It's Who You Know

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#333366" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>It's Who You Know</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=165 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="132" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 35 ><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id406.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Getting Moved In"><U><B><IMG SRC="007151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id408.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Living As Gods Masterpiece"><U><B><IMG SRC="008151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="20"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="35" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="20" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="13"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="27"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div> Previous/Next Sermon</div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="www.stanbaker.org"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Biblical and Theological Studies"><U><B>Biblical and Theological Studies</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Church Ministry"><U><B>Church Ministry</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sermon Notes"><U>Sermon Notes</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Personal"><U><B>Personal</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> www.stanbaker.org</div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:stan@stanbaker.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:stan@stanbaker.org"><U>stan@stanbaker.org</U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>"It's Who You Know," </B><A HREF="http://www.biblegateway.com/bible?passage=Eph+1:15-23" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.biblegateway.com/bible?passag"><U><B>Ephesians 1:15-23</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>Berean Bible Church, September 28, 2003am</B></div> <bR> <div>      William Randolph Hearst invested a fortune collecting art treasures from around the world. One day Mr. Hearst read the description of a valuable art item which he sent his agent abroad to find. After months of searching, the agent reported that he had finally found the treasure. To the surprise of Hearst, the priceless masterpiece was stored in none other than the warehouse of William Randolph Hearst. The multi-millionaire had been searching all over the world for a treasure he already possessed. Had he read the catalog of his treasures, he would have saved himself a lot of time and money.  (Today in the Word, December 13, 1995, p. 20. Bible.org, "Contentment").</div> <div>      Another man became envious of his friends because they had larger and more luxurious homes. So he listed his house with a real estate firm, planning to sell it and to purchase a more impressive home. Shortly afterward, as he was reading the classified section of the newspaper, he saw an ad for a house that seemed just right. He promptly called the realtor and said, "A house described in today's paper is exactly what I'm looking for. I would like to go through it as soon as possible!" The agent asked him several questions about it and then replied, "But sir, that's your house your describing." (Bible.org, Contentment).</div> <div>      Many times we have no longer appreciate what we have. We have no idea how valuable what we already possess is. We find ourselves searching for more and more, wondering if this is all there is. Many of us who have a relationship with God have lost our sense of appreciation for what we have in Christ, and who we are in Christ. We find ourselves hungering after the comforts and pleasures and possessions and experiences of this earthly live, and still not satisfied. Why keep searching for the "greatest" things of this life, when have all we could ever want or need in Christ? In reading Psalm 84:2, we find the psalmist hungering above all else for God. The only thing that would satisfy him to knowing and enjoying God. What do you hunger for? Do you desire God as much as you desire fun and pleasure and possessions?</div> <bR> <div> I. Ephesians 1:15-23: Paul prayed that we would know God better (vss. 15-17), leading to a better understanding and appreciation of three realities for those who are in Christ:</div> <div>      To know, understand, and appreciate these three realities requires a work of the Holy Spirit. Only he can open our mind's eye to finally "get it" (vss. 17b-18a). That's why Paul was praying for it, and why we should too.</div> <div> A. We have eternal hope because God called us to salvation (vs. 18a).</div> <div> B. We are God's valued inheritance (vs. 18b).</div> <div> C. We have God's mighty power available to us (vss. 19-23). The power of Christ is described in three areas. 1) Resurrection and exaltation (vs. 20); 2) Authority over all (vss. 21-22a); 3) head of the church (vs. 22b-23). In the political arena, like Washington DC, people are networked together, and most of the time, it is who you know that really counts if you want to get something accomplished. To know Jesus is to the know the very ruler of the universe. And he makes his power available to his church, his people, in order to accomplish his purpose.</div> <bR> <div> II. What difference does knowing these things make?</div> <div>      First, our worship changes. Last week we saw three benefits of being "in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3-14): God has chosen us and prepared us to belong to his family. We have been given the riches of God's grace. And we have been guaranteed a secure future. These cannot help but motivate overflowing worship when we begin to understand these things, aided by the Holy Spirit.</div> <div>      Second, our prayer life changes. For one thing, we pray for more than just "earthly" issues, since we exist in the heavenly realms at the same time. Note again that Paul is imprisoned when he writes this. But that is not the focus of his prayers! For another thing, we pray with greater faith, because of God's power in Christ. He makes his power available to the church, for the benefit of the church, Christ's body. Christ puts all his resources behind accomplishing his work through God's people on planet earth, the church.</div> <div>      Third, the focus of our efforts changes. If these three realities are true, and we understand them, we become willing to devote our earthly lives to this greater cause, because it is worth every effort. Jesus said that it is costly to follow him. In Luke 14:27 and 33, Jesus said, "Anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." He wants you to regard him as worth everything. He is not just a minor addition to your already full and satisfied life. He is the most valuable person you can know. Salvation is the most valuable thing you can possess. Paul (the writer of this letter, from prison) was willing to give up everything for the cause of Jesus Christ. In Philippians 3:7-12 (NLT) Paul wrote, "I once thought all these things were so very important, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ  and become one with him. I no longer count on my own goodness or my ability to obey God's law, but I trust Christ to save me. For God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith. As a result, I can really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I can learn what it means to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that, somehow, I can experience the resurrection from the dead! I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be."</div> <div>      Believers and unbelievers alike may say, "Is this all there is?" about Christ and Christianity. To know God is the ultimate reality we can experience. People in our generation are willing to give their lives because of how valuable Christ is. Someone who has spent his whole life out of control because of sin finds Jesus Christ, and for that person, it is the most awesome thing in the world. Someone who has invested everything in the possessions and pleasures of this world, and comes to realize how unsatisfying it all really is, when they find Christ they are satisfied. Ask God to help you see it, whether you have never realized it, or have forgotten it. That is Paul's prayer for you - make it your own, pray it for others, and dive into the truth of God through his word.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> copyright, 2003, Stanley Baker</div> <div> www.stanbaker.org</div> </td> </tr></table></body>