First Wednesday March 2024| Made for More Series
TAMPA/ONLINE CAMPUS NOTES
RIP ME
3 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. ~ 2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV
This loving of self is the very thing the Bible tells us to die to.
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life[a] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ~ Matthew 16:24-25 ESV
23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. ~ Luke 9:23 ESV
20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. ~ Galatians 2:20 ESV
God doesn’t want to kill you, He wants to kill what’s killing you.
How do we do this: Flee from Sin
22 So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. ~ 2 Timothy 2:22 ESV
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.. ~ Colossians 3:5 NIV
14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. ~ Romans 13:14 ESV
You will never overcome sin by accident, you have to invite and fight.
How do we do this: Draw Near to God
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. ~ James 4:7-10 NIV
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! 24 And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! ~ Psalm 139:23-24 ESV
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ~ Philippians 2:3 NIV
Jesus says stop doing yourself, die to yourself. If your going to save your own life you’ll loose it.
SOUTHSHORE CAMPUS NOTES
DYING TO SELF
13 Now when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah, or one of the other prophets.” ~ Matthew 16:13-14 NASB
15 He *said to them, “But who do you yourselves say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.” ~ Matthew 16:15-19 NASB
21 From that time Jesus began to point out to His disciples that it was necessary for Him to go to Jerusalem and to suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and to be killed, and to be raised up on the third day. 22 And yet Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You!” 23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s purposes, but men’s.” ~ Matthew 16:20-23 NASB
We can do a good thing, disguised as a God thing, when it is really a self-serving work of the flesh.
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ ~ Matthew 7:21-23 NASB
17 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” ~ Mark 16:17-18 NASB
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. ~ Matthew 7:21 NASB
Don’t measure your spiritual standing by how effectively God is using you.
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: sexual immorality, impurity, indecent behavior, 20 idolatry, witchcraft, hostilities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ~ Galatians 5:19-21 NASB
Your freedom is promised, because it was bought and paid for on the cross.
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. ~ Matthew 16:24 NASB
14 For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am fleshly, sold into bondage to sin. 15 For I do not understand what I am doing; for I am not practicing what I want to do, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 However, if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, that the Law is good. 17 But now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. 19 For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. 20 But if I do the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. 21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully agree with the law of God in the inner person, 23 but I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my body’s parts. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. ~ Romans 7:14-25 NASB
Resolve to wage war against our flesh.
23 but I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my body’s parts. ~ Romans 7:23 NASB
17 For the desire of the flesh is against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, in order to keep you from doing whatever you want. ~ Galatians 5:17 NASB
Prepare yourself to suffer.
4 Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human lusts, but for the will of God. ~ 1 Peter 4:1-2 NASB
Surrender to the Spirit
12 Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. ~ Romans 12:1 NASB
Put our flesh to death by the Spirit
12 So then, brothers and sisters, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living in accord with the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ~ Romans 8:12-13 NASB
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. ~ Galatians 5:16 NASB
Die daily
11 For we who live are constantly being handed over to death because of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our mortal flesh. ~ 2 Corinthians 4:11 NASB
31 I affirm, brothers and sisters, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, that I die daily. ~ 1 Corinthians 15:31 NASB
You will suffer while dying to Self
35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; 36 and others experienced mocking and flogging, and further, chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented 38 (people of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts, on mountains, and sheltering in caves and holes in the ground. ~ Hebrews 11:35-38 NASB
38 Then He *said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.” 39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” ~ Matthew 26:38-39 NASB
You must surrender your will
The full life God created for you to live is impossible unless you die to self
25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 For what good will it do a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul? Or what will a person give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay every person according to his deeds. ~ Matthew 16:25-27 NASB
Your flesh isn’t doing you any favors:
- You cannot worship God in the flesh. (John 4:23-24)
- You cannot obey God in the flesh. (Romans 8:7)
- You cannot please God in the flesh. (Romans 8:8)
- The flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41)
- The flesh cannot profit you. (John 6:63)
- There’s nothing good in the flesh. (Romans 7:18)
- The flesh brings corruption. (Galatians 6:8)
- The flesh will perish. (1 Peter 1:24)
- The mind set on the flesh is death. (Romans 8:6)
- You cannot put confidence in the flesh. (Philippians 3:3)
- You cannot spiritually war in the flesh. (2 Corinthians 10:3-4)
- Flesh cannot inherit the kingdom. (1 Corinthians 15:50)
He died for you first
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ~ Romans 5:8 NASB
PLANT CITY CAMPUS NOTES
12 So then, brothers and sisters, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living in accord with the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received [b]a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. ~ Romans 8:12-17 NASB
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: sexual immorality, impurity, indecent behavior, 20 idolatry, witchcraft, hostilities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 Now those who [a]belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let’s follow the Spirit as well. ~ Galatians 5:19-25 NASB