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An Overlooked New Year’s Resolution (2 Corinthians 5:12-21)
10 Plays2 days ago
Have you made any New Year’s resolutions? Forbes posted some interesting statistics related to resolutions made by Americans at the end of 2023. According to a survey that polled 1,000 US adults on October 23, 2023, 48% made resolutions regarding physical fitness, 38% focused on personal finances, 34% desired to lose some weight, 32% promised themselves to do a better job with their diet. The remaining percentages dropped tremendously after these top four resolutions.
Thirty percent of those asked were honest enough to admit that they only 25% really anticipated keeping their resolutions beyond the first 30 days. Statistics reveal only 1% maintain their commitment through to the end of the year. I chuckled when I read that the second Friday of January has become known as “Quitter’s Day” since only 8-10% usually stay the course on their promises beyond the first couple of weeks in January. I wasn’t even aware of this special date on the calendar.
As believers in Christ, we have some priorities we value that are not related to the body or the budget. Scripture describes followers of Jesus as simply being “in Christ” a phrase mentioned over 160 times in the New Testament. So, why don’t we set New Year’s resolutions in keeping with spiritual goals that are related to our position and identity in Christ? If we did this, then the power of God would help us reach our goals all year long.
2 Corinthians 5:12-21 seems to provide us with five areas of blessing given to us the moment we place our trust in Jesus Christ. I challenge you, brother or sister in Christ, to make at least one goal this year related to one of the following five new initiatives Jesus is making in your life.
1. In Christ we are given new sight, 5:12, 16
2. In Christ we are given new significance, 5:13-15
3. In Christ we are given a new start, 5:17
4. In Christ we are given a new status, 5:18-19, 21
5. In Christ we are given a new call to service, 5:18-20
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Transcript
Introduction to Growing in Grace
00:00:08
Speaker
Welcome to Growing in Grace with Pastor Victor Morrison. This is a ministry of First Baptist Church located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas. We are praying that God will bless you as you listen to this message.
00:00:22
Speaker
If you would like additional information on worship times and ministries at FBC Columbus, you can find out more at our website, fbccolumbustx.org. And now, take your copy of God's timeless Word as Pastor Victor gives today's message.
Discussion on 2 Corinthians 5 and Resolutions
00:00:43
Speaker
Welcome to Growing in Grace. I'm so glad you're listening today. Today I'd like to share from 2 Corinthians 5, verses 12 through 21, on the topic, an overlooked New Year's resolution.
00:00:57
Speaker
Have you decided on any New Year resolutions yet? I don't know. Maybe you have. Maybe you have lots of different ones. I read an interesting article on the Forbes website.
00:01:08
Speaker
It's actually dated a bit. They did an interview back on October 23rd of 2023, and they were asking, I think they interviewed about a thousand ah adults here in the United States, and they were asking them, ah do you have a new year's resolution?
00:01:26
Speaker
If so, what is it? And so some had more than one, but anyway, these were the top ranking, um, new year resolutions that they had, uh, at the top, uh, beyond any other, uh, competitor was physical fitness. Everybody's wanting get in shape. 48% of those, uh,
00:01:46
Speaker
of those they were polled, said, yes, we need to get in shape. So physical fitness, 48%. Others said, well, it's not so much my physical fitness as my financial fitness. I'm getting out of shape on my spending. So they were saying, you know, in the new year, I want to kind of control my spending, get things budget-wise in under control. And so 38% sort of noted, well, it's finances, not fitness.
00:02:18
Speaker
ah But then under that, the next one would be the 34% that said, I'm trying to lose a few pounds. So their weight was of concern to them. And then close behind them, another 32% said, the the real problem is I'm not eating right.
00:02:35
Speaker
So my diet. So 32% had some resolutions they were counting on ah related to the things that they eat.
Challenges in Keeping Resolutions
00:02:44
Speaker
But ah what was kind of amusing for me was I didn't even know this day existed.
00:02:50
Speaker
But on the second Friday of every January, they call it Quitter's Day. Because by then, very few people are still keeping the resolutions they made on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.
00:03:04
Speaker
And so I was shocked to to read that only 8% to 10% can actually make it beyond the second Friday of January. So anyway, if you're making some, then good luck. I hope you make it.
00:03:18
Speaker
ah past the second Friday of January. ah I think 25%, something like that, ah are trying to make at least 30 days. And I think 1% make it for a whole year. So by the time you get to... ah you know December, it's almost all gone. like There's very few who are really living it ah when it comes to keeping those promises to yourself.
Focus on Identity in Christ
00:03:42
Speaker
But one thing I was thinking about was, well, as believers in Christ, hey, we should have sort of like a higher level than just talking about our body and our budget and those kinds of things, biscuits, whatever you wanted to say. But I'm thinking, well, you know, the Bible describes us as being in christ In Christ is mentioned in the New Testament over 160 times. It refers to our position in Christ, not necessarily our daily walk in Christ and how are we doing in our fellowship with the Lord,
00:04:20
Speaker
but it refers to our spiritual position in Christ, and that supports our identity in Christ. And so I thought, well, why don't we make New Year's resolutions that are related to our identity in Christ, our position in Christ, maybe understanding these things better, maybe trying to live up to who we really are in Christ. You know, there's so many different things that way that that would be a better, um a better approach when it comes to selecting some New Year's resolutions.
00:04:55
Speaker
So I got to thinking, where can I take those that listen? Where can we go to learn together about some um New Year's resolutions that may be overlooked?
00:05:08
Speaker
So let me share with you or introduce you if you've never read this passage. It's awesome. But 2 Corinthians 5, beginning with verse 12, and reading down to the end of the chapter.
00:05:20
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Because what it says, these are things that Christ has already been doing in our lives. But sometimes we're getting further and further away from them in terms of our awareness, in terms of our commitment to the development of these things. And so these are maybe, let's say, areas that we could choose some kind of a... um you know, resolution related to to one of these. So let me share these five with you as we look at these verses from 2 Corinthians 5, verse 12 to the end of the chapter.
00:05:58
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We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to boast about us so that you may be able to answer those who boast
The Role of Love in Spiritual Resolutions
00:06:09
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about outward appearance.
00:06:12
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and not about what is in the heart. For if we're beside ourselves, it's for God. If we are in our right mind, it is for you.
00:06:26
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For the love of Christ controls us because we have concluded this, that one has died for all, therefore all have died. And he died for all that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
00:06:50
Speaker
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer.
00:07:02
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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come.
00:07:13
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All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
00:07:37
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Therefore, We are ambassadors for Christ. God making his appeal through us.
Ambassadors for Christ
00:07:47
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We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
00:07:54
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For our sake, he made him to be sin who knew no sin so that in him, we might become the righteousness of God.
00:08:07
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Those are fantastic verses. So I want us to look at this passage together and think about these priorities that the Lord has already started. You know, he says in here, we're a new creation.
00:08:20
Speaker
And so when you come to a new year, We are to say, Lord, what is it that you're already working in me to accomplish? So let me share with share with you some things ah that we have in Christ that I think should be related to our goals for a brand new year.
00:08:39
Speaker
Let's look first at verse 12. And of course, we could throw in verse 16 because I think it's related to the same thing. In Christ We are given new sight, new sight. It's almost like when I ah went and got cataract surgery, it was like I had a new vision. I could see so much farther than I could before because I had a cataract that was sort of clouding one of my eyes and my vision.
00:09:09
Speaker
Well, it's like whenever we come to know Christ as our Lord and Savior, we no longer view everything from external appearances. That's what he's saying was the problem with a group that these believers knew in Corinth. There were certain ones in the group that were boasting, he says, about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. And so he's trying to say, you're different now.
00:09:39
Speaker
You know, the church is called the ecclesia. It means an assembly that has been called out. And so we're called out of the way the world thinks, perhaps the way you grew up. Maybe you grew up always being so self-conscious about your external appearance that now it's it's really a stumbling block for you. You feel insecure about something related to your external appearance.
00:10:05
Speaker
But you know, the Lord changes all of that because now we we have the same vision that the Lord has. He doesn't look at things outwardly, externally.
00:10:18
Speaker
He's looking much, much deeper at the heart. You know, remember whenever ah the Lord was going to replace Saul as the king? Saul was a bad king. He had not tried to follow the Lord. And so God was ready to replace him. And he called the prophet Samuel to go to the house of a man named Jesse.
00:10:39
Speaker
And he said, Jesse has sons, and I'm going to show you which of his sons you are to anoint as the king. So he goes over there, and I mean, all of the brothers kind of kept coming up one by one, and the Spirit was not saying, this is the one. Nope, that's not the one. That's not the one. So finally, when he gets to David, ah Samuel says, this is the one that the Lord has said I should anoint as the next king of israel And perhaps all of his brothers were so shocked because he wasn't the the biggest ah man in the family. And so probably he was just a teenager at that time.
00:11:21
Speaker
He was really young. He was even out watching the sheep so the others could line up to be the king. But God had to teach him a lesson that day. It's recorded in 1 Samuel 16, 7, that God does not look outwardly as man looks, but God looks at the heart. So it was David's heart that really drew God's attention to him.
00:11:45
Speaker
And I think it's the same even now. I mean, when you go to the New Testament, the reason Jesus... And the Pharisees got cross-threaded between the way that they perceived everything was because the Pharisees also were more externally based rather than internally based. And so in Matthew 23, 25 to Jesus compares their way of thinking to someone who's washing dishes.
00:12:13
Speaker
And trust me, I mean, I'm a dishwasher. That's one thing that I do is I wash a lot of dishes. My wife goes to the trouble of cooking the meal. So it's a joy for me to get the get those pots and pans all cleaned up and dishes and so forth. But Jesus says to the Pharisees, you know what you guys are like?
00:12:31
Speaker
You're like people that kind of clean the outside of the dish, the outside of the cup, but you neglect the inside of the cup. Would you like to take a coffee cup and get ready to pour it in there? And it's never been cleaned from whoever drank from it last time. I mean, this would be serious. you know Well, that's what the Pharisees were doing.
00:12:52
Speaker
But you see, Jesus was saying, don't you guys get it? I've come to help you see with a new set of eyes. You're going to begin to see new values, new priorities are going to come into your life. So whenever we're deciding what will be our New Year's resolutions, I wonder if maybe the reason we can't keep our New Year's resolutions are because so many of them, just like this list from ah Forbes magazine, so many of them are all related to external things.
00:13:25
Speaker
And God is saying, that's not really where I'm working. I'm trying to help you grow spiritually, internally, so that eternally, you're gonna be so excited at how I reward you when you get to heaven. So I just thought, maybe we should look at our spiritual vision and say, Lord, am I looking at the wrong things in life?
00:13:48
Speaker
Well, let's move to a second gift that we receive whenever we come to know Christ. Not only does he give us new sight, he also gives us new significance.
00:13:59
Speaker
What would you say is the most significant, valuable thing in your life? I'm sure for most of us, we would probably say our families, right? And there's nothing wrong there. I'm not trying to say that family shouldn't be significant or shouldn't be important or valuable to us. They should.
00:14:18
Speaker
But I'm wondering, what is it that the Lord is trying to produce in me that is a new significance, like something that's a passion that maybe wasn't a passion before I trusted Christ. Let me read verses 13, 14, and 15, and I think you'll see what I'm talking about. He says, "'For if we are beside ourselves, it's for God, and if we're in our right mind, it's for you.'" For the love of Christ controls us. That word controls there means sort of like urges us. It's kind of like a coach saying, come on, give me more.
00:14:58
Speaker
For the love of Christ controls or urges us on because we've concluded this, that one has died for all, therefore all have died. And he died for all that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
00:15:18
Speaker
Okay, so let me get down to the point. I think that in Christ, the new significance that we've been given is to say, okay, from now on, the love of Christ is what will control me.
00:15:33
Speaker
But I'm also, that's verse 14, but verse 15 would be someone who concludes, well, now that Christ is in my life, I want to live for Christ. i would I don't want to live for myself anymore. You know, there's almost no way that someone can remove self from the throne that is established within every heart.
00:15:57
Speaker
All people, all of us want to do things that are really best for us, not for our spouse, not for our kids, not for other people, certainly not for God.
00:16:07
Speaker
But look at what is said at the end of verse 15, that those who live, might no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
00:16:21
Speaker
You see, the whole idea is to say, Lord, I would now the passion of my life, the greatest honor of my life is to live for you, but also your love and loving you back.
00:16:35
Speaker
That's what urges me on. You ever have trouble facing what you're facing, maybe at school, if you're a student, or if you're a teacher, or perhaps in your career, wherever your office is, or maybe you're out in the field with other workers, but wherever it is, i just wanted to encourage you to let the Lord refill your tank each morning. Meet with Him and let the love of Christ fill your tank in that will control you, that will urge you on, that will help you as you go through your life.
00:17:11
Speaker
Have you heard of something called narcissistic personality disorder? I read an article that said psychologists are saying that there is a steady increase in people in our society, American society, who are being classified as narcissistic personality disorder.
00:17:33
Speaker
What is causing all of us to become more and more selfish, more and more self-centered? That's what a narcissist is, someone who only wants to gratify themselves and so forth. Well, there were several things that they highlighted. But definitely I would say inflated grading.
00:17:52
Speaker
Do you know that in the school systems, some school systems, maybe not the school system where you teach or where you are, but in many, they're having to grade on the curve because you know if they give them the grade they deserve, then the kids just fall apart. The parents get upset.
00:18:10
Speaker
You know, they know that there's something wrong with the test, not with their child. And so this inflated grading system is beginning to make children feel like, oh, I'm a success. I'm a star. I'm and a straight A student when really they're not.
00:18:27
Speaker
You know, the individualism that we cherish in Western society, Western societies, plural, I think that individualism can sometimes go rogue and it can sometimes make us feel like, you know what, everything is really for me.
00:18:46
Speaker
All my salary's for me. I don't care about my kids, or my wife. i don't care about giving to others that are underprivileged. No, it's all for me. And so if we don't watch it, that can happen. Of course, the same way, social media.
00:19:01
Speaker
Social media is a very good thing. It's a great tool for helping us to ah stay connected with others and get word out about our families and get the gospel out, so many different things.
00:19:14
Speaker
But if you don't watch it, social media can be all about yourself. You can just take one selfie after another and pretty soon people are like, you know, i think that they're just caught up in who they are and themselves.
00:19:27
Speaker
Sometimes even the reward system in sports, you know, everybody gets a trophy. Everybody is a winner. You know, if you don't watch it, that can begin to get in the head of our young people and they can't take it when they're not ah number one in something.
00:19:43
Speaker
ah The other day I shared this with my staff and my staff, a member of my staff said, I think sometimes, you know, the advertising industry, they're promoting, you're nothing if you don't have this product, you know? And so it's like, all of these things are bombarding us, but you know what we need?
00:20:02
Speaker
Christ. All we need is Christ, because if Christ is controlling us, the love of Christ, we don't feel like we have to have another product to know that we're loved or that we're special, that we're important. We're living for Christ. We're not living for self. So if I don't get my way at the office, I don't just crumble or I don't fly off the handle.
00:20:28
Speaker
Do you see what I'm saying? I wonder if some of our New Year's resolutions should line up with our identity in Christ, with our position in Christ, with all these spiritual initiatives that Christ has started already. And if we get in line with Him, He's going to help us reach them.
00:20:48
Speaker
But I love verse 17 because it introduces us to the third ah New Year's resolution area from which we
New Beginnings as New Creations
00:20:57
Speaker
could choose. See, thirdly, in Christ, we're not only given new significance and new sight.
00:21:04
Speaker
We're given a new start. I wonder if there's somebody listening to me today and you know that you've made several mistakes in your life. You're living in the shambles of some of those mistakes, bad decisions, sins, things that you've gotten off track with God and off track with your priorities and your morals and so forth.
00:21:26
Speaker
How can you ever get back? How could you ever start again? hey, I got good news. Why don't you start with Christ? That's where he'll start in your life. Let me read verse 17. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come.
00:21:49
Speaker
Man, that's good news. That's good news for somebody that says, I need a fresh start in life. I've already blown the start that I had. But do notice that a new start, it's not for everybody.
00:22:02
Speaker
No. Did you notice that it's conditional? Let me read it again. Therefore, If, oh, there's a condition word, right? If anyone, so it's not it's not ah saying that it's not for everyone. It's just that not everyone is going to do it.
00:22:19
Speaker
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, If someone's still outside of Christ, they're outside of this whole new start that they could have in Christ. But did you notice how not only is it conditional, it's transformational.
00:22:36
Speaker
If we'll ever get on the inside and say, Lord, I give you my life. I want to turn from sin. I'm tired of being the one in charge of my life. I'm making too many mistakes, Lord.
00:22:47
Speaker
I really want you and I need you to guide me. If you'll come to Him, then let me tell you, He will transform your life. Here's the way He describes it in this passage. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, He's a new creation.
00:23:03
Speaker
The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come. transformational is the way you could describe this new start. Everything changes when you turn your life over to Christ. But I did want to point out thirdly, I think that it's gradational.
00:23:18
Speaker
I mean, I've been around for a long time. I've seen a lot of Christians grow and and seen some grow fast and quick quickly. Others grow slowly. What's the difference?
00:23:29
Speaker
I believe that surrender makes a difference. So I think that God, it's like a process that he starts. He wants to change everything in our lives. And if we'll work with him and cooperate with him, man, he's going to change a lot.
00:23:43
Speaker
But if we don't work with him, and we want to do things again in the flesh, well, it's going to take a little longer. So why don't we just call it a process? It's gradational. It's gradual.
00:23:55
Speaker
Happens a little bit at a time. But in Christ, we are given a new start. But there's a fourth thing that we're given. You might consider this. How about the new status that you receive in Christ?
00:24:09
Speaker
Oh, yes. you built Before you receive Christ, Your status was just like my status. Our status is just like everybody else's status. We're all sinful.
00:24:20
Speaker
We're all broken. We've all disobeyed God. We've resisted Him. We've rejected Him at one time in our life. But here's the good news. When you come to Christ,
00:24:31
Speaker
the Lord changes your spiritual
Reconciliation and Righteous Status
00:24:33
Speaker
status. He changed mine. Here's what it is. It's twofold. Verses 18 and 19, one part of the status. Verse 21, second part of the status.
00:24:45
Speaker
The first part of our status is now rather than being separated from God, alienated from God, You know what we are? Hey, we're reconciled to God.
00:24:57
Speaker
That is definitely a change in status. He says, all this is from God who through Christ reconciled us to himself. I love that.
00:25:09
Speaker
In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself. That's the only way to make things right with God. That's the only way to be in God's family, to be able to so for God to say, welcome to my heaven when you die.
00:25:23
Speaker
You can be reconciled to God. And if you've trusted Christ at this moment, no matter how you feel, you are reconciled to God. Man, that's a fabulous part of our status as we're in Christ. But there's another part of our status that's available to anyone who trusts Christ, and that is we are righteous before God.
00:25:46
Speaker
I know we're not perfect. I know we don't feel righteous. You know, we feel sinful still. We feel like we're still, you know, hobbling along or kind of limping along, but but here's here's reality.
00:25:59
Speaker
Verse 21, for our sake, jesus ah God made Jesus to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in Jesus, we might become the righteousness of God.
00:26:14
Speaker
He doesn't say you're going to receive the righteousness of God. He says we will become the righteousness of God. You see, right now, regardless of how your day's going, regardless of whatever mistakes you've made, spiritually, if you've ever repented and put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you know what?
00:26:36
Speaker
There's been this stamp over your spiritual passport, let's say, and that stamp says justified. All those sins that you, it's just as if you'd never sinned. You know, you are not only forgiven and justified of past sins.
00:26:53
Speaker
Get ready for this one. When Jesus died on the cross, he took all of your sins on himself. That's what verse 21 says. But get ready. He also took his righteousness and he placed it on you and on me so that every day we live, we wake up in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. When the Father looks at you and looks at me, he sees us through the righteousness, the perfect righteousness of his son who was sinless. Man, that's incredible.
00:27:29
Speaker
That's incredible. So why not have a status to where rather than getting down on yourself all the time, you remember who you are in Christ, your position. And you say, you know what?
00:27:40
Speaker
Man, i I am looked upon through the righteous blood of Jesus Christ, and I am reconciled to God. Man, that's a whole different outlook, I'd say. It's whole different status.
00:27:53
Speaker
But let me give you a fifth and a final one. do you know that God not only gave you a status, he's called you to service. There's something he wants to do through your life.
00:28:04
Speaker
And so that's the last one. In Christ, we're given a call to this service that he wants us to do. And it's ministry of reconciliation.
00:28:16
Speaker
That's what you're called to do. Help other people now to become connected to the Father through the Son. And to help you out, help me out, so that we have something we can tell people. He said, you know what I'm going to do? i'm going to actually tell you the message that will help other people trust Christ and and be reconciled to the Father. That is, in Christ,
00:28:41
Speaker
god was reconciling the world to himself himself not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation I love that. He's got a job for you to do.
00:28:56
Speaker
whatever your career is it doesn't matter it's sort of like that message of your life you'll always be a person others will look to as a person with hope You have hope because of what Jesus has done in you and what he wants to do through you.
00:29:14
Speaker
And so just think, who are the messengers of reconciliation? Who has the right to be able to share that good news with other people? Just the people who've been to seminary and Bible school? No, no, the people who've trusted Christ. Listen to what the Lord's word says about every one of us in verse 20. Therefore, we, all of us who have believed in Christ, we are ambassadors for Christ. God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
00:29:49
Speaker
Wow. Let's pray that God would give us some really spiritual New Year's resolutions. Would you pray with me? Lord, thank you for this passage. We learn so much from passages like this. So help my friends as they start a new year.
00:30:04
Speaker
Please give them your very best and help them to grow. in the kinds of things that we saw that Christ is already doing in our lives. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:30:16
Speaker
You have a very blessed new year. I pray for God's best to be upon you.
00:30:25
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.