Preeminent in Christ by: Dr. Pete Norris

Today on power in the word How easy not how he was how easy the Bible said he preeminent. He's seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus So if he's preeminent, so are we were we at Ephesians 2 and 6 we're seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus So if I'm seated in heavenly places How can I be struggling in the physical realm because I don't understand that I'm more spiritual than I am physical and that I exist Beyond my capacity to live because what's in the inside of me is more powerful than what's around me Welcome to power in the word Sometimes it's difficult for believers to embrace the Godhead as all-knowing and all-powerful And even more difficult to believe we are Engrafted through Jesus Christ into this Godhead. Well today. Dr. Norris explores the Bible's Inspiration of the preeminence of God and how we fit in it's a powerful message. You don't want to miss it. Stay with us So we're gonna talk tonight about Preeminent in Christ. What does it mean to be preeminent? The Bible said that Jesus preeminent So let's see what it says verse 18 and he is the head of the body the church who is the beginning Now underline the beginning so he's the beginning He's the firstborn from the dead that in all things. He might have the preeminence Now guys, you got to get a hold of that Preeminence means I looked it up in the dictionary, you know Webster. He was anointed to Preeminence means that he's first. He's surpassing all others. He's over and above excellence He's very distinguished in some way He's surpassing of all other people He has a Paramount rank dignity and importance in other words He is actually Number one in whatever you're talking about So now think about that just a minute if he's preeminent that means Read this again. He is the head of the body the church who is the beginning so preeminence means the beginning He's the firstborn from the dead ain't nobody ever done what he done That in all things he might have the preeminence and then there's a period and then let's read verse 19 For it pleased the father that in this one this preeminent

All should all fullness dwell So this one is preeminent here is the fullness of God Nothing lacking nothing missing nothing broken He's everything God was will be and ever will be he's the first beginning the end and the beginning and everything now I want to show you something. I want you to go to Revelation I wasn't gonna do this, but I'm gonna do it because it's in my spirit Let's go to Revelation 17 verse 14, and I want to show you some These will make war with the Lamb and the Lamb will overcome them for he is the Lord of Lords King of Kings and those who are with him are called chosen and faithful So if he's the Lord of Lords who is he the Lord of If he's the Lord of Lords who's the little Lords if he's king of Kings who's the little Kings? So if he's preeminent So are we in him You say pastor you saying we better than everybody else I pretty much am in him Say in him Let's go to verse 20 and having made peace through the blood of his cross by him To reconcile this one this preeminent has reconciled all things to himself By him I say whether they be things in earth Or if they be things in heaven he's reconciled everything to it Now before Jesus died on the cross when would that place Nobody died in Christ before he died in the beginning You got to get this now because if you don't stay with me you go. I'm gonna lose you right here When was he crucified? When were you chosen in him So How was he gonna reconcile anybody in earth or in heaven if nobody was here when he was crucified? That's What made him preeminent Because ain't never been nobody before like him so he was crucified way before Adam ever got here

Are you with me So if that's the case and you're in him, what's your problem What are you trying to do you're not trying to do something he ain't already done And so if you're in him you ain't got to do it So He don't know what you're talking about when you want to talk about a sin world because He never walked in sin, never was a part of sin, He just became sin before the foundation of the world so you and I would be delivered from sin before we ever sinned. So you've never been a sinner in the sight of God you've always been delivered from sin. So sin is not a part of who you are because you are a new creature chosen in Him before the foundation of the world so that makes you preeminent because you're the first and the beginning and the end because now you're eternal and everything that's eternal don't have no beginning or no end. So when you think about what you really are you're some kind of something in Him that you don't even discover that you are and you're trying to be good when you don't have to be good because you are good it's not a state of you doing, it's a state of you being. So it has nothing to do with you at all and so when I was getting to see this, the Holy Spirit's been telling me, Pete look man, you're missing the picture. You need to be exalted in how big I am when He told me several years ago, I went back and pulled a scripture He told me on March the 12th of 2017, here's what He told me He said, Pete, you can exaggerate my grace and you still won't get it. What's preeminence mean now? Let's go on. Go meet 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 20 For all the promises of God in this one that's preeminent there she is, and in the one that's preeminent is Amen To the glory of God, through who? So God gets His glory from us being in Christ Go to John 16, 13, and I want to show you something. Now remember this that the glory of God through us, say the glory of God's through us However when He, the Spirit of truth has come

He will guide you into all truth Think about that now. He's going to guide you into righteousness and a right standing with Him to where there's no wrong in you For He will not speak of His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will tell you of things to come Who's we talking about here? The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth Listen to me, listen to me Listen to me, listen to me. Stop trying to do and let what He did become who you are So when you begin to magnify how big He is you discover how big you are in Him So it's not about a performance thing, it's not about trying to fix a thing it's not about trying to get good in a thing, it's about accepting so much truth that you can't be anything but truth So there's not an object of you being something different because you're truth What did Jesus say? I'm the way, the truth, and the life He said truth and grace came through Jesus, so if it came through Jesus, the glory of God is Christ being revealed in us. Now watch verse 14 Stay with me, this is all in red He will glorify me. Who? The Holy Spirit's going to glorify Jesus For He will take what is mine, and He's going to reveal it to you What's He going to reveal to you? Who you are in Christ, that's the glory of God And if we ever discover who we are in Christ, we'll get out of the picture and become who He says we are The preeminent one, the beginning and the end, the author and the finished, the King of kings and the Lord of lords Now watch 15, stay with me All things that the Father have are Therefore I said that you will take of mine And declare it to, you with me?

You'll do what with it? You'll declare it to you Now look at 16 A little while and you won't be able to see me And again a little while And you'll see me What was He telling them guys? He was telling them, I'm going to leave Right now, a little while, you will not see me But again a little while and you'll see me In other words, I'm going to leave your presence, but I'm going to send back the Holy Spirit That's going to teach you all things, and all the Holy Spirit's going to do is reveal that you are the glory in Christ It's not going to reveal to you how wrong you are It's going to reveal how right you are in me And you'll see me because I'm going to go to the Father And if I go to the Father, you'll benefit and I'm going to send you back the Holy Spirit And the Holy Spirit's going to live in you and show you me Why? Because once you discover, you're going to see something When you see Him, you ain't going to look for anything else Because if you can see Him, you're no longer able to see you So the church hasn't grabbed hold of what this really grace message is really about. It's losing sight of you and who you are in the physical realm and becoming who you are in the preeminent realm. And so the Holy Spirit has not been sent to reveal all the physical and reasoning facilities that you want to talk about. You've been sent to become who he says you are. And the only thing the Holy Spirit is going to tell you is who you are in Christ because that's the only way the Father gets glory. And so the glory of God is going to be revealed where? In us. Now, go read Romans 5 and 1. Stay with me, I'm not going to keep you long. Therefore, you need to find out what it's there for. Romans is a powerful book, man. If you read Romans for about five weeks in a row, you'll be lit up from the floor up.

Therefore, having been justified, declared righteous by faith, we have peace. With God, how? Through our Lord Jesus Christ. We got peace with God through how? Through the Lord. Why ain't people got peace with God? Because they don't understand this is a done deal. Say, Pastor, prove that. Look at verse 2, comma. For whom also we have access. Say, we have. Access into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. What's he saying to us, guys? He's saying, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn to somebody and say, I got peace. For whom also we have access by faith into his grace. In which we stand and rejoice. So we have faith. We have and we stand in a permanent tense and never needs to be repeated. Guys, you understand that we stand and we have a permanent tense place with God. You don't go in and out of it like water, like the shower. We've been justified by faith in the past. We have access to faith into this grace in which we stand in the now. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God in the future. So he's talking about the past, present and the future here in these two scriptures. In Romans chapter 5, 1 and 2. So I want to get that again. So we have been declared righteous by faith when? In the past. How many of you know you were already righteous before you knew it? How many of you know you had access by faith into the grace in which we stand in the now? You always had access to it. And you stand in that now. You ain't gonna get it in the future, guys. Rejoice in hope of the glory of God in the future. What's the glory of God? You and I are the glory of God on the earth. That's the manifestation of Christ being revealed in us.

That's God's glory. He gets glory out of us when Christ is revealed through us. He wants the very best for you. He don't want you to try. He wants you to just receive and stand in that permanent place, a permanent tense of knowing who we are in Him. And we don't have to try to do this. If you're trying, you're walking back in the law. When you understand that if you get everything right, there's not a chance or an obstacle for another opinion. When you're so full of that word, quitting is not an option. Believing anything outside of the word is not an option. Christ put everything that He had in us. Going to the cross was not an option for Him. He went to the cross because He'd done and been there. He'd come to the cross 2,000 years ago because He'd already been to the cross and conquered it before the foundation of the world by faith in Christ. He went to the cross in Himself because He was preeminent. There was no end to Him. There was no beginning to Him. He was the first, the last, and the beginning. He was everything that ever will be, and He knew you couldn't stop what He didn't. Listen, it was not a battle in His mind of whether He was going to the cross or not. It was not an option. He was so truthful and had so much truth that false could not be a part of His destiny. It's not an option for us, man. We can be so full of truth that there's no obstacle, no choice, or no other option because truth will always stand. This is not a battle. This is a decision that we make. Go to 1 John 4. Love has been perfected among us in this, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment because as He is, not as He was, but as He is, so are we. in this world. How is he? How is he? Not how he was, how is he? The Bible said he's preeminent. He's seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. So if he's preeminent, so are we. Where are we at? Ephesians 2 and 6. We're seated in

heavenly places in Christ Jesus. So if I'm seated in heavenly places, how can I be struggling in the physical realm? Because I don't understand that I'm more spiritual than I am physical and that I exist beyond my capacity to live because what's in the inside of me is more powerful than what's around me. And when I understand that the depth of who I am is more powerful than whatever I'm gonna face, that there's no option for failure. So as he is, so are we right now. It's not coming. That's why I don't buy the eschatology that something's coming. It's gonna be better than what was here. If that's the case, then what Jesus done is not enough to fulfill us here and we got to have something outside of here. I don't believe that's perfect. I think we simply lose sight of this place to the dimension that the other place has to show up. It doesn't have a choice, it has to show up. You don't have, listen to me, it's not an option to choose to go. You so much more real. I'm so concerned that we get to heaven, we're gonna walk by him and not recognize him. Because we know about him. Go to Colossians. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he has made a life together with him, having forgiven you of all your trespasses. We are so worldly minded that we only talk about the life that we have here because we can't believe that something be so much greater that exists beyond our capacity to grab it in our mind. And he said when you were yet in dead in your trespasses and the circumcision of your flesh, he has made a life together with him, he's made us alive together with him. Preeminence. Failure is not an option. Quitting is not an exception, excuse. We haven't grabbed the depth of the capacity that which Paul, on the road to Emmaus, experienced. Paul knew something. Very few people have lived long enough to grab hold of. Go meet a Romans, fine. And if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his son, much more having been reconciled, we shall be saved. Shall be saved how? By his what? By his life. Now watch this. Watch this. If we, when we were enemies, were reconciled to God through the death of his son, how many of you believe you were reconciled to God? Through the death of his son. So that means you were reconciled to the preeminent one that existed before the foundation of the world. All your things were wiped away,

your sins were removed, all your sins were removed, and you no longer have any have a sin issue. You no longer have a sin problem. Sin was not conquered on the cross. Sin was conquered before the foundation of the world. Before the sin, first sin was ever committed, it was already overcome. That's why the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Jesus had already took care of the sin problem before you ever sinned, before Adam ever fell in the garden. If he's not, then he wasn't preeminent. Is he preeminent? Colossians 1 18 says he was. He's the first one to rise from the dead. You got to understand something. He was the first one to rise from the dead. Jesus was preeminent because you can't kill life. Listen to me. He had to live in death for three days, but there was too much life for him to remain in death, and the Bible said the Spirit had to give him up. Do you understand how big he is? He's an omnipotent, preeminent God that's able to rise above every circumstance. Death couldn't contain him. The Bible said the Spirit of death had to loose him. Pow! Glory be to God. Go to Hebrews chapter 2 verse 9. I'm shouting myself happy. I'm happy if y'all ain't. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the Elohim for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. Hallelujah! He took death and death was all inside of one man. Everybody in the world was free from death and the Bible said because we were so righteous he had to get up out of the tomb. We were calling him forth. Come forth. Life was calling him out of death. Life was calling you out of death. We've been delivered from death. Death no longer can contain us because life swallowed up death. Romans chapter, 1st Corinthians chapter 15. He swallowed up death. The option's not yours. It's a done deal. Go to Hebrews 9 and 26. He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world. When did he die? But now, once at the end of the age, he has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. What did he do? Sin, come on, get on me. So that Nelson, Brunt, Aaron, Larry, Kenneth can be free from it. I'm gonna take all the sin. What did John say? Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. He said he's took it. He's took the sin of the whole world. He's took the sin of the whole

world. You can't be a sinner anymore because he took the sin of the whole world and because of that you're now free, man. We are absolutely free. It's not an option. It's not a choice. See, if we believed that, if we believed he was preeminent, we would have come become just like him and we wouldn't have this religious spirit that wants us to be humble and walk around like we've been run over and we would walk around with power and authority. Jesus walked around and said, do you know who I am? Who do they say that I am? Some say you're the Christ. Well, that must be right. He didn't tell Peter, oh, I'm not that. No, I'm not the Christ. He said, Peter, flesh and blood didn't give that to you, brother. You got that by the Spirit. That's exactly who I am and that's who you're gonna become. Go to Galatians 5 and 1. Stand fast there, guys. Stand fast. Say stand in this permanent tense. In Romans chapter 5, verse 2. Look at Romans chapter, Galatians chapter 5, verse 1. It's something about fives. Fives is good. Stand fast, therefore. Therefore, you need to find out what therefore is for, for standing fast. In the liberty by which Christ hath made us. Glory! How many of you free, man? You're still trying, I don't want to sin, I don't want to drink, I don't want to eat this, I don't want to do that, I don't want to act like that, I don't want to love everybody. I want to do that. You don't understand, you're already, you're full of love. You don't If you'll get lost in this truth, truth will become who you are. Stuff is looking for you, it's waiting for you to take a name. Stuff is looking for you, it's waiting for you to take a name. Some of you didn't get that. God can't give you what you don't have the name to back up. God ain't gonna heal you, he's done it. God ain't gonna bless you financially, he's done it. He's waiting for you to call him out. You're the only one got the authority because you're preeminent on the earth. You're the kings and the priests on the earth. Revelation 1 and 6, Revelation 5 and 10, kings and priests reigning on the earth. Where is that at? Where's the kings? We're some kind of something. We haven't discovered it, but we're some kind of something. Why? Because when you get so full of truth, there's not another option, guys. You got to get a hold of that. When you become total truth and get off on your carnality, mmm, mmm, by which he's made us free and we do

not be entangled again with that yoke of bondage. Turns to my side, I'm not gonna be in bondage again after the night. Well, pastor, now you're just a little over charismatic. Jesus was over charismatic. Look at Ephesians 1 and 6. I'll show you something. To the praise of the glory of his grace by which he made us. Now I want you to understand this. You got to understand something right here. There's a powerful revelation. I've given this revelation a little bit, but I'm gonna dig it today. I'm gonna dig it tonight. So it turns to my side, he's gonna dig it. To the praise of the glory of his grace. To the praise of the glory of his grace. Now who's the glory of God? So we're his grace, right? By which he made us accepted in the beloved. Now this word's only one other place. And so I asked the Lord, I said, Lord, there's got to be more to that than just you spoke that to Mary. But you can find it in Luke chapter 1 verse 28. But there's more to it. You ready for this? Let's go to Luke chapter 1 verse 28. And having come in, and having come in, and having come in, the angel said to her, rejoice highly favored one. Highly favored one is the identical same Greek word as accepted. The Lord is with you, highly favored one. one, blessed are you among women. And so I said, Lord what does that mean? Now the word accepted in the Greek is highly favored. The word is only used two times in the New Testament. It's used in Luke to talk about Jesus. Highly favored one. Me and you. And it's talking about Mary. And so I said, Lord I don't, I don't understand that. And he said the reason Mary was a highly favored one is she was carrying him. You're highly favored because he's carrying you. You're not carrying him. You've been sealed with the Holy Spirit in him. Now watch this. Mary was under the law. She was giving birth out of the law because he was born under the law. Born of a woman. Adam wasn't. You and I were not born of a woman. We were born of the Spirit. We were born out of what she gave birth to. Glory! So the old covenant was giving birth to the new covenant and the new creation. So when Jesus was in the tomb dying for your sins, he was in the womb giving new creation and existence in the world. So when he took the sin of the whole world in death, you and I were made free in life. He was not only in a tomb, he was in a womb giving

birth to a new creation in us. Mary gave birth out of the old covenant to what is going to give new creation in the new covenant. And because of that, you and I were born into the new creation out of the old, but we were not born in the physical. We were born by the Spirit because Jesus died in the physical and in the spiritual and he was resurrected out of death. Even though he contained all of death, he was resurrected because we were made alive in his death. Jesus did not struggle in the garden whether he was going to go to the cross or not. The only thing that could go to the cross was pure truth. Me and you couldn't have went because we were sinners. We just didn't know we were right yet. Purity went to the cross because it was pure truth. It was perfect love. It was not a struggle with him to whether he was going to go to the cross or not. The struggle with him is I don't know how I'm going to die once I get there. So we got to understand are you full of life or are you full of death? Because life there's not choices. Ain't nobody in heaven right now having no choice. Truth never has a choice. Truth just manifests. Thank you for joining us today at Power in the Word. All of us here at Harvest Fellowship Church want you to know that God is not mad with you but he loves you so very much and he has a plan for your life. Please feel free to contact us here at Harvest Fellowship Church at our website HarvestFellowshipChurch.net. So until next week please remember there's power in the word.