Sermon Tone Analysis

*TABLE OF CONTENTS*

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*Opening with Scripture*.. 2

*Born Again!!*. 3

*You Are a Christian!!*. 4

*A New Creature*.. 5

*Child of God*.. 7

*Because of Christ*.

8

*Conclude*.. 9

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*Opening with Scripture*

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*Let’s break bread together by turning to the book of 1 Peter 1:3-9 (ASV): *

*3 **Blessed /be/ the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy begat us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,* \\ \\

*4 unto an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,* \\ \\

*5 who by the power of God are guarded through faith unto a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.*

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*6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, ye have been put to grief in manifold trials,* \\ \\

*7 that the proof of your faith, /being/ more precious than gold that perisheth though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ:* \\ \\

*8 whom not having seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him no*

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*9 receiving the end of your faith, /even/ the salvation of /your/ souls.*

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*I find that a very few Christian people will argue with the truth of assured victory in Christ.

In other words, when we became saved we recognized that God has already secured the victory over satan.

We won’t argue that God is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient.

We won’t argue that there is nothing God can’t handle.

There’s no mountain too high to climb and no valley too low to come out of.

We won’t argue that the bible contains the true and divine Word of God, that God can’t lie, and that He keeps His promises.

We believe that He will never leave or forsake us and that He loves us and provides for us.

It’s in the Word.*

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*What is disheartening is that even though we believe all these things, why is it so often that our lives don’t reflect our beliefs?

Why is it so often, so difficult, to find a smile on a Christian face, or rejoicing in a Christian heart, or strong joyful commitment to Christian duties?

Why do we find ourselves stuck in circumstances we know we ought to be delivered from?

We find ourselves bound up and weighed down by burdens we should be free from.

The reason - some of us just don’t know the real biblical truth about who we really are in Christ.

So today our topic is “Who You Really Are”.*

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*Born Again!!*

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*Satan**’s biggest weapon against you is to keep you from understanding and acting on the things we will be talking about today.

If satan can keep you from understanding who you truly are, he can continue to hold you hostage and keep you from receiving what God has for you.

He doesn’t want you to know that you no longer have chains on you.

He doesn’t want you to know that who you used to be and what you used to do doesn’t matter.

He doesn’t want you to know that the fact that you aren’t worthy, aren’t perfect doesn’t matter.

He doesn’t want you to focus on the fact that you are who God says you are (1 Peter 1:3,23).

You’re new, different, set free.

The old you died.

The you that was in bondage died.

The you that was confused and uncertain died.

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*You have new hope now through new birth.

You were born initially with a birth defect.

You were born sin-riddled and corrupt.

But when you were born again, when you experienced spiritual rebirth, that birth defect was corrected and removed.*

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*You Are a Christian!!*

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*You need to understand that now that you are born again, you don’t have to try and live like a Christian.

You are a Christian.

Let go of that old habit of identifying yourself by what you do and start identifying yourself by who you are.

Satan loves for us to think of ourselves in terms of what we do.

If we’re saved but we abuse alcohol, satan wants us to think of ourselves as nothing more than an alcoholic.

That is not who you really are!

You are a Christian with a serious drinking problem.

You’re saved but you’re heavy of heart because you’ve stolen something from someone.

Satan says you’re just a common thief.

That’s not who you really are.

You are a Christian who made a bad choice, a bad decision.

One perspective says you have no power, the other says you have access to all power!

One says nothing ever changes, the other says everything has already changed.

A Christian is not perfect.

Christians can still do things wrong, but those things don’t define you.

You aren’t what you do, but who God says you really are.

You still need to confess your sins, deal with them, and turn from them, but you still are who God says you really are.

Think of it this way - your identity is determined by birth.

Your natural birth labeled you as defective, born under the burden of sin, lost and corrupt.

That was who you were.

No matter what position you gain in life, no matter how much worth you amass or how nice a person you try to be, your identity stays the same.

But now look at 2 Corinthians 5:17 which says (ASV) “**17 Wherefore if any man is in **Christ**, /he is/ a new creature: the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new**”.**

You accepted Christ and you were born again (who you really are!!)*

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*A New Creature*

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*Now you have a new nature, a divine nature, a God-given nature.

The burden has been lifted, the defect repaired, the sin atoned for, your direction fixed.

You are not the same.

Your new birth has redefined you.

You might still be doing some of the same things, but you are not the same person.

Your spirit has been renewed.

Now it’s up to you to renew your mind.

It starts with a clear understanding of who you are and whose you are.

Satan will tell you you’re the same person you used to be, but you’re not.

You’re new and you’ve got new reserves, new resources, new hope, new peace, and newfound joy.

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*Don’t be confused about who you really are.

Changing what you do, how you act is rooted in understanding who you are.

Nothing can stop you from living right and wanting to do it.

I told you the new nature in you is divine, is perfect.

It cannot practice sin.

It won’t let you continue in sin.

When we make a mistake, we have a habit of saying, “I’m only human.”

That’s no longer true for you.

Now you are more than that.

You have divinity in you.

If you look at Galatians 2:20, it sums up perfectly who you are by saying **“20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that /life/ which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, /the faith/ which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me.”

**Adopt, memorize and internalize this verse.

When satan tries to take you back to the cemetery of your old life, call it back up and speak it out loud.

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*Child of God*

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*This is who you really are, Child of God.

What you were before was crucified with Christ.

You are not some patched up, converted sinner.

You are holy in the sight of God.

Your new identity, your true identity gives you hope that soon the change in your spirit will be matched by a change in your thinking and a change in your actions.