Well I don't feel like that. Hey, it's got nothing to do with feelings. Your feelings and everything around you will change if your heart belief will change. Got to work on the heart belief system see? Okay, I want you to have a look with me in 2 Corinthians 5. So the Bible tells us many things about who are. You've got a job to discover it, otherwise you're only who people say you are and who you think you are, but God says there's much more to you than that, much, much more to you than that. You are His workmanship, God's working on you, fine piece and master of art. You're His workmanship. You're His servant. Do you see yourself as a servant of God? You're a minister of God. Do you see yourself as a minister of God? Wherever you go you can bring God to people; do you see that? Do you believe that? If you believe that then of course you'll want to be equipped on how you can move in the spirit of God to bring God to people, because that's who you are. You do that kind of thing.
Let's have a look in 2 Corinthians 5. I want to read a few verses here and we'll pick it up in verse 14. For the love of Christ motivates us, because we judge that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. I reckon if someone gave you $1 million you'd feel very indebted to them for helping you. What if someone laid His life down for you? You'd feel quite indebted to respond. Okay, it says from now on we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we've known Christ according to the flesh, we know Him this way no longer. Notice that - from now on we no man after the flesh. I'll tell you what that means in a moment - therefore if anyone is in Christ he's a new creation; old things have passed away and behold, everything has become new. I've got a problem straight away because it doesn't feel like everything's become new.
Now let's just go through it, and then it says then we are ambassadors for Christ. I want to go through a few things in here and show you. Notice what the Bible tells us, it says we have new motivation when you become born again. The new motivation, it says now the love of Christ compels me forward. I'm not doing things because I have to any more, not doing things because it's the right thing to do any more; I'm doing things because I'm loved by God and the love makes me want to do stuff. See, the love of Christ constrains or motivates or harnesses my life. I want to do things I never wanted to do before. Before you came to the Lord you're selfish. That was the old you. The new you is generous. Have you caught up with who the new you is yet, or are you still living the old one? So you notice the first thing is we've got a new motivation in the love of Christ. Notice the second thing here, it says we no longer live for ourselves, so we've got a new centre of living.
So we're no longer self-centred now. We're thinking man, I want to live my life for the Lord. I want to please the Lord. I've got someone who loves me, committed to me! I want to serve Him! I want to so connect with Him that my life makes a difference, otherwise I don't think that way, I'm thinking like I used to live. It's just what's in this for me, see? So [we no longer 00.17.14] live for ourselves. Notice a couple of other things here; got a new perspective and it says before, from now on we know no one after the flesh, got a new perspective on people. Now what does it mean to know someone after the flesh? It means when you look at people you start to look at them differently, so when you're born again you start to look at people differently. You don't look at them and say how much money this man's got, or what job he's got or whether he's white or black or brown or yellow. We're not looking at whether it's a male or a female. We now see people differently.
The problem is of course if you don't realise that you see people differently you're just going to relate to them the way you used to, out of prejudice and attitudes. But you see if I'm motivated by the love of God now, and if I actually start to look at people differently I see this is a lovely person that God created to represent Him. This is my brother, this is someone in the family of God. I'm not worried whether he's the mayor of town or whether he's got some great position or some great influence or income. That's got nothing to do with anything. We're not to know people after the flesh. To know them after the flesh means you judge people and you put them into ranks of social status; this is high up, this is low down; moneyed status, this is rich, this is poor, or positional status or racial status or gender status. Said in Christ all of those things have gone, because God doesn't see us that way. It's time I caught up in my thinking and look at people differently.