Follow Suit: Co-heirs

Last sermon in this series, start a new series called “Listen to Glisten”: A Journey through Book of Acts

Climax, use a climactic passage! Romans 8! Sparkles with hope

Follow Suit: The heart of the King and his heart

Co-heirs, joint heirs, fellow heirs

What does that mean? Heirs of What? What have we inherited?

What can we expect as co-heirs?

How does being a co-heir change your life?

Source: 1861 by the Rev. C. H. SPURGEON, “The Joint Heirs and Their Divine Portion”

What is it that is inherited?

1. Property

Old Testament concept of inheritance has to do with a strip of land...

But through Jesus, the ‘land’ that is inherited is, well, everything!

We can trust that Jesus owns everything.

Dad Joke: “Why can’t you trust atoms?” Because they make up everything!

Why can you trust Jesus? Because he owns everything. He is the King of kings over all

Hebrews 1:1-2: Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

And we are co-heirs of that property!

Sent as Royalty

Ambassadors AND Co-Heirs

Biblical

Actual royalty...

Governor General in Canada: Queen’s presence!

Governor General:

Commander-in-Chief

TITLE: Her Excellency the Right Honourable Julie Payette

Pre-1952: Governor Generals were British

Post-1952: Vincent Massey: First Canadian to hold office, “Reflected Canada's new sense of autonomy and identity in the post-war era and Canadian sense of pride in the Canadian Crown.” www.canada.ca

Adopted from outside Britain to be the presence and power of the crown!

Adopted from outside the commonwealth of Israel and placed as the representative of the King!

Co-heirs of Christ’s Kingdom

2. Co-Heirs in Our Experience!

What does this mean?

“If children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may be also glorified with him.”

Co-heirs suffer with Christ

Affliction:

The Christian experiences affliction as part of our inheritance…

Christian should expect a year like 2020.

Theme: Suffer with Christ! is part of receiving our inheritance

Persecution:

“Paul, Paul, why do you persecute me?!”

Co-heir are persecuted

Temptation

Charles Spurgeon: “You must be tempted of Satan, you must be tried by the world, the flesh, of the devil. Do you shrink from it? … Remember, in this, too, Christ is your co-heir. "He was tempted in all points like as we are." "We have not an High Priest that cannot be touched with a feeling of our infirmities." Do you shrink from being tempted? Would you take Job's jewels, but not his dung-hill? … Would you have your Master's throne, but not his temptation in the wilderness? … The joint heirship reaches from the gloomy patina of deep affliction up to the bright ineffable splendor of the throne of bliss...”

Co-heir are glorified with him

Co-Heirs experience what Jesus experience not merely in his affliction, but also in his glorification!

What is this?

It means that someday you will be brought up, perfected, ushered into the throne room as the bride of Christ ready to experience unity with Christ forever. As one who belong to Jesus, you will experience a rising again, not just up from death, but up to a throne where the Church is Queen, forever unified with the King of kings to experience shalom together. The new heaven and the new earth will be made new, and just as this creation will be set free from “its bondage to corruption” (Rom. 8:21), we will be set free from affliction, persecution and temptation. Christians will be brought to our new home with new glorified, undefiled and permanent bodies that will never decay or spoil, but only experience life, joy, peace, and love! Our glorification is the experience akin to a wedding, where the Bride and Groom meet and live in perfect harmony, protection, and relationship forever and ever.

To be glorified is to to bask in the holiness of God, to experience his presence and to know forever that we are chosen, heirs to the promises of resurrection and salvation, where we forever trust to whom we belong as united with Christ.

To be glorified is the look Bride’s receive when they turn the corner to walk down the aisle. It’s the moment of arrival, where all is well, all is beautiful, all is grace. Where angels will gasp at the beauty Christ attracted.

As a pastor who has performed multiple marriages, that moment the bride turns the corner is always a special moment:

Wide eyed little girls

Gasps, smiles and camera flashes

Co-heirs will experience that moment. Those who are united with Jesus will experience that moment.

Already not yet...

Do you recognize who you are?

Do you know you’re royalty??

Like, YOU are special?

You may be depresssed

Anxiety

Suicidal even

ENCOURAGE: IN CHRIST, YOU ARE A JOINT HEIR of ROYALTY

This is hard...

Trust it’s not too controversial analogy:

Prince William and Catherine Middleton

2nd in line to the throne

Prince Harry and Megan Markle:

Desired to be financially independent

After lengthy negotiations, Harry and Megan can longer taken on the title of ROYAL in Britain...

Clearly he’s still family, but his choice to be independent led to that decision.

Now, this is an analogy… I’m not sharing this to make a judgment call here. I don’t know what it’s like to be a royal that sense of the word… I’m using this just as example as to how it’s impossible to be independant and still yet be co-heirs with Christ.

Just as it was determined as impossible to live privately and independently with the term ‘royal’, it’s impossible for us to dissect our identity as co-heirs with Christ with how we serve the world.

Co-Heirs with Christ need to think like a royal and to assume the responsibilities of an a co-heir.

Love the Kingdom and the King

To serve the people within the King’s domain.

To be dedicated for the well-being of others!

Fight for the Kingdom, to seek it first, and when I say, fight, I mean stand your guard confident in your salvation, your faith, your hope, in peace with the Gospel, and using God’s Word.

When we forget who we are as co-heirs with the King, that’s where sin comes in.

We establish our own independence from the King

So if you’re in the dumps right now, be encouraged, you are royalty as co-heir with Christ.

If you’re stuck in a sin you can’t shake, die to your independent spirit… Let loose the shackles because shackles don’t belong Brides. Our train is not made up of chains and shackles like Jacob Marley. Ours our white, remember from last week:

“Hallelujah!

For the Lord our God

the Almighty reigns.

7  Let us rejoice and exult

and give him the glory,

for the marriage of the Lamb has come,

and his Bride has made herself ready;

8  it was granted her to clothe herself

with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

Prayer: