Gospel Shaped Living

Gospel Shaped Living September 20, 2020 Romans 8:9-13 John quoted Jesus, "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance." (John 10:10, HCSB). Exactly what is this 'abundant' life which Jesus promised? One song, quoted in a critique of the prosperity gospel seems to capture in a single phrase what many understand an abundant life to be: Just name it and claim it, It's yours, It's yours.1 Listen to Paul's experience: 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 Doesn't sound like a life of increasing material prosperity! And a few paragraphs later Paul wrote these words: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. 1. Abundant life = Life indwelt by the Holy Spirit John 3:3,6 2. Abundant life = Righteousness granted through the Holy Spirit The problem that faces every human being: how can a righteous God, a Holy God even look upon one who by birth and nature is a sinner, condemned and unclean? Romans 3:23 Romans 8:3-4 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 3. Abundant life = Power to overcome sin by the Holy Spirit If abundant life is granted by the indwelling Holy Spirit, if this life is Jesus' perfect obedience granted to us, then why do believers continue in sinful behavior? Romans 8:12-13 First, to whom are we indebted? Ephesians 2:2-3 Second, we are empowered to participate with the Holy Spirit in 'putting to death' the 'deeds of the body.' On scholar explains: Gospel Shaped Living September 20, 2020 Romans 8:9-13 John quoted Jesus, "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance." (John 10:10, HCSB). Exactly what is this 'abundant' life which Jesus promised? One song, quoted in a critique of the prosperity gospel seems to capture in a single phrase what many understand an abundant life to be: Just name it and claim it, It's yours, It's yours.2 Listen to Paul's experience: 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 Doesn't sound like a life of increasing material prosperity! And a few paragraphs later Paul wrote these words: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. 1. Abundant life = Life indwelt by the Holy Spirit John 3:3,6 2. Abundant life = Righteousness granted through the Holy Spirit The problem that faces every human being: how can a righteous God, a Holy God even look upon one who by birth and nature is a sinner, condemned and unclean? Romans 3:23 Romans 8:3-4 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 3. Abundant life = Power to overcome sin by the Holy Spirit If abundant life is granted by the indwelling Holy Spirit, if this life is Jesus' perfect obedience granted to us, then why do believers continue in sinful behavior? Romans 8:12-13 First, to whom are we indebted? Ephesians 2:2-3 Second, we are empowered to participate with the Holy Spirit in 'putting to death' the 'deeds of the body.' On scholar explains: the way to crucify the old self is to obey the promptings of the Spirit. When we walk in fellowship with the indwelling Spirit, the desires of the lower nature are not met. For all practical purposes they are put to death. It is only when we break fellowship with the Spirit that our sinful nature is able successfully to reassert its fraudulent claim on our lives. The key to freedom from what we were is constant reliance on the active presence of the Spirit.3 David Jeremiah recounts the life of Louis-Charles Bourbon, the son of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Upon the death of his parents when Louis was 8, he became the 'king' of France. The French Revolution, which began in 1789, imprisoned the young 'king.' Rather than executing him as they had his parents, they devised a plan to discredit him in the eyes of the French people: They would expose the young prince to all kinds of temptations, and when he inevitably succumbed, he would be discredited in the eyes of his supporters. They exposed him continually to foul language, hoping to corrupt his mind and speech. They surrounded the prince with every temptation they could think of to discredit him and drag him into dishonor. But the boy did not slip or yield to the temptations...Astounded at his resistance, they finally gave up...and asked him why he never partook of the extreme pleasures dangled before him. The young Louis-Charles replied, "I cannot do what you ask because I was born to be a king."4 Are you united with Christ? Then the Holy Spirit is dwelling in you - and you have life - resurrection life here and for eternity; you are clothed with the righteousness of Jesus - who lived a sinless, perfect life of obedience; and you are able to partner with the Holy Spirit to defeat the challenges of sin, and to overcome the temptations the enemy continues to throw at us... the way to crucify the old self is to obey the promptings of the Spirit. When we walk in fellowship with the indwelling Spirit, the desires of the lower nature are not met. For all practical purposes they are put to death. It is only when we break fellowship with the Spirit that our sinful nature is able successfully to reassert its fraudulent claim on our lives. The key to freedom from what we were is constant reliance on the active presence of the Spirit.5 David Jeremiah recounts the life of Louis-Charles Bourbon, the son of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Upon the death of his parents when Louis was 8, he became the 'king' of France. The French Revolution, which began in 1789, imprisoned the young 'king.' Rather than executing him as they had his parents, they devised a plan to discredit him in the eyes of the French people: They would expose the young prince to all kinds of temptations, and when he inevitably succumbed, he would be discredited in the eyes of his supporters. They exposed him continually to foul language, hoping to corrupt his mind and speech. They surrounded the prince with every temptation they could think of to discredit him and drag him into dishonor. But the boy did not slip or yield to the temptations...Astounded at his resistance, they finally gave up...and asked him why he never partook of the extreme pleasures dangled before him. The young Louis-Charles replied, "I cannot do what you ask because I was born to be a king."6 Are you united with Christ? Then the Holy Spirit is dwelling in you - and you have life - resurrection life here and for eternity; you are clothed with the righteousness of Jesus - who lived a sinless, perfect life of obedience; and you are able to partner with the Holy Spirit to defeat the challenges of sin, and to overcome the temptations the enemy continues to throw at us... 1 The Clark Sisters, Name it, Claim it, quoted by Kate Bower, Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel (Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2013), 225. 2 The Clark Sisters, Name it, Claim it, quoted by Kate Bower, Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel (Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2013), 225. 3 Mounce, R. H. (1995). Romans (Vol. 27, p. 180). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 4 David Jeremiah, Overcomer: 8 Ways to Live a Life of Unstoppable Strength, Unmovable Faith, and Unbelievable Power (Nashville, TN.: W Publishing, 2018),158-159. 5 Mounce, R. H. (1995). Romans (Vol. 27, p. 180). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 6 David Jeremiah, Overcomer: 8 Ways to Live a Life of Unstoppable Strength, Unmovable Faith, and Unbelievable Power (Nashville, TN.: W Publishing, 2018),158-159. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------