This morning, we’re

continuing our message series entitled “Reclaimed” which is all about

becoming who you were created to be. 

This series begins our focus on the work of the Holy Spirit and His

ministry, the third core value of New Hope.

1 Timothy 1:15 

(ISV)

This is a

trustworthy saying that deserves complete acceptance:

To this world Christ

Jesus came,

sinful people to

reclaim.

We were each created

uniquely and intentionally by God.  We

were created on purpose and for a purpose. 

The process of being reclaimed is all about reaching that full potential

that we were created for.

This process of

being reclaimed is an awesome cooperation between us and God.  God does all of the hard work.  He lived the perfect life that we could never

live – fulfilling the law entirely.  He

took on the cross paying the penalty for our sin.  He died that we might live.  He served all so that we might reign.  He made a way where there was no other

way.  He went through the depths of hell

so that we inherit the riches of Heaven.

God looks at us

exactly where we are at – all of our shame and brokenness and hurt.  He knows all that we’ve been put through and

He knows every bad decision that we’ve ever made.  He knows the dark thoughts that pass through

our mind and the hard parts of our hearts that we try to hide.

Yet God considered

that you and I were totally worth every sacrifice.  God sees you not only as you are, but as He

created you to be.  God sees the rust and

dents and missing pieces, but still paid top dollar for your life because He

knows the potential that you possess.

Our lives might be

quite the fixer-uppers, but God knows that you are worth the price that it cost

to reclaim your life and the work that it will take to restore it!

We’ve been reminded

throughout this series that our reclamation is all a work of the Holy Spirit

transforming us from the inside out.  The

apostle Paul, a man who lived his entire life dedicated to reading, studying,

and living the law of God as closely as possible; a Pharisee of Pharisees

determined to stop this Jesus movement at any cost, later wrote:

Philippians 3:7-9

7 But whatever were

gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I

consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ

Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage,

that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my

own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the

righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.

After meeting the

resurrected Jesus personally, the living word of God, he realized the

truth.  He stopped trying so hard to live

by the law of God that only ever lead to death and he started actually living

for God embracing the new life that he had been freely given.  He again wrote:

Galatians 2:19‭ NLT

For when I tried to

keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law – I stopped trying to meet

all its requirements – so that I might live for God.

What does it mean to

live for God?  How could Paul possibly

make statements like this?  If anyone

looked at his life, it was extremely evident that he had been living

passionately for God all of his life. 

However, after Paul had a personal encounter with Jesus, he knew that

all that he had done before was a religious waste of time.  It was him trying to live perfectly and earn

God’s grace, mercy, and love.

There is something

so freeing when we also turn to Jesus and realize this revelation.  The life that he lived before meeting Jesus

was radically different than the life that he lived after meeting Jesus.  The results were clearly evident as

well.  While the Holy Spirit is doing a

work from the inside out to transform us, there are things that we can do as

well.  It’s time for us as well to stop

trying and to start living for God.

Living life for God

after receiving the free gift of