I Am Accepted

Series Intro - finding our identity in Christ;

who we are, what we are supposed to be; only God can answer that - not what your employer, your peers, your critics say about you; definitely not what you think about yourself; voices telling you are no good. You are accepted. damaged goods? . You are secure You have a friend who will not let you down, or a father who leaves that door open when you storm out and say you aren’t coming back. You are significant. You have value. You have a place. Even if you think you are worthless; you are necessary.

Do you truly believe these things about yourself? Do you struggle with any of these?

How you see yourself will affect everything else in your life.

Have you ever experienced rejection (parents, school, church, social setting) Do you experience feelings of rejection. Do I matter?

bad

walk into a church, are you noticed and approached?

absent for awhile, return, no one says you were missed?

maybe a “hi, haven’t seen you in awhile” - so?

good scenario:

maybe a “we’ve missed you” - better

“I’ve missed your joy, we’ve missed your spiritual gifts - great.

What’s the difference?

you feel valued; important; it feels good to know people notice you, miss you when you are gone, desire a relationship with you.

Conversely, if someone is not noticed, not missed, not appreciated, it feels bad; you don’t feel valued. If this happens enough (family, work, church) it affects your self esteem. Do I matter? Do I have any value?

no value - horrible

valued for your skills - feels good but inadequatevalued because you are human and you are in my line of sight (notice I didn’t say ‘here.’

In all 3 cases a person’s sense of value comes from what others have said or done to you. The voices in your head. What you say to yourself.

Series: Don’t base your self identity, your sense of value, importance based on your circumstances, what others say about you - you are valuable because of what God says about you in His Word. We are going to look at what God says about you.

I”m not going to read a lot of Scripture - I”m going to focus on a few.

Sermon Intro - I am accepted, even when I feel rejected. God has rescued me from feelings from rejection.

(feelings of rejection: whether people actually accept us or not - feelings still there

I am accepted. My family might reject me. My peers might reject me. A church might reject me. I’ve been rejected because of my appearance, my beliefs. My personality. Gossip. People might be accepting me, but my self esteem, my self worth is so low, that I carry feelings of rejection. It feels horrible. But wait: God says I am accepted.

Why should I feel accepted. 1) Because God accepts you. God loves you (feel better?). e.g. “God loves everyone.”

God uses powerful language to describe how we are accepted by the one who matters most. 1) I have been adopted, 2) I have been redeemed 3) God is accessible to me. He might seem distant, but he’s right there.

I have been adopted into God’s family

Ephesians 1:5 NIV

he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—

I am adopted.

(sometimes received in terms of rejection; a joke when someone is bad; maybe an adopted person wonders why their birth mother gave them up for adoption.)

cultural context:

A Dictionary of the Bible: Dealing with Its Language, Literature, and Contents Including the Biblical Theology, Volumes I–V Adoption

Romans maintained in a very extreme way the rights of fathers over their children as practically despotic; and these did not cease when the sons came of age, or had families of their own, but while the father lived could only be terminated by certain legal proceedings, analogous to those by which slaves were sold or redeemed.

the only thing that mattered was the will of the father

theological

Holman Treasury of Key Bible Words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew Words Defined and Explained Adoption

the word means “placement into sonship.” The Greek word is a legal term that indicates that believers have been given all the legal privileges of being sons in God’s family. When God adopts believers as His children, He places the Spirit of His Son into their hearts so that they become, in effect, His natural-born children. As such, they are not merely “adopted” (in the sense the word now conveys) but genuinely “begotten” by God. God makes “sons of God” out of “sons of men.”

application - ex. story core; van that records people’s stories; adopted as children reunited w parents

why did you give me up for adoption; answers range: I was vulnerable; made you vulnerable; wanted stability for you.

feeling rejected is a powerful force; it lingers, it sticks, even people are accepting you, the feelings are strong

especially powerful image for someone rejected by parent; without a parent or completely excluded by society;

the only thing that matters is the will of the father

transition: father doesn’t just adopt us, he delivers us from evil

I am redeemed and forgiven.

Colossians 2:14 NIV

having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.

Colossians 1:14 NIV

in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Colossians 1:1

Colossians 1:13–14 NIV

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Dictionary of Bible Themes 6720 redemption

The buying back or release of an object or person. In Scripture redemption refers to God’s ransoming of believers only through the death of Jesus Christ upon the cross and to all the benefits that this brings.

redeemed - rescued from debt, slavery, - in some cases these are the consequences of our sin; the financial aspects is interesting because of modern debt (Christmas loan) for those who accidentally buy too many Christmas presents

debt is an assumed part of life -

debt is a form of slavery - weighed down; restricts us from generosity, enjoying life; anxiety; helpless to overcome; didn’t realize the consequences at first

theology

redemption - God has paid an unpayable debt

consequences of evil (slavery)

spiritual slavery? what makes you a slave? keeps you from feeling loved;

application

overwhelmed, enslaved by....indebted to…in bondage to

God’s wrath? Enemy is much more harsh and unforgiving

transition:

since we have been adopted into God’s family (we are no longer orphans with no protection or identity; since we have been freed from sin, our debt is paid; we can now have access to God - no barriers

God is always available to me.

Ephesians 2:18 NIV

For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

e.g. tv commercial, listening to a child; demonstrating interest; placing value; entering relationship; being accessible

kids remember coming home late; remember the tv watching;

distant dads - even alcholics

distant relationships; limited hours; limited interest

Jesus knows rejection.

Isaiah 53:

Isaiah 53:3 NIV

He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.