I John 2:17

Courage

• John 16:32

• Acts 4:13 – Peter and John showed confidence, but it was not through their own knowledge or training. It was from being with Jesus!

• Acts 18:9-11 – God gave Paul some encouragement by settling him in a safe place for a while.

• I Corinthians 16:13

Cost

• Philippians 3:7-8 – Paul gave up many physical things, including a career as a Jewish official, to serve God.

• Whatever the cost, we must stand with Christ.

• Matthew 16:24-26

Christ

• I John 2:3-6

• I Peter 2:21-24 – Jesus did not die so that we could sin like anybody else!

• We should not stoop to the level of the enemy. We must be like Christ!

• Galatians 2:20

• Matthew 10:16

Faulty appeals

• Amos 7:10-17; Jeremiah 38:1-6 – God’s prophets were often rejected without reasoning through their warnings. People tried to ignore or stop their message with force.

• What is it?

  • Appealing to faulty sources of authority might be very effective or persuasive, but it is faulty reasoning because it does not prove a proposition.

  • The appeal to force/fear: “You better accept my claim or there will be consequences!”

    • Daniel 3:6

    • You do not see this sort of appeal in the New Testament. The apostles did not try to force people to be baptized.

  • The appeal to emotion: attempting to persuade people by stirring powerful emotions rather than making a logical case.

    • Matthew 27:17-26

  • The appeal to pity: a particular type of the appeal to emotion that occurs when an arguer tries to persuade people to accept a position by generating sympathy for those who hold the position.

    • I Peter 3:8-9

  • The appeal to ignorance: the fallacy of appealing to the unknown; specifically, it is when a person argues that a claim is probably true simply because it has never been proven false.

  • The appeal to the majority of what’s popular: the fallacy of deciding proof by opinion polls.

    • Matthew 7:13-14

• Spiritual importance

  • Acts 4:14, 21; 5:18, 28, 40

  • What about preachers who primarily tell anecdotes and poignant stories instead of reasoning with people from the Scriptures (Acts 17:2)?

  • “What about the tribal member deep in the jungle who’s never had a Bible and doesn’t know about Jesus?”

    • John 3:36; 14:6; Acts 4:12 – We have to obey what we do know. God is the judge of all.

  • “If you teach creation in this school, we’ll sue you.”

    • This is a realistic example. David Gelernter, professor at Yale.

Philippians 1:27-2:4

Philippians 1:27 – Our conduct should be worthy of the gospel (up to the standard of the gospel).

• Standing for God – Matthew 12:25; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 6:11, 13; 4:12; I Corinthians 10:12; 15:1

• Striving together for the faith – Jude 1:3

Philippians 1:28 – There are adversaries, even within the church. If we strive together, we can stand against them.

Philippians 1:29-30 – Striving builds us up in the faith.

• Acts 5 – Suffering for Christ has great value.

• Revelation 2:13

• Despite all the suffering and conflict the Philippians were faced with, they continued to grow!

Philippians 2:1-2 – What to do about conflict and suffering? Be united in serving God!

Philippians 2:3-4 – We are no good in battle if we only think of ourselves. Looking out for others first gives us courage.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Why follow spiritual pursuits?

• I Peter 2:11; Romans 7:22-25

Matthew 17:5; Hebrews 1:1-2; Acts 3:22-23

II Peter 1:3

II Corinthians 11:3

Genesis 3:6

I John 2:15-17

II Corinthians 11:14-15

Romans 8:6-9, 13-14

Romans 13:14

I John 3:8

Romans 6:16-18

Philippians 2:25; Philemon 1:2

II Timothy 2:3

Ephesians 6:10-18

This is heaven’s armor, but it is for us.

• Revelation 2:10; I timothy 6:12

• II Corinthians 10:3-5

• Matthew 4:1-11

• Hebrews 2:14

• I Peter 5:8

We must put on all the armor of God.

• Ephesians 6:13

• I Timothy 4:16

• James 1:21

• Ephesians 4:14

• Colossians 2:8

• Jude 1:3

• I John 3:7

• Psalms 119:172

• Romans 10:17

• Psalms 119:105

• Colossians 3:16

Ephesians 6:15 – preparation of the gospel

• I Peter 3:15

• I Peter 2:2

• Hebrews 6:1

• I Timothy 4:13, 16

• Hebrews 5:12-14

• Jeremiah 6:10

• Hosea 4:6

• I Timothy 3:15

• Matthew 7:13-15

• Philippians 2:15

• Psalms 1:1-2; 119:15-16

• II Timothy 3:16-17

• II Timothy 1:3

• Titus 2:1

• I Peter 3:15

Ephesians 6:16 – the shield of faith

• Galatians 3:26

• Hebrews 11:1

• Romans 10:17

• John 20:30-31

• Hebrews 2:10

• Matthew 28:18

• Proverbs 3:5-7

• John 10:27-28

Ephesians 6:17 – helmet of salvation

• Ephesians 1:3

• Matthew 5:45

• II Timothy 2:1, 10

• Ephesians 1:7

• Romans 6:4

• Galatians 3:27

• Colossians 3:1-3

• Philippians 4:8

Ephesians 6:17 – sword of the spirit

• This it he only offensive spiritual weapon we have, but it is the most powerful weapon known to man.

• II Corinthians 10:3-5

• Hebrews 4:12

• II Peter 1:5-10

Ephesians 6:18 – prayer is how we communicate with the Commander in this warfare

• I Thessalonians 5:17

• Luke 18:1

• Hebrews 12:1

• Philippians 3:13-14

• Revelation 2:10

• I Peter 1:22-23

John 1:1, 14

“In the beginning was the Word”

• John 1:1-3, 14-15

• Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2

• Genesis 3:15

• Galatians 4:4

• Hebrews 2:14

• I John 3:8

• Deuteronomy 18:15

• Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7

• Matthew 1:20-23

• I Corinthians 2:6-9 – God’s plan came before creation!

• Ephesians 1:4

• II Timothy 1:9-10

“And the word became flesh.”

• John 1:14

• Micah 5:2

• Luke 2:4-7, 10-20, 24 – Jesus was humble from the beginning.

• Mark 6:1-4

• John 1:46

• Philippians 2:5-8

• Hebrews 4:15

“John testified about Him”

• John 1:15, 23

• Matthew 3:7-12

• Jesus grew up to say …

  • Matthew 5:44; 6:24; 7:21; 10:34; 20:27

  • Mark 8:38