Key Life Network

Matthew: That was Steve Brown. He doesn't want to be your guru and he's not trying to be your mama. He just opens the Bible and gives you the simple truth that will make you free. Steve's a lifelong broadcaster, author, seminary professor, and our teacher on Key Life.

Steve Brown: Thank you, Matthew. If you were listening yesterday, we were talking about how God defines us. And you should never let others define you. Always go to the scriptures to find out who you are. And the news from the Bible, from the throne of God, is plain amazing. We’re masterpieces, Ephesians 4. We’re valuable masterpieces. The blood of God's own son was paid for us, and we are family, sons and daughters of the God of the universe.

Don't you have a daddy? If you do, his name is God, and you can call him Abba. And that means it's going to be okay. Don't you have a home? You live in a big house. You're not just a servant, you're the son, the heir, the daughter, the heir. And if that doesn't make your dark days more sunny, then there's something wrong with you.

I have some friends who adopted a teenage girl. They were probably smoking pot or something when they did it. Who adopts a teenager? At any rate, they adopted this girl and loved her. Before the adoption, she lived with them. And I had dinner with that family once during that period when she was living there. And this teenager was so well-behaved and perfect that frankly, because I know teenagers, I was uncomfortable.

She would quick to say, "Yes, sir." She would wash the dishes. She kept her room clean. That's not normal for teenagers, by the way. Her room was surprisingly neat and organized. And then they finally made the adoption forever. And I had dinner with them one more time. And this time, that teenage daughter was different and I might say normal. She wasn't so quick to be obedient.

She laughed a lot. She kidded her parents and me and listened to music that was not the music adults like. What was the difference? Before, she was trying to earn her place. Now she was adopted and beloved and the legal daughter of parents who were great. She was free because she had parents who loved her and who would always love her.

Listen to me, that's true with you too if you're a believer. The lies we've been told about who we are become the soil from which guilt and shame and fear and regret grow. When the soil changes, everything changes. If we're the adopted children of God, it means that we are also the designated legal heirs of God. Jesus said, and this is Matthew 25:34, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."

And then in Galatians 4:7, where Paul writes, "And if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ." That's Romans 8:17. "So you are no longer a slave," Paul said in Galatians 4:7, "but a son. And if a son, then an heir through God."

I have a friend, he's now deceased, who was maybe the wealthiest woman I've ever known. She owned much of the shoreline, in fact, a lot of the shoreline of the state where she lived. And a whole floor in an office building housed a large staff. And you know what they did all day? They did nothing but manage her wealth.

I mean, she had more money than anybody I ever met. But let me tell you something, she also looked homeless. One day she called me in the early morning, waking me up. She'd cut her leg on a side of a table in her house, and she wanted me to take her to the hospital. When we got to the emergency room, we waited. And then we waited some more. And then we waited some more. Homeless people don't get good service anywhere, and that's sometimes true in a hospital emergency room.

Finally, after a long, long time, someone came and escorted her to an examination room. And as soon as she left, I went to the young attendant and I said, "Young lady, I know she looks homeless. But that woman has more money than anybody you've ever met. In fact, she's probably got enough money in her pocketbook right now to buy this stupid hospital and to fire you. And if I were you, I'd be a little bit nicer to her."

She said, "Thank you, sir." And she got up and left and evidently she told the powers what I'd said. And all of a sudden, doctors started coming out of the woodwork. My friend was treated unbelievably well and with great respect. As it were, you have more money than God too. Well, at least as much because you are his heir.

You did absolutely nothing to deserve the inheritance. You didn't earn it and I didn't either. It came to us as daughters and sons. It was given to us. It's ours. Once we begin to get that, the definition others give us really no longer matters. Forgiveness is not only your reality, it's your right. And so is God's mercy and compassion and provision. Police will often say to us, "Driving isn't a right, it's a privilege." About so many things God finds that they aren't just our privileges, they are our rights.

And then I've got one other thing and we'll start looking at another lie. We are not only a masterpiece, a valuable masterpiece, the family of God, sons and daughters. We are ambassadors—credentialed, commissioned, and anointed ambassadors of Christ. Jesus didn't say that we should work hard to be the salt of the earth or the light of the world. He was not giving us a command, "Be salt."

He said, "You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world," Matthew 5:13 through 14. In Galatians 2:20, Paul didn't say that we should allow ourselves to be crucified, but that we were already crucified and now Christ lives in us. Paul wasn't talking about a petition, but an established fact of who we are.

We don't have to do anything to be the light of the world or have Christ live in us. Actually, we smell like Jesus and we can't help it. That's why it's so important that Christians show up—not just in church, but in unexpected places. We don't have to do anything, just show.

We have somehow gotten the idea that our goodness and purity and obedience are our witnesses. That's not true. We're not good enough to pull that off. It isn't what we do, but our presence and who we are. So, you smell like Jesus and you can't help it. Don't stay at home, get involved. You think about that.

Matthew: Thank you, Steve, for that reminder. We have a daddy and we have a home, and that makes all the difference in the world. We'll continue in our new series tomorrow. Hope you will join us.

Hey, speaking of daddies, Father's Day has now come and gone. Hope it was a good one for you. And while the holiday is behind us, we still have the challenge before us of understanding the role of father. Steve spoke about that challenge in a sermon called "The Best Father You Ever Had." We'll send you that message on CD for free. Just call us right now at 1-800-KEY-LIFE. Again, that number is 1-800-539-5433.

You can also email Steve at keylife@keylife.org to ask for that CD, or to mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses for the US and Canada. Again, just ask for the absolutely free CD called "The Best Father You Ever Had."

And one last thing. If you value the work of Key Life, would you join us in that work through your giving? Giving is easy. You can charge a gift on your credit card or include a gift in your envelope. Or you can give safely and securely by text. Just pick up your phone and text KeyLife to 28950. Again, that's KeyLife, one word or two, doesn't matter. Text that to 28950, then follow the instructions.

And remember, no matter how you give—big or small, one-time or ongoing—every gift matters and every gift really helps. Thanks. Key Life is a member of ECFA in the states and CCCC in Canada, and Key Life is a listener-supported production of Key Life Network.