Born to Fly, Part 2

I want you to understand that in saving us, Christ did more than prepare us for eternity. He also comes into our lives to do a significant work of change in our lives. Salvation is not just for the hereafter, it's also for the here and now. Hello and welcome to Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepherd, Senior Pastor at Destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California. We're so glad you're listening. Well, I don't know about you, but when I think of the men and women who lived the Christian life the way it should be lived, I'm thinking of Moses or Peter, Ruth, the Apostle Paul. I don't think of how they ran the race, I think of how high they soared. And you were born to soar too, to rise high above the fray and make a profound impact on the world we live in.

How can you do that? Find out next by staying with us right here or visit pastorpaul.net to listen to any recent message on demand, including today's message, Born to Fly. Here's Pastor Paul. Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2. I'll read them from the new American Standard Bible.

You can follow along silently in whatever version you have. The wording will be similar. Romans chapter 12 beginning with verse 1. Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. This is the continuation of a message I began the last time in which I'm wanting us to understand that God is up to something significant and profound in our lives. When the Lord saves us by his grace, he saves us not just to prepare us to have relationship with him throughout all eternity.

Thank God that that is true. Thank God that when you are saved, even when you finally leave this earth, you are going to spend eternity in the presence of God. And it is wonderful to know that we have blessed assurance in Christ about that. But I want you to understand that in saving us, Christ did more than prepare us for eternity.

He also comes into our lives to do a significant work of change in our lives. When we were born physically, we were born in sin. You know that from the word of God. We were born in sin.

We were shapen in iniquity. Everybody shows up wrong. Everybody shows up out of God's plan.

Everybody shows up alienated from God. The writer of Paul says in the book of Ephesians, you have he made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins. We were born dead, spiritually speaking, and Christ is the one who came and made us alive. And in making us alive, his plan is to take us from the state we were in to a state that is totally different. God comes into our lives by the Lord Jesus to transform us. So when we get saved, we are jacked up, but God's plan is to not leave us jacked up. When we get saved, we have areas of our lives that are really, really messed up.

But God's plan is to make sure that does not remain the case. And so I began to make the point in the first part of this message that the Lord says here through the apostle Paul that we are to present our bodies to him as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to him. That's our spiritual act of worship. Notice, what is the spiritual act of worship is not just to show up at church. It is to present yourself to God for the process of transformation that he has ordained for your life. Showing up at worship service is necessary and important and good, but it's not the thing that we're told here in Romans 12. We are told to present ourselves to God as a living sacrifice. That is the spiritual act of worship to say, Lord, I know you've saved me for your own purposes. Here I am.

I am available to you. Do in me, do through me, do with me exactly what you have ordained. And Paul says in that process, he says, don't be conformed to this world, but be ye transformed. Now transformed is the word that we're really focusing on here because that word transformed, here's the Greek. The Greek is metamorphio. Metamorphio. Be ye transformed. When you see transformed there in Romans 12, too, it is the Greek word metamorphio.

And you can tell how we got an English word from that Greek word. We got the word metamorphosis. He says, don't be conformed to this world, but allow God to do in you a work of metamorphosis by the renewing of your mind so that you will prove what the will of God is. So God is in the business of taking us through the process of metamorphosis, a spiritual metamorphosis, a spiritual transformation. I used to be this, but when God is through, I will be that.

That's his plan. So see, you get saved instantly. The moment you accept Christ as your savior, that very moment you are born again. But you're born again with a potential that has not yet been fully realized. It is going to be realized as you go through God's process of metamorphosis.

You get it? So I'm saved. The moment I get saved, I'm ready to go to heaven. If I get saved one minute and die the next, I'm going to spend eternity with the Lord. My whole outlook is different.

The moment I get saved, I'm ready to die. But if I'm going to get ready to live in this world, that's going to take me through a process of becoming what God has ordained that I be. So Romans 12 two talks about metamorphosis. That's why I am using as an example in this message what we see in nature with the butterfly. Now I talked about the fact that when the mama butterfly lays the eggs, she lays them and flies off.

She has done her job. And when the eggs are hatched, if you think a little tiny butterfly is coming out, you've got another thought coming. When that egg is hatched, you don't see a butterfly. You see a little caterpillar. Caterpillar. The caterpillar looks nothing like what it will become.

You tracking with me? It was born to fly. But when it comes out of the egg, it doesn't look like mama. It doesn't have wings. It doesn't have the ability to do anything but lay there on the leaf or wherever it was laid and just there. And eventually it starts eating. And that's all it can do.

It's earthbound. It can't fly. I called it ugly. Now after the service, I heard from one of my members who is a bug specialist. One of my members really took issue with my description of it as ugly because he's into bugs and he said, oh, they are beautiful creatures and intricate and all that. He's into the intricacies.

And so that brother thinks what comes out is lovely. It's quite all right. The Lord bless him real good. When I look at the caterpillar, I am not impressed.

That's all I got to say. To each his own, he sees something different because he knows all the intricacies and all that. He just thinks it's just wonderful, just beautiful, fine. Just like when your baby was born, you think it's the most lovely thing on earth.

Your baby born, it's the best thing God ever did. That's okay. You're the parent. You're supposed to think that. Good. Don't be surprised, though, when some other folk look at the baby and just say, oh.

That's something. Anyway, I ain't going to fool with your baby. You know the point. The point is that what the caterpillar looks like now is nothing like what it is destined to be. It is destined to go through a complete metamorphosis, but it starts out a caterpillar.

In the last message, I talked in detail about that caterpillar's job. Its job is to do one thing and one thing only because it can't fly and don't need to try and learn how to fly. Caterpillar doesn't take flying lessons. It can't fly. It only does one thing.

What is that? It eats. It eats constantly. It nibbles on that leaf constantly. It grabs nutrients everywhere constantly. It is constantly feeding.

Why? Because its first job is to go from a teeny baby caterpillar to a full-grown caterpillar. It must be full-grown before it enters into the next phase of its development. It can't go straight from baby caterpillar into butterfly.

No, there's a process, and it grows as a caterpillar. For us, that eating principle is clear. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. It is our job as we begin to have spiritual aspirations and to realize God wants to transform me. He saved me like I am, but he didn't save me to leave me like I am. I have jacked up areas of my life. I have caterpillar areas of my life. Everybody who gets saved has caterpillar areas of your life. If you think you are all butterfly, you are tripping. You got some caterpillar stuff, some herb-bound stuff, some jacked up stuff, some ugly stuff in your life.

If you don't believe me, ask a friend who loves you enough to tell you the truth. Still ahead, the second half of Pastor Paul Shepherd's message, Born to Fly. But first, we want to take just a moment to thank those of you that support Destined for Victory with your prayers and financial support. Destined for Victory is a listener support of ministry.

As we move ahead into 2021, I don't need to tell you that we are still walking through some challenging times. Your support is even more critical today because in seasons of crisis like this, people are looking for a reason to have hope. Please prayerfully consider making a generous gift to Destined for Victory today. Give online right now safely and securely from our website, pastorpaul.net, or give us a call at 855-339-5500.

Again, that number is 855-339-5500. Now, for more practical advice about how to reach the new heights in your relationship with Christ, here's Pastor Paul with the rest of today's Destined for Victory message, Born to Fly. Some of y'all surround yourself with yes people and affirming people who don't love you enough. If you love me enough, you'll tell me about myself.

In love, you'll speak it in love, but you'll tell me about myself. And so all of us have that, and the job you have at this stage in your early spiritual development is to simply feed on the word as it pertains to that area. If I am sinfully angry, what does God say to me as a sinfully angry person? What does God want me to feed on so I can begin to grow in my understanding that my sinful anger is not acceptable to him?

And what does he want me to do in exchange? If I am terribly lustful, what does God say to me about how to control my body and my mind and my eyes? If I am a person who is greedy and a person who is selfish and self-centered, if I am a person who is insensitive, if I am a person who is hateful, whatever the caterpillar stuff is, you got to feed on the word of God.

What does God say in his word to me about those areas? And just eat the word. Don't mind that you're not instantly different. Still angry, but eating the word about anger.

Still got sinful areas, but eating the word about it. In other words, I refuse to buy the lie that it's okay to stay this way. I eat the word which tells me constantly this is not God's plan for me.

And that's what you got to do. Have you ever met these people? There are a whole lot of folk who are spiritually deceived. And I've heard folks say, well, I got a word from God. And the Lord said, this is okay, whatever the this is. And it's something clearly spoken against in scripture, but suddenly they come up with a revelation that God said is all right. That's deception.

Be not deceived. Get into the word. Rightly divide the word. That's why you got to be in a church where the word is taught in its purity and rightly divided. That's why you ought to thank God for a pastor committed to telling you the truth. Preaching in season and out of season. Reproving, rebuking, exhorting with all long suffering and doctrine.

Why? Because the time is coming, Paul said to Timothy, when people won't put up with sound doctrine. Because they will heap to themselves teachers who tell them what they want to hear.

Well, thank God this guy talking to you now is not one of those. I'm not going to tell you what you want to hear. I'm going to tell you what you need to hear from the word of the living God. And so we got to feed, feed, feed, feed, constantly feed on the word.

Get in the word until the word gets in you. Feeding on the word. The caterpillar eats and eats. And as it eats, it grows and it grows and it grows. And finally, it has gotten to its fullness in that state. And once it gets to the fullness in that state, God then through the process he established in the universe begins to take it to the next level. And that requires the caterpillar's cooperation. It is instinctive to the caterpillar, but it still requires something they must do.

What is that? It then begins to build the sack in which it is going to be transformed to the next level. The technical term is chrysalis.

We know it typically as cocooning. When you create an environment in which the next stage of transformation will take place. I want to let you know that that's where many of us are now in our spiritual development. If you've been feeding on the word, if you haven't been feeding enough, you got to feed because you're not ready for a sack. You're not ready for that next stage until you get in the word. So, feed, feed, feed, feed, feed on the word. And make sure it is the word of God. Don't just take in any and everything.

Not everything is to be eaten. We live in a world where everybody think they got something to say. Have you ever seen so many blogs in all of your born days?

Everybody talk. You know, the internet can be a blessing, but it can also be a horrible curse. Because what the internet does is takes people who really don't have anything worth saying and gives them a platform.

And they can be talking all kind of craziness, but if you log in, you're now exposed to their craziness. So, you got to learn to discern as you live your life in this world. The information of our age can be a blessing, but it's also a curse.

Television, blessing and curse. Your job in this stage of your life is to feed on the word. So, check every voice out by the word. I love Oprah Winfrey. I love some things about what she says. I love some things about what she does. I love some of her accomplishments. There are many things I can affirm about her, and she's been a great example in some ways. But not everything that comes out of her mouth is the word of God.

I know why you're looking scared. I'm the one preaching. Not everything she says is according to scripture.

Not everything she does is according to scripture. Check OAP out by the word. Check Dr. Phil out by the word. Check all of your favorite gurus out by the word.

Oh, I always tune in. He's so deep. Check his deepness out by the word. When you go to church, check the preacher out by the word. Don't take it just because the preacher said it. Preacher could be right if he's consistent with the word.

Could be wrong if he's inconsistent with the word. Check it out by the word of God. When I listen to the word channel, I watch the word channel too. I promise you, not everything on the word channel is the word. Check it out by the word because your job is to feed on what God said to you about the caterpillar areas of your life. So you got to feed, feed, feed, feed, feed. Keep eating the word. Build it into your life. Get into a church, Bible believing, Jesus honoring church, preacher who can rightly divide the word of God, who has the heart of a shepherd.

The Bible says submit yourselves to those that have rule over you for they watch for your soul. He a man just like me. No, I'm a man who's got to give an account for your soul. I'm not like you.

I'm different than you. And you got to be here and submit yourself so I can speak life into you. I have to give an account to God for how I shepherd your soul. See, you're going to get to just sweep through the gates and go on into heaven. I got to get held at the gate.

Hold up. He won't talk to you first. If I'm going to get held up at the gate, you need to be here so I can rightly divide the word into your life.

If he going to ask me what I did with your soul, I don't want to tell him, I don't know. I ain't ever seen him. He need to be here like a baby bird does in that nest. Mouth open, waiting to get the nutrients it needs to grow up. And so this is your time to feed.

But after you get full grown in this stage, the caterpillar then gets to a place where it can no longer remain the same. Something's got to give. Some of you are there right now. Some of you are there in your spiritual life.

Some of you are there in your development with God. You hit a place where things were going fine for a while. So you got to understand life is seasonal. Just cause things were going a certain way in a certain season doesn't mean that season's going to last forever.

And how many have ever experienced the coming to the end of a season and you didn't anticipate it. It just showed up and suddenly you realize I can't keep doing this. I can't keep going here. I can't keep being with these folks. I can't keep in this frame of mind.

I can't stay in this lifestyle. Something's got to give. The caterpillar gets to a place where something's got to give.

And that's where some of you are right now. As I prepared this message I saw as it were in the spirit people arriving at a place at a season where God has just called an end to it. They have gone as far as they can go in this season. They've grown as far as they can grow in this season. Now to have the transformation go to the next level something's got to give. Don't try to remain a full grown caterpillar when God is ready for your metamorphosis. Something's got to give. It begins to build the cocoon.

It begins to build the chrysalis in which it is going to see transformation take place. And you've got to be sensitive to what's going on in your life. You've got to be sensitive to the change of a season because it's meant to bring about your growth and development and your destiny will be fulfilled as you cooperate with that. If you try to stay a caterpillar it's not going to go well because you weren't born to crawl. You were born to fly. You weren't born to stay ugly.

You were born to get beautiful. And so something's got to give. Now the caterpillar senses that and begins to build but it takes their building. God doesn't build the sack and the caterpillar just crawls in it. That's not what happens in nature. The caterpillar builds the environment in which transformation can take place.

That's where some of us are right now. You've got to create the environment. Paul said present yourself as a living sacrifice. In other words I'm not going to do your job. I'll do my job of transforming you.

You do your job of presenting yourself. You have to make yourself available to God for what he wants to do in your life. You have to make yourself available for God for the changes that he has ordained in your life.

This is very much a partnership. You can't change yourself but you can and must create the environment in which God will change you. And so you have got to present yourself as a living sacrifice. Lord I'm ready now for the next stage of what you want to do in my life. I'm ready now for you to show yourself strong. I'm ready now for you to take away the ugly areas of my life. I'm ready for you now to get me out of this state of only being earthbound so that I will be able to fly.

You make the presentation. See the Bible puts the onus on you. It says things like Colossians 3. Paul said to the church there set your affection on things above not on things of the earth.

That's your job. God doesn't set your affection. God made me fall in love with him.

I know what I've heard people testify like that but technically he didn't. Technically he gave you the reasons to fall in love with him but you had to set your affection. You know why I know that? Because the Bible said it.

The Bible says you set your affections on things above not on things of the earth. That's your decision. I am a kingdom first person by decision. That's the only way it happens.

It's by decision. Thanks so much for joining us for today's Destined for Victory message by Pastor Paul Shepherd. You know God has a unique purpose for all who put their faith in Christ. But he also has a plan for those who haven't. Consider 2 Peter 3 verse 9. God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. This is our primary calling as Christians.

To go out into the world and share our faith with others. And there's no better time than now to help Pastor Paul do just that. As we continue to walk together through a challenging season in our history, now is a great time to consider becoming a Destined for Victory partner with a monthly commitment of $20 or more. As our way of saying thanks for your partnership, we'll send you a few thank you gifts, including one of Pastor Paul's most popular CDs, The Best of Let My People Smile. Call 855-339-5500 to find out more or start your partnership today. Or you can mail your gift letting us know you wish to become our partner. Our address is Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538.

You can also become our partner from our website, pastorpaul.net. Now if you can't become a Destined for Victory partner but would like to make a generous donation today, we'd love to send you Pastor Paul Shepherd's booklet, Lessons from the Cocoon. You know butterflies don't enter this world with wings. They don't even enter the world as butterflies.

Their transformation takes place over time and so does yours. In Lessons from the Cocoon, Pastor Paul reminds you that eventually you will have wings because you were born to fly. That's Lessons from the Cocoon, our gift to you today by request for your generous gift to Destined for Victory. I want you to understand that in saving us, Christ did more than prepare us for eternity. He also comes into our lives to do a significant work of change in our lives. That's tomorrow when Pastor Paul shares his message, Born to Fly. Until then remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are Destined for Victory.