Rooted in Christ: Discovering True Identity and Purpose
Summary
### Summary
Today, we explored the profound importance of being rooted in God's Word and how it shapes our identity. We began by acknowledging that our faith in Jesus Christ connects us to the source of life, making God not distant and unknowable, but intimately involved in our lives. Paul’s words to the Athenians in Acts 17 remind us that God is not an unknown deity but a knowable, loving Creator who desires a relationship with us. This relationship is not a hobby or a luxury but the very essence of our existence.
We delved into how our identities are often misplaced in external and internal sources—whether it be our jobs, hobbies, or even our moral self-perceptions. These identities are fragile and can lead to crises when they are inevitably challenged or stripped away. In contrast, an identity rooted in Christ is unshakeable. Hebrews 13:5 assures us that God will never abandon us, and Hebrews 13:8 reminds us that His love and nature are unchanging.
We also discussed the challenges people face when their core identities are rooted in things other than Christ, such as atheism, agnosticism, or even sexual identity. These identities can become barriers to experiencing God's love and grace. However, as Christians, we are called to die to ourselves and take up our cross, as Jesus instructed in Mark 8:34-35. This means letting go of our false identities and embracing our true identity in Christ.
Empathy and understanding should replace accusation when we interact with those outside the faith. The church should be a place of salvation, not condemnation. By showing Christ's love and grace, we can help others see that their true identity is found in Him. This is crucial because our mission is to introduce Jesus and His redemptive work to the world, standing firm on the rock of Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
### Key Takeaways
1. Rooted in God's Word: Being rooted in God's Word is not a hobby but a vital connection to the source of life. It fosters an intimate relationship with God, building faith, hope, and love. This relationship is essential for enduring life's challenges and glorifying God in all we do. [00:55]
2. Knowable God: God is not distant or unknowable. Paul’s message in Acts 17 reveals that God desires to be known and to have a relationship with us. This knowable God gives life and breath to all things, making our faith in Him deeply personal and transformative. [03:44]
3. Identity in Christ: Our true identity should be rooted in Christ, not in external roles or internal perceptions. When our identity is in Christ, we are unshakeable, even when external circumstances change. This identity provides a stable foundation for our purpose and direction in life. [06:42]
4. Empathy Over Accusation: The church should be a place of salvation, not condemnation. By empathizing with others and remembering our own journey to Christ, we can better introduce them to Jesus. This approach helps break down barriers and shows the world the love and grace of God. [15:53]
5. Sanctification Process: Sanctification is an ongoing process where we are continually being cleansed and perfected for heaven. This journey requires us to die to ourselves daily, embracing our identity in Christ and growing in His values. This process is essential for living a life that glorifies God. [19:28]
### YouTube Chapters
[0:00] - Welcome
[00:55] - Rooted in God's Word
[01:53] - Paul's Message to the Athenians
[03:44] - Knowable God
[04:37] - Intimacy with God
[05:33] - Barriers to Faith
[06:42] - Identity in Christ
[08:45] - Supernatural Sources of Identity
[10:31] - External Identities
[12:09] - Internal Identities
[13:57] - Challenges of False Identities
[15:53] - Empathy Over Accusation
[17:40] - Standing on the Rock of Christ
[19:28] - Sanctification Process
[21:09] - Knowing God Through Christ
[23:14] - Concluding Scriptures
Study Guide
### Bible Study Discussion Guide
#### Bible Reading
1. Acts 17:22-28 - Paul's message to the Athenians about the knowable God.
2. Hebrews 13:5, 8 - Assurance of God's unchanging nature and His promise to never abandon us.
3. Mark 8:34-35 - Jesus' call to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him.
#### Observation Questions
1. What does Paul say about God in Acts 17:22-28 that challenges the Athenians' view of their gods? [01:53]
2. According to Hebrews 13:5, what promise does God make to us? [12:09]
3. In Mark 8:34-35, what does Jesus say is required to follow Him? [13:57]
4. How does the sermon describe the difference between external and internal identities? [10:31]
#### Interpretation Questions
1. How does Paul's description of God in Acts 17:22-28 help us understand the nature of our relationship with Him? [03:44]
2. What does it mean for our identity to be rooted in Christ according to Hebrews 13:5 and 13:8? [12:09]
3. How can the process of sanctification, as described in the sermon, impact our daily lives and decisions? [19:28]
4. Why is empathy important when interacting with those who have different beliefs or identities, according to the sermon? [15:53]
#### Application Questions
1. Reflect on your current relationship with God's Word. How can you deepen your roots in Scripture to build a more intimate relationship with God? [00:55]
2. Think about a time when you felt distant from God. How does Paul's message in Acts 17:22-28 challenge that feeling? [03:44]
3. Identify an external identity (e.g., job, hobby) that you have relied on. How can you shift your core identity to be more rooted in Christ? [10:31]
4. Consider someone in your life who has a different belief system. How can you show empathy and understanding to them, as suggested in the sermon? [15:53]
5. What steps can you take this week to deny yourself and take up your cross, as Jesus instructs in Mark 8:34-35? [13:57]
6. How can you actively participate in the sanctification process in your daily life? What specific actions can you take to grow in Christ's values? [19:28]
7. Reflect on a time when you felt judged by others. How can you ensure that your church community is a place of salvation and not condemnation? [15:53]
Devotional
Day 1: Rooted in God's Word
Being rooted in God's Word is not a hobby but a vital connection to the source of life. It fosters an intimate relationship with God, building faith, hope, and love. This relationship is essential for enduring life's challenges and glorifying God in all we do. [00:55]
"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night." (Psalm 1:1-2, ESV)
Reflection: How can you make time today to meditate on God's Word, allowing it to shape your thoughts and actions?
Day 2: Knowable God
God is not distant or unknowable. Paul’s message in Acts 17 reveals that God desires to be known and to have a relationship with us. This knowable God gives life and breath to all things, making our faith in Him deeply personal and transformative. [03:44]
"The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything." (Acts 17:24-25, ESV)
Reflection: In what ways can you seek to know God more personally today, recognizing His presence in your daily life?
Day 3: Identity in Christ
Our true identity should be rooted in Christ, not in external roles or internal perceptions. When our identity is in Christ, we are unshakeable, even when external circumstances change. This identity provides a stable foundation for our purpose and direction in life. [06:42]
"For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." (Colossians 3:3-4, ESV)
Reflection: Reflect on an area of your life where you have placed your identity in something other than Christ. How can you begin to shift your focus to your true identity in Him?
Day 4: Empathy Over Accusation
The church should be a place of salvation, not condemnation. By empathizing with others and remembering our own journey to Christ, we can better introduce them to Jesus. This approach helps break down barriers and shows the world the love and grace of God. [15:53]
"Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted." (Galatians 6:1, ESV)
Reflection: Think of someone who may feel judged or condemned. How can you show them empathy and the love of Christ today?
Day 5: Sanctification Process
Sanctification is an ongoing process where we are continually being cleansed and perfected for heaven. This journey requires us to die to ourselves daily, embracing our identity in Christ and growing in His values. This process is essential for living a life that glorifies God. [19:28]
"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18, ESV)
Reflection: What is one specific area in your life where you need to die to yourself and allow God to transform you? How can you take a step towards that transformation today?
Quotes
### Quotes for Outreach
1. "Being rooted in God's Word isn't a hobby. We aren't hobbyists dabbling in faith when it's convenient to make the time or to distract us from our, quote, unquote, real-world problems. Being rooted in God's Word is a reminder that our faith in Jesus Christ connects us with the source of life." [00:55]
2. "Paul describes an all-powerful, all-knowing God of all things. And boldly declares, that this God is not an unknown God, but is knowable. He is knowable as one who loves, as one who gives life, not as one who meddles and conjoles humanity. He purposes through humanity to be known and for us to come into fullness in relationship with Him. For in Him we live and move and have our being." [03:44]
3. "If your core identity is in Christ, if the primary title that you bear is Christian, then you will know that He will never abandon you. That's in Hebrews chapter 13 verse 5, that His love and nature is unchanging, Hebrews chapter 13 verse 8, and that God became flesh not just so He could identify with us but so that we could identify with Him." [12:09]
4. "My friends, don't you see that when we as Christians point our fingers at the world and say, you are wrong, you are harmful, all we are doing is reinforcing their false identity. As a result, those outside of Christ are digging in their heels against the church because they see the church as a place of accusation and the world as a place of acceptance. Brothers and sisters, the church is not a place of accusation, but a place of salvation." [15:53]
5. "What if instead of pointing fingers, we had empathy? Tolerance, saying you don't have to change, but true empathy. What if we remembered what it was for us to die to ourselves and the struggle that we had when we first came to Christ? Putting ourselves in their shoes, saying there is a better way. I can show you I've been there. What you're doing, what you're believing about yourself, it's separating you from God who loves you." [17:40]
### Quotes for Members
1. "Being rooted in God's word, again, is not a hobby, nor is intimacy with God a luxury reserved for only the religious elite. In your own life, if you lack intimacy with God, it is not because God is distant and unknowable, or because others are just simply better than you. No. That is accusing God. It's accusing God of being distant and unknowable. And honestly, that accuse is nothing more than an excuse to remain stuck in our sin and in our unbelief, hiding behind the barriers that we've put up between us and God in an attempt to avoid His righteousness." [04:37]
2. "But, if you do address those barriers and senseless comparisons, which is done through repentance for the purpose of restoration, then you'll find yourself drinking deeper and deeper from an intimate relationship with God. You'll grow in faith, you'll grow in hope, you'll grow in love, and His values will increasingly become your values. You'll passionately endure whatever may come in order to see Him glorified in not just your life, but in others as well." [05:33]
3. "We Christians more than anyone should know what it means to die to ourselves, to let go of both external and internal identities, and to submit ourselves to Jesus Christ. Mark chapter eight verse 34 through 35. If you want to open up your Bible to it, Mark chapter 8 verses 34 through 35. Jesus said to the surrounding crowd and His disciples, 'If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it.'" [13:57]
4. "Because if He is the way, the truth, and the life, John 14, 6, if His resurrection is for eternal life, then He is life because the wages of sin was paid Romans chapter 6 and that eternal life means knowing God through Christ John 17 3 then showing the world Jesus Christ that He is greater than our natural external and internal identities that He is greater than our false identities and that He is not only knowable but that in Him we are fully known and loved." [19:28]
5. "Honestly, I didn't expect this to be the message today. No, it's not what I expected. Who said that? Bob actually expected in continuing the series of being growing God's kingdom to share a message about vision and purpose and direction seeking the Lord's direction seeking God's will for our lives and how to take steps practical steps for His purpose but the more I prepared that message and wrestled with it the more I realized that it is absolutely meaningless to talk about vision and purpose if we don't get our identities from the vision giver and the purpose maker." [21:09]
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