Rob was having lunch with a guy who was telling Rob about a struggle he had been having for a while with sin. He said he knew he was a sinner and that he was falling and that he would keep committing this one sin, and he knew he was going to keep committing this one sin because he was a sinner and his nature was evil and there was nothing he could do about it because he was a sinner... Do I have to go on?
His question was, "Why do I struggle like this?"
The problem was that his system was perfectly designed to achieve the results he was getting. His system: He is convinced he is a sinner, convinced he is going to sin, and he has no hope against sin because it's in his nature. It's no wonder he wonders why he sins.
This mindset makes us feel guilty... it guilts us into doing something for God. I don't think this is what Jesus had in mind.
But what is the message? What did Jesus have in mind? How should people feel about themselves?
The Bible gives us a clear answer. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. When we become Christians, a fundamental change takes place in our identity. Our old identity ceases to exist.
What are some of the characteristics of our new identity? Read Colossians 3: 12-17
What are we supposed to do? How can we start doing these things right now, today?
This is who we are. In Philippians 3:16, Paul tells us to "live up to what we have already attained." What have we attained?
What does this mean for the Christian life? To begin, Christians are people learning who they are in Christ. We are being taught about our new identity. Do you see how deeply this new identity affects the life of a community? I heard a teacher say that if people were taught more about who they are, they wouldn't have to be told what to do. It would come naturally. When people spend most of their time convincing others not to sin, we see a people who have missed the point. The point is not "sin management." The point is who we are now in Christ. Sin has already been managed. We could not manage it ourselves so Jesus died on the cross for ALL sin. ALL people. Everywhere. Every tribe, every tongue, and every nation.
Read Colossians 1:20. How many people did Jesus reconcile?
Jesus died on the cross for all sin. This is the reality. Our choice is to live in this new reality or cling to a reality of our own making. The reality is that all of the bad parts of our lives, the ugly parts of our lives, and the parts of our lives we wish never happened are all forgiven. Sometimes we find ourselves asking, "Am I really forgiven for that?" We feel like it is too good to be true. But the amazing thing is... IT IS TRUE! We can trust in this reality that God has created where we are forgiven, or we can trust in the story we spin for ourselves. It's a choice we make every day about the reality we live in. We can choose to live in God's reality, or in our reality void of God. The realities extend beyond this physical life. Heaven is a place where people live in God's reality. Hell is a place where people live in their own reality, void of God's existence. People from Heaven and Hell have been forgiven; Jesus paid it ALL! What we believe about these realities determines the path each of us will take.
When we choose God's reality of who we are, we are living as God made us to live. We are living in the flow of how we are going to live forever. This is the life of Heaven. If we live this life in harmony with God's intentions for us, Heaven becomes more present in our lives. Heaven comes to Earth (Matthew 6:10). There is this place, this reality, Heaven, where things are as God desires them to be. As we live this way, Heaven comes here, to the place we are living in, today.
Now, if there is a life of heaven, and we can choose it, there there's also another life, and we can choose it as well. A reality of living out of sync with how God created us to live. The word for this reality is Hell. Hell is the reality absent of how God desires things to be. Just like we can bring Heaven to Earth, we can also bring Hell to Earth. It is our choice.
For Jesus, this new kind of life in Him is not about escaping this world, but about making it a better place, here and now. It's about showing God's love to the world. The goal for Jesus isn't to get a ticket to Heaven. The goal is to bring Heaven to Earth, to get Heaven here, today. Read Revelation 21:3.
God made us in His image. We reflect the beauty and creativity and wonder of the God who made us. Jesus wants us to return to our true selves, the ones God intends us to be, before we veered off course. God wants you to be you. He doesn't need a second anybody. God knew exactly what He was doing when He make you. There are no accidents, no coincidences. God wants you to embrace your true identity, who are you in Christ, letting this new awareness transform your life.
This is what Jesus had in mind.
This is what brings Heaven to Earth.
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