Classic Christianity Radio (03-12-19) – Created Anew Part 2
Bob George shares from Ephesians about being created anew, that both the Jew and the Gentile, as one body in Christ Jesus, are saved the same way.
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Bob explains mercy and grace and how God provided both mercy and grace to us in Christ Jesus. God showed mercy when he withheld death from us, who deserved and earned death because of sin. God extended grace to us when he offered eternal life as a gift, something we never deserved and could never earn. Bob then explained the difference between belief and faith. Belief is necessary for faith but is not automatic in the faith. True faith is putting trust in Jesus Christ, in what he accomplished for you in his death, burial and resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures
Bob George continues his teaching, explaining this new spiritual birth.
2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Spiritual birth is a new birth, a new creation of God, and not a birth of mom and dad.
This new birth is not by the will of mom and dad, nor is it from your heritage as a Jew or a Gentile.
John 1:12-14
12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
By natural birth, I am a Gentile, but by a new creation, I am a child of God. Both Jew and Gentile, slave and free, have become one in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 12:13
For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
If I am a brand new creation, do I want to keep hanging onto my Gentile heritage? No. If I am a brand new creation, do I want to keep hanging onto my Jewish heritage? No. I am a child of god now. I am a new creation. I was not born but re-created. This is God’s workmanship not mom and dad’s. When I see God’s workmanship, you cannot improve on that.
Ephesians 2:10
10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do
How many things we are doing today shocks God? In some strange way, God chose that I would be doing what I am doing today.
In many ways, the world does not receive us even as the Jews did not receive Jesus. They think us strange. Bob expressed that in his day of ministry he felt like a Titanic in regards to the organized church culture due to the rejection he at times received.
John 15:18
18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.
Yet, God has assigned each person unique work to do. If it is serving, serve with all your heart unto the Lord. Is it preaching, preach unto the Lord, imploring men on behalf of God to be reconciled to Him. This work is unique to each individual part of the body of Christ. We do not serve to get a reward but we serve out of the grace and love of God we received and do so unto Him for His honor and praise. Nor do we serve in the energy of the flesh but with the strength and energy that God supplies.
1 Peter 4:11-13
11 Are you called to preach? Then preach as though God himself were speaking through you. Are you called to help others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies so that God will be glorified through Jesus Christ—to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen.
Bob then shares how we go about discovering the work God has assigned us. As children of God, uniquely created in Him, we hear His voice and we rest, or abide in Him, and we then learn and grow and start letting Christ live in and through us, according to His good purposes. Bob shared from the parable Jesus told of the vine and the branches in John 15.
John 15
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
If God had a little twig on a vine, and said, “twiggy, I want you to abide in me and you will bear one little grape.” I told you to bear one grape and you did. What reward will she get? 100% Now to the big lug, God says, “I want to hang 100 grapes when you abide on me.” He does and 100 grapes appear. They both get the same reward. They did what God asked them to do.
There are those who will accept Christ and will pay a physical price for the decision to come to Christ. At a conference, a man out of the Mennonite religion came, who came to know Christ. The Mennonite culture is a very legalistic, religious culture. He came to know the grace of God and brought a young man named Daniel to the conference, who was very much drawn by the Holy Spirit, listening intently and with strong interest. He also was a Mennonite. Bob asked him, “Are you ready by faith to accept Jesus Christ as savior. Bob informed him that he would be rejected by his family, those of an Amish community. In regards to this physical life, you will go through trials and tribulations. Knowing this, are you willing to accept Christ as your savior.” He was willing and accepted the message.
1 Peter 4:12-13
12 Dear friends, don’t be bewildered or surprised when you go through the fiery trials ahead, for this is no strange, unusual thing that is going to happen to you. 13 Instead, be really glad — because these trials will make you partners with Christ in his suffering, and afterwards you will have the wonderful joy of sharing his glory in that coming day when it will be displayed.
Did you know that God has already given us everything we need for life and Godliness? We just rest in Christ and trust Him to produce through us what we could never produce to begin with.
2 Peter 1:3
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
God has already given us everything we need. Now, we just get involved in the action, in accordance with what God had already planned in advance for us to do. We do not get into action to get rewards. For if you are working for rewards you are not going to get one, at least not from God.
Matthew 6:2
“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
Ephesians 2:11-13
11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Think of the Gentile, how hopeless and helpless they were before they came to faith in Christ. They were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
But now, because of a new spiritual birth, what a change! But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.