Back to Basics - Ephesians 2:1-10

S - Ephesians 2:1-10 Trusting in God
O - We are completely dead from sin.
It is totally God's grace that we can be saved. Because we are dead we cannot respond - it is not our works or our faith that saves ourselves. In God's eyes we are sinners no matter how hard we try on our own.
v1-3 our bondage to sin is caused by three enemies - the world, the devil and the flesh

Hate worldliness, not the world. Worldliness suppresses the truth of God. Life and lifestyles with no reference to God. But not the world that God created.

The devil works on the world and our sinful nature/flesh.
Flesh can mean the worst of our human nature (Romans 1:18-32) - and even the best of our human heritage and achievement (as in Philippians 3:3-6) - ie the greatest human self-confidence.
"Sin can manifest itself in respectable forms" - F.F Bruce
Deceptive disguise of sin...
We are the objects of God's wrath, BUT
God's love, mercy, grace and kindness - the gospel happened to us
We are made alive
v5-7 - "made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus"

v10 - "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them".


Jesus Christ has the power to save us -
Ephesians 1:19-21 "and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come"


But this is more than showing off God's power. v7 - "so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus"
Only God can do such work.
And God's work is a gift to us - we did not contribute to this - we could not while we were dead. Salvation is God's work from fist to last. Even our faith to believe in Him comes from him, In choosing to believe in God we will realize it was God who chose us first.
If we add to God's work, we take away from it. Our only work is to trust that Jesus has done it and done it perfectly for us.

The proof that we trust in Him? - v10!
We are under Jesus' lordship, no longer under the devil's rule.

Every true believer is a display of God's amazing grace in Christ. The only before-and-after testimonies worth believing is in Jesus Christ.

A/P - Thank you Lord that in Jesus Christ, our salvation is perfect and complete.
That God's power, grace, love and kindness is shown through Jesus.
That we can live as God's workmanship, living in Jesus' rule for good works that God has prepared.

Bible reading plans

I have 3 more sermons to go in this 8-sermon Back to Basics series.
Then I shall go back to pick up Genesis and Matthew where I left off. Will also have time to read some Christian books at the same time.

1 Corinthians 3:5-17

S - 1 Corinthians 3:5-17
5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—13 each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

O - Only God can give the growth, so commit more to prayer. Only Jesus Christ is the foundation. Paul is saying that works that we do in power of the 'flesh' or in disobedience will not survive God's judgement, but works of Christlike faith and obedience will.


Read this passage this morning.

P - Another friend getting baptised, really happy and excited.

Frances on missions.

Thinking of going on missions/dental project trip.

Rethinking church membership? - Maybe not?

Lacking focus in study

Back to Basics - Colossians 4:2-6

S - Colossians 4:2-6
From the back to basics sermon series. I'm halfway through!

2 cContinue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it dwith thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may eopen to us a door for the word, fto declare the mystery of Christ,gon account of which I am in prison—4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

5 hWalk in wisdom toward ioutsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech alwaysjbe gracious, kseasoned with salt, lso that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

O - Paul sees prayer as part of his Gospel work for God. He doesn't pray for personal benefit, but so that "God may open to us a door for the word".
"To declare the mystery of Christ" - the mystery - fact that God will save through Christ. Saving all the world.
How? - by "declaring" - preaching as part of the process of God's revelation.
Declaration makes it known. Pray that Paul may declare it clearly v4.

We cannot evangelise or do Gospel work without praying to God for people.
v5 - Be wise, make use of every opportunity to answer any questions. Speak graciously, "seasoned with salt" - charmingly. Why? Because response often provokes argument and disagreement. Focus not only on the content but the manner of speaking.
"Seasoned with salt" - stirs or arouses taste - compel interest and attention through conversation with people.
Paul is saying evangelism should be opportune in time, appropriate in words.

A - practice!
Two Ways To Live

P - Pray Paul's prayer for the Church of Colossae.
Opportunities to share the gospel, speak graciously, seasoned with salt
Speak the truth

Ephesians 4:25-32

S - Ephesians 4:25-32
This was today's sermon on the Holy Spirit.  It really spoke to me about taking sin seriously, and not grieving the Holy Spirit who dwells in us believers. Gotta keep praying about the last application points.

Recap: Holy Spirit permanently enters the life of a believer, powerfully equips

His influence can be impeded

Is soveriegn, but can be hindered

In OT

Solomon

Saul

David

Spirit comes upon them and then leave

NT

Can lose the power of the Spirit? Yes

Can regain? Not always

Sins

Blasphemy agaisnt the Spirit- unbelievers- only unforgivable sin

Grieve the Spirit- doing something we shouldnt do

Quenching the Spirit - 

Hebrews 10:29 - insulting

Acts 5:3 lied

Romans 8:9 noone is a Christian unless the Spirit is in them. Impossible for us to be a believer if 

1 corin 6:19 - He is in us, bought with a price

Because He is in us, we ought to live according to Him

Spirt of God has emotions (debatable?) 

Relationship - dwelling in all believer's bodies, of love, personal relationship

Sin- hurt the one who lives within us

How do we grieve

1) When we sin- do, speak the unholy. Moral conduct

Galations 5:16 - walk by the Spirit, what He desires conflicts with our sinful nature

Weeding analogy - Spirit works in us to get rid of the glaring obvious sins

1. Pple go back ontheir commitment to God

2. Disobey, sin

3. Self-indulgent- wasteful, overly luxurious. Beaccountable stewards

4. Greed for money

5. Pride

2) Failure to acknowledge His presence within

To behave as though He wasnt who He is

3) Dont respond to His prompting- work in us - Jesus has purchased

Promptings, nudges

Opens doors for us to do His work

Consequences

Doesnt leave us- promised

Lost of His gracious manifestations

Decreasing sense that God loves you

Less sense of salvation

Less sense of peace

Sense of His presence, the reality

Divine comforts lost

Repent

Delivered you to spiritual attack

We repent, Spirit of the Lord will smile upon us

Treat sin seriously!

Summary (Prayer for me)- How to not grieve the Holy Spirit?

Remember and realise that he Spirit is in us and with us

Live my life consciously in His presence

Careful not to disappoint Him - when He prompts - obey, comply , be available

Go to Him and ask intentionally- if theres anything displeasing

Conduct inventory of day with Him

John 16:1-15

S - John 16:1-15
So last night I was talking to Neda and she mentioned - "...you know, just like last week's sermon was saying". All I could think of was, "What? what's last week's sermon. Ohhhhh."
Even so, I couldn't remember the specifics. I felt a bit ashamed. Maybe it's to do with the "omg I just got baptised!" thoughts filling my mind, but I won't make any excuses.
Here's last week's sermon notes, which was on the how we should live in the Holy Spirit.


John 15:18-20, 26-27

Walk in the Spirit

Because we no longer belong to the world

15:26-16:1

16:12-13

16:14-15

Because it brings glory to Jesus - final outcome

Suffer, sacrifice- for master, king, our Lord

Give up fitting in, natural desires, society etc, anyhing

16:7-11 He is going to convict the world through you

Convince them of righteousness

Show the world the reality of sin - sin is not following Jesus, not believing in him. Rebellion against the one who made us

The thing that separates them from God is not having a relationship with Jesus Christ

Focus on the Spirit, not on the small things that we do or not do that is religion

Our righteousness is not by the things that we do

Only if we live by the Spirit, we acknowledge that it is only by what Jesus has done that we have righteousness

People feel condemned when they see you because they dont have this relationship with Jesus

We are no longer constraint by the standards of this world

Because Jesus has defeated it - sin

Judgement has come

Christ has won

Walk in the Spirit 

No longer belong

Spirit knows the right way to walk

Reference passages for Titus 2:1-3:8

S - Colossians 3:1-17
O -

9 tDo not lie to one another, seeing that uyou have put off vthe old self4 with its practices 10 and whave put on xthe new self, ywhich is being renewed in knowledge zafter the image of aits creator.


"Have put off...have put on" - past tense
change of identity already occurred in believers


"being renewed" - present tense
transformation of Christians is an ongoing process


v11 ...but Christ iscall, and in all.
Jesus binds all Christians together in equality


What we should do
12 dPut on then, as eGod's chosen ones, holy and beloved, fcompassionate hearts, gkindness,hhumility, meekness, and patience, 13 hbearing with one another and, iif one has a complaint against another, gforgiving each other; gas the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.14 And above all these put on jlove, which kbinds everything together in lperfect harmony. 15 And let mthe peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called nin one body. And obe thankful. 16 Let pthe word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, qsinging psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, rwith thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And swhatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,tgiving thanks to God the Father through him.


S - Galatians 5:16-25

19 Now bthe works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, cdivisions, 21 envy,4 drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that dthose who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

idolatry, sorcery - desire to be in touch with the spiritual realm through humanly invented means - rejects the revealed way in which God should be worshipped. Christ is "the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). All other ways to God are false.

enmity, strife - when people reject God, they turn in on themselves, so relationshpis between human beings are destroyed.

Outward conduct also indicates their inward spiritual status - do not have Holy Spirit within, are not true children of God.

Envy - not content with what God has given them, long for what he has given others.

Drunkenness - misuse God's good gifts in desctructive ways. OT - wine assoc with joy and celebration, when abused, highly destructive, consistently condemned throughout Scripture (Eph 5:18)

 22 But ethe fruit of the Spirit is flove, joy, peace, patience, gkindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 hgentleness,iself-control; jagainst such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus khave crucified the flesh with its lpassions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, mlet us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 nLet us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Love - greatest quality, most clearly reflects the character of God

Joy - rejoicing in God's salvation - affections are rightly placed in God's will and his purpose

Peace - product of God having reconciled sinner to himself, so they are no longer his enemies, resulting in confidence and freedom in approaching God

Patience - following God's plan & time rather than our own, abandon our own ideas about how the world should work.

Kindness - showing goodness, generosity, sympathy towards others - an attribute of God

Goodness - working for the benefit of others, not ourself

Faithfulness - consistently doing what we say we will do - characteristic of God

Gentleness - attribute of Jesus Matt 11:29, enables people to find rest in him and to encourage and strengthen others

Self-control - given by the Spirit to resist the power of the flesh

A/P - We have put to death our sinful nature with Christ, so we shouldn't be behaving like that. Jealousy, envy, and even fits of anger were described as works of the flesh, and they strike me as the easier sins to fall to. However, walk with the Spirit so that we may be able to persevere in "putting on" our "new self", so that we may be constantly renewed in the image of God.