S1: Today on Bold steps with Mark job, we're learning what
S1: it means to be chosen.
S2: God's been working all your life to set you up
S2: for his purposes. All. You fought him at times, but
S2: God has been involved in bringing you to the place
S2: that you would respond to him all of your life.
S2: God has been involved way in advance.
S1: Welcome to today's edition of Bold Steps with Mark job.
S1: Mark is the senior pastor of New Life Community Church
S1: in Chicago and president of Moody Bible Institute. I'm Wayne Shepherd.
S1: Earlier in the week, we began a new series called
S1: When You Believe Everything Changes, and we've been learning about
S1: what it means to take your place in the Kingdom
S1: of God. Yesterday we learned what it means to be blessed,
S1: and today marks going to show us how and why
S1: we've been chosen. So if you have your Bible handy,
S1: turn to Ephesians one to hear Mark job with today's
S1: bold steps.
S2: So he has given us every blessing in the spiritual world.
S2: Number two, write this down. For he chose us in
S2: him before the creation of the world, to be holy
S2: and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us.
S2: So not only has he blessed us, and it talks
S2: about our position. He's chosen us and it talks about
S2: our destiny. For he chose us in him before the
S2: creation of the world, to be holy and blameless. Hold
S2: on a second. Did you just read what I. What
S2: I read? That God chose you before the world was
S2: even created. Hold on, hold on, hold on. What does
S2: that even mean? That before you were even a glimmer
S2: in your father's eye, God had chosen you. That God
S2: chose you before your family name even existed. Before your
S2: grandfather or great grandfather, or great great grandfather, or great
S2: great great grandfather before your Aztec ancestor, or your Viking
S2: ancestor from Europe was even around. God had already chosen you.
S2: Before there was a world before Adam and Eve, before
S2: light was separated from darkness. God, in his foreknowledge, already
S2: knew that you would exist. God, in his foreknowledge, already
S2: knew your name. God, in his foreknowledge, already knew what
S2: you would look like. God knew how you would be.
S2: And God chose you before. Way before there was even
S2: a you to be chosen. Because God had a destiny
S2: and a purpose when he chose you, even before you existed. Wow. Now,
S2: I know some people say in their testimony, they'll say,
S2: I found God, and I know what you mean by that,
S2: but can I tell you? Bad expression. First of all,
S2: God was never lost. And you didn't find God before
S2: you ever thought of finding God, he had already chosen you.
S2: Way before. Before you ever decided to follow him. He
S2: had chosen you and knew you would follow him way before. Oh,
S2: I know that'll mess with your mind a little bit. Oh,
S2: I know that's hard to think about. But it speaks
S2: to our destiny. And it says. And he chose us
S2: before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless.
S2: He chose us to be separated unto himself and to
S2: live a certain kind of life before we were ever born.
S2: He had a purpose and a plan for our life.
S2: And if that doesn't really stir you up, think about this,
S2: he says. And in love he predestined us to be
S2: adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with
S2: his pleasure and his will. In love he predestined. To
S2: Predestine means that not only did he choose you, but
S2: he predestined you in advance to live and walk for
S2: him even when you didn't know him. You say, well, pastor,
S2: I don't understand how God could do that. Well, let
S2: me explain it this way. And the church is divided
S2: at times by two thoughts. One is in those of
S2: you that have been around the church, church at large,
S2: what I'm talking about understand one is what's called Calvinism.
S2: Have you heard of Calvinism? And one and the other
S2: is what's called Arminianism. Calvinism emphasizes the sovereignty. And the
S2: grace of God. Arminianism emphasizes the choice of man. And
S2: there's been a debate down the last 500 years. Is
S2: it more that we are choice to follow God, or
S2: is it more God's choice to choose us and cause
S2: us to follow him. And there's been entire denominations that
S2: have risen out of those that believe. It's more the
S2: choice of man and other denominations that believe that. More,
S2: it's the choice of God. I believe that it's both.
S2: God is all sovereign, and he chooses his in advance
S2: before we choose him. He chooses us. But I believe
S2: that doesn't relieve us from the responsibility of choosing him
S2: as well. Let me give you a crude illustration of this.
S2: Let's just suppose that I knew the future. That I
S2: had a clear insight into the future. I would know
S2: who is going to win the Super Bowl this year.
S2: I would know if I had that. And here's the thing.
S2: If I knew who was winning the Super Bowl, then
S2: I would choose the winning team always, right? Because I
S2: know if I was into horse racing, I would know
S2: what horse, the name of the horse that would win
S2: the race, and I would choose the horse in advance.
S2: That would win the race, because I know already who's
S2: going to win that race, right? Because I'd have foreknowledge. Now,
S2: even if I did know who was going to win
S2: the Super Bowl, when that team wins the Super Bowl,
S2: it doesn't relieve them from the responsibility of hard work
S2: and the training that they have to have to win.
S2: They still have to work hard. They still have to
S2: do it. Just because I know and choose them in
S2: advance doesn't relieve them from the responsibility of working hard
S2: to win. Are we clear on that? God has chosen
S2: you in advance, and God knows that you'll be a
S2: son and daughter of his in advance, but it doesn't
S2: relieve you from the responsibility of responding to the voice
S2: of God and the call of God when he calls
S2: you unto salvation. The Bible says that he desires that
S2: all men would be saved, and to come to the
S2: knowledge of the truth. But not all men will be
S2: saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. But
S2: God already knows the fact that you're here, and following
S2: Jesus does not surprise God. He knew already when he
S2: connected you to a believer that would invite you to
S2: hear the gospel already. Oh, God's been working on you
S2: way before you were aware that he was working on you. Oh,
S2: you thought someone invited you and you heard the gospel
S2: and a friend, and you thought it just happened in
S2: the last few months. No, no no, no. God's been
S2: working all your life to set you up for his purposes.
S2: All your life, he's been involved in working. Oh, you've
S2: resisted him at times. Oh, you've fought him at times. Oh,
S2: you've pushed away from his plans. But God has been
S2: involved in bringing you to the place that you would
S2: respond to him all of your life. God has been
S2: involved way in advance. And then it says, listen, he's
S2: predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ
S2: in accordance with the pleasure of his goodwill. Not just
S2: chosen us, but adopted us. Listen, when you're adopted, you're
S2: given all the full rights of sonship. All the inheritance
S2: of a son or a daughter has been given to you.
S2: He sealed you with his name. He said, you are mine.
S2: I'm not ashamed of you. All that is mine is yours.
S2: All my inheritance is yours. That's what God has done
S2: for us. He's chosen us before the foundation of the
S2: world to be adopted into his sonship. And then it
S2: goes on to say, look at what it tells us
S2: in the next verse. Listen, it says in him you
S2: have redemption through his blood. The fourth point is you
S2: are redeemed. That speaks to your transformation. Listen to me well.
S2: To be redeemed means that he's bought you with a price.
S2: He's removed a debt from you, and he's released you
S2: to walk in freedom. When God redeemed you, it means
S2: that when God redeemed you, that God paid a price
S2: for you. God bought you. Bought, bought us from whom?
S2: He bought you from the slavery of sin. He bought
S2: you with the blood of Jesus Christ. It was the
S2: blood of His Son that he paid for your ransom,
S2: and he bought you. And with that same blood he
S2: washed you and cleansed you. And now he sets you
S2: free to live fully for him. That's what redemption means.
S2: It says. And he redeemed us through his blood, the
S2: forgiveness of sins, according to the richness of God's grace
S2: that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
S1: You're listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. A message
S1: he's titled Take Your Place. While we're pausing today's program
S1: right now to remind you that it's not too late
S1: to download the Bold Steps app. You can hear Mark's
S1: bold and engaging teaching anywhere you go, and utilize a
S1: wide array of Bible study resources and new content from Mark.
S1: When you download this app to your favorite smart device.
S1: All the instructions for setting up the app can be
S1: found on bold steps. Well, Mark, we have listeners all
S1: over the country listening in a variety of ways, and
S1: I see you have a comment from Arizona.
S2: Yes. This is Brenda who says, thank you truly for
S2: being bold in your preaching and walk with the Lord.
S2: I listen every evening in surprise, Arizona. Brenda, thank you
S2: for that word of encouragement. Surprise! Arizona sounds like a
S2: great place to visit. I've never been there.
S1: Surprise. All right, here's one from California. Thank you for
S1: your messages. I listen on my way to work at
S1: 4 a.m.. I get so much out of them. Thank
S1: you for making the Bible so understandable and relatable. God
S1: bless you and your ministry. That comes from a K
S1: wave listener in Santa Ana, California.
S2: Yeah, big shout out to K Wave in California. We
S2: love getting messages and emails and words from people that
S2: are listening in California. And yes, we do air twice,
S2: one at 4 a.m. in the morning and I always
S2: wonder who's listening.
S1: But there are.
S2: A lot of people that get up for work at that.
S1: Time, and then again in the evening on K wave. Well,
S1: it's so encouraging to hear from our listeners, but have
S1: we heard from you? You can reach us through our website,
S1: Bold Steps. Org or check us out on Facebook or
S1: Instagram as well. Bold steps radio. All right, end the pause.
S1: Let's get back into today's message with Mark.
S2: Listen, God did not only choose you, but he cleans
S2: you up and loved you enough when he chose you. Listen,
S2: you weren't a sinner that chose God. God looked at
S2: you in your sin and chose to love you and
S2: clean you. When you hated God, he still loved you.
S2: When you sinned against God, he still reached out to
S2: you when you were full of hatred and bitterness in
S2: our sin. God still loved and reached out to us
S2: the grace of God. And then lastly it says, And
S2: he made you, and he made known to us the
S2: mystery of his will according to the good pleasure which
S2: he purposed in Christ to be put into effect, when
S2: the times will have reached their fulfillment to bring all
S2: things in heaven and earth together under one head, even Christ. Listen,
S2: he has made known to us the mystery of his will.
S2: For thousands of years before Jesus Christ came, people knew
S2: that God had a plan, but they did not know
S2: what we know today about the plan of God to
S2: change us and save us. In the Old Testament, they
S2: slaughtered lambs and took their blood and sprinkled it at
S2: the altar. They did not know that this was symbolic
S2: of the Lamb of God. That would be that would
S2: shed his blood on a cross. They didn't know it.
S2: When the people of Israel were slaves in Egypt for
S2: 400 years, 400 And God chose to set them free
S2: out of slavery, he brought Moses, and he sent plagues
S2: against the Egyptians. And the final plague was that the
S2: angel of death would go throughout the camp of Israel,
S2: and the Egyptians, and the firstborn of every family would
S2: be slaughtered, except if they took a lamb the night before.
S2: A lamb with no spot or wrinkle. And if they
S2: killed the lamb and took the blood of the lamb,
S2: and they put it on the doorpost of their house,
S2: then when the angel of death came, the angel of
S2: death would pass over their house, and the firstborn would
S2: not die. What was that all about? That was just
S2: symbolic of Jesus hundreds of years before Jesus came. It
S2: was saying, there's a day that will come when a
S2: lamb would be slaughtered. The wrath of God still falls
S2: upon those that don't know him. But if you're able
S2: to take the blood of Jesus Christ and sprinkle it
S2: upon your life, then the wrath of God when it
S2: comes to your house, the wrath of God will see
S2: not your sin, but will see the blood of Jesus
S2: Christ and will pass over your life, so judgment will
S2: not come upon you. When Jesus sat with his disciples
S2: to partake of communion, he took the bread and he
S2: took the cup. He was celebrating the Passover. And he
S2: said to them, this is my blood, and this is
S2: my body that's given for you. Hundreds of years before,
S2: people did not even understand and know what they were doing,
S2: but it was all pointing. It was a mystery. It
S2: was pointing to Jesus and the sacrifice of Jesus. It
S2: was the mystery that's been revealed to us. You know
S2: what Abraham did not know. You know what Moses did
S2: not comprehend. You know what Jacob did not even fully understand.
S2: You know what Adam and Eve could even just dream about?
S2: You know what, Noah only understood vaguely. We know now
S2: what they only had a shadow of before because it's
S2: been revealed to us. We've seen it. We have more
S2: understanding than what they had. Listen to me well. I
S2: want you to hear me really well. That means that today,
S2: a prostitute from the streets of Chicago that's lived 35
S2: years in prostitution could walk into this place, having been
S2: a junkie and prostitute, having sold her body full of resentment,
S2: having all her kids taken away by by by DCFS,
S2: having the lines in her in her arm to indicate
S2: where she has been. She could walk into a meeting
S2: like this today. Like this today. And she could hear
S2: the message of Jesus Christ. The message of hope that changes,
S2: delivers and cleanses. And she could respond to that message
S2: in brokenness of heart. Raise her arms up to God
S2: and say, God, I have sinned against you. I've sinned
S2: against your holiness. Today I need forgiveness. I need the
S2: blood of Jesus to come and wash me. I receive
S2: him as my Lord and Savior. Listen to me well.
S2: She could come in after years and years and years,
S2: after years and years and years, and she could experience
S2: the forgiveness and the washing of the blood of Jesus.
S2: And if the wrath of God came upon her, God
S2: would no longer see her sins or her background. He
S2: would see only the blood of Jesus Christ that makes
S2: her a woman of dignity, value, and beauty and purity
S2: before God Almighty. And if that former prostitute were to
S2: walk out of these doors, having lived 35 years that
S2: way and only lived an hour in her new saved position,
S2: and she were to go to Archer Avenue and be
S2: struck by a bus and die that day, after 35
S2: years of a prostitute and only one hour of knowing Christ,
S2: I would not have a doubt in my mind where
S2: she would go. She would go directly to the presence
S2: of Jesus Christ. She would go directly to the presence
S2: of God. Why? Because her salvation is not based on
S2: what she has done or not done. Her salvation is
S2: based on what Christ has done for her, washed her,
S2: and cleansed her. That's why I love the gospel of Jesus.
S2: That's why I love the message that he brought, the
S2: good news that there is hope for all. That's why
S2: it's about him and not about you. That's why it's
S2: about grace and not about works. That's why it's about
S2: hope and not about condemnation. That's what it's about. Relationship
S2: and not religion. That's why it's about Jesus and not
S2: about you. That's the gospel. The gospel of hope. Some
S2: of you are hearing the gospel presented maybe for the
S2: first time, or maybe you've heard it, but you've never
S2: taken a step yourself. Practically every Sunday I have the
S2: opportunity of sharing the gospel with people. And this past Sunday,
S2: I prayed with a young man who came forward with
S2: tears in his eyes, living with his girlfriend for several years,
S2: three children. But he finally understood the gospel and he said,
S2: I want to give my life to Christ and soon
S2: get baptized.
S1: And so yeah.
S2: Yeah, beautiful thing to see other people coming to Christ
S2: for the first time. And so if you're listening to
S2: this message and you say, pastor Mark, I have never
S2: made a commitment to follow Christ. I've been around the church,
S2: or I feel like God has been drawing me and
S2: pulling at me. I've seen signs. I've I've maybe had
S2: dreams or had people speak to me, but I know
S2: I need to make that decision. Then if you're ready
S2: for that, I would like to pray with you right now,
S2: wherever you're at. And so if you're ready to give
S2: your life to Christ, then I'd like for you to pause.
S2: And I'd like you to pray with me. It's not
S2: about the magic of a prayer. It's about the decision to,
S2: in faith, surrender your life to Jesus. It's about a decision.
S2: Pray with me. Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner.
S2: I know that you've been drawing me, calling me, reaching
S2: out to me. I'm tired of running. So today I stop.
S2: And I finally surrender my life to you. I turn away,
S2: repent from how I've been living. And today I say
S2: that Jesus. Only you can save me. Come wash me,
S2: cleanse me. Today I choose to follow you in Jesus name. Hey,
S2: if you've made that decision and are serious about moving
S2: forward in your walk with God, I'm going to encourage
S2: you to do two things one. Jump on our website
S2: at Bold Steps radio.org and click on my next steps
S2: because I explain it a little bit more and give
S2: you some material to get started. And I want to
S2: challenge you. If you're not a part of a Bible
S2: believing local church, find a church. Start attending. Get involved.
S2: Get in a Bible study. Tell the pastor someone in
S2: the church, hey, I just gave my life to Jesus.
S2: I need to grow.
S1: It's vitally important to act on the step you just
S1: took and that decision you just made.
S2: Yeah, you're just a baby, Christian, but you need to
S2: plug in with other believers so that you can grow
S2: in God. God bless you.
S1: Alright. Thank you Mark. And if you'd like to share
S1: Mark's message of salvation with a friend who might need
S1: to hear it, head over to our website at npr.org.
S1: Click the connect tab and go to the My Next
S1: Step in Faith button. There you'll find a specially prepared
S1: video from Mark, and we'd love for you to share
S1: this message of salvation with someone today. This daily program
S1: and the resources we offer are made available in part
S1: because of the generous partnership with listeners. We're grateful for
S1: our bold partners, those who give a financial gift each month.
S1: And if you'd like to join with us in this endeavor,
S1: we'd love to partner with you. You can become a
S1: bold partner today by signing up online at Bold Steps.
S1: Or by calling us at 800 835 six A6600 39.
S1: You can also send a one time gift in the
S1: mail by addressing your envelope to bold steps. 820 North
S1: LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. When you write to us,
S1: be sure to ask for our current bold step gift.
S1: Last month, we offered the book titled Lies Girls Believe
S1: to help young women in your Life. Now we're excited
S1: to present the companion resource Lies Boys Believe. Designed to
S1: address the unique challenges boys face, together, these powerful resources
S1: equip an entire generation to stand firm on God's truth.
S1: Unlike traditional books that may not hold a boy's attention,
S1: Lies Boys Believe is specifically designed with young men in
S1: Mind is filled with engaging illustrations and some fun puzzles,
S1: interactive challenges and graphic elements that appeal to boys visual
S1: learning style. And it makes discovering truth and adventure rather
S1: than a chore. This thoughtfully crafted, bold step gift will
S1: keep boys engaged while imparting life changing biblical wisdom. Today,
S1: we'd love to send you a copy when you give
S1: a gift to support this ministry. Just go to Bold
S1: Steps org or call 800. And that's all the time
S1: we have today. I'm Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join
S1: us again tomorrow. When Mark explains what it means to
S1: be a true and authentic follower of Christ. It's a
S1: message titled, what you know will Change You. And you
S1: can hear Thursday here on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe.
S1: Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry
S1: of Moody Bible Institute.