Latest / Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons / The Will of God for Believers

Transcript

The Will of God for Believers · Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons

0:02
Hi there, welcome to NECF. We're excited to share
0:07
today's message with you. Don't go anywhere,
0:10
stay with us till the end for some valuable resources
0:14
to enrich your faith. Here's today's sermon.
0:25
Colossians chapter 1, I'll be teaching on the
0:28
will of God for the believers. The will of God
0:32
for believers. We are writing the will of God
0:35
for believers. Colossians chapter 1. The letter
0:39
of Paul to the church in Colossae. Colossians
0:43
chapter 1. From verse 1 to 15. Please be sensitive
0:48
to what God is doing. He is speaking to us. And
0:53
he is edifying us. Paul, an apostle of Jesus
0:56
Christ. By the will of God and Timothy, our brother,
1:01
to the saints and the faithful brethren in Christ
1:04
who are in Colossae. Verse 3. We give thanks
1:12
to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1:16
praying always for you, since we heard of your
1:19
faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all
1:24
the saints. Because of the hope which is laid
1:28
up for you in heaven, of which you heard before
1:32
in the word of the truth of the gospel, which
1:36
has come to you as it has also in all the world,
1:41
and is bringing forth truth as it is also among
1:45
you since the day you heard and knew the grace
1:49
of God in truth. Verse 7. As we also learn from
1:55
Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful
1:59
minister of Christ on our behalf, who also declared
2:04
to us your love in the Spirit. Your love in the
2:10
Spirit. So for this reason, we also, since the
2:14
day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you
2:18
and to ask that you may be filled. with the knowledge
2:23
of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding,
2:27
that you may work worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing
2:32
to him, pleasing him rather, being fruitful in
2:35
every good work and increasing in the knowledge
2:39
of God. Strengthen with all mind according to
2:43
his glorious power for all patience and longsuffering
2:47
with joy. Giving thanks to the Father who has
2:50
qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance
2:55
of the saints in light. He has delivered us from
3:01
the power of darkness, has conveyed us into the
3:05
kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have
3:09
redemption through His blood, the forgiveness
3:12
of sins. The last verse from here, verse 15,
3:15
it says, He is the image. of the invisible God,
3:19
the firstborn of all creation. Hallelujah. The
3:26
will of God for believers. Now, thanks to not
3:31
from this passage, the Paul here is writing to
3:34
who? To a church. He says to faithful Christians,
3:40
Christians that are faithful and committed in
3:42
their work with God. Faithful Christians whom
3:46
he has received a good report of their faith
3:49
in Christ Jesus and love which they show for
3:54
themselves, for their brethren. And of course,
3:56
Paul received this good report from Epaphras,
3:59
a faithful minister of Christ. He's one of them.
4:03
He's their pastor. He's their minister. And he's
4:06
given a good report of the people of God to Paul
4:09
of their faithfulness, of their love. Of their
4:14
growth. Of their commitment to the things of
4:17
God. Of their indulgence in the spiritual things.
4:22
Verse 9 and verse 10. It's a place of our focus.
4:25
It says for this reason. Which reason? For the
4:27
good report I've had of you. For the love I've
4:32
had. That you have in the spirit. Verse 8. Who
4:36
also declared to us your love in the spirit.
4:39
For this reason. We also, since the day we had
4:44
it, we do not cease to pray for you. We do not
4:49
cease to pray for you. And what is our prayer?
4:51
Our prayer is that we ask that you, that is the
4:57
church, that is the people of God, that is the
4:59
faithful Christians, the faithful men and women
5:02
of God, that you may be filled with what? With
5:08
the knowledge. The knowledge of his will. Whose
5:13
will? The knowledge of the will of God. The knowledge
5:18
of the will of God in all wisdom, which is spiritual
5:23
understanding. This wisdom is spiritual understanding.
5:29
So the desire of Paul is that these people will
5:32
know, will have a grasp, will fully comprehend,
5:37
will have a perfect knowledge. Of what God desires.
5:42
Of what God desires. So poor prayer is that they
5:46
may be filled with what? With the knowledge.
5:49
If the Bible is yours, underline that knowledge.
5:53
That they may be filled with the knowledge. That
5:56
they may be filled with what? With knowledge.
6:00
The knowledge of what? The knowledge not of physics.
6:05
The knowledge not of chemistry or politics. or
6:09
commerce, or government, not of even history,
6:13
but a knowledge of what? Of the will of God.
6:20
So what is that knowledge? The word knowledge
6:23
in that text. The word knowledge is translated
6:26
into the English language from the Greek word
6:30
epignosis. E -P -I -G -N -O -S -I -S. Epignosis.
6:37
E... P -E -P -I -G -N -O -S -I -S. Epignosis.
6:46
And this epignosis means precise. It means a
6:54
precise and accurate knowledge. A precise and
7:00
correct knowledge of the will of God. Which means
7:05
that... There could be a knowledge of God that
7:07
is not precise. There could be the knowledge
7:10
of the will of God that is not accurate. There
7:12
could be the knowledge of the will of God that
7:14
is not correct. And you know, the funny thing
7:17
is that some people's entire Christian life is
7:20
built upon a distorted knowledge of the will
7:23
of God. Some people's entire Christianity is
7:27
built upon false doctrine, a distorted knowledge
7:31
of what God demands. A distorted knowledge of
7:35
what God has in plan for humanity. A distorted
7:38
knowledge of what God wants of us who are his
7:42
people. Now the precise knowledge of God's will
7:45
is essential to fulfilling God's will. The precise
7:51
knowledge of God's will is very vital, is important
7:55
if you and I that are believers will do what
7:58
God wants us to do because it is God's desire
8:00
that we do his will. Without knowing what is
8:04
expected of you, it is impossible to do that
8:07
which you have been instructed to do accurately.
8:11
Imagine you enter an exam hall and then the professor
8:15
gives an instruction. Some of us actually, unfortunately,
8:19
don't read exam instructions. I remember ever
8:23
entering an exam back in high school and the
8:26
teacher wrote almost 20 questions in the paper.
8:29
And they write instructions so tiny. And the
8:33
instruction is write your name and submit. Nobody
8:37
read the instruction. There was time and everything.
8:41
But there's an instruction, write your name and
8:43
submit. Just a test to see whether we listen
8:48
to instructions, we understand instructions.
8:50
And everybody was busy answering questions. Writing,
8:54
writing, and writing. Which means that everybody
8:57
failed the exams. If you don't understand instruction,
9:01
it is impossible for you to do what God demands.
9:04
If you don't understand the will of God, it is
9:07
impossible for you to do the will of God. And
9:11
if you have a distorted knowledge of the will
9:13
of God, definitely we will have a distorted result
9:17
in our lives. What is that word will in verse
9:21
9? The word will in verse 9. The word will is
9:26
also translated from another Greek word, thilema.
9:29
T -H -E -L -E -M -A. T -H -E -L -E -M -A. Which
9:37
means, what one wishes or desires. No, no. What
9:44
one wishes or has determined shall be done. What
9:48
one wishes or has determined. That shall be done.
9:52
It also means, it means the person's will, right?
9:54
It means the person's choice. The word means
9:56
the person's choice. The person's inclination,
9:59
his desire, his pleasure. What gives him pleasure?
10:02
Do you know what God wants of you as a believer?
10:06
Do you know what demands of you as a believer?
10:09
Do you know what gives God pleasure as a believer?
10:12
We can see the usage of the word will, the lima,
10:15
in other places in scriptures. Matthew 6, verse
10:21
10, quickly. Matthew 6, verse 10, where we usually
10:26
refer to as the Lord's Prayer. It says, your
10:30
kingdom, what? Your kingdom come. Your will,
10:35
what? Be done on earth as it is in heaven. What
10:42
is done in heaven, the culture of heaven where
10:47
God lives. should be established where? On the
10:52
earth. Of course, we know this is before Jesus
10:55
died and he rose again. Chapter 7, verse 21.
10:58
Chapter 7, verse 21. It says, Not everyone who
11:02
says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom
11:07
of heaven. But he who does the will of my Father,
11:14
where? In heaven. So how does one get into the
11:19
kingdom of heaven? How? Huh? By what? Huh? Believers,
11:28
how do we enter the kingdom of heaven? By believing.
11:34
Right? By faith. You see, we don't enter by works.
11:41
If you are entering by works, it means that you
11:43
don't know what the will of God is. The will
11:45
of God is that you believe, that you have faith
11:47
in what Jesus has done. So not everyone who says
11:51
to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of
11:54
heaven, but he who does what? Who does the pleasure
11:58
of God? Who does what God desires? Who does what
12:02
God demands of us? The will of God. Chapter 12,
12:10
verse 50. We'll see another place where the word...
12:13
Wheel is used. 12 verse 50. For whosoever does
12:19
the wheel of my Father in heaven is what? Is
12:23
my brother and my sister and my mother. This
12:26
is Jesus speaking. Whoever does the wheel of
12:30
God is my father. Who does the wheel of my Father
12:37
in heaven is my brother, is my sister, and is
12:41
my mother. That is to say, when you do the will
12:44
of God, you come into fellowship with Jesus.
12:46
You come into the family of God by doing the
12:50
will of God. Chapter 18, verse 14. The word will.
12:54
Even so, it is not the will. Now, this is opposite.
12:59
This is in the negative. Even so, it is not the
13:02
will. It is not the desire. It is not the demand.
13:07
It is not the pleasure of your father. Who is
13:10
in heaven that one of these little ones should
13:13
perish? So God does not desire, God does not
13:17
have pleasure for people to be perished. Amen?
13:24
Luke chapter 22, verse 42. Luke 22, verse 42.
13:30
Saying, Father, this is Jesus here, praying,
13:34
if it is your will, take this cup. away from
13:38
me. Nevertheless, not my will, but what? But
13:42
yours be done. This is Jesus submitting to what?
13:46
To the will of the Father. What we do to the
13:49
will of the Father is that we submit to the will
13:51
of the Father. We embrace the will of the Father
13:54
even if it is comfortable. We embrace the will
13:58
of the Father even when we don't understand.
14:00
We submit to what gives God pleasure at all times,
14:04
at all seasons. And all circumstances, because
14:08
that is what God desires. Luke 23, verse 25.
14:14
And he released them, the one who they requested.
14:16
Now this is the Jewish, the Jewish people. Who
14:19
for rebellion and murder had been thrown into
14:23
prison. Who are they? Who are we talking about
14:25
here? Barabbas, right? But he delivered Jesus
14:29
to their will. So what is it? The word will here
14:31
is a desire of the people. What the people wants
14:35
to happen. What do people plan to happen? What
14:39
do people desire to see manifested? They desire
14:43
to see Jesus crucified. The word will. John chapter
14:48
1 verse 13. John chapter 1 verse 13. Our salvation
14:55
here. Look at our salvation. Who were born not
14:59
of the blood nor of the will of what? Of the
15:03
flesh. Which means that you being born again
15:06
is not the works of, is not an orchestration
15:09
of man. Alright? It's not a plan. Your salvation
15:13
is not designed by you or your economic council
15:18
in your country or your pastor or your church
15:21
elders. Your salvation is the will of who? Of
15:26
God. God planned, God orchestrated, God desire.
15:32
and executed your salvation. It is all about
15:35
him, what he desires and what he manifested in
15:38
Christ Jesus. Chapter 4, John chapter 4, verse
15:41
34. John chapter 4, verse 34. Jesus said to them,
15:46
my food is what? Is to do the desire. Is to do
15:53
the wishes. Is to do what God has determined.
15:59
Is to do the pleasure. Of him who sent me. And
16:05
to do what? And to finish whose work? His work.
16:10
God's work. So Jesus was committed to one thing.
16:15
The commitment of Jesus Christ. Must be the commitment
16:19
of the believer. The will of the father. The
16:23
will of the father. And of course we have the
16:26
ability to do the will of the father. What that
16:30
takes. You can read also John chapter 5 verse
16:32
30, John chapter 6 verse 38 to 40. You can write
16:37
it down, John chapter 5 verse 30, John chapter
16:39
6 verse 38 to 40. Ephesians chapter 1 from verse
16:42
1 down to 11 is the will of God, the will of
16:45
God, by the will of God. So we see that Paul's
16:49
prayer is for the saints, the believers, the
16:54
Christians, to have a correct... precise knowledge
17:00
of what God wishes or has determined shall be
17:05
done or should be done, God's choice, God's plan,
17:10
His desire, and His pleasure for humanity. Hallelujah.
17:17
Now, the understanding of this, of God's will,
17:21
will result in what we see in the next verse,
17:25
Colossians. chapter 1, verse 10. With the understanding
17:32
of the precise knowledge, the accurate knowledge
17:36
of the will of the Father, that you may walk
17:41
worthy of the Lord to fully pleasing Him. In
17:46
pleasing Him, you are being fruitful, Lord, in
17:49
every good work and increasing in the knowledge
17:54
of God. Being fruitful, In every good work is
18:00
a product of understanding what God wants of
18:04
you and then you do it. Without understanding
18:08
precisely, without understanding accurately,
18:11
it is impossible to become what's fruitful in
18:16
every good work. So the knowledge of God's will
18:20
results in working in alignment with God. It
18:24
results in doing what pleases God. It results
18:28
to being fruitful in every good work. Now, abounding
18:34
or fruitfulness in every good work refers to
18:37
what? Ministry. Amen? It refers to what? It refers
18:43
to ministry. It refers to ministry. And it's
18:47
to the saints, to every saint, to every believer.
18:51
to every Christian, every man that is born again,
18:54
it's called to ministry. You must know that that
18:57
is the will of God for you. That is the plan
19:00
of God for you. That is the desire of God for
19:02
you. So your effectiveness and precision in ministry
19:07
are a product of knowing what exactly God's plan
19:11
is. You must know what God's plan is for you,
19:17
the believer. You must know what the will of
19:20
God is for you, the believer. And there's no
19:23
way you can find the will of God. Then what?
19:27
That in the word of God. Because the word of
19:30
God is a written word of God for the believer
19:33
to know God's plan, to know God's purpose, to
19:36
know God's desire for you, to know God's desire
19:38
for the church, to know the hope to which you
19:41
were called without an explanation. Without an
19:45
accurate teaching of the word of God, it is impossible
19:48
for you to know what God demands of you. Because
19:53
it is all about the will of God and less of us.
19:57
Hallelujah. Now let's look at the believer's
20:02
identity. Who we are. It is important to note
20:08
that the believer's identity comes with... a
20:12
responsibility, or let me say the responsibility.
20:15
The knowledge of the believer's identity comes
20:20
with a responsibility to fulfill God's eternal
20:23
plan on earth. The knowledge of your identity
20:29
comes with a responsibility upon you to do the
20:34
will of God. 1 Peter chapter 1. Let's read 1
20:39
Peter chapter 1 from verse 22. Down to chapter
20:42
2, verse 1 to 10. 1 Peter chapter 1. 1 Peter
20:48
chapter 1 from verse 22. but incorruptible through
21:10
the word of God, which lives and abides forever.
21:13
Because all flesh is as grass, and all the glory
21:18
of man as the flowers of the grass. The grass
21:22
withers, and its flowers fall away. But the word
21:27
of the Lord endures forever. Now this is the
21:31
word which by the gospel was preached to you.
21:35
Chapter 2. Therefore laying aside all malice,
21:39
all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,
21:43
as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the
21:48
word, that you who may grow, if indeed you have
21:53
tested that the Lord is gracious. Coming to him
21:58
as to a living stone. We're singing about the
22:04
rock Elaron. And who or what do we say is a rock?
22:09
Huh? The Lord is a rock, right? Or the rock is
22:14
the Lord. Hallelujah. Coming to him as to a living
22:19
stone rejected indeed by men but chosen by God
22:26
and precious. You also as living stones are being
22:35
Let me say, I built up a spiritual house, a holy
22:41
priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable
22:47
to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is
22:51
also contained in Scripture. Behold, I lay Zion
22:55
a chief cornerstone, elect precious. And he who
22:59
believes on him will by no means be put to shame.
23:04
Therefore to whom believe, he is precious. But
23:09
to those who are disobedient, the stone which
23:12
the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone
23:15
and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.
23:21
So when you believe, this rock is not a stumbling
23:25
block. It's not a rock of offense. It says they
23:31
stumble, being disobedient. What is that disobedience?
23:34
They refuse to believe that rock. Amen? They
23:39
refuse to believe that rock. So we are built
23:43
on him. That was our song. The Lord is a rock
23:46
of which we are built on him. When you don't
23:49
believe in a rock, you are like that foolish
23:52
man that builds his life on what? On the sun.
23:57
And we know what happened to that house. We know
23:59
what happened to that life. So they stumbled
24:02
being disobedient to the word to which they also
24:05
were appointed. But you, say but I, but you are
24:13
a chosen generation, a royal pursuit, a holy
24:18
nation, His own special people, that you May
24:28
proclaim the praises of him who called you out
24:31
of darkness into his marvelous light. Who once
24:35
were not a people, but now the people of God.
24:39
Who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained
24:43
mercy. Hallelujah. So in chapter 2, verse 4 and
24:49
5, we see the identity of the believers. We see
24:54
the identity of the church. The identity of the
24:57
believers. The identity of. We believers. It's
25:02
coming to him as a living stone. Rejected indeed
25:06
by men. But chosen by God. And precious. You
25:10
also. It called Jesus the living stone. And also
25:16
called us. The believers. You also a living stone.
25:20
As living stones. See the living stones is in
25:22
plural. Meaning everybody. That believes is also
25:26
what? It's a living stone. That is the identity
25:29
of every believer. I built up a what? A spiritual
25:34
house. A habitation. A spiritual house. A holy
25:40
priesthood. Holy means set apart. A priesthood.
25:46
A priest. A priesthood. You know, we used to
25:49
say every Sunday that we are priests. Isn't it?
25:53
We are priests. We are what? We are kings. We
25:56
are what? And prophets. Hallelujah. So we are
26:01
a holy priesthood to offer what? We offer up
26:04
spiritual sacrifices acceptable to go through
26:08
Jesus Christ. So we see in verse 4, Jesus is
26:13
a living stone. And we see believers also referred
26:17
to as living stones. This is what we call identification.
26:22
Amen? We identified with him. Because of who
26:27
he is, we become. Because of who he is and what
26:31
he has done, we become. So we identify with his
26:35
nature because we believe. This is identification.
26:40
The phrase as living stones identifies us with
26:43
Christ. He is the living stone and we are also
26:48
living stones. We live. Because we share in his
26:53
resurrection, in his resurrection life, by believing
26:58
in what he has done. Hallelujah. How many of
27:04
us know that this living stone is a figure of
27:06
speech? We know, right? Are you a stone? Are
27:13
you a rock? You are a human being. So, it's a
27:17
way of communication. Right? In English, what
27:22
do we call it? Simile? Or metaphor? Okay, what
27:28
if we carry the characteristics of a living thing
27:31
and give to a non -living thing? So, let's join
27:34
the two together. Of course, it's metaphorical,
27:39
right? But we are seen as what? As living stones.
27:46
Okay? And what is our function? We have been
27:50
built up into a spiritual house. That is also
27:55
metaphoric. Right? To us, it is a metaphor. But
28:01
spiritually, it is a reality. It is not a metaphor
28:03
spiritually. Do you understand what I just said
28:06
now? It is a spiritual reality. We must define
28:11
what stone is. Stone is a Bible language. So
28:15
stone is equal to stone in Bible language. And
28:20
you are a house. Conglomerately, we are the house
28:26
of God. We are the church of God. We are the
28:28
habitation where God dwells. Hallelujah. We are
28:33
the house of God. So we've been built up into
28:36
a spiritual house. We are not only a spiritual
28:41
house, but we are a holy priesthood. So what
28:44
is our identity? We are identified in Christ.
28:48
Our identity is in Christ. We are who Christ
28:51
is. Amen? We are identified with him. We are
28:58
a holy priesthood. What does a priest do? A priest
29:04
offers spiritual sacrifice to God. So from this,
29:11
we can know that the believers, collective and
29:14
individual, Collectively and individually, we
29:18
are spiritual, right? We are heavenly. Spiritual
29:22
simply means that we are heavenly. Spiritual
29:25
simply means that we are not only physical, but
29:29
we are spiritual by nature. Our nature, our identity
29:33
first is that we are spiritual men. We are heavenly.
29:39
And we are a dwelling place of God. We are God's
29:44
house. God's temple. I want us to note also that
29:49
this conversation is about a union. The union,
29:53
if you look through all scripture, right? We
29:56
are in God and God is in us. It's a union. Hallelujah.
30:01
It's a union. So the believers collectively are
30:07
the priesthood who offer spiritual sacrifices
30:11
to God. The priest under the law, the priest
30:17
under the law, the law of Moses, performs activities
30:21
where? Where does he perform his activities?
30:24
Inside the temple, the physical temple. So what
30:28
we see Moses did, Moses created what? A shadow
30:31
of the reality. Moses created a type of what
30:36
he saw in the heavenly. So the temple... It's
30:42
a physical representation, a pointer to the real,
30:46
which is our reality today. So the priest under
30:51
the law performs activities in the temple. He
30:55
goes into the Holy of Holies, the dwelling of
30:58
God, and offers sacrifice. He offers blood on
31:01
the altar. The priest is a typology of what Christ
31:06
has done. Number one, it's a typology of what...
31:10
Of what Christ has done. Alright. His activity
31:14
in the temple. Is an expression. Whose activity?
31:18
The activity of the priest under the law. Is
31:21
an expression. Of what Christ did. In other words.
31:27
The priest. Is proclaiming. The work of Christ.
31:33
The priest. Is demonstrating. What Christ has
31:38
done. The priest is showing, I would say, the
31:43
priest is teaching what Christ will do. Which
31:48
our reality, Christ has already done it. Hallelujah.
31:51
So we are a holy priesthood. And what we do also
31:57
is offer a spiritual sacrifice acceptable to
32:02
God. What is this spiritual sacrifice that is
32:06
acceptable to God? What is this spiritual sacrifice
32:09
that is acceptable to God? What is this spiritual?
32:12
We didn't say it's a fiscal sacrifice. We're
32:15
not saying give $10 ,000 as a sacrifice. That's
32:20
not what we're talking about here. We're not
32:22
saying bring ram and bull to be slaughtered for
32:24
sacrifice. No. The sacrifice is a spiritual sacrifice.
32:30
So what spiritual sacrifice do we offer? The
32:36
proclamation of his praises. Amen. The proclamation
32:41
of his praises. Look at verse 9. 1 Peter 2 verse
32:45
9. Let's read verse 5 and then we read verse
32:48
9. It says, you also as living stones are being
32:54
built up a spiritual house. A holy priesthood.
32:59
So a priest has a function. You are a holy priesthood.
33:03
To do what? To offer up spiritual sacrifices
33:06
that is acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
33:09
And we see it emphasized again in verse 9. Verse
33:12
9 says, But you are a chosen generation, a royal
33:15
priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people,
33:21
that you may what? What does a priest do? He
33:26
offers sacrifices, right? Spiritual sacrifices.
33:30
And we see emphasis here. A priesthood to do
33:33
what? To proclaim. Hallelujah. To proclaim the
33:37
praises of him who called you out of darkness
33:40
into his marvelous light. Which means that what
33:44
the priest in all order honored the Lord of Moses
33:48
as he goes into the temple and is doing those
33:51
activities. What is he doing? He's pointing at
33:56
what? What Jesus will do. In Christ. In his death
34:00
and his burial and his resurrection. So also
34:02
are we. As priests under the new order. In Christ
34:07
Jesus. We offer. What? A spiritual sacrifice.
34:12
And I say that this sacrifice we see in verse
34:15
9. That you may proclaim the praises of him.
34:19
Who called you out of darkness. Into his marvelous
34:22
light. So our identity as living stones. That
34:27
is, spiritual people that are built up into a
34:31
spiritual house comes with a priestly responsibility
34:34
of the proclamation of the works of God. Let
34:40
me repeat that. Our identity as living stones,
34:45
as spiritual people that are built up into a
34:49
spiritual house comes alongside with our priestly
34:53
responsibility. Of the proclamation of the works
34:58
of God. So you are a priest unto God. Because
35:02
you believe in Jesus Christ. In other words.
35:06
You are a minister of God unto good works. Amen.
35:11
You are a minister of God unto good works. Ephesians
35:16
chapter 2 verse 10. It says for we are God's
35:18
masterpiece. Ephesians 2 verse 10 NLT. It says
35:21
for we are God's masterpiece. He has created
35:24
us anew in Christ Jesus so that we can do good
35:30
things he planned for us long ago. What good
35:35
things has he planned long ago? That is his will,
35:38
that is his purpose for the believer. These good
35:42
things he has planned for us are the work of
35:45
ministry, the proclamation of his good works.
35:48
2 Corinthians 5, verse 18 to 19, NLT says, and
35:51
all of this is a gift from God. Your selection
35:56
and your being chosen by God is a product of
35:58
God's grace. It's a gift from God who brought
36:02
us back to himself through Christ. And God has
36:07
given us his tax of what? Of reconciling people
36:12
to him. For God was in Christ. Reconciling the
36:16
world to himself. No longer counting people's
36:18
sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful
36:22
message of reconciliation. So the believers have
36:26
a responsibility. The reconciliation of men to
36:30
God. By the proclamation of his good works. So.
36:36
What does it mean to proclaim? What does it mean
36:39
to proclaim? When we say proclaim His excellencies,
36:43
as the Amplifier will put it, what do we mean?
36:47
1 Peter 2 verse 9, in the Orchid Gem, it says,
36:50
But ye are a choosing generation, a royal priesthood,
36:54
an holy nation, a peculiar people, that ye should
36:59
shew forth the praises of Him who hath called
37:04
you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
37:08
She forth. She forth. The phrase she forth, which
37:15
is not a common English in our day today, is
37:19
translated into a modern English as set forth
37:23
in the Amplified translation. It's also translated
37:27
as declare in the NIV. Of course, in the New
37:33
King James, we see the word proclaim. And then
37:36
in a tippity, which is paraphrase, he uses the
37:39
word broadcast. Broadcast. To broadcast something.
37:44
What do you broadcast? What do you proclaim?
37:46
What do you show forth? What do you declare?
37:51
You utter. You manifest. You declare. And all
37:55
these are translated into English from a great
37:58
word, exangelo. E -X -A -N -G. E -L -O, which
38:07
means to tell out or forth, to declare abroad,
38:12
to publish, or to make known by praising or proclaiming.
38:20
Exangelo, which means to tell forth or forth,
38:26
tell out or forth, to declare abroad, to publish,
38:31
to make known by praising or proclaiming. This
38:35
word exangelo, gelo rather, is from two root
38:39
words, ek, e -k, which is a preposition. The
38:46
preposition, it explains origin. And angelos,
38:51
two words, are brought together to form exangelo.
38:57
Ek and angelos, which refers to, angelos refers
39:02
to... It refers to a messenger. It is from the
39:07
word we get angel from in English, angelos, which
39:11
is refers to a messenger, an envoy, you know,
39:16
an envoy that is sent out to deliver a responsibility.
39:20
One who is sent a messenger, especially from
39:24
God. Hallelujah. So tell yourself, am I a messenger
39:27
from God? So to shift of all, in other words,
39:30
to declare or proclaim his praises, one has to
39:35
be sent. You are sent with a definite message.
39:40
And that must not be altered. So there's a specific
39:42
message. If you are sent on error, you don't
39:45
remix the message on the way. Amen? You don't
39:49
alter the content of the message. You deliver
39:51
as you are given. It's not what I order versus
39:53
what I receive. As a deliverer of the message,
39:57
you deliver as you receive. That brings us back
40:00
to understanding the message. That brings us
40:03
back to understanding who sent us. That brings
40:06
us back to understanding the modalities of the
40:08
delivery. That brings us back to understanding
40:10
what the will of God is for the believer. Hallelujah.
40:14
The messenger is one from God to declare the
40:17
praises of him who was called out of darkness
40:19
into his marvelous light. What are the praises
40:22
of God? What are the praises of God? The Amplified
40:27
Classic says, the wonderful deeds and display
40:33
the virtues and perfection of him. Give me amplified
40:38
1 Peter 2 verse 9. Yes, it says, so that you
40:43
may proclaim the excellencies and he explains
40:46
these excellencies as the wonderful deeds and
40:51
the virtue and the perfections of who? Of him.
40:55
Who is that him there? Of God. Hallelujah. And
41:00
we say that that proclaim is what? Is to broadcast.
41:02
Is to speak out. Is to announce the wonderful
41:06
deeds. And how, what has God done for us? How
41:13
did he do what he did for us? The good news translation
41:16
use the word wonderful acts of God. How do we
41:20
see the wonderful acts of God? Where do we see
41:23
the wonderful acts of God? Where? In Christ.
41:28
Hallelujah. In Christ, you know the word praises
41:34
is arete, A -R -E -T -E, which refers to virtues
41:39
or the goodness, that is the quality, the characteristics
41:43
of God, who God is. And we see who God is in
41:47
what he has done. Hallelujah. We know who God
41:52
is by what he has done. And what has God done?
41:57
He gave us Christ. So we are to declare the character
42:00
of God. Who is who he is. His goodness. His virtue.
42:07
And wonderful acts. We see all this in Christ
42:12
and what he has accomplished. Colossians 1 .15.
42:16
Colossians 1 .15. We see it. We see the goodness
42:20
of God. We know God through Christ. He is the
42:23
exact living image. the essential manifestation
42:26
of the unseen God, the visible representation
42:29
of the invisible, the firstborn, the preeminent
42:33
one, the sovereign and the originator of all
42:36
creation. Hebrews 1 .3 The Son is a radiance,
42:44
the only registered, patented, qualified, approved
42:52
modality. In which you know God. I just paraphrase.
42:59
This verse. The sun is a radiance. And the only
43:04
expression of the glory of our awesome God. Reflecting
43:08
God's kind of glory. The light being. The brilliant
43:11
light of the divine. And the exact representation.
43:16
And the perfect imprint of his father. Of his
43:20
father. His father's essence. So believers. Our
43:25
identity as a choosing people, as royal priesthood,
43:29
and a holy nation is to preach and to teach the
43:37
wonderful works of God which he has accomplished
43:40
in Christ Jesus. This is our life. This is our
43:46
song. And this is our reality. Glory to God.
43:50
We'll continue from here next time. Let's just
43:52
close our eyes and begin to pray. If today's
44:15
message was a blessing, share it with a friend.
44:18
Till next time, be blessed.