Welcome to today's program. The beauty of grace and I'm pastor Pete Norris of Harvard fellowship, church, Goldsboro, North Carolina. And today I want to talk to you about seeing our way clear, you know, so many times we wonder, and we question the clarity of why we're here, our existence, and why do we belong here? What's our purpose for being here. Wallace Stevens says the way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it. And I think that's a tremendous revelation. He said this the way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it. And I think that's pretty clear with most of us is we questioned the identity of what's my purpose for being here. What's my reason for being here. You know, I believe the glory of God is when man is fully alive and you say, well, pastor, what do you mean by man being fully alive? You know, a simple prayer rises from my heart. Jesus, take away the fog and the clouds and the veil and Help to help me to see, give me eyes to really see, you know, Jesus and John 10and 10 and said, the thief does not come except to steal, to kill and to destroy. But I come that you might have life and that you may have it more abundantly. Now,
A lot of people,
I believe Jesus has just come to forgive him. And there's no doubt about that. He has come to forgiveness to forgive us and forgiveness is awesome. But Jesus said that he came to give us life. He came not just to forgive us, but to us, to have life. And when I think about that life , what does that really mean? What does that really look like? What's the composure of why I'm here. And so many people ask me all the time, pastor, what am I really doing here? What's the purpose of me being here? Well, you know, we get married, we have children, we're born, we grow up, we get married, we have children and then we retire and then we die. And then what's the real purpose of all that. Well, I believe the purpose of that is we He came that we may have life, you know, in John 10, 10, the thief come to steal, kill and destroy it.
Most people believe that that's the devil that he come to steal and he come to kill and he come to destroy and he come to do all those things. But the great thing about this is that's not talking about the devil in John 10, 10, that's thought talking about false teachers and false prophets. And people saying things that don't line up with the word. And if anything has happened in the world, religion has really Rose up and is killing us. And, and, and it's the stealing from us. And it's destroying us and Jesus come to give us life and to give us life more abundance, not just give us life, but give us life more abundantly. You know, the scripture is very plain in first Corinthians 15 and 54. So when this corruptible shall take on incorruption and the mortal shall take immortality, then shall we be brought to pass and saying, this is written.
Death is swallowed up in victory. Now I want you to look at that. Death has been swallowed up in life. So life has overcome death, even though we're so death minded in our relationship, there was a death minded in our speech. We're so death minded in our thinking, I want you to realize today in Colossians chapter three, verse four, when Christ, who is our life shall appear, he shall also appear. We shall also appear with him. You're going to appear with him, who is our life. He said, I come to give you a life. And he is our life. That's a more miraculous understanding of the wisdom of that. You and I are fully of life. When we, the glory of God, the glory. See, we thinking about a vapor coming down and overtaking people and the glory of God overwhelming a church service. And, but I don't believe it's like that.
I believe the glory of man is when the glory of God is when man is, is fully alive and living the life that God designed him to have the, giv
Welcome to today's program. The beauty of grace and I'm pastor Pete Norris of Harvard fellowship, church, Goldsboro, North Carolina. And today I want to talk to you about seeing our way clear, you know, so many times we wonder, and we question the clarity of why we're here, our existence, and why do we belong here? What's our purpose for being here. Wallace Stevens says the way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it. And I think that's a tremendous revelation. He said this the way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it. And I think that's pretty clear with most of us is we questioned the identity of what's my purpose for being here. What's my reason for being here. You know, I believe the glory of God is when man is fully alive and you say, well, pastor, what do you mean by man being fully alive? You know, a simple prayer rises from my heart. Jesus, take away the fog and the clouds and the veil and Help to help me to see, give me eyes to really see, you know, Jesus and John 10and 10 and said, the thief does not come except to steal, to kill and to destroy. But I come that you might have life and that you may have it more abundantly. Now,
Speaker 2:
A lot of people,
Speaker 1:
I believe Jesus has just come to forgive him. And there's no doubt about that. He has come to forgiveness to forgive us and forgiveness is awesome. But Jesus said that he came to give us life. He came not just to forgive us, but to us, to have life. And when I think about that life, what does that really mean? What does that really look like? What's the composure of why I'm here. And so many people ask me all the time, pastor, what am I really doing here? What's the purpose of me being here? Well, you know, we get married, we have children, we're born, we grow up, we get married, we have children and then we retire and then we die. And then what's the real purpose of all that. Well, I believe the purpose of that is we He came that we may have life, you know, in John 10, 10, the thief come to steal, kill and destroy it. Most people believe that that's the devil that he come to steal and he come to kill and he come to destroy and he come to do all those things. But the great thing about this is that's not talking about the devil in John 10, 10, that's thought talking about false teachers and false prophets. And people saying things that don't line up with the word. And if anything has happened in the world, religion has really Rose up and is killing us. And, and, and it's the stealing from us. And it's destroying us and Jesus come to give us life and to give us life more abundance, not just give us life, but give us life more abundantly. You know, the scripture is very plain in first Corinthians 15 and 54. So when this corruptible shall take on incorruption and the mortal shall take immortality, then shall we be brought to pass and saying, this is written. Death is swallowed up in victory. Now I want you to look at that. Death has been swallowed up in life. So life has overcome death, even though we're so death minded in our relationship, there was a death minded in our speech. We're so death minded in our thinking, I want you to realize today in Colossians chapter three, verse four, when Christ, who is our life shall appear, he shall also appear. We shall also appear with him. You're going to appear with him, who is our life. He said, I come to give you a life. And he is our life. That's a more miraculous understanding of the wisdom of that. You and I are fully of life. When we, the glory of God, the glory. See, we thinking about a vapor coming down and overtaking people and the glory of God overwhelming a church service. And, but I don't believe it's like that. I believe the glory of man is when the glory of God is when man is, is fully alive and living the life that God designed him to have the, give him the life that, that he designed him to walk in and, and endeavor to have and to grow in and establish himself. And so what is our real purpose on this earth? I think our real purpose on this earth is for God's life to flow through us. And, and most people think just Jesus came to forgive me, but now he come to forgive you, but he come to put his life in you, the breath and the raw wind of God, blowing through you to bring you to a place that where you're fully alive in the things of God. And when Wallace Stevens said the way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it, because really though the going out of the exiting is automatic, but the find our place in the world is what an encounter, what a revelation, what a, a drive that most people are looking to find their destiny, the find their purpose, the find God's plan for their life. And the Bible says the steps of a righteous man has been ordered of the Lord and that you and I are designed for a purpose, that we are a pattern of God's reflection on the earth. And as we begin to see our way clear, not out of the world, but through the world. And as we be understand that Jesus understood that when he came to earth, he came for one significant purpose and that purpose to reveal the father to the world. And I think today day that's, our example is to reveal the father to a lost and dying world.that's the beauty of grace.