Jesus Finished the work!

God’s demands have been met. He wants nothing from you, except to remain in his Son. 

Everything comes from that anyway. And think of this- if God did not withhold his only Son from you, you can believe that there is nothing you can ask from him that he will withhold. 

If you have Jesus you have everything.

1 John 5:1 Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. 2By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. 3For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. 4For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

But somewhere along the way you can miss how radical this message is. The message of Christianity is righteousness by proxy. I am holy because Jesus is my Scapegoat. 

Blame him for what I did. Treat me according to what he deserves… this is Radical Stuff! 

And this is exactly what God did. This is why God the Father sent Jesus. And Jesus did it willingly because he loves you and does not want to lose you. 

Today God treats us according to what Jesus deserves.Generally, most of us do not believe that. 

We slide back into thinking God will treat us according to our thoughts and deeds.

When times were hard, I blamed myself and thought maybe it was because I wasn’t working hard enough or doing this or that enough… wasn’t serving 

God enough, et cetera. 

I was “Christian” back then. Why was I clueless? Why was I acting Christless? We think we’re going through trouble because we have not done enough. 

And when times are good we pat ourselves on the back because we deserve it. Wrong.

Sunday after Sunday this wrong message is reinforced in thousands of pulpits around the world. The message that “God helps those who help themselves”, that faith is a matter of doing, and grace is received when we go through hoops for God. 

You need to live a repented life.. Wrong!

Luke 5:31Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

Luke 15:7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

Week after week they say “If you want to change ABC in your life, here’s what you need to do: X, Y and Z”. No. God helps the helpless. 

Remember that. We are the helpless. Not the strong. We have been forgiven much. That’s why we love much. This is OUR good news. Because we need it. This is OUR Savior- because we desperately need saving. 

Don’t count yourself among the strong. When you are weak, God makes you strong. 

Don’t think you can save yourself by following the “Law” or some remedy people prescribe you. I want to point you now to the only answer- Jesus, and his perfect, finished work on the cross.

What do we do with the Answer?

Receive it. When the disciples said “We have found the one —Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” I do not know if they realize what Jesus came to do. That he would die for them. Take their place. But you and I know this.

Whenever you need an answer, make Jesus your answer. 

Literally say it out loud: “Jesus is my answer for this _____. I will rest in his finished work on the cross.” 

Live each day this way. That’s how to be under grace. To rest and know that it’s all been done and stop believing it’s about You. Life is a gift to receive, not a work to accomplish. 

Leadership; What is really important!

The priority question of What is really important?  And Moses rejected the world's standard and instead came up with his own value system.  What was Moses' value system?

1.  God's purpose is more valuable than popularity.

As Pharaoh’s grandson, the heir to the throne, that's a position of popularity.  But Moses wasn't impressed.  Don't ever sell your life out for popularity because it doesn't last.  One minute you're a hero, the next minute you're a zero.  It just doesn't last.  One of the things you have to learn as a leader is to hold in your hand lightly both praise and criticism.  Because one minute they love you and the next minute they hate you.  One minute you're doing great and the next minute you're doing lousy.  You must learn, if you're going to be effective in ministry, to live for an audience of one.  Really what matters is, What does God think about this?  Because you cannot play to the crowds.  

I make people happy all the time and I upset people all the time.  It's par for the course.  The pioneer takes the arrows.  If you're going to call the shots, you take the shots.  You hold both criticism and praise lightly.  Like chewing gum: You chew on it but you don't swallow it.  

2.  People are more valuable than pleasures.  

v. 25. Moses is on Easy Street.  He's got a royal lifestyle.  Any whim he wants is going to be satisfied.  Immediately.  But in order to do right, he had to choose discomfort over pleasure.    Saying, I want to have a ministry without discomfort is like saying, I want to have a baby without my tummy getting big and going through labor.  It's an impossibility.  It's par for the course.  

Notice why did he give up for people.  v. 25 He chose to be mistreated "... along with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasure of sin for a time."  He did it for the sake of people.  He said I want to do this to help others.  

That's why we put up with inconvenience in ministry – to help others.  That's called service.  The problem is a lot of people only want to serve God when it's convenient.  But a lot of ministry isn't convenient.  A lot of ministry isn't exciting.  It's just ministry, service.

3.  God's peace is more valuable than possessions.  

He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as greater value than the treasure of Egypt because he was looking ahead.  Moses knew that no possession could give inner peace.  Peace comes from doing God's will.  

The Leaders Priority Question

The Priority Question is this: What is really most important?  If you're going to be used effectively by God you've got to establish some kind of value system.  You clarify your values, your morals, your ethics, your priorities.  This is what Moses did.  He decided what was important.  v. 26 "He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt because he was looking ahead to his reward."  Circle "regarded" which means I made a moral choice, a value judgment.  And circle the word "value".  It says he considered, he regarded.  The word "regarded" literally means “evaluate”.  It's the word that's used of weighing in the balance.  It means to judge the value of something.  This is not something you do quickly, a snap judgment.  You are seriously considering, What is the direction of my life and what are going to be my values?  

If you were asked by somebody, "What are the values that you are basing your life on?"  Could you name them?  You ought to be able to say, These are things that are important to me.  You don't lie, you don't steal, those kind of things.  Basic values of life.  The fact is, if you don't decide what's important in your life, other people will do it for you.  They will decide what's important and they will force their values on you.  

We, in America, are right now in a values war.  Don't let anybody kid you about it.  We are in a values war.  The media is on the wrong side.  When Madonna made the cover of  Newsweek of a book that is sheer pornography that says something is happening in our society.  They may put down the idea, but there is a values war.  And we know who's behind it.  (It's not the Democrats.)  It's Satan.  He is the god of this world and he is trying to warp the world to his value system.  

What is the world's value system?  The world's value system is summed up in these three verses.  The only good thing you can say about the devil is he's consistent.  He doesn't have any new tricks.  The same three tricks he pulled on Adam, he pulled on Jesus.  The same three tricks he pulled on Jesus, he pulled on Moses.  They're the same three he pulls on you.  The lust of the flesh, the lust of the world, the pride of life.  We see these in v. 24, 25, 26.  The world's value system.  

v. 24 "Moses refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter."  He's talking about power and prestige.  That's the first value of the world.  Power and prestige.  One of the values of the world is, I want to be famous, I want to be looked up to.  I want power.  I want prestige.  Why else would people pay fifty bucks for a card that's gold when they can have one that's green that doesn't cost that much.  People want to have a certain color card so they can say, I have prestige.  I have power.  

The second standard of the world is in v. 25.  Pleasure.  "He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than joy the pleasures of sin for a short time."  In v. 24 he rejects the world's measure – they're standard of evaluation, being famous.  In v. 25 he rejects the world's pleasure.  

In v. 26, he rejects the world's treasure which is possessions.  Power, pleasure, possessions.  Measure, pleasure, and treasure.  "He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasure of Egypt."  All of the wealth of the world in that day was concentrated in Egypt.  And it would have been Moses.  He was in line for it.  And he walked out the door from a position of prestige (the measure of the world), all the pleasures of the world he could have in the palace of Egypt, and he rejected the world's treasure – the world's value system.  

It's ironic.  Those things were all offered to Moses and by these standards Moses had it made.  But he walked away from it.  It's interesting to me that he walked away from the very three things that most people spend their entire lives trying to get.  He walked out the door.  That's why God used him.  He knew that these things don't last.  

This is very important.  You must understand that as a leader in ministry, in order for you to say, Yes, to God there are things you must say No to.  You cannot say Yes to the world and Yes to ministry at the same time.  It doesn't work.  Jesus said it like this, "You can't serve two masters.  You'll either hate one or love the other."  The problem with a lot of Christians is not that they're not willing to serve in ministry but it is that they're afraid to say no to the world's value system.  Compromising only makes you miserable.  It's like trying to sit on a fence.  Ouch!  You need to learn to say No.  I refuse to be sucked in again.  I'm going to go against the flow.  I'm going to reject what the world says is important.  

The Leaders Responsibility Question

The responsibility question is this: What will I do with my life?  You have to stop making excuses, you have to stop blaming other people and take the initiative if you're going to be a leader and decide what does God want me to do with my life and then get on with it.

Hebrews 11:25 "He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time."  It says, "he chose".  Circle that word.  I think that, next to salvation, the greatest gift that God has given you is the ability to choose.  He's given you the freedom to choose.  That's why we're different than animals.  God made us in His image and we have the freedom to choose.  As a leader, your leadership will be based on the type of choices you make.  That is the responsibility question.  What will I do with my life?  What will I do with my ministry?  Your future is determined by your choices.

Notice three things in Moses' life that are issues that each leader must eventually deal with.  God's will explodes in your life when you make the right choices and say "Based on what You made me to be, then I'm going to accept responsibility for that and I'm going to make the right choices."

Notice three things:  

v. 24 we have Moses refusing.  In v. 25 we have Moses choosing.  See the difference?  First there's the negative, then there's a positive.  God always backs up a negative with a positive.  The Christian life is not just a matter of don'ts.  It's not a matter of "I'm not going to do this... this ... this...” It’s a matter of "I am choosing to do this."  He's refusing and then he's choosing.

v. 23, as a child, God chose Moses.  But in v. 25, Moses had to choose God.  Big difference.  God chose Moses even before he was born to be the liberator, the savior, the deliverer of the nation of Israel.  He chose him even before he was born.  But Moses could have short-circuited that plan by not choosing God.  

So God has chosen you for ministry.  John 15, Jesus says, "You have not chosen Me.  I have chosen you that you should go forth and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain."  God chose you from the foundation of the world.  He chose you to be saved and when He chose you to be saved, He chose you to be a minister.  But you must make the choice yourself to choose God's will for your life.

Notice in v. 24 it says "When he had grown up."  You might underline this.  "When he had grown up, he chose."  One of the marks of maturity is when you begin to accept responsibility for your spiritual life.  As a baby, it was ok for Moses to live off his parents' faith.  But someday he had to make the decision on his own of who was going to be his God and what were going to be his values and what was his identity.  Leaders recognize three very important truths and they're all illustrated here in the life of Moses.  

1.  The first truth that every leader must recognize is I can't live off someone else's spiritual commitment.  That's a difference between a leader and just an average person.  You need a personal relationship to Christ and you need a personal ministry.  You don't get into heaven on somebody else's spiritual apron strings and you don't serve in ministry on someone else's spiritual commitment.  It's time to grow up and make that choice.  I can't live off other's spiritual commitment.

2.  I can't blame others for the direction of my life.  We are in a society that wants to blame everybody else for everything.  There are things that you cannot control and there are things that we've all been victims of, some of you in serious, major issues.  And while you cannot control all the things that happen to you, you can control your response.  And that's your choice.  That is your choice because God's given you that freedom of choice.  So don't blame the environment for your future.  You are as spiritual as you want to be.  When you cut through it all, you're as close to God as you want to be.  If you say, "I'm not very close to God.  Why?"  It's because you don't want to be closer.  You're as close to God as you want to be.  It's your choice.  God has no favorites in His family.  He does have intimates – those who know Him well.  Who are those?  Those who chose to make the effort to know Him well – when you choose to make the effort through Bible reading, through quiet time, through prayer.  You get to know somebody well when you spend a lot of time with them.  The more time you spend with God the more you become an intimate of God.  The Bible says in Psalms that the people of Israel knew the acts of God but Moses knew the ways of God.  The people saw the acts of God.  They saw the fire, the pillar, the water, the spreading of the Red Sea.  They saw all the acts of God.  But Moses knew the ways of God because he was God's friend.  Did God love Moses more?  No.  Moses made choices that others were not willing to make.  You are as close to God as you want to be.

3.  I'm free to choose my response to life.  Nobody can ruin my life except me.  God won't ruin it.  The devil can't, if you're a child of God unless you make choices.  So it's your choice.  Even what other people do to you.  Nobody can ruin your life except you if you've given it to God.

So the responsibility issue is, What am I going to do with my life?  Joshua 20:4 “You may choose for yourself today whom you will serve, but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."  He's saying, I'm facing the same issue that Moses made.  Joshua was his successor.  Joshua watched Moses be a man of choice, be a man of character, a man of integrity.  He saw it work and years later he's making the same decisions.  He's saying, As for me and my house – I  don't care what you guys think, we're going to serve the Lord.

The Leaders Identity Question.

Every leader must first ask the question, Who am I?  This was especially essential for Moses since he had an identity crisis early on.  He was born Jewish and yet he was raised Egyptian in Pharaoh's palace.  As he grew up he had to decide, What am I really?  This was going to have a major consequence in his life.  In fact it would affect the rest of his life.  Here was his choice: He could pretend that he was Pharaoh's grandson in which, if he accepted that he would have fame, he would have fortune, he would have a luxurious lifestyle, he would have a great career.  Or, on the other hand, he could admit his Jewish roots and if he did, he would be disgraced, humiliated, thrown out of the palace and forced into slave labor.  

If you were confronted with those two choices, what choice do you think you would make?  Moses did not hesitate, but he made the choice to admit exactly who he was, to confirm the identify that God had given him because he was a man of integrity.  He refused to live a lie.  He made his decision that affected the rest of his life.  

In Hebrews 11 where we have the story of Moses, v. 23-27, in v. 24 it says, "By faith, Moses, when he had grown up refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter.”  The word "refused" there in Greek literally means "to reject.” It means to disown, no turning back, slam the door shut and put a dead bolt on it.  So Moses refused to live a lie.  He insisted on being what God made him to be.  And no amount of peer pressure could sway him from that.  

This is very important because this is the first issue you have to deal with as a leader.  The point is, God made you for a purpose.  And only you can be you.   Why weren't you more like...?"  He's going to say, "Why weren't you more like you?"  Because only you can be you.  You are one in five billion.  There's never been anyone like you.  If you don't be you, who's going to be you?  

The point is, God made you for a purpose and being successful equals being me –  being yourself.  That's the first foundation.  Quit trying to be like everybody else.  I know when I first entered into the ministry, I had a deep desire to mimic the models in ministry that I admired.  I tried to preach like them, I tried to dress like them, I tried to use words and phrases, even hold my Bible the way they did.  But I eventually discovered that was ineffective.  The only thing I could be that God could use was to be me.  So quit trying to be like anybody else.  

There's a great relief when you accept your identity.  God chose your genes, your parents, your background, your makeup or SHAPE.  Job 10:8 says "God formed and shaped me." SHAPE stands for Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, Experiences.  These five things shape you and form you to become who God made you to be.  They set your identity.  

Ephesians 2:10 says "We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do."  The word "workmanship" there is the Greek word from which we get the word "poem" –  poema.  You are a work of art.  You are unique.  There's nobody like you.  God made you to be you.  He doesn't want you to be a leader like someone else.  He wants to use your personality, your abilities, your experiences for the glory of God.

Settle the issue of identity – Who am I?