The Abundant Life…knowing Christ

(by David Pugh)

What a blessing to study together the great ‘I AM’ statements of Jesus! Jesus Christ makes such bold claims about Himself because He is nothing less than God-incarnate! He is the great I AM, the all-sufficient God.

This week we studied – Jesus is the Door.

In John 10:9-10, Jesus said, “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

Notice he says in verse 9, if anyone enters through Me he will be SAVED. Jesus is the only way of salvation from sin and hell. This sounds reminiscent of John 14:6 “…I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” It’s narrow; it’s exclusive, but that’s where it starts. If you have not entered through Jesus, through His substitutionary atonement on the cross, you are under divine wrath. You need to be saved, rescued, and delivered from your sin! If you trust in Jesus by faith, Jesus says in John 10:27-28 “…I give eternal life to [My Sheep], and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”

As a result of entering through Jesus, He says His sheep will go “in and out and find pasture” (v9). Jesus is the door through which ‘the sheep enter the safety of God’s fold and go out to the rich pasture of His blessing’. Jesus also says that He came “…that they may have life, and have it abundantly”(v10). The Greek word for “abundantly” describes something that goes far beyond what is necessary; something that is excessive.

What is excessive about the life Jesus gives? It’s means more than having infinite quantity of days to live, though that is true. Rather, the abundant, eternal life is about KNOWING GOD HIMSELF!

In John 17:3 Jesus defined eternal life like this. He was praying to his Father in heaven, and said: “This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.“

Eternal life is summed up in a personal, intimate knowledge of the God of the Universe and His Son Jesus! John Piper said it this way, “[Eternal life] is NOT like an inoculation against the disease of death, that works unconsciously like a spiritual antibiotic. It is a conscious experience of knowing and relating to God.” (emphasis mine)

Jesus is the door to knowing Himself and the Father – that’s abundant, excessive, eternal life! Paul was awestruck by this prospect when he described the “…the unfathomable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8) and that in Christ “…are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3).

In Philippians 3:8-10, we see Paul’s heart to know Christ,

“I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death”

Knowing Christ (v8), gaining Christ (v8), that I may know Him (v10), including His death, resurrection, and sufferings (which is a study in itself)…that’s what it all about.

Life in Jesus Christ is abundant and satisfying because it’s about knowing Him in both this present life and the life to come. Are you finding your satisfaction, Believer, in anything but Him? Spend time this week praising Jesus Christ as the door to knowing God because of His incarnation, death, and resurrection.

 

Care Group Schedule in March

Due to a couple of big events we have tweaked our meeting schedule for March a bit. We will meet this Sunday night (3.16) at 6pm to study Jesus’ assertion that he is the Gate and then we’ll meet on the 29th (this is a Saturday night) to study what Jesus meant by saying that he is the Good Shepherd.

The changes result from 1) Resurrection Sunday (3.23) and 2) A Baptism Service at OBC on Sunday 3.30. One of our dear friends, Denise Ball will be getting baptized, so make plans to come and encourage Denise and be impressed with the work of divine grace in her life.

We plan to be back on schedule with the 2nd and 4th Sunday nights in April.

This Rings a Bell

Hi All,

My family home had a ship’s clock hanging on the wall. It reported ‘bells’ on the half-hour rather than chiming on the hours. If you have not heard the ships bell system, it rings in a series of eight rather than the familiar 12 hour system. The ‘eight bell’ system was designed to direct the functions of the sailors on duty sailing and tending a ship on a series of four hour watches.� (Eight Bells completed every 4 hours when sounding on the half-hours)

Bells are interesting. Some historians report that the largest known bell weighed over 600 thousand pounds and was lost in Myanmar by the Portuguese who had taken it from a local temple. The largest functional bell still in existence is the Mingun bell in Mingun, Myanmar which weighs in at just over 200 thousand pounds.

I am sure that through your life you have heard various bells in churches and schools. Bells are often sounded for a purpose. Bells can remind us of the time or perhaps remind us of events such as weddings, victories, or calls us to worship and/or prayer.

Consider this email the ringing of a great bell. The bell tolls a loud and constant call for prayer for the ministries of Omaha Bible Church in the Sarpy County area. In your personal and family devotions, small group meetings, care groups or other gatherings, I ask you to purposely pray for the following.

Pray that God will be glorified in all activities relating to OBC South
Pray for the leadership of OBC, the pastors, elders and others who are seeking God’s Wisdom and direction for the ministry
Pray that God will provide the place and things needed to begin services at OBC South
Pray that God will raise up gifted individuals to fill the needs of the church
Pray that each individual’s focus will be on Christ, His Church and His Kingdom
Pray for God to grant love, patience and understanding to all who are involved in preparations for the new ministry
Pray that Bellevue, Papillion and the surrounding area would be impacted by the preaching and teaching of God’s Word to His glory
Pray that God would change hearts, and call His own to worship and obedience
Pray that the Holy Spirit would lead draw all of us to God’s Word as the perfect source of knowledge, understanding and correct action in planting a church

I would ask you to pray all the above and anything else the Spirit lays upon your heart to pray in support of the church plant. We are to encourage one another to love and good works. I ask each of you to encourage one another in praying for this ministry. Please pray for this church planting effort whether you plan to attend services in the Bellevue/Papillion area or not.

The bell is sounding-it is our ‘watch.’ May our great God and King be glorified by our prayers and our desire to serve Him.

Your Brother in Christ,
Hank

PS If you will commit to praying regularly for this ministry, please see me on Sunday morning and I will give you something to help you in this endeavor.

Encouraging Beginnings

This past Sunday night was full of encouragement for me and my family as we prepared to head out to Care Group. We have been anticipating this night for several months now. I was so refreshed and encouraged to gather together with brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ and worship through song, prayer, Bible study, small groups, and fellowship.

There is just something special about the knitting together of hearts through the study of the truth. As we looked together at the sufficiency, exclusivity, beauty, ability, sovereignty and glory of Jesus we were brought low and he was seen in marvelous light. This is truly the work of divine grace and the stuff of angelic jealously.

I do pray that you too were encouraged as you partner with other believers with the expressed purpose of building each other up in the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am very much looking forward to the coming weeks as this study unfolds and we sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to him tell us exactly who he is from the pages of Scripture.

Feel free to drop a comment and share how the study or fellowship impacted you.

Care Groups Get Underway this Weekend!

I have literally been counting down the days until this weekend. We will begin this Sunday night at 6 pm. In this first season we’ll be studying the “I Am” statements of the Lord Jesus. Our first text will be John 6 concerning Christ’s declaration that he is “The Bread of Life.”Everyone should have received a letter with Care Group assignments. IF you either a) did not receive a letter, or b) are new and would like to get involved, feel free to contact me via email or a comment here.

Here are the maps and locations for the current groups…

The Pugh’s (map)
2309 Mayflower Rd
Bellevue, NE 68123
402.547.8300

The Whitman’s (map)
11629 Lilley Ln
Bellevue, NE 68123
402.291.5050

The Atkin’s (map)
2816 Leigh Ln
Papillion, NE 68133
(402) 597-0955

You will no doubt find it helpful to read through the 6th Chapter of John prior to Sunday night.

Thanks and have a great rest of the week.

Erik

The Cemetary? I used to live there too.

As I read the Bible and consider my own life I am more and more thankful for the sovereign grace of God and in particular for the powerful confrontation ministry of Jesus.

When I read a passage like Mark chapter 5 and see Jesus encounter the freak who lived at the local cemetery I am encouraged. I’m sure you recall the story, this guy was unable to bound by shackles and chains (Mk. 5.3), he was constantly engaged in violent outbursts (5.4), and to make matters worse he ran around screaming and gashing himself with stones (5.5). All of this was done, as Luke tells us, in the nude (Luke 8.27). And this is the guy who comes running up to Jesus as the Messianic boat is anchored on the shore of Gerasenes?

So what happens? Quite simply the Sovereign Lord of everything and his imposing power overshadow this guy as he bows before the Savior. Jesus of course, in full Sovereign mode, confronts the unclean spirits and then provides the gracious comfort that was needed for this desperate man.

When I read an account like this I get encouraged. My encouragement comes first by my identification with the freak at the tombs. He is in my family, if you will. I see strands of his problems in my own spiritual genes. I remember a man who was completely enslaved to sin while standing not only unable but unwilling to do anything but which my demonic master commanded. I too was approached by Jesus. And just like this one my Savior powerfully confronted me with his lovingkindness and grace. I too found myself in a bit of hazy amazement as I sat in my ‘right-mind’ following Jesus powerful confrontation.

I am also encouraged in this narrative by the power that is exhibited by King Jesus. We often categorize folks as how may be likely to be saved or unlikely. Well, here is an example that should tip the scales a bit; a naked, self-mutilating, tomb-living, freak begged Jesus to follow him (Mk. 5.18)! I’m guessing you don’t have too many guys like this on your “lost person prayer list”.

Let’s remember what we are dealing with here. Jesus Christ has all of the power in the universe, this means that he is able to penetrate any heart with his gospel and he has the power to change anyone.

So let’s not cast folks off for their supposed ‘lack of potential’ for if truth be told, no one has potential. We are all relegated to the helpless state of our cemetery guy in Mark 5. And thankfully, we are not talking about a ’semipotent’ but and omnipotent God.

So join me today in thanking God for his radical grace through his Son’s glorious ministry of confrontation, and let’s also pray and preach like we have a powerful God that delights in saving radical sinners like you and me. And let’s head this powerful Savior’s words to the guy at the cemetery:

Mark 5:18-19 ¹⁸ As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him. ¹⁹ And He did not let him, but He said to him, “Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.”

How to Get Involved

It was a great encouragement to meet together this evening to talk about the new ministry at the South Campus. Furthermore, it was great to see so many people who are excited about seeing this ministry take off and make an impact for the glory of Christ.

I just wanted to highlight in summary some of the ways in which you can get involved in this ministry…

• Pray. Pray that God would open a door for his word (Col. 4.3), pray for faithful, fervent, God-glorifying, Christ-centered, Spirit-empowered unity in & for the gospel (Phil 1). Pray for faithful, God-fearing, Word-trembling, Christ-enjoying leadership.

• Subscribe to & keep up to date with the South Campus website. This site will be regularly updated with information including current events, edifying articles, devotions, interviews with members, and sermon audio. There are instructions here to help you with subscription (email or feed).

• Sign up to join a Care Group. All of the groups will meet on the 2^nd and 4^th Sunday night of the month at 6.00pm. We will all be studying the ‘I Am’ statements of Jesus through May (more info and locations). You may sign up for a group by emailing me (eraymond@omahabiblechurch.org) or by leaving a comment here. You should be contacted within the next week with more information on your Care Group.

believing the gospel,

Erik