Wayne's world...(10Feb08)

The glorious Gospel of Jesus, is the power of God for salvation.

 

Romans 1:16-17 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

 

We have been asking some very key questions over the last weeks.

 

We asked, what is the Gospel.

 

We asked what is the good news…Today I want to ask…

 

What is salvation?

 

I truly believe that for myself and for many Christians, we have lived in a substandard form of Christianity. We live with partial victory, partial peace, partial deliverance and partial anointing. Bill Johnson says "if you live in the subnormal for too long, the subnormal, becomes the normal". I feel prophetically that Jesus is on a mission. His mission is to take His glorious bride through transformation to normal church. Normal church has people saved daily. Normal church has signs and wonders and miracles happening often. Normal Christians carry power and anointing. Normal Christians live in victory, experience healing. Norman Christians are filled with joy and peace and righteousness. Normal Christians can't help expressing their love for God in service and obedience. Normal Christians live as those who are free. 

 

Part of what has contributed to this substandard Christian experience is a broken understanding of what the cross has purchased for us. The power of the cross. The huge inheritance to us as believers through what Jesus accomplished on the cross.

 

What then is salvation?

 

Salvation is everything Jesus purchased for us through the atonement.

 

Lets look at two greek words used to in the new testament to explain salvation. 

 

The word here in Romans 1:16 is

G4991  σωτηρία  sōtēria  so-tay-ree'-ah

Feminine of a derivative of G4990 as (properly abstract) noun; rescue or safety (physically or morally): - deliver, health, salvation, save, saving.  

 

In other places this word is used, it is the more common word. 

G4982 σώζω sōzō  sode'-zo

From a primary word σῶς sōs̄ (contraction for the obsolete σάος saos, "safe"); to save, that is, deliver or protect (literally or figuratively): - heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole. 

 

If we look at these definitions of salvation from the Greek we find awesome life changing truths. These truths are something we can possess through promise. They are ours. 

 

Firstly this word is a noun. In other words this word is not a verb, its not something God is doing, it's not something we're doing…it's done…it is finished. A noun describes a person or a place of a thing. Guess what person, place, thing…your saved. Nothing left for you to do, and nothing left for God to do.

 

OK so what is our state?

 

Saved means delivered. Saved means healed. It means saved. It also means protected, and to make whole. Atoned…made at 1 with God.

 

All these things come to us through the salvation experience, it's part of our salvation.

 

Andrew Wommack "When the scripture says that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, it's not just talking about being how to be born again and have our sins forgiven. It also means that the Gospel-the grace of God- is the power of God unto healing, unto deliverance, unto prosperity- unto everything that comes to us as a result of being born again. It's talking about our relationship with God. It's how we relate to God based on Grace (what Jesus did) instead of performance (what we do)" 

 

I love this our salvation experience, this gospel from God is powerful. Within it is power. Power for health, for forgiveness, for prosperity and for protection. Based not on our performance, but based on His performance on our behalf.

 

Jesus paid for this for us on the cross. Thank you Jesus. Salvation is a gift. The problem is that for so many Christians we receive the gift but do not unwrap it. Unwrap it friend, and look, look inside, see the power of the gospel, the good news. We have a Father in heaven that loves us more than well ever know, this salvation is His gift to us, paid for by the blood of the lamb. How precious how beautiful is our salvation, and how great is the love, mercy and goodness of the Father. Do we deserve this…no. Can we earn it…no. It's a gift of grace.

 

I love it that this salvation not only saves us, but protects us too. I think one day when we get to heaven and see our live, we will suddenly realize how importantly Jesus has taken his role in saving us. Every day he is attentive to us. Leading guiding and protecting us. How many times has he protected us from harm, diverted evil, deflected attack and sickness…this too is part of our salvation. 

 

Now Satan tries to get us into the deception that we must earn these things from God. Make ourselves our savior. To put our faith in what we've done instead of in Christ, our only means of receiving from God.

 

Get this…instead of coming right out and telling us that God does not prosper, deliver and heal today, Satan deceives us into thinking that we have to do something to earn Gods promises.

 

Listen to this quote:

 

"Instead of relating to God, and receiving from Him based on His grace, goodness and mercy, we try to earn the gift through human effort".

 

Most of us believe that God moves in our lives in proportion to our performance. So much of what Paul addressed in the NT was about that. This puts us in a place of constantly striving for the promises. When we lack something we exercise works instead of faith. If we know and believe we have these things, we can begin to walk in the fullness of the inheritance purchased for us on the cross. When we do, we will have a renewed passion for the gospel. We will want everyone everywhere to know and live in this glorious gospel of Jesus.

 

I wish we had time to open each of these promises from the bible. Gods protection, Gods provision, his mighty power working for you and in you. His glory in us. God is so good, and faithful and true. 

 

There is another thing I would like to point out regarding our glorious salvation.

 

It's about our changed nature that happens when were surrender to Jesus. Were going to look at this in great detail later in the series, but I want to touch it now.

 

Here is a question for you…don't answer out loud, just think for a moment.

 

"Do you think you still have a sinful nature?"

 

Friends, please know who you are. "as a man believes in his heart so is he"

 

"out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks"

 

Our nature, our sinful nature has not been changed! It has been crucified, murdered, and it died. Dead forever. The old man gone. Your spirit is now perfect, forever.

 

"God made him who had no sin to become sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God". Your spirit is as righteous as Jesus. Co-seated with him in heavenly places, equal in righteousness to God. "as Jesus is, so are we in this world" 1 john 4:17. This is the word. God spoke to me and said "show my people who they are, and they will be it"

 

A prophetic word came for us last week "the thing that will take this church and it's people into the next level in God is learning who we are in Christ".

 

Look and see friends, family, see the power of the Gospel is working in you.  

 

Father please come and minister the power of this truth to us. Come and confirm your word with signs following. Holy Spirit confirm your word now with your presence.