Introduction: The Lamb of God, which came to take away the sin of the world, had been slain and offered a sacrifice for sin on Calvary. For 72 hours, Jesus' body lay undisturbed in Joseph's borrowed tomb. But God raised Jesus from the dead, and He came out of that tomb the Victor over death and the grave, "Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him." (Romans 6:9)
For 40 days, Jesus walked this earth after His triumphant resurrection. During these 40 days, Jesus cared for the business of the Kingdom. In those final days when Jesus walked the earth, He expressed some great concerns. Jesus came back from the dead and left a message for His followers.
His main concern was expressed to His disciples. He wanted them to tell others He was alive, and He wanted them to tell the world that Jesus saves. He commissioned His followers to get the Gospel out. One of His three commissions is found in Mark 16:15, "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
There was also another message not noticed nearly as much as His Great Commission. One of His own disciples, a rough-cut fisherman named Peter, had quit and gone back to fishing. He wanted Peter and those, who followed him, to come back into the ministry. Jesus knew that Peter did not need to be a fisher of fish but a fisher of men.
There was yet another message Jesus proclaimed before He ascended back into Heaven. Notice with me again our text verse, "And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book." (John 20:30) What were these "signs" Jesus did in the presence of His disciples? These signs were not miracles (different word) but proofs of His Messiahship. The Bible makes it very clear that these signs were done "in the presence of His disciples." Before Jesus went back to Heaven, He desired to make sure His disciples were well-grounded in the truth about Himself. What a blessed assurance this is! The disciples had had plenty of problems with doubt. Before they could turn the world upside down, they had to know what they believed and why. Jesus made sure they had no questions before He left them.
What were these proofs, of His Messiahship, done in the presence of His disciples? Biblically, we do not know, because the Bible says they are not written in this Book. But for 40 days, Jesus met with His disciples regularly and gave them proof that He was Who He said He was. The disciples were probably much like Jesus' predecessor, John the Baptist. When he was in prison and about to have his head chopped off, for preaching the truth to Herod, he wanted to know if Jesus was Who He said He was, "And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?" (Matthew 11:3) Jesus sent word back to John that He was just exactly Who He said He was, and John died with the assurance that his cause, his life, and his death were for the right reason.
I am challenged by this personally. After Jesus spent this time with His disciples, these same men made such an impact that the world was forever changed for the cause of Christ. When I think of what He did, I am challenged to think of what I have done. If I died today, is my family well-grounded in the truth so that they never fall because of a lack of knowledge? Is my church family well-grounded so that if I were suddenly taken, the church family would know what they believe? Often, parents know what they believe, but the children are destitute of this same knowledge. Often, a husband knows a great deal about what he believes, but the wife is left without this assurance. If a pastor is taken, his church family should not be ignorant of the truth.
Just as Jesus made sure His disciples were well-grounded in the truth, so we should make sure that those, who follow in our steps, be well-grounded in the truth. Are there some areas more vital than others?
1. Make sure they know you are saved. - 1 John 5:13
"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."
- I cannot tell you how many times I have spoken to Christians who have lost a loved one and have no idea whether or not he was saved. It's not written anywhere, and no one else seems to know anything about it.
- Share your testimony regularly. Make sure those, who follow in your steps, know which steps you have taken.
2. Make sure they know they are saved. - Romans 10:13
"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
- God forbid that any parent or spouse neglect the salvation of those nearest him.
- Make sure your spouse knows he or she is saved. Make sure your children know Christ as their Saviour. If they do not know for sure and do not care to know for sure right now, do your best to make sure they at least know how to be saved.
- Know how to bring your family to faith in Christ. Don't leave it up to another soul winner. Be the soul winner yourself.
- Not only that, make sure they understand that once they are saved, they are eternally saved and that no man, not even they themselves, are able to pluck themselves out of the hand of God, "And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand." (John 10:28,29) John 6:37 says, "...him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
3. Make sure they know Who Jesus Christ is. - Matthew 16:13-17
"When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven."
- Hosea 4:6 says, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..." Sadly, many parents know Who Jesus is but have never passed that knowledge on to their families.
- Before Jesus went back to Heaven, He made sure His disciples understood just exactly Who He was. Each of those men, armed with that knowledge, went on to become the great pastors, evangelists, and preachers who founded the very faith we believe.
- Jesus is not the brother of Lucifer, nor was He simply a good teacher or powerful prophet. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." (John 1:1-3)
4. Make sure they know what the Bible is. - 2 Timothy 3:16
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."
- This verse does not teach "all that is Scripture is inspired"; rather, it teaches that all Scripture is inspired of God. This means God breathed out from His own breath the very words of the Bible.
- With every kind of version and perversion available today, men have added to and taken away from these preserved words of God.
- If those, who follow in your footsteps, do not know the sacredness of Scripture, they might sell it one of these days or exchange it as you would a bad pair of pants.
5. Make sure they understand the importance of the local church. - Ephesians 5:25
"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it."
- The Bible says plainly that Jesus gave Himself for the church because He loved it. The word "church" is the word "ecclesia" which, by definition, means "a called-out assembly." This is not a description of all believers, for all believers are not yet assembled in one place. This speaks of the local church, a saved and assembled group of people.
- Jesus loved the church and gave Himself for it. If we are not careful, the next generation will have little or no regard for the local church. It's already happening in our generation. Going to church has become less and less important as the things of the world have become more and more important in the minds of believers.
- If we do not emphasize to the next generation the importance of the local church, they may see it as a non-issue and unimportant in their own Christian lives.
Conclusion: So many things could be said, but there is no way to cover everything. Jesus apparently thought the grounding of His disciples in the truth was important. We should give it no less priority. Here are some things to think about. Do those who follow you:
- Know you are saved?
- Know they are saved?
- Know Who Jesus Christ is?
- Know what the Bible is?
- Know the importance of the local church?
If not, the next generation will not turn the world upside down but will be turned upside down by the world. Let's make sure they know the truth.