(1 Peter 2:9) Declaring the Excellencies of Christ: Pray to Win 1

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For what purpose did God make us his people. In one sense Peter challenges us to personally live out the Gospel as foreigners in this world. In another sense, he challenges us to live an evangelistic life.

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INTRODUCTION:
Down through the ages … many Christians have faced a choose -
They can either
Deny Christ and live
OR
Proclaim Christ and die.
And often horrible deaths … stonings, hangings, burned alive, eaten by wild animals ....
And,
The book of Acts records the first martyr of the Gospel- Stephen.
While Stephen was being stoned for proclaiming Christ - we read this incredible testimony.
Acts 7:54–59 ESV
54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Acts 7:59–60 ESV
59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Acts
What is it about Christ … that made Stephen look to Christ even as he is being stoned.
And to be more concerned about those who were stoning him then his own life.
And
Stephen’s testimony and commitment to Christ is incredible,
but he is not alone.
He is just the first.
Early Church father, Ignatius of Antioch.

“Now I begin to be a disciple.… Let fire and cross, flocks of beasts, broken bones, dismemberment … come upon me, so long as I attain to Jesus Christ.”

Jon Hus - the Pre-runner to the reformation.

“Lord Jesus, it is for thee that I patiently endure this cruel death. I pray thee to have mercy on my enemies.”

Both gave their lives for the Gospel.
And the list goes on.
What is it about Christ … that made Stephen, Ignatius, Jon Hus, and countless others choose Christ over their own life?
We could say >>>> you won’t die for something you don’t believe in,
but I would challenge us >>> you won’t die for something you are not in awe of.
These people had learned of a Christ - who left them in awe of what he had done for them.
A Christ who was so valuable and wonderful … they would rather die then give him up.
In the Same way,
We won’t die for a Jesus we are not in awe of.
But neither will we live for a Christ we are not in awe of.
We won’t spend time and sacrifice telling others about a Christ we are not in awe of.
Our passage is a passage that ought to stir our hearts today.
Stir our hearts for an awe of what Christ has done.
And stir our hearts to share our Christ with those around us.
Let’s read our text - .
1 Peter 2:9–10 ESV
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
(ESV)
1 Peter 2:9 ESV
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

We ought to declare the mercies of Christ to the lost around us.

and this text will tell us why.
The big question - a Stephen, a Ignatius, a Jon Hus, a Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Jim Elliot … leaves us with.
Why?
Why would you give your life up to tell others about Christ?
Why would you give up the American dream and American privileges and nice retirement … and risk your life to tell people about Christ?
Peter tells us it is because of - what Christ did for us.
What did Christ do for us?
Well -

1) Christ made us God’s own chosen people.

Peter in this passage is not so much telling us how we get saved.
but what it means that we are saved.
but what
What does it mean that were saved - And according to Peter -
According to Peter, if you are a believer born anew by the death and resurrection of Christ … then observe what God has made you.
(ESV)
1) Christ made us God’s own chosen people.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
b) King’s priesthood.
c) Holy nation.
d) Prized possession.
Peter gives us 4 titles of the church … that tell us what it means that we are saved.
First, we are

a) A chosen race.

Chosen carries the idea of being picked.
ILLUSTRATION:
If you remember as a kid and at recess,

2. Royal Priesthood.

What does every kid want to be?
They want to be picked.
>>>> Whether Basketball, dodge ball, or tag;
every kid wants to be picked.
Now being, picked at recess is really trivial.
For most of us, not being picked or being picked is a vague memory of the past.
We studied the idea of a “Royal Priesthood” as we understood that Peter tied the Holy Priesthood of with the Royal Priesthood of . Therefore, I will not fully explain it this week. But I do want to remind us that it is in our text this morning. We need to remember we are a Royal Priesthood in worship of King; that is Christ the King.We need to remember that we are simply ambassadors in this World. Though we may submit to the government of this World, our ultimate allegiance actually goes back to Christ the King.Which means our loves and our passions are not found in this world, but principally found in the Return of Christ. Our hearts look forward to see the day that the promises that the Lord has made are fulfilled in our very sight. A day in which we no longer are ambassadors in a foreign land, but a priesthood in the Kingdom of God. We ought to praise God because we are His Royal Priesthood. So Peter has called us a Chosen Race, a Royal Priesthood, and thirdly, a
However, let me tell you about something that is eternally true
God picked you.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ and his perfect sacrifice for your sins,
then God has picked you.
Out of his great love, God picked you to bless.
And our text says - a chosen race.

3. Holy Nation

We are a chosen race, but what kind of race are we?
This is not the idea of an ethnicity or from a certain place.
We are not a race made of people from a certain place.
This idea of race is We are not a race made of people from a certain place.
Christians literally circle the globe.
People in every land,
The word nation is an interesting word. This has the idea again of being constituted as a people, a nation. Particularly, a nation is separated and divided by political allegiance as much as geography or race. ILLUSTRATION: What makes the nation of China different from the nation of Japan? Partially ethnic/cultural differences. But especially political allegiances.The people of Japan and China have an allegiance to their nation and the government of their nation.Some of these differences are observed in the fact that China supports North Korea, while Japan supports South Korea.China military regularly show military force against the United States, while Japan hosts 3 separate U.S. Bases.I am not trying to make a political statement, but just to highlight what it means to be a nation. If political allegiance often defines a nation, what makes believers a Holy nation?We do not have a parliament somewhere. We do not even vote on a leader.Instead, you become a part of this nation when you believe in the Gospel. You transfer your allegiance from the demonic forces of darkness in this World to the glorious Kingdom of God.You transfer your loyalty from self-allegiance and Demonic allegiance to Jesus Christ, the Creator and Savior of the world.
- from the visible churches across America
- to the underground churches in China,
>>>> we make up the race of God.
But persecution caused many to flee Jerusalem and literally sent the Gospel all around the World.
So what constitutes this people?
Today, not only are we a people made of believers in every nation, but we are people coming from all kinds of ethnic cultures and languages.
So what constitutes this people?
ESV13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
We are all believers in Jesus Christ.
What makes Christians a chosen race is not
where we are from,
what nation we are apart of,
or our ethnic background,
but principally we are believers in Jesus Christ.
Holy in Holy nation has the idea that you are set apart to God. Israel was a Holy nation according to because it was set apart unto Yahweh, the God of Israel. Likewise, The believers is a purified Holy nation because your true political allegiance does not rest with the things of this world, but with Christ.Remember, we are ambassadors of a holy nation that does not belong to this World. We are ambassadors spread across the nations of this world. Now we today may be more like ambassadors, But remember, there will be a day when God will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem composed entirely of believers.
We are a Spiritual race.
Every race has certain understood customs and beliefs.
The Race of Christianity is unified by belief in the Gospel and it’s related truths such as:
knowledge of Scripture,
ESV9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
Love for God,
the reflecting of Glory to God,
and the transformation of the heart to reflect the love and compassion of God.
When that day happens, we will be able to look around and behold the Holy nation that God established in a very concrete and literal way. Illustration:Many of us travel to places, and it always fun. It was fun to see Yellowstone recently. There is something fun about being able to look down at the great canyons and walk through the tall pine trees. As fun as those places are, are we not glad to return to our homes at the end of our vacation?Those places are fun for a while, but eventually we all want to come home. We as Christians should be like that. God has created a world in which even after the flood have many qualities worth enjoying. But at the end of the day, do we really belong to this world?Are we not a Holy nation, devoted to God, longing for the day in which we will see Christ and all the riches of His salvation. We ought to praise God because we are Holy nation looking forward to the riches that come when Christ our king returns to this World. Not only are we a Chosen Race, a Holy Nation, but also a
You often know someone is a certain race by how the look, and likewise we know if you are a Christian by these kind of distinctions.
ILLUSTRATION:
I remember reading a book about an American who smuggled bibles into Communist Russia during the Cold War. On one of those trips, he was able to travel into Russia and meet an pastor of the underground Russian church.
This American did not know Russian and the Russian did not know English.

4. Purchased Possession of God.

At first, they were not sure what to do. Until one of them realized they could talk using their Bibles.
The missionary and pastor exchanged a full conversation using passages in the Bible.
The Scripture and the truths of Scripture became the common language of which they both knew and joyfully exchanged with one another.
ILLUSTRATION:There is saying, 9/10ths of the Law is about possession. In other words, If I have it, I own it. There is an important truth we need to remember: The believer is owned by God. You are a “purchased possession of God”ILLUSTRATION: This is opposite to our natural thinking. After all, what is the pride of most men? We are our own man, able to take care of our selves and do what we want. Don’t even tell us I can’t do something. How about the ladies?Do not the ladies pride themselves in being able to take care of their families. Whether it is how you organize your house or train your children, you pride yourself in being an independent women who can do it all.But is the man really independent?Is the women really self-dependent? The believer is the personal possession of God on two accounts. First, Christ is the creator.God in eternity past choose to create this world including everything in it. God breathed it into existence and He has an eternal plan for every person in His Creation.So by the fact that God created us, we are the possession of God. In This way, Christ owns us because he made us.Secondly, The fall made us hopelessly opposed to all of God’s plans. Every person was naturally bent in opposition to God. Yet, in God’s enduring love Christ redeemed us. Redemption should be a word that brings great joy to the world.Redemption means that God has purchased our freedom from slavery. Slavery to sin ultimately leads to judgement before a Holy and Just God. But Christ in his mercy paid the penalty of sin and set us free from the power of sin. In this way, Christ has redeemed us from sin; purchasing our freedom with the pain, suffering, and death of the Cross. (the blood of the cross, purchased possession verses)If creating us was not enough, certainly his redemption made us the personal possession of God. This was true of Israel. In , Israel is called a purchased possesion of God because he brought them out of slavery and into a promised land through God’s strenght alone. Israel could have never purchased it’s freedom on it’s own, and so Israel owes it’s national identity to God. Likewise, The Christian is the purchased possesion of God. Christ purchased the freedom that no man could pay; and so the believer and the church owes their national identity to Christ.Because of this no Christian is his own master. We are each the purchased possession of God. ILLUSTRATION: I remember reading a biography of a Vietnam Veteran who nearly died in conflict some years back. He explained how God providentially protected him and preserved his life in Vietnam. God’s preservation of his life made him feel responsible to live a that was worth saving.Clarification - Now none of us can truly live a life worth saving, we are all sinners before God. But this man did understand an important truth; a redeemed man is a purchased possession. Being a purchased possession means that we are no longer our master, but wholly owned by Christ. We ought to give God praise to God because he purchased us us from the bondage of our sins.
May I suggest,
We are a chosen race; distinctly unified by the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We ought to praise God because we have the privilege of being called God’s Chosen race.
What does it mean - a chosen race?
But further. we are the

b) The kings priesthood.

a) Chosen race.
In the Old Testament,
how close you and me get to God?
As the Gentiles the closest you could get it in the outer court.
The Temple Mount had a large outer court.
And was the closest we as Gentiles could come to God.
In the Gentiles that was the closest we could come to God.
>>>>> We couldn't even enter the inner court of the Temple.
We couldn't even enter the inner court of the Temple.
But let's say you were even in ethnic Jew.
How close can you get?
The closest you can get was the inner court.
- Only a priest from the tribe of Levi could enter the temple.
- And then, only the high priest could enter the holy of holies – one time per year.
But according to Peter - we are each a priest
>>>> under the high priest, Jesus.
Which means - We now have complete access to God.
The King’s Priests.
The Gospels records this reality with the curtain for the Holy of Holies being ripped open
when Jesus died on the cross.
Matthew 27:50–51 ESV
50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. 51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
Matthew 27:50-51
We each are a royal priesthood.
We studied the idea of a “Royal Priesthood” as we understood that Peter tied the Holy Priesthood of
1 Peter 2:5 ESV
5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
with the Royal Priesthood of
. Therefore, I will not fully explain it this week. But I do want to remind us that it is in our text this morning.
We need to remember we are a Royal Priesthood in worship of King; that is Christ the King.
We need to remember that we are simply ambassadors in this World. Though we may submit to the government of this World, our ultimate allegiance actually goes back to Christ the King.
Which means our loves and our passions are not found in this world, but principally found in the Return of Christ. Our hearts look forward to see the day that the promises that the Lord has made are fulfilled in our very sight.
A day in which we no longer are ambassadors in a foreign land, but a priesthood in the Kingdom of God.
(ESV)
This has the idea again of being constituted as a people, a nation.
Particularly, a nation is separated and divided by political allegiance as much as geography or race.
ILLUSTRATION:
What makes the nation of China different from the nation of Japan?
Partially ethnic/cultural differences.
But especially political allegiances.
The people of Japan and China have an allegiance to their nation and the government of their nation.
Some of these differences are observed in the fact that China supports North Korea, while Japan supports South Korea.
China military regularly show military force against the United States, while Japan hosts 3 separate U.S. Bases.
I am not trying to make a political statement, but just to highlight what it means to be a nation.
If political allegiance often defines a nation,
Why did Christ do that?
what makes believers a Holy nation?
We do not have a parliament somewhere.
We do not even vote on a leader.
Instead, you become a part of this nation when you believe in the Gospel.
You transfer your allegiance from the demonic forces of darkness in this World to the glorious Kingdom of God.
You transfer your loyalty from self-allegiance and Demonic allegiance to Jesus Christ, the Creator and Savior of the world.
1) Christ made us God’s own chosen people.
Colossians 1:13–14 ESV
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Holy in Holy nation has the idea that you are set apart to God.
Israel was a Holy nation according to
Exodus 19
because it was set apart unto Yahweh, the God of Israel.
Likewise,
The believers is a purified Holy nation
because your true political allegiance does not rest with the things of this world,
but with Christ.
Remember,
we are ambassadors of a holy nation that does not belong to this World.
We are ambassadors spread across the nations of this world.
Now we today may be more like ambassadors,
But remember, there will be a day when God will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem composed entirely of believers.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Revelation 21:9–11 ESV
9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
When that day happens, we will be able to look around and behold the Holy nation that God established in a very concrete and literal way.
Illustration:
Many of us travel to places, and it always fun.
It was fun to see Yellowstone recently.
There is something fun about being able to look down at the great canyons and walk through the tall pine trees.
As fun as those places are,
are we not glad to return to our homes at the end of our vacation?
Those places are fun for a while, but eventually we all want to come home.
We as Christians should be like that. God has created a world in which even after the flood have many qualities worth enjoying.
But at the end of the day, do we really belong to this world?
Are we not a Holy nation, devoted to God, longing for the day in which we will see Christ and all the riches of His salvation.
We ought to praise God because we are Holy nation looking forward to the riches that come when Christ our king returns to this World.
We are -

c) A holy nation

The word nation is an interesting word.
This has the idea again of being constituted as a people, a nation.
Particularly,
a nation is separated and divided
by political allegiance
as much as geography or race.
ILLUSTRATION:
What makes the nation of China different from the nation of Japan?
Partially ethnic/cultural differences.
But especially political allegiances.
The people of Japan and China have an allegiance to their nation and the government of their nation.
Some of these differences are observed in the fact that
China supports North Korea,
while Japan supports South Korea.
China military regularly show military force against the United States,
while Japan hosts 3 separate U.S. Bases.
A nation is primarily defined by political allegiance.
If political allegiance often defines a nation,
what makes believers a Holy nation?
what makes believers a Holy nation?
We do not have a parliament somewhere.
We do not even vote on a leader.
Instead, you become a part of this nation when you believe in the Gospel.
You transfer your allegiance from the demonic forces of darkness in this World to the glorious Kingdom of God.
You transfer your loyalty from self-allegiance and Demonic allegiance to Jesus Christ, the Creator and Savior of the world.
ESV
Colossians 1:13–14 ESV
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
There is much more that can be said,
Holy in Holy nation has the idea that you are set apart to God.
Israel was a Holy nation according to
because it was set apart unto Yahweh, the God of Israel.
Likewise,
The believers is a purified Holy nation
because your true political allegiance does not rest with the things of this world,
but with Christ.
Remember,
we are ambassadors of a holy nation that does not belong to this World.
We are ambassadors spread across the nations of this world.
Now we today may be more like ambassadors,
But remember, there will be a day when God will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem composed entirely of believers.
ESV
9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
When that day happens, we will be able to look around and behold the Holy nation that God established in a very concrete and literal way.
Illustration:
Many of us travel to places, and it always fun.
It was fun to see Yellowstone recently.
There is something fun about being able to look down at the great canyons and walk through the tall pine trees.
but for time sake - we are Holy nation.
As fun as those places are,
are we not glad to return to our homes at the end of our vacation?
Those places are fun for a while, but eventually we all want to come home.
We as Christians should be like that. God has created a world in which even after the flood have many qualities worth enjoying.
But at the end of the day, do we really belong to this world?
Are we not a Holy nation, devoted to God, longing for the day in which we will see Christ and all the riches of His salvation.
We ought to praise God because we are Holy nation looking forward to the riches that come when Christ our king returns to this World.
Why did Christ do that?
(ESV)
1) Christ made us God’s own chosen people.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

d) A prized possession.

We could probably take some time here and talk about how we belong to God.
In fact,
to a degree Peter is making the point that we belong to God and thus should be living holy lives.
But I want to highlight what kind of possession we are.
We are not a trinket that God puts on the shelf and says look at me,
We are adopted children of God.
Being God's possession is the idea of being something that God values and loves.
>>>>>We are a prized possession of God. <<<<<<
When we consider the significance of what were saying.
We are a -
chosen rase
royal priesthood
holy nation
and prized possession.
In some ways Peter is telling us we are this kind of people,
so live like that kind of people.
But at the same time, Peter saying so much more than just that.
If you were to read these titles and you didn't know they were talking about us
– who would you think this was talking about?
Israel.
Peter is saying that we are the blessed people like Israel.
CAVEAT:
To clarify I don't think this is teaching us that we have replaced Israel,
but that we or a people like Israel.
We are a blessed people because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross.
There are number of allusions to the Old Testament >>>>> that we simply don't have time to look at today.
But I want you to understand, if you are a believer in Jesus Christ
– then you are the blessed and chosen people of God.
Romans 8:31 ESV
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
I hope these titles stir your heart today.
That you are in awe of what Christ has made you.
Peter telling u
You want to know why Stephen, Ignatius, and Hus were willing to die for Christ ...
because they were in awe of what Christ had done.
But have you ever wondered why Christ did that?
What purpose did God have in making us
a chosen race,
a royal priesthood,
a holy nation,
and a prized possession?
Why did Christ do that?
From our passage,

2) The Purpose of Christ’s Work - To make us declarers of the wonders of the Gospel.

(ESV)
2) The Purpose of Christ’s Work
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
The word “that” is an important conjunction in this paragraph.
- The particular kind of conjunction is used here has the idea of purpose.
- That is why the NET Bible translates this, "so that".
That is why the net Bible translates this, "so that".
Essentially a paraphrase of this paragraph would be -
You are a chosen race .... for the purpose of declaring the wonders of the gospel.
((((( This conjunction is very clear that God made us his people .... for the purpose of proclaiming.)))
The word proclaiming here is the idea of being a witness.
God made us his blessed people so we could declare the wonders of God.
Again this is strikingly similar to the book of Exodus.
Exodus 9:16 ESV
16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.
What Peter is alluding to is that - God made us his blessed people… So that we would make his name known to the nations.
In general, reason God made us his blessed people… So that we would make his name known to the nations.
Let's explore what Peter tells us we are to declare to the nations.
God’s work through the Gospel was designed to make us declarer’s of the -

a) The excellencies of God.

(ESV)
2) The Purpose of Christ’s Work
1) Christ made us God’s own chosen people.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
What challenges me about this passage, is our Faith is not just to believe in Christ.
We are not simply supposed to agree with the Gospel.
But we are to consider Christ to be to be excellent or wonderful to us.
Christ is to be excellent or wonderful to us.
ILLUSTRATION:
When I consider the Stars, the planets, the galaxies ....
I am not just agreeing that God created them, but I am in awe of what God has done.
Like the song - How majestic is his name.
It should be the same with Christ.
ANALOGY:
We ought to p
Certainly
We have to believe in Christ the most excellent, most wonderful person in the world.
Sometimes,
When people describe the Gospel,
they sound like lawyers arguing for what is right.
The difference between belief
They don’t sound like people who are in awe of what Christ has done for them.
When we proclaim the Gospel … we ought to be telling people like it is the greatest story they could ever hear.
There is a passion and a love that goes with this declaring.
>>>>>It is more then belief … it is an awe of God.
Because I am in awe of God … I declare the wonderful truths with passion and conviction.
And Finally, we are told to declare

b) The transformation found in Christ.

“who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
Darkness in the New Testament often refers to -
Our inescapable lostness
Our love of sin and wickedness
And Satan’s control over our lives.
Light in the New Testament often refers to -
Salvation found in Christ
Wisdom and goodness.
and God’s control over our lives.
We are to declare how Christ sets us free from our sinful nature, our allegiance to Satan.
and gave us the wonderful truth and goodness of Christ.
Basically … we are to declare how Christ changed our lives.
CONCLUSION:

c) The mercies found in Christ.

(ESV)
2) The Purpose of Christ’s Work
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Why did Stephen, Ignatius, Jon Hus, and countless others give their lives for the Gospel?
Because they were in awe of what Christ had done
and wanted others to know the good news of Jesus Christ.
So
I challenge us - Have you forgotten what is like to not know Christ?
ILLUSTRATION:
Sometimes
When we have been saved for a while … it can seem like a lifetime since we did not know Christ.
And we can forget what it means to be lost.
We forget
the hopelessness,
and foolishness,
and guilt,
and fear,
and anxiety that is found .... when I don’t know Christ.
And thus,
we forget how wonderful the Gospel is.
We forget why the Gospel is the greatest story we could ever hear.
We forget to be an awe of the excellencies and wonders of Christ.
And so it is not a wonder … we struggle with telling people about Christ.
You can share the excellencies of a Christ you are not in awe of.
We have become luke warm to the greatest news the world has ever heard.
Take some time this week to remember why Christ is worth dying for.
And why we should be burdened to tell others about Christ.
I as your Pastor have been
In my own life,
Why our lives should be centered on this single purpose - declaring to the lost people around us the excellencies of Christ.
It is not by accident I choose this verse this morning.
and in my shepherding of this church - I have become burdened that we need to do more to reach people for Christ.
I have been wrestling with a balance.
I don’t want to be about numbers. I have been in churches where everything is about getting people saved. And it is not healthy.
But I can’t deny that one of the main tasks a believer has is to tell people about the excellencies of Christ.
The main task of the church is to make disciples by declaring the excellencies of Christ.
It is not by accident I choose this verse this morning.
I choose this verse because - you can’t dismiss our responsibility.
My normal preaching habit is to preach through whole books of the Bible.
Yes God saves people,
but God made us his people to make his name known.
One of the reason’s God makes us the people of God … is so we will tell others about about the wonderful news of the Gospel.
How do we individually and as a church become more evangelistic?
God is the
But I as your Pastor have been burdened with our need to make
I think it starts with an awe of who God is.
When we decide Christ is excellent … the Gospel just naturally flows into our conversations.
When I am luke warm to the Gospel, it is really hard to tell people about Christ.
I need to meditate on riches of the Gospel.
I also think it starts with prayer.
If God has made us his people to declare the excellencies of Christ,
then we ought to be praying that God would allow us to win someone for Christ.
Consider Paul’s burden in -
Romans 10:1 ESV
1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.
If we are not
in awe of God,
and burdened for others to be saved,
and praying that God would use us to reach people
… we can’t expect to be a very evangelistic church.
… we can’t expect God to bless us at making disciples.
So beginning this year - I would like to present a challenge.
((((( Show Card/Sign))))))
Not a 2020 challenge.
But what I hope to be a challenge that you live by for the rest of your life.
A challenge that I believe will reshape our lives practically and Spiritually.
Pray that God will use you to win 1 person to Christ.
I love this saying … because it is not about numbers.
Because your focus is on 1.
And when you win 1, you are not done.
You are going to ask God to use you to Win one more for Christ.
But I am not bragging or feeling guilty for not reaching 2, 3, 5, or 10 people for Christ.
Everyday … we are praying that God will use us to win 1 of these 7 or 10 friends and family for Christ.
People who are lost and going to hell.
ILLUSTRATION:
George Mueller was a great man of prayer … and a man who prayed a number of years for several specific men to come to Christ.
It took a lifetime… but God answered that prayer for most of those friends.
This year .... we will take some time to walk side bye side with one another in this.
We will talk about how to wisely declare the excellencies of Christ.
We will talk about how God gives the growth, but uses us.
But I am asking you as a first step .... start praying.
Stick this in your bible
Make a list of your lost friends
… and starting praying that they will get saved.
If God has made us his people … to declare the excellencies of Christ.
Let’s make sure we are a church that prays for the lost.
If nothing else - Let’s make sure we are a church who prays for the lost.
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