Key points
- 1
1God chose us before creation — not because of our goodness, but because of His
“God did not choose you because of your goodness. God chose you because of his goodness, because it's in his character and it's in his nature”
- 2
2To be 'holy' means to be set apart for a specific person (God) and a specific purpose (His glory)
Illustration
The stepdad's IBC root beer kept separate in the fridge — set apart for a specific person and purpose — used to illustrate the meaning of 'holy'
- 3
3Being a faithful follower of Christ means picking up the cross of obedience and giving Jesus total access to every area of life
A story from life
A young man after a sermon told the prayer team his girlfriend was 'the cross he was supposed to carry' — used to clarify what the cross of obedience actually means
- 4
4As believers, we have dual citizenship — earthly and heavenly — and access to spiritual blessings the world cannot have without faith in Jesus
“Paul wasn't selected because he was a good guy. Paul was selected because God is a good God”
“I'm so grateful that we don't serve a God who cancels us, we serve a God who calls us”
- 5
5God's plan is that at the right time Jesus will return, bringing everything under His authority and delivering believers into their eternal inheritance
- 6
6The Holy Spirit living in believers is God's guarantee of the promised inheritance and our secret weapon for daily life
- 7
7Paul's prayer is that believers would grow in the knowledge of God — and going into a new year without drawing closer to Jesus would be a wasted year
“if on that vision board and in the goals that you wrote down did not include you growing closer to Jesus, you might as well throw them all away”
“this is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms”
“To be in Christ means that in God's plan, I have been chosen. I have been adopted, and he deems me to be holy, which means I have been set apart for a specific purpose and a specific person, and the purpose is to give the person glory, which is him”
A story from life
The preacher's story of visiting his stepdad's office before proposing, thanking him for raising him as his own son despite not being his biological father
Application
Pastor Brent's call to action is straightforward and urgent: because God chose you, adopted you, and set you apart before creation began, the right response is total surrender — not giving Jesus some of your life or parts of your life, but complete and unreserved access to all of it. As you step into a new year, let growing in your knowledge of God be the non-negotiable on your list. Lean into the Holy Spirit as your daily guide and secret weapon. Place your hope not in people, places, or circumstances, but in a Jesus who never changes and never fails. And live with the awareness that He is coming back — which means every day is an opportunity to be a faithful follower who picks up the cross of obedience and walks closely with Him.
