[0:00] anyway okay so last Wednesday night we got into had a message here about this teaching of Paul's that's kind of a new teaching something introduced that no one prior to his ministry ever really expounded upon to say the least it was mentioned but not not at all given in detail or description were taught as a doctrine and that was that Jesus Christ is inside of the believer that he comes inside by his spirit and dwells inside of you and I remember I don't remember the first time I shouldn't say that way maybe some of you do but I can recall being younger and just thinking how is that possible it just doesn't make sense how is God in me and you think maybe some things you get introduced to thoughts on television with somebody that's empowered you know a cartoon character or something that can do special feats and you might think is that what it's supposed to look like and if I mean he could do miracles he could turn water to wine he could calm the seas he could heal people raise the dead as disciples did it should I be able to do it so people are confused even to this day thinking that they can do things believing that God's given them power that they're apostles and so forth now it is a confusing thought on the surface and so that's why we study the Bible that's why we believe the Bible that's why we put all our faith and trust in what the word of God says and don't go on what somebody else tells you they did or what they felt that doesn't matter to me and it shouldn't matter to you what matters is what sayeth the scriptures when the Bible says that Christ is in you that's Colossians 1 verse 27 that was where we began where Paul teaches this that Christ is inside of the believer and he's called the hope of glory as we mentioned last week he's the elsewhere he's called the the earnest of our inheritance till our body gets redeemed to the redemption of the purchased possession and while this while we're still stuck in this body of flesh we've been given a down payment or a promise the Holy Spirit of promise and he's called the Spirit of Christ in Romans chapter 8 and in Romans chapter 8 right after he calls it the Spirit of Christ then he says and if Christ be in you the body is dead because of sin and so forth so there's Jesus Christ inside of the the believer this pledge by God that he will one day conform your body to be made like unto his glorious body that were predestinated to be conformed to the image of his dear son now in chapter 2 we studied first it was kind of the what is taking place Christ is in you and then we studied how that took place in Colossians 2 verses 10 through 13 where we saw that the Bible says God performed an operation in verse 12 and that operation is described as a circumcision made without hands and talked about it last week kind of tried to give the description if you're unfamiliar with this teaching just catching your back up on it God did something inside of you where he cut apart or circumcised the the new nature that he puts in you Jesus Christ in you from the the old nature that you had your body of the sins of the flesh verse number 11 he separates the two because he's not going to dwell or be I don't know what the right word there is he's not going to touch he's not going to be associated with or connected to sinful flesh and so in essence he creates a new department or compartment inside of you where he can dwell and so that's that's the process of spiritual circumcision Colossians chapter 2 then Colossians chapter 3 we studied that Christ is in the person called the new man and in that new man what we looked at was he's first of all he's a new man there's a new creature that never existed before inside of you now and that's why you as a believer
[4:03] now can have different thoughts you can have different impressions you can think differently you can you can almost have different desires and and you could see the world differently when you have eyes of faith when you have Jesus Christ inside of you you can go to the same job and drive the same car and be beside the same people but you inside can be very different and that's Jesus Christ in you that wasn't there before and now that he's there everything's new old things are passed away behold all things are become new that new man is called a uh the spirit he's called a new creature he's called the inward man and there's uh those are the major designations the apostle Paul gives to him we saw that you're a new man we also saw because Jesus Christ is in you you have a new mind and that was in verse number 10 where you're renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him and we ran those references a little bit into Philippians and Ephesians and all the way back into Romans and saw that this mind is the mind of Christ a new mind a new way of thinking and a mind of humility and there is several attributes to that and to being renewed in the spirit of your mind when you put on the new man and I said last week that the new mind is like a new control panel for the decisions of your life you can now make them in righteousness you can now understand the holy choice to make versus the carnal one the one that suits your flesh and one thing that has to happen for a believer is his thinking has to change his thinking has to be renewed and if you never get that bible in you you're not going to have access to the words of God and the truth of God and you're not going to grow you're not going to know how to think you're just going to be consistently bombarded and influenced by a carnal spirit by a worldly fleshly lusty spirit that's going to just keep you where you were before you got saved now I gave you some examples of that but we'll pass over on that and finish with what we closed with last week was because Jesus Christ is in you you have a new master at the end of verse 11
[6:03] Christ is all and in all and later in that passage he addresses servants and he tells them you serve the Lord Christ and he addresses masters in chapter 4 in verse 1 he says you have a master in heaven and so no matter who you are servant or master whatever place you find yourself if you're born again you have a new master he's on the inside of you and in verse 17 it says whatsoever ye do in word or deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus you have a new master and your old master was your flesh and sin had dominion over you and now you have a new one he's inside of you and he's alive in you now I want to continue that thought about Jesus Christ being in the believer so let's kind of read through the passage of Colossians 3 together and get our minds back into it we're gonna start in verse 8 and read all the way to verse 14 where the Bible says Colossians 3 verse 8 but now ye also put off all these anger wrath malice blasphemy filthy communication out of your mouth lie not one to another seeing you have put off the old man with his deeds and have put on the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him where there is neither Greek nor Jew circumcision nor uncircumcision barbarian Scythian bond nor free but Christ is all and in all put on therefore as the elect of God holy and beloved mercies or bows of mercies kindness humbleness of mind meekness long suffering forbearing one another and forgiving one another if any man have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you so also do ye and above all these things put on charity which is the bond of perfectness now let's continue that thought I gave you three points I want to give you two more tonight to round this off because Jesus Christ is in you you have a new man you have a new mind because Jesus Christ is in you you have now a new master and then fourthly you have a new manner a new manner meaning a new way to express behavior toward others in verses 12 and 13 you're told to put on as the elect of God holy and beloved bows of mercies now let's just contrast the the wording that he introduces this with in verse eight so we'll contrast eight and nine verses 12 and 13 in eight nine you're to put off all these and then in 12 and 13 you're to put on these and we're not going to break them down one by one but you get the gist here in eight nine put off anger wrath malice in verse nine lie not one to another seeing you've put off the old man but then in the contrast to putting those things off you're putting on bowels of mercies verse 12 kindness humbleness of mind meekness long suffering there's forbearance and forgiving or forgiveness mentioned in verse 13 when we compare the two
[9:08] I want you to notice that these are relationship oriented you're not you're not having bowels of mercies when you're going for a hike with your dog that's not it's it's about people it's about relationships with others and the new manner because Jesus Christ is in you have a new manner about you notice again in verse nine it says lie not lie not one to another that's a relationship in verse 13 forbearing one another forgiving one another if any man have a quarrel against any these are these are interactions with other people because Jesus Christ is in you you now have a new manner a new way to express yourself and your behavior toward others a new manner is a demonstration of Jesus Christ in you now there's a real specific point I want to make and I think it'll help you clear up some thought if you're if you need it when you get saved it doesn't mean that your personality changes at all God saves you he washes away your sins he puts his nature in you he puts Jesus Christ in you but if you're a hyper and an aggressive individual or if you're the whole other side to where you're just a quiet composed passive person that doesn't change when Jesus Christ comes inside of you if you're quiet you're still going to be quiet and when it comes to witnessing God can give you boldness to do that but in a general rule your personality isn't just going to turn on to something that you're not you don't need to be either and we're all different and the Lord God made us all different thank God he made us all different they say opposites attract and there's there's some truth to that but then also at the same token birds of a feather flock together there's truth to that too but no matter what type of a person you are you could be this they they have it listed in several ways type a b c d and or different names for personality traits and characteristics about people it doesn't matter what category you might fall into by man's studies whatever it is with Jesus Christ in you you'll behave in a new manner let me tell you what I mean here if somebody does something disagreeable to you or hurtful to you or just some I don't know just some overall negative situation you find yourself wrapped up into you will still respond according to your personality but with Jesus Christ in you it doesn't have to be the old man anymore it can be the new man this time and here's what I mean if you're an outspoken person if you're kind of that just wide open things come and they come right out of your mouth or you just respond you react you know we know people like that some of you may be that way I think in this room there's probably a little bit of everything which is great there should be if that's your style if you're way over here with this outwardness and and some you get into some negative situation your old man's going to react with anger and wrath and malice but the new man with Jesus Christ in him is going to react with a new manner he's still going to be outward with his emotions and his response but this time it should be bowels of mercies not just I'll give them one chance and if they don't respond right
[12:40] I'm done with them that's the old man he's just pretending to be the new man and he can't do it for long but so what I'm saying is you can be that outward and just bubbly and and just over aggressive individual and personality and the new man can respond with that outwardness but this time the the gushing forth isn't anger and wrath but it should be mercies and helps and be the one that assuages the situation and calms it down and presents a solution and offers forgiveness on the same token you could be that passive person you could be that person that doesn't say much just takes everything on inwardly instead of externally and in your old man when something bad goes down you'll tend to turn it toward bitterness it'll become you'll become resentful toward the person or persons toward whatever the negative thing is you won't voice it they won't see it or they'll they'll see it on your face maybe but the old man is just going to get angry in his own way but if the new man in that passive person shows up he's going to show mercy in a different way it might just may not be these bowels gushing forth from him and and just you know making everybody happy but it'll be that long suffering that'll come out that patience that comfort that meekness that's mentioned in verse 12 you can see whatever edge of the spectrum you're on or anywhere in between with jesus christ in you there's a new manner a new way of expressing yourself it's not a change in your personality now let me give you a bible example of this and so turn to acts chapter eight look at acts chapter eight and i think we can see this from somebody that we know pretty well in this book so we're introduced to this character named saul first in chapter seven at the end in the stoning of stephen and then in chapter eight and verse one where he's consenting unto his death so verse three chapter eight verse three it says as for saul he made havoc of the church entering into every house and hailing men and women committed them to prison going into every house is he what an aggressive guy he really believed what he was doing and if you look at chapter nine this guy was driven and motivated chapter nine verse one and saul yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the lord went unto the high priest and desired of him letters to damascus to the synagogues that if he found any of this way that whether they were men or women he might bring them bound under jerusalem so again he's he's an active high strung kind of guy he's a doer he gets things done he doesn't sit around and complain about it at night drinking tea and just fussing i just don't like it don't like it somebody no he says i'm gonna do something about it matter of fact look at chapter 26 he tells us exactly what he thought and then what he did acts 26 paul was a doer this was his personality is what i'm pointing out chapter 26 verse 9 paul says this i thought i verily thought with myself that i ought to do many things contrary to the name of jesus of nazareth you hear that you hear his own admission most people in this world say they think with themselves that that somebody ought to do something about this
[16:40] but paul's saying i thought to myself that i ought to do many things contrary and in verse number 10 which thing i also did in jerusalem and many of the saints that i shut up in prison i've received authority from the chief priest and when they were put to death i gave my voice against them and i punished them off in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme and being exceedingly mad against them i persecuted them even under strange cities paul is on the road a road trip to round up anybody he could find this guy can't sit still he's aggressive it is his nature and personality to be going going going and getting after it it's just what he is and you might say that's just the way god made him uh he went all the way to damascus in verse 12 with authority and commission that's not a like an overnight trip i'll look later in the chapter then look at chapter 20 uh no 26 and verse 19 so he says whereupon o king agrippa this is after jesus christ met him he's converted he says i was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision but showed first unto them at damascus and at jerusalem and throughout all the coast of judea and then to the gentiles that they should repent and turn to god and do works meet for repentance so on one side he's just going anywhere he finds christians he's on the road getting them then he gets saved you'd say he's following jesus christ commission and where he's going going going going everywhere he can go to preach a different message to have a different ministry look back at chapter 20 i want to make one more point about the apostle paul here alex chapter 20 he's the kind of guy that he acts on what he feels you know people like that maybe you're like that yourself you feel it you think it you just you can't just ignore it you're just wired that way here's the apostle paul in chapter 20 of acts in verse 19 he's before he leaves ephesus he reminds them what he's done there in that town he says serving the lord with all humility of mind with many tears and temptations which befell me by the way in lying in wait of the jews and how i kept back nothing that was profitable unto you but have showed you and have taught you publicly and notice this and from house to house did you remember what we read in the first time we talked about him how he was going into every house hailing men and women he was going after him now what's he doing now that he's saved with a new commission the same thing he's going house to house he's not sitting at home he didn't just stop doing what he used to do his nature and personality and drive and motivation is to go to go to do something i got to do something and so he goes and does it for jesus christ and so his personality is the point it is still intact but the energy is focused on the work of god now he has a new man in him steering him that way personality didn't change at all you could say the same thing about the apostle peter the apostle peter in the gospels very outspoken putting his foot in his mouth left and right speaking the wrong words getting rebuked by jesus christ but he's just that guy he just says what he thinks and then you get past what we call what christ may have called his conversion you get in the early book of acts and you start seeing this man is boldly speaking to all the authorities in the name of jesus christ every chapter in the early acts one after another the apostle peter standing up and preaching preaching up a storm it's the same personality it was just redirected to something new so the new man has a new manner a new way of expressing his behavior in relation to others there's a difference and jesus christ is that difference on the inside so practically speaking maybe this can help you is you don't have to take on the personality
[20:46] of another believer you don't have to follow and be mentored by somebody and try to be them that'd be foolish that'd be wrong what you need to do is be the guy the woman that jesus christ made you to be that he came inside and cleansed and sanctified you keep being that person but give your heart and surrender to jesus christ don't try to be somebody else that's a bad idea don't try to imitate somebody else be yourself in the new man you have a new manner and that'll be christ in you i know um going to pensacola bible institute i used to hear it all the time people would just rip on guys that would graduate from there they say oh they're all trying to be like rockman they're all trying to talk like rock they try to put them down they try to kick them and there was a few guys that would be just they were just like that that's what they did and i didn't like that i didn't like hearing that and i thought to myself i'm not going to be that guy i'm not going to try to pick up personality traits and i didn't even have to this just having just hearing that was enough to make me aware of it not to be like that i knew a guy that was a preacher for years and years and he would listen to a certain evangelist and he would listen to all his messages and then when he'd get up to preach i could hear that evangelist in the pulpit he just he picked up some of those character traits and ways of speaking and then a couple years later he got turned on to a different preacher and he's listened to a lot of stuff of his teaching and preaching and what i noticed was he's doing some of his antics in the pulpit he's saying some of the things he says and it's part of it's natural i don't want to push it out too far but don't be a chameleon just just be the person god made you to be allow learn to accept that and to be that um i don't want to talk about myself really much here but this is something i struggled with as a young man really is a feeling called to preach and feeling just totally inadequate and listening to guys that could really quote unquote shell the corn listening to guys that as they say they could peel the bark they could just preach they could preach the roof off a place you know and they're sweating and spitting and walking around and flinging their code and and the whole place is erupting and i thought i can't do that am i supposed to do that am i supposed to get in front of the mirror and just i mean what is this what is this thing and and the lord taught he showed me something once when uh it was it was through some circumstances then through a preacher and then through another thing where he just said it's that still small voice that cuts through all of that garbage sometimes it's garbage sometimes it's not but it's it's the voice of the lord that people need to hear not your voice not your antics and so throughout it all i learned and just said you know what i don't have to be anybody but this guy god called me and for what it's worth i'll just surrender myself to him and if he uses me fine if he doesn't that's his deal so help though maybe that helps somebody god will put a new man in you and that new man has a new manner but he doesn't take away the personality that he made you to be and so accept that and use that and let god use that and then finally let's finish this thought here there's one more point here because jesus christ is in you you have a new motive and what i mean by that is in verse 14 it's a new goal it's a new new something to strive for verse 14 it says above all these things put on charity which is the bond of perfectness now this is this is just easy to read right past it's easy not to get the weight of that statement above paul above all these you mean above the mercies and the kindness and the the humility and the
[24:47] meekness and long above all of those things he says you need to put on charity you're putting on therefore from verse 12 all of these things in 12 and 13 but above all these things put on charity and so because jesus christ is in you you have a new motive a new a new goal to reach for and it's charity the humility the the meekness and kindness the forgiveness that's mentioned those are all incredibly great qualities those are those characteristics or attributes of god living in you they should be coming out of you but there's one thing that i wouldn't have said this but the bible says it there's something that surpasses all of them all of them there's something that you might maybe it encompasses all of them or embodies all of them together i don't know if that's the right way to say it but it seems to be from the scriptures it's the pinnacle of godly behavior it's charity it's the bond of perfectness which is completion and complete maturity charity i personally wouldn't make a big deal out of that word it doesn't it just it doesn't stand out to me as a man but then i read it in the bible and i see that paul's not the only one that makes a big deal about that word well most of the time it is paul but peter does too in first corinthians chapter 8 verse 1 we read that charity is superior to knowledge knowledge puffeth up but charity edifieth we read in chapter 13 verses 1 through 3 that charity is greater than than any exercise of any spiritual gift that was given to the body of christ or all of them together it's better than spiritual understanding it's better than all acts of benevolence and all sacrifice charity is and at the end of that chapter and now abideth faith hope charity these three but the greatest of these is charity at the end of first corinthians chapter 16 verse 14 he says let all your things be done with charity all your things peter said in first peter 4 verse 8 and above all things have fervent charity among yourselves that sounds like what paul said here in verse 14 above all these put on charity above all these things have fervent charity among yourselves in first peter 1 and verse 5 now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart the end the end is what you're striving for it's it's upward and growing towards something toward the greatest thing the apex of christianity and it's charity and it's charity and first it's charity abiding inside of you and next it's demonstrated in your relationships with others the old man cares for the lusts of the flesh and of the desires and the of the desires of the flesh and of the mind the new man though has a new motive something far higher now we can't talk about charity without reading this passage look back at first corinthians 13 it's mentioned in a few places i read most of them but here it's just expounded upon first corinthians 13 and as we read this let me remind you let me clear your mind this is not a marriage theme it's a common passage to read at weddings that's fine but this theme this is about the ministry he's not talking to men and women he's talking to believers all of us to have charity it's a popular text but it's a ministry
[28:55] theme and so it's the the believers mantra or goal in all relationships let's read through this together beginning at verse number one though i speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not charity i am become a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal and though i have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and though i have all faith so that i could remove mountains and have not charity i am nothing and though i bestow all my goods to feed the poor and though i give my body to be burned and have not charity it profiteth me nothing so if i could couple this with where we were just at in the book of colossians and there you're told to do this and do that put on the new man put off the old man and if you don't have charity and if then your relationship with others isn't there's not charity sounds like it's just vain sounds like it's meaningless and verse four here goes the description charity suffereth long well that's mentioned back there in colossians long suffering and is kind so is kindness for that matter charity envieth not charity vaunteth not itself is not puffed up sounds like your flesh vaunts itself up when it doesn't get its way when it doesn't like what somebody says to you or parks in a parking spot it vaunts itself up so quickly not charity you see how this new man is supposed to take over verse five does not behave itself unseemly oh my oh how guilty we all are right there in our behaviors seeketh not her own we're so every point i feel it i hope you do too i feel it charity in the end of verse five is not easily provoked oh god help us because i am easily provoked sometimes it doesn't take much to just there it is and it comes up inside of me just that fast i need charity is not easily provoked thinketh no evil there's cross references all over our bibles for these statements we could study this out in verse six charity rejoiceth rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth it's not all about charity charity beareth all things we read forbearing one another charity believeth all things there's a there's faith charity hopeth all things and charity endureth all things my how far how short we all fall just in this little list and really the truth it's showing you how high up this thing is and having showing kindness here and there that's a good thing we preached on that a few months ago about david showing kindness to mephibosheth and how that's a good christian virtue that's just one but charity is it's like it's above all of this it's way up there above all these things charity never faileth in verse eight now the less and the less and the less of you that you can get to be and the more and the more and the more of jesus christ this is what it's going to look like this list here it's going to start to look like that remember john the baptist near the end he had this ministry when it came to the end when christ
[33:00] came on the scene he said this he must increase but i must decrease and there's a good picture of the old man and the new man and the lord jesus christ on the inside he needs to increase he needs to take over he needs to have all access to every part everything that's called surrender that's called offering your body a living sacrifice and this is evidence of jesus christ living in you and working in you and changing you in the new man so you have a new motive with jesus christ in you you have a new motive a new goal new new motivation in your life is to get somewhere further than you are right now it's to get more of jesus christ in you and less of yourself controlling you so recapping this christ is in you in the new man with a new mind he's your new master you have a new manner now access to another choice another avenue that you can go and then a new motive ultimately the goal i believe is total submission to jesus christ all of us not just me up here preaching all of us total submission in all areas of our heart and our conduct and our mouth and our thoughts and our decisions jesus christ he makes the choice i surrender it to him it's a process it takes time it takes time in the word of god it takes time putting the flesh down it takes time growing the new man it takes years really it takes growing it takes purging it takes faith it takes obedience maybe you could make that your goal what john the baptist said he must increase but i must decrease and as he increases this is what comes out of you his charity so praise the lord for this new doctrine that paul gives us of christ in us but i hope you'll see then it's not just a doctrine to know in your head but it's one that should be showing up in your life it should be showing out in your words and in your reactions and in your relationships with others it should show up he's in me so amen amen let's close with that father thank you for our time tonight thank you for this book and for pointing us to these to a higher level and a higher plane lord thank you for christ in us oh god help us to submit to you help us to take it serious every day every decision of our days help us to walk with you to want you to want to do right allow you to lead us thank you for that leading and for the the still small voice lord i pray that you'll give grace and that you'll give mercy and that you'll be patient with us but god i pray mostly that you'll help us to grow help us to submit to you help us to recognize where we're not on board with your plans where we're where we're seeking the lust of our flesh where we're pretending our old man's posing as a new man just give us wisdom lord make it evident and help us to have the courage and boldness to do what's right again we love you thank you for not leaving us to our sin and to ourselves and to hell thank you for putting your spirit within us so please give us a good evening the rest of the night now and this traveling safety home and good day tomorrow help us to walk with you and to do right lord i pray that each person here would have somebody they could invite for our friends day upcoming pray that you'll begin to work there that you'll do something for yourself i pray that you'll be able to get the gospel to somebody that's never heard it before somebody that's on their way to hell lord i pray that you'll get somebody out of that on that
[37:04] very day help us to be faithful and to be obedient in inviting those that we can we pray this in jesus name amen all right you're dismissed you