Trick or Treat?

There are some blessings that come along with being part of the family of God is surrendering and realizing that you're crucified with Christ is you get to enjoy God's part.

Hello and welcome to this Wednesday edition of Destin for victory with pastor Paul Sheppard were glad to have you with us when you come to faith in Christ you get a benefits package and one of those benefits is that you get to enjoy a lifetime partnership with the creator of the universe will never leave you never forsake you plenty of other perks for all of us as believers in Christ, Pastor Paul shares them with us next. Stay right here or visit Pastor Paul.net any time to listen on demand can also download the podcasting Google podcast or whatever you get yours now here's Bastrop all today's Destin for victory message trick or treat Galatians chapter 3 let's look at the first nine verses, beginning with verse one, you foolish Galatians who has bewitched you before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you. Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard. Are you so foolish after beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort, you have suffered so much for nothing. It really was for nothing. Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you, because you observe the law or because you believe what you heard. Consider Abraham he believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness understand them that those who believe our children of Abraham, the Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham.

All nations will be blessed through you sold those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith, I decided to entitle this message trick or treat because the apostle opens this section of the letter by saying who has bewitched you uses a very strong word who has bewitched you, who has put a spell on you what's wrong which all is kinda what polls get mad if you want to make it real common sounding and so I just chose to use that particular phrase which is common to us. I'm not preaching on Halloween so you can relax. That's a hot button issue for you, you know, there are different views about Halloween in the body of Christ. There are those who say hey long as you're not dressing up as witches and warlocks and encouraging your kids to think those things are cool, then you're all right then there's another category of believers who say well we think Halloween ought to be avoided, but because there are some activities around our children.

We like to offer positive alternatives and so many churches will do something like hallelujah night. Instead, a Halloween night or something like that in trunk or treat is one of the things that you see in certain places around the country and so some believers say a positive alternative is a really good opportunity for us to keep the right themes before our children.

And then there's the category of folks who say we should have nothing to do with it at all. We should recognize that because of its promotion as they would see it of some very negative very harmful very anti-Christian themes that we should do nothing in the way even of positive alternatives and so you have those three schools of thought. It's one of those debatable matters in the family of God.

I think when it comes to debatable matters. We need to constantly remind ourselves of the old adage in essentials, we should have unity that is when it comes to doctrines that are really make it break.

It issues then we should have unity. By all means we all are collectively a firm essential Christian doctrine. So when in essentials, we should have unity. But in nonessentials and I would put that in that category we should practice liberty.

The fact of the matter is you should be fully convicted about your own position in your own heart.

You shouldn't let anybody move you from it.

If it is a well thought through position be fully persuaded in your own mind but give grace and liberty to your brothers and sisters who don't see it quite the way you do and then in all things we should have charity and so if Halloween is a hot button issue for you, and you won't even like that I use the title of the message trick or treat. Just forgive me please because I'm really not preaching on that as a good role.

When you're engaged in listening to the word of God reading Christian books going.

The conference is whatever it is, whenever you're engaged in instruction in the word of God, you are bound to run across some things where you have a different slant a different view from instructors, teachers, authors, that sort of thing. I think we ought to learn to not be so narrow that we can't be blessed by what we can be blessed by.

I don't agree with everything I hear, but I still allow myself to be as blessed as I can possibly be, and what I practiced over the years is what I encourage people to practice. I call it the watermelon principal.

Enjoy the fruit and spit the seeds if there is a seed you don't like your own photo hold melon away. What is watermelon the whatever milling you enjoy.

That has seeds in the whole thing away because it has seen his athletes in all know know know you enjoy the fruit and when you get a senior map and you feel it necessary not want to swallow that you just and you keep on, and I think you are to do that when you're reading Christian books or listening to messages attending Christian conferences. Whatever it is called throw everything away just because you take issue with a finger to just learn to be a little more world-class than that. And so, forgive me. I asked you in advance if you don't like my choice of title, but I promise I'm going preach truth out of Galatians chapter 3, and again Paul use is a word that I cannot ignore. He says just like you've been there when next I really don't understand how you Galatian believers can actually see your self going from freedom back into bondage and not be disturbed and he is trying to as we been saying throughout the series so far he is trying to shake them to the reality that Christ has set us free from legalism, free from seeking to be saved by means of observing the law and he wants them to learn to walk in and enjoy the freedom that they have in Christ and to get away from this pattern of walking in bondage and so when he moves into the section on the last message we looked at the last verses of Galatians 2 and we sold that there is a key principle.

Here Paul says I have been crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live yet.

It's not high, but Christ is at work and alive in me and the life I now live in this body.

He says I live by the faith of the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

Now that's a key to learning how to walk with Christ is, as Paul says in the point we made is we must die to everything, but Christ the Galatians had to die to their attempts to be justified by the law. Paul said you got to realize that when Jesus was on the cross in a very real way. Not only were your sins on the cross but you yourself were on the cross and that you should die to self and everything that self would try to do to be right with God and instead you ought to learn to live by the of the son of God who loved you and gave himself for you and so built on that foundation of dying to self dying to an attempt to be justified according to the flesh. We suggested that the many of us aren't necessarily in today's Christian world hung up on trying to be justified by the works of observing the law. That's not necessarily the hangup for many of us, but many of us are seek to be justified.

While having flash on the throne of your life.

A lot of us I said one account. I have a Burger King Christianity, have it your way.

But that works at Burger King did not work in the kingdom of God and the kingdom of God were called to die to self we are to have our own Gethsemane, a time where you say you here are some things that I would want to happen. Here are some decisions I wish you would sign off on here are my desires. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done in all of us have to get to a place where we get to that. Never the less, not my will but thine be done. All of us have to get on the altar until everything is surrendered over to the Lord.

And we ourselves are on the altar so that we can be a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable under God, which is our true spiritual act of worship. In other words, God, I want to just singing and shouting and praising him and then you try to hold onto the self life because that's not true worship. Paul said in Romans 12.

True worship is when I get on the altar and say Lord I might as well be dead because all I want is your life to come through me and so we've got to learn that that is the will of God, and Paul continues in that theme as he moves into chapter 3 looked in the way he addresses it he says you are bewitched, and yet you are the people who saw the Lord crucified, you were able to experience it in your own time. You know that Christ was portrayed as crucified among you, the eyewitnesses have spoken directly to you. You know people who they are when Jesus died. You ever heard first-hand accounts from people you been able to speak to all people. He says you ought to know that Jesus died and you are to realize that he would not have died if there was any way you could justify your self by observing the law so he says you must be under a spell. You must have been bewitched, but what he goes on to say is, instead of being tricked you to realize that God in Christ has given you some treats and is up to you to decide whether you will be tricked or whether you going to enjoy the treats came to tell you that some treats you learn to live the way God wants you to live coming up next. The rest of today's message.

Trick-or-treat with pastor Paul Sheppard, senior pastor, destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California pastor Paul.net is the place to go to hear any recent destiny for Victor message on demand.

That's pastor Paul.net and why you there. Be sure to visit our online store for some great resources, including books and MP3 downloads from pastor Paul. You can also watch selected video clips by subscribing to pastor Paul and you to for more details and links to all of the social media visit pastor Paul.net when Jesus ascended into heaven, he promised to send his disciples a parting gift. It's a gift.

He still gives believers in Christ today is pastor Paul and the rest of this message trick or treat some treats that are some blessings that come along with being part of the family of God, and Paul lays out in chapter 3, he lays out three things that I want to call treats in this message. The first thing he says is one of the advantages of surrendering and realizing that your crucified Christ.

One of the advantages is you get to enjoy God's partnership. Look at how he makes this case. He says that God has given you the spirit. He says you have received the spirit guide printed in the form of a question. He says did you receive the Spirit by observing the law or by believing what you heard. In other words he's saying you all have received the Holy Spirit that was a blessing from God. You didn't earn God's presence in your life. God's partnership in your life. You didn't earn it. You couldn't earn it. God is love and grace gave you the tree. His partnership through the Holy Spirit that I want to make sure you understand what that means if you try to observe the law. If you try to be justified by your own works, then you are operating according to just human effort, and that would fail God knew it would fail God knew that no one would ever be justified in his side, by means of what they can do.

So what did God do he not only send his son to die for our sins. But then the son said now I'm going back to happen after my resurrection, he hung around for some 40 days and showed himself alive through many infallible truths. Paul taught in another letter.

Jesus, having revealed himself as alive more than 500 witnesses saw him eyewitnesses saw him alive after his resurrection, but before Jesus left he told his disciples.

Now I'm going to go away. But you will know I made a safe trip to heaven because when I get there I'm going to tagteam the Holy Spirit.

Now you going to do that.

Jesus, because if I leave you all in the world with my own partnership, then you will not be able to live the way I've called you to live so I didn't come to die just for your sins and give you a clean slate for you to just dirty up again that you need to understand that Jesus didn't save you just to say okay all your sins are forgiven you are clean through the word I've spoken to you now.

Good luck living the rest of your life. How sad would we be to get a clean slate and no ability to live differently thereafter. So he said I didn't just come to save you and forgive you now going to send you the Holy Spirit what's his job.

When you read John 14 Jesus makes it very plain read when you get a chance in the Gospel of John chapter 14, Jesus says when I go away going to send the Holy Spirit to you and he is going to be your personal guide your personal conflict or King James says counselor NIV said he is going to be someone who comes alongside you as a personal guidance counselor with you. In other words, God said, I am going to not just save you and leave you to your self because if I leave you yourself you'll mess up everything I'm going to do is save you and then I'm going to come get you by the Holy Spirit, and I will live the rest of your life with you and to the extent that you yield to me, you will experience many wonderful treats and sold the parts benefit. Paul lays out here for walking with the Lord and for being justified by faith. He says that you must understand that God has given you the tree of his old partnership salvation.

I've said it many times before but it bears repeating.

Salvation is not at its core, religion, Christianity is really not religion because religion I know we mean when we say it is and to an extent. It is, but in the purest sense, religion is often man's attempt to try to be right before God. It is man's attempt to honor some deity or deities. Christianity is at its core, not religion, but relationship it is God coming God becoming sin for us so that we could become righteousness in him.

And then God saying now that I've made you claim I'm going to walk with you.

I'm going to give you my spirit, I'm going to develop a personal relationship with you so that you now have a personal companion with whom you can go through the rest of your life. I want to let you know that is a wonderful benefit of Christianity because what you get to do is you get to have God to be in your life every day. Every day you get to wake up with God not only being omnipresent is all over the universe, but God, being personally present with you God being personally acquainted with what's going on in your life. He has touch with the feelings of your infirmities. He knows this plan for you. He knows what he wants you to a boy he knows what he wants you to do. He knows what he is working out in your life, and he is there is a personal guide through life.

I come to tell somebody that you gotta learn to practice the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life.

You gotta learn to say Lord I thank you that you're with me now get ready to go to work and you know was going on in my job. Jesus need you to go if it was just me by myself but I thank you Lord that you're going with me and I need you to lead me messy. Now let's pause for a moment. That's the problem that many of us know he is with us on some level, but the yielding part is what we gotta get good yielding to him when he goes ahead. He's the leader and tucked in behind him. A lot of us want to jump out in front not to, but people I know want to jump out in front. We want to make a decision. We want to decide who to love and hate.

We want to decide who to speak to would not speak to we want to decide who to forgive, and who not to forget we want to decide how to handle feeling mistreated or disrespected. We want to decide even come into your life to watch you fly the plane I told you many times before you had a bumper sticker God is my copilot. Please tear that off please set it all up.

Whoever coined that phrase they meant well. They meant that God is a companion with me, but the language is poor and an accurate but copilot said so does a few things, but the pain is responsible for the welfare of the flight so that God is the copilot who are you all get we talk noted that the Lord, you may not do so, would you me know and I don't know he won't be your copilot he will watch you fly the plane until you get Tyler to you get sick, sick, and yourself a mess it up know he came in your life to take the pilot seat and put you over here and to guide your life. Jesus said he will be a comforter counselor. He will be the person who guides you into true not just theological truth guide you into experiential truth, meaning he'll get your life on the right footing. He will make sure that you make silent God honoring decision, but he must be the pilot he's gotta be in charge and it's a wonderful treat when you get to turn your life over to the God who knows what you don't know what you think about it. Why wouldn't you surrender to the Lord. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows where you're going and how to get you there. You don't even know what you're going, much less how to get there, let's be honest. All we have is a pocket full of good intentions, hopes and dreams and desires. I hope my life works out okay says began a good work in you. I promise to bring it to completion and what Joe got a new lead you and guide you from where you are to where I'm destined you to be. Philippians 1 verse six he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.

That's God's promise to you is your partner and every promise God makes is a promise. God keeps thanks so much for being here for today's destined for victory message trick-or-treat. Remember Pastor Paul.net is the place to go to here, in a recent message on demand.

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My help somebody if you let me, what can a GPS teach us about our walk with Christ.

Find out tomorrow. Pastor Paul Shepard's message trick-or-treat. Until then, remember he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory