Sunday, April 22, 2018

You are not who you used to be - April 15, 2018


Intro - DEAD TO SIN
Friend from St Louis – Fan à Cardinals/Rams à StL Football is “dead to me”
The Rams still exist in another state, but they have NO POWER over his life.

Romans 6:5-11
·      For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 
·      We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. 
·      Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. 
·      11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
·      Dead, buried, resurrected
·      Dead to sin, alive to God
·      You ARE who God says you are.  - Sin has NO POWER over your life anymore

Dilemma
If we are honest…
·      We don’t live this way
·      We don’t feel this way
·      We don’t always believe this way
·      And we start to get FRUSTRATED
Why?
1.    We’re not sure how it works.
2.    We don’t believe it works. (I don’t always believe I’m dead sometimes)
PRAYER

Word - LET GO OF THE OLD
Paul tells us…
·      We are dead (Rom 6)
·      MARRIAGE Illustration – Go back home with mom/dad
·      We are crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20)
·      We are new creations
·      We have killed our sins/sin nature
·      Galatians 5:24 (NLT) - Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.   Take time on this… very important!
·      Not believing this is actually DISOBEDIENCE
·      You are who God says you are!

COME ALIVE AGAIN! 
So, what does ALIVE really look like?
·      Zeke and I’s hiking trip
·      If that is Alive?
·      Why doesn’t our life in God reflect this?
·      Sin usually seems a ton bigger than my Christian experience, right?!
·      Satan’s Lie
You - JESUS BELIEVES IN YOU
Let’s walk through the gospel again…
·      John 17 prayer
·      20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.
·      We are one with the Father and the Son…
·      Jesus believes this… Jesus only does what the Father is doing…
·      God answers Jesus’ prayer… and we all go with Him through the pain & the life!
All believers died and resurrected with Jesus (“all who are far off”)
·      Fall – sin enters us
·      Gospel – Jesus kills it
·      We become united with Him and FREE from all sin, condemnation, etc.
·      We have already been resurrected… not waiting
You are who God says you are!

Action - REMEMBER
Still don’t believe you’re free?
What remembrances has Jesus given us? He knew we’d forget J
·      Teach them about me
·      Show them what I did
·      Baptize them
·      Communion – remember the Easter story - YOU'RE DEAD
·      Miracles – remember my power & demonstrate it (healing story) - JESUS LIVES IN YOU
·      Baptism – remember that you’re dead & now I live in you - YOU'RE RESURRECTED

'Repentance
·      Leave your old life and accept Jesus’ life (Romans 6:11)
·      Hebrews 6:1 – Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God
·      Elementary/Baby steps à repentance – God isn’t defining you as sinful
·      Maturity = Believe what Jesus believes!
·      FREEDOM = You are who God says you are!

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