Alive In Christ

Alive in Christ

Description:

In this sermon we will examine how Christ has saved us from death in sin, to life in Himself, discuss contemporary ways in which sin and Christ likeness are manifested, and we will thank God for His gift of spiritual life can.

Scripture Studied: Eph. 2:1-5

Key Scripture: Eph 2:4,5

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).

Intro:

When I was about 13 years old my Mom bought me a Boston Terrier at a flea market. I named him Spanky. We were pals for the longest time. When he would see me this dog would leap up in the air, moan, groan, and he would yelp non-stop until I paid attention to him. He was a very obedient dog. He would sit down and shake hands at my command. He would come, go, stop, jump, lay down, all at my command. He would only bark if there were a problem or a stranger entering our yard. Sometimes we would leave home for a few days and come home to realize we left the gate open. Spanky would be there, on the edge of the yard, waiting for us to come home. Spanky was full of life and love. He gave a “good dog” its definition. One day Spanky became very sick. He Lost weight and eventually lost his sight. He turned into a different dog. My family was sad because Spanky was walking around as if he had already died. He was running into things, falling over, and acting very strange. Spanky would just lay there with no involvement or awareness with his surroundings before he passed on.

In the same way, some of us are like a dead dog that doesn’t move. A person who is spiritually dead is unable to have any sort of involvement in God’s realm, the spiritual realm. Just as a dead animal or person is unable to give itself life, a spiritually dead person is unable to do anything at all to come alive spiritually. Only God, who gives life, can provide a way for a person to become spiritually alive.

Opening Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

We come before You today, to ask that you would teach us through Your Word. Teach us Your ways and grant us the understanding of Your truth. We pray that you would give us the wisdom to know the will of God and the strength to apply it to our lives. We pray this in Jesus name, Amen.

Sermon :

The Bible has some important things to say about being spiritually dead or alive. I’m amazed at the tremendous meaning in today’s text. The first five verses of Ephesians Chapter 2 are packed with God’s insight and truth. First, Paul describes our old life, which is no life at all, it’s actually death. (We were “dead…in transgressions, v.1-3.) Then He writes about what God did in Jesus Christ to rescue us and make us alive (v.4, 5).

For some adults who have led a life of degrading sin and later found life in Christ, they can easily identify with these verses. So can a youth who has decided to turn away from the world’s pressures and decides to follow Christ. But what about youth or adult—who has grown up in the Christian faith and has never had to make a radical break with the past? What does this passage say to him or her?

For some of us, we do not have an “old life” to contrast with our “new life.” Some of us are here, not because we found some new and exciting faith. Some of us can’t remember being “dead in our trespasses” because we’ve never outwardly participated in the obvious sins of the world. Being a Christian, to this group of people, seems like “business as usual” rather then having some radical transformation of being alive in Christ.

These verses in Ephesians 2:1-5, tells us that everyone needs to be saved. The text tells us that God loves us and wants to show us His awesome mercy. Paul shows us the difference between living for Christ and living sinfully. If we commit are lives to Christ early in life, it shows us the grief and trouble we have avoided!

Paul mentions two signs of an existence “dead in transgressions”: Following the world and Following selfish desires.

FOLLOWING THE WORLD:

“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world…(v.1-2).” We often long to be accepted by our peers. For the youth, we may conform in our style of clothing, jewelry, hairstyles, music selection, or new hobbies, etc.. The real danger is when we begin to pick up the moral values from our peers at school, work, our neighborhood, and in some cases at home; we are now following “the ways of the world” [v.2] in a sense that displeases God.