Justified, Reconciled, and Joyful: Our New Identity in Christ

Let’s Pray

Church

you and I as Christians are called by God to be different as God’s children

we have looked at sin

we have looked at the reality of sin....our true and desperate need for a savior

We have looked at how salvation is by grace and never by works

if you are saved this morning you are saved by God’s gift of grace not your keeping the law

we have looked at how faith...true faith...brings peace and how we are to glory in tribulations knowing tribulations worketh or bring patience and patience brings experience and experience brings hope

and that hope makes us unashamed

why

Because God’s love is so great He gives us the Holy Spirit when we are saved!!!!

Last week we looked at how Christ died for the ungodly....you and me...while we were yet sinners

How great is God’s love for us...you and me?

Today we continue with this journey by really starting to look at what reconciliation with God truly means to us as Christians

Last week we took a quick look at Holy Spirit and some of the roles He plays in our lives

Holy Spirit is God’s gift to you and me....all Christians

Because He knows we are no match for the world and evil on our own

The passing of Nanny and Mikey have for sure taught me I am far from able but in my weakness God displayed His strength

If you are like me we drive the hot mess express

i am a trainwreck on my own

I am a bull in a china shop on my own

destroying everything and everyone in my path

God knows that

He created us

He became flesh in Jesus and knows us better than we know ourselves

I love scripture for many reasons but one is God truly wants us to know Him and He truly wants us to know our new identity in Him as Christians

That is really what our scripture today talks about

Romans 5:9-11

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Romans 5:9–11 “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.”

I want to look at a few things that this scripture tells us about that new identity

Justified

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Romans 5:9 “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”

justified by His blood

we have talked before about the Greek word translated justified and as a reminder the Greek means render righteous

God through the blood of Jesus makes or renders us righteous

this morning I want to take a practical look at justified

we looked at it from a legal standpoint and how only those who are justified legally have direct access to God the Father

the only one’s justified are saved...Christians....God’s Children

What does justified mean to new identity in Christ?

First you must understand your old identity

Romans 5:10

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Romans 5:10 “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

Enemies

comes from Greek word meaning hateful, to hate, hostile at enmity with God

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strong language God uses to describes sinners...the lost...enemy...hate...hostile

Enmity means The quality of being an enemy the opposite of friendship, ill will, hatred, unfriendly dispositions

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sinners are at enmity with God

an enemy

hatred

do you see it?

God is very clear on your identity before Christ

enemy

hatred

having ill will

this is a horrible place to be

this is exactly where you and I were before the Holy Spirit led us to repentance that led to salvation

if you are not saved this morning that is the very place you stand here today and you willingly stay there because you refuse the gospel

you refuse Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior

Once you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior you are saved and you have a new identity

II Corinthians 5:17

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2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Here is the scary thing however

you can choose to leave your justified...new creature and return to being an enemy of God

James 4:4

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James 4:4 “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”

Very clear words here

Friends with the world means you are an enemy of God

the reverse is also true Friends with God means you are an enemy of the world

you and I as Christians are called to love all men and women

we are called to lay down our lives for our enemies

that is so very true

however we hate the world

How do we do that?

Through the Holy Spirit and true Bible study and discipleship

you see when you love those in the world

when you lay your life down for your enemies

you are following God’s path not the worlds

How do you know who you love

look at your path...your fruit

if you love the world your life will be marked with

wars...quarrels

fights

materialism

self-centered living

death

If you see these things in your life chances are you are a friend to the world and an enemy of God

What things should you look for as a friend of God

hope

love

joy

fruit of the Spirit

everlasting life

opposite paths and opposite fruits

you are known by your fruit not your words

you have a new identity in Christ

justified

no longer God’s enemy

The second thing I want to look at in relation to this new identity is

Reconciled Greek means to change mutually, exchange, return to favor

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Through Jesus’ blood you are reconciled.....returned to favor....your old life is exchanged for the new life

That is salvation...eternal life...but you are also reconciled on earth in this life as well...Given a new life to live

II Corinthians 5:18-19

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2 Corinthians 5:18–19 “And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”

This is where it gets messy

this is where it is very simple but so incredibly hard

you cannot do this in a pew

you cannot do this fully behind a screen

you cannot do this without pain and rejection and sorrow and heartbreak

you cannot do this without presence

I learned these past 2 and half weeks presence is powerful

you don’t need to know what to say just be there

sit in someones sorrow and be with them

when you are present you will get messy

you will be taken advantage of

you will be used

don’t get mad about it understand people are people and they will do selfish sinful things

you will be treated unfairly

you will face trials and tribulations

you will be persecuted

God tells us that in His Word

John 15:18-25

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John 15:18–25 “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me. If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.”

Remember friend of God means enemy of the world

the world loves only it’s own

the world only tries to steal from you

kill you

destroy you as it’s enemy....it does that also to those it love

John 10:10

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John 10:10 “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

the only thing satan is interested in is steal kill and destroy

here is what that means

it is never just a song

it is never just a movie

it is never just a tv show

it is never just a video game

it is spiritual warfare

it is picking a side

friends with the world and enemy of God

or friends with God and enemy of the world

those are the ONLY TWO OPTIONS

To carry out the ministry of reconciliation that God has called every Christian to you must get people in contact with the Truth

God’s Word

you can never reconcile anyone yourself

Only God reconciles through the Holy Spirit leading them to repentance that leads to salvation through Jesus and Jesus alone

you are to have friends....not people of influence but friends who are lost

how else will they see Jesus?

you come here to serve and be fed so you can go out there and be a minster of reconciliation

It is done over coffee

it is done at dinner tables

it is done in living rooms

it is done at ball games

it is done at work

it is done in the world just not of the world

why

why is this God’s Way?

what do you get out of it?

what fruit is produced in your life?

Joy Greek meaning to vaunt, boast, rejoice

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Our joy is boasting in God through Jesus because you and I have been atoned

God didn’t save you so you could keep Him to yourself

He saved you to glory in Him

He saved you to rejoice in Him

He is your Joy and you must share that joy with everyone you meet

Once you are saved your time on the sideline is over

you are now in the game

how do you prepare

by being disciplined in the Word

By moving from milk to meat through Bible study and discipleship

by growing in Christ Jesus

how do you grow in Christ Jesus

through obedience to the Word

How you live your life matters

why you do what you do matters

where is your joy

what or who are you boasting about

are you truly a minister of reconciliation