Jesus Our All

                                                                          Scripture Text                                                                             Song 5:16

Intro: Jesus in Revelation 2:4 told the church of Ephesus that they had left their first love. Jesus is to be our first love and we are to never forget Savior and Lord. He is our bridegroom and we are His bride. He has done so much for us, so we must give Him His rightful place in our lives and stand strong for Him in this dark and sinful world.

I. Christ's words are most sweet to us. Song of Songs 5:16 (NKJV)  His mouth is most sweet, Psalm 19:10 More to be desired are His word than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Psalm 119:103 (NKJV) How sweet are Your words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth! Christ' words are Sweeter than honey; which is the sweetest food we know of. The honeycomb is that which is sweeter than the rest. Words are a principal part of Christ's beauty, and the main means of our comfort, security, joy and salvation. Our comfort and joy completely depends upon his sweet and excellent words, his holy teaching and gracious promises contained in the gospel. Luke 4:22 (NKJV) So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?" To appreciate the sweetness of His words you have to feed upon Jesus' words by reading and meditating on it daily. His word tells us in Jude 1:24 (NKJV) Jesus is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy. That is most sweet to our souls.

II. Christ is altogether lovely. Song of Songs 5:16 (NKJV) Yes, he is altogether lovely. There is no part of him which is not all together lovely and beautiful. Now the important question is this: Is He altogether lovely to you? Are you able to speak of Him with the enthusiasm the bride had for her bridegroom? We must know Christ intimately if we are to witness of Him. When one comes to Christ it is not a business transaction, it's a forever commitment. He is wonderful, and I don't think we praise Him, glorify Him, lift Him up, worship Him, and honor Him with thanksgiving enough. He is altogether lovely any way that you look at Him. 1.Christ is lovely in his birth and by becoming flesh and dwelling among us. 2.Christ is lovely by being a blessing to others, He goes about doing good and helping those who are oppressed of the devil. He is lovely by His holiness, and His obedience to the Father, fulfilling His will. He is lovely by His perfection in all He does.  3.Christ is lovely in His death, for by His death on the cross, we sinners are reconciled to the Father; our sins are forgiven and no longer to be remembered, giving us the promise of everlasting life in heaven with Him and the Father. 4.Christ is lovely in the promise of His kingdom. He saved us so that we can have access to and serve in His kingdom. He made us heirs of God and joint heirs with Him. 5.Christ is lovely in His position as the mediator between God and us. He stands as advocate between the Father and us and brings us together in peace and harmony.  6.Christ is lovely in His person; He's full of mercy and grace, wisdom, knowledge, humility, holiness, righteousness, love, compassion, faithfulness, and kindness. 7.Christ is lovely in His care for us, protecting us at all times and meeting our needs. Christ, therefore, is lovely in everything He does. His loveliness cannot be improved on.

III. Christ is my beloved. Song of Songs 5:16 (NKJV) This is my beloved, Can you say He is beloved to you? Is He is the One whom you love the most? Is He is the One dearest to your heart. Do you desire none but him. Is He is the focal point of your interest; is your faith completely in him, and do you love him because He first loved you and gave Himself for you. Do you love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength which is the first and greatest commandment?

IV. Christ is my friend. Song of Songs 5:16 (NKJV) And this is my friend, Christ is lovely as our personal friend. We can talk to Him at all times. He discloses the secrets of His heart to us. John 15:15 (NKJV)  No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. He paid our sin debt for us by his suffering in our place on the cross, and by shedding His precious blood to purchase us as His own. He has entered into heaven in our name, where He is our advocate before the Father. He is abundant in His mercy and grace, and gives us help and relief in times of need. We can share all our secret things needs with Him, knowing that He will help us. He gives us good and wholesome counsel by His word. He shows us the right path to follow to avoid the pitfalls of life.
He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother; He loves at all times; is constant and faithful, and always to be trusted in; He is a rich, powerful, everlasting, unchangeable friend.

Conclusion: "Let others be governed by the love of the world, and seek their happiness in its friendship and favors, This is my beloved and this is my friend. Others may do as they please, but this is my soul's choice, my soul's rest, my life, my joy, my all; this is he whom I desire to live and die with." Quote from Matthew Henry Commentary

Invitation: Christ is seeking those that have not experienced His love in the forgiveness of their sins. If you have never experienced Christ's love for you, confess your sins to Him, ask Him to forgive you and save you from hell and give you a home in Heaven. He will not turn you away and you will begin to experience His great love for you! 

A Call to Remain Faithful

 

Scripture Text

Jude 17-21

Intro: We Christians are under persecution daily by those who don't know Christ. We are being mocked for our belief in Jesus Christ. These mockers are in our government, media, society and even some churches. Jude calls on all Christians to remain faithful.

I. Remember we are warned there shall be mockers. Mockers were predicted by the apostles. Jude 1:17 (NKJV) But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: What we see today shouldn't surprise us. We are warned in the bible that this would happen. There are mockers in and out of the church. They are in every aspect of life. Christianity is foolishness to them. They mock things they don't understand. The idea of a spiritual world that is more real and alive as the physical world is questioned. The idea of levels of authority, of principalities and powers and rulers in a spiritual world is mocked. The idea of Christ being exalted to the right hand of God is laughed at. The fact of believers someday ruling, serving and ministering for Christ forever in a new heavens and earth is ridiculed and mocked. We see a total disregard for anything concerning God! The devil has blinded their eyes. His favorite devise is to keep them ignorant and unconcerned about spiritual truths. These scriptures give us three characteristics of mockers! a. They are sensual. Jude 1:18 (NKJV) how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. Mockers are sensual (fleshly) and worldly minded. They don't ever think of spiritual things. Their mind is set on the things of this world and satisfying the desires of the flesh. They are like brute beasts. Jude 1:10b (NLT) They do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction. They walk after their passions. They think and act as natural fleshly men. These people couldn't care less about God or Christ but live their lives only after their own lustful passions. They think only of themselves and what they want. They hate people who disagree with them. Jude 1:16 (NLT) These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want. b. They cause divisions Jude 1:19 (NKJV) These are sensual persons, who cause divisions. They cause divisions every where they go. As we look at our world today we see divisions everywhere in and out of the church, in the nation & government, social media, news media, different religions. Divisions come when people turn from the source of unity which is the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit ruling in the hearts of men there can never be peace. Man has tried since the beginning to bring peace but has never been successful. c. They do not have the Spirit Jude 1:19c (NKJV) not having the Spirit. All these evil actions that people do is because they don't have God's Spirit in them. Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. They have never been saved. They are ignorant to the results of this kind of lifestyle, that leads not only to physical death, but also spiritual death. This is why the church is so important. We can't stop using every method at our disposal to reach people for Christ. He is the only hope for the world.

II. We are called to remain faithful. Many are turning away from the faith that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Even though mockers are all around us we are to remain faithful to our calling for there is no other way to unity and heaven but by Jesus Christ. a. By building upon our "most holy faith." Jude 1:20 (NKJV) But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith. We were called to be God's children. We were called to one day rule and reign with Christ. We are to keep assembling ourselves together as Heb. 10:25 says so we can help each other build up our “most holy Christian faith.” Holy means separate, set apart, different. Our holy faith is far different from all other faiths. It is a faith that is not based upon opinion, speculation, works and imaginations of men. It is a faith of grace and salvation thru Jesus only. John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. It is faith that has been separated and set apart from man's ideas about God and life. It is a faith that is set apart by God Himself, it comes from God. Our holy faith is based on the holy bible, God's word. We are to read, study, memorize it and live it. We are to preach and teach it as long as we are able. b. We are to remain faithful By praying in the Holy Spirit. Jude 1:20b praying in the Holy Spirit, We communicate with the Father in prayer letting our request be made known to Him.  We pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, asking and depending upon the Holy Spirit to cleanse our requests and make sure that what we ask is according to the will of God. Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groaning (0r moaning) which cannot be uttered. We set time aside time every day in prayer before God for the needs of loved ones and for the needs of God's people and for the world, all in and with the help of the Spirit. c. We are to remain faithful by keeping ourselves in the love of God. Jude 1:21 (NKJV) keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. Jude is telling us to keep ourselves in a place where God can actively bless us, and to keep ourselves away from all that is unlike Him, and those things that would drag us down spiritually. In other words, we don’t keep ourselves saved, but we keep ourselves safe in His love. That includes denying ourselves and embracing what God has for us. If we get out from under God's love, the devil will be waiting to make our lives miserable.

Conclusion: By doing these things we will keep ourselves safe in God's love. We must remain faithful in the midst of this crooked and perverse generation and shine as lights in a dark place. We are to be salt of the earth and light of the world as Jesus said.

Invitation: Have you responded to God's call to be saved from hell and to be saved for Heaven? If not, the bible says now is the time, today is the day of salvation for all who confess their sins to Jesus and ask Him for forgiveness.