“In Christ” – Ephesians part 2
On the lighter side of life:
Church Signs from beliefnet.com
"Beat the Christmas rush, come to church this Sunday!"
"Don’t wait for the hearse to take you to church."
"Don’t give up. Moses was once a basket case."
"Life has many choices. Eternity has two. What’s yours?"
"Worry is interest paid on trouble before it is due.
Church Sign Chuckles:
Some favorite messages spotted on church signs or billboards, submitted by Beliefnet members:
-Fire Insurance Inside
-This Church Is Prayer Conditioned
-God Answers Knee Mail
-PRAY NOW! Avoid Christmas Rush!
-Sign broken, come inside for message
-This is a ch--ch. What’s missing? U R!
-Stop in the name of love and meet the Supreme
-Wal-Mart’s not the only savings place
-The best position is on your knees!
Thesis: When we are in Christ then we have hope beyond this life.
Scripture Text:
1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
11Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)—12remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
14For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
Introduction:
What does it mean to be “In Christ?” Paul answers this question for us in chapter two by telling us the following:
We are saved by grace! Not works!
We are created by God to do good works even though these do not save us. We do it out of gratitude and love for what Jesus did for us.
We are now joined with Christ because of mercy and grace
(united, grafted into the life giving vine of life)
(We are in the “In group!”)
We have inherited the covenant promises because we are in the “In group.”
We have hope -- because we have God!
We now have access to God! Before there was no access to God but today there is through Christ this brings us hope.
We are members of God’s family and this reality should give us hope!
We are citizens of Heaven and family members in the house of God!
We are being built together to become a dwelling place of the Lord. Yes because of grace He lives in us and Holy Spirit desires to indwell the entire church body. He wants everyone of us to be “The faithful.”
These are all promises to the one who is “In Christ” “The Faithful” – all these blessings bring great benefits to our lives but the one which sticks out to me the most is the phrase that says:
12Remember that at that time (When you in the out group) you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
Paul reminds the faithful in Ephesus that, “We now have hope because we have God and we have God in us because of Jesus sacrifice on the cross!”
Celebrate Communion: Play song “In Christ Alone” with movie clip of Jesus our hope!
Someone has wisely stated that if you could convince a man that there is no hope, he would curse the day he was born and then give up.
The question of "Is there any hope?" is common in our world today. We hear this question being asked by young, middle aged, and older people.
- We hear the cry of global warming.
- We hear the effects of what could happen in a
nuclear war.
- We have witnessed the devastating effects of terrorism and senseless killings
- We hear that suicide is at an all time high.
- We hear about A.I.D.S. and its deadly effect on many lives.
- We hear about the Bird flue and what it could do if it hits America.
- We hear of economic troubles that are coming.
- We hear of job layoffs everywhere affecting many working class people.
- We hear that our country is on the brink of financial collapse.
- We hear of Social Security’s inevitable bankruptcy
The list could go on and on and we could ask, "Is there any hope?" And the answer to this question is, "Yes, there is!" But to clarify this "yes", let’s first look at this word or term "Hope".
I. Who is our Hope?
1. Do we place our hope in our government, our job, our money or in a higher power?
a.) The 12 step program of recovery speaks to us about the role of our a higher power.
1.) In step one, we admitted that our lives are out of control and we ourselves recognize our powerlessness to change it.
a. Romans 7:17, which speaks directly to this life predicament, "I know nothing good lives in me, that is in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out."
2.) Step one speaks to us about our brokenness and inability to fix ourselves. Step two which centers us in on our "Higher Power" the Lord Jesus Christ.
a. He is the one with the power to restore my life and repair my broken condition.
b. I have to come to the conclusion here, that I cannot repair myself. Christ is the one who is able to put me back together.
2. This scenario reminds me of the Old Nursery Rhyme, "Humpty Dumpty". Let’s make the rhyme more personal!
1.) Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
a. (Using drugs and alcohol and being self-centered.)
2.) Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
a. (Why? Because of his self- centered mindset and the drugs and alcohol.)
3.) All the Kings horses, and all the kings men cannot put Humpty Dumpty together again.
a. (All of the world’s effort, money, good deeds and all my money, self-will, pride cannot put me back together again.)
3. But when the natural ways, and my ways fail, I’m promised that Christ can put me back together again. I just have to place my faith in Him.
a.) I have to get into Christ!
1.) Phil. 2:12, "God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey Him."
a. ALLAN K. CHALMERS: The Grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.
b. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.: If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream. - The Trumpet of Conscience
2.) In the 12 step this point progresses us to step 3 which involves the decision to let God be in charge of our lives.
a. Romans 12:1, 2 speaks to us here: "Dear Friends, God is good. So I beg you to offer your bodies to Him as a living sacrifice, pure and pleasing. That’s the most sensible way to serve God. Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to Him." (CEV)
b. But we must make this decision to turn our will to God!
4. Through our brokenness, pain, disappointments and our suffering, there is a promise to all those who suffer.
a.) Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest, take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matt. 11:28-30)
b.) The invitation is still for us today. But the decision is up to each one of you to accept it!
1.) But if you have to accept His invitation. If you do then you will receive Hope!
II. What is Hope?
1. Hope is not something we have naturally. It’s something supernatural!
a.) Hope is some extraordinary spiritual grace that God gives us to control our fears, not to oust them. ~Vincent McNabb
b.) You’ve gotta have hope. Without hope life is meaningless. Without hope life is meaning less and less. ~Author Unknown
c.) When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
~Author Unknown
2. The following material is from "A Future and a Hope", Ogilivie
a.) We have to understand are reality today, “Hope cannot be humanly induced on demand.” The truth is I cannot give myself hope.
3. To better understand what "Authentic Hope is we need to see what it is not!"
a.) Hope is not wishful thinking,
a. We try to wish our dreams into reality and we try to wish away the hurts of life but it never works.
b. I have been there and tried this and it does not work.
b.) Hope is not a yearning – (Webster says a yearning is a deep longing for something a strong desire for something).
1.) Ogilivie states, "We often incorrectly use the word, "hope" to express our yearning. "Oh, I hope so!" We say, expressing a longing for something to be true or to happen. "Here’s hoping," we say in response to a possibility." (47)
2.) The sad fact here is we usually end up with disappointments because our expectations are not met.
c.) Hope is not simply cheery optimism.
1.) "Hope certainly can produce and optimistic attitude, but an optimistic attitude is not a substitute for true hope." (48)
2.) Optimism that is not based on God’s promises, power, and faithfulness fades under the pressure of disappointments.
4. Hope is centered in the person of Jesus Christ. Christ’s life, message, atonement for the sins of the world and resurrection are now the basis of hope.
a.) Jesus Christ is the object of Hope, but also He is the one and only who enables us to truly have lasting hope.
b.) Hope comes to us by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It comes from knowing God on a personal level.
c.) Romans 5:1-5 “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Conclusion:
You’ve gotta have hope. Without hope life is meaningless. Without hope life is meaning less and less. ~Author Unknown
Do you desire Hope beyond brokenness, a hope that will never leave you or forsake you, a hope, that will put you back together, a true unfailing hope? Then today yield your life to Jesus Christ and you will see the pieces of your broken life slowly put back together.
I hope that I will always be for each person
what he or she needs me to be.
I hope that each person’s death will diminish me,
but that fear of my own will never diminish my joy of life.
I hope that my love for those whom I like will never lessen
my love for those whom I do not.
I hope that another person’s love for me will never
be a measure of my love for him or her.
I hope that everybody will accept me as I am,
but that I never will.
I hope that I will always ask for forgiveness from others,
but will never need to be asked for my own . . .
I hope that I will always recognize my limitations,
but that I will construct none.
I hope that loving will always be my goal,
but that love will never be my idol.
I hope that everyone will always have hope.
-Henri Nouwen
Chicken Soup for the Veteran’s Soul
In your times of deep despair,
Do you feel there is no hope?
As the darkness closes in on you,
Do you feel you cannot cope?
As you struggle on through every trial,
Do you say "When will it end"?
As you cry yourself to sleep at night,
Do you wish you had a friend?
When your body’s racked with aches and pains,
Do you feel you are alone?
When you think about the future,
Do you fear the great unknown?
There is someone who really cares,
And He hears your every cry.
His arms are reaching out to you,
And on Him you can rely.
When things close in around you,
He sees your fear and doubt -
He wants to hold you in His arms,
And He will never cast you out.
As you stumble through the darkness,
He will be your guiding light.
He wants to wipe away your tears,
For you are precious in His sight.
Reach out right now to Jesus,
And let Him take complete control -
He’ll take that heavy burden,
And He’ll touch and make you whole.
He’s reaching out His arms to you,
And He wants to be your friend.
Let Him take you in His loving arms,
For His love will never end.
