Ever heard that saying "You don't know what you've got until it's gone"?
Have you ever been in a situation where a relationship ended? Maybe it was due to going separate ways, or maybe, due to death?
Reflecting on that relationship, thoughts cross your mind of; "If I had that relationship over again, or if that person were still alive, I would make a point of doing things differently."
We have this incredible way of looking at our lives and believing that we are always right. Am I right?
But as soon as that person is not around any more, we have sobering moments of realising that we weren't right all the time and we, all of a sudden, start realising how often we screwed up. And, given a second chance, we would make sure that we would do things the right way. But very seldom those second chances present themselves.
If you had a near death experience, or, if you have died and come back to life, how differently would you live your life now? What would you change?
I did a talk a couple of years ago where I asked the question, "If you had to die today, how would you be remembered?" After the talk, a man approached me with tears in his eyes and proceeded to tell me that, in that week, he died in the hospital theatre. The Doctors had declared him dead, when all of a sudden he came back to life. He was blown away by the second chance at life he had received and he has devoted himself to serving Jesus wherever he can, and never take his life for granted again.
In our minds, we try logically explain what actually happened because the idea of a miracle is simply foreign to us. We claim to believe in miracles, especially as Christians, but when we are exposed to one, we question it. Don't we?
The point of this is:
If you had a second chance of doing things over; or having that miracle take place in your life...
- How differently would we live right now?
The truth is this... Right now, We are living in our second chance already.
Let me show it to you:
Ephesians 2:
Vs 5,8 "By Grace you have been saved"
The Foundation and the Turning point:
When you receive communion, what does it mean to you?
•Is it just something you do because everyone else walked up?
•Have you forgotten what it means?
•Does it symbolised to you the power of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the torture he endeared, sacrifice he made in taking your place, to unite you with God?
•Does it remind you that you need saving more than anything?
•Does it humble you and make you want to serve God the way he serves you?
•Maybe it doesn't mean anything to you.
Communion reminds us of Jesus's act of salvation on the cross which came almost 2000 years ago! Methodists call this Prevenient grace!
Rom 5:8 " God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
VS 13 – Prevenient grace! - the price that was paid.
Jesus died for you before you were even born to commit your first sin.
God made sure there was a way for you to be free from sin.
DON'T FORGET!!! – We must not forget this.
God made sure that we have a second chance in hope that we live a life with him. We are already living in our second chance because of Jesus.
That is where it ALL starts!
WE ARE LIVING IN THAT MIRACLE RIGHT NOW!
ITS HERE...
We forget this!
Don't forget!
Remember, we said that if we ever had a chance of doing something over, we would do it way differently!
•You have been given a life beyond the sins and transgressions that this passage speaks about.
•You have been given a second chance.
•You have been given new life in Jesus.
How are you living this life?
How can we check the way we are living this life?
Ephesians 2 highlights it for us…
Compare versus:
Vs1-3,12: (note the previous tense)
1- As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
2-in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
3-All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
12-remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
vs 10,13,18,19: (note the present tense)
10-For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
13-But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
18-For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19-Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people and also members of his household,
What Ephesians is reminding us here is, that we have a choice.
•We are either obedient to God or we are not.
•We are either living separate from God or we are members of his household.
•We either invest all our energy into sinning, by disobeying God, and live under a false sense of salvation and end up being under God's wrath.
•Or; we accept what Jesus Christ has done for us, and be obedient in doing all that God requires from us.
If you claim to be a Christian, you are automatically called to serve Jesus and you need to be obedient in all your ways. Then you will be living true to vs 10,13,18,19. If you are justifying what you are doing, in anything, you are living your old life in vs 1-3,12.
How will you live this life now?
Do you live it to please God or yourself?
Don't forget!
•Don't wait for something drastic to happen in your life before you live the right way.
•Don't forget: You are dead to sin – Don't live in death
•Don't forget: you are alive – Jesus made sure of that.
•Don't forget: What it cost him for you to be alive.
•Don't forget: God's great mercy.
•Don't forget: You need to live a life that glorifies God RIGHT NOW!
Q: What do you need to change in your life, right now, to live right?
Tomorrow is too late!
Keep the SON in your eyes!
