BIBLICALLY CENTERED
Message Title: Who Gets to Define Your Life?
Date: January 4, 2026
Big Idea: Because God made us, God defines us—and His Word must be central to our lives.

Introduction: Identity Is Discovered, Not Created
We didn’t invent ourselves—God did.

[Psalm 100:3 NLT]
“Know that the LORD is God. He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”

Key Truths:

• Humanity’s first lie was believing we could define ourselves (Genesis 3).

• Every other sin grows from rejecting God’s authority to define truth.

• If God made you, God gets to define you.

Memorable:
If God defines you, then His Word must be central.

Point 1 — Decide Who Defines You
[Ephesians 2:10 NLT]
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Key Truths:

• God has a design, direction, and purpose.

• Daily choices either move us toward God’s purpose or away from it.

• Settling who defines you ahead of time clarifies decisions in the moment.

Authority Question:
Who tells you what is true about you?

• Your feelings

• Your culture

• Your past

• Your wounds

• Or your Creator

Memorable:
A biblically centered life begins with this decision: God defines me.

Point 2 — Decide What Shapes You
[Romans 12:1–2 NLT]
“Give your bodies to God… Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”

[Hebrews 4:12–13 NLT]
“For the word of God is alive and powerful… It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God.”

Key Truths:

• Scripture doesn’t just define us—it shapes us.

• God’s Word reveals what needs healing, not humiliation.

• The Bible confronts in order to correct.

Memorable Statements:

• We don’t adjust the Bible to fit our lives; we adjust our lives to fit the Bible.

• The Bible is not the patient—we are.

A biblically centered person chooses accountability to God’s Word over personal preference.

Point 3 — Decide How You Will Live
[Romans 6:1–6 NLT]
“Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?… Our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ… We are no longer slaves to sin.”

Key Truths:

• Christianity is not just belief in Jesus—it’s obedience to Jesus.

• Identity leads to obedience, not the other way around.

• Biblical living is powered by new life, not willpower.

Memorable:
You don’t obey to earn identity—you obey because you already have it.

Application — Four Clear Responses

1. Accept what Scripture says about your sin and what God has done about it.

2. Repent and call on Jesus for forgiveness.

3. Put to death the old self-focused life—stop feeding what Christ crucified.

4. Start doing what Jesus actually said.

Closing Truth
You are not self-made—you are God-made.
The only safe place to build your identity and life is on God’s Word.

Final Challenge:

• Decide who defines you.

• Decide what shapes you.

• Decide how you will live.

When you discover what you were made for, you can finally become who you were made to be.

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