"Become What You Believe" Part 1 - Pastor Raymond Woodward

Ephesians is an incredible book some people have called it the book of Joshua of the New Testament because Joshua is about conquering a physical promised land Ephesians is about conquering kind of a spiritual Promised Land that tonight we're going to begin a little bit of study in Ephesians I don't know how long we'll go we'll go until it gets bad and then we'll quit how's that but it never gets bad so we might be here for a while Ephesians is one of the books that the Apostle Paul penned some people think that this was a book because Ephesians is in the title but it wasn't in the original manuscript so some people think this was written to one Church in Ephesus some people think it was actually written to several churches and passed around and because Ephesus was kind of the mother church in that area that that's how it ended up being called Ephesians it doesn't really matter we do know it's from the Apostle Paul and we do know it's the Apostolic and the great thing about the books we read in the New Testament it's not just to Ephesus or Corinth or Thessalonica it's to us we're apostolic stew and so there's incredible things here for us before we're seated would you lift up your hands in your voice and let's pray that God would open his word as we open our hearts to his word you ready for Bible study let's pray this is how we get ready or Jesus I thank you for the wonderful people of God that are here in this room tonight thank you for the privilege of belonging to a great church thank you God for the honor of being able to come into your presence and open your word and look into the scripture but more than us looking into the scripture lots of people do that they read they might read a book about the Bible they might memorize the Bible but more than us just looking into the scripture tonight Jesus would you turn the searchlight of heaven on us and let scripture look into us instead of us just having a little lesson tonight would you allow us to receive with meekness the engrafted word that's able to save our souls Jesus I pray that there would be an intervention of the Holy Ghost in this room over the next few moments Jesus we don't have a goal to get through a certain number of verses we just have a goal to hear from you speak Lord for your servants we're listening our hearts are open our minds are eager [Music] would you just reach out to the Lord for a moment thank you Jesus thank you Jesus thank you Jesus I Love You God I worship You Jesus I worship You Jesus amen you can be seated thank you for praying tonight we're going to begin some kind of a series I don't know how long but because called become what you believe would you say that with me become what you believe lots of people talk about what they believe and lots of people say they believe the scripture but the Bible doesn't want us to just believe things with our head the Bible wants us to become what we believe now there's lots of people including Oprah and all kinds of other people that have co-opted that little principle and to them it's a positive thinking kind of situation that if you believe it strong enough you can become it well that's ridiculous if you're only talking humanly speaking lots of people have positive thinking but they can think and think and think and never dig themselves out of their mess but in Scripture we have something more than just the power of positive thinking we have the power of the Holy Ghost so when you believe not what you choose to believe or not what you want to believe but you believe what the Word of God says about you you've just entered a whole different level of believing and you can become what you believe because God says you can be coming now Ephesus was an incredibly powerful wealthy city in the ancient world it had beauty everywhere marble streets mosaic sidewalks a massive temple to Diana that even back then they called it one of the wonders of the ancient world and Ephesus was an incredible city it had a busy port and a popular athletic arena Ephesus had one of the finest libraries of the ancient world in the 1st century and many wealthy people villas filled with artwork and tapestries and silks and exotic animals and just all kinds of things and even today if you went to Ephesus the restored Colosseum at Ephesus the roman empire built Coliseum's everywhere but the one at Ephesus has been restored and it is considered even today acoustically considered one of the finest performing arts centers in the world so this city knew what they were doing even a couple thousand years ago and it was into this influential city of a half-million people that the Apostle Paul brought the gospel and planted a church if you read acts 19 how he worked in Ephesus is kind of summarized in there and he worked here longer than anywhere else he stayed here nearly three years Paul was a church planter and he stayed here nearly three years and and so he's writing now back to them the people that he knows and loves the people that he's won and he's pastored and he's writing to them about what they can become in Christ and I feel like God has put that kind of calling on our church it wasn't that the Ephesians themselves were so special it was that they had such an awesome God and he had a great purpose and I feel like God has a destiny for us as a people and I'm thankful for what God's been doing but God doesn't just do things so we can enjoy it and sit back and say wasn't that cool God does things because he's leading us and he's developing us and he's building us so here he goes Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God to the Saints which are at Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus grace be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ grace is the kind of the the Greek or the Gentile greeting peace as the Jewish greeting and he puts it together and and and and so he's just kind of saying hello but he can't he can't wait to launch into theology Ephesians is about six chapters long and for the first half of the letter Paul is going to take us to the heights and the depths of theology he's going to tell us what we believe he's going to tell us what God has blessed us with and how God has led us and and all kinds of things God's done for us and that's gonna be about the first half of the book and then he's gonna turn and in the last half of the book he's going to tell us what we can become because of all of this that God has done so we can become what we believe verse 3 blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus now the reason God can bless us is because he's a God of blessing he has everything and he lacks nothing God is not frail he's not impoverished he's not out of date he's certainly not irrelevant he is a God of blessing he has all the resources of heaven and earth the physical realm and the spiritual realm at his disposal God owns everything and the devil owns nothing the devil is a liar he tells you all the time he's powerful he threatens and he Huff's and puffs but the devil at the end of the day owns nothing and God owns everything and the reason God can bless us is because he is blessed himself and God blesses us with things that sometimes we want really badly and sometimes he blesses us with things that we're not so sure we want at all but it's still God's blessing see God is a good parent all of you parents that are here you know that sometimes what you want to give to your children for reasons that are good for them is not what they want God's a good parent he's not only good to us he's good for us and sometimes he doesn't give us everything we want because we couldn't handle it he doesn't give it to us when we want because we're not ready for it maybe when the blessing comes we need to be mature enough to handle it and sometimes God will allow us to walk through even times that we perceive as very negative and and we think gods hating us or God's abandoned us but nothing like that is true God is still a blessing God and he's with us through those times and he builds something into us through those times we serve a God who blesses us God doesn't want to curse you he hasn't cursed you he's not going to curse you so so stop thinking that every time you mess up God is messed up God's not messed up he's a God of mercy he's a God of grace he's a God of love he's a God of forgiveness and he's not up there waiting for you to mess up so he can come down in blood and thunder God is cheering you on and saying I've given you my spirit I've given you my name I've given you my blood I've given you my word you can make it and you can do this God has blessed us now the Bible says Paul said he hath blessed us that's past tense we already have access to whatever God has already given us in other words the blessings of God are a finished work from God's viewpoint we've already got everything we need to do everything we need to have to do what we need to do we've already got everything we need for revival we've already got everything we need for harvest we've already got everything we need for evangelism personally we've already got everything we need to conquer everything we need to be a victor everything we need to overcome we've already got that he hath blessed us it's a past tense all of the blessings we could ever receive from God have already been created it's like we've already been promised our promised land and now we just need to take it and the first step to getting the blessing of God is believing that God has what we need but the second step is reaching up and taking hold of what God has already promised us a lot of believers spend their whole life just kind of rejoicing over you know well God has promised us but they never take it God has blessed us but they never inherited their and the reason is not because God hasn't done it they're correct God's blessed me God's provided it God's a miracle worker but they're not fighting for it they're not taking advantage of it they're rich beyond belief in Christ but they're not using any of those resources now in in verse 3 here's where I think it comes disconnected for some people is he has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places so not all of your blessings go in your bank account not all your blessings show up on your insurance summary for your valuable possessions not all of your blessings are here in the physical realm because primarily God has blessed us with spiritual blessings and they're not even here on the earth some of them they're in heavenly places in Christ a lot of times we look at blessings as everything's good down here but do you know the greatest blessing for the child of God is that everything's good between here and up there that's the greatest blessing and then as we pray and serve God the blessing in here transmits and translates to blessing out here you know your family can be a mess and you come to God and it may take a little time not everybody's gonna be happy that you're serving God not everybody's gonna be happy that you're a crazy strung out Pentecostal drunk on the Holy Ghost not everybody's gonna be happy about that not everybody's gonna be happy that you go to church several times a week not everybody's going to be happy that you know God is such a big part of your life but but here's the thing as you begin to serve God that blessing begins to work that inheritance begins to work we're expecting it to happen in about a week and a half you know they might not be here next Sunday but sure two weeks from now everything will be good everybody be saved delivered healed prayed through it doesn't always happen that way how many can be a witness to that but here's the thing it does happen sometimes it takes a while for the spiritual blessing to translate into a physical earthly kind of blessing that we can see and our challenge is to keep our faith in the Word of God that has decreed spiritual blessings in heavenly places until we see temporal blessings in earthly places but you already have those blessings they're already part of your inheritance Paul said this in 2nd Corinthians 4:18 he said while we look not at the things which are seen but we look at the things which are not seen that is the first thing the primary thing the worst thing that can get you off track in your spiritual life is when you start looking around and all the things which can be seen in fact you could even look around in this room tonight and maybe somebody else that's sitting here is one of those things that can be seen that has irritated you maybe not hopefully not but maybe but you could look at your boss you can look at your job you could look at your home situation you can look at your bank account you can look at your email inbox and you can get really messed up because you're looking at the things which can be seen but here's what we've got to remember Paul said we're not looking at the things which can be seen we keep our eyes on the things which cannot be seen so I may have a sickness in my body but I've got the Holy Ghost in my spirit I'm not looking at the things which can be seen I'm gonna keep my eyes on the things which cannot be seen because they always encourage me Paul says in in in Corinthians he said for the things which are seen their temporal everybody say temporary temporal means of the earthly realm things that are passing away so everything you're looking at it's not going to be around here too so you in a hundred years because you're not gonna be here in a hundred years but the things which are not seen are eternal Paul said be careful where you're looking you get looking down here and you're gonna get discouraged you're gonna get disillusioned and disheartened but if you'll keep your eyes on the things which can not be seen the things which are eternal that will encourage you in the Lord all spiritual blessings are eternal they existed before we did and when we became God's child God takes those spiritual blessings and it's like he opens a bank account for you and he puts those blessings in your bank account everything you need is already in the bank account of heaven you withdraw it through prayer and worship and faithfulness and consistency in living for God but it's all already there he have blessed us us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus temporal blessings are only temporary anyway but spiritual blessings lasts forever and so so God's already planned everything you need I don't know what you personally might be going through this week but God is not going to go into a panic attack because you had a problem this week he's not gonna have to go into emergency mode thinking oh my goodness what am I gonna do to deliver them God already has planned everything you will ever need for whatever you will ever need the process of growing up in God is is unique to everyone but in many ways it's the same for everyone this process of maturing is learning to let what God's put in you come out through you that's maturing in the Lord when you're young in the Lord what will happen is you'll face a problem and you'll react the same way that you used to react when you were a sinner and it will throw you because you'll think this Christianity thing isn't working it's working but you haven't grown up yet and so it's easy to fall back on old habits always of talking and always of thinking in all ways of reacting but as you begin to mature the reason you look around and you see senior Saints and they look so godly and precious and kind and most of them are but there's a few mean ones somewhere probably they don't attend this church they attend another church but they visit sometimes and and and and you look and you say they're so sweet they're so sweet because they've lived for Jesus long enough that now when the same thing hits them you've maybe been through it once since you started serving God they've been through it 50 times and somewhere along about time 30 they figured out I better stop reacting with my carnal nature and I better let the Holy Ghost handle this because I've messed up 30 times but thirty one's gonna be different and now you see them at time 51 and it looks so easy for them but see maturing in Christ is learning how to pull out of that bank account God put in us when we started we have heavenly riches in us in the Holy Ghost we've just got to learn to pull them out and react that way if you're new at CCC if you're young in the Lord take courage and take heart because a baby born naturally has all the chromosomes and every trait that it's going to have you didn't know this but your receding hairline it was already in your chromosomes when you were a cute little infant mm-hmm you didn't know it but your pot but never mind it was all there everybody said you were skinny all through high school and God knew it's in the chromosomes but can I give you some good news that's really pathetic bad news isn't it you know you had that cute little button nose now it's a mountain I never mind but it was all in your chromosomes when you were born can I tell you something that's actually good news when you were born again everything you will ever need to fight every battle and win that you will ever face God already built it in you when you were born again we we have the idea that somehow we've got a claw and scratch and work so hard to get to a certain place so we can have victory know the victories already in us this is the victory that overcomes the world even our faith it's already in us the Christian life is learning how to let it just kind of come out through us and let the Holy Ghost lead us that's called maturing in Christ you look around the church and you may look around and say well that believer that older saint that senior christian they seem to have so much more of God and that's not even close to true if you've got the Holy Ghost there's no more God than that the Holy Ghost is Christ in you the hope of glory so if you've got the Holy Ghost you've got all of God you could ever have it's not that they've got more of God but they've learned how to walk in the spirit over time and this is what Paul is saying to the Ephesians verse 4 he said so even blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ according as he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world he's already planned this a long time ago that we should be holy and without blame before him in love so so God has chosen us and he's planned all this and he knows what's gonna happen to you he knew about the marital situation he knew about the sickness he knew about the trial he knew about the devastation he already knew it before he ever called you or he ever saved you and he has equipped you to handle it he has equipped you to get through it it might not be fun it might not be joyful it might not be see but God if he's given you the Holy Ghost you're not living in the hand of the world you're not living in the hand of yourself you're not living in the hand of the devil you're in the hand of God and God has planned that you can get through these things there's this beautiful scripture that we quote at funerals but it's not really a funeral scripture first Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 9 and Paul says there as there's written eye has not seen ear has not heard and it hasn't even entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him now we've all cluding pastor we've all read that scripture and applied it to heaven and we've even written songs about it and we've certainly preached sermons about it that that our eye hasn't seen in our ear hasn't heard and it hasn't even entered into our heart what God has prepared and we're thinking about heaven and that's not a bad thing you can kind of preach that concept from other verses but it's not what that verse is talking about how do I know I read the next verse and it says but God hath past-tense revealed them unto us by his Spirit for the spirit searches all things yea the deep things of God that's not talking about heaven when it says I hasn't seen and ear hasn't heard and it hasn't even entered into your heart what God's prepared it's talking about the next step in your Christian life it's talking about 10 years from now if God terry's in your Christian life that you think well it's just gonna kind of be normal and I've struggled the last year and so it's just kind of continuing on the same but God's saying through the word he's saying through the Apostle Paul's pen that you haven't even heard you haven't even thought it hasn't even entered your mind your eye hasn't seen it and your ear hasn't even heard it what God's going to do I remember growing up in the Pentecostal church here in Fredericton actually and and I remember loving my church and loving all those people and I remember going to camp meeting and camp meeting was an exciting thing and there were more of us at camp meeting and it was kind cool because you know that was Church do you understand that in one lifetime for us we've gotten to the place where there are thousands receiving the Holy Ghost in one meeting there are thousands of Pentecostals gathered together in one arena there are all kinds of miracles happening and in all kinds of far-flung places in the world there are multiplied hundreds and thousands of people coming to God whether you're talking about China or Central America or South America whether you're talking about Europe it's happening all over the world and in one lifetime things that I never heard all the while growing up there were great things happened but not on that scale and in one lifetime all of a sudden the reports have multiplied never dreamed that there would ever be in the United Pentecostal church a youth event where 34,000 people would attend one youth event never dreamed that would ever happen but that just happened this past summer never dreamed that we'd get reports from our missionaries of all these wonderful miracles and you know what I was never in a service growing up where we had a couple dozen people get the Holy Ghost in one church service but we've had that happen here more than once and so what we've got to realize is that that verse is not just talking about heaven I hasn't seen an ear hasn't heard that's talking about next month at CCC that's talking about next year serving God that's talking about your family and your miracle over the next few months of you serving God if you could see what God has already planned for you your eyes never seen it but that doesn't mean it's not coming your ear has never heard a report like that but that doesn't mean it's not gonna happen it hasn't even entered into your heart I know you've got a good heart I know your heart loves God I know you're faithful and consistent Saints but if we could take the veil off our eyes it hasn't even entered into our heart what God wants right here in our local church and through all the missionaries we're connected with and this great fellowship we get to be a part of it hasn't even dawned on us what God wants to do that's a good Wednesday night Bible study response to that powerful verse could you give God a little bit more on that one God has planned some incredible things not just for you but for your church not just for our church but for this apostolic movement in the end times I hasn't seen an ear hasn't even heard I love it I love it now the Bible says that he has chosen us verse 4 before the foundation of the world if nobody else has ever wanted you nobody else has ever loved you nobody else has ever showed you any value first of all I want to tell you something you've become part of a church family where people do love you and people do value you and people have chosen you so if nobody in your earthly family ever loved you your church family loves you but it gets better than that because God already said before the foundation of the world I loved you and I chose you and I have a purpose for you God already did that before the heavens and the earth were ever created he knew you'd be around and he loved you and he wanted you and so Paul says he has chosen us past tense that we should present and future tense because of what God's done for me now I should do something for him I don't just say well thank you God for saving me I guess I'll just sit here thank you God for saving me I guess it's all done and I can just coast no because he has now we should and here's how we respawn to the blessing and the love of God that we should be holy and without blame before him in love that's the response of a grateful heart holy is what happens on the inside without blame is what happens on the outside where other people could see it and know that it's wrong so holy is being made right with God on the inside without blame is being made right with everybody on the outside that is our response to what God has already done for us because here's how great it gets verse 5 he has predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will you've heard and seen and we've had those in our church that have adopted precious little children and the beautiful statement about adoption is that from a moms perspective I remember the poem very well never forget for a single minute you didn't grow under my heart but in it that's the adoption pole well let me tell you something God adopted us none of us have enough goodness enough innate righteousness or even enough value in a heavenly scale that God would need us but he adopted us you know when you have children they're your kids but when you adopt a child you choose them and God chose you he chose you to be part of this local church at this time in his plan and I'm glad you're here he predestinated us that's a big theological word I don't think we'll take a lot of time on that but basically predestinated means that you couldn't have affected god's choice no matter what you did you couldn't have affected it but you were predestinated no it's not that he said you're going to heaven no matter what you do and that person's going to hell no matter what they do that's not predestination that's a false teaching but predestinated means that it happened before you had any influence on it so you think that it was that night in 1952 or 1968 or 1974 that you came to the altar for the first time and you think that's when you chose God and yeah that's that's good what a wonderful decision but what you can't see is he predestinated all of that he already knew what the sermon would be and who the preacher would be and what the choir would sing he already knew that you'd be there he knew what row you'd be sitting in he already knew what somebody would have said to you three days before that service that kind of pushed you over the edge and you thought yeah I think I will go to church and you think it was all you and I think it was all me but it wasn't because before we were ever born God already controlled all the factors so that we couldn't know him and serve him and love him and when we had no influence on God choosing us because we didn't exist yet and we had no access to him because of our sin if we did exist but before all that God planned it all out and we were predestined and that's incredible and he chose to adopt us they say in the movie industry that very often they shoot the last scene of a movie first and then they go back and shoot all the other scenes in the context of the powerful ending that's that's the best way to do it they say well can I tell you something God's already shot the last scene of this first he already has seen you going in the rapture he's already he's already got your mansion picked out in the subdivision in the nude Reus love wherever you're gonna live for the endless ages of eternity and he figured all of that out first and now he's back here in time with us but see he lives in eternity time doesn't matter to God so he already knows where you're gonna be for all the endless ages of eternity so the next time you get up on a Wednesday morning or a Thursday morning or a Friday morning and you think life is tough and this isn't fair and I'm not very happy with my situation please remember that this is just one little scene in your life this is just one day out of your eternal existence and it's gonna be over soon enough but God has this eternal plan for you God isn't making this up as he goes along heaven doesn't have a red button to push when there's an emergency God doesn't get hysterical about the things that upset you because here's what God knows that maybe you need to be reminded of this is a fixed fight it doesn't matter what the devil says does or threatens it doesn't matter what the devil thinks or how he acts or how he pushes against the church this is a fixed fight because greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world so it's a fixed fight and it doesn't matter how hell rages horse pits or sputters against you if you stay in Jesus it's already decided you're going to heaven and the devil is going into eternal torment that's why he's trying to take you there because he can't stop himself from going there and so when I think about all of that it gives me courage on a Thursday or a Wednesday or a Monday to serve God because this is a fixed fight God's already conquered the devil and he's just working backwards the devil's cruel he hates you and he hates me for the tailor run up here for a minute would you please there's a little paper sign right there behind that monitor would you just stand right here beside me and just hold that up in front of you here's how hateful and crafty and wily the devil is here's what he did back in the Garden of Eden the devil created this unbelievable dilemma for God the devil thinks he he's never quite grasped that he's not God's equal that's how he fell from heaven he tried to be God's equal I will ascend and I'll do this and I'll do that and so when the devil was cast down to earth and he sees you and me God's creation mankind and he knows how much God loves us and God put us originally in a perfect place the Garden of Eden he loved us and the devil thought in his hateful way don't ever think the devil likes you or loves you or he ever wants anything good for you I don't care how good the temptation looks or how easy it might look out there in the world it's all a trap and here's what the devil did in the Garden of Eden man that God loved he seduced Adam and Eve into sin because he was trying to frustrate God's plan and so he got Adam and Eve to sin and so you have the man that God loves but now inside the man that God loves is the sin that God hates and the devil thinks there you can't do anything now God he's always trying to thwart the purpose of God because as long as what God loved mankind as long as what God loved was separated from what God hated as long as there was no sin and man as long as what God hated was over here and what God loved was over there there's no problem but when the devil trapped us and tricked us and now sin was inside what God loved now what God hates is inside what God loves now there's this huge conflict because if God kills what he hates he has to kill what he loves so it's a conflict and if God loves what he loves he has to love what he hates because sin has now entered into mankind when pastors preach and counsel and talk and oh my goodness they thought pastor was hard in the 60s back then they had to call you on the phone now they can Facebook tweet text social media call email oh my goodness when pastors communicate in whatever way we communicate or leaders communicate and elders communicate with any of you dear folks and they warn you about sin it is not so you can be little mr. or mrs. goody two-shoes and keep the rules and and make pastor's workload less that's not why we get up here and talk about sin that's not why we say stay away from sin that's not why our young people get preached to and taught about sin and we don't care what they're doing at high school you stay away from sin and you think that's awful harsh no that's wonderful because here's why sin is not just a little excursion sin comes with a huge cost see every time we allow sin to get in us we create the same dilemma and the devil loves it as long as you keep sin over here and you stay over they're serving God love and God protected under the blood obedient to the word as long as you're over there God can destroy and judge what he hates and he can love what he loves and the devil is constantly trying to repeat what he did in the Garden of Eden to get sin in you because if what God's hates is inside what God loves the devil knows that's a stalemate now if God is to love what he loves he has to love what he hates and if he's to hate what he hates he has to hate what he loves what an incredible dilemma but the devil has never yet in all of his slimy existence he's never yet been able to create a dilemma that God couldn't come up with a solution for in fact God came up with the solution for that dilemma before that dilemma ever happened he already out strategized the devil before the devil ever came up with the strategy look at revelation 13:8 he is the lamb slain from the foundation of the world so even though the devil thought he'd messed God up permanently in the Garden of Eden and God did have to kick us out and God did have to let judgment come and every time a lady has a child and she's in the pain of childbirth that's a penalty of sin in the Garden of Eden and every time a man is exhausted because he's worked all day and and the sweat of his brow that's that's a curse from the Garden of Eden that's because of sin and every time somebody dies and we have their funeral that's a penalty that's because of sin in the Garden of Eden but here's the thing God has already blessed us with spiritual blessings in heavenly places that overcome all of those curses in the earthly realm so God was the lamb slain from the foundation of the world the Garden of Eden happened long after the solution had already been planned in the of God and the devil thought their God what do you do with that God I'll tell you what I'll do I'll take this and you can go for you that's what Calvary did I wish somebody in this room thank you brother Taylor I wish somebody would lift up your thanks to God the elders wrote an old beautiful song that we sing sometimes it's called my thanks to him I wish you give your thanks to God right now because you've sinned you've messed up I don't care how long you've been in church or how good a person you are there are some things in your life that they weren't nice and they weren't right and they were certainly not godly but God already had a plan and even if you messed up this week the same plan that got us out of trouble after we messed it up in the Garden of Eden that same plan of mercy and grace love and forgiveness that'll dig you out of a ditch today that'll dig you out of a ditch in 2017 because it's still the Lamb of God that was slain from the foundation of the world you're not serving a God who just reacts to everything he's not having a panic attack God acts he acts preemptively he acts strategically he's already supplied everything you need I love you Jesus I love you Jesus Jesus Jesus somebody needs the mercy of God it's already there it's a heavenly blessing it's a spiritual blessing that comes from a heavenly place but every time you need it it'll come down here to this earthly realm and it'll turn it around somebody needs God's love or God's forgiveness or God's healing power that's a heavenly blessing that's a spiritual blessing in a heavenly place but as we pray in worship we can pull spiritual blessings from a heavenly realm down to this earthly realm I don't care what the devil tried to do to you this week the grace of God is greater than his worst attack the mercy of God it works even when the devil has messed you up royally it works God is love God is forgiveness God is Grace and God is mercy our God is never on the defensive he's always on the offensive he's not a God who just reacts he's a God who sovereignly acts there is nothing the enemy can ever do that God can't turn it around in fact the devil has never had a creative thought or an original thought all he ever does is abort what God does that's all he ever does God tries to bless mankind and the devil tries to mess it up and abort it but there is no way that Satan can outmaneuver Jesus we already saw that at Calvary and so God he has blessed us we have these blessings they are ours and we're like God's general contractors as we live for God as we build his church as we witness as we serve him we're building in time what he has planned for us in eternity so the best thing you can do for yourself is give up your own little plan for your own little life and just say yes to God's plan for your life that blesses you in unbelievable ways he's predestinated us verse 5 under the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will he adopted us knowing fully who we were what we would do see for those of us that have had children you do your best you pray you teach she trained you correct lovingly you raised you school but we all know as parents cuz we've all heard the stories and we all have friends and maybe it's in your family that a child grows up and they make a choice that just takes them so far away from what you would want for them now you had those children and and you love them no matter what they do because they're your kids but God has a deeper love than you do because God adopted us knowing everything we would do in the future even after we became his child he knew for anybody here that served God for a while and then you back slid and now you've come back thank God you've come back we're so glad you've come back we're so proud of you for coming back to God but for everybody that Backson took a vacation from God God knew about the years you'd spend cursing him when you grew up loving him and he still chose you and he still adopted you before you ever knew him for everybody that's ever battled with what the psychology field calls low self-esteem verse six probably should be your verse he has adopted us to the praise of the glory of His grace and I'm caught away in this tonight I'm sorry wherein he has made us accepted in the beloved you might not feel accepted by different groups here you might not feel accepted by your own family you might not feel accepted by those that you call your friends and life can be lonely sometimes and life can be hard sometimes but talk about a boost to your self-esteem even if nobody else has accepted you you are accepted in the beloved adopt adoption in Paul's time wasn't like adoption today in our day you go and you adopt a child and a lot of people even want to adopt an infant and the reason that they do it's not a selfish thing they want to adopt a child that's young they would prefer probably to adopt an infant because they can raise that adopted child that genetically biologically is not theirs but they want to to teach that child and and the earlier they get them they can drain them to be part of our family not the family that your biology says you're part of but in the Paul's time adoption wasn't like that for the most part in Paul's time you didn't adopt children unless there was a tragedy and the parents died you didn't adopt children in Paul's time adoption was one adult who had resources usually they were childless in that family but they were wealthy and they would adopt an heir they had no children so they had nobody to pass their wealth down to but this childless couple that was usually of means they would choose we don't have an heir so we want somebody that's gonna inherit everything of ours so let's go adopt a son let's go adopt a child let's go adopt an heir but it wouldn't be a six year old or a six month old it would be a full-grown adult that they would adopt into their family to be an heir if they died somebody would inherit their wealth do you understand the picture here the picture isn't that God went into the maternity ward and he chose somebody that he didn't know how they were gonna grow up or even what they were gonna look like her mistakes they were gonna make no God adopted us after he already knew we were sinners and we'd made mistakes we were full-grown in that sense you understand what I mean we already had sin we already had a human nature we already had and yet God he'd walk into the maternity ward he walked into the emergency room he walked into the place where you were laying on a gurney or on a stretcher in your life was a mess and you had problems and addictions and a past and a list of sins a mile long God didn't walk into the innocence of your life he walked into the guilt of your life he didn't walk into the cleanness and the purity of your life he walked into the sin and maybe even the debauchery of your life and God said they're not at all like me they're from a whole different family but I want them in my family and even though they're full-grown and even though they've got a pass and even though they've got a history I love them I want them and I want to make them my heir so they can inherit everything that I've got in the bank account of heaven that's adoption in the Bible sense and it makes it even more powerful and even more beautiful I need to come to a close very quickly so let's just go maybe another verse or two and we'll we'll quit for tonight verse 7 in whom in Jesus we have redemption through his blood and we have the forgiveness of sins and it is according to the riches of His grace we've all had places in our life situations where we had to forgive somebody and before you get all high and mighty yes I've had to forgive so many people well they were doing the same thing for you while you were doing that for them we've all had to forgive and we've all had to ask for forgiveness but but here's what God did for us we have redemption through his blood we have the forgiveness of sins and that forgiveness and that redemption is not according to how much you can do it's not according to how many resources you have it's according to the riches of His grace wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence Paul saying now you're you've been adopted into a new family here you're different now you have a bank account your dad has given you he's redeemed you and he's done this not according to your resources he's done it according to his resources verse 9 having made known unto us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself you didn't do it God did it you couldn't have planned it God planned it it's still a mystery to us it's the mystery of his will and he's making it known unto us and that's why sometimes we feel like we are so in the dark because the mystery is being revealed day by day and trial by trial victory by victory it's a mystery it's the mystery of his will but he is making it known to us but it's on his timetable it's according to his good pleasure it's according to what he has purposed not what you've purposed so you can pray the magic prayer come to the special spot at the altar you can have the right people lay hands on you and whatever and and and and I believe that God intervenes and God does miracles and we've seen him do it it's wonderful but if it doesn't happen for you on the timetable you want in the way you want don't get frustrated with God because there's still a mystery to his will and he's making it known unto us and it's according to his pleasure and his purpose last verse and will it will will finish here tonight verse 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ both which are in heaven and which are on earth even in him here's what Paul's saying this is hard to explain he's he's brilliant and he and I'm neither so I'm just trying to kind of interpret here that in the dispensation of the fullness of times as God's plan comes together that's not talking about heaven that's talking about his plan as it comes together here even on earth it's it's his fullness of times that he might gather together in one all things in Christ both which are in heaven and which are on earth even in him we're part of one family of God how many of you have members of your family that don't live here in Fredericton would you raise your hand so so you have people that they don't live in the same place that you live and yet they're part of your family even though they live in a different place do you understand what Paul's talking about when he says that we're one he's gathered together in one all things in Christ both which are in heaven and which are on earth and it's all in him he's talking about our family I thank God for our church family our church family is way bigger than the people you see in this room tonight for one thing there's the people on campus there's kids ministry there's youth ministry there's Nursery many services there's there some ESL going on tonight so our church family is bigger than what you see in this room and then we have people that might be sick and body and some of them are watching right now we're always so glad to have you on especially those of you that are sick and in hospital we're praying for you we don't forget you just because you're not here and our church family is bigger than the people you see even on this campus tonight because there's people like that that are watching online or they're part of our church and they couldn't be here tonight for one reason or another our church family is bigger than all of that because there's other churches precious Apostolic people and they might be a rural Church where we're a City Church although I'm not sure how much Fredericton qualifies as a real City but we think we are so good good and and and some churches are small and some churches are big and we're part of that family so God's families way bigger than what you could imagine just by here and it's even bigger than that because we've got missionary friends some of them out of this congregation that are all over the world and some of those churches are massive and God's family is way bigger than what you see in this building or what you see with your eyes it's it literally straddles and girdles the globe God's family is all around the world and they might not be able to even talk to you because they speak Chinese and you speak English and you can't communicate but there's a unity there because they're part of your family even though they live in a different place but God's family is even bigger than that because it's not just the family on earth it's the family that is in heaven and the family that's on earth and it's all one in him so there are people that they're not here tonight and we don't believe anything spooky or weird about people that have gone on and there's lots of people that you know believe crazy things about when you die some people believe you know that they're still with me and you know if that's comforting go ahead but that's not true people say well they're an angel in heaven no they're not that would be like saying they're a cat in heaven it's a different species it's not true you don't turn into an angel when you die if that's comforting that's fine but it's not true they're redeemed in heaven they're the saints of God in heaven and the whole point of heaven I don't want to step on anybody's toes I'm certainly not trying to cause a theological argument at the in the closing moments of Bible study that wouldn't be very bright but but the whole point of being heaven is that you're not here who wants to go to heaven and then have to watch all of us down here your Grandpa's not in heaven going oh no oh no don't do that don't go there you've got in trouble last time you went there what kind of existence with that the whole point of going to heaven so you don't have to be here but there's a wider theological sense our family's not just God's family here we've already got family over there and just like your family's still part of your family even though they live in a different place those people are still part of our family even though they live in a different place it was their prayer and their sacrifice their giving their worship their faithfulness that got us to where we are right now and so it's not just about us that are here we don't get all the credit oh well we've got a bigger building than they had 30 years ago big deal we have a building because they had a little building and they were faithful and invested and so it's all one family it's the whole family Paul says in another place in whom in heaven and in earth I'm really grateful for my family now you know how family is because if if somebody picked on one of you in school you might fight like cats and dogs with your siblings all the time but that all saying Bloods thicker than water that's really true and you might fight with your brother but if you got into trouble your brother would fight whoever was giving you trouble and if you got a large enough family you just don't want to cross some people we've had people come to preach for us and said man I can't gossip about anybody in New Brunswick they're all related to each other well we are we're part of the family of God and when you pick on one of us you've picked on all of us devil when you attack one of us you've tried to attack all of us and one of us might not be very strong but all of us together we can push you back and knock you down and we're one family furthermore we've got some older brothers and sisters that are already in heaven and they may live in a different place than we live but they're still our family and we take incredible courage and inspiration from the fact that they weren't anything special they weren't anything so strong or so great they were just normal people like us and if they made it everyone of us can make it that's not putting them down that's telling us that we're gonna be okay if they could make it you can make it it's one thing Paul starts out his letter to Ephesians and he's telling us you believe this you've heard this preached I preached this to you when I pastored in Ephesus eath he's saying this is what you believe but don't just believe it in here become it don't don't just believe that God gives you victory and then let the devil beat you up every day don't just believe that you've got power over sin but then yield to sin every week become what you believe you're stronger than you think you are you're mightier than the devil will admit to you but you've just got to become what you believe would you stand with Pastor I feel a presence of the Lord have felt the Lord in a very special unique way maybe a kind of an individual way tonight I'm not sure how to even describe it but I thank God for it would you lift up your hands and let's not do a dismissal prayer yet let's just do a prayer prayer let's not get ready to go just yet let's let's pray for a moment because it's important that we become the people that we say we believe these truths is important that we become these truths that we live out these truths my prayer warriors in this room would you lift up your voice and help the rest of us some of us it's it's difficult to just kind of snap into prayer but my intercessors and prayer warriors just push your way into prayer you'll help some of the rest of us there's a wonderful witness of the Holy Ghost in Bible study tonight yeah yeah give vent to that you feel it right now there there's a powerful witness of the Holy Ghost right now you can make it you can overcome it you can get through it you can get through the trial you can get through the sickness you can get through the setback because you can become what it is that you believe you you heard about it from the word but you can become this you can flesh it out Jesus was the Word made flesh but you can be the word example in flesh and the word living in flesh Arabic where a teller has OSA a talker Deus Arabic Rasha Rasha cetera basi ASA I'm gonna book good ideas yes up I can't forgive you but God's word has already declared you're forgiven I can't heal you but God's word has already declared you are healed I can't make you victorious but God's word has already declared you're more than a conqueror so so we just need to enter in to what the word has already said about us and just live what the words there are strong people in this room this isn't some weak little Church this is God's church this isn't some fractured little tribe of people this is God's family together we're mighty United we're an unstoppable force we are on the way to becoming what God has decreed we can be in the last days harvest field and in last days revival and I thank God for it abba-abba-abba to Kosh a teleportal avocado curry - ABBA I worship you Jesus I worship you Jesus I worship you Jesus a radius of erratic yourself [Music] so they really we hope decoration I love you thank you Jesus would you just consciously wait on the Lord for a couple of moments you can worship while you wait you can pray while you wait use your voice while you wait but but let's just wait on the Lord for a couple of moments before we leave tonight we normally do this almost every service but I think it would be especially helpful tonight somebody may be here and the devil's been attacking your mind and just giving you a rough time we're strong when we're together so we do this a lot I know but but if you'd help pastor just we'll take a couple minutes and we'll still be out on time would you just reach over and let's pray one for another because when we pray together when we love God together when we serve God together when we study the Bible together when we go to prayer together we're strong we're strong we're strong so would you get a hold of somebody maybe put your hand on their shoulder take another hand whatever connecting someway and now would you just lift up your voice and we'll let this be our closing prayer we're going out there to do some damage to Hell and do some great things for heaven we're going out there to just be God's people in an ungodly world we're strong when we're together there's nothing like the church there's nothing like the church thank you God for your people thank you for your plan thank you Jesus thank you for my brothers and sisters they strengthened me when I'm with them thank you Jesus for senior Saints elders in the faith that show us that we can do this we can make it we're going to be okay thank you God for your great family some of them are already in heaven some of them are around the world in far-flung nations but God some of them are right here I thank you for your family and your great plan I worship you Jesus tippy Jesus I worship you God I Love You God I worship you Jesus I Love You God I Love You Jesus and worship worship thank you Jesus amen what a beautiful and powerful witness of the Holy Ghost tonight anytime the devil says to you in your ear well that's just normal you know it's normal to be defeated and it's normal to be depressed that's normal that's just normal any time the devil starts saying that or you remind the devil of two things first of all normal for a child of God is not the same as normal for a person in the world and secondly remind the devil that he can't tell the truth stay on a stack of Bibles he's lying to you we have a right to be victorious because of what God has given us spiritual blessings in heavenly places love you is such an honor and a privilege to be your pastor thank you for being a Bible study

Channel: Capital Community Church

Views: 19,097

Rating: 4.8539324 out of 5

Keywords: become, what, you, believe, part, one, pastor, raymond, woodward, preaching, preach, sermon, ccc, capital, community, church, fredericton, nb, new, brunswick, canada, upc, upci, united, pentecostal, international, pentecost, apostolic, christian

Id: b99huJmKXaw

Length: 73min 20sec (4400 seconds)

Published: Thu Oct 12 2017