1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,100 You’re listening to a sermon from Pastor Colin Smith of Open the Bible. 2 00:00:07,100 –> 00:00:15,180 To contact us call us at 1-877-OPEN-365 or visit our website www.openthebible.org. 3 00:00:15,180 –> 00:00:17,379 Let’s get to the message. 4 00:00:17,379 –> 00:00:20,799 Here is Pastor Colin. 5 00:00:20,799 –> 00:00:27,639 Please open your bibles at 2 Corinthians and chapter 5 we looked last time from verse 14 6 00:00:27,940 –> 00:00:31,879 at what it means to be controlled by the love of Christ. 7 00:00:31,879 –> 00:00:36,560 And we saw the testimony of the Apostle Paul that the love of Christ really took a grip 8 00:00:36,560 –> 00:00:42,599 in his life, took hold of his life when he came to two conclusions about the death and 9 00:00:42,599 –> 00:00:45,520 the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. 10 00:00:45,520 –> 00:00:51,459 The first was that Jesus changed death that He died in our place in order to change the 11 00:00:52,459 –> 00:00:53,459 forever. 12 00:00:53,459 –> 00:00:58,840 That’s why He says one has died for all, and therefore all have died. 13 00:00:58,840 –> 00:01:04,459 He has changed death from what it would have been, a passing into condemnation into what 14 00:01:04,459 –> 00:01:09,820 it will be for a person who is in Christ, and entering into celebration He’s changed 15 00:01:09,820 –> 00:01:13,220 the face of death for all of His people. 16 00:01:13,220 –> 00:01:18,620 Not only that, we saw that the Lord Jesus has changed the face of life, the whole purpose 17 00:01:18,620 –> 00:01:19,620 of life. 18 00:01:19,620 –> 00:01:25,540 His Lord, He died to bring us from the misery of living for ourself into the joy of living 19 00:01:25,540 –> 00:01:26,540 for Him. 20 00:01:26,540 –> 00:01:31,779 He died, verse 15, that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him 21 00:01:31,779 –> 00:01:35,099 who for their sake died and was raised. 22 00:01:35,099 –> 00:01:42,059 Now, in these verses we’ve really come to the core of what God has done in Jesus Christ 23 00:01:42,059 –> 00:01:44,019 for all of His people. 24 00:01:44,139 –> 00:01:51,839 He’s changed death, He’s changed life, and He’s done it for all who are in Jesus Christ. 25 00:01:51,839 –> 00:02:00,860 Now, today we’re going to come to the first of, really, a series of conclusions or applications 26 00:02:00,860 –> 00:02:06,599 that come from the great truth of who Jesus is and what He has done and what He has accomplished 27 00:02:06,599 –> 00:02:08,259 for His people. 28 00:02:08,300 –> 00:02:13,259 And so we’re really coming, therefore, to a series of conclusions from this wonderful 29 00:02:13,279 –> 00:02:16,940 reality that the love of Christ controls us. 30 00:02:16,940 –> 00:02:21,240 And what we’re going to see today is that when that is the case, it changes the way 31 00:02:21,240 –> 00:02:28,619 that we see other people, and it also changes the way in which we see ourselves. 32 00:02:28,619 –> 00:02:34,820 And so I want to try and show you from the Bible today, how it is that knowing Jesus 33 00:02:35,100 –> 00:02:43,020 Christ will change the way you view others, and it will change the way in which you see 34 00:02:43,020 –> 00:02:45,039 yourself. 35 00:02:45,039 –> 00:02:50,259 So we come, therefore, to verse 16 and verse 17, and I’d like to read these verses again 36 00:02:50,259 –> 00:02:51,940 for you now. 37 00:02:51,940 –> 00:02:56,839 From now on, therefore—so the word therefore means this is a conclusion. 38 00:02:56,839 –> 00:03:04,199 This is what comes from what we’ve been learning before—from now on therefore, we regard 39 00:03:04,199 –> 00:03:13,279 no one according to the flesh, even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh. 40 00:03:13,279 –> 00:03:19,440 So that same phrase a second time—even though we once did this we regard him thus no longer—then 41 00:03:19,440 –> 00:03:25,440 this marvelous verse—therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. 42 00:03:25,440 –> 00:03:30,539 The old has passed away, behold, the new has come. 43 00:03:30,580 –> 00:03:36,039 The key words here are the words according to the flesh and you’ll notice that that little 44 00:03:36,039 –> 00:03:41,479 phrase comes twice in verse 16 as if to underline its importance. 45 00:03:41,479 –> 00:03:48,779 From now on, we regard no one according to the flesh, we once regarded Christ according 46 00:03:48,779 –> 00:03:53,220 to the flesh, but we do so no longer. 47 00:03:53,440 –> 00:04:00,419 Now, what does it mean to regard someone according to the flesh? 48 00:04:00,419 –> 00:04:05,860 Well, very simply, to regard someone according to the flesh means to form an impression about 49 00:04:05,860 –> 00:04:11,699 a person from the most obvious things about them. 50 00:04:11,699 –> 00:04:17,980 Remember the Bible says man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart. 51 00:04:17,980 –> 00:04:22,559 We often emphasize, rightly, the second half of that verse, God looks on the heart. 52 00:04:22,559 –> 00:04:26,959 We forget the first part, which is that man looks on the outward appearance. 53 00:04:26,959 –> 00:04:34,200 We form impressions on what is immediately apparent in regards to other people. 54 00:04:34,200 –> 00:04:39,079 Of course, we do want to know the heart, but as everyone knows, that takes time, and you 55 00:04:39,079 –> 00:04:40,720 can’t do that with everybody. 56 00:04:40,720 –> 00:04:47,320 You’re only able to know the heart of a limited number of people. 57 00:04:47,440 –> 00:04:49,119 I want to list for you then 58 00:04:49,119 –> 00:04:56,140 10 factors that distinguish us according to the flesh. 59 00:04:56,140 –> 00:04:59,480 Let me give you this health warning before we get into it. 60 00:04:59,480 –> 00:05:02,000 Every one of them is sensitive. 61 00:05:02,000 –> 00:05:03,260 Every one of them is sensitive. 62 00:05:03,260 –> 00:05:08,980 That was the thing as I was just meditating on this and listing out, what does it mean 63 00:05:08,980 –> 00:05:13,640 to be in the flesh, and what does this phrase, according to the flesh mean? 64 00:05:13,640 –> 00:05:16,040 I’m meditating on it, so I’m going, oh, that’s sensitive. 65 00:05:16,279 –> 00:05:23,179 Oh, so is that, oh, so is that, and the reason for that is that these things reflect our 66 00:05:23,179 –> 00:05:29,239 life in this world and as you will see, they are therefore the focus of great tension in 67 00:05:29,239 –> 00:05:31,220 many spheres. 68 00:05:31,220 –> 00:05:36,279 Here is number one, appearance, the most obvious of them all. 69 00:05:36,279 –> 00:05:42,559 This is obviously the first way in which we identify people in ordinary conversation. 70 00:05:42,700 –> 00:05:48,059 One will say, oh, you know, I spoke to Mary Jones this morning and I’ll say, now who is 71 00:05:48,059 –> 00:05:49,059 she? 72 00:05:49,059 –> 00:05:52,399 And she’ll say, well, she’s the tall lady with the dark curly hair and she walks with 73 00:05:52,399 –> 00:05:54,619 a bit of a stupe and she always wears a green coat. 74 00:05:54,619 –> 00:05:59,559 And I mean, that’s the kind of ordinary conversation that we have all of the time in regards to 75 00:05:59,559 –> 00:06:02,619 how we describe or identify people. 76 00:06:02,619 –> 00:06:09,019 According to the flesh, you have a certain height and you may either like that or not 77 00:06:09,019 –> 00:06:10,160 like it. 78 00:06:10,160 –> 00:06:14,799 You are of a certain weight and you may either like that or you may not like that. 79 00:06:14,799 –> 00:06:16,399 You have your own style. 80 00:06:16,399 –> 00:06:22,059 You have your own level of fitness and all of these things are immediately apparent. 81 00:06:22,059 –> 00:06:24,920 All of us have thoughts about our own appearance. 82 00:06:24,920 –> 00:06:28,540 Whether we like it or whether we don’t like it, how it compares with the appearance of 83 00:06:28,540 –> 00:06:29,540 others. 84 00:06:29,540 –> 00:06:35,079 And that’s why these things become sensitive, but our appearance is a factor that distinguishes 85 00:06:35,079 –> 00:06:36,720 us according to the flesh. 86 00:06:36,720 –> 00:06:37,720 That’s number one. 87 00:06:37,720 –> 00:06:39,779 Number two, ability. 88 00:06:39,940 –> 00:06:45,940 I’m thinking here about gifts, talents, abilities that each of us have in different spheres, 89 00:06:45,940 –> 00:06:50,320 sports, arts, music, so forth and so on. 90 00:06:50,320 –> 00:06:59,119 And our abilities in different areas are part of what we are according to the flesh. 91 00:07:00,119 –> 00:07:04,619 Now, I went to high school for six years. 92 00:07:04,619 –> 00:07:09,339 And the reason, I hasten to add, is not that I did particularly badly. 93 00:07:09,500 –> 00:07:11,500 It was that we didn’t have middle school. 94 00:07:11,500 –> 00:07:16,700 And so at the age of 12, you went to what was called secondary school, effectively high 95 00:07:16,700 –> 00:07:19,579 school, and were there for six years. 96 00:07:19,579 –> 00:07:23,940 So I began there at the age of 12. 97 00:07:23,940 –> 00:07:30,359 And in the high school that I attended, for which I will always be grateful, we were divided 98 00:07:30,359 –> 00:07:37,899 into streams according to ability, and many others will have had this kind of experience. 99 00:07:38,600 –> 00:07:44,160 There were five classes in each year. 100 00:07:44,160 –> 00:07:48,059 And if you’re curious to know where I was, the answer actually is very, very boring, 101 00:07:48,059 –> 00:07:51,720 I was absolutely, slap, bang, right in the middle. 102 00:07:51,720 –> 00:07:58,720 Well, I guess the school didn’t want it to be too obvious that the classes were streamed, 103 00:07:59,500 –> 00:08:05,500 and so the classes were given what seemed to be random names. 104 00:08:05,940 –> 00:08:12,940 They were X, G, T, H, and K, and so you would go into 1X or 1G, and 2X and 2G, and so forth 105 00:08:15,779 –> 00:08:16,459 and so on. 106 00:08:16,459 –> 00:08:19,980 Well of course, all the kids, as is always the case, knew who was at the top and who 107 00:08:19,980 –> 00:08:26,980 was at the bottom, and so here we were, 12 years old, trying to work out what these apparently 108 00:08:28,339 –> 00:08:33,520 random letters might actually stand for. 109 00:08:33,539 –> 00:08:35,500 And we worked it out. 110 00:08:35,500 –> 00:08:40,840 X, we decided for sure, must be for Excellent, because these kids were the high fliers. 111 00:08:40,840 –> 00:08:44,900 G, which was the next lot, therefore must be for Good. 112 00:08:44,900 –> 00:08:50,799 T, which was Us, we dubbed Terrific, though other classes reckoned that it may well be 113 00:08:50,799 –> 00:08:52,099 Terrible. 114 00:08:52,099 –> 00:08:59,099 H was obviously for Horrible, which left K, which by universal acclimation was regarded 115 00:09:00,099 –> 00:09:02,479 as standing for Chronic! 116 00:09:02,479 –> 00:09:07,260 And these kids lived with that for six years! 117 00:09:07,260 –> 00:09:10,179 Now, this is the world in which we live. 118 00:09:10,179 –> 00:09:16,260 And how many of you have these awful memories of, you know, two captains picking teams for 119 00:09:16,260 –> 00:09:21,260 some kickabout game of the ball, and there you are, all the kids standing on the wall, 120 00:09:21,260 –> 00:09:25,580 like, oh, I love this person, I love this person, and the first ones to be chosen, they 121 00:09:25,580 –> 00:09:30,460 walk out with a kind of swagger, because they’re obviously the best players, and then the number 122 00:09:30,500 –> 00:09:35,200 that are standing by the wall becomes lower and lower, and the last kids to be chosen 123 00:09:35,200 –> 00:09:40,020 kind of walk out with their heads hanging, because everybody knows that they’re the ones 124 00:09:40,020 –> 00:09:41,820 who are least wanted on the team. 125 00:09:41,820 –> 00:09:42,820 Why? 126 00:09:42,820 –> 00:09:48,179 Because they’ve got a lower level of ability when it comes to this particular game. 127 00:09:48,179 –> 00:09:56,219 We have different abilities that distinguish us according to the flesh. 128 00:09:56,219 –> 00:09:58,799 Number three, age. 129 00:09:59,119 –> 00:10:03,359 The young and the old, and everything in between. 130 00:10:03,359 –> 00:10:08,440 Paul says to Timothy, let no one despise your youth. 131 00:10:08,440 –> 00:10:09,960 What’s the point of him saying that? 132 00:10:09,960 –> 00:10:14,679 Well some people will not give him a lot of credibility because he is young and he’s going 133 00:10:14,679 –> 00:10:19,880 to have to earn their trust and their respect. 134 00:10:19,880 –> 00:10:26,599 Similarly older people often feel pushed to the margins in a society that chases increasingly 135 00:10:26,780 –> 00:10:32,940 after the young, and so how many tensions in society relate to these differences between 136 00:10:32,940 –> 00:10:35,840 us relating to age? 137 00:10:35,840 –> 00:10:38,780 Number four, friends. 138 00:10:38,780 –> 00:10:42,039 When you’re at school this can be a huge factor in your life. 139 00:10:42,039 –> 00:10:44,239 Who is your friends? 140 00:10:44,239 –> 00:10:46,000 What’s the group to which you belong? 141 00:10:46,000 –> 00:10:49,440 Which group wants you in and which group doesn’t want you in? 142 00:10:49,440 –> 00:10:52,200 This remains true throughout life. 143 00:10:52,280 –> 00:10:58,080 We talk about social circle and it becomes important and significant with regards to 144 00:10:58,080 –> 00:10:59,900 who we are in the flesh. 145 00:10:59,900 –> 00:11:02,460 Number five, race. 146 00:11:02,460 –> 00:11:07,280 We’re talking about the things that distinguish us according to the flesh. 147 00:11:07,280 –> 00:11:14,919 Clearly race or ethnicity is one of these, and it’s very striking how often in the Bible 148 00:11:14,919 –> 00:11:19,119 you have reference to the Jews and the Gentiles. 149 00:11:19,119 –> 00:11:23,719 Even the great tensions between these two and how they might be overcome. 150 00:11:23,719 –> 00:11:31,479 You can’t understand the history of America or of the tensions in our country today apart 151 00:11:31,479 –> 00:11:36,940 from this issue and the many, many injustices that have gone with it. 152 00:11:36,940 –> 00:11:45,260 Number six, gender, God has made us male and female and this distinguishes us according 153 00:11:45,260 –> 00:11:47,380 to the flesh. 154 00:11:47,380 –> 00:11:52,700 As we think about race and about gender just think about this, these are the great issues 155 00:11:52,700 –> 00:11:57,820 that cause so much tension, so much debate within our society. 156 00:11:57,820 –> 00:12:03,780 We’re trying to work out how we live together well with what distinguishes us according 157 00:12:03,780 –> 00:12:06,539 to the flesh. 158 00:12:06,539 –> 00:12:10,059 Number seven, work. 159 00:12:10,059 –> 00:12:17,260 According to the flesh, our life in this world, the kind of work that a person does leads 160 00:12:17,260 –> 00:12:22,179 to a very different kind of experience in life. 161 00:12:22,179 –> 00:12:29,659 Manual labor, business, education, health, art, science, or as you work in the home and 162 00:12:29,659 –> 00:12:31,799 with the family. 163 00:12:31,799 –> 00:12:37,260 And the kind of work you do relates very much to the kind of experience that you have in 164 00:12:37,260 –> 00:12:38,260 your life. 165 00:12:38,260 –> 00:12:41,440 I’m always interested to ask people now, what’s your work? 166 00:12:41,580 –> 00:12:47,159 Because that gives us a great insight into what a person’s experience of life actually 167 00:12:47,159 –> 00:12:51,679 is according to the flesh. 168 00:12:51,679 –> 00:12:53,919 8, home. 169 00:12:53,919 –> 00:12:58,159 I find it difficult to know what to call this one. 170 00:12:58,159 –> 00:13:02,679 But think about everything that goes into a person’s lifestyle. 171 00:13:02,679 –> 00:13:09,739 The home you live in, the car that you drive, the vacations you enjoy, the restaurants you 172 00:13:09,919 –> 00:13:15,580 frequent, the entertainment that you choose, the leisure activities you pursue, all of 173 00:13:15,580 –> 00:13:19,179 this is driven in very significant measure by what? 174 00:13:19,179 –> 00:13:29,179 The underlying means that are available to you to sustain this particular style of life. 175 00:13:29,179 –> 00:13:32,059 I could have called it wealth, I could have called it lifestyle. 176 00:13:32,059 –> 00:13:35,719 I called it simply home. 177 00:13:35,719 –> 00:13:36,979 Home has associations. 178 00:13:37,140 –> 00:13:41,219 We sometimes use the phrase, you know, brought up on the wrong side of the tracks. 179 00:13:41,219 –> 00:13:43,859 Why do we use that phrase? 180 00:13:43,859 –> 00:13:49,859 Because so many communities have a more prosperous part of the community that is one side of 181 00:13:49,859 –> 00:13:57,080 a railway line and a less prosperous part of a community that is on the other side of 182 00:13:57,080 –> 00:13:59,080 the tracks. 183 00:13:59,080 –> 00:14:00,739 Number nine, family. 184 00:14:00,840 –> 00:14:09,799 And here we can include family of origin, family by adoption and family by marriage. 185 00:14:09,799 –> 00:14:18,039 And there’s the whole issue of the mix that gets scooped out of the gene pool and gets 186 00:14:18,039 –> 00:14:20,500 poured into you. 187 00:14:20,500 –> 00:14:27,440 And we think most of us, perhaps a great deal from time to time about that gifts and talents 188 00:14:27,460 –> 00:14:32,640 and physical features that were passed to you from your parents. 189 00:14:32,640 –> 00:14:38,599 But then along with that battles and struggles and desires that were in your father and mother 190 00:14:38,599 –> 00:14:43,840 and may also in some degree now be in you. 191 00:14:43,840 –> 00:14:49,979 And most of us therefore try to spend some time figuring out now what is in us and where 192 00:14:49,979 –> 00:14:52,320 did it come from? 193 00:14:52,320 –> 00:14:59,859 And when we do this we are very simply trying to figure out who we are according to the 194 00:14:59,859 –> 00:15:00,859 flesh. 195 00:15:00,859 –> 00:15:06,799 This is all part of what’s being spoken of in 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 16. 196 00:15:06,799 –> 00:15:11,760 And for some this whole business has many more blessings than it has sorrows. 197 00:15:11,760 –> 00:15:17,059 You think primarily of what you’ve received genetically in terms of what you aspire to 198 00:15:17,059 –> 00:15:21,200 in those you have seen as you’ve gone before. 199 00:15:21,200 –> 00:15:25,080 For others there are many more sorrows than there are blessings and when you think of 200 00:15:25,080 –> 00:15:29,880 this whole thing you’re thinking of what you want to try to avoid in terms of what has 201 00:15:29,880 –> 00:15:32,440 gone before. 202 00:15:32,440 –> 00:15:39,559 For some who don’t know who their biological parents are there are open questions and curiosity 203 00:15:39,559 –> 00:15:41,099 about what is in me. 204 00:15:41,099 –> 00:15:48,000 But what I’m saying to you is that for every single one of us this whole business is a 205 00:15:48,000 –> 00:15:51,500 mixed bag. 206 00:15:51,500 –> 00:15:53,799 According to the flesh. 207 00:15:53,799 –> 00:15:55,599 Which leads to number ten. 208 00:15:55,599 –> 00:15:57,940 Experience. 209 00:15:57,940 –> 00:16:03,599 Who we are according to the flesh is shaped not only by nature, but by nurture. 210 00:16:03,599 –> 00:16:07,760 Not only by the genes that have been passed to us, but also by the environment of our 211 00:16:07,760 –> 00:16:09,799 experience. 212 00:16:09,799 –> 00:16:15,659 And so our early experiences, either of great love or of great neglect will have significant 213 00:16:16,380 –> 00:16:20,500 on the shaping of our lives according to the flesh. 214 00:16:20,500 –> 00:16:26,479 The opportunities that come or do not come to us in our growing up years also will be 215 00:16:26,479 –> 00:16:28,460 significant. 216 00:16:28,460 –> 00:16:33,299 Some people seem to have a track in which all the doors open for them. 217 00:16:33,299 –> 00:16:38,140 And others have a track in which it seems all the doors close for them. 218 00:16:38,179 –> 00:16:47,539 And it makes a significant difference in our experience of life, according to the flesh. 219 00:16:47,539 –> 00:16:48,539 So there are 10 factors. 220 00:16:48,539 –> 00:16:50,320 When I got to 10, I thought I’ve got to stop. 221 00:16:50,320 –> 00:16:52,840 Otherwise, I’ll go on forever. 222 00:16:52,840 –> 00:16:59,900 You can discuss this in the life groups, you can add other factors to the list. 223 00:16:59,900 –> 00:17:03,780 But as I’ve been reflecting on these issues and just going through the list and saying, 224 00:17:03,799 –> 00:17:10,160 why is it that these are the issues that are so sensitive in our world? 225 00:17:10,160 –> 00:17:16,540 I think it’s for this reason, because for many people, what we are according to the 226 00:17:16,540 –> 00:17:20,199 flesh is the only thing there is. 227 00:17:20,199 –> 00:17:25,380 And if what you are according to the flesh is the only thing there is, you will always 228 00:17:25,380 –> 00:17:28,920 be uptight about who you are according to the flesh. 229 00:17:28,920 –> 00:17:30,599 You have to be. 230 00:17:30,599 –> 00:17:33,439 If that’s all there is. 231 00:17:33,540 –> 00:17:40,579 You’ll always be battling it, and never find a way of coming to peace with it. 232 00:17:40,579 –> 00:17:50,280 And now that we’ve looked at these ten, I want you to see, hear, and feel the extraordinary 233 00:17:50,280 –> 00:17:58,280 power of what God says to us in 2 Corinthians 5, verse 16. 234 00:17:58,319 –> 00:18:10,060 From now on, therefore, we, that is we who are in Christ, regard no one according to 235 00:18:10,060 –> 00:18:18,079 the flesh. That is an extraordinarily radical statement. 236 00:18:18,079 –> 00:18:23,859 In a world in which everything is about what we are in the flesh, the Apostle Paul says, 237 00:18:23,900 –> 00:18:26,599 From now on, we regard no one according 238 00:18:27,739 –> 00:18:36,300 to the flesh. In a world in which people’s lives are perceived to be shaped and defined 239 00:18:36,300 –> 00:18:41,579 by the ten factors that we have looked at, and others that may be added, the Apostle 240 00:18:41,579 –> 00:18:49,420 says, that for us who are in Christ, we do not see these things as ultimately defining 241 00:18:50,079 –> 00:18:54,079 person. From now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. 242 00:18:59,780 –> 00:19:05,060 So now that we’ve tuned our minds into how extraordinarily important this is and how 243 00:19:05,060 –> 00:19:11,500 deeply it speaks to our entire world and to our personal lives, I want to put this case 244 00:19:11,500 –> 00:19:22,079 before you that a change in how you see Jesus will lead to a change in how you see others 245 00:19:22,699 –> 00:19:30,219 and a change in how you see yourself. That is the thrust of these verses that are before 246 00:19:30,219 –> 00:19:37,060 us as we follow what the Apostle Paul is saying. A change in how you see Jesus will lead to 247 00:19:37,060 –> 00:19:46,000 a change in how you see others and a change in how you see yourself. And this is wonderfully 248 00:19:46,000 –> 00:19:51,660 liberating for all who are in Christ. Let me build that case then in these three steps 249 00:19:51,660 –> 00:20:00,199 and start here. A change in how you see Jesus. This is where it begins. Look at verse 16. 250 00:20:00,380 –> 00:20:12,599 Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard Him thus no longer. 251 00:20:12,640 –> 00:20:15,819 Now you see what Paul is saying? He’s talking about the way in which he viewed Jesus. The 252 00:20:15,819 –> 00:20:21,439 opinion he formed about Jesus. And he’s saying, the opinion that I had of Jesus was 253 00:20:21,439 –> 00:20:28,880 formed entirely by what he was according to the flesh. A Jewish man born into a poor family, 254 00:20:28,900 –> 00:20:34,400 raised in an obscure village, a carpenter by trade, of unusual ability in leading others, 255 00:20:34,400 –> 00:20:41,079 who hung out with sometimes embarrassing friends and died early in life without owning more 256 00:20:41,079 –> 00:20:48,079 than the robe for which the soldiers gambled while he hung on the cross. 257 00:20:48,880 –> 00:20:55,099 That was my opinion of Jesus. And all of these people worshipping him, therefore, was the 258 00:20:55,300 –> 00:21:01,900 most offensive thing imaginable to me, that’s what Paul is saying. 259 00:21:01,900 –> 00:21:08,599 Now as you read the Gospels, there are actually multiple examples of people who dismissed 260 00:21:08,599 –> 00:21:13,979 Jesus because they regarded him according to the flesh. And because people still do 261 00:21:13,979 –> 00:21:20,540 this today, I want just to take a moment to show you this. Let me give you some examples. 262 00:21:20,579 –> 00:21:23,819 In John 6 verse 42, Jesus says, 263 00:21:23,920 –> 00:21:28,560 I am the bread of life, he’s been saying I’m the bread of life as it came down from 264 00:21:28,560 –> 00:21:32,920 heaven. The crowd don’t like what he’s saying. They begin to grumble, and here’s 265 00:21:32,920 –> 00:21:42,880 what they say, Is this not Jesus, the son of Mary and Joshua, whose father and mother 266 00:21:42,880 –> 00:21:48,800 we know? So you go down to the ten factors according to the flesh and they’re dismissing 267 00:21:48,819 –> 00:21:53,260 Jesus, why? On the basis of his family of origin they’re saying. We know his 268 00:21:53,260 –> 00:21:58,040 parents, how can he possibly be the bread of life? So they completely dismiss him on 269 00:21:58,040 –> 00:22:07,599 the basis of family. Matthew chapter 13, when Jesus comes into his hometown of Nazareth 270 00:22:07,599 –> 00:22:16,479 and they listen to him speak, the scripture says in Matthew 13 verse 55, Is this not the 271 00:22:16,660 –> 00:22:22,040 carpenter’s son? Now you go down your list of ten, what are they doing there? They’re 272 00:22:22,040 –> 00:22:27,079 dismissing Jesus because they view him according to the flesh and they’ve got him tagged, 273 00:22:27,079 –> 00:22:33,439 why? By his job. He’s a carpenter’s son. He follows in the line of the carpenter. That’s 274 00:22:33,439 –> 00:22:40,599 what he does. How can these things that he’s been saying be true when he’s simply a carpenter. 275 00:22:40,599 –> 00:22:45,739 Mark chapter 2 and verse 16. Here are all these people rejecting Jesus, dismissing him. 276 00:22:45,819 –> 00:22:50,459 Why? Because they only view him according to the flesh. The Pharisees see the company 277 00:22:50,459 –> 00:22:57,280 that he’s keeping and they ask this question of the disciples, why does he eat with tax 278 00:22:57,280 –> 00:23:03,280 collectors and sinners? Now the Pharisees are dismissing Jesus. Why? Because they are 279 00:23:03,280 –> 00:23:09,180 judging him according to the flesh and in particular they have come to this conclusion 280 00:23:09,180 –> 00:23:14,359 because they’ve looked at the friends he is keeping. He’s in that circle of people there 281 00:23:14,680 –> 00:23:21,079 therefore he cannot possibly be the Messiah. Let me add this one because there are so many 282 00:23:21,079 –> 00:23:27,339 John chapter 7 and verse 41 when the Pharisees are debating the claims of Jesus and one of 283 00:23:27,339 –> 00:23:33,079 them says can the Christ come from Galilee? Well you see that’s the location of the home 284 00:23:33,079 –> 00:23:40,079 and they’re dismissing Jesus on the basis of judging him according to the flesh. And 285 00:23:40,119 –> 00:23:47,119 then you remember Pilate and he puts up the sign above Jesus and the cross. And Pilate 286 00:23:48,000 –> 00:23:53,199 has dismissed Jesus because he regards him according to the flesh. He does not see him 287 00:23:53,199 –> 00:23:59,239 as the son of God. And so he puts up this sign and what is it? This Jesus of Nazareth 288 00:23:59,239 –> 00:24:06,160 the king of the Jews. And there is a racial slur there without doubt which is why the 289 00:24:06,160 –> 00:24:11,359 Jews, the Bible says, came back and said can you change what you have written? Pilate says 290 00:24:11,359 –> 00:24:16,660 what I have written, I have written. Here is a racial slur, here is the best of them, 291 00:24:16,660 –> 00:24:28,660 the king of the Jews. So all through the Gospels you have clear examples of people who dismissed 292 00:24:29,420 –> 00:24:36,420 Jesus because they regarded him according to the flesh. They formed an opinion of him 293 00:24:38,520 –> 00:24:45,520 based on family, based on work, based on home location, based on race. The Apostle Paul 294 00:24:49,160 –> 00:24:56,160 says in the verse that is before us today, that is what I was regarding Jesus according 295 00:24:56,300 –> 00:25:03,300 to the flesh. Now how did that change? The answer of course is the Resurrection. And 296 00:25:06,680 –> 00:25:12,500 it changed for the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus, when the risen Lord Jesus appeared 297 00:25:12,500 –> 00:25:19,500 to him. Saul, Saul, I am Jesus who you persecute. He sees the risen Lord and from that moment 298 00:25:20,500 –> 00:25:29,040 he cannot possibly write of Jesus as a misguided Jew who died on the cross. Friends, for those 299 00:25:29,040 –> 00:25:33,800 of you who are struggling whether you should really come to a commitment of praise in 300 00:25:33,800 –> 00:25:40,680 Jesus Christ, let me try and make this very simple for you today. Either Jesus Christ 301 00:25:41,040 –> 00:25:48,040 is the Sovereign, Risen Lord, who by virtue of who he is and what he did in his birth, 302 00:25:51,400 –> 00:25:56,579 life, death, and Resurrection. Either he is the Sovereign Lord who by virtue of who he 303 00:25:56,579 –> 00:26:03,579 is and what he has done lays claim to your life and to every life, or Christianity should 304 00:26:04,180 –> 00:26:11,180 be thrown out completely. If Jesus Christ truly is raised from the dead, he is in a 305 00:26:15,579 –> 00:26:22,579 category of one, as the unique Sovereign Lord. If Jesus rose from the dead, for you to push 306 00:26:23,199 –> 00:26:30,199 him away is the height of madness. And if he’s not the reigning Lord, why are you even 307 00:26:30,319 –> 00:26:35,239 tinkering with Christianity? What would be the point? 308 00:26:35,239 –> 00:26:41,859 Now you see this is the great transformation that has come into the mind of the apostle 309 00:26:41,859 –> 00:26:47,939 Paul. He had come to the conclusion that Christianity should be rejected completely, because he 310 00:26:47,939 –> 00:26:53,479 judged Jesus according to the flesh. That’s why he persecuted the church. That’s why he 311 00:26:53,479 –> 00:26:59,599 set out to destroy it. Why? Because he regarded Jesus according to the flesh and as long as 312 00:26:59,599 –> 00:27:10,520 he did that, the idea of one man laying claim to the lives and the loyalty of all others 313 00:27:10,520 –> 00:27:15,839 seemed to him to be completely and utterly preposterous. 314 00:27:15,839 –> 00:27:19,660 Of course there are many who have come to that conclusion today. How can you say that 315 00:27:19,660 –> 00:27:25,920 Jesus is the only person by whom we can come to God? How can you say that Jesus can claim 316 00:27:26,060 –> 00:27:30,819 to be first in your life and first in every person’s life? Isn’t that preposterous? Well 317 00:27:30,819 –> 00:27:35,719 it would be if you regarded Jesus according to the flesh. 318 00:27:35,719 –> 00:27:41,599 But you see when Paul is confronted by the Risen Lord, he finds himself offering his 319 00:27:41,599 –> 00:27:48,599 own life into the hands of the one he had previously despised. And that’s why he says 320 00:27:49,599 –> 00:27:56,599 even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 321 00:27:57,479 –> 00:28:02,680 And I want you to notice the significance of the word we here. It’s not I, it’s we. 322 00:28:02,680 –> 00:28:07,920 He includes himself because this great transformation in his view of Jesus has happened in his own 323 00:28:07,920 –> 00:28:14,760 life but it’s not limited to him as a person who directly saw the Risen Lord Jesus Christ. 324 00:28:15,699 –> 00:28:21,599 Now what he’s saying is that this is the core truth about every person who really is a Christian, 325 00:28:21,599 –> 00:28:27,739 that a Christian is a person who has come to a new opinion about Jesus on the basis 326 00:28:27,739 –> 00:28:29,880 of the resurrection. 327 00:28:29,880 –> 00:28:35,380 We no longer regard him as a figure of history according to the flesh, we see much more than 328 00:28:35,380 –> 00:28:42,380 that, we’ve come to worship him as the Risen Lord, as the Sovereign King, as the Gracious 329 00:28:42,739 –> 00:28:49,140 Redeemer, as God with us and God for us. 330 00:28:49,140 –> 00:28:51,359 Now that’s at the core. 331 00:28:51,359 –> 00:28:57,060 To put it in the New Testament question, what do you think of Jesus Christ? 332 00:28:57,060 –> 00:29:02,099 Because what He claims and how He is presented in the Bible to you is this, that He is the 333 00:29:02,099 –> 00:29:09,099 Sovereign Lord who lays claim to your life and to every life, and that to fight against 334 00:29:09,780 –> 00:29:16,780 Him is a battle you can never, never, never win. 335 00:29:17,859 –> 00:29:21,760 Change in how you see Jesus. 336 00:29:21,760 –> 00:29:24,380 And here’s the application that Paul is making. 337 00:29:24,380 –> 00:29:31,380 A change in how you see Jesus will lead to a change in how you see others. 338 00:29:32,660 –> 00:29:36,859 We no longer regard Jesus according to the flesh. 339 00:29:36,939 –> 00:29:43,939 And from now on, verse 16, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. 340 00:29:45,400 –> 00:29:52,400 Friends, here’s something that is beautiful and unique to the Body of Christ. 341 00:29:55,660 –> 00:30:02,660 The things that make us different according to the flesh are overwhelmed by the new life 342 00:30:03,060 –> 00:30:10,060 enjoyed by those who are in Jesus Christ. In the flesh, our life was living for ourselves, 343 00:30:11,199 –> 00:30:18,199 and so it’s all about which group is going to gain precedence in the endless struggle 344 00:30:19,319 –> 00:30:26,319 that revolves around the 10 factors that differentiate us, make us different. But in the Body of 345 00:30:26,959 –> 00:30:33,959 Christ, where new life has come through Jesus Christ, these things that make us different 346 00:30:35,239 –> 00:30:42,239 are simply overwhelmed by what now binds us together in our new life that is received 347 00:30:42,599 –> 00:30:49,599 from Him and shared in Him. That is why, very wonderfully in Galatians chapter 3, the apostle 348 00:30:50,359 –> 00:30:54,540 says this of those who are in Christ, he says, 349 00:30:54,540 –> 00:30:56,939 In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek … 350 00:30:56,939 –> 00:31:00,839 … in Christ there is neither slave nor free … 351 00:31:00,839 –> 00:31:07,839 … in Christ there is neither male nor female for you are all one in Christ! 352 00:31:10,459 –> 00:31:17,459 Jesus. That is something that is not possible in the world because in the world, it is all 353 00:31:17,760 –> 00:31:24,439 about what we are in the flesh. But in the body, there is a new life that is about who 354 00:31:24,439 –> 00:31:31,439 we are in Jesus Christ. And that is why the church offers for all who are in Jesus Christ 355 00:31:32,819 –> 00:31:39,180 the wonderful possibility of pursuing a new community in which that which makes us different 356 00:31:39,180 –> 00:31:46,180 is overcome by that which makes us one. A community in which men and women of every 357 00:31:47,800 –> 00:31:54,800 race, people of every appearance and age, people of every background and experience, 358 00:31:55,040 –> 00:32:01,400 people from every trade and profession, and every level of ability are brought together 359 00:32:01,400 –> 00:32:08,400 in one body in the Lord. Why? Because we’ve all been brought to peace with the same God 360 00:32:10,599 –> 00:32:15,920 through the blood of the same Saviour, and we have submitted our very, very different 361 00:32:15,920 –> 00:32:22,920 lives to the authority of the same Lord. That’s beautiful. And it’s only possible when Christ 362 00:32:23,880 –> 00:32:30,880 is at the centre and where Christ is exalted. That’s why we want to be a church that is 363 00:32:31,699 –> 00:32:37,199 Christ-exalting, because that’s what’s going to pull people together around Him, exalt 364 00:32:37,199 –> 00:32:44,199 anything else, and what makes us different will be all that will be apparent. So change 365 00:32:44,839 –> 00:32:51,219 in how you see Jesus, no longer according to the flesh, but as He exalted in the risen 366 00:32:51,219 –> 00:32:58,219 Lord leading directly to a change in how we regard and relate to one another. 367 00:32:59,380 –> 00:33:04,900 And lastly, the change in how you see Jesus will lead to a change in how you see others 368 00:33:04,900 –> 00:33:11,380 and a change in how you see yourself. Why? Because, verse 17, if anyone is in Christ, 369 00:33:11,380 –> 00:33:18,380 he or she is a new creation. That’s true of every Christian. 370 00:33:19,319 –> 00:33:26,319 Being a new creation means very simply that there is more to you than what is in you according 371 00:33:26,859 –> 00:33:33,859 to the flesh. There is more to you than what is in you according to the flesh. You have 372 00:33:34,800 –> 00:33:41,800 been reconciled to God. You have been adopted into his family. You have an inheritance in 373 00:33:43,359 –> 00:33:49,079 heaven that can never spoil or fade. The Holy Spirit lives within you. Your little life, 374 00:33:49,079 –> 00:33:56,079 my little life, has been caught up into the eternal sweep of the great redeeming purpose 375 00:33:56,760 –> 00:34:03,760 of God. And so when you are tempted to lose heart because of what you are according to 376 00:34:03,839 –> 00:34:10,840 the flesh, take heart from who you are, Christian brother or sister in Jesus Christ. And remember 377 00:34:13,439 –> 00:34:18,879 this when you become discouraged about issues relating to the flesh. There are natural gifts 378 00:34:18,879 –> 00:34:24,239 that may impress people who judge according to the flesh, but there are spiritual gifts 379 00:34:24,379 –> 00:34:31,379 that Christ gives that will make you really useful in life for Him. There is a natural 380 00:34:31,500 –> 00:34:38,219 beauty that may get a face on the cover of a magazine, but there is a spiritual beauty 381 00:34:38,219 –> 00:34:43,919 that brings pleasure to the heart of God. There is a natural strength that can come 382 00:34:43,919 –> 00:34:49,479 from developing your muscles, but there is a spiritual strength that God can give to 383 00:34:49,580 –> 00:34:55,760 bring you through the hardest of trials. There is a material wealth that will last 384 00:34:55,760 –> 00:35:02,719 only for a time, but there is a spiritual wealth that will last for an eternity. 385 00:35:02,719 –> 00:35:09,719 If you have had experiences in the flesh tha have broken your heart, remember this, that 386 00:35:11,020 –> 00:35:18,020 there are experiences of the love of Christ in the Spirit that are able to rebuild the 387 00:35:19,500 –> 00:35:24,139 your soul. So from now on we regard no one according 388 00:35:24,139 –> 00:35:29,320 to the flesh. Why? Because if anyone is in Christ, he or 389 00:35:29,320 –> 00:35:36,320 she is a new creation. So a change in how you see Jesus is gonna 390 00:35:38,479 –> 00:35:45,479 lead to a change in how you see others. And as he’s the Sovereign Lord of your life, 391 00:35:45,479 –> 00:35:50,479 it’s going to lead to a change in how you see yourself. 392 00:35:50,479 –> 00:35:57,479 So, wrapping this up in these last moments, if you judge yourself according to the flesh, 393 00:36:02,540 –> 00:36:06,120 you’ll either spend your life looking down on other people because you see yourself as 394 00:36:06,120 –> 00:36:11,159 superior more gifted and this kind of thing, more successful. 395 00:36:11,260 –> 00:36:17,860 Or you will always be losing heart because you see that others have more gifts, more 396 00:36:17,860 –> 00:36:23,100 talents, more advantages in life, and more opportunities than you do. 397 00:36:23,100 –> 00:36:29,879 And here is the wonderfully good news, that Jesus Christ does not regard us according 398 00:36:29,879 –> 00:36:30,560 to the flesh. 399 00:36:30,560 –> 00:36:34,260 Aren’t you thankful for that? 400 00:36:34,399 –> 00:36:41,419 Jesus Christ does not regard us according to the flesh. 401 00:36:41,419 –> 00:36:47,060 If Jesus Christ regarded us according to the flesh, who would be in heaven? 402 00:36:47,060 –> 00:36:54,500 All of the ones in class X and possibly class G, and the rest of us in TH and K would not 403 00:36:54,500 –> 00:36:59,060 have a chance if Christ regarded us according to the flesh. 404 00:36:59,060 –> 00:37:03,219 Who would be in heaven if Christ regarded us according to the flesh? 405 00:37:03,219 –> 00:37:08,199 The super-talented, God would take an interest in them, the super-successful, the super-rich 406 00:37:08,199 –> 00:37:10,600 perhaps, the super-healthy. 407 00:37:10,600 –> 00:37:19,560 Thank God, Jesus Christ does not regard us according to the flesh. 408 00:37:19,560 –> 00:37:26,500 In fact, he says this, you, he says to the pharisees, judge according to the flesh. 409 00:37:26,500 –> 00:37:27,800 I judge no one. 410 00:37:27,800 –> 00:37:29,840 Of course, he does not mean he is not the judge. 411 00:37:29,840 –> 00:37:31,679 The Bible tells us he is the judge. 412 00:37:31,679 –> 00:37:34,360 What he is saying here is I do not judge as you do. 413 00:37:34,360 –> 00:37:37,639 You judge according to the flesh, I do not. 414 00:37:37,639 –> 00:37:41,800 I do not form an opinion about people and decide whether I am going to take an interest 415 00:37:41,800 –> 00:37:46,340 in them on the basis of appearance, their ability, their age, their friends, their race, 416 00:37:46,340 –> 00:37:51,739 their gender, their work, their home, their family or their experience. 417 00:37:51,739 –> 00:37:56,659 What you are according to the flesh, friend, will not make Jesus more interested in you 418 00:37:56,659 –> 00:38:00,100 and it cannot make Jesus less interested in you. 419 00:38:01,100 –> 00:38:05,060 He is not drawn to you because of these things, because of what you are in the flesh and he 420 00:38:05,060 –> 00:38:10,620 certainly will not be kept from you because of what you are in the flesh. 421 00:38:12,020 –> 00:38:19,520 So our Jesus offers Himself to every person of every race, of every ability, of every 422 00:38:19,520 –> 00:38:25,320 background, at every economic level, every kind of work and He does it without partiality. 423 00:38:26,260 –> 00:38:32,820 And He offers Himself as the Living Saviour and as the reigning Lord and whatever you 424 00:38:32,820 –> 00:38:40,560 are according to the flesh, He is able to make of you a new creation. 425 00:38:40,560 –> 00:38:48,239 If anyone is in Christ, He, she is a new creation. 426 00:38:48,239 –> 00:38:53,120 So what matters most about you is not what you are in the flesh, in any one or even all 427 00:38:53,280 –> 00:39:01,120 of these ten areas, but are you in Christ. 428 00:39:01,120 –> 00:39:10,439 And when you are in Christ and He is your risen Saviour and your reigning Lord, then 429 00:39:10,439 –> 00:39:18,399 what He thinks of you, what HE thinks of you, is the one thing and ultimately the only thing 430 00:39:18,439 –> 00:39:22,280 that really matters. 431 00:39:22,280 –> 00:39:27,080 Which is why a change in the way you see Jesus is going to lead to a change in the way you 432 00:39:27,080 –> 00:39:37,600 see others and a change in the way that you see yourself so that you will not lose heart. 433 00:39:37,600 –> 00:39:48,280 Father, thank you for the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in lives like 434 00:39:48,280 –> 00:39:57,959 ours. In a world like this, we thank you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.