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.
A relationship with God is thee best, we don’t have to be different to be God’s friend. We don’t have to have a mo-hawk, or baggy pants. We don’t have to part our hair or wear fitting pants. We don’t have to wear a certain brand of clothing. All of these things I mentioned are not exactly a moral offense, when being sexually promiscuous, doing drugs, stealing, lying, or any other ungodly act…that’s when we have a serious problem.
Don’t follow the crowd! A new hair-doo is okay as long as it’s not causing you to compromise your faith, but don’t conform to the world’s moral values!
This last weekend my wife and I went shopping on Melrose Place in Hollywood. During our visit we passed a store and to my amazement I saw what looked like a man in his late 50’s with a mo-hawk sticking about two and a half feet off his head. Lets call this man Spike. He had tattoos, a piercing here, there, and everywhere, and he also had customers. The surrounding stores were plastered with craziness and young people from “who knows where?” Did Spike have his wife get out the clippers one day to keep his business going? Did he do it because he had nothing else to do? To be cool? Maybe he did it for the newspaper clipping on the front of his store? I don’t really know. However it is very apparent that Spike has conformed this world. His mo-haw isn’t violating a moral offense, however the other things he sold in his store, the pictures on his window; the things he advertised showed me that this conformed man needs a positive change. He needs to stop following the crowd and start following Jesus. He needs to conform a little more…to Christ, not to the world!
FOLLOWING SELFISH DESIRES:
“..We all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others [v.3].”
The pressure here is not from the world outside, but from our own sin nature. Maybe you don’t follow the worlds questionable styles or values, that’s good! But what are we following on the inside? Some of us may be going our own way, chasing personal ambitions- living for ourselves rather then for Christ? Self-centeredness is just as bad as worldliness; it’s also much harder to spot! It’s possible for a person to look like a Christian while living for his or her own ego on the inside. Selfishness is just as bad as worldliness for your spiritual life.
SOLUTION FOR FOLLOWING THE WORLD AND SELFISH DESIRES:
In either case, whether your struggling with external temptations of the world or internal temptations of selfish desire, the cure is the same. “It is by grace that you have been saved” [v.5]. God’s grace- His unearned love and mercy-is always available to the most stumbling Christian. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” [Hebrews 4:16].
We should take time out of our day to speak with to God. If you are a Christian, tell him how thankful you are for having His gift of spiritual life. Also tell him an area of your life where you need His help to further change and improve. If you are not a Christian, you can still talk with God. If you would like to, tell God that you want to become a Christian and gain eternal life. Or admit to Him you are not interested right now. Whatever the case, it’s important to be honest with God. It is my prayer that none of us will desire to wait until another time to become Alive in Christ. Another chance may not come around.
Closing Prayer:
Dear Lord,
We thank you for being such an awesome God. We thank you for giving us the choice to obtain eternal life through your Son Jesus. We ask, that through this message you will penetrate the hearts of your people. Give us the wisdom to see our need for you. Please help those that are spiritually dead to become Alive in Christ. We worship and praise you Lord, for you are a mighty and powerful God, all things are possible through you. We ask that you would here our prayer today. Heal our spiritual need. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.
