This sermon emphasizes the importance of understanding God's purpose for each believer, focusing on Romans 8 and the concept of adoption into God's family. It delves into the transformation God desires in believers to be conformed to the image of Jesus, highlighting the role of the Holy Spirit in helping, interceding, and shaping individuals. The sermon encourages a shift from self-centered prayers to aligning with God's will, leading to victory over sin and a life of godliness through the power of the Spirit. It concludes with a call to trust in God's promises, embrace the divine nature, and live out the birthright as children of God.

I want to share with you this morning something that has come fresh to me and which I feel that the Lord would have us focus on in all that we hear in the church and it's so important because we can get so meeting-centered, so message-centered that we lose out on really what God wants to do for each one of us, not just for us as a church. And the word on my heart is Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8. I'm deliberately skipping Romans 8.28 which we all know and you'll see why because I feel this is how we should understand it. Romans 8.29 says there, for those whom he foreknew he also predestined to become conformed to the image of his son so that he would be the firstborn among many brethren and these whom he predestined he also called and these whom he called he also justified and these whom he justified he also glorified. Now some big words there which you know in our English language can can be very confusing, foreknowledge and predestination and so many things there. I want to read that to you in the message Bible and I think you'll see it on the screen. Romans 8.29 in the message Bible says God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his son. Let me read it again. That word foreknew is just this. God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his son. The son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. That is predestination. We see the original. We have a prophetic image or a picture of the intended shape that our lives are going to take. That's not just when we see Jesus but here on this earth. It says in verse 30 in the message after God made that decision of what his children should be like he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name he set them on a solid basis with himself and then after getting them established he stayed with them to the end gloriously completing what he had begun. Doesn't that excite you that after God has called us not by a number but by name and he's established us put us on a solid basis with himself and after getting us established he stays with us gloriously completing what he had begun. He was begun a good work in you we all know that Philippians chapter 1 will complete it to the day of Jesus Christ. So verse 31 so what do you think with God on our side like this how can we lose if God be for us who can be against us and that is what I want you to focus on this morning. I want that we look at that this is God's purpose for every last one of us who have come to Christ. Don't lose sight of it. Many many things that we can hear and we get occupied with we battle against sin we we want to pursue after holiness we want to become godly but don't lose sight of this this is God's purpose and this encourages my heart tremendously that's why you know I said I read that then Romans 8 28 will make more sense we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God to those who are called according to his purpose this is his purpose this is what he is planned not just before he created us in our mother's womb but before the foundation of the world Ephesians chapter 1 verses 4 and 5 again from the message it says long before he laid down earth's foundations he had us in mind had settled on us as the focus of his love to be made whole and holy by his love long long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ and what pleasure he took in planning this so we must never lose sight of this my brothers and sisters otherwise the Christian life becomes heavy and many things that we hear in the church can become heavy if I don't focus on God's purpose for my life for your life if you have come to Christ if you're in Christ this is God's purpose he's shaping you he's shaping me through all the situations and circumstances of life he wants to produce in me the image of Jesus he wants to make me more like Jesus simply put make me more like Jesus and the way I conduct my not just I give an impression to others but the way I live every day with my family 20 the ones dearest to me 24 by 7 the way I conduct myself in my office in my work spot the way I conduct myself in my business the way I relate to the brothers and sisters I must be coming more like Jesus and then life becomes easy I know it's become easy for me and it gets easier day by day this is God's purpose first of all I want to see for our lives to make us like Jesus and he has planned this long long ago even before that day you and I repented and came to him and a truth that must always keep us humble is John chapter 15 verses 16 to 17 16 actually John chapter 15 verse 16 this is something that must keep you and I humble all the days of our life Jesus said here this is Jesus's words you did not choose me but I chose you I must not think that I chose Jesus 49 years ago next year will make 50 years I didn't choose him he chose me and he chose you never think that you chose him and he says you did not choose me but I chose you and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit and that your fruit would remain so that whatever you ask for of the father in my name he may give it to you and it says in second Thessalonians in chapter 2 verse 13 another word I'd like you to look at and read from the message again it says God picked you out as his from the very start he picked you out think of it from your family from your community and all all the other relatives who perhaps have not come to Christ God picked you out he singled you out he singled me out and that must not make me proud that's not must not make me pat myself on the back and think that God saw something special in me no he didn't see anything special in me he didn't see anything special in you you did not choose me I chose you that must make us put our faces in the dust my brothers and sisters God picked you out it says in second Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 13 as his from the very start think of it included in God's original plan of salvation by the bond of faith in the living truth this is the life of the spirit he invited you through the message delivered in which you get in on the glory of our master Jesus Christ we call to gain the glory of Jesus we've heard that often so that's the first thing that we understand God's purpose not just to forgive us our sins not just not even to sanctify us not even to give us victory over sin not even to make us holy and godly that's all part of his purpose but his ultimate purpose in working in your life and mine is to make you and me more like Jesus and for that he has given us a helper a helper who comes alongside us and that's something that we read also in Romans and chapter 8 in Romans chapter 8 it says then verse 26 in the same way the spirit also helps our weakness for we do not know how to pray as we should but the spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words so God has given someone to come alongside you and me and that's the Holy Spirit in John chapter 14 verse 16 Jesus said I will ask the father and he will give you another helper another helper so what do I understand from that when he was here on earth he came as our savior he came as our helper and we see that in the life that he lived on this earth and so he says I'm going away but I will ask the father and he will give you another helper and if you have a margin Bible you can see in your margin that literally the Greek word I am not a student of Greek the word there is parakletos is one is means one called alongside to help comforter advocate intercessor it's in your margin if you have a margin Bible that's what it means that's the name of the Holy Spirit he comes alongside us not behind us to push us alongside us to help and that's how a wife should be to her husband she's called a helper God said in the beginning I will make a help me I'll make a helper for man for Adam and that's what you sisters who are wives have to be to your husband a helper somebody to come alongside him not behind him all the time berating him all the time prodding him all the time finding complaint finding room for complaint you you never do this for me you don't do that for me and you don't care and you don't love me so much and all these things but if we come sisters if to come alongside your husband you're doing the work of the Holy Spirit you become another helper too and that's what God has called all of us to be helpers to come alongside we're not to we're not to be before we're not to be the leader that's how the disciples they wanted to find out who's the greatest who's the leader I want to come alongside my brothers and sisters and I hope you do too that's what the Holy Spirit is in and God has given us a helper to achieve his plan and his purpose for our lives and the moment we begin to tire and get discouraged and want to give up because of so many trials and temptations and different situations we find in the home or in our work spot the moment we begin to tire and lose courage he comes alongside us to help us he's within us and he comes alongside us to help us that's what we read in Romans chapter 8 it says in the same way in the same way what is the Holy Spirit saying in the same way you go before that it says there in verse 24 in hope we have been saved and hope that is seen is not hope for who hopes for what he already sees but if we hope for what we do not see with perseverance we wait eagerly for it in another place in Romans chapter 4 he speaks about Abraham who had this hope he didn't see what God had promised him we do not see this picture this image that God has of you and me what he has planned before the foundation of the world this is how Ian should be put your name there this is how this is what I want for this son for my daughter and put your name there he has planned it long before and so along the way we can tire we can lose courage but it says in the same way in the same way in what way the Holy Spirit hopes for what he does not see in you and me and so he works in me and he works alongside with me I hope you're encouraged by that I am greatly encouraged and there's no need for me to to tire and to get discouraged it says in verse 26 in the message let me read it to you it says meanwhile the moment we get tired in the waiting you know the picture there's of a mother who's expecting a child you know one month two months three months the moment we get tired in the waiting God's spirit is right alongside us helping us along if we don't know how or what to pray it doesn't matter does that encourage you that doesn't mean that we stop praying but we do not know how or what to pray many many other times I do not know how or what to pray for it doesn't matter he does our praying in us and for us I'm reading from message bible verse 26 making prayer out of our wordless sighs our aching groans sometimes a sigh can come from the Holy Spirit not your side that you're fed up with somebody you were tired and all there it goes again not that kind of sign but a sigh that I want to become more like Jesus why am I why was why was that not a Christ-like action why was that not Christ-like words why did I have to write that why do I have to say that and I sigh that's the Holy Spirit and he sighs within me along with me that I I don't want to be like that I want to be more Christ-like I hope that that is what you experience he says he does our praying in us and for us making prayer out of wordless sighs our aching groans he knows us far better than we know ourselves knows our pregnant condition and keeps us present before God that's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good God works all things for our good because we love him he intercedes for us it says there in the same way something that he does not see but he intercedes for us who hopes for what he sees we hope for what we do not see and that's the that's the ministry that's the work of the Holy Spirit in you and me he hopes for what he does not see does that encourage you and not just that he prays he intercedes he's our advocate he's our comforter he's our intercessor interceding for us from within and Jesus there at the right hand of the father interceding for you and me what a salvation my brothers and sisters I feel that we we have lost it and we can be occupied with so many other things that can get us down notice that in verse 26 in your bible three times the Holy Spirit is is mentioned the spirit helps this is the spirit also helps us in our weakness in verse 27 the spirit intercedes for us intercedes for the saints according to the will of God three times in 26 and 27 the spirit helps the spirit himself himself intercedes and the spirit intercedes for us according to the will of God and so we know with that in mind even when I'm reminded of that God will cause all things to work together for my good because I love him because I want I want his purpose to be fulfilled in my life and God knew from the very beginning and he planned to fulfill his purpose and therefore he has called us and that's the third thing I want you to see we understand God's purpose and for that God gives us the comforter Jesus said I will not leave you as orphans I'm sending you one another helper to come alongside you to help you to be within you to intercede for you what more do we want my brothers and sisters that's why the apostle cries out that's why that we read at the end of these words which we will come to the third thing I would say that God has called us says those those whom he called in verse 29 those he foreknew he predestined to become conformed to the image of his son so that he would be the firstborn among many brethren and those whom he predestined he also called and those whom he called he also justified he has called us to come to him and not just once when we came to him for the repentance of sin but to keep coming to him Jesus on that last day of the feast in Rome in John chapter 7 and verse 39 he cried out with a loud voice and if any man is thirsty let him come to me let him keep coming to me and drink drink of the water of life that I can have a well in me spring up into everlasting life that I can have power that I can have joy I can have peace that's why he calls us to come to him to come in whatever condition we are in whether we are tired whether we are defeated whether we are discouraged I can come to him he does not say to us he did not say to us in the beginning go and clean yourself up and then come has he ever said that to you go and clean yourself up and then come come as you are come as you are you don't have to clean yourself up like the leper who met Jesus and said Lord if you're willing you can make me clean and without any hesitation Jesus said I am willing be cleansed so we don't have to clean ourselves up we don't have to get things right we don't have to put our house in order he'll come and put everything in order he'll come and clean up the mess if you made a mess if you made a mess in your past before your married life don't lose courage he can clean up that mess he can give you a new start a new beginning and make your married life glorious whatever past you may have had so I want to encourage you my brothers and sisters to think of Peter's encounter with Jesus I like that in Luke chapter 5 this is the first time that he meets Jesus when it says that you know the story you know when they had caught nothing they didn't catch any fish he says have you been he says we probably all night we have caught nothing that's not the first time we notice this here very significant at the beginning of Peter's life and at the end before Jesus left the earth in Luke chapter 5 when Simon Peter saw and saw this whole catch of fish he fell down at Jesus feet saying go away from me Lord I'm a sinful man you felt like that go away from me Lord don't there's no hope for me I'm hopeless I don't know how long I've struggled I'm so defeated go away from me Lord he will not go away he will not let go he didn't let Peter go in spite of in spite of his big mouth in spite of saying so many things Lord I'm willing to go with you and to death and yet you know when he when a young girl accosted him and said you're also one of his disciples he said no I don't know the man and again somebody asked him you know you speak you speak like a Galilean you must be one of his disciples no I don't know him and then again somebody says to him you are one I saw you there in the garden oh I don't know him and he must have used some swearing words to prove that he was not of he was not he didn't belong to Jesus he didn't belong to that group and the cock crowed and Peter went out and wept bitterly this is Peter he looked through his life we heard you know just a few Sundays back what the the apostles that Jesus chose they were not perfect people they had a past they had messed up Peter denied the Lord a terrible thing to do to deny Jesus he walked with Jesus for three and a half years but denied even knowing him and then he wanted to give it up give up let's go fishing after Jesus died and he he didn't believe that he rose again let's go fishing and I like that there the end of at the end of Jesus's time on the earth and we see that in John chapter 21 before that you know the angels they had a special message God had told the angels go and tell my disciples but go and tell his disciples and Peter why Peter because Peter Jesus knew how Peter would be feeling and then he prepares breakfast and I believe that that breakfast was mainly for Peter come and have breakfast and then he says to him Simon son of John do you love me more than these do you love me this is all that he asked you and me do you love me do you love me more than these you love me more than your job do you love me more than your family members more than your children do you love me more than that special child of yours do you love me and Peter's an honest man there and Jesus the word that he used there was do you have a divine love for me but Peter each time he replied said Lord you know I'm your friend that's the word he used I love you I love you Lord you know that I know you know all things you know that and then Jesus came down to his level I like that there we're not students of Greek but you know Jesus came down to him are you really very fond of me do you really love me are you really my friend he said Lord you know all things he said feed my sheep tend my lambs that's all that needs to qualify us my brothers and sisters to be shepherds all of us not just not to be an elder you don't need to be a shepherd to be an elder you love me and whatever our past and whatever how however we have slipped up that's what he asked you love me feed my sheep tend my lambs and lastly the fourth thing that we see is those he called he justified that's another big word justification we have heard if you've been coming to this church you would have understood what it means it just simply means putting us right with God because of what Jesus did for us on the cross making you and me right with God declaring us not guilty Jesus is our advocate the Holy Spirit is our advocate and we are declared not guilty just as if we had never sinned that's the meaning of the word justification we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ we are justified just God looks at us when we come to the cross when we come in repentance and faith and we believe and receive the blood that cleanses us from all sin cleanses out my past God then looks at me just as if I had never sinned he doesn't make us righteous he declares us righteous there's a vast difference in being made righteous and declaring somebody righteous he said how can it be look at his past Jesus stands there I've taken his place and he puts on us puts on you and me a robe of righteousness he declares us righteous God looks at you and me just as if we had never sinned that is not a license for me to continue in sin when I see that and when I see what it costs Jesus it would really make me hate sin and make me never want to sin not that I will not sin but never want to sin and the moment I sin and I slip up there's a there's a repentance there's a sorrow there's a remorse that comes and the Holy Spirit shapes us in a way being shaped just like God in that garden when he took the mud and made and shaped imagine it the effort that God made everything from his head his eyes his nose and shaped him it was not just in a moment like you know you see these so-called magicians he shaped him he made him out of that lump of clay and that's what he does with you and me when we come to Christ he begins to shape us we see that many times we are clay in the potter's hand and if he finds that you know the vessel has not turned out the way it wants the potter looks at it and says no this is not how I want it this is there's a stone in it that spoiled it takes it out squeezes it all up again and starts all over again and sometimes God has to do that with us but he'll never give up on us like we read he stayed with us right to the end and it's not a reformation neither can we call it a renovation no there's nothing old in this renovation we renovate this building the structure and all that is the same it's not a renovation and it's not a reformation we are not called to reform ourselves it's a transformation the very simple word you can get that picture as you look at that caterpillar many times I've watched it you know these hairy caterpillars they get onto you and you're itching all over the body you got them on even after having a bath these hairy caterpillars but we watch them in our garden and sometimes when I watch them they have curled up and roll themselves up in a leaf and they're inside there and what a picture that is many times I've thought of that what a picture that is of what happened with Jesus and what he wants to do with your life and my life he wants to transform us not reform us not renovate us he wants to transform us and that hairy caterpillar was so repulsive you know crawls up into itself and becomes a chrysalis and it's curled up in that leaf and then one day something happens a butterfly a beautiful butterfly which we would only be too happy to let it rest on us but not before when it was a caterpillar now we are too happy to rest let it rest upon us we like to catch it we admire its colors that is a beautiful picture my brothers and sisters of what God wants to do with you and me with our lives if we had only yield to him if he had only surrendered to him if he would only be gripped that this is his purpose for my life and he is he has decided this right from the very beginning that he would shape you and me and make me more like Jesus and so all I have to do is not strive and struggle and try but yield to him yield to the one who's come alongside me to help me yield to the one who's inside me interceding with groanings and words and sighs too deep for words yield to him and then I will become more like Jesus and it's because of justification that the peace of God can rule in our lives not just once at salvation but all the time it's because of justification that believers can have assurance of salvation because God has forgiven my past he's blotted it out and he looks at me just as if I have never sinned and in fact it says the fact of justification that enables God to begin the process of sanctification what we heard brother Newton share but I can get overwhelmed with that if I don't yet see God's purpose in Romans 8 29 and 30 and see why God allows certain things that God everything is planned by him nothing happens by mistake or accident God will work everything forever all the things that seemingly seemingly go wrong in our homes in our family life in the office God will work it for my good because I love him he's called me and he's called me my name and so we read these words there what shall we say to such wonderful things with God on our side like this how can we lose if God be for us who can be against us we are more than conquerors through him who loved us I hope that you will clean your lens I hope you'll adjust your focus and look at what God has for your life and my life in Romans 8 29 and see that to get that fulfilled in your life he's given us a comforter to come alongside us and help us and to intercede for us may God help us that we would refocus so that all that we hear in the church in every word that I hear I'm not just listening to messages I am focused on what God has planned before the foundation of the world make you and me just like Jesus before he comes before he see him then the then it will be complete or if he calls us home he would the work he has begun on us will be complete I hope that gives you faith in your heart it strengthens you encourages you and that you can keep running amen almost all of us when we came to the Lord we all had our baggages and sometimes some of you can think that my baggage may be too much and I don't know whether God will ever forgive me I have met people like that who said that you know there is no baggage that is too much for God and there is no sin or depravity that God I mean the blood of Christ cannot cleanse there is hope for the worst of the worst in this world I was reminded of a story that I read about Sadhu Sundar Singh when he was preaching in some place up in the north there was a bandit in the audience he was listening then after the message was over he came to Sadhu Sundar Singh and he told him can you Jesus I mean can you just come with me I will show you something and then Sadhu Sundar Singh went along with him and he took him to his den and showed a pile of bones and skulls of people whom he had murdered then he asked can you Jesus forgive me these sins and Sadhu Sundar Singh turned his attention to the mount Himalayas and pointed out to him and said though your sins are as high as the mount Himalaya Jesus can still forgive you some of us can feel that our past is very bad we have messed up and we have fallen again and again and again is there any hope for me you know when people speak like that what I tell them I direct them to Romans 5 8 it says God demonstrates his love towards us while we were at sinners or in other words God demonstrate his love towards us while we were groaning under the lord of our sin which we could not bear still God loved us and sent Jesus to die for us God demonstrates his own love towards us in that while we were at sinners that means when we were at our worst Christ died for us much more than having now been justified by his blood we shall be saved from the wrath to come and it says while we were still enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his son much more having been reconciled we shall be saved by his life you see God has not called us for wrath we heard this morning from Romans 8 29 what our calling is our calling is not just to be forgiven and then not that we are on our way to heaven our calling is not that I hope you saw that clearly today morning Romans 8 29 our calling is to all those whom God called he called with this one purpose not to evangelize primarily not to go and heal the sick give the gospel primarily but primarily my calling and your calling is in verse 29 it says whom he foreknew he also predestined to become conformed to the image of his son this is our calling that needs to be impressed on our mind and in our heart very clearly we need to understand this my calling is not just to go and preach the gospel and get people converted no you know there are so many cliches in the evangelical circles save to save and things like that you are born to win another soul you know and go and share with others so many such cliches but we don't find them in the bible Jesus gave a great commission in Matthew 28 he said go and preach the gospel to all nations and make them my disciples and you know things like that even in Mark 16 the primary thing is that God has called you and me to be conformed to the image of his son Jesus Christ so that he can be the firstborn among many brothers and then I can you and I can be you know followers of him Jesus said follow me Paul said follow me even as I follow Christ my calling is to become like Jesus your calling is to become like Jesus that's why it says that we have threefold help we read in verse 26 of Romans 8 we read that in the same way the spirit also helps our weaknesses because we do not know how to pray as we should but the spirit himself intercedes for us or in other words to simplify it the spirit himself prays for us with groanings too deep for words what is the holy spirit praying for you and me you and I we pray Lord give me this give me that give me give me give me like the leech it says in proverbs our prayers are always centered around us I me and mine like somebody prayed Lord bless me and my wife and my son and his wife we four are no more see that should not be our pattern of prayer the the indication that you are spiritually growing is that you there's nothing wrong in praying for our needs first of all you said pray this way give us this day our daily bread first we pray for ourselves initially when we are I mean thank you Lord but we must grow up spiritually and one mark of my spiritual growth is that over a period of time I I don't stop praying for myself but I pray less and less for myself and more and more for others and their needs when I look around the need in other people's lives and families then I pray more for them and I don't stop praying for myself I need to pray for myself too each day asking the Lord to forgive me fill me and to strengthen me but here we see the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings too deep for words because we do not know how we ought to pray now most of the time our prayers are so self-centered we can pray Lord this troublesome boss of mine get him transferred Lord as soon as possible but what do you think the Holy Spirit is praying the Holy Spirit may be praying Lord make him permanent here don't get him a transfer and later on you'll come to know that that guy has bought a flat here and he's called his children and put them in school and he settled down here for good we had a similar experience in our neighborhood when we were building our house 12 years ago there was a troublesome neighbor in the neighborhood they had not built their house often they used to come and create a lot of problems to everybody there and we thought thank God they're not our next door neighbor they were four sites away from our site and then to an extent we were happy and you know what the Holy Spirit was praying perhaps Lord let them come and be next to Charles's house it so happened they started building their house in the fourth site and then they realized that that was not their site they had to drop all that and then come and construct their house next to mine and that is how the Holy Spirit prays and they became our next door neighbor and we are living with them for the last 12 years so 10 11 years and we're having good time with them we never had problem with them even though they create a problem we know how to die to ourselves and we get over that and we still love them and allow us to this is how the Holy Spirit prays for us he knows how to pray for you so that those rough edges can be smoothened out those feelings that you have those high thoughts that you have about yourselves that self that is there in you which needs to be properly shaken up and you know rubbed off and all this those rough edges so that you can be properly rounded off and be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ this is what the Holy Spirit prays for you and me and we read further in verse 31 that God is for us the Holy Spirit is praying for you and verse 34 Jesus also is praying for you verse 34 we read there that who is the one who condemns us it is Christ Jesus he's the he's the one who died rather Christ who is raised who intercedes for us verse 34 if the Holy Spirit is praying for you the Lord Jesus Christ is praying for you and the father is on your side and who can be against you no one in all these things Paul says the declaration he gives our victory in Christ Jesus in all these things what are those things read verse 38 i'm convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor things present nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from the law of God which is in Christ Jesus in all these things we are more than conquerors he says in another translation we overwhelmingly conquer because of the one who loved us you see Jesus said in Luke 9 23 if any man wants to come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me what does it mean for many people and and many denominations even for me i didn't know exactly what it means to carry my own cross i shared once that i saw somebody carrying an aluminum cross towards um good friday time with a wheel carrying an aluminum cross i wish it was so easy for us to carry our cross on a good friday but that is not what Jesus meant carrying our cross is really that this is the place where i understood it properly it is when God's will crosses my will God's will and my will they cross that is my cross there what i do i deny my will and i say Lord just like Jesus prayed not as i will but as you will i accept the will of the father the will of God that is when i take up my cross that's the time when i die to myself that is the time when i deny myself denying myself is taking up my cross as simple as that don't get confused taking up the cross is nothing but denying your own will that wants to exalt yourself that wants to give back to the fellow who you know did something wrong to you want to get even with him you die to yourself you say Lord just like you forgive on the cross all those who did harm to you Lord i want to do that i want to follow in your footsteps this is on a daily basis if we do this self-denial i deny daily and i die daily like Paul says then one day you will be able to die when the time comes when you need to be martyred you'll be prepared for that if you're not in these small small things you're not able to die you think you'll become a martyr far from it Jesus and his apostles they carried their cross they died daily that's why they were able to be martyred almost all of them except perhaps John may the Lord impress these words and help us fill us with his holy spirit ask the Lord to fill you to strengthen you make your weak heart bold and strong and believe that the blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse all your sin one last word i want to read from Isaiah chapter 1 verse 18 it says whatever may be your sin it says come now and let us reason together says the Lord though your sins are as scarlet they shall be white as snow though they be red like crimson they'll be like wool what is your sin this morning don't think your sin is too much for God to forgive it is not it's nothing you know how how much your sin is before God maybe you can turn one more verse to Micah chapter 7 Micah 7 second last verse verse 19 it says he will again have compassion on us and he will tread our iniquities underfoot and yes thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea you know how deep is the sea somewhere i read even the mount Everest can be drowned and you will not know it it is so deep it can be as deep as 8 to 10 kilometers inside and go to the bottom of the sea and your sin let us say a bottle of black ink or red ink or whatever your sin go there and unload it there at the bottom of the sea and come up and see whether anything comes out whether you will be able to trace any of that ink God's mercy is as wide as the world rather wider than that which can cover multitude of sins have faith in that come to the Lord repent he is gracious he will never say no to anybody may God help us we heard some powerful illustrations as even if our sins are as high as the mount Everest even if they are as deep as the deeps of the ocean we heard some powerful words from Romans 8 words like predestined elect justified there's one powerful theme that runs through Romans 8 that i wanted to think about it's the word adoption we read that in verse 15 for you have received the spirit of adoption by which we cry out abba father we see in verse 16 that the spirit himself testifies that we are children of God and then we read in verse 18 in verse 19 for the anxious longing of creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the sons of God and in verse 21 we read that creation itself was set free from its slavery of its corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God and verse 23 we read and not only this we ourselves wait eagerly for our adoption as sons the redemption of our body there's something very powerful that the that scripture is that God is trying to impress in our hearts about this this word adoption i was i was picturing it like this that perhaps this is how my christian life began there i was an orphan in an orphanage lost and lonely stuck in sin dead in my transgression then one day then one day i got a lovely letter a wonderful letter it's a letter that is written in the blood of christ a letter of forgiveness from my sins a letter of deliverance from condemnation condemnation and guilt of my past not only that it was a letter of adoption a child of God i am his he is mine we sang that today oh what a wonderful wonderful day a day that i can never forget he has not left us as orphans on this earth and so our life began my brothers and sisters i know each one of us when we look back we can see that wonderful day but what has happened since you know it's almost like the days have become weeks the weeks have become months the months have become years and and our adoption is like a distant memory it's like life has hit us and when the pressures of life get turned on when we are faced by temptations when it's almost like i have a dna in my flesh which is so different from this spirit of God it's it's like my reactions are so opposite so opposite when the pressure is turned on what seems to come seems to be things that glorify the selfishness of myself and the fleshiness of my flesh God doesn't want to leave us there my brothers and sisters it's but this is where we find ourselves again and again it's in Romans chapter 7 it seems like this is the situation that we are now in Romans chapter 7 there is a in verse 24 there is a question there wretched man that i am who will set me free from this body of death so in one side i have this this this old promise of adoption that i've received but i see something else in my flesh which so easily comes up every time it's provoked oh wretched man that i am who shall deliver me does our gospel end with this question mark for the rest of our life are we supposed to live in that question mark is that the the is that what we have to look forward to for the rest of our life no the glorious gospel does not end there it just the next verse is an emphatic exclamation mark thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord there's an exclamation mark there God wants to open our eyes to something that is more than just the forgiveness of sin of our past he wants to do something more in us my brothers and sisters i was thinking is there hope for the wretched yes there is that's what the gospel says and we read that again resoundingly in the beginning of Romans 8 for the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus there is a mighty deliverance i wanted to share a little thought of that i was thinking of it it's like when i was stuck was stuck in in my situations one day i was looking back at that letter of adoption that i received and i was looking at that and out slipped a little slip of paper and i looked at that slip of paper and and i found out that hey this is something special it's like a check it's like God has written a check for me that where i'm stuck he has a word of deliverance it's a check written by God signed by Jesus Christ written on the bank of heaven this is what was coming to me that this is the way the Lord has for me if you can turn with me to to first Peter to second Peter chapter one and it says there in verses three and four seeing that his divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness God didn't leave us alone with just that that letter of adoption he did something more his divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true knowledge of him who has called us by his own glory and excellence in verse four five four by these he has granted us his precious and magnificent promises so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature having escaped the corruption that is that is in us in the in the world by lust this is what was coming to me that that God has something more for us he has given his magnificent promises in Christ i wanted to read a little bit from Romans 8 Romans 8 chapter 1 the verse that i read for there is no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ the law of spirit of life in Christ has set us free Romans 8 32 says this if what shall we say then verse 31 who shall bring a charge against God's elect verse 33 verse 32 he who did not spare his own son but delivered him for us will he not with him freely give us all things there is no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus for the life of Christ for the life of Christ has given us something that if we can hold on to can transform us can bring us to the birthright that he has for us he has he has come to set us free he has come to deliver us i was thinking of this verse in Luke's Luke chapter 12 verse 32 it says there do not be afraid little flock for your father has chosen gladly to give you his kingdom the Lord has something for us he has given us all that we need that pertains to life and godliness he has given us the very keys of heaven this is our birthright this is what he wants to transform us to he has not left us alone as orphans i want to trust his word i want to claim his word and time and time again i have seen that when i do that when i write my name into the checks that he's given me these glorious promises that that is how he's showing me the proof of his adoption his very life his very nature flows into me it came to me that this is the sign of his adoption he gives me his life he doesn't leave me alone he has not left me as an orphan he has adopted me he has signed strength and sealed and delivered me i want i'm so great i'm so grateful for the glorious gospel it i it came to me as uh there was a small play that our teens had put up last year and this pictured it to me so wonderfully and in this play you see you saw on the stage our teens they were they were as though they were chained and shackled by by by the burdens that was upon them and then they were groaning and mourning under the the weight of their chains but then one of them suddenly had a revelation and he sang a song i want to just end with the words of that song it was a song of deliverance a song of hope that that dawned there and the song goes like this he did not bring us out this far to lead us back again back again to the shackles of egypt or sin or the law whatever it is he did not bring us out this far to lead us back again he brought us out to lead us into the promised land though there be giants in the land we will not be afraid and that was the resounding cry this is the faith god wants to write in us he doesn't want us to be so consumed and so inward looking and so bogged down by the limitations of ourselves he wants us to reach out to to life that is in him and the second verse of that song goes something like this lord give us faith to do your will to claim your promises you bought us out to lead us into the promised land yes we have we are adopted as sons we have the we have a hope we have the assurance we have the the life of christ written sealed and available to us i'm so grateful for the power of the new god new covenant in our lives