Built Different: Against The Flow!

Built Different: Called to Stand Out! Sermon Summary                      

Against The Flow!                       Pastor Brad Myers

                                                                              August 24, 2025

Recite: I am not common… I am chosen… I am not random… I am redeemed… God formed me… God knows me…God calls me to stand out… I am built different!

Today: Against the Flow:

Thought: The world is moving away from God at full speed. The Kingdom of God is advancing in the opposite direction. If you are in Christ, you are swimming upstream, but your life will intersect with the world in moments of tension, decision, and opportunity. At those collision points, your identity in Christ will be tested!

Two Currents: Two Kingdoms

• The kingdom of this world → rebellion, self-rule, temporary pleasures.
• The Kingdom of God → surrender, holiness, eternal life.

Story Rip Current:

• Powerful channel of water flows away from shore.
• Looks calm compared to the crashing waves.
• Pulls you out to sea faster than you can swim to shore.
• Natural reaction fight against it, to swim straight back toward the shore.
• Harder you fight, more exhausted you become — and drown
• Only way to survive is to do something that feels unnatural: you have to swim sideways, across the current, until you’re free from its pull.

Thought: Today’s culture looks exciting! But if you embrace it, you’ll be pulled far from God!

Apostles Paul knew this: Writes Personal Kingdom building

Paul writes to Galatia:

• Location: Central Asia Minor (Turkey).
• Roman Province: Now Roman province
• Name: Celtic Tribes (the Gauls) 3rd century BC: Galatia (“land of Gauls)
• Religion: Polytheistic (many gods), worship gods of nature, war, and fertility.

People of Galatia

• Ethnic Mix: Celtic settlers, now Greeks, Jews, and Romans.
• Religion: Pagan, cult, & Jewish.
• Culture: passionate, volatile, easily influenced: Easily led astray

Galatian Churches: Paul’s First Missionary Journey

• Trouble: false teachers (“Judaizers”) must obey Mosaic Law to be truly saved.
• Today: If Christians are not accepting of sinful behavior, we really are haters.
• Reason Paul Wrote: salvation by grace through faith alone, not the Law.

Thought: Paul explains why Christian freedom doesn’t mean license to sin because the Spirit builds believers to live differently.

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Galatians 5:16-17 (ESV)

My Thought: Paul introduces two kingdoms colliding inside the believer! It’s the core conflict of every Christian life.

• Spirit vs. flesh

Collision is Inevitable

• Jesus warned that the world will not understand or accept you.

John 15:18-19 (ESV)

• Hatred today if you oppose worldly positions:

Ten years later Paul continues warning

• Under house arrest in Rome
• Cosmic Conflict: Believer vs. the powers of darkness.

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)

• Internal Battle → Spirit vs. flesh.
• External Battle → Spiritual forces of evil.

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Thought: So, what we are seeing today is over 2,000-year buildup of a collision between the Bible and moral relativism.

Thought: Moral relativism is the belief that morality is not absolute but depends on culture, context, or individual perspective.

What It Means

• No universal standards of right and wrong.
• “moral” or “immoral” based on three things:
  • Culture: “society decides.”
  • Context: “situation decides.”
  • Individual: “I decide.”

Contradicts Christianity

• Bible teaches moral absolutes:

Remember Isaiah?

Isaiah 5:20 (ESV)

Jesus said:

John 14:6 (ESV)

• Truth found in Christ! Never shifts..

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What do we do?

Hebrews 2:1 (ESV)

• Hebrews 1:  Jesus greater than angels’ divine Son through whom God speaks.

“Pay Much Closer Attention” Not “pay attention”

• several warning passages in the book.
• Warns: “don’t drift”

“drift away” Water metaphor… Like rip current…

• drifting or anchoring

Thought: It’s not dramatic rebellion but subtle neglect that causes spiritual drift.

Against the Flow Three things Paul emphasizes

Built to Resist (Defense)

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV-2011)

• Paul’s teaching Armor of God

“day of evil comes” not just end of time.. moments when the enemy pushes hard.

• Temptation is fierce,
• Trials overwhelming
• Devil trying dislodge your faith,
• Doubt, fear, depression, confusion, or spiritual fatigue set in.

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Paul’s Teaching…

Thought: Believers were created for resistance, not convenience.

He writes to from prison (Rome 60 AD)

Colossians 1:13 (NLT) (Colossae: Turkey)

• “rescued”: From danger
• “transferred”: Greek “from one Kingdom to a new Kingdom”
• Paul: Not a “spiritual improvement” — a total change of authority.

Paul emphasizes.

Built to Shine (Witness)

Philippians 2:15 (NLT)

• Philippians: believers in Philippi: Roman colony in modern-day Greece.

My Thought: Paul’s reminder that the way believers live—especially in a corrupt culture—should be visibly different. Not bitter, not argumentative, not dimmed by compromise… but bright, bold, and beautiful, reflecting the holiness and joy of Christ in a broken world.

Paul’s overall thoughts..

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Thought: The darker culture becomes, the brighter your faith, integrity, and obedience shine.

Jesus Himself emphasizes…

Built to Advance (Offense)

Matthew 16:18 (NIV)

• Jesus asked: “Who do you say that I am?” 
• Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (v.16)
• Matthew 16:18 isn’t passive: His church will storm the gates of Hades.
• Gates are defensive, not offensive. The imagery is about Kingdom advance.

Reflects Back to..

Daniel 2:44 (NIV)

• God’s Kingdom crushes every other kingdom

• Every believer is part of that Kingdom.

Three areas of pushback against the flow of today’s culture.

• Resist (defense)
• Shine (witness)
• Advance (offense)

Church Declaration

“I wasn’t built just to survive…. I was built to shine; I wasn’t built to hide….I was built to advance;  I wasn’t built to bow down… I was built to push back.