Lives Transformed by the Power of the Gospel

Introduction

Last week we talked about how our MISSION is to CONNECT PEOPLE WITH JESUS!

This week, we are going to talk about our proposal for our new mission statement- TO SEE LIVES TRANSFORMED BY THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL!

Context of 2 Corinthians- show its similarities to us

People joke about us getting a letter. We did. God gave us the Bible

Gen-Z has high rates of anxiety, depression and suicide. Medically diagnosed anxiety is present in roughly 61% of Gen-Z.[1]

Beyond that, 43% of Gen-Z who battle anxiety self-reported having an anxiety attack every month.

Depression rates paint a similar situation. According to a study by the Walton Family Foundation, roughly 42% of Gen-Z battles MEDICALLY DIAGNOSED depression.

The same study shows that suicide rates have risen, with up to 18% of Gen-Z saying that their challenges are so hard that they would be better off dead, and that up to 1 in 5 Gen-Z members know someone who has committed suicide.

Even as these statistics are hitting a critical mass in Gen-Z, they are not the only generation struggling in this area.

GUYS, WHAT WE HAVE IN AMERICA IS A FULL BLOWN IDENTITY CRISIS!

And let me be blunt- it isn’t getting better. If statistics hold, then these rates will continue to RISE!

Simply put, our society has a need- it’s a need for NEW LIFE!

And we have the answer for that!

It’s our main point today.

Main Point: We can live NEW, TRANSFORMED lives because of what JESUS did!

Body

2 Corinthians 5 is a powerful chapter. Throughout the chapter, Paul has been giving a clear message to the Corinthians on what is about to come after death.

We’re going to pick up after a challenge that Paul gives in verse 15 to not live for OURSELVES but to live for Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:16 CSB

16 From now on, then, we do not know anyone from a worldly perspective. Even if we have known Christ from a worldly perspective, yet now we no longer know him in this way.

Paul starts off this verse by saying, “FROM NOW ON.” Now remember, Paul has just been talking about how JESUS DIED and how we LIVE NOT FOR OURSELVES BUT FOR GOD!

So Paul is saying that FROM THE TIME OF OUR FAITH IN JESUS, our new life begins!

Now think about that. That packs MAJOR MEANING!

See, salvation doesn’t start when we die. Salvation starts the day that you put your faith in Jesus!

YOUR LIFE IS TRANSFORMED! Your NEW LIFE BEGINS AND YOUR OLD LIFE ENDS!

So from THE DAY OF OUR SALVATION ON, Paul says that we “do not know anyone from a worldly perspective. Even if we have known Christ from a worldly perspective, yet now we no longer know him in this way.”

So what is a worldly perspective?

Well, Paul uses a word here σάρκα that can also refer to FLESH!

And that gives us the clue that we need. Throughout Paul’s writing, flesh, or SARKA refers to SINFUL!

So Paul is talking about a SINFUL PERSPECTIVE!

On one hand we have this NEWNESS that CHRIST GIVES and on the other, there is a SINFUL, FLESHLY, WORLDLY perspective!

I’m going to get even more specific on what a worldly perspective is. It is ANY PERSPECTIVE that is not build on CHRIST!

Let me provide 3 defining characteristics of a worldly perspective.

First, a worldly perspective focuses on EXTERNAL APPEARANCES!

Secondly, a worldly perspective SEES SIN and FINDS IT ATTRACTIVE!

Thirdly, a worldly perspective looks for how it can USE OTHER PEOPLE!

These three characteristics are so important. Let me just briefly talk about each one.

First, a worldly perspective focuses on EXTERNAL APPEARANCES!

Do you want to know the #1 way that we see this played out in our culture?

It’s in “KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES!” Or in other words, we see this perspective in the intense materialism of our culture.

It isn’t just in materialism. We see this in an obsession with looking a certain way, or being perceived in a specific way!

This is a PREVAILING mindset in our society. And let me be clear- it promises life and popularity.

But do you know what it actually gives? It will never give the popularity that this lie from satan promises, it will instead give brokenness, depression, anxiety, an obsession with people-pleasing and it will lead to DEATH!

So this worldly, fleshly focus on the exterior LEADS TO DEATH!

Secondly, a worldly perspective SEES SIN and FINDS IT ATTRACTIVE!

Can I tell you something? OUR WORLD LOVES SIN!

It does!

Do you know why the sexual revolution is a thing? Do you know why drugs, drinking, debauchery, and more have grown in popularity?

It’s because a WORLDLY perspective LOVES SIN!

It does! And this LIE promises that the SIN is more fun than doing what is right.

And let me be quite blunt. We as CHRISTIANS HAVE TO PROCLAIM TRUTH! Because if we don’t people are going to run after whatever they think is the “MOST FUN,” and I will promise you that in our world that is misled by satan, the fun option is going to lead to death!

Thirdly, a worldly perspective looks for how it can USE OTHER PEOPLE!

I actually want to go to a biblical example here.

ACTS 8- SIMON THE SORCERER!

SIN WANTS TO USE OTHERS! It just does! Think about it! In all of these defining characteristics, you are using other people.

You use other people to make yourself feel better by putting them down, you use other people by letting them experiment with sin first; or you even try to use GOD TO MAKE YOU RICH!

And let me be blatantly clear- THIS LEADS TO DEATH!

Jesus didn’t come to be used, JESUS CAME TO MAKE NEW!

And that is really the fundamental point that Paul is getting at!

The worldly perspective is the opposite of the Christian perspective. See, a God-Centered perspective, a CHRIST-BASED perspective is built off of three things also we could say:

The Inside

1 Samuel 16:7 CSB

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his stature because I have rejected him. Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.”

Hating Sin

Romans 12:9 CSB

9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good.

Serving Others

Mark 10:45 CSB

45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

So we know what a GOD-CENTERED PERSPECTIVE IS AND WHAT A MAN-CENTERED PERSPECTIVE IS.

And let me give you the best news EVER!

We don’t just know about it; if you know CHRIST, then YOU HAVE BEEN SET FREE FROM A WORLDLY PERSPECTIVE AND YOU CAN SEE THINGS FROM THIS CHRIST-CENTERED PERSPECTIVE!

2 Corinthians 5:17

And that next verse gives us the best statement!

2 Corinthians 5:17 CSB

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!

Listen to me- IF ANYONE IS IN CHRIST.

Now notice that- ANYONE! Not just some people, not just people of a certain level of goodness, not just people with so much money, no, no, no! None of those WORLDLY perspectives.

IF ANYONE IS IN CHRIST!

ANYONE CAN BE IN CHRIST! From the most innocent looking person to the worst, ANYONE CAN BE IN CHRIST!

And what does it meant o be in Christ?

It means to have YOUR FAITH IN JESUS FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF YOUR SINS!

It’s that simple!

If you have faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins, then you are IN CHRIST!

So if ANYONE is in CHRIST, he is a new creation!

If ANYONE is in JESUS then they are a NEW CREATION!

DON’T MISS THIS! (BE EXCITED)

There’s no future tense verb here.

Paul isn’t saying, “When they get to heaven they are made new;” Paul is saying, “ON THE DAY OF SALVATION YOU ARE A NEW CREATION!”

It is a DECLARATION, a STATEMENT OF FACT, A PROMISE FROM GOD THAT SPEAKS LIFE OVER US AND OVER OUR IDENTITY!

WE ARE NEW CREATIONS!

And look at what he says next!

“THE OLD HAS PASSED AWAY, and see, THE NEW HAS COME!”

Our bondage to sin is gone! No longer are we controlled by sin.

Instead, THE NEW HAS COME!

Cornerstone family, don’t miss the gloriousness of this declaration! Don’t miss what this says about you!

This is promised in scripture and it is DECLARED TO BE TRUE!

Ezekiel 36:26 CSB

26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Galatians 2:20 CSB

20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

WE ARE MADE NEW!

WE HAVE BEEN TRANSFORMED! We have been freed from the bondage of sin and now we are able to LIVE IN AND THROUGH CHRIST!

Listen to me- if you hear nothing else today, hear this. IF YOU ARE IN CHRIST, then YOU HAVE BEEN TRANSFORMED!

You have been made new!

You have been set free by Christ’s sacrifice!

And hear me on this too! Do you want to see the world around us changed? THEN GUESS WHAT! WE HAVE AN OPTION AND IT’S pretty simple! WE GET TO GO TELL THE WORLD ABOUT WHAT JESUS HAS DONE!

2 Corinthians 5:18-19

2 Corinthians 5:18–19 CSB

18 Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 19 That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us.

In verses 16-17 Paul tells us about our transformation and in verses 18 and 19 Paul tells us about the MINISTRY THAT WE HAVE BEEN ENTRUSTED WITH!

See, salvation, or reconciliation comes FROM GOD, but GOD HAS GIVEN US A JOB!

Our job is to bring this message of reconciliation to the WORLD!

And Paul clearly explains that message of reconciliation in verse 19. God forgave the SINS OF THE WORLD AND RECONCILED, or BROUGHT THE WORLD BACK INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD!

That’s literally the GREATEST NEWS OF ALL TIME!

And God has now GIVEN US THE JOB OF TAKING THIS TO THE WORLD!

This message has been entrusted to us and we are expected to TAKE IT TO THE WORLD!

2 Corinthians 5:20

That’s exactly what Paul expands in verse 20.

2 Corinthians 5:20 CSB

20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.”

God has called us to be AMBASSADORS FOR CHRIST!

I love this image.

When I was in college I took a class for my minor. The class was called “Diplomacy and Negotiation.” It was taught by a long time diplomat and he had a lot of friends who were ambassadors.

The role of an ambassador is pretty straightforward.

They move to another county and they help to manage the relationship between the US and that other place!

Whether it was providing services to US Citizens abroad, or if it was working with these other governments, the ambassadors had to MOVE away from home and had to bring AMERICA with them!

And we are called to be ambassadors!

So what does this mean?

Well, first, it means that this world is NOT OUR HOME!

It’s easy to talk like that, but do we really believe that?

Do we really live like and believe that this world is not our home? We are here for a time, but our permanent home as NEW CREATIONS, as those who are IN CHRIST, is IN HEAVEN!

As ambassadors we are not only living away from home, we have also been given a mission!

What is our mission?

Our mission is to proclaim the message of reconciliation to the WORLDW!

It’s to take this message to EVERYONE THAT WE MEET!

See, it’s easy for us to approach this job like we are an embassy. We wait for people to show up to us!

But that isn’t what Paul says. Paul compares us to AMBASSADORS!

That means that everywhere we GO we BRING THIS MESSAGE TO THE WORLD!

Our mission is simple- our message is simple- we are to proclaim the message of reconciliation BECAUSE OF JESUS to the world!

There’s a final thing that is really important here.

As ambassadors we don’t call the shots.

The US ambassador to Uruguay can’t just decide we are at war with uruguay.

An ambassador doesn’t have that type of authority

And here’s the crossover- we don’t have the authority to decide who GETS TO HEAR ABOUT SALVATION AND WHO DOESN’T!

It’s our GOD-GIVEN job to take this message!

And Paul’s second sentence provides more insight into this.

Paul says that we are to PLEAD ON CHRIST’S BEHALF!

Notice that! We are to PLEAD!

That word is important here. We aren’t just supposed to talk about the Gospel with no emotion or care. We are to PLEAD!

We are to consistently and purposefully PLEAD WITH PEOPLE!

Let me be clear- pleading requires emotions. Pleading also requires COMPASSION AND CARE LIKE WHAT WE SAW LAST WEEK IN MATTHEW 9!

This week as I was driving, an acronym popped into my head.

As Christians we need to PLEAD!

Persistently

Love

Evangelize

And

Disciple!

Is it a bit cheesy? Maybe, but it accurately captures what we are called to do!

For us to do our jobs as ambassadors of CHRIST’S KINGDOM, it will take time and it will take persistence.

Let me give an example.

On July 19th, maybe the most anticipated video game of all time is coming out.

In July of 2013, Daniel had just finished his sophomore year of high school. And all my friends and I bought NCAA 14, a college football video game.

It was the last game that would be released in this series until July 19, 2024.

And there’s a lot of buzz and excitement about this upcoming game. In fact, I talked with a number of kids at camp who were EXCITED ABOUT IT!

Now, if they came and asked you as a parent or a grandparent you might say no and they’d stop.

But if they were PLEADING WITH YOU, they wouldn’t take no as an answer!

Instead, they’d maybe give you “4 reasons why they need this game” or “3 reasons that getting them this game will benefit you” or they might promise to be super well behaved.

They are PLEADING WITH YOU!

They aren’t taking no for an answer!

And guys, that’s evangelism!

Evangelism is PERSISTENT!

And evangelism is EMOTIONAL BECAUSE IT IS ABOUT SOMEONE’S ETERNAL LIFE OR DEATH!

Devan story but call him David

That’s evangelism!

Sometimes I think we approach evangelism as dry and awkward, but if we are doing REAL EVANGELISM AS AMBASSADORS OF CHRIST WHO PLEAD WITH THE WORLD then it is so far from dry, unemotional or awkward!

Instead, it’s an emotional thing because evangelism comes from our deep love of two things- GOD AND PEOPLE!

So when it comes to our NEW LIFE, let me encourage you- we have been given a job- to PLEAD WITH PEOPLE AND TO PROCLAIM THEIR NEED TO BE RECONCILED TO GOD!

2 Corinthians 5:21

2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB

21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Paul finishes this section by bringing us right back to God!

I love this about Paul. He will give us instructions but he ALWAYS brings us RIGHT BACK TO WHAT JESUS DID!

PAul gives us the gospel here. God made Jesus who had never sinned to BE SIN FOR US!

In other words, Jesus took our place! Jesus bore our sins!

And why? SO THAT YOU AND I CAN BE THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD!

Righteousness means to be without sin.

And we can’t do that on our own. Every human has sinned!

But that is the power of what JESUS DID!

Jesus’s sacrifice was SO SUFFICIENT THAT IT COMPLETELY COVERED OVER OUR SIN IN EVERY SINGLE WAY!

Cornerstone family- we are called the RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD!

Just hear that declaration of identity today.

See, this passage not only reminds us of our vision as Chrsitians, but also of our GOD-GIVEN IDENTITY!

Our identity doesn’t come from man, it comes from God and God gives it to us here in verse 21!

We are made NEW, OUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN AND WE ARE CALLED THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD!

That is NEW IDENTITY!

And we don’t just have a new identity, we have a NEW PURPOSE!

Our new purpose is simple- WE ARE TO PLEAD WITH PEOPLE FOR THEIR RECONCILIATION TO GOD!

We are to PERSISTENTLY LOVE, EVANGELIZE AND DISCIPLE THE PEOPLE AROUND US!

Application

Main Point: We can live NEW, TRANSFORMED lives because of what JESUS did!

New Identity

New Purpose

New Response

New Identity

You are made new!

JESUS GIVES YOU NEW LIFE!

And how?

GOSPEL! THROUGH WHAT HE DID! (PLEAD DANIEL!)

New Purpose

PLEAD

Persistently

Love

Evangelize

And

Disciple

PLEAD WITH EVERYONE AROUND YOU! PLEAD WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR COWORKERS, YOUR FRIENDS!

PLEAD! And see how God will work!

I promise, GOD IS GOING TO WORK!

This is a sermon on vision, so let me vision cast for a minute.

This is going to sound HUGE, but I genuinely think this is very doable.

We have about 60 people on Sunday mornings.

Do you know what would happen if 60 people were faithful to PLEAD with just one person around them and GOD MOVED IN THEIR HEARTS?

We’d be celebrating 60 baptisms in the next year!

And now imagine if the year after that 120 people were faithful to PLEAD?

Now it’s 120 baptisms we are celebrating! That’s 10 a month!

And now imagine just one more year with me. Now 240 people are faithful to PLEAD with their neighbors!

And God is faithful to move- and we know GOD will be!

Now we are celebrating 240 baptisms, or 20 a month! Think about the impact that would happen on the COMMUNITY THAT WE ARE IN!

And guess what- PLEADING WITH PEOPLE AROUND YOU DOESN’T REQUIRE MONEY OR A CHURCH PROGRAM!

It requires that we each CARE about the people around us!

Now, hear me out- this is vision. This isn’t about numbers; the numbers are just an example. My point is just that the impact that WE AS INDIVIDUALS CAN HAVE FROM SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS OBEYING GOD WITH OUR NEIGHBORS IS HUGE!

When we each OBEY TOGETHER, then guys, GOD’S POWER IS SEEN THROUGHOUT THE REGION!

I’m telling you, this gets me AMPED UP!

And guess what? WE EACH HAVE A UNIQUE COMMUNITY TO REACH!

I can’t go to UHS and reach your friends; I can’t go to your job and reach your coworkers, I can’t go to every family event to reach your cousins, I can’t go to every restaurant with you.

BUT YOU CAN!

And that’s the beautiful reminder of 2 Corinthians 5:20!

WE ARE EACH CALLED TO PLEAD! NOT JUST SOME OF US, WE ARE EACH CALLED TO PLEAD!

WE ARE EACH CALLED TO MAKE DISCIPLES IN MATTHEW 28! Not just some, ALL OF US!

So let me challenge you- we have a new PURPOSE! OUR NEW PURPOSE IS TO PLEAD WITH OUR WORLD AND TO PROCLAIM RECONCILIATION TO GOD THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS ALONE!

New Response

RESPOND THROUGH REPENTANCE! RESPOND THROUGH PROCLAIMING JESUS!

Don’t look in the past and see failures at it, START NEW TODAY! Today, start PLEADING WITH PEOPLE ABOUT JESUS!

NEVER TOO LATE TO START!

Here’s one of my favorite things about this passage. We ALL have a response to this!

So as my final words today- let me challenge us- embrace it and spend time with GOD TODAY!

Do you need new life?

Do you need to take the next step in your new life and be baptized?

Do you need to grow in your identity?

We’ve got some awesome resources we’d love to share with you about identity and there are more that I am are working on right now, like a Bible Study through our IDENTITY!

Do you know people around you who need to hear about JESUS?

We all have a response! Spend time with God today praying through what your response is!