1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:04,720 Good testimonies. I don't expect to be a little 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:08,360 glubbering mess coming up here. That was awesome. 3 00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:13,720 All righty. So I have been filled up and 4 00:00:13,720 --> 00:00:16,360 excited for this message this morning. 5 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:23,080 The title of today's message is Your glorious inheritance and 6 00:00:23,080 --> 00:00:25,240 identity in Christ. Amen. 7 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:29,840 Your glorious inheritance and identity in Christ, you didn't 8 00:00:29,840 --> 00:00:32,600 know it already as a follower of Christ, something massive 9 00:00:32,840 --> 00:00:34,920 happened to you on the inside of you. 10 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:37,720 You have a glorious identity in Christ. 11 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:41,360 A couple of core themes we'll hit on is your hope, your 12 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:45,000 inheritance, your very life is secure in Christ. 13 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:48,280 That's good news. And what my what I'm after and 14 00:00:48,280 --> 00:00:51,600 I'll be very upfront is what Paul prays in Ephesians is that 15 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:53,600 the eyes of your heart would be open. 16 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:58,480 They would look yourself in the mirror of God's Word and you 17 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:00,920 would recognize who He says that you are. 18 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:05,360 Truly, there's a lot that He says, and it's good. 19 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:11,600 And if we settle with who we are in Christ, so much is taking 20 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,840 care of you. All The text that we'll be 21 00:01:14,840 --> 00:01:20,920 anchoring in today is Ephesians 4 verses 17 to 24, but just fold 22 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:22,680 it. Full disclaimer, we'll be 23 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:23,960 reading a lot of the Bible today. 24 00:01:24,560 --> 00:01:26,200 We won't just be staying there. Sounds good. 25 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:33,280 Yes. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you 26 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:36,120 for this word. Thank you, Lord, for the power 27 00:01:36,280 --> 00:01:38,600 of the word that's active and alive. 28 00:01:38,920 --> 00:01:41,600 That the hearing of this word, Lord, that it would be preached 29 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:45,040 to the meaning that you meant it, God, that that as we receive 30 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:48,560 it, that our eyes would be open, that we would receive wisdom and 31 00:01:48,560 --> 00:01:51,320 revelation of who we are and whose we are. 32 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,720 God and it would be transformed from the inside out, knowing 33 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:58,960 that identity does not rest on our performance, it rests in 34 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:05,280 your secure hands. So Jesus, may we be open and be 35 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:10,400 pliable and receive from you in Jesus name, Amen. 36 00:02:11,640 --> 00:02:15,680 All right, reading from Ephesians 4 starting at verse 37 00:02:15,680 --> 00:02:19,680 17. Now this I say and testify in 38 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:24,000 the Lord, that you must no longer walk as Gentiles do in 39 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:27,160 the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their 40 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:30,760 understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their 41 00:02:30,760 --> 00:02:33,440 ignorance that is in them. Due to the hardness of their 42 00:02:33,440 --> 00:02:35,560 heart. They have become callous and 43 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:39,720 have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice 44 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:43,040 every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you 45 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:47,520 learned, assuming that you have heard about Him and you were 46 00:02:47,520 --> 00:02:52,600 taught in Him as the truth is in Jesus to put off your old self 47 00:02:52,640 --> 00:02:56,200 which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt 48 00:02:56,320 --> 00:03:00,480 through deceitful desire and to be renewed in the spirit of your 49 00:03:00,480 --> 00:03:04,360 minds and to be put on the new self created at the likeness of 50 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:06,880 God in the true righteousness and holiness. 51 00:03:08,920 --> 00:03:12,680 Some some key things here starting right at verse 17 where 52 00:03:12,680 --> 00:03:18,040 it says now this I say so that's what my translation says the 53 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:21,280 original meaning and other translations say therefore. 54 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:23,600 So whenever we see it therefore in the Bible. 55 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:25,840 What does that mean? We have to look where is that 56 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:28,680 going back to? Where is that therefore 57 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:31,680 literally? And so in this instance we can 58 00:03:31,680 --> 00:03:36,600 go back to the the start of this chapter when Paul says, I 59 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:41,560 therefore once again a prisoner for the Lord urge you to walk in 60 00:03:41,560 --> 00:03:44,800 a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called. 61 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,200 So to really get the richness of this context, I want to go back 62 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:52,720 to the foundation. Paul preaches and spends the 63 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:57,120 first 3 chapters going into glorious detail talking about 64 00:03:57,120 --> 00:04:01,720 how God freed us by his grace. He tells what he has done, that 65 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:05,680 he chose us, He predestined us, He adopted you, He redeemed you, 66 00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:09,720 He forgave you, He raised you, He seated you and he sealed you 67 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:13,040 with his spirit. There's three solid chapters. 68 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:16,200 I could just read that and that would be the the sermon today. 69 00:04:16,839 --> 00:04:20,079 But instead I'm going to focus on two major themes that are 70 00:04:20,079 --> 00:04:22,400 going to lens everything we're talking about today. 71 00:04:23,160 --> 00:04:27,880 Going back to chapter 1 of Ephesians, I'm going to be 72 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:37,240 reading verse 11, verse 11 here in Him, in what? 73 00:04:38,640 --> 00:04:42,760 That's right, in Him we have obtained an inheritance. 74 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:47,600 You have an inheritance, did you know, having been predestined 75 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:51,680 according to the purpose of Him who works all things, not some 76 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:56,200 things, all things, according to the counsel of His will. 77 00:05:00,760 --> 00:05:04,200 That key portion there in him, we're going to be hitting on 78 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:07,040 that quite a bit in him, in Christ, in whom? 79 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:09,840 That is an incredible foundation. 80 00:05:10,040 --> 00:05:13,680 Why is that important? We build our lives on something, 81 00:05:14,440 --> 00:05:17,560 our lives, our identity, it's continually built on something. 82 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:20,520 For me personally, my own personal story, I grew up in a 83 00:05:20,520 --> 00:05:24,600 performance culture. What that means is you are what 84 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:28,960 you achieve if you get good grades, if you do well in work. 85 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:31,280 Everything was tied to that production. 86 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:34,800 It was never associated with a loving father. 87 00:05:34,800 --> 00:05:38,200 It was associated with here's what I'm going to do and there's 88 00:05:38,200 --> 00:05:40,360 a good feedback loop. You do well in school, you get 89 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:43,200 praised by teachers, you get praise with accolades. 90 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:45,800 As a recovering people, please are here. 91 00:05:46,160 --> 00:05:49,000 It was felt good. My sense of worth is coming from 92 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:54,400 that chasing of approval, and I kept chasing it until I felt 93 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:56,800 like it was fulfilling, but it never was. 94 00:05:56,800 --> 00:06:00,320 It's a cup that continually come to after school. 95 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:05,600 I traded my grades for a paycheck, a title, a work status 96 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:07,520 of some kind. And The funny thing about work 97 00:06:07,520 --> 00:06:09,480 is when you do really well, they promote you and they give you 98 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:13,320 more work, more work, and you get more praise and it feels 99 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:18,280 good for a season. But something I realized in the 100 00:06:18,280 --> 00:06:22,760 midst of this is a real revelation They I had just 101 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:25,200 gotten out of college, had a job, I was doing really well. 102 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:27,800 I kept getting affirmed at and then a recruiter reached out to 103 00:06:27,800 --> 00:06:29,840 me and said, hey, I've got this, you know, super awesome 104 00:06:29,840 --> 00:06:32,800 opportunity. It was a title, it was a pay 105 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:34,200 raise and I was excited about it. 106 00:06:34,320 --> 00:06:37,360 So I put my two weeks in, told Jordan we had just bought a 107 00:06:37,360 --> 00:06:40,040 house. I was on cloud 9 because my 108 00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:44,400 foundation was built on these works that I had built start on 109 00:06:44,400 --> 00:06:45,760 Monday. I'm excited. 110 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:48,960 I've got my Home Office set up. I just started working from home 111 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:52,840 and it was like a movie y'all. On Wednesday I got an e-mail 112 00:06:52,840 --> 00:06:57,400 from HR that said I am laid off, my job is gone and they don't 113 00:06:57,400 --> 00:07:01,600 have anything else for me. So within 48 hours, all of this 114 00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:03,280 that I worked towards, I had no Plan B. 115 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:05,760 We had a new house that we had just purchased, we were renting 116 00:07:05,760 --> 00:07:08,120 for years. And I'm looking at myself like 117 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:11,760 God. I put myself not in him, not in 118 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:16,560 Christ, but in Alan. And that was not the solid rock. 119 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:21,960 And here's the good news. As Christians, as followers in 120 00:07:21,960 --> 00:07:27,320 Christ, our identity is rooted in him, in his foundation, in 121 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:30,640 his solid rock. That that that parable that 122 00:07:30,640 --> 00:07:34,600 talks about on sand versus on the rock, We get to say we are 123 00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:38,320 on the rock. It's based on his finished work, 124 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:42,960 his righteousness, his unchanging love of us. 125 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:47,240 None of that is changing. He doesn't have a bad week. 126 00:07:48,160 --> 00:07:50,400 His opinion of of you doesn't change. 127 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:54,160 He loves you abundantly. So we can fail. 128 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:56,560 You can have the worst day of your life where you're losing 129 00:07:56,560 --> 00:07:58,840 your job and don't know what tomorrow looks like. 130 00:07:59,320 --> 00:08:01,840 But he never rests. He never slumbers nor sleeps. 131 00:08:04,240 --> 00:08:07,640 And the good news that we also can look at is what Paul prays 132 00:08:07,640 --> 00:08:11,240 down in verse 16. And this is such, such a rich 133 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:17,440 encouragement and prayer. Paul says, I do not cease to 134 00:08:17,440 --> 00:08:22,760 give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God 135 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:26,960 of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory may give you the 136 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:29,240 spirit. This is important, the spirit of 137 00:08:29,240 --> 00:08:36,120 wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, having eyes of 138 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:40,200 your heart enlightened that you may know what is the hope which 139 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:43,720 He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious 140 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:48,080 inheritance in the Saints, and what is the immeasurable 141 00:08:48,240 --> 00:08:54,960 greatness of His power towards us who believe according to not 142 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:59,280 Allen, not John, Michael, according of His great might. 143 00:09:02,680 --> 00:09:05,320 I really want to hit this home that inheritance is not 144 00:09:05,320 --> 00:09:08,160 something that you earn, but it's given to you because he 145 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:10,160 loves you. He loves you a lot. 146 00:09:11,000 --> 00:09:14,120 I think about the analogy that helped me bring this home is 147 00:09:14,480 --> 00:09:16,400 imagine if you had a rich Uncle Bob. 148 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:19,160 Everyone now proof you have rich Uncle Bob in your life. 149 00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:24,440 Rich Uncle Bob left you an inheritance, but unfortunately 150 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:28,160 the lawyer cannot find you to give you this inheritance. 151 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:31,880 He's got $1,000,000, a boat, whatever you can imagine, but he 152 00:09:31,880 --> 00:09:37,680 cannot find you. So you're technically rich, but 153 00:09:37,680 --> 00:09:39,200 are you? You don't know, you haven't 154 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:43,080 received it, you aren't living in it. 155 00:09:43,080 --> 00:09:46,240 And so many believers, and this saddens my heart, are rich 156 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:50,280 beyond measure in Christ, in Christ, in his identity. 157 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:54,040 You are rich. But sometimes we're living in a 158 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:58,680 spiritual bondage where we're never meant to be in because 159 00:09:58,680 --> 00:10:02,240 we've never opened our eyes to see and be revealed to the 160 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:04,760 goodness of his glorious inheritance for you today. 161 00:10:05,840 --> 00:10:10,200 So the way, and this is where I want to focus a lot of our time. 162 00:10:11,200 --> 00:10:14,320 I want to illustrate that identity and that inheritance 163 00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:26,360 going back to Ephesians 4 verses 22 to 24 where it says to put 164 00:10:26,360 --> 00:10:29,080 off your old self when we're talking about that old self 165 00:10:29,360 --> 00:10:32,800 which belongs to your former manner of living and is corrupt 166 00:10:32,800 --> 00:10:34,920 through through deceitful desire. 167 00:10:34,920 --> 00:10:38,120 That's important there and to be renewed in the spirit of your 168 00:10:38,120 --> 00:10:41,960 minds and to put on the new self created after the likeness of 169 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:45,400 God in the true righteousness of and holiness. 170 00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:50,240 So it's my first summer in Deltaville and yesterday I 171 00:10:50,240 --> 00:10:53,000 finally got a taste of what everyone's in warning me about 172 00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:54,600 how hot and humid it could be here. 173 00:10:55,440 --> 00:10:58,920 Y'all were not kidding. It does get really hot here and 174 00:10:58,920 --> 00:11:01,480 so it gets worse. It gets worse from here. 175 00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:04,360 That's what I was told. Like I'm just in the baby 176 00:11:04,360 --> 00:11:06,000 season. It ain't human yet. 177 00:11:07,040 --> 00:11:09,520 Even the Indian in me is just like man, this is hot, this is 178 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:11,400 different, this is a different level. 179 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:15,120 It is a different level. But I realized something. 180 00:11:15,560 --> 00:11:18,680 It points to this analogy of we're putting off the old self 181 00:11:18,680 --> 00:11:21,240 and putting on the new self. It's like clothing that we put 182 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:22,840 on yesterday. I'm playing with Adeline in the 183 00:11:22,840 --> 00:11:27,160 heat, and I am drenched in sweat and I'm stinky. 184 00:11:27,160 --> 00:11:30,280 And I know Jordan was like, I think a shower would benefit. 185 00:11:32,960 --> 00:11:35,760 So I came in. I came inside, I took a shower. 186 00:11:35,960 --> 00:11:41,040 And this analogy of my dirty, slimy, disgusting clothes are 187 00:11:41,040 --> 00:11:46,800 here on the left and these clean beautiful clothes are to my 188 00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:49,400 right. And I have a choice to make to 189 00:11:49,400 --> 00:11:53,640 either put back on these dirty clothes that feel disgusting to 190 00:11:53,640 --> 00:11:56,440 put on. It doesn't feel right anymore. 191 00:11:56,520 --> 00:12:00,160 It's not what I was then. It's a different environment to 192 00:12:00,560 --> 00:12:03,400 these new clean, beautiful garments that are there. 193 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:08,000 And something key to mention, it's not a shower in this 194 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:11,400 analogy is our baptism. We get baptized in Christ. 195 00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:14,000 It's like, oh, he's doing the work in US. 196 00:12:14,000 --> 00:12:20,640 It's so good. And I want to focus specifically 197 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:22,480 on the new clothing. We're going to come back to this 198 00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:26,200 analogy a little bit later and talk in depth about our renewal 199 00:12:26,200 --> 00:12:28,480 of our minds and what that choice looks like. 200 00:12:28,840 --> 00:12:32,360 But for right now, I want to focus on this new clothing. 201 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:35,880 When Paul talks about this new self, this new clothing, this 202 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:38,680 new identity, what does it really look like? 203 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:42,160 It's funny, Jamaica. And I didn't talk about using 204 00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:44,800 this analogy together, but it just is so good of the prodigal 205 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:48,520 son where? Yeah, he took half of his dad's 206 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:49,720 inheritance. He left. 207 00:12:49,720 --> 00:12:52,480 He wasted it. He's rehearsing how to repent. 208 00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:57,080 And the father looking from afar off, far off, he's like, that's 209 00:12:57,080 --> 00:12:59,280 my son. I'm going to take off his 210 00:12:59,280 --> 00:13:02,520 clothing and put a new robe, a new signet ring. 211 00:13:02,920 --> 00:13:04,800 And in that time that's, that's identity. 212 00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:07,120 He's changing, he's shifting forever. 213 00:13:07,280 --> 00:13:09,240 That new clothing that's put on to him. 214 00:13:10,560 --> 00:13:11,960 That's what God is going to do to us. 215 00:13:12,640 --> 00:13:16,640 So I don't know if you knew, but there is over 100 verses in the 216 00:13:16,640 --> 00:13:20,480 Bible that talk about in Christ in whom, in who you are. 217 00:13:21,320 --> 00:13:24,240 I don't have time to go through 100, but I do have time to go 218 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:28,400 over 5 major themes that are impactful, that are powerful, 219 00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:32,120 that are connected. And my goal is you're hearing 220 00:13:32,120 --> 00:13:36,640 these themes is that you'll see what God does in you, what how 221 00:13:36,640 --> 00:13:39,880 God lives inside of you and what God made you for and how 222 00:13:39,880 --> 00:13:44,800 exciting and incredible that is. So starting with the first in 223 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:49,240 Christ, the new shirt, the new identity, you are a new 224 00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:52,160 creation. Scripture is clear where it says 225 00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:57,520 if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come, the old has 226 00:13:57,520 --> 00:14:00,840 gone and the new is here. If you're taking notes that 227 00:14:00,840 --> 00:14:03,960 Second Corinthians 517. So what? 228 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:06,960 So what that I'm a new creation. Why is that valuable to us? 229 00:14:06,960 --> 00:14:09,560 Why does that matter? Couple of things. 230 00:14:09,840 --> 00:14:13,480 If anyone, it doesn't matter your background doesn't matter 231 00:14:13,720 --> 00:14:15,840 what life was before. It doesn't matter your family of 232 00:14:15,840 --> 00:14:19,520 origin, Christianity, Christ is for everyone. 233 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:21,920 It doesn't matter your starting point in life. 234 00:14:21,920 --> 00:14:25,880 That is incredible to say. Yep, he is exclusively looking 235 00:14:25,880 --> 00:14:27,360 at you and saying, Yep, I love that one. 236 00:14:27,680 --> 00:14:30,400 I don't care what the neglect, I don't care what the world has 237 00:14:30,400 --> 00:14:32,000 called you. I want that one. 238 00:14:32,240 --> 00:14:35,960 I want him in my Kingdom. I want her in my Kingdom because 239 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:38,840 I love them abundantly. I know them abundantly. 240 00:14:39,920 --> 00:14:42,960 The second part of that, the creation part, when it talks 241 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,520 about new creation, and I hate to get a little nerdy here, but 242 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:50,320 that word for creation is very special. 243 00:14:50,760 --> 00:14:53,800 It's the same word that's used in Genesis when we talk about 244 00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:57,240 creation. Think about it, when God spoke 245 00:14:57,360 --> 00:15:01,200 the world into life, everything that we see around us, that word 246 00:15:01,200 --> 00:15:03,720 for creation totally branded from Him. 247 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:07,320 His words created us. That's what he means when He 248 00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:10,520 says a new creation. You are totally transformed from 249 00:15:10,520 --> 00:15:14,160 a Caterpillar to a butterfly. You're totally transformed 250 00:15:14,240 --> 00:15:17,720 inside and out. What does that mean? 251 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:20,400 OK, I'm OK, I'm. I'm transformed. 252 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:22,920 I'm new. Your taste buds change. 253 00:15:23,200 --> 00:15:26,200 Your desires change. What you're excited about 254 00:15:26,200 --> 00:15:28,160 changes. I was thinking. 255 00:15:28,160 --> 00:15:30,600 I was talking with Jordan. Adeline's taste buds changed 256 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:34,280 almost every day now. But in a season of life, there 257 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:37,200 were items that she would not like one day. 258 00:15:37,200 --> 00:15:39,480 And then we'd keep feeding her. We keep feeding her. 259 00:15:39,480 --> 00:15:41,480 I think green beans is what we were talking about. 260 00:15:42,000 --> 00:15:45,400 And eventually her taste buds came to enjoying and liking 261 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:47,880 green beans. Or maybe she's just telling us 262 00:15:47,880 --> 00:15:51,920 that. But in the same way, when we 263 00:15:51,920 --> 00:15:56,600 become a new creation in Christ, our desires are changing 264 00:15:56,600 --> 00:16:00,840 completely. Our desires, our hunger for God. 265 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:05,760 God puts a new hunger for him to want him, to desire him to make 266 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:10,000 this word alive. When you're reading it, you have 267 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:13,360 a new heart for people. When you're going into work, 268 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:15,840 you're going in the grocery store, the same people used to 269 00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:19,040 see you have a burden, a heart for their souls. 270 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:21,920 You have a heart for having more patience and kindness and 271 00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:24,640 compassion. God's already put that in you to 272 00:16:24,640 --> 00:16:27,000 love them well, to love them abundantly. 273 00:16:29,080 --> 00:16:30,520 You don't have to try and strive. 274 00:16:30,520 --> 00:16:32,840 This is not the behavior modification department. 275 00:16:32,840 --> 00:16:35,440 This is the Lord literally putting a new heart and saying, 276 00:16:35,640 --> 00:16:37,480 Yep, you got this new hunger, Bubba. 277 00:16:37,880 --> 00:16:39,600 You've got a new love for people. 278 00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:44,120 You're not having it to try. You have a new pool for what is 279 00:16:44,120 --> 00:16:46,040 right. Sin tastes disgusting. 280 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:49,680 It's no longer enjoyable. It's enjoyable for a little bit, 281 00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:50,960 but it's not what you want anymore. 282 00:16:50,960 --> 00:16:54,920 It's like that dirty clothing. It still bothers you to a new 283 00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:56,960 degree. And you are striving because 284 00:16:56,960 --> 00:16:59,840 your heart's delights become his heart's delights. 285 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:04,040 You enjoy the delight in him. Two other things. 286 00:17:06,119 --> 00:17:10,079 A new priority at home, your responsibility, how you view 287 00:17:10,079 --> 00:17:12,520 your world view. It starts to change how you act. 288 00:17:13,119 --> 00:17:16,839 God is so clear as we're being transformed that your identity 289 00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:19,000 is shifting. How you operate as a husband, as 290 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:23,640 a father, as a a leader, as a a wife, as a mom. 291 00:17:23,640 --> 00:17:27,040 Like all of that changes when you're in him. 292 00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:29,840 And it's not a formula that you're doing. 293 00:17:29,840 --> 00:17:32,440 It's him doing the transformation, which is so 294 00:17:32,440 --> 00:17:35,480 beautiful. And the final one that I want to 295 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:40,160 talk about with a new creation, the grip that your old cravings, 296 00:17:40,160 --> 00:17:44,040 your old sinful desires have the stuff that may have you been 297 00:17:44,040 --> 00:17:48,120 been chasing, they're going away because you've been replaced 298 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:51,080 with a better and greater desire in Christ. 299 00:17:51,920 --> 00:17:55,240 Alcohol, pornography, you name the gamut of things that might 300 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:58,520 feel like a grip in your life. Christ says I am taking those 301 00:17:58,520 --> 00:17:59,880 away because we're focused on him. 302 00:17:59,880 --> 00:18:02,360 He is amazing. He's worth pursuit. 303 00:18:02,800 --> 00:18:05,840 All of those things start to fade and the grip that they had 304 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:08,680 in the past with the transformation is a new creation 305 00:18:08,840 --> 00:18:10,880 are no longer it's awesome. Amen. 306 00:18:12,480 --> 00:18:15,560 So that's number one. You're a new creation. 307 00:18:16,320 --> 00:18:20,480 The second is that you are chosen and adopted into the 308 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:24,560 family of God. He predestined us for adoption 309 00:18:24,560 --> 00:18:27,480 as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ. 310 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:30,800 Before you took a breath, God knew you intimately. 311 00:18:31,280 --> 00:18:33,600 And for for those who've been in church, that can be just 312 00:18:33,600 --> 00:18:35,360 something we can read and roll over. 313 00:18:35,640 --> 00:18:37,800 But really take a moment to take that back. 314 00:18:37,960 --> 00:18:42,480 Imagine an orphan child who comes from a rough background, 315 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:45,400 who doesn't understand, a healthy family, who doesn't have 316 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:50,800 health in their life anywhere. And from today, this afternoon, 317 00:18:51,040 --> 00:18:54,480 someone in our church, the Norwoods, the Whites, the nines, 318 00:18:54,480 --> 00:18:58,960 the Clarks, adopt that child from orphan hood to sonship or 319 00:18:58,960 --> 00:19:02,080 daughtership. That child's life is transformed 320 00:19:02,080 --> 00:19:04,560 forever. They finally get to get around a 321 00:19:04,560 --> 00:19:07,720 family of God that loves them, that cares for them. 322 00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:11,600 Their name is forever changed literally as they come into a 323 00:19:11,600 --> 00:19:17,360 new family. And what's key is God chose us 324 00:19:17,360 --> 00:19:20,080 first. It's not that we're so cleaned 325 00:19:20,080 --> 00:19:22,720 up to say, Yep, I'm ready to be chosen now. 326 00:19:22,880 --> 00:19:26,440 No, he chose us before the foundations of the earth. 327 00:19:28,320 --> 00:19:31,560 There's a there's an old Roman law that really struck me as I 328 00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:35,240 was studying this, that in those times when a person had been 329 00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:38,000 adopted. So in this, in this analogy, if 330 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:41,440 one of us were to adopt back in that time, it was a it was 331 00:19:41,440 --> 00:19:44,520 complete. The person was had legitimate 332 00:19:44,520 --> 00:19:47,680 right to be in that family immediately under law. 333 00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:50,960 Not only that, in the eyes of the law, they were a new person. 334 00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:55,040 They were a totally new person. All of their debts, their 335 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:57,480 financial debts were all paid. They're all gone. 336 00:19:57,760 --> 00:20:02,240 All of that old living was gone the moment they were chosen and 337 00:20:02,240 --> 00:20:04,880 adopted in the family of God that's in US today. 338 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:08,480 So if there are things that you're holding on to, they're 339 00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:13,160 not yours to carry. They're meant to be His. 340 00:20:13,720 --> 00:20:15,560 He no longer calls you that name anymore. 341 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:21,040 All right, so it's a little heavy, but I love you. 342 00:20:21,720 --> 00:20:23,080 And it's good. It's good news. 343 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:25,360 It should change how you come to God. 344 00:20:26,440 --> 00:20:29,800 God is your father. We all come from a variety of 345 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:32,880 experiences where we could imagine who God is. 346 00:20:32,880 --> 00:20:37,440 Often for me, something I've had to grow in is putting, taking 347 00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:41,640 off my earthly father off of the face of God and saying God is 348 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:43,760 God. He's amazing. 349 00:20:43,760 --> 00:20:46,520 He's a good father. I don't have to come to him like 350 00:20:46,520 --> 00:20:49,040 a worker, like I grew up in the performance culture, but I can 351 00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:52,960 come to him as a son. I can come to us as a son. 352 00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:55,720 And that's us today. You can come to him today in 353 00:20:55,720 --> 00:20:59,480 your seat Today you can come and say father, thank you, that 354 00:20:59,800 --> 00:21:06,640 you're perfect and you are good. But often we still see him as 355 00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:09,960 how we grew up. So I implore you to remember 356 00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:14,840 that God is so much more mighty. The final analogy to really 357 00:21:14,840 --> 00:21:18,240 bring this home is a royal Prince. 358 00:21:18,760 --> 00:21:22,440 So imagine you've got a Prince who's five years old. 359 00:21:22,960 --> 00:21:26,120 He's the King's son. One day the Kingdom will be 360 00:21:26,120 --> 00:21:30,000 inherited to him. It's his Kingdom, but he doesn't 361 00:21:30,000 --> 00:21:31,680 know that yet. He's still a kid. 362 00:21:32,360 --> 00:21:36,040 But that inheritance, that glorious identity of kingship, 363 00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:41,080 of Kingdom is his. And today, as we look at being 364 00:21:41,080 --> 00:21:43,880 adopted in the family of God, we might be at different places in 365 00:21:43,880 --> 00:21:47,520 our spiritual walk, but know with confidence that you don't 366 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:49,360 have to earn your place at the table. 367 00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:54,720 The Lord loves you fully as a son and daughter. 368 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:58,120 Come boldly to the throne room, He says, with your prayers and 369 00:21:58,120 --> 00:22:01,120 your requests. So that's the second. 370 00:22:01,840 --> 00:22:05,840 The third, you are a conqueror in all things. 371 00:22:06,040 --> 00:22:09,280 We're more than conquerors through Him who loves us. 372 00:22:09,280 --> 00:22:12,640 That's Romans 837. So we talked about your new 373 00:22:12,640 --> 00:22:14,360 creation. You've been adopted in a new 374 00:22:14,360 --> 00:22:16,000 family. And the next thing that's 375 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:17,960 already true about you in Christ, not that you've worked 376 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:20,920 towards, is that you are a conqueror. 377 00:22:20,920 --> 00:22:23,200 Not someday. Right now you're a conqueror. 378 00:22:24,600 --> 00:22:26,080 Here's a good news of being a conqueror. 379 00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:29,960 You fight from victory. You don't fight for victory. 380 00:22:31,440 --> 00:22:34,880 You work from the finished work of the cross. 381 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:36,840 Man, I can get so hype about this. 382 00:22:36,840 --> 00:22:40,400 This is so good. The battle is already won. 383 00:22:40,600 --> 00:22:43,000 Death has been defeated. We cannot die. 384 00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:49,120 He's died so that we may live. We fight from that victory. 385 00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:52,720 Often we can fall victim to fighting this uphill battle 386 00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:55,080 instead of realizing the devil is dumb. 387 00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:58,160 Like God has won. It's not like the Facebook memes 388 00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:00,920 of like God versus the devil. It's literally God won. 389 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:03,640 And I walk from that victory. It's amazing. 390 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:06,400 And where's that strength come from? 391 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:07,760 Where's that confidence come from? 392 00:23:07,760 --> 00:23:10,560 It comes in the best thing ever, the imperishable Christ. 393 00:23:11,360 --> 00:23:14,560 You can lean on and dig. You don't have to dig deep each 394 00:23:14,560 --> 00:23:16,360 day. You can say, Lord, this is what 395 00:23:16,360 --> 00:23:19,040 I have today. Thank you and you have given me 396 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:22,760 strength for today to be a conqueror for the day ahead of 397 00:23:22,760 --> 00:23:27,760 me. And here's the final part that 398 00:23:27,760 --> 00:23:30,480 really seals the deal of you being a conqueror and the 399 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:32,280 foundation that it comes from Christ. 400 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:37,560 If you continue to read on in Romans 837 and read further to 401 00:23:37,600 --> 00:23:41,880 38 onward. Paul continues and says this is 402 00:23:41,880 --> 00:23:45,960 this is key. Neither death nor life, neither 403 00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:51,520 angels nor demons, neither present nor future nor powers, 404 00:23:51,520 --> 00:23:55,200 neither height nor depth or anything else in all of creation 405 00:23:55,360 --> 00:24:03,480 will be able to separate us from the love of God, from the love 406 00:24:03,600 --> 00:24:09,720 of God that is in Christ Jesus. So the next time you are looking 407 00:24:09,720 --> 00:24:13,840 at a situation, know that you're not saying it from vain words, 408 00:24:13,840 --> 00:24:17,680 that you're a conqueror, right? That that that phrase should 409 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:21,640 power you up because it comes from such strength to a God 410 00:24:21,640 --> 00:24:25,200 who's not forsaking you, a God who loves you, who God who cares 411 00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:28,080 about you and is clearly telling you it does not matter. 412 00:24:28,080 --> 00:24:31,000 I love you. No matter what has happened, I 413 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:37,880 care about you. The 4th is more of an activating 414 00:24:38,680 --> 00:24:41,960 is you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. 415 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:45,040 This comes from first Corinthians 619. 416 00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:49,680 If you're taking notes, do you not know that your body is a 417 00:24:49,680 --> 00:24:55,600 temple of the Holy Spirit within you whom within you whom you 418 00:24:55,600 --> 00:24:59,240 have from God so far we talked about you're made new, you're 419 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:04,160 adopted, you're a conqueror. Now to talk about what God looks 420 00:25:04,160 --> 00:25:09,000 like inside of you and this, I've got to go a little bit back 421 00:25:09,000 --> 00:25:11,280 into the Old Testament talking about this, But when Paul talks 422 00:25:11,280 --> 00:25:14,440 about the temple in that verse, it's really important. 423 00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:16,080 The word that he chooses for temple. 424 00:25:17,200 --> 00:25:20,880 There is one word for temple. That means like the whole temple 425 00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:23,800 grounds in the Old Testament, like this is massive building, 426 00:25:23,880 --> 00:25:25,800 much bigger than this building that we're in now. 427 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:29,840 And there's another word for the word temple that refers to the 428 00:25:29,840 --> 00:25:34,080 Holy of Holies or this really small intimate room where they 429 00:25:34,080 --> 00:25:38,720 hosted the presence of God. Why is that important, Alan? 430 00:25:39,040 --> 00:25:40,680 Why is that word mean mean anything? 431 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:45,760 Well, the reason that word temple being in the the holy of 432 00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:49,760 holy is important is because every year only one man could 433 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:53,800 enter into that place. Only one man once a year could 434 00:25:53,800 --> 00:25:57,200 go into this holy of holies and see God's presence. 435 00:25:57,360 --> 00:25:59,000 Why? If anyone else went in there, 436 00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:01,120 they would die instantly under the power of God. 437 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:06,760 And it was the most sacred, it was the most untouchable place, 438 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:09,880 but it was a place that is so sacred. 439 00:26:10,040 --> 00:26:13,520 And the reason that word is so important is guess what, that 440 00:26:13,520 --> 00:26:16,560 holy of holies, that presence of God lives inside of us. 441 00:26:16,560 --> 00:26:23,160 Now today, the presence of God is not behind a veil anymore. 442 00:26:23,640 --> 00:26:28,120 The veil was torn into Scripture says and that that presence of 443 00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:32,520 of God lives inside of you and he made a home in residence 444 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,720 inside of you Christian as a Christ follower. 445 00:26:35,720 --> 00:26:39,320 What does that mean exactly? Well, that power is the same 446 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:43,560 power Jesus heal the sick. He cleansed the leper, he opened 447 00:26:43,560 --> 00:26:47,400 blind eyes, he raised the dead. That spirit lives inside of you. 448 00:26:49,040 --> 00:26:52,440 You have the ability to pray and he hears you and that power is 449 00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:56,240 there to heal that person. That's crazy today. 450 00:27:01,760 --> 00:27:06,160 And Paul says it pretty plainly that that power that was raised 451 00:27:06,160 --> 00:27:10,280 from the dead, that power that walks, lives inside of us is not 452 00:27:10,280 --> 00:27:12,920 in a faraway place. It's not when we get to heaven. 453 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:18,280 It's available to us today. It's not available for just a 454 00:27:18,280 --> 00:27:21,840 super Christian or a pastor. It's available for the everyday 455 00:27:21,840 --> 00:27:29,200 ordinary Christian like, and you're sealed that that phrase 456 00:27:29,200 --> 00:27:31,840 sealed, it can feel a little like, what does that mean? 457 00:27:32,200 --> 00:27:34,200 We go back to that particle sign analogy. 458 00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:38,200 I mentioned that signet ring back in the day that was a way 459 00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:41,960 of like a credit card or payment that you'd seal that person. 460 00:27:41,960 --> 00:27:44,840 So like the King's seal. So the seal that we're talking 461 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:48,320 about here is the Lord. The Lord seals you, the Holy 462 00:27:48,320 --> 00:27:50,560 Spirit seals you. So it's not something that's 463 00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:52,720 just going to go away. The Lord is pursuing you. 464 00:27:52,720 --> 00:27:56,680 He wants to hear from you and he wants that power that you have 465 00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:02,080 in him to come alive. And it is the third, and this is 466 00:28:02,080 --> 00:28:05,640 key for parents and for all of us to understand is that there's 467 00:28:05,640 --> 00:28:10,160 no kid sized Holy Spirit. There's no junior Holy Spirit, 468 00:28:10,160 --> 00:28:11,800 there's no trial run Holy Spirit. 469 00:28:11,800 --> 00:28:17,320 I remember a long time ago, I thought when I first got saved, 470 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:19,920 I was like, do I do I have like a trial Holy Spirit? 471 00:28:19,920 --> 00:28:22,920 Is it like a small like these people over here doing these 472 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:25,360 sort of like crazy miracles? Like do they have like a bigger 473 00:28:25,360 --> 00:28:28,440 Holy Spirit and then hitting the revelation that that's not the 474 00:28:28,440 --> 00:28:33,920 case, that the Lord said, Yep, I've given you the Holy Spirit, 475 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:37,120 the power that raised Christ from the dead, that heals the 476 00:28:37,120 --> 00:28:40,560 sick, that opens the blind eyes, that heals the leper that 477 00:28:40,560 --> 00:28:49,640 transforms day in and day out. So what's the point of this 478 00:28:49,680 --> 00:28:54,760 specific reality when you feel alone, when you feel like man, I 479 00:28:54,760 --> 00:28:58,600 don't have anybody. It's not true that God, who used 480 00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:00,840 to reside, used to, is important. 481 00:29:00,840 --> 00:29:03,280 And the Holy of Holies, lives inside of you. 482 00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:07,760 He made a home inside of you. You're no longer powerless, 483 00:29:07,760 --> 00:29:11,520 Christian. Thank you Lord, by his stripes 484 00:29:12,600 --> 00:29:16,880 the deadness is now alive and we live a life that is carried by 485 00:29:16,880 --> 00:29:22,120 His strength and His power. Now the final one, and I had to 486 00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:26,280 add this is you are the salt and the light. 487 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:29,720 We're salt church, right? What does that mean? 488 00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:34,120 We are the salt. We don't have to try to be salt, 489 00:29:34,120 --> 00:29:37,440 right? You are salt, you are putting 490 00:29:37,440 --> 00:29:41,080 flavour, you take preservation to what is decaying. 491 00:29:41,080 --> 00:29:43,480 That's what salt does. It preserves. 492 00:29:44,080 --> 00:29:48,040 You preserve the Kingdom of God, the presence of God in all of 493 00:29:48,040 --> 00:29:52,520 the spaces that you go to, your workplace, the grocery store. 494 00:29:52,880 --> 00:29:55,800 The moment we get out of this building, you are salt of the 495 00:29:55,840 --> 00:29:59,120 earth, Christian. You can preserve a decaying, 496 00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:02,760 dying world and it's incredible. And it's not coming from your 497 00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:09,520 power, it's coming from his. And you are the light of the 498 00:30:09,520 --> 00:30:11,960 world. I always heard that in kids 499 00:30:11,960 --> 00:30:14,760 songs and I was like, I really want to understand what does 500 00:30:14,760 --> 00:30:16,160 that mean? The light of the world. 501 00:30:17,520 --> 00:30:21,400 You are not only pushing back the darkness, but the light 502 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:24,840 shines through you. If we think of the analogy of 503 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:28,440 the sun and the moon, the sun being Christ and it illuminating 504 00:30:28,440 --> 00:30:31,920 the moon at night, that's us. We're being illuminated through 505 00:30:31,920 --> 00:30:35,360 Christ, the sun, and it hits everything around us. 506 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:41,040 That should be a big relief valve, like he's shining through 507 00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:43,680 us. It's his power, his strength. 508 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:52,280 And the goal is not that people are are idolizing you, but 509 00:30:52,280 --> 00:30:54,920 looking at Christ through you, whatever. 510 00:30:54,920 --> 00:30:57,240 What a relief, what a hope, what an excitement. 511 00:30:57,920 --> 00:31:00,240 So what is the result of this? Why does this matter? 512 00:31:00,920 --> 00:31:05,120 We no longer have to settle for small evangelism, small ways of 513 00:31:05,120 --> 00:31:08,160 coming into our workplaces, our grocery stores, our parenthood. 514 00:31:08,160 --> 00:31:11,680 We can come bold because we are salt and we are light in places. 515 00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:14,080 It doesn't matter how dark the darkness is. 516 00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:18,560 You are the light, and the light has overcome the darkness. 517 00:31:18,760 --> 00:31:22,360 We can really believe that. I don't care if there's demons 518 00:31:22,360 --> 00:31:25,880 because Christ is better. He is awesome, He is with us. 519 00:31:27,400 --> 00:31:32,320 So I want to make sure we don't miss the five kind of new 520 00:31:32,400 --> 00:31:34,560 realities, new transition. So I'm going to recap. 521 00:31:35,760 --> 00:31:38,640 We started with you are a new creation. 522 00:31:38,840 --> 00:31:44,240 The old is completely and utterly gone. 2 you're chosen 523 00:31:44,240 --> 00:31:47,360 and adopted. You finally belong to the family 524 00:31:47,360 --> 00:31:48,840 of God. You don't have to work for that 525 00:31:48,840 --> 00:31:52,000 belonging. You already are three, you are 526 00:31:52,000 --> 00:31:54,480 more than a conqueror. You've already won. 527 00:31:54,800 --> 00:32:00,280 You walk from V4. You are the temple of the Holy 528 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:03,840 Spirit, his presence and his power lives inside of you. 529 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:07,280 And finally we finished with practical. 530 00:32:07,440 --> 00:32:12,200 You are the salt and light God. It's shining presence in the 531 00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:16,960 dark and depraved world. Amen. 532 00:32:16,960 --> 00:32:19,280 And the and the great thing that I want to emphasize over and 533 00:32:19,280 --> 00:32:22,680 over again, and I hope it's it feels repetitive is it's not 534 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:23,920 something you're trying to become. 535 00:32:25,560 --> 00:32:29,280 It's by the blood of Jesus that you're already who you are right 536 00:32:29,280 --> 00:32:33,440 now in that scene. Now the question that might be 537 00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:35,800 nagging you that you might be thinking through like, oh man, 538 00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:39,480 these are all great things. Alan is if I'm a new creation, 539 00:32:39,480 --> 00:32:41,920 I'm chosen, I'm a conqueror, I'm full of resurrection power. 540 00:32:41,920 --> 00:32:44,480 I'm salt and light. Then why doesn't my life always 541 00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:47,440 look like that? Why do I have moments of 542 00:32:47,440 --> 00:32:50,080 weakness? Why do I fall into temptation? 543 00:32:50,400 --> 00:32:56,200 Why are these moments happening? And that moves back to my Third 544 00:32:56,200 --> 00:32:57,920 Point here and what I shared earlier. 545 00:32:57,920 --> 00:33:00,920 We're going to go back to that analogy of that new shirt versus 546 00:33:00,920 --> 00:33:03,800 the old shirt. I have a hot, sweaty day. 547 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:06,320 We have that old shirt that's dirty, that's not for us 548 00:33:06,320 --> 00:33:09,120 anymore. And we have a new clean shirt in 549 00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:11,360 our identity in Christ that we're not working for. 550 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:16,720 And we have a choice every day and every moment to say, are we 551 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:19,840 going to go and reach for that old shirt, that old identity? 552 00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:21,360 We're going to reach for the new shirt. 553 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:25,200 If we put that old one on, it's going to feel weird. 554 00:33:25,480 --> 00:33:29,080 It's not going to feel right. And yes, if you fall and you 555 00:33:29,080 --> 00:33:31,600 sin, OK, your salvation isn't lost. 556 00:33:32,000 --> 00:33:34,600 It's simple. We renew our minds in the 557 00:33:34,600 --> 00:33:37,520 Scripture just like we did a few minutes ago, looking at each of 558 00:33:37,520 --> 00:33:40,840 these promises in Christ and we repent genuinely. 559 00:33:40,840 --> 00:33:45,160 And repent is just an easy I'm over here, I'm turning around 560 00:33:45,160 --> 00:33:47,800 and I'm living a different way and I'm walking in a new 561 00:33:47,800 --> 00:33:49,920 reality. It doesn't need to be this 562 00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:52,560 complicated. Judo, please don't make it that. 563 00:33:55,920 --> 00:34:01,000 And the final thing is that we pray, we pray these promises of 564 00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:04,360 the Lord, they are true, they are right. 565 00:34:04,680 --> 00:34:08,040 They are your glorious inheritance and identity that 566 00:34:08,040 --> 00:34:14,480 you have in Christ. So for for the Christian, I say 567 00:34:14,480 --> 00:34:19,639 this everything that we talked about, every promise, every 568 00:34:19,639 --> 00:34:24,560 reality is built on a strong foundation in Christ. 569 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:31,360 You can walk confidently today. You can stand up tall that you 570 00:34:31,360 --> 00:34:34,560 are a conqueror. Your past does not define God's 571 00:34:34,719 --> 00:34:36,719 liking and identity of you today. 572 00:34:37,920 --> 00:34:43,080 Walk with strength. And for those who do not know 573 00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:47,440 Christ, when we go back to verses 17 to 19 where it talks 574 00:34:47,440 --> 00:34:51,480 about a darkened mind, futility, feeling aimless, if that's you 575 00:34:51,480 --> 00:34:55,159 today, I'm not going to assume that someone doesn't feel that 576 00:34:55,159 --> 00:34:57,720 way right now. I invite you to do business with 577 00:34:57,720 --> 00:35:00,880 the Lord. There's the invitation open to 578 00:35:00,880 --> 00:35:04,800 be a follower of Christ, to step into what God has called you to 579 00:35:04,800 --> 00:35:08,400 what Christ has called you. It's a it's a price worth 580 00:35:08,520 --> 00:35:11,800 paying. What's 100 years worth with with 581 00:35:11,800 --> 00:35:14,040 an eternity with fellowship with him? 582 00:35:15,280 --> 00:35:18,200 It's he's worth it. He is worth it. 583 00:35:19,560 --> 00:35:20,920 You don't have to clean yourself up. 584 00:35:20,920 --> 00:35:24,680 That's right. You don't have to change. 585 00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:28,920 You have to change your physical appearance, but you come to him 586 00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:33,680 with severity and saying, yes, Lord, I want you, I desire you. 587 00:35:34,040 --> 00:35:36,360 My life is no longer mine, but it's yours. 588 00:35:38,160 --> 00:35:41,560 So I'm going to pray and do an addiction here in a second, but 589 00:35:41,600 --> 00:35:44,040 I'm going to linger. If if the Lord is calling you, 590 00:35:44,040 --> 00:35:47,800 he's drawing you, he's pushing you say Lord, I'm not believing 591 00:35:47,800 --> 00:35:50,240 I'm a follower of Christ. I'm not believing I'm a 592 00:35:50,240 --> 00:35:51,800 conqueror. There's something going on. 593 00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:54,720 I implore you, you are a conqueror. 594 00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:58,480 You are predestined to be a son and daughter in God's family. 595 00:35:58,480 --> 00:36:01,560 You are loved abundantly. Your foundations are in Him. 596 00:36:02,240 --> 00:36:03,760 You no longer have to work for it. 597 00:36:04,880 --> 00:36:09,320 And for the one who's on the edge, do business with the Lord 598 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:14,120 as I pray. Dear Heavenly Father, I thank 599 00:36:14,120 --> 00:36:17,240 you for the preached word. I thank you that we are 600 00:36:17,240 --> 00:36:19,680 conquerors. I thank you that we're sons and 601 00:36:19,680 --> 00:36:22,000 daughters. I thank you that you love us, 602 00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:25,800 that no height, no death, death and an Angel and our demon will 603 00:36:25,800 --> 00:36:29,880 separate us from the love of God, that we have a glorious 604 00:36:29,880 --> 00:36:35,040 inheritance and identity in him. And I thank you, Lord, for for 605 00:36:35,040 --> 00:36:39,200 the one who is thinking, can this be true? 606 00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:41,400 Can this be for me? Yes. 607 00:36:41,680 --> 00:36:43,680 I pray that you would speak to that heart, Lord. 608 00:36:44,160 --> 00:36:46,760 You would speak to them, cry out to them, come to them, speak to 609 00:36:46,760 --> 00:36:51,280 them and say that yes, I chose you, I love you, I care for you, 610 00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:54,440 I knew you before the foundations of the earth, the 611 00:36:54,440 --> 00:36:57,640 decisions that you would make, and still I draw you to me. 612 00:36:58,120 --> 00:37:03,280 Give me my life and I'll exchange it for a new life, new 613 00:37:03,280 --> 00:37:11,760 creation in Jesus name, Amen. Now may the Lord bless you and 614 00:37:11,760 --> 00:37:14,280 keep you. May his face shine upon you and 615 00:37:14,280 --> 00:37:17,120 be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up his 616 00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:20,320 countenance to you and give you a great peace.