Participants: Bill Liversidge
Series Code: IHS
Program Code: IHS000008A
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00:13 Eat the bread, you will have life.
00:16 Eat my flesh, you will have life. 00:19 Drink My blood, you will have life. 00:21 The evidence is our willingness to hear 00:24 and to obey the Word of the God, 00:26 especially since we realize this is God speaking. 00:32 This is not an ordinary book we are talking about 00:36 this morning this is the word of life. 00:40 This is the Word of God we have in His presence. 00:47 The Holy Spirit's ability to inspire. 00:59 Let's bow our heads together as we get into God's word. 01:03 Father in heaven, thank You once again 01:05 because of the ability of Your word 01:08 to revitalize weak sinful human beings 01:13 and restore within them not only the image of Jesus 01:16 but the very vitality of Jesus. 01:19 Once again this morning refresh us in Your word 01:22 especially with this vital subject Father, 01:26 so that You can be glorified once again in an through us. 01:30 In Jesus precious name, amen. Amen. 01:35 I don't know why we have to wrestle 01:39 with the issue of overcoming. 01:44 And the Book of Revelation is crystal clear 01:49 the message to the seven churches, 01:51 each message ends with the same thought doesn't it. 01:56 To him who continues to sin right till the very end. 02:03 Is that how the Washington version reads? 02:06 No. Oh, thank you, God. 02:10 How does the Washington version read? 02:13 To him that overcometh. 02:14 To him who over cometh, that's repeated, 02:18 over and over again. 02:21 To him who overcometh 02:25 and the 144,000 are called the first fruits 02:31 and they are the first fruits because they have moved 02:34 into overcoming in their lives and God is able to seal them. 02:41 Why do you think Revelation 14 begins with the 144,000? 02:46 It moves into the three angels' messages 02:50 and then the harvest of a great multitude. 02:54 It is sequential when God finally has a sealed group. 03:00 You can be confident they are overcomers 03:04 but the one word that you won't hear 03:06 from their lips is the declaration 03:08 of their own perfection. 03:10 Amen. 03:12 Because the closer we see the perfection of Christ 03:17 the more clearly we see our own imperfection. 03:23 Amen. 03:24 Isn't God good to us? Amen. 03:28 He saves us from that extreme agony of thinking 03:33 that we might be perfect. 03:34 Nothing could be further from the truth. 03:37 That's right. 03:39 But there is no question about it, 03:42 the Great Controversy cannot end 03:45 until God has a people who finally prove it 03:51 that God is not an unjust God, 03:54 His laws are not impossible, 03:58 He can actually restore them within our own minds. 04:03 We can have the law of God written in our minds 04:05 instead of on tables of stone. 04:09 We can do by nature the things that glorify God 04:14 because it's actually God in us who makes it possible. 04:18 Amen. 04:20 I'm more convinced than ever that it's not our ability 04:23 to baptize more people or reach the rest of the earth. 04:27 It's the fact that God waiting with longing desire 04:31 to the manifestation of His character in His children 04:36 because then He will be free to pour out His spirit 04:41 and a great multitude much bigger than any of us 04:44 can comprehend is going to be awakened. 04:47 Do you believe it? Yes. 04:49 That the earth in fact, 04:51 it's gonna be lighten with His glory. 04:54 I can't wait for that moment. 04:58 How is your faith this morning? Amen. 05:01 So once again I'm choosing 05:03 to address the subject of victory. 05:06 I don't know why it's not on every one's lips. 05:08 It's almost like a foreign word today. 05:12 People come then I say, 05:14 that I'm only human that I know who 05:18 but God understands that that I'm always gonna be like this. 05:22 I said, well, interesting enough that's not God's plan. 05:26 The Bible talks about of people 05:29 who are no longer slaves to sin. 05:32 Amen. 05:33 They are slaves to righteousness. 05:39 Four steps to victory. 05:43 Look at the description of those who receive 05:46 the grace of God in Romans 5, 05:49 there's four loaded words for you describing 05:53 individuals upon whom the grace of God is poured out. 05:57 Romans 5:6 has two of them in it. 06:04 "While we were still..." Without strength. 06:08 "Without strength" my version says, "helpless" 06:11 other version say "powerless." 06:16 Hear it while we were powerless without strength helpless. 06:23 What did God do for us? He died. 06:26 He died for us and the rest of the verse 06:29 of course is even more radical. 06:31 The end of this 6, Christ died for the? 06:37 Ungodly. Ungodly. 06:42 I have to actually be willing to acknowledge my ungodliness. 06:49 The Pharisees were unreachable because they felt holy. 06:54 They didn't need what God was wanting to offer them 06:57 because they had it, they were doing all the right things. 07:03 They felt righteous in the sight of God. 07:06 That's why Jesus said, "Unless your righteousness 07:09 exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, 07:12 you will not see the kingdom of heaven." 07:15 Because their righteousness in their own eyes came about 07:19 from doing all the right things 07:21 and even making it more burdensome than ever. 07:26 To impress God with the fact that they were deserving. 07:30 Bad news for you this morning, none of us is deserving. 07:33 Amen. 07:35 I can't point one thing in my own life that I could 07:39 actually feel free to offer the God 07:43 one thing of my own doing 07:46 because it mean all of my own good things. 07:50 Was any goodness, if there is any love, 07:55 if there is any unselfishness, any purity, any holiness. 08:01 I got news for you this morning that ain't me, 08:06 I know me it's not me, it's God in me 08:12 and I'm grateful that the holy God of heaven 08:16 even dares to dwell 08:21 in a wretch like me 08:25 and to give me the privilege of having His holiness 08:29 seen even through me. 08:31 What an overwhelming privilege that is? 08:35 I'm not-- I'm thankful to God this morning 08:37 that I'm not alluding myself in that respect. 08:41 It's by grace we are saved through faith 08:45 and even that is the gift of God not of works 08:51 lest any man should boast. 08:57 But thank You, God, 08:59 for a willingness to acknowledge the fact 09:02 that I'm helpless, I'm powerless. 09:06 I like the translation that says without strength. 09:11 I'm without strength. 09:15 And going on to verse 8, 09:18 "God demonstrates His own love toward us, 09:20 but while we were yet" Sinner. 09:22 Sinners. Another word kicking in. 09:25 Sinners and finally down in verse 10, 09:29 "even if we were enemies." 09:33 Look at all these words, without strength, ungodly, 09:41 sinners, even enemies of God 09:47 He has poured out his love upon us. 09:50 I declare this morning that I want to be the first 09:53 to acknowledge the truth about myself 09:57 that in me dwells no good thing, 09:58 I have nothing to offer God 10:01 that could ever be considered as righteousness. 10:05 Not one little thing. 10:07 So our willingness 10:08 to acknowledge our true condition 10:16 and I know many people that can't take that first step. 10:20 They are denied the grace of God in their lives. 10:23 Oh, yes, they believe all the doctrines, 10:27 they have the right words to say 10:28 but they are denied the privilege of the power 10:32 of the living God in their lives 10:34 because they cannot bring themselves 10:36 to acknowledge the truth about themselves. 10:41 But no matter how hard I try I cannot manufacture holiness. 10:46 I've tried it and everything I touched has not become holy 10:51 it goes in the opposite direction if I'm on my own. 10:54 Have you proved that? Amen. 10:58 So that's just the first point out of the way 11:00 because the big points are now going to come. 11:03 Romans 6:11, point number two. 11:10 Romans 6:11, it begins in my version 11:14 with the word "Even so consider." 11:18 When Paul says consider he doesn't mean feel. 11:25 He doesn't mean work toward producing this. 11:30 He means by faith 11:33 choose to believe again this morning that you are what? 11:40 Dead to sin. 11:43 Why, because you are feeling 11:44 a little more holy this morning? 11:46 No. Look at the verses around it. 11:50 This is Paul, he is been building up an argument here. 11:54 Look at verse 6, "We were crucified with Him." 12:00 Verse 8, "If we had died with Christ." 12:07 But when he says consider yourself to be dead to sin, 12:11 He means that you have come to the cross. 12:17 And you have seen in the death of Jesus 12:20 your death taking place. 12:24 Come to the cross. Amen. 12:30 Come to the cross. Amen. 12:33 And see the atoning death of Jesus and with gratitude 12:37 look up and consider yourself to be what? 12:43 Dead. 12:44 Dead to sin and praise God it's got nothing 12:47 to do with how you feel. 12:49 Amen. 12:51 It has to do with how Jesus felt in the likeness 12:55 of sinful human flesh. 12:59 Because incredibly God has asked Jesus 13:02 to resolve the sin problem not me. 13:05 Thank you, God. Amen. 13:08 I consider myself to be the one hanging on the cross 13:12 that was my death that took place in His death. 13:17 It's an active faith to believe that I'm not beating 13:20 myself up every day like Martin Luther 13:22 lying on the floor and so whipping himself. 13:26 Trying to show God that he is truly sorry for sin. 13:31 I have died to sin in Him. Amen. 13:37 I don't have to beg God to put me to death every day. 13:42 I come to the cross and I recognize afresh every day 13:46 that my death took place in His death. 13:50 Amen. 13:52 God in His infinite mercy has accepted Jesus in my state. 13:56 That's a miracle. 13:58 I don't understand that kind of love 14:00 but I sure appreciate it. 14:01 Don't you? Amen. 14:04 So consider yourselves this morning to be dead 14:07 this intake hold of everything 14:10 that the death of Jesus is offering you and believe it. 14:15 This is the first great step really 14:17 that leads to victory in our lives. 14:19 We are not focused on ourselves, 14:23 we are focused on the amazing 14:25 and atoning death of Jesus Christ. 14:28 Romans 8 of course picks this up again. 14:31 Slip over to Romans 8:1, 3. 14:34 Come to the cross, I'm gonna write it up here, 14:37 and believe 14:42 I'm dead to sin. 14:46 Are you actually seeing yourself as God sees you? 14:51 Well, have you allowed your eyes to fall down 14:53 to the mirror of your self reflection 14:56 and that becomes the mirror of how well you are doing. 15:00 Romans 8 picks it up again. 15:03 "There is therefore now no condemnation 15:09 to those who are in Christ Jesus." 15:13 That's my challenge to be in Jesus Christ 15:15 every day of my life. 15:17 And I've got news if you are coming 15:19 to the cross every day of your life 15:21 God's response is to bring the living Christ into you. 15:27 You don't have to sweat for that, 15:29 you don't have to beg God to make it possible. 15:33 He will bring the mind of Christ into you 15:36 as you come to the cross. 15:39 Amen. 15:40 And the good news is as you put on Christ 15:47 let this mind be in you 15:50 that is also in Christ, Philippians 2:5. 15:57 Thank you. Let this mind be in you. 16:02 As you put on the mind of Christ 16:05 you do so with the profound realization 16:10 that I'm not condemned 16:18 because my condemnation 16:20 has already fallen on Jesus. 16:24 Amen. 16:26 You been to the cross and the living Christ 16:29 is coming into you through the Holy Spirit 16:31 for another day of your life. 16:35 The good news this morning is the whole time 16:39 that you are under going the process of sanctification 16:43 and how long does it take? 16:44 Lifelong. It's a lifelong process. 16:48 The whole time that we are going through 16:52 that daily experience with Jesus, 16:55 growing up into Him we are not condemned. 17:02 Amen. 17:06 I hardly know a dozen people seriously who believe, 17:12 I hardly know a dozen people because most of the people 17:17 I know if they make a mistake or they slip back 17:21 or they stumble, you know, 17:23 they start believing that messed up, 17:29 have lost everything. 17:31 God's taken back from you all the blessings that I had. 17:36 I've got news for you this morning. 17:38 What condition you were in 17:40 when God put all those blessings upon you? 17:44 Ungodly, helpless, 17:48 powerless, sinful, 17:52 even had enmity with God. 17:55 All the blessings of the atoning death of Jesus 17:59 are not yanked away from us because we make a mistake 18:05 and especially God doesn't start unlike some parents, 18:10 God doesn't start heaping condemnation back on us again. 18:15 It wasn't lifted from us because we were so pure, 18:20 it was lifted from us because Jesus was so pure. 18:24 Amen. 18:25 And incredibly God has accepted Jesus in our state. 18:31 So I sat up the other day I'm gonna repeat it again today, 18:33 if you mess up you make a mistake and we all do. 18:38 Do what a child of God should do. 18:42 Ain't beat yourself up. 18:44 Don't act like somebody 18:45 that God's taken away all the blessings 18:47 and He is heaping guilt and condemnation back on you. 18:51 What does a child of God do when they make a mistake? 18:55 They come back to their Father in repentance. 18:59 They feel His around. He restores them. 19:02 He freely offers them forgiveness. 19:05 Puts His spirit back in them and incredibly He says, hey, 19:09 you are still My child. 19:11 I'm gonna teach you how to believe that. 19:14 Trust me this is God. 19:17 Whatever happened to our picture of God, He is sitting 19:20 up there waiting for each one of us to make a mistake 19:23 so He can heap guilt back on us again. 19:26 I praise God every day that even though I still got a lot 19:29 of growing yet to do. 19:31 He is not placing condemnation on me afresh every day. 19:35 Amen. 19:36 Because as I come to the cross I feel it lifting up from, 19:39 I feel like Christian. 19:41 If you ever read "Pilgrim's Progress." 19:44 Christian with that great burden on his back 19:46 he goes through life. 19:48 He meets Giant Despair 19:50 and he falls into the Slough of Despond 19:53 and he almost gives up and he looks up on the hills 19:56 and he sees an old rugged cross up on the hill. 20:00 He climbs up on the hill, he can hardly make 20:02 because the burden on his back is so heavy, 20:05 in a state of exhaustion he falls down 20:08 at the foot of the cross 20:10 and the burden lifts up from him 20:13 for the first time in his life. 20:16 He is delivered from the guilt and the condemnation. 20:20 I need that every day of my life. 20:22 Amen. 20:23 That's why I need the habits of coming to the cross 20:26 every day to remind me how good God has been to me. 20:32 And even though I look at my life 20:33 and I know God has much 20:34 to do with me yet you feel the same? 20:36 Yes. 20:38 Especially in making me like Jesus is. 20:42 As I go through the pain sometimes the challenge 20:48 of becoming like Jesus I have the absolute assurance 20:53 that I'm not under condemnation as I do it. 20:56 Amen. What a gracious God He is. 20:58 I'm actually free now to enjoy a daily intimacy 21:02 on what with Jesus 21:04 and growing up can actually become quite fun 21:08 knowing that He is not heaping the condemnation back on me, 21:13 but He is helping me to not continue to make 21:16 the same mistakes over and over again. 21:21 So these steps are crucial. 21:23 We come to the cross, we put on the mind of Jesus, 21:29 we grow without condemnation. 21:45 You got a very good translation of the Bible 21:48 that will pick the continuous tense in Greek. 21:51 It's beautiful if you actually allowing the tense 21:54 to come through. 21:55 "Do not continue to go on presenting 21:59 the members of your body to sin 22:02 as instruments of unrighteousness, 22:05 but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, 22:10 and your members as instruments of righteousness." 22:13 He was reading the King James Version 22:15 so when he got to verse 16-- 22:17 who has a King James Version out there this morning? 22:21 Read it to us, would you? 22:23 Let's hear in the King James as an interesting word. 22:25 Listen carefully here verse 16. 22:28 "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves 22:30 servants to obey, 22:32 his servants ye are to whom ye obey, 22:35 whether of sin unto death, 22:37 or of obedience unto righteousness?" 22:39 What's the key word popping up there? 22:41 Yield. 22:42 Yield, yes, thank you very much. 22:44 And look at that verse again, especially verse 16. 22:49 I'm not sure I can read it here and this is one of those pages. 22:52 Look at it's one of those pages in my Bible 22:55 that is challenging me but verse 16, 22:59 "Don't you know that when you 23:00 present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience," 23:03 it actually reads if you continue to present yourself, 23:08 you continue to present the members of your bodies 23:12 as instruments of righteousness. 23:14 This is dealing with the establishment of? 23:17 Habits. Habits. 23:20 That can become life saving things in our lives. 23:25 So the establishment of habits to go on continually 23:32 presenting the members of our bodies as instruments 23:37 of righteousness will lead by the grace of God 23:40 to the production of habits in our lives that will kick in 23:45 especially when we are facing serious temptation. 23:49 I hope you believe this? Amen. 23:51 Those habits will kick in 23:53 and we will automatically do 23:55 the things that we have been engaging in continually 23:59 no matter how strong the temptation. 24:03 We will do that which is now 24:04 a part of our habitual experience. 24:08 This is a huge thing to understand, 24:11 to establish habits that glorify God. 24:20 You've all had the experience of thinking some things done 24:23 within your life and then you stumble back into it again. 24:25 Have you had that happen? 24:27 And you feel so miserable 24:29 its because we fail to establish 24:33 the kind of habits in our life that will glorify God 24:36 and will kick in at the moment of the most 24:40 serious temptations in our lives. 24:44 We will do by nature now the things that we have been 24:47 continually presenting the members of our bodies to do. 24:51 Isn't that exciting? Yes. 24:52 And I missed the word heaven here in Romans 6, 24:55 I should have seen it 24:56 because of the continuous tense in Greek 24:59 continue to go on presenting the members of the your bodies 25:04 as instruments of righteousness 25:07 till you become servants now of Jesus Christ 25:11 the righteous one himself. 25:15 How is your faith this morning? 25:17 Amen. Amen. 25:18 This is a pretty simple process, you know, 25:20 we complicated of course. 25:22 And the mistake I made was here, 25:29 because I instead of yielding or surrendering 25:34 I chose to struggle and I prayed 25:38 that self defeating prayer for many years, 25:40 God make me strong enough so I can overcome this habit. 25:45 Now I keep digging the hole deeper and deeper. 25:49 Finally God hit me over the head one day 25:51 when I was reflecting and I listen He says, 25:53 hey, there is only one person in human flesh 25:57 who was over strong enough. 25:59 I'm not asking you to be Him, I'm asking you to put Him on. 26:05 Let the victorious over coming one into your mind 26:10 every single day. 26:13 Yield to Him, don't struggle and beg for help, yield, 26:18 surrender to Him and His will will now become one 26:24 with your will and you will have grace to establish 26:28 new habits in your life 26:30 that will bring great glory to God. 26:34 Amen. 26:36 Let's bow our heads together as we conclude this morning. 26:41 Father in heaven, what a merciful God you are. 26:43 Forgive us for our foolishness, Father. 26:46 Forgive us amen for thinking if we cry out to You enough 26:50 You will make us strong enough to make these changes 26:52 in our lives and all along there's ever been one human 26:56 who was strong enough, 26:58 Jesus who totally trusted in His Father 27:02 developed the complete life 27:04 which He is willing to impart to us. 27:07 Give us the grace to come to the cross every day. 27:11 Give us the strength to yield instead of struggle. 27:14 Enable us to have the mind of Jesus every day 27:18 so that Christ in us can make choices 27:22 that will bring great glory to You. 27:23 Thank You Father, 27:25 for the assurance of victory that we have today. 27:28 In Jesus precious name, amen. 27:32 If you would like more information 27:33 about this ministry or how you can obtain a copy 27:36 of this entire series 27:37 and other resources by Pastor Bill Liversidge 27:40 please contact us. 27:42 Creative Media Ministries proclaims the full ministry 27:44 of Jesus through the sanctuary. 27:46 With the growing cost of TV production and broadcasting 27:49 this dynamic ministry needs partners committed 27:52 to spreading the good news throughout the entire world. 27:55 You are invited to prayerfully consider making 27:57 a tax deductible donation to Creative Media Ministries. 28:00 Contact us online at www.creativemediaministries.org 28:06 That's www.creativemediaministries.org 28:11 By mail at Creative Media Ministries, 28:13 P.O. Box 1981, Palm Springs, CA 92263 28:19 or call us at 888-744-0443, 28:24 that's 888-744-0443. |
Revised 2015-08-20