Hey all, Pastor John here. Thanks for tuning
in to the weekly sermon podcast. We pray this
message encourages you, strengthens your faith,
and helps you to take your next step with Jesus.
If this content blesses you and you'd like to
be a part of helping us continue to bring the
gospel to life, we'd love for you to consider
supporting the ministry of Village. Your generosity
makes it possible for us to keep creating and
sharing resources like this podcast. You can
give safely and easily by visiting sacvillage
.org slash give or by heading to our website
at sacvillage .org. Thanks again for listening.
Now let's dive into this week's message. The
glory of God is a human being fully alive. The
glory of God. is a human being fully alive. That
was Irenaeus who said that many, many centuries
ago. And this week, number three, week number
three, we're in the third week of our Made for
More series, walking through what it means to
be a Christ -honoring disciple using a four -point
framework or discipleship framework that we've
been walking through. Rooted in Christ, renewed
in grace, shaped for purpose and sent to serve.
Week one, we talked about what it means to be
rooted in Christ. And we looked at Colossians
chapter two, and we said that the Christian life
doesn't start with just trying harder. It starts
with receiving Christ Jesus as Lord and master.
It begins with surrendering our life to him.
And it begins by drawing. our life from him by
sinking our roots deep into him. Paul said, just
as you receive Christ Jesus as Lord, now continue
to walk in him rooted and established in faith.
And so when your life sinks deep into Jesus,
he holds you steady even when the storm hits.
He becomes the place that nourishes your life
when everything else is run dry. and his life
begins to be produced in your life, the life
of Christ in yours. So discipleship begins, first
and foremost, with being rooted in Christ. And
then week two, last week, we looked at being
renewed in grace. 2 Corinthians 5, 17 says, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The
old has passed away, and see, the new has come.
We talked about how grace doesn't just change
your status, but it changes your very nature.
That grace isn't a one -time transaction. It's
ongoing transformation. It's not just cleaning
up the surface. It rebuilds us from the inside
out. And we said that the gospel isn't about
polishing up that old self. It's about making
you entirely new. Amen? We also said a lot of
amen last week. That was an export or import
from Uganda. I was listening back to the sermon
on our audio, and I was like, that's a lot of
amen. Wow. We might do half as much amen today,
if that's okay. Junior. I want you to know, though,
as we talked about being renewed in grace as
this kind of second aspect of our discipleship
process, that this idea is not just theory. It's
not a theoretical thing. It's actual real life,
real people. In fact, real people right here
at Village have experienced being renewed in
grace as the Spirit has worked in them. to make
and shape Christ and to overcome and even kind
of use the very moments of life, good or bad,
to drive people toward Christ and invite them
in to discipleship. We have folks here who can
say, Jesus changes everything, amen? So let's
take a moment. Right here, we're going to watch
one of those stories. I'm going to invite the
tech team to lower the lights first. We're going
to watch one of those stories of one of our villagers
here. I think most of you, if not all of you,
will recognize her and know her. But she is going
to share her testimony here on video for us about
being renewed in grace. Here we go. Because at
that point, I wasn't saved or I wasn't like a
full believer at that point. My name is Alyssa
and this is my story. I'm the office admin and
kids ministry director at Village. And one thing
I've learned as a Christian is God's plan is
not our plan. I was raised in the Mormon church
until I was about 10 or 11, where most of my
family currently attend today. After high school,
I got in a serious relationship, which started
off great. We would travel a lot. I ended up
moving three hours away to live, and we ended
up getting engaged. That's when I started noticing
things were changing within the relationship
with him. I noticed that he was drinking more,
he was abusing pain pills, and he was getting
into drugs. One night we got into a bad argument,
which led to a drink thrown in my face. That
night, I realized that I couldn't stay in the
relationship any longer. It started turning really
abusive physically, mentally, and verbally. One
day while he was sleeping, I decided to pack
up all my stuff and leave and never look back.
I ended up moving back home with my parents,
and I took a three -month break off of work,
which led me to hanging out with friends all
the time who were drinking. which then led me
to me drinking and getting drunk every night.
Once I realized that hiding my pain through a
bottle was no longer worth it, I decided to get
a job. Through that job, I met somebody, and
that relationship ended up getting serious. I
ended up getting pregnant not very long into
our relationship. After I found out I was pregnant,
I was given an ultimatum. He said if I didn't
terminate the pregnancy, then he would leave.
And to be honest, I thought about it, and I had
the appointment scheduled. After I scheduled
the appointment, I ended up calling my mom, where
then she reminded me that when I was 17, that
the doctor told me that I couldn't have kids,
which ended up really making me, oh, I can't
do this. After that phone call, I ended up calling
the clinic, and I ended up canceling the appointment.
We tried to make the relationship work, but when
my daughter was four months old, I became a single
mom. When she was about six months old, I got
in a car accident and was rear -ended. I ended
up in the hospital for a back injury. I was prescribed
pain medication for my back. I ended up getting
addicted to that medication. which then opened
the door to me selling them. Right before her
first birthday, I decided that I could no longer
live that life, so I decided to quit, not only
for myself, but for my daughter that I thought
I could never have. Shortly after that, I met
Ben, and within a year, we were married. Unfortunately,
I was still holding on to a lot of baggage from
previous relationships and life. from my addiction
to abusive relationships and much more. I didn't
know what to do with it, so I bottled it up and
put my head down and just worked. Ben was already
involved in church, and he ended up taking Kaylin
with him on Sundays while I worked football season
as a server. After football season, I got promoted
to event coordinator, church every Sunday with
Ben and Caitlin. It was really at that point
when we were attending church that that one song,
Life Defined, was playing. The life I live, I
live by faith in Jesus Christ who lives in me.
That was played one Sunday. And that really hit
hard. And made me start thinking about everything
prior. And made me really think, am I living
my life through faith? And is Jesus Christ in
me? Because at that point I wasn't saved or I
wasn't like a full believer at that point. And
that week led me into really thinking about those
words and one day I came home and was in a really
weird place and Ben kept asking me if I'm okay
and my usual answer is I'm fine, I'm fine. After
he asked me again if I was fine I said no I'm
not. At that point I broke down and I laid it
all out on him that I'm struggling. I was struggling
with still carrying everything around. It was
getting too heavy that I knew I had to talk to
him about it. That's when he told me that Jesus
is a lot stronger than I am and that I didn't
need to carry it alone. So I decided to follow
him and give it all to him. I felt a huge weight
lifted off of my shoulders and that I knew I
was no longer in control and that he was. I didn't
know what to expect after that. I thought life
would be pretty easy and smooth sailing. But
boy, was I wrong. Life over the last few years
have been rough. We had an apartment fire. We
got into a really bad car accident, which left
my husband with a neck injury. That led to a
surgery. While my husband was in surgery and
I was waiting in the waiting room, I got a phone
call that his... mom's cancer spread and that
she's getting put on hospice and only had a couple
weeks to live. About a month after his mom passed
away, I ended up in the hospital with E. coli,
which at that point I also found out I was diabetic.
During my stay, I was almost septic to the point
where I almost died. While I was recovering from
my hospital stay, we got an eviction notice.
that our landlord wanted us to get out within
60 days so she could move somebody else in. We
struggled to find somewhere to go, so we ended
up at my parents' house for a few months. Through
all of that, I've learned that God can turn the
most difficult scenarios around. Without the
community of Village, I've learned that I'm not
in this alone and that I do have brothers and
sisters by my side. To pray for me and encourage
me through all the hard times. And that I can
still lay my burdens down at the feet of Jesus.
A great reminder for anyone new that your past
doesn't define who you are today. In 2 Corinthians
5 -7 it says, We live by faith, not by sight.
And that is a great reminder that through the
faith that we have in Him, that He is ultimately
in control. that we don't have to be alone. My
name is Alyssa, and that was my story. Wow. Takes
a lot to share, but that's evidence that God
is at work in her life and has brought her through
so much and has been willing now to look back
at it and through the lens of Christ and what
he's done. So thank you, Alyssa, for being willing
to be transparent and open with us and to encourage
us with your story because I'm sure it resonates
with many of you. So that's what we looked at.
We looked at being renewed in grace and that's
a story of God's grace at work through all kinds
of things and still at work in her life and in
their life. And so we're moving out of renewed
in grace to this week where we're gonna focus
in. on what it means to be shaped for purpose.
God doesn't just save you from something. He
saves you for something. You are not an accident.
You are not some random assortment of quirks,
of strengths, and of struggles. You are the intentional
handiwork of God. His workmanship that he has
shaped for a purpose. with a calling that fits
exactly how he designed you. Every believer,
not just pastors, not just missionaries or leaders,
every believer is uniquely designed by God for
God's glory, amen? And your story, your wiring,
your gifts, your passions, and yes, even your
pains and struggles, all of it is a part of the
redemptive story God is writing through you.
So today we're going to see three movements in
the passage out of Ephesians chapter two, three
movements that show us how God works for us.
God works in us so that God can work through
us. If you're taking notes, the first point I'll
have you write down is God works for you. Ephesians
chapter two, verse eight and nine says, for you
are saved by grace through faith. And this is
not from yourself. It is God's gift, not from
works, so that no one can boast. God's purpose
for your life begins with his grace. Before you
ever did anything for God, God did everything
for you. You didn't work your way up to him.
He came down to you. Salvation isn't a reward
for your great effort. It's a gift of grace.
Paul couldn't be clearer. It is not for yourself.
It is a gift of God. And that word gift reminds
us that everything about our relationship with
God starts in mercy, not in our own merit. You
can't earn it. You don't deserve it and you can
never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever pay it back.
All you can do is receive it. Next time it rolls
around to your birthday, why don't you, next
time someone's giving you a birthday gift, right?
They come and they, hey, I got you a gift for
your birthday and they hand it to you. Why don't
you, next time I want you to try this, immediately
pull out your wallet and say, you know, here,
let me pay for you for that. Let's pay for that.
How much do I owe you, right? They're going to
look at you funny. They might take the gift back
because you ruined the moment, right? You didn't
understand the exchange that was happening. It's
a gift and a gift isn't earned or paid for. A
gift is a gift and it's given. And that's what
grace is. Grace doesn't eliminate effort in our
life, but it reorders it. We don't act to earn
God's favor. We act because we already have his
favor. So listen to a few scripture passages
that Apostle Paul lays out, one in Titus and
the other in 1 Timothy. He says, he saved us,
Jesus saved us, not because of works of righteousness
that we had done, but according to his mercy.
According to his mercy, he saved us, not because
of works of righteousness we did. 2 Timothy 1
says, he has saved us and called us, not according
to our works, but according to his own purpose.
and grace. God didn't look down at your resume
or my resume and say, I got to get this guy on
the team. Let's pull out all the stops. We got
to get this guy. He looked down and what he saw
was someone who was dead in their sins. And God
said, I'll make them alive in Christ. Grace doesn't
wait for you to get it all together. Amen? It
meets you right where you're at. Pastor Timothy
Keller once said, the gospel is not advice about
what we must do to reach God. It is the good
news, the gospel news of what God has done to
reach us. And because of that, Paul says, so
no one can boast. No one can boast in their work.
No one can boast in what they did or all the
skills that they bring to the table. The only
bragging rights in the Christian life belong
to Jesus. He's the only one. And if we boast,
we boast in what he has done, not what we brought
to the table. Because you and I, we are not self
-made. We are grace -made. If you think that
your purpose in this discipleship relationship
is about earning your place, you're going to
spend your whole life striving and never resting
in what God has done. But if you know that your
purpose flows from his grace, then you'll finally
live from love and not for love. And that's what
God wants for us. But God doesn't stop. It doesn't
just end with what God works for us. It also
moves on from there. God works for you, but he
also then begins to work in you. And number two,
write down, God works in you. The next part of
Ephesians chapter two says, for we are his workmanship.
We are his workmanship. So Paul kind of shifts
gears here. And after reminding us that salvation
is by grace alone through faith alone and not
by works, he then immediately says, for we are
his workmanship. It's not our works that earn
us a place. It's all about what he's doing in
us. And that word workmanship, man, that's rich.
It's this Greek word that I slaughtered in first
service. It's that word right there. Poema. Poema.
Gotta say it quick. Poema. And it's where we
get our English word poem from. And it means
something that is carefully crafted. Something
that is intentionally designed. Something that
is skillfully formed. We are God's carefully
crafted, intentionally designed, skillfully formed
workmanship. We are his masterpiece. And some
of you need to sit in that for a second. You,
with all of your strengths and flaws, your victories
and your wounds, are the intentional artistry
of God. You are not random. You are not mass
produced. You are a one of a kind creation in
the hands of a purposeful God. Isaiah 64 said,
we are the clay. You, God, are the potter. We
all are the work of your hand. God is the potter.
You and I, we're the clay. And the potter doesn't
just throw a lump of clay on the wheel and hope
for the best, does he? What does he do? He presses.
He shapes. He spins. Sometimes it feels like
pressure, doesn't it? Sometimes it feels like
spinning out of control. Sometimes it feels like
it's without purpose. But every moment and every
movement of his hand is intentional in your life.
You may not like the pace. You may not like the
process. But you can trust the potter's purpose.
And you can know that he is not destroying you.
He is shaping you. The psalmist said of God,
you knit me together in my mother's womb. Your
works are wondrous, and I know this very well.
But before you took your first breath, God was
at work. He was weaving together your very DNA,
your story, your wiring, your personality. He
didn't just make you to exist. He made you to
reflect his glory in a one of a kind, beautifully
unique way that only you can. And remember that
God even redeems and uses our wounds and brings
them into the masterpiece too. He uses our pains.
He uses our failures. He uses our struggles,
not to shame us, but to shape us. If you're writing
things down, write this down. Nothing is wasted
in the hands of the potter. Nothing is wasted
in the hands of the potter. Paul reminds us in
Philippians that the one who began a good work
in you, he's going to carry it on to completion,
on to fullness, on to perfection until the day.
of Christ Jesus, meaning God isn't finished with
you yet. You may not see progress the way that
you want to, but he's still forming and shaping
you. He's sanding off pride. He's sculpting humility.
He's firing your faith in the kiln of trial and
suffering. And if you've ever felt like life
is just too messy for God to use you, well, remember,
There's a kind of a famous philosophy that Michelangelo
had when he would sculpt, you know, when he would
bring out the David, right, out of the block
of marble. Michelangelo would say, I saw the
angel in the marble and I kept carving until
I set him free. And that's what God is doing
in you. He sees who you are becoming. And even
when you can't see that in yourself, God's working
to make you holy, to make you Christ -like, to
make you useful in his hands. And as John Stott
says, God's work of making us holy is slow. We
hate that, don't we? Slow. But you know what?
If it was fast, we'd hate that too. So what are
you going to do, right? It's slow or it's fast,
whatever, right? It's slow. It's deep and it's
beautiful. It's like the growth of a tree or
the forming of a sculpture. And that's what sanctification,
sanctification is just a big churchy word, right?
But what does it mean? It means that the spirit
of God, God is patiently forming Christ in us
until Christ's character shows through us every
contour of our lives. That's sanctification.
Christ in me. Christ in me. His shape. His form.
His character in me. You are not an accident.
You're an assignment in progress. Just like all
of us. And God works for you. That's his salvation.
And God works in you. That's his transformation,
his sanctification, grace at work in you. And
every day through his spirit, through his word,
through your circumstances, through community,
he's shaping your life into a reflection of his
grace. But there's more because God doesn't just
work for you and he doesn't just work in you.
He works for you and in you so that he can work
through you. And that's number three, God works
through you. We are his workmanship. And then
the next part of Ephesians 2 .10 says, created
in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
ahead of time. for us to do. And notice the word
that Paul uses there. He uses us. He uses us.
He doesn't say, which God prepared for you to
do or for me to do. He says, for us to do. In
other words, this isn't a solo calling. It's
a shared one. God doesn't just shape individuals.
God builds a people. Leslie Newbigin, he said
once that the church is not a religious organization.
It's a people through whom Jesus continues his
work on earth. He forms us uniquely and individually
so that together we can reflect the fullness
of Jesus Christ. That's what Ephesians says right
in the next chapter. He forms us uniquely and
individually so that together we can. reflect
the fullness of Christ. You were never meant
to follow Jesus in isolation. You were designed
to belong to a body, to a family, to a fellowship
of believers where your gifts and your story
matter and where you're shaped for a purpose.
Romans chapter 12 says that now as we have many
parts in one body, like you guys know your body,
right? Not just one part. That'd be weird. It'd
be super weird. Just a hand walked in here or
something. Like, you know, we're many parts in
one body and all the parts do not function the
same, right? Paul's hitting biology pretty good
right now, right? One body, many parts. Parts
don't all function the same. In the same way,
we who are many are one body in Christ and individually.
Any individuals in here? Yeah. Individually members
of one another. So what is God doing in this
body? What is he doing in this togetherness,
this work, these works that he's prepared? Well,
these good works, they're not just random acts
of kindness. It's kind of the popular thing of
the last 20, 30, 40 years, right? Do your random
acts of kindness. That's not what he's talking
about. The good works, the God works that are
prepared for us in advance, they are spirit -empowered
acts of love. Hear me out. Spirit -empowered
acts of love that stretch our faith and force
us to depend on God as he builds up his people
and advances his mission here on earth. There's
a lot there. Spirit -empowered, they're acts
of love that stretch our faith. They're not things
that you can go back and go, man, I could have
done that on my own. I didn't need God for it.
I had all the skills and knowledge and gifting.
I could have just gone out and done. No, they're
spirit -empowered acts of love that stretch our
faith and force us to depend on God as he builds
up his people and advances his mission. Kids
are being taught here at Village. Our Village
kids and our teachers, they're not just babysitting.
That's not what they're doing over there. If
they were, they'd just throw crackers at your
kid all day long, right? While they scrolled
on their phone and just threw crackers. Just
keep the crackers coming. They're not babysitting
over there. They are in the trenches. Faith,
their faith is being stretched, I promise you.
And their dependence on God, man, they're leaning
into God every time. I promise you, some of them
are probably praying on the way here the whole
time, right? Maybe fasting Saturday night. I
don't even know. I can only imagine. But it's
stretching their faith and it's forcing them
to lean in and depend upon God for another one,
especially if your kid shows up. I'm not looking
at anyone. I'm just glancing, right? God is using
them through that faith stretching and through
being forced to depend on him. What's happening
there? A spirit -empowered act of love on behalf
of these kids that doesn't feel good all the
time. But what is it doing? It's producing young
disciples. The work of the kingdom is happening
as their faith is stretched, as their dependence
is stretched. God is using them to build young
disciples. God is using people in all kinds of
ways, both in serving the body as well as in
their homes and in their neighborhoods and their
workplaces and among their family. God is using
people here to... greet others at the door and
to make them feel welcome with the same love
that they've received in Christ, to be there
at the doorway to make sure that you are seen,
make sure that you know that Jesus loves you
and that someone else is here. The embodiment
of the gospel is present in receiving you every
single Sunday. There are people on Sundays who
run sound or who play guitar or who serve coffee.
They're not just filling volunteer slots. No,
these are labor of love that is forcing them
into faith and dependence upon God in order to
serve the body. And the fruit of it is the love
of God abounding in the building up of the body
here. We see it every single week. We hear it
in the stories of what God is doing through the
community of saints. They're helping to shape
a spiritual environment where people can meet
Jesus. Every act of service matters because it
reflects the grace that has shaped you. Ephesians
4, a little bit later, says he gave some to be
apostles, some to be prophets, some evangelists,
some pastors and teachers. Why? To equip the
saints for the work of ministry to build up the
body of Christ. And that's God's design. Ministry
isn't done for the church by a few. Ministry
isn't done in the world by a few or a few professionals.
It's done through the church by all. Every believer
is a minister. Every believer is a missionary.
Every believer, every disciple is a builder in
the kingdom of God. And many people think of
the church, the gathering, the people of God
like it's a cruise ship. Anyone been on a cruise
ship before? Yeah? Been on a cruise ship, right?
It's a place that's designed for comfort, where
a small crew serves the needs of the passengers.
That's a cruise ship, but the church was never
meant to be a cruise ship. It's a battleship.
Every person has a role. Every believer has an
assignment, and the mission moves forward only
when everyone is at their post. On a cruise ship,
it's about being served. On a battleship, it's
about being on mission. And that mission is to
serve others. On a cruise ship, you ask, am I
comfortable? On a battleship, you ask, am I contributing?
And that's what it means to be shaped for purpose,
to recognize that you've been equipped by God,
not for a vacation. But for a vocation, a work
that God has prepared. I love this quote from
Charles Spurgeon. He said, every Christian is
either a missionary or an imposter. Every Christian
is either a missionary or an imposter. If you
are in Christ, you are God's workmanship, and
the mission field is first and foremost your
brothers and sisters for their building up, for
their pouring into them, for sowing into them
the seeds of life, and for helping them to be
renewed in grace. But that's not where it ends,
because it moves from there as we are equipped
and grown up and built up. Where does it move
to? Where does it move to? Anyone? Out there!
Not just in here and not just the gathering,
but it's through this equipping and through this
strengthening that we gather and then we go.
We gather and we go and we go and we're sent
to serve a world to bring the message of reconciliation.
That's what we're doing. And we're going to talk
about next week and our final point in our discipleship
framework. The last one is sent to serve. People
don't just attend church. Believers, disciples
don't just attend church as if it's an event
on our schedule, as if it's a religious exercise
that we drop down on 9 a .m. or 11 a .m. on Sunday
mornings. That's not what disciples do. They
don't just attend church. They become the church.
And you could wipe away the chairs and you could
take away the building and we could be left with
asphalt or dirt or down at the park or at one
of your houses and we can still become the church.
Praise God we have a building we can get together
and all be here, right? Not everyone has that.
Which means we're more responsible. Because we
do have it. We're more responsible to not make
this the thing. But to make this the place, the
equipping place and the preparing and the encouragement
thing so that we can go and be witnesses to this
world. But here we're shaped for a purpose. We're
shaped for a purpose in community. We're shaped
for a purpose as God works through us in his
word. We're shaped and shaped and molded. And
we bring all of us to the table and God won't
waste any of it. including our gifts. First Peter
says, just as each one of you has received a
gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards
of the varied grace of God so that God may be
glorified through Jesus Christ. Everyone a gift,
using it to serve one another as good stewards
of the gift and of the very grace of God. so
that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.
When we serve one another, we display God's grace
to one another. When we use our gifts, we build
up the body. And when we do the work that God
has prepared for us, we show the world what the
grace of Jesus looks like in motion. You are
shaped by grace for service. If you thought you
were shaped by grace for good feelings, Or you
were shaped by grace for therapy, right? Christian
church therapy. Nope, sorry. Maybe down the road,
I don't know. But no, the word is clear. You
are shaped by grace for service. You signed up
for something. And so God works for us in salvation
and God works in us through transformation. And
then he works through us to build up his body
and to bless. the world. And that's what it means
to be shaped for purpose. In conclusion, village,
you were made for more. You were made to be rooted
in Christ. You were made to be renewed in grace.
You were made to be shaped for purpose. And next
week, we'll look at what it means to be sent
to serve. He wants to do a work through you,
using your life to build up his church and to
bless the world. You matter, your shape matters,
your story matters. And maybe some of you, you've
believed in Christ, but never really stepped
into the why. It has been all therapy for you.
It has been all religious duty or exercise for
you. Well, now's the chance. Now's the time for
you to step into the why, the mission. Of discipleship.
What this is about. Why you've stepped from darkness
to light. So that you can now become a light.
To the world. Ephesians 2 says that every believer
has been crafted by God for good works. Works
that he prepared long before you ever existed.
And that means your life and my life is not accidental.
But it is intentional. And at Village that's
what we want to be all about. We want to be a
church where every person knows their shape.
uses their gifts and takes their place in the
story that God is writing here. Because when
we do that, when every part does its work, the
body grows stronger and the gospel comes to life
and our communities are transformed. And praise
God, that's what we want, amen? Philippians 2
says, it is God who is working in you both to
will and to work according to his good purpose.
And so our invitation today is to ask God to
show us where he wants to work through us. How
does he want to work through us? Where is he
pointing you? Maybe it's in your community. Maybe
you don't know. And maybe it starts with just
serving your brothers and sisters in some way.
Maybe it's with your family or workplace. But
God has shaped you for a purpose. He shaped you
through all of your life and your gifts for a
plan. And if you haven't found it, or you're
just kind of searching in the dark, now's the
time to step into that plan and ask God to show
you where he wants to work through you.