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Proof of Life
1 Thessalonians 1:4-10
Introduction
One day Jesus was talking to a Pharisee by the name of Nicodemus, and He explained to Nicodemus that to be a part of God’s Kingdom, you must be born again. Being part of God’s family isn’t just a change of name or a change of lifestyle; it’s a completely new life that comes from God to you.
As part of that conversation Jesus described the process of how we receive that new life. He said to Nicodemus “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Today we are going to be talking about that new life that Jesus was describing to Nicodemus. We are going to explore how we can be sure that we have received it, and how we can help others to discover it.
I want to remind you before we start that this is not just trivia. Jesus went on to say this to Nicodemus: “Whoever believes in me is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
As a Pharisee, Nicodemus already knew that God is going to judge the world on day. Jesus wanted Nicodemus to know that God is going to Judge the world on the basis of what people have done with Jesus. This final Judgement is recorded in Revelation chapter 20. Let’s find out what that will be like:
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
The New Jerusalem
21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the
So how can we be sure that our names are in the book of life? What can we do to see other people’s names entered into that book, so they too can look forward to Christ’s return instead of fearing it?
(o/h)
Open in Prayer
So what can we learn about this new life that God wants to give us?
(o/h)
4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you,
1. New Life starts with a Divine Choice (v 4)
• A choice which is a mystery
• A choice which we may influence through prayer
• A choice which we may enact through witness and response
5 because our gospel came to you…you welcomed the message
2. New Life is communicated through the message of the Gospel (v 5a, 6b)
our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction…You welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
3. New Life is received through the illumination of the Holy Spirit (v 5-6)
You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord… you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath
4. New Life is demonstrated by a transformed lifestyle
And so you became a model to all the believers in
5. New Life results in visible witness
Conclusion
Receiving New Life does not depend on us but on God. Some people think that they are not cut out to be a Christian. Some people don’t think that God is interested in people like them. Some people think that one day they might be like that, but for now they want to “have fun” and do what they want to do. Let me tell you: If God makes you new, all of that stuff just goes out the window. It doesn’t matter what you were like before. It doesn’t matter what you thought or what you did – you will receive a new life that is better than you could have possibly imagined. You will know that you are loved. You will know that you have a future.
Ephesians 2 describes it like this: once we were all just doing what we thought was best for ourselves, but really we were just making a mess of our lives. We were destined for hell. But God suddenly opened our eyes and gave us new life through Jesus.
On Friday night several of the athletes shared about the things that they used to chase after in life, and how messed up their lives were as a result. It doesn’t matter what your “idol” is – girls, boys, drugs, booze, sport, school, work, whatever. None of that will give you the life you really want, the life God created you to have. The life that is destined for heaven not for hell.
If you are listening to this today and you know deep inside that it is true, here’s what you need to do. You need to realise that God is speaking to you. To you it’s not just another boring sermon. You know that God wants you. You know that He wants you to give up all the stuff that you have been chasing after. You know that Jesus died for your sins, and now you need to give Him control of your life.
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