God created all things for His pleasure, as stated in Revelation 4:11, and this purpose remains central to His plan. The sermon explains that humanity, created in God's image, was meant to reflect Him and bring Him pleasure, but fell into an ungodly state through sin. Redemption through Christ restores this ability, enabling believers to live in a way that pleases God and manifests Him to the world. This transformation is accomplished by the indwelling Holy Spirit, who allows believers to cry "Abba, Father" and live as adopted sons, fulfilling God's original purpose.
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Revelation chapter four verse eleven where we read thou art worthy O Lord to receive glory and honor and power for thou hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created Revelation chapter four verse eleven this is a very interesting text Because in this passage, Revelation four, and again in Revelation chapter five, they are worship chapters. We find the universe worshiping.
In chapter four, it is a worship that is directed to God because he is the creator, the creator of all things. Creation worships God. We find why God created. In chapter four, verse eleven, thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. In chapter five, we have worship because of redemption. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive power and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing for thou hast redeemed us. We have creation and redemption.
For these two purposes we worship God. And in the great worship chapters of the Bible we always find God worshiped as Creator and then he's worshiped as Redeemer. The person who doesn't learn to worship as God as Creator has no real appreciation for him as Redeemer. In Hebrews chapter one that great worship chapter of the Bible we read that he created all things by the word of his power. And when he had by himself purged our sin, creating all things by the word of his power, that's creation. When he had by himself purged our sins, sat down in the right hand of the throne of God.
That is redemption. So creation and redemption are the foundation for worship. Now we turn to the book of Galatians chapter four. Galatians chapter four, in that very familiar passage, verse four. But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under law, to redeem them that were under law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because your son, God has sent forth the spirit of his son into your heart, Crying, Abba, Father.
Let's pray together. Our Father, we thank you that wherever we look, we see the revelation of thyself, for you have put your stamp on creation. You have created all things. And you have created all things for your pleasure, for thy pleasure. They are and were created, and thou art worthy, therefore, to receive glory because of it. And we thank you, our Father, for redemption. For redemption completes man's wicked way of dishonoring you and not honoring you in creation.
And we pray, O God, that thou would open our understanding in order that we may indeed rejoice in being saved by grace and knowing thee, the God who made all things, and thy dear Son, who redeemed us to his precious blood. We thank you, and we ask you to open our hearts and our minds for Jesus' sake. Amen. Why did God create? Why did God create the universe? Well, the word of God tells us in Revelation four, verse eleven, for thy pleasure they are and were created.
Therefore, we can draw a conclusion that the gospel, friends, that saves a person for all eternity must fit into that pattern of being that which in the final analysis and first cause pleases God. We must keep this before us. God created us for his pleasure. And you'll notice that behind you. He created us. Therefore the gospel, this good news that we proclaim week after week, this gospel that saves a person for all eternity must in the final analysis and first cause be that which pleases God.
And there's one thing that pleases God. It is holiness. God says, I am, the Lord, am holy. Be ye holy in all manner of life. Now, in the creation of man, we see that which pleases God. For God in creation, Genesis chapter one, in verse twenty-six and twenty-seven, God said, let us make man in our image after our likeness. Now, here, God made man in the image of God. Then man was God-like. That's what he was as he came from the hand of the Creator. He was God-like. I'm going to move this up so that those in the back can, you can easily see it now.
Man pleases God when he so functions in his relationship to God that he actually implements God's purpose in creation. And oh, how we need this today. How this needs to be emphasized in our minds and in our lives. Is my life that which implements the purpose of God in creation? Am I as a creature bringing pleasure to God? For thy pleasure all things are and were created. But you see, there's a problem took place after creation.
And the problem is real. Man, however, believed the lie of Satan, the devil. And Satan has multitudes of lies today. Man believed the lie of Satan, the devil. The devil came to Mother Eve and said to her, Why, that's fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In the day that you eat the rub, you'll be like God. That was a lie. They already were. They already were like God. If God made man in his image, then man was like God. But when they partook of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, desiring to be God-like, which he already was, he became ungodlike.
Therefore, he became ungodly. That's the problem of man. Man, instead of implementing creation, for thy pleasure they are and were created, man, instead of being godlike, is rather ungodly. That is a problem of man. But more than that, man does not have in and of himself that which it takes to be godlike. Friends, it takes God and a person to make a person godlike. And man doesn't have it to do. Man is unable to make himself God-like.
It takes God in a man to make him God-like. And it takes Christ in a person to put God back into that person. A person who lives without Christ. That's why we read in Galatians for when the fullness of the time has come. God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under law, to redeem them that were under law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. It takes Christ and a man to put God back into that man in order that that man or that woman, that boy, that girl, might bring God pleasure. Thou art worthy, O Lord, for thy pleasure all things are and were created.
Now notice three. It is only when a person is born of God. That man's humanity becomes the vehicle of God's deity. You know, we sing Christmas carols and I love to sing them and I love to hear the boys and girls sing them. And I love all this. But God is known in the world to a human being. We, by being born of God, bring pleasure to God, but we also become the vehicle whereby God is manifested to the world. He's manifested to the world through our bodies.
And that was a prime purpose of creation. Why did God create? God created in order that we might bring pleasure to him. That's why he created. And man only brings pleasure to God. As he is born of God, for it takes Christ in a man to put God back into the man. And until that happens, man cannot bring pleasure to God, and he cannot be a vehicle to manifest God to the world. You see, four, it's the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to cry Abba Father.
It is the Holy Spirit that has brought to us the adoption of sons, Galatians chapter four, verses five and six, in order that we can cry Abba Father. It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that puts God back into a man in order that he might be God of it. Now I've tried to illustrate this as best I could. And here we have man, as he is, a natural man. Man is created by God. First Thessalonians chapter five tells us that man is spirit. First Thessalonians five twenty three, soul and body.
Our body is that which communicates with the world. When somebody says to me, do you know David Lyme? Do you know what happened? Immediately a person... comes to mind. A body comes to mind with a certain face and the features of David Lyons. Why? It is with his body that he communicates with me. I cannot communicate to the world any other way but through my body. And my body is world conscious. That's the outer ring. That represents my body. But then I have a soul.
My soul is that which is self-conscious. I'm a self-conscious person, and so are you. But also, man by nature has a spirit. But the problem with a natural man, a non-Christian, the person who does not have God living within him, like Adam was after he fell, his spirit is dead. His body's alive, but his spirit is dead. It's empty. It's empty. This is a problem with a natural man. He is empty toward God. He is spiritually dead. It doesn't mean he's spiritually dying. And all he needs is a little fanning of the spark.
None of that nonsense. Man by nature is spiritually dead. Now the difference between the Christian and the non-Christian is this. Here we have the non-Christian. The difference is Romans chapter eight and verse nine. Roman J, verse nine says, Knife, any man have not the Spirit of Christ. He is none of his. And the difference between the non-Christian and the Christian is, the non-Christian is empty, the Christian. The Spirit of God has come. Quicken the human spirit of man. And man now is spiritually alive. And it's only, friends, as Christ is brought into the life that the Spirit of God has come in.
made us alive toward God, and we cannot bring pleasure to God. You see, the difference is Romans eight, nine. If any man am not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. Now you may do a lot of things that are nice, but if you do not possess the Spirit of God, you don't belong to Jesus Christ. You cannot bring pleasure to God because, as we noted Thursday night, there is a way that she must ride unto a man. but the ends thereof are the ways of death. Your way may be a nice way. But you see, the essence of sin is not murder. The essence of sin is not adultery.
The essence of sin is not fornication. It is not stealing. It is wanting your own way. All we like sheep are gone astray and we've turned everyone to his own way. And in Proverbs fourteen it says, there is a way, singular. Every one of us have our own way. Your way may be different than my way, but I want to tell you something. By nature, I want my own way. And so do you. But the Word of God says there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Your way and my way and everybody else's way leads to death.
There isn't any other way. And the difference between the Christian and the non-Christian. is Romans eight nine. God has entered in. The Holy Spirit of God indwells us. And we can say we are born of God. That's the difference. And now we can cry as the Galatians four says, Abba Father, we have received the adoption of sons. Tell me something. I don't care what you've joined. But Are you possessed by the Holy Spirit? Does the Spirit of God dwell within? That's the final analysis. If the Spirit of God dwells within, you're born of God.
We can ask a question, and asking this question can help you. What have you done this week that none of your ungodly neighbors could not have done? You claim to be a child of God, but what have you done this week that proves that it is a genuine work of the Spirit of God? If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. For you see, there's a problem. There's a real problem. And the real problem is this. Man, though ungodly, he's still a very religious person.
Second Timothy chapter three and verse five. And when you go to chapter three of Second Timothy, it says, This know also that in the last days perilous time shall come, for men shall be lovers of their own selves, all so soulish. You and I are living in a soulish society. There happens to be one commercial on TV that irritates me to no end. It is this gal that... has lived in wickedness and she is advertising something and then she adds, and I'm worth it. I deserve it.
That grates on me to no end. I'll tell you why. The poor soul doesn't realize that if she gets what she deserves, she'll only get the lake of fire. For you don't deserve anything else and neither do I. And man, though he's ungodlike, he's ungodly. He has followed the steps of Adam. He's still very religious. You see, he has the power of godlikeness. Or he doesn't have the power of godlikeness. The power of godlikeness is God. Second Timothy three, verse five says, Oh, I missed it.
Second Timothy three, five. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. He speaks of the conditions of the last days. Men shall be lovers of themselves, boasters, proud, disobedient to parents, and all those things. And the last thing he says, he has a form of godliness, but no power. Why? Why, because the power of godlikeness is God. You can never be godly apart from God, friends. And you can't be godly apart from the Holy Spirit living within. And you can't have Christ living within apart from the Holy Spirit living within.
They go together. And the power for God-likeness is God. Now, God created man to be what? God-like. That's why God created us. And that's why Christ redeemed us. Christ didn't redeem me just to take me to heaven so I escape hell. and live my own way down here. God redeem me in order that I might bring pleasure to him as a creature of his on planet Earth now, day by day. This is why God saves us, Fred. He saves us in order that we might bring pleasure to him.
Now you see, three men lost God and he ceased to be God-like And in ceasing to be God-like, he became un-God-like. He became un-God-like. But notice number four, but man still practiced what? God-likeness. He's very religious. He's very religious. And even various lodges that you join are religious. They're religious. And they claim to help you to get to God. And there's a form. There's a form of godliness, but there's no power.
There's no power. It takes Christ and a man to put God back into a man. You know why? I'd like to talk to you just a moment about Christ. Jesus Christ is a man. He lives. a life that pleased God. He could say, I do always those things that pleased the Father. God the Father could say of his Son, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And you see the Bible, while it speaks of a lot of men, it centers in and zeros in on two. Adam the first and Adam the last.
The last Adam is Christ. First Corinthians The first Adam, we're all related to by natural birth. And by natural birth, because we're related to Adam the first, we are ungodly by nature. But to the new birth, we can become related to Adam the second, the last Adam, the one who always pleased God, the one who blessed God. and who brought pleasure to God. And you see, it is this blessed person, the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it is written that Christ died for the ungodly.
Oh, is it that good news? Christ died for the ungodly, friends. Well, we might have a form of godliness, but no power. But you see, it takes God in a man, to put Christ back into a man. Or should I say it, it takes Christ in a man to put God back into a man. And the evidence of Christ in a man is the Holy Spirit in dwelling on. For if any man am not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. You see, Christ puts back into the believing sinner what it takes to be God-like. And everyone who's saved can take these things and bless God for them.
You see, man by the new birth is re-inhabited by God. That's what that diagram was all about. He's re-inhabited by God. You see, God came to possess him into his very spirit. He sent the spirit of his son into a heart crying, abba father he possesses us in our very spirit you see man by the new birth is re-inhabited by God God has come to indwell us notice Colossians one twenty seven Christ in you the hope of glory my hope of glory is Christ living within me when right now Christ in you the hope of glory.
Colossians three, verse four, Christ who is our life. When Christ who is our life shall appear, then shall we also appear with him in glory. Colossians three, ten, speaking of the believer's condition before God, he says, we are renewed in the knowledge after the image of him that created him. Oh, friends, we were created by God. Why? To bring God pleasure. And by the new birth, by Christ indwelling us, we are now renewed in the image of him who created us.
Furthermore, true man, now God the invisible, now becomes visible. The invisible God becomes visible. in us as we proclaim the gospel. Can people see Christ in you? You know, we talk about putting Christ back into Christmas. I'd like to put Christ into the lives of those who claim to be his own. Let me live to the praise of his glory. Why?
You've made me, Lord, that I might bring pleasure to you. That's why I was created, that I might bring pleasure to God, not do my own thing, but that I might bring pleasure to Him. The invisible God, no man has seen God at any time. Our Lord Jesus said, but He, the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He has revealed Him. He revealed Him to us. Then He came to take up His abode in our heart. And we can cry, Abba, Father, from the heart. And we can live Christ before men. And the only gospel that men will many times ever see is that which is made known through our lives.
Is Christ known through you? Oh, friends, this is solid biblical exposition. Not because I'm doing it. But it's the truth of the gospel. You and I therefore become the vehicle whereby God is manifested to the world. One question remains. One question. How does man appropriate God-likeness? How can I have it? So that's what I want. I want that. That's the only thing that brings pleasure to God. How can I have it? Well, notice First Peter chapter one, verses one through three.
It says, Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them who have obtained life, precious faith with us, through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, according as his divine power has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness. His divine power has given us, has given us. That's Christmas, friends. We know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for our sake he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich. Now notice, his divine power has given unto us all things.
Faith takes what grace provides. Grace provides it. Faith lays hold of it. Faith takes. You see, he's given unto us. This is what faith takes. What is he given? All things. all things so that we can say blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavens is in Christ. Faith takes, what does it take? Life and godliness or life and godlikeness. That's what Adam had before he sinned. He was made in the image of God. He brought pleasure to God.
But he became ungodlike, he became ungodly. But when faith takes what grace provides, we then have all things through the redemptive work of Christ that pertain to life and God-likeness. You want to know something? You can't have it any other way. Joining the church won't do it. Getting the Christmas spirit won't do it. Singing in the choir won't do it. Nothing will do it except simple personal faith in Jesus Christ.
Oh Lord, you provided it and I take it by faith. Let me ask you, was there ever a time in your life when you appropriated the work of Christ that's the message of Christmas really Galatians four verse four says when the fullness of the time has come when God's time is full God sent forth his son made of a woman made under law to redeem them that were under law that we might receive the adoption of sons and because your sons when you receive Christ because your son God sends forth the spirit of his son into the heart whereby we cry Abba God is it yours now I'm sorry that this is only a half a sermon I'll preach the other half tonight but look do you have the son Have
you appropriated by faith what grace has provided? I trust you have. If not, why not come to Christ today and know the reality of what grace provides? Now let's pray together. Our Father, in the name of our dear Son, we thank you that you're more interested in us than we are in ourselves. for when we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly all father we want to do that which brings pleasure to your heart you created us to bring pleasure in our ungodly state we couldn't but now that you've saved us we can and all we ask you for each one here that they may appropriate our Lord Jesus Christ and know the reality of the forgiveness of sin and the blessing of being able to cry, Abba Father, for Jesus' sake.