I Am Alive
Sermon Audio
Sermon Notes
Intro:
Hey everybody my name’s Louis I’m one of the pastor’s here at the church, it’s great to be with you. Today we’re continuing our series called “Identity: I am ___,” and it’s all about helping us to learn who we really are, not who society’s molded us to be. More importantly it’s about helping us to learn who God says we are, not who society says we are, and one of the things society’s taught us is to create avatar images of ourselves. We’ve been taught to create avatar images, to keep certain parts of our identity hidden, to keep it secretive so we can be accepted by others. We’ve been taught things like don’t show your weaknesses, don’t show your insecurities, don’t show your deepest darkest sins, or how dirty your house REALLY is before people come over. We’re taught to keep stuff like this hidden because if people know the truth about who we really are, they might think differently of us and not accept us. As a result we’ve created these avatar images of ourselves where people only get half of who we really are.
Look the most real you’ve ever been to yourself and others was when you were a child. If you ever watch a child they’re extremely free, way more free in their identity than we are. They can care less about wearing their superman or superwoman pajamas in public. They can care less about what others think. They care to be loved, but they can care less about what others think, and so they run around freely expressing their strengths and weaknesses, their securities and insecurities, their innocence and sinfulness. Children are way more free in their identity than we are. But as time goes on we’re taught by society to create avatar images, to keep certain things hidden, and we spend much of our lives trying to hide our weaknesses, insecurities, and sins only to have them keep poking their heads up whenever we face things like rejection, failure, or temptation. We can’t run from it, so we try to hide it with our avatar lives, and this is the life society’s taught us to live. Today I’m gonna show you how Christianity offers us a much better life than that. I’m gonna show you how the gospel, how Jesus can affect our avatar identities. So let’s turn to Ephesians 2:1-10 and get into it. The title of today’s message is “I am alive.” I am alive. What does it mean to be alive with Christ, and how does that affect our avatar identities?
Context:
Here’s your context. Paul, the author of Ephesians uses the phrase “in Christ” or its equivalent “with Christ,” “in him,” “in the beloved,” at least 30 different times in Ephesians, and each of those phrases are an identity indicator as to who you really are in Christ. So whenever you see the phrase “in Christ” or it’s equivalent, it’s an identity indicator as to who you are in Christ. Now in our study of Ephesians we’re not gonna hit all 30 plus “in Christ” phrases, we’re just gonna hit the dominant identity themes found in the texts we’re preaching on, and this week’s dominant theme is “I am alive!” Let’s find out what it means to be alive with Christ.
The Word:
Ephesians 2:1-10 states this, “And you were dead...” Paul says “you were dead,” not physically dead, but spiritually dead. He says “You WERE dead,” it’s past tense, meaning once you have a relationship with Jesus you’re no longer dead anymore. You’re no longer spiritually dead which means part of your “I am ___ statement” should read “I am alive!” It should read “I am alive.” But what’s it mean to be dead?..What’s it’s mean to be spiritually dead?..Paul tells us.
Again vs. 1, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” So Paul basically says 3 things about being spiritually dead. He’s says:
#1 To be spiritually dead means you’re guilty of your “trespasses and sins” = It means you’re guilty of your trespasses and sins. Everybody’s guilty of trespassing and sinning against God and His creation because we’re all born with a sin nature. I mean when a child’s born they don’t have to be taught to sin, they just start sinning. They’ll learn some sins from adults, but not all sins. Some sins they just start doing on their own without being taught. For example I never taught my kids to bite another kid, take their toy, and lie about it after they do it. But when they were younger they did it and I’d ask “Did you bite that kid?” Nope...“Did you take that toy?” Nope...I just saw them do it, they know I saw them do it, but they’re like “Nope, didn’t do it” Now unless my sweet wife has a hidden avatar identity that includes biting people like a piranha, there’s no reason my kids should’ve started biting, stealing, and lying about it. We never taught them to do any of those things, yet they did it. They did it because of their sin nature. Everybody is born with a sin nature, everybody trespasses and sins against God and His creation, and those who are spiritually dead are considered guilty in their trespasses and sins.
#2 To be spiritually dead means you’re following “the prince of the air” = Paul says people who are spiritually dead are following the prince of the air, meaning they’re following Satan not God. Satan knows we’re born with a sin nature and so he keeps adding temptation sticks to the fire hoping we’ll keep trespassing and sinning against God and His creation. Paul calls him the prince of “the air” because he’s running around the world whispering lies and temptations in the air, in our ears. People who are spiritually dead are following the whispers of Satan, and it’s causing them to reject God, deny God, keep trespassing and sinning against God and His creation. They’re following Satan’s voice not God’s, which leads to #3.
#3 To be spiritually dead means you’re a “child of wrath” = Paul says to be spiritually dead means you’re a child of wrath. It’s because you’re still guilty of your trespasses and sins, and guilty of listening to the voice of Satan not God. The truth is none of us are deserving of God’s grace, God’s presence, or the rewards of heaven because of our trespasses and sins. We’re not deserving of God’s grace, we’re deserving of God’s wrath, and that’s the bad news. It’s the bad news of what it means to be spiritually dead. It’s the news society tells us not to talk about which only leads to not just an avatar life, but an avatar world. It’s an avatar world where millions of people are walking around spiritually dead, and they don’t even know it. They’re an object of wrath, not an object of grace, and that’s the bad news...here’s the good news.
Vs. 4, “But God...” Let that sink in for a second...But God...Let that sink in...
Vs. 4, “But God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ...” There’s the good news, there’s the big idea, there’s the great message of Christianity and what God does for the spiritually dead who put their faith in Jesus, who are willing to believe Jesus was God who came to live, die, and rise again for their sins. He makes those who are spiritually dead, alive! Paul says you WERE spiritually dead! But God. You WERE guilty of trespasses and sins! But God. You WERE born with a sin nature! But God. You WERE following the whispers of Satan! But God. You WERE by nature a child of wrath! But God. But God saw all this and was still willing to make us alive with Christ! Why? Because that’s who the God of Christianity is...It’s who the God of Christianity is...Paul says He’s “rich in mercy” and because that’s who He is, it’s what He does. He extends His mercy to us even when we don’t deserve it. But God. God’s made us alive with Christ, which is why we can say “I am alive.” I am alive...But what’s it mean to be alive, to be spiritually alive? Paul tells us 5 things about being spiritually alive with Christ.
Again vs. 4, “But God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved, 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Okay so there’s the first 2 things Paul tells us about being alive with Christ. He tells us: #1 To be alive with Christ means you’re “saved” = Paul says to be alive with Christ means you’re saved. Saved from what? Saved from the spiritually dead life you were living, saved from your sin nature which made you more prone to listen to Satan’s whispers, and saved from God’s wrath which you deserved because of your trespasses and sins. To be alive with Christ means to be saved from all those things, and to be saved to a new life, a forgiven life, with a new nature that’s now prone to listen to the whispers of God not the whispers of Satan. To be alive with Christ means you’re saved from being an object of wrath, to being an object of grace.
#2 To be alive with Christ means your “seat” in heaven is eternally secured = Paul says you’re “raised up” and “seated” with Christ in heaven. He’s saying our spiritually dead bodies have been raised up to spiritual life and seated with Christ, but he’s also pointing to the future hope of our eternal security with Christ. He’s saying we’re guaranteed to be raised to life like Christ, and seated in heaven with Christ. So to be alive with Christ means God not only saves you, He also eternally secures you. He’s guaranteed you a seat at the table with Jesus. I am alive...I’m alive and waiting to take my seat at the table. Here’s what’s awaiting us at the table.
Vs. 7, “So that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” That’s what’s waiting for us at the table, that’s what’s waiting for us in heaven. It’s God showing us the immeasurable riches of His grace, which is #3.
#3 To be alive with Christ means you’ll be shown “the immeasurable riches of His grace” = In eternity God will show us “the immeasurable riches of His grace.” Now let’s think about that for a second, especially in light of the gospel. I mean how amazing is the gospel to you?..How amazing is the gospel to you, how amazing is God’s grace poured out on the cross for you?..It’s the most amazing thing in the world to those who are spiritually alive. Now sometimes our hearts will wander to other things, it happens to me too, and it’s in those times we need to remember the gospel and ask God to restore our amazement of the gospel again. But deep down inside the gospel’s the most amazing thing in the world to the spiritually alive. Jesus dying for us on the cross is greater than our wedding day, our child’s birth, our graduation, our Summa Cum Lade awards, it’s greater than anything else in the world which makes what Paul says about God’s grace being immeasurable so interesting. It’s interesting because it means we’ve barely scratched the surface of our understanding and experience of God’s grace. In fact the Greek word for “immeasurable” means “to surpass.” It means to surpass our understanding and experience of God’s grace. It’s not God’s grace that’s to be surpassed, it’s our understanding and experience of that grace that’s to be surpassed. Now if we’re already blown away by God’s grace on the cross, and if we’ve barely even scratched the surface of our understanding and experience of that grace, imagine how much more blown away we’ll be when we’re standing in the presence of Jesus and the immeasurable riches of His grace...In eternity, we’ll never exhaust of God or the immeasurable riches of His grace. To be alive with Christ means God shows us some of His grace now, but He’ll show us even more fully the immeasurable riches of His grace in the future. I am alive...I am alive now, and can’t wait to see the immeasurable riches of His grace later.
Vs. 8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” That’s #4.
#4 To be alive with Christ means you don’t need to “work” for God’s acceptance = To be alive with Christ means that unlike society, you don’t need to work for God’s acceptance. A lot of people think they can gain or lose their relationship with God based on good or bad works. “If I do good works, if I do good deeds God will love and accept me. But if I do bad works, if I do bad deeds God won’t love and accept me.” Paul says that’s not true, we’re saved by God’s grace not by our works, which means God doesn’t love you any more when you’re obedient or any less when you’re disobedient. Remember the “But God.” But God saved us, loved us, accepted us, poured out His grace on us before we were spiritually alive, He did it when we were spiritually dead. It’s because we’re saved by God’s grace, not by our works. So to be alive with Christ means you don’t have to work for God’s acceptance. You’re free from having to work your way UP to God with your good deeds, and free from having to run FROM God because of your bad deeds. You don’t have to work your way UP to God or run FROM God, instead you’re free to live FOR God. I am alive...I’m alive and free to live FOR God, which Paul talks about next.
Vs. 10, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus FOR good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” That’s the 5th and last thing Paul teaches us about what it means to be alive with Christ. He teaches us: #5 To be alive with Christ means you need to “work,” BECAUSE of God’s acceptance = You need to work not FOR God’s acceptance, but BECAUSE of God’s acceptance, or in response to God’s acceptance. Paul says we’re created in Christ, made spiritually alive in Christ “FOR good works,” meaning we’re to be a display of Him and His grace in the world. I think this is important because we’re living in a time where we’ve pushed grace so much in America, and we should! But we’ve pushed grace so much that we’ve downplayed the need for Christians to work. I’m not talking about working for God’s grace, salvation, or acceptance because He’s already given us that in Christ, instead I’m talking working BECAUSE of those things, because of God’s grace. But we’ve pushed grace so much in America, that we need to be careful of creating couch potato Christians that think they don’t need to work, don’t need to strive for holiness, don’t need to strive for obedience, read their bibles, pray, be committed to the church, committed to serving in and outside the church laboring together for the gospel in our city. “Yeah but I’m too busy for all that.” We’re all too busy. We don’t labor for the gospel because it’s convenient or easy, we labor for the gospel because we’ve received God’s grace and want others to receive His grace too. His grace is the most amazing thing in the world, it’s immeasurable, it’s too amazing for us to do nothing like a bunch of couch potato Christians. God saved you for something so much greater than that. Paul says He saved you FOR good works, to be a display of His grace in our city, to be not the walking dead, but the walking living. He saved you to be the walking living, to be a display of His grace to the walking dead in our city. What kind of display does our city see in you?..What kind of display does our city see in you?..Does our city see you as the walking dead, or do they see something different in you, do they see you as the walking living, as a display of God’s grace?
The Big Idea:
Let’s get to the big idea. Here’s the big idea. I am alive...I am alive...When you have a relationship with Jesus your “I am __” statement should include the word “alive,” which means life is a part of your identity. I am alive, and when God makes you alive with Christ, it means you don’t have to live the avatar life society’s taught you to live. You don’t have to try and hide your weaknesses, insecurities, sins, and greatest disgraces hoping to be accepted by others, at least not with Jesus. If you air your dirt out to people in society, you might not be accepted. Society might not accept you IF they knew who you really are, but Jesus went to the cross for you BECAUSE of who you are...Society might not accept you IF they knew who you really are, but Jesus went to the cross for you BECAUSE of who you are...Christianity offers us, the Gospel offers us a much better life than the avatar life society offers us. It’s a much better life because it offers us a relationship with Jesus who sees right through our avatar lives, into our spiritually dead souls, and is still willing to save us anyways. Jesus offers us a life of acceptance and grace, despite our greatest disgrace. His grace is greater than your greatest disgrace...Jesus’ grace will always be immeasurably greater than your greatest disgrace...So let’s go to Jesus with our avatar lives, with our greatest disgraces, because he already knows who you really are, not the half truth society’s taught you to be, and he still went to the cross for you. Let’s go to him because of that, worship him for that, and be a walking display of His grace in our city. I am alive.