Beautiful Exchange

The title for what I would like to talk about tonight is as the song says a
Beautiful Exchange

Have you ever thought about your salvation, as a

beautiful exchange?

When we have been Christians for a long time we / I can become complacent about the terms we have heard for so long about our salvation and all that Jesus has done for us .... Ive been listening to Hillsongs song "A Beautiful Exchange" alot lately and its lyrics has really blessed and spoken to me I feel refreshed as its helped me to remember and think once again about all God has done for me! So what I bring tonight is based on the lyrics of this song ..... It begins .......

You were near

Though I was distant

Disillusioned I was

Lost and insecure

Is there anyone here tonight feeling this way?? Or ever felt this way??

It says in Isaiah 53 v 6 …...

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,

each of us has turned to our own way;

Without Jesus in my life this is how I felt …... distant dissilusioned my life felt meaningless, l was lost, wandering making a mess of things... sometimes in our walk we can feel this way God can seem distant and far away but God never changes its us that we try and do things in our own strength.















Still mercy fought

For my attention

You were waiting at the door

He wants to get our attention tonight are we listening?? What is it he wants us to hear?

In Revelation 3:20 it says ….

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

He is here waiting! So What are we waiting for??



Then I let you in

What happens when we let him in? Our lives are changed forever ...

In 2 Corinthians 5 v 17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

We are no longer lost, lonely, we are new creations we are loved we have meaning a purpose we have been given the gift of eternal life! He comes to us as we are .. broken unnatractive in our sin, hopeless, helpless, weak, unworthy he makes us beautiful!!

As Pastor Robin said about the country park last week it has been reclaimed and turned into something beautiful. The same Jesus does with our lives!



Trading your life

For my offenses

For my redemption

You carried all the blame

He took our place, took our sin, trading his life for ours,

He gave for us the ultimate sacrifice





In John 3 v 16 it says ….

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

 In Romans 5 …..6

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.

and in v8

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.



Breaking the curse

Of our condition

what is our curse ??….... we are all sinners

We are cursed meaning we are sinners destined for an eternity in hell ….

it began in the very beginning ...

In Genesis we see Adam and Eve living in the paradise of the garden. There is no sin in the world and God Himself would come and walk with them in the cool of the day. Not only did they have direct access to God, they had access to everything else in the garden, all except the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil,

In Genesis 3 we read about how the serpent convinced and persuaded Eve to eat of this tree.

So they both ate the fruit and their eyes were opened to the knowledge of good and evil. They became no longer acceptable to God.Verse 21 tells of how God clothed them both with leather, this meant that something had to die – probably an innocent lamb. God killed it to clothe Adam and Eve, to make them acceptable. From that time onwards there was a process of continual sacrifice of the innocent to pay the price for the guilty.

Then in verse 23 and 24 we read how they were expelled from the Garden of Eden.



We are all sinners and none of us are perfect!!

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,Romans 3:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23



But God made a way for us where there was no other way! He sent his son and changed it all!!!!

all we have to do is ….........

1 John 1:9-10 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2 Cor 8:9 says, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”

Jesus broke the generational curses!!!! Because of His Grace we are now able to lay hold of the many blessings that God has for us.



Perfection took our place

He took our place, when he died on the cross for all our sins, he didnt deserve this death, this torment and torture ... he had done nothing wrong... but stil he took our place.

Hes taken away my sin! Hes taken away your sin!

How awesome is God!! Can we understand all that he has done for us?? Our position with God is not dependent on my our lives what we have said and done but on the quality of the sacrifice, The ultimate sacrifice Jesus, the Lamb without blemish.

1 Peter 1 v 18-19 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

God offered His own Son, perfect and without spot or blemish. What a sacrifice!



1 Peter 2:22

“He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”



Chorus:

When only love could make a way

You gave your life in a beautiful exchange

How deep is our fathers love for us!! Only love could enable us to be able to spend eternity in heaven, he exhcanged his life so we might be saved!

Corinthians 5:21

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The notes on bible gateway after this verse read

a sin offering this verse has been called the Great Exchange amid many other things. It is shocking in its simplicty and profound in its depth.

He did this for us!!!!



My burden erased

My life forgiven

Acts 10:43

All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."

Ephesians 1:7

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace

There is nothing that could take this love away

we must take hold of this fact! God loves us!!

Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,

neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

And my only desire and sold ambition

Is to love you just the same

Is this our desire above all else in life tonight?? No matter whats going on today do we want more than anything else to love Jesus as he loved us??



Mark 12:30

And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.



Chorus:

When only love could make a way

You gave your life in a beautiful exchange

Isaiah 53

Who has believed our message

and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

He grew up before him like a tender shoot,

and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,

nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by mankind

a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.

Like one from whom people hide their faces

he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

Surely he took up our pain

and bore our suffering,

yet we considered him punished by God,

stricken by him, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions,

he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was on him,

and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,

each of us has turned to our own way;

and the LORD has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and afflicted,

yet he did not open his mouth;

he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,

and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

so he did not open his mouth.

By oppression

and judgment he was taken away.

Yet who of his generation protested?

For he was cut off from the land of the living;

for the transgression of my people he was punished.

He was assigned a grave with the wicked,

and with the rich in his death,

though he had done no violence,

nor was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,

and though the LORD makes

his life an offering for sin,

he will see his offspring and prolong his days,

and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.

After he has suffered,

he will see the light of life

and be satisfied

by his knowledge

my righteous servant will justify many,

and he will bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,

and he will divide the spoils with the strong

because he poured out his life unto death,

and was numbered with the transgressors.

For he bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors

WOW!!!! Powerful words that bring it all together and amaze me everytime!!



Isaiah 61:3

and provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty

instead of ashes,

the oil of joy

instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise

instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

a planting of the LORDi

for the display of his splendor.



He makes us beautiful we are new creations in him. What ever we have been through or are going through ... we can know his love and healing power today .let us be filled with good fruit, the fruits of the spirit, kindness, goodness, faithfullness, patience, self control, peace, joy, meekness and love. let us feel loved by the Lord and feel positive about ourselves and our lives be encouraged feel important ,significant, valuable ,accepted ,guilt free ,forgiven unique and special.

1John 4 18

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love

God loves us perfectly, without fault! Such love can only be found in him, no one else! we all fail ourselves and eachother! we are human in Mathew 26 v 41

“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

but Gods love never fails!

Please in your own devotional times read 1 John 4 all about Gods Love it truly is amazing stuff!!

In the message version it says in v 17-18

God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ's. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love. We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.



When only love could break these chains

You gave your life in a beautiful exchange

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.

Isaiah 61:1

Our chains have been broken we are set free! Free from sin!! Let us praise him!



Bridge:

Holy are you God

Holy is your name

With everything I’ve got

My heart will sing how I love you

Is this our song tonight?? Will we sing praises to God our king for all he has done and give thanks to him! How can we not after all he has given and done for us..... He gave his life for a beautiful exchange ...

To finish ...A few quotes i found on the internet

our salvation wasn't a joint effort. You didn't contribute a penny because you were spiritually bankrupt. Bob Gass



I know you have no righteousness of your own…here, have mine.” God

and one more scripture :)

In Psalm 40

I waited patiently for the LORD;

he turned to me and heard my cry

He lifted me out of the slimy pit,

out of the mud and mire

he set my feet on a rock

and gave me a firm place to stand

He put a new song in my mouth

a hymn of praise to our God

Many will see and fear the LORD

and put their trust in him.