We are not perfect but we are being perfected by Him. The word perfect here does not mean without fault, but complete lacking nothing.

OPENING SCRIPTURE:

I HAVE BEEN CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST AND I NO LONGER LIVE, BUT CHRIST LIVES IN ME. (Galatians 2:20 NIV)

• This journey is not easy because it involves something called Pressure.
• Being Perfected and Pressure goes hand in hand.
• As a matter of fact, God promises us Pressure – John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. IN THIS WORLD you will have TROUBLE (Pressure, trials, tribulations). But take heart! I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD.” (John 16:33 NIV)

• In this world, there will always be the pressures of life. Jesus does not overcome the pressure for us, but He uses the pressure to perfect us.
• In the amplified version you can read it as: “I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you”
• Pressure always points to the solution: Jesus.
• God uses imperfect, ordinary vessels like you and me to house His glory.

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (2 Corinthians 4:6-7 NIV)

• He has chosen broken vessels like you and me to shine for Him.
• Ordinary jars of clay to carry the perfection of Christ.

“Don’t shine so that others can see you. Shine, so that others can see Him” ~ C.S Lewis

The pressure is not to harm or destroy us but to perfect us, to point to Jesus.

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body (2 Corinthians 4:8-10 NIV)

#1 PRESSURE SHAPES US

• Marriage is a God ordained thing – The pressure of marriage is good. It shapes.
• Children are a blessing of the Lord – The pressure of raising them shapes us.

THAT IS WHY WE NEVER GIVE UP. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. (2 Corinthians 4:16 NLT)

• We might look like fragile jars of clay but we are containers the Holy Spirit. This power is shaping us day by day.

For our PRESENT TROUBLES (Pressures) are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the TROUBLES (Pressures) we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever (2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT)

• The pressures will soon be over, but the perfection that we are going through will last forever

#2 PRESSURE CREATES DESTINY

• The word destiny and destination go hand in hand.
• God will use pressure to give you the right coordinates for your journey.

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1 NLT)

• In order to follow God and embrace a new life, Abraham had to leave the old life behind:

This means that ANYONE WHO BELONGS TO CHRIST has become a NEW PERSON. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT)

• Pressure not only creates destiny, but it also releases God promises!
• Without Pressure there is no Perfection or Completeness!

CONCLUSION
• What is the Holy Spirit saying to you through this message?