Discussion Guide: Walking in the Fullness of Christ

thank you for a great introduction you don’t know what I’m going to say but God  did thank you we need more of that we need more of that god is moving family I’m here today  i’m excited i’m pumped up every time I say the word pumped up it reminds me of a time when my  son called me and he was like “Hi Mom how are you?” And I’m like “I’m fine how are you?” He’s  like “I’m fantastic i’m great.” And I’m thinking

01:34:48 “Who is this?” And he he says to me “I’m pumped  up Mom.” I’m like “Really what’s happening?” He said “Mom I’ve been listening  to this song.” And he says “And it’s my generation.” And he says “Mom get over it.” I said “Excuse me.” Now mind you he was smart  enough to call me while he was in a car and not in the house because I am known to have a very quick  backhand he can tell you about that too anyway I said “Excuse me?” He goes “Mom I’m listening  to this song it’s called Battlecry get over

01:35:35 it Mom.” See the song was a little bit on the  edge and I had told them they couldn’t sing it well history is told i repented they sang it and  it became a my song i’m here to declare a battle cry i’m here to remind you what we’re here for  i’m here to tell you what God is doing in the earth today and why he needs you not just me  not just Alysia not just Holly he needs each and every person that can hear my voice he needs  each and every person in the earth to declare his goodness his greatness his power his excellency he  is he the one who went to the cross like we just

01:36:43 talked about and he died there be with joy because  he saw you he saw me he died in joy knowing what he was bringing he was bringing life and life  more abundantly and he’s given us all things all means all everything included he’s given us  all things so that we can live an abundant life now I want to tell you if you know anything  about me you happen to know that I love Jesus with all my heart i’m happy to tell you that  God rescued me even as a child and placed me where I belonged and I’m here to say that  he did it so I could have an abundant life

01:37:23 well let me tell you what else I you would know  about me if you know me well i hate the devil i hate the devil i hate that he tries to kill  rob and destroy he tried to kill this church well I’m here to tell you he didn’t win he’s a  loser he always has been and always will be and until you get that in your soul when he wants  to kill you then you you need to just say “No no.” God said “I will live i will not die i  will declare the works of the Lord the devil may be trying to mess with you well that’s  his problem don’t let it be yours you can

01:38:00 just tell him to go to hell where he lives it’s  fine and excuse me if that offends you but here these last several months our pastors here the  Holy Spirit put it in their hearts to preach on the overcoming church well let me tell you I  grew up in church all my life and you know I went to some churches when I was very young that just  basically taught you that you couldn’t overcome that was for heaven that was for when you got to  heaven but while you lived here on earth you just had to get through it that’s not abundant life  that’s not what Jesus said that’s not what Jesus

01:38:39 said quit living like the devil is right he’s not  he’s a liar why why do we even pay attention right so it was their heart that we rehearse this truth  in our ears so that we begin to remind ourselves of who we are and what we are and why we’re  on the earth it’s not here to have a fun life there’s nothing wrong with having fun please don’t  get me wrong but what I’m here is to say it’s not my goal my goal is to live like Jesus lived to set  captives free to heal the sick to make the blind I see those are the things that make me happy those  are the things that propel me these are the things

01:39:24 that matter in life i’m not going to get caught  up in all the crazy you know the world is crazy if you don’t know it turn your TV on for a minute  look at your phone and you just will shake your head and say “Oh my gosh where am I?” But you know  what when you live in heavenly places and you’re seated next to Christ and you’re looking down on  the earth you see things a little bit differently and it’s with those eyes and that heart that you  go into all the world to make a difference yes you i don’t care how quiet you are you can say “I’m  not crazy like you i don’t sit there and yell at

01:40:03 people or pace around like a crazy person.” But  I am so excited inside i I I was just jittery when I walked in the building i thought “My God I  don’t know if we’re going to make it through this today but I’m here because I’m here to get you  excited i’m here to remind you who you are i’m here to say get up get going.” The subject they  gave me was walking in the fullness of Christ walking in the fullness of Christ you couldn’t  have picked a more favorite subject for me thank you Shelley for not giving me eternal judgment  i appreciate that thanks for giving it to Pastor

01:40:40 Bob he did a great job he did a great job and it  actually is a very important message because if you understand God and that he’s a righteous judge  you’ll be okay you’ll live your life without fear when you know that when you live his way you have  nothing to fear in front of the judgment seat of Christ because the blood of Jesus covers us so  we’ll move on pastor Bob did a great job listen to it if you weren’t here but we are living  in a world where people don’t want to live in their reality they’re continually allowing  labels or physical diagnosises to be their

01:41:19 identity for some reason it’s just easier to  accept the negative rather than the positive people are always unhappy and complaining  comparing themselves to others and allowing circumstances to dictate their happiness and rob  them of joy who comes to rob who comes to rob say it louder who comes to rob who comes to give life  who comes to give life when you feel like you’re being robbed when you feel like you’re being  destroyed know who’s talking know who’s talking in our study of what the word has to say about  overcoming we found that Webster’s dictionary

01:42:11 defines it as a person that who overcomes as one  who succeeds in dealing with or gaining control of some problem or difficulty it also quotes  Lauren Quinn to defining it this way someone who refused to be defined by anyone of those  challenges depression addiction sickness you put it financial problems you can refuse to  be overcome by that and you can overcome it that’s what the overcoming church does it’s  not in heaven heaven doesn’t need overcomers where did the church get this when  I get to heaven when I get to the

01:42:57 streets of gold come on but how  many of us are living that way today in the scriptures overcome means to  subdue conquer overcome prevail get the victory jesus says in John 16:33 as he prepares his  disciples for his departure “These things I have spoken unto you that in me ye might have peace  and in the world ye shall have tribulation.” Shock jesus said “I’m going to have tribulation.” Why do we live like that’s a problem or a surprise  when it comes you just say “Okay let’s take it on.” But Jesus said “Be of good cheer i have  overcome the world.” Jesus subdued every power and

01:44:06 principality of hell he conquered Satan himself  jesus overcame death hell and sin and he took the keys and he left and he came guess where he  came he didn’t go to heaven he came back to earth jesus left hell and came back to earth before he  ascended to heaven he was here for 40 days after he came out of hell do you think that was a quiet  time do you think that the disciples were a little surprised do you think that the people came and  ran and said “What is this how can this be?” Yeah it was that is the full gospel the disciples got  to witness Jesus announced as the son of God they

01:45:07 watched him die on the cross and be humiliated and  they saw him come back to earth victorious that’s the full gospel we need to live in the full gospel  of Christ if we receive God’s gift of salvation we are no longer bound to destructive habits nor are  we cursed to repeat generational sins or be under a generational curse genesis 3:13 tells us that  Jesus became a curse for us he paid the penalty of that curse so that we do not have to be under  it or experience it we are not under the curse

01:46:03 now let me tell you the enemy’s always trying  to change that always trying to bring you back backwards oh your mom had this problem oh your  dad did this oh oh nothing come on jesus paid the price for you and for all of their mistakes too  and you don’t have to live subject to them that is with what we call walking in the fullness it’s not  buying the enemy’s package he’s just a liar that’s what he does don’t be so surprised when he does  it just say “No I am able.” When we truly receive Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross we are staking our  life with his we are individually accepting his

01:47:01 finished work on the cross which means we are not  subject to nor do we have to settle for anything that hell has to offer death destruction defeat  lies sicknesses and the list goes on we may feel these things we may even be tempted by them but  our response should be I am free from sin i am free from death it does not have any power over  my soul my thoughts and it does not have any power over my body paul beautifully lays out the details  of our creator his design for the earth and mankind along with a picture of the power of the  grace of God as he writes the Christians in Rome

01:47:52 summarizing the gift of salvation he addresses  the struggles that can come but most importantly he teaches the freedom we have in Christ and  how dramatically it differs from the law of Moses he doesn’t deny there was a struggle but  he reinforces heaven’s plan for people to walk in freedom how God supplied us access to the keys of  living righteously how a life in Christ looks but most importantly that because of Jesus’s sacrifice  we are no longer slaves to sin we are servants of the most high God we are no longer under the old  covenant but Jesus brought a new covenant for us

01:48:38 to live by paul says in Romans 7:25 “Thanks be  to God who gives us the victory in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:2 goes on to tell us that the law  of the spirit is life the enemy has tried to change the focus of this letter written to  the Romans to focus on Paul’s story of his life before and after his encounter with Jesus the  struggle of his flesh to live under the law of Moses the old covenant and Satan has perverted  or tried to twist the truth of the gospel to say that we are now under the control of two  covenant covenants an old covenant and a new

01:49:23 covenant that we have an old nature a sinful  nature and I have a new nature residing within me no the old is the old and the new is the  new decide which one you are if you’re living as a new creation you’re new the old is gone  the old means yesterday new means present it means today we are new creations in Christ Jesus  that’s why we get so excited about water baptism around here we’re having water baptism next  week because Jesus said if you want to be born again that you must be born of the water and  the spirit just like in conception of a baby

01:50:09 right we have the conception but then that  baby grows and then that baby breaks forth but it has to come through water first and so  when we go down into the waters of baptism we identify with the burial of Christ but we come  out of those waters new and anything that was over here before is no longer got control over me it’s  in the water it’s dead when it’s dead it’s gone my assignment today walking in the fullness of  Christ i’m here to share that we do not have these two natures if we truly appropriate fully  accept the facts that when we receive Christ

01:50:56 we receive an incorruptible seed in our spirit  seeds contain life they grow they produce life they produce fruit the life of Jesus that is in  our physical bodies gives us full access to live and walk by faith in God’s gift now I’m here today  to declare that the actual concept and statement of walking in the fullness of Christ is possible  here on earth here on earth but it requires action everything God does he does his part and then  we have our part god always partners with us so here he’s given us everything and now we have  to use it in order to walk it means we must move

01:52:05 in order to walk it means we have to move we must be headed to  a predetermined destination you can walk in circles and a lot of people do  or you can have a goal set before you and you can walk to the goal it may be 10 miles down the road  but you won’t get there until you keep walking if you decide you need a break and you stop walking you’re not going to get  there this is where it becomes my choice walking requires movement and it brings advancement i also just take a  little side note walking requires

01:53:14 feet drew can I just ask if Jesus is the head of the body and we’re the body do they need each other when we walk our brain sends a message all the  way through the whole body all the way down to my feet and they say “Move.” My brain says  “Move feet move.” When Jesus is the head of the body and he says “Move,” we move okay you’re  going to get a little more of this in a minute but when we decide to sit and not move granted we might get  a moment to rest god can do that he can say “Lay down for a minute but it’s not for  eternity there’s things to be done because

01:54:32 when we’re sitting we’re not advancing to the  goal we all know the poem of footprints in the sand where at first there were two sets of  footprints and the author said it was them and the other one was Jesus and then all of  a sudden there was only one print and they were trying to figure that out what happened to  Jesus what they found is Jesus was carrying them but the footprints kept going and the  poem doesn’t tell us how long because you know it’s one thing when you walk and  hold a two-year-old it’s another thing to

01:55:20 walk and hold a 20-year-old in fact I personally  could not do that but some of us are making butt [Applause] prints we’ve sat down and I don’t know you could be like a little  kid who gets up and is being dragged and as soon as you let go sits down again and maybe that  happens again because God’s gracious and he says “Come on come on come on can’t carry  you forever come on.” And then plop plop plop which do you want to be but the word walk  it also denotes a lifestyle it’s how we live the places we go the things we do are all part of our  daily lives it’s the choices we make the path we

01:56:26 follow but more importantly who we are following  we are to live in the fullness of Christ of all he has done for us that’s what walking is it’s not  just movement it’s my life the second word in the phrase is in walking in and the word in indicates  inclusion or location or position within limits it denotes being a part of something or someone  fullness it means as an entirety the quality or state of being without restriction exception a  qualificator a per being perfect complete whole strongs also calls it totality wholeness  planitude this quality or state of being

01:57:17 full a synonym is abundance entirety and the last  word in the sentence is the most important right walking in the fullness of Christ the Messiah  the anointing one the God of the impossible the way maker the miracle worker the Messiah the  one who comes and saves us out of a pit and puts us on a path of life and on the journey on  the path of life he leads us he goes before us sometimes he comes and walks right alongside  of us when we’re having a struggle but he is always there he is the expected king of kings  in order to walk in the fullness of Christ we

01:58:07 must be willing to move to go to new places not  to get stuck in our ways and our traditions just like I had to right when I wouldn’t let you guys  sing that song and God said “Sling knock it off.” He used the voice of my son god help us but anyway  we must ask ourselves who are we following we must embrace that our individual lives must reflect the  path we are traveling and represent our faith my belief my convictions and the which should be in  the word of God as we contemplate what walking in

01:58:45 the fullness of Christ means to us individually  let’s look at a couple of scriptures that remind us of who God is and what he is offering each of  us if we choose to walk in his fullness now I’m going to suggest to you you all have a phone  that you write down the references I’m going to give you or that possibly you see on the  screen um because I’m going to jump through them i’m not going to necessarily read the whole  thing and frankly you should go read the whole chapter to these places but John 1:1 in the  beginning was the word and the word was with

01:59:18 God and the word was God verse 12 but as many as  received accepted this is a choice and those who received him to them gave he power to become the  sons of God moving down to verse 14 and the word was made flesh he dwelt among us and we beheld  his glory and he was full of grace and truth and they bear witness of him but he says and of  his fullness his graciousness his abundance that which he put in to fill us up to fulfill every  need and desire the act or process of completing and of his fullness have all we received and grace  for grace the spiritual blessing upon spiritual

02:00:10 blessing favor upon favor and gift heaped upon  gift john 10:10 a thief has only one thing in mind he wants to steal slaughter and destroy but  I come to give you everything in abundance more than you expect life in its fullness until  you overflow are you overflowing are you overflowing ephesians 1 beginning in verse 15  wherefore I also after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto the saints  I ceased not to give thanks for you making mention of you in my prayers that the God of our  Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory may give

02:00:56 unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation  in the knowledge of him that that the eyes of your understanding be enlightened that ye  may know what is the hope of his calling the hope of his calling god has  a calling to each and every one of us that only we can fulfill this  isn’t about my calling it’s about his calling and what the riches of the glory  of his inheritance is in the saints let me read that again that ye  may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of  the glory of his inheritance in the

02:01:54 saints God’s holy people what is the exceeding  greatness of his power to us word who believe who commit who trust according to the working power  to us word sorry going backwards we’ll read it again the working power to us word who believe  commit trust in according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he  raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places far above the  principalities and power and might and dominion that every name that is named not only in this  world but in the one which is to come and hath

02:02:41 put all things under his feet and gave him to be  the head over all things to the church to who to the church who’s the church we are and it also  says the church is his body the fullness the graciousness the abundance that once again which  is put in us to fill us up to bring fulfillment of every need or desire of him that fillth all in all  these passages from John and Paul emphasize that those who receive God’s invitation to be a part  of his family by acknowledging God’s great love to give mankind another opportunity to know him as  the father and as our creator one with a plan and

02:03:30 a unique calling for each individual to fulfill  will receive the power the ability to succeed yes God has a plan for my life and yes he  knows exactly what it is and all I need to do is tune into him i need to learn how to hear  the voice of God i need to understand the voice of God i need to study the word of God so  I know what that plan is we do not have to wonder we can know what it is and then we can  walk it out if you don’t know the call of God on your life start asking him if you don’t  know his plan and purpose know that he wants

02:04:11 to reveal it to you he’s not hiding it from you  or Bishop Miller used to say he’s hiding it for you paul begins his letter to the church in  Colasse commending them and reminding them of the gospel that was brought to them and its power  it’s supernatural unexplainable yet a gift that we must choose to use see I can get you a gift i  can wrap it up all pretty and I can give it to you but until you open it and decide to keep it some people take it back but until you open it you  see it and you learn to use

02:05:07 it it’s of no use so we  have a choice in the matter i’m telling you everything God’s given you i’m  telling you what he’s got for you but only you can choose to walk in it colossians 1:10 that  ye may walk live be occupied with worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing and be fruitful in every  good work and increasing in the knowledge of God moving down to verse 15 who is the image of the  invisible God the firstborn of every creature for by him were all things created that are  in heaven and that are on earth visible and

02:05:52 invisible whether they be thrones or dominions or  principalities or powers all things were created by him and for him and he is before all things  and he is the head of the body the church who is the beginning the firstborn from the dead he  was the firstborn what does that mean there’s more to come he is the firstborn from the dead  that in all things he might have the preeminence for it pleased the father that in him should all  fullness dwell we are the other ones coming after him we are born in of him we have everything Jesus  had we have the same abilities god allowed Jesus

02:06:37 to live 30 years on earth without operating  in all of those abilities he trained him he taught him he showed him what people are like he  showed him the sufferings he showed him what it was like to work hard to eat to sleep to do  life he let Jesus himself experienced all of it and then he began to display what God has and  he began to teach and he began to proclaim the kingdom of God and how it works there and after he  understood all of their craziness that they were living under and all their doing he began to teach  them a new way of life it was in him all of God’s

02:07:24 fullness dwelt we are complete in him he is the  head of all principalities and power the NLT says it this way for in Christ lives all the fullness  of God in a human body so you also are complete through your union with Christ who is head over  every ruler and authority peter reminds us that our salvation is the beginning of an abundant  life but one of the secrets to walking in God’s fullness requires response he challenges us not  to be satisfied with the gifts but to actually respond by adding to them contribute partnering  with God and growing up so we can produce fruit

02:08:11 that will be useful and productive in the kingdom  of God here on earth second Peter says it this way “By his divine power God has given us everything  we need for living a godly life and after we’ve received it he says he has given us great and  precious promises these are the promises that enable you to share you can share his divine  nature it’s not just for you you’re supposed to give it out and you can share and escape  the world’s corruption caused by human desires in view of all of this make every effort to  respond to God’s promises here’s how you respond

02:08:52 in supplement your faith with a generous provision  of moral excellence after which is goodness and then you’re going to add knowledge and then you’re  going to add self-control and after that you’re going to add patient endurance and after a patient  endurance godliness and godliness brotherly affection and then you’re going to learn how to  not only love your brother but to love the world like Jesus did participating in love to county is  a way to show love to all yes we have to show love one to another and it helps when we start here and  get a clue how to do it and most importantly what

02:09:28 not to do and uh you know because we’re brothers  and sisters sometimes we have to give allowance uh because we don’t do it right and sometimes we have  to forgive because someone didn’t do it right but as we add and we begin to see we get these things  in our lives working we then can bring it to the world all throughout the scriptures God is  always pointing us to become overcomers he continually challenges us to understand his  great love for us his steadfast faithfulness to our future he reveals himself as a father  not a dictator not someone with a control issue

02:10:13 how many times have you heard that he not only wrote Emanuel the Bible for us to  read he sent his son to show us how it is done who then taught those around him how to walk it out  and then he left them he left them but not alone he sent Holy Spirit not to just be on the earth  but to actually live and reside inside of those who ask him to live within him just like  we ask Jesus to come and live in our lives we ask Holy Spirit to come and live in us and  to speak with him and to help us speak to God in

02:11:02 languages that we don’t even understand but that  brings peace and comfort that gives us what we need to go through the tough times and he brings  the power and the ability to walk in the fullness of all God has for us and Jesus also made it clear  that we are all in this together there is no just individual Jesus in me because if it’s Jesus you  either have just a head or you’ve got the whole body if Jesus is the head I think we all want  the whole thing right we want the body well you and I are the body we need each other we need  a local church we need a local family we need

02:11:46 to be a part of someone and something it’s not  about me just getting the goosebumps when I’m at home and listening to a worship song and  just praying in my closet it’s me when I get out there in the world and I say “Hey guys I’ve  got great news for you i’ve got good news i’m tired of all the bad news are you tired?” Good  because I have good news you guys can do that you don’t have to be as crazy as I am to do  it that’s fine but you can get out there and say “Hey I’ve got answers because I know the  one i know the one who knows it all i know the

02:12:21 creator of heaven and earth every day I look  at that sunset and every day I say there’s a creator look at how he painted the sky today it’s  beautiful look at it oh my gosh it’s cloudy and it’s dark and he’s watering the earth and he’s  he’s making things to grow even when there’s dark days he uses the dark days to bring the  rain that brings the growth he uses it all i don’t doubt that there’s a God for one minute  when I look outside all I have to do is say “How in the world where did you come from you are  so unique you can look at a bug i have to talk to

02:13:07 God about bugs but and snakes i don’t like snakes  either but you can look at an animal and you can look at your friends and you can see how fun  God is and how what creative he is and how he made us all different and none of us are the  same why are we always trying to be the same jesus made it clear that we are in this together  that there is no individual that is not important or invaluable we cannot make it without each other  we cannot make it without the entire body the head Jesus the shoulders the knees and the toes we need  the whole thing people okay you’re going to sing

02:14:05 the old song head shoulders knees and toes right  but we need them all when Jesus began his ministry he simply said “Follow me.” As he was walking  and he looked at them “Pat follow me and he kept going so when Jesus looks at you he says “Follow me are you ready will you get up do you  see something so unique so unusual so amazing that you’re going to go see where he’s  going what what what it is that’s happening but in order to follow what do we need we have to walk it requires that we give  up what’s familiar what’s comfortable it was

02:15:10 a call to a new life a new way of living when  these men who answered the call followed Jesus they did life together not alone they came  to understand God in a completely different light they found purpose and value god never  intended man to walk alone he created man and woman to create family god creates families every  local church is a family we belong in a family he was in the garden with Adam and Eve and it  was there he taught them of who they were and he gave them instructions and he and he they had  to choose he required an individual choice rather

02:15:57 than a forced obedience so we decide what we’re  going to follow so one of my biggest passions if you don’t already know it is debunking Satan’s  myth i’m just going to call it a lie that we can live our Christian lives on our own that we  don’t need anyone else people only hurt people i don’t need you i don’t need it i’m just going  to do this on my own i don’t want to be with you you’re crazy i don’t need a church i don’t need a  family i’m just going to go live out in the woods by myself well y’all have a good time out there  but if there was ever a twist of a scripture that

02:16:44 brings death and devastation it’s this lie that  we can do it on our own without the body of Christ there’s been no bigger twist to Christianity in  all the world and it’s so small sounds so sweet all I need is Jesus all I need is Jesus amen jesus  the head jesus the body all I need is Jesus all I need is Jesus the whole thing satan didn’t  deny that Jesus existed he doesn’t deny he’s the head but he wants to disconnect the body  that’s what we call an antichrist spirit it’s against the wholeness and fullness of Jesus  so to walk in the fullness of Christ we walk

02:17:46 together to summarize what it means to walk  in the fullness of Christ according to the word of God it confirms that each individual  must personally choose to accept the gift of salvation that Jesus provided for us in doing  this we become part of Christ’s many membered body we receive supernatural power from God the  Father that enables each one to grow in grace and be able to emulate God’s character here on  earth walking in Christ’s fullness enables us to be free free from sin and all its devastation  we can overcome life’s challenges with the same

02:18:36 spirit that raised Jesus from the dead in other  words even the places that died in my heart from hurt from pain from misunderstanding and caused  me to question God’s faithfulness can live again that’s walking in the fullness of Christ he  resurrects dead things he brings life again we can live again because we believe in  the finished work of Christ on the cross we are equipped and well able to be the overcoming church stand if you’re part  of that overcoming church take 10 seconds and thank God for choosing you

02:19:40 for loving you for giving you a  place in his body that you’re in him that you’re in him that he wants  to partner with you do you understand how humbling it is to understand that God  wants to use my voice to impact somebody else but I’m only one voice god has many people and he wants to use  your voice he wants you to hear his and use it to reach others there is a dying world out  there that needs Jesus and it starts with you it starts with me we choose to reproduce life  abundant life so if you’re feeling all sad and

02:20:51 sorry for yourself ask Jesus to show you the joy  set before you and how you’re going to overcome i love you guys it’s going to be a great week and  Pastor Jonathan’s gonna come close