Grace the Power to Change Part 17

Grace The Power To  Change

Part 17

Grace to Change

How is trying to change in your own abilities, rather than trusting in God’s, in effective?

When you try to make changes by your own abilities you render Jesus non-effective by leaving the realm of grace. Very few people ever give up on God. They give up on themselves and their abilities. We get seduced back into entering into works, effort, and personal ability, which is unable to bring lasting change.

How do Christians gratify the flesh and what is the result of doing so?

We gratify the flesh by trying to be righteous in our own efforts. This removes us from grace and places us back in the realm of our own abilities.

When a person relies on personal ability, the “works of the flesh” listed in Galatians begins to manifest themselves in their life. Why is this?

Gal 5:19 now the actions of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, promiscuity,

Gal 5:20 idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, rivalry, jealously, outbursts of anger, quarrels, conflicts, factions,

Gal 5:21 envy, murder, drunkenness, wild partying, and things like that. I am telling you now, as I have told you in the past, that people who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Because your flesh is not able to resist gratification on its own. You will find yourself in sin if you try to live in your own ability.

I want to clear something up. Because of grace if a person who believes in the finished work of Jesus, goes out and commits a sin, that person doesn’t go to hell. All believers have sinned at some point in their lives.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

Have you ever tried to change your life in your own ability? What was the result? On the other hand, have you made changes based on God’s ability in you to do so?

In what areas are you still trying to be righteous in your own efforts? Do you feel “tired”? Are you sick of struggling in this area? Can you or are you willing to surrender to the grace of God in this area?

Are their areas where you are trying to “work” your way to success, freedom, peace, righteousness? How is that working for you? Can you surrender to God’s ability?

For more information about this go to www.fambible.org. Click on the messages section. You can also watch live service on Sundays at 11:00am.

Grace The Power To Change Part 16

Grace The Power To Change

Part 16

Conquering Temptation

Why can’t tenacity and willpower bring us victory over temptation?

Because tenacity and willpower involve using the best of our abilities. When we use sheer willpower, we are still torn inwardly. We may not be giving into sin outwardly, but inwardly we are struggling. This is not the victory that grace (God’s ability) can give us. Not giving into sin, but still “wanting” to is not victory.

Why does the Bible tell us to labor to enter into rest?

Heb 4:11 Let us; therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fail by following their example of disobedience.

We have to change our views, opinions, and ideas, and it takes an effort on our part to surrender our former beliefs. It takes an effort for our hearts to be changed. That effort is the laboring. Once we change our beliefs at the level of the heart, we can enter into rest. From that point on, every change that comes into our lives will come from believing not doing.

What was the key to Abraham’s continual confidence in God?

Rom 4:21 being absolutely convinced that God would do what he had promised.

Abraham was fully persuaded. Being persuaded was also the common denominator of all the people listed in the great “roll call of faith” in Hebrews chapter 11.

What are some ways that our hearts  become persuaded about God and His promises?

Persuasion can come in many different ways. It can come from hearing others speak, from reading the Bible, from meditating on the Word of God, or from speaking the Word of God. It can also come as the Holy Spirit directs us into truth. We need to incorporate every possible means of persuading our hearts into our daily lives.

What does it mean in II Corinthians 10:5, “And bringing into captivity every thought of the obedience of Christ”?

Co 10:5 and every proud obstacle that is raised against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive in order to obey the Messiah.

When a thought that is not consistent with the knowledge of God rises up, it challenges who you are in Jesus. It challenges your ability to resist temptation and sin. It denies all that Jesus came to give you. We bring that thought into captivity by asking ourselves, “Did Jesus do anything about this temptation or sin at His resurrection?” The answer is yes! So, we ask ourselves, “Am I in Jesus?” If I am joint heir to all He received and I too have victory over sin and temptation.

Grace The Power To Change Part 15

Grace The Power To Change

Part 15

Frustrating the Grace of God

How can we continuously experience the grace of God?

We can continually experience by being 100% persuaded that we are righteous and being committed by walking in that righteousness.

1Pe 4:10 as good servant managers of God's grace in its various forms, serve one another with the gift each of you has received.

John 1:14 The Word became flesh and lived among us. We gazed on his glory, the kind of glory that belongs to the Father's unique Son, who is full of grace and truth.

It was Jesus’ belief about the truth that made grace effective in His own life.

How do we know that we are qualified for God to work on our behalf?

Our qualifications for God to work in us is the finished work of Jesus. God has qualified us in Jesus.

Col 1:12 and might thank the Father, who has enabled us to share in the saints' inheritance in the light.

What does it mean in II Peter 1:4 “…having escaped the corruption that is in the world”?

2Pe 1:4 Through these he has given us his precious and wonderful promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, seeing that you have escaped the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.

The term world refers to the world’s system. When we turn to the world’s system, the world’s view, and the world’s way of success, we have turned away from God and His Word. So the corruption that is in the world corrupts us when we try to obtain God’s promises by working the world’s system, a religious system, or any other system rather than trusting God.

Why does God consider unbelief wicked?

Because unbelief either denies that God has given us the promise, or it denies that Jesus alone qualifies us to receive the promise. Unbelief keeps us from living in the promises that Jesus died for us to partake in.

How can we find God’s grace (ability) to come out of sin and work’s righteousness?

Be accepting what Jesus says about us and acknowledging our righteousness through His finished work, grace will begin to flood our hearts. We don’t really believe that believing works. We look at and give heed to our works more than Jesus’ finished work. We have walked in our own abilities for so long that we do not know how to walk in His ability.

Questions to think about.

In what areas are you living in your own ability?

Are you willing to accept the truth in that area and begin to trust in God’s ability in you?

Do you know what Jesus says about your situation?

Find the promises of God that pertain to what you are facing – persuade your heart of those promises and what Jesus did about your circumstances. Write them on note cards, put them where you can see them at all times, confess those scriptures, read them often, open your heart to God’s grace in those areas. See yourself walking in the promises and walking out of your circumstances.

Grace The Power To Change Part 14

Grace The Power To Change

Part 14

Freedom from Sin

What is the “Spirit of grace”?

The Spirit of grace is one of the names of the Holy Spirit identified in Hebrews 10:29. This name identifies Him as the One who works in us to make us able. When we received Jesus we also received the Spirit of Grace – God’s ability within us.

Does taking personal responsibility for your choices, actions and beliefs frighten you?

Sin is willful – sin is always a choice. Personal responsibility is the only pathway to freedom.

Why does a failure to understand grace keep people bound to sin?

We tend to believe that grace is just God’s unmerited favor, leading us to think that God can still favor us when we sin. The truth about grace actually says, “I don’t have to sin. Sin has no power over me; I am not limited to my ability to deal with sin”. God will continue to love us and accept us if we sin, but that is an issue of mercy, not grace.

What will limit the Spirit of grace from working in your life?

Failure to make a decision limits what the Spirit of grace can do in your life. If you don’t believe you can yield yourself to God, you will not make a decision to yield. We make decisions whether to yield to sin or yield to righteousness. If we choose to yield to righteousness, the Holy Spirit will give us grace to walk in that righteousness – the choice is ours.

Why sin does not separate us from God.

Rom 8:39 nor anything above, nor anything below, nor anything else in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is ours in union with the Messiah Jesus, our Lord.

God never draws back from us; we are the ones who draw back. When we sin our hearts condemn us, but God is greater than our hearts. In other words, God does not change and withdraw from us; in our hearts we change and withdraw from Him.

Why should we confess our sins to God?

Confessing is saying the same thing God says about you and your sin, and this is the way you return to the light. It is in believing truth that your heart becomes established in righteousness. It is in confessing truth that we experience forgiveness. Not receive forgiveness – but experience it.

How can we annihilate the root cause of sin that we continually yield to?

Through personal fellowship with the Father we can experience love and acceptance that will destroy the root cause of sin. Then sin no longer has power over us. Our needs can be met only in a close, personal relationship with God.

Are you at a place where you can say the same thing about your sin that God says? Do you recognize when you sin that it is not God who withdraws from you, but you who separates yourself from God? Talk about what freedom it brings to know that Grace is not just unmerited favor, but that it is actually God’s ability working in you because of the finished work of Jesus. Is it empowering?

If you want to better understand this message, go to www.impactministries.com.

Grace The Power To Change Part 13

Grace The Power To Change

Part 13

The Time of Need

What is a benefit of grace working in us?

It always brings peace and joy. Peace is knowing that grace “God’s ability” is working in us – in HIS ability we can do all things.

What do we need to know when we are approaching the throne of grace?

We need to know that we have the total acceptance of God. We may not have confidence in any of our abilities, but we can have boldness and confidence in God. If we don’t believe God’s acceptance, we will never receive His grace. Approach God based on what Jesus has done. If Jesus has a right to come before God in confidence, then we have a right to come before God in confidence.

Name something God will never do.

God will never violate your will. He will convict you, draw you, and compel you, bet He will not change your mind for you. Once we have repented, changed our minds, and made a decision, God can move in our lives.

What is wrong with our attitude about sin?

We do not sin as the source of our pain. We wrongly believe that our pain is God’s conviction. We view sin as a list of fun things God does not allow us to do, instead of accepting the truth and viewing sin as a list of things that will bring absolute destruction in our lives.

Here are some questions to ask yourself.

When you approach God, do you do it on the basis of what you have done or on the basis of what Jesus did?

Are you at a place where you can allow the ability of God to work in your most difficult situation?

Have you repented and changed your mind?

How do you view sin? Do you see it as something God is keeping from you? Or, do you correctly view it as the things that affect your heart in a way that separates you from the life of God?

Have you confused the consequences of your sin as the punishment of God?

Grace The Power To Change Part 12

Grace The Power To Change

Part 12

Coming Out of the Grave

Why are we able to have victory in our lives?

We are able to live victorious lives because of the power of God that works in us. It is the same resurrection power that went into the grave to raise Jesus from the dead. It is the power that caused Him to be victorious over all other power.

How is God’s glory related to reality?

The word for glory means the view, judgment, and opinion of God, which is reality. The way God sees it is the way it is. Regardless of how we see it or understand it, God’s view is reality.

How was Jonah a type of Christ?

Jonah in the belly of the whale was a type of Jesus in hell. Just like Jonah made confessions of faith, worship, and trust while he was in the whale, Jesus began to say in hell what God said. He began to worshipfully speak God’s view and opinion, which is reality. Those words brought the Holy Spirit in and delivered Him from the chains of sin and death to make Him the firstborn of the dead.

What does the Bible mean by lying vanities?

Lying vanities are our views and opinions. To be swayed by emotions or to make decisions from our perspective is to observe a lying vanity. It shows we have no real regard or trust for the view and opinion of God.

What lying vanities are you allowing to control your life? Are you willing to surrender your opinion to God’s opinion in this area? No matter what tribulation, trial or circumstance is affecting your life right now, you can stabilize your heart by using God’s word. Just like Jonah you can begin to worshipfully speak God’s view and opinion of your situation and allow your own heart to lead you to victory.

To hear more of Dr. Jim Richards teaching on grace, go to www.impactministries.com.

Grace The Power To Change Part 11

Grace The Power To Change

Part 11

The Doorway to the Heart

What does it mean to be carnally minded?

The carnally minded person believes that we become righteous by doing righteous deeds. That is a mind that understands things according to the flesh.

What does it mean to “renew your mind”?

Rom 8:6 To focus our minds on the human nature leads to death, but to focus our minds on the Spirit leads to life and peace.

We must see things the way God sees them, not how we decide they are. As we ponder and meditate on the Word of God, those thoughts affect our emotions and find their way to our heart.

Mar 4:24 He went on to say to them, "Pay attention to what you're hearing! You will be evaluated by the same standard with which you do your evaluating, and still more will be given to you,

Renewing our mind is when we persuade our hearts of what God says about us and look to what He says about us, not what others have said.

How do we establish information in our hearts?

Once we have received any input, whether true or false, we begin to think on it. Once we begin to think on anything – particularly those things that produce emotions – it begins to affect our hearts. Hearing a truth may not affect your life; but when you begin to think or meditate on it, it will.

What is the doorkeeper to your heart?

Your thoughts are the doorkeeper of your heart.

What makes up our soul?

The soul consists of the mind (thoughts), the emotions (feelings), and the will (the ability to make decisions).

What will alienate us from God’s grace?

Any thoughts or imaginations that are not consistent with the Word will cause us to go backwards, guide our live into destruction, and alienate us from God’s grace.

What is the number one way to guard your heart against those things that rise up against the Word of God?

You must conquer your thought life. When any thought or word tries to take your thoughts captive, speak God’s truth out of your mouth until your thoughts and emotions come back in line.

Every time you start to get a thought that is negative or against God’s Word, you must immediately stop, send it away, speak a scripture that is opposite of the thought, meditate on it, see and feel it. Every time you say something negative do the same thing. If you do this, I’m telling you from experience of how amazed you will see things change. I will also add that some things will change very fast, but others will not, it will take time to get those things in your heart that have been programmed against the Word of God. If it takes millions of times doing this, I’m telling you it is worth it.

To learn more about writing on your heart, go to www.fambible.org. Go to the message section and pick video or audio. Find the message about writing on your heart. Pastor Allen Speegle is the Pastor speaking.