I am no different than anyone else—despite what people may think—because I am a Gator football player, through everything I do…and just by living…I want people, when they see me, to say, ‘There’s something different about this guy, and that’s because he has a relationship with Jesus Christ. … I found true satisfaction, true happiness, and it is not by having your name in a newspaper, it is not by winning trophies, it is not by winning championships, it is by having a relationship with Jesus Christ.

So I have a ton of respect for him. Every chance he gets, he gives glory to God and is never hesitant to mention his relationship with Jesus Christ. And I believe he is genuine when he does it.

However, maybe there are some who are missing the point. Tim’s reason for doing what he does when he is ‘Tebowing’ is really pure: he is giving thanks to God in a public way, and showing everyone on national television that he is not ashamed to do so. I wonder how many of us would do that if we were given the same opportunity? After all, Jesus did say, Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven (Matthew 10:32, 33).

Yet, we have to come to grips with the fact that this is not about looking good, or drawing attention to oneself. This is not even about religion. Tim said it himself: It is about a relationship. A relationship with Jesus Christ is the reason Tim Tebow does what he does after a touchdown. Some people draw attention to themselves by doing some shake-and-bake-spasm dance in the end zone, or they run around throwing their arms in the air drawing glory for themselves and then finish it off by jumping into the crowd. Yet Tim chooses to drop down on one knee, in humility before God, and give thanks to Whom it is due. He knows he would not be here without God. He also ‘Tebows’ because of his relationship with Jesus. It is for Christ’s glory, not Tim’s, and Tim knows that.

Paul exemplifies this for us. In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, he says Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. Even though Paul is specifically talking about immorality, the application remains the same. The glory is God’s not ours, thus we are to live for Him daily in all that we do. Paul reminds the Philippian church in Philippians 1.27-28, Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God. Paul also reminds us in Philippians 2 that we must have the same attitude which was found in Jesus Christ when He came as fully God in fully flesh to die on the cross: humility. Why? We see the answer in 2:10-11 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. For the glory of God. I am reminded of a quote by St. Francis of Assisi, “Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”

We must be careful not to idolize the man Tim Tebow. After all, ‘Tebowing’ has been around a long time. This is not about Tim Tebow, it is about Jesus Christ. Only. Period. So then, my prayer for Tim Tebow, and for the generations of fans watching him is that the GOSPEL will be furthered by this. I pray the message of Jesus Christ, not the image of Tim Tebow, will be extended farther and wider to audiences in this country and abroad who have never heard the redemptive message of Jesus.

James 2:1-13

No Distinctions

God is Impartial (v. 1-7)

God does not play favorites (Acts 10:9-16, 28, 34-35)

God executes with Justice (Deuteronomy 10:12-13, 16-18; Romans 2:9-13)

Judges with Evil Motives (John 7:24)

God chooses (Deuteronomy 7:7-8; Matthew 5:3)

The Law is Impartial (v. 8-11)

The Royal Law (Levticus 19:18; Matthew 22:36-40)

God’s Law Requires Perfection (Matthew 5:21-22; Romans 3:23; 8:1-4)

We Must be Impartial (v. 12-13)

God and His Law are impartial, we must be too (Luke 10:30-37; James 1:27)

We must not show favoritism (Luke 6:36-38; Matthew 18:32-35)

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

Click the Play Button below for the Sermon Audio

Outline:

Receive the Word (v. 19-21)

Anger as an example (Ephesians 4:26-27; Matthew 2:12-17).

Quick to Listen (Proverbs 10:17)

Slow to Speak (Proverbs 17:7)

Slow to Anger (Proverbs 16:32; Ecclesiastes 7:9)

The bigger picture: Get of filth and wickedness out of lives by receiving the word.

In humility (Matthew 7:24-26)

Implanted (Ephesians 4:20-24; 1 Peter 2:1-3)

Salvation is the result of receiving the word which is implanted within us (Matthew 13:18-23)

Give the Word (v. 22-27)

Prove ourselves (Romans 2:12-13)

Illustration in verses 23-25 (Romans 8:1-4; John 8:31-32; Colossians 1:13-14)

Prove to be doers of the Word (Ephesians 2:8-9; Matthew 7:24)

The promise: blessed (John 13:12-17)

Illustration in verses 26-27 (Psalm 39:1; Matthew 25:34-40)

“The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”- Brennan Manning

My pride gets the better of me many times. There are a few certain people that I wish would listen to my sermons. During my woe-is-me selfish times, I wonder aloud why they do not listen to them. And if they do, why is there not any feedback? And then, to top it off, I get to a point where I think that they think that what I am doing as a pastor is basically a hobby. You know those kind of thoughts: “Oh look at John…he’ll make something of himself one day.” And then there are those times when all I need is that approving smile, or “Good job, I am proud of you.” Yeah. Those scream through my head during those woe-is-me times too. These times provide a sampling of thoughts and emotions felt, and seek to demonstrate as an example of what’s running around up there. After all, I am certainly prideful and selfish in other ways.

At some point along the way however, thankfully, God reigns me back in. I realize that my pride has indeed gotten the better of me. I then come to realize the only thing I am interested in is my success. Will people like me? Do I bore them when I preach? Am I any good? When will I be popular and will people want to hear me preach? As I peel back the layers and take a long hard look, I come face to face with a severe reality: I am human. There is nothing that I can do to deserve God. By His grace, I must humbly receive the implanted word (James 1:21). Yet, I must also take into account what James says right before that: Therefore, ridding yourselves of all moral filth and evil excess, humbly receive… You see, I just preached on this passage this past Sunday, and I think I am just now getting the full effect of the sting. Because, as I look back and reflect on those questions and ponderings, I realize I have much longer to go. Let’s face it, pride is a moral filth and evil excess. In fact, Paul would tell me that pride (or greed) is really just idolatry (Colossians 3:5). The bottom line is, receiving the word is not just for salvation. The word needs to be received and applied by every believer everyday. Psalm 119:1-2, and 8 says: How happy are those whose way is blameless, who live according to the Lord’s instruction! Happy are those who keep His decrees and seek Him with all their heart… I will keep Your statutes; never abandon me. 

So. As I look back at 2011, I am ready to shut the door on that year. It was a good year, a painful year, a growing year, a stressful year, a learning year, and a new beginnings year. I am in decent shape, I need to eat better, lose a little more weight. From the ups and downs to the downs and ups, and sometimes not knowing which way was up. Overall, it was a year never to be repeated. Thankfully. Onward to 2012.

But, where do these thoughts lead? Psalm 46:10 comes to mind. “Cease striving and know that I am God, I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted among the earth.” Eugene Peterson in his paraphrase, The Message, says it this way: “Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above politics, above everything.” This is where I need to start in 2012. Sometimes the traffic of life with its schedules, deadlines, meetings, and all the stuff get the best of me. Sometimes I forget to take a step out of the traffic and look longingly at the face of God. With His help, may I know afresh and anew what it means to savor Jesus.

As I look ahead to the year, the challenge of Psalm and James still rings in my head. But again, reading just a couple of verses more, James goes on to say: But be doers of the word and hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his own face in the mirror; for he looks at himself, goes away, and right away forgets  what kind of man he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who acts, this person will be blessed in what he does (James 1:22-25). As 2012 begins, I think this is also where I start: being a doer of the word by being a leader for my family. That seems random. Yet, this has been a progressive thought process in a journey of self discovery. I noted some thoughts on servanthood in a recent post. Then I preached through this James passage. I have also read a thought provoking post on another blog which also grabbed my attention.  At least in my train of thought, that leap from the James passage to being a leader in my family was more of a side step.

There are two points of interest for me. One, when I say my family, I mean beyond my wife and child. I am talking about my parents, my siblings, and extended family. Point two, through this brief-thus-far journey of discovery to one more piece of my puzzle, I am realizing that true leaders, God led, God called leaders are servants. Combining these two together, I think  I have a New Year’s Resolution so to speak: to be a servant leader to my family.

In reference to my wife and child, please note that I have not perfected being a servant leader for my wife or my child. Far from it. I fail everyday in that department. When put in context of Ephesians 5 and 6, I know beyond any doubt that I have long way to go. God is gracious and merciful and has continued to teach me, and I pray one day I will be proven a godly leader of my family. They, above anyone on earth, are my priority. With the Spirit’s help I pray I grow in being a leader, a shepherd to them…even it is just a little bit.

However, I have come to realize just how disconnected I am from my family (beyond my wife and child). This of course can be attributed to a bunch of selfish, man-made excuses of time and energy. But I do realize that I do not want to be disconnected. I want to be a godly leader and example to them as well. It’s not a matter of saying, “look at me,” but rather, showing them through my actions that I want to be there for them. What will that look like this year? Unknown. Perhaps, it means me helping my mother in law with an attitude of gratefulness rather than an attitude of obligation. Perhaps, it means being more of a participant in cleaning up the kitchen at my family’s house after dinner. Perhaps, it means just keeping in more constant contact with my family through texts, email, phone calls, etc. Whatever it means, and whatever it looks like, I know it involves being a servant.

These things are a good start. But I know it will not end there. I pray God would continue to show me ways to grow in my personal life and show me ways to be a better servant to my family(and church family), so that in turn, I can be a better leader for them. Thus, I pray I will savor Jesus, that I will wait on the Lord, that I will lead my wife and child on a godly path: the path they should go, and I pray that He would grow me into being the kind of servant leader that my family deserves.

In general, I reflect on Psalm 25:1-15. Thank you Pastor Al for showing me this passage at the beginning of this New Year. Lord, I turn to You. My God, I trust in You. Do not let me be disgraced; do not let my enemies gloat over me. No one who waits for You will be disgraced; those who act treacherously without cause will be disgraced. Make Your ways known to me, Lord; teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; I wait for You all day long. Remember, Lord, Your compassion and Your faithful love, for they ⌊have existed⌋ from antiquity. Do not remember the sins of my youth or my acts of rebellion; in keeping with Your faithful love, remember me because of Your goodness, Lord. The Lord is good and upright; therefore He shows sinners the way. He leads the humble in what is right and teaches them His way. All the Lord’s ways ⌊show⌋ faithful love and truth to those who keep His covenant and decrees. Because of Your name, Yahweh, forgive my sin, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the Lord? He will show him the way he should choose. He will live a good life, and his descendants will inherit the land. The secret counsel of the Lord is for those who fear Him, and He reveals His covenant to them. My eyes are always on the Lord, for He will pull my feet out of the net. 

What would happen if we saw a woman getting assaulted in the parking lot at Walmart? What would happen if we heard of physical abuse in a family? What would happen if we sat up and took notice of people around us? We tend to be quick to help the third world countries who are starving, or in need of shelter, and that is good.  I personally think we help those other countries because all we have to do is make a donation, or drop supplies off, and go back home. But what about our neighbor down the street whose car just broke down for the tenth time? Or the child whose mother is sick with cancer? Do we reach out? Again, Jesus’ command is absolutely different.

Matthew 20:24-28 says:

And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

A little background on this passage is appropriate. Back up to verses 20-23. The mother of the sons of Zebedee, which were James and John, wanted her sons to be able to be to sit on either side of Jesus when He went into His kingdom. This was asked most likely in light of 19:28:  And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Interestingly, even though she was the one who asked this of Jesus, there seems to be an indication that James and John had put her up to it, considering Jesus shifts His focus to them, when He says, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” And they answer in the affirmative. The term ‘cup’ was used in the Old Testament as a metaphor for suffering. He thus promises them that they too shall drink of His cup. His promise, while it may not include death, did include pain, suffering, and hardship.

The other disciples seemed to take this with the weight of a lead balloon. In fact, they were literally, ‘very displeased.’  Yet, Jesus pulled them aside and basically gave them a reality check. Who sat beside who is not the point, instead:

First, He called them to be servants. The term ‘servant’ in the Greek is diakonos, were we get the term deacon. This is one who executes the commands of another; it could be a servant to the king; a deacon in the church, or even a waiter of a table. Indeed Isaiah commands us in 1:17: Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow. Simply, He was telling them they should be putting others before themselves. We need to be putting others’ needs before our own. Why is that? Because we are all the same: we are all depraved, sinful creatures who are in desperate need of Savior. Who are we to serve? God first and foremost. After all, in Deuteronomy 10:12-13: Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with call your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? Also, the text explicitly says to serve each other. The greatest among us will be our slave. Essentially, we are called to serve. We go out in the name of Jesus, witnessing, serving, ministering, helping, providing for people. That is not the culture we live in. We are called to go against the grain of our culture and live according to the commands of Christ, and in this context that is to be a servant.

Along the same lines of being a servant,  there is an implication that title and prestige are really not all that important. Here, power and control are called into check. He says, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you.” Why does He say this? What is wrong with exercising a little bit of prestige, or being proud of a title? Well, basically, He says that is not the point. In fact, a couple of chapters later, Jesus is in the process of denouncing the Pharisees because they refuse to live what they teach. He, in a similar manner as our passage, says in Matthew 23:8-12: “But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.” So then, if power, prestige, control, title are all NOT the point, then what is? Serving others for the glory of God. As this passage in Matthew 23 says, He is our Teacher, our Father, our Leader. We are all in service to Him, not ourselves. That being said, we are to recognize our service to Him, and as He has commanded, our service to each other. Paul recognized this and echoed Jesus’ sentiment when he said in Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” For Paul, this exhortation leads right into the character of Christ that we are commanded to emulate. For he goes on to say in verses 5-8: “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” In contrast to the Pharisees we saw illustrated for us in Matthew, Jesus practiced what he preached. In so doing, He commands us today to the same. Paul in the Philippians passage, goes on to say because of His obedience, God exalted Him. Again, this echoes what Jesus said in contrast to the Pharisees, and we see this element in our passage here in Matthew. In all, it really does not matter what man says about us, how they think about us, or what they want to believe about us. At the end of the day, we are all servants of Christ, even unto death if need be.  But, by being servants of Christ, we are servants to each other.

Second, being a servant requires sacrifice. In service to God and consequently, service to each other requires sacrifice. This was alluded to just above in the Philippians passage, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” We are to be Jesus to dead, hurting world. By doing so, we are to humble ourselves as Paul is exhorting us to do. A willingness to be humble requires great sacrifice. But not only are we to be humbled, but we are to be willing to take what we believe into fatal account if need be. Jesus humbled Himself to the point of death, and so should we. Jesus alludes to this in our main passage in Matthew 20: And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Whoever is to be first or great, must first be a slave.  This does not mean we should be total push-overs. Jesus became indignant when His Father’s temple was being misused. When Christian values are on the line in the public square, we as a church, should be the first to take a stand. But, among the family of God, we should be willing to sacrifice for each other.

Paul was familiar with the sacrifice of servanthood. He introduces himself as a ‘bond-servant’ in most of his letters, which in the Greek (doulos) is more literally translated as ‘slave’ (cf. Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:7; Philemon 1).  We read Paul’s solemn words in Philippians 2:17, 18: But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all. You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me (cf. 2 Timothy 4:6).  Even so, he urges them to rejoice in the same way. He wants them to share his joy. Indeed, in Philippians 4:4, Paul says Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! What a concept. Here, Paul is writing from a Roman prison, shackled and chained to a guard. Yet he tells them to be joyful, and to share his joy. Why does he have joy? Because he is being poured out, sacrificed and given away for his Lord. In Philippians 3:7Paul says, But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 

Sacrifice is hard. Sacrifice for others in Jesus’ name is difficult. It may not carry to the point of imprisonment, but it is worth it to see one, just ONE come to faith in Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:2-7: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort. When we reach out in Jesus’ name, it is worth it. We are called to be servants, we are called to be His servants, and to reach out in His grace and mercy. Who knows? If we are willing to reach out in the love of God, the Holy Spirit may draw that person to Himself. On the other side, if we reach out to a fellow brother or sister in the Lord, it is for their comfort and encouragement. This is about sacrificial servanthood. Yet, to a deeper level, there is a sense of checking our own motivations. The implication lies in this passage: But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer… Jesus came as a ransom for many. He reached out with His life. He died to set our souls free, so we should freely give the gift of ourselves away in Jesus’ name.

So what? 

We are called to be servants. We are called to go against the grain of the culture, to love and reach out and serve our fellow man. All the while, we must be giving thanks and glory to the Father. We live as Jesus live, and develop our attitudes in accordance with His will. We serve others as we seek to serve Him. We are part of the family of God under the Lordship of Christ; we are brothers and sisters in Him if we bow the knee to the Lord of Hosts. We must reach out. We must be willing to sacrifice ourselves for His service.

Because we are brothers in sisters in the family of God, we should not consider ourselves higher or better than the other. We see this in our Matthew 20 passage and we saw this as well in Matthew 23. Romans 12:3-9 says: For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Either way, we are not consider ourselves more highly than another, whatever our gift may be, because we are all under the Lordship of Christ. As a final illustration, Paul says more explicitly in Galatians 3:26-29: For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

May we serve each other in the grace and love of Christ Jesus.

Outline

He is Eternal (v. 1-5, 18)

John begins with Christ as eternal God (Philippians 2:6-7)

Jesus existed at the beginning with God (Genesis 1:1; John 8:58)

No one has ever seen God (Colossians 1:17; John 4:24; Exodus 33:11; numbers 12:8; Genesis 2:16-25)

The only begotten God

He fulfilled prophecy (Isaiah 9:6-7; Hebrews 13:8)

He Dwelt (v. 14)

He appeared in the Old Testament (Genesis 18; Judges 6)

His Incarnation was more than an appearance, He dwelt with His creation (Philippians 2:7; Colossians 1:15; Luke 2:1-20)

He was the Supreme Revelation of the Father (Hebrews 1:1-2; Romans 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Timothy 3:16)

He Redeemed (9-13)

He came to Redeem fallen humanity (Genesis 3:15; John 6:37)

He did not come for His own benefit (Isaiah 53:1-3, 7-10; John 3:16-17)

We respond to Christ by giving our all (Mark 12:29-30)

Sermon Outline Unavailable.

Below is the Sermon Audio and outline from Sunday

Temptation (v. 13, 14)

What is temptation?

Peirazo

If God does not tempt, who does? (Ephesisans 6:11, 16; 2 Thessalonians 2:8-10)

How does Satan tempt?

Physically (Matthew 4:2-3)

Spiritually (Matthew 4:5-6)

Mentally (Matthew 4:8-9; Genesis 3:4-5)

Matthew 22:37

Sin (v. 15)

Harmatia.

Desire (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Deception

Disobedience (Matthew 15:18-19)

Sin is universal (Romans 3:23; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 7:18-25)

The creation narrative: Genesis 3:6-7

Death (v. 15)

Sin brings death (Romans 6:23)

Physical

Spiritual

Eternal

Creation (Genesis 3:14-19; Romans 5:12-13)

For the believer, persistent sin could end in death (1 Corinthians 11:30; 1 John 5:16)

God is the Reason we Persevere (v. 12)

Perseverance: ‘Hupo’ and ‘Meno’ (Matthew 10:22; 24:9-13

Love endures or perseveres all things (1 Corinthians 13; 1 John 4:8; 2 Timothy2:8-10

Perseverance carries a promise (1 Timothy 6:21; 1 Peter 5:4; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

God is the Reason we can Resist Temptation (v. 13-16)

Test (peirasmos) v. Temptation (periazo)

Test (Deuteronomy 8:2; Judges 2:20-23)

Temptation (1 Peter 5:8; Genesis 22:1, a contradiction)

We resist temptation through God’s power (1 Peter 5:9; Hebrews 2:17-18; 4:15; Ephesians 6:10-13)

God is the Reason we are Blessed (v. 17-18)

We are blessed by God because He can only give such things that are good (Matthew 7:7-11; Psalm 84:11; Psalm 136:7)

The ultimate gift: Jesus Christ (John 3:3, 16; Romans 8:31, 32

We are blessed because God is constant (Malachi 3:6)

We are blessed because we are His (John 1:12-13; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Ephesians 1:13; Romans 8:19-22)