Christ Centered Submission

Pt. Dave Kenney
Eph 5:12-21 (NIV)

Paul is a very practical guy.

Live (our live) wisely

• Don't be foolish : Understand the system of the world is against you, you need to reject it.
• Take every opportunity : to grow and to be more like Him, this is God's purpose.
  Act wisely, what to choose : temptation or God? You will never overcome the temptation when you always says Yes to it.

• Know the world around you is evil!

Understand God's will

• Don't be led by wine
• Be led by the God's Spirit

Why did Paul contradict this?
People inspired / intoxicated by the spirit are always in control.
God doesn't posses you, but instead will inspire you.

God's spirit leads you to :

• Speak to each other in songs
• Sing and make music to the Lord
• Give thanks for everything
• Submit to each other because of our reverence for Christ - We don't submit to each other bot because of what the other person are.

Christ-centered submission is

• an act of worship to Christ
• not inferiority
• by both parties in a relationship

Christ-centered submission requires acting like Christ

• husbands sacrificing themselves for their wives - if you love your wife, you became more like Christ.
• fathers training and loving their children - God wants to teach man how to become a father by giving them children. By being a good father, you will imitating God.
• masters treating their slaves with the fear of the Lord

Christ-centered submission begins with being filled with the Holy Spirit
We should be filled with it everyday. That should be our goal. Doesn't matter how!

• our carnal nature will fight against Godly submission
• the world will encourage us to rebel
• demonic forces are in constant rebellion against God
• only by the Holy Spirit can we practice Christ-centered submission

Consider submitting to one another an act of worship to Christ.

• Husbands love your wives - be caring and putting her as priority is required.
• Wives submit to your husbands

democracy doesn't work in : military and marriage.
God says, the man break a vote. Not because he is smarter, but a decision need to be made.
Maybe God made women more easier to submit.
Women, you submit because you are bowing to Christ and your reverence for Christ.

• Children, obey your parents in the Lord

not because you are children and they are parents, but because you are bowing and worshiping Christ.

• Fathers train and teach instead of frustrate
• Employees (slaves) follow your boss whole hearted
• Employers treat your employees as brothers

Act like Christ in all our relationship

Be filled with the Holy Spirit

We are challenge by Paul:
"Do not be intoxicated..
say yes to Jesus, and not to the world"

Ephesians 5:22-6:9 (NIV)

Christ Centered Spiritual Warfare

Pt. Dave Kenney

¹⁰ A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. ¹² For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

¹³ Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. ¹⁴ Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. ¹⁵ For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.¹⁶ In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.¹⁷ Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Eph 6:10-18

How we do spiritual war in the word, it all comes to: stand in the Lord, Rely in His power.
Roman soldiers was the strongest at that time that's why Paul uses this analogy.

Knowing the Truth
Exercising faith
Practicing righteousness

Spiritual warfare is:

• to believe in Jesus Christ - so not only for "advance Christians". When you believe in Jesus Christ you will be always facing spiritual warfare,

and

• to lead a life that pleases God - every time you engaged to pleases God, you are facing a spiritual warfare.

Every time you face the same temptation, means you never overcome it.

The Bible says we [every Christians!] have three enemies hindering us in our pursuit of God's purpose in our lives:

• the WORLD
• the FLESH
• the DEVIL

we need to learn how to fight them, and realize that God never leave us during the fight.

The Devil
two extreme :
everything is because of demon and,
doesn't belief in demonic

Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

Satan
Devil : standard, flaws, accuser - is a created being, he is not the opposite of God, not as equal as God
And other names describe his character :
murderer,
tempter,
father of lies,
thief.
There is one devil, but many demons


Mark 5:6-10
⁶ When Jesus was still some distance away, the man saw him, ran to meet him, and bowed low before him. ⁷ With a shriek, he screamed, “Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In the name of God, I beg you, don’t torture me!” ⁸ For Jesus had already said to the spirit, “Come out of the man, you evil spirit.”

⁹ Then Jesus demanded, “What is your name?”

And he replied, “My name is Legion, because there are many of us inside this man.” ¹⁰ Then the evil spirits begged him again and again not to send them to some distant place.

Fact #1 : Jesus has complete authority over Satan and demons

Luke 10:17-20
¹⁷ When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”
¹⁸ “Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! ¹⁹ Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. ²⁰ But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”


Fact # 2: Being saved and belonging to Jesus is more important than having any authority in your life. First focus is, your relationship with God.

Eph 1:21-22
²¹ Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. ²² God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church.

Matt 28:18 “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
Devil exist, yes. Must stand firm against them. Don't go out looking for them. Jesus has the authority not us. The important thing is living pleasing Him.

James 4:7-8
⁷Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

submit : to get into proper rank [military term]
By saying YES to the Lord, and doing the thing He told us to do, you will make the devil flee from you.

The World

Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. James 4:4 [NLT]
We love sinners but we don't love sin!

¹⁵ Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. ¹⁶ For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 1 John 2 : 15-16

These are the areas that will most likely be tempted in

• Lust of flesh - craving for physical pleasure, flavour, sensuously, pornography
• Lust of eyes - never satisfied for everything, "it got to be yours".
  You can posses something, but don't let it possessed you.
• Pride of life - egoism, egotism.

² Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Rom 12:2 [NLT]
changing mind set : understands God's purpose in your life.

The Flesh

¹⁷ The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. Galatians 5:17

We don't want to submit to Jesus, because we don't want to follow HIM, do things He told us to do. We are at risk when we lose our "hold on" to God.
Victor Hugo : "Ninety Three"

¹¹ So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. Romans 6:11
As Christians : lead by Spirit OR lead by own desire - which do you want to chose?

¹² Do not let sin control the way you live;^a]"> do not give in to sinful desires. ¹³ Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. ¹⁴ Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. Romans 6:12-14
Every time you are tempted, you have a choice. Outcome determine you are living under which master.

1. Pride - having an inflated attitude of yourself. Cutting others down. Trying to impress others.
Don't be selfish, don't try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Phil 2:3

⁶ But he gives us even more grace to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but favors the humble.” James 4:6

2. Greed /Covetousness

I will not compare myself to others, I take my eyes off other people's possessions, positions, spiritual gifts, marriages, children or ministries, and I fix my eyes on Jesus.

God is in control so I will be content and thankful with what He gives me.

1 Tim 6:6-8 ⁶But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. ⁸But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

3. Lust [sexual temptation]

There is no future in this. It will damage our relationship with God and could destroy relationships with our spouse / children, as well as damage reputation and discredit ourselves as testimony for Christ.

¹² Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. ¹³ Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. ¹⁴ Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. Rom 6:12-14

4. Anger

²⁰for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1:20

5. Worry /Anxious thoughts

⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

⁸ And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Phil 4:6-8

6. Seeking Revenge

¹⁷ Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. ¹⁸ Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Dear friends, never take revenge. Romans 12 : 17-19

7. Fear

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
2 Tim 1:7

¹⁰ So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

God's Maturing Family

Pt. Dave Kenney

Eph. 4:1-7, 11-16 (NLT)

What is God calling us to do?

We carry His Name. v1. - this name identifying us.
To be a Christian means to be like or to belong to Christ.
We are His property, His owned, His children.

We are chosen by God to complete His purpose.
For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us new in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Eph 2:10 (NLT)
Never to do the different things that He has planned for us.
That's why we need to:
Live the life of Love and unity.

We each have a gift or gifts. v.7
Don't get confused. Relaxed. Everything that God give is a gifted, as long as you are using it for the Lord.
What is your gift?
each of us are startled unique.
How do you use it for God?
How do you use it in the church?

We each have helpers. v11. [not only gifts]
Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church : the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people.
Exercises their gifts.

Apostles
Prophets
Evangelists
Pastors
Teachers
These people are responsible to equip God's people. Take their gifts and do their work.

Life Group leader
Pastoral staff members
Christian writers
Christian broadcasters
Mature believers
Deacons
Each of us need to learn and build a skill or talent, to become better to serve God, cause..

We each has a task v.12
God's people... (should).. do his (God's) work and build up the church, the body of Christ.
Learn as we serve
Train as we serve
Grow as we serve

We ARE the church v.18
"The church should do this or should do that..." OR
"I should do this or should do that.." ?

Paul's Prayer in Ephesians

Pt. Dave Kenney [six week series on the letter to Ephesians]

Paul in Rome
Onesimus, a new believer - runaway slave of Philemon who lives in Colossians

Acts 19:8-10
Act 20:25-27, he is facing his eternal depart.

And so what is that Paul thought that God wanted them to know? What is Paul reminding them about? What does God want you and I to know?

Ephesians 1:3-23

v.3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.

He highlights the spiritual blessings by stating :
[these are blessings be cause we are united with Christ]

• He blessed us with every spiritual blessings
• He chose us from the very beginning - He still give us freewill even thought He knows we make poor decisions in live, still He chose us from the beginning.
• He adopted us because He loves us.
• We have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus - not by some personal act
• Our sins are forgiven completely
• He has given us the Holy Spirit so that He can always be with us.

as inheritance
if we don't actualize, hold on to it, it won't make us any good.

"..You forgot who you are, because you forgot who I am.." -Mustafa, the Lion King

Eph 1:15-19

The first part of Paul's prayer after thanking God for the Christian's faith in God and love for others he prayed that we would received wisdom and revelation so that we would :

• Grow in our knowledge of God. That we would know Him better - including heart knowledge, through the relationship with God. Knowing God and knowing about God is totally different!

True Christian revelation is a balance of head, heart, and spirit.

1 Cor 2:12,14
Matt 16:15-17
v.17 "for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven"
God wants us to understand Him with our heart.

Matt 13:13
2 Kings 6:17
Psalm 119 : 18

Paul prayed that we would know God better, and our eyes would be open to :

• Know the hope to which he has called you.

Hope : Jesus will come and take us all to heaven. So the hope is a firm and assured hope, not still hoping.

• Know the riches of His glory inheritance in the saints - sanctify : have you sins forgiven, make you holy. If we become a follower of Jesus, we are saints.
• Know and His incomparably great power for us who believe - Holy spirit. God has resurrected: body to spirit.

Remember these 3 important things:
In spite of your circumstances, continue to serve God
example : Onesimus

We have all received spiritual blessings and we should know them and put them to use.
He highlights the spiritual blessings by stating :

• He blesses us with every spiritual blessing
• He chose us from the very beginning
• He adopted us because He loved us
• We have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus not some impersonal act
• Our sins are forgiven completely
• He has given us the Holy Spirit so that He is always with us.

Paul's prayer for us to:

• Grow in our knowledge of God. That we would now Him better. Not just head knowledge.
• Know the hope to which He has called you.
• Know the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints : what does it mean to be a saint? learn about it, and apply it!
• Know and His incomparably great power for us who believe. The power of God so that we can serve God, always will be enough in our life to live to Him