Building on the previous two sermons, Greg has offered a third challenge to us to live in the love that God extends to us and wants to spread through us. God has done everything necessary to make our “abiding in Christ” possible.
Focus Scripture – Hebrews 11:1HIDESHOW
1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Extended SummaryHIDESHOW
Building on the previous two sermons, Greg has offered a third challenge to us to live in the love that God extends to us and wants to spread through us. God has done everything necessary to make our “abiding in Christ” possible. Christ took our sin and gave us his righteousness! All that is Christ’s by nature becomes ours through God’s gracious gift. Luther called this the “happy exchange.” We now are responsible to abide?¬to live?in Christ on a daily basis. Even though we have confessed to being sinners, and have been forgiven in God’s grace, we need to recognize that we cannot presume to “abide in Christ” automatically. Faith is a “life lived” not an “idea thought”. The problem is we often think we “have it” and then we “move on” to other things. This is not possible. To “move on” is no longer to “abide.” We must abide in Christ and live in that love without adding some other qualification to the equation. Being a Christian is not abiding in Christ plus: circumcision (the Galatians example) or fasting or speaking in tongues, etc. but rather simply abiding in Christ is enough. Indeed, enough to fill a whole lifetime. When we add to what God wants to give us freely (grace), God’s gift is corrupted for those who adhere to the “additional” stuff. This qualifies and undermines God’s work. God has given us infinite worth by becoming one with us through Christ. By faith, we must accept this gift and begin to live in this new reality! We must believe that what God says about us is true and receive the love that God extends to us and clothe ourselves in this new identity, our true identity. In Greg’s words: In Christ, the only thing that matters is faith energized by love. (See Galatians 5:6.)
Practical Applications (homework)HIDESHOW
- As an act of discipline for transforming your mind (Romans 12:2), read the list of phrases that are true about you because of what God has done for you. Repetition establishes new patterns. Set a new pattern of thinking about yourself using the list provided. As you repeat these phrases, you will begin to know them by memory and they can be used to strengthen you on a regular basis.
- Kingdom principles often work opposite of what we might expect. If you want to be blessed, bless others. If you want to have “more life” you must give of your self to others. Matt. 16:25 makes this point explicit. Practice some kingdom living this week by identifying the sorts of things that you often pray about and begin to see if the Lord might use you to bless others in those very ways!
Reflection QuestionsHIDESHOW
- What are some of the things that are now true about those who are in Christ? [Have someone write down the things that your group comes up with from memory.]
- After reviewing the things that are now true of a person who is “in Christ” ask yourself, do you really believe that these things are true about you? Of course, we are supposed to believe these things, but do we live with this awareness of ourselves? Does it inform our moment-to-moment decisions and actions? [Leader, if this is too abstract or simply too much to think about at once, go down the list offered in the “Responses” section and read through a few of them one at a time.] Do you see yourself AND others as having this sort of value? Faith is seeing this reality as here and now even though its fullest expression has not yet come. [Hebrews 11:1]
- Greg said, “‘love’ is what faith looks like when it is energized.” What might faith look like when it is not energized by love? Does the Bible speak to this problem at all?