Sermons of Love The Scholars Corner

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 



But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 



And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”



Matthew 3:13–17 



Why Did Jesus Have to Submit to Baptism? 



John was the last bearer of the Law and the Prophets and carried the anointing of the Word...  



Jesus was submitting to the Law and the Prophets through the Baptist. 



Only then did he receive the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit. 



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Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 



but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 



Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5–11



There was no record of Jesus doing miracles before his Baptism. As a man, he was not able to do miracles in his own strength and nature. The power came through his total reliance and dependence upon His Father and The Holy Spirit. 



When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 



For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 



When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 



And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment. Matthew 8:5–13ESV



What was the Centurion’s Faith?   



His authority came through his submission to his generals and ultimately the Emperor.  



He recognized Jesus’ authority over disease came from his submission to God the Father. He was under command authority so he had authority to command.



Submission is not Servility.  It is a willing sacrifice of self-esteem in order to esteem others more highly than yourself. It is to excel in giving honor to others.  



Think about this: John the Baptist was an imperfect man, and yet the perfect man, Jesus, submitted to his anointing.   



We submit to the Word of God in a Man, but we give honor to the man through whom God is speaking and using.  Just as we are to give honor to one another. 



Note:  We are not to submit to anything ungodly or contrary to the Word of God, even if told to do so by those in authority.  We give honor to those in authority who are imperfect like ourselves and cannot expect them to be without flaws before we give them honor.&n

Last week’s message was on forgiveness:  Some may struggled and feel like you can’t forgive:  Forgiveness is an act of the will not of the emotions. In fact, your emotions won’t get healed until you forgive. 
Gary will be preaching about demons. I’m going to do a quick introduction into deliverance ministry. 
The Body of Christ (that means you) has authority to deliver people from demonic bondage. Jesus Said: 
“Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.” (Mark 16:14–20, ESV)
Not everything is a demon: 
PTSD, Trauma, Satanic ritual abuse, and sexual abuse can result in Split personality disorder. There is no demon to cast out here, but the past needs to be faced,  
Difference between demons and principalities and powers. We have authority over demons, but not principalities and powers. Against those we wrestle, we don’t cast out:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:10–12, ESV)
“Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day— just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones. But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively. Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion. These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.” (Jude 5–13, ESV)
How the devil disarms us…through fear
Entrance of Fear (my story)
Opening Doors for the evil one to oppress you 
Signs of oppression: 
addictions to sex, drugs, alcohol, gambling, fear of the occult, compulsions and uncontrolled anger
Unforgiveness – cause and/or result of oppressio

(Audio has an echo... sorry)
Habakkuk 2:4  "The Righteous Shall Live by his Faithfulness."  - Quoted by Paul.



 In Hebrew, faithfulness means trustworthy or steadfast.  It is different from faith. It is being faithful to do what is right and follow the Lord's leading even when you don't have faith to move mountains. 
Genesis 16, 17:15–21
1 Samuel 21:10–22:2
Mark 14:26–31
Matthew 26:69–75
John 21:15–19

God’s Sovereign Call



“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 1:1–2, )



Paul was called, Paul was chosen by the will of God. He was chosen against his will. He did not seek, ask, or desire. He was chosen by the Grace of God. 



In fact, he was radically opposed to God and hated God. He fought God with all his might!



“Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,” (Ephesians 3:7–8, ESV)



“I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent (violent) opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:12–17, ESV)   (He knows your destiny!)



“Then he (Jesus)  appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.” (1 Corinthians 15:7–10, ESV)



Paul’s will was involved. He had to yield to God and say yes to the calling., BUT WHO WOULDN’T? But God is the one who called him to this ministry.  He didn’t invite himself! 



But the Good News for Paul is the Same as it is For YOU.  You are called and You are Chosen! (if you be in Christ) :



“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,” (Ephesians 1:3–7, ESV)



Note here that Paul continually repeats that God is accomplishing everything according to the purpose of his will! 



“In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:11–14, ESV)



People don’t like the word “predestination,” because it implies we don’t have free will. But we have to be faithful to what the scripture says, and Paul mentions it several times here in this passage.  Predestination has to do with the Sovereign will and ability of God to accomplish everything according to his will

Genesis 37: 1-11
Joseph is 17, a tattletale, and not very humble or smart.
Joseph Enslaved, He Prospers
Falsely Accused & Thrown into Prison
While in Prison, He Prospers.
God is more interested in the development of your character than in giving you things.
Faith and Confession cannot shorten the process.

What is Faith? 



“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” (James 1:5–8, ESV)



Double-Mindied = Two Souled, Two Thoughts, Two Minds, Undecided.Vanilla or Chocolate? Will God or Won’t He Heal? Is it God’s Will to heal or not? 



Doubt: evaluate and judge for oneself. Adam set himself up as a judge and evaluator of God’s Word about the fruit.  It isn’t so much a doubt as the opposite of trusting God.  



 The Three types of faith: knowledge, agreement, and trust. 



The Word of Faith Movement has a lot of truth to it. God does want you to “prosper and be in health,” as  John says. But what is prosperity?  



Having everything you need to do what God has called you to do. 



Would God want you to fail in what he has told you to do? 



The problem of the Word of Faith movement is that it can take away your focus from Jesus and put it on yourself, your efforts, your faith and upon how much faith you have, OR DON’T HAVE! 



Faith can become a form of works of self-improvement and a cycle of performance so that your focus is no longer on Jesus, but upon you: are you doing enough? Do you have enough faith? What if you don’t have enough faith? 



The result of this misplaced focus is humanism. Man becomes the center of your theology instead of what Jesus has done for you on the cross. 



The reason this happens is because when faith is treated like an object that we can possess or own, faith becomes separated from the One who is Faith and the One who gives Faith.  



“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1–2, ESV)



Faith is not something we have separately from a relationship of intimacy with Jesus. It says 



“faith works through love” (Gal. 5:6). And it says faith is a gift: 



“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” 



 (Ephesians 2:8–10, ESV)



If Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith and faith is a gift given to us by the Father, how so is faith something we can exercise ourselves outside a relationship with God?  Is the focus on our faith or upon Jesus whose faith we share by his faith working in us?  If we are his workmanship, is it not his faith which works in us to perfect us and make us like him? 



So,  let us look a the kind of faith Jesus had as our model. 



The word for faith in Greek is the same as the English word TRUST.  In almost every instance in the New Testament, everywhere the word faith appears, you can substitute the word trust. And it would be good for you to do so, as it changes the meaning of the scriptures as it applies to us. It becomes a term of relationship, rather than a term describing our performance or ability. 



First of all, Jesus shows that he is totally dependent upon the Father for everything he does. 



“Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.” (John 5:19, NRSV)



“Do