Belonging to Christ
Minister: | Rev. Ronald Van Overloop |
Date: | 3/1/2015 AM |
Text: | II Timothy 4; Lord's Day 1 |
Psalters: | 269, 215, 301, 203 |
- The meaning.
- To belong to Jesus Christ is a thoroughly biblical concept.
- To belong to Christ is a legal, judicial idea.
- This Lordship is a profession so I confess Him to be responsible for me and is my proprietor and Lord.
- How did I become His property?
- The sheep are Jesus’ sheep by an act of the triune God ordaining the Son to be Jesus and giving the sheep to Him.
- Secondly, we become His sheep by the act of Christ purchasing and redeeming the sheep.
- Thirdly, we become His sheep by an act of the Holy Spirit branding (sealing) us as Jesus’ sheep.
- To belong to Jesus Christ is a thoroughly biblical concept.
- The comfort of belonging to Christ.
- Comfort implies the presence of an evil which threatens me and a grief which overwhelms me.
- First, there is the guilt of my sin.
- Second, there is the corruption of my heart, my sinfulness, the power of sin within me.
- But God gives me knowledge of what He has done.
- First I belong to my Lord.
- Second, His Spirit within delivers us from the dominion and power of sin.
- Comfort implies the presence of an evil which threatens me and a grief which overwhelms me.
- The assurance of belonging to Christ.
- We are able to believe and say that we belong to Him over against the constant evidence of our sin and sinfulness.
- This assurance is often lacking because they doubt whether they belong to Jesus.
- Assurance comes in the way of our hungering after righteousness, i.e., striving to walk righteously.