WEBVTT

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9. If you don't have a Bible, there should be

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some on the back tables on each side. You're

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welcome to take one of those home with you. Ephesians

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chapter 2, starting in verse 1. And you were

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dead in your trespasses and sins in which you

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previously walked according to the ways of this

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world, according to the ruler of the power of

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the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient.

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We too all previously lived among them in our

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fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations

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of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature

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children under wrath, as the others were also.

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But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his

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great love that he had for us, made us alive

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with Christ, even though we were dead in trespasses.

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You are saved by grace. He also raised us up

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with him. and seated us with him in the heavens

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in Jesus Christ, so that in the coming ages he

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might display the immeasurable riches of his

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grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

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For you are saved by grace through faith. This

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is not from yourselves. It is God's gift, not

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from works, so that no one can boast. For we

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are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus

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for good works. which God prepared ahead of time

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for us to do. So let's do this, now that my sleeve

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microphone just broke. It's going in my pocket.

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Let's pray together, and I want to ask that as

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we unpack that section of Scripture that... You

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just ask the Lord to speak to you. So it's not

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just me praying up here. I ask that you do the

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same thing. He does primarily speak through his

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word. And so we want to do that this morning.

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So Lord, we come before you and will you, by

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your spirit, help illuminate this section of

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scripture to us? Lord, if there's areas in our

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life where we've not seen you properly, where

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we've not understood the gospel clearer, Will

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you make that real to us today? If there's areas

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in our life we need to lay down and surrender

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to you, will you reveal that to each of us? And

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Lord, we will come as grateful, surrendered children

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of God before you. We give this all to you this

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morning. Amen. All right. Well, as we talked

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about last week, When we were doing our Vision

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Sunday, we're starting a real short series that

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we try to do every year in some form. It's called

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Radiant Basics. And we try to do this every year

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because when we think of the basics of what it

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means to be the church, it starts with really

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this statement which we say around here all the

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time. Who God is and what he's done defines who

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we are and how we live. that it's the start point

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for our church is understanding who is this God

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that we claim to worship and what is it that

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he has done, because everything from that should

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flow into how we live. If you've been around

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church, I'm sure you've seen it. I'm sure you're

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not guilty of this, but I'm sure you've seen

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how so many times people try to put on a mask,

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they try to act a certain way, and it's really

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not... who they are. Or they come to church and

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they think, I have to earn God's favor. I have

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to do something to get something. And when we

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say, so as we unpack this, I want you to keep

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in mind that statement and just think, everything

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of who God is and his nature and what he's done,

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that needs to change me. That's what's behind

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this. So here's how this series is going to work.

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So we are going to, all the Radiant churches

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right now are doing this same series, and they're

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doing it in the same order. In fact, most of

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us are teaching the exact same texts. So the

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way we're going to do it is we're going to be

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all over the place. I'm here this week. Next

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week I'm in Fairbanks. And Radiant, the Anchorage

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pastor is going to be here. And I'll be teaching

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in Fairbanks. And then the week after that I'll

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be in Juneau. And the Fairbanks pastor is going

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to be teaching here. So we're just doing this.

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And so we're all getting, so you're going to

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get a chance to kind of meet some of the other

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Radiant churches. If you don't know this, there

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are five Radiant churches. And we just call ourselves

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a family of churches. We're fully autonomous

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churches. We don't, we're not campuses or anything.

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We've all been, we're all church plants that

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started. And so we're just gonna, you're gonna

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get a chance to know other people as well I get

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to go up and Radiant Fairbanks and Radiant Juneau

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will get to, I'll be able to be in their presence

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and teach the same thing. And so, so let's, so

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as a church, so we believe that who we are, our

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identity, comes from who god is and what jesus

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did for us what he did is what we call the gospel

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it's good news that's what it means and so as

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a church and i know this thing you've been around

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this church like here we go again he always talks

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about the gospel really not much else okay if

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you're new like he always talks about the gospel

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years ago in fairbanks in the first church we

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planted The guy came up and he was very upset

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with me. And he said, I don't like the fact that

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you talk about the gospel so much. And I said,

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I'm not going to stop. Case point, he left. Point

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is, when you look at the scripture, the center

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point is Jesus. And the good news of Jesus is

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what everything, we are called to live our lives

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around. And so we always start with the gospel

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and we'll always end with the good news of Jesus,

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okay? So as a church, we do this. We fix our

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eyes on Jesus. We say this, Psalm 34, verse 5.

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Those who look to the Lord are radiant. Their

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faces shall never be ashamed. So we start there

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in our lives. Our lives are to be fixated on

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Jesus and every facet of it. And Jesus and the

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good news of the gospel is center. Center. Not

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moralism. It's Jesus and the good news. And if

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that's the case, all people are welcome because

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the gospel is for all people, right? So in our

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church, we say, everybody's welcome. I don't

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care what kind of junk you're coming in here

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with. I don't care how religious you think you

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are. You're all welcome here. But one thing is

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true is that in order to belong or being a part

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of belonging to Jesus is saying, Jesus, you're

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center. You're at the center of everything. And

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so we start there. The gospel center. The gospel

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is powerful. The gospel changes everything. And

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so the Bible is very, very, very, very clear

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on this. In fact, Paul says in Romans 1 .16,

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which is, by the way, the theme for all of the

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book of Romans, which you should know by now,

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says through this, Paul says this, for I am not

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ashamed of the gospel because it is the power

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of God for salvation to everyone who believes,

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first to the Jew and also to the Greek. It's

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the power of God for the gospel. Why do we go

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back to the gospel every week? Because it is

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the power of God. That's where it's found. If

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you want power to see your life changed, if you

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are broken, you say, I come to the gospel. A

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newsflash, we're all broken here, starting with

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me. So that's why we go back to it. 1 Corinthians

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15 says this, verse 3. For I pass on to you,

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by the way, this is the most used section of

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Scripture in every Easter service around the

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world. He says this. For I pass on to you as

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most important. what I also received, that Christ

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died for our sins according to the scriptures,

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that he was buried, and that he was raised on

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the third day according to the scriptures. That's

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the gospel message right there. Now what the

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implications of that is massive. And so the gospel

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is the most important because it changes everything

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about us. It changes everything if you really

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believe it. Now you can go to church, you can

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hear the gospel, and not change anything because

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you have not surrendered your life to it. But

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we start with saying the gospel cries out for

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you and I to surrender our lives to Jesus because

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of what Jesus has done. So it gives us a new

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identity. And so for our radiant basics, we start

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with gospel. And then the next three weeks are

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what I call identity handholds for who you are.

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Who God is and what he's done, that's what we're

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going to talk about today. But then after that,

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it says, now who you are is this. By the way,

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if we say who you are, and I go through like

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first one is family. We say, okay, the gospel,

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the good news of Jesus points to the fact that

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you now, if you put your faith in Jesus, are

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family. Then if we say we're family, are we actually

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living that out as a group of people? That's

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the hard part. That's the part that says. Who

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we are and how we live. Okay? So first week is

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gospel. Second week is family. That's James Marchetti

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in Anchorage is going to preach that here. And

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then the third week is servant. And Ben will

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preach that here. And then I'll be back when

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we move to the new building. On that February

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8th will be the theme of mission. That God has

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called us to live on mission. So three identities.

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We'll go into there. Now. There are so many passages

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that we could talk about when it comes to the

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gospel. I just had two of them coming up to that.

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But we're going to look at Ephesians 2, 1 through

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10. And this is really a remarkable verse, chunk

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of verses. And we're going to just touch on a

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few of the things today. But on one hand, it's

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a really simple summary of the gospel and the

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effects of it. On the other hand, it is, you

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could mine the depth of these verses hours upon

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hours upon hours. There's so much richness in

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here. And so as we go through this, I want you

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to think of these in four points, okay? These

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10 verses, we're going to break them into four

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chunks. First one is this, and these are just

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parts of the verses. Verse one, number one is,

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and you. Number two, but God. Number three, saved

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by grace. And then number four, for good works.

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Okay? That almost sounds like a verse all by

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itself. These are just, and you, but God, saved

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by grace for God's work. Okay. The Bible refers

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to the concept of being saved. It's the idea

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of deliverance. When you're delivered from something.

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The whole passage here is really a discussion

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of God's deliverance and salvation or you being

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saved. That's what this whole chunk of 10 verses

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are really camping out on. And so the question

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is, what have you been saved from? You've got

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to start with that one. What have you been saved

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from? If you were saved, delivered, if there

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was something here you were delivered from, and

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then obviously we're going to get saved to what?

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So verse 1 is the and you. And this verse is

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about you, who you are or were without Jesus.

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So let's look at verse 1 starting, and we're

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going to go through verse 3. It says this, and

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you were dead in your trespasses and sins in

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which you previously walked according to the

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ways of this world. According to the ruler of

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the power of the air. That's Satan. You can write

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that in there. That's him. That's his control.

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The spirit now working in the disobedient. That's

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the spirit of the enemy working in those who

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are not followers of Jesus. What are you talking

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about? We too all previously lived among them

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in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations

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of your flesh and thoughts. And we're by nature

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under wrath as the others were also. All right.

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Before we can understand and embrace a new identity

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in Christ, we must accept our identity apart

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from Christ. Okay? We need to accept the truth

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about our needy condition. We need to go to the...

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What the Sermon on the Mount calls the poor in

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spirit. That's when you look at yourself like

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in the mirror and you go, oh, without Jesus,

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I'm a mess. I'm gross. I'm poor in spirit. Sermon

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on the Mount is amazing as it builds like a sunrise

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of information for you as you go through it.

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But the very first thing is this, that you and

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I have to get is how bad you are without Christ.

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You are poor in spirit. And then the second one

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is that it grieves you so much that you weep

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over your situation. Do you see your own sin

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as this bad? This is where he starts. So the

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question is, from what are we saved and delivered

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from? Number one, or first is this. It's death

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and separation from God forever. Death is the

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first and foremost penalty of sin. Because of

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sin, death entered the world and spread to all.

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And every one of us are carrying around this

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death wish. Right now, the success rate is 100%.

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We're all stuck. I feel it every morning as I

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wake up now. I'm getting older. I'm starting

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to, ah. I was talking to somebody this morning.

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They said, I think when you hit 55, you're just

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constantly in pain of some form. Pretty close.

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Because your body's dying. And it's a result

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of sin in our broken world. And so there's this

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moment of time that we live in this brokenness.

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But death is a final separation from the removal

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of life. Duh. Right? That's what death is. It

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separates us from, though, the source of life.

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What's the source of life? Why is this such a

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big deal? Since all of life originates in God,

00:15:46.200 --> 00:15:49.799
death is separation from God, both spiritually

00:15:49.799 --> 00:15:53.960
and physically. And it's by God's grace that

00:15:53.960 --> 00:15:57.320
you have a shot right now in this brokenness.

00:15:57.879 --> 00:16:00.659
Because someday every one of us is going to die

00:16:00.659 --> 00:16:03.299
as a result of the sin that has entered the world.

00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:08.879
The question is, will you be separated forever

00:16:08.879 --> 00:16:16.120
from God? Or not. See, death is final. And it's

00:16:16.120 --> 00:16:21.000
forever. And that's a long time. Every one of

00:16:21.000 --> 00:16:27.080
us who has not put our faith in Jesus is separated

00:16:27.080 --> 00:16:33.419
from the life of God because of sin. And so as

00:16:33.419 --> 00:16:36.019
I think about this, that thought, that truth.

00:16:37.899 --> 00:16:39.899
When I think about our city, when I think about

00:16:39.899 --> 00:16:41.700
my neighborhood, when I think about walking through

00:16:41.700 --> 00:16:43.500
the halls of Colony High School, which I get

00:16:43.500 --> 00:16:45.299
a chance to coach, and I see all these kids,

00:16:45.440 --> 00:16:52.919
and I think, oh, so many don't know Jesus. And

00:16:52.919 --> 00:16:57.899
so when death comes, it's separation for eternity.

00:16:58.860 --> 00:17:00.799
And so in the inside of you, if you're a follower

00:17:00.799 --> 00:17:02.960
of Jesus, that'll create a sense of urgency in

00:17:02.960 --> 00:17:16.220
you. Everyone will die. With our backs toward

00:17:16.220 --> 00:17:19.039
God and your face toward your own selfishness

00:17:19.039 --> 00:17:22.400
and sin, you daily walk deeper into the darkness

00:17:22.400 --> 00:17:26.579
and devastation of death. Unless you turn to

00:17:26.579 --> 00:17:31.140
Jesus. The course or the way of this world is

00:17:31.140 --> 00:17:34.759
instead of God is... is to choose or pursue power,

00:17:35.000 --> 00:17:38.759
to pursue money, to pursue self -satisfaction.

00:17:38.839 --> 00:17:40.960
It's the pursuit of comfort. It's the pursuit

00:17:40.960 --> 00:17:44.279
of significance, the pursuit of beauty, the pursuit

00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:49.400
of control. We choose all of these instead of

00:17:49.400 --> 00:17:52.240
Jesus. That's what the world does. That's what

00:17:52.240 --> 00:17:56.940
he's talking about. The Christian, though, is

00:17:56.940 --> 00:18:00.920
the one who repents by turning your back on sin.

00:18:02.829 --> 00:18:06.809
Acknowledging this is my junk. And turning toward

00:18:06.809 --> 00:18:12.990
God and facing him and what he has done. So when

00:18:12.990 --> 00:18:16.930
you put your faith in Jesus, you are saved from

00:18:16.930 --> 00:18:20.970
the power of death. And you are saved from the

00:18:20.970 --> 00:18:24.089
pattern of this worldly living that we have.

00:18:24.289 --> 00:18:26.809
So what God does, he says, looks at you and he

00:18:26.809 --> 00:18:29.589
says, if you have put your faith in Jesus, the

00:18:29.589 --> 00:18:32.960
Bible says you are a new creation. The old is

00:18:32.960 --> 00:18:35.339
gone, the new has come. And so there's inside

00:18:35.339 --> 00:18:39.559
of you a desire to please your God, not yourself.

00:18:39.940 --> 00:18:41.500
Now it doesn't mean we have to struggle with

00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:44.019
that. Like I wake up every day and struggle with

00:18:44.019 --> 00:18:47.279
my own selfishness. But inside of you there's

00:18:47.279 --> 00:18:52.440
this desire to say, God, I want you first. When

00:18:52.440 --> 00:18:55.519
you put your faith in Jesus, it changes you.

00:18:56.420 --> 00:19:04.680
And so just look at verse 2 one more time. In

00:19:04.680 --> 00:19:07.039
which you previously walked in the ways of this

00:19:07.039 --> 00:19:09.660
world, according to the ruler and the power of

00:19:09.660 --> 00:19:13.099
the air, the spirit, now working in the disobedient.

00:19:13.880 --> 00:19:17.920
But when, he says, when this world ruled you,

00:19:18.059 --> 00:19:22.259
and who drives this world? But Satan himself.

00:19:23.319 --> 00:19:28.160
And he wants you to not acknowledge Jesus. But

00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:31.180
when you put your faith in Christ, you are following

00:19:31.180 --> 00:19:35.319
and obeying, you are no longer following or obeying

00:19:35.319 --> 00:19:39.059
the ruler or power of this world. So faith is

00:19:39.059 --> 00:19:41.819
a significant identity shift. It's an identity

00:19:41.819 --> 00:19:44.319
shift that you believe you're all of that and

00:19:44.319 --> 00:19:46.960
you've got it figured out to saying, God, I surrender

00:19:46.960 --> 00:19:49.559
all of you because you're the only hope that

00:19:49.559 --> 00:19:54.819
I have. The word heir would have made sense to

00:19:54.819 --> 00:19:59.319
the original readers. See, the heir in Ephesians,

00:19:59.829 --> 00:20:02.529
is is not something you and i read i get that

00:20:02.529 --> 00:20:04.990
that's what it means and ancient thinking was

00:20:04.990 --> 00:20:09.490
that there was a region below the moon and above

00:20:09.490 --> 00:20:13.150
the earth and they believed that in this space

00:20:13.150 --> 00:20:16.990
is where all the spiritual powers dwelled evil

00:20:16.990 --> 00:20:21.869
controlling powers and so paul is saying here

00:20:21.869 --> 00:20:26.049
is that there is a dark spiritual power at work

00:20:26.049 --> 00:20:32.849
in those who are not in christ So before Christ,

00:20:33.069 --> 00:20:38.549
verse 3 says, we too all previously lived among

00:20:38.549 --> 00:20:41.390
them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the

00:20:41.390 --> 00:20:45.150
inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we

00:20:45.150 --> 00:20:49.369
were by nature children of wrath. Those are not

00:20:49.369 --> 00:20:52.869
fun verses, are they? You're children of wrath.

00:20:53.029 --> 00:20:56.750
By nature means that by nature we were separated

00:20:56.750 --> 00:21:02.809
from God. By nature you are walking dead. Zombie

00:21:02.809 --> 00:21:06.970
type, in a sense, spiritually. By nature, you

00:21:06.970 --> 00:21:10.650
are drawn in by worldly pursuits. By nature,

00:21:10.710 --> 00:21:13.569
you are subject to Satan's powers. By nature,

00:21:13.630 --> 00:21:16.509
you are worthy to receive God's wrath and eternal

00:21:16.509 --> 00:21:21.190
judgment. That's what you deserved. But God,

00:21:21.289 --> 00:21:25.430
number two. Look at, but God, in his grace, saves

00:21:25.430 --> 00:21:28.329
you. This is your second point. Look at Ephesians

00:21:28.329 --> 00:21:32.920
chapter two, verse four. It says this. But God,

00:21:33.180 --> 00:21:35.740
underline that, circle that, that's the critical

00:21:35.740 --> 00:21:39.559
piece. But God, who is rich in mercy. See, mercy

00:21:39.559 --> 00:21:42.180
is not getting what you deserve. God is rich

00:21:42.180 --> 00:21:45.880
in that. But God is rich in this not getting

00:21:45.880 --> 00:21:50.759
what you deserve. Because of his great love that

00:21:50.759 --> 00:21:55.980
he has for us made us alive with Christ. Even

00:21:55.980 --> 00:22:00.700
though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved

00:22:00.700 --> 00:22:03.400
by grace. Grace is getting something you don't

00:22:03.400 --> 00:22:06.019
deserve. So not only are you not getting what

00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:07.859
you deserve, you're getting something you don't

00:22:07.859 --> 00:22:13.039
deserve. He raised us up with him and seated

00:22:13.039 --> 00:22:17.640
us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus so

00:22:17.640 --> 00:22:22.740
that in the coming age we might display the immeasurable

00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:28.000
riches of his grace through his kindness. To

00:22:28.000 --> 00:22:31.859
us in Christ Jesus. I'm going to ask a question

00:22:31.859 --> 00:22:33.599
I think is incredibly important here in a minute.

00:22:34.779 --> 00:22:40.319
See, salvation originates in love and grace and

00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:45.059
mercy and kindness of God. Question is this.

00:22:45.220 --> 00:22:50.180
Do you see this? Do you see God this way? Do

00:22:50.180 --> 00:22:55.500
you see God as somebody way up in somewhere kind

00:22:55.500 --> 00:23:00.410
of raining down? or a heavy hand or this distant

00:23:00.410 --> 00:23:06.349
being out there? Or do you see God coming to

00:23:06.349 --> 00:23:09.690
us with love and with grace and with mercy and

00:23:09.690 --> 00:23:13.509
with kindness? That's what it says right here.

00:23:14.410 --> 00:23:18.869
That's how God comes to us. And the question

00:23:18.869 --> 00:23:24.630
is, do you see God that way? It is all of him

00:23:24.630 --> 00:23:28.970
and his goodness toward us. That's what it means

00:23:28.970 --> 00:23:32.490
when it says, but God. But God came after you.

00:23:34.470 --> 00:23:38.029
But God, in spite of all jacked up you are, all

00:23:38.029 --> 00:23:40.329
of that, he came after you in his love and his

00:23:40.329 --> 00:23:44.789
mercy and his grace and his kindness. All of

00:23:44.789 --> 00:23:47.829
him. See, salvation comes through Jesus. The

00:23:47.829 --> 00:23:50.990
name Jesus means God saves his people from their

00:23:50.990 --> 00:23:54.109
sins. That's what the word means. He comes after

00:23:54.109 --> 00:23:56.789
you. And so, you know, if you live in religion,

00:23:56.950 --> 00:23:59.210
you just kind of slide in, slide out of church.

00:23:59.390 --> 00:24:02.029
You kind of think, if I just do my duty, I'll

00:24:02.029 --> 00:24:03.910
make God happy enough. I'll be all right. I'll

00:24:03.910 --> 00:24:06.750
slide. No. Being a Christian means you get how

00:24:06.750 --> 00:24:10.150
wonderful God is. You go, yes, he loves me. He

00:24:10.150 --> 00:24:12.869
gives me his grace and his mercy and his kindness.

00:24:12.930 --> 00:24:15.369
And he comes after me. And I love that. And I

00:24:15.369 --> 00:24:17.970
want him. It drives. There's something inside

00:24:17.970 --> 00:24:20.170
of you. Like, when I first met my wife, I was

00:24:20.170 --> 00:24:21.829
like, I couldn't get enough of her. And I still

00:24:21.829 --> 00:24:24.670
can't, by the way. But she is amazing. Why? Because

00:24:24.670 --> 00:24:28.369
I love who she is. And so I go toward her. Is

00:24:28.369 --> 00:24:32.089
that how we go toward God? See, this gospel,

00:24:32.250 --> 00:24:36.029
it's God coming toward us. Who God is and what

00:24:36.029 --> 00:24:39.210
he's done, gospel, defines who you are and then

00:24:39.210 --> 00:24:43.410
how you live. The question is, do you get who

00:24:43.410 --> 00:24:45.269
he is and what he's done for you? Because it's

00:24:45.269 --> 00:24:51.619
massive. Once we put our faith in Jesus. The

00:24:51.619 --> 00:24:57.680
natural question is then, now what? What did

00:24:57.680 --> 00:25:03.079
God say for us, have for us? Why did God save

00:25:03.079 --> 00:25:09.000
us? He didn't have to. The answer is in verse

00:25:09.000 --> 00:25:13.180
7. So he might display the immeasurable riches

00:25:13.180 --> 00:25:19.140
of his grace. Radiant reflections of Jesus. Why

00:25:19.140 --> 00:25:23.779
did he save you? God desires to show exceedingly

00:25:23.779 --> 00:25:28.579
riches of his grace through you and me. Like

00:25:28.579 --> 00:25:32.019
he says, look, I just like zap this love and

00:25:32.019 --> 00:25:33.660
kindness and grace and mercies. Now I want you

00:25:33.660 --> 00:25:35.900
to flip that around and be a conduit for that.

00:25:36.539 --> 00:25:40.960
That's what he's calling us to. He desires to

00:25:40.960 --> 00:25:45.900
show the exceeding riches of his grace. By giving

00:25:45.900 --> 00:25:49.259
your life to Jesus, by raising you up with Christ.

00:25:49.789 --> 00:25:52.509
giving you a new identity, and seating you with

00:25:52.509 --> 00:25:56.869
Christ in his place of victory, God has demonstrated

00:25:56.869 --> 00:26:01.190
his overwhelming love, abounding in his gracious

00:26:01.190 --> 00:26:06.490
nature. He loves you, but has a plan for you

00:26:06.490 --> 00:26:09.549
at the same time. Do you see this kind of God

00:26:09.549 --> 00:26:12.170
looking down at you? Do you see God this way?

00:26:12.769 --> 00:26:17.990
As one who's poured out himself for you? Look

00:26:17.990 --> 00:26:23.190
at Ephesians 2, verse 8 now. For you are saved

00:26:23.190 --> 00:26:27.869
by grace through faith. And this is not for yourself.

00:26:29.029 --> 00:26:32.109
Which means you had nothing to do with saving

00:26:32.109 --> 00:26:38.569
you. It is a gift. It is God's gift. Not from

00:26:38.569 --> 00:26:41.930
works. So that no one can boast. That's religion,

00:26:42.109 --> 00:26:44.789
guys. If we look at anything we do and we say,

00:26:44.829 --> 00:26:47.950
look what I just did. That's religion. It's not

00:26:47.950 --> 00:26:50.309
up to you. It's all because of what he has done.

00:26:50.450 --> 00:26:53.730
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ

00:26:53.730 --> 00:26:57.230
Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead

00:26:57.230 --> 00:27:02.430
of time for us to do. God had a plan for you,

00:27:02.569 --> 00:27:08.369
still does. We are his workmanship. We are his

00:27:08.369 --> 00:27:14.970
work of art, his masterpiece. Is this the way

00:27:14.970 --> 00:27:19.200
you see yourself? Do you see yourself as something

00:27:19.200 --> 00:27:21.680
that God has picked up and said, I am creating

00:27:21.680 --> 00:27:25.079
a masterpiece out of you? That's what he wants

00:27:25.079 --> 00:27:32.859
to do. We are radiant works of art. When I say

00:27:32.859 --> 00:27:34.700
that, it's not just a play on radiant words.

00:27:35.380 --> 00:27:37.640
But it's really to say, what is the purpose of

00:27:37.640 --> 00:27:40.960
this masterpiece he made in you? To make much,

00:27:41.059 --> 00:27:43.519
to radiate it outward. So everybody goes, whoa.

00:27:46.569 --> 00:27:50.750
You are meant to live your life on display of

00:27:50.750 --> 00:27:56.430
God. You get to display Jesus. Many years ago,

00:27:56.470 --> 00:27:59.150
my wife and I visited the Sistine Chapel in Rome,

00:27:59.230 --> 00:28:01.829
and I was thinking again about that experience,

00:28:01.910 --> 00:28:05.329
and Michelangelo in 1512 painted the ceiling

00:28:05.329 --> 00:28:08.250
in an amazing work of art. Anybody been there

00:28:08.250 --> 00:28:12.009
before? A few of you. And when we were there,

00:28:12.130 --> 00:28:14.970
which I found out, they were renovating parts

00:28:14.970 --> 00:28:20.470
of it. In fact, they still are. I checked it

00:28:20.470 --> 00:28:23.089
this week. They're still renovating this piece

00:28:23.089 --> 00:28:27.069
of art. Little meticulous things. But one of

00:28:27.069 --> 00:28:29.269
the things that struck me was the contrast between

00:28:29.269 --> 00:28:33.970
the unrestored and the restored parts. You see

00:28:33.970 --> 00:28:36.509
it, and you go, kind of cool, I guess, but blah

00:28:36.509 --> 00:28:39.589
and bland. It had been around since the 1500s.

00:28:39.849 --> 00:28:41.789
In this section over here, they'd restored it

00:28:41.789 --> 00:28:44.309
back to what it was supposed to be, and it was

00:28:44.309 --> 00:28:50.829
beautiful. You know, that's what God wants to

00:28:50.829 --> 00:28:59.690
do in you and me. The reason God restores us

00:28:59.690 --> 00:29:03.049
is to reflect his glory to the world that is

00:29:03.049 --> 00:29:11.529
dark. It needs to see what he's done. It needs

00:29:11.529 --> 00:29:13.690
to see him, and they get to see him through you.

00:29:14.589 --> 00:29:18.039
The world is full of sin and death. And we are

00:29:18.039 --> 00:29:22.160
God's people and a part of God's mission to see

00:29:22.160 --> 00:29:25.599
sinners saved and all things made new. That's

00:29:25.599 --> 00:29:29.160
our purpose. Our good works are a reflection

00:29:29.160 --> 00:29:32.279
of his good works. It's not like God saved you

00:29:32.279 --> 00:29:35.160
just now, get to work. No, we get to be a reflection

00:29:35.160 --> 00:29:37.619
of what he has done in us. And he's still doing

00:29:37.619 --> 00:29:40.240
in us. You don't get saved and everything's good

00:29:40.240 --> 00:29:42.619
and fixed. You are in a process. And every time

00:29:42.619 --> 00:29:45.160
your eyes are on Jesus, he changes you. And as

00:29:45.160 --> 00:29:47.549
he changes you, you share that. With the world

00:29:47.549 --> 00:29:50.650
around you. And people are going to go. You're

00:29:50.650 --> 00:29:54.450
different. Who is this? And you don't get the

00:29:54.450 --> 00:29:57.509
glory. But God gets the glory. So who God is

00:29:57.509 --> 00:30:01.869
and what he's done. Defines who we are. And how

00:30:01.869 --> 00:30:06.609
we live. So for us at Radiant Church. It all

00:30:06.609 --> 00:30:10.150
starts with Jesus. And the good news. We call

00:30:10.150 --> 00:30:16.619
the gospel. It's from God. It's from. the work

00:30:16.619 --> 00:30:21.799
of Jesus, that we become family. And we'll talk

00:30:21.799 --> 00:30:25.700
about that next week. It's from who God is and

00:30:25.700 --> 00:30:28.880
what he's done that we live, we serve like Jesus

00:30:28.880 --> 00:30:33.079
served. We'll talk about that in two weeks. And

00:30:33.079 --> 00:30:35.599
it's the fact that we are sent out as missionaries

00:30:35.599 --> 00:30:39.960
into the world. The Spirit sent Christ. The Spirit

00:30:39.960 --> 00:30:43.980
empowers us. As we go into the world, we declare

00:30:43.980 --> 00:30:46.819
who Jesus is. And that's the last. part of the

00:30:46.819 --> 00:30:52.140
basics that we'll talk about why do we bob and

00:30:52.140 --> 00:30:54.059
i were having a discussion this week about communion

00:30:54.059 --> 00:30:58.940
and uh his point was valid in many ways he said

00:30:58.940 --> 00:31:02.000
we don't really we need to have a higher view

00:31:02.000 --> 00:31:05.359
of what we do around communion so i just want

00:31:05.359 --> 00:31:08.359
to take a minute i want you to think deeply this

00:31:08.359 --> 00:31:12.750
morning about what communion represents You know

00:31:12.750 --> 00:31:14.950
what it represents? It represents what Christ

00:31:14.950 --> 00:31:20.490
did for us in his death, his burial, and his

00:31:20.490 --> 00:31:24.549
resurrection. It represents his body selflessly

00:31:24.549 --> 00:31:30.809
being broken, his blood being shed for us. And

00:31:30.809 --> 00:31:34.789
if that weren't the case, we would be nothing.

00:31:35.690 --> 00:31:38.529
And so we come together around that every week.

00:31:38.630 --> 00:31:41.049
The primary reason we do it every week is actually

00:31:41.049 --> 00:31:43.019
there's a... Partnerships is whenever you gather

00:31:43.019 --> 00:31:46.759
together, do it. But here's another reality.

00:31:47.220 --> 00:31:50.539
We need it. We need to come back to the importance

00:31:50.539 --> 00:31:54.900
of the gospel in your life. So as you go, and

00:31:54.900 --> 00:31:58.019
you take communion this morning, if you are in

00:31:58.019 --> 00:31:59.740
Christ. Now, guys, if you're not a Christian,

00:31:59.859 --> 00:32:02.039
if you're just kind of, I'm not sure if I'm here,

00:32:02.220 --> 00:32:05.579
don't do this. Don't do it. Because what you're

00:32:05.579 --> 00:32:07.680
symbolizing, you're saying, look, what Jesus

00:32:07.680 --> 00:32:13.460
did in his death. was his mercy was poured out,

00:32:13.500 --> 00:32:16.140
his grace was poured out, his kindness was poured

00:32:16.140 --> 00:32:18.960
out for me, God. You did this because of your

00:32:18.960 --> 00:32:20.900
love for me. So if you're not yet a follower

00:32:20.900 --> 00:32:23.259
of Jesus, don't do it. Because it's kind of making

00:32:23.259 --> 00:32:26.420
a mockery of what he did. But boy, if you are

00:32:26.420 --> 00:32:28.519
a follower of Jesus, you are in Christ. This

00:32:28.519 --> 00:32:33.920
is a very significant thing that we do. We say,

00:32:33.980 --> 00:32:37.180
God, I acknowledge and I am thankful for what

00:32:37.180 --> 00:32:41.970
you did in the work of Jesus. Here's the other

00:32:41.970 --> 00:32:45.430
thing. If you know you're actively living in

00:32:45.430 --> 00:32:50.130
sin and you have not repented of that sin, then

00:32:50.130 --> 00:32:52.029
you're also making a mockery because you said

00:32:52.029 --> 00:32:56.470
your grace isn't sufficient for me. So do yourself

00:32:56.470 --> 00:33:01.029
a favor. Sit right where you're at and confess

00:33:01.029 --> 00:33:04.269
that sin to the Lord. Maybe you need to confess

00:33:04.269 --> 00:33:06.470
it to somebody else, but get up out of your chair,

00:33:06.569 --> 00:33:09.210
go to him and say, I am sorry. Or here, say,

00:33:09.289 --> 00:33:11.490
I've wronged you and I've sinned against you.

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If that's where you're at, then after that, say,

00:33:17.470 --> 00:33:22.109
I'll go to the communion table now because of

00:33:22.109 --> 00:33:28.970
what Christ has done for me. Let's pray together.

00:33:36.720 --> 00:33:43.960
Lord, your good news is so good. Help us to see

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you in all of your kindness, in all of your love,

00:33:50.339 --> 00:33:55.420
in your mercy, in your grace. Help us to cast

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our eyes on that picture of who you are. Lord,

00:34:01.839 --> 00:34:05.279
help us as we understand deeper and deeper the

00:34:05.279 --> 00:34:08.030
significance, of the gospel that it's not just

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abc it's the a disease of every part of our life

00:34:10.929 --> 00:34:14.630
that we will begin to build our life see our

00:34:14.630 --> 00:34:17.650
life with you at the center of it and how it

00:34:17.650 --> 00:34:20.849
affects every aspect of our life that this good

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news matters so jesus thank you this morning

00:34:26.070 --> 00:34:28.309
for the good news of the gospel