Change - 2/3

Word of God:

'Change' (; )

Someone once said, "Change is inevitable; but misery is optional"

And "A change in behavior begins with a change in the heart"

What we do know is that if nothing changes then nothing will ever change

Things have to change in order to bring about change

Change has to occur in our lives - (In order for our lives to change)

Change has to occur in this church - (In order for this church to change)

(Change at the source) - Has the power to release change into the situation Pastor David Holder

(And we see this principle throughout history)

The change in Women's rights - Human rights - Workers' rights

The change in Democracy - Voting - Health - Race & Cultural rights

If people want change desperately or passionately enough

Then from that source of 'wanting change' the situation will begin to change

1. If God's people are desperate or passionate enough to want to change for the better in their devotion, commitment, faith and service to their God then from that source of desperation or passion - 'Their situation will change'

2. In the same way; if we want Life Change Community Church to change for the better - To expand our territory - To intensify our testimony

To increase our saltiness & To brighten the rays of our light -

Then the source of that change (Which is us) has to be desperate enough or passionate enough to want it

I can either try to resist change and stay the same way that I am

Or I can release my resistance to change and be like that hot air balloon that rises up into the sky when the weight of the sandbags are removed from it -

The Bible says in (KJV) “let us lay aside every weight”,

(In other words) There's some stuff that needs to change

There are some things that need to be put aside & off loaded

(And Jesus Christ is giving us the opportunity to do just that)

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon

you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

(You See) Our Lord is giving us the means to get the source right in order to bring

about the change in the situation

(And if nothing

changes)

"Nothing will ever change if nothing changes"

Then I'll keep doing what I've always done & I will keep getting what I've always got

And I will keep feeling what I've always felt & I will keep staying where I've always been

And My level of faith & commitment to God & His Church will stay just as it is

There will be no change - There will be no spiritual growth taking place in my life

And The church that I am part of will never benefit from me

Albert Einstein said”- “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result"

`

We have to understand here today

That nothing is going to change in our lives - (Unless something changes in our lives)

And nothing is going to change in our church - (Unless something changes in our church)

(Now) I know that many people fear change

They fear the uncertainty as much as they fear the pressure of commitment

“[But God has not] ..given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”.

· Therefore we should not be 'Fearful of Change'

· We should not be fearful of the 'Pressure of Commitment'

· We should not be fearful of the 'Weight of Resistance' (That comes with change)

(Because change) - Can change some things in our lives and in this church for the glory of God

One of the greatest motivations for serving God

Must be the fact that it changes us for the better

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

This is such an amazing scripture that teaches the 'Doctrine of Divine of Change'

(Praise God)

There can be a change in me

· I don’t have to stay the way that I am

· I don’t have to be the person that I've always been

· I don’t have to be a worrier

· I don't have to be the victim anymore

· I don’t have to be someone who is always unreliable & absent

· I don't have to be that person of doom & gloom anymore

· I don’t have to be someone who sees the glass half empty

· I don’t have to be bound by sin & circumstance

·

Glory to God;

I don’t have to be destroyed by my lack of self esteem anymore

[Because], if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

That word 'New' in 'New Creation' means 'Qualitatively New' not 'Temporary New'

(It is something 'That is' 'That wasn't before' & It is something that 'Is not impaired by time or use')

(In other words) - Unlike your new clothes & your new electrical goods that deteriorate over time & with use

This newness that has its source in God

Is brand new - It is something now that it wasn't before - It is permanent

And it just keeps getting newer & more gleaming the more we draw nearer to God

Things can change - It can be different

It doesn’t have to stay the same way that its always been

There's a well know saying; "Imagine Life Differently"

And we can apply that in a spiritual way because the way that we focus our attitude Can forge avenues that can lead us to great changes in our lives -

ü Imagine your life without all that stuff that seems to drain your happiness

ü Imagine for just a minute what it would be like to go through an entire day without

feeling depressed, or angry or jealous or unloved

ü Imagine your life without the weight of circumstance having control over your Christianity

ü Imagine this church without those empty seats - Full of people praising & worshipping the Living God

(You see) - When we begin to imagine things with a more up-beat attitude

It affects the quality of our philosophy - It elevates our emotional outlook - It increases the level of our faith

It determines the direction of our walk - It lightens our footsteps - It removes the frown from our faces

It asserts within us a level of positivity - And it lightens the weight of our circumstances

(In other words) A right attitude gives us a turbo boast to our lives - (Praise God -It lifts our spirit & it makes us feel better)

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

This verse of scripture is talking about the effect of change that happens in a person’s life when they get baptized? - Not 'Water Baptism' but 'Spiritual Baptism'

It's about identification with Christ - It's about our Salvation - It's about Divine Connection

You see to be 'In Christ' is to be immersed in Christ at the 'Spiritual DNA Level'

There is a change that happens in a person's life when they become 'Born from Above'

ü It is a change that affects to the very core of their lives

ü It is a change that not only affects their condition 'It affects the very state & destiny of their souls'

In other words we cannot truly undergo this change

Without a change being manifested in & through our lives

1. Church was boring & irrelevant - (Now it is exciting & important)

2. God's word was meaningless - (Now it's bread for my soul)

3. Prayer was useless - (Now it unlocks the very blessings of God upon my life)

4. My life was just an accident - (Now it's valuable, purposeful & eternal in God)

(You see) Something changes when we connect with God

God is never going to leave someone the way that He finds them

· He’s going to bless them & encourage them & strengthen them

· He’s going to forgive them & heal them inside & out

· He’s going to raise them up & cause them to stand above the people

who used to put them down

Let us Praise God in His house today

Because something has changed and is changing (amen)

· I remember the darkness that surrounded my life before I was baptized into Christ

· I remember the fear of death & the uncertainty & the lack of reason to my life

· I remember the despondency & the shame & the guilt

(But there’s something else that I can remember like it was yesterday)

And that was the immediate change that took place in my life that night when Jesus Christ revealed Himself to me and touched my life with His Spirit and washed my soul clean with the healing forgiving power of His Blood

(I’ve got to be honest with you here) - Before I was 'Born from Above'

There was a lot of miraculous work that my God had to do in my life & still needs to do

You see; I know that I am far from perfect:

But I thank God that He hasn't given up on the work that He started in me back in Aug.1991

Others will give up on you - Deny you - Reject you - Refuse you - But my God will never do those things

ü God wants to take the brokenness and put together anew

ü He wants to take the ugliness of sin and replace it with a crown of beauty

ü He wants to break those shackles that bind & open the prison door that confine

ü He wants to release from the misery and fill with the oil of gladness

ü He wants to remove the despair and set upon our hearts an attitude of praise -

(But we have to realize here today) - That Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your

mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

"Transformed by the renewing of your mind"

'Transform' means to 'undergo a change in the structure' - It’s a genetic modification

A caterpillar is limited & captive by its surroundings

It crawls around on the ground vulnerable to its predators & limited in its view

But at some point in its life it under goes a transformation both physically & mentally

The transformation physically causes the genetic structure to change which produces wings of a multitude of colours - This change makes it possible for the new creature to fly and to look more beautiful than ever before

But there’s also a transformation that takes place in its mind

When it was a caterpillar all it could do was crawl around, but after the transformation

in the mind - That caterpillar suddenly realizes that it can fly

So it spreads its wings and rises above being stepped upon & enlarges its view

(You See) If there hadn’t been a change - 'Then nothing would have changed'

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

(Nothing will Change) - If you allow things never to Change in your life

· You can make up in your mind today that I am sick & tired of being sick and tired

· You can change from being dead in sin to being alive in Christ

From lost to found - From hurt to healed - From sad to happy - From being absent to being present

From failing God to fulfilling what God wants of you

You can take that first step today - ('WHY' )

Because change begins with that 1st step - Nothing Changes Without Change

· I’ve heard people say, "I’m going to change" But nothing ever really changes in their life - (So nothing changes in their life)

· If you truly want real, genuine change in your life, why don’t you change something here today?

· Why not make a decision to start walking with God today in a greater way than you've ever done before?

Why don’t we make a decision today 'To talk to God'

Before we talk to anyone else about what is going on in our lives?

Let me tell you a truth - "Prayer changes things"

(So to me) - When we pray we should expect a change to take place

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Change must happen in life

'For to live is to grow' and 'To grow is to change'

(We are going to stand & sing) - And then I want us to raise our voices in prayer

Let us seek that change in our lives and in our church

Let us cry out to our God and determine in our hearts & minds that change is going to take place in our lives and in our church today

Sing: The Power of the Cross