Luke 6:20-26
Getting the New Man Right
The title itself will tell those who are knowledgeable in the Bible
that I am preaching this morning to the saved for only the saved can
be "new," whether they be male or female, man or woman. Being made
"new" can only be accomplished by experiencing the new
birth—salvation.
Eph 2:14 For he (Jesus) is our peace, who hath
made both one…
15 …for to make in himself of twain one new
man, so making peace;
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ,
he is a new creature: old things are passed
away; behold, all things are become new.
Christ’s death on the cross and our acceptance of it as payment for
our sins, is what makes us new creatures, new people in Christ. But
having been made new is not the end of the work. It is the
beginning. There is so much that God wants to do with us. The
question is, "Will we let God make us right?"
Christian, it is up to you and me to decide what kind of new creature
in Christ we want to be. We know what God wants. God wants us to be
totally sold out to Him. The question is how far down that path will
we go? Important truths - If you are a Christian, your levels of
satisfaction, contentment, and happiness will all depend upon how far
down that path you go.
I. Introduction:
A. Notice in the text, that Jesus is sharing some truths about
what the Christian is supposed to be.
B. We can divide the verses into two sections. Those with
positive teaching and those with negative teaching.
1. \\#20-23\\ The positive teaching is done with the
pronouncement of blessings.
a. The blessings:
(1) \\#20\\ Blessed are the poor.
(2) \\#21\\ Blessed are the hungry.
(3) \\#21\\ Blessed are the mourners (weeping).
(4) \\#22\\ Blessed are the hated, the isolated, the
slandered, and the cursed.
b. These are such foreign goals to the human heart, that
many refuse to believe they are for us at all.
(1) Some want to relegate them to the millennial
(a) Perhaps they will apply even more in that
time period.
(b) That is rather difficult since the verb
tense Jesus used was present and since in
\\#25\\ Jesus stated the time was "now."
(2) Others want to spiritualize them as much as
possible.
(a) Instead of financial poorness, let’s make it
spiritual poverty, a humble spirit; and
instead of the body being hungry, let’s
make it that the spirit is hungry for God.
(b) But we can’t spiritualize them all (i.e.
being hated, slandered, and cursed only
occur in this world) and what is our
scriptural reason for spiritualizing any
of them?
(c) Can we not at least consider the fact that these
are literal and for us?
(a) For most generations since Jesus died, there
was no problem accepting them literally.
(1) Remember the Apostle Paul’s testimony.
1Cor 4:11 Even unto this present hour we both
hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are
buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;
12 And labour, working with our own hands: being
reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer
it:
13 Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the
filth of the world, and are the offscouring of
all things unto this day.
(2) It has only been in recent years that
some pockets of civilization have
enjoyed the bounty and blessing that
most of us take for granted.
(b) If we consider that these are literal
blessings that God is pronouncing on poor,
hungry, isolated, mourning Christians, we
might then ask ourselves, "Why are these
kinds of Christians blessed?" What is or
will happen to them for bearing this kind
of life?
i. They will learn to do without this
world’s gifts.
aa. They will live without this
world’s happiness.
bb. They will live without this
world’s substance.
cc. They will live without this
world’s friendship, acceptance,
company, and approval.
dd. Is it possible that being without
these worldly gifts would of
itself be a cause of blessing to
us?
ee. Truthfully, most of us Christians
do not know. We have been raised
to think that these worldly
gifts are treasures of great
value, treasures to be sought
after.
ff. In truth, most of us have never
thought of it any other way and
to accommodate that belief, we
have spiritualized this and other
sections of Scripture.
gg. Yet, there is a definite blessing
pronounced on those who MUST do
without these things for what-
ever the reason they must.
hh. Just consider the possibility for
right now.
ii. In the future, they will have great
rewards.
23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy:
for, behold, your reward is great in heaven:
for in the like manner did their fathers unto
the prophets.
2. \\#24-26\\ The negative teaching is done by pronouncements
of woes or cursing.
a. \\#24\\ Woe to the rich. That’s us. Every person in
this church has more food, more clothing, more
shelter, more heat, more material goods, more items
of luxury, and more items of comfort, than the
majority of the world’s population today and
throughout the history of mankind.
(1) In 2012, 2.1 billion people lived off of less
than $1.90 per day. That is about 1/3 of the
world’s population.
(2) That number has dramatically dropped in the last
twenty years.
(3) At the turn of the millennium, more than 3
billion lived off less than $2.50 per day and
80% f the world population lived off less than
$10 per day.
(4) Here, Jesus says to those who have more than they
need, WOE.
(a) Why?
(b) Because you got your consolation.
(c) From where? From the world.
(d) The rich MAY never know the blessedness of
living independent of this world’s gifts
and dependence upon Jesus Christ.
b. \\#25\\ Woe to you if you are full, if you have
laughter now….
c. \\#26\\ If you have the world’s approval and
friendship.
d. And again, why? Because in having these things, we
are in danger of knowing only what this world can
offer to us and of never knowing what God has in
store for us.
II. Let’s draw some Biblical conclusions about our walk in this
world.
A. For the new man to be what it should be, there must be a
rejection of this world.
1. This world is neither or friend nor is it necessarily good
for us.
2. This is where we live for the moment, but it is not a good
place to live nor it is it our final place to live.
a. Peter described us a pilgrims just passing through
this world.
1Pe 2:11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as
strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly
lusts, which war against the soul;
b. Paul called us ambassadors for Christ. (An ambassador
is one living in a foreign country to represent his
country.)
2Co 5:20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ,
as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you
in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
c. The Apostle John said that those who love this world
do not have God’s love in them; that is, they are not
saved.
1John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the
things that are in the world. If any man love
the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
d. The Apostle Paul said to be sure that our new man
is not like our old man was, shaped by this world.
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that ye present your
bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto
God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that
ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God.
3. All of this warnings and commands concerning the world
make perfect sense ONLY IF we understand that this world
is a dangerous and deceitful environment which can and is
robbing many Christians of a blessedness that can only
come by declining at least some of the gifts this world
offers.
B. For the new man to be what it should be, there must be some
restrictions on our flesh.
1. Jesus coined a word for some of His followers when He
walked on the earth.
a. The word was disciple.
b. The word means "one that is disciplined."
2. There are reasons why Christians need to discipline
ourselves.
a. We are born sinners.
(1) That means we are born broke.
(2) Just like the man of Gadara, we are born
separated from God and not meeting the
Creator’s specifications.
(3) I will explain to you what that means in just a
minute but right now you need to understand we
are damaged and defective goods.
(4) We are only hitting on one of our eight
cylinders. Our bobbin won’t thread. Our
transmission will only go in reverse. Our
computer won’t connect to the internet. Our
touch screen doesn’t work.
b. But even worse, it is our nature to go the wrong way
spiritually—even if we who are saved.
Ho 11:7 And my people are bent to backsliding
from me: though they called them to the most High,
none at all would exalt him.
(1) That means that human flesh left to itself, saved
or unsaved, will most always go the WRONG
direction.
(2) That is what is meant in the Bible when God calls
us carnal or fleshly. That’s not meant as a
good thing or even a statement of fact. It is
a bad thing.
3. So if we are going to be the right kind of new creature in
Christ, we must make this flesh obey our spirit.
a. Now let me explain to you more about sin broke in us.
(1) We are a triune being: body, soul, and spirit.
(2) Our soul is our mind, will, and emotions.
(3) Most people have a body which is largely
controlled by the soul.
(a) Typically, the strongest part of our soul is
our mind and will.
(b) But some people are very emotional and they
let their emotions control them.
(c) Then there are some all out of whack and
they are controlled by their bodies.
(d) However, God created our bodies to be
controlled by our mind and will which is to
be controlled by our spirit.
(e) The new creature that is doing right brings
their body, their mind, and their will back
under the control of their spirit.
b. So to be the right kind of new creature, we must start
telling our body and our soul what to do and them
make them do it.
C. For the new man to be what it should be, there must be a
realization of heaven.
1. Too many people look at heaven like a retirement home.
a. It’s the place you go after you have done everything
you wanted and can’t do anything else.
b. If that is the way you look at heaven, you will never
be the right kind of new man.
c. The correct attitude to have concerning heaven is that
heaven is not a retirement home, it is a savings
account.
b. Heaven is the place where you put the best things of
life so that you can enjoy them fully in the future.
23 Rejoice ye in that day (the day when the
world hates you), and leap for joy: for, behold,
your reward is great in heaven: for in the like
manner did their fathers unto the prophets.
2. Many Christians need an attitude adjustment.
a. Heaven is not the end of the trail. It is where the
trail begins.
b. We need to dispel the false myths about heaven.
(1) You will not be a mindless robot floating on a
cloud, strumming a harp, and mindlessly shouting
glory.
(a) You will still be you in heaven—just without
sin.
(b) While I don’t know exactly how God will do
that but you will not be mindless.
(c) There is no way God has suffered our free
will on a sin-filled earth only to take it
away from us when we get to heaven.
(d) I suspect God will give us so much
knowledge, wisdom, and understanding that
we will WANT to make the right choices.
(2) Heaven will not be boring.
(a) Do you have fun on earth?
(b) Heaven is better than earth and you will
have a better body when you get there so
you can rest assured that heaven will be
more fun that earth ever has been.
3. You and I need to understand that heaven is going to be
more than everything we have ever imagined, wanted, or
wished for.
4. Paul said concerning heaven:
1Co 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen,
nor ear heard, neither have entered into the
heart of man, the things which God hath prepared
for them that love him.
a. Dream as much and as big as you can about heaven and
God promises it will be bigger and better.
b. Save yourself for heaven.
c. Don’t peak in this life, fulfill all of your dreams,
and have nothing to look forward to when you get to
heaven.
I must stop for this morning, but I want to continue this message
tonight. Right now, would you just consider the fact that this
earth, its gifts, its pleasures, and its sin is not all you think it
is? That if God is all He says He is that you and I will be
infinitely better off doing without some of what this world offers
and waiting for our gifts in heaven?
Virginity is a great example. Sex is casual in our culture today,
but a few are still waiting for the right partner so that they can
experience something together that the rest of the world will never
know. Something more than just pleasure. Something special,
personal, private, and blessed by God.
Click here for remainder of the message.
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