Dead to the Flesh, Alive in the Spirit

Good morning and welcome to ccc

we are so glad you are with us this morning

we also want to welcome in those online through our live stream either on our website, app or Facebook....we would love to worship with you in person very soon

if you are a first time visitor hopefully someone has handed you an information card....if you would please fill that out and place it in the offering plate or you can give it to me after services

we would love to stay in contact with you and pray for you

what a glorious day yesterday was we made it to the first Saturday on the square and I was blessed and I am sure the rest who were there were blessed as well....we learned a lot which is good as we will continue to do the first Saturdays through November........we were able to pray over someone, hand out lots of popsicles, and have some great conversations and meet many in our community....there is a sign up sheet out for July.

Let’s pray

Today is powerful and quite honestly an overlooked Truth in most Christians lives today

I almost just preached on verse 9 this morning as it is powerful on it’s own but felt led to look at all 3 verses together rather than separate them

as i said last week what we talked about in verses 1-8 continues today in 9-11

there will be some overlap but i hope to build upon the foundation that was laid last week.

God wants us to make sure that we understand and believe that we are dead to sin and alive in Spirit as Christians

if you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior then you have none of the rights and privileges that Christians enjoy......salvation and relationship being among them....hell is your destination

If you are saved this morning then you are a son or daughter of God with all the rights and privileges that come with sonship and daughter ship

nothing changes that

you can choose to live like an orphan or runaway but you are still God’s child if you are saved

this morning I want to start with and make sure you understand about Holy Spirit and receiving Him at salvation

Francis Chan wrote a book called Forgotten God and it is all about the Holy Spirit...it is a great book....His title is perfect because so many Christians today have forgotten all about Holy Spirit

Praise God you are here today to be reminded

Many are new to Jesus and the faith and just don’t know about the Holy Spirit

Praise God you are here today so He can teach you

At The Moment Of Salvation You Receive The Holy Spirit

__________________

The very moment you make Jesus Lord and Savior over your life

the very moment that repentance leads to salvation

at that very moment you are indwelled with the Holy Spirit

Ephesians 1:13-14

__________________

Ephesians 1:13–14 “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”

When you heard the gospel and believed and responded to the gospel you were saved or will be saved if you have not responded to Christ yet

once that happens you are sealed

sealed here is an interesting word and concept

when someone sent an official letter or order or correspondence they sealed it with their official seal

what does that mean

it meant that document was officially under the authority of the owner of that seal

king

high priest

commander in the army

whoever owned the seal

God seals you...places you officially under His authority at salvation

what does that mean to you

I was reading in my John McArthur study bible and I believe he hit it perfectly

being placed under God’s authority at salvation means

Security

Authenticity

Ownership

Authority

You are secure in God....the Bible says you are in His hand who can pluck you out of it

It is authentic....the Holy Spirit proves you are saved and God’s child with all the rights and privileges that goes with that

He owns you and if He owns you He will take care of you

Authority....God living inside of you in the Holy Spirit gives you authority through the Holy Spirit

Pretty cool stuff

that seal

Holy Spirit

means a lot and is how Christians survive and thrive

if you are saved...the moment you were saved you received the Holy Spirit and were sealed

placed under God’s security, authenticity, ownership and authority

Spiritually secure and protected

You are God’s!!!!!!!!

Not only are you sealed with Holy Spirit but He

Dwells In You

__________________

Dwells refers to being in one’s own home

intimate

personal

ownership

you are God’s dwelling place via Holy Spirit

His own home!!!!

that is true of every Christian

I Corinthians 3:16

__________________

1 Corinthians 3:16 “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

God’s temple

have you ever thought about that....you are God’s temple

that comes with responsibility as well because you are God’s temple

God’s dwelling place

do you represent Him as you should?

God’s Spirit dwells inside of you

those aren’t my words that is God’s Word.....

so why do we get fearful and anxious and depressed again??

I Corinthians 12:13

__________________

1 Corinthians 12:13 “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”

one Spirit

all Christians have same Holy Spirit

all made to drink of one Spirit

that is one of the multitude of things I love about God

there is no status

there is no standing

there is no one more important and there is no one less important

because we are dead to the flesh and alive in Christ

the world wants to separate and isolate

the world wants to label and respects people based upon worldly things

money

power

prestige

status

looks

etc

God looks at you as worthy because Jesus died for you and once you accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation God sees Jesus blood covering your sins.....all are equal because their worth is Jesus not themselves

because we have all drank from one Spirit no one is more or less important than anyone else

how cool is that!!!!!!!

You may have heard someone say

I received extra Holy Spirit or

I received a 2nd indwelling of Holy Spirit

that is not scriptural

at salvation all Christians receive Holy Spirit

not partially but fully and completely

I pray you take God at His Word

if you are saved Holy Spirit dwells in you

last week we looked at Fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23

that is one way to know you have Holy Spirit and therefore salvation

Jesus says another way to know you are saved and have Holy Spirit is understanding

John 14:17

__________________

John 14:17 “even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.”

You only understand because of Holy Spirit

your faith comes from Holy Spirit awakening you

moving you from the world

from death to life because he is now in you as a Christian

Nehemiah 9:20

__________________

Nehemiah 9:20 “You gave your good Spirit to instruct them and did not withhold your manna from their mouth and gave them water for their thirst.”

Holy Spirit teaches you

not me

not barb

not sheryl

not tony

not kenny

no any person

Holy Spirit does the teaching......He also opens scripture up so you can understand

God loves you so much that He never wants you to walk alone or make uniformed decisions

notice also that God provides for you

so many times we miss this and only look for this when times are hard

James 1:17

__________________

James 1:17 “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

if you have a job and way to make money that is not because your boss hired you that is God providing for you

every time you eat God provided that for you

the world says you pull yourself up by your boot straps and make something out of yourself

that you work hard and good things happen

that you provided that for yourself and family by working

that doesn't match scripture....all good gifts are from God

working

paying bills

providing for family

all good gifts

all from God

Holy Spirit helps teach you that

Acts 16:7

__________________

Acts 16:7 “And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.”

God wants to guide you through Holy Spirit

God cares about you

He wants to guide your very steps

He knows the entire picture and guides you

will you listen?

So many times people say God is guiding them but really they made the plan and asked God to bless it

not how it works folks

look at scripture

they want to go to Bithynia

they had made plans

that was their idea

the thought they knew where to go but God through Holy Spirit stopped them

they were actually trying to go...on the way...they had hit the road and were going to go to Bithynia but God through Holy Spirit stopped them

If you will but listen to Holy Spirit He will lead you and guide you on where you need to go and what you need to do

God guided the apostles and He will guide you as well

why

because God wants you to be where He has planned and willed for you to be

are you willing to change your plans because God says stop through Holy Spirit

are you willing to step outside of your comfort zone and sign up to represent Jesus to the community at Bushwhacker days and first saturdays

are you willing to step outside of your comfort zone and talk about Jesus and pray for people in the community when Holy Spirit says speak or pray

God is always speaking and guiding

are you listening

God also gives you signs you are not indwelled with Holy Spirit

Jude 19

__________________

Jude 19 “It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.”

Divisions

those intentionally looking to cause divisions in the church are not saved

God takes divisions very seriously and so should you

why

because in this instance and in most instances inside the church the divisions were fracturing the church

it is my understanding that this church had a fracture over moving the communion table many years ago

many church split over the color of the carpet or style of music or many other things that do not matter.......

why

because division is powerful and must be stopped at all costs

division is putting brothers and sisters against each other and leading them away from God

God calls us to unite not divide

you as a Christian must always choose unity over division

you heard in the announcements this morning that we have our monthly congregational board meeting next week

will we always agree in those meetings.....nope.....here is what God calls us to do....talk about it...not yell about it....pray about it....make a decision and then support the decision no matter how you feel about it

that is unity

division is going to a meeting....not getting your way and then talking about it and running people and the decision down causing division

Look at what God calls them

worldly people

Remember Jesus in John

worldly people cannot receive Holy Spirit that means they are not saved

satan sends undercover agents

those posing as Christians but instead of uniting they look to divide

if we all looked to unite instead of divide what a powerful church we would be

i love our body......look around

we have retired school administration

many school teachers and a few coaches

retired police officers

accountants

folks who work with livestock

business owners

those delivered out of addiction

we have such a diverse community of believers if we would unite....put God first and others second this would be such a powerful force for Jesus

unfortunately we all divide.....most do not intend to divide but that still happens

how

demand your way

demand your wants

when the praise team sings a song different than you know it or sing it you grumble to your friends and family

when I preach something that offends you instead of going to God and looking to respond to that conviction you grumble and talk about me to others

look at your marriage......do you look to unite or divide

those are really the only two choices

when you demand your way

when you let your pride call the shots

when you get upset because you deserve or don't deserve this or that

you are dividing and living worldly and rejecting the guidance of the Holy Spirit

same here at church

you will not like everything that happens here

there will be music you like and don't like

there will be people you like and don't like

there will be preaching you like and don't like

now if any of those things are against Gods Word that is different but if they are just against your preferences then suck it up buttercup and get over it

you are called to unity not division and if something is being done and is not in direct violation of God’s Word then you must chose unity....still don't have to like it but you suffer long...patience....because you love those who do like it

unity

if unity is not important to you then you better have God check your heart because it is very important to Him

Another way God says you know if you are not indwelled with Holy Spirit

II Corinthians 6:16

__________________

2 Corinthians 6:16 “What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

Idols

those who refuse to give up idols when convicted are in serious trouble

God is clear here

“What agreement has the temple.....YOU through Holy Spirit and idols

none is the answer

no agreement whatsoever

God willingly gave His all so He demands your all in return

He is your God and you are His people

no room for idols

anything you put before God is an idol

for many years in my life sports and coaching were an idol

i put them in front of God and church but also family and friends

i served them

they dictated my mood

they consumed my time

they defined who I was

I put them in place of God

I have also placed alcohol

porn

sex

money

status

prestige in front of God and served them as my idol in my life......if you are honest so have you

God takes idols very seriously and so should you

the temple of God which you are if you are saved can have zero agreement with idols

if you do you better check your fruit and heart and repent and confess and seek forgiveness

here is where the rubber meets the road

if you are saved you are dead to the flesh and alive in Spirit because of righteousness

are you striving to eliminate sin

are you striving to die to yourself

are you striving to die to sin

are you striving to kill your pride

are you striving to kill your offense

are you striving to kill your demands

As a Christian your mortal body is dead to you

I urge you to ask God to show you your heart here

are you alive in flesh and dead to the Spirit

or

are you dead to the flesh and alive in Spirit

those are the only two options

you can try to justify staying alive in flesh

you can try to hide staying alive in flesh

you can try to pretend to not be alive in flesh

that is not what scripture says

scripture says if you are saved you are dead to flesh and alive in Spirit

which are you this morning

the praise team is coming and we are going to give you a time to reflect and think on God’s Truth and where you stand

if you need salvation come grab me or one of the men up front and they will talk with you

if you need prayer again come grab someone and they will be delighted to pray with you

if you need to repent and confess come go to the altar and get with God

where are you this morning?