Radio Broadcast Monday 02/27/2023

Classic Christianity – The Book of John P10 (02-27-23)

If You Are In Christ Jesus, You Have The Mind of Christ Living in You ~ Abide in Him

~ “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” ^{1 Corinthians 2:16}

~ “You don’t have to get all engrossed in the things of the world. Because the things of the world are going to continue going downhill, unless it’s got leaders who are in Christ Jesus, and who listen to the leading and the teaching of the Holy Spirit of God that lives in us.

Join Bob George in this chapter by chapter exposition of the gospel of John. Available also for download the complete series on the Book of John. Realize why Christ, Himself, is REAL LIFE and how He personally offers hope in daily living that you may:

Discover an abundant and meaningful life as a Christian.
Overcome fear with His assurance that you have His eternal life.
Experience joy during adversity.
Apply God’s wisdom in decision making, no matter how big or small.
Experience freedom as you walk by faith in His love and acceptance.

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Announcer 0:12
Welcome to Classic Christianity Radio with Bob George Bob’s clear, timeless teachings on the complete forgiveness and unconditional love of Jesus Christ will transform your life as you learn about God’s amazing grace. Let’s join Bob as he teaches us from God’s Word.

Bob George 0:29
Let’s turn to John chapter three, one of the most important chapters in the Bible because it teaches us how to enter into this brand new relationship with Christ Jesus, that when we come to Christ Jesus, we not only come to Him, to be our Lord and to be our Savior, but we come to him, for him to be our teacher. As I said, last week, when I was interviewed in college and joined the Armstrong Corporation, what I did was give an assent, they made an offer, and I made an agreement to come and be trained by them. I didn’t go with them to be trained by General Electric or General Motors, I came to be trained by them. And and the same thing is true with Jesus, when we come to Jesus, what we’re saying is, I have come to be trained by you, to be equipped by you, to have my mind renewed by you, for you to be the source of everything that I do. It’s not just I’m going to come to Jesus say thank amen and go back into the world. But it’s I’m going to come and be trained by you. If you joined the military, you are joining a branch of the military to be trained by that branch. In the military, if you join the Air Force, you’re going to be trained by the Air Force, you join the army, you’re going to be trained by the army. When you join the army, you’re not trained on what to do on a ship. You do that when you go to the Navy. And so we have to understand that we have come to Christ Jesus, to be trained by him. And our trainer is the Holy Spirit of God who lives in us. And that’s exactly what he said, the purpose of the Holy Spirit is living in you is to take the things of mine, Jesus, and make them known to you and to train you in truth. And so we have come to him to be trained and equipped by him for the work of ministry that he’s called us to do. And so we’re dealing with the Lord Himself, we’re dealing with a privilege, guys that people in the world do not have, that we who are in Christ Jesus, who have accepted the offer from God, to come to his Son. And we’ve said I do. We’ve become married, so to speak to Christ Jesus, that we have the privilege of being taught by Him, trained by him, having our mind renewed by him, teaching us truth and setting us free with that truth. The world does not have that opportunity. The world apart from Christ does not have the opportunity of being taught by God. Because you can’t be taught by God unless you’re in dwelt by God. No man has, can understand the things of God, natural man cannot understand spiritual things. They’re foolish to them. And so it’s only till you become a spiritual being, that you’re going to be able to understand spiritual truths.

And so we’re privileged, above all people, to be able to be taught truth by God. Think about that, guys. You know, we praise our teachers, but who are we? That’s what Paul said, Who’s Paul, who’s Apollo’s? We’re only servants, we sow the seeds, we water the seeds, but only God can make them grow. But we have the privilege as born again, people are being trained by God Himself, the Holy Spirit of God alive living in us, which is our only hope of glory, every day of our lives training and equipping us for truth, to come to truth. And folks, that’s what sets you and that’s what sets me apart from the world is our understanding of truth. Truth separates you from the world.

I don’t know when I am in situations like we’re in right now getting ready for a political campaign. I always get sick in my stomach every four years. Because I’ve never heard so much gobbly goo and manipulation and lies. I think about Martha Stewart. They said you lied to the government. The government lies to us every day. But the issue is we don’t think anything of that. But that’s truth. We manipulate, we twist, we spin, we do all of those kinds of things. And we sit back and think nothing of it. That’s why, as I said last week, I know who I would like to see in office. But I, quite frankly, don’t give a flip who’s in office. And as I said, If I lived through Jimmy Carter’s presidency, I can live through anybody’s. But the issue is, would you rather see a man saved? Or would you rather see a man elected? And I’d rather see a man saved, than I’d rather see a man elected. And so our efforts, even though we’re in the world, we’re not of the world. That’s what Jesus is saying to us, you’re here, but you’re not of it. You don’t have to get all engrossed in the things of the world. Because the things of the world are going to continue going downhill, unless it’s got leaders who are in Christ Jesus, and who listen to the leading and the teaching of the Holy Spirit of God that lives in us.

And so we have to understand the truth of these things. That we are privileged above all people, to have an ability to plug in to truth, and to be set free with it. Instead of listening to the gobbly gook of the world, that is constantly deceiving people in one form or another. Advertising is nothing but a lure with a hook in it. And that’s exactly what we have to deal with in this world. Do we get out of it? No, we stay in it. But we stay in it with a proclamation of truth. We stay in and what sets us apart from the rest of the world? Integrity can certainly do that, honesty, standing up for what you know is true about Christ Jesus. Everybody talks about New Age and this and this just brags on it. Loves to take pills for everything that’s going on. We got a friend of ours that you know, he is going through all kinds of stuff in his life. His kid was on drugs, his wife was mad at him all this kind of stuff. Business not going well. So I go to the doctor and gets on Prozac. Well, we’ll tell you something, guys. He was going through a stressful time, was he not? And when you’re going through a stressful time you feel stressed. Do you not? Is does that mean? You go out and take pills? When you’re stressed? is stressed unusual? To answer the question, Is it unusual to be stressed out not to live in this world it isn’t. Is it unusual to experience anxiety? Not unusual all if it was so unusual, why would God say don’t be anxious about anything? If it was so unusual? To experience anxiety? It’s not unusual. Is it unusual to have fears? Is that unusual guys to have? Why? If it was unusual? Why would God say Fear not? Why? Because it’s normal to have fears. But he says you don’t have to have fears fear not have overcome the world. You imagine Jesus standing there saying come on to Prozac all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I’ll give you rest for your souls. And yet we live like that. Guys, Jesus is the solution to the heartaches of man. Jesus is the one who can calm the heart permanently. Do you want the peace of God that’s temporary? Or do you want the peace of God that passes all understanding? You can get peace at night by a mountainside. But the minute you leave the mountain, you got the same stress that you went into the mountain with. God’s peace is a peace of God that passes all understanding. You can’t explain it. It’s just peace that you have in the midst of the storms. As we said, you’re going to have storms, in this world, you’re going to have tribulation period, not when not if but when. But fear not. He says, You don’t have to be fearful about that. I’ve overcome the world. That’s the God that we worship today. That’s the God who so loved the world. that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish but have eternal life. What’s the opposite of that mean? That whoever does not believe in Him will perish and will not see eternal life but live rather with eternal death. That’s the opposite of that. That is not being negative. That’s not being judgmental. It’s being unbelievably practical. That’s the only life available to you and me. And that’s what salvation is, is being saved from the consequence of sin called death, by the gift of God called Life, and the only life available to you and me is the resurrected life of Christ Jesus.

Buddha cannot give you life. Mohammed cannot give you life. The Pope can’t give you live. Martin Luther can’t give you life. I can’t give you life. Nobody can give you life except the resurrection, the resurrected living Jesus, not being narrow minded. Any more than two plus two equals four is narrow minded. It’s truth, it’s factual. And apart from Jesus, you are not going to see eternal life. Period. That’s not a Christian thing. It’s a truth thing. It’s a practical issue. You’re dead, and you need life. And there’s only one life available to you. And that’s Christ Jesus. So he says, God didn’t send His Son into the world to condemn it. You don’t need to condemn the world, the world is already condemned. What is the condemnation? They don’t believe in God’s provision for our problem. They’d rather go to Prozac. Or they’d rather go to here, or where they go to religion, or where they go to New Age thought. Just give me anything except Jesus. It’s like they said, we’ll believe in Moses, but I won’t believe in God, go anyplace except to the one source and is available to us for the satisfaction of the heart. And that’s Christ Jesus said, I didn’t send the my son into the world to condemn and it’s already under the condemnation. What is the condemnation of sin? Death, the world is already under the death penalty. And that’s why we need life, is it not? So I don’t need to condemn the world, the world is already under the condemnation of death. But I came to save the world. Through Jesus, I came to save it. I saw the world in its lost condition. I saw what Satan had done to this world. Because the condition of this world is because of Satan, and the fall of man, and the lies that he continually perpetuates through people. I saw it cause death, I see him trying to keep people away from understanding spiritual death. Just understand sin. And don’t understand that too much. Just what it means to you is what sin is. I see all of that. And I see these people down here Dead as a hammer. And in my love, to save my creation, I sent my Son into this world, not to condemn it, it’s already condemned, but to save it from the condemnation, which is called death. The wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is what? Eternal life through Christ Jesus, our Lord. I didn’t come to condemn, but to save it. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned. Which means when you don’t believe in Him, you are condemned. Why? Because you have not received the provision of God for salvation. You’ve accepted religion. You’ve accepted good deeds. I do good deeds. It’s nice, but it won’t get you to heaven. It’s nicer to do good deeds than bad deeds, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It just will not get you to heaven. Why? Because you don’t have life. And only living people are going to go into the presence of a living God, dead people aren’t gonna go there dead people go to the place of the dead.

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Bob George 14:01
And so who believes in Him is not condemned. You’ve been freed from condemnation, but whoever does not believe they stand condemned already. God doesn’t condemn people to hell, my friends. It just says that he doesn’t condemn you to hell, there was a byproduct to sin. It’s called death. There’s a byproduct of jumping out of an airplane without a parachute. It’s called death. Gravity grabs you and you have splat on the ground. The airplane isn’t sitting up there and see what I did to you. It didn’t do anything to airlines didn’t cause that you decided to take a smoke outside. So the world has already condemned because he has not believed in God’s one, one and only Son. It didn’t have to one. One way I am the way I am the truth. and I am the Life and no man comes to the Father except through me. Now, guys, if we believe that, and we truly do believe that with all of our heart and soul, and we know how many people are out there who do not believe that, why wouldn’t we be tenacious and getting the message to them? And that’s the question that we all have. Why aren’t we more aware? That man is condemned by God? I think it’s because think Well, I’m not sure that they’re good people. Have you ever heard interviews of murderers, and rapists? Basically, I’m a good person. I just killed a few people. But basically, whatever that means, I’m a good person. Folks, Jesus said, there isn’t anybody good except God. And we have to realize that where we live, and where we work and play, are people out there that are dead, that are more than anxious to tell you about New Age thinking. All kinds of weird stuff. Hera Krishnas, just go out and tell you all about that kind of stuff. And we sit back and don’t say anything. Guys, the world is dead. People who do not have Christ are dead, and they’re gonna stay dead, until they come alive, or continue at their deathbed, refusing Christ Jesus. Not being narrow minded at all. Just being truthful, as to what the Word of God claims. Stand condemned already. Jesus doesn’t condemn you. I didn’t come to the world to condemn I don’t need to there’s a WAGES OF SIN called death on everyone that is born into this world with the option to receive life. They haven’t believed in God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict. God says, Yeah, had a trial. Here’s the verdict. Life has come into the world. But men love darkness instead of light. Why? because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly, that what he has done, has been done through God.

Now, that was the teaching of Jesus to Nicodemus, and to you and me today. Nicodemus, you must be born again. Nicodemus was thinking on a human level. What do you mean be born again? I’m an old man, you want me to crawl back into the womb of my mother and be born again? How can that be? And he was saying to him, Nicodemus, don’t you understand you’re a teacher of the law. But don’t you understand these things? That you had to be born of your mom and dad, that’s what it means to be born of water. You’re born in a sack of water, aren’t you? Anyone here not born a sack of water. You’re all born in a sack of water. That’s what it means to be born of water doesn’t mean to be dunked in water, or baptize, it means to be born in water. And he explains what that means. That which is flesh is flesh. And that which is spirit is spirit. You must be born again. Nicodemus didn’t understand that. You’ve got to be born from above, you got to be born physically by mom and dad. And then you got to be born from above by God. And if any man be in Christ, you’re a what?, a new creation. God has to create you. spiritually. You are born naturally of your mom and dad, you got to be born again spiritually created again by God. And that’s what he does. If any man be in Christ he is a new creation, old things have passed away. And behold, all things are new. Nicodemus did not understand that. Jesus explained that no one has ever gone into heaven. You didn’t know and you didn’t send someone to the heaven to bring this message back. Only the One who is in heaven came to the earth to give you the message. You can’t learn heavenly things from earthly people you got to learn or heavenly things from heavenly people. It’s why natural man can’t understand spiritual things. It’s foolish to him but the spiritual man comprehends all things. You got to be taught from above. And you realize guys and everyone sitting in this room who is in Christ Jesus has a capability being taught from above. That’s pretty good to be taught by God. Truth, not error. And so that’s the entry point we enter in to this relationship with God through being born from above. And how are you born from above? by faith, you accept the provision, you believe in what the Son of God came to do. He came to take away your sins at the cross never to see them again. He didn’t come to take away some of your sins, guys, he came to take away all of them. Is that right or wrong?

And there are people I have people sometimes say, Well, I understand that Jesus died from you know, my, my sins of the past, but what about, you know, what about the future? I ask people how many of your sins were in the future when Jesus died for him 2000 years ago? Seems like all up. He didn’t come to die for some sins, He came to take away the sins of the entire world of the entire world. Do you realize there is not a man born or a woman born into this world whose sins have not been reconciled by God? Are we together? Now are those sins have all people appropriated what Jesus did into their lives? No. Was it done for you? Yes, there is no more forgiveness to be executed for you or for anybody else. Were Saddam Hussein’s sins forgiven, by the cross where we were Hitler’s? Some people get mad at that stuff. Don’t get mad at it. So we’re yours. They all were. They all were. But you see, if you deny that, and you deny that there was a consequence to that sin called death, and refuse to come to the only source of life who is Jesus. Where are you going to die? in your sins. When you were dead in your sins, and the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you what? Alive. with who? Christ and forgave how many? all of your sins. So the provision that God made 2000 years ago at the cross is only received in his resurrected life. And that’s precisely why the Apostle Paul said, without the resurrection, we are to be pitied of all people, and are still in our sins. Knowing full well Jesus went to a cross and took away the sins of the world. But what was provided is only received in him, and in his resurrection. If you don’t believe in the resurrection, you’re still in your sins. The apostles were crucified and killed and tortured because of teaching of the resurrection. Not of the cross, everyone knew Jesus died on the cross. They just didn’t believe he was raised from the dead. And so it’s life.

Now, it says, After this pronouncement was made, and Jesus made this pronouncement to Nicodemus, and to you and me today. It says, After this event took place, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside. They went to where he spent some time with them, and baptized. Now, before you get too far into that of Baptize, I want you just very quickly to go down to chapter four in your Bible, John four, all together. And the Pharisees heard that Jesus was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John, although in fact, it was not Jesus who baptize, but his disciples. Are we together? Jesus didn’t baptize anybody. Who gave you salvation? Jesus. Who died on a cross? Jesus. Who was raised from the dead? Jesus. Who’s seated today at the right hand of God? Jesus. Who baptized you? Not Jesus. Because baptism is not in salvation. Baptism has nothing to do with salvation. Jesus alone saved you. And if baptism saved you your lost because Jesus would have to save by baptize you to save you, would he not? He didn’t get somebody else hanging on the cross for him. Did he? Did he get anyone raised from the dead for him? No. If you are saved by baptism, who would have to baptize you? The same one who died for you. Simon has raised the dead for you. His name is Jesus. In it, you have people today who claim that you’re saved by getting dunked in water.

Now let’s study that for a little bit. But he was saying that he went there where they were baptized. And we know now that wasn’t Jesus but his disciples. Now John was also baptizing in the ancient near St. Sal. Salem, because there was plenty of water and people were constantly coming to be baptized. This was before John was put in prison. An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Hebrew over the matter of what? Ceremonial washing. Now, what are they going to be talking about? Baptism? What is another name for baptism? Ceremonial washing. Now, folks, there was a group of people called the Ascenes and many of them camped out in the desert very close to where the Dead Sea is, and where so many of the, of the manuscripts were found there in Israel. And the Ascenes were very, very devout people. Some people thought that John the Baptist was in an Ascene. They studied the scriptures. They went out in the deserts and lived such as John the Baptist, and they were very devout religious people. A part of their lifestyle was ceremonial washing, or baptism. It was an integral part of their cleansing process. All through Israel, you find baptismal pools, where they were ceremonial washing took place. If you wanted to get clean, you went in and did a ceremonial washing before you approach God. Amy talks about one of her relatives that in Russia that before he would read, the Bible would go in and get cleaned up, and brush his teeth and comb his hair, and then sit down and read the Bible kind of way of getting cleaned up before you approach the Word of God. And those are called ceremonial washings.

Thank you so much for tuning in to Classic Christianity, with Bob George. We hope you’ve enjoyed today’s program. We truly hope that today’s message has inspired you to walk a life of faith in the Lord, find more information online at shop.BobGeorge.net. There you’ll also find available CDs, DVDs, and bible studies available for purchase. It’s through your help that we are able to spread the good word of Jesus Christ. Until next time, walk in faith, be good to one another and praise the Lord. Amen.