`Freedom in Christ`
1) PREACHING
It's in Ephesians 4 that Paul talks about `some being called
evangelists, pastors, teachers` etc.
I know that all of us have the potential for these gifts, someone may
not have the gift of evangelism but the Spirit will stir up that gift
for an occasion, or even a season.
For the last 1 maybe even more years I've been wanted to preach. I've
been a Christian for 13 years but I never felt worthy enough or was too
worried I'd be doing it for the wrong motives.
Now, I don't feel any worthier but because I understand about grace a
little more, because He knows I love Him, and now, I know that He knows
that I love Him, I can stand up and preach for surely there is no
condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus.
2) THAT WARM GLOW
On Tuesday, every time I thought about standing up here I would get a
warm glow, a feeling of Joy. I started to worry again that it was my
ego longing for me to be the centre of attention for a captive
audience, and that may be still true!!
But I had a revelation. I realised that I never really get the chance
to talk about Jesus in my every day life, and now I have been asked to
for a requested period of time!!
How gorgeous is that?
3) THE TITLE OF THE SERMON
The title of my sermon is `The Freedom we have in Christ` and is wholly
based around Galatians 5:1:
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and
do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."
4) LET'S START WITH A SUBJECT THAT I THINK WE ALL MAY KNOW A LOT ABOUT,
SIN.
When we are born again our conscience comes alive and things that we
did before, for which would not even get a pang of conscience about
start to suddenly, or even gradually become uncomfortable.
Look at the opposite, positive side about that. My heart has come alive
to the truth!
5) NAUGHTY MAGAZINES.
When I first become a Christian I used to have a stack of naughty
magazines, showing pictures of a very revealing nature. Before I was a
Christian, not only was I not ashamed but I was actually proud that as
a single man I had the good and liberal sense to be practical and not
lose sight of the female form. How blind is that? It didn't take long
for the Spirit's conviction.
5) SIN FEELS NICE.
The thing is I didn't stop wanting to look at them. I threw them away
because it was right and I knew that I would be tempted to look at
them, because sin to our flesh, our natural state feels very nice.
That's why we beat ourselves up so much.
6) GUILT OVER FEELINGS.
So even before we sin as a Christian, we feel condemned by sinful
feelings; how can a real Jesus loving Christian have such sinful
thoughts?
7) WHEN WE DO SIN.
When we fall into sin we run from God because of our unfaithfulness,
and hide. Then we do one of two things, eventually when we feel we've
felt the right amount of guilt we confess our sin to God because He
didn't know about it; or we harden our heart because we're annoyed at
God for making us feel so guilty,
8) WE CERTAINLY DON'T FEEL FREE!
So when Christians preach about `Freedom` there probably are various
responses.
a) God I hope this preacher is able to deliver because I so need to
feel free.
Or
b) This is pointless, I know all this in my head, and probably know
more scriptures than the preacher, but what about my heart knowing the
truth about freedom?
Or
c) This might change things for as long as he's preaching on it! Etc,
etc?
9) "IT IS FOR FREEDOM THAT CHRIST HAS SET US FREE."
It's in the bible and repeated in similar forms throughout the New
Testament so why aren't we free, if it's true that it was for freedom
that Christ died for our sins?
10) A SERIOUS ERROR.
I believe one of our most serious errors in all this is thinking that
we need to stop ourselves from thinking and doing sin; that ultimately
it's up to us to free ourselves.
11) AN ILLUSTRATION FROM MY LIFE ABOUT TRYING TO WALK THE CHRISTIAN
LIFE.
For about 11 years of my Christian life I had ridden the roller coaster
of sin and repentance. I was like a schizophrenic, one moment happy
because I was doing those things that I imagined were pleasing to God,
the next very second plummeting because I'd had a sinful thought or
committed a sinful deed. It was like keep spiritual accounts. At this
moment I'm in credit because I'm doing something Christian, the next
moment I'm in debit because I got angry at Pauline and was horrible to
her.
12) IT REALLY WAS LIVING ROMANS 7.
"I do the things I don't want to do but don't do the things I know I
should!"
And:
"Who can free me from this body of death?"
And he's so right because in a way it is carrying around our dead
body!
13) MY REVELATION THROUGH `RATS` AND `RABBITS`
It was learning about rats and rabbits that first opened my eyes to the
possibility of real freedom.
Because of the sin of Adam we are all born into this world rats. No
matter how we try to hide it, by living a good life or just letting
ourselves be ratty in secret, the fact is because of Adam the human
race is really a rat race.
When Christ became the new Adam by paying the price for the sin of
Adam, thus all our sins, those who believed and believe in this
incredible, awesome free gift spiritually become new creations. Their
spiritual DNA is supernaturally changed from Rat DNA to Rabbit DNA. In
reality, the only reality that is eternal, spiritual reality, we are a
new creation. Our identity in the eyes of God, surely the only opinion
that counts, and to the whole spiritual realm, for remember we do not
battle against flesh and blood but powers and principalities in the
spiritual realm, is that of a redeemed righteous bunny. The thing is we
know it in our heads, we're taught it, but the world of our five senses
shows us to be still our ratty self.
So we are all the time checking our ears, are they still long? Have we
still got that lovely fluffy ball of a tail? Can I hop? All the time
trying to be something that the whole spiritual realm knows to be true,
we have become a new creation!!
So whether you feel like it or not, whether you choose to live that
redeemed bunny life or not, it's irrelevant you are a bunny. Is there
anything sadder than a lovely new bunny spending its life checking with
itself, God and others whether it still is a bunny? Whether it still
looks like a bunny? Etc, etc?
14) SO HOW CAN WE LIVE IN THE REALITY OF CHRIST'S FREEDOM?
The rats and rabbits picture is a very simple picture of our dilemma,
how can we live out our bunny lives when we still feel, a lot of the
time, left to our own devices, like blinking rats? How can we live a
godly Christian life, free and at peace, when all the time we come face
to face with this supposedly dead sinful nature?
15) AN ANSWER.
The answer has to do with a small phrase that is probably the most
repeated and taken for granted phrase in the New Testament, and that is
`in Him`. All that we are, all that we have is `in Him`.
We make think we know that in our heads, and those of us who have been
Christians a few years have even had the pleasure of trying to explain
what that phrase means to New Christians. But it has to be spiritually
discerned, and don't worry, I don't mean you have to be some sort of
special saint. The fact is it takes a revelation from God, like
everything else that really matters, to understand what `in Him` means.
A revelation that continues all through our life on this earth. This is
because it means absolutely everything. Remember He is the Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and end. He is the way, the truth and the life. It
makes perfect sense that our life as a Christian can only be lived `in
Him`.
16) HOW?
So how do we live `in Him`? How do we `move and have our being `in
Him`?
I believe it first requires us to give up trying to be a good
Christian, to stop trying to be a rabbit.
If at the end of the day you want to know whether you are still in
credit with God, take a look at what Jesus did on the cross. You may
have lost 50 points that day, on the debit and credit scale of
godliness, but your a/c is still in the black by countless millions of
points. This is because He paid the full amount already into your
account. The full amount you owed, have owed and will owe as a payment
for sin.
You are only righteous but it's not because of anything you did then,
when He died for you, and it is not for anything you've done are doing
or will do in the future. It's not about you; it's about what he's
done.
17) YOU ARE FORGIVEN!!
When Jesus went to the cross to die for us, to set us free from our
sins, it was once and for all, for all of us who would receive it. If
you have received this gift of freedom by faith then you have been
released from the consequence of sin, spiritually. Because we can still
suffer in our body we do not believe that we have been forgiven, not
deep in our hearts. How victoriously you live your Christian life is in
direct proportion to the amount of faith you have in the efficiency of
Christ's sacrifice on the cross.
18) WHY FORGIVENESS IS SO FANTASTIC!
That is why `feelings` for us are so important. They are, if you like,
the souls affirmation of the spiritual act, but you trying to rev them
up takes you away from faith `in Him`. Takes you away from letting Him
take the burden, a burden in reality that has already been
lifted.
God knows that we continually need to feel forgiven, especially in
these bodies that are so vulnerable this side of heaven.
He gave us `1John1:9`
"If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and
His blood cleanses us from all unrighteousness."
This is such a fantastic scripture because WE need that comfort. We
were forgiven once and for all but God, full of grace, understands our
weakness and how we need to confess our sins and receive continual
forgiveness, because we continue to sin, even though we've been
forgiven.
So that scripture is necessary because it reinforces for us the fact
that God is willing to forgive us.
Can you see the contradiction, why do we need to confess our sins if we
are forgiven? In spiritual reality we don't but God knows so very well
that we need to, to keep our relationship with God close and our hearts
soft.
19) YEAH RIGHT BUT HOW DO WE LIVE IN FREEDOM?
Good question.
Jesus has provided a way for us to live in that freedom. Through His
Holy Spirit, our helper, counsellor and guide.
How close we are to Jesus determines the peace and freedom we have in
our walk.
You say, "I know that"
We all know that but it has to be lived out first in our hearts.
In Galatians 5:1 it talks about standing firm so as not to allow you to
be a slave again.
Jesus recognises the danger.
But He has to do it; He has to be our freedom!
The clues are in the things he said about who He is. I Am the way, the
truth and the life.
He is the living God who does.
We have to stop doing Godliness, righteousness and the whole trying to
be good bit, we need to shelter under His wings, hide in His shadow and
through that intimacy realise that all is well with our souls.
In Romans 2 Paul says that it is kindness that leads to Repentance.
Repentance being that `change of mind` that John talked about last week
at the `Vineyard`.
It's when we understand or even begin to get a glimpse of how much
Jesus loves us that we begin to get heart realisations about
freedom.
Jesus desires us, His heart aches for us. He is forever waiting for us
to turn our gaze to Him. As in the Song of Songs, He is that passionate
lover.
God is love, love is God's power. When we begin to open our hearts to
receive that love our hearts and minds are changed. It truly is a
supernatural act. But in a way so is love.
It's easy to want to please our lover. Sin becomes an offence to us
because it offends the one we love.
Freedom is when we live out our true nature in Christ, `in Him`. He
transfers, through love, by His spirit, his nature to us.
But because He is a sensitive and gracious lover He lets us choose to
come to Him. He will woo us but our hearts need to be ready to attend
Him.
20) HOW DO WE BECOME INTIMATE, HOW DO WE FALL IN LOVE WITH JESUS?
We fall in love with Jesus by seeing Him, like anyone else who is
ravishing.
In your quite times begin to put everything else aside save for those
things that bring Him to the eyes of your heart.
Is there a worship song that moves you to praise Him? Worshiping Jesus
attracts the Holy Spirit more than anything.
Be still and just sit with your lover. Do nothing; you don't have to
say nothing.
Just be aware of the truth above all truths.
Jesus is with me and all is well with my soul.
21) KEEPING THE WORD CENTRAL IN OUR LIVES.
The consequence of the growing knowledge of God's love for us is a
desire to know His word. The word is what cleanses and heals our soul.
I don't read it enough; we never have time for it. But it is the living
word. Intimacy with Christ goes hand in hand with a deeper knowledge of
His word. His word is our plumbline. Emotionally we blow so hot and
cold. The word is our counter balance, a counter balance to relying on
emotion as a barometer of our spiritual life.
22) IN CONCLUSION
`It's for freedom that Christ has set us free`. Jesus, the lover of our
soul has set us free to know God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. If
you want to know God the Father let Jesus show you. The more I've
pushed into Jesus the more I've found access to the father. As I've
gazed on the face of Jesus the Spirit has revealed the most tender and
beautiful spirit to me that had me worshiping in awe and gratitude. We
take one small step towards the heart of Jesus and like the father to
the prodigal He comes sprinting towards us.
Our true freedom is found in our faith in Jesus to be all He promised
for us.
One day we will be able to look outwards to the lost with our hearts as
well as our will and our minds. Only Jesus can make that happen.
