Salvation
Notes
Transcript
Good morning church! It is so good to be together! If you are new here, we are excited to have you! In fact, we have a gift we want to give you on the way out today. Your ticket to get that gift is right there in the back of the seat in front of you. If you will fill out as much info on that thing as you feel comfortable with, after the service, hand it to the Next Step folks there and they will hook you up with your very own Lindsay Lane East swag and some info on our church, alright?
This morning, we are rolling on into week 3 of this new series called Summer School: looking at basic truths we believe. This morning we will look at What does it mean to be SAVED? Turn to Ephesians 2.
Elsie Jo played 8U softball this year and I helped coach. That is a lot more than I bargained for! But we had an incredible group of girls. We tried to make a run in the county tournament, but got put out by West Limestone in a tough loss.
All the games we were winning at the end of the season were only made sweeter when I looked back to where we had come from.
Most of our girls were only 7, and many had only played one year before and a few had never played. Even several practices in, I wondered if we could pull out more than a handful of wins, but we wound up doing really well and beating some teams that had waxed us pretty bad early on.
I’ll say it again, the wins at the end of the season were made sweeter by looking back to where we had come from, and Paul seems to believe here in Ephesians 2, that the same is true for believers. The joys of salvation are only made sweeter when you look back to where you have come from.
What we see is that all that sin wrecked, (patrick talked about that last week) God was going to make right! This is so cool, let’s dive in!
Let me read Ephesians 2, pray, and then we can start looking at what’s going on here.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins
in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient.
We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!
He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,
so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—
not from works, so that no one can boast.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.
PRAY
Patrick talked with us last week about some of the overarching context of the whole book of Ephesians. Let me quiz you simply...
Ephesians is a letter from a real person to real people. Who wrote it? PAUL
Who was it written to? The believers gathering as a church in Ephesus.
In these verses, Paul does two things really well for these believers: he compares what they were by nature with what they are now by grace. These verses are by my estimation, some of the most beautiful verses in all of Scripture. And as much as I have studied them and preached on them in 13 years of ministry, I’ve never noticed the blatant symmetry to this comparison.
In my studying this week, I read a sermon by John Piper on these verses. Though I do not agree with him on every part of his theology, Piper helped me see in his sermon, that Paul is making very distinct declarations about our salvation in light of our former hopelessness. And the whole thing hinges on verse 4.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
This is the fulcrum, the turning point, the tip of the spear that flips it for us! Piper helped me see this symmetry, and I want to share it with you today. So, some of the wording of the three main points today are not my own. They are borrowed. Credit where it is due, alright.
1. God brought LIFE where there was only DEATH
1. God brought LIFE where there was only DEATH
In verse one, Paul reminds his readers that apart from the work of GOd in us WE ARE DEAD in our sin. Not SICK in our sin. Not KIND OF BAD in our sin. There is not a faint spiritual heart beat going in us that might allow us to do some good. We are dead in our sin, completely hopeless when it comes to pleasing God.
BUT GOD.... right?
Paul says that, for those of us who are believers, though we were absolutely dead and separated from God in our sin, God HIMSELF stepped in to act on our behalf! Look at verse 1 and verse 4 and 5.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!
Part of our salvation is a newness of life that comes from God! Our spiritually dead bodies are made alive by the power of God in Christ Jesus!
While sin has killed us spiritually, God acts and makes us alive in Christ!
But that’s not all that salvation is!
2. God brought freedom where there was only bondage
2. God brought freedom where there was only bondage
I’ll say this because some of y’all were thinking it earlier… Paul describes sin in a way that most of us are uncomfortable with. Saying I am dead is one thing. But where he goes next is not the way we think of our sin.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins
in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient.
Most of us probably can see that before coming to Christ, we walked according to the ways of the world, right? We did what everyone else was doing. We sought the things the world said we should. All good there.
But then Paul defines that walk as not only according to the ways of the world but according to the ruler of the power of the air… Some translations read “Prince of the power of the air.” Who is that?
Well Paul calls this prince in one place in Ephesians “the evil one” and in two other places the “devil.” This is Satan.
Paul says that before coming to Christ, every human being follows the directions of the prince of the power of the air, Satan himself! He is the ruler, the prince, and it is an absolute monarchy. He is on the throne and he calls the shots! And we obey because we are dead in our sin!
Is this how serious you see your sin? When you sinned you were following the orders of Satan?
I will argue that it is not as serious as I most often view my sin, but Paul says we have got to change that!
Before you were saved by God you weren’t just an OK guy or girl! You were walking according to the direction of a different ruler. You were a member of a different kingdom! There was a throne in your heart and it was not God who sat on it. It was not yourself who sat on it. It was Satan who sat on the throne and you followed his lead!
This is the seriousness of sin church! Human beings are naturally, instinctively in BONDAGE to sin! If you are here today, and you have not trusted in Jesus yet in your life, the Bible makes it clear that you are not a morally neutral creature. You do not get to choose each day who you will follow. That decision is made for you. Every day. Instinctively. Without fail. And it will continue that way forever...
Listen...
But GOD!!!
in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,
Notice this change of space for those who are in Christ! Notice what God does for us in Christ! We are walking around every day in the domain of darkness ruled by Satan himself, but God raised us UP.
I’ve always just viewed this as a resurrection. We were dead, but God raised us up. But it seems that there is more going on here. God has already made our dead hearts alive. Here he says that he has raised us up WHERE!? In the heavens in Christ Jesus! We are seated with Christ in heaven!
Why is that significant?
When you think in terms of what Paul said in verse 2, it is a change of dominion. A change of kingdom! Do you see it?
Paul says that here on earth Satan is the ruler that humans give in and follow, without question. We are in the domain of his reign. But in salvation, God has raised us up out of this domain and into a new one! A heavenly one! Where there is a different king, amen? And we can now follow his reign, his lead. We are a part of HIS KINGDOM NOW!
I was viewing this as a statement of spiritual resurrection, but it’s more likely a statement of spiritual ascension and session!
After Jesus spent 40 days speaking and appearing to his disciples after his resurrection, God caught him up in the air. (This is the ascension of Christ.)
And where did Jesus ascend to? The right hand of God! Where he sits now to rule and reign. (that’s referred to as the session of Christ)
Paul says that where there once was bondage to an evil ruler, there is now freedom to follow a different king!
Upon your salvation, there came a spiritual freedom that the rest of the world does not get to taste unless they come to Christ as well!
God brought kindness where there was only wrath
God brought kindness where there was only wrath
This one’s tough too! Look at verse 3...
We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.
Paul has already said that we were marching to Satan’s drum, and here he says that we were just teetotally evil! Notice what he says...
Our desires were evil.
Our thoughts were evil.
And those caused us to carry out evil actions.
And what does that earn us? What are we called because of this? CHILDREN UNDER WRATH.
You may not be familiar with the word wrath. It is very similar to the word ANGER and of the 36 times it’s used in the NT it is actually translated as anger. In several other places it is used right alongside anger as in...
Let all bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander be removed from you, along with all malice.
But it is most often not used as a reference to man’s anger, but actually GOD’s! Wrath is the anger God has with sin. And it encompasses the way in which he deals with sin which is utter separation. The Bible speaks of a Day of God’s wrath coming. What does that wrath look like? A moment in which the separation becomes permanent. Man is separated forever from God because of their sin.
This is the heaviness of your sin! It brings the wrath of God on your life!
BUT GOD… he acted on your behalf!
We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For those who are in Christ, it is not an eternal wrath or godly anger that awaits us! It is his kindness in Christ Jesus. Where we could only find wrath, God offers his kindness IN CHRIST!
This verse here should make you smile! The outcome of your salvation is not just an avoiding of wrath, and separation from God. The outcome of your salvation is that God uses the rest of eternity to display the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness to us!
MAN that fires me up!
Do you see this beautiful progression?
Paul says that you and I are dead in our trespasses and sins, but God makes us alive.
You and I are enslaved to Satan, the ruler of the power of the air here, but God gives us freedom to obey a new king.
You and I are deserving of nothing but God’s wrath, but God offers in Christ his kindness instead!
Y’all, I don’t understand it all! But what Paul is saying is that IN Christ, all that sin messed up has been made right. The effects of sin are undone in Christ!
And you may ask, “Why? Why would God offer this for us?”
It’s easy for me to get lost in all the details here that we have just looked at! But sitting right at the end of verses four that we have read half a dozen times now is the answer...
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,
It is because our merciful God LOVES US. And not just a little love or a normal amount of love. “GREAT LOVE.”
Church, that is the best news I could share with you!
And if you are not yet a follower of Jesus, you’ve not yet been saved, let me just say, I don’t know what your opinion of God has been, but hear me when I say this, “God loves you.” Today, he stands ready to bring to YOU life where there was only death, freedom where there was only bondage, and kindness where there was only wrath.
I plead with you today, consider the love of God and act on it.
The Bible tells us how we can act on it and receive these as gifts from God!
It’s as simple as repenting: turning from your sin to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Remember that you are living according to different kingdom today. Ask God to change your heart to follow after Jesus’s rule and not Satan’s. Repent
And it’s belief. Believe that Jesus really did come to earth, die on the cross, yet be raised from the dead to right the relationship between God and man.
The Bible says that if you will repent and believe, you will be saved!
If that’s something you would like to do today, we want to help you do it. During this last song, just come let me know that this is what you want to do, and we will help you through it just like somebody helped us! Today there is grace for you in form of life, freedom, and kindness! amen?
Let me speak for just a moment as well to those who may be believers. The Bible is clear that we are to believe and then be baptized. This coming Sunday, we will be baptizing two adults who are already following Jesus. One was sprinkled as a baby. This was more of a testimony of her parent’s hope than her own. So she is being baptized next week as a believer in Jesus herself.
If you are like her and were sprinkled as a baby or child, that’s awesome. Your parents did that hoping that one day you would trust in Jesus! If you have done that now, you need to be baptized now. That sprinkling was not your own obedience to Jesus. That was an effort of your parents. We would love to talk with you about this decision as well.
The other adult we are baptizing next week was baptized at a young age, but later realized that his motives were not honest for doing it. Some kids just want to be baptized to earn parents favor, or because a friend is. These are bad reasons to be baptized. If you are like this guy who knows that he is following Jesus now, but believes that following started later than you were baptized, then you need to be baptized as a believer. The first one was a dunking, not a baptism!
We would love to talk with you about this and get you lined up for next Sunday too! Right now, we are around 3 kids and one adult per service next week. We got an hour in both services! We have room for you!