Newmarket Alliance Sermon Podcast Jonathan K. Gonyou

Hey Jude!

Here we are with ANOTHER letter that seems to be addressing yet another messed-up Church.

In fact it seems A LOT of the New Testament is responding to messed-up churches...

It makes you wonder if the whole enterprise is worth the effort, or if it should be abandoned (as many people that you probably know have decided).

But in fact, that's WHY so much ink in the Bible is given to maintaining a healthy church. It's just that important! It's Jesus' plans for changing the world and He doesn't need a backup plan.

Jude tells us to CONTEND for the truth... to FIGHT for a healthy church... to even get TOUGH with those who sneak in and try to dismantle what God has built.

It's a fight worth having.

Walking in the Truth

John continues to lay out the three things that form the core of the identity of a true believer, obedience-truth-love, in his third letter to his friend Gaius. In the midst of a culture hostile to the early Christian churches, John stresses over and over how important it is for followers of Jesus to know and walk out the Truth. He compares and contrasts the behaviour of those who live out the truth and those who do not. He also speaks to some troubles in the church in his day that are still relevant today.

In his first letter, John emphasizes LOVE and in this second one he expounds on it. Love is a measurable action - not sentimental emotion or some theological theory.
But there's something that goes hand in hand with love, and that's TRUTH.
It's why - maybe more so than ever - we need to be vigilant in knowing Jesus and not being influenced by false teachers

"My Sharona"...
"Funkytown"...
"Achy Breaky Heart"
We all know what a "one-hit wonder" song is but the Bible has some "one-hit wonders" as well. Five, to be exact.

There are five books in the Bible that consist of only one chapter. But they are still so good, so important, so full of significance, that even that single chapter of writing was given a title and included among the Bible's 66 books.

This is the kind of series where you can prepare for Sunday by reading an entire book of the Bible in about 3 minutes.
We are starting with Obadiah

Up until now, in this series, we've studied the Biblical laughs we would likely aspire to.... the laugh of fearless confidence, the laugh of heaven etc.

On this final message of the series, it's important that we look at the laugh you DON'T want to hear.

It's a sobering gut-check on something we are ALL susceptible to.

When God Makes Us Laugh (part 4)

When you hear the phrase "getting the last laugh" or the old axiom "he who laughs last, laughs best" there's something that sounds a little nefarious about it all.

Is this the laugh of revenge? The laugh of comeuppance?

Can you picture Snidely Whiplash twisting his moustache or Dr. Evil with his pinky to his mouth giving a "muwhahaha" villainous laugh?

That's NOT the Jesus way. He never felt vindictive towards ANYONE.

But, Jesus does talk about the pain of this life... how those who weep today are actually blessed because one day that weeping will be turned to great laughter (Luke 6:21)

That's the "Last Laugh" Christians can look forward to!