Superior Christians vs The Supremacy of Christ GREG

Superior Christians vs The Supremacy of Christ? GREG MORSCHER NEO XENOS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP JUNE 27 TH, 2015

Christian Superiority – WTF? “Nonbelievers tend to regard evangelicals as a legion of morals police determined to impose their notion of right behavior on others” (16)* “When Christians talk to you, they act as if you are a robot. They have an agenda to promote, and if you don’t agree with them, they’re done with you. ” (18) When I ask, “Tell me the first word that comes to your mind when I say Christian, ” not one time has someone suggested the word love. (34) * From Philip Yancey, “Vanishing Grace, Whatever Happened to the Good News? ” (Zondervan – Grand Rapids, MI; 2014)

The Supremacy of Christ

Jesus Christ: Supreme throughout eternity Its about Christ, not me Eternal • Revelation 22: 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. (see Rev 1: 8) • John 1: 1, 3, 14 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. . . 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. King • Isaiah 9: 6 -7 6 For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on His shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this. • Daniel 7: 13 -14 13 I continued watching in the night visions, and I saw One like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was escorted before Him. 14 He was given authority to rule, and glory, and a kingdom; so that those of every people, nation, and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will not be destroyed. • John 12: 23, 32 And Jesus *answered them, saying, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified… 32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself. "

Jesus Christ: Supreme throughout eternity – “the church” is part of that • 15 He Col 1: 15 -17 is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. • 18 He Col 1: 18 -20 is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. 19 For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Jesus Christ: Supreme in Love, Humility, Sacrifice, and Suffering Philippians 2: 5 -11 (NASB) 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

How should we live? Build into one another (BOC) • Philippians 2: 1 -4 1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Philippians 2: 12 b-13 work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Lights to the world • Philippians 2: 14 -16 14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing; 15 so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.

How should we live? A Few Examples: Francis Collins Ernst Neizvestny Survivors of the Charleston AME church shooting

Matthew Parris, “As an Atheist, I Truly Believe Africa Needs God: Missionaries, Not Aid Money, Are the Solution to Africa’s Biggest Problem — The Crushing Passivity of the People’s Mindset. ” - The Times of London, December 26, 2008 "Now a confirmed atheist, I’ve become convinced of the enormous contribution that Christian evangelism makes in Africa: sharply distinct from the work of secular NGOs, government projects and international aid efforts. These alone will not do. Education and training alone will not do. In Africa Christianity changes people’s hearts. It brings a spiritual transformation. The rebirth is real. The change is good. I used to avoid this truth by applauding — as you can — the practical work of mission churches in Africa. It’s a pity, I would say, that salvation is part of the package… But this doesn’t fit the facts. Faith does more than support the missionary; it is also transferred to his flock. This is the effect that matters so immensely, and which I cannot help observing. . We slept under the stars, so it was important as we reached the more populated and lawless parts of the sub-Sahara that every day we find somewhere safe by nightfall. Often near a mission. Whenever we entered a territory worked by missionaries, we had to acknowledge that something changed in the faces of the people we passed and spoke to… Elsewhere in his article Matthew Parris reports on the failure of massive aid programs that offer handouts without affecting the people’s mindset. Rural Africans have a fatalistic view of life, seeing themselves as helpless pawns before the forces of evil spirits, ancestors, nature, and swaggering leaders… Christianity “smashes through the philosophical/spiritual framework… liberates” “It confounds my ideological beliefs, stubbornly refuses to fit my world view, and has embarrassed my growing belief that there is no God. ”