Living the extraordinary life 1
Our Surrender to Him, the secret of Life Gal. 2:20 EBC 10/11/09
Too many Christians find themselves in a rut, unable to please anybody and so we will be unable to please Christ. Why do we live less than productive lives? We don’t understand God’s love.
Rom. 8:38- what can separate us from the love that God has for us. There is no greater love than the love of God.
When we go back to the basics of our faith, all we do, say, and believe is a result of our love and trust in Jesus Christ. We can make the most of the opportunities He provides because we know that He has a plan and purpose for our existence. Often people become entrapped by the question, What does God want me to do? His Word says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Prov. 3:5–6). When you commit your way to God, He will place you in the position He wants you to occupy. It is a matter of simple, basic trust in God.
Lets do this this week. Write a Missions Statement for yourself- those things God would have you to do and accomplish. Jer. 29:11- We may not realize the impact of our lives on others. However, God does. He is looking for willing vessels; He will do the rest. Ask Him, “Lord, how do You want me to invest the rest of my life?” It may involve something other than your vocation—a job may or may not represent your life purpose. We are called to be Christ’s disciples in every area of life. One of the basics of the Christian life is the act of spending time with Christ. When our lives and hearts are focused on Him, we will discover His purpose.
I.Abiding In Christ - Learning to abide instead of striving teaches you to place your trust in Someone who knows much more than you do about life and what is to come. Once you have experienced God’s goodness, you will never want to return to a life of striving and self-effort. You will want to know more about your Savior and how your life can more effectively reflect His love and grace to others.
A.Gal. 2:20- To be crucified with Christ is the same as being dead to the law. This means that we are freed from all the curse and guilt of the law and, by this very deliverance, are set free truly to “live for God. We are crucified with Christ, that is, identified with his suffering and death.
1. Being crucified with Christ brings pardon
a.2 Cor. 5:14-15-
b. Col. 2:12-14-
2. Being crucified with Christ brings power. Our power comes as we yield ourselves to Him.
a. 2 Cor. 10:3-6-
1. Max Dunnan- Let’s look at this from the posh side of the tracks, We’ll call the people in our story Mark and Sue. Their Maryland suburb of Washington, D.C. could be any upper middle- or upper-class section in America. Mark’s $145,000-a-year salary, the security of his government job, and the comfort and beauty of their $300,000 home weren’t adequate, nor was Sue’s degree from one of the most prestigious Ivy League universities, to fill the deep need of their life. The ultimate sign of the family’s crumbling came when one of four boys in the family, a brilliant seventeen-year-old, was stabbed almost to death in a drug brawl. Then, though recovered from the stabbing, he was incarcerated in a youth detention home. When I met them, the young son was still in the detention home, but Mark and Sue were coping beautifully. They told me about their transformation. The son’s debacle had driven them to a Marriage Enrichment Weekend. There they not only met themselves and faced up to the emptiness of their lives, the brokenness of their relationship as husband and wife, and the futility of their life-style; they met Jesus. I don’t say that casually. Nor did they. It was obvious to me that Jesus had given them meaning and power, and they were gradually, with love, purpose, and commitment, by the grace and guidance of the indwelling Christ, painstakingly putting their broken marriage and shattered family together again.
3.Being crucified with Christ brings partnership.
1. Rom. 8:17-
a. The secret of the Christian life is to allow Jesus to live His life thru us.
b. The old man is dead and the new man lives.
b. Col. 3:9,10-
2. The Greek verb behind live is in the perfect tense, indicating a past completed action that has continuing results. When a believer trusts in Christ for salvation he spiritually participates with the Lord in His crucifixion and in His victory over sin and death.
3.The surpassing motive for all our actions is gratitude to a loving Lord. Gratitude for saving us.
a. “who loved me”- is the motive behind God’s grace.
1. John 3:16-
2. Rom. 5:8-
4. John 15:4- The true Christian life is not so much a believer’s living for Christ as Christ’s living through the believer.
a. The person who abides in the Lord lives not for himself but for Jesus Christ. As I meditated on these verses, I discovered that it was not my responsibility to strive for anything. My part was to submit my life to God and allow Him to live His life through me. He sharpens our talents, purifies our minds, and prepares us for service in His kingdom. We can rest because God is in control of all things. In essence, He refocuses our spiritual eyesight to see only Him and not the things that make us feel fearful and unsure. In abiding, we discover that God takes our thoughts and conforms them to His will and purpose. He sharpens our talents, purifies our minds, and prepares us for service in His kingdom.
B. Rom. 8:37-