November 7, 2025 • 38 mins
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In John 14:12, the greater works that Jesus was talking about was the scope of impact. When Jesus was on this earth, His travels were limited. Now the church of Jesus Christ, has carried his message to billions all over the world.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Biblical Talks Sermon of the Week.
In John, chapter 14, verse 12,Jesus said this Truly, truly I
say to you whoever believes inme will also do the works that I
do, and greater works thanthese will he do, because I am
going to the Father Now.
(00:22):
This verse can be veryconfusing, but the reality is
that Jesus was talking about thescope of impact.
Listen, Jesus traveled while hewas on this earth was limited,
and as were the number of peoplewho he healed and people who
had heard his voice, but in theyears since, the church has
(00:46):
carried the message of thegospel to billions of people
around the world.
That is the greater work thatJesus is talking about here.
Let's listen to Pastor KevinSmith talk about this sermon
called Greater Words.
Here's Pastor Kevin Smith.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
John, chapter 14, just a few verses, 12 through 14
.
Jesus begins with those famouswords of his in the King James.
It's amen, amen.
He says truly, truly.
(01:29):
I say to you, whoever believesin me will also do the works
that I do, and greater worksthan these will he do, because I
am going to the Father.
Whatever you ask in my name,this I will do.
That the Father may beglorified in the Son.
If you ask me anything in myname, I will do it.
That is the glorious word ofthe Lord.
(02:01):
You may be seated Before I, ourmothers in Zion.
Thank God for you, dear lady,thank God for you.
Have you ever been given a blankcheck?
I mean someone with a boatloadof money hands you a check with
(02:30):
no amount on it and says to youfill in whatever you want.
And, by the way, the check ismade out to you, just to be
clear.
Now I know about you.
I wouldn't be greedy, I'd onlyask for five million.
I mean just to be clear.
Now I know about you.
I wouldn't be greedy, I'd onlyask for five million.
(02:50):
I mean I you know, just alittle pittance.
Our Lord says things in thispassage I just read, that sound
like a blank check, and somehave taken it that way.
Just believe it and you willreceive it.
Now, that may be wrong, but thepromise is still there.
(03:11):
Disciples of Jesus can dogreater works than Jesus.
Do you believe it, though?
Do you believe it Whatever itmeans?
Do you believe it?
Whatever it means?
Do you believe it?
We're back in chapter 14, ofcourse, when we're in the upper
(03:31):
room the night, our lord will bebetrayed, arrested, and the
next day he'll be crucified.
He's giving his final teachingbefore he suffers, to comfort
his disciples concerning hisleaving them.
Keep in mind all of this, whatwe're studying into chapter and,
to the point where he'sactually arrested, everything he
(03:53):
says is to comfort hisdisciples, who will miss his
physical presence.
Therefore, it's for us too.
He's told them that he's goingto prepare a place for them in
the Father's house, heaven.
He told them he is the way ofGod, the truth of God and the
(04:14):
life of God, and the only way toGod.
He revealed himself, as you sawlast time, as part of the
divine holy trinity, and all ofthat's controversial enough to
the world, but what we'relooking at this morning is some
(04:34):
of the most controversialteachings he gave, even to the
church.
We disagree on how to understandthis passage.
We disagree on how tounderstand this passage and I'm
so glad the Grams are here,because I think what you said to
us about Bogota.
I think you find some help hereand hope here.
(04:58):
First of all, greater workscome through faith in Jesus.
Faith in Jesus, this is themain idea.
But he also says we will dowhat he did.
Then he says greater.
We will do what Jesus did.
He said, and then we'll dogreater.
Now, to understand these amazingpromises, we have to ask
(05:20):
something what was Jesus'mission?
To ask something what wasJesus' mission?
And it's very simple, we knowthis.
It was to preach the gospel ofthe kingdom in order to seek and
save the lost to his father'sglory.
That's it in a nutshell.
That was his mission.
All of his miracles and gooddeeds are for this purpose to
(05:45):
authenticate the presence of thekingdom in the king among them
and to give authority to hismessage.
Here's what we do when we readthis passage.
We tend to focus on themiracles, but the miraculous
(06:07):
works were not his focus.
He came to save.
Mark, chapter 1, verses 14 and15.
Now, after John was arrested,jesus came into Galilee,
proclaiming the gospel of Godand saying the time is fulfilled
and the kingdom of God is athand.
Repent and believe in thegospel of God and saying the
time is fulfilled and thekingdom of God is at hand.
Repent and believe in thegospel Mission.
(06:31):
He delivered people from thepower of the fall to set them
free to follow him through faithin his message and repentance.
When the disciples got excited,one time they came back the 72,
they came back and they wereexcited about the fact that they
(06:55):
had performed miracles.
Watch this God performedmiracles through them.
They got excited aboutmiraculous power and they came
back and the Lord says somethingvery profound to them in Luke,
chapter 10, verses 17 to 20.
Here it is the 72 returned withjoy saying Lord, even the
demons are subject to us in yourname.
(07:18):
Miraculous power.
And he said to them power.
And he said to them I saw Satanfall like lightning from heaven
(07:38):
.
Behold, I have given youauthority to tread on serpents
and scorpions and over allmiraculous power, that the
spirit is a subject to you.
But rejoice that your names arewritten in heaven.
(08:00):
Dr boyce comments on this, mypastor.
He says here Jesus explicitlyweighed the value of physical
miracles over against the valueof having passed out of
spiritual death into salvationand chose the spiritual miracle
without hesitation.
In other words, the emphasis isnot on having miraculous powers
(08:25):
but on the spiritual miracle ofGod saving people.
That's a spiritual miracleBecause no one can believe
unless the Holy Spirit does aprofound work of transformation
in them and then they can saythat's what John told us through
(08:49):
Jesus.
Jesus told us through John, itshould say in chapter three,
when he's with Nicodemus.
He tells Nicodemus two things.
He says no one can see thekingdom of heaven unless they
are born from above.
Do you see what he's saying?
No one can see unless theSpirit makes them born again.
(09:10):
In other words, you have to beborn again first before you can
see the kingdom.
And then he said no one canenter the kingdom unless they
are born again Again.
What comes first?
They're born again Again.
What comes first?
The miracle of the work of theSpirit has got to transform us,
(09:31):
make us alive, so that we canone see a kingdom and then enter
the kingdom.
Jesus says that's more importantthan any kind of miraculous
power over demonic spirits orany other type of miracle.
So first of all, the works ofJesus are setting people free
(09:55):
from bondage to sin, satan anddeath.
This we do as we, in faith inhim, proclaim the gospel.
Faith in Jesus is in his powerand that power being released in
(10:16):
his message.
Romans 1.16.
Where do we see the power ofGod?
For I'm not ashamed of thegospel, for it is.
It is the gospel, it is thepower of God for salvation to
everyone who believes, to theJew first, also to the Greek.
1 Corinthians 1.18.
(10:38):
For the word of the cross isfolly to those who are perishing
, us folly to those who areperishing, but to us who are
being saved, it is the power ofGod.
(10:58):
Paul points twice to the gospelas the revelation of God's power
in us, not miracles, becausemiracles can be counterfeited.
Satan has power.
Go into various places wheredarkness reigns.
I remember in Miami it wasSanteria, the voodoo mixed with
(11:20):
Roman Catholicism.
Go into Jamaica and you gotOvia, more voodoo.
Go into Africa voodoo.
Things happen in the dark.
Power is revealed by darkness.
Satan is not impotent, he'sjust not in control.
(11:43):
When you put your faith inmiracles, if you misinterpret
this passage as many have done,and focus on the miracles, you
set yourself up.
But worse, paul says in 1Corinthians 12,.
(12:05):
He made it clear in thatwonderful chapter that the
Spirit has given a variety ofspiritual gifts to the church.
But he says something aboutmiraculous gifts that we need to
hear.
He's speaking rhetorically.
This is rhetorical questionsthat Paul is asking to drive
(12:27):
home his point.
1 Corinthians 12, 29 and 30.
This won't be on the screen.
You have to listen please.
He says at the end of it areall apostles, are all prophets,
are all teachers?
Do all work miracles?
Do all possess gifts of healing?
(12:48):
Do all speak with tongues?
Do all interpret?
And the answer is no.
That's what he's pointing out.
But in the passage that Jesusis teaching us, he says everyone
(13:09):
who believes will do my worksand even greater works, everyone
who believes, but everyone.
If you focus on miracles, thensome of us are in big trouble
Because all of us don't havemiraculous gifts.
(13:30):
And what you find out, and whatthe grams are talking about, is
that in some places, in someteaching, if you do not speak in
tongues, you do not have theSpirit.
If you do not speak in tongues,you might even be born again.
If you do not have gifts,tongues, you might even be born
(13:52):
again.
If you do not have gifts of, of, of miraculous power.
You are a lower class christianrather than a maturing
christian, and paul and our lordjesus would say no see, if you
focus on the miracles, you endup.
There Are miracles stillpossible?
Sure, they are, because God isreal, but that is not our
(14:17):
mission.
He didn't send us to domiracles.
The works of Jesus, primarily,are the proclamation of his
gospel through word and yes, ofcourse, through deeds of mercy,
love and compassion that pointpeople to him and not to us.
(14:40):
How many times I watch these,some of these miracle working
pastors on TV and I.
Every single time they getexalted more than Jesus.
All of the miracles that,should that happened in his name
should point to him and givehim glory and give him the honor
(15:04):
and the rest of us go amen.
So Jesus, first of all, hisworks that he's talking about
are not miracles, but the gospel.
But watch, no, then hold it now.
Then what are the greater worksthat we do?
Everyone who believes will dogreater works too, not just his
(15:27):
works, but greater works.
What does that mean?
Well, he can't mean we will domore spectacular or more
powerful miracles than he did.
He showed power over nature,speaking to the winds and waves.
Peace be still boom.
Walking on water, multiplyingmatter.
(15:51):
Speaking to the winds and waves.
Peace be still Boom.
Walking on water, multiplyingmatter by touching it Fish,
loaves, bread, just multiplyingit like that, speaking to those
who are demonically possessedand saying come out of him, boom
Done.
Spiritual forces of darkness athis feet Raised two people from
(16:15):
the dead Widow of Nain's sonand, of course, the one you know
most of all, lazarus.
Two people he raised from thedead in front of folk.
And then, of course, last ofall, he himself rises from the
dead.
So let me guess You're going todo greater miracles than that.
(16:37):
Huh, if that's what he'stalking about, who can top that?
Listen, saints, the discipleswould have said no way to that
interpretation.
They would have said how are wegoing to top that?
We saw you do these things andwe still can't believe it.
We're going to do better thanthat?
(16:58):
No, we can't.
So the greater works cannotmean bigger miracles and since
we see that his works are mostlypreaching of the kingdom, it
has to be related to that.
The most respected commentatorssee this as a reference to the
reality of the new covenant andthe extent of these works when
(17:18):
the spirit of God comes.
You see, after the death andresurrection of Jesus, a new era
has come into being.
He has poured out his spiritupon his church, as he told his
disciples in Acts 1.8.
You will receive power when theHoly Spirit has come upon you.
Now read the sentence.
Power to do what?
(17:39):
And you will be my witnesses inJerusalem and in Judea and
Samaria and to the end of theearth.
We are all equipped by theSpirit of God, all of us.
I don't care how introvertedyou are, I don't care how
extroverted you are, I don'tcare how much you think you know
(18:00):
the Bible.
We are all equipped with hisSpirit.
Every one of us who is adisciple of Jesus has been given
the Holy Spirit so that we canbear witness to Jesus with our
lips and lives of compassion,justice and mercy.
Listen in places.
(18:20):
Jesus never went when he wasphysically present with us.
He was physically present withus.
Jesus, while physically present, never left Israel, except that
one time when he went to Egyptwhen he was a baby running for
(18:42):
his life.
He was an immigrant.
He was an immigrant.
He never physically, but now wetake this message of his
reality and works to the end ofthe earth, to every tribe,
nation and tongue.
That's the emphasis in the bookof Acts.
(19:03):
When you read the book of Acts,those wonderful chapters, sure,
we see a few miraclesauthenticating the apostles as
having been with Jesus.
But it's not a book full ofmiracles.
There are only a few, a fewmiracles authenticating the
apostles as having been withJesus.
But it's not a book full ofmiracles, there are only a few.
But what you see exploding inthe book of Acts?
If you read it, you'll see howthe mighty gospel spread
(19:26):
throughout the Roman world,saving people dead in sin,
trapped in darkness and underthe power of the evil.
One.
Saving people dead in sin,trapped in darkness and under
the power of the evil one.
Thousands put their faith inJesus in major cities, even the
capital, rome itself, as theeternal kingdom of light broke
out in the darkness of the Romanworld and into our world.
(19:49):
And into our world when Peterpreached on the day of Pentecost
and 3,000 people repented oftheir sins.
And then later we see 2,000more people came to submit to
King Jesus.
Peter reached more people thanour Lord Jesus did in his
(20:11):
physical life.
Thousands, thousands, thousandsand thousands of people.
And then, when the apostlesspread the gospel throughout the
Roman world, and then thegospel began to spread from life
to life, from lip to lip, aspeople were being transformed
and translated from the kingdomof darkness into the kingdom of
(20:33):
light.
The gospel spread like wildfireall throughout the Roman empire
, so much so that one group ofpeople cried out these men, who
have turned the world upsidedown, have now come to our city,
and they were not happy aboutit.
It wasn't because they weredoing miracle, saints.
It was because the reality andthe presence and the power of
(20:58):
Jesus had overwhelmed them andthey were full of the glory of
God and they gave their lives toproclaim him at whatever risk
was necessary.
And they paid the price.
And they paid the price, asmany, even today, are still
paying that price.
(21:24):
There you see the works of Jesusexploding, the greater works of
the gospel spreading throughoutthe world.
What greater work?
What is a greater work thanthat?
You tell me, what can begreater than that?
Anybody got one.
You lenore goes out and hestarts running down the street
(21:45):
healing folk.
Maybe a hundred people gethealed.
That's greater.
How many begin healed isgreater than the thousands and
millions that are being reachedwith the gospel throughout every
year.
Oh, by the way, don't tellanybody.
(22:07):
I said this Miracles don't savepeople.
You know how?
I know Because Jesus did a lotof them and they still crucified
him, I don't know.
(22:32):
Years ago there was a teachingelder pastor in one of our
presbyteries.
I'm going to say where.
I was in that presbytery andI'll never forget.
The dear brother decided toleave our denomination, which is
(22:53):
not a sin, but what he said wasstriking.
He said I'm leaving to thewhole person there.
He said I'm leaving because Iwant to go spread the gospel
with power, signs and wonders.
I'm not exaggerating, I'm notmaking this up.
He said he wanted to go spreadthe gospel with power, signs and
(23:15):
wonders.
That's why he was leaving thePresbyterian Church in America
and all I could do was almostweep for him, the Presbyterian,
some guys get all.
My heart was broken for him,because that's not what Jesus is
telling us to do.
(23:37):
Just just, as backup, just tosay, just to say, just say and I
do believe in the gifts of theSpirit, by the way Just say
Freeman, dr Freeman, he's aphysician.
Just say he had the gift ofhealing and he goes out and he
heals people.
I should say.
(23:58):
Let me be clear, god uses himBecause, remember, the apostles
were not the power.
Jesus was always the power.
Okay, so the apostles didn'theal anybody.
Jesus did healing through them.
So I want to be clear with mytheology.
Okay, so Dr Freeman goes outand God uses him to start
healing people.
Does that guarantee they willbelieve in the gospel?
(24:24):
Let me back up.
How many times have people comeinto the church and benefited
from all the kindness and loveand grace of the people of God
and still walked out the doorunsaved?
You see, only the work of theSpirit can move and transform
(24:48):
people, and he does it throughthe gospel.
We're looking for people to betransformed, not just to be
served.
If all we are doing is helpingpeople feel better in their
situation helping people, youknow, maybe even progress in
some ways, if that's all we'redoing, then we are a social
(25:17):
service organization and not achurch of the kingdom of God.
The gospel must go forth withgreat power so that people are
transformed from the inside out,that they would then come and
follow King Jesus.
That is the power of God, thatis the miracle of the Spirit,
that is the great work of God,and the more it happens, the
more we see the greater works ofJesus being manifest in the
(25:40):
lives of people around the worldand in the nations.
Hmm, and again, the beauty ofall this.
This kind of life is not forsuper Christians, he says again,
whoever believes in me, faithin Jesus is the key saints.
(26:04):
Faith in Jesus and in hispromise to us as everyday
Christians.
Promise to us as everydayChristians living the everyday
Christian life, to be at his use, to be at his disposal.
If we will let who Jesus is in,his love and presence,
(26:26):
overwhelm our everyday existence, moving us from thinking only
about ourselves and our littlekingdoms, we will discover that
we have everything we need to beused by him in his works and
greater works.
If you're like me, it's so easyto just get caught up in doing
(26:49):
life.
I got bills to pay, just likeyou.
My car broke down, got to getit fixed, need an oil change,
spending money, money going outthe window.
It's always going out thewindow.
How come it don't stay in thehouse?
It's always going out thewindow.
I'm sick, I'm hurt, my wife'ssick, my dog's sick.
(27:12):
I mean life.
People at your job don't likeyou.
People do like you.
You're going to birthdayparties for your children.
You're going to birthdayparties for your co-workers,
you're going to birthday partiesfor your classmates.
We're doing life and it's easyto get caught up in just doing
(27:34):
life.
Or, if you're like me and youstruggle with depression, you
just like to sit in front ofyour TV and watch Netflix for
about three hours, four or fivehours.
We just get caught up and it'svery easy to forget that you've
(27:59):
been sent, that you're not justhere to exist.
I'm talking to Christians now.
I'm talking to us.
We're not just here, but Jesushas sent you to do his works and
to do greater works.
Each one of you, not just KevinSmith.
(28:22):
I've been blessed.
Jesus put me in places Idreamed about, places I dreamed
about.
The Grahams can tell you we hadthe privilege of being with
them in, I think, bali, creteand the Dominican Republic,
preaching to missionaries.
I've had the honor andprivilege of standing before a
(28:46):
few thousand people to proclaimthe gospel on several occasions.
Never, never.
It blows my mind and I amnobody.
All I'm saying to you is thatJesus will use you as he sees
fit If you will make yourselfavailable, if you will get up in
(29:09):
the morning and say Lord.
What are we going to do today?
Because he wants to use you.
So you're part of the equation,he's working through you, so
you are important.
You're just not the mostimportant.
How many of you want to be usedby Jesus Don't raise your hands
(29:35):
, because some of you might belying how many of you want to be
used by Jesus to see that truthin this passage, these promises
realized in you?
Or are you spending most ofyour days looking at yourself?
Got to fix me, and that's ourculture today.
(30:02):
A lot of us, a lot of ourculture's teaching and ideology,
is fixing self.
That's not the kingdom.
Jesus does the fixing.
He just wants you to beavailable, to trust him and then
(30:22):
let him, in your messiness, useyou to exalt him.
As you tell people clearly whohe is and yes, even in the Bible
belt.
Greater works as you send yourmoney and support missionaries
(30:47):
who are reaching people.
You'll never see greater worksas you are making yourself
available to speak to peoplewherever you have an opportunity
.
Not being obnoxious but lookingfor.
As you are making yourselfavailable to speak to people
wherever you have an opportunity, not being obnoxious but
looking for people will talk.
People just talk.
You know what I've always saidto you.
I've said this many times, soforgive me for being redundant.
(31:09):
When people say, what did youdo this weekend, they're going
to ask you.
When you go to work tomorrowholiday weekend People are going
to ask you what do you?
Speaker 1 (31:18):
do what did?
Speaker 2 (31:19):
y'all do.
What did y'all do?
And what are you going to sayoh, we had barbecue, man, we
didn't even got.
I killed the brontosaurus andwe burned it up.
Baby, yeah, and that's allwe're going to say.
How about?
I was in worship and I heard amessage that challenged me that
God wants to use me to do theworks of Jesus.
(31:41):
And then you've got to explainwhat that means.
It goes to gospel.
I used to have a license platein Virginia.
It said five tulip, the numberfive in T-U-L-I-P.
(32:02):
Now, most of you know tulip isan acrostic based on acronym for
basically the five points ofhow God saves us, you know.
And so people would ask me fivetulip, what's that mean?
Well, I could say I got fourdaughters and a wife, my five
(32:22):
tulips.
But that wasn't.
But that's not the gospel.
Every time they ask me, let metell you you see, t stands for
you're messed up.
You can't save yourself.
T means that in thought, wordand deed, you are a mess.
(32:47):
My friend, come on.
You know it's right, don't you?
Yeah, man, I feel you.
You stands for I can just goright down and talk about how
Jesus saved sinners like me, andhim and her opportunities.
What are you going to say?
Because the work of Jesus isthe proclamation of the king of
(33:11):
the kingdom, who has come tosave, to seek and save lost
people to the glory of hisfather.
That's the good work.
Listen, you got an opportunity.
You can listen to it.
You got an opportunity.
Listen to me.
Let Jesus use you to do hisworks, and maybe even greater,
(33:34):
as he uses you and yourresources and your church.
We're doing the greater worksof Jesus through the grams as
you're reaching people in Bogota.
Think about it.
There's more to say here in thispassage.
I just decided to focus on thatone part.
Everything else I'm going tosay next week reinforces what we
(33:58):
just said today.
Remember today, becauseeverything else will build on it
.
All right, amen.
Let's pray, father.
Thank you, jesus, lord Jesus,that we could be used by you,
that you could do work in us sothat your works and greater
works are manifest to us.
(34:19):
It's above our head.
But thank you, lord, that youcan use even us.
We're not the most influentialpeople, we don't travel on
private jets and fly around theworld, but thank you that, even
in our little reality, you canuse us to do your works and
(34:42):
bring great glory to your Father.
So use us, oh Lord.
Use us, use each one of us,make us, help us to see the
greatness of the journey that weget to walk with you.
It's not about us, it's aboutyou and your glory being
(35:03):
manifest.
Help us, lord, use us.
Deliver us, o Lord, fromourselves and living in
mediocrity where we can live inthe adventure of knowing and
walking with you each and everyday.
Help us to see it.
(35:25):
Help us to see you, amen.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
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Thank you for listening toBiblical Talks.
Welcome to Biblical Talks Sermon of the Week.
In John, chapter 14, verse 12,Jesus said this Truly, truly I
say to you whoever believes inme will also do the works that I
do, and greater works thanthese will he do, because I am
going to the Father Now.
(00:22):
This verse can be veryconfusing, but the reality is
that Jesus was talking about thescope of impact.
Listen, Jesus traveled while hewas on this earth was limited,
and as were the number of peoplewho he healed and people who
had heard his voice, but in theyears since, the church has
(00:46):
carried the message of thegospel to billions of people
around the world.
That is the greater work thatJesus is talking about here.
Let's listen to Pastor KevinSmith talk about this sermon
called Greater Words.
Here's Pastor Kevin Smith.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
John, chapter 14, just a few verses, 12 through 14
.
Jesus begins with those famouswords of his in the King James.
It's amen, amen.
He says truly, truly.
(01:29):
I say to you, whoever believesin me will also do the works
that I do, and greater worksthan these will he do, because I
am going to the Father.
Whatever you ask in my name,this I will do.
That the Father may beglorified in the Son.
If you ask me anything in myname, I will do it.
That is the glorious word ofthe Lord.
(02:01):
You may be seated Before I, ourmothers in Zion.
Thank God for you, dear lady,thank God for you.
Have you ever been given a blankcheck?
I mean someone with a boatloadof money hands you a check with
(02:30):
no amount on it and says to youfill in whatever you want.
And, by the way, the check ismade out to you, just to be
clear.
Now I know about you.
I wouldn't be greedy, I'd onlyask for five million.
I mean just to be clear.
Now I know about you.
I wouldn't be greedy, I'd onlyask for five million.
(02:50):
I mean I you know, just alittle pittance.
Our Lord says things in thispassage I just read, that sound
like a blank check, and somehave taken it that way.
Just believe it and you willreceive it.
Now, that may be wrong, but thepromise is still there.
(03:11):
Disciples of Jesus can dogreater works than Jesus.
Do you believe it, though?
Do you believe it Whatever itmeans?
Do you believe it?
Whatever it means?
Do you believe it?
We're back in chapter 14, ofcourse, when we're in the upper
(03:31):
room the night, our lord will bebetrayed, arrested, and the
next day he'll be crucified.
He's giving his final teachingbefore he suffers, to comfort
his disciples concerning hisleaving them.
Keep in mind all of this, whatwe're studying into chapter and,
to the point where he'sactually arrested, everything he
(03:53):
says is to comfort hisdisciples, who will miss his
physical presence.
Therefore, it's for us too.
He's told them that he's goingto prepare a place for them in
the Father's house, heaven.
He told them he is the way ofGod, the truth of God and the
(04:14):
life of God, and the only way toGod.
He revealed himself, as you sawlast time, as part of the
divine holy trinity, and all ofthat's controversial enough to
the world, but what we'relooking at this morning is some
(04:34):
of the most controversialteachings he gave, even to the
church.
We disagree on how to understandthis passage.
We disagree on how tounderstand this passage and I'm
so glad the Grams are here,because I think what you said to
us about Bogota.
I think you find some help hereand hope here.
(04:58):
First of all, greater workscome through faith in Jesus.
Faith in Jesus, this is themain idea.
But he also says we will dowhat he did.
Then he says greater.
We will do what Jesus did.
He said, and then we'll dogreater.
Now, to understand these amazingpromises, we have to ask
(05:20):
something what was Jesus'mission?
To ask something what wasJesus' mission?
And it's very simple, we knowthis.
It was to preach the gospel ofthe kingdom in order to seek and
save the lost to his father'sglory.
That's it in a nutshell.
That was his mission.
All of his miracles and gooddeeds are for this purpose to
(05:45):
authenticate the presence of thekingdom in the king among them
and to give authority to hismessage.
Here's what we do when we readthis passage.
We tend to focus on themiracles, but the miraculous
(06:07):
works were not his focus.
He came to save.
Mark, chapter 1, verses 14 and15.
Now, after John was arrested,jesus came into Galilee,
proclaiming the gospel of Godand saying the time is fulfilled
and the kingdom of God is athand.
Repent and believe in thegospel of God and saying the
time is fulfilled and thekingdom of God is at hand.
Repent and believe in thegospel Mission.
(06:31):
He delivered people from thepower of the fall to set them
free to follow him through faithin his message and repentance.
When the disciples got excited,one time they came back the 72,
they came back and they wereexcited about the fact that they
(06:55):
had performed miracles.
Watch this God performedmiracles through them.
They got excited aboutmiraculous power and they came
back and the Lord says somethingvery profound to them in Luke,
chapter 10, verses 17 to 20.
Here it is the 72 returned withjoy saying Lord, even the
demons are subject to us in yourname.
(07:18):
Miraculous power.
And he said to them power.
And he said to them I saw Satanfall like lightning from heaven
(07:38):
.
Behold, I have given youauthority to tread on serpents
and scorpions and over allmiraculous power, that the
spirit is a subject to you.
But rejoice that your names arewritten in heaven.
(08:00):
Dr boyce comments on this, mypastor.
He says here Jesus explicitlyweighed the value of physical
miracles over against the valueof having passed out of
spiritual death into salvationand chose the spiritual miracle
without hesitation.
In other words, the emphasis isnot on having miraculous powers
(08:25):
but on the spiritual miracle ofGod saving people.
That's a spiritual miracleBecause no one can believe
unless the Holy Spirit does aprofound work of transformation
in them and then they can saythat's what John told us through
(08:49):
Jesus.
Jesus told us through John, itshould say in chapter three,
when he's with Nicodemus.
He tells Nicodemus two things.
He says no one can see thekingdom of heaven unless they
are born from above.
Do you see what he's saying?
No one can see unless theSpirit makes them born again.
(09:10):
In other words, you have to beborn again first before you can
see the kingdom.
And then he said no one canenter the kingdom unless they
are born again Again.
What comes first?
They're born again Again.
What comes first?
The miracle of the work of theSpirit has got to transform us,
(09:31):
make us alive, so that we canone see a kingdom and then enter
the kingdom.
Jesus says that's more importantthan any kind of miraculous
power over demonic spirits orany other type of miracle.
So first of all, the works ofJesus are setting people free
(09:55):
from bondage to sin, satan anddeath.
This we do as we, in faith inhim, proclaim the gospel.
Faith in Jesus is in his powerand that power being released in
(10:16):
his message.
Romans 1.16.
Where do we see the power ofGod?
For I'm not ashamed of thegospel, for it is.
It is the gospel, it is thepower of God for salvation to
everyone who believes, to theJew first, also to the Greek.
1 Corinthians 1.18.
(10:38):
For the word of the cross isfolly to those who are perishing
, us folly to those who areperishing, but to us who are
being saved, it is the power ofGod.
(10:58):
Paul points twice to the gospelas the revelation of God's power
in us, not miracles, becausemiracles can be counterfeited.
Satan has power.
Go into various places wheredarkness reigns.
I remember in Miami it wasSanteria, the voodoo mixed with
(11:20):
Roman Catholicism.
Go into Jamaica and you gotOvia, more voodoo.
Go into Africa voodoo.
Things happen in the dark.
Power is revealed by darkness.
Satan is not impotent, he'sjust not in control.
(11:43):
When you put your faith inmiracles, if you misinterpret
this passage as many have done,and focus on the miracles, you
set yourself up.
But worse, paul says in 1Corinthians 12,.
(12:05):
He made it clear in thatwonderful chapter that the
Spirit has given a variety ofspiritual gifts to the church.
But he says something aboutmiraculous gifts that we need to
hear.
He's speaking rhetorically.
This is rhetorical questionsthat Paul is asking to drive
(12:27):
home his point.
1 Corinthians 12, 29 and 30.
This won't be on the screen.
You have to listen please.
He says at the end of it areall apostles, are all prophets,
are all teachers?
Do all work miracles?
Do all possess gifts of healing?
(12:48):
Do all speak with tongues?
Do all interpret?
And the answer is no.
That's what he's pointing out.
But in the passage that Jesusis teaching us, he says everyone
(13:09):
who believes will do my worksand even greater works, everyone
who believes, but everyone.
If you focus on miracles, thensome of us are in big trouble
Because all of us don't havemiraculous gifts.
(13:30):
And what you find out, and whatthe grams are talking about, is
that in some places, in someteaching, if you do not speak in
tongues, you do not have theSpirit.
If you do not speak in tongues,you might even be born again.
If you do not have gifts,tongues, you might even be born
(13:52):
again.
If you do not have gifts of, of, of miraculous power.
You are a lower class christianrather than a maturing
christian, and paul and our lordjesus would say no see, if you
focus on the miracles, you endup.
There Are miracles stillpossible?
Sure, they are, because God isreal, but that is not our
(14:17):
mission.
He didn't send us to domiracles.
The works of Jesus, primarily,are the proclamation of his
gospel through word and yes, ofcourse, through deeds of mercy,
love and compassion that pointpeople to him and not to us.
(14:40):
How many times I watch these,some of these miracle working
pastors on TV and I.
Every single time they getexalted more than Jesus.
All of the miracles that,should that happened in his name
should point to him and givehim glory and give him the honor
(15:04):
and the rest of us go amen.
So Jesus, first of all, hisworks that he's talking about
are not miracles, but the gospel.
But watch, no, then hold it now.
Then what are the greater worksthat we do?
Everyone who believes will dogreater works too, not just his
(15:27):
works, but greater works.
What does that mean?
Well, he can't mean we will domore spectacular or more
powerful miracles than he did.
He showed power over nature,speaking to the winds and waves.
Peace be still boom.
Walking on water, multiplyingmatter.
(15:51):
Speaking to the winds and waves.
Peace be still Boom.
Walking on water, multiplyingmatter by touching it Fish,
loaves, bread, just multiplyingit like that, speaking to those
who are demonically possessedand saying come out of him, boom
Done.
Spiritual forces of darkness athis feet Raised two people from
(16:15):
the dead Widow of Nain's sonand, of course, the one you know
most of all, lazarus.
Two people he raised from thedead in front of folk.
And then, of course, last ofall, he himself rises from the
dead.
So let me guess You're going todo greater miracles than that.
(16:37):
Huh, if that's what he'stalking about, who can top that?
Listen, saints, the discipleswould have said no way to that
interpretation.
They would have said how are wegoing to top that?
We saw you do these things andwe still can't believe it.
We're going to do better thanthat?
(16:58):
No, we can't.
So the greater works cannotmean bigger miracles and since
we see that his works are mostlypreaching of the kingdom, it
has to be related to that.
The most respected commentatorssee this as a reference to the
reality of the new covenant andthe extent of these works when
(17:18):
the spirit of God comes.
You see, after the death andresurrection of Jesus, a new era
has come into being.
He has poured out his spiritupon his church, as he told his
disciples in Acts 1.8.
You will receive power when theHoly Spirit has come upon you.
Now read the sentence.
Power to do what?
(17:39):
And you will be my witnesses inJerusalem and in Judea and
Samaria and to the end of theearth.
We are all equipped by theSpirit of God, all of us.
I don't care how introvertedyou are, I don't care how
extroverted you are, I don'tcare how much you think you know
(18:00):
the Bible.
We are all equipped with hisSpirit.
Every one of us who is adisciple of Jesus has been given
the Holy Spirit so that we canbear witness to Jesus with our
lips and lives of compassion,justice and mercy.
Listen in places.
(18:20):
Jesus never went when he wasphysically present with us.
He was physically present withus.
Jesus, while physically present, never left Israel, except that
one time when he went to Egyptwhen he was a baby running for
(18:42):
his life.
He was an immigrant.
He was an immigrant.
He never physically, but now wetake this message of his
reality and works to the end ofthe earth, to every tribe,
nation and tongue.
That's the emphasis in the bookof Acts.
(19:03):
When you read the book of Acts,those wonderful chapters, sure,
we see a few miraclesauthenticating the apostles as
having been with Jesus.
But it's not a book full ofmiracles.
There are only a few, a fewmiracles authenticating the
apostles as having been withJesus.
But it's not a book full ofmiracles, there are only a few.
But what you see exploding inthe book of Acts?
If you read it, you'll see howthe mighty gospel spread
(19:26):
throughout the Roman world,saving people dead in sin,
trapped in darkness and underthe power of the evil.
One.
Saving people dead in sin,trapped in darkness and under
the power of the evil one.
Thousands put their faith inJesus in major cities, even the
capital, rome itself, as theeternal kingdom of light broke
out in the darkness of the Romanworld and into our world.
(19:49):
And into our world when Peterpreached on the day of Pentecost
and 3,000 people repented oftheir sins.
And then later we see 2,000more people came to submit to
King Jesus.
Peter reached more people thanour Lord Jesus did in his
(20:11):
physical life.
Thousands, thousands, thousandsand thousands of people.
And then, when the apostlesspread the gospel throughout the
Roman world, and then thegospel began to spread from life
to life, from lip to lip, aspeople were being transformed
and translated from the kingdomof darkness into the kingdom of
(20:33):
light.
The gospel spread like wildfireall throughout the Roman empire
, so much so that one group ofpeople cried out these men, who
have turned the world upsidedown, have now come to our city,
and they were not happy aboutit.
It wasn't because they weredoing miracle, saints.
It was because the reality andthe presence and the power of
(20:58):
Jesus had overwhelmed them andthey were full of the glory of
God and they gave their lives toproclaim him at whatever risk
was necessary.
And they paid the price.
And they paid the price, asmany, even today, are still
paying that price.
(21:24):
There you see the works of Jesusexploding, the greater works of
the gospel spreading throughoutthe world.
What greater work?
What is a greater work thanthat?
You tell me, what can begreater than that?
Anybody got one.
You lenore goes out and hestarts running down the street
(21:45):
healing folk.
Maybe a hundred people gethealed.
That's greater.
How many begin healed isgreater than the thousands and
millions that are being reachedwith the gospel throughout every
year.
Oh, by the way, don't tellanybody.
(22:07):
I said this Miracles don't savepeople.
You know how?
I know Because Jesus did a lotof them and they still crucified
him, I don't know.
(22:32):
Years ago there was a teachingelder pastor in one of our
presbyteries.
I'm going to say where.
I was in that presbytery andI'll never forget.
The dear brother decided toleave our denomination, which is
(22:53):
not a sin, but what he said wasstriking.
He said I'm leaving to thewhole person there.
He said I'm leaving because Iwant to go spread the gospel
with power, signs and wonders.
I'm not exaggerating, I'm notmaking this up.
He said he wanted to go spreadthe gospel with power, signs and
(23:15):
wonders.
That's why he was leaving thePresbyterian Church in America
and all I could do was almostweep for him, the Presbyterian,
some guys get all.
My heart was broken for him,because that's not what Jesus is
telling us to do.
(23:37):
Just just, as backup, just tosay, just to say, just say and I
do believe in the gifts of theSpirit, by the way Just say
Freeman, dr Freeman, he's aphysician.
Just say he had the gift ofhealing and he goes out and he
heals people.
I should say.
(23:58):
Let me be clear, god uses himBecause, remember, the apostles
were not the power.
Jesus was always the power.
Okay, so the apostles didn'theal anybody.
Jesus did healing through them.
So I want to be clear with mytheology.
Okay, so Dr Freeman goes outand God uses him to start
healing people.
Does that guarantee they willbelieve in the gospel?
(24:24):
Let me back up.
How many times have people comeinto the church and benefited
from all the kindness and loveand grace of the people of God
and still walked out the doorunsaved?
You see, only the work of theSpirit can move and transform
(24:48):
people, and he does it throughthe gospel.
We're looking for people to betransformed, not just to be
served.
If all we are doing is helpingpeople feel better in their
situation helping people, youknow, maybe even progress in
some ways, if that's all we'redoing, then we are a social
(25:17):
service organization and not achurch of the kingdom of God.
The gospel must go forth withgreat power so that people are
transformed from the inside out,that they would then come and
follow King Jesus.
That is the power of God, thatis the miracle of the Spirit,
that is the great work of God,and the more it happens, the
more we see the greater works ofJesus being manifest in the
(25:40):
lives of people around the worldand in the nations.
Hmm, and again, the beauty ofall this.
This kind of life is not forsuper Christians, he says again,
whoever believes in me, faithin Jesus is the key saints.
(26:04):
Faith in Jesus and in hispromise to us as everyday
Christians.
Promise to us as everydayChristians living the everyday
Christian life, to be at his use, to be at his disposal.
If we will let who Jesus is in,his love and presence,
(26:26):
overwhelm our everyday existence, moving us from thinking only
about ourselves and our littlekingdoms, we will discover that
we have everything we need to beused by him in his works and
greater works.
If you're like me, it's so easyto just get caught up in doing
(26:49):
life.
I got bills to pay, just likeyou.
My car broke down, got to getit fixed, need an oil change,
spending money, money going outthe window.
It's always going out thewindow.
How come it don't stay in thehouse?
It's always going out thewindow.
I'm sick, I'm hurt, my wife'ssick, my dog's sick.
(27:12):
I mean life.
People at your job don't likeyou.
People do like you.
You're going to birthdayparties for your children.
You're going to birthdayparties for your co-workers,
you're going to birthday partiesfor your classmates.
We're doing life and it's easyto get caught up in just doing
(27:34):
life.
Or, if you're like me and youstruggle with depression, you
just like to sit in front ofyour TV and watch Netflix for
about three hours, four or fivehours.
We just get caught up and it'svery easy to forget that you've
(27:59):
been sent, that you're not justhere to exist.
I'm talking to Christians now.
I'm talking to us.
We're not just here, but Jesushas sent you to do his works and
to do greater works.
Each one of you, not just KevinSmith.
(28:22):
I've been blessed.
Jesus put me in places Idreamed about, places I dreamed
about.
The Grahams can tell you we hadthe privilege of being with
them in, I think, bali, creteand the Dominican Republic,
preaching to missionaries.
I've had the honor andprivilege of standing before a
(28:46):
few thousand people to proclaimthe gospel on several occasions.
Never, never.
It blows my mind and I amnobody.
All I'm saying to you is thatJesus will use you as he sees
fit If you will make yourselfavailable, if you will get up in
(29:09):
the morning and say Lord.
What are we going to do today?
Because he wants to use you.
So you're part of the equation,he's working through you, so
you are important.
You're just not the mostimportant.
How many of you want to be usedby Jesus Don't raise your hands
(29:35):
, because some of you might belying how many of you want to be
used by Jesus to see that truthin this passage, these promises
realized in you?
Or are you spending most ofyour days looking at yourself?
Got to fix me, and that's ourculture today.
(30:02):
A lot of us, a lot of ourculture's teaching and ideology,
is fixing self.
That's not the kingdom.
Jesus does the fixing.
He just wants you to beavailable, to trust him and then
(30:22):
let him, in your messiness, useyou to exalt him.
As you tell people clearly whohe is and yes, even in the Bible
belt.
Greater works as you send yourmoney and support missionaries
(30:47):
who are reaching people.
You'll never see greater worksas you are making yourself
available to speak to peoplewherever you have an opportunity
.
Not being obnoxious but lookingfor.
As you are making yourselfavailable to speak to people
wherever you have an opportunity, not being obnoxious but
looking for people will talk.
People just talk.
You know what I've always saidto you.
I've said this many times, soforgive me for being redundant.
(31:09):
When people say, what did youdo this weekend, they're going
to ask you.
When you go to work tomorrowholiday weekend People are going
to ask you what do you?
Speaker 1 (31:18):
do what did?
Speaker 2 (31:19):
y'all do.
What did y'all do?
And what are you going to sayoh, we had barbecue, man, we
didn't even got.
I killed the brontosaurus andwe burned it up.
Baby, yeah, and that's allwe're going to say.
How about?
I was in worship and I heard amessage that challenged me that
God wants to use me to do theworks of Jesus.
(31:41):
And then you've got to explainwhat that means.
It goes to gospel.
I used to have a license platein Virginia.
It said five tulip, the numberfive in T-U-L-I-P.
(32:02):
Now, most of you know tulip isan acrostic based on acronym for
basically the five points ofhow God saves us, you know.
And so people would ask me fivetulip, what's that mean?
Well, I could say I got fourdaughters and a wife, my five
(32:22):
tulips.
But that wasn't.
But that's not the gospel.
Every time they ask me, let metell you you see, t stands for
you're messed up.
You can't save yourself.
T means that in thought, wordand deed, you are a mess.
(32:47):
My friend, come on.
You know it's right, don't you?
Yeah, man, I feel you.
You stands for I can just goright down and talk about how
Jesus saved sinners like me, andhim and her opportunities.
What are you going to say?
Because the work of Jesus isthe proclamation of the king of
(33:11):
the kingdom, who has come tosave, to seek and save lost
people to the glory of hisfather.
That's the good work.
Listen, you got an opportunity.
You can listen to it.
You got an opportunity.
Listen to me.
Let Jesus use you to do hisworks, and maybe even greater,
(33:34):
as he uses you and yourresources and your church.
We're doing the greater worksof Jesus through the grams as
you're reaching people in Bogota.
Think about it.
There's more to say here in thispassage.
I just decided to focus on thatone part.
Everything else I'm going tosay next week reinforces what we
(33:58):
just said today.
Remember today, becauseeverything else will build on it
.
All right, amen.
Let's pray, father.
Thank you, jesus, lord Jesus,that we could be used by you,
that you could do work in us sothat your works and greater
works are manifest to us.
(34:19):
It's above our head.
But thank you, lord, that youcan use even us.
We're not the most influentialpeople, we don't travel on
private jets and fly around theworld, but thank you that, even
in our little reality, you canuse us to do your works and
(34:42):
bring great glory to your Father.
So use us, oh Lord.
Use us, use each one of us,make us, help us to see the
greatness of the journey that weget to walk with you.
It's not about us, it's aboutyou and your glory being
(35:03):
manifest.
Help us, lord, use us.
Deliver us, o Lord, fromourselves and living in
mediocrity where we can live inthe adventure of knowing and
walking with you each and everyday.
Help us to see it.
(35:25):
Help us to see you, amen.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Hello, my name is Michelle Tolliver and Biblical
Talk's book offer for the monthof November is Fox's Book of
Martyrs by John Fox.
In 1563, john Fox published anaccount of the life of Christian
martyrs, beginning with Stephen, the first to die for the cause
of Christ, and ending with themost recent martyrs of his day,
protestants killed during BloodyMary's reign.
(35:53):
He knew that dangers lay inforgetting the martyrs and being
insensitive to their struggles.
They faced torture and death intheir fight of faith, willing
to stand for their beliefs andthe word of God regardless of
the price.
The faithfulness of suchhistorical figures as John
Wycliffe, john Huss, martinLuther, william Tyndale and so
(36:13):
many others has given our richChristian heritage.
Their courage and dedicationinspire us to live for Christ
today, and so many others hasgiven our rich Christian
heritage.
Their courage and dedicationinspire us to live for Christ
today.
A good Christian is bound torelinquish not only goods and
children, but life itself forthe glory of his Redeemer.
Therefore, I am resolved tosacrifice everything in this
(36:37):
transitioning world for the sakeof salvation in a world that
will last to eternity.
For any amount of donation toBiblical Talks, we will send you
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Please go to biblicaltalkscomand click the Donate here tab.
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I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Ruthie's Table 4
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.