I. Introduction
A. Alton Howard (Composer and Lyricist), in his foreword to our song books, Songs of the Church, makes the statement: "All singing should reveal a living message. Certainly some songs are sung with different feelings and tempos. And as different singers, we prefer one type of song to another. But there is room in the singing of praises to God for a variety of songs. These should include the lively spirited songs that express one's feelings of joy and praise, along with the reverent hymns of love and devotion. As God's people we have a story to sing about! Redemption, Salvation, Love, Faith, Hope , Heaven. The music of the world reflects the message of the world. The singing of Christian people reflects the good news of Jesus and His message of hope."
B. The song I Believe in Jesus, is a reflection
of the author's belief in the deity of Jesus, a basis for all
the things listed above.
II. Verse 1-read
A. "I believe" To believe is
1. to have confidence in the truth, or the reliability of something,
without absolute proof
2. to have confidence or faith in the truth
3. to have confidence in a statement or assertion of a person.
B. "in the One they called Jesus. Isaiah 7:14, Matt. 1:20-25,
16:13-18
It was foretold that Jesus would be born of a virgin, given the
name Emmanuel, save his people, and give himself up for his people.
He was and is more than just a good man who taught people good
things. He was and is the Son of God.
C. "I Believe he stilled Storm Galilee..................water" Matt. 14:25-33 Power over the elements is something that man has always desired to have. To control storms, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, has always be in man's thoughts. Imagine what was going on in the thoughts of the disciples when this happened. This great power served to strengthen their faith and belief, it can do the same for us today! Isn't it important to us to have a record of the things that Jesus did while on this earth so that we can strengthen ourselves in time of trail with the reassuring knowledge that he is the Son of God and his promises for us are true!
D. "He's the answer for me" Matt 25:34-46 If we fulfill
our responsibilities in our service to God and Christ, we will
be rewarded with eternal life. This is the answer that many lost
souls in the world fail to find. JESUS CHRIST IS THE ANSWER TO:
Why am I here, and what is my purpose in being here.
III. Verse 2-read
A. "I believe in the words of the Bible" II Tim.
3:16, Rom. 10:16-17, II Cor. 6:4-10
To take parts of the Bible and claim that they are not inspired,
are not the words of God, is to effectively nullify its credibility
and applicability to your life. We must take it as it is, if we
state that we believe the words of the Bible. Or if we hold to
only portions of the word, our faith and belief is meaningless!
B. "How he made the poor blind man to see." John 9 Please note how the Pharisees with all the evidence given could not accept the fact that Jesus had caused this blind man to see. Their inability to see Jesus as he was was indicative of the fact that they were blind to God. they even chastised the blind man and threw him out.
C. "I believe that the deaf ears were opened." Matt. 11:4-5, Mark 7:31-37 Notice that in this miracle, not only was his hearing restored immediately but he was able to speak plainly. Deaf people can still feel the vibrations caused by their voices and are able to utter guttural sounds in trying to match the vibrations. These sounds are not understandable. This is why we have the statement the string of his tongue was loosed. The man did not have to relearn the use of his tongue. This miracle of Jesus was complete, the man was made whole!
D. "And I believe he's made a difference in me."
II Cor. 5:17, Eph. 4:23-24, Col. 3:9-10 If Jesus has not made
a difference in our lives, we need to examine our lives and see
if we have put on the "new man" and put away the "old
man of sin."
IV. Verse 3-read
A. "I believe that He spoke to dead Lazarus." John 11:1-46 What power Jesus had. By his voice he was able to raise Lazarus from the dead. The power that Jesus displayed was from the Father, another reason that we should believe on him!
B. "And he said unbind and set free. " John 11:44 The significance of this statement is that Lazarus did not participate in some kind of trickery or deceit. The men had to roll back the stone from the tomb. He was still bound in the clothing that he had been wrapped in at the time of his death. And finally the statement had been made that after this time the body would stink, illustrating the fact that all who participated in the burial believed him to be dead.
C. "I believe that he reigns up in heaven." Rom.
8:34, Heb. 12:2 Not only does Jesus reign up in heaven with the
Father, but very important for us, he makes intercession for us!
D. "And I believe that he is coming again." I Thess.
4:15-18 As we read, we should be comforted in knowing that he
will return. If we find no comfort in this an examination of our
lives should be done immediately!
V. Chorus-read
A. "Yes, I believe in the One they called Jesus, I believe He died on Mount Calvary." Luke 23:33 As I understand it, this location was at the entrance to the city. Many people traveled on the road at this location and it was selected for this so that travelers could see and know that criminals would be punished.
B. "And I believe that the tomb was found empty."Matt.
27:59-28:7 Even the Jews were afraid that there might be some
deceit, so they took precautions to prevent the disciples from
stealing the body. What they did not count on or believe in was
the deity of Jesus and the fact that his coming was from the Father.
It is important to sing this song with conviction. However,
to just sing this song is not enough. We must live our lives in
a manner that tells everyone that We Believe!