I am CHOSEN for a Purpose - Louie Giglio

0:28 Not the old me, with all of the patterns and the processes and the problems and the issues and the highs and the lows, the wins and the losses, and the things that people said about me, the labels the world tried to stick on me, the labels that maybe I tried to stick on myself. No, that's not who I am. That's no longer me. I am alive in Christ, joined to Christ, and I have a new identity in Christ. So we're talking about the labels that God puts on our lives. And last week, we looked at the label, able. And I love just the juxtaposition of that word. If you take the L off label, you get able. It's spelled wrong. I know. I was corrected in that last week, but that's not the point is the spelling. It sounds like able, label, able. Take the L off label and you get able.

1:30 I had to fix it at the 1145, but I really didn't want to. because it still works. The label that God wants to put on your life is able. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. And this identity we looked at last week, just recapping a bit, is because of our position, not because of our performance. In other words, I'm not able because I've always done everything right. I'm able because I'm in Christ. And so I'm living out of my position. That's how I then perform.

2:24 I'm not able because I performed a certain way. And that's going to be true of every label that we talk about. And the goal is to live out our new position in Christ, to take the positional reality and live it out in our daily lives. We've talked about this before, but it's like when you see an athlete traded from one team to the other. I think enough time has passed by that we can talk about Freddie going away from Atlanta, very loved in this city. and we can talk about Matt Olson coming to Atlanta, also very loved in this city. I was hoping for an amen or something, some applause or something, somebody's going to send this to Matt Olson. He's going to go, well, I don't know. It seems like people kind of, I don't know, it's very quiet when he said I was loved in the city. These are the division champion Atlanta Braves.

3:21 and when Matt Olson got I don't know how it went down the phone call the text from his agent I'm assuming to say the Atlanta Braves have just selected you and you're no longer an Oakland A. Praise God. You are an Atlanta Brave.

3:52 Done. Done. Decision made. Reality established. And in an instant, Matt Olson's sports identity changed. And out of the positional change that happened, came actual steps of change that happened. At some point, he got in a car, an Uber, his family member, went to an airport, got on a plane, flew to Atlanta, went to the stadium, walked into the locker room, walked to his locker, sat down in the locker that had his name on it, put on the jersey that was hanging there that had Olson stitched on the back and Brave stitched on the front.

4:50 Why did he do all that? Because he was an Atlanta Brave. If he'd done that the week before, that would have been the weirdest thing of all things. A, it would have been weird when he walked in there. B, there would have been nowhere for him to sit and no jersey for him to put on. But now his position has changed. and so everything about him now changes as he lives that out and that's the goal of God wanting us to understand who we are in Christ. He said in Ephesians 4 and I'm just recapping a little bit and then we'll jump into the label for today but I want everybody to be on board with where we are. He says in Ephesians chapter 4 that however is not the way of life you learned. When you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught with regard to your former way of life, your Oakland A's way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, and to be made new in the attitude of your minds. And that's what we're doing right now. We're renewing our minds today to what is true. And when you do that, the fruit of that is to put on the new self, the brave self.

6:23 created to be like God in righteousness and holiness, in true righteousness and holiness. And that's the picture today. So we're coming to our new label, but the idea is that this old me, anybody know the old you? Show of hands, anybody know the old you? that, you know, not great necessarily?

6:57 Anybody alive back in this era? wore the wrong outfit today. I got a hoodie thing now. I got to figure that out. You know, and you're like, hey man, I love God. You're like, well, you look weird. We having a good time? Doesn't look like it. Why? Because I'm trying to wear the old me around. and this is no longer who I am and what Paul is saying is I want you to put off the old self. In other words, take that off. That's not you anymore and you do that by renewing your thinking and when you renew your thinking, it allows you to put on the new self, which is created to be like God.

7:58 And he's saying, put on who God has made you to be. I might just preach in this for the rest of the talk today. And he said, it looks good. Thank you. I was hoping for that.

8:22 So the question, before we let God speak to us, is do you know who you are? Do you know who you are? Is that who you are? or is this who you are? Are you the label that's been on your life for decades?

8:46 Or are you who God says you are? And today he's speaking something really powerful over all of us. And he is, and Christ made a new label for you and me, shall we say? And please put your glasses on. Don't make me have to say it again. Don't you love the dynamo? I'm not talking because I need to concentrate. People are nervous. No one's ever prayed for the pastor more. God wants you to know today, not only are you able, but he wants you to know today that you are chosen.

9:59 You're chosen. You are not incidental. You're not a pauper. You are not abandoned. You're not left behind or forgotten. You are not overlooked. You are not worthless. You're like, oh, but you don't know my story. Those things are in my story. Great. Take off the old story. and put on a new story because the new story and the real story and the eternal story for every person who is in Christ is that they are chosen by God. and that becomes the doorway to a pathway to a lifetime of purpose because I've been chosen by God.

11:02 We're in Ephesians 4 in this text, but if you back up to Ephesians 1, you see how this unfolds. This is all about who you are in Christ. Paul, an apostle of Christ, Jesus by the will of God to the holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus. And then he greets them, grace and peace to you from God, our father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing. And where are the blessings? Say it with me? In Christ. For he, here we go, chose us in him, there's the position again, before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. Let's keep reading. We'll see some of the other labels probably for another day. In love, he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ in accordance with his pleasure and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us where in the one he loves in him. See how this is all positional.

12:32 We have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed. Where do you purpose all of his good pleasure? In Christ. To be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment. To bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him, positional, question is looming today. Are you in Christ? We were also, say it with me, chosen. Now your translation may have a different expression there. We'll talk about that in just a moment.

13:28 Having been, uh-oh, second time we've seen this word, predestined, whoo, look out, according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. He wants you to know today that in Christ, when you joined your life to him, you were chosen by God. Now, this is important that we understand this, this Greek word in verse four, for he chose us. The word means you're not going to believe this to choose. In other words, God picked you.

14:27 God said, I want you. God said, I choose you. I want to be with you and I want you to be with me. I want you to move from the back row up here to the front row with me. I do not want you to live without me. On the contrary, I want you to live with me.

14:54 I choose you. I want you. I desire you. I pick you. I'm looking at you. And when did he choose you? Hello? When did he choose us? He chose us in Christ before the creation of the world.

15:20 In other words, he didn't wait to go, hmm, let's see how they work out. Because this is a big step. You know, once we make this decision, we're stuck with him in heaven for eternity. so let's see how it all plays out before we make a big decision like that no he chose you before there was a world or a human race he saw you his ways are not like our ways, and his thoughts are not like our thoughts. His ways are higher than our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, and they're beyond searching out. How could a God see you before there was a human race for you to be born into?

16:19 And when he saw you, He chose you. He chose us. His bride, his body, his church, his people. He chose us before the creation of the world. He's underscoring today that we're chosen by grace, not by our performance. we're picked by God because of the desire of his heart. Now this word predestined, which has appeared twice here, and is the banner over this section of scripture and over scripture, is a tricky word for people in the church. So what do we understand and what are we to make of this today? Are we to understand that God just sort of, you know, oh, I don't know, not you and you.

17:17 Choose you, but don't choose you. And that's settled. That's done. You don't have any say in the matter. Or is it that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved? Or is it that, well, no, we've already decided who we're going to choose and who we're not going to choose. That's predetermined by God before there was a world. or is it that you can hear the gospel, respond to the gospel, repent to God, invite him to give you eternal life, and he will, even if you're the thief on the cross in your very last breaths. He'll do it. How do we match these things together? Well, it would be fantastic if in the next 20 minutes I were to solve that for us all. that would be a banner day in the history of the church what do we make of this though and how do we respond to the question that emerges that's personal and pertinent in this how if God predetermined all this how do I know that I'm chosen how do I know how does someone know do you know how you know that you're chosen by accepting the love of God repenting and putting your trust in the finished work of Jesus that's how you know that you are chosen by God before the foundation of the world you accept the love of God you repent of your sins you put your full trust in the finished work of Jesus and that's how you know that before the world God chose you in Christ so the question again today is have you come to that place to say I know that I'm in Christ

19:25 not simply that I'm in church or in the building or in a denomination or in a small group or a Bible study or in a religion but I'm in Christ I have joined my life to Christ by faith and in that moment that's how I know that I am saved and it's how I know that I am chosen and loved by God. And we're chosen for a reason. I think this is the main thing that God wants you to understand about this label. Not only does it mean that you're significant to God, that you matter to God, but it means now you have purpose in life. We're not free agents floating around and you know, inviting God into a particular area of our existence. But we understand now that God chose us in the same way going back, and the illustrations kind of break down at some point, but going back to Matt Olson, the best first baseman in baseball, by the way, you go back, thank you, you go back to Matt Olson. Matt Olson, when he understood that he had been chosen by the braves. He also then understood that he had purpose in his life.

20:50 the purpose isn't just to walk around with the jersey on. The purpose is to show up. and give fully everything that I have to the task of making this team the greatest team that we can be. And that's what God is wanting you to see today, two sides of chosen. The first side is, I'm a person of great worth to God, and I'm gonna live like it. I'm gonna put that on. I am gonna take off nobody, and I'm gonna put on somebody. I'm going to take off not wanted, and I'm going to put on chosen by God. I'm going to take off insignificant. Nobody even notices or sees, and I'm going to put on, wow, in the bullseye of heaven.

21:49 In his grace, God chose me, and he chose us, chose this body, chose this family. and I'm going to take off living life without purpose or trying to find a purpose that will trump all this negativity that was in my story and I'm going to put on, wow, God included me. God, what do you want me to do? How can I make this team the greatest team it can be? How can I make this body the greatest body that it can be? How can I make the church the greatest church that it can be? Because I know I was chosen for a reason. I'm not a free agent just floating around. Hey, I've got the jersey. I've got the goods, man. I know I'm going to heaven.

22:41 I know I've got Jesus. That's great. Now, I'm just going to go on my way and do my thing and weave my own story and find my own glory. No, I'm chosen for a reason. and when I knew that I was chosen, I understood that I have a purpose. Jesus said it like this. He's talking in John 15 to his followers, and he says, you did not choose me, but I chose you,

23:14 and here comes the next point, because we want to put a period right there and say, fantastic. Again, grace. Again, Jesus is foreshadowing the cross. He's helping us to peek behind the sovereign will of God, the predetermined plans of God, the fact that things just don't happen by accident, but God is in fact in charge and in control of history, but also of your history. that's great, I love it, I didn't choose Jesus, Jesus chose me, but it's interesting that that's only half of the idea, I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit, fruit that will last. And so that whatever you ask in my name, the Father will give you. I chose you for a purpose, and the purpose is that you bear fruit in the kingdom of God. So the questions are just coming left and right today. Are you in Christ? That's the most important question about your life. I urge you, I implore you as your pastor today, settle that question. It's the most important question in your life. Are you in Christ?

24:50 Because if you're in Christ, if you're in Christ, you know the truth about you. But if you're not in Christ, you know what's not true about you. I'm not able. You're like, oh no, I'm very able. I'm a very able person to do whatever I decide I'm going to do. I'm a self-made man, self-made woman, and I do things and make things happen, Louis. I'm able. You're not able to have a relationship with God. You're not able to break free from the constraints of this world and enter into everlasting life. You're not able to do that. You're not able to satisfy the demands of a righteous, holy God. You need a savior to do that. You need an intermediary to do that. You need a perfect man to come and give his life for you to do that.

25:45 You say, well, I run my own business, or I've been on the cover of a magazine, or I've got a lot of attention on my life. Some people say that I kind of am chosen. I mean, they've always said about me, even when I was in elementary school, they said, man, this kid is something on this kid. That was me. High school, I was it.

26:10 Coming out of law school, I was the one. All the moms in the neighborhood, they all look at me like, man, I don't know what you got going to your house, but you are crushing it. It's just always been that way. I kind of like, you know, some people think I'm chosen. Well, you may be the best at what you're doing right now. but all the things that you're doing right now are going to fade. And the lights are going to go out one day. you're not going to bear fruit that will last. but in Christ, you get a purpose. And when you put on the new man by renewing the attitude of your mind in the truth of what God says is reality now for you in your new position in Christ, when you put that on and you walk that out, when you think like that and act like that and move like that and say, wait a minute, that's the old me and that's no longer me.

27:19 Who's the new me again? Great, that's the way I want to respond. That's the way I want to think. That's the way I want to act, flow, move, give. That's the way I want to see things and interpret things is in this new me. And in that moment, I'm living out that I'm chosen by God, but I'm chosen for a reason. And the reason he chose me is to bear fruit in his body, not to be a free agent on my own, but to see myself as a part of this glorious family and to do everything I can to make this family the greatest family it can be, to make this team the greatest team it can be, to make this church the greatest church it can be. You need to start asking, God, what do you want me to do?

28:12 How do you want me to serve? Where do you want me to step in? What things do you want me to carry? What do you want me to be generous towards? I just want the church to be the strongest church it can be. Because we're chosen. I'm chosen. The second thing about this purpose is not just to bear fruit, but specifically as well, Jesus says, we're chosen for something else. Paul, on his way to persecute followers of Jesus, has a revelation of Jesus and is blinded. He ends up going to this place where he's recovering from being blind and a man is called by God to go to him and to lay hands on him and to pray for him. And the guy says, no way, this guy kills people who follow you, so I'm not going. But the Lord said to Ananias, this is Acts 9, go.

29:08 I'm telling you to go. Telling you where he is, what house he's in, what street he's on. I want you to go. I want you to lay hands on him. I want you to be my instrument in this story. And Ananias, it's like, I don't know. And then I love how even in Acts, not the gospels, it's Jesus talking. This is my chosen instrument. Paul, this guy, he's my chosen instrument. You're always going to see these things connected in scripture. He's chosen to be an instrument, chosen to bear fruit, chosen for a purpose, chosen for a reason. That's even true of Jesus. When you go back into the Old Testament and you start seeing the prophecies of Jesus where God says, he's my chosen one, you see that right in the flow is he's my chosen one or my anointed one to bring redemption to my people. Always chosen purpose connected. So he is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name.

30:16 To the Gentiles, I hadn't even thought about them yet, the Jews are just focused on the story being among them. And then God's saying, no, the story's for everybody. And to Kings, he's going to be able to share the name of Jesus to the most important people on the planet, and he's also going to be amazing at sharing my name with the people of Israel. He is my chosen instrument to carry my name. So what is God saying to you today? He's saying to us today, do you see how valuable you are, how wanted you are, how prized you are? Are you seeing that God's not against you, he's for you?

31:03 Are you seeing that you're not a burden to God, but you were wanted by God? Are you seeing that you didn't barely make it in by the skin of your teeth, but that before there was a world, God said, you, you, choosing you. I need someone today to go, I will never. talk myself down a day in my life. Satan, you need to find somebody else because that's no longer me. Yeah, but remember they left you behind. I know they did, but he chose me before they even left me behind.

31:55 He had already chosen me in Christ. now don't you think this is all for you today because nobody cares about you I mean you've got the wrong me you've got the wrong person you need to go find somebody who doesn't know who they are in Christ you need to go stick that label on somebody else I will never a day in my life talk myself down Thank you. and act like I'm at the bottom, barely looking up into hope. I am chosen by God. And I know why. Because he needs me. You're like, you know, God doesn't need anything. He needed Paul.

32:50 He needed that guy. appeared to him, knocked him to the ground, took his sight, woke him back up, sent a guy to the house where he was to put their hands on his head to restore his eyesight, to let him understand that he too is the son of God in Christ, chosen by God to be an instrument to proclaim the name. if we could just all get this if we could embrace this I'm chosen, I'm not forsaken but I'm chosen for a reason I've got a purpose, I've got a mission and it is to tell the world his name is Jesus his name is Jesus his name, the name is Jesus it's not that or that or them or those it's Jesus and if you're looking for life and freedom and love and grace and hope and power if you're looking for a reason and a purpose his name is Jesus if you're looking for the healer if you're looking for the one who mends if you're looking for the one whose arm is not too short to save you're looking for Jesus and maybe your mission wasn't the Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. Maybe your mission was state farm insurance.

34:27 Give me my name. or do good. Be the best person they've ever hired. Be the best hire they've ever made. Treat your co-workers, clients.