In the sermon "Believing in Jesus and His Saving Work," Jason Dohm explores the themes of faith, foretelling, and the role of the Holy Spirit based on John 14:29-31. Dohm explains that believing in Jesus involves both assenting to the truth and consenting to the truth-teller, implying a deep trust in Christ. The Holy Spirit is described as a Helper, teaching believers and bringing to remembrance the teachings of Jesus. The sermon emphasizes the peace that comes from the Holy Spirit, which surpasses understanding, and encourages believers to turn away from anxiety by focusing on God. Dohm also discusses divine foretelling, illustrating how Jesus' predictions serve to build faith by demonstrating divine prescience. The sermon explores the legal metaphor of the devil having no claim against Jesus, portraying Jesus as the Lamb without blemish. Finally, the sermon highlights the concept of 'loving obedience' as demonstrated by Jesus' willingness to go to the cross, and encourages believers to grow in love and obedience to God.

Good morning. Our sermon text is John 14, 29-31. I will begin in verse 25. These things I have spoken to you while being present with you, But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.

Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let it be afraid. You have heard me say to you, I am going away and coming back to you. If you loved me, you would rejoice, because I said, I am going to the Father, for my Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.

I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming and he has nothing in me but that the world may know that I love the Father and as the Father gave me commandment so I do arise let us go from here." So if you were here on March 27, 2011, raise your hand. Wow, that's actually a lot. Josh wasn't feeling well this morning or the Johnsons would have been here. So March 27, 2011 was our first Sunday together. For about four or five months we had been having prayer meetings together.

But March 27 was the first Sunday. And it don't count until you've met together on a Sunday. So that's really the date we harken back to. Praise the Lord! God has been so kind to us over the last eight years.

The title of the sermon this morning is Believing in Jesus and His Saving Work. We encounter this word again for the umpteenth time in the Gospel of John. Believing has two parts. Assenting to the truth, owning that truth as true and yours, and consenting to the person who is telling you the truth. In other words, submitting yourself and trusting yourself to the truth teller.

Ascending to the truth, consenting to the truth teller. We have that again in our passage this week. Last week, Jesus was continuing to teach on the person and the work of the Holy Spirit whom He called for a second time in this chapter, the Helper. What kind of Helper does the Holy Spirit give us? Well all kinds of help.

Jesus says two things specifically in last week's text. One, the helper helps us by teaching us all things. And the helper helps us by bringing to remembrance all the things that Jesus said when he was on earth in the flesh. There's a narrow sense in which this is true of the men that Jesus was nose to nose with. He was there with the eleven faithful apostles.

And it's true in a sense with them, the original hearers, in a way that it's not true of us. They were inspired to found the church on Jesus' doctrine. So did they remember the things that Jesus taught them face to face? You betcha it was the ministry of the Holy Spirit to make sure that was so. Some of them even wrote scripture.

They were inspired to the level of the inspiration of being authors of scripture. But it's also true in a broad sense. Meaning if we look at the New Testament, we see that in what Jesus says here, I'll teach you all things, the Holy Spirit will teach you all things, and the Holy Spirit will bring to remembrance the things that Jesus has taught. When we look elsewhere in the New Testament, we find we have a claim on that promise. We have a right to expect that as we hover over our Bibles, there is a tutor that comes along with that book, an indwelling helper who will teach us what this means, how it applies to our lives.

And later on when we meet someone who needs the truth of God through His Word, the Holy Spirit is there bringing to our remembrance the things that we were studying when we were hovering over our Bibles. So there is a narrow sense in which it is true. Praise God! We have a reliable gospel because it was delivered to us through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. And there's a broad sense.

Praise God! We have a right to claim this promise. That the Holy Spirit will teach us today and that the Holy Spirit will bring to remembrance today the things that we need when we need them. Then Jesus spoke of the gift of peace that He was leaving with them. And this is tightly related.

This isn't a separate category. It's actually the ministry of the Spirit to bring peace. Unexplainable peace. Peace that surpasses our understanding into the hearts of the children of God. How do we know that for sure?

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, and so on and so forth. So I don't have to let my heart be troubled. I have another choice. I can turn away from those feelings of disquiet, and I can re-fix my eyes on God. And actually I have a command not to let my heart be troubled.

And I don't have to let my heart be afraid. Actually I have a command not to let my heart be afraid. Because there is an indwelling helper who can turn us away from those anxieties and fears and re-fix our eyes on the God who gives peace and the God we can fully entrust ourselves. Here's what that means. We friends are living a life of ongoing repentance.

It's not, I repent and I'm done. No, no, no. I repent and next hour I'm going to need to repent and next hour I'm going to need to repentance. Don't be discouraged by that. Be encouraged that there is a God who cleanses and helps and is with us and for us.

So as we come to our text, let's ask for the Lord's help. God, I do pray that all these things would be an encouragement to us. Jesus, I thank you for your saving work. I pray that you would help us today to fully, fully, fully, comprehensively in every way and trust ourselves to it. To turn our back on every other hope in this life and trust ourselves to the work of Christ, the obedience of Christ, the righteousness of Christ.

That would be our one and only hope. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay, we have three verses. We'll just look at them one at a time.

Hopefully your thumb is in John chapter 14. Follow along as I reread verse 29. Jesus says, and now I have told you before it comes that when it does come to pass, you may believe." In this verse we have foretelling that builds faith. So if you're taking notes by filling in the blank on the handout, faith fills in the blank. Foretelling, saying ahead of time, that builds faith.

Now flip back to chapter 13 verse 19. We've seen almost exactly these words. Just one chapter back, chapter 13 verse 19. It is the same evening, it is the same discourse, and Jesus is identifying that one of them, one of the disciples will betray him. Look at 13 verse 19.

Jesus said, Now I tell you before it comes, I tell you that one of you is going to betray me before it comes, that when it does come to pass you may believe that I am He. So I don't know how many minutes earlier in this discourse this was but it's not very many minutes. Jesus has almost said exactly what's in our text in chapter 14 verse 29. Again, it is foretelling that builds faith. I said at that time when I was preaching that text, here is what Jesus is doing.

He is taking circumstances that would otherwise tend to erode their faith, and He is using it instead to build their faith. Jesus can do that. I think at the time I was marveling at Jesus as a disciple maker. One who really knows how to teach us and do with us to bring us along. He anticipates circumstances that by themselves would tend to erode our faith, erode our confidence because they are faith-shaking circumstances, but because he knows what is coming and can tell us in advance and has this as part of his plan, he takes that and flips it on its head.

It would have eroded our faith. It would have tended towards the erosion of our faith. But He actually flips it to build our faith. It becomes a faith builder because He said exactly what was going to happen before it happened. Here again we see the same thing.

Jesus can do that because He knows everything that will happen. Well how does He do that? How does He know everything that is going to happen? Because the triune God, God in three persons, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit is directing it. God in heaven, the triune God is bringing all things to pass.

We've been studying that in the attributes of God. He knows what's going to happen because He's causing it to happen. He's establishing it through different means. He doesn't always explain it to us, but He's never ever surprised by it because it's what He is doing. Here's a question.

How can God, through a prophet, 150 years or so in advance, say I'm going to raise up a King, his name is going to be Cyrus, and he is going to send you back to rebuild Jerusalem and re-inhabit Jerusalem and to build again the foundation of the temple. Now this is a prophecy to people who are in Jerusalem. What do you mean, bring us back to rebuild, re-inhabit? The walls are fine. The city is inhabited.

Relay the foundations of the temple. What are you talking about? What am I speaking about? I'm speaking about Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 45. Something like 80 years before Nebuchadnezzar came with the Babylonian armies to break down the walls of Jerusalem and to lay low the temple and to take the inhabitants into captivity.

80 years before that even happened, God was saying, don't worry I'll bring you back to rebuild. 80 years, several generations before they even go into captivity, God is giving gracious promises that He'll bring them back, and he even names the king. Now at that time they won't go into captivity for another 80 years and then they'll be in captivity for 70 years, by the way, God through the prophet said it's going to be exactly 70 years. Cyrus' great granddaddy is not even born yet. Think about that for a minute.

At the time of the writing of Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 45, God through the prophet says, I'm going to raise up a king and his name is going to be Cyrus. But his great granddaddy is not even born yet. How do you know? Because God is doing it. Matthew Henry says that the disciples will know two things when what Jesus says comes to pass.

One, they will know that Jesus has what he calls divine prescience. What is divine prescience? The knowledge of future things that only God can have. You can't have that. How would you know?

What of the variables do you control? How could you say with certainty what's going to happen a week from now, let alone the name of a king 150 years from now. How would you know? So Matthew Henry says, when these things come to pass, his disciples will know that Jesus has divine prescience. The knowledge of future events that only God can have and secondly that they'll know that these events are part of a plan.

Not time and chance coming together in certain events, but they're part of a plan. Now Talk about building your faith. If anything would erode a person's faith, it would be watching your Lord, your dearest friend on earth go to the cross. Wouldn't that erode your faith? Not the disciples because he just said, he just demonstrated, I have divine prescience, I have the knowledge of future events that only God can have, and by the way this isn't time and chance, this is a part of a plan.

The cross isn't the derailing of a plan, the cross is the plan. Talk about building your faith. Now what things is Jesus referring to? The immediate context for verse 29 is verse 28. We'll just subtract one.

Look at verse 28. What had Jesus just said? Verse 28, you have heard me say to you, I am going away and coming back to you. If you loved me, you would rejoice because I said, I am going to the Father." I'll stop there. The disciples, as they heard Jesus say this in the upper room, were undoubtedly confused and uncertain as to exactly what He was saying.

But here's the thought exercise. Fast forward to the going down of the sun on the day of Pentecost. Pentecost is 50 days later. Fast forward 50 days. Pentecost is ending.

The sun is going down on Pentecost. Now, Read to these 11 men verse 28. I am going away. That's His death and burial. It has to be His death and burial.

I am coming back to you. That's the resurrection. It has to be the resurrection. I am going to the Father. We watched Him go into heaven.

That has to be the ascension. Just backing up a couple of verses to verse 26, the Father will send the Holy Spirit in my name. That morning tongues of fire rested upon them and they spoke in languages that they had never learned and they were understood by people who had converged on Jerusalem from around the world. That has to be today. He was speaking of today.

The death and burial. Check. The resurrection. Check. The ascension.

Check. The outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Check. Now let me go to the well again. Turn to John 20.

John 20. We actually haven't been here in a few weeks. To my credit, I did skip a week or two from quoting John 20 verses 30 and 31. This just reminds us as John frames his Gospel, what he said, why He recorded what He recorded. John 20 verses 30 and 31.

And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name." What we are seeing in our text is just another one in a long, long, long, long, long, long, long line of signs of the Messiah. Signs that Jesus is from heaven. Jesus is who He claimed to be. Jesus did what He claimed He would do in order to purchase a people by the shedding of his own blood.

Why the signs in the Gospel? So that you can have confidence that this Gospel is not just a fairy tale, but a saving Gospel. It can save your soul. It can save your soul. That's why the signs.

This is another sign. Jesus showing his divine presence. That he has the knowledge of future events that only God can have. This was for them. This was for us.

We have all those signs too. So that we will believe. Back to our text. Verse 30 now. John 14 verse 30, Jesus says, I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in me.

This verse we have the work of the devil and the state of the lamb. If you are taking notes on the handout, devil goes in one blank, lamb goes in the other. The work of the devil and the state of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Let's take this phrase by phrase. The first phrase is, I will no longer talk much with you.

This just continues what Jesus has been saying repeatedly a little while and he's letting them know my time is up. The ability for me to take time to instruct you is almost at an end. This continues to drive home the point that Jesus knows exactly what will happen and exactly when it will happen. Why does that matter? It speaks to His willingness to go to the cross to save.

Jesus knew exactly what would happen, death on the cross, when it would happen the next day, and he wasn't shrinking back or running from it, he was preparing his disciples for it. It is a willing act. The cross is Jesus for the joy set before Him enduring the shame. Willingly going to the cross. Next phrase, for the ruler of this world is coming.

Consider an earlier usage of the term ruler of this world in the Gospel of John. I'll just remind you of where we've already been. John 12 verse 31. In John chapter 12 verse 31, Jesus said this, Now is the judgment of this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out.

What is he speaking of? Two things. The cross, now is the judgment of this world. Jesus' death on the cross, the pouring out of judgment and wrath of God against sin on the cross is the judgment of this world. Now the ruler of this world be cast out.

The cross in addition to being the judgment of the world, the cross is the defeat of the enemy of mankind and of God, Satan. The ruler of this world will be cast out. Jesus' death. So, we have this term here again, for the ruler of this world is coming. Jesus is already tied Satan to the cross.

And here we are seeing the convergence of those two things again. Consider these three verses. Just flip back to the beginning of chapter 13. This really frames this and puts it in perspective. 13 verse 2, and supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him." So we saw that at the very beginning of this dinner that we are still in the middle of in chapter 14.

Now look in chapter 13 verses 26 and 27. Jesus answered, It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it. That will be the traitor. And having dipped the bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him, then Jesus said to him, what you do, do quickly.

We have Satan putting it into the heart of Judas at the beginning of the chapter, then we have Satan actually entering Judas, towards the end of chapter 13, Luke 22, verse 53 is Jesus in Gethsemane. They've come to arrest Him, to apprehend Jesus. It's sort of a hilarious scene. They come to arrest Jesus and his disciples with a mob with swords and clubs. Meaning, isn't that ironic?

Jesus points out the irony of it in 2253, says, when I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize me. You need a mob? With swords and clubs? I've been in the temple every day this week. You never tried to seize me.

But this is your hour and the power of darkness. What's happening here in the dark in the garden is the power of darkness. It might be people coming with their swords and clubs, but behind the people, working in and through the people is the power of darkness. Though the devil is never named in any of the crucifixion accounts, Jesus says the ruler of darkness is coming. The ruler of the world is coming.

The ruler of this world is coming. What did the Apostle Paul say? We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Paul knew a little something about persecution and opposition. Paul saw beyond the flesh and blood, he knew there were people that were doing things, but he could see beyond that and say, this fight is not with the flesh and the blood, it is with the spiritual hosts of wickedness.

There may be human instruments, there were human instruments opposing Paul city to city, there were human instruments in the garden. Judas certainly was a human instrument, but these are fundamentally works of the devil that are on display as Jesus goes to the cross. Here's one thing we should pick up from that. Don't let yourself be overly preoccupied with the human instruments. Things are going to happen in your life that are going to be inexplicable.

No, they're explicable. Meaning people are going to do things that are illogical. And you can't think of one reason why they would be acting that way, saying those things, doing those things. And here's the explanation. We don't wrestle against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities, against the rulers of darkness.

Don't be overly preoccupied with the human instruments. Jesus saw beyond them to the root. These were works of the devil. The final phrase of this verse, and he has nothing in me. The Hebrew underlying this is a Hebrew phrase.

We have English phrases like it's raining cats and dogs. It's not raining cats and dogs. Someone who wasn't a natural English speaker wouldn't know what to make of that. But we know Exactly what someone means when they say that. So this is a Hebrew phrase that's like that.

The underlying Hebrew. It's almost always used in a legal context where a person would say, legally this person has nothing on me. This person has no legal claim against me. There is no legitimate basis for accusation against me. So think of it this way.

The ruler of this world, Satan, the devil, has nothing in Jesus. Has no legal claim against Jesus. Has no legitimate basis for accusation against Jesus. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament lamb without blemish. You can't just sacrifice a lamb.

If the lamb has a blemish You have to set it aside. Why? Because only a lamb without defect will do to stand in your place for the sacrifice. It must be without defect. It must be a perfect lamb so that the Lamb is an acceptable substitute for you.

This is all symbolic. What does the book of Hebrews say? For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. The Lamb without defect, the Lamb without blemish, a perfect Lamb, and so a lamb acceptable as a substitute for me was he tempted by the devil in Matthew 4 it's so clear there were there were there was a time in his life when he was directly face to face, tempted three times by the devil. And then after the third failure by the devil to tempt Jesus, Luke's account of that says that the devil withdrew until an opportune time.

He kept at points in Jesus' life trying to tempt him. Never that directly again, at least not that it's recorded. Here we go again. The ruler of this world is coming. He found at the cross what he found in the wilderness.

He had nothing in Jesus. There was no legitimate basis for accusation. He had no legal claim against him. He had nothing in him. There was no crack in which to insert the pry bar, to pry apart the righteousness of Jesus.

There was no foothold to gain a standing with Jesus. What did John the Baptist say? Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The perfect Lamb who is able to be a substitute and sacrifice. The devil has nothing in Jesus.

And what did John the Gospel writer and John the letter writer say? Well, in his first letter he said this, this is the message we have heard from him, from Jesus and declare to you that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. Jesus taught this, John the letter writer in 1 John 1 verse 5, John says, Jesus taught us what we are declaring to you that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If you continue reading, it is so crystal clear that we are talking about moral righteousness. God is no mixture of a lot of good, but a little questionable, a little evil.

He is unmixed. He is utterly holy. Jesus is God. The devil has nothing in Jesus. In every nanosecond of his time on earth, he was light and in him there was no darkness at all.

Now, are you ready for something glorious? Turn to Romans 8. Turn to Romans 8. That the devil had nothing in Jesus leads us to Romans 8 verses 31-34. Romans 8, 31-34.

Paul writes, What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.

Who is He who condemns? It is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God who also makes intercession for us. Do you have things in your life worthy of accusation? Do you have things in your life worthy of condemnation? Does the devil have anything in you?

Does the devil have a legitimate basis for legal accusation against you if this is the standard? Yes. And yet, when you are joined in union with Christ, His righteousness is yours. He loses the devil, the accuser of the brethren, loses his basis of being able to accuse you. The unrighteousness that is yours is placed upon Christ and dealt with so that Paul can say, who shall bring a charge against God's elect." All the accusable offenses are gone.

The righteousness that belonged to Christ. The devil had nothing in Jesus that becomes Yours. So the accuser of the brethren, his ground has been taken away from underneath him. There's nothing with which he can accuse you. Because Jesus' righteousness has become yours.

Back to our text. The last verse, verse 31. Jesus says, But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as a Father gave me commandment, so I do." Arise, let us go from here. In this verse we have The life testimony of His love for the Father. Jesus' life testimony of His love for the Father.

So if you're taking notes on the handout and filling in blanks, it's life. Jesus' life testimony, the way He lived His life, testified to something. In a sense, Jesus' life preached a sermon. What was part of that sermon? I love my Father.

The transition word beginning the verse points to a contrast. But that the world may know what is the contrast. This, the devil is coming. The power of darkness will fully exert itself to get this Messiah on the cross. But, This is the contrast.

What is really happening at the cross is not the victory of the devil. It is a demonstration of loving obedience. At the cross, it's not the devil winning, it's Jesus obeying simply by pouring out His life for sinners. What is about to happen is a billboard for Jesus' love for the Father. It's a billboard above the city.

I love my father. He humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Philippians 2.8. He humbled himself. Jesus humbled himself and became obedient.

He obeyed the commands of his Father to the point of death. He obeyed all the way to death, even the shameful, disgraceful, agonizing, contemptible death of the cross. Turn back to John 10. John 10 verses 17 and 18. John 10, 17 and 18.

John 10, 17 and 18. Therefore my Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from my Father.

In order to save the people, God the Father commanded God the Son to go to the cross to lay down His life. Jesus didn't have to, but he willingly obeyed his father. Here in this verse we see the bi-directional love. His father loved him because of his loving obedience. His father loved him because of his loving obedience.

His father loved him because of his loving obedience. Did people understand right away that the cross was a demonstration of loving obedience? Only a few. At first, most of the Jews thought it was a sign of judgment on Jesus. They didn't understand it.

How about today? I wonder how many churches today are studying this text in the world. I bet there's a church on every continent on earth studying this text today. Jesus enshrined this truth in His Word. He enshrined it so that it would be a sign to the world that He loved His Father and obeyed Him all the way to death, even the shameful death of the cross.

Now notice this, Jesus in this chapter, Jesus calls us as disciples to have evidence of our love. Not to have a fruitless love, not to have the kind of love that doesn't have anything that demonstrates that it's genuine, but to have evidence for our love. How many times have I said this over the past few weeks? Love for Christ in heart results in obedience to Christ in life. How many times have I said that?

Love for Christ in heart results in obedience to Christ in life. Verse 15. If you love me, keep my commandments. Verse 21. He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me.

Verse 23. If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. So essentially, what Jesus is requiring of us, that we prove that there is real love in our hearts by obeying He has present and demonstrates in His own life. Only his love and obedience doesn't ebb and flow like ours. Do you know that's true of you?

I hope so. That your love for God ebbs and flows. And so you see obedience following that eb and flow. Obedience in your life ebbs and flows too. Sometimes you're more obedient than other times in your life.

That was never true of Jesus. His love for his Father never ebbed and flowed. It flowed and flowed and flowed and flowed. His obedience to his father didn't ebb and flow. It flowed and flowed and flowed and flowed.

Loving obedience is Christ-likeness. He is our example. The cross is our example. The cross being the declaration that there's no outer limit beyond which I will not go in loving obedience. Did Jesus not prove that to your satisfaction?

That there was no outer limit to which he would not go in loving obedience to his Father? He went to the contemptible, agonizing death of the cross. You should grow in Christ-likeness, loving obedience to God. Fix your eyes on the cross. And the reward for the cross, by the way.

Finally, in this verse, Jesus says, arise, let us go from here. But what we're going to find out next week when we start chapter 15 is he just starts talking again. A lot of commentators say they were walking and talking. I don't know. I know this is true and I know that if it mattered much we would have more detail.

He says arise let us go from here. They probably did arise and go and the discourse continued. That's as good a guess as any. Applications, I'll give you Four. One.

These are faith building words. That's what Jesus was getting at with His disciples. That's why He told them beforehand what was going to happen because these circumstances were coming that would tend towards the erosion of their faith. And he flipped that on its head and it actually built their faith. Well, we have the faith building words.

We have them. Don't neglect them. Is life bringing any faith eroding circumstances to you? Ever? Has that ever happened to you?

It's not life, it is God actually. Where you are faced with things that tend towards the erosion of your faith. He's given us words to combat that. You can hover over your Bible. When we're hovering over our Bible and receiving the teaching and reminding ministry of the Holy Spirit, the things in life that would normally tend towards the erosion of our faith can actually end in the building of our faith because these are faith building words.

There's a lot to marvel at in here. We can start with Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 45 where God through the prophet says, 150 years from now I'm going to raise up a king. His great granddaddy is not born yet, but his name will be Cyrus. Number two. So number one, don't neglect these faith building words.

You do that to your own harm. Our comfort and confidence is here in these faith building words. Number two, don't be overly preoccupied with human instruments. Jesus didn't need to be overly worried about Judas or the high priest or the mob that came out with the clubs and the swords. He saw beyond them to the real problem.

The ruler of this world. Don't be overly preoccupied with the human instruments. In fact, Expect the inexplicable thought patterns, inexplicable words, inexplicable actions from people. It doesn't all have to make sense. This means that we have an enemy working through human instruments.

It means that not everything is going to have a logical explanation. You get that, right? Just knowing that helps you encounter Inexplicable things in life and know what's going on. Don't be overly preoccupied with human instruments. Number three, if you are a Christian, exhale.

Because the devil had nothing in Jesus, if you were in Christ, the devil has nothing in you. Who can bring an accusation against God's elect? Those whom He has joined in union with His Son so that His Son's righteousness has passed to them. There's nothing in you. The devil has nothing in you.

Your sins have passed to Him and been dealt with and it is finished. I'm not saying that we don't have to worry about the devil and that he's not still trying to harm us and that he's not accusing us anyway. I'm not saying that. I'm saying that in the ultimate sense, in the sense that matters More than anything else, these things are dealt with and finished. The Christian can exhale.

The Christian can rest in Christ. The standing of the devil to accuse you If you are joined to Jesus Christ, he is gone. He has no standing. Exhale, rest. Number four.

Study Jesus and grow in loving obedience. I am falling in love with the term loving obedience. If you have found yourself in the Christian walk, if you have been in the Lord for any period of time at all, and in your mind is the drum beat, obey, obey, obey, I know I should love. Jesus wants to use these texts to have the drum beat be, love God, love God, love God. You know when we really love God, the obedience takes care of itself.

It flows out of the love. We are to obey. I don't want to minimize our duty to obey. But loving obedience keeps it in the context that Jesus sets it in. Obedience is simply to be an expression of genuine love in the heart.

We want the drum beat to be, oh that I loved God more. God help me to love you more. You are so lovely. You deserve to be loved beyond what I am loving you. Let that be the drum beat in your heart.

You will find yourself obeying more if that is the drum beat in your heart. Oh God, that I could love you more. Help me to love you more. Forgive me for not loving you more. Let me grow in love.

Study Jesus. He is the ultimate example of this. There was no ebb and flow. It was only flow, flow, flow. Study Jesus and grow in loving obedience.

God, thank you. Let us lovingly obey you. Let the drumbeat in our minds be, Oh God, we see you as so lovely, so worthy of love without ebbs, only flows. God, help us to grow in love for you so that we'll grow in loving obedience to you. We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen.