Somebody Loves You
Walking In The Newness Of Life Pt.2
As you get into the Word of God, and the Word of God takes effect in your life, then people are either going to be build up through your life or people are going to be turned off to the Word of God. You see? You can make a difference in the world by your behavior, by the way you live, by either bringing people to Christ or by turning people away from Christ, by the way that we live. ♪ ♪ ♪ I am falling ♪ ♪ I am falling ♪ ♪ I am falling ♪ ♪ I am falling ♪ Welcome to Somebody Loves You Radio, the Bible Teaching Ministry of Role Race in Diamond Bar, California. Well, it is good to have you along today for Rawls' continued series, exploring what it looks like to live faithfully before God. As you look ahead to the possibilities of this new year, you'll see the necessity of spending daily quiet time with the Lord, seeking Him to guide and direct you through His Word. We'll see that God can transform our hearts and lives for His glory, and through us, to point others to His truth. Today's lesson is titled "Walking and the Nuness of Life." Here's Rawl Race. If you have a Bible not turned over to the Book of Ephesians, chapter 4 for this evening. Ephesians chapter 4, beginning this evening with verses 20 to 24. He's not going to speak to you and to speak to me. He's going to begin to describe now what happens when you come to Jesus Christ. And the change of heart, and the change of life, and the change of mind, and the change of behavior that comes to those that truly have been touched by the Holy Spirit, and God has changed their lives. Look what He says. "But you have not so learned Christ. If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus, that you put off concerning your former conduct or manner of life, the all men which grows corrupt according to the deceitful desires of the flesh." And here it is. "And be renewed in the spirit of your mind." And then you put on now the new man which was created according to God in righteousness and in true holiness. So tonight we're coming back now to this great passage of Scripture where Paul begins to reinforce his admonition that he gave to us with an argument from the experience that we have had in Jesus Christ in the past when we came to Jesus Christ. And again, the emphasis is on the mind. The outlook of the believer, the mind which is the most important thing that Satan always is attacking. The mind of man. He plays with your thoughts. He plays with your mind in such a way that he tries to bring confusion and to cloud your mind from the things that God is injecting into your mind as you read the Word of God. I don't know about you, but have you ever noticed that when you get serious in your life to get serious with God and you get serious about praying or reading the Word of God, how many interruptions they are? It's amazing. But whenever you're not really serious about reading or praying or committing your life or doing anything for God, it seems that there are no interruptions. And the reason is because Satan, first of all, does not want you to be a real committed person. He wants to distract you. He wants to keep you busy. He wants to disappoint you. Because if he can keep you from hearing the Word of God, then he can entrap you that you have no defense against your enemy. You see? And the only way that I have learned to renew my mind is whatever you put into your mind, that's what you become like. But if you're putting on those things that are from the Word of God, those things that are pure and holy and you're learning about forgiveness and you're learning about holiness and you're learning on how you ought to walk in Jesus Christ in a life of submission and obedience. And as you're reading through Daniel and you're reading through Matthew and Mark and Luke and John and then Romans and Acts and Corinthians and Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and so on. What you're doing is you're cleansing your mind. Why? Because by the reading of the Word of God is I take in a shower, you feel clean. The Word of God washes your mind and it renews you. And so Paul now is going to speak to us on how we as believers have put off now the old man and have put on the new man. Literally he's saying, why don't you take off your old clothes and put on the new clothes? Literally. That's what he says. Man, you've been worrying that all goes for a long time, it's time for a change and that change can only come through Jesus Christ, our Lord. And even like Paul the Apostle says in 2 Corinthians 5, 17, therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. All things are passed away and behold, all things are becoming brand new. I like that. Becoming brand new. And that's what Paul is arguing here in verse 20 to 24. Let's look at that argument again as he not begins to expound the Word of God there in verses 20 to 22. Look what he says again. "But you have not so learned Jesus Christ." You know what's interesting about that? That word to learner is a very interesting word. When you look it up in the lexicon in the Greek language, literally it's the word for disciple, of making a disciple. That is one who is a learner, one who is taught by his teacher. That's literally what it means. And so what Paul is declaring, he says, now he says, but you have not so been discipled by Christ this way. You see? Christ didn't teach you to continue to live a life of sin. But what did Christ teach us to put on the new man? You see? To change, to repent, to submit, to obey, to do what he says. And so the only way that I can see about becoming a disciple of Christ, he talks now about not only learning, but look what he says again. And if indeed you have heard him and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus Christ, that you put out concerning the former conduct or manner of life, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceivable desires of the flesh. So Paul is declaring this, he says, if you're sitting in church or you're sitting at home, or wherever you may be, and you're reading the Bible and you're studying the Word of God, then that is teaching you how to put off the old man. You're in a classroom. You're being educated by the Holy Spirit. He not only speaks to you, but he convicts you. Now when you look at the Word of God, the Word of God is so important in the life of every believer that we should every day without any hesitation should always make time for the Word of God. The Bible is not only God's Word, but this is how it is. Through the Bible, God, in prayer, we speak to God, but through the Word of God, God speaks to you. So if you're not in prayer, you're not speaking to God, and if you're not in the Word, God's not speaking to you. That's just the way it is. We need both prayer and the Word. Why? As I speak, he speaks back to me. And that's why Paul is so cut up here in not only the Word of God, but the importance of the Word of God and the life of the believer. Number one is because the Word of God is a restraint in the life of the believer. The Word of God is a restraint in the life of the believer. Psalm 119, 161 says this. He says, "Leaders, persecute me without a cause, but my heart spins in awe of your Word." God, your Word is so awesome, so awesome. Secondly, the Word of God is a guide in the life of the believer. A guide, it will lead you. It will guide you as you walk through this world. Psalm 119, 11 says, "Your Word have I hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you." Notice that. That I might not sin against you. God says that his Word is so important, and David here crying out, says, "Lord, I have hidden your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you." The more you get into the Word of God, the Word of God will guide you away from sin. Thirdly, the Word of God is a source of joy in the life of the believer. It brings joy to our hearts. Psalm 119, 47 says, "And I will delight myself in your commandments which I love." Do you love the Word of God? So many times with these fights, the Word of God. I've seen so many young people, I've seen older people too, that they don't even take time to read the Word of God. And yet they read books and they read magazines. They read the newspaper. But how more important it is for us to delight into not only as we delight in the Lord, but as God begins to put in my heart a love for his Word where I cannot live apart from his Word. And I think we must make it in our lives a rule and a priority, the Word of God, so that we can receive it. And it brings joy to us constantly. And then fourthly, the Word of God is a standard of conduct. I like that, a standard of conduct. The Bible will tell you how you are to live. That's important. Now what the world is saying, but what does the Bible say? He says in Titus 2.5, he says to be discreet and chaste and he's talking about the women, good and obedient to their own husbands. But then if you do this, that the Word of God would not be blasphemed. What does he mean by that? Because as you get into the Word of God and the Word of God takes effect in your life, then people are either going to be build up through your life or people are going to be turned off to the Word of God. You see? You can make a difference in the world by your behavior, by the way you live, by either bringing people to Christ or by turning people away from Christ, by the way that we live. This is Somebody Loves Your Radio with Roll Race. To order this series titled How to Walk with God, visit us at SomebodyLovesYou.com. And while you're there, browse our full selection of resources. Each one is designed to strengthen your faith and enrich your relationship with the Lord. Now back to more with Roll Race. And fifthly, the Word of God is a source of new life in the life of the believer. First Peter 1.23 says this, being born again now, not of corruptible seed, but of the incorruptible by the Word of God which lives in abides forever and ever. I like that. The Word of God lives in abides forever. And sixth, the Word of God is a source of spiritual food. You have to feed upon God's word daily, if you want to grow. He says this in 1 Peter 2.2. He says even as newborn babies, desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby. That we may grow. Grow up. That we may mature. I mean, you've seen babies when they're first born and how the mother feeds them. And then they grow to the bottle and then solid food and they begin to mature. But can you imagine if that baby did not eat, what would happen? He would die. And there are so many believers that are dying because they're not feeding upon the Word of God. God wants us to feed constantly in the Word of God. And then secondly, look at verse 23 and 24, the transformation that we have in Jesus Christ. I like what A.M. Hunter says. He says a true conversion will change immense mental as well as his moral habits. I like that. He says a true conversion. When somebody is really touched by God, there's going to be a change mentally and a change morally in your habits. You're not going to be the same person. Otherwise, how can we say that God has touched our lives? And you see Paul is writing to the Ephesians, those people, they were believers, and even though they had come to Christ, they were not living according to those moral standards. It's like the church today, all over the world. They were living like the Corinthian church in carnality, where people could not make a distinction if they literally had taken off the old garments and put on the new garments. There was no change. They couldn't see that change. Look what he says in verse 23, 24 of Ephesians. He says, "And now be in renewed in the spirit of your mind." That you may put on now the new man which was created according to God in true righteousness and in holiness. You see, Paul's argument was that now you don't belong to the old corruption of sin, but now you belong to the new creation in Christ Jesus. That's what he's talking about. He's arguing this point. That you have not been transformed by the power of God. You're no longer to be the way you used to be. Why? Because if your friends or your family sees you the same way you used to be before and you tell them that you're a Christian, then something is wrong with your life. If you're not really transformed by the power of God, you see, we should not be doing what we used to do before we came to Christ, that we have been changed by the power of God. And that's what he's arguing here. Let me share with you just a little bit about that transformation that comes through God and his Holy Spirit. First of all, the transformation comes. It's a result, first of all, of a new life that has come through the Holy Spirit that makes us new creatures in Jesus Christ and I read to you already for 2nd Corinthians 5 17. Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creation. All things are passed away and behold all things, not partial things, all things have become brand new. Secondly, the results of a new life is what? A changed life. Romans 6-4, listen. Therefore, we are buried with Jesus Christ by baptism unto death, that like as Christ Jesus was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in the newness of life. So our baptism, if you haven't been baptized, we're going to drown you this summer. Don't worry about that. But baptism doesn't save you. But baptism is when you're saying, "I'm going to be baptized to show the world that I am dead in Jesus Christ. I'm going to be buried with Christ in the water and that same power of resurrection, the resurrected Jesus Christ from the grave, is the same power that Christ is going to rise me from the dead, from the water, and so the water becomes the type of a grave." And when they come up, it's like they're resurrecting from the grave, even with the same power of the Holy Spirit, the same power that resurrected Christ from that tomb in Jerusalem is the same power that you and I now are possessed by. Same power, a resurrection. And that's what Paul is talking about here in Romans 6-4. He says again, "Therefore we have been buried with Him about this amount of death, that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even now we also should be walking in the newness of life. And if we're walking in the newness of life, thoroughly, the result of a new life is what? A holy life. That is not a perfect life. Don't get me wrong. Not sin is perfection. No one like that. Because we do sin. But he's talking about this life of separation that God has within us. Look what he says in 1 John 3-9. He says, "Whosoever has been born of God does not make a practice of sinning anymore." You see? We do sin. But we don't make a practice of it. Why? Because the Holy Spirit convicts us the moment we do that. For His seed, which is the Word of God, remains in Him and He cannot see and why. Because He is born of God. You see? We have been born of God. And the Holy Spirit has been given to us that before we even sin and when we start planning or thinking is starting to do what is the first thing that happens, the Holy Spirit says, "Don't do it." He gives you the right to say yes or to say no. Fourthly is that the results of a new life is that we now possess righteousness in Jesus Christ. 1 John 2-29 says this, "If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone that does righteousness is born of God." Everyone that does what is right is born of God. You see? Those are the keys to the new life. Those that do what is right are born again of the Holy Spirit. Fifthly, the result of the new life is that we possess the love of God. The love of God. 1 John 3-10 says this, "In this the children of God are manifested or known. And the children of the devil, whoever does not righteousness is not of God, neither He the love and not His brother." Interesting that if you and I do not love one another or our brothers or our sisters, then how can the love of Christ dwell in you? How can you say I am a Christian when God is love? You see? When God is love. 6. The result of a new life is victory over sin. Victory over sin. 1 John 5-4. For whatsoever is born of God, overcomeeth the world, and this is the victory that overcomes the world. What? Even our own faith. What is that? Believing in God and possessing the fear of God in our lives. That God is real. That God will judge one day. Seventh, the result of a new life is truth. Truth. Third, John 3-4. For I rejoice greatly when my brethren came and they testified of the truth that is in you. Just as you walk in the truth and I have no greater joy than to hear than my children are constantly walking in the truth. I love that. What a beautiful picture when people come to me and they'll mention your name. And they'll say, "You know one man, there's such a neat couple, or there's such a neat people." And you can see that they're walking in the truth of God. There is no greater joy in a father's heart to know that his children are walking in the truth. No greater joy. John says, "So incredible." And then, eighth, the result of a new life is wisdom from God. The wisdom of God. Colossians 4-5. He says, "Walking wisdom toward those who are outside of our believers." Why? Redeeming the time. No one thinks Jesus is coming again. That's wisdom. He's coming again. So we need to be careful how we walk when we go outside of our walls here. Ninth, the result of the new life is a life of obedience. Second John, sixth is this. This is love that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment that as you have heard from the beginning, that you should keep on walking in it. That is walking in the Word of God. Walking in love. Loving God and loving one another. Tenth and final. The result of a new life is what? The light of Jesus Christ. Listen, Ephesians 5-8. "For you were once in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light." You see that? Walk as children of the light. No longer walking in the darkness. May the Lord tonight give us the power to start living not only this new life, as Paul says, but listen. We will be happier and more useful in the kingdom of God to bring glory and honor to His name if we obey the Word of God. Maybe this evening you want to take some time to examine your life. And maybe to see if there are any sins in your life that are hindering your walk in Jesus Christ. That would be a good thing to do. Secondly, if you find some wrong in your life, then ask God to forgive you and to give you the power to put that away. And thirdly, take time to repent of that sin that is keeping you from God and, fourthly, accept His forgiveness by faith and receive His peace that passes all understanding. And then, fifthly and lastly, let the Holy Spirit now rule over your life daily and walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. ♪♪ We hope today's message has inspired you to keep seeking God's transformation of your heart in life, paving the way for Him to use you and pointing others to salvation. You're listening to somebody who loves your radio with rolleries. If you'd like to review the lesson, Walking in the newness of life, we'll be happy to send an unedited version to you for a donation of $5 or more. Just call us at 800-634-9165. To help you establish a more heavenly mindset, we'd like to tell you about Roll's 16-part series titled "How to Walk with God." You'll gain greater motivation to spend daily time with the Lord as you ponder the eternal fruitfulness of absolute surrender. You'll also discover how vital it is to discard any disobedient habits that are keeping you from living out God's perfect plans. To purchase Roll's 16-lesson series titled "How to Walk with God," visit somebodylivesyou.com or call 800-634-9165. We'll send you the CD set for $30 or the thumb drive for $20. Our number again is 800-634-9165. Or you can write us at Somebody Loves Your Radio, PO Box 4440, Diamond Bar, California 91765. Somebody Loves Your Radio with Roll Race is fully listener supported. Every tax-deductible gift helps us keep sharing the wisdom of God's Word and we are blessed by your partnership. Next time, we'll continue focusing on walking in close communion with the Lord. We'll find that the best way to honor God is to allow His Holy Spirit to guide us into righteousness as we leave sinful ways behind. ♪ I am falling in love with you ♪ This program is sponsored by Somebody Loves Your Radio in Diamond Bar, California. [MUSIC PLAYING]
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