“MY LIFE VERSE” John 3:30
FBCF – 3/19/23
Jon Daniels
INTRO – Have you ever thought about having a “life verse” – a verse that the Lord has used in your life in a strong way to give you direction or comfort or clarity in your life? Texted several of my pastor & minister friends to see if they had a life verse. So interesting & encouraging to see some of their responses:
- Scott Carter – 1 John 3:1 – “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”
- Chip Stevens, FBC, Jxn – 2 Chronicles 16:9 – “For the eyes of the Lord move to & fro throughout the whole earth, that He may strongly support those whose hearts are completely His…”
- Ron Mumbower – Isaiah 57:14 – “Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.”
- Becky Brown – Luke 12:48 – “To whom much is given, much is required.”
- Bill Elliff – Acts 20:24 – “I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.”
- Josh Braddy, Broadmoor BC – John 10:10 – “I have come that they might have life & have it more abundantly.”
- Mark Sandifer – Proverbs 3:5-6
- Cindy Sansing – Habakkuk 2:2-3 – “Then the Lord replied: ‘Write down the revelation & make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end & will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come & will not delay.’”
- Michael Nanney – Luke 10:19 – “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”
- Matt Hines – James 1:2-3 – “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”
EXPLANATION – John 3:30
John 3:30, the sermon text for today & our memory verse right now, is my life verse. I really can’t remember exactly when I chose that verse as my life verse. I do remember a pastor teaching on it at one time & it spoke to my heart. So, I decided to start looking for a life verse & landed on John 3:30. I’ve always been a fan of John the Baptist. As a kid, thought it was cool that he was a Baptist & I was a Baptist. I didn’t know that he wasn’t really a Southern Baptist church member or a part of the Southern Baptist denomination (or any other Baptist denomination for that matter), but still thought it was cool. He wasn’t John the Methodist or John the Presbyterian or John the Episcopalian. He was John the Baptist! And that ended up being my CB handle! And he’s the one who actually said the words, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
We talk a lot about making much of Jesus around here. And we strive really hard to truly do that in all we do as a church.
- “Take It to the Town” - 7 people saved last year - 7 people saved this past Wed night
If there was anyone in the NT who made much of Jesus, it was John the Baptist. In fact, that was the entire reason for his life. Isaiah prophesied about J the B in Isaiah 40 as John said in v. 23. And I would submit to you that John 3:30 was purpose for living - HIS life verse.
APPLICATION – Having a life verse helps you make much of Jesus.
Question: Why have a life verse?
- It plainly shows your priority – Glorify God in all we say & do. Zeroes us in on this. Cuts through all the other distractions that vie for our attention & voices that scream for our attention.
- It places you in the proper position – Position of humility w/ Jesus on the throne of your life – Bowing low before Him – “Jesus you are LORD of my life, KING of my life, the BOSS of my life!”
- It points others to Jesus – Point away from ourselves & point to HIM.
4 Characteristics of a Life Verse:
LOVE – Jesus made it abundantly clear to us that our lives as His followers MUST be characterized by love.
- Love the Lord your God – Love others – Matthew 22:37-39
- They will know you by your love – John 13:35 – “By this will everyone know…”
- Love your enemies – Matthew 5:43-44 – “You have heard it said…”
- Love leads to sacrifice – John 15:13 – “Greater love…”
A life verse should help you love Jesus more & more & more! Which then will lead you to love others more & more & more! Which then means you are living in obedience to Jesus more & more & more…& that’s a GOOD THING!
INTENTIONAL – One of the reasons that so many people flounder in their relationship w/ Jesus is b/c of a lack of intentionality in this area of their lives.
- Intentional in their business/work life
- Intentional in their athletic pursuits
- Intentional in their recreational activities
- Intentional in their hobbies
But when it come to their walk w/ Christ, it’s more of an afterthought. There’s a casualness about it – a flippancy – an attitude of “If I have time left over after all my other pursuits & activities, then I will try to think about my walk w/ Jesus.
If we are going to make it in this life – if we are going to be able to stand against the withering onslaught of the enemy’s attacks – if we are going to enjoy the abundant life that is promised to us – then we’ve got to be intentional in our walk w/ Jesus.
- Matthew 6:33 – “Seek FIRST the K of G…”
- Jeremiah 29:13 – “You will seek me & find me when you seek me w/ your WHOLE heart.”
- Psalm 119:2 – “Joyful are those who obey His laws & search for Him w/ ALL their hearts.” (NLT)
FOCUS – Focus is so important.
- If you can’t get your eyes to focus, you can find yourself in a dangerous position if you’re driving or coming down some stairs or reading the instructions on a pill bottle.
- If you can’t get your rifle scope to focus, you might miss that trophy buck standing out in that food plot.
- If you can’t get your mind to focus, you might fail that big exam, or miss an important appointment or interview or a big event in your child’s life.
A life verse can help you stay focused on what’s truly important in your life & not get sidetracked by the world’s attractions.
- Romans 12:2 – “Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test & approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing & perfect will.” (NIV)
ENCOMPASSING – The very term “life verse” brings the thought of an all-encompassing verse to mind. It should help you:
- Define your view of God.
- Learn more about God.
- Help you continually grow in your faith.
The W of G covers absolutely every area of your life. “The authority of Scripture means that all the words in Scripture are God’s words in such a way that to disbelieve or disobey any word of Scripture is to disbelieve or disobey God.” (Wayne Grudem, https://gracequotes.org/topic/authority-bible/) Let your Life Verse lead you to believe & obey God in every area of your life.
CONCLUSION – Let me conclude this sermon by saying something that might sound a little contradictory to what I’ve preached today: You don’t have to have a life verse. Nothing in Bible says you have to just one as your life verse. After all, there are over 31,000 verses in the Bible! May be tough to choose just one! But I hope that this message has helped you consider your walk w/ Jesus, whether you have a life verse or not.
But, can we go back to my life verse, our sermon text – John 3:30? This doesn’t have to be YOUR life verse. But the message of it must be message of every Christ-follower’s life.
He must increase – Investment in stock of a certain company. You believe it’s a good investment & has great potential for growth. If you want your investment to increase, you’ve got to first make an initial investment, an initial deposit. It’s obvious that it won’t increase if there’s nothing there, nothing in your portfolio, nothing in your account.
So, take a look at the account of your spiritual life. Has that initial investment happened in your heart? Have you trusted in Christ alone & received Him as your Savior so He could make the deposit of eternal life in your heart? That happened in my life 50 years ago yesterday – March 18, 1973 – my spiritual birthday.
You don’t have to know the exact date that you made that decision. But do you know that you know that you know that you HAVE made that decision & that you are truly saved? If not, then NOW is the time to make that decision.
And if you have made that decision, can you honestly say that Jesus is increasing in your life? Increasing in importance – Increasing in influence – Increasing in intimacy – Increasing in the time you spend w/ Him & the desire to grow in Him – Increasing in your desire to serve Him & live for Him & tell others about Him.
