Living In Christ

Now this I say and testify in the Lord that you must go long longer walk and that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles to in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to their Hardness of Heart. They have become callous and they have given themselves up to sensuality Greed and to practice every kind of impurity but that is not the way you learned Christ assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him as the truth is in Jesus to put off your old self which belongs to your former manner of life and his corrupt through deceitful desires and to be renewed in the spirit of your mind and put on the new self created after the likeness of God and true righteousness and Holiness there for having put false ID. Infant having put away falsehood Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor for we are members of one another and be angry and do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your anger and give no opportunity to the double let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor. Doing honest work with his own hands so that he may have something to share with anyone in need but no corruption. No corrupting talk comes out of your mouth. But only such as is good and the building up as fits the occasion that it may give Grace to those who hear and do not grieve the holy spirit of God by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption that all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you along with all malice be kind to one another tenderhearted forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you.

Amen, thank you Tim. Thank you Church. For having your scriptures open to the book of Ephesians as we continue looking at chapter 4 and as we are looking at this, I I don't want us to forget what we talked about last weekend. Just very briefly. If you weren't here last week. I want you to see there in verses 1 through 16 of Ephesians chapter 4 were told that the in light of what Christ has done in light of God's plan for the gospel. The church is to be unified. And now in this second half of the chapter what we see is that that Unity is not just a collective experience, but there's also some individual implications the gospel carries with it the assumption That your life will be changed. If you are in Christ, there will be a new manner of Life a new way of living in Christ that is different from the way you live before in a collective sent. It means that instead of dwelling in opposition to other people instead of carrying and essentially antagonistic approach to your relationships with those around you you will carry and essentially unifying approach to your relationships. But in your life in our life as a congregation together, the new life in Christ is not just about us to get it's also about the transformation that begins to work itself out in us. And so today I want to consider with you what it means to live in Christ. What does it mean to be in Christ? And how does that work itself out in our lives would you play with? before we Dive In father as we come before your word we do so in your presence and so God make us mindful of your Holiness and your righteousness make it mindful of the fact that your word reveals you as holy. Holy. Holy. And our own lives got in your wording in concert testify that we are not holy. Holy holy. Got What U challenges

Would you help us to be transformed by this encounter with your word? But also God would you help us did not lose heart but to trust in the one who accomplishes all things for us. To trust in your son Jesus Christ I ask in Jesus name. Amen. The first thing that I want you to understand from the text that Tim just read is that living in Christ is not something that you can do on your own. It's not something that you can accomplish on your own instead living in Christ result from an entirely new way of being an entirely new way of existing now, I'm not going to take the time to go back into read chapters 1 through 3, but I want to call your attention to what we know from the context in Ephesians chapter. 1 were told that this is all God's work that we fall in humanity would have an Avenue of redemption opened up to us and we begin to understand that that Avenue of redemption has to come Through what is spiritually dead being made alive? What is dead has to be brought out of the grave and given new life? We have to be resurrected before we can live in Christ. You can't just show up and be like, all right, I've read The Sermon on the Mount I've read a little bit about this Jesus of Nazareth guy. I don't think he was two people claiming to be but he was a good teacher. So I'm just going to do what he said. I'd like to know if anybody tried that just in tirely on their own strength to obey what Jesus commanded. Here's what you'll find. you can't you will inevitably disappoint yourself. If you try to live in Christ without first being resurrected in Christ Living in Christ presupposes Ephesians chapter 4 17 through 32 presupposes if he's a chapter 2 1 through 10. That we who were dead have been made alive in Christ in Christ. We have to understand that our living in him comes from this new way of being vs24 here points us to this. Look at that with me and to put on the new self what new self is Paul referring to but that resurrect did self the self that is no longer trying to earn God's favor, but it has been given God's favor in living where it was dead before once we are in Christ. We are a new creation no longer dead now alive before we were blind to what God was doing in the world before we were blind to the glory of God. Now we see in Stark Clarity That Glory is a new way of Being Human how many viewers Switchfoot fans?

Yes, yes. Okay. So this is a trick I found if I reference a book you guys don't always track with me, but maybe I need to start referencing music is Switchfoot a new way to be human, right? That's what that's what it is to be in Christ. And some of your not catching the Switchfoot reference at all, but I'd encourage you to go back and listen to the catalog. They got some good music. Jon Foreman is a musical genius. I'll just go ahead and throw that out there. We have to understand that. We try harder to live in Christ. We have to first be resurrected by Christ before after first have this new life given to us by my kids got none of Star Wars. Kick. Where were they just are obsessed with Star Wars and Yoda has that classic line? I don't even know which movie it's in but the do or do not right there is no try. But you know in a very real sense that's the case for those of us who are in Christ. You can't try to live in Christ. You're either in Christ, or you're not in Christ. If you're not in Christ, you cannot live in price. If you are in Christ, you will inevitably begin to live in Christ. You will inevitably begin to look more like the one whose power has saved you whose power has granted you new life. I want you to understand that it is not human effort that produces a lifestyle consistent with the gospel. Human effort is not excluded. This will be the hardest thing you've ever done. But if you understand what Paul has been saying in Ephesians, you'll understand. If it's not you who's doing that? It's Christ who's doing that through in you? It's the spirit who's doing that work in you do what? I don't want you to take away from today if you're sitting here and you're not in Christ, but I don't want you to take away from today is to live in Christ just means I try harder. I don't want you to take that away at all. I want you to understand to live in Christ is to have been set free by his power to have been given New Life to have been taken from the grave and set back on the path towards God that is what it is. So it results from living in Christ results from this new way of being that the gospel produces butts. Again, it does not exclude transformation. It does not exclude hard work on our part because living in Christ coming out of that new way of being coming out of that resurrection power that we had nothing to contribute to results. In a lot of different things it results Ephesians chapter 2 says in good works right that God prepared beforehand that we ought to walk in them. We're not raised by new works, but we're raised for good works. And so living in Christ results first and foremost in a new way of thinking Church.

Did you know? Did there's something wrong with your mind? Did you know that there is something fundamentally flawed in the structure of the gray matter inside of your brain case? Did you know this some of you know this better than others? Some of you are like me always thinking about the Hereafter as my dad likes to say you walk into a room and say what am I here after? Come on, give me something. Write some of us are like that. I already know there's something wrong. I don't remember what I should remember the words. Don't come out right or I can I forget things I should remember. But even those of you whose minds are sharp as a tack. Whose minds are steel trap? Who are intellectually gifted you need to understand? There's something fundamentally flawed in your mind and it was given to you by the fact that you were born. And it's not it's not structural. It's not genetic. It's a result of being born sinful into a sinful world. You have been conditioned from the time you are tiny. To think a particular way and that particular way is this life is all about me. You have been conditioned whether you can remember the dates and facts from high school history or not. You have been conditioned to think this life is about me living in Christ requires an entirely new way of thinking that doesn't cut it anymore a self centered approach to life life is about me having my needs met life is about me getting what I want life is about progressing in the direction. I think I ought to go. No, No. Life in Christ is fundamentally a new way of thinking this life is not about me. I was dead. Now Christ has made me a live there for any life. I have belongs to him. He owns it because I owe it to him. This life is Christ life. Paul says, it's no longer. I who live in his Christ who lives in me. Remember you were bought with a price there for you and I are no longer your own. This is the clear Witnesses the New Testament the new way of thinking that Christ brings in is a way of thinking that puts aside the old mine. This is about me and brings you in a new way of thinking. This is about Christ. Look at how Paul opens the section in 17 and 18 know you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do those were outside of Christ in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance. Excuse me, that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts. What is it that separates Humanity outside of Christ from Christ? their mind dinner in tirely gear to the wrong way of thinking Vitter entirely design to say what's in it for me instead. Paul says that the new way of thinking for us is very different verse 20. That is not the way you learn to Christ. If you learned Christ if your mind has been given the example of price the testimony of Christ the power of Christ the resurrecting Life of Christ you now grasp the fundamentals shift that has to take place Christ is the one who matters Christ is the one who is King. This life is all about him verse 23 be renewed in the spirit of your minds. living in Christ

requires a new way of thinking church. So no longer. Can we the people of God blindly follow our culture? You think you know what you need you say a little bit time for yourself. Self-care is the first care. You got to put your mask on before helping others. Now. I'm not telling you to disobey the flight attendants on your next flight.

But when we take this understanding like well if I if I'm going to be able to help anybody I got to help myself, right? I can't I can't love somebody if I don't love myself we're putting that Focus back on us. Christ demonstrates for us an entirely different way of thinking. Jesus talks to his disciples. They just have gone out on a on a mission trip. They did busy. They've been I've been frantic if the crazy been hectic tells him come aside. Let's go find some rest. There's nothing wrong with rest. but the crowds saw where he was going. And he had compassion on them. And instead of taking the disciples away for rest out of their emptiness. They proceeded to serve the crap. That's what I'm telling you guys. You can't wait until yourself is fulfilled to begin to serve others. This new way of thinking says that it's not about me I get to rest great if I do great. If life is Christ anyways, if I'm tired if I'm exhausted christ-life. If I'm filled up and I'm full of joy and energy, it's Christ life. It's a new way of thinking living in Christ is not just passively waiting. for the new South Dakine Dove magically happen It is quite intentionally. Looking at Christ in sin, How did he do this? What it what did he do? How did he show us how to live this life? What what did he tell us about this line? Not it. Just words, but also in his action. Okay, that's what I need to do as well. The new way of thinking a new way of looking at the world when we are in Christ. You guys know me, you know, I'm not a big fan of math. Unfortunately my children keep getting older as children get older their math gets harder and one of the things on my to-do list yesterday with a math date with my oldest child. now if you want me to do something on a to-do list, don't put math there. But out of love for my wife and concern for my daughter I said, okay will do some math together. She's in sixth grade. I don't know how it happened, but we were doing algebra. In sixth grade, sixth grade was like freshman through senior year for me. So I don't know what she's doing doing it in 6th grade, but I looked at it and I instantly had flashbacks. You can't do Algebra. I don't know how to do this. Thankfully my wife was right there, and she said you just do the steps. She had to shift my way of thinking hun algebra from I don't do this to just do what the books telling you to do. We have to shift our way of thinking from It's All About Me. To just do a Christ showed need to do. In Christ Living in Christ requires and results in a new way of thinking. I want you understand. Is it living in Christ results in a new way of feeling? Feeling now. This is the point at which our culture. Should stand in stark contrast to our churches. Because I put this in that order very intentionally that we first have to understand. There's a new way of thinking. That new way of thinking than results in a new way of feeling our culture wants to reverse that. Our culture wants to reverse that. They tell us feeling is the most important thing don't start with thinking. Start with feeling Christ and the way of life in Christ says to us start with getting your thinking write. This is about Jesus. It's not about me and then your feelings will follow as some of you are not feeling people. Do you think you're not? Because you don't cry when Old Yeller dies, right? Do you think you're not feeling people because you're just not that emotive, but I'm telling you you live in America. You have been conditioned to start with your feelings. If you've ever watched the Disney movie you have been told the right way to approach a decision is how I feel about this. In Christ feelings matter, but they're no longer primary. And they are very much knew the way we feel is difference. We're watching a show Megan and I the other day and in the show Nyssa is a paraphrase, but essentially one of the one of the main characters says, well, this is how I feel and you can't help how you feel. So I just have to do this and I heard it again this message. I've heard so many times growing up in this country. And I recognize that is so contrary to Christ life. According to the culture is do what you feel like doing as often as you feel like doing it life according to Christ is do what you should be doing until you feel like doing it. You say that one more time life according to Christ is do what you should be doing until you feel like doing it. I don't know how many times I've told myself, you know, I just don't feel like praying right now. You know, I just don't feel like reading my Bible. And it's somehow because I've been conditioned my my culture. It feels inauthentic. To read my Bible when I don't feel like reading my Bible urge to pray when I don't feel like praying. It's a lot of times. I just don't. But I'm beginning to understand that that's not how the gospel encourages me to live. The gospel does not encourage me to wait until I feel like looking like Jesus to start looking like these it doesn't encourage me to wait until I feel like reading my Bible to read my Bible. This new way of thinking that this is about Christ. Ought to be slowly percolating in until I read my Bible. I look like Christ. I pray. Because Jesus said to do it. Not because I want to and the incredible thing that happens when you start doing that. When you start doing that your feelings start to match your thinking. It's awesome. People always say fake it till you make it that's not what I'm saying. But it's kind of what I'm saying.

Because that's how God has wired us when we tell ourselves again and again in our minds. Jesus is King. God wants me to pray. God has revealed himself to me in the word if we keep telling ourselves that and we keep going to those things eventually guess what will start to recognize I can't live without this.

Martin Luther said I have so much to do in a day that I can't begin to get it done unless I spend three hours in prayer. That is not how I generally view my prayer life.

I have so much to get done. I don't have time to pray. now My way of feeling needs to be changed by my way of thinking. This is about Christ now. This is no longer about me. There was there was a point last year where I had been I've been listening to a lot of books and reading a bunch of different books and I found myself kind of in a rut where I was listening to a lot of an in reading a lot of books that were either either not helpful. Or not fruitful listening to a bunch of fiction. I love fiction. Don't give me wrong. But I was like all I was listening to and then I was listening to some philosophy and submit some different thinkers in our in our current age to deny Christ and I told myself I'm doing this to try to understand what's happening in our culture. But here's what I found. I filled my mind with that for a couple of weeks. I began to notice at one point. man I'm feeling I'm feeling angry. Feeling irritable. I'm doubting the love of God for me. And I'm doubting things that I know are true. What's going on? I was listening to a bunch of music that that frankly wasn't helping this. I just had to stop and say okay. special reset button Let's read some good stuff. I read Eugene Peterson's a long obedience in the same direction. Interesting lie enough titled from a quote from Nietzsche but a reflection on the Psalms of ascent. And I began to listen to some music recommended to me by Corey Stein. Allie Paige

John Van deusen

and all the sudden my attitude began to change the way I was feeling began to change because I was feeding my mind this core of my thinking different things in the way my thinking change change the way that I was feeling about this. Don't start with your feelings church if you are in Christ. Start with your thinking. And let that reality begin to change the way that you are feeling now at this point we talked about things that are internal right thinking and feeling these are things that happen inside each one of us occasionally, you have some things that kind of spillover out of thinking and feeling right and there's this very much this group sent to the gospel in the New Testament. There's this collectively that sit work here until all of us need to be making sure that we're thinking correctly together and feel incorrectly together by and large we do most of our thinking and are feeling individually. Is that where the life in Christ stops is Christ only concerned with transforming. Your internal reality is Christ only concerned with how you think and how you feel? No, he's not because we just had Tim read Ephesians 4:17 to 32 and while thinking and feeling are a part of this life in Christ. We recognize it has to be moved to the external. Or it's not complete because living in Christ is not just a new way of thinking a new way of feeling it is a new way of speaking. It's a new way of expressing ourselves in words, particularly how we speak to one another look at look at the text again, look at verse 25 verse 25 therefore having put away falsehood that each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor for we are members of one another because of the transformative impact of the Gospel on our thinking and I'm in our feeling we need to also speak in a way that is consistent with that. We put away falsehood and we speak truth with our neighbor because we are members of one another the reality of the unity of the church means that my sanctification the process, whereby I look more like Jesus today than I did yesterday that that has an impact on the church last week. We talked all about the unity of the body this week. I want you to understand your Speaking will have his big of an impact on the unity of this church as just about anything else the way you speak to one another church. Will in large part determine the extent and the character of your Unity. Do not make the mistake and it's not at all. I just have to change the way things change over phone. Do you have to change the way you speak to people in the church look at verse 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up as fits the occasion that it may give Grace to those who hear we should see that phrase good for building up and our mind should immediately recall what we just looked at in verses 1 through 16 write the purpose of the Gospel the purpose of our unity in Christ the common identity that we have under the Son of God means that the body is being built up into Christ the day-by-day collectively. We look more like Jesus to the world that is watching us. And now Paul says that our speech is a part of that building up. Church be mindful of the words you speak to your brothers and sisters be mindful of how you talk particularly in the interim time that's coming up particularly in the time when there's a leadership transition taking place be mindful of the way you talk about one another be mindful the way you talk to one another be mindful the way you talk about the church be mindful of the way you talk amongst the church because we are to In Christ this new way of life. We are to speak that which is good for building up. What fits the occasion that gives Grace to those who hear that would be a really really good kind of simple litmus test for every word that comes out of my mouth. Is this word giving Grace? Is this word demonstrating the grace that God gave me is this word reflecting the transformation that has become in my life through Christ. And is it encouraging that transformation in this person I'm talking to or is it getting vents? To some stinky attitude of mine. Is it giving vent to some impression that I have? Based out of my own sinfulness that's going to end up corrupting or polluting the mind of this brother-sister corrupting or polluting the unity of the church sticks and stones may break my bones.

But words can never hurt me. Nope. We just had an in Sunday school we're talking about a lot of those old sayings are really good. That was really bad. Sticks and Stones. Yes break bones word break something more important

Yeah, that's right. They break hearts. Daybreak Fellowship, they break Unity, they break not our bodies, but they break the body of Christ. Living in Christ thought to result in a new way of speaking one. That does not tear down corrupt. Destroy but one that feels that one that is motivated by Grace one that gives Grace to others let all bitterness and wrath. This is for 31, let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you along with all malice. Life in Christ changes the way we think changes the way we feel that changes the way we speak finally it changes the way we act in verse 19. This is the way we used to act. We become callous. They've given themselves up to sensuality degree to practice every kind of impurity right that that was us in that old life in that dead life. buried in the grave muck not breathing not thinking of anything except ourselves. That was us we were greedy for this. We were callous we'd given ourselves up to sensuality but that is not the way you learned Christ. So something Paul is killing us in here. Something is going to be different about the way we act about what we pursue about what we do something is going to be different as a result of Christ. We're going to act differently in him verse 22, what would you be is where to be renewed in the spirit of mines and to put on the new self created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and Holiness instead of selfishness. righteousness instead of self-direction and self fulfillment glorifying God and his righteousness and his Holiness and pointing others to him. It's a different way of acting and then we see all of this be angry and do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your anger. Give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor doing honest work Zone hand. Do you mean have something to share with anyone in need? This is a different way of acting. Write why you go to work?

Pay the bills right? Keep the roof over that keep the food in my belly not according to Paul here. The purpose of our job is not just to provide an income force ourselves and provide for us if that's part of it, but why does he tell the thief no longer to steal?

So that he has something to share. with others so that he can give out of the abundance that God gives him he's got to work for it. But it's for the sake of others. That's the new way of acting. We're now acting for the sake of others instead of acting for ourselves. And this can be such a fine line. Because it's entirely possible.

to do good things

for ourselves It's entirely possible to do all the right things. But with the entirely the wrong motives, that's why I think Paul lays it out in this order. We are changed in Christ were made alive in Christ that changes our thinking which then changes are feeling within which of these changes are speaking with then changes our acting by the time you get down to the action. You take Christ follower. It should have been so filtered through the mind of Christ through the heart of Christ through the words of Christ that your actions are all about Christ. No longer about you. And I want us to understand this I want us to Grass this and I am always encouraged when I see this taking place in myself on occasion and in you guys. One of the things that Anthony mentioned earlier was he talking about Alice Alice Anderson some of you know, her some of you didn't she was a student at suu she was involved with intervarsity and God has brought an opportunity in front of her that as I was thinking about this time like this is so different from what our culture says. Our culture says go to college get a degree so that you can make a bunch of money and be fulfilled. She went to college she got a degree and she's an incredibly skilled graphic designer. By the way, if you see Red Hills is Bible camp logo that was her work a lot of stuff that we've done advertising and stuff. She's just volunteered her time to do our graphic design for so she's been phenomenal in using her gifts for the church now guys put an opportunity in her in in front of her to use those for intervarsity. So I'll let her tell her to tell you about that.

If you don't know me, I'm Alice. I went to read hold up until last April when I graduated. I see you. So now I worship with you virtually and I'm here to invite you into something awesome that God has invited me into and I'm so excited to share with you about that. So College of the point where thousands of students have experiences that help them decide who they are and what they mean and interested he is an amazing campus ministry to help students connect with Jesus through his word and his people and when students are transformed they can then transform their campus and then go out from there to change the world. So I think many of you have heard of in a rush City and got it is using it on ACU's campus. You have some amazing soon as leaders in your congregation, so that it to them and he's also using iniversity and about seven hundred other campuses in the US. Am I not sin is that I was offered a graphic design job and the rest is national service center in Wisconsin. So my role will be to design visual resources to equip staff and students on campus around the nation. Hope of Jesus with the people around them where they are on their campuses. So I am so excited to use my creative passions to glorify Jesus in this way. It's a dream come true it honestly really is so yeah. I'm praying for a team of people would like this around this ministry with their prayers and financial support as I do need to raise support for intervarsity to become an official employee and thereafter to be funded annually. So if you're interested in learning how to become a Ministry partner with prayer for finances, I would love to talk with you and my contact info is in your bulletin. So I'm so excited to invite you my church family and to what God is doing on college campuses and I hope you might consider being a part of this. So I love you. I miss you. I miss being there with you and may God's hope and peace and joy go with you maybe surround you with his love and remind you of his abundance and provision. May God bless you by family.

as you heard that what I wanted you to hear was hey, this is an opportunity for us as a church to come alongside. One of our own as they are being sent out for the sake of the Gospel, but I also wanted you to hear transforms thinking transformed feeling. transformed words And a transformed life you can make some money as a graphic designer. You can't make money as a graphic designer in Ministry. You might be able to pay the bills yet. She says I'm willing to do this because this is god-given. And so I appreciate it so much her testimony and I want to encourage you to prayerfully consider whether or not you might want want to reach out to her. And even if you can't support her financially right now reach out to her and just say I want to join you in prayer. How do I do that? It's over information is in your bulletin. I would encourage you to follow up with that as the Lord leads church. This is what living in Christ is about it's about recognizing that what we've been given is not ours for our own sake Is to be used for the kingdom. It's to be used for him. To recognize that because we are in Christ. There's this new thought process that takes place is no longer about me is now about Christ to change the way that we feel it's no longer about me. It's about Christ to change the way we speak. It's no longer about me. It's about Christ to change the way we Act is no longer about me. It's about Christ. You see the Common Thread here.

Church, it's not about it. The transformation that Christ brings into us the sanctification that we see in our life. It's not just because that makes our lives better or easier. It's for the sake of our brothers and sisters. It's for the sake of the world dying in desperate need of the Gospel. This is what you've been given. Don't waste it. Would you play with me?

Related Media

Related Sermons