Pastor Mark (3rd service live)
Relationships / making connections with people in life is very important
Who do you connect / hang out with?
When you encounter Jesus, your life transforms bcos Grace is the antidote to sin
Eg. Zacchaeus the tax collector met & connected with Jesus and become the most generous person
I am not ashamed of the Gospel bcos it is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16)
To save you from every problem in your life
The Gospel is able to deliver us from all problems
2 Cor 5:21
We were made the righteousness of God in Christ
We were made (Ie. we were on the receiving end and our part is passive), and so no action of ours can un-make us
When you encounter Jesus, your life transforms bcos Grace is the antidote to sin
Eg. Zacchaeus the tax collector met & connected with Jesus and become the most generous person
To save you from every problem in your life
The Gospel is able to deliver us from all problems
We were made the righteousness of God in Christ
We were made (Ie. we were on the receiving end and our part is passive), and so no action of ours can un-make us
There's no way to un-make your righteousness bcos you didn't make yourself righteous in the first place
Just live by faith believing that you are still the righteousness of God in Christ bcos that's what God's word says about you
God defines me not by my actions and deeds but by His Son, bcos as Christ is, so am I (1 John 4:17)
We are not measured by what good deeds we do, but by the Grace we receive
Not how much I do, but how much I receive
We are not measured by what good deeds we do, but by the Grace we receive
Not how much I do, but how much I receive
Amos 3:3
To walk with God means to agree with Him
Homologeo = say the same thing as what Jesus says about you!
You are righteous, you are healed, you are beautiful!
When we are in Christ, we become new creations
We're a spirt. The real us is a spirit. The body is just a shell.
We're a spirt. The real us is a spirit. The body is just a shell.
So changing your outside (eg. doing good works) doesn't change the real you on the inside
How to change the real you? Since we're a spirit, we must be transformed spiritually - by death on the cross and by receiving Jesus
Similarly, when we receive Jesus inside, the inside has changed but the outside may still look the same. Be patient. Inside is the real you. Eventually the outside will change to reflect the real you that's inside.
The Lord's prayer (Matt 6:9-13)
Life like heaven on earth is possible when we first receive from Christ
Isaiah 61:1-3
All these are fruits / results
1) Good tidings to the poor
1) Good tidings to the poor
God doesn't want His children to be poor
We as imperfect parents don't want our children to be poor. How much more our Father in heaven (Matt 7:11)
The Bible has numerous promises of provision
Eg. Ps 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not lack
Eg. Phil 4:19 My God shall supply all your needs
2) Heal the broken hearted
3) Proclaim liberty to the captives
Includes being captive by anger, worry
V2-3 the good news proclaimed is
We don't want to be angry or worry, but on our own effort we can't get out of it
Only our Lord can get us out and He proclaims our freedom from these things
4) Open prison to those bound
Includes those bound by disease
V2 acceptable year of the Lord is proclaimed first, vengeance of the Lord comes later after the rapture / during tribulation. But for now, we're in the acceptable year!
I) Comfort all who mourn
II) Give us beauty for ashes
Ashes = our background / history, the bad words we said or bad things we did which we cannot take back
Ashes = our background / history, the bad words we said or bad things we did which we cannot take back
III) Oil of joy for mourning
Don't complain that life is unfair or that your family is not perfect
All families have their own share of problems / are imperfect bcos when 2 imperfect pple come together, there can't and won't be perfection
We tend to project what our earthly father / mother are like unto what our heavenly Father is like. Don't do that.
(Me: To see what our heavenly Father is like, see what Jesus is like in the Scriptures bcos whoever has seen Jesus has seen the Father (John 14:7,9))
It took Pastor Mark 2-3 years to accept that God is his Father bcos of his family upbringing
We are connected to the most important family in this universe - the family of God
Unfairness is all around in this world - parents, spouse, boss, family, wealth, background etc
We're not here to compare bcos then we will never be happy
If you want to compare, look to Jesus who is unfairly good to you & who died for you when He didn't deserve to
Jesus took the phrase, "Why me?" on the cross when He cried "Abba, why have you forsaken me?" so that now we cry "Abba, why are you so good to me?"
When we feel insecure or loss, we can run to our heavenly Father who makes us whole
Don't forget your parents & grandparents too
How to receive the breakthrough / fruits of 1-4 above?
Know your identity first = you are righteous in Christ Ie. clean not shameful
Why not tree of wealth or health? Bcos if you're wealthy and healthy but feel condemned, you'll lose it all anyway
As a tree of righteousness, you will bear fruit in everything
As a tree of righteousness, you will bear fruit in everything
Who plants you? The Lord
For what purpose? That He may be glorified
What does a tree do? Nothing, it just stands still and is rooted
Tree rooted in grace = soak yourself in messages of grace
Trees don't grow overnight
Similarly, don't give up. Be patient and just keep soaking in the Word even if your actions continue to be incorrect / circumstances don't seem to have changed.
The only way to grow in the Christian life is to grow in grace
To know you're righteous - that's growing
Say what God says about you. Agree with Him!
Speak to cholesterol, blood pressure, excess fats be gone in Jesus' name!
The just shall live by faith (Heb 10:38)
Jeremiah 17:7-8
Will not fear, will not be anxious, will yield fruit
Romans 10:10-11
Whoever believes on Him as your righteousness, will not be put to shame
Grace will never reject you
The path of the righteous shines brighter and brighter (Prov 4:18)
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