God Wants To Change Your World-view!

Preached by Chris Adams, February 24, 2008

Communion Shared by Jonathan Pedican and Lauren Marfo; (Syracuse University students)

We are God’s ambassadors!

Download audio
Paul’s said that since Jesus died and was raised again, he no longer looks at anyone from a worldly point of view (2 Corinthians 5:16-17): not Jesus, not anyone in the church, and not even himself! Paul’s hope was in God’s power and desire and ability to bring Paul and the Corinthians to be with Him in heaven forever. (2 Corinthians 5:4-5)

For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

This changed everything for Paul, and I believe it is the secret for how we can be transformed in our thinking to be able to view pain, trials and repentance of our own sin in a spiritual way–for we, like Paul, our now Christ’s ambassadors, and we make it our goal to please God in every way (2 Corinthians 5:9).
“Change your world view” preached by Chris Adams
Sunday, February 24, 2008

2 Corinthians 4:16-18
• How you view the circumstances of your life changes everything.
• When your worldview changes, everything changes.
• Discipling changes your worldview.
• God wants you to change how you view the world.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10
Question: What purpose did God make you?
• The immortal will swallow up our mortal lives!
• We can be confident always, if we focus on what Paul focused on!
Question: What do you need to change to become confident always?

2 Corinthians 2:14
• The triumphant procession Paul was referring to was probably the common sight of a parade of victorious Roman soldiers.
• Paul said that disciples of Jesus Christ are always victorious.
• However, it is actually during those times of adversity (not after) that you will be victorious.
• We do not view the world the way we could and should as disciples.
Question: Are you going to be focused on heaven?
Question: How do you feel when you hear the word “judgment”?
• People feel judged.
• The words “judge” and “judgment” make people cringe.
• Satan is your accuser. (Jesus in John 5 says “I am not your accuser.”)
Question: Why do you think that Jesus had to say that He does not judge you?
• You can come into the Kingdom with this fear and worldly expectation of being judged.
• Another word for Judge is Evaluate. . . like a teacher evaluates her students to help them learn more.
• If you are judged by Jesus Christ, then it is a good thing.
• The heart behind the judgment should be Biblical not worldly. (Matthew 7:1-5)
• Your worldview changes how you view being judged by brothers in Christ.
• Only through God can you truly change and love the way Jesus loved.

2 Corinthians 5:14-16
• Everything Paul did was because Jesus died for him.
• Jesus took all the sin of mankind because He was perfect.
• Every person is accountable to God.

Acts 9:1-19
• Paul’s worldly point of view was taken away from him. Blinded!
• Paul’s view of the world completely changed.

1. Change your view of God.
• Change your view of God from Master to Friend.

2 Corinthians 5:16-21
• God reconciled you to Him.
• A relationship can always be reconciled.

John 15:12-17
• Jesus said one thing and you do another. We need to change our thinking to match Jesus’ thinking about everything.
• You think that Jesus is ashamed of your behavior or conduct spiritually.
• You have to view God as wanting to be your Friend.
• Jesus says it’s possible for us to be His friend, so it’s possible for us to trust one another.

Ephesians 1:22-23
• Your relationships depend on whether you view Jesus as a Master or as a Friend.
• If Jesus’s body is the church, then however you treat your brothers and sisters now is how much of a best friend you are to Jesus.

Matthew 25:37-40
Question: Should your view of God change?
• Your view of God can change.
Question: How is Jesus challenging you?
• Every disciple of Jesus Christ should be treating others with love and honor.
• Honor means speaking the truth in love.
Question: Are you being like that to each other?
• You got to be honest with each other.

2. Change your view of sin.
• Grace: unmerited favor.
• Paul was trying to win their hearts and minds.
• The purpose of God’s mercy and grace is repentance.
• God’s kindness should lead you toward repentance. (Titus 2:11-12)
• God’s grace deserves our having a humble response about our sin leading to repentance.
• You say that the cross means nothing to you if you refuse to repent of your sin(s).
• You get temporary comfort from sin.
• But far from comforting you, your sin really hurts you.
• You are relying on your own power to get a Godly view of sin.
• The problem with any unrepentant sin area of lives, is that we do not want to see and we refuse to see the adventure that God wants to lead us on.

2 Corinthians 5:17-19
Question: Are you going to respond to the message?
• God is viewed as a Shepherd leading you toward water. (Psalm 23:1-6)
• Sin will totally contaminate you by changing your view of God and the world as well as draw you away from God.
• God wants to pull you from having a restless heart to a restful heart.

Isaiah 30:15-18
• God never changes.
• Even your sin cannot change God’s love toward you.
Question: Why wouldn’t you want quiet and trust?
• You struggle with trust.
• You got to stop and rest. That goes against our do-it-ourselves nature of self-reliance.
• He wants you to see who He is and who you are, so you can see WHOSE you are.

Isaiah 11:10-16
Question: How many chances does God give you?

3. Change your view of your role in this world.
• Stop being withholders and start being ambassadors of Christ!
Question: How many of you know that you should be ambassadors of Christ?
• Ambassadors are responsible for representing the views and customs of the country that they are from.
• Ambassadors receive diplomatic immunity because their jobs are that important!
• How important are you viewing your role as an ambassador—God has given you immunity from sin—every sin will be purified if you continue to walk in Jesus’ steps. (1 John 1-2)

2 Corinthians 5:20-21
• Paul viewed this role of being an ambassador as being reconciled to God.
• Be like Jesus to be reconciled to God.
• Being reconciled to God presupposes that at least some Corinthians had not repented like their peers in 2 Corinthians 7.
• You can receive God’s grace in vain if you are not careful.
Question: Don’t you want to be God’s fellow worker?
• You need to repent of your sin.
• There is no shortcut.
• You got to be known as someone who repents quickly.
Question: Don’t you want to have a restful heart?
• Paul built the church in Corinth but here they were critical of Paul and living faithlessly.
• Paul was trying to win them back.

Romans 8:28; Romans 8:35-39
• During a 3 month stay in Corinth, Paul likely wrote his letter to the Romans
• Irony: the Romans destroyed the city of Corinth in 146 BC when Corinth tried to defy Rome and create their own independent league of states. The city was completely annihilated and destroyed. Julius Caesar re-built and re-populated Corinth in 44 BC with freedmen when he saw the economic opportunities. So Paul brought the gospel of freedom from sin to this incredibly immoral city but later had to remind them of their humble beginnings (1 Cor. 1: not many of you were of noble birth). Meanwhile he was writing to Roman disciples who were living in the midst of the most powerful empire the world may have ever seen to that point—but the Jews had been ousted from the city and there was persecution approaching. He wanted all disciples everywhere in all ages to understand who the real conquerors really were! So even as Nero hung and burned disciples along the highways as human street lamps, Paul’s words must have encouraged them to never give up.
• As Rome sent out waves of soldiers to plunder the peoples of the world, God would send out waves of disciples of Jesus Christ to build God’s eternal kingdom.
• Today, you are more than a conqueror, even a Roman conqueror!

Categories: Audio Lessons       Download PDF: