Title: The survivor
2010.2.28 Sunday Morning Worship Sermon
Ephesians 2:1-7 ‘1. He raised you, who were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2. In those days you walked according to the customs of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the Spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience. Among them, we lived according to the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like others. 4. Because of the great love that God, who is rich in mercy, loved us. made life together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6. He also raised us up and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7. so that by showing mercy to us in Christ Jesus the exceeding riches of his grace may be revealed in the generations to come.
In verse 1 of today's text, it says that He raised us from the dead in our trespasses and sins. We are the living, and the unbeliever is the dead. I would like to share a message about the existence of the saints under the title <The One Who Lived>.
1. The Living and the Dead
Text Ephesians 2:1 It says, 'You were dead in your transgressions and sins...', but in other words, because of Adam's original sin, not my experience, life is born with a sinful nature and growing up, no matter how much education and personal training you have. From the root of sin, many sins have been emitted in the history of mankind.
The scene of his death is the very text, Ephesians 2:2, “In those days you walked according to the customs of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience.”
According to the world's customs, it is said that the history behind life is driven by instinctive social values and is controlled by the one who holds the power of the air, that is, Satan.
1 John 5:19 “And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in the evil one.”
John 5:24-25 ‘…he who believes has eternal life…and has passed from death to life, 25…the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live’.
The Bible used a more specific and extreme parable of the ordinary life apart from God, Ecclesiastes 3:18-19 '...to make them realize that they are no different than the beasts... 19. ... .There is no superiority of man over beasts, all things are in vain.'
What is the difference between a living animal and a life that, even though it is alive, goes to destruction? Life without God is already dead, so what good is there in the writings, books, or claims of the dead, and is there any message to live on? Man is alive, but let's be dead. Only by being born again of the spirit in Jesus Christ will we become living and have eternal life.
2. If you live according to the flesh, you will die.
We, who have been raised in Christ Jesus, still have a sinful nature and cannot fully follow the good will of God. As in verse 3 of the text, before the text
Ephesians 2:3 “In the midst of them, we all lived in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like others.” The content of life as a dead being is characterized by living according to the desires of the flesh. is. The inner man of the believer who has been renewed by receiving the Holy Spirit wants to grow day by day. This is called the sanctified life of the saints.
Galatians 5:16 “I tell you, walk by the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”
Since we are of the spirit, we now know that if we live according to the desires of the flesh, we will be disciplined by God. God said that every child He receives will bear a rod. Romans 12:8 “All discipline is acceptable, but if you do not have it, you are an illegitimate son and not a true son.”
It's someone else's child, I can't take an active interest in it, but my child takes the rod to the right path. The Bible tells us to take up the rod when raising children. It is the duty of parents to raise their children to rebuke and to take the rod.
The Church is a spiritual organization and an organization that serves as the heart of the world. However, while living according to the flesh, both European and Western churches collapsed, and as the Korean church grew bloated, the inside of the church became a mess, and as the number of churches slowly decreased, God's stinging judgment was right in front of us. why? Because they live according to the flesh and do not repent. No one calls for repentance. only up. This is the way of death.
3. Those who are alive and enjoy the glory of heaven
Believing in Jesus does not mean living in the world for free in order to go to heaven after death. Today’s text, Ephesians 2:6 “He raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus”
In Christ Jesus, we are seated together in heaven, saying that although we are on earth, we are already spiritually living in heavenly glory.
Philippians 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven…”
It means that Christians must already enjoy the benefits of being citizens of heaven. They said that the saints are citizens of the kingdom of God, not citizens of any city in the world. If they live in the kingdom of God only in their name, but their will or attitude to live like a villager, what kind of evidence will they be as citizens of the kingdom of God?
The saints must be changed by reform in every way. Reforming every day is a characteristic of the living. If we just live according to our nature, wouldn't we be dead? You and I must have been alive.
We must enjoy all the rights we receive as citizens of the kingdom of God. Then there will be obligations. There must be a civil law for the kingdom of God that God wants, and that is the Bible.
Now, I pray that you and I will be able to enjoy the heavenly glory by wiping away all the worldly physical and weak natures that have earthly nature and living according to the new laws the Lord has taught us. *