Who Are You - 3
Who Are You?
‘A
while back a man obtained a ticket to the Super Bowl. And as he sat down in his
seat, he was surprised to see an empty seat next to his, at the Super Bowl. He
commented on it to the woman sitting on the other side the empty seat. “Oh, It was my husband’s,” the woman explained. “But
he died.” “I’m so very sorry to hear that,” replied the man. “But you know, I’m
surprised that a relative or friend wouldn’t jump at the chance to accompany
you to the Super Bowl and take his seat.” “Yeah It beats me,” she said. “But they were
all stuck on going to his funeral.”’…
·
I am a saint!
·
I am blessed with every
spiritual blessing in Christ.
·
I am chosen and
predestined for adoption to sonship by the Heavenly Father
·
I am accepted by God and a
recipient of his grace.
·
I am redeemed and forgiven
in Christ.
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·
I am Christ’s
Heir!
·
I am Sealed by the Holy
Spirit
·
I have access to spiritual
wisdom and insight in Christ by the Holy Spirit.
·
I am guaranteed resurrection!
·
I am Christ’s
Representative every day!
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Ephesians 2:1-22 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
2 in which you used to live when
you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air,
the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one
time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and
thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God,
who is rich in mercy,
I.
Seated With
Christ
a. I have been raised to new life in Christ and seated with him
in heavenly places
Ephesians 2:5-7 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in
transgressions—it is by grace you have been
saved. 6
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms
in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that
in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace,
expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
b.
The disciples wanted a place of honor.
Matthew 20:20-23 Then the mother
of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor
of him. 21 "What is it you want?" he asked. She
said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and
the other at your left in your kingdom." 22
"You don't know what you are asking,"
Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I
am going to drink?" "We can," they answered. 23 Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my
right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom
they have been prepared by my Father.
c. We will be
seated with Christ!
We are seated with Christ in Heavenly places; the
word of God tells us this truth, As we come into the fullness of being seated
with Christ the view from heaven changes our mindsets and is a
trigger for revival in our hearts and those we speak to. Eph 2:6; For he raised us from the dead along with Christ, and
we are seated with him in the heavenly realms—all because we are one with Christ Jesus. We are the carriers of His glory because of the presence of God
in our lives
John14:19-20 In just a little while the world will not see me again, but you
will. For I will live again, and you will, too. When I am raised to life again,
you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
Who are you?
You are seated with Christ!
II.
I have been
saved by grace through faith in Christ.
a. Saved by Grace
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no
one can boast.
She was an energetic young woman
whose life was forever changed by an accident. Because her spinal cord was
severed, she first struggled to survive. Forced to live her life as a
quadriplegic, she nearly lost the will to live. Slowly, she achieved the impossible.
She painted by holding a brush with her teeth. She produced record albums of
joyful music. She married, & is now known as an encourager to countless
thousands of people. Her name? Joni Eareckson Tada. “A 2 a.m. Miracle” –
Joni Eareckson Tada wrote
It was 2 a.m. and Ken, my husband was snoring softly
beside me, not aware that I was biting my lip to keep from waking him up. The
combination of my paralysis with middle-of-the-night insomnia always makes me
feel claustrophobic. But this was different. The pain in my neck and shoulders
was searing. I tried to move my head on the pillow, but was stopped short by a
razor –sharp stab in the back of my neck.
“O God,” I whispered, “I
need to reposition, but I haven’t the heart to wake up Ken. He only has a few hours
before hi alarm goes off, yet…I cannot tolerate this pain. Please, I can’t live
like this….help me?” I began to breathe
deeply and recite a favorite hymn: “And
I shall see Him face to face, and tell the story - Saved by Grace. And I shall
see Him face to face, and tell the story - Saved by Grace.” The next thing I
knew it was morning, Ken was off to work, and
my girlfriend had arrived to get me up. When I told her about my rough night,
she replied, “I bet you can’t wait for
heaven.” Joni looked at her friend and said, “I just experienced a small piece of it.”
One of our adopted kids,
David Pettigrew lost a leg in Iraq. We got word that he was struggling with his
injuries.
I found an email address for
Joni Erickson tada. And sent her a message regarding David and his battles. She
didn’t know me from Adam but the next week she called David and they talked for
over an hour. A quadriplegic encouraging a stranger who had war injuries. What
was the reason? Saved by Grace.
Who Are You? You
are saved by Grace! You didn’t earn it! You didn’t deserve it!It was by GRACE
III.
I am God's
workmanship - a masterpiece and a new creation - in Christ.
a.
God’s
Workmanship
b.
A
Masterpiece
c.
A new
creation
Ephesians 2:10-12 For we are God's handiwork, created
in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
11 Therefore, remember that
formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called "uncircumcised" by
those who call themselves "the circumcision" (which is done in the
body by human hands)— 12 remember that at that
time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and
foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the
world.
How many of you have been to a funeral? As you
approach the casket you'll see numerous floral arrangements, and these floral
displays use two different kinds of flowers.
First there are the
bouquets of cut flowers, and there are planters. There's generally more bouquets
than planters because the florist can create a more impressive
splash of color than a planter can. But both of these floral arrangements have
beautiful flowers and both mean a lot to the family of the deceased.
BUT NOW... wait
about 6 weeks. What happens then to the cut flowers after that
period of time? (They die.) What about the planters? (They usually are still
alive.)
Why did the cut flowers die? They died because (unlike
the planted flowers) they DIDN'T have any roots. Both sets of flowers had
pretty fruits--the flowers, but the cut flowers died because they had no root.
It was the root that gave the plant its life...not the fruit
But both sets of flowers were on display at the funeral
because of their fruit. You'll never go to a funeral and see a bunch of stems
sticking out of a planter with no flowers. The root gives the flower its life.
But the fruit (the pretty flowers) give the flower its usefulness in that
setting.
Now let's go back to
Ephesians 2:8-10 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--
and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no
one can boast."10 "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do
(what?) good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
Why does verse 10 say we were saved (created in
Christ Jesus)??? To do good works! But the previous verses tell us we're not
saved by those good works; WE ARE SAVED TO DO GOOD
WORKS.
Who are you?
You are God’s Workman designed to do Good Works!
2 Corinthians
5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in
Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
IV.
I have been
brought near to God by the blood of Christ.
a. Washed by the Blood
Ephesians 2:13-15 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been
brought near by the blood of Christ. 14
For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed
the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15
by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His
purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making
peace,
Matthew 26:28 This is my blood of the covenant,
which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Have you been to Jesus for
the cleansing pow’r? Are you washed in the
blood of the Lamb? Are you fully trusting in
His grace this hour?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
o
Refrain:
Are you washed in the blood,
In the soul-cleansing blood of the Lamb?
Are your garments spotless? Are they white as snow?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Are you walking daily by the
Savior’s side? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Do you rest each moment
in the Crucified?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
When the Bridegroom cometh will
your robes be white? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Will your soul be ready for the mansions bright, And be washed in the blood of
the Lamb?
Lay aside the garments that are
stained with sin, And be washed in the blood of the Lamb; There’s a fountain
flowing for the soul unclean, Oh, be washed in the blood of the Lamb!
Who are you?
You are washed clean by the Blood
of the Lamb.
V.
I am
reconciled to God through the cross of Jesus Christ.
a. The Cross
Ephesians 2:16-17 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the
cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17
He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were
near.
AT JESUS’ ATONING DEATH ON THE CROSS, IT IS SAID
THAT SIN WAS NULLIFIED,
SINNER WAS JUSTIFIED, LAW WAS SATISFIED AND GOD WAS GLORIFIED!!!
Matthew 27:50-52 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave
up his spirit. 51 At that moment
the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook,
the rocks split 52 and the tombs
broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.
1 Corinthians
1:18-25 For the message of the cross is
foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the
power of God. 19 For it is
written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the
intelligent I will frustrate." 20
Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the
philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
21 For since in the wisdom of
God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the
foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for
wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ
crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both
Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than
human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
A man wrote… Many years ago, I
got a job at a paper mill. There was an older man working there who was a very
dedicate Christian. My first few weeks there they had me working with him, He
was the greatest guy I’d ever known. He asks me if I was a Christian, I replied
that I was. One day I let words that hurt, come rushing out of my mouth, Word
that cut like a knife. I knew that those word had really hurt my friend, I
walked away in shame, too stubborn to apologize. I dreaded to face my friend
the next day, when I saw him next, I got up my courage and told him I was sorry
for what I’d said. He simply said I don’t remember you saying anything out of
the way, BUT I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU, “ARE YOU LIVING AT THE FOOT OF THE
CROSS”. Conviction ate me alive and I responded with words I hated to
admit: NO, I’M NOT” THAT ONE INCIDENT CHANGES MY LIFE
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