Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell. Pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. God places his law on the hearts of his people. and to an extent in the heart of every man. His way gives life It protects and it grows all that is good in mankind.
Sin, on the other hand, is self destructive. It destroys, separates, and distorts. In Deuteronomy 27, God reinforces the importance of the material. of following his way. commanding the priests to call out those things which bring curse on his people.
Through the lens of Christ's action on our behalf, we see the great power we can have to overcome sin. and we see the grace and blessing that Jesus gives us through His substitutionary work. Let's listen to this message titled, The Choice of Life or Death. You have become the people of the Lord. This is part three of a message first preached on October 13th, 2024.
God's law written on your hearts.
Now, let me. It's not all like the 10 commandments in all the laws of Moses that are written on my heart. What is he saying by the law written on my heart? The righteous requirement of the law. Is written on my heart.
It is at the core. of my being. The righteous requirement of the law. Belongs To me. I have it.
I did not Achieve it. But I received it. By faith. This is what Paul was talking about in 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 21. That is part of what makes you.
A new creation. His law written on your heart. And because of that, a declaration is made. Remember in the old covenant, he said, Today the Lord declares you to be his people. You have become the people of the Lord.
What is the declaration? For us under the new covenant. What are we declared? Righteous. And the word for that is justification.
You are justified before God. What that means is now the infinite, sovereign, holy God. Who is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Finds Me. in Christ.
Acceptable. to come before him. This is why I invite you. to live At the altar. You are free from the curse in Christ.
In Christ, it's so important that we understand that this is only true for those who are in Christ, those who have the righteousness of Christ. We are free from the curse in Christ. And this is why this is exactly what Paul says in Romans chapter 6.
So, you also, listen to this, Christians, okay, you also must consider yourselves. Dead to sin. And alive to God in Christ Jesus. This is why I invite you to live at the altar. Because that word consider yourselves, it's One translation says, reckon yourselves.
That's for us southerners. Reckon ourselves. It's a term of inventory. Take inventory. Know what you have and who you are.
Whose you are. Not because you've achieved it, but you have by faith received it. Why? Because the debt has been paid. And so, my invitation to you today to live at the altar is just like we sang about earlier today in one of the hymns: let your goodness.
Like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to you. Why? as the next part of the song says, prone to Wander. Lord, I feel it.
Now, let me talk about an example. that has happened very, very recently. that we can learn from. And I'm not going to mention a name because it'll lead people to be Googling all over the place. I'm like, that's not necessary.
But this is a high profile Moral failure. That I'm going to talk about. This person was a lead preacher. of a church in Texas. He was the president of a Christian organization.
He was the chair of a seminary doctoral programs. He was a prolific author. and he was sought after. He was highly sought after. conference speaker, and he was on the road a lot.
And it was just discovered recently. that he had had an inappropriate relationship with a woman, not his wife. This woman was young enough to be his granddaughter, and it had been ongoing for five years. This, folks, is a prime example of. Uncontrolled urges, uncontrolled passions can make you Stupid.
I'm not calling him. Stupid. But sin can lead you. to do stupid things. Many pastors and seminarians that Looked up to this individual, are mystified, and some of them shattered.
By this revelation. And the responses are all over the place.
Well, you know, it could happen to anyone. In a sense, that's true. And some say, but for the grace of God there go I. But do you know what that means practically? That could be just a cop-out.
I also listened to a seminary president, a very prominent, well-known seminary president, who was talking to the seminarians in the light of this revelation of this misbehavior by this high-profile leader. in conservative evangelical Christianity. The seminary president said, You won't have sex with a woman, not your wife, if you are never alone in a room with a woman, not your wife. That's true. But what is that?
Sin management. I'm not saying boundaries don't have their place. Boundaries do have their place. There is a place for boundaries. Even Paul said that.
Paul said, 1 Corinthians 9: I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified. But And hear me now. External rules and boundaries. Sin management. are an incomplete answer.
They are an incomplete answer. Paul said, Colossians 2, They are of, here it is, no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. Sin management is of no value in stopping. The indulgence of the flesh. What is he saying?
This is a hard issue. This is a heart issue. And this is why I invite you to live at the altar.
So the question might be given this example And you know the struggles that you have in your own life. You know that you are prone to wander, and the Bible has listed these curses. You are headed for disaster if you do this.
So, what resource and ability does the Christian have to keep from getting tripped up over stupid sin. Do we just throw our hands up and say, well, I'm at the mercy of God's grace? What does that mean? And where does your personal stewardship and worship come into this picture? This admired author, pastor.
conference speaker Get this now. Listen to this, please. He was very busy for God. But He was not. Walking.
With God. And I can say that with complete confidence, because if he indeed was walking with God. this would not have been a reality in his life. It's a matter of the heart.
So.
So Colossians 3. Cautions 3. Verses 1 and 2, if then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things which are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Here it is. Set your minds on the things that are above, not on things on the earth.
What does that mean and what does that look like practically? I'm going to label that, as I've said already numerous times. I invite you this morning as one who is a human being, albeit redeemed and reconciled to God, you are capable of doing stupid things. What keeps you from that? Sin management.
only plays a tiny part in that. It's not the answer. according to the grace of God. What is the answer? It is living at the altar.
And what is that altar? As it was prescribed here in Deuteronomy chapter 27, the altar was a monument of stone covered with plaster and the law of God was written all over it. But listen, in Christ, God's law has been written on your heart. You have an internal bent towards Pleasing God. And so the altar to which I invite you To visit often, to live at that altar.
It's not a thing. It's not a event. But a person. I'm inviting you. to relationship.
was gone. A passionate Pursuit. of God. It is the only thing that will rescue you. From the indulgence of the flesh.
Let your goodness, let your goodness. Like a fetter, bind my wandering heart. Do you know? The goodness. Thanks for joining us here at Delight in Grace.
You've been listening to Rich Powell, the lead pastor at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Delight in Grace Mission. Is to help you know that God designed you to realize your highest good. and your deepest satisfaction in him. the one who is infinitely good.
We hope you'll join us again on weekdays at 10 a.m.
