Sunrise Service message -

Friends, what compelled you to come out this morning and worship?

You could easily be relaxing at home and planning to come to 11:00 service.

We could perhaps say the fellowship, or perhaps it was just to eat breakfast in a few moments.

I pray today that we came out today with one purpose, to celebrate the risen savior.

That being said I want to talk today about the joy of our salvation.

What Jesus did on the cross many years ago is wonderful, miraculous and still speaks today.

I want us to consider today, have we forgotten the joy of our salvation.

If you are saved today, perhaps you could think back to the day, even the moment you accepted Christ into your life.

You were excited, you were happy and the Lord had began to dwell within you.

The Lord has remained with you, but where has the excitement went?

Romans 6:5–11 KJV 1900

For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Friends, in or life we are creatures of habit.

We begin to develop patterns and we follow those patterns.

As we stand here with this early morning sun I am afraid to say that we have perhaps lost our drive.

Think of this, what Jesus did for us was an agonizing sacrifice on our behalf.

What does that really mean to you?

No, really, does your life display that His sacrifice was significant to you.

How is it that we feel our time is our time.

Our effort is our effort.

Or even that our life is our life.

We owe all to Him, yet often give little.

How is it that we have taken such a sacrifice for granted?

What does your salvation mean to you?

The joy of our salvation is rooted in our heart.

When we begin to allow our heart to dwell outside of the focus of Jesus Christ and into the world we begin to lose our joy and lose our excitement.

Suddenly, because we are focused on loving the world

What happens is tjat seeing someone come to Christ doesn’’t feel as special to us as it once did.

seeing children learn about the father is far less significant.

In this disease where our heart has fallen astray our relationship with the father is distanced.

How terrifying is it today that He went to the cross died and was risen again.

Yet, we consider church, time with the father or even just an excitement for the gospel as a burden to us.

Friends, we are here today to celebrate the father.

When we choose to worship the father with joyful hearts that are full of thanksgiving we begin to see life's transformed.

So this morning I want us all to ask ourselves, whya re we hear?

Why do we worship the father.

I pray we can all say we are here and we are worshipping because we have great joy in what he has done for us.

You see because Paul said in verse 5 of Romans 6.

Romans 6:5 KJV 1900

For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

You see, when our life is unified with Christ we, like him have died to the human flesh.

Because of this we also will certainly rise with him in resurrection.

Paul continues in verse 6 and 7

Romans 6:6–7 KJV 1900

Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.

You see, as we celebrate the resurrected king we do so because the resurrection was a symbol of new life.

I pray today that each of you that are here today have that promise of an eternity.

But here is the truth, if you have it you need to act as though it means something to you.

You need to have a relationship with the father, you need to be faithful in sharing the gospel, and your life needs to display the joy that a promise of eternal life really should be.

This is such a wonderful promise.

He died so that we may live.

Because of this Paul says in verse 11 “we consider our self, dead to sin and alive to God in Jesus Christ”

In life today may we praise him.

In life may our life a special kind of joy that can only come from such a wonderful promise.

friends, i want to encourage you today, not to leave here in any way but joyous.

Our life, must be a living example of what was done for us on the cross.

One of the ways this is done is when those who do not have Jesus are able to look at us and know something special is within.

Paul even said in Galatians 5:22.

Galatians 5:22 KJV 1900

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

When the spirit lives within us we display these qualities.

So let us not go throughout our life with us on our mind.

Let us not look like our lives are built for anything but jesus Christ.

May we display our life as though we have died to sin and live just as he live.

friends, we are risen with him, may we act like it today!