Could Jesus preach for “your” church?

Is “your” church, “His” church?

The day our church “fired” Jesus!

• I have come to believe that the “feel good” religion now sweeping our churches in the name of Christianity is to the church what drug addiction is to society at large. Once these churches are infected, they rapidly become addicted. They become filled with a very shallow people, wanting ever more dramatic events to make us “feel” fulfilled

• Once addicted, hype replaces substance. Sounds like somewhat of a reversed substance abuse?

• Churches abuse their members from a lack of substance. Drug addicts abuse their bodies by the invasion of harmful substance. These churches are always looking for the innovative method of church growth. “Children’s church” replaces training your children to worship and respect their creator.

• As the youth move into teenage, entertainment replaces serious Bible study and effective spiritual growth. In other words, the original call of the gospel is often replaced with an offer of entertainment or treats.

• Most of the religious leaders involved in these changes know that what they are presenting is different than what Jesus presented. Their justification (once called on the issue) will remind you of all the “medical” marijuana arguments raging in the secular world. The bottom line is really the same. Worship becomes about “us,” rather than about offering ourselves to our sovereign Creator. A shocking reality is it not?

• I believe that Jesus would be run clean out of the pulpits of most churches today. At best He would be relegated to some small country church, known for it’s “backward” ways! Jesus’ “brand” of Christianity is very different from today’s brand. He is the founder of Christianity!

• This study will be an in depth look at Jesus' actual preaching style. I will be asking directly... could you handle it? I am also asking you to consider carefully what you think "should be" the nature of the preaching (it's tone and content) in the church today.

Have you attempted to discover from scripture what “should be” in the churches?

• These movements afoot in our generation causes us to preach what “should not” be…

• Today I will share what I have discovered in my own study what “should” be. and take you on a journey that perhaps you, like I, have never been on.

In our mind’s eye

• let’s try to picture what would happen if Jesus was hired as preacher of some local congregation. Would Jesus be able to last?

• Wouldn’t it be horrible if that congregation fired Jesus as their preacher…What if “they” never even realized what they had done? Why would they not be “satisfied” to have Jesus as their preacher?

• Actually this scenario is not as absurd as it may sound. Jesus’ description of the judgment in Matthew 25 carries this very kind of imagery. Doing (or not doing) for Jesus and never even realizing it – “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it

unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (25:40)

• In Luke 24 Jesus appeared to two men on the road to Emmaus and discussed scripture with them. Scripture describes how “their eyes where holden” Luke 24:16. Jesus started His discussion with them with – “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the

prophets have spoken!” (vs25) • He continued till they recognized him and

then He disappeared. As we observe Jesus’ method of teaching;

• The one major Characteristic of Jesus’ teaching style is that He was incredibly blunt.– Could we tolerate Him in our pulpits today?

• Another surprising characteristic to many was that His normal mode is to end a discussion (or sermon) on something powerfully provoking but… negative.

• As Jesus preached week after week and kept sending us home to think on something negative, (with a sour taste in our mouth)… how long would the congregation tolerate it?

Consider the sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7).

• It starts in Matthew 5 with the pleasantries of the beatitudes. Many sermons have been based on the beginning (Matthew 5) portion of this sermon. It is after all the most famous sermon of Jesus’ ministry. The last portion is often ignored

Now notice

• The sermon ends with the prophecy of the judgment, and most of the people there assembled would be condemned while thinking they were serving Jesus.

• Jesus sent them home with….– Matthew 7:23. And then will I profess unto them, I

never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity

• Jesus followed this comment with the parable of wise man who built his house on the rock and the foolish man who built his house on the sand. Then, Jesus sent them home to think about it. Consider Nicodemus John 3. I tend to think the tone of Jesus’ voice was tender in this discussion… but the message is as direct as ever.

• Jesus first response to Nicodemus was that unless he was born again, he would not even see the kingdom of God. Following Nicodemus puzzlement Jesus says he cannot enter the kingdom without being born of the water and the spirit. – “ Nicodemus said to Him, "How can these things

be?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?” John 3:9-10

• Jesus went on to explain further and sent Nicodemus home with . . . – "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into

the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God." John 3:19-21

• Notice that even when Jesus is dealing with godly, seeking people… His usual method is to send them home with some powerful but negative truth to chew on.

• This is exactly backwards of what “professional” preachers are taught today. To “grow” a church must leave everyone with something positive

Consider the woman at the well in John 4

• Her discussion with Jesus rapidly focused on pointing out she was living with her 6th man who was not her husband. She eventually ran into town still pondering this and exclaiming such to the townspeople

• Consider the healing at Bethsaida John 5 • Jesus healed the man then, “Afterward Jesus

found him in the temple and said to him – "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore,

so that nothing worse happens to you."”

Do you see the pattern emerging

• one after another are sent home with something serious/negative/ or harsh to ponder?

• Let’s consider the aggressive style of Jesus’ preaching in Matthew 23…

• The first segment is to the effect that the Pharisees actually preach it generally right… but they just don’t live it. That’s a bit surprising from the rhetoric of today isn’t it?

• If Jesus came to preach a “meeting” at a congregation, Then…culminated the week’s series of lessons with this sermon as the climax, Would He be invited back?

Using Matthew’s order of sermons

• Verse 1-12 Is the introduction. It is pretty stiff in it's own right, but note what happens after the introduction

• 13. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because

• 1 4. ["Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because• 15. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because• 16. "Woe to you, blind guides• 17. "You fools and blind men!• 19. "You blind men,

• 23. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

• 24. "You blind guides,• 25. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,

hypocrites!• 26. "You blind Pharisee• 27. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,

hypocrites!• 29. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,

hypocrites• 33. "You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will

you escape the sentence of hell?

The reality • even though we are created in the image of

God…We keep trying to re-create God in our own image

• Do we recognize Jesus as He is revealed in Scripture... Or do we change him into something we perceive as more acceptable?

• If Jesus continually sent us home with negative thoughts… (His normal method of teaching) Then preached His “final” public sermon in a congregation…. Would He ever be invited back?

• Let's close by considering Paul's assessment of what happened to the Gentiles. With a realistic view of how people would really react to Jesus if He were their preacher today, Can we realistically see this kind of thing happening to us all over again?

Romans 1

• 21. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

• 22. Professing to be wise, they became fools, • 23. and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God

for an image in the form of corruptible man and . . .• Does this fairly describe the real reaction that would

occur if Jesus preached in some of His own churches today?