Empowered

If you could have any super power what would it be?
Why?

Philip
Acts 8:39
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing.

I’ve always wanted to fly. Had dreams about it. Why can’t we fly?
Example, fly like a bird. We don’t have a birds traits or build or equipment, but might try to fly because we saw one do it and got inspired. Just being inspired does not empower. That’s not who we are.

The person that you think you are, the identity you assume, will determine what you do and how you treat others. God wants you to know who you really are. The problem is we already think we know.

When I was in Jr. High, my identity was wrapped up in being Kevin’s little brother. Since my brother was popular, and a lot of the girls liked him, I assumed the identity that took on his persona. I was relaxed around people, felt confident around girls, and if there ever was doubt, I just told people who I was. It was great. It opened all kinds of doors for me. It even determined how others looked at me and the kind of person I was, even if I really never opened my mouth around them. That was the identity I took on. It empowered me to do things that I may not otherwise have thought I could do. It was a built in ability. The identity created friends. It gave me an instant inroad to talk to girls that were older than me and that I knew were out of my league. I didn’t care, I didn’t have to worry about that. I knew I was Kevin’s little brother, and they needed to know that too.

Ephesians 1:4-6
4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

Galatians 1:15
15 But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him 16 to reveal his Son to me[e] so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles.

I’m gonna ask you a question: Who are you? How does that define what you do, what you say, and how you act around people? We naturally live, act, operate out of an overflow of who we think we are.

I will ask you again, who are you? Do you know?

You see, we let people and circumstances define our identity. Loser. Ugly. Flirt. Dumb Jock. Insignificant. Invisible. Proud. Scared. Insecure. Rich. Poor. Intelligence that creates crazy expectations. How we see ourselves skews how we look at the world, how we see God. What we do or do not do.

Acts 1:8
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Set Free

Tangled – great movie, but it has a great story for us today. Do you remember the story of Rapunzel? Let me tell you how they portrayed it in the movie.
She was taken when she was a baby for her magical hair and kept in a tower for 18 years. She was the child of the king and queen, but did not know it and the woman that captured her and kept her prisoner under the pretense that it was just too dangerous out in the world. She finally sets out and explores the world and finds out that who she really is.
Many of us have been told that we are someone we are not. The problem is when we believe a lie. Trapped in a tower of lies and told we can’t leave because it will just be too painful.

Galatians 5:7
7 You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth? 8 It certainly isn’t God, for he is the one who called you to freedom. 9 This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough! 10 I am trusting the Lord to keep you from believing false teachings. God will judge that person, whoever he is, who has been confusing you.

The problem is that it is more painful not knowing who we really are, and some of us hope and wish that the lies we believe weren’t true. We even fantasize about fitting in, being accepted and loved for who we really are on the inside. Do you know who you really are? Odds are you don’t. Some of you have been lied to for a long time. Today it’s time for you to learn the truth and be set free.

John 8:31-36
31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?”
34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.

Jesus says the Truth will set you free. Now, there are two parts here that I want to explain to you.

1. Slaves to sin.
You see, sin separates us from God. It keeps us from being and knowing who He created us to be. So, when He says knowing the truth will set us free, He is talking about knowing Him. Knowing Jesus, really knowing Jesus, is to be in relationship with him and knowing Him as Lord and Savior, so that He can save us from our sins and set us free. Notice how he talks about a slave not being part of the family but a son is? To receive Jesus into your life is to receive the gift of adoption, thus bringing you into His family.

Ephesians 1:4-8
4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

2. Slaves to lies.
You were not created to be a slave! God CHOSE you to be part of his family before the world even began! Remember in the story that Rapunzel was really a princess, royalty, but she didn’t know it because she was lied to all her life? Some of you believe lies – that no one, not even God loves you, that you aren’t accepted, that you are stupid, unwanted, ugly, that you are just too bad or that you have gone too far and that you can’t do anything right. Some of you struggle with the same sin over and over and you think that God just doesn’t want to mess with you anymore because you are a lost cause. Those are all lies. You need to know the truth about who you really are. You are the son, the daughter of the king. You have been chosen and adopted. Today it’s time to know truth, because the truth will set you free.

Love

He loves us. Yep, we've all heard the song, probably sung it a few hundred times. When I think about this song and the original singer/songwriter, I think of my good friend Chris Kuykendall that first told me about him and directed me to his music on iTunes. Chris passed away from a car accident a year ago May 11 and I still think of him constantly. Everyone who knew Chris misses him. We sang this song at Chris' funeral.

Here is the story behind the song, and the guy that originally wrote it; John Mark McMillan.