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You're listening to Heed the Word with our pastor and teacher, Ken Davis. Pastor Ken is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel, Southwest Metro. Please join us as we study our series entitled Lessons in Christian Living.

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There is a deceiver, a murderer, and his name is Satan and he works through the philosophies and the vain deceits of this world and he will try to convince you that you can live any way you want to live and still be accepted by God. And yet Paul says here that you're not to be deceived. He says do you not know that the unrighteous that means those who practice unrighteousness, those who have a lifestyle of living in rebellion against God, will not inherit the kingdom of God?

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There's no shortage of self-help books, motivational speakers and even opinions out there about how we're supposed to live on this earth. But as Christians we need to take our direction in this area from the Word of God. So we're bringing you our series entitled Lessons in Christian Living, taken from the 12th and 13th chapters of Paul's letter to the church in Rome. When we identify ourselves with the God of the Bible, when we call ourselves believers, that means that we love and follow Jesus. If we say that we're of God but then decide to walk according to our own understanding, according to our own ideals, we're deceiving ourselves. Jesus said if you love me, keep my commands. Don't forget to stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Heed the Word, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. But for now, please open your Bibles to the book of Romans, chapter 12, verse 2.

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As we join Pastor Ken with the first half of part two in our series entitled Lessons in Christian Living, as we read through chapter 12, we recognize that, really, what Paul is giving us is a series of lessons in Christian living, and it's all predicated upon the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we look at verses one and two, paul says I beseech you, or maybe I urge you, I want to encourage you. Paul is saying, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. Paul is saying I beseech you, therefore, brethren. Well, therefore, why? Well, therefore, why is the therefore there right? What is he saying, therefore, about? He has, just, in the first 11 chapters of the book of Romans, shared the gospel in a very complete way. Well, what is the gospel message? In a nutshell, it's this All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We serve a holy God. He is perfect. We are not. We have all sinned, and the wages of sin, or what we earn when we sin, is death. The wages of sin is death period. That's it. We deserve to die because of our sin, but the Bible tells us that God demonstrated his love for us and that, while we were still sinners, christ died for us. You see, I had a debt that I could not pay. And so he came and paid that debt for me, in that he died for my sins. And that if I believe in Jesus Christ, if I believe in my heart that Jesus Christ is Lord, and if I confess with my mouth that God has raised him from the dead, then the Bible tells me I shall be saved. Period, that's it. And so Paul has just explained all of this. He's explained the faithfulness of God in keeping his promise. He's described the love of God in giving his own son for us. And so, because of this gospel message Paul is saying I urge you, because of this gospel message, my brothers, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice. In other words, if Christ died for me, it's only reasonable that I live for him. Amen, that's what Paul is saying.

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I had a friend, wonderful guy, dear friend, had a really hard life growing up. He was one of those kids who truly was sort of that whole ADHD type, you know, and from a very young age he was just on Ritalin constantly, and there are whole periods of his youth that he does not even remember because he was living in such a haze. Well, after high school he kind of slipped into this drug subculture as well and started to take illegal drugs and smoking marijuana and doing a lot of other things and really just warped his mind for a long time. And one day he was at a church service. I don't know how he got there, I don't remember if he told me, I'm not even sure he remembered, but he was at this church service and he had actually been smoking pot just prior to walking in. So he's sitting here in this church service and the guy's high at the time and he sees all these people going forward and so he figures, oh, they're all going forward, I guess I'll go forward too.

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And so he goes into this little room right and there are all these people sitting around in a circle and this guy's explaining the gospel and he's listening to all of this. And so he's hearing and he's like, oh man, this is you know, and I don't remember if he prayed the prayer at that time or not, but he did not give his heart to the Lord, he was completely out of it and he was just like it, wasn't willing to repent of his sins, wasn't willing to make any change whatsoever or submit in any way to the lordship of Christ. And then one day he had a really bad trip and he knew that he had overdosed and he knew that he was going to die there in his apartment, all by himself. He began to slip out of consciousness and in his mind he thought this is great. I can give my life to Jesus, be forgiven of my sins, die tonight, go to heaven and I'll never have to live for him. I won't have to do anything. And so, right there he prayed and accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, confessed his sins and repented of them and faded away into unconsciousness and the next morning he woke up. God saved that man's life and he saved that man's soul, and he has been living for Jesus Christ with all of his heart every day since then.

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He is an incredible, incredible man of God, one of those guys who, when I had a question like I don't understand this verse, I could call this guy and he'd be like well, this is what it means. And I'm like thank you, lord, for sending this guy into my life. He's currently an elder and an assistant pastor at another Calvary chapel and just it's amazing what God will do, you know. And here's this guy who said you know, I don't want to have to live for Jesus, but I'm perfectly happy to die in Jesus. You see, and that's what so many people want, isn't it? They want to be able to live their lives any way they want to, but when that life is over, they want all the benefits of heaven. They want all this, and Jesus too. But you see, if we're truly born again, then we're not going to see living for Jesus as a drudgery. We're going to rejoice in it. We're going to recognize that, after all that he has done for me, it's nothing for me to give my life back to him Now. When my friend woke up that next morning, hey, he was kind of surprised, right, but do you think that for one moment he ever regretted the decision that he made? No, he didn't. He loved the Lord because the Lord had first loved him, and he's been serving the Lord ever since.

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Paul writes I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. It's logical, it makes sense that we should do this. Now. I want you to think about something for a minute or two. What is this body that we live in? It's corruptible, it's mortal. The Bible tells us that when we're in heaven, that this mortality will put on immortality right, that this corruption will be transformed to something that is incorruptible. But the bottom line is, this is the body we have to live in and to work in and to have our being in for as long as we're on this planet, isn't it? And what we do with our bodies has spiritual implications. There are spiritual consequences for the things that we do in this flesh. Turn with me and keep your place marked here, because we will be back, but turn with me right now to 1 Corinthians 6.

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Now, if Paul is saying don't be deceived, that implies that there's somebody out there that would like to deceive you. Isn't there. There is a deceiver, a murderer, and his name is Satan and he works through the philosophies and the vain deceits of this world and he will try to convince you that you can live any way you want to live and still be accepted by God. And yet Paul says here that you're not to be deceived. He says do you not know that the unrighteous that means those who practice unrighteousness, those who have a lifestyle of living in rebellion against God will not inherit the kingdom of God. Do not be deceived. And now he's going to go down a list of examples.

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Neither fornicators that is, those who are involved in pornea or in sexually explicit activity neither fornicators nor idolaters those are people who put anything else above the Lord nor adulterers, those who are breaking the vows of their marriage bond. Nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous these are self-explanatory, aren't they? Covetous those who desire to have that which they don't have and envy other people. Nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. He's saying look, these people who practice these things. Now, I'm not saying that if you have stumbled or fallen in one of these areas, that you're not saved, but if these are your lifestyle, if these words describe the style or the manner of life that you are living on a consistent basis and you're not struggling with and repenting of these sins and seeking God's forgiveness, but are looking at this way of living and saying, hey, this is okay, god doesn't mind. You need to examine your heart and ask yourself am I really saved? He's saying listen, those who practice these things thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners they're not going to inherit the kingdom of God.

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And now he points out something that we must always remember, and such were some of you. So when we see people in the world who are fornicators, who are idolaters, who are adulterers, who are homosexuals or sodomites or thieves or covetousness, or drunkards or revilers or any of these things, when we see the people in the world who are doing these things, let's not look at them and pass judgment on them. Let's not look at them and revile them. Let's not look at them and hate them, but let's look at them and have pity on them and recognize the fact that. But for the grace of God, there go I. But for the grace of God, there go you. We were just like this, and such were some of you, but something happened in your life. You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God. In other words, you were born again. God saved you and he washed away all of your sins. So you are no longer these things, but you belong to Christ.

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Now Paul goes on to say look, in verse 12, all things are lawful for me. In other words, because I've been forgiven for everything, there's nothing that's going to keep me out of the presence of God. All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. The suggestion here is this If we as Christians participate in sinful behavior, we can be brought under bondage to that thing. In other words, even as believers, we can develop some pretty rotten habits, can't we? We can develop some pretty rotten ways of living our lives and some pretty rotten ways of thinking. But here's the thing God won't let you stay there. If you're really his child, he will discipline you and he will chastise you and he will bring you in line with his Holy Spirit. He will do it. He's a good dad. He will discipline you when you need to be disciplined.

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Now Paul goes on, verse 13, foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods. In other words, this is sort of a little saying that was popular at the time. In other words, you know what the food was made for your stomach and your stomach was made for food. Right, but God will destroy both it and them, both the food and the stomach. Now, the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body and God both raised up the Lord and will raise us up by his power. In other words, god the Father raised up Jesus Christ, our Lord, and he will raise us up by his power. In other words, god the Father raised up Jesus Christ, our Lord, and he will raise us up from the dead as well, by the power of Jesus.

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Now, do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? You see, when you were born again, you were, as an individual, attached to the body of Christ and you are now one body with him. You see, you are part of the body of Christ that is the church. Okay, now think about this If your body is part of Jesus Christ, if your body, your physical, manifest body right here on this earth, if you are a member of Christ, if you are in union with him, if you are one with him, are you going to take a piece of Jesus out on Saturday night and get it drunk? Does that sound like a good idea to you? And yet we do that, don't we? Not we, but we. You understand what I'm saying. People, meaning we, people. You know People do that.

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Or do you not know that one who is joined to a harlot is one body with her, for the two, he says, shall become one flesh. But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. What he's saying is that the connection that we have to Jesus Christ in the spirit is just as intimate as the sexual union between a man and a woman. Do you realize how intimate that is? There's no more intimate thing that could ever be described. Is there? We are one with Christ in the spirit. He who is joined with the Lord is one spirit with him. And he's going to give us some good advice here. And really it's a command.

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He says flee sexual immorality. In other words, run from it. Don't go anywhere near it. Stay the heck away from sexual immorality. Do you understand what I'm saying? I don't know how to be any more emphatic than that Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.

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Or do you not know? In other words, don't you get it? Don't you realize, or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you? When you were born again, that means you were born from above or you were born of the Spirit. You see, when you came to faith in Jesus Christ, he sent the Holy Spirit to live in you, every one of you who confesses Christ as Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit lives in you right now. Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God and you are not your own, in other words, you don't belong to yourself your own, in other words, you don't belong to yourself, for you were bought at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. So when God came to save you, he didn't save just your soul. He wants your body too. And the day is coming when he will resurrect that body.

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And guess what? It's going to be the same body, just a whole heck of a lot better. It's like a seed. When you plant that seed in the ground, what grows up doesn't look like the seed that was planted. It looks totally different, doesn't it? I mean, if I plant an acorn in the ground and all of the elements are right, up grows a tree. That doesn't look like an acorn, does it? It's quite different. And these bodies are just the seed that, as they are planted, god is going to transform them into something miraculous, something that looks a whole lot like Jesus, and that's pretty awesome.

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So what he's saying is are you going to take that and go and practice unrighteousness with that which belongs to God? You're not gonna do that. I pray. You see, the life that I live is no longer my life, because the life I was living was a life that was given over to sensuality, that was given over to self, that was given over to the pleasures of this world, that was given over to making me happy. And guess what the result was? I was miserable. How many of you can say the same thing? You seek all your earthly life, all of your life in the flesh, to satisfy yourself, and yet yourself is never satisfied. And yet in Christ, we find a satisfaction that goes beyond anything we could ever have dreamed or hoped for. He gives us what we do not deserve His grace, his blessing, his mercy, his peace, his joy, his love. It's a gift. Turn with me to Mark, chapter 8, verse 34.

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Now, at this time, jesus is healing the multitudes, he's feeding people by the thousands, he's casting out demons. He is doing incredible things there in Israel and he was developing quite a following. He was getting pretty popular. People would go out for miles to hear him speak or maybe to receive a touch from him that they might be healed. And Jesus calls them all together and he says again whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Deny himself, but wait a minute, lord. That's kind of a negative confession. Aren't I supposed to have all this in Jesus too? You know, frank Farley wrote this too.

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Much of our Christianity today is drenched with sentiment, but devoid of sacrifice. It's drenched with sentiment. Man, we talk a good game, you know. We praise the Lord and we worship the Lord, and the tears are running down our face right. But don't let us be inconvenienced. We might just have to find another church where they treat us better. You know, I talked to a pastor once who had the opportunity to minister in South Africa for a time and he talked about how the people that would come to the church where he was speaking as an evangelist would walk, sometimes for days, in order to be at that service. And yet there are churches where, if the parking isn't good enough, they're not going to walk blocks to get to the service. If the parking is full, well, we're going to go someplace else. You know, statistically speaking, they say that if a church reaches 80% capacity, visitors won't stay anymore because they think it's too crowded. They need a little more space. That's the church in America today.

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Guys, you know I love Jesus, but don't ask me to give up any of my personal comforts, right? Don't ask me to inconvenience myself, heaven forbid. Don't ask me to miss a Cowboys game. So only one life will soon be passed. Only what's done for Christ will last. Amen.

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If we seek to save our lives, to hold on to all that we are and all that we have, and to keep control for ourselves, guess what? There will come a day when you will lose everything. There will come a day, be it long or near, where you will lay there in that bed and know that the end is coming, when the doctor comes in and says to your family there's really nothing more that we can do. We can make them comfortable, we can make sure they're not in any pain, but medically speaking, we've come to the end of the line. 100% of the people born eventually die. You're in that 100%. And if you seek to hang on to your life because you don't want to give any control to Jesus Christ, then, guys, the day is coming when that life will be ripped from your hands. But if you're willing to lose your life for his sake, then he's going to give it right back to you. You see, when we hold on to our lives for ourselves, we eventually lose them. But if we give our lives to Jesus to hold on to for us, there comes a day when he gives them back to us. You see that moment when that doctor comes in and says there's nothing more that we can do. For the Christian, for the one who has the assurance of their salvation, for the one who really knows where they're going, it's not the end but the beginning of life. And the Christian can look at that moment and say all right, I'm going home. Those of you who know the Lord, who are confident in your salvation, aren't there days when you say couldn't it be today, couldn't it be now? But there's work yet to be done.

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Jim Elliott said he is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep to attain that which he cannot lose. You can't keep this life, but you cannot lose the life that is eternal. So it is reasonable, it is rational, it is logical to say that I'm going to give my life as a living sacrifice to God. To live not for my own pleasure or for my own desires, but to live for Jesus Christ, to live for him to be his hands, to be his feet, to be his mouth, to go where he says. Go to do what he says, do to say what he says to say. There is no greater blessing than to know that you are a tool in the hands of a master craftsman, to know that you are a tool in the hand of Jesus Christ.

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Romans 12,.

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I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice wholly acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

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And do not be conformed to this world. Guys, as I said last week, the world wants to press you into its mold. The world wants you to look like it, because if you look like it it doesn't have to feel bad about how it is. But if you look like Jesus, then the world doesn't want you around, because you are pointing out to the world that it's not measuring up to the glory of God. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. These two verses describe our relative position and attitude, as it should be, toward God when we become Christians. If we are truly born again, if we love Jesus Christ, if we remember that we have been forgiven for our sins and that we didn't deserve eternal life, but that he gave us eternal life, then the natural result within our hearts is going to be to respond with love and adoration and say Lord, what would you have me do today?

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Well, that's all the time we have for today. You've been listening to Heed the Word, the radio ministry of Calvary Chapel, southwest Metro, located in Burleson, texas. With so many ideas out there about the Christian life, we thought it necessary to share with you a series entitled Lessons for Christian Living, a thought it necessary to share with you, a series entitled Lessons for Christian Living, a teaching through the 12th and 13th chapters of the Book of Romans that tackles the issues of Christian life. If you were with us at the beginning of today's broadcast, you know we mentioned that we'd be giving additional information about Heed the Word and how to get a free copy of this message. For more information about Heed the Word and how to get a free copy of this message, for more information about Heed the Word, log on to heedthewordorg. That's heedthewordorg. At the website, you'll find everything you need our contact information and a link to our online order form, which will allow you to place an order for a CD of today's message in its unedited form. Since all of our materials are free of charge, supplies are limited, so log on to heedthewordorg and place your order today.

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As we close today, we want to encourage you to not just listen to Heed the Word, but to truly apply what you're learning. Take the Word of God and begin applying it to your life every day. Well, that's all the time we have for this edition of Heed the Word of God and begin applying it to your life every day. Well, that's all the time we have for this edition of Heed the Word with Pastor Ken Davis. Place a marker in your Bibles and join us next time as Pastor Ken continues with our series entitled Lessons for Christian Living. Thank you.