over us.  As Paul said, the death of Jesus “takes away the sting of death” which is the penalty of sin.  The Power of the death and resurrection obliterates the power of sin and death.

Jesus was unique, so it is not surprising that His death would be unique.  It was uniquely prophesied, uniquely executed, and uniquely powerful.  Most of all, however, the Death of Jesus must be

4.  Uniquely Applied (Rom. 6:1-5)

Let’s go back to the text we read earlier:

6:1  What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ² By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³ Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.  ⁵ If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. ⁶ For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— ⁷ because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

Jesus died for a purpose—to pay the penalty for sin.  We say that the death of Jesus brings us to the place of atonement—or right standing with God.  Rom. 3:25 says, ²⁵ God presented Him as a propitiation  ^y through faith in His blood,  The NET gives a more accurate translation, ²⁵ God publicly displayed him at his death as the mercy seat accessible through faith.  The word propitiation means a “sacrifice of appeasement to gain the favor of God.”  That is a part of the application of the death of Christ, but the focus in Romans is not on the sacrifice, but the place of the sacrifice.  The word often translated, “propitiation,” is actually the word that refers to the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies.  This is the place where God’s Presence resided in the Temple.  It is the place where one high priest entered once a year to make “atonement” for the people.  When Jesus died, the veil separating the Holy of Holies was torn asunder.  Now, through the blood of Jesus all who are saved can enter into God’s Presence.  This application of the death of Jesus is what theologians call the “doctrine of atonement.”

The entire O.T. provides numerous pictures of the process of atonement as a story of the life and activities of God’s people, particularly the various sacrifices and rituals.  The biggest picture of atonement comes with the story of the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt, particularly the last plague.  After nine horrible plagues to convince Pharaoh to set the Israelites free, God brought the plague of the death of the first-born male in every family.  The only way that death would pass over a household was to kill a spotless lamb and spread the blood on the outside frame of the door to the house.  The O.T. is filled with different kinds of sacrifices involving different kinds of animals.  Much blood flowed in the O.T. in an attempt to gain “atonement,” or right standing with God.  The lesson learned after thousands of years and countless sacrifices of animals is simply this:  there is no way for a person to become right with God no matter how many sacrifices have been made and how much blood would flow.  All of those powerless sacrifices serve as a vivid lesson teaching the need for “One Perfect Sacrifice, Once For All.”  That is why Jesus had to die.  Paul says in Hebrews 10:10:

¹⁰ By this will of God, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ ONCE AND FOR ALL.

On that dreadful night long ago in Egypt, it was not sufficient that a lamb was killed.  In order for the Death Angel to pass over the household, the blood had to be “applied” to the door posts of the house.  In the same way, in order for the “once-for-all” sacrifice of Jesus to bring atonement, or right standing with God—we call this, being saved—the sacrifice of Jesus has to be “personally” applied to our individual lives.  It is not enough that Jesus died, His blood must be applied.  There is much discussion by scholars as to exactly what that means and how it is accomplished.  One thing seems clear from Scripture:  Jesus shed His blood to make salvation “available” for any man, woman or child, but that blood does not become “effective” (bringing salvation) until it is personally applied. 

Our text in Romans teaches that if we “die with Christ,” then we “will also be raised with Christ.”  So, how do we apply the principle of dying to our self.  Paul said in Romans 6:6:

⁶ For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— ⁷ because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

The blood of Jesus, like the blood of the Passover Lamb in Egypt, is applied to the doorposts of our heart when we “die to our self” by putting Jesus on the throne of our lives.  We make Him, our Lord.  Romans 10:9 explains the application process like this: 

⁹ If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.

Jesus made salvation “available” when He died as the Lamb of God on the cross.  That sacrifice becomes “effective” when a person publicly confesses before men that he or she is surrendering absolutely and completely to Jesus as the Lord of Life.  As I said earlier, God has no secret agents.  In order to be saved a person must, in a moment of time, confess before others that Jesus is Lord.  That act of “confessing (admitting) publicly” that you are a sinner and cannot save yourself, is how the death of Jesus is UNIQUELY APPLIED to your life.  An old hymn reminds us of this important “application” process:

Down at the cross where my Savior died,
Down where for cleansing from sin I cried,
There to my heart was the blood applied;
Glory to His name!

Without a public confess before others, the blood Jesus shed will not be “applied” to your life, and you will die in your sins.

All people ever born, or who will ever be born, share on event in common—you will die.  Death is not a unique event in the history of mankind.  Yet, the death of Jesus Christ was absolutely unique among all the deaths of a man born of a woman.  The death of Jesus was uniquely prophesied. The death of Jesus was uniquely executed.  The death of Jesus was uniquely powerful.  The only question that remains for you and I is:  has the death of Jesus been uniquely applied to my life?

I said earlier, “The day of your death will either be the best day of your existence, or it will be the worst day.”  Death is not a wall, but a doorway.  While death is the end of this life, it is the beginning of eternity.  You will die.  The only question will be, “will you spend eternity with God in heaven, or will you spend eternity in the horrible loneliness and pain of hell?

It all comes down to whether you apply the blood that Jesus shed to the doorposts of your heart by confessing today, “Jesus is My Lord!”

The Enemy Within

September 30, 2018                   NOTES NOT EDITED
“The Enemy Within”
Mark 9:38-50

SIS – When we allow the grace of God to annihilate the enemy of pride within us, we need fear no enemy about us.

When I sent Gloria the visual image for my sermon this week, she replied, “That’s scary.”  Of course, she had the animated version that was flashing on and off on her computer.  It is a bit scary, I admit.  I think it is appropriate.  Pride is a scary thing when you begin to see it as Yahweh sees it.  Pride is the arch-enemy of mankind.

In 2002 George W. Bush identified the “Axis of Evil” comprised of Iran, Iraq, and North Korea.  Our old arch enemy Russia, like a bear still stalks us as the last election, and the ensuing “Russian Investigation” reminds us.  America has many enemies.  Iranians chant on the street, “Death to America,” and burn our flags.  Iraq and Iran both spawn horrific terrorist attacks against Americans at home and abroad.  “Little Rocket Man,” Kim Jong-Un, is feverishly working on missile systems to deliver a nuclear attack on the United States.  The Axis of Evil President Bush identified is real, and really dangerous—passionate enemies of the American Way.  It is a fact of life for the United States that we have many enemies that would wish us harm and would like to take us out—and I don’t mean on a date.  Yet, even with the Axis of Evil breeding terror all over the globe and the Russian Bear always hungry for a Western meal, what I witnessed this last week reminded me that our greatest enemy is not from outside our borders but inside our gates.

America is decaying before our eyes—if we’d just open our eyes and look around.  The very foundation of America’s judicial system has been nearly demolished in the last ten days or so as the nomination of a supreme court judge has become a political blood-bath.  Many senators and others are now advocating that the the doctrine of a “presumption of innocence” be cast aside—and an accused man strung up for political gain, with zero evidence.  The “hearing” held in D.C. this week was painful to watch.  It was like watching the slow death of a dear friend—and I don’t mean Bret Kavanaugh.  I mean the United States as we know it.  I feel like Pogo, the possum looking over his beloved swamp overrun with garbage and lamenting, “I have seen the enemy and he is us.”
All this caused me to recall a quote I heard once attributed to an African proverb.  “When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.”  This quote draws a line for me from the concept of an Axis of Evil in the material world to a Trinity of Evil in the spirit world.  John outlined that Trinity of Evil (1Jn. 2:16):

 For everything that belongs to the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one’s lifestyle.

I’m sure you noticed that the sin of “pride” highlights that list.  Scholars throughout the ages have called pride the “Father of All Sins.”  In the book of Mark, we have a picture of the greatest enemy we will ever face at work in the life of the disciples—just like it is at work in many of us.  LET’S READ MARK 9:38-50.

As much as I hate to see the fighting in Washington, D.C., I realize there are times we must fight for what we believe in.  Life presents many conflicts.  It gets harder as we get older.  Some fights cannot be avoided.  I remember reading about a couple that had been married for over 30 years.  One day at church Bob was talking with a good friend from church named Joe.  Bob was visibly unhappy.  Joe said, “Bob, what’s eatin’ at ya’?”  Bob replied, his eyes looking at the ground, “Joe, I’ve been married for over 30 years and my wife and I have fought almost every day.”  Joe was shocked.  He asked, “You mean even before church today?”  Bob responded obviously a bit ashamed, “Yea.  Even before church.” Joe was shocked and didn’t know quite what to say (a good sign you should be quiet) and blurted out, “Well, how did it turn out?”  Bob replied, “Well, after a little while that woman came crawling on her hands and knees and said to me, ‘Come out from under that bed and fight like a man!”

I can assure you that as you journey through life, you will have to face an enemy.  You will have to come out from under the bed of cowardice, and fight.  The greatest enemy you will ever face is “pride.”  Our biggest enemy in life comes not from anything around us but from an ungodly sense of pride within us.

In the passage before the verses we read this morning, the ugly monster of pride reared its head among the disciples.  They actually debated among themselves over “who is the greatest disciple.”  That’s like fighting over an award for the “Person with the Greatest Humility.”  Pride is everywhere.  It is so powerful it has been called, “The Father of All Sins.”   C.S. Lewis, the brilliant English scholar and defender of Christianity once wrote:  “According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.”  This is helpful, let me repeat it.

We spend so much of our time and energy, and so many of our resources battling enemies “without and about us,” such as health issues, wealth issues, political issues, or even doctrinal issues.  These external enemies pale in comparison to the “Enemy Within—Pride.”

First, let’s examine some of the “external” enemies that are NOT our greatest foes, and then we will examine the enemy that is our biggest challenge.  First, there are three common enemies that are

1.  NOT our biggest or fiercest challenges.

(1)  Circumstances are not our biggest enemy.

Notice what circumstance in verse 38 prompted John’s question.

³⁸ John  said to Him, “Teacher,  we saw someone  driving out demons  in Your name,  and we tried to stop him because he wasn’t following us.” NIV, “not one of us.”

Now, there’s something to fight about:  someone doing good!  How could John come up with such a silly question?  Because, pride makes you stupid.  Jesus quickly and harshly rebuked John for his attitude.

But, notice what prompted this exchange between John and Jesus.    It was the enemy called “demon possession.”  Over and over and over again we see people seeking out Jesus to help them with some challenging circumstance, whether it be healing a deaf mute or casting out a demon.  Crowds followed Jesus everywhere He went because they sought “deliverance” from one difficult circumstance or the other.  In this present situation, the circumstance was demon possession.

Casting out demons was not solely associated with Jesus.  As we see in Matthew 7:21ff, one could cast out a demon but not be a follower of Jesus.  Human good deeds are not solely done by church-folk.

There are many groups that do “good works” but are totally secular.  Our text really does not address one way or another the spiritual condition of these “unbonafide” workers of good.  The point Jesus made was, “If they wish to do good and give Me credit, then leave them alone.” More simply, “Mind your own business!”  Jesus was saying nothing about the relationship of these other disciples’ relationships with Him. He was shedding light on bad attitudes.

Christianity is not essentially about “alleviating difficult circumstances.”  Jesus did not die to make you healthy and wealthy.  Jesus died to make you holy.  Circumstances are not always your enemy.  In many cases, God is closest when He seems farthest away.

(2) Other People are not our biggest enemy.  I do not mean to say that people will not hate you, or even seek to kill you, because you are a believer.  It happens all the time around the world.  Jesus said,

^{John 15:20} Remember . . . : ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’  If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.

Muslim people are not our enemy.  Mormon people are not our enemy.  Homosexuals are not our enemy.  Democrats or Republicans are not our enemies.  When we allow the Devil to focus on “other people” and get us to focus on the sinner instead of the sin, then the Devil is winning.  A different opinion does not make someone our enemy. Certainly a different religion or a different skin color does not make someone our enemy.  People are not our biggest problem.

John said in affect, “Those people aren’t like us.”  John may have been right.  These people might have been wrong doctrinally like Mormonism.  The text does not say.  John’s problem was he focused on them as “people” who were “outsiders” and a threat. 

On one occasion, not long after this one, Jesus focused on His date with destiny in Jerusalem.  He determined to go straight through Samaria on the way.  He sent the disciples ahead to Samaria to secure lodging.  The Samaritans and Jews hated each other and the Word of God says that the Samaritans did not welcome the disciples.  This was John’s response in partnership with his brother James:

^{Lk 9:54} When the disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?”

Other people may be different.  They may be difficult.  They may even be downright deadly—but other people are not our biggest enemy.  All people are sinners, and none are beyond the reach of God’s love.

(3)  This may shock you but it is true:  the Devil is NOT our biggest enemy!  Well surely this can’t be right.  Look at verse 38 again.  The whole discussion focused on people who were actively—and effectively—fighting the Devil.  They were “driving out demons.”

Didn’t Peter warn us about “watching out for the Devil?”  1Pet 5:

⁸ Be serious!  Be alert!  Your adversary the Devil  is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.

The Bible says clearly that the Devil is our enemy, our adversary, and that he wants to devour our lives.  In fact, all throughout the Bible the Devil worked night and day, no vacations, to destroy the plan of God and take captive the people of God.  He does so even today.

I did not say the Devil is not “an enemy,” but I said he is not our “biggest” enemy.  In fact, read the verse following the one we read in 1Peter 5:8.  Verse 9 says,  ⁹ Resist him  and be firm in the faith.

The word, “resist,” is a war word.  It is a battlefield word.  It means to “dig in and take a stand.”  James uses this same word but adds something to it (Jam. 4:7-8):

Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. 
⁸ Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

We cannot be defeated by the Devil because the Devil has already been defeated by the Lord.  The Devil is an enemy, but is not our biggest enemy because the Devil is a defeated foe.  If we stay close to God (“draw near to Him”) the Devil will stay far away from us.

Our biggest enemy is not the difficult circumstances of life, however difficult they may be.  Our biggest enemies are not other people, however different, difficult, or even deadly they may be.  Our biggest enemy is not even the Devil, as evil and deadly as he is.  I know it sounds shocking to say the Devil is not our biggest enemy, but it is the truth.   Our biggest enemy in life comes not from anything around us but from an ungodly sense of pride within us.

2.  Our biggest enemy is PRIDE, the Enemy Within.

This entire pericope, or section, falls on the heels of the prideful argument the disciples were having along the way, and then John’s prideful pointing of his fingers at others who were “not part of the club.”  Remember, Jesus is having this entire discussion with a little child sitting on His lap (v36). We’ll get back to this in a moment.

What caused the argument among the disciples?  Pride.  What caused John to point an accusing finger at others?  Pride.  What lies at the root of all sin?  [WAIT FOR ANSWER]  That’s right . . . PRIDE.

Let me take you back to the very root of John’s prideful spirit—which is no different from yours or mine.  Turn with me to Genesis 3.  Pride entered the Garden of Eden with the Devil personified as a serpent.  The essence of the Devil’s being is “pride.”  The Word of God says, speaking about Lucifer, or the Devil (Ezek 28:17):

¹⁷ Your heart became proud because of your beauty; For the sake of your splendor you corrupted your wisdom. So I threw you down to the earth;

That dark, deceitful, deadly, devilish pride slithered out of heaven and into the life of the First Family.  Genesis 3:1-6, esp. v3, says

3 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?” ² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. ³ But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ” ⁴ “No! You will not die,” the serpent said to the woman.  ⁵ “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God,  knowing good and evil.” ⁶ Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate _⌊it_⌋; she also gave _⌊some_⌋ to her husband

That same serpent wants to “slither into your life” today.  And he already has if you are not a believer.   You must learn to recognize the horrible hiss of the serpent as he attempts to slither into your soul promising you absolute  “control” over your life.  Think about the chaos in Washington, D.C.  It is all about “control.”  Think about any abusive relationship.  It is all about “control.”  The essence of being lost is wanting to “control,” that is, run one’s own life.  Sin is about “control.”

(1)  Sin leads you top seek control over your DECISIONS (3:1a)

The Devil hissed a tantalizing question raising doubt in Eve’s mind:

Did God really say ‘you can’t eat from any tree in the garden

For one, the Devil twisted the Scripture as he always does.  God said, you cannot eat from “every” tree, not “any” tree.

The Devil always challenges God’s authority.  “Did God really say?”

YES!  GOD REALLY DID SAY.  God has said a lot in fact. Pride prompts us to seek control of our decisions, but faith requires that we submit our decision-making to God through His Word.

Pride says, “My will be done.”  Faith says, “Thy will be done.” 

God says, “give a tenth.”  It doesn’t require a decision, but an act of obedience.  God says, “Remember the Sabbath Day.”  It doesn’t require a decision, but an act of obedience.  God says, “Watch and pray.”  This requires no decision but only obedience.  God says, “meditate on the Word.”  God says, “evangelize the world.”  God says “feed the hungry, clothe the naked, take care of the lowly and disenfranchised.  These things don’t require a decision, but a simple act of obedience.  God’s Holy Word not our carnal desires must control our decisions.

James warns us against being presumptuous and leaving God out of our decision-making:

^4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” ^4:14 You do not know about tomorrow. What is your life like? For you are a puff of smoke that appears for a short time and then vanishes. ^4:15 You ought to say instead, “If the Lord is willing, then we will live and do this or that.” ^4:16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

(2) Pride prompts us to seek control over our DESIRES

Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food

and delightful to look

The Apostle John calls these two, “the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes.” (Jn. 2:16).  The word for “lust” is epithūmia.  According to Kittel’s Dictionary of N.T. Words epithumia means, “the direct impulse towards food, sexual satisfaction etc., and also desire in general.”  Epithūmia leads to all kinds of unhealthy addictions from drunkenness, sexual sin, drugs, pornography and any number of destructive behaviors.

Eve’s action is an example of “seeking immediate gratification.”  We see something we want and we take it, giving no regard for the consequences.  As the Bible says,  “Sin is sweet for a season but soon turns to gravel in your mouth.” (Prv. *****).

Eve’s pride caused her to think she could control her desires, that is fulfill them how she wanted them fulfilled when she wanted them fulfilled, without taking any consideration for the consequence.  Every sin and every evil that has ever been or ever will be came as a result of Eve wanting to control her desires instead of bringing her impulses into submission to God’s Word.

(3)  Pride prompts us to want to control our DESTINY.

Genesis 3:6c says that Even saw the fruit “and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom.”  At this point, Eve agreed with the Devil who had said in verse 5,  “In fact, God knows that when  you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God,  knowing good and evil.”

The pride in man rises up directly from the pit of hell to prompt a man or woman to seek to control his or her eternal DESTINY.  This is the most damnable part of the devil’s prideful plan.  Pride becomes like a 2000 pound grinding stone wrapped around your soul as you are tossed into the abyss of eternity.  That’s exactly what Jesus said.

As Jesus held that innocent, humble, trusting little child on his lap and heard the prideful arguing of the disciples Jesus gave one of the harshest, if not the harshest, statements in the N.T.  When the pride in the disciples rose up to seek control of their DESTINIES, Jesus said,

^{Mk 9:42} “But whoever causes the downfall of one of these little ones who believe in Me —it would be better for him if a heavy millstone  ^w were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ⁴³ And if your hand causes your downfall, cut it off.  It is better for you to enter life maimed  than to have two hands and go to hell—the unquenchable fire,  [⁴⁴ where Their worm does not die,

and the fire is not quenched.]

How do we cause the downfall of the “little ones?”  By modeling a life of prideful disobedience instead of passionate devotion to Christ. 

Prideful parents lead to prideful children.  It is a death sentence for the soul and Jesus said the penalty for prideful living will be severe.  Pride is awful.  Pride will destroy your soul.  Pride will drag you down into the eternal lake of fire “prepared for the devil and his angels.”  I have been asked many times over the years if I believe that hell is “eternal fire.”  Well, the Word clearly says it is “eternal,” and clearly describes it as “fire.” 

My personal opinion is:  hell is worse than being burned alive eternally and having maggots crawl in and out and all over you.  It’s at least that—and much, much worse.

The better question to ask is:  “how can I make sure I never go there?”  The answer is woven throughout this passage and in fact throughout the entire Bible:

v39:  “in My name.”  v40: “not against [me] but for [me].”  v41a: “of My name.” v41b: “belong to the Messiah.” v42: “believe in Me.”

Pride will lead you to seek control of that which man can never control.  Pride leads you to accomplish by your works what can only be accomplished by God’s grace.  Only faith in Jesus overcomes pride.  Faith in Jesus allows us to surrender our decisions to His will, submit our desires to that which leads to godliness, and trust Jesus to fulfill our destiny.  Only by surrendering to the Lord Jesus can we ever overcome the enemies of life—the greatest being pride.

This passage, and the one last week, show us John and the other disciples at their worst.  They were focused on all the wrong “enemies” while being blinded to the Enemy Within—which is pride.

Pride leads to all kinds of evil, even among disciples of Jesus who allow it to slither into one’s life.  If this pride is not dealt with, it’s venom will course through your life and ultimately lead to death—eternal death.

Today, is the day you must deal with this Enemy Within.  Perhaps nobody else sees it, but you know it is there.  It is eating away at your soul just like the venom of a rattlesnake eats away at your tissues and flesh.  Today, you can cast off this ugly serpent by giving yourself humbly and completely to Jesus “like a little child.”

Today.  Tomorrow may be too late.

If a person winds up in hell after he or she dies it will not be because they were dragged into the pit by a demon of drug addiction.  A person will not find themselves in hell after they die because they were led down a demonic path of a deceitful cult.  It won’t be this vice or that which will defeat your soul and sink you into the vast abyss of darkness for all eternity. If you wind up in hell you will have been consigned to that fate by one enemy:  pride.  Because of pride a person refuses to surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and allow Him to defeat all your other enemies. 

When we allow the grace of God to annihilate the enemy of pride within us, we need fear no enemy about us.