Destined for Victory

Paul Sheppard: We need to understand that when spiritual life is concerned, the Bible says we are born again of the Spirit of God. So if I'm born spiritually of God, it makes sense that some of who He is comes into my life. Spiritual DNA. Listen to this from 2 Peter 1, verse 4. As believers in Christ, we are partakers in the divine nature.

Guest (Male): Hello and thanks for being here for today's Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Sheppard. We're glad you're with us. What does it mean to partake in the divine nature? How can you activate that power in your day-to-day life?

Answers come your way next, so stay with us if you can. But if your busy schedule won't allow that, remember, you can always visit pastorpaul.net to hear any of our recent messages on demand, including today's. Again, that website is pastorpaul.net. Now let's listen in to our Destined for Victory message, Loving Others the Way God Loves Us.

Paul Sheppard: In the most recent messages in this series, this teaching/preaching series on the book of Ephesians, we've looked at the latter verses of chapter 4. In the most recent messages, we discovered and discussed five habits that we as followers of Christ are called to develop.

Let me just walk you briefly through those habits. I won't expound them, we've already covered them. Habit number one was truth-telling. We've got to learn how to tell the truth as a lifestyle, not every now and then. Habit number two: anger management. God knows we've got to get that habit down. Manage your anger.

The Bible doesn't say you can't be angry; it says, "Be angry, but what? But don't sin." And we talked about that. Habit number three: making money honorably. Making your money honorably so you don't have to be run and be scared when a thick envelope comes. You say, "Oh Lord, is that the IRS? They found out." None of that. Make money honorably.

Number four: cleaning up your language and filtering what you say. We talked about that, and there's a little more of that coming later in chapter 5. But some folks got a good dose of that. There were groans throughout the kingdom when I covered that one.

And habit number five: making pleasing God your highest aim. So we've covered those, can't go back. I now actually, this message is going to be another habit and let me take you to that and then give you the scriptural basis for it.

Habit number six we're about to talk about is loving the way God loves. Loving the way God loves us, loving others the way God loves us. Ephesians 5, go there with me and let's look at verse 1 and the first part of verse 2. We're using the New International Version, but you can follow in whatever version you have.

Ephesians 5:1 and the first part of verse 2. Here's what it says: "Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love." We'll just pause there. We'll cover the rest of it later in the message, but let's just stop right there. Zero in on that. "Follow God's example." This is Paul talking to the church, not only in Ephesus but all of us. "Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love."

You know what he means when he says follow God's example? He literally means imitate God. Imitate God. And I want to let you know that there are two principles that will help us as we say, "Okay, how do I imitate God?" There are two principles I want to drill down on and discuss in these moments together.

Here's the first principle: the traits of the parents become the tendencies of the children. Think about that naturally so you can know how we should apply it spiritually. The traits of the parents become the tendencies of the children. I'll talk about that in a moment, but let me give you a preview of the second principle. Principle number two: some things are caught, not taught. Some things are caught, not taught. These are both principles that will help you understand what does it mean to imitate someone, and in this case, imitate God.

I'm a human being, I'm a flawed person, I'm an imperfect person. I have issues, I've got situations. How do I imitate a holy, sinless, perfect God? Well, these principles are going to help us get to what Paul is talking about. He's not saying we can become divinely perfect, but he's saying we ought to imitate Him and these principles are going to help us do it.

So let's look at principle number one. Principle number one: the traits of the parents become the tendencies of the children. Now I want you to think about your own family or think about families you know. Some of the traits you see in children are the result of nature, are the result of DNA.

Some people have facial or physical features because of their parents. Have you ever looked at somebody? You never met them, but you said, "Now that's got to be so-and-so's child." You know what I'm saying? I never met them. And have you ever walked up to somebody and said, "Are you a Johnson?" Because you see Johnson's stuff on them. And the DNA showed up in physical similarities.

So that's one set of traits of parents when it comes to facial or physical features. And sometimes people get them from one parent, like one parent's genes are seen real prominent there. And the other parent, you just know that that's the dad, but you don't really, he doesn't show up much because mama's all in their face. And vice versa, some kids look just like Daddy and Mom was just the bakery, you know what I'm saying? So they have DNA from both, of course. We know that. That shows up sometimes facially or in other physical features.

But some of the traits are not so much physical as they are behavioral. You ever seen someone, and just by the way they're acting, by the way they're behaving, you say, "Oh, that's got to be so-and-so's child." Because the behavior gives it away. It could be physical behaviors like the way they walk. Some families, you see them, they all walk alike. Look at her, she walks just like her daddy.

They walk alike. Sometimes they have certain gestures and you say, "That's the way that family gestures." Sometimes it's the way they use their hands when they talk or whatever it is. And you say, "They all do that. Have you noticed that? They all do that." Well, that's what I mean when I say the traits of the parents become the tendencies of the children. Some traits are physical, some traits are behavioral.

And some traits are heard. Ever hear somebody who sounds like one of their parents? When they talk, either vocally or what they say, but it sounds just like that parent. So sometimes it is heard. It's heard when they laugh. Some families, they all have the same laugh and they've got a way of cracking up, that's all of them.

So I hope you see that physically in nature, there are traits that parents have that become tendencies of the children. Some of them are rooted in DNA and you couldn't separate yourself from it because it was baked into you. Literally, the DNA is responsible for it.

However, there are some other traits like, have you ever seen a family, all of them are good athletes? Think about it. Even if it's not the same sport, they all tend to just have aptitude, amazing aptitude and ability when it comes to sports. So whether they play the same, they can all play basketball, they can all play whatever it is, or whether it's different sports, they tend to excel in certain sports as a family.

I'm originally from Philadelphia. One of our big hero quarterbacks from decades gone by was Randall Cunningham. He is now a pastor/preacher, leader in the Kingdom of God, but he used to lead the Eagles on the football field. And so he was an outstanding athlete in his prime. I just watched in the last Olympics his daughter competing in high jump in the Olympics, but competing at a world-class level because she comes from a family that's used to world-class athletics. And so it's easy to aspire to what you have been so accustomed to. And whether it's DNA or not, well she's real tall like her daddy, but whether it's DNA or not, you see some families, they seem to all be outstanding athletes.

I've heard some families, all of them can sing. Everybody in the family can sing. You know what I'm saying? And some might have a little more outstanding voice in certain ways, but they can all sing. Like if you, I mean think about it. If there's a Winans who can't sing, you don't even want to show up in public if you're a Winans and you can't sing because folks just expect it. They hear your name and they hand you a mic. "Oh, Winans? Yeah, come here and sing something for us." Because the ones I know, they can sing.

We had a family in our church. My dad, when my dad was pastoring, there was a family, all of them could sing. A couple of them were opera singers. Just, I mean sing to beat the band. But you know what? Some of them sounded alike. Their vibrato was the same, their ability to use their voices. Some folk have that fast vibrato, some folk have slow, and some of us just don't have one.

Come on somebody. You ever tried to sing with vibrato and it just doesn't work? They had a little clip on America's Funniest Videos and this little girl obviously is around Black folk in church and she hears all these people singing vibrato, and the way she did it, she said, "And then..." America's Funniest Videos, we were cracking up. Said that girl's been around church. She heard all that vibrato in voices and she figured you just shake yourself. That's the way you get your vibrato. It's the cutest thing. But fact of the matter is, some folk just have it naturally.

And some sets of families I've seen excel in things like the sciences and they all excel in some area of the sciences, whether they go into the medical field or whether they go into some sort of engineering or whatever. But they all seem to lock in there. So the principle is: the traits of the parents become the tendencies of the children.

And so when it comes to spiritual things, we need to understand that when spiritual life is concerned, the Bible says we are born again of the Spirit of God. So if I'm born spiritually of God, it makes sense that some of who He is comes into my life. Spiritual DNA. That's why when Paul says imitate God, he's not saying just literally try to mimic what you see. More importantly, you've got some stuff in you, just let it develop. You have spiritual DNA. You're born again of God. You are one of God's kids. So go ahead and let the Godness in your DNA spiritually come out. Don't act like one of the devil's kids because you don't belong to the devil. You were born again.

And we have to learn to live in that. There's Bible for that. I want you to take a look at what I mean by that. 2 Peter actually talks about that. Chapter 1, verse 4, that there is spiritual DNA that we need to know it's there and so go on and live it out. Put that up for me if you would on the screen. "Through these," Peter says, "God has given us some very great and precious promises," watch this, "so that through them, through the promises He's given us, you may participate in the divine nature."

Wait, what? He said because you're saved, God now has caused you to be born of His Spirit. You've got God stuff in you. And God gives you great, precious promises. And as you live those promises out, you actually participate in the divine nature. So I'm not blowing smoke when I tell you you've got some God stuff in you. If you're saved, you've got some God stuff in you. And therefore, all you've got to do is activate the promises of God. When God says who you are, believe it and live like it. I am who God said I am. I can do what God said I can do. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength because I have the ability in God to do all things through Him who gives me the strength.

And so you need to understand that this is the way God operates spiritually in our lives. He has given us some of His DNA. Now you'll never be God Himself. You're not going to graduate in four or five years and you're going to be God. No. But you can always be a child of God. And the traits of the parent, the divine parent, can become the tendencies in your life. Oh, this is good.

Now I need you to understand the second principle and it's also related to imitation and I just gave it to you: some things are caught, not taught. Some things are caught. Now think about natural families. I want you to think about the fact that those of you who are parents, do you remember some of the things your mom or your dad said frequently as you were growing up? Some of them you hated.

And I need some people to be real. See, you've got your church clothes on. I need some real people. My mom said such and such, my dad said such and such, and I hated it because they said it all the time. Can I see? Your mama ain't here. Can I see a few honest hands? Thank you. Mama can't see, we're not putting the camera on you. Hated it. There she goes again. Right. Said it over and over and over again. And you hated it every time you heard it.

Now you're now a parent. Some of y'all see where I'm going. Have you ever heard yourself say to one of your children the same exact words you heard spoken to you? You didn't like them, so what are you doing saying them? You know what the answer to that question is? Some things are caught, not taught. You caught it from your daddy, from your mama. You didn't plan it. "Oh, when I grow up I'm going to be just like Dad."

In fact, sometimes you said, "I promise God I will never say that to my children." And then you grew up, had your kids, and heard fly out of your mouth something you promised you would never say. Because you caught it. The principle of imitation has to do with exposure. It's not "I intend," it's not intention, it's exposure.

Guess what? You who have sadly had COVID to this point at some point, you didn't want it. You weren't saying, "Oh, maybe today's my COVID day." Nobody did that. Everybody who got it didn't want it. How did they get it? They were exposed to it. And whether they wanted it or not, it showed up. Catching the cold, same thing. You never been taught a cold in your life, but you caught it. Be around sneezing, sniffling folk and you tried to get away, but they already got you.

I was flying somewhere years ago, flying somewhere across the country. I think I was going to preach at First Baptist Glenarden. And so I was flying probably the Friday because I had to preach Sunday there for Pastor Jenkins in that church. And I was in coach. I had not graduated to first class. And I was in coach and there was everybody in there. And dude next to me, the middle seat was empty, but he was on the aisle, I was on the window. He should have never traveled anywhere.

You know, they tell you if you are contagious, be nice to the people you're going to be around. No, he gets in a plane. "Pastor Paul's going to be there, I'm going to fly five hours with Pastor Paul and I'm going to give him what I got." He might as well have said that because the man coughed, sneezed the whole way. I was pressed up against the window. I was like, "Oh Lord Jesus."

I prayed, "Lord," because I knew the principle of exposure. And I remember I was saying, "Oh God, please let me be okay to preach Sunday because this man is working hard to get me."

Guest (Male): Thanks so much for being here for today's Destined for Victory. We'll pick it up right here next time in our continuing message, Loving Others the Way God Loves Us. You know, Destined for Victory got its start largely because of friends and partners like you. Your faithful prayers and financial support helped us launch this media ministry and it's because of you that we're still sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with people all over the world.

We hope you'll consider sending a generous gift today to help keep the legacy ministry of Pastor Paul on this station. And when you do, we've got a great thank-you gift to share with you, one that will help you find the courage to persevere through life's challenges or through a past you can't quite forget. Introducing our booklet, Keep Moving Forward. Drawing from Israel's transition from Moses to Joshua, this booklet will help you understand that God will go before you as your leader and your protector, even when you're up against overwhelming odds. And this is a great resource for anyone who wants to be more fully equipped to move confidently into the future God has prepared.

Again, that's Keep Moving Forward, our thank-you gift for your generous donation to Destined for Victory today. You can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-5500. Or visit pastorpaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538.

Psalm 34:17 says that when the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. If you need prayer today, our ministry team would be happy to join you. Use the contact feature at the top of our homepage, pastorpaul.net, and share your prayer request with us. That's pastorpaul.net. How does God love people who are rather obnoxious or arrogant or issue-laden? How does God love them? That's how we are to love people. That's tomorrow in our continuing message, Loving Others the Way God Loves Us. But until then, remember: He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.