Avoiding Superficial Faith

18, 19 [Arabic, p. 148] And when Jesus said that, he went out leisurely to go to Jerusalem. And when he arrived at Bethphage and at Bethany, beside the mount which is 20 called the mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, and he said unto them, Go 21 into this village that is opposite you: and when you enter it, you shall find an ass tied, and 22 a colt with him, which no man ever was mounted: loose him, and bring them unto me. And if any man say unto you, Why loose you them? Say unto him thus, We 23 seek them for our Lord; and straightway send them hither. All this was, that what was said in the prophet might be fulfilled, which said, 24 Say you unto the daughter of Zion, Behold, your King comes unto you, Meek, and riding upon an ass, And upon a colt the foal of an ass.

25 And the disciples did not know this at that time: but after that Jesus was glorified, his disciples remembered that these things were written of him, and that this 26 they had done unto him. And when the two disciples went, they found as he had 27 said unto them, and they did as Jesus charged them. And when they loosed them, 28 their owners said unto them, Why loose you them? They said unto them, We seek 29 them for our Lord. And they let them go.

And they brought the ass and the colt, 30 and they placed on the colt their garments; and Jesus mounted it. And most of the multitudes spread their garments on the ground before him: and others cut branches 31 from the trees, and threw them in the way. And when he neared his descent from [Arabic, p. 149] the mount of Olives, all the disciples began to rejoice and to praise God with 32 a loud voice for all the powers which they had seen; and they said,

“Praise in the highest; Praise to the Son of David: Blessed is he that comes in the name 33 of the Lord; and blessed is the kingdom that comes, that of our father David: Peace in heaven, and praise in the highest.”

 34 And a great multitude, that which came to the feast, when they heard that Jesus 35 was coming to Jerusalem, took young palm branches, and went forth to meet him, and cried and said,

Praise: Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord, the 36 King of Israel.

Certain therefore of the Pharisees from among the multitudes 37 said unto him, Our Master, rebuke your disciples. He said to them, Verily I say unto you, If these were silent, the stones would cry out. 38,

39 And when he drew near, and saw the city, he wept over it, and said,

Would that you had known the things that are for your peace, in this your day! now that is 40 hidden from your eyes. There shall come unto you days when your enemies 41 shall encompass you, and constrain you from every quarter, and shall get possession of you, and your children within you; and they shall not leave in you a stone upon another; because you knew not the time of your visitation.

42 And when he entered into Jerusalem, the whole city was agitated, and they said, 43 Who is this? And the multitudes said,

“This is Jesus, the prophet that is from Nazareth 44 of Galilee”

. And the multitude which was with him bore witness that he called 45 Lazarus from the grave, and raised him from among the dead. And for this cause great multitudes went out to meet him, because they heard the sign which he did.

Tatian The Assyrian. The Diatessaron . Fig. Kindle Edition.  (Read John 12:12-19, Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:18-24, Matthew 21:1-11)

I.                Different types of Christian faith – (Matthew 13:18-23)

a.     No Christian faith

             i.     Tim Keller Podcast – Questioning Christianity

            ii.     Tim Keller – Making Sense of God

            iii.      The Case for Christ – 2017 – Lee Strobel

b.     Superficial Christian faith

c.     Sincere and true Christian faith

II.              Superficial Christian Faith

Mat 13:20-21 NET] 20 The seed sown on rocky ground is the person who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. 21 But he has no root in himself and does not endure; when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.

“Christ, you know I love you; did you see I waved?  - (Should. Be slide)

I believe in you and God, so tell me that I'm saved!

Christ, you know I love you; did you see I waved?

I believe in you and God, so tell me that I'm saved

Jesus, I am with you; touch me, touch me, Jesus!

Jesus, I am on your side; kiss me, kiss, me Jesus!

[SIMON ZEALOTES]

Christ, what more do you need to convince you

That you've made it and you're easily as strong

As the filth from Rome who rape our country

And who've terrorized our people for so long?”

a.     Lots of “Joy” but lack of depth of understanding. – (Matthew 13:20,21)

b.     Looks to “use Jesus” to get something else.

c.     Loses faith when it seems that Jesus “doesn’t work.”

III.             Overcoming superficial Christian faith

a.     Learning more about the Messiah Jesus

       i.      The heart cannot long be committed to something the head rejects. 

      ii.      What is your “reason for the hope you have in Jesus? – (1 Peter 3:15,16)

[1Pe 3:15-16 NET] 15 But set Christ apart as Lord in your hearts and always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you possess. 16 Yet do it with courtesy and respect, keeping a good conscience, so that those who slander your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame when they accuse you.

b.     Wanting the Lord Jesus and not just what HE can do for you.

        i.     “If Christianity is untrue, then no honest man will want to believe it, however helpful it might be; if it is true, every honest man will want to believe it, even if it gives him no help at all”. ― C.S. Lewis, God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics

       ii.     If following the devil led you to an eternal place of happiness and following Christ led you to suffer hell, would you follow the devil or Christ? – C.S. Lewis

c.     Experiencing the presence, peace, and power of the “Living Christ” in daily times of private worship and regular times of public worship.   (Hebrews 4:14-16)

[Heb 4:14-16 NLT] 14 So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Handbook to Prayer: Praying Scripture Back to God by Ken Boa

       i.     What plan do you have for encountering Christ privately?

     ii.     What plan so you have for experiencing Christ publicly?

IV.            Is your faith superficial or sincere?

[Isa 1:16-18 NASB20] 16 "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil, 17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor, Obtain justice for the orphan, Plead for the widow's case. 18 "Come now, and let us debate [your case,]" Says the LORD, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They shall become as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be like wool.