Believer or Follower?
About this sermon
In “Believer or Follower,” Pastor Dean Odle presents a Scripture-centered message about faith, holiness, the authority of Scripture. Drawing especially from 2 Corinthians 13, John 17, Genesis 1:26, 1 Thessalonians 5:23, the teaching emphasizes that biblical faith trusts God’s character and acts upon His promises. Odle connects that foundation with the conviction that God calls believers to reject compromise and pursue practical holiness.
Chronological teaching outline
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Odle focuses on faith while working through 2 Corinthians 13, John 17, Genesis 1:26. The message argues that biblical faith trusts God’s character and acts upon His promises. It connects this with the conviction that true worship centers on God and is expressed through reverence, surrender, and obedience. The practical emphasis is to trust God’s promises and refuse decisions governed by fear.
Odle focuses on the authority of Scripture while working through 1 Thessalonians 5:23, Isaiah 9:6, Isaiah 9. The message argues that Scripture is presented as the standard for doctrine, discernment, and daily obedience. It connects this with the conviction that prophecy should produce discernment, readiness, and faithfulness rather than speculation alone. The practical emphasis is to remain watchful, grounded in Scripture, and ready to obey Christ.
Odle focuses on the condition of the heart while working through John 17, John 17:3. The message argues that the inner life must be healed, guarded, and brought under the truth of God’s word. It connects this with the conviction that Scripture is presented as the standard for doctrine, discernment, and daily obedience. The practical emphasis is to respond with honest repentance and concrete obedience.
Odle focuses on marriage and covenant. The message argues that marriage is treated as a covenant requiring faithfulness, sacrifice, truth, and biblical order. It connects this with the conviction that faithfulness in the home requires instruction, loving correction, protection, and a consistent Christian example. The practical emphasis is to seek God in prayer and act on what Scripture requires.
Odle focuses on the Holy Spirit while working through 1 John 5:2, Jeremiah 3. The message argues that the Holy Spirit leads, equips, corrects, and strengthens believers who yield to God. It connects this with the conviction that God calls believers to reject compromise and pursue practical holiness. The practical emphasis is to practice patient, truthful love in relationships and conflict.
Odle focuses on faith while working through Matthew 25. The message argues that biblical faith trusts God’s character and acts upon His promises. It connects this with the conviction that material stewardship reveals priorities and should be governed by generosity, integrity, and obedience to God. The practical emphasis is to trust God’s promises and refuse decisions governed by fear.
Odle focuses on spiritual leadership while working through Jeremiah 23:1, Psalm 23. The message argues that leaders are accountable to teach faithfully, serve the flock, and model the character they proclaim. It connects this with the conviction that the church is called to recover biblical faithfulness instead of accommodating compromise. The practical emphasis is to test the teaching by Scripture and apply it through faithful obedience.
Odle focuses on family discipleship while working through Matthew 4:19, Matthew 8:19, Matthew 9. The message argues that faithfulness in the home requires instruction, loving correction, protection, and a consistent Christian example. It connects this with the conviction that God’s grace forgives and also trains believers to leave sin and live in obedience. The practical emphasis is to seek God in prayer and act on what Scripture requires.
Odle focuses on faith while working through 1 John 2:15. The message argues that biblical faith trusts God’s character and acts upon His promises. It connects this with the conviction that following Christ requires self-denial, obedience, and perseverance rather than passive association with religion. The practical emphasis is to trust God’s promises and refuse decisions governed by fear.
Odle focuses on holiness. The message argues that God calls believers to reject compromise and pursue practical holiness. It connects this with the conviction that angelic activity is examined within the biblical passage and its prophetic sequence. The practical emphasis is to examine the heart, receive correction, and finish faithfully.
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- 0:00:00
[Music] trust not in this world's vain riches which so rapidly Decay seek to gain a home in it will never fil [Music] away hold to God's unchanging hand hold to God's unchanging [Music] hand build your hopes on things turn on and hold to God's unchanging hand [Music] trust in him who will not leave you whatsoever years may bring If thy Earths forsake you still more closely to [Music] him God of changing hand hold to God's unchanging hand your hes all [Music] things to God changing [Music] trust in him who will not leave [Music] you whatsoever years may bring and if your Earthly friends forsake you still more closely to him clle come [Music] on to God's uning hold to God changing [Music] hand come on sing it to him I can't hear you this morning let me hear [Music] you give him praise come on give him
- 0:03:01
praise in this place this morning Lord we love you we exalt you and we choose to hold to your hand Lord and follow you wherever you lead us glory to your [Music] name hold to [Music] God God's unchanging hand say it one more time hold to God's un chaining build your h on things turn on and hold God changing build your hes say build your hes on things turn on hold to God change your [Music] hand hold of [Music] his Hallelujah Lord Hallelujah Lord we're going to hold to your unchanging hand Lord Jesus you are the same yesterday today and forever and Lord we're not going to just be Believers but we're going to be followers and Lord we want to follow you wherever you lead us we want to go where you want us to go do what you want us to do because you are the Lord you are the Creator you're the Healer the deliverer you're everything Lord there is none like you there is no comparison you are the only true God the only true Savior and you are the true and one creator and we just worship you today we worship you today we exalt you today and we praise you and it's in Jesus name we pray amen and amen you may be seated this morning go ahead give him praise this morning hallelujah thank you Jesus for all you have done and all you're going to do amen hallelujah I'll tell you this is um this morning the Lord just keeps laying this same theme on my heart and it's really the difference between uh the difference between being a Believer and being a follower somebody say uh-oh got a lot of Believers don't we oh how many Americans say oh yeah I'm a Believer in Jesus Christ that's really not the question anymore question is do you follow him do you know him not do you know about him not do you just believe in a religion or a Creed but do you know him and do you
- 0:06:01
follow him you know and I I think about this this verse it's a verse in 2 Corinthians 13 where it says examine yourselves to see whether you even be in the faith now think about that Paul wrote that to a Christian church uhoh right examine yourselves to see whether you're even in the faith because there's a lot of people that think they are in the faith but they are not and you know I I've told the story before but y'all remember the story of John Wesley he thought he was a born again believer in Jesus Christ even formed the holy Club at Oxford came to be a missionary before he ever got saved and that's that in itself he did more before he got saved as than most Christians do in their whole lives and I think God honored him and and said you know what boy I'm going to show you the truth because you're willing to do anything back then crossing the ocean to be a missionary in the American colonies was not an easy task riding everywhere on Horseback or walking taking a ship across the the ocean back then was dangerous they didn't have a nice weather forecast they could look ahead and see what was out there we have it so easy today and yet I am afraid that we do little with all that we're blessed with now I'm going to read a few verses here y'all don't mind let's go to John 17 the Gospel of John that is chapter 17 and we're going to start at verse one let y'all get there I this verse is always we'll get down to verse three it's always kind of been burned in my heart and in my mind mine these words spake Jesus and lifted up his eyes to heaven and said father the hour has come glorify thy son that thy son Also may glorify thee as thou has given him power that is the word authority over All Flesh that he should give eternal life to as many as thou Hast given him and then he's going to Define eternal life and this is life eternal that they might Know Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent now you have to know who Jesus is Jesus is the fullness of the godhead B Jesus is the image of the invisible God he's not just the Son of God he's not just a man anointed by God no Jesus Is God Almighty Who Came In the Flesh all right and he is when we see him we are seeing the fullness somebody Say fullness we're seeing the fullness of the godhead
- 0:09:02
bodily that's what Colossians says and the Bible says this in John if we backed up in the Gospel of John it starts out with in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God right and then he says something about the word in verse 14 says and the word became flesh and dwelt Among Us true Christianity believes solidly believes that Jesus Christ is God Almighty the Creator In the Flesh now you say I I get confused about this Trinity thing and how this all works guess what the church has been debating the Trinity issue since day one okay and you're never going to we're never going to fully grasp how this fully works I know there's people I they think they do okay but I do believe in the Trinity Father Son and Holy Spirit but he's one God very distinct Parts all right and there is the father and there is the Son and there is the holy spirit but they are one and I've explained it like this just for the new people watching the Bible says that God created Man In His Image right genesis 1:26 created God God created man is let us make man in our image and that's why there's plural there let us make man father Son and Holy Spirit then he makes man and he says in first Thessalonians 5:23 and you can put it up if you want to there 1 Thessalonians 5:23 Paul said I pray God that your whole Spirit soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ so a human being has a spirit and a soul and a body these are three different Greek words in the original Greek so you have three different distinct Parts all right but you are not three people okay you are one person and these parts can separate God can take your spirit like he did with Ezekiel ezekiel's in Babylon God can take Ezekiel Spirit out of his body take him to Jerusalem and show him what's going on his soul and body are still in Babylon but his Spirit by the power of God is in Jerusalem seeing everything that the wicked backslidden leaders of Israel are doing in the temple so this is kind of how the Trinity Works they are three very distinct Parts but one God but he can separate out himself each distinct part can separate out and do things now I know there'll be people that want to argue and fight and fuss but this is just what we this is Bible okay this is Bible but one of the things you have to understand every false religion every cult every Christian cult that's in the world Islam you name it they all believe that Jesus is just a man he was just a man like any
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