The Religiously Immunized

Message from Judy Greer. A lot of people stay immune to the real gospel because they have the antibody of superficial religion. This is a group of people who believe in Jesus because there superficial religion keeps them from seeing why Jesus invitation for them to come to him is even relevant to them and I want to show you how specifically Jesus address that group.

The Bible teaching ministry of Pastor Arthur and theologian Jeannie Aaron. I'm your host Molly. That's kicking off a brand-new series called can't believe we will be looking at some of the most common barriers that hold people back from saving faith. Beginning our series by talking about a barrier that many people might find surprising is religion that might seem weird for a pastor to say that, but today cheese explaining how religion can actually keep you from truly surrendering to Jesus. I think the power of the gospel. Jenny titled this message the religiously entered bypass III learned to share the gospel.

When I was a teenager.

That's right after I came to Christ. Second, writes about teenage years alerted share the gospel by means of a will be called a gospel tract.

It is a shortcut of trifold pamphlet that explains the basic points of the gospel at the Christian bookstore near my house. There were snow and to the different kinds of bees that were were were offered depend on your personality depend on how you want to do. It is a whole rack of them, not willing to give these contracts to waitresses or those people that were seated next to us on airplanes, especially if they look nervous during takeoff or landing was a key time to deliver them to personal interaction made you uncomfortable. You just didn't really like people you could just place them stealthily in public restrooms on top of the urinal girl even in VHS tapes that you were returning the blockbuster. I'm not joking about that when we put in there that person that opens up the movie there is there for truck.

One of my favorites was this is an actual strategy you could pay the toll booth attendant. The failure of the person in the car behind you and then ask them told with the tenant to give the truck to the person that was in the car behind you. Could you pay the toll help. One pastor even showed me how to hold the track next to your car and release it so that it would land at the feet of somebody standing beside the road held up as she got to be going to talk about rights to the bunch is are you the angle you holdouts wetlands right there, the feet of somebody. I wish that I were joking about some of this metaphor that I said is joking.

It was all that's the way we did it not the whole focus of the tribe was usually to get somebody to pray a prayer that was printed at the end I was the sinners prayer you prayed a prayer you asked Jesus come in your heart you asked for forgiveness of your sins and if they pray that prayer there were a number of things that you were supposed to tell them immediately in response. You were supposed to encourage them to start reading the Bible and praying to go to church but you will also post supposed to say something like this to them. Now that you have prayed this prayer to accept Jesus as your Savior. You are safe forever.

You are guaranteed to go to heaven. He promises never to leave you or forsake you, and no one can pluck them out of your father's hand. So from here on out you are saved, no matter what. Welcome to the family of God tell you at this point. Stick your hand out and shake their hand. Welcome them into the family of God. Now did you know that a 2011 Barna study shows that 50% of Americans say that they have prayed a prayer just like that one.

At some point in their life. Maybe it didn't happen at the end of gospel tract presentation. Maybe it's because they saw Billy Graham on TV here is because I came to a church that I prayed a prayer at the end or grandma led them through it. 50% of people in our culture say that they have prayed a prayer like that one.

However, the same study revealed that less than half of that group goes to church on any regular basis. More than half of them think that the Bible is wrong in a number of things that it teaches and about two thirds of them have lifestyles. The study showed that in no significant way differ from those that are on the outside of the Christian faith, knowing these people business. 50% of this culture that I talk to when you tell them that they need Jesus to be saved. Their immediate thought is a call. Been there, done that. I prayed the prayer a bit of the class I been baptized and confirmed whatever good my grandma was super meaningful. I don't think my Bible has a name on it had a date.

I know when I prayed that prayer. But what I want to show you today is that the Bible speaks frequently about a kind of faith that is superficial of faith doesn't go very deep faith does not say that all that's what you can see from John chapter 2. The tragedy is that for a lot of people like this. A lot of people there. Superficial faith has immunized them from understanding the need for the real gospel and unite here on immunization works immunization you early some immunizations they did. You just a small amount of the disease, usually a dead impotent version of the disease so that your body develops the antibodies to be able to defend itself against the disease if you're ever in the driver exposed to the real thing. A lot of people stay in the human to the real gospel because they have the antibody of superficial religion. This is a group of people who can't believe in Jesus because there superficial religion keeps them from seeing why Jesus invitation for them to come to him is even relevant to them, but I why I already prayed our daughter believe, and I want to show you how specifically Jesus address that group she were starting a new series today called can't believe you look at seven different stories from the gospel of John, of people who for whatever reason, couldn't believe could not believe some of these people couldn't believe because they are blind spot some of them wanted to believe, but for whatever reason felt like they couldn't look at the sexual captive to look at the skeptic, but distracted the herd and the disappointed look of a coward to the moral failure today were going to look at the religiously immunized to see how Jesus engaged seven different individuals who couldn't believe the gospel of John believing you see is a major theme in the Gospel of John uses the word over 99 times in the book and he says for the end of the book. This is why Rhoda John 2031.

These things are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, and that he is the son of God, and by believing you have life in his name. So it's why he wrote the whole book.

So if you feel like for whatever reason you can't believe you have trouble believing or you know somebody that has trouble believing the book of John is written for you my hope and my prayer summit. Listen in this series is that for many of you feel like you can't believe God would use this stuff it's in these stories that are in the gospel of John to open your eyes to the glory of who he is because John 114 says that is is how that is how you learn to believe is by seeing the glory of Jesus. John 114 we beheld his glory, the glories of the only one, begotten, the father full of grace and truth. We see that in that that empowers us to believe.

My prayer is that he would open your eyes a prayer. Secondly, that you would not only believe you would learn to adore him, but you would your heart would well up in worship that if you are already a believer in Jesus, you would see him again a fresh new maybe what you meant the Islamist things that sometimes you notice when you get familiar with some really beautiful, you forget how beautiful it is. I'm praying that this series you will see again of the stories the beauty and the glory of Jesus, so that the eyes of your heart would again be open to worship and adoration amid I'm praying that that adoration would send you out in confidence to face life and would send you out and boldness to tell the world about the glory of who he is. You see, ultimately it is a vision of Jesus that empowers everything in the Christian life.

That's why one of the most frequent words is repeated, other than believed by the gospel of John is look in Greek. Do behold look look at it because when you see them for who he is and you will see what he can do in your life you will you will you will have courage because you see his finished work. You were lifted out of depression, through a vision of Jesus.

It is a vision of Jesus that empowers believe is a vision of Jesus that inspires courage is a vision of Jesus that empowers sacrifice is a vision of Jesus is the source of everything in the Christian life to what we pray is that you would see not telling you what the stuff to go do. I'm saying see and when you see you will do so. Group number one of those who can't believe.

Here is our first group the religiously immunized the religiously immunized verse 23 of jabber to now when Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover feast. There were many who believed in his name to that. They believe when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust you said your great Bible open, you'll see that the Lord entrusted to say more, believe Jesus did not entrust himself to them because he knew all people, and he needed no one to bear witness about man because he himself knew what was in man, I hear you got a group of people who believe in Jesus but it says that Jesus would not give himself to them because he could see that their fate will superficial you could almost say that they believe in Jesus but Jesus did not believe in them because he knew what was in them and he could see that their interest in him was just a fleeting interest. It was a convenient believe they believed because they had seen the signs and they were temporarily impressed. They were curious as to what else Jesus could do for them, but there believe Jesus knew would never withstand the test of time or temptation or trial. Jesus was for them the book, but the best of all the options like Lloyd's better than all the other legislators on what else I would be so you know I'm a fan of Jesus.

Now in our day. This might refer to that large group of people in our culture who believe what their parents believed other grandma believed for a lot of their friends believe it's just kind of what is convenient, you ask most college students are you a Christian, and the like. While I'm not a Muslim. I'm not Jewish. So yeah, I guess I am a Christian. Jesus would not give himself the beast people in John to even though they had a certain type of belief not shot with freezer to show you. In contrast, what real faith looks like. Remember that in the writing these books, the original authors input chapters and verses in there that's what we added in later. So what you see is that Chapter 2 Chapter 3, or conjoin and watch the stories in chapter 3 are given as an answer. The problem with raising jabber to the problem in chapter 2 is what kind of faith saves what kind of. If there is a kind of believe that Jesus does not give himself to Ben. What kind of belief does Jesus give himself to.

That's what you see in chapter 3, but before we get into that right this down if you take notes on one the dangers of superficial belief. That's what you're seen at the end of John to.

There is a kind of belief that immunizes you from the understanding that you need the real thing Johnson.

By the way is the only place that we get this picture. Matthew chapter 7, a passage that used to scare me to death when I was in high school, talks about a group of people that are to stay on the last day it at the judgment in there to look at Jesus in their divorce law, Lord Jesus is good to see you. Remember what the church member.

We went on mission trips we share Christ.

People read our Bibles. We gave the offerings. Jesus is going to say the most terribly shocking words that have ever been uttered in the universe to them.

He's going to say depart for me because I never knew you. I never I never gave myself to you in there and be shocked to hear that because they thought they knew Jesus because they believed in him and because they don't there's some initial bags of church I you I don't know a lot about that group of the year, but I know that it says that there are many which means many that think they are on the road to heaven who were actually on the road to hell which operators another place where Jesus warned about any talk about some seed that went into the ground.

Use this a lot here at our church for the bigot so alarming. It says that the seed spring up quickly, but again it brought fruit quickly. It looked like a great plant but then after the sun came out the weeds. Throughout these seeds died away, and I'm often asked you to DC that these quick plants. They represent say Brun say people the answer is there unsaved people who for a while look like or say people that they they come to get baptized lately. Pray the prayer they start they look good but it doesn't pass the test of time. Jesus warns of there's a lot of people who start that are not on the road to heaven not to listen 50% of Americans said they prayed a prayer asking Jesus into their heart even though half of them never go to church even though two thirds of them have lifestyles that are not significantly different than people outside the Christian faith dog. If the group that is being describing John to locator Matthew seven and not talk about them.

I don't know they could be talking about the question presented in John two is what kind of belief saves and that is an eternally important question because most of you.

Most of us 50% of Ramadan is probably higher in the South says that they are okay that they've done that. Is it possible for what you think about is it possible that your faith is what is described here. John 223. Is it possible that you would be in that group that leads to number two. Description of saving faith. We got the danger of superficial religion, superficial belief that we got number two. A description of saving faith. Chapter 3 now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus he was only for a religious ruler of the Jews. This man, Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, which is when I can schedule the story Nick at night.

I and this man said to him rabbi.

We know that you are a teacher come from God, and no one can do these things that you do unless God is with him. You see these tied it back to verse 23 Nicodemus, all the signs are believed. So that's why you connect these two stories. He's one of the people Jesus was talking about verse 23 verse three Jesus answered him. Elevator answered him.

Nicodemus asked the question that you see an interrogative in that statement Jesus had this way of answering the questions you should have been asking to Jesus answered him, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God Mount born-again is a phrase that's familiar to us is common in our culture. Pres. Jimmy Carter, I think was the first one who got a made it famous, but the Nicodemus it was unfamiliar and so he it sounds absurd to him and so he asked what we would have asked that we heard that for the first time verse four. How can a man be born when he is old alveolar second time into his mother's womb and be born, that sounds impossible it sounds. Even if it is possible. Sounds awkward. Now you do that you born-again verse five Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the spirit and I am of the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you.

You must be born again genuine saving faith turns on one phrase one phrase you must be born again. You must be born again. That is the answer to the problem in verse 23 of chapter 2. You gotta be born again.

Jesus said, truly, truly, now is the thing Jesus was not one prone to exaggerate and usually he did not qualify what you say them by saying all now I'm telling you the truth always told the truth he never exaggerated. He was himself the truth so when Jesus, who was himself the truth drops a truly truly not just one truly, truly, truly, when he drives that it means you better pay attention because I remember truth and saying something I feel the need qualify twice. Truly, truly, you must be born again. Do not miss the scandal of this Nicodemus was a deeply religious man, a religious leader, a respected church person in our current church person. He was a leader get this in the right religion and Jesus was telling him that despite all of his good works.

Despite all of his learning all of his church attendance.

All of his religious rituals he was dead in his sin see the gospel is bad news reports good news and this is where most people miss the gospel because will never really grapple with the bad news to see if were Jesus started his gospel presentation and where we must start to listen is very clear you if this does not offend you flesh if you're going to new to this whole thing. If it does not offend you. If it does not.

Some point in the next few minutes… Best, you want to get up and leave. You're probably not here to write.

It was as offensive in Jesus day it was intended to be offensive as it is today because what the Bible is doing is tumbling you because it is trying to say there is no possible way you will ever send it to the kingdom of God on your own strength your homework your own value. It's gotta be a gift that's given to you from above our sin. You see, cut us off from God and left the spiritually dead in the garden to be met. Adam and Eve severed their connection with God. They wanted to be in charge, not God. They rejected God so they can have what they wanted were around here we call send big eye problem so you spell CSI in the letter. It's what I do what I want to do instead of what God wants me to do. I want to be in charge. I want to serve myself. I would have other people serve me as well.

I want all the glory. I want to be the primary point of my and everybody else's life. That is the path that Adam and Eve started out in Genesis 3 and it is the path that all of us voluntarily have continued down ever since then, our lives exist in a state of rebellion against God. You might not think that you are all that bad, and relatively speaking. You probably aren't that bad, but as a race, we have committed cosmic treason.

We have committed an unspeakable blasphemy. We have said to the creator of the universe. I want to be in charge of my own life.

I want the glory. I want the attention I get to decide what's right for me.

Not you, my agenda, my interest are much more important to me than yours are simple rebellion against God was infinitely worse than most of us have ever imagined.

Because if we imagine that we will be on our face before God saying God be merciful to me a sinner see that choice left us as a race condemn under a curse death.

That's what God said Genesis to the soul that sins will die to death is at work in us and around us. You can see that, can't you you look around the world and see the effects of death, famine, pain, disease, injustice, genocide. These are all aftershocks of the curse of death we can fill it at work in ourselves corruption weariness dysfunction in our relationships. We heard those sometimes that we love the most. This is all a symptom of death at work in us now to chapter 3 for the very last verse of the chapter. John 336 says that we exist as a race under the condemnation the wrath of God abides. It remains on ice, which means that what we need is not religious improvement will need a slight alteration or a midcourse correction. We need to be completely reborn from above, Jesus told Nicodemus that in his simple flash he could not hope to even see the kingdom of God in our sinfulness, we could no more hope to stand in the presence of God anymore than a wilted dandelion can hope to withstand the blast of a nuclear bomb. Sin did not merely knock us down or put us on Jott Dodge JV squad report is on probation report. You want a slower track to get to your mansion. You haven't said what you out completely. Listen you to hear this verdict on humanity on Dr. Phil or Oprah. But that's were Jesus started. The gospel is where we start to Francis Schaeffer was kind of a philosopher Christian thinker about 50 years ago Francis Schaeffer asked one time if you had one hour.

The modern person never heard of Christianity.

Yet one hour like sampling trip would you do without our Francis Schaeffer says is listen. I would spend the first 45 to 50 minutes on the negative. To really show him his dilemma that he really is morally dead that I would take the last 10 or 15 minutes to preach the good news of the gospel to him. I believe that much of our evangelistic and personal work today is not clear simply because were to anxious to get to the answer without ever having a man realize the real cause of his sickness, which is true moral guilt and not just psychological guilt feelings in the presence of God presented Jesus as the answer but people don't know the question of the problem is not into you understand the problem. The question that you begin to adore and worship Jesus.

Jesus said those were forgiven. Much love, much the reason some of you are bored with Jesus. The reason some of you don't love Jesus because you have no concept of the wickedness that gives you and what you save you from when he came to earth because when you understand that you either run away from him in hatred and anger or on his feet in adoration and worship run away from Jesus clings to her feet in length. You're listening to Summit life and today was the first message in our new teaching series called can't believe from Pastor Jeannie great air.

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