Identity—what's My Future?

Our identity determines our destiny.

Our destiny impacts our identity.

Only as we are IN CHRIST — only as we identify WITH Christ — do we change our default destiny.

Our default destiny is eternal separation from God.

As John Macarthur says:

The only way you are living your best life now is if you are going to hell.

Romans 3:23 (LSB) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 6:23 (LSB) [Tells us the] … the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Sin causes spiritual and physical death — separation from the God who created us and loves us.

But, God offers us eternal LIFE in and through Jesus Christ.

Will we accept the free gift of salvation.

Free to us, but it cost the Father the best of heaven — His Son Jesus.

The Father loved us so much He gave His only Son to set us free from our default destination.

The Son, Jesus, willingly GAVE Himself to die in our place — to pay the penalty OUR sin deserves.

So, we can now choose to repent of sins and ask Jesus to be Lord of our lives.

Unless we do that, we will live in that state of separation from God and His love forever.

God tells us, through the Holy Spirit, of our need to repent.

Because as 2 Peter 3:9 (LSB) The Lord … is patient toward [us], not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

But, ultimately, we have to choose.

We have to choose to embrace forgiveness and love.

It seems like a no-brainer — but there are many people who choose to reject God’s forgiveness and love.

They remain and live their lives in their default condition — and then they die in that condition — forever separated from the God who loves them passionately.

To say that is heartbreaking is an understatement.

People Who Choose Christ

But let’s focus this morning on those who choose repentance and relationship with God.

That choice changes their identity and their destiny.

As to their identity, repentance leads us to the place described by

Galatians 2:20 (LSB) [that says] “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Those who choose the path of repentance and surrender gain a new identity.

No longer hell-bound, but heaven-bound.

No longer children of destruction, but children of God — heirs of eternal life.

As to their destiny it is, of course, 2 parts.

There is the here and now of physical life.

Being dead to self and sin causes us to live differently.

Being heaven-bound instead of hell-bound changes us fundamentally.

Changes us to have a different understanding of reality which leads to different priorities and passions.

But there is also our eternal destiny.

Where, according to 2 Corinthians 5:8 (LSB) we are of good courage and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

Changed Understanding and Outlook for This Life

But, this morning, let’s consider the here and now of these physical lives.

Consider, but let’s not get too wrapped up in them.

Let’s not be so enamored with this life, that we loose sight of eternity.

In fact, in the here and now, we do well to keep eternity with Jesus in view.

Eternity with Jesus was to be the second half of this message

But that was going to take too long to do it justice.

So, Lord willing, we will look at it more closely next week.

But, after we repent of our sins and ask Jesus to take over leading our lives, we begin to see THIS world in a different light — with a different understanding.

Our lives in this world stop being centered on us and becomes centered in Christ and His Kingdom priorities.

It’s not about pleasing ourselves, being more comfortable here, accumulating this world’s stuff.

It’s about living for Jesus and accomplishing His will.

As followers of Jesus, we are not supposed to be wrapped up in and consumed by this world.

2 passages of scripture really help us understand this concept.

Let’s really focus on them this morning.

First, the writer of Hebrews said in:

Hebrews 11:13–16 (NLT) All these people [talking about Abel, Noah, Abraham and Sarah] died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. 14 Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. 15 If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. 16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Secondly, The Apostle Paul said in:

Colossians 3:1–2 (NLT) Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

These 2 passages tell us 5 things we need to understand our present identity and to fulfill God’s will for us in this present life:

First, vs. 13 talks about belief in the promises of God.

He has promised us a better life than the best life anyone could have here on this earth.

Remember 2 Corinthians 1:20–22 (NLT) For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “So it is”) ascends to God for His glory. 21 It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, 22 and He has identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything He has promised us.

What God has promised HE WILL DO!

HE WILL enable us to stand firm against all the temptations of this life.

HE HAS commissioned us for His service in this world.

HE HAS identified us as His own.

HE HAS poured out the Holy Spirit in our hearts as a down-payment of that which is to come — eternity with Him.

Second, as we really believe the promises of God, we understand this world is not our home.

We adopt an unpopular identity (especially in the current political climate!):

We are wanderers and foreigners.

We are outsiders to this world.

We have dual citizenship.

But, we are first and foremost citizens of heaven.

As Philippians 3:20–21 (LSB) … our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by His working through which He is able to even subject all things to Himself.

THEN, in a DISTANT second-place, we are citizens of this world.

Even though we are citizens by physical birth, our spiritual birth changes our identity to that which we see in Hebrews 11:13 — to that of a wanderer and foreigner

The old, possibly negro, folk song helps us remember this concept.

“I’m just a poor wayfaring stranger, A-trav'ling through this land of woe. But there's no sickness, no toil nor danger In that bright land to which I go. I'm going there to see my Savior. I'm going there no more to roam; I'm just a-crossing over Jordan. I'm just a-crossing over home.

Third, as we live in this world as God’s children, we are looking for a better world.

As beautiful as this world is, and it is (Sandra and I have been blessed to see a few spots — just here in the U.S.)!

What God is preparing for us beggars description.

Jesus told His disciples and us in John 14:1–3 (TPT) “Don’t worry or surrender to your fear. For you’ve believed in God, now trust and believe in me also. 2 My Father’s house has many dwelling places. If it were otherwise, I would tell you plainly, because I go to prepare a place for you to rest. 3 And when everything is ready, I will come back and take you to myself so that you will be where I am.

God created this masterpiece in which we now live in 6 days (He rested on the 7th).

Jesus has been gone for 2000 years preparing a place for us — how much more beautiful will that place be after 2000 years!

In our study passage this morning, Hebrews 11:15 tells us Jesus is preparing a heavenly homeland and a city

And then we get a short glimpse of it in…

Revelation 21:1–7 (LSB) Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, 4 and He will WIPE AWAY EVERY TEAR FROM THEIR EYES; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain. The first things passed away.” 5 And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” 6 Then He said to me, “They are done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. 7 “He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I WILL BE HIS GOD AND HE WILL BE MY SON.

That is the environment of eternity:

Perfect alignment with our Creator and Savior.

The Never-ending Presence of God.

No death, no separation from loved ones, no more tears or pain.

That is all passed away and everything is made new.

Ah, but then you read on further in Revelation 21:10–27 (LSB) [we see] the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like precious stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper.

As you read on you see a city …

With 12 foundations made of precious stones, sapphires, emeralds, topaz, amethyst to name a few

With walls 1400 miles tall and 216 feet thick, made of jasper and gold,

12 huge gates, EACH one made of a single pearl,

streets of pure gold — so pure it appears as glass

There is no sun, no moon, no streetlights — NO! as vs. 23 says: … the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.

The description goes on and on in its splendor and glory

As I said, we are looking for a new world of indescribable beauty

Fourth, we need to set our sights on the REALITIES of heaven

We need to see Heaven as MORE real than the realities of this life.

Like Stephen, the first martyr.

The pain of being stoned couldn’t compare with the reality of heaven that confronted and comforted him in his agony.

Acts 7:55–56 (LSB) … being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

Acts 7:59–60 (NLT) As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.

May the realities of heaven sustain us in our most pressing trials — becoming more real than our next breath.

Fifth, we need to think about heaven more than we do.

We need to think about it all the time.

Certainly we need to focus on and be be more passionate about heaven than this world.

We need to be passionate about taking as many people with us to heaven as we can.

What Do You Choose?

Heaven affects …

our identity.

how we live now.

Because Heaven is our eternal destiny.

Hebrews 9:27 “27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,”

Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.

The Bible is clear in its teaching.

Each man and woman is given one life to live, and how their life is lived will determine their eternal destiny—life, death, judgment.

C.S. Lewis wrote about a tombstone epitaph he had once read: “Here lies an atheist all dressed up and nowhere to go!”

The man had these words added to his tombstone as his final declaration of his view of eternity—a sad joke about the futility of faith.

Lewis commented: “I’ll bet now he wishes that were so!”

The truth of the matter is that we WILL go somewhere to spend our eternity but which place is up to each of us.

As Sister Michelle and the worship team comes…

Can we be sure of our eternal destiny?

Can we know what our future holds?

Can we know what will happen after we die?

The Bible says we CAN know.

God has given us a glimpse of eternity.

He has shown us what eternity will be like and how we can be sure of our final destination.

So much so we sing, Come, Jesus, Come!

When we have a certainty of our ultimate destiny we find strength for daily living.

As we stop to remember the future God has planned for us, we are renewed in our inner being.

Regardless of how bad a day may be, God renews our spirit with the knowledge “the best is yet to come!”

Are you on the road to heaven or hell?

Your choice!

Are you headed for hell and want to change your destination?

I encourage you to come down here and pray with me.