The Simplicity of Christ

2 Corinthians 11

I. Introduction (2Corinthians 11:3)

A. There are some things in life that are super, super complex

A single living cell - all that constantly goes on inside a single living cell to keep it alive
The Tax Code - PAYE, Capital Gains Tax, Universal Social Charge, PRSI, Value Added Tax, Deposit Interest Retention Tax, Capital Acquisitions Tax, Corporation Taxes, Local Property Tax
Computer programs - software that controls everything from your microwave oven, to your smartphone, to the engine in your car!
The entire universe - spinning, vibrating, moving
An airbus cockpit - take 10’s of 1,000’s of hours training

B. But there are some things, some very important things, that were made simple so that anybody could understand and could enjoy

Like getting to ride in an airbus airplane - just takes buckling your seatbelt!
And like getting born again!

II. Background (2Corinthians 11)

A. I, Like the Apostle Paul, Am Jealous of People (11:1,2)

It’s a good word
Not envious, but jealous - It means, protective, concerned
There is a lot of competition for people’s hearts and worship, and lives - a lot!
All that ‘competition’ kind of drowns out what I want to talk about this morning

B. I and Every Bible Believing Pastor has Worked Hard (11:2)

The Apostle Paul did! Tirelessly…
Trying to get people to worry about important things
People worry about their weight, their looks, the kind of car they drive, or don’t drive
They worry about what their friends think, and about how they will do on their exams
My job is to get people to worry about their soul, and whether they have a right relationship with the God who made them
I work hard to get people to follow one Man’s life - Jesus’
To love Him supremely
To be like a young lady getting ready for her wedding!

C. But There is someone who works full time corrupting everything God does (11:3,4, 13,14)

He and his minions appear so good - as angels even
Soiling, corrupting, ruining
But this ‘enemy’ soils everything God is busy doing in people’s minds a. Ruins love, with lust and pornography b. Corrupts children, with abuse and hatred c. Makes fun of, and mocks anything that is clean and pure and good
Does it Subtly. Subtle - very devious, deceptive, cunning, a good liar
Been doing it Since the Beginning! a. Satan has been at it since the beginning - in the garden of Eden b. He did whatever it took to turn Adam and Eve away from God (Genesis 3) c. Lied, twisted God’s words d. Made God out to be evil e. Made Eve the victim f. And Satan succeeded - Persuaded Eve, who then persuaded Adam to turn away from God!
And he is still at it today a. Giving false confidence! Making people think they are doing just fine without God, or with as little of Him as possible b. Promoting false preachers - It’s all about YOU! You have a miracle coming to you today! Get anything you want from God! c. Advertising Wrong Jesus’ - Hippy Jesus, Wimpy Jesus, the Failure Jesus, the Genie Jesus, the Non-Existent Jesus, the Designer Jesus d. Wrong spirits
1. Angels, voices, apparitions, dreams, feelings
2. Causing people to bark like dogs, laugh like hyenas, and fall backwards
3. Getting people to go where the entertainment is, where the fun is, where they free stuff! e. Presenting false hopes and false Gospels
4. False Gospels that tell you to keep the law
5. False Gospels that say you can do whatever you want and still go to heaven
6. Getting people to forget about sin, and about heaven and hell
7. False Gospels that seek to only help people make money
8. And False Gospels that tell you that to please God you must destroy your enemies

D. So I Am Afraid (2Cor 11:3; 4:4)

I know Satan has succeeded in blinding the whole word to their conditioning
He is succeeding with countless millions who are addicted to their tv and internet, their Netflix and sky movies
They just do as they always have done, just following the world around them
I am afraid that He will succeed with believers too
Just like he succeeded with Eve

E. So This Morning I want to Balance the Influence - I want to PUSH-BACK! Go head to head with the corruption, and present the power of the simplicity of Christ

F. I want to present just how Simple A Believer Has it ‘In Christ’, and how much better it is!

III. Message

A. Christ’s Simple Life

One Solitary Life (by Dr James Allan Francis, 1926) a. Born in an obscure village called Bethlehem, to a poor man and woman b. He worked with His step-father in a carpenter shop until He was thirty c. And then for three and a half brief years He was an itinerant preacher, proclaiming a simple message and living a unique life. d. He never wrote a book. e. He never held a political office. f. He never raised an army. g. He never had a family of his own. h. He never owned a home. i. He never went to university. j. He was a plain kind of a man, that didn’t stand out from the crowd physically. k. He never travelled more than a hundred miles from the place where He was born. l. He gathered a little group of friends about him and taught them His way of life. m. While still a young man, the tide of popular feeling turned against him. n. One friend denied him; another betrayed him. o. He was turned over to his enemies. p. He went through the mockery of a public trial. q. He was nailed to a cross between two convicted thieves. r. And on that cross, He died. s. And when He was proven to be dead, His body was laid in a borrowed grave because He had left no money for His own burying. t. Three days later, He arose from that tomb and appeared to His disciples. u. And 40 days later He ascended back up to heaven where He had come from
Today we can look back across two thousand years and see the influence of this Man from Galilee!
The life of Jesus of Nazareth!
When He taught people, He sat amongst them, speaking eye to eye and heart to heart!
He spoke with great authority, and yet with complete humility!
That’s why fishermen like Peter, Andrew, James and John left their nets to follow Him
That’s why tax collectors like Matthew left their wealth and income to follow Him
That’s why children ran up to Him and sat in His lap
All because His life was so amazingly simple
And so captivating!

B. His Words Were Simple (Mark 2:1-12; John 7:45,46)

Read through the four Gospels - four entire books devoted to the words of Jesus
You will find He used mainly 1 and 2 syllable words when He spoke and taught the crowds
Short sentences (Mark 2:1-12) - no huge theological explanation!
Often He would just be silent while everyone else around Him would argue and debate
See John 7:45,46

C. His Expectations Are Simple

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” - Matthew 11:28,29
“And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.” - Matthew 9:9
“Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” - John 6:28,29
Just Worry About what I think you should and should not do a. Don’t worry about priests and imams b. Don’t worry about parents or siblings c. Don’t worry about questions and confusions
No expectations of weight, or looks, or intelligence, or skin colour, or past failures!
Just do as He did. Speak as he did. Love as he did. And leave the rest to Him
I am so grateful for Christ’s simple instructions
Not easy - But they are simple! a. Like, Husbands love your wives b. Like, Children, obey your parents in the Lord c. Like, Give unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar, and unto God the things that belong to God

D. His Warnings Were Simple (John 3:18,19)

Before we will ever accept the good news, the Gospel, we need to hear and know the bad news
Jesus spent 3 1/2 years warning and waking people up to the facts!
No mincing words - no political correctness!
Jesus didn’t waste time warning of Global warming, and cooling; WWIII, nuclear holocausts, or financial disasters
We are in trouble with God, (under the condemnation of God) and need saving!
And we know it - we know we are a mess
That’s why each of us and billions of people all over the world try very hard to be good, and do good, and worship something
Not only that, but We do not even know God on our own (John 8:17-20) - like a blind man trying to find a light bulb! More Religion is not the answer! Jesus warned people away from religion a. (Mt 23:15) Beware of scribes, Pharisees who are hypocrites - only make people twice the children of hell b. > “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” - Matthew 7:15
We live out our lives doing the will of our father the devil (John 8:44)
And the saddest part is, we do not know how to get right - not on our own (John 8:21-24)!

E. His Gospel is Simple - the best part!

The devil, and religion, and society make everything so complicated!
God made getting saved, forgiven, born again very simple!
When Jesus is asked by someone how to be saved, He responds with no more than 1 or 2 sentences, and that’s it!

“Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” - Mark 1:14,15

“He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” - John 1:10-12

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” - John 3:16

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” - John 5:24

“And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” - Acts 16:31

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” - Romans 6:23

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” - Romans 10:9,10

“Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” - Isaiah 45:22

Could it really be that easy? That simple?
YES!
You see… If God didn’t make it so simple, then only Theologians would be able to get eternal life. Only very very good people would have the chance to get forgiven. Only very hard working and energetic people would be on their way to heaven!
But He made it so simple a CHILD could get it. A thief on the cross dying next to Him to get saved.
It is easy for you and me
But it was not easy for God a. He had to account for every wrong doing - every sin - every broken law - every debt b. And God had to completely pay off every last debt of every last person who will ever live c. To do that, He had to live an absolutely perfect life from start to finish - all according to God’s perfect laws d. He had to love without partiality e. He had to humble Himself constantly f. And in the end, He had to suffer horrendously the punishment that was due to all of us!
When the great day of judgment comes and I stand before the Lord God Almighty, and He looks into my face and He says, “By what right do you enter My beautiful city and walk on My golden streets?”
I will then remind the Lord, “Way back yonder, when I was 17 years old, in a little town just north of Austin Texas, just after hearing Pastor Jack Humbert preach to me and 250 other people the gospel of Christ again. And that Sunday evening, when the preacher had done his best, pleading for people like me to respond… It was THAT NIGHT I received Jesus Christ as my Saviour.”
And I will tell the Lord, “I’m not trusting any miracle, and I’m not trusting any angel, and I’m not trusting any light from heaven, and I’m not trusting any great experience… but Lord I’m trusting You to keep Your Word.”
For my salvation is based upon the perfect Word and the absolute promise of Almighty God.

IV. Let’s Review

Simple	Corrupt
Only One Life to focus on - Jesus	4,000 leaders, 28,000 religions
Simple words to believe and live by	135 volumes of Catholic Tradition, The Quran and Haddith in Islam, The Hindu Vedas, and The Bhagavad Gita, and so the list goes on and on
Simple Expectations	Look at the stress today of just about everyone trying to live up to impossible expectations!
Simple Warnings	Innumerable, conflicting warnings!
Simple Good News	No Good News! No assurance
One All-Important personal experience	Zillions of experiences needed to be happy
The Way, the Truth, and the Life! (John 14:6)	Satan’s deception that leads to hell

V. Invitation

A. What it is to trust in Jesus? What is it to believe in the Lord Jesus? Second Timothy 1:12

“For I know whom I have believed,” Believed, trust, “for I know whom I have trusted, for I know whom I have believed,
“and I am persuaded” - convinced, sure
“that He is able” - not me, or some religion
“to keep that which I have committed unto Him” - my soul, my forgiveness, and my destiny
“against that day.” Judgment day!

B. So, What is it to trust in Jesus? What is it to believe in Him? This is it:

It’s to commit to Him your soul and your very life.
Trusting Jesus, not trusting myself, not trusting the church, or your religion, not trusting sacraments, but simply looking to Jesus, simply trusting Jesus to save you and keep you forever!
“Lord, I lay it in Thy hands. I can’t keep myself, I can’t save myself. When I die, nobody wants me, even those who love me will put me away and bury me out of sight, no longer could they stand to look upon my face. But Lord, I commit to Thee in life, in death, in this world, and in the world to come, I commit to Thee my soul. All because Jesus paid for my forgiveness. And I accept it by faith”
Will YOU accept it now?