From Shifting Sand to Solid Rock [Part 1]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan Wright.

If you just read the stories of Peter through the Gospels and the book of acts and read all about Peter. I think I would like it if you use the life of the party. He was gregarious and expressive emotional, impulsive, what those guys I think that you get around him. You're just ready to fly the pastor to another message of good news that will help you see your life in a whole new light. Deliberate excited for you to hear the teaching today the series life of Peter is presented in an old church in North Carolina.

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More on this later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan Wright is blessed are you, for God shows your spiritual treasures.

He reveals to you by the spirit things of flesh and blood could never discern you're blessed when you see things in the spirit that God has shown you and as you see Jesus more more this coming year. You'll see yourself more more as you understand his identity who he really is been you understand more more who you really are a blessing for you in this new year that essentially says to you that you are a rock, a living stone is what first Peter says a living stone in the unstoppable Church of God, which means you're a Victoire promises of the gates of hell cannot prevail against you and your bearer of keys. The keys of the kingdom.

Jesus says and it's because you're filled with the grace of God, and that's the grace that opens up heavens doors. You're a representative of God you re-present God on the earth bold with spiritual authority. This is who God says is you are its baguettes magnificent. It is mindbending, but this is I believe the blessing of God for us this year. While I hope that your new year is off to a rousing start to read in the paper this morning that over half of Americans will have made a resolution to lose some weight and get more fit. This year it's over half of us and I was at the breakfast table with the my daughter Abby is quite the snarky one on things he said well at least we understand what our problem is and we always have kind of a comical episode with New Year's resolutions at our house and all kind of started years ago when one morning at New Year's. I was asking the kids if they had some goals for the coming year and Abigail was little at the time she had been reading the old old novels that Bob see twin stories and see thought about it for a while and finally she said well you know I been reading these Bob see twin books and in their family. After every meal. They have a really nice dessert. She said no nice things homemade cakes and pies and things like that.

CC declared her New Year's resolution was to have a nice dessert after every meal in the coming year. My wife chimed in and she said, as I remember from a child reading those stories the body. Twin family also had a personal cook that lived with them and so my wife declared that her New Year's resolution. What does she want to have a personal call to come in and make all of these nice dessert said in the mail that we've never been able to recover ever sense about our New Year's resolutions so this past week was no different. I asked the kids do you have some goals for the new year and they said nothing in the. Finally, Abby said well you know we went to see the new Star Wars movie the night before New Year's Eve and she said that was good and all she said but she really wanted to see the new Pixar animated film the good dinosaur and CC. Finally, time is that my New Year's as I want to see the good dinosaur and I'm planning on site.

We don't have resolutions.

We got bucket lists we visited was the be all about.

I looked a bit of that minute if you got any New Year's goals. All and he just couldn't come up with a single thing. So finally I said wow about. I suggest that you have it inserted us try to suggest New Year's resolutions for one another, as was stated in the married couples don't do that. I got a few things I think would be good resolutions for you this year. Just some errors in well with the wind it out when we stopped really kind of have any, New Year's resolutions years ago when I started realizing from the gospel that New Year's resolution is a reason they don't work is the same reason that Paul says that the law doesn't work. The trying to live under a system of law, of any type, where what you're empowering yourself with is nothing more than your own commitment to try harder. It not only has no power, but Paul said to the Romans that the law actually incites sin that happened to be that wanting to do better and pledging to do better and make a solemn resolution to do better. How can it be that actually could make things worse, but that's essentially what Paul was saying it was referring to the system of the law.

So there's two systems by which you can live your life and they are represented in the word of God. The first system is a system that we might call the system of works or law that represented in the old Mosaic covenant, the law was good and holy and right and true is a wonderful thing that God would reveal to the people, how it is that their lives should be lived reveal to them what holiness is all about so that they could they could clearly see this is how I designed you and this is who I am and this is a you're supposed to be. But the covenant said, essentially, that is, if you will keep my wall then it'll go really well for you and the problem is that no one can keep the law. And when you are under a system of the law is essentially what happens is that your building your motivation on fear. What if I don't measure up.

One of I don't keep the law so as to say for example that if I got decide to get really public in and say okay. My resolution I will lose 10 pounds this year I will lose 10 pounds and I minute you start exercising regularly every weekend.

I want you guys know that because I'm really going to do it and and you're welcome to hold me accountable to that end, and so while you might see me next week and say how's it going so well. Exercise three times this week and I've already lost ground and you go okay way to go in next week coming semester will again to Brandon excising this week and you'll say tsk tsk tsk.

You know, try harder this next week. While in LA like our way around to say what would happen. Is there a time that I see you then. I'm just not want to disappoint you, and that becomes a motivational force that I don't want to have to face that sense of other people be disappointed in me.

Me being disappointed in myself or God being disappointed in me. In other words, the law is a system that Paul refers to as a system of living. The law is good, but the system by which you try to keep the law is legalism. And when you try in your life to be able to to muster the kind of resolve that it takes to live by that you'll find yourself ever increasingly frustrated.

But not only frustrated, it can't be that this is God's way of empowering us because it's ultimately a system of fear. It's only a system in which what is motivating. He was you're afraid of being punished. You're afraid of not being blessed you're afraid of not being accepted. And God cannot have ever wanted a system like that to be ultimately how we are fueled in life because 365 times it is where he says do not be afraid to not be afraid to not be afraid. In fact, Paul says it when you get into a life of the spirit which he realizes God is not given us a spirit of slavery that leads us back into fear is for freedom that you been set free for the whole design of God for your life is that you are going to live by faith, not by fear led by fear. We live by faith, so that the the life of grace in contrast to the life of law is the life of appreciating a gift that is been given to you and the transformational power of grace is because when you see Discover the gift of God to you. In Jesus Christ you begin to discover what your life is all about, and you become filled with hope, confidence and faith. And that's what changes your life. In the end. People don't change because it's a llama feel really bad about myself, about loses 10 pounds. Instead, there's some greater hope or faith. It takes over that in a real sense that you are living out an identity in all the self-help gurus and all they say things I just believe in yourself and get a vision, don't. Don't try to go out and lose weight for somebody else's sake, don't try to please all you need to do this for you while there's a real piece of God's truth and that actually there really is because essentially what those self-help gurus are saying is that is got to be a different motivation that comes in your life and that is because you begin to see your self differently. All truth is God's truth in that piece of it really is the grace of God at work, so every new year. Instead of me standing up and preaching like I've heard so many sermons were people say oh it's the new year and I want to challenge you this year to basically be better Christians challenge you to pray more, I challenge you to read you were more challenging your spiritual doesn't challenge you to give more this year and let's make some commitments together and and try harder this coming year. Amino will say exactly like that was that more inspirational terms, but I'm sick of that coming doesn't work and so instead of the beginning of the new year. What we do here at no charge is instead of saying, can you try harder to be a better person this year we announce vision, a blessing over one another's lives that is consistent with the word of God and appropriate to the season as the spirit has led us. Here's what the power of blessing is all about. It's not merely a complement is not merely encouragement. It is the very release of visionary faith when spoken by people who love you and are speaking in accord with God's word, saying, this is how God sees you. This is how God has made you this is who you really are. It has a prophetic vision for your life and in this there is something so powerful that when Jacob came in and stole his brothers blessing. Esau and and Esau came in and spoke to the father, Isaac, and he said you father. You bless the wrong son. Can you not bless me also that Isaac Bible said tremble violently is that I blessed your brother and indeed he will be blessed. Why because the blessing of God. Like every word that proceeds from the mouth does not fall empty to the ground and you can't take back those words and swallow them and when blessing goes for it has with it a power that is irrevocable and that's how strongly we believe in this and we raised our kids this way and this is the way that I preach and this is a way that we believe all of life should revolve is that we come under the sound of the announcement of who we are in Christ and that changes everything. Challenge right will have more teaching moment from today's important series pressures always find it hard to say no very natural disappoint someone one thing in any relationship in paradise.

They were naked and felt no shame entered the world, he became anxious and with a nine question like this painting.

There is only one solution. Grace of God that lifts are shown in the six-week master class. Pastor Alan exposes that an exception and share the individual or in a snobbery series is sure to bring healing and hope our ministries. This man thinking the digital master class, but he is instead. Thanks for your partnership in a world separate shame.

It's time to let God's grace to shame. We missed you as our banks from our night ministries, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website.

Pastor our and.org. Today's teaching now continues here once again is decided to go to start out with a blessing that Jesus gave to Simon Peter. Peter Ridgely's name Simon it then Jesus calls him Peter which means rock. I think if you had met him.

You really like him. I really do.

If you just had to read the stories of Peter through the Gospels and the book of acts, and you just read all about Peter. I think you like to. If you use the life of the party. He was gregarious and expressive and emotional, impulsive love those guys. I think that you get around him. You're just ready to fly to the moon with a counter person like you talk to him for a while and he is so certain of where he's going and he so confident of what he's going to build a do and you just like him to do it with you and you like, I'll fly the moon with you and yet is one of those people that if you're in a real relationship with him. Probably within a few weeks you be just as disappointed as you were inspired earlier. You know the kind of person is like I just I just love being around this person and then a week later, like can't believe I have anything to do with the like that he was both. He was both full of faith and full of fear. Almost at the same time did this as this is a man who was very he was very certain of of just what he be able to do that he be very uncertain.

He's the one who who said to Jesus, call me to you while Jesus was walking on water and heat statistics and steps.

He walked on the water for little bit, say it is the one who said you said I will never leave you to others may fall away and never will I do it Peter. You're going to me three times for the rooster crows and and he did. He is the one who who went to try to rescue that will pull out his sword and chop all somebody's ear and he he he is I will defend you to the very to the very end. And yet and yet when Jesus crucified Peter goes into hiding for fear of the Jews is Peter. He is a denier of Jesus and a follower of Jesus. He is a doubter and also a believer.

He's a brother and a friend and yet he also is a betrayer. He is all these things emotional, impulsive, capricious, lovable, frustrating Peter, you could say all those things about Peter. If you were to think of all the words that might describe Peter meet any of those words. You might you might describe as likable, you might describe as frustrating. You might describe him as is inspiring you might describe him as as unstable and unreliable.

You could use any of those words. But if if you come up with the last word that you probably would ever apply to Peter's life. Just reading the stories your pride be the word rock something that is steady, something that is solid, something that does not move something you can really build on. That's not how you would describe Peter's line. And yet when they came to Caesarea Philippi and Jesus was asking them who you say that I am Peter in Matthew 16 makes a confession of who Christ really is. Jesus calls him Peter. The rock is Matthew chapter 16 it is one of the most powerful blessing spoken anywhere in the Scripture, and it is a blessing that I speak of your life this year as I believe that it is Peter, representing all of the believers in Christ. He was a leader for the disciples and when he spoke he was really speaking for all of them but he is one who spoke first and and so there's something there's a word here for all of us.

It's Matthew chapter 16 verse 13 Matthew 16 verse 13 Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples to people say that the Son of Man is and they said, some say John the Baptist others say Elijah and others Jeremiah 1 of the prophets and he said to them, but who do you say that I am Simon Peter replied you're the Christ the son of the living God and Jesus answered and blessed are you, Simon bar Jonah for flesh and blood is not revealed this to you, but my father was in heaven.

And I tell you you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I would give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven just just excited when Peter saw this is what you realize is that Peter was seeing what only the Spirit can perceive. Blessed are you, Simon bar Jonah for this is not something that is been revealed you by flesh and blood. This is something that is come by's father's revelation.

This is spiritual insight with the greatest blessing imaginable in this world is very simply to be able to hear from God to be able to have spiritual revelation instead of simply natural insights is not a thing in the world wrong with natural insights and thank God for our intellect and the things that we can figure out the things that we can see with our natural mind for the New Testament clearly teaches that when you're a Christian, you are born anew.

There is a way in which your spirit is made alive again and there's some party that had been shut off from God that now is alive to God and deep calls to deep in you spiritually can commune with God, and there are things that you can understand from God that you could not understand with your mind. This explains why Paul often says things like, I pray that the eyes of your heart would be enlightened, so that you wouldn't know what is the hope of your calling but you know what your glorious inheritance in the same that you would be out of perceive the power of God in your life that ECP praise at one point, I pray that you would be able to know the unknowable. That's exactly what he says, how long, how wide, how deep, how high is the love of God. Why, because love is not something that you merely intellectualize is it is something that you experience it is a heart experience and this is what Jesus is excited about is like Peter so excited about you.

I was good to see Jesus look at the headlight. Also business I going to do it. Father you go to start showing them things by the spirit like this. It was a little prelude of what would come when the spirit had come in fullness of Pentecost is a wonderful thing if you began to have spiritual revelations in your life. We went to the new Star Wars movie and those boiler here but no big surprise.

Like so many many movies. It revolves around getting the map the pieces of the map and fitting it together. The mat you know it's like so many like is like the parts of the Caribbean movie that you always have a treasure map right gets the map because the map is going to be able to show you where the treasure is an and this is one of the big themes of literature in one way or another is finding out what you didn't know about because if you can the treasures they are the ideas the treasures there could you just can't see it yet and and this is this is what is what Jesus is excited about repeaters like this is treasure that my father is showing you flesh and blood did not reveal this to you and because of this, is very excited. The blessings being poured out in Peter's life Alan Wright today's teaching from shifting sand solid rock stay with this. Alan will be accurate.

A moment with additional insight on this for your life in a final word in this series of life pressures always assigned to find it hard to say no worry, that shall disappoint someone one relationship in paradise. They were naked and felt no shame entered the world they became anxious and within nine question like this idea.

There is only one solution. The grace of God that lifts are shown in the six-week Mastercraft Pastor Alan exposes the shame and share is an individual or in a snobbery series is sure to bring healing and hope our ministries. This man thinking to digital Mastercraft is instead a way of saying thanks for your partnership in a world separate shame. It's time to let God's grace to shame, we are happy to see Misty and Alan Wright Ministries, 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website Pastor our and data work Alan. It's just like them. Message title of today's teaching says from shifting sand solid rock. We saw the transformation in Peter.

There is some assurance and knowing our identity in Christ, Peter is a is a guy who is one of those guys. I just think you like them no and if you met them and did you be so frustrated with it and so he so real and I think we just find so many points of connection and when we see how his life is transformed by Jesus giving him his true identity. It points us to how our lives transformed. We really know we are in Christ.

Thanks for listening today.

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