Living As a New Creation - Who do You say that I am (Wk. 2) (3)

In one paragraph

This was the second week of a series called "Living as a New Creation," taught at First Baptist Jackson. The session picked up from the previous week's foundation on who God says we are in Christ, and turned toward the practical question of how we actually walk that out. The heart of it was the relationship between our body, soul, and spirit, and what it looks like to let the spirit lead. The...

Read together

1. Ephesians 3:20 God can do more than you could think or ask or imagine by his power at work within us
2. James 1:23-25 hearer of the word versus effectual doer, looking at natural face in mirror
3. Acts 3:19 repent and turn to God so sins may be wiped out and times of refreshing may come from the Lord
4. Romans 8:5 those who live according to the flesh have minds set on flesh, those in the spirit on what the spirit desires
5. 1 Corinthians 2:14 people who aren't spiritual can't receive truths from God's Spirit, only those who are spiritual can understand
6. Proverbs 20:12 ears to hear and eyes to see are both gifts from the Lord
7. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 prayer that whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless, God who calls you is faithful to make it happen
8. Isaiah 60:1 spoken as a blessing over the women: arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you

Talk about it

1. The sermon opened with the idea that what you believe you have within you will determine what you reproduce around you. Where have you seen that play out in your own life, for better or worse?
2. Christine talked about the difference between condemnation and conviction, saying condemnation ties your identity to your behavior while conviction calls you back to who God says you really are. Can you think of a time when you felt the difference between those two things?
3. John the Baptist is described as someone who, after years of preparation, stood up and said 'I am a voice crying in the wilderness,' taking ownership of the identity God had spoken over him. What makes it hard to take ownership of what God says about us, and what has helped you do it?
4. Christine described personality traits like shyness, stubbornness, and impatience as things God wants to refine rather than leave as excuses, reshaping them into gentleness, steadfastness, and a pioneering spirit. Is there a trait in yourself you have excused as just who you are that you think God might want to work with instead?
5. The image of the adult, the teenager, and the toddler in the car was used to picture the spirit, soul, and body, with the question being who is driving. What does it look like practically, in a moment of conflict or fear, to let your spirit lead rather than your emotions or physical reactions?