THE SO-CALLED UNPOPULAR SIDE OF CHRISTIANITY                                                  JOHN 15:19

Let’s take a close look at our key scripture JOHN 15:19 - I have chosen you out of the world

The scripture uses two expressions – “I” and “THE WORLD” and each express something that is radically different from one another

• one is of God and the other is of the world – sin – satan – spirit of the age
• Jesus made it very clear, “We – My Father and I have determined that you cannot belong to the world and to us at the same time!”

As it has been in the past several messages, this morning we see Jesus preparing His Disciples for life and service after He had been crucified and then later taken back into heaven. Jesus was telling His disciples, “the people hate Me so much that they will crucify Me so don’t be surprised when you declare your allegiance to Me that they will hate you as well – because they will”.

Two Roman historians wrote of the early Christians “a people who are hated for their crimes who the mob calls Christians a race of men who belong to a new and evil superstition”.

Of what crimes and evil superstitions where they accused?

1.    The Romans said that Christians were insurrectionists and disloyal to Caesar.

2.    The Jews declared them a cult who were trying to destroy Judaism.

3.    They were accused of cannibalism because of a misunderstanding of Jesus’ words – “This is my Body broken for you – this is My blood shed for you – eat and drink.”

4.    They were accused of flagrant immorality. They would meet once a week for meal called Agape or a Love Feast and the word was spread that this was an orgy of sexual indulgence.

5.    They were accused of being fire-raisers in that they believed and were waiting for the world to be destroyed by fire.

6.    They were accused of being home wreckers since many families did split up because of an acceptance of or a rejection of Christ.

In the beginning of this Gospel, John addressed the real reason that people hated John the Baptist, Jesus the Christ and why they would also hate Christ-followers. JOHN 1:5-7 Jesus then moved even closer to the reason JOHN 3:19

Jesus knew that His disciples would shake things up. Jesus knew that the light of God’s revelation on a sinful life style would cause discomfort and angry responses. He knew that the message of “Yeshua the Messiah” would create anger and persecution and Jesus gave them good Counsel JOHN 15:19

Jesus said, “I CALLED YOU OUT” from the world

• I called you out of sin into salvation.
• I called you out of the bondage of the world’s pattern and into the freedom of My love.
• I called you from being a slave to sin to live a holy life.
• I called you to myself so that you need no longer be slaves to the works of darkness.

The Apostle Paul made Jesus’ teaching very clear ROMANS 6:16-18

Let’s hang onto that thought for a moment and go back and take a look at the several and progressive things that God has done for us.

1.    VERSE 11

• Jesus gave us His joy so that we can life a joy-filled life.

2.    VERSE 12

• He has commanded us to love one another because if we don’t love one another we can’t love God.

3.    VERSE 13

• He has called us His friends – just think of it – friends and associates of God!

4.    VERSE 16

• God has made it possible for us to live spiritually productive and joy filled lives

5.    VERSE 19

• one Greek translator put it this way – I have sprung you out of the world.

Once again, we need to go to Paul’s letter to discover exactly what this being “SPRUNG” means. ROMANS 6:1-2 ROMANS 8:1

We need to understand what the Bible means by “the world”.

• There is the created world and there is the world of humanity as opposed to the animal kingdom.
• Lastly there is a part of our society that lives apart from God and it is a society that is opposed to God’s Word.

So for Christians, the exhortation about “not being conformed to the world” means that God does not want us to personally identify and practice the philosophies or anything else that cannot find and retain the anointing and blessing of God’s Holy Word.

God’s Word tells us that when we “moved into Christ”; when we were “snatched” from the kingdom of Satan – saved, redeemed – He told us that when this happened we moved into a new spiritual position – we became the children of God. As Children of God, we are to live, not after the traditions of the world, but rather we are to “walk and live in the light as He is in the Light.”

God’s word tells us that we are a new creation who has been given an entirely new set of values and God expects us to live by those new Divinely implanted values. I PETER 4:1-6

Let’s look once again at VERSE 6. Now let’s see how this ties in our Key Scripture, “I have chosen you; I have plucked you OUT of this world.”

We need to catch part of Jesus’ prayer in the Garden. JOHN 17:9, 13, 15-17

Jesus most certainly chose or snatched us out of the “world order,” but in this prayer, we discover that He has no immediate plans for His Disciples and Christians of all the ages to be removed from difficult situations… VERSE 15

We now come face to face with three powerful thoughts

• Chosen or snatched out from the sinful nature – 5:19
• Protected by the power of God – 7:15
• Sanctified or set apart for a special purpose – 7:17

So then, what does all of this mean for us today – right now?

All of this comes together when we read – GALATIANS 1:4

Now catch these two similar thoughts

• Jesus said – I have chosen/snatched you out of the world
• Paul said – Jesus Christ rescued us from the present evil age.
• chosen/snatched/rescued/world/evil age
• that is what has been done for us and this is where we are now living  in Christ and not in the world.

The doctrine or the teaching of Christian separation has been one of the most disliked doctrines of the Bible but we dare not forget what I said in the beginning of this message God’s Word is not negotiable

• if God’s Word says it then we must believe it and practice it.

What then does “separation from the world” mean? I’ll begin by telling you what it does not mean. It doesn’t mean

• that we have dress weirdly and wear our hair in a 1800’s fashion.
• that we have to speak King James language.
• that we are to become severe and serious and religious.
• it doesn’t mean that we can no longer have fun as we participate in life.

If that is not what separation means, then what does it mean? The word “sanctify” means

• set apart for a special purpose and that special purpose – surprise – surprise takes care of God’s needs before ours!    JOHN 15:11

I don’t need to tell you anything that is going on – you are as aware of it as I am. I’m not even really concerned with the things the Apostle Paul calls – the sins of the flesh – because if we are decent people and then if we love God, these won’t be an issue.       GALATIANS 5:19-21

• My concern is found in GALATIANS 1:7b

Listen carefully. It doesn’t matter what the Wesleyans, Baptists, Pentecostals or any other group says – what is important is, “does our living balance with the Word of God?”

It’s not Church standards and traditions that keep Christians living holy, separated lives but rather it is the measure of our obedience to the Gospel of the Word of God. Anything less is not of God but of Satan.

When we stay anchored to the Rock and when we are geared to the times, the expression of our Christianity will be the most powerfully, attractive force in the world.

When people see Christians living an attractive, winsome, 2009 age-conscious, Christ-like life, then the power of Christ, instead of causing us to be weird and religious will cause us to be the most magnetic people in our communities. 

In the very beginning of this message I said

• Jesus made it very clear – We – My Father and I have determined that you cannot belong to the world and to Us at the same time!
• That is why this message is entitled “The Unpopular Side Of Christianity”

God rescued us from hell’s grasp for a special purpose and that purpose is that we, by living a holy life are to bring Him honor. He rescued us from the bondage of living according to the dictates of this present evil age so that we can live a spiritually honorable life. ROMANS 6:1-2

God has made it possible that “we don’t have to sin.” Does that mean that we are perfect and that we will never sin? No of course not, but God’s children are not salves to sin – we have been given a choice.

Jesus told the Disciples, “living a holy life in the midst of a society that doesn’t want to accept that lifestyle will bring you persecution.”

I’m not persecuted nor are you but we are attacked by the “spirit of the age”. We always have before us the pressure and the opportunities to compromise, to let down, to conform.

However I have learned the power of an incredible promise – “where sin abounds in all of its abundance, God’s grace, God’s help, God’s love, God’s power, God deliverance is so much greater than anything that hell throws at us, that a failure to live in victory is not God’s fault by ours.” Romans 5:20 adapted

This morning’s message has provided us an excellent opportunity to see where we are in a holy relationship with our God who chose us and rescued us.

Open my eyes Lord, I want to see Jesus

To reach out and touch Him, and say that I love Him

Open my ears Lord and help me to listen

Open my eyes Lord, I want to see Jesus