Jump Start # 1906

1 John 4:4 “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.”

NOTE: Our Jump Starts are taking a few days off for some R & R. There will be no Jump Start on Friday or Monday. Hopefully, we will be back on Tuesday. Thanks.

I was thinking this morning about all the people that I know that need God’s help. The prayer list is long. A troubled marriage, a struggling teen, someone having surgery, someone just found out they have cancer, a church looking for a preacher, a family buried a loved one, a church that is struggling, a family drowning in financial debt, a preacher overseas who needs everything, new Christians, tired Christians, young families, college students getting ready to head off to campus—so many people. So many needs. I feel overwhelmed. Thinking about one person, leads me to thinking about another person. That leads me to thinking about yet another person. Then there are so many people that do not know Jesus. Most do not even realize that they need Him, but they do.

Do you ever feel this way? A few things come from this.

First, people need us to pray for them. Some never pray. Some don’t know how to pray. Some are praying, but our prayers need to be added. Folks are scared, confused and hurting. God’s help is the best that they can receive. God’s help can get through doors that we think are closed and locked. Don’t just pray for yourself. Don’t keep God to just yourself. Share. Share your heart and share your God. When people say, “I just don’t know what to pray about?” I think, “Really?” Open your eyes. Turn on the nightly news. There are things going on all over this planet. Pray. Pray. Pray. Prayer works. God wants us to pray.

Second, I suppose people needing help is nothing new. I suppose it has always been this way. I just finished reading a book about the European plagues during the 13-15th centuries. Terrible. Thousands died. There has been wars, plagues, disasters, violence in every generation. It’s easy to believe that our times are the worst ever. We can see things from our little spot in the universe and believe that nothing like this has ever happened before. Probably not true. Our world is broken because of sin. The appointment with death brings crime, violence, wars, disasters and disease. Often the innocent and young are caught up in those things. Many look at these things and use this as proof that there is no God. Their theology has God putting man back in the garden of Eden where there are no weeds, thistles, or death. Because we do not live in a utopia they do not believe God exists. This twisted theology ignores Bible teaching. Jesus said that the rain fell, the floods came and the winds blew against both houses, the one on the sand and the one on the rock. Storms come. Storms come in many places. Storms come, often more than one at a time. It is God who tells us these things. Instead of removing the storms, God provides a shelter that is found in Christ. Withstand the storm. We want isolation. God provides insulation. There is a difference.

Third, from our verse today, God is greater. God, who is in us, is greater than he who is in the world. The “he who is in the world,” may have been false teachers and antichrists, but eventually all fingers point to Satan. God is greater than Satan. Christ came to destroy the works of Satan. Satan is not an equal with God. He has never been and never will be. Forget all the junk found in movies and false books. Stick with what we know from the Bible. When Satan wanted to turn Job’s world upside down, God put limits on what Satan could do. The first round, he could not touch Job. The second round, he could touch Job but not take his life. Satan sought permission to sift Peter like wheat. Why did he “seek permission?” Because Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. Satan is not God’s equal. He is limited. He is bound by God. God will win. God always wins.

Fourth, did you notice where the writer placed God. He is “IN YOU.” God is not just in Heaven above, but He is in you. This is our fellowship. He is in us and we are in Him. Because He is in us, there is never a time and never a place that God is not with you. Alone in the hospital room, God is in you. Taking that dreaded walk to the cemetery to bury a loved one, God is with you. You feel that no one gets you. God does. He is in you. What comfort and what help that ought to be for us. The world doesn’t understand. The world doesn’t get it. The next verse states, “They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.” They are speaking a different message than we are. They are interested in different things than we are. They are traveling a different direction than we are. We must not worry about keeping up with the world. We listen to a different message, the message of God.

Pharaoh thought that he could crush the escaping Israelites. Greater is God. The sea opened and they passed through safely. Pharaoh and his armies drowned. The king of Babylon thought he could destroy those rebels from Judah who refused to bow down to his idol. Thrown into the fiery furnace, God was greater than the king. They were safe. When Peter was locked in the inner prison, the local authorities thought that they had him and he could not escape. God is greater. Angels appeared. Doors opened. Peter walked out.

The world wants us to be a defeated, scared little flock. The world wants us to cower in fear. The world believes that it has questions that we cannot answer. The world believes that it has proof for it’s theories and hopes. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. That’s the answer! I don’t have to have a PhD in science to know that God created the world out of nothing. I don’t have to be an expert in climate change to know that we will not all die from some environmental disaster.

Confidence, trust, hope fills the heart that realizes greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Of all the places that God could be, He chooses to be in you. This happens by faith. This happens by trust. I do not have to understand the ages of rocks, as long as I understand the Rock of Ages!

Greater is He who is in you…

Roger

Jump Start # 1364

1 John 4:4 “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.”

  This week our Jump Starts are taking us on a little journey through Scriptures looking at “Who we are.” There are many who live with an identity crisis—they simply do not know who they are. If a person doesn’t know who they are, it’s hard for them to know what to expect and how to behave. Atheists would have us believe that we are distantly related to pond scum that crawled out of the water and evolved into an animal. At our best, we are driven by instincts like animals. Others, want to believe that some of us are better than others. A specific race, gender or nationality, makes them different than everyone else. For some, that  becomes the ticket to do whatever they please. The rules do not apply to them because they are different.

When we come to God’s word, we find several passages that tell us who we are from Heaven’s side of things. We need to hear that. We need to know what God thinks of us. We need to understand our roles and responsibilities.

Our first passage in this journey tells us that “You are from God.” I like how that is worded. I’m often asked “where are you from?” That’s sometimes hard to answer. Where I live is not where I preach and it’s not where I was born. I live in Lanesville. My mailing address is Corydon. I preach in New Albany. Any of those answers are always followed with a “where’s that?” So I generally say near Louisville. That’s close enough. Where are you from. Our accents often give us away. There are folks from the south who have lived in my area for a long time, but they still have that wonderful southern drawl. John, in our passage, is not talking about a mailing address or a location of birth, but a spiritual residence.

The context of this chapter deals with some troubling times. Some just could not grasp that God would put on flesh and come to this wicked world. God is too good for that. The conclusion of such thinking meant that Jesus was not God. Multiple times in this section John emphasizes Jesus Christ is from God and Jesus Christ is flesh. The expression, “From God,” is found eight times here. These Gnostics, as they were known as, were confusing God’s people. John was very clear that their message was not from God. They were not from God. Those who denied Jesus were not from God. They listen to the world. They are of the world. In contrast, the brethren, were from God. They listened to those from God, like John. They confessed Jesus as the Son of God.

So we have that little expression, “You are from God.” This is not intended to mean that we existed in Heaven before we were born and God sent us down as little packages to our families. The “You are from God,” is not pointing to past origins, but rather, present relationships. You are from God meant that you accepted the testimony of the apostles that Jesus was God in the flesh. It meant that they were Christians. Christ was their Lord. That is the message from Heaven. You are one of those if you confessed that, lived that way and held to that principle.

You are from God carries a deeper connection for us. This concept brings out a loyalty and a responsibility. We have many loyalties. My dad served as a Marine in WW II. He went straight from high school to the war. He served around three years. All his life, the Marines have been very special to him. The ring tone on his phone is the Marine hymn. Others are like that about the college they went to. I live in the land where there are many die hard Indiana University and University of Kentucky fans. This region is called Blue nation, because of the Kentucky fans. Cars stickers, clothes, banners flying from front porches all identify those who are a part of that big blue nation.

We are from God. That’s our banner that flies from our heart. We are loyal to the end to God. That is our Father. He is dwelling in what will be our home someday. This dedication, loyalty drives us to worship Him, follow Him, obey Him and love Him. When it comes to sports, especially basketball, around here, one can tell the true fan and the guy who just likes the winning team. Kentucky has had some lean years. The true fan still flies his flag and wears his UK blue. The “Johnny-come-lately,” will only get excited when it looks like they may win a tournament. The tough years, he’s not so loyal. The true fan knows the difference.

We are from God, not just sitting in a church building with folks who feel the same, but on a Monday, in the office, when we may be out numbered by those who would rather party on the weekend than worship God. We are from God. That keeps our attitude in check. We are from God, that opens our eyes to serving others. We are from God, that shuts our mouths when we could say something that we shouldn’t. We are from God. It shows. We are from God and we are happy about that. We are from God and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

They became that way by choice. They remained that way by choice. That choice would take them a direction and down a path that the Gnositcs and others were not traveling. We are from God.

Think about that today. We are from God. That thought will help shape your day and especially how you respond to it.

We are from God and wouldn’t have it any other way!

Roger

Jump Start # 522 

1 John 4:4 “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” 

  I love this verse and I use it often. It’s powerful, profound and very encouraging. The verse is packed with pronouns: you, them, He, and he. As with any Bible passage, grasping the context is essential. Without that, the “hes” and the “yous” and the “thems” can means just about anything you want.

  The chapter begins with John reminding the brethren not to believe everything they hear. They were encouraged to test the spirits to see if the are from God. He warns that there are many false prophets. The spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ came in the flesh is from God. Those that don’t confess that are not. The background to these verses is the Gnostic influence that was just getting a start in the late first century. It was a philosophy and theory that God is too holy to dwell in the flesh. It also contended that what the flesh does has no impact upon the spirit. Many spin off ideas came from this. One of them is that Jesus was not the Christ or that Jesus was never in the flesh. Crazy stuff that confused folks and chipped away at the teachings of the New Testament. Throughout this letter you will find references to “know” or knowledge (which the Greek word gnosis—Gnosticism came from) and references to Jesus in the flesh.

  The “you” of our verse are the Christians John is writing to. The “greater is He” is God who is in us. The “he” that is in the world, would be these Gnostic prophets that were spreading their poison, but more so, Satan, who is always behind everything that is crooked and false.

  Greater is God who is in you than Satan who is in the world. That’s how we are going to look at this passage.

  First, Satan is powerful. The Bible acknowledges that. We are told to not be ignorant of him. He is portrayed as a roaring lion. We know this all too well. Satan is everywhere. There is no town that is “Satan free.” There is no man made defense that keeps Satan completely out. As you go to work, Satan is already there. At school, Satan is there. On your day off, Satan will find you. He’ll be at your vacation spot. He’ll be at the stores. He’ll be at the movie theatre. He even goes to church. He’s never sick. He observes no holidays. He never retires. And he has an agenda. He wants your soul. He’ll attack your church. He’ll attack your marriage. He’ll attack you. He deceives. He lies. He tempts. He creates doubt. He confuses. He finds you when you are having a bad day. He seeks you when you are stressed. He follows you when you are alone. He loves the night and he loves when you are vulnerable. That’s Satan. Satan knows the word of God. He’s demonstrated that twice—once with Eve by adding a word, and once with Jesus, by misapplying a passage. He can twist and turn the Bible so it won’t do what it’s supposed to do nor help you as it should. He knows that God’s word is the sword. He knows that the word is your avenue to stay connected with God and to keep you holy and on the path to Heaven. I expect he hates Jump Starts or any other tool that helps you spiritually. Satan loves to dangle carrots of lust, pride, materialism and selfishness before our eyes. The forbidden fruit looks so good. He knows that. He uses that. Thousands fall to his tricks everyday. You and I trip and stumble before we realize what he is doing to us. This is Satan. He is your greatest enemy. He cannot be ignored. You have to face him and fight him. This is your greatest struggle in life.

  Our passage tells us, as great as he is in the world, God who is in us is greater. Satan is not equal to God. Satan is not eternal. He is not all powerful. He had to get permission to sift Peter. He was given limits as to what he could do to Job. The future of Satan is sure. He’s headed to Hell. God made hell just for Satan. People are not supposed to go there, but they will if they live without God. Hell is ugly, painful and pitiful—just what Satan deserves. God tells us how to deal with Satan. James says resist and he will flee. Timothy was told to flee youthful lusts. The Ephesians were told to put on the full armor of God and to stand firm. God’s armor would extinguish every flaming missile of the evil one.

  Where is God? He is in you. He is in those who walk, love, follow and obey Christ. This is a blessing of being a child of God. We have God. We have God with us everywhere. God is in you when you go to work and Satan is there. God is in you when you are at school and Satan is there. God is in you working, reminding, and helping us. God’s word works. Jesus went to the word to fight Satan in the wilderness.

  Greater is God who is in us than Satan. I don’t have to give in to Satan. I don’t have to choose wrong. Saying, “I couldn’t help it,” doesn’t fly for the Christian, because you can help it. God is in you and he is greater than he who is in the world. You can win. You can be holy. You can be righteous. How? The world is so polluted with sin, how can I? Greater is God who is in you than Satan who is in the world—that’s how.

  Pray to God—He’s not far away. Use godly tools. Know the word. Know Satan. Know what buttons he pushes to get you confused and foggy. The battle belongs to the Lord.

  God is in you…you don’t have to run to the church building…you don’t have to run to a city of refuge, as they did in the O.T., nor find a priest as they did in the O.T. God is in you. He chooses to dwell in your heart. He does that so you will dwell in Him.

  Satan is watching you right now. But greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.

Roger