“PEALING BACK THE LAYERS
THAT REVEAL THE REVIVED SELF IN CHRIST”
Mike Barnett, September 16, 2007
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We have been
praying and expecting a spiritual revival for some time at
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I think it is
important for us to realize that revival is not out there someday – revival is
already here!
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When Jesus
dies on the cross, he said it is finished.
John
30When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It
is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
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The Bible
says the
Luke 17:20-21 says:
20Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the
kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The
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When you came
to faith in Christ – your heart, soul and mind was revived and born again
through the power of the Holy Spirit.
John 3:5-8 says:
5Jesus
answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the
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The Bible declares
that every born again Christian is no longer a slave to sin, but now a slave to
righteousness – a person who has been awakened to God’s love and has
experienced a Spiritual Revival already that will never be taken away from them!
Romans 8:5-11, 15-17, 28-30, 35-39 says:
5Those
who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that
nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their
minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6The mind of
sinful man[e] is
death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; 7the sinful mind[f] is
hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. 8Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
9You,
however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the
Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ,
he does not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you,
your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of
righteousness. 11And if the Spirit of him who raised
Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will
also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in
you.
15For
you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you
received the Spirit of sonship.[g] And
by him we cry, "Abba,[h]
Father." 16The Spirit himself testifies with our
spirit that we are God's children. 17Now if we are
children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we
share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
28And
we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,[j] who[k] have
been called according to his purpose. 29For those God
foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that
he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And
those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those
he justified, he also glorified.
35Who
shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or
persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As
it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are
considered as sheep to be slaughtered."[l]
37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that
neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[m]
neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither
height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate
us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
THE ONION ILLUSTRATION
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The Bible
says when a person comes to faith in Christ; they are no longer slaves to sin,
but slaves to righteousness.
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QUESTION: If
the Bibles says Christians are slaves to righteousness, why is it then that so
many of us feel like they are slaves to sin at times?
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The Christian
life can be compared to an onion.
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When we come
to faith in Christ – the first layer is peeled off and often we think – wow I
am born again, I am free from sin.
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Some of you have been set free from addictions
and bad habits. At this stage life feels good – you have life all figured out.
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But then God
brings up some undealt with junk – this is the second layer that God wants to
peel off.
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Many
Christians are not prepared for this stage and they feel that something is
wrong with them.
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They say
things like: “I thought I was done dealing with my baggage and junk from the
past – why are all these old painful memories and feelings surfacing now?”
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During this
stage, the Christians feel worse then when they were pagan unbelievers because now they are
convicted of their sin and it hurts them tremendously.
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The tendency
is to take all this emotional baggage personally and some Christians at this
point think;” How can I possibly be saved”?
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But God is
simply showing the Christian what he is saved from.
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Just like
when a person swallows poison, he has to get it out of his system by vomiting,
so too the Holy Spirit is purging you of all the world’s junk you have
swallowed over a life-time.
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Do not take
the vomit personally – God is setting you free from your sickness that has
poisoned your soul for years.
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You will find
suppressed hurts, pains and memories coming up from deep within your soul.
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You will find
hurt and pain coming up from deep within your soul.
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You will find
shame and guilt coming up from deep within your soul.
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You will find
anger and resentment coming up from deep within your soul.
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You will find
fear and anxiety coming up from deep within your soul.
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You will find
lust and greed coming up from deep within you soul.
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You will see
a side of you that you have never seen before.
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Many
Christians long for relief from all this baggage coming up from the depths of
their souls.
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Some stop
reading the Bible.
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Some stop
praying.
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Some stop
coming to church.
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Because they
think that going to church, reading the Bible or praying is somehow cursing
them.
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But it is
just the opposite.
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All the truth
you are hearing at church or during your quiet time when you read the Bible is
now setting you free.
Jesus said: “If you hold
to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32Then you
will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32
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The Holy
Spirit who now lives in you is purging you from the old, gross sinful part of
you that has been infected by the sin virus that runs throughout all humanity.
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You never
knew it was so gross until you became a Christian.
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As a
Christian, pure holiness in the form of Jesus Christ/the Holy Spirit lives in
you and now you have a mirror inside you to compare the sin nature to.
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Before you
had nothing to compare it too.
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Before you
did not have a mirror to reflect it.
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But now you
see the grossness and want to run from it.
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When God
starts peeling off the layers – the temptation is to run for the hills.
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But if you
stay and allow the Holy Spirit to do his purging work, you will be free from
all that junk once and for all.
Ephesians 4:22-24 says:
22You were taught, with regard to your former way of
life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful
desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in
true righteousness and holiness.
OBSERVATIONS ABOUT TAKING OFF THE OLD
SELF AND PUTTING ON THE NEW – EPHESIANS
1) JUST LIKE AN ONION HAS
MANY LAYERS, SO TOO MY OLD SELF MUST BE PEALED OFF ONE LAYER AT A TIME. V. 22
2) THE
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So what does
God think about you?
Ephesians 1:3-11 says:
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing
in Christ. 4For he chose us in him before the creation
of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5he[c] predestined us to be adopted as his
sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely
given us in the One he loves. 7In him we have redemption
through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of
God's grace 8that he lavished on us with all wisdom and
understanding. 9And he[d] made known to us the mystery of his
will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their
fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head,
even Christ. 11In him we were also chosen,[e] having been predestined according to
the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his
will.
3) PUT ON THE NEW SELF WHICH
IS UNDERNEATH ALL THE LAYERS OF THE OLD SELF - JUST LIKE THE SEED OF AN ONION
IS UNDERNEATH THE SEVEAL LAYERS OF THE ONION SKIN, SO TOO THE HOLY SPIRIT OF
GOD LIVES INSIDE OF MY SOUL, MIND AND BODY)!
V. 23
1Corinthians
16"For who has known the mind of the Lord that he
may instruct him?"[a] But we have the
mind of Christ.
NOTE: WHO YOU REALLY ARE IS INSIDE YOU AND IT IS NOT YOUR OUTWARD PHYSICAL
APPEARANCE – IT IS YOUR SPIRITUAL APPEARANCE) IN CHRIST THAT DEFINES YOU!
HOW TO PEAL OFF THE
LAYERS OF THE OLD SELF:
1) READ THE BIBLE ON A
REGULAR AND CONSISTENT BASIS BECAUSE IT IS THE MIRROR THAT EXPOSES YOUR OLD
SELF AND AT THE SAME TIME REVEALS TO YOU YOUR BRAND NEW SELF IN CHRIST.
James 1:20-25 says:
22Do
not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says
is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and,
after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
25But the man who looks intently into the perfect law
that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard,
but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
A. LET THE COMMANDS OF
GOD CONVICT YOU ENOUGH THAT YOU WANT TO PEAL OFF THE OLD LAYERS OF SIN AND HURT.
Hebrews
4:12-13 says:
12For the word of God is living and active. Sharper
than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,
joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must
give account.
A. LET THE PROMISES OF
GOD EMPOWER YOU TO PEAL OFF THE OLD SELF.
Matthew 7: 24- 27
says:
24"Therefore everyone who hears these words of
mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the
rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the
winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its
foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these
words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who
built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the
streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with
a great crash."
2) CONFESS YOUR SINS TO
GOD AND TO THOSE YOU HAVE HURT.
1 John 1:8-9 says:
8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves
and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he
is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all
unrighteousness.
3) RECEIVE GOD’S
FORGIVENESS FOR YOURSELF AND FORGIVE THOSE WHO HAVE HURT YOU.
Luke 6:36-38 says:
36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 37"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not
condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed
down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with
the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
4) DISCIPLINE YOURSELF TO
LET GO OF THE PAST THAT PULLS YOU DOWN AND ACT AS IF YOU ARE WHOLE TODAY BECAUSE
POSITIONALLY IN CHRIST, YOU ARE!
Philippians 3:12-16 says: