Today, scripture reading is John 15 verses 18 through 27. If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own, but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my father. But the works that is written in the law must be fulfilled. They hated me without a cause. But when the helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me, and you will also bear witness because you have been given, because you have been with me from the beginning. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and the hearing of His Word. The world, as we know it, is filled with religious fervor and zeal. And the presence of religion is practically everywhere. You cannot turn on your TV, turn on the radio, and there is not somebody, somewhere, commenting on religion. There is not a continent on this earth where people are not worshiping someone or something with passionate zeal. A religion works itself out in all aspects of life in this world, from the airports in Afghanistan to the courtroom in Brunswick to football stadiums all over this country. You see religion, the prominence of it, and there is no more prominent and no more visible religion than Christianity. For good or for evil, Christianity is the most practiced and the most recognized religion in the world. And it is evident on every continent in the world there is not, I mean, it is in more known languages than any other. It is among more known people groups than any other religion. There are very few countries where there are no Christians. This would have been hard to imagine when Jesus was gathered with his disciples on that final evening before he was crucified. That night there were no visions of grandeur. That night there was no promise of prominence. That night there was no talk of world domination. In fact the very opposite was true. They had experienced trouble because of Jesus and more trouble was on the horizon. And Jesus was taking this crucial moment and this crucial time to teach his disciples what it truly would mean to be his disciples in this world and what it would require of them. He was sending them into a world that would not openly welcome them and they would not openly welcome them because of him. They would be in the world for the sake of the world but the world would be against them. The world would be against them. And this is amazing beloved if you think about it because Christianity is a worldly religion. It is worldly in the fact that it is the most prominent and most practiced faith. More than Islam, more than Hinduism, more than Judaism. It is worldly, not because it conforms to the world's ways, though unfortunately at times it has but it is worldly because of its relationship to the world. Christianity is in the world. Christianity is in the world. When we become Christians, God does not take us out of the world. Contrary to have some have sought to practice their Christianity, God does not intend for us to coister ourselves off away by ourselves and pray and sing to him all day. But Christianity is to be in the world. Jesus sends his disciples into the world and Christianity is meant to be lived out in this world, worshipping Jesus as we live and work in the world. Christianity is in the world, but Christianity is not just in the world. Christianity is for the world, it is in the world for the world. Christianity is not an exclusive religion. God calls all men and women everywhere to repent and trust in Christ. Therefore Christianity is not bound by language, is not bound by race or country or tribe. Christ came to redeem any and all who call upon Him. Do you realize, beloved, that most religions in the world are concentrated where they started? Think about it. Most religions are concentrated where they started. Christianity is in the world, from the sake of the world, to the Bible says in John 3.16, why did Christ come? Because God so loved the world. Because Christianity is not just in the world, Christianity is for the world, and the Christianity that is in the world, and the Christianity that is for the world, finds that this world is against it. The world is against Christianity. The religion that God has sent into the world, the faith that he has ordained that would be for the world, finds itself at odds with the world. Despite his love and sacrifice, this present world did not accept Jesus. And consequently, it would not accept his disciples. And every day, every day, his disciples are in the world. They are reminded, as the song says, that this world is not a friend of grace. It is not helping us on to God. And when Jesus and His disciples gather together on that final evening, this is what Jesus was setting forth for His disciples. They were going to be in the world. They were going to be full of world. But they would find that that world would be against them. And yeten still, Jesus would build His church. And the gates of hell would not prevail against it. This is the groundwork that our Lord was laying for His disciples as they gathered together and shared that last meal in those last conversations. This is the foundation that has been laid for us according to the prophets and the apostles and the Word of God. This is the legacy that has been given to us by the Spirit of God. Jesus reminded His disciples that following Him would mean the world would not be their friend. And in fact, to be of the disciples would mean to be hated by the world, to be His disciples would mean to be hated by the world. This is why. This is why, beloved, that there has been so much emphasis upon love, particularly love for each other. As He says, in John 15 and 17, as He has repeated, over and over again, why is it important to love one another, mainly because the world until which you are going will not. And Jesus was sending them out into that world and emphasized over and over again, you, each of you, you must love one another. The world in which you live in will not love you. So you better love one another, you better love one another. When Jesus was sending them into this world, He knows and He knew what was ahead of them. And every day He sends you and me into the same world, beloved, He knows what is ahead of us. He knows what challenges we will face. And He wanted His disciples to know it then. And He wants His disciples to know it now, and therefore sending them out into the world. He gave them two guarantees, two important guarantees. He gave them two guarantees that He gives to us even now. The first one is hostility, guarantee it, but the second one is help, hostility and help, hostility. Jesus had just told His disciples, right? And John 15 and 14, He had just told them that they were His friends. But being the friend of Jesus means that you are not a friend of this world. Jesus Bible says, James chapter 4 and verse 4, the world and Jesus do not share friends. If it's something that the disciples have to come to grips with, friendship with Jesus in that odds with the world. And Jesus told His disciples this, John 15 and verse 18, that therefore those who are hostile to Him would be hostile to them while the hostility, while He tells us the world is hostile because you're saved. Verse 19, if you were of the world, the world would love it, love you as its own, but because you are not of the world. But I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you, because I chose you, because you are chosen by Christ, the world is hostile, looks at Peter and John James and says the world is hostile because I chose you, because you're saved, beloved. If you are born again, you have been reborn into a hostile world. The world is not a friend of your salvation. The world is not a friend of your sanctification, beloved. It is not interested in you being more like Jesus. It is not interested in you bearing fruit in Jesus. The world is what He's telling the disciples, says they are gathered there, and He's telling us this morning reminding us that the world won't like you because you used to be one of them. Now don't miss that. You know how that goes? You used to be one of them. The disciples are chosen by Christ out of the world. So I said, John 15, 16, you are chosen out of the world. You used to be one of them. You used to pray for Georgia. Now you pray for Georgia Tech. You used to pray for Alabama. Now you pray for Auburn. You know how that goes? So the Bible says in Ephesians chapter 2, this is 1-2-5, and you were dead and the trespasses and sins, and when she once walked, found the course of this world, found the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, but God, being rich and mercy because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. By grace, you have been saved. By grace, you have been called, by grace, you have been chosen out of the world. Now you no longer belong to the world. You belong to the world, but now by the grace of God, you belong to Christ. And that means that the world is losing. That means that the devil is losing. That means that the passions of your flesh are losing. And of course, the world, the devil and the flesh is not interested in losing you. Not interested in losing you at all. Your salvation is you winning. Your salvation is Jesus' winning. Your salvation is the world, the flesh, and the devil losing Satan doesn't like losing. The world doesn't like losing. And that's why it's hostile. It's hostile because you're saved. It's also hostile because you are servants. Verse 14 of John chapter 15, Jesus told his disciples that they were his friends and yet those whom Jesus calls friends know themselves to be servants. In verse 20 of John chapter 15, Jesus says, remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. He calls them, reminds them that they are yet still servants. The word for servant there is doulas. Nearly it means slave. Slave, one who belongs to another, one who owes his freedom to another. Remember love in any world, in a world where self love and self care and self esteem are the highest of virtues, the disciple of Jesus understands themselves to be servants of Jesus. Slave of Jesus. It's what the apostles understood. The apostles understood themselves this way. This is what Paul said in Romans chapter 1 and in verse 1, this letter is from Paul. He says, what do you call himself a slave of Christ, Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle? A slave of Jesus. It's how Paul understood himself. This is how Peter understood himself and second Peter, chapter 1, verse 1. He called himself a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ. As slaves, they understood and we need to understand, we belong to Jesus. We owe our freedom to Jesus and as slaves, therefore we should not expect any more than what the master receives. This is what Jesus saying. As they treated Jesus, so they would treat you. If they loved Jesus, they would love you but since they hate Jesus, why would you expect anything different? This is what it means to be a disciple. So what it means to be a disciple means that you're owned by Jesus, means that you're his, that you belong to him, that he has redeemed you, he has bought your freedom and you are servant, you are his slave. So what it means to follow Jesus in this world. When we follow Jesus, it is not just to follow Jesus to heaven, but in order to follow Jesus to heaven, you have to first follow him to the cross. You don't skip the cross to get to heaven. That's what Jesus said in Matthew, chapter 16, in verse 24. And Jesus said to his disciples, whoever wants to be my disciple must deny himself. Take up their cross and follow me. You got to follow me to heaven, you got to take up your cross because first, we're going by way of Calvary. We're going by Golgasa, it is there that you deny yourself. It is there that you realize that you're not in it for yourself. It is there that you realize that you are a servant, that you have been bought and paid for with a price that you are no longer your own. You belong to Jesus. You belong to Jesus. And following Jesus, beloved, is not just washing the saints' feet as Jesus washed their feet. It is also lovingly unlovable. Following Jesus is helping the needy. Following Jesus is offering forgiveness. Following Jesus is loving each other. But also following Jesus is in doing ridicule because as James, chapter 1, verse 27 says, following Jesus is keeping yourself from being polluted by the world. You know the world is polluted? I'm not talking about old-zone layer stuff. I'm not talking about emissions, the world is polluted because sin has entered the atmosphere. It has entered the atmosphere and being in the atmosphere, it has corrupted everything that is born into it. Everything that is born into it, in fact, it has so corrupted the atmosphere that it turns everything in the world against God. And the disciples of Jesus Christ, servants of the masters, do you know what they are called to do? We are called to fight pollution and the world is not interested in those type of pollution fighters. We are called to fight pollution in ourselves and in the world. Jesus is a pollution fighter, holy spirit is a pollution fighter, the disciples of Jesus Christ are pollution fighters.
And in this world, listen Peter, listen James and John, this world is not fond of those type of pollution fighters. And that's why it's hostile because your mind and we fight pollution. It's hostile because you're saved, it's hostile because you are servant, but it's really hostile because of sin. Ultimately, the world will hate you because it loves sin and it hates Jesus. And that's what Jesus said, 15, 22 through 25, if I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin and whoever hates me hates my father also. If I had done, if I had not done among them, the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But beloved, listen, this is because of sin that they hate Jesus. Not because he was good, not because he spoke well, not because he did good works. Jesus says they hate me because they're guilty of sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my father. But the word that is written in there law must be fulfilled. Notice what Jesus says. They hated me without a car, listen, beloved. There is no reasonable reason for the world to hate Jesus. None, none, but the Bible says he was despised and hated and it says what, without cars, why? Because there's no reasonable reason to hate Jesus. The Bible says he was full of grace. He was full of grace. He was full of love. He was full of compassion. You know what, Acts 10 and verse 38 says that he went about doing good. He was loving, he was gracious, he was compassionate, he lived his life doing good. And yet they still hated him. Why? Why? Because the love of sin is blinding. It blinds the mind sin causes irrationality. It's irrational, it causes what the prophet says in Isaiah 5 and verse 20. Causes us to call good evil and evil good. To put darkness for light and light for darkness, to put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. As what sin does, it causes good evil and evil good. It causes sweet bitter and bitter sweet. This is why the world hated Jesus, this is why the world hates the church. Why does the world hate the church? The world doesn't hate the church because the church is full of hypocrites. That's not why the world hates the church. Don't listen to that foolishness. The world doesn't hate the church because the church is full of hypocrites. The world is full of hypocrites. That's why they hate the church, hate the church because it hates light. It hates the church because it hates Christ. Because at its best the church represents the righteousness of Christ. At its best it demonstrates the rightness and the uniqueness of Jesus. At its best it proclaims the judgment against sin and the gift of heaven and the certainty of hell. It was after, beloved, it was after Peter said in Acts chapter 4 and verse 12 that there is no salvation outside of the name of Jesus. It was after he said that that the church began to get persecuted. It was then they decided there was something that needed to be done. However, the uniqueness and the necessity of Jesus is preached. The world will hate the saints because it hates Jesus. And it has no reason because the church is in the world for the world, but sin causes people to call evil good and good evil. This and beloved hostility is a sure thing in this world, but I want to make an important point this morning that though the Bible tells us that the world is against us, it never tells us to go out there and be against the world. Then beloved, listen, listen, the world that persecutes the church, the church is called to love. The world that reviles the saints, the saints are commanded not to revile back. The world that condemns and ridicules the disciples of Jesus, the disciples are called to forgive and love into the kingdom of God in the world. Is that possible? We do. What Jesus said do in Luke chapter 6 and verse 27 and 28, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. How do you do that? Jesus sends his disciples into a world that is against them and he says, but don't you be against it. You be for it. You be in it and when they hate you, you do good for them. When they curse you, you bless them. When they mistreat you, you pray for them. How do you do that? You do it, beloved, because not only did Jesus promise hostility, he also promised help. I'm not sending you out there all by yourself. You're going to have help, help in a world that promises hostility. Jesus gave his disciples an assurance. It was the assurance of help and he said to them as he had said before, he says again in verse 26 of our passage, my father and I will send you a helper. I know it's going to be hostile out there. I promise you it's going to be hostile out there, but I am not sending you alone. My father and I will send a helper. Several times, several times in this discourse, Holy Spirit is referred to as helper. Christ promises to send a helper of all helpers. This is Christ, promising them that God himself would be with them to lend them aid. God himself is coming with you to lend you aid. Why? Because, beloved, God has always been a helper. Who God is? He's an helper. What says, Psalm 121, verse 1 and 2, I lift up my eyes unto the hills from which does my help come? My help comes from the Lord. Why? Because God is helper. What says, Psalm 54 and verse 4, behold, God is my helper. The Lord is the upholder of my life. He is helper. That is His name. He is Jehovah Ezzer. The Lord my helper in Psalm 33 and verse 30, the Lord is our help. And to send help, beloved, when you send help to someone, the help is that they will be by your side in the midst of conflict, in the midst of competition, in the midst of danger, in the midst of distress. You know what Psalm 118, the verse 6 says, it is the Lord who is on your side, it is the Lord who is with you. Why? Because He is your helper. And we all need help. We all need help. Some of us need more help than others. But we all need help. There is not a person in here, no matter how you appear, or what you say, we all need help. We need help with directions. We need help. We need help moving. We need help. We need help with math. We need help. This is true in the natural world, beloved. How much more true is it of spiritual things? We all need help. And to really be a help to someone, to really, truly be a help, there are three things that are absolutely necessary. And you find them in abundance in the Holy Spirit. And the first one is, you got to be able to help. To help, you have to have the power and the ability to help. You've got to have the ability to help. To learn, to speak a foreign language, you will need help from someone who is able to speak that language. If I want to speak Spanish, I'm not going to ask Pastor Field. Let's go to Miller, Mother Scroggins, but I'm not going to Pastor Field because he is not able to help me. Now, beloved, you might question some things in God, but there is one thing that is never in question and that is his ability. If God is anything, God is able. So the Bible says over and over again, Saint Corinthians chapter 9 and verse 8, our God is what? Abel. To make all grace abound to you so that having all sufficiency and all things at all times, the Bible loves that we are all. All things at all times, you may abound in every good work. He is able. But the Bible tells us in Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 20. Now unto him, who is what? Abel. To do more abundantly than all that we ask or think according to the power that is at work within us. He is able. Abel. He is able. He is able. I know he is able. I know my Lord is able to carry me through. And believe it, it is the Holy Spirit that powers you through anytime, anytime, anytime, anytime you get through. It was the Holy Spirit that powered you through. It was his help because he is able and it truly be a help. You have to be able. And not only do you have to be able, but to truly help, you have to also be available. You have to be present, you have to be available to help. Good intention makes for bad help. If I needed to help, I needed you to help me move yesterday. I don't need you to come today and say, man, I attended to be there. Good intention is no help. Listen, beloved, Holy Spirit is not good intention. Holy Spirit is help. He is a real help because he is an available help. Why? Because God is a very present God for His says in Psalm 46 and verse 1, God is our refuge and our strength, a watch, a very present help, very present help. You know what Holy Spirit is? Holy Spirit is an ever present spirit. That's what Jesus said in John chapter 14, y'all remember when he said in verse 16, I will ask the Father and He will give to you another helper who will be with you forever, forever, forever, always, He's always present, He's always available. He is never otherwise occupied. Holy Spirit is never too busy. But the Bible says in Isaiah chapter 55, verse 6, you know what it says, seek the Lord while He may be found. Call on Him while He is near. You know what? Holy Spirit can always be found. You can always be found because Holy Spirit is always near. Holy Spirit is the guarantee of the promise that God had been making to His people from the very beginning where He says, fear not, I am with you. That's the promise He made to Isaac and Jacob. That's the promise He made to Joshua and Jeremiah. That's the promise He made to Peter and to Paul. That is the promise He makes to you and to me. When I was growing up, we used to sing a song. We don't sing these songs anymore because we didn't kind of advance beyond. But we used to sing a song that said Jesus is on the main line. Call Him up. Tell Him what you want. Jesus is on the main line. Call Him up. Tell Him what you want. That line is never busy. Call Him up. Tell Him what you want. He's always available. My little granddaughter, every night, and then likes to come down into my office, and I'm there and there, slaving and worried about, Lord, what are we going to preach on Sunday? And she comes down there and she ain't minding none of that. She wants to get up in my lap. She wants to fool around with everything on my desk. She wants to eat anything that's edible. And I have to tell her, sweetheart, Papa busy. Papa ain't got time. Papa got work to do. Listen, beloved, you can always call up in the lap of the Holy Spirit. He is never too busy. He is always available. He's always willing for you to come. He's always ready to help. Call Him up. Tell Him what you want. I said three things in that. There are three, beloved. You have to be able. You have to be available. But I think the most important thing is that you have to be willing. What difference doesn't make if you have the power to help, and you are available to help, but you are not willing to help. True help must be willing. Just like those emails that Pastor Phil sends out when he asked for people to come and help at the church and serve at the church. He knows. He knows that all everybody has the ability. He knows everybody got time, then he finds out that not a lot of them are willing. That's why you all have no help, because you got to have the ability. You got to be available. But what difference doesn't make if you're not willing. It's past week. My wife and I were about to get in our truck, and we were leaving, and we were already running late. You know, as we usually are, they ain't nobody's fault. That's just ears. Hey, man. They used to call us as seminary. The fascist being late caught us. That's nobody's fault. That's just ears, brother Brown. That's just ears. We were getting our truck and we were running late. And we were hurrying. And just as I was about to start the truck, our neighbor asked, do you have jumper capers? Do you have some jumper capers? Now to stop her as to stop what we were doing, and to help her would mean that we would really be late to where we needed to be, but our neighbor needed help. And assessing the situation, I thought to myself, I have the cables. So I'm able, I'm here, like I can't run so you can see me, I'm available. The question that I had to ask at that moment was, was I willing, was I willing to be late, was I willing to compromise our agenda, was I willing to be in convenience. Thankfully beloved, this is never a question with the Holy Spirit. He never have to answer these questions. Thankfully beloved, he is able and also willing. You don't have to twist it arm. He's not running late to some other engagements. You are not going to inconvenience him. He is willing, like Christ. In Mark chapter 1 and verse 40, the man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. He said to Jesus, if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean. And Bible says that Jesus being moved with compassion, reached out and touched him. And what did he say, I am willing. This is the willingness of Christ. This is the willingness of the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit is a willing spirit, is willing to save all those who confess a faith in Jesus Christ this morning. He is willing to comfort all those who stand in the need of prayer this morning. He is willing, not only to comfort you, he is willing to pray with you, and when you cannot pray any longer for yourself, he is willing to pray for you, because he's willing. Is the able, yes, won't he do it, yes he will. Holy Spirit will help. When others are no longer willing, when others are no longer available, when others are no longer able, Holy Spirit is there to help. In the world, the flesh and the devil, raise war on your soul, Holy Spirit will come and help. Will comfort your soul, will calm your spirit. As the song says, when the peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when stones, like feebillows, roll, whatever my life, Holy Spirit comes and says, it is well, it is well, it is well with my, because he helps, because he's available, because he's available, and because he's willing. Is the able, yes he's available, won't he do it, yes he will, that's great.