WHY THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS BETTER
“The Best Things in Life Don’t Come Easy.” Following Christ is not always easy. The joy and peace experienced by having a genuine relationship with the Creator of the Universe makes all effort and struggles worthwhile. Figuring out how to convey this message to an unbeliever is not always easy. The main thrust of our lesson is to understand why the Christian life is better than any other manner of living and how to best share this with unbelievers.
Read John 14:15-18 The Presence
In the previous two verses, 13 & 14, Jesus gives a promise of power in prayer. The scope of prayer is unlimited but it has a condition. Verse 14 says, “Yes, ask Me for anything in My name and I will do it.” Then in verse 15, we learn the condition- Jesus says to love Him. The one who loves Jesus will live a life of obedience to Him. This is John’s account of the disciples last few moments with Jesus. The eleven disciples had given up everything to passionately follow Jesus. Now He was informing them that His time on earth was coming to an end- not exactly an easy message to swallow for the disciples. Jesus is giving some encouragement to the disciples. John shares with us these promises from Jesus to serve as a great foundation for us for a better Christian life. The close relationship the disciples had with Jesus helped in their petitions to the Father. It is this relationship that Jesus wanted to honor. So the next promise is that the Father will send them -and us- “another counselor”. When it says “another” it means a second counselor in this case. So we are being told that this counselor would be like Jesus Himself. Ask: Who is this counselor and why do you think it says “the world is unable to receive Him or know Him”? (The Holy Spirit! Unbelievers will not know Him and only believers will have the Holy Spirit to reside in them.) The promise of Jesus went even further. He was telling the disciples that even though He was going away, He would have His Father provide a helper that would be personal and permanent. We know that God never abandons us. This promise clearly says that we don’t have to face life alone. (The Christian doesn’t have to face “losing” a loved one alone and without the eternal hope of being with them again.) This is the first reason that Christian life is the best life because we have the PRESENCE of the divine Counselor and the Advocate- this means the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. The word advocate combines the ideas of comfort and counsel- (The NLT version of the Bible uses “advocate” in place of “Counselor”.) Therefore, this suggests the Holy Spirit will be far more than a counselor. He will be that comforter we all need to live a better Christian life.
Read John 14:27-31a The Peace
After the promise of the Holy Spirit, Jesus told the disciples that He leaves them with “peace”. This is not worldly peace, but Godly peace! This is described as Jesus’ peace, which will far surpass any peace of comfort we can find in the world alone. This is the peace of God, which scripture teaches surpasses all understanding and calms the inner turmoil of His followers. As believers, we receive a peace that the world will never comprehend. Ask: What seems to be the key difference in how God gives and what also Jesus said, “not give to you as the world gives”? (The world expects that its gift needs to be repair, many times with interest. God gives unconditionally with no expectations that we repay anything.)Jesus continues by saying He expected the disciples to rejoice in the fact that He went to the Father. Then He says that the Father is “greater than I”. This is not a comparison of their ranks or equality, but rather their roles. Scripture teaches that each member of the Trinity is equal. Jesus was saying that He was submitting to many of the physical limitations of His humanity while on earth. (Philippians 2:6). Ask: Who is the “ruler of the world” that Jesus said is coming? It is not who we may first think! (Satan, but they were given assurance that Satan has no power over Jesus.) Again Jesus was giving encouragement to the disciples. He was preparing them for His “going away” and the reason was because He loved the Father and was doing His Father’s will. Jesus assured all future generations of believers that they would be able to cling to God’s presence and PEACE. This was yet another reason why Christian life is better.
Read John 15:11-16 The Purpose
The final benefit of the Christian life Jesus was teaching the disciples in John is divine purpose. We hear often of someone asking the meaning of life and they express how it must be a deep, dark secret. Christianity provides that answer very clearly and simply. We were created to fellowship with God, abide in Him so we might produce spiritual fruit. In other words, seek God’s will and do His will in all things. No one can experience genuine joy apart from a relationship with Christ. In verse 1-10, just preceding what was read, Jesus shares the analogy of the vine and the branches. He is telling the disciples (and us) that your joy will be complete when we love Him and show that love by producing that spiritual fruit. So we know that true, lasting joy which transcends circumstances originates with the Christian life because of our personal relationship with Jesus. Ask: How do you think we take hold of this life full of God’s presence, peace and purpose? (It is likely the most simple yet most difficult thing to do. We simply obey God. We do that by following His guides/commandments for our life and praying to Him constantly. This involves – to love one another.)We know that Christ demonstrated no “greater love than this”, the depth of His love we can never fully understand- until we meet Him face to face in Heaven. We are asked only to accept it. Remember, Jesus was facing arrest, trial, and execution. Yet here He was preparing and giving encouragement to the disciples- and to us. What a great example as we face our final days on this earth and prepare to experience our Great Adventure (more on this tonight). Then in verse 15, Jesus calls us, as believers, His friend! Because Jesus Christ is Lord and Master, He should call us servants. Instead we are called- “My friends, if you do what I command you.” This is not blind obedience, like one would expect from a servant or slave. This is “because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing”. Jesus tells us that He has “made known to you everything and have heard form My Father.” So Jesus indicates that He has shared all of this with us solely because He “chose us”. How great is it to be chosen by Jesus? Jesus is telling us that when our relationship with His is to the point that we are truly abiding in Him, then things we desire to pray for are the things He impresses upon our hearts. When this occurs, the Father will answer all of our prayers- those that Jesus impresses upon our hearts, through the work of the Holy Spirit. This type of intimacy with the Creator can only be obtained by living the Christian life- Presence, Peace, and Purpose.
HERE IS A STUDY OF CHRISTIAN AFFIRMATIONS Copy and Paste:
http://90647nuue1xs5n49n8cjcx6k2x.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=CHRISTIANAFFIRMATIONS
VICTORIOUS LIVING GUIDELINES Copy and Paste:
http://7a712f1s83tu0scrs5yjv6vl6w.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=VICTORIOUSCHRISTIAN