Fundamentals Of The Faith - Week 3 - What It Means To Be A Born-Again Christian - Part 2 Series

A. Made Accepted In The One He Loves.

1. Eph 1:6 "to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

a. Jesus is the one He loves.

2. Matt 3:17 "And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

a. We do not make ourselves acceptable to God either in the past, present, or by what we do. We are made acceptable by Jesus. Apart from our position in Jesus, we have no acceptable standing before God.

3. 1 Peter 2:5 "you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

a. Our acceptance by God is not based upon our practice, either before or after we become a Christian, but it is based upon our position in Jesus.

4. Phil 3:9 "and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith."

a. Paul the Apostle who wrote this last verse wanted to be found in Jesus not because of what he did but for what Jesus did for him.

B. A Citizen of the Spiritual Kingdom of Jesus.

1.Col. 1:13 'For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves."

a. We have been delivered from the power of satan's kingdom, but we have also been placed into the everlasting Kingdom of Jesus. Salvation is both from and to. This change has already taken place.

2. 2 Peter 1:11 "and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

3. 1 Thess 2:12 "encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory."

a. We are called into His Kingdom. There is no mention of the possibility we could be placed back into the dominion of satan.

b. We have been called into the glorious kingdom of Jesus.

4. 1 Thess 5:24 "The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it."

a. The certainty of this call rests upon the faithfulness of Jesus and his word.

C. Built Upon the Foundation of Jesus.

1. Matt 7:24-27 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

a. The rock represents Jesus and His righteousness. The sand represents the scribes and Pharisees their type of righteousness.

2. 1 Cor 3:9-11 "For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ."

a. A life that is founded upon Jesus cannot be destroyed by the storms of circumstances. A life that is built upon the pride and effort of man will fall. The foundation determines the security of the home. Our foundation is Jesus!

D. A Love Gift From God, the Father to Jesus, God the Son.

1. John 17:2 "For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him."

2. John 17:6 "I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word."

3. John 17:9-12 "I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name the name you gave me so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled."