This is Redemption Church in Plano Tx. Welcome everyone worshipping with us in person, and greetings to everyone connecting with us online. I bless you all in Jesus’ name.  My name is Chris Fluitt, and I am pumped up today, because I have the pleasure of sharing God’s Word with you.

Born for This

We are in the 3rd week of our sermon series – Born for this.

Mark Twain once said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”

We have been defining our ‘God-given’ whys. In week 1 we told you that you were born to KNOW GOD & LOVE GOD. In week 2 we discovered that we were FORMED FOR HIS FAMILY.  God has invited you into His family, and His family is called THE CHURCH.

Today I want you to know that you were created to become like Christ.

Created to Become like Christ

We humans are always in a state of becoming. Right now, what are you trying to become?

Become healthy.
Become wealthy.
Become educated.
Become spiritual.
Become a business owner/entrepreneur.
Become happy.
Become married or become a parent.

You are trying to become something right now. Are you aware of it?

Some people want to become more like a successful celebrity movie star.

WILL SMITH

I sure wish I could be wildly successful, wealthy, and popular like them. We often dream of becoming like someone; for example, Will Smith.

WILL SMITH SLAP

We often find out that the icon we seek to emulate is not as perfect as we originally thought them to be. Some heroes can mess up so badly, we scoff at the notion of having ever held them in high esteem.

Born for This

What you are becoming has everything to do with your purpose. God built growth inside of you. You are meant to grow up, grow in skill and maturity, and grow in so many ways. Are you aware of how you are growing?  We will come back to this thought, but first an important question.

Why did Jesus come to Earth?

Your answer to this question is important. Christians often get this answer wrong.

Most Christians say, “Jesus Christ came to Earth to save us.”  This sounds like the correct answer, but it is not. The reason why this is not the correct answer is because it makes Jesus a “plan B.”

Jesus is not a “Plan B”

Let me explain. If Jesus came to earth to save man, it must be that man was “plan A” but they failed so now Jesus came to save man as a “plan B.” If the reason Jesus came to Earth was to save man, then it means Jesus came to Earth as a response and was never the primary plan.

Jesus saves.  If He did not come to Earth we would all be lost. This is true. Yet I would tell you that Jesus would have still come to Earth even if man had never sinned and needed saving.

Jesus is “Plan A”

Jesus is not a response to a failed “plan A.”  Jesus is “plan A.”  Jesus is not secondary, He is primary.

Can we think of any scripture that preaches Christ as “Plan A?”

Romans 8:29 (Living Bible) 29 For from the very beginning God decided that those who came to him—and all along he knew who would—should become like his Son, so that his Son would be the First, with many brothers.

From the beginning God decided we should become like His Son Jesus. Jesus is the FIRST…  Not 2nd or 3rd…  He is Plan A!

Colossians 1:15b (Message) …We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created.

The first man was Adam, but God’s original purpose is not found in Adam, but in Jesus Christ. 

Prototype – an original model on which something is patterned

Adam is not the protype that we were all patterned after.  Jesus is the prototype we are patterned after.

Romans 5:14 (NIV) Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

Adam is patterned after the one to come. The one to come is the prototype model… Jesus is that one to come.

In Genesis 1 God created man. It says that God created man in His image and after His likeness.  God’s image that we were patterned after is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the image of the invisible God. (Colossians 1:15)

Here is what I think this means.

Jesus is what it means to be Human.

If Jesus is “plan A,” if He is the prototype and the purpose for all creation; Jesus is the perfect model of humanity.

Jesus does not just save you from sin, Jesus redeems & restores you to your original purpose.

Addiction is not your design.
Hatred is not your design.
Death is not your design.
Greed is not your design.
 

Here is what you were born for… you were created to become like Christ.

Created to Become like Christ

 

What are you trying to become today? You were born to become like Christ.

 

Jesus is God come to Earth, but we are not saying that you become a “god.”

…Not to become a God

There are some people who come up with some weird beliefs. There are humanistic beliefs that teach that you can become your own god.

You are no God.  If you were God, you would have solved your problems by now. You are not God, and any attempt to become God is foolish.

Have we seen such a foolish plan before?

Genesis 3:4-5 (Message) 4-5 The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”

This attempt to be God is what has gotten us in this mess to begin with.  When you are attempting to become a god, you are patterning yourself after satan (Isaiah 14:14) and not Christ!

Become Godly

Jesus is God, yet at His baptism the voice from Heaven does not say “This is God.”  No, the Father says, “this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) God is NOT saying this what it looks like to be God, but rather this is what it looks like to be HUMAN.  The Father is saying be like my earthly son.

As you become like the man Christ Jesus, you will fulfill your God given purpose.  We are to become Godly, but never become a god.  We are to become that perfect design for humanity, the very image and likeness of God.

You will never find your God-given purpose until you believe the following…

Who You Are > What You Do

Your character > Your job
Your virtue > Your career
Your values > Your desires & decisions
Your wisdom > Your accomplishments

Are you spending more time thinking about what you will do or who you are? Are you focusing on the external rather than the internal & eternal?

God wants to change who you are.  He wants you to be born again in Jesus Christ.

I love to pray with people in this altar, but can I tell you most of the prayers in this altar are about “what we will do” rather than “who we are.” “Change me O God” is a prayer we need to pray today!
 

Created to Become like Christ

All of the “WHYS” of life have 1 Godly answer. Why?  To make you more like Christ.

Why am I lonely?  Jesus Christ was lonely.
Why am I experiencing disappointment?  Jesus experienced disappointment.
Why am I afflicted?  Jesus was afflicted?
 

All of the “whys” you ask God share this one answer – to make you more like Jesus.

Philippians 2:5 (New Century Version) 5 In your lives you must think and act like Christ Jesus.

God is not going to stop working on you until every thought and action becomes like Christ.

In Galatians 5:22-23 Paul gives us a list of Jesus qualities we are intended to have. Paul calls these the fruit of the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.

This list perfectly describes Jesus.  Does this list describe you?

God will not stop working on you until this list describes you.  So How does God bring love, joy, and peace into our lives?  This question brings a surprising answer.

Negative Force = Positive Gain

In the gym, in order to gain positive muscle mass, you must experience the negative force of tearing muscle. To become strong, you must go through weakness. The things that tear us also build us.

We want God to simply ZAP us with what we need.  We would gladly take a pill if it would endue us with the power we crave. We would pay the 3 easy payments of $19.99 and even purchase the book if it would just add the missing ingredient.  God does not work that way.

God puts you in the opposite position to gain what you need.

How does God build love in you? Does God put you around loving people and by osmosis you learn to love?  Nope. God puts you around difficult people.  He sticks you in tight spaces with unlovely people. God uses nasty comments and unkind looks as if they were heavenly sandpaper to knock off your rough edges. When you learn to love those that don’t love you… then you have learned to love like Jesus.

How does God build joy in you? It would be great if God dropped confetti and balloons on us and that was all it took for us to become joyful. Many confuse joy with happiness. Happiness is about happenings. If the right circumstances happen, you become happy… this is not joy. God builds joy through the negative force of grief. It is here that God turns sorrow into joyful dancing. (Psalm 30:11) The most joyful people are not those who have never have experienced difficulty, but those who have come through trials and tribulation.

How does God build patience in you? Red lights and traffic jams.  The Department of Motor Vehicles is one of God’s instrument to teach patience. The Doctor’s office waiting room is a place that builds patience.  God places you in his own waiting room.  There you prayed, but you still don’t see the answer.

Problems Build You 

God is not a vending machine. God is not Amazon Prime, same-day delivery. Prayer to God is not, “But I want an Oompa Loompa Now!”

Your problems are helping you. Your problems are the negative forces shaping you to become more like Jesus. Your problem is reminding you that it is not about you.

Galatians 2:20 (NIV) I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

“I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” I become less like Chris Fluitt and more like Jesus Christ.

It is not about you; it is about LOVING GOD and LOVING OTHERS exactly as Christ loves.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (New Living Translation) And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

[Ephesians 4:13 (NIV) 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.]

We become more and more like Christ until we are changed into His glorious image.

Every Problem has a Purpose

Every problem offers a choice.

You are given Truth.  You choose what you will do with that Truth.
You are given trouble.  How will you respond?
You are given a trial. In what spirit will you walk through your trial?
You are given temptation. Who will you choose to serve?

 

Your problem yields an opportunity to do bad or good.  For you who have been praying for opportunities to do good, congratulations!  God answered your prayer with a problem. For you who have been praying Lord help me avoid doing bad, congratulations! God answered your prayer with a problem.

 

You were born to know and love God.
You were formed for His family.
Next, God wants you to grow up.

Grow Up Baby

There is a difference in growing old and growing up.  We all know people who are older in age but still immature. In fact, I would tell you that the world is full of babies that need to grow up.

Describe a baby with me.

Baby – Shallow, Self-centered, Entitled, Reliant, Lacks responsibility, Desires instant fulfillment

This describes the world.  Our world needs to grow up.
Does this list describe Jesus?  No.
Does this describe you?  Grow baby grow.

 

 

There is such danger in remaining an infant. Jesus warned of this in his parable of the Sower.

Mark 4:16-17 (Message) “And some are like the seed that lands in the gravel. When they first hear the Word, they respond with great enthusiasm. But there is such shallow soil of character that when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it.

Created to Become like Christ

Jesus offers us an opportunity to grow. You are born to become like Jesus.

What area of your life does not look like Jesus? That is area you can grow.

Does anyone feel God calling them to grow today?
Does anyone want to gain depth today?
Does anyone want to come pray that God would change them to be more like Jesus?