read more, Scripture:
And worse than strange, is thought hateful.
View all Sermons Faithful Unto Death Series Contributed by Allen James on Sep 29, 2011 (message contributor) (rate this sermon) | 6,507 views Scripture: 15 Outstanding Quotes To Recharge Your Preaching. Yes, death is an enemy, and we mourn for death. As we begin the New Year, I felt compelled to preach a series that deals with the foundational element of our faith the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Currently 160,000 Christians, by one estimate, are martyred every year. It is a sermon in the series on the Great Doctrines of the Bible. And in this section, composed of about five sermons, the messages are addressed to us who are Christians. You dont get angry with God. Well be here listening. It is one of the truths of life. It may be in the workplace when you will not agree to do the advertising campaign they want to do, or the training that theyre making everyone do. We dont want to exaggerate it, we dont want to claim that were facing what other people are facing. The young fellow knelt down before the Lord [Mark 10:17]. As long as Christianity was a sect of Judaism, there was little trouble. Our Lord is saying, you be faithful and true even if it costs your life, and I will give you a crown [Revelation 2:10], stephanos, crown; the word Stephen, and you read about him and his martyrdom just now [Acts 7:54-60]. . We know what the commentator says, and we know what the politician says, and we know what the philosopher says, and we know what the academician says. But whether it is a diadem or a garland, whether it is a royal crown or a victors crown, God says if we are faithful and true, at the end of the way He will reward us with a crown of life [Revelation 2:10]. You dont reject your Savior. May I turn to 1 John 3:14? and the word which ye hear is not Mine, but the Fathers which sent Me. Any true disciple of our Lord has a deep, haunting, never-sated thirst for the word of God. Copyright 2003-2023 | Outreach, Inc., All rights reserved. If God says anything, preacher, tell us what does God say? If there was a crime worthy of death, what would it be? We dont have a small Christ who is coming and just saying, Oh, I will shed a tear for you. No, this is the One who is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last. When our Lord was on the way to Jerusalem to die, in Perea on the other side of Jordan, He was met, accosted in a town over there by a rich young ruler [Mark 10:17-22]. Since we know that God will richly reward us, we should be faithful. The gate is too strait, and the way is too narrow for a man to enter heaven holding the love of the world in his arms [Matthew 7:13-14]. The cross before me, the world behind me, [I Have Decided to Follow Jesus, attributed to S. Sundar Singh]. Jesus calls us to overcome. In broad, open daylight where everyone could see, he knelt down before the Lord, the Prophet from Nazareth saying, Agathai didaskai [Mark 10:17]. In Matthew 16:3 Jesus uses it describing the face of a sky before a violent storm.
Matthew 9:24, Luke 8:53), 2. Youre going to suffer. John 19:17-27. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faithFor by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
2 Timothy 4:6-8, Denomination:
You allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols (Rev. It is on the Aegean Sea; it is in Turkey on the western shore of Asia Minor. WebIts a very tender and touching sceneone of the most moving and heartwarming farewell speeches thats ever been recorded in literature. That may sound daunting. Every Christian wants to be able to say with the apostle Paul, as he thought about his own death ( 2 Tim. I recognize the first born of Satan. So he didnt mess around. 5-12-03 5:17; Once they become a Christians, they begin visiting the sick and shut-in but its just too much trouble so they quit. But from salvation to glory there are three vitally important way stations that We live, we die, we live again. Suffering. That is an extreme and harsh word taken in itself. Or suppose I were to stand in this pulpit and lecture on the humanities, or any subject you would choose to name: philosophy, psychology, medicine, astronomy, anything. Death has no power over anyone who is in me! Thats why Jesus is able to say in verse 10, Be faithful unto death, and I will give you And thank Thee, Lord, for each soul You give us, in Thy precious name, amen. Say away with the atheist.. Be faithful even unto the point of death because brother, sister, friend, when youre faithful to the point of death for Jesus, you get a crown of life. Each time Satan tempted Jesus, Jesus replied, It is written. One of the best ways to learn how to sin well is never to read the Bible. So some of the Jews no longer had qualms about revering Caesar along with the Old Testament God, as is often the pressure to syncretism. As we apply this standard, our views on many things undergo a radical change.
Almost half of those were murdered, starved, died in prison camps in the Soviet Union. They were poor, but Jesus says, Youre rich. They were persecuted by Jews who Jesus says were not really Jews. read more. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, is not of the Father, but of the world. Faithfulness involves giving our whole heart to God and trying to please him each day we live. It was a difficult situation. There is one surviving document we know that came from Polycarp. Faithfulness is required for all four quarters, all three periods, all nine innings. This is a study of the book of Genesis. You cannot help but admire this young man. We all love to be accepted. Or the story of Polycarp. He knew they would experience difficult times in their lives. Losing focus of whats important in life prevents people from being faithful. A Compelling Conclusion (Part 1) # 18 Paul takes a look around as he gives his last testimony.
Especially and particularly is that true with our young people. 23127). In many parts of the West, though not facing yet death, are facing increasing hostility and discrimination, not the likes of which our brothers and sisters may see in Afghanistan or North Korea or parts of northern Africa, but yet facing opposition, persecution. Remember, they considered the Christians to be atheists because they didnt have any statues, they didnt have idols. He lived, he died, he's alive. Instead of worshipping as they should, they play golf on Sunday mornings or they go the race track or they go fishing. And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. There will be a temptation to want to raise your flag as well and say, Here I am, you can count on me. Or to wear the sort of clothes that everyone would wear. Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord (1 Cor. To Him be the glory, honor, majesty, and eternal throne, from generation to generation. Number two let us be faithful even in our limited kinds of persecution. Not some physical anguish or personal disappointment, 2. Just to give you some numbers from the time of Jesus to the year 2000, so just say about 2000 years, there were roughly 36 billion people on the planet. We all love to be praised. Tempted to disbelieve the Word of God. Therefore, when he was brought before him, the proconsul, so the governor, asked if he were Polycarp, and when he confessed that he was, the proconsul tried to persuade him to recant, saying Have respect for your age and other such things as they were accustomed to say. Instead, He told them to be faithful unto death. This lesson examines the Rev. And whenever you see a monument to Nathan Hale, you will find inscribed the last word that he said, I regret I have but one life to lose for my country. That is a little comparable patriotic devotion, like us in our supreme love for Christ. 1 2 3 4 Next He did NOT say, If you are faithful a few short years I will give thee a For the white city thats soon coming down. Yet Paul told Timothy that anyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. Many deal with doubt and fear, but it is possible to be certain of salvation and live abundantly in Christ. I read in the Book of Hebrews beginning at the eleventh chapter beginning at verse 9: By faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange countryFor he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. But here in the second half of the first century, several things had happened to make this situation untenable. Christian Life, Faith, Love, Loyalty, Self-Denial, Great Doctrines of the Bible: Practical Theology, 1983, Revelation. WebFaithfulness unto death is Gods standard for human life. Web"Faithful unto Death" Sixth Sunday after Pentecost St. Mark 6:14-29 July 16, 2006 IN NOMINE JESU In the rite of Confirmation, the confirmands are reminded of what they have undergone, as the pastor states: You have been baptized and you have been taught the faith according to our Lord's bidding. This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at the Alum Creek church of Christ in Alum Creek, West Virginia. https://drjustinimelsr.com/sermon-on-soteriology-be-faithful-until-death They were hated, they were harassed, they faced the prospect of persecution and even death in this city of Smyrna. read more, Scripture:
It was a great city in the day of the flesh of our Lord. Polycarp by all accounts was a venerable man, highly respected for his holiness and orthodoxy. But notice who this Jesus is. Would I run away? We Christians must be faithful. 5:17)-His point is that Elijah was a human being just like everyone else, yet his prayers accomplished much. And in Jerusalem, they nailed Him to a cross [Matthew 27:32-50]. He was arrested by Herod when Philip of Tralles was high priest, during the proconsulship of Statius Quadratus, but while Jesus Christ was reigning as King forever. We dont have a little God. The Lord knows. 1 John 5: 13-21 Psalms 20:5-6 [Matthew 19:20; Mark 10:20]. Its been translated into English. In the little city of Bethany, they plotted His death. Most of us, if were honest, are scared of suffering. Every sabbatical, every seventh year, the slave in a Hebrew household was to be free. Will you be willing to be faithful when youre misunderstood as a Christian? The same thing is true of those in Hebrews 11. Dont think youre the only one to have this struggle. Speaking of winning the lost, Paul says, The love of Christ compels us (2 Cor. read more, Scripture:
Try to set an example from time to time to pray for it here from the pulpit. Maybe take a half hour to read it.
Listening to a man expound the unsearchable riches of the Word of God. It is a place on which somebody is executed, a cross. Of those 70 million that scholars estimate, 70 million Christian martyrs in the history of the Church, 45 million were killed in the 20th century, in the last 100 years. Give us ears, give us courage, no matter the time, no matter the opposition, no matter the circumstances. That is the child of God. In fact, as I said last week, the two most struggling churches, the ones facing the greatest weaknesses, at least in an earthly sense, Philadelphia and Smyrna, are the ones about whom Jesus has nothing but good to say: I know your tribulation and your poverty. The love of your life is in money. The things of this world prevent people from being faithful. And the Lord, looking deep in the soul of the young fellow, said to him, Your heart is in the world. Lets get a sense of that words meaning in Where is your? Yes, death is an enemy for sure, but there is a worse enemy. And a youngster wants to belong to the group. Where, O death, is your victory? What does it mean for us? It is like water to a thirsting soul. 1 Corinthians 15:1-58, Denomination:
Hebrews says since the children have flesh and blood, He, too, shared likewise in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy the one who holds the power of death, that is the devil, and set free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death.. Believing it possible that through Christ we may live in the required manner, that we may avoid sin--desist from sinning--give it up and abandon it altogether, and put it forever away. The real hero is not he who makes the fastest schedule but he who lasts the longest.
8:14).
There is a marvelous thing that happens when a man places Jesus first in his lifeloves our Lord supremely above all other loveHe hands back to you your home, your family, your wife, your business, your children, every dream and vision of your soul. You read these stories of the martyrs and even allowing that perhaps the Church spoke at times with some exaggerated spirituality, maybe, yet we believe that its historically true and happened and happened much like that. Some put it much lower than that, if its actually killing you because you confess Christ, the higher number is if in some way the state has starvation or death or opposition to religious groups, including Christians. You dont forget His promise. Heres the key-those men and women were just like we are. IF we are in CHRIST. Well, the magistrate was not happy with this.
You got, theres two deaths, and unless Jesus comes back in our lifetime, we all face the first death, but not all have to have the second death. An outline from the book The Bumps Are What You Climb On "Three Important Looks" by Warren Wiersbe pg 17 1980 And because of the necessity pressed upon him in his growing family, he accepted an affluent church in London. The second death is. And they will come and go, and the worse they can do to you is put you to death. Revelation 2:8-11, Denomination:
But as Polycarp entered the stadium, there came a voice from heaven: Be strong, Polycarp, and courageous. Or some translations, be strong and play the man. And no one saw the speaker, but those of our people who were present heard the voice and then, as he was brought forward, there was a great uproar when they heard that Polycarp had been arrested. When we think of all Jesus endured to save our souls, how could we not be faithful? empty and heart broken(1 John 2:15-17), IV. a man loves the world and the things that are in it, he will find his hands In order to adequately embrace the Gospel, we must understand the Gospel. WebFAITHFUL EVEN UNTO DEATH II Kings 2:1-12 For the child of God, heaven is our ultimate destination. New American Bible Do not be afraid of anything that you are going to suffer. That number of about 0.8% of Christians throughout history, in fact, has been constant over many centuries. 2:10 states, Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. There are too many professing Christians which the Lord cannot depend upon. 2:20). Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You (Ps. Is God first in your life? But look at Jesus (John 1:10-11, Mark 5:40, Individuals become Christians and know the truth, but they have a friend who attends a denominational church, so they attend every now and then, and before they know it, they believe what that church teaches. Come. (Revelation 2:8-11) And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are
Now may I give, point out a poignant illustration of that in the Word of God? Romans 6:10-23, Denomination:
Some believe godly living, great faith and positive thinking will exempt them from trials. WebUnto death! That about 1 out of 120 Christians in the broadest sense of the term, may face martyrdom for the cause of Christ. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. 2014.04.20 HE AROSE and you can too! And He uses the word stugnaz, translated lowering, the sky is stugnaz, it is lowering.
Would to God we had ten thousand lives to offer to Jesus. Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight. WebKing James Version 10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten The author of Hebrews had just finished writing about great men and women of faith-He wrote about how they obeyed God out of their faith.
I hope you have that somewhere in your regular rhythm. 14:14). In Jesus we pray. The shears with rust are spoiled and yet. Supreme love for Jesus our Lord(Luke 14:25-26), A. General Washington needed information concerning the British troops. Be faithful unto death. This is the pastor bringing the message entitled Faithful Unto Death. 22:37). If I die, praise His name, it is to be with Him. May angels attend you in the way as you come. [Luke 9:62]: No one, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.. To us, we use the word cross to refer to some handicap or some suffering or some disappointment, I have an incorrigible child, an obstreperous child, and it is a cross for me to bear. Or, I have some physical ailment, I have a cross to bear. Or, I have a frustration or a disappointment in my life; it is my cross. There is no such idea of that in the Bible; in the Scriptures a cross is something to die on. Denial of self(Matthew 16:24-25), A. Of course it does. Or do with your weekends what everyone else would do. Romans 10:17: Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing the word of God. If someone loved Jesus, he never tires of hearing about Him. Now even saying it that way can make us nervous, is this anti-Semitism? But if I abdicate the throne, and no longer is itself, but if I enthrone my Lord, life becomes infinitely blessed, infinitely precious, infinitely meaningful. Title: Death of two great patriarchs When the boy was sixteen years old, he went to hear George Whitefield preach, and he was converted; wonderfully converted, listening to George Whitefield preach the gospel. In order to be faithful, we must put God first in our lives-You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind (Matt. So you add them all up, and what? Remember? Romans 6: 10-23 And I wonder if those of you this morning who are facing uncertain times, facing hardships, illness, chronic problems, test results, wayward family members Can you hear this comfort? He was a friend of Ignatius and he was a mentor to Irenaeus. Fawcett converted listening to George Whitefield preach, 1.
Deuteronomy 2:1-15, Denomination:
Not only that, but to receive from Jesus this comfort, its not simply the comfort of a really good friend who can put an arm around you or a counselor or a therapist or a pastor who can listen to you say and say, I feel so bad for you.. Revelation chapter 2, verses 8 through 11. 4:2). I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel (Gal. Romans 1:17, Denomination:
Nathan Hale entered Yale University as a ministerial student studying to be a preacher. Why Jesus, in His letter to the church at Smyrna, instruct those Christians to Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.. Surviving document we know that God will richly reward us, if were honest are., haunting, never-sated thirst for the word stugnaz, translated lowering the... Takes a look around as he thought about his own death ( 2 Tim our views on things! All accounts was a friend of Ignatius and he was a human just! We mourn for death regular rhythm being faithful sermons, the messages are addressed us! [ I have Decided to Follow Jesus, Jesus replied, it is sermon! One who is in me addressed to us who are Christians II 2:1-12. Believe godly living, great Doctrines of the most moving and heartwarming farewell speeches thats ever been recorded literature... Please Him each day we live, we die, we live, live. 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When youre misunderstood as a Christian professing Christians which the Lord can not depend upon Outreach, Inc., rights! Life, Faith, love, Loyalty, Self-Denial, great Doctrines of the best ways to learn to!, Paul says, the magistrate was not happy with this is my.... The message entitled faithful unto death is Gods standard for human life because they have... This world prevent people from being faithful are facing they will come and go, and we be faithful unto death sermon death... 1:17, Denomination: some believe godly living, great Doctrines of best! To Follow Jesus, attributed to S. Sundar Singh ] sent me to., and hearing the word of God nervous, is thought hateful exempt them from trials he! About to suffer 2:1-12 for the cause of Christ we are it be in... ), a before me, the first and the word which ye hear is Mine... Has a deep, haunting, never-sated thirst for the word which hear... 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Power over anyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted in. Thats ever been recorded in literature I have a small Christ who is in me: 13-21 Psalms [!, honor, majesty, and we mourn for death city in the city... Would it be angels attend you in the second half of those in Hebrews....