INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• Today we will wrap up our Discover Discipleship series.
• There are many reasons to be a disciple of Jesus. One of the last things Jesus commanded as He ascended into Heaven was for us to make disciples of all nations.
• We have a big job to do, many people in Sierra Vista are not disciples.
• Before any of that can happen, there is something we need to do, we need to make sure we take discipleship personally.
• We need to understand that being a disciple should be our number one priority in life.
• As a church, our number one focus should be on helping to make and build disciples.
• Jesus did not tell us to make churchgoers, He did not ask us to make a friendly social club, He told us to make disciples.
• We have learned that to be a disciple of Jesus, we have to give all that we have to Jesus, that we have to love Him more than anything. This is not easy, but it is worth it.
• Today as we conclude this series, we are going to examine the personal goal of discipleship.
• Open your Bibles to 2 Corinthians 3:18, as this will be our main text for the message today.
• SLIDE #2
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 (CSB) We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.
• SLIDE #3
SERMON
The personal goal of discipleship is that…
I. We should see the glory of the Lord in us.
• In the latter part of chapter 3, Paul takes the time to share some of the differences between the covenant of Moses versus the New Covenant.
• This is where the language of the unveiled face comes from. Paul combines the text of Exodus 34:29-35 with a commentary.
• During the time of Moses, only Moses could approach God, and when he did, his face glowed, and this glow scared the people.
• The people did not want to stand before God, they wanted Moses to do it for them.
• Moses was the only one who could stand in the presence of God with an unveiled face.
• The glow in the face of Moses scared the people so when Moses would speak with the Lord, he would remove the veil, when he went back to the people, he would put the veil back on, so the people would stay calm. Exodus 34:29-35
• When Moses stood before God, Moses would radiate the glory of God, the people would see this and knew that Moses had been in the presence of God.
• Over time, the glory would fade until Moses returned to the presence of God.
• Moses was the only one who could stand before God in this manner.
• A veil covers our hearts as long as we refuse to turn to the Lord
• SLIDE #4
• 2 Corinthians 3:15–16 (CSB) — 15 Yet still today, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts, 16 but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.
• When we turn to the Lord, we live in His presence!
• Moses was in God’s presence for a limited time, but Christians have the promise of the Lord that he is always with them (Matt. 28:20).
• The veil of Moses represented Israel’s hardness of heart; the unveiled faces of Christians portray their confidence (see v. 12), for they have fellowship with the Father and the Son (1 John 1:4). Baker NTC: 2 Corinthians.
• Now here is the application for today in 2018!
• Moses wore the veil over his shining face until he went in to speak with the Lord; and
Paul asserts that all Christians can, like Moses, approach the glory of the Lord with unveiled faces and experience the same transformation.
• The emphatic “we all” refers to the experience of all Christians, not just that of apostles or Christian ministers, because Paul is not simply contrasting himself with Moses. It is “we” as opposed to the unbelieving Jews of the day.
• In contrast to the Israelites who had a veil covering their hearts, Christians have this veil taken away when we come to Jesus.
• Let’s look back at the first part of verse 18 again.
• We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord
• What this tells us is this. Moses reflected the glory of God to the people, and that glory would fade over time.
• In Christ, we are to let the glory of the Lord shine on all those we come into contact.
• We are called to reflect Jesus all of the time!
• When it comes to reflections, the closer to the source you are, the brighter the reflection will be.
• This looking into a mirror is something we are to do all of the time figuratively. We are to always reflect Jesus to anyone who looks.
• Moses glowed in the presence of the Lord, we are to glow all of the time because we are in the presence of Jesus!
• Let’s turn back to our verse again.
• SLIDE #5
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 (CSB) We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.
• SLIDE #6
The personal goal of discipleship is…
II. Personal Transformation.
• For one to be able to reflect Jesus to others, something fantastic needs to happen, and this thing that needs to happen is one of the personal goals of discipleship, TRANSFORMATION!
• His image which is reflected back upon us should help transform us into the same image!
• Paul uses the word transformed elsewhere.
• In Romans 12:2 where he calls Christians apart from the world to demonstrate to others the true nature of God.
• This Greek word comes across into English as “metamorphosis,” commonly used to describe the spectacular changeover of caterpillars to butterflies.
• Paul affirms that believers are in the process of such a dynamic change in a spiritual and moral sense. The character of God is emerging in human lives as the Spirit does its work.
• As one looks intently at Jesus, it will change them!
• In the classical Greek period, it was believed that when a human looked upon a god or goddess, this would result in both physical and spiritual changes, and the word “transformed” was used to describe this.
• Nonbiblical Jewish writers in the intertestamental period also wrote of the transformation of God’s elect who behold the glory of God in the coming eschatological day. The College Press Commentary: 2 Corinthians.
• The word IMAGE that Paul employs is used of Jesus being in the same image of God in 2 Corinthians 4:4 and Colossians 2:15.
• In the Old Testament, we find that Adam was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27).
• A METAMORPHOSIS is something that happens from the INSIDE OUT.
• We are transformed from the inside and then the outside reflects that change.
• This is why Romans 12:2 tells us to be transformed by the renewing of the mind.
• So a man thinks, so is he. Garbage in, garbage out. ?
• SLIDE #7
• Colossians 3:10 (CSB) and have put on the new self. You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator.
• We are being renewed into the image of our creator through Jesus!
• My goal in life should not be more religious, or just a better person, my personal goal for discipleship should be for me to be transformed into the image of God.
• From the time we are a new creation until the time we are called home or the Lord returns, we are to be continually transformed into His image!
• People should see something different about us, and when they see it, they will eventually want to know why we are different, NOT WEIRD! ?
• Let's take a final look at our passage because there is an essential third personal goal found in the passage.
• SLIDE #8
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 (CSB) We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.
• SLIDE #9
The personal goal of discipleship is to allow…
III. The Holy Spirit to work in your life.
• One of the things we need to understand is that we have a part to play in the transformation process, our role is to allow the Holy Spirit to work in and to direct our paths in life.
• We cannot go to the extremes of thinking God does it all or that we do it all.
• We have to allow God to do His work in us through the Holy Spirit.
• We have to allow the Spirit to work, we have to be open to the leading of the Spirit.
• And are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.
• God did not give us the Holy Spirit for nothing.
• He gave us the Spirit to help us to be victorious in our walk with Him.
• The Spirit will not FORCE you to change, you have to allow it to happen.
• We need to spend time in the Word, time in prayer, time in fellowship with one another.
• Our transformation is possible because of the Holy Spirit.
• This was not available under the Old Covenant, the Old Covenant was about keeping rules, external issues.
• Don’t Kill, Jesus says to not harbor hate in your heart.
• Do not commit adultery, Jesus says do not look at someone with lust in your heart.
• Jesus could go to heart issues because in Him through the working of the Holy Spirit our hearts and lives can be transformed!
CONCLUSION
• Discovering Discipleship.
• There is more to it than just baptizing someone into Christ, it is about transformation, it is about me allowing the Holy Spirit that I received when I was baptized into Christ to help me to be transformed into the image of Jesus.
• For me to help bring people to Jesus, people have to see Jesus in my life, or else, what I am trying to bring them to?
