#11 (The 12 Disciples
Series)
"JOHN – THE PASSIONATE!"
TEXTS: Luke
9:46-56; John 19:25-27; I John 4:19-21
INTRO:
Neither the church nor the Christian
can survive without passion! It is
passion that fuels everything in society, why do you think products are sold
promising moving experiences if only you buy or use their products?
i.e. "There ain't no
power like mountain dew ... just dew it!" – The commercial shows all
kinds of dangerous and exciting things for a thrill and then connects it to
drinking mountain dew, the idea being that drinking Mountain Dew is not just
drinking a soft drink, it is a passionate
experience!
“Princess Cruise
Lines” – we all know it as the "Love Boat" – thus a cruise guarantees
romance and intrigue!
Cars are sold connected to
such things are bathing beauties, dangerous mountain climbing, treks through the
wilderness where only beasts go, etc.
Certain beers used to
promise you a pool in the middle of the desert with all kinds of beautiful girls
and partiers that would magically show up to share the moment with
you!
One of ATT commercials a
couple years ago promised their lines will be so clear and cheap that family
members at odds with one another would call each other and reconcile – talk
about passion!
All humans are passionate,
we don't first become passionate when we get saved, but we must exchange our
passions – the wrong ones for the right ones!
PROP.
SENT: The Bible teaches us that we must submit
ourselves to God for developing the right passions or our lives can experience
anything from emptiness to damage. Christians must guard against passions
that hurt themselves and the body of Christ ... or
others.
I. JOHN THE PASSIONATE CRITIC! Luke
9:46-56
A. Arrogance
Lk. 9:46-50
1. The disciples in these early days
of ministry find themselves "REASONING" (KJV) as to which of them would be
greatest!
a. The word "argument" is literally "reasoning"
... thus meaning more than just a sudden thing, they were backing up
their claims with examples, bragging on themselves as if to convince the others
that they are God's gift to the church and the Lord – passionately trying to
prove their points!
b. You have to say they all are quite
passionate, but this is passion that hurts the body of Christ and the believer
that displays this attitude!
2. Imagine how this could have
impacted their friendships with one another had Jesus not stepped in to correct
this!?
a. How often however does this
attitude infiltrate the church today, and is left unchecked or
unchallenged?
b. What about those Christian critics
that have a hard time saying anything good about the church, they only focus
their perceptions on the weak areas, if only they were in
charge!
3. Jesus has to step in to redirect
their passion and pride, greatness has little to do with grandstanding or
brilliance, it has more to do with SERVICE from love for even the smallest
need!
ILLUS: Like the
famous story of Lord Nelson who boarded a British ship during the war and found
two brilliant British officers quarreling, grabbing them and whirling them
around toward the open sea where enemy ships were visible he said, "Gentlemen,
there are you enemies!" – Source Unknown
4. Upon hearing Jesus’ explanation of
being the greatest in the kingdom ... serving others for Jesus, John immediately
tries to complain to Jesus about some stranger he had seen who had been trying
to cast out demons in Jesus' name though he hadn't joined the
disciples!
a. He seems to give away that he had
failed in casting out the demon himself; his pride was hurt and his position as
an "official" disciple made him mad
at this other person – who may have succeeded!
b. Perhaps his own hurt pride was at
the base of this. (SEE 9:39-40) John and the others had just come from a
failure to help deliver a boy from demons and now some stranger may have
succeeded where they had failed without even being a part of their close knit
group!!!
c. Their wounded pride was showing and
their passion wasn't as much for Jesus as it was for their own
self-elevation!
5. Jesus attempts to stir their
passion toward fighting real enemies and to consider ALL those who help in the
kingdom as friends and co-laborers!
a. We are not called to promote
ourselves; we are called to promote Jesus!!
b. When we have to have our way our passions
are misplaced, when we have to have Jesus' way, our passions are right
on!
6. Arrogance is a symptom of a
passionate critic who feels they are always right, others are
wrong!
B. Anger! Lk.
9:51-56
1. These fresh recruits however still
have much to learn about proper passions, they are still concerned about their
own sense of importance and rightness!
a. The Samaritans refused Jesus; they
were passionately prejudiced against Jews going to
b. This aroused a passionate reaction
in at least 2 guys in the group; JAMES & JOHN the “sons of
Thunder!” (Their very
name shouts “Passion!”)
c. Their response: "Lord, do you
want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy
them?"
2. Was their passion misplaced? YES &
NO!
a. They were certainly right about the
Samaritan’s prejudice being wrong!!!
b. but their passion to prove it made
their own passion just as evil ... "let's show em
Lord!"
c. We must be careful with our
passions and how we channel them against a truly ungodly world; we might be
right and still be wrong in how we respond!
d. Does our response demonstrate God's
passion for saving the lost, or does it seek to elevate us to show the world how
right we are and how wrong they are!!!
3. It
is possible to be right and still be wrong!!!
ILLUS: Years ago
Leonardo Da Vinci was working on his painting of Jesus and the "Last
Supper." He suddenly became very
angry with a certain man and said some very bitter things to this man, believing
he was right. After expressing his
anger at this man he returned to his canvass to work on the face of Jesus, but
he was so upset he could not compose himself to do the delicate strokes
necessary to paint Jesus. Finally
he put down his tools and sought out the man he had lashed out at, he asked the
man for forgiveness. The man
accepted the apology and Leonardo was able to go back and finish the face of
Jesus. His anger not only hurt the
man, it made him incapable of revealing Jesus ... how true that still is! Our passion should be to reveal Jesus to
others, not to reveal ourselves! – Source Unknown
4. Indeed, we find Jesus rebuking the
“sons of thunder” here; destroying a few ungodly Samaritans would hardly have
been an effective evangelism campaign!
a. Their passions needed
correction.
b. Jesus expected more from them as
believers, and as leaders – He still expects a lot from us
today!
II. JOHN THE PASSIONATE CAREGIVER! John 19:25-27
A. Anguish Jn.
19:25-27a
1. What a change from John's earlier
scenes, here at the end of Jesus' time with them we find a man who has gone from
“BIG MOUTH” to “BROKEN MAN!”
a. How had this come
about?
(1. John had been the one to get close to
Jesus!
(2. He was one of 3 inner circle disciples,
thus he had spent more time with Jesus than
most!
(3. It was John who had leaned against Jesus
at the supper table, the place usually reserved for a best
friend!
b. Perhaps leaning against Jesus chest
had brought him close to Jesus' heart in both
senses!
(1. Jesus had pulled John in very close,
Jesus simply rubbed off on him.
(2. We tend to assimilate the passions of
those we hang around.
(a. This is why people who hang with
complainers become complainers!
(b. Hang around people who love Jesus and
others and you’ll be like them!
(c. You will also experience their painful
consequences.
ILLUS: Like a
talking parrot a man had. He would
take the parrot outside to let him get exercise each day. One day the parrot was flying around and
noticed a group of crows on a nearby tree, so he flew up to join them. After hanging around them for a little
bit a sudden gun blast blew toward them, some crows were killed, others flew
away. The parrot unfortunately was
also hit, but was only wounded, he had a broken wing. A farmer had shot at them to get them
away from his crops. After the man
noticed his parrot hadn't returned he went looking for it. Finally finding it walking he picked it
up carefully and asked, "What happened to you?" The parrot responded, "Bad company I
guess!" – Source Unknown
2. John now stands alone at the foot
of the cross, the only disciple apparently close by
Jesus.
a. John is in anguish,
broken.
b. This is not a time for words or
chastising the other guys for running away, it is a time to think about Jesus,
not self!
c. Gone was the arrogance and pride,
gone was the self-righteous attitude.
d. He didn't have all the answers; his
passion was a broken heart for Jesus!
3. No criticisms are offered here
though this certainly wasn't the way John would have expected things to
go.
4. He was a different man, no railings
here against the Romans, no railings here against the Jewish leaders, different
passions were at work now. He had
been with Jesus too long now to be a “son of thunder” by
exploding.
B. Accommodation Jn.
19:27b
1. Jesus now speaks to John, how glad
to see him standing by!!
a. Jesus needs a man of passion to
take care of His earthly mom, not just anybody for this special mom – He wanted
the man who had stayed close to His own heart!
b. It was John that was constantly
referred to as "the disciple whom Jesus
loved."
2. Jesus needed someone who didn't
think of himself, someone who had learned to put others first, who had
disciplined his passions to match those of Jesus
Himself!
a. What man had stayed closer to
Jesus? None other than John, he was
always the closest!
b. Peter may have been first among the
disciples but John was first to the heart of Jesus, John was the “disciple whom
Jesus loved.”
3. Jesus had come to trust the
passions in John's heart, He had watched him
change.
a. John was no mere spectator in
Jesus' life and ministry, he had been an active participant, this had shaped him
up!
b. Critics tend to observe and judge
others, caring Christians tend to get in there and serve and encourage
others.
c. Spiritual health comes to those
participating in building the body and the kingdom, not to those who watch to
find the errors!
ILLUS: Who is
usually in better shape, a football fan or a football player? What happens to a football player that
becomes a spectator? – His blood pressure goes up, weight goes up, cholesterol
increases, and triglycerides go up, why?
Spectators just sit and so get little exercise, stamina and flexibility
decrease on body muscle groups ... only the luckiest survive long as spectators
– but participants are usually in great shape because they are active and so
they are stronger! – Source Unknown
III. JOHN THE PASSIONATE CHRISTIAN I John
A. Accountability I Jn.
4:19-20
1. In all of John's writings we find a
great emphasis on LOVE. He is one
of the most passionate writers in the New Testament, connecting ACTION to
PASSION.
a. So much so that he states here that
if one claims to have a passion to love God but hates his brother he is a
LIAR!
b. It is not enough for a Christian to
be passionate; he must be passionate for the RIGHT
THINGS!
2. John's point is very clear, passions must be held
accountable by theirs actions!
a. This is the missing ingredient in
the world today -- the world promotes passion but without accountability or
proper responses!
b. Passion without accountability
promotes pain!
c. It also causes passion to grow into
other misguided actions, leading into a deeper and deeper pit of
sin!
d. Passion held captive by
accountability however controls our appetites and guides them into proper
channels!
3. Today there is too much focus just
on PASSION without looking at where passion can take us or what to do with
them.
a. The Bible is clear -- Love has a
focus, and a right and wrong way to show it!
b. We must be just as interested in
the expression of passion as we are in the experience of
passion!
ILLUS: A teenage
boy had a love for science, especially astronomy, so his father bought him a
very expensive telescope. The boy
knew something of optics and so was fascinated on how a telescope worked. He studied the telescope, even taking it
about, examining the lenses, calculating the focal distances, etc. He was so passionate about the telescope
and its optics that he never did use it for its intended purpose -- to see the
heavens! People love passion, they
study it, examine it, talk about it (look at the all the talk shows!) -- yet few
ever use those passions to discover the wonders of heaven, expressing passions
in God's intended way and thus they miss a great blessing! – Source Unknown
B. Absolute! I Jn.
4:21
1. John's final word is clear, "Whoever loves God must also love his
brother." (Emphasis
mine)
2. How many churches have a passion to
experience God's presence and power?
a. Yet these same churches may be
filled with people hating each other, or not speaking to one another, they want
God to fill them with passion, but with no plan to use the passion to love one
another!
b. Churches with passion but not love
are not effective!!! It is not
enough to just have “experiences” … there must be “expressions”
too!
3. John went from a “Son of
thunder” to a “man of love” ... controlled passions that expressed
the heart of Jesus.
CONCLUSION: John went from a "Son of thunder"
with a passion for self, to a "son of love" with a passion for
others! Being the closest to Jesus
he soon not only heard Jesus' heart beat but found Jesus' heart beating in
him! It is impossible to get close
to the "God of love" and remain arrogant, hard, angry, and uncaring. What you draw close to will determine
your
passion!