Choose Your Path.

Steve Gentry

[0:00] Last week we talked through the vision that God has for your life. God has a [0:09] destination that every one of you need to be headed towards, but so many of us [0:15] we are doing a lot of stuff. We are active in many ways. We’re exhausting [0:19] ourselves with so much effort and so much activity, but we’re really not going [0:24] anywhere because we have no vision for where God wants us to be. And so what the [0:28] apostle Paul was writing about last week in that section of Philippians 3 was

[0:33] for us to actually set a course for us to chart a destination that we are going [0:39] into embrace forming a vision for our life. But then there comes another issue [0:44] that many people have. You actually have a vision that you can share with people. [0:49] You know all of the verbiage. You know all of the language of to communicate [0:54] But you have a stated vision for where you are saying you’re going, but all of your [1:01] activity says something else. You have this hope that you’re going to get here,

[1:06] but you’re headed in the wrong direction. You’re doing all of the wrong [1:10] things to lead you away from the vision that you’re stating that you want to have [1:15] with the hope that everything will work out. With the hope that you’re going to [1:21] receive something in spite of the activity that you actually put into place in your life. [1:28] And what I want you to understand is that God has not designed us to hope that things [1:34] work out alternatively to what we’re actually putting into place. But instead,

[1:38] God has designed us to put our intentions as to what our hopes are to be. For us to [1:45] develop rhythms, for us to have forming habits, for us to actually enter into [1:50] environments in our life to produce the vision that he wants us to form. [1:57] And so what the apostle talks about to close out Philippians 3 is really how to put into practice [2:03] the standards, the rhythms, the habits, and the environments to actually get to the vision [2:11] that God has for our lives. Here’s what the apostle Paul says. After saying,

[2:16] let us hold true to what we have attained or let us live out what we have attained [2:21] through the gospel of Jesus. He says, brothers, join in imitating me and keep your eyes on those [2:28] who walk according to the example you have in us. That’s interesting. He says, imitate me. [2:35] He says, for many of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, [2:39] walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. There is nothing worse that can be said about you in [2:46] scripture than to be an enemy of the cross of Christ. That is the last thing that you would

[2:52] ever want to be said about you in your life. Then he goes on and he says, if you’re an enemy of the [2:57] cross of Christ, their end is destruction. Their God is their belly. And they glory in their shame [3:05] with minds set on earthly things. If you’re the type of person that underlines things in the [3:11] Bible, I would say that that phrase is one that you need to underline because it’s going to come [3:16] up later. It’s going to be very important that your minds set on earthly things. And he continues, [3:22] but our citizenship is in heaven. And from it, we await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

[3:29] who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body by the power that enables him even [3:37] to subject all things to him. Self when it comes to following Jesus, when it comes to becoming [3:48] more like him, this text is vital for your followership of Jesus Christ, for you to [3:58] understand what it means to develop proper rhythms in your life, to receive the vision [4:04] that God has for your life, for you to form the right habits in your life so that you know you’re [4:09] going in the right direction, for you to actually enter into the right environments with your life

[4:16] on a regular basis so that you will reap the right things. To reap the right things. Here’s the thing [4:24] you got to understand. You got to sow the right things. And so the big question you got to deal [4:29] with today is what are you sowing? What are you sowing? And to determine that number one, [4:35] who you follow is who you will become. Who you follow is who you will become. That’s something [4:43] that people really don’t understand enough of is that so many times we find people in this world [4:50] and have you ever seen them? You want to be just like them. I mean, you want to have the things

[4:56] that you have. You want to be the type of person that that person is. You want to have the charisma [5:03] that they are. You want to have the discipline that they have. You want, maybe you want to have [5:08] the physique that they have. Just you look at this person and you say, that is the type of person [5:14] that I desperately want to be like. And do you know how you can do that? Well, follow them. [5:22] Follow them. Pick up the same habits that they have. Follow the same rhythms that they follow. [5:29] I mean, it’s one thing to want to have the perfect Zeke. It’s another thing to follow an obese

[5:35] person. Right? And so every cheeseburger that I eat, I get further and further from that six pack [5:41] I dream of. Because who you follow is who you’re going to become. And the same thing is true of [5:49] Jesus Christ. You see, last week we saw that Paul’s vision for his life was captivated by what he [5:56] called the prize. And what was the prize? The prize was Christlikeness. The prize was becoming [6:03] like Jesus in every way that he could possibly become like Jesus. And so he set up those practices [6:10] and this is what he says in the church of Villibot. He says, imitate me.

[6:16] Imitate the way that I am living my life. Sometimes we kind of don’t understand how to get there. [6:25] We look at the life of the apostle Paul. I wish I loved Jesus as much as Paul does, but I can’t be [6:30] like Paul. Did you know that Paul defeats that mentality right there? Paul is telling you, he says, [6:36] there’s nothing special about me. If you want to have the relationship with Jesus Christ as the [6:41] apostle Paul has, follow the apostle Paul’s example. Do the things that the apostle Paul does. [6:46] Because he’s saying that you can have the very things that he has, but it has to start with one

[6:51] very important thing. You know, it has to start with very simple, desire. You have to first desire [6:58] to be like Christ. You have to desire to be who Jesus is. And one lie that this world believes, [7:08] and many of you are convinced of, is that you can have faith in Jesus without a desire to be [7:14] like Jesus. That’s not the way it works. If you don’t want to be like Jesus, here’s the key. [7:21] You don’t have faith in Jesus. Because many of you, you want the benefits of the gospel, [7:29] but you don’t want the person who delivers the good news. You want the benefits. You say,

[7:34] I don’t want to go to hell. I mean, who does? You say, heaven sounds like a much better place. [7:40] You say, oh, so I got to believe Jesus died for my sins. I got it. But then you understand that [7:45] being a Christian is following Jesus. You say, well, I didn’t sign up for that. I just signed up [7:49] for the no hell part. Well, Christianity is not about just going to heaven. It is about [7:56] treasuring Jesus Christ. It is about delighting in who he is. It is about desiring to follow him. [8:04] It is about desiring him. And so you have to have a desire, but it has to go beyond desire,

[8:11] and it has to impact your daily life. It has to impact the moment by moment life that you [8:19] live. And many of us limit our capacity by treating the spiritual as if it does not impact [8:27] the practical. Many of us use, and this is a good term, it’s not a bad term, but we use this term, [8:33] spiritual life. But you know, sometimes spiritual life can become code language for a mystical [8:41] out of body thought process that doesn’t impact the day to day. [8:46] Everything in your life is spiritual. Everything that you do is spiritual. If Jesus is Lord,

[8:53] then he is Lord of all. You do not just have him in the church building and not have him impact [9:00] the career ambition. You do not have him in your family devotional and not have him impact your [9:08] social circle. You cannot have him in your quiet time and not have him impacting your daily life. [9:17] You have to want Jesus to cover every facet of your life for the gospel to actually be active [9:25] in your life. The apostle Paul is looking to the church of Philippi, and through them he’s looking [9:32] at us and he is saying, set goals like I have. Change behaviors like I have. Let faith determine

[9:41] your life like Paul lets faith determine his life. Your desire to become like Christ must become a [9:51] practice of acting like Christ and day to day, moment by moment living. But that’s not what we [9:59] often do. If you look at the life of Paul and you hear him say something as audacious as [10:06] imitate me, that’s not what you really thought you were signing up for. We prefer to look for [10:13] the minimum standard. We say, okay, if we’re in the church at Philippi, you look at the guy who’s [10:20] just meeting his membership expectations. He’s hanging on by the hair of his teeth.

[10:28] He’s barely there, but he serves exactly the amount of times that he signed up to serve. [10:33] He comes to the exact amount of services he’s supposed to be coming to. He gives the amount [10:38] that nobody’s going to ask him about in the long run. He’s meeting the minimum expectations of what [10:44] the church is willing to affirm him as a Christian as. And we say, I’m going to imitate that guy, [10:50] because that’s the least amount of time commitment. That’s the least amount of effort [10:54] commitment. That’s the least amount of energy commitment. That’s the least amount of ability

[10:56] commitment, because I got a busy life and I got to be out there living that life. And Paul says, [11:01] no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I’m not telling you to imitate that guy. Paul says, imitate me. [11:09] This guy who has risked everything for the gospel, this guy who has sacrificed [11:17] much for the gospel, this guy that is willing to say there is nothing that God has called me [11:23] to do through the gospel that I will not drop everything I’ve got going on to pursue. [11:29] This is a guy that went about saying, how much more of my life can I give to Jesus? How much more

[11:35] of my time can I give to Jesus? How much more of my effort can I give to Jesus? And he says, I wish [11:41] I had more that I could give to Jesus Christ. Paul says, that is what someone who’s going to [11:52] embrace. That is the attitude that you will have. And I’m so boggled sometimes when I talk to so [11:58] many people who are doing just enough so that someone would call you a Christian. And you say, [12:06] why am I not experiencing the victorious Christian life? And I say, you’re experiencing [12:13] just enough victory. If you want to live the vision of God in your life, you will not have

[12:23] the attitude of how little can I give. You will embrace the reality, how much more can I give [12:32] to God? And to do that, you got to follow the right people. Friend, if you follow the right person, [12:38] that’s who you’re going to become like. You’re going to become like the right person. But I mean, [12:42] imitate me. Doesn’t that sound egotistical? I mean, Paul doesn’t say imitate Christ. [12:50] Paul says, imitate me. But it isn’t egotistical. The qualification is about Jesus. The apostle is [12:58] saying, if you want to be like Jesus, one thing that I’m confident of, if you put the practices

[13:03] that I have into place in your life, you will be like Jesus. Why? Because what was Paul’s greatest [13:10] desire? To be like Christ. In 1 Corinthians chapter 10, in verse 33, he clears it up. He says, [13:18] as I try to please everyone and everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many [13:23] that they may be saved. See, Paul’s not a people pleaser. He’s not pragmatic. He’s saying, I’m [13:28] conforming my life. I’m making decisions. I’m doing everything that I can so that the gospel [13:34] could change more and more people. And then in 11.1, he says, be imitators of me as I am of Christ.

[13:42] What the apostle is saying is, as much of Jesus as you see in me, that is what you imitate in your [13:52] life. That is what you pursue in your life. Friend, I tell you, everyone is following someone’s example.

[14:01] There’s not a person in here that’s not following something. There’s not a person in here that’s not following someone’s example. [14:08] That’s not chasing after what someone else has. I know some of you want to be pioneers. [14:15] All right. And you think you’re the only one blazing the trail you are. No, you’re not. Everyone follows [14:21] someone or something. The question is, are you following the right example? I mean, be honest with [14:28] yourself. Who do you want to be like? Who do you respect? Whose example are you following in the [14:36] practices that you put into place? The fact is, you are free to follow whatever example you want to

[14:43] follow in this life. But the reality that you have to deal with is that that is who you will become like. [14:49] So if your goal is to be more like Jesus, then you need to ask if the example you are following will [14:56] get you there. If you are not following a Christ-like example, then you should not expect to become like [15:02] Jesus. But I’ve talked to so many Christians, and they’ll tell me that the greatest example, the [15:07] greatest thing that they’re reaching for in their life, the people that they are following, the people [15:10] that they want to be like and become, they are people that do not love Jesus. You are missing it, and

[15:17] you will never become like Jesus if that is who you are like. That is the heart of Psalm 1. The Psalmist [15:23] writes, he says, Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of wicked, nor stands in the way of [15:28] sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is what? The law of the Lord, and on his [15:35] law he meditates day and night. Now this is a praise song that is instructive of the example [15:42] that you are to follow. He simply says, do not follow those that will lead you on a path that [15:48] will lead you away from Jesus. And note that he says, walks, stands, and sits. See, the reason that he uses those three is because that is what encompasses basically all of our lives. You’re either walking, you’re standing, or you’re sitting. That’s how you are in every situation of your life. In the

[16:18] Who’s standing with you? Who’s sitting with you? If they’re stupid, guess what you’re going to be? Stupid. If they’re foolish, guess what you’re going to be? Foolish. If they’re wicked, don’t believe the lie that that won’t rub off on you. If they’re sinful, and this is the way of sinners, he’s saying that you are actually making a habitual practice of disobeying God.

[16:49] He says, don’t think that you’re going to come out of it righteous. That’s prideful, but it’s more foolish than anything else. He says, don’t sit in the seat of the scoffers. Modern day scoffer is a hater. He sees nothing but negativity about everybody. When somebody’s living righteously, you just want to pull them down. When somebody’s doing good for themselves, you wish they would stop it. When somebody’s succeeding, you wish they would stop it. [17:18] You’d rather them fail. If you want to become like Jesus, you will walk, you will stand, and you will sit with people who want to be like Jesus. This theme, read the Psalms over and over again. Read the Proverbs. He says, don’t walk with foolish people, walk with wise people. [17:39] Wisdom is always about following God. Wisdom is always about getting to God. But the foolishness that we have in our day is that we’ve deceived ourselves into believing that the people that we surround ourselves with, the majority of the time, do not have the most influence over us. [17:56] So we put zero thought into the people that we surround ourselves with, into the people that we surround our children with, and into the people that we surround those that we love the most with. And we believe, oh, but they’ll come out okay. You are believing that you will come out of that situation okay against everything that scripture teaches. [18:16] Scripture teaches that if you walk the path of the foolish man, you will not grow in wisdom. Friend, to believe that you are the exception to that rule is to believe that God is a liar.

[18:36] So I ask you, is God a liar? Your life will tell what he is. This is what you surround yourself with, environments of delighting in God’s revelation. [18:50] You see friend, the people you walk with, stand with, and sit with, they are a mirror into who you are. Because number two, you’re going to get wherever you’re going. You’re going to get wherever you are going. [19:09] I mean that sounds pretty simple doesn’t it? I mean that’s not profound. If you think that’s profound, I’m glad. But I couldn’t have put it much more simple. I mean if you’re going somewhere, where you going to get? You’re going to get where you’re going. [19:27] So this is something so simple my five year old daughter understands it. I said my eight year old son in the first service, but then I realized, oh it’s even so simple someone younger than him understands it. [19:37] Because I have this game that they’re tired of, but I’m not tired of yet, so it’s going to keep going. And it is the game of pretending that I’m lost in my own neighborhood. [19:48] I drive directly by our house and pretend that I don’t know that it’s our house. Now don’t ask me why I started doing that. It was a good idea at the time, and for some reason I get some kind of sick pleasure out of it.

[20:01] And so I just keep driving. I drive by our house and they’ll say, daddy you drove by the house, you’re going the wrong way. And I say no I’m not, I don’t know where I’m going. [20:11] And what I’m really doing is I’m being nosy. I want to see all my neighbors yards. And sometimes I’ll go down to three or four cul de sacs and they’re like turn around you’re going the wrong way. [20:22] Because my five year old is wise enough to understand that if you go in the wrong direction, you are not going to get to the right place.

[20:33] You’re going to end up like Christ. But something happens when you reach adulthood. Something happens as you age. You start believing the opposite about your life.

[20:46] You believe you can go in all of the wrong directions. You believe that you can invest in all of the wrong things. You believe you can commit to all of the wrong practices. [20:56] But you’re going to end up like Christ. And you just hope that everything turns out okay. You just hope that God is gracious to you. [21:07] And you become like Christ, opposed to all of the effort that you’re putting in in your life. [21:13] Friend, I have to tell you that the scripture tells us of a natural law that God designed for your life. You will reap what you sow. [21:25] If you do not sow Christ like behavior, Christ like attitudes, and a Christ like direction, then it is very foolish to believe you will reap Christ likeness in the end. [21:46] And so I’m going to tell you, stop hoping and start doing. Stop hoping and start repenting. Stop hoping.

[22:00] And in the words of my five-year-old daughter, you are going the wrong way. Turn around.

[22:10] It’s that simple. You are going to get wherever you are going. [22:16] You see, in verse 18, the apostle is writing something that is very sobering for us. He writes to us, he says, there are many of whom I have told you, and I even now tell you about. [22:27] With tears. Why would he say that? Because that’s a different way of talking about enemies of the cross than he uses in other sections. [22:37] And the reason is that these are not the people who were just outright wicked and wolves trying to pervert the gospel through false teaching. [22:44] These are people who were once a part of them. These are people who used to be in the church at Philippi. [22:52] These are people that at one time professed and claimed faith in Jesus Christ.

[23:01] But the apostle Paul says there came a point where it was very obvious that they were not followers of Jesus. [23:10] They outed themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. You might be saying, how is that possible? [23:17] How could that happen? And I tell you, I don’t believe things like that happen in an instant. [23:22] You see, the reformers in their great doctrinal, really, reparation of the church, they called it perseverance of the saints. [23:32] And what that means is, is that your faith in Christ is validated over the long haul. [23:39] That just because you claim you have something doesn’t mean you have it.

[23:43] I tell you, I could claim to have a million dollars in my back pocket. It ain’t back there. [23:50] It ain’t back there. The only way that I could claim it with validity is it was actually back there. [23:57] And bad news for those of you that think I’m going to give you a million dollars. I ain’t got it. [24:00] If I did, I’d use it for myself. But the reality is that the apostle is saying that they came to a point where they had a choice to make. [24:09] And some of you, your flaw is that you don’t believe you’re ever going to have to make this choice. [24:15] And you do make this choice. You make it every single day. You make it moment by moment.

[24:20] And the reason that you make that choice is because you always have to choose, will I follow Christ or will I follow the patterns of this world? [24:27] Will I follow the wisdom of God or will I follow the wisdom of this world? [24:31] Will I do things to build the kingdom of God in my life and Christlikeness in my life? [24:35] Or will I choose to build the things that I can only see in front of my face? [24:40] Will I choose to invest my life in the things that I can only see in front of my face? [24:44] And you say, Steve, how do you know that? Because of what the apostle Paul does when he takes inventory.

[24:50] He’s saying that the reason that these people are now enemies, even though they once claimed faith, isn’t because they lost their salvation. [24:56] You cannot lose your salvation. It’s because they never had it. [25:01] Because they didn’t truly treasure Jesus. [25:04] And that was seen by the life that they lived where they poured themselves out into treasuring other things. [25:10] He writes about them. He says, their end is destruction. [25:15] Their God is their belly. Now, I’ve got a pretty impressive belly.

[25:23] But that’s not what he’s talking about. All right. He’s not saying, find the guy with the most rotund belly and worship. [25:31] No, he’s not literally talking about worshiping the abdomen. [25:35] He’s talking about a really an unchecked, sensual, fleshly, bodily desires. [25:43] These are people who bowed down to their sensual impulses. [25:47] This is the person you ever see. He’s like, they say, I can’t control myself.

[25:53] That’s what he means when he says their God is their belly. [25:55] They go after whatever they want because there is nothing in their lives to prevent them from doing that. [26:04] Paul is writing that you worship your base desires. [26:10] You cannot understand why you wouldn’t do so. [26:13] And you may often say, well, this is just what comes natural to me. [26:19] When you are guided by that which just comes natural to you, your God is your belly.

[26:26] And that is not a virtue to be extolled. That is a sinfulness to be rejected. [26:32] Can you control yourself? Are you a slave to lust?

[26:40] Are you a slave to envy or covetousness? [26:45] You just want what everybody else has because you deserve it. They don’t.

[26:50] You want to take it from them. Are you a slave to materialism? Nothing is enough.

[27:00] Then your God is your belly. He goes on. He says they glory in their shame. [27:08] He’s saying they are proud of things that they should be ashamed of by God’s law.

[27:16] Are you proud of things you shouldn’t be proud of? This is the culture around us now. [27:22] Pride is a very interesting word in our culture. Our culture aggressively pushes for people to [27:27] have pride in that which God calls sin. The pendulum is beginning to swing to the extremes [27:34] of glorying in shame. But we must be clear that such a philosophy is an enemy of Christ [27:42] and must be rejected by his people. Do not call good what God clearly calls bad. Do not take pride [27:51] in what God says is shameful. But we do not just have to go to that which culture is normalizing,

[27:59] but is actually somewhat of an extreme nature of glorying in the things that God would call shameful. [28:05] There are other ways of glorying in your shame. Have you ever met anybody that’s proud of how [28:10] little they accomplish? Say I’m so proud I never put effort into anything. I’m so proud I never [28:17] have to work hard on anything. I’m so proud I commit to as little as I possibly can.

[28:25] Do you realize that’s shameful? Just that that lifestyle is to be rejected. [28:31] God has designed you to accomplish things. God has designed you to reach and work and put forward [28:40] effort and to commit to something in your life. He wants you to do things.

[28:49] Some people are proud of committing to the wrong things. You see some people,

[28:57] they’re proud of their ability to overcommit to absolutely stupid things that they will never [29:03] experience any return on. Maybe you’re like that. Maybe you know some people like that. [29:08] And they commit themselves to this thing, to that thing, to this committee, to that committee, [29:13] to this group, to that group. And they commit their kids to something Monday night, Tuesday night, [29:17] Wednesday night, three times on Thursday. So we got something at six, seven, eight. And then by [29:21] God’s grace, we’ll get them in bed by 11 and he will magically turn two hours of sleep into 12.

[29:27] And then we do it all day Saturday.

[29:32] See the thing to ask are your commitments stupid is do your commitments make you more like Jesus?

[29:39] Or do you just commit to things because that’s what everybody else commits to?

[29:45] Some people are proud of always having an excuse for not meeting expectations. [29:51] You’re proud of your excuses. You’re proud that you do not conform to healthy rhythms that promote [29:58] to promote growth in your life. Friend, do you glory in that which you should actually be ashamed of?

[30:10] It amazes me the things that people will be proud to me about. And I look at them and I say, [30:15] you’re just proud of being a loser. And why would you do that though? [30:21] See, he ends the verse with a very important statement. The reason that you would do those [30:28] things is because your mind is set on earthly thing. See, he’s actually warning you here. [30:38] He’s saying, do not have a mind that is consumed with the earthly. Have a mind that is consumed [30:44] with the godly. He writes about this in Romans 8, 5. He says, for those who live according to the

[30:51] flesh, the earthly, the sinful, the corrupt, they set their minds on the things of the flesh. [31:02] He’s saying it’s not complicated. You are reaping what you are sowing. What’s so funny is I will [31:10] have someone tell me I cannot read the scriptures and then they will tell me the entire starting [31:18] lineup in every stat for their favorite football team. You should be ashamed of yourself. [31:27] It’s not that you can’t understand the Bible. It’s that you have a mind that is fleshly. But [31:33] note where he goes. He says, but those who live according to the spirit, what do they set their

[31:38] minds on? The things of the spirit. See, so many of us are foolish in that we don’t know what we [31:45] don’t know. We avoid effort to the extent that some of us lie to ourselves about the mindset [31:53] that you have. You are not following Christ because your mind is not of the spirit. I mean, [31:59] friend, I have to ask you, do you set a habit of saturating your mind with God’s word? Because [32:04] that is where the spirit resides. Do you commit before any other commitment in your life to [32:11] enter environments with God’s people around you? Do you set constant reminders of who you are in

[32:18] Jesus and what it means to follow Jesus? Or are you earthly minded about what will help you conform [32:26] to the standards of this world? Well, if you are committed to conforming to the standards of this [32:33] world, here is the truth that you need to understand. That is all you will ever get.

[32:41] This world. The greatest hope that you have for all of the sewing that you have and are doing in [32:49] your life is what is right in front of you. You have no greater hope than that. Because you will [32:57] not reap what you have not sown. Because that is a natural design of God. CS Lewis once wrote, [33:07] he said, all get what they want, but they do not all like it. You see, [33:14] whatever practices you have in place, that is what you’re going to get. So what do you need to do? [33:21] Well, in Proverbs chapter six, this is the way that he writes. He says,

[33:24] the teaching is a light. Note, it is very important descriptive words he uses. [33:32] Lamp and light. Why would you need a lamp and a light? You need them because you are going [33:38] somewhere. You need them because you have to get going. You have a path to follow. You have a [33:45] destination to get. But he is being very honest. He is saying, if you do not saturate your mind [33:51] with the commandments of God, but then he goes one step further, he says, with the teachings [33:56] about what those commandments mean. He’s saying you’re going to be in a very dark place and

[34:02] you’re not going to be able to see where you need to go. And he continues. He says the reproofs of [34:09] discipline are the way of life. I love this question because it’s hard. How do you respond [34:16] when you’re corrected by the word? Do you get irritated? Do you get mad? You say, how dare they?

[34:31] See, if that’s your attitude, he’s got a very sobering reality for you. He’s saying [34:37] that if you don’t like the reproofs of discipline,

[34:42] then what’s the opposite of life?

[34:46] Death. See, if all that you saturate your life with

[34:53] is this world, you will only get this world. We often deceive ourselves that we are going [35:01] to invest heavily in the things that have nothing to do with Jesus. But somehow we will come out in [35:08] the other side Christ like. You won’t. So number three this morning, you need to change. You need [35:18] to live the future now. This is where the apostle Paul goes with this. And I think it’s one of the [35:24] most helpful sections of scripture because it lays the hope of following Jesus for us. He says, [35:30] but our citizenship, he’s saying the story for the follower of Jesus is different than the story

[35:37] of the enemy of the cross. He says, our citizenship is in heaven and from it we await a savior, [35:44] the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body by the power [35:50] that enables him even to subject all things to himself. He’s saying that only the future [35:58] can impact the present because the follower of Jesus lives a faith that is victorious. [36:04] In this section, he uses the exact same term in the original language that he uses in Philippians [36:11] 127. In Philippians 127, he starts that text with this phrase. He says, only let your manner of life

[36:17] be worthy of the gospel of Jesus. The term for citizenship is in heaven is the exact same term [36:26] for let your life be lived in a manner worthy of the gospel. He just adds one different verb [36:33] in 127 to say that your citizenship is to be lived out in the now and it is to be worthy [36:39] of where you are called to be. But in 320, he uses it as a describer to say, you are not an enemy of [36:47] the cross. You are a citizen of heaven. You are a citizen of what it means to follow the one who [36:55] died on the cross. And so he’s saying, and this is what I wholly reject about what many Christians

[37:01] claim to believe, but it is foolishness. We can’t live for the future because the future [37:08] is negative. I mean, have you ever been so overwhelmed by the negativity and the hard [37:14] things that are happening in this world? You say, oh my goodness, it’s all going to hell in a hand [37:17] basket. What’s the point? There’s no hope. There’s no reason to be positive. You see, the apostle [37:25] demolishes such an argument. I cannot believe a theology of the future that does not have the [37:34] gospel triumphing over this world because that is exactly what is going to happen. In Matthew chapter

[37:41] 28, Jesus stood before his people and he said, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given. [37:48] That verb means now. He’s saying, I am Lord. I am God. I am the king of this world. John the [38:00] Baptist came and he was preaching and he said, I am preparing the way for the kingdom of heaven [38:06] because it is at hand. When Jesus came, he walked this world and he said, I have come to deliver [38:13] the kingdom. And so I ask you, friend, what kingdom are you a citizen of?

[38:23] See, in one sense, it is all about the destination. The Christian life is wrapped up in where you will [38:30] end up. It’s different than what you think, though. See, because some of you, you hear me saying [38:35] that and you’re like, so what are you saying? Detached from reality? That’s not what I’m saying [38:42] it on. See, living with the hope of heaven does not make the present less relevant. [38:49] Living with the hope of heaven makes the present more relevant. And that is Paul’s point. When he [38:55] wrote that our citizenship is in heaven, he wasn’t making a statement that the here and now doesn’t

[38:59] matter. He was making a statement as to why the here and now matters. He’s telling the Christian [39:09] to live out the values of God’s kingdom on this earth. He wants them to understand [39:15] their distinctions are important. He wants the follower of Jesus to own your distinctions. [39:24] She has a philosophy that’s just foolish. It says if you want to reach the world, [39:29] become exactly like the world. That’s foolishness. That’s foolishness. If you want to reach the world, [39:37] you must show your distinctions from the world. You see, he wants them to own that. And that is

[39:44] why he mentions waiting for Jesus to come back. When you wait with an expectation of hope, friend, [39:50] I tell you, you will live differently. You will not live pessimistically. Your life will not be [39:57] governed by anxiety over negativity. Instead, you will be seeking to make an impact because you know [40:05] there will be a payoff. You know that you will reap. Why? Because you have sown. And so because [40:15] of that, you desperately need to stop living for the values of now. Friend, when you live for the [40:23] value of now, you are blown back and forth by the prevailing culture of the day and you are headed

[40:30] nowhere. You see, the future is God’s. The right side of history is always God’s side of history. [40:39] He will reign forever and ever. And do you want to know why I am certain that he will [40:45] reign forever and ever? Because he reigns now. Because he is Lord now. And the follower of Jesus [40:52] submits to that. You see, what are you, what you are living for now, you have to look at that. [40:59] And you have to ask a very important question. What are you living for now that is not going [41:04] to matter in the kingdom of heaven? What are you investing in now? With much of your effort,

[41:13] much of your time, much of your energy and much of your ability.

[41:20] That once Jesus has returned and set up his kingdom forever will not matter. [41:25] It will be foolishness. You see, Jesus will make all things subject to himself. That is the only [41:33] power that will prevail. That is where this world is going. And he is calling the followers of [41:39] Jesus to set their lives up now for what he has promised it is going to be like in the future. [41:46] Because he is saying, when I deliver my physical kingdom into this world, you will have brought [41:52] things into subjection to Jesus. I mean, do you think it is supposed to be a culture shock for

[42:00] you when Jesus returns and sets up his kingdom? No, you are just supposed to be ready for it.

[42:08] So I have been preparing for this. This is exactly what my hope was wrapped up in. [42:13] Because you are living your hopes. The question is, is Jesus your hope? What you must take [42:20] inventory of in your life is why you are investing so heavily in things that will not matter in the [42:27] kingdom of heaven. Friend, the future is set. I will live the future now. I will pour my life [42:37] into that which I know will endure Jesus making all things subject to himself. Because he will [42:44] be my hope. I will be prepared. I will run and not grow weary. I will invest into things that will

[42:57] be of eternal value. We must set our minds on heavenly things so that we can be some earthly [43:06] good. Friend, own your distinction. Invest eternally. Live victoriously. Obey Jesus.

[43:17] And the only way for you to do that is to follow Christ-like examples. Because Jesus reigns.

[43:26] You know, as we transition into a time of communion, sometimes when we look at how we are [43:34] living, when we look at the examples that we are following, when we actually are forced to take [43:40] inventory of where our lives are headed, that can be hard and sobering. It can wake you up to [43:50] actually pay attention to the choices that you are making in your life. And so there’s two types of [43:57] reactions to that. The first one is that you look at your life and you see no evidence that you’re [44:03] living by faith at all. You see no evidence that you’ve ever invested into anything that God would

[44:11] say, that’s what following Jesus looks like. You’re following all the wrong examples and you can see [44:16] it because you’re becoming someone that’s not like Christ. And for you, I just want to call you to do [44:22] something that’s going to change your life. You need to put your faith in Jesus Christ today. You need [44:28] to be redeemed from your sin. You need to turn from your sin and you need to trust that Jesus [44:36] is enough. That he died for your sins, that he rose from the dead, and that he reigns over your [44:43] life now and you need to follow him. If that’s you, in just a moment, as we that are followers of

[44:49] Jesus reflect on communion, I’m going to ask you to do something different. I’m going to ask you [44:53] to quietly slip out into the foyer where somebody would love to pray with you. Somebody would love [44:57] to answer any questions that you might have about what being a Christian is all about. [45:03] But there are some of you in here, you are a Christian,

[45:08] but you’ve been confronted today that you’re doing the minimum.

[45:14] You’re not chasing hard after Jesus. You’re just kind of walking with timidity in this world. [45:20] You’re investing in some of the wrong places. Maybe you feel directionless and I’m going to [45:25] call you to do something that’s going to change your life. You need to repent of your sin and you [45:31] need to follow hard after Jesus. You need to give more of your life. You need to fall in love with [45:39] Christ again. And for all of us, if you’re a follower of Jesus, I want to represent that today [45:45] through communion. The cup represents the shed blood of Christ. The plate and the bread on the

[45:51] plate represents the broken body of Christ. And as Christians, we eat and we drink a meal that God [45:57] has provided through his son to proclaim to everyone around us, I will follow Christ. [46:04] If you’re in here and you are a follower of Jesus, the tables in the front and the back, [46:08] they are open to you. But understand what you are proclaiming before you eat and drink. [46:14] You are proclaiming not just that Jesus is God, not just that Jesus is Savior. You’re saying Jesus [46:20] is my God. Jesus is my Savior. And then when you walk out of those doors today,

[46:27] follow Christ when you’re ready. Come.