What I've Been Through

Opening

As we culminate today our Series for October entitled iShape, we will talk about our “experiences”

Shape is an acrostic that stands for:

Spiritual Gifts - 9 Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Wisdom

Knowledge

Faith

Healing

Miracles

Prophecy

Discernment

Speaking in Tongues

Interpretation

Heart - our passion, the things we love doing most

Abilities - Things that we are good at

Personality - Our distinctive character

Our distinctive character

Experiences - Our personal encounters

When we do what God Shaped us to do:

We enjoy it!

We are good at it!

(BREATHE)

Text: “Present Suffering & Future Glory”

The letter to the believers in Rome was written by Paul in the year 57 AD while he was in Corinth

The church in Rome was neither founded by Paul nor under his jurisdiction

Though he greets at least 26 people there that is known to him

There was strong tension between Jewish and Gentile Christians in Rome (meets is separate house churches)

The controversy was about circumcision, observance of sabbath, food laws, and the law in general

You remember I said last Sunday that the Jewish Judaism religion has spawned the 10 commandments to some 613 lesser laws?… This made a lot of things becomes very contentious

(BREATHE)

And because of these, Paul wrote them a letter

On the first part of his letter, he rebuked the Jews saying that no one is righteous

That everyone have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

No one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law

But rather, through the law, we become conscious of our sin

Righteousness is through faith in Jesus Christ

(BREATHE)

By His grace we are redeemed

Through faith we are justified

And what they, and all of us need is circumcision of the heart by the Holy Spirit

Paul gave strong emphasis that we are not under the law, but instead, we are under grace

Because of the law, we are dead to sin

But we are released from the law, and now alive in Christ

(BREATHE)

And there’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus

The Spirit brought us to adoption as children of God

We are co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share His sufferings in order that we may also share His glory

The sufferings that they were experiencing here are not just the conflicts & persecutions

But also encompasses the full range of human experiences: sickness, injuries, natural disasters, financial loss, poverty, hunger and death

Paul called on them to remain hopeful, hope for the things that they are yet to receive

Hope is not wishful thinking, it is a confident expectation of the fulfillment of God’s promises

God’s promise is that, those He predestined, He also called, those He called, He also justified, those He justified, He also glorified

(BREATHE)

And to bear all these sufferings, this is what Paul told them in verse 28

Romans 8:28 NIV

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

This verse is probably the most mis-used, over-used and abused scripture in the Bible

Here Paul talks about the perceived tension between human experiences and divine promises

We have to understand that there are qualifiers to deserve this promise

Love Him

Called according to His purpose

If you truly love God, and you’re living out your life according to His purpose, God will work all things for your good

Seriously? Does God really meant what Paul said to us?

(BREATHE)

When I lost my mother even in my young age of 8, was that for my own good?

When my father was assassinated when I was just 19 years old, was that also for my own good?

Having children out of wedlock from my failed relationships, are those too for my own good?

Loosing all the businesses that I put up

Loosing my political career

After loosing almost everything that I had... was all these for my own good?

I know that I truly love God

I know that He called me according to His purpose

And so I say that, YES! God worked all of these for my own good

God never did things by luck nor by chance

God is perfect in His ways

And all of my experiences are part of how He SHAPEd my life

Ephesians 1:11 NIV

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,

Ephesians

(BREATHE)

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Predestination

Predestination

Dr. Harry Ironside told of a man who gave his testimony, telling how God had sought him and found him. How God had loved him, called him, saved him, delivered him, cleansed him, and healed him. It was a tremendous testimony to the glory of God.

After the meeting, one rather legalistic brother took him aside and said, “You know, I appreciate all that you said about what God did for you, but you didn’t mention anything about your part in it. Salvation is really part us and part God, and you should have mentioned something about your part.”

“Oh,” the man said, “I apologize. I’m sorry. I really should have mentioned that. My part was running away, and God’s part was running after me until he found me.”1069

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Experience

A useful axe must be sharp, but to have a sharp axe you must be willing to allow it to suffer loss on the grindstone. In a similar way, if you want to live a life that is useful in service to God, you must be willing to allow him to put you on the grindstone of trials and testings so that you may be made sharp through loss.441

God wants us to use our experiences

Not just the good, the bad, but even the ugly

(BREATHE)

Turn to your neighbor and ask… What about you? What are your experiences?

How can we use our Experiences to bring Glory to God?

Embrace All Your Experiences

Galatians 3:4 GNB

Did all your experience mean nothing at all? Surely it meant something!

Don’t run away from your past

Don’t live in denial

Don’t make up story, just because you don’t want the real story

God can use every experience in my life for good

In order to use them, you gotta remember them

Enlist Your Experiences

(BREATHE)

Deuteronomy 11:2 GNB

Remember today what you have learned about the Lord through your experiences with him. It was you, not your children, who had these experiences. You saw the Lord’s greatness, his power, his might,

Keep a Journal

Jesus said, you will not realize now what I am doing… but later on, you will (John 13:7)

You intended to hurt me, but God intended it for good ()

(BREATHE)

Extract the Wisdom from Your Experiences

Unexamined experiences are useless

2 Corinthians 13:5 NLT

Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.

(BREATHE)

Employ Your Experiences

Minister to Others

1 Timothy 4:6 NIV

If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed.

Motivate Others

Hebrews 10:24 NLT

Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.

Model for Others

Philippians 3:17 NIV

Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.

Story: Hike at Torrey Pines Trails. Standing at view points gives you vantage view of the horizon

Knowing your SHAPE will give you the vantage point of your God-given Life’s Purpose

I’d like you to take home this piece of paper, and on it, write down your God-given SHAPE

Write down an inventory of your:

Spiritual Gifts

Heart (Passions on Life)

Abilities

Personalities

Experiences

And then pray how you can use your SHAPE to Glorify God, and Share His Love

Prayers