1 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:10,080 There's also child care on Thursday nights. Kids ministry 2 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:13,720 meets with junior Bible quiz and the youth meet on Thursday 3 00:00:13,720 --> 00:00:17,440 nights. And they'll be kicking back up this week, too. So a lot 4 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:20,760 to be plugged into. If you've got capacity, I encourage you to be a part 5 00:00:20,760 --> 00:00:24,480 of that. Well, good morning. Are we awake 6 00:00:24,480 --> 00:00:28,270 this morning? Well, praise God. I'm glad that we're awake. 7 00:00:28,270 --> 00:00:31,350 It's a new year. How did we get to 2026? 8 00:00:32,070 --> 00:00:35,910 Oh, my goodness. Grace. Barbie says grace. 9 00:00:38,550 --> 00:00:42,350 Don't say that, Kevin. Okay. Sometimes 10 00:00:42,350 --> 00:00:45,110 things fleet in your mind, and it's like, I'm glad that didn't come out of 11 00:00:45,110 --> 00:00:48,630 my mouth. Thank you, Lord, for the power of 12 00:00:48,630 --> 00:00:52,230 filters. God is good. God is good. 13 00:00:52,310 --> 00:00:55,990 And I am excited about this new series that we're getting 14 00:00:56,070 --> 00:00:59,810 into for 20. A 15 00:00:59,810 --> 00:01:03,370 couple of disclaimers before we get into this. First of all, this is now a 16 00:01:03,370 --> 00:01:06,690 thing. So. Yeah, 17 00:01:07,010 --> 00:01:10,610 thank you. Talk about 18 00:01:10,690 --> 00:01:14,449 20, 26. So, you know, I feel like I'm in a 19 00:01:14,449 --> 00:01:18,210 fishbowl, because I am. These are bifocals, you know, so, you know, 20 00:01:18,210 --> 00:01:21,930 I can see both directions. So I'm gonna be taking them off and on. And 21 00:01:21,930 --> 00:01:25,650 so if I have them off and I don't say a word the right way, 22 00:01:26,050 --> 00:01:29,690 now I'm being trouble, right? Okay, so you know why. And I promise they're 23 00:01:29,690 --> 00:01:32,990 gonn much more stylish than this come next few weeks. Okay? But 24 00:01:34,350 --> 00:01:37,790 these are my starters. And so, anyway, so 25 00:01:38,190 --> 00:01:39,950 we're gonna start with that. And then also, 26 00:01:41,790 --> 00:01:45,310 you know, I was getting into 27 00:01:45,710 --> 00:01:49,430 this last quarter and just thinking about the 28 00:01:49,430 --> 00:01:53,190 things, and I was so excited about John 15. And 29 00:01:53,190 --> 00:01:56,830 the operative word was is key there, because. 30 00:01:57,230 --> 00:02:00,830 And I am excited because God's doing things. But have you 31 00:02:00,830 --> 00:02:04,570 ever gone to class, clean out a room, and you gotta make 32 00:02:04,570 --> 00:02:08,170 things messier before they become better? Well, 33 00:02:08,490 --> 00:02:12,330 welcome to Springhouse Church. We are about to go through a season of 34 00:02:12,330 --> 00:02:16,090 making some things messy before they get better. And 35 00:02:16,170 --> 00:02:19,570 so for those of you who are new to Springhouse, or even if you've been 36 00:02:19,570 --> 00:02:23,330 here, I'm gonna ask you to do me a favor. If 37 00:02:23,330 --> 00:02:26,970 I say something that offends you, if I say something 38 00:02:26,970 --> 00:02:30,570 that maybe you don't even agree with or just kind of hit you the wrong 39 00:02:30,570 --> 00:02:33,920 way, if you would wait till the first week of February to leave Spring 40 00:02:34,070 --> 00:02:37,830 Springhouse, but kind of like a gym membership, keep paying your tithe 41 00:02:37,830 --> 00:02:41,590 all through the year, that would be great. Okay. You know, 42 00:02:41,590 --> 00:02:45,390 but no, seriously, if you choose to leave Springhouse, please wait 43 00:02:45,390 --> 00:02:48,150 a little while. I just want, you know, I just want to get through these 44 00:02:48,150 --> 00:02:51,310 first couple of weeks because we are going to get messy because I think God 45 00:02:51,310 --> 00:02:54,950 has some real truth and some real revelation in his word for us. 46 00:02:55,910 --> 00:02:58,710 And, you know, can you look at your neighbor right now and ask them this 47 00:02:58,710 --> 00:03:00,310 question? Why are you here? 48 00:03:04,780 --> 00:03:08,460 Now, on the cuff, that answer. On the cuff, that answer might 49 00:03:08,460 --> 00:03:12,020 seem something. That's natural. On the cuff, it might seem 50 00:03:12,020 --> 00:03:15,660 something. But let me tell you, how many times, how 51 00:03:15,660 --> 00:03:19,500 many times do people dawn the doorsteps of the 52 00:03:19,500 --> 00:03:23,140 church and have no idea why they're in the 53 00:03:23,140 --> 00:03:26,620 house? And I believe that this morning, 54 00:03:27,210 --> 00:03:30,570 January 4, 2026, God has a 55 00:03:30,570 --> 00:03:34,370 powerful word for us. And it's going to open 56 00:03:34,370 --> 00:03:38,010 up and start a ripple effect in our lives if we will 57 00:03:38,010 --> 00:03:41,810 grab hold of it and we will allow him to mature it 58 00:03:41,810 --> 00:03:45,530 in our walk this week as we nudge forward week by week 59 00:03:45,530 --> 00:03:49,210 into this year. Now, last year we got off on the 60 00:03:49,210 --> 00:03:53,010 greatest stories ever told, and we started a message 61 00:03:53,010 --> 00:03:56,690 and kind of capped it nicely at the end each week. This series is 62 00:03:56,690 --> 00:04:00,430 gonna be an evolution. We different at the end of this year than 63 00:04:00,430 --> 00:04:03,470 we do at the beginning of this year because of this principle of abiding in 64 00:04:03,470 --> 00:04:07,230 Christ. And so my encouragement is that we really lean in 65 00:04:07,230 --> 00:04:10,990 this morning. And I'm gonna pray something that I don't usually pray after we read 66 00:04:10,990 --> 00:04:14,350 the Word. Are you ready for this? I'm actually gonna pray that the Holy Spirit 67 00:04:14,350 --> 00:04:16,470 of God will convict our hearts in this room. 68 00:04:17,910 --> 00:04:21,630 I'm not here to entertain. I don't wanna be entertained. I 69 00:04:21,630 --> 00:04:25,360 wanna be changed by the word of God. Anybody with me? So let's go on 70 00:04:25,360 --> 00:04:28,840 the journey together. Stand with me. We're gonna read from John, chapter 15. This is 71 00:04:28,840 --> 00:04:32,680 gonna be a baseline scripture for us through this series. And let's read 72 00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:36,400 it like we mean it with some passion today. Here we go. I am the 73 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:40,040 true vine, and my father is the gardener. He 74 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:43,360 cuts every branch in me that bears no fruit, 75 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:47,040 while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes 76 00:04:47,280 --> 00:04:51,040 so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already 77 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:54,560 clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 78 00:04:54,880 --> 00:04:58,620 Remain as I also remain in you. 79 00:04:59,100 --> 00:05:02,820 No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must 80 00:05:02,820 --> 00:05:06,660 remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit 81 00:05:06,660 --> 00:05:10,460 unless you remain in me. I am the vine, 82 00:05:10,620 --> 00:05:14,300 you are the branches. If you remain in me and 83 00:05:14,300 --> 00:05:17,420 I in you, you will bear much fruit. 84 00:05:17,660 --> 00:05:21,260 Apart from me, you can do nothing. Let's read that last part 85 00:05:21,260 --> 00:05:23,180 again. Apart from me. 86 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,680 Father, we believe that today, and Holy 87 00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:32,400 Spirit, I'm asking for you to convict 88 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:36,200 our hearts today. I'm asking you to give 89 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:39,040 us eyes to see things that we haven't seen before, 90 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:42,800 ears to hear some things that we haven't heard before. 91 00:05:43,600 --> 00:05:47,040 That we would make some connections this morning that we weren't 92 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:50,680 necessarily expecting to make when we came in. But by the grace 93 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:54,320 of your Holy Spirit, you met us. You were preparing the 94 00:05:54,320 --> 00:05:58,110 atmosphere in our spirits before we even knew it, Lord, 95 00:05:58,430 --> 00:06:02,070 for this moment in time. So may we hear your 96 00:06:02,070 --> 00:06:05,670 word. May we respond to it today in Jesus name. And 97 00:06:05,670 --> 00:06:08,670 everybody said, amen. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. 98 00:06:10,190 --> 00:06:13,790 So I was getting into the Word and I was preparing for this series, Abide. 99 00:06:14,750 --> 00:06:18,590 And like I said, I thought, hey, I'm gonna jump in and 100 00:06:18,590 --> 00:06:21,990 this is gonna be easy. This is gonna be. I didn't really think easy. Cause 101 00:06:21,990 --> 00:06:25,310 nothing about it is really easy. But I thought, you know, I'm familiar with this 102 00:06:25,310 --> 00:06:28,730 word, so I'm gonna be able. We're gonna be able. Like a roller coaster. And 103 00:06:28,730 --> 00:06:32,450 boy, after pages and pages of notes, the Lord had me set 104 00:06:32,450 --> 00:06:36,290 that aside and he gave me something different. And I believe the 105 00:06:36,290 --> 00:06:40,130 Lord said, we're gonna have to unpackage some things. Do you know 106 00:06:40,130 --> 00:06:43,970 that it's just as important for us to unlearn things than 107 00:06:43,970 --> 00:06:47,690 it is to learn things? And I believe that there are 108 00:06:47,690 --> 00:06:51,490 some things that we need to purpose to unlearn so he can 109 00:06:51,490 --> 00:06:54,970 open some crevices to teach us some things that actually come from him. 110 00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:59,320 Some of us are wearing the residue of the world, the 111 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:02,600 stench of the world. And we have no clue. Have you ever been around somebody 112 00:07:02,600 --> 00:07:06,440 that stinks? The most loving 113 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:10,240 thing to do with somebody who stinks is to go up to them. 114 00:07:10,400 --> 00:07:14,200 Not in an unpleasant way, but if you love them is to say 115 00:07:14,200 --> 00:07:17,040 you have a stench. There's a smell about you. 116 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:21,560 Okay, I'm reminded of a story I don't have time really to tell, but I 117 00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:25,240 went through a whole two periods of high school with a sugar smack on my 118 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:28,340 cheek because I didn't have friends who cared. Cared enough about me to tell me, 119 00:07:28,340 --> 00:07:29,740 you got breakfast still on your face. 120 00:07:31,980 --> 00:07:34,940 We need to be a people who are willing to say the truth in love. 121 00:07:35,740 --> 00:07:39,540 And the Lord has some real things for us today. And so I 122 00:07:39,540 --> 00:07:42,460 was asking the Lord, okay, where do we go? And he took me back to 123 00:07:43,020 --> 00:07:46,860 the Old Testament. He took me back to the Old Testament. And 124 00:07:46,860 --> 00:07:50,060 I wanna take us back to the Old Testament to a moment in 125 00:07:50,060 --> 00:07:53,620 Israel's history. A moment that maybe some of you have never 126 00:07:53,620 --> 00:07:56,940 heard about, but one that will feel strangely 127 00:07:56,940 --> 00:08:00,400 familiar as we kinda unfold. Open what 128 00:08:00,400 --> 00:08:04,080 happened in the Old Testament with God's people? God had chosen 129 00:08:04,080 --> 00:08:07,880 Israel to be his people, not because 130 00:08:07,880 --> 00:08:11,680 they were perfect, not because they were polished, but because 131 00:08:11,680 --> 00:08:15,480 he loved them. And he called them to live differently 132 00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:19,160 than the nations that were around them, to worship him alone, 133 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:23,120 to practice justice, to care for the vulnerable, and 134 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:26,580 to reflect his character all around the world. But over many 135 00:08:26,580 --> 00:08:30,060 generations, something started to happen. They began to back away 136 00:08:30,060 --> 00:08:33,660 from this call, from this directive, especially the leaders. 137 00:08:34,220 --> 00:08:37,660 They started to chase gods of the other nations. 138 00:08:38,060 --> 00:08:41,780 They started to mix faith with idolatry. They trusted 139 00:08:41,780 --> 00:08:45,460 in political alliances more than God. They opposed the 140 00:08:45,460 --> 00:08:48,780 poor, and they ignored God's commands. 141 00:08:49,580 --> 00:08:53,150 And God didn't respond with anger at first, like he 142 00:08:53,150 --> 00:08:56,950 usually does. And in keeping with God's character, he was patient 143 00:08:56,950 --> 00:09:00,750 and he was kind. And in his great patience and his sovereignty, 144 00:09:00,830 --> 00:09:04,590 he sent prophets, prophets like Isaiah 145 00:09:04,750 --> 00:09:08,590 and Micah and Jeremiah, to render the true 146 00:09:08,590 --> 00:09:12,350 word of the Lord. And this is what these prophets would say. They 147 00:09:12,350 --> 00:09:15,070 would say, turn back to the Lord. 148 00:09:15,870 --> 00:09:19,710 Stop sinning. If you keep going this way, 149 00:09:19,710 --> 00:09:23,190 destruction and exile will surely come. 150 00:09:24,230 --> 00:09:27,910 Now, just like some of us, the nation of Israel did 151 00:09:27,910 --> 00:09:31,510 not like this word because this word caused 152 00:09:31,510 --> 00:09:35,350 them to have to do something and change behavior that they didn't want to change. 153 00:09:36,150 --> 00:09:39,830 And so alongside Jeremiah stood some other people 154 00:09:39,990 --> 00:09:43,590 with a voice that became louder and louder than that of 155 00:09:43,590 --> 00:09:47,230 Jeremiah's. And this voice, these voices would say 156 00:09:47,230 --> 00:09:50,640 this worry, God will never let 157 00:09:50,640 --> 00:09:54,320 anything happen to Jerusalem. God will fix your issues 158 00:09:54,400 --> 00:09:57,760 quickly. Now, Israel liked this word 159 00:09:58,160 --> 00:10:01,920 because this word was comfortable, this word felt 160 00:10:01,920 --> 00:10:05,520 good. This word didn't necessarily cause change 161 00:10:05,520 --> 00:10:08,800 and put all the onus on God and nothing on them. 162 00:10:09,840 --> 00:10:13,120 But the biggest problem was, is it wasn't true. 163 00:10:14,690 --> 00:10:18,370 Jeremiah, on the other hand, he brought a very different word. He says, 164 00:10:18,450 --> 00:10:20,850 this path will not end well. 165 00:10:21,650 --> 00:10:24,930 Babylon will rise, exile is coming, and it will 166 00:10:25,330 --> 00:10:29,129 not be short. And because Jeremiah's message was uncomfortable, 167 00:10:29,129 --> 00:10:32,970 the people rejected him. They mocked him, they 168 00:10:32,970 --> 00:10:36,450 treated him poorly, they threw him in a pit. They labeled him 169 00:10:36,450 --> 00:10:39,090 negative, unpatriotic, and unfaithful. 170 00:10:40,700 --> 00:10:44,500 And then it happened. The Babylon empire invaded 171 00:10:44,500 --> 00:10:48,220 Jerusalem. The city fell, the temple was destroyed. 172 00:10:48,220 --> 00:10:51,980 The very place where they worshiped God was destroyed. And a 173 00:10:51,980 --> 00:10:55,580 large portion of God's people were taken captive and carried 174 00:10:55,580 --> 00:10:58,940 far away into Babylon. I want you to 175 00:10:58,940 --> 00:11:02,540 imagine that moment. You have been fooled to believe 176 00:11:02,540 --> 00:11:05,100 that your God is going to take care of everything. 177 00:11:06,460 --> 00:11:10,220 Yet here you are finding yourself in a different 178 00:11:10,300 --> 00:11:13,780 place where you've lost your land, you've lost your security, and 179 00:11:13,780 --> 00:11:16,620 you've lost every semblance of structure. Of your life. 180 00:11:17,900 --> 00:11:21,660 And in that confusion, the false prophets that 181 00:11:21,660 --> 00:11:25,300 communicated this message continued to run their 182 00:11:25,300 --> 00:11:29,020 mouths, as often false prophets do. And they 183 00:11:29,020 --> 00:11:32,610 said, don't unpack your bags, because God is gonna 184 00:11:32,610 --> 00:11:36,450 rescue you out of this exile. God is gonna take you away. God is 185 00:11:36,450 --> 00:11:39,450 going to come and serve you on your 186 00:11:39,690 --> 00:11:43,290 behalf. Their message sounded hopeful. 187 00:11:43,690 --> 00:11:47,530 Jeremiah's message sounded painful. But 188 00:11:47,530 --> 00:11:51,210 Jeremiah was the one telling the truth. So 189 00:11:51,210 --> 00:11:54,850 God speaks through Jeremiah again. This time he sends it in 190 00:11:54,850 --> 00:11:58,650 the framework of a letter that we read in Jeremiah chapter 29. 191 00:11:58,650 --> 00:12:02,320 And it says this. This is what the Lord Almighty God of 192 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:05,760 Israel says to all of those carried into exile from 193 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:09,560 Jerusalem to Babylon. Build houses and 194 00:12:09,720 --> 00:12:13,480 settle down. Plant gardens and eat what they 195 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:16,960 produce. Marry and have sons and daughters. Find 196 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:20,800 wives for your sons and give the daughters in marriage so that 197 00:12:20,800 --> 00:12:24,640 they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there. Do not 198 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:28,400 decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of 199 00:12:28,400 --> 00:12:31,360 the city to which I have carried you into exile. 200 00:12:31,920 --> 00:12:35,680 Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too 201 00:12:35,680 --> 00:12:39,360 will prosper. Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty 202 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:42,960 God says to Israel. Do not let the prophets and the 203 00:12:42,960 --> 00:12:46,480 diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you 204 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:50,080 encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in 205 00:12:50,080 --> 00:12:53,440 my name. I have not sent them, declares the Lord. 206 00:12:54,420 --> 00:12:58,180 And so there is this letter, and the God of the universe is saying, 207 00:12:58,580 --> 00:13:01,460 I have sent you to this exile place. 208 00:13:02,980 --> 00:13:06,700 It tells me that the Lord God Almighty, in his 209 00:13:06,700 --> 00:13:10,540 mission, in his love for you, in 210 00:13:10,540 --> 00:13:14,260 his mission, in his chasing after your soul, will allow 211 00:13:14,820 --> 00:13:18,020 hardship to happen in your life, to bring about change. 212 00:13:19,060 --> 00:13:22,660 He will allow you to be in uncomfortable situations 213 00:13:22,660 --> 00:13:26,480 and live there for a season of time so that you will 214 00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:29,960 come to a place to acknowledge him as the 215 00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:33,360 Lord, as the Lord. And so God says, 216 00:13:33,920 --> 00:13:37,520 build, plant, get married. 217 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:41,040 Increase, do not decrease. 218 00:13:42,400 --> 00:13:46,240 In other words, this is not going to be short. You're going to 219 00:13:46,240 --> 00:13:50,000 be here for a while. Don't put your life on pause. 220 00:13:50,560 --> 00:13:54,300 Don't hold your breath waiting for rescue. Live 221 00:13:54,300 --> 00:13:58,140 faithfully, right where you are. Seek the peace and the prosperity of 222 00:13:58,140 --> 00:14:01,820 the city to which I've carried you into exile. Pray for it. Because if it 223 00:14:01,820 --> 00:14:05,380 prospers, you're gonna prosper as well. This 224 00:14:05,380 --> 00:14:09,060 wasn't about the Israelites blending in 225 00:14:09,219 --> 00:14:13,060 with Babylon, and it also wasn't about them fighting 226 00:14:13,220 --> 00:14:17,060 against Babylon. It was about learning how to 227 00:14:17,060 --> 00:14:20,740 live as God's people inside a culture that did 228 00:14:20,740 --> 00:14:24,050 not share their faith. And I want you to understand, 229 00:14:24,530 --> 00:14:28,250 friends, that we live as God's people inside of 230 00:14:28,250 --> 00:14:31,170 a Culture that do not share our faith. 231 00:14:31,890 --> 00:14:35,570 We live as exiles in Babylon, 232 00:14:36,050 --> 00:14:39,690 learning how to live, work our jobs, build our houses, 233 00:14:39,690 --> 00:14:43,250 have our families within the construct of the world, 234 00:14:43,410 --> 00:14:45,730 living in the kingdom of God. 235 00:14:47,010 --> 00:14:50,650 The exile was not God discarding his people. It was 236 00:14:50,650 --> 00:14:54,500 God's way of reshaping them. He was teaching them how 237 00:14:54,500 --> 00:14:58,140 to remain his people even when the world around them 238 00:14:58,300 --> 00:15:01,860 did not reflect the kingdom. And that's where our story 239 00:15:01,860 --> 00:15:04,940 meets us today. Because like Israel in 240 00:15:04,940 --> 00:15:08,540 Babylon, we live in a world whose values don't 241 00:15:08,540 --> 00:15:12,260 always match the kingdom to which we belong. We build families, work 242 00:15:12,260 --> 00:15:16,060 jobs, live lives here, but our identity is somewhere else. 243 00:15:16,060 --> 00:15:19,700 I like to say it like this. In America, we have a constitution 244 00:15:19,700 --> 00:15:22,380 that gives us rights. And there are people who have given their life, 245 00:15:23,590 --> 00:15:27,390 people have laid down their life for the Constitution. And the Constitution 246 00:15:27,390 --> 00:15:30,910 of the United States gives you the freedom to speak, gives you the freedom to 247 00:15:30,910 --> 00:15:33,550 do kind of whatever you want to do. That's kind of, I guess, the purpose 248 00:15:33,550 --> 00:15:37,310 of the Constitution. But if you belong to the kingdom of God, the word of 249 00:15:37,310 --> 00:15:40,790 God is the constitution of the kingdom. And the word of God 250 00:15:40,790 --> 00:15:44,550 supersedes the Constitution of the United States every single time. 251 00:15:44,870 --> 00:15:48,070 You belong to a kingdom. And guys, I hate to tell you this, you have 252 00:15:48,070 --> 00:15:51,530 a king. It's not a democracy, it's not a presidency, 253 00:15:51,690 --> 00:15:55,490 it's not a negotiation. You have a king who is sovereign and 254 00:15:55,490 --> 00:15:59,250 sitting on a throne and wants to be the king of your life. The 255 00:15:59,250 --> 00:16:02,930 difference about this king, unlike other kings, is he actually knows 256 00:16:02,930 --> 00:16:06,650 your name and has a purpose and a plan for your life. Because 257 00:16:06,730 --> 00:16:10,370 later we see what God says to the people. 258 00:16:10,370 --> 00:16:12,970 Hey, build your houses, get married, 259 00:16:14,090 --> 00:16:17,810 live your lives. Because here's the thing, and we like to quote this verse, 260 00:16:19,480 --> 00:16:22,920 I have a plan for you declares the Lord, plans to 261 00:16:22,920 --> 00:16:26,000 prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a 262 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:29,800 future. This promise was in the 263 00:16:29,800 --> 00:16:33,520 context of exile. We like to parade that 264 00:16:33,520 --> 00:16:37,080 truth around when things are going well, right? We like to parade that truth around. 265 00:16:37,240 --> 00:16:41,040 This was in the moment where God Almighty lent way 266 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:44,330 and gave permission for his people to be in a place of 267 00:16:44,330 --> 00:16:45,650 captivity in exile. 268 00:16:48,290 --> 00:16:52,130 So the question becomes, as we begin this series on abiding 269 00:16:52,130 --> 00:16:55,810 in Christ, we have a question that we need to grapple with. And here's the 270 00:16:55,810 --> 00:16:59,490 question we need to grapple with. Will we be 271 00:16:59,490 --> 00:17:03,290 formed by the world we live in? Or will we 272 00:17:03,290 --> 00:17:06,370 remain rooted in the kingdom to which we belong? 273 00:17:07,890 --> 00:17:11,090 Will we be formed by the world we live in? 274 00:17:11,650 --> 00:17:15,330 Or will we remain rooted in the kingdom to 275 00:17:15,330 --> 00:17:18,690 which we belong? I'D like to suggest this morning, 276 00:17:20,210 --> 00:17:24,010 as I click this button that's not working, hit that 277 00:17:24,010 --> 00:17:27,730 next slide. The greatest danger 278 00:17:27,730 --> 00:17:30,530 in the world is not persecution. It's deception. 279 00:17:32,930 --> 00:17:36,610 Let that marinate for just a moment. I'm 280 00:17:36,610 --> 00:17:40,450 called to pick up my cross. I'm called to a life of 281 00:17:40,450 --> 00:17:44,030 suffering. I'm called. The greatest danger in our 282 00:17:44,030 --> 00:17:47,630 world living as Christians, is not that we are going to be 283 00:17:47,630 --> 00:17:51,110 persecuted, not even to the point of death. It's 284 00:17:51,110 --> 00:17:54,350 deception. It's deception. 285 00:17:54,990 --> 00:17:58,710 Now, deception can come in various forms. In 286 00:17:58,710 --> 00:18:02,230 my experience, deception often comes from the person who 287 00:18:02,230 --> 00:18:05,910 always has something to say. Have you ever known a 288 00:18:05,910 --> 00:18:08,910 leader who's got an opinion about every single thing that's said or done? 289 00:18:10,590 --> 00:18:14,310 Have you ever followed somebody who just every single time there's something that 290 00:18:14,310 --> 00:18:17,790 comes up, they've got something to say about it? Here's what I've 291 00:18:17,790 --> 00:18:21,630 learned as I've matured as a leader in the Lord Jesus 292 00:18:21,630 --> 00:18:24,830 Christ. It stands to reason, when you become a leader, you would think, man, 293 00:18:25,550 --> 00:18:29,110 I've got to learn what to say and when to say it. But what I've 294 00:18:29,110 --> 00:18:32,830 learned as a mature believer in Christ and what I'm learning as a leader 295 00:18:33,230 --> 00:18:35,700 is that it's more important for me to learn when to shut my mouth. 296 00:18:37,530 --> 00:18:41,210 There's a man by the name Bruce Kobel, served on staff here for decades. 297 00:18:41,690 --> 00:18:45,490 And let me tell you, Bruce had a lot of opinions. He 298 00:18:45,490 --> 00:18:47,530 had a lot that he could have said. 299 00:18:49,530 --> 00:18:53,290 But Bruce rarely spoke. But 300 00:18:53,290 --> 00:18:56,890 when he opened his mouth, the room was silent 301 00:18:57,130 --> 00:19:00,690 and everything changed. I admire that 302 00:19:00,690 --> 00:19:04,490 man because he knew from the Holy Spirit when it was time and 303 00:19:04,490 --> 00:19:07,250 place and appropriate for him to insert 304 00:19:08,050 --> 00:19:11,730 his thought or his opinion. And also more 305 00:19:11,730 --> 00:19:15,490 than that, I've heard that man come back many a time and apologize, 306 00:19:15,490 --> 00:19:19,250 even in the vein. Even in the vein of not saying much at all. 307 00:19:19,250 --> 00:19:22,770 Come back and say, you know, what I considered and I had 308 00:19:22,770 --> 00:19:26,610 weighed what I said to you, and I don't believe it was rightly placed. Would 309 00:19:26,610 --> 00:19:27,570 you forgive me? 310 00:19:30,210 --> 00:19:33,930 Be leery of leaders you follow who always have to say something 311 00:19:33,930 --> 00:19:37,720 about everything, because you won't 312 00:19:37,720 --> 00:19:41,440 know very clearly what the Holy Spirit's saying and 313 00:19:41,440 --> 00:19:45,120 what's just their opinion. First, Thessalonians 314 00:19:45,120 --> 00:19:48,600 4:11 says this. Make it your ambition 315 00:19:49,000 --> 00:19:52,720 to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and work with 316 00:19:52,720 --> 00:19:56,480 your hands so that your daily life may win the respect of 317 00:19:56,480 --> 00:19:59,280 outsiders. You know, there are a few people that I think about when I read 318 00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:02,800 this scripture. And in this gathering, the couple that I think about are Michael and 319 00:20:02,800 --> 00:20:06,510 Rhonda Frazier. Do you know what type of 320 00:20:06,510 --> 00:20:08,990 a powerhouse couple Mike and Rhonda are? 321 00:20:09,870 --> 00:20:13,670 Rhonda has a gift of teaching that would literally, I 322 00:20:13,670 --> 00:20:16,990 think, ripple and change generations just in one setting. 323 00:20:17,310 --> 00:20:20,870 What the deposit she carries, whether it's with students or adults or 324 00:20:20,870 --> 00:20:24,150 whatever, whatever Rhonda puts her hand to, it's done with such 325 00:20:24,150 --> 00:20:27,870 excellence. Have you heard Michael compose anything? Do you hear him 326 00:20:27,870 --> 00:20:31,510 play the anointing he carries from this platform? And whenever he gets behind 327 00:20:31,510 --> 00:20:35,230 the keys or whenever he's involved with composing or orchestra, all those. 328 00:20:35,690 --> 00:20:39,530 The weight and the gravity that this couple carries. But here's the thing. Most 329 00:20:39,530 --> 00:20:43,250 of you in this room probably don't have deep connections with Mike and Rhonda. 330 00:20:43,250 --> 00:20:47,050 They are not vying for the spotlight. They are not vying for time in the 331 00:20:47,050 --> 00:20:50,090 stage. They're not looking to say, look and see what I've got to say here. 332 00:20:50,650 --> 00:20:54,410 They just lead their lives. And they step into places where the power 333 00:20:54,410 --> 00:20:57,890 of the Holy Spirit meets them. And he says, speak and do. And they speak 334 00:20:57,890 --> 00:21:01,650 and they do. This is the type of 335 00:21:01,650 --> 00:21:05,440 lives we're supposed to lead. We're not supposed to be 336 00:21:05,440 --> 00:21:09,240 looking to elevate ourselves in the world's eyes. We're not supposed 337 00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:12,560 to be looking for great grandiose platforms to speak from. 338 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:16,480 And if the Lord gives those places, those places should be met with a huge 339 00:21:16,480 --> 00:21:17,360 degree of humility. 340 00:21:20,400 --> 00:21:24,080 Are you glad you came to church today? The next 341 00:21:24,080 --> 00:21:27,880 verse says this. If it's possible, as far as it depends on 342 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:31,610 you, live at peace with everyone. I don't 343 00:21:31,610 --> 00:21:35,330 know where we got this idea as Christians that we're supposed to declare war 344 00:21:35,330 --> 00:21:38,370 on the world. The Lord God 345 00:21:38,370 --> 00:21:41,770 Almighty. Listen. He has placed us 346 00:21:41,850 --> 00:21:45,610 contextually in this world bubble to live 347 00:21:45,610 --> 00:21:49,290 as a servant of the kingdom. He has placed us here, which 348 00:21:49,290 --> 00:21:53,010 tells me if the world's got stuff going on, he's going to take care of 349 00:21:53,010 --> 00:21:56,530 the world. In fact, some of us have succumbed to the 350 00:21:56,530 --> 00:21:59,920 notion that God is about trying to make the world a better place. 351 00:22:01,590 --> 00:22:05,190 But God is going to come and destroy this world, and he's going to establish 352 00:22:05,190 --> 00:22:08,830 his kingdom. So if you're under the illusion that the 353 00:22:08,830 --> 00:22:12,510 world's going to become a better place, it's not becoming a better 354 00:22:12,510 --> 00:22:16,270 place. Allow yourself to be undeceived in 355 00:22:16,270 --> 00:22:19,830 that. Okay, as foreigners and 356 00:22:19,830 --> 00:22:23,350 exiles. This is Peter. Okay, one Peter. This tells me, as 357 00:22:23,350 --> 00:22:26,760 foreigners and exiles, what does that make us? Foreigners and 358 00:22:26,760 --> 00:22:30,440 exiles abstain from sinful desires which 359 00:22:30,440 --> 00:22:33,360 wage war against your soul. Stop sinning. 360 00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:39,840 Let's pray. No, listen. It says, live 361 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:43,520 such good lives among the pagans. That 362 00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:47,360 though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your 363 00:22:47,360 --> 00:22:51,120 good deeds and glorify God. Now let me give you the. 364 00:22:52,590 --> 00:22:56,270 The shallow Christian version of this scripture. Are you ready for it? 365 00:22:58,590 --> 00:23:02,150 Though they accuse you of doing wrong, that they may watch 366 00:23:02,150 --> 00:23:05,550 your Facebook post and hear what you say to glorify God. 367 00:23:07,630 --> 00:23:11,270 No, it's not what it says. It says, see your good deeds and 368 00:23:11,270 --> 00:23:14,990 glorify God. That means that what you say, you better be walking. 369 00:23:15,710 --> 00:23:19,360 What you preach, you better be walking. Let them see 370 00:23:19,440 --> 00:23:23,200 you actually model the faith. Remember a few weeks ago we talked about, do 371 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:26,640 you believe what you really believe? Let the world see you 372 00:23:26,640 --> 00:23:29,920 model your belief by your faith. And that will change 373 00:23:30,080 --> 00:23:31,040 people's lives 374 00:23:34,560 --> 00:23:38,400 as foreigners and exiles in the world. And so this is what we 375 00:23:38,400 --> 00:23:42,000 contend with. We have the context. We have this 376 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:45,770 world that we live in. But here we are in the middle, in 377 00:23:45,770 --> 00:23:49,410 the kingdom of God. And so what does that 378 00:23:49,410 --> 00:23:52,050 look like? The world says, hold on a second. 379 00:23:54,370 --> 00:23:58,010 The world tells us to seek approval. The kingdom of 380 00:23:58,010 --> 00:24:00,050 God tells us to seek the king. 381 00:24:01,650 --> 00:24:05,290 The world tells us to build our platform. The kingdom of 382 00:24:05,290 --> 00:24:07,410 God tells us to humble ourselves. 383 00:24:09,410 --> 00:24:13,210 The world tells us to strike back. The kingdom of God tells us to 384 00:24:13,210 --> 00:24:16,970 turn the other cheek. Are you with me this morning? The 385 00:24:16,970 --> 00:24:20,450 world tells us to fear losing control. The kingdom of God says, 386 00:24:20,450 --> 00:24:24,210 surrender. The world tells us to walk 387 00:24:24,210 --> 00:24:26,610 away. You know what the kingdom of God says, forgive. 388 00:24:28,050 --> 00:24:31,890 The world tells us to secure our future by 389 00:24:31,890 --> 00:24:35,730 any means necessary. The kingdom of 390 00:24:35,730 --> 00:24:39,530 God tells us to store up treasure in heaven. The 391 00:24:39,530 --> 00:24:43,300 world tells us to seek comfort and what feels good. The kingdom of 392 00:24:43,300 --> 00:24:47,140 God tells us to take up our cross. The world tells us to run 393 00:24:47,140 --> 00:24:50,660 faster. The kingdom of God is telling us to slow 394 00:24:50,660 --> 00:24:54,300 down. The world tells us to follow our 395 00:24:54,300 --> 00:24:57,580 heart. The kingdom of God says, follow Jesus Christ. 396 00:24:59,420 --> 00:25:02,940 Jesus says this. He says, my kingdom is not 397 00:25:03,180 --> 00:25:06,700 of this world. Would you say that my kingdom is 398 00:25:06,700 --> 00:25:10,540 not of this world? And so we are succumb 399 00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:12,710 to. To deception. 400 00:25:13,910 --> 00:25:17,550 Deception. And deception creeps 401 00:25:17,550 --> 00:25:21,190 in every single day of our lives. And 402 00:25:21,190 --> 00:25:24,910 deception starts like this. We know we belong to this kingdom. I 403 00:25:24,910 --> 00:25:28,630 can delineate clearly between myself and the kingdom and the world. 404 00:25:28,630 --> 00:25:32,390 But as deception creeps in and nothing's done about it, you 405 00:25:32,390 --> 00:25:36,190 realize that slowly, slowly and slowly, all of a 406 00:25:36,190 --> 00:25:38,910 sudden, you look no different than the world. 407 00:25:40,830 --> 00:25:43,710 And I wonder how many Christians are in this place 408 00:25:45,390 --> 00:25:47,790 looking no different than the world we live in. 409 00:25:50,110 --> 00:25:53,710 There's that scripture where we read in John 15 and it talks about the tree, 410 00:25:54,430 --> 00:25:57,790 and there's a branch on that tree, and it says, when the branch doesn't bear 411 00:25:57,790 --> 00:26:01,070 fruit. He cuts it off and he throws it away. 412 00:26:01,390 --> 00:26:05,050 You know what's interesting about that? For a branch to be 413 00:26:05,050 --> 00:26:08,610 connected to the tree. It tells me at one point in time it had life. 414 00:26:09,810 --> 00:26:13,450 At one point in time, it had life. See, you can be 415 00:26:13,450 --> 00:26:17,290 connected as a dead branch waiting to be cut off the 416 00:26:17,290 --> 00:26:21,090 tree. And I'm wondering if there's any fruit being 417 00:26:21,090 --> 00:26:23,970 born in your life. Is there any fruit being born in my life? 418 00:26:25,810 --> 00:26:29,320 But deception begins to lead us towards sin, leads us toward 419 00:26:29,710 --> 00:26:33,510 destruction. Deception always promises an 420 00:26:33,510 --> 00:26:37,110 easier path. Deception always promises an 421 00:26:37,110 --> 00:26:40,590 easier path. Some of you have bought 1999 422 00:26:40,590 --> 00:26:44,430 subscription to something that told you were gonna lose £100 in three days. 423 00:26:46,750 --> 00:26:50,510 Some of you invested money thinking in two weeks time 424 00:26:50,510 --> 00:26:54,310 it was gonna blow up and exponentially increase. You know why? Cause it's not 425 00:26:54,310 --> 00:26:57,220 enough to trust the Lord God, the one who owns the cattle on the hill 426 00:26:57,690 --> 00:27:01,330 with your finances. So we resort to the world's schemes and 427 00:27:01,330 --> 00:27:04,890 listen when it prospers. When something happens, we go, oh, glory to God. 428 00:27:05,450 --> 00:27:08,570 When it backfires on us and we didn't hear from the Lord, then we go 429 00:27:08,570 --> 00:27:12,330 to God and say, what happened? I don't understand. He says, I 430 00:27:12,330 --> 00:27:16,090 didn't tell you to do that in the first place. Deception always 431 00:27:16,090 --> 00:27:19,050 promises an easier path. 432 00:27:20,810 --> 00:27:24,650 So here are two of the greatest deceptions I believe we can come under. 433 00:27:24,650 --> 00:27:27,160 The first one is, I'm not deceived. Conceived. 434 00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:33,080 The Bible says this. The Bible says, he who says he is 435 00:27:33,080 --> 00:27:35,720 without sin is a liar. 436 00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,920 Where is sin conceived? It starts with deceit. 437 00:27:41,560 --> 00:27:45,200 It starts with a thought. So 438 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:48,440 congratulations, every one of you. You have been deceived. 439 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:52,640 I have been deceived at one point and the other. We've been 440 00:27:52,640 --> 00:27:56,240 deceived. And the deception is. Grows exponential every 441 00:27:56,240 --> 00:27:59,960 day. Every day. And it's not glaring that, 442 00:27:59,960 --> 00:28:02,040 oh, I wish I had a sign. I have props. I don't have this prop. 443 00:28:02,040 --> 00:28:05,680 I wish the enemy's holding a sign saying, here I am to deceive 444 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:09,440 you. No subtle ways. In 445 00:28:09,440 --> 00:28:12,520 fact, what the devil does is he puts on that Christian T shirt, 446 00:28:13,720 --> 00:28:17,440 he carries a Bible with him. Are you with 447 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:21,030 me? He literally says a 448 00:28:21,030 --> 00:28:24,750 version of the truth that will lure you in and get you 449 00:28:24,750 --> 00:28:28,430 off course enough so that you begin 450 00:28:28,430 --> 00:28:32,030 to become more familiar with his voice because it's more comfortable 451 00:28:32,030 --> 00:28:35,790 than the voice of a holy God. The second 452 00:28:35,870 --> 00:28:39,550 greatest deception is I know more 453 00:28:39,550 --> 00:28:42,990 than I really do. Listen to me. 454 00:28:44,830 --> 00:28:48,630 If this right here is everything you could possibly know 455 00:28:48,630 --> 00:28:51,680 about God, Everything, I mean everything. 456 00:28:52,560 --> 00:28:54,960 This is God. It's everything. You can know. 457 00:28:56,240 --> 00:28:59,680 That's how much I know. This is how much 458 00:28:59,680 --> 00:29:02,640 Justin knows. This is how much Barbie knows. 459 00:29:03,760 --> 00:29:06,320 We'll give Ronnie two stones. This is how much Ronnie knows. 460 00:29:15,130 --> 00:29:18,170 Listen to me. This is super important to me. 461 00:29:18,730 --> 00:29:22,250 Some of you will walk in here and build your entire life based on this. 462 00:29:22,890 --> 00:29:24,570 When you've got access to this, 463 00:29:27,290 --> 00:29:30,970 you will build your entire foundation. And not only will you build 464 00:29:30,970 --> 00:29:34,570 your foundation, you will try to build your kids foundation on this. 465 00:29:36,010 --> 00:29:39,810 And this is only what I think I know. This 466 00:29:39,810 --> 00:29:43,530 is what I think I know. Now, I'm not trying to dissuade you from 467 00:29:43,530 --> 00:29:47,190 coming to church and listening to the teaching here, because God the 468 00:29:47,190 --> 00:29:50,990 Holy Spirit can do exponential things with just a little bit. But when we 469 00:29:50,990 --> 00:29:54,590 come here, when we come here, we're coming here 470 00:29:54,590 --> 00:29:57,750 to enthrone him on our praises, to be 471 00:29:57,750 --> 00:30:01,349 reminded about what he did on the cross and to be nudged 472 00:30:01,349 --> 00:30:04,670 along in our faith. What happens here should 473 00:30:04,670 --> 00:30:08,350 affirm what you are already learning and walking in through 474 00:30:08,350 --> 00:30:11,910 the week. The best thing that you can do 475 00:30:11,910 --> 00:30:15,750 is get a Bible, dust it off, and start reading and 476 00:30:15,750 --> 00:30:17,770 learning about the God you say you love. 477 00:30:22,250 --> 00:30:25,330 We have to not build our lives on hollow 478 00:30:25,330 --> 00:30:28,970 deceptions. We have to not be deceived. And 479 00:30:28,970 --> 00:30:32,570 I am afraid with a holy 480 00:30:32,570 --> 00:30:36,330 righteous fear that I walk in places where I think 481 00:30:36,330 --> 00:30:39,890 I've got it right, but I've got it so wrong because my spiritual 482 00:30:39,890 --> 00:30:43,640 ears are not cleaned out enough to know. This is the voice of the Holy 483 00:30:43,640 --> 00:30:47,260 Spirit. Spirit. This is the voice of the 484 00:30:47,260 --> 00:30:48,100 Holy Spirit. 485 00:30:54,020 --> 00:30:54,740 And so. 486 00:30:58,820 --> 00:31:02,500 Jesus says this, not everyone who says to me, 487 00:31:02,500 --> 00:31:06,180 lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only 488 00:31:06,180 --> 00:31:08,980 the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 489 00:31:10,110 --> 00:31:13,390 This tells me that there are people who attend church faithfully 490 00:31:14,270 --> 00:31:18,070 who will be casting out demons who will be worshiping all in his name. 491 00:31:18,070 --> 00:31:21,550 And they're going to get there that day and he's going to say, I 492 00:31:21,790 --> 00:31:23,550 never knew you. 493 00:31:25,470 --> 00:31:29,150 You cannot live your life on 494 00:31:29,150 --> 00:31:32,550 the coattails of my faith. You 495 00:31:32,550 --> 00:31:35,790 cannot live your life on the coattails of your parents. 496 00:31:37,300 --> 00:31:40,740 You cannot live on the coattails of your faith 497 00:31:40,740 --> 00:31:44,300 alone. You must have a relationship with this 498 00:31:44,300 --> 00:31:48,100 holy God. The reason he went to the cross was because 499 00:31:48,100 --> 00:31:51,900 he wanted an intimate relationship with you. And it 500 00:31:51,900 --> 00:31:53,860 is available right now, today. 501 00:31:55,940 --> 00:31:59,620 Have you forgotten your first love? Have you forgotten your 502 00:31:59,620 --> 00:32:03,380 first love? Why are you here this morning? What were 503 00:32:03,380 --> 00:32:07,060 you expecting? Besides chicken after church at a restaurant? What were you 504 00:32:07,060 --> 00:32:10,860 expecting? What did you expect to happen when you walked 505 00:32:10,860 --> 00:32:14,460 into this place? Are you looking to be transformed by the truth of 506 00:32:14,460 --> 00:32:18,179 God's Word to be encouraged with other believers. Why are you here 507 00:32:18,179 --> 00:32:21,060 today? What's the point of this? 508 00:32:25,940 --> 00:32:29,630 So what do we do? God? Lord, 509 00:32:29,630 --> 00:32:33,350 am I being deceived? Lord, I'll tell you how Kevin's 510 00:32:33,350 --> 00:32:37,110 wired. Lord, if I'm being deceived, I want to start doing something right now 511 00:32:37,110 --> 00:32:40,710 to make sure I'm not deceived. Get me in the driver's seat. I want to 512 00:32:40,710 --> 00:32:44,350 figure out what I'm doing. I'm turning every stone. I'm messing things up. 513 00:32:45,470 --> 00:32:49,310 Because we have a propensity. Every single time some type of 514 00:32:49,310 --> 00:32:53,110 conviction comes our way, the very first mistake we make is that we feel 515 00:32:53,110 --> 00:32:56,960 like we got to do something. And what we don't realize is what we did 516 00:32:56,960 --> 00:32:59,760 is what got us in the first. Got us in the situation in the first 517 00:32:59,760 --> 00:33:00,120 place. 518 00:33:03,560 --> 00:33:06,920 So the very first place that we have to look at 519 00:33:07,640 --> 00:33:11,240 is something. It's a commodity that every one of us have. 520 00:33:12,120 --> 00:33:15,880 Every one of us have this commodity. It's a precious commodity. And 521 00:33:15,880 --> 00:33:19,520 believe it or not, you're actually in control with what you do with it, and 522 00:33:19,520 --> 00:33:23,210 that is your time. Why do we 523 00:33:23,210 --> 00:33:26,650 have to start here? We have to start here. 524 00:33:26,890 --> 00:33:30,450 Not start by trying to dissect what the word abide 525 00:33:30,450 --> 00:33:33,170 means and all of these things. Oh, I got. I need to clean out this 526 00:33:33,170 --> 00:33:36,970 drawer. No, we need to stop so that 527 00:33:36,970 --> 00:33:40,650 we understand. Clear. Have you ever been in a situation where you're 528 00:33:40,650 --> 00:33:44,290 giving instructions to multiple people and the person over here is on their 529 00:33:44,290 --> 00:33:47,690 phone not paying attention, and these people are talking and you have to repeat yourself? 530 00:33:48,110 --> 00:33:49,150 Any teachers in the room, 531 00:33:53,070 --> 00:33:56,910 you would have gotten the correct instruction had you listened correctly 532 00:33:56,910 --> 00:34:00,590 the first time, but you were distracted. Well, how 533 00:34:00,590 --> 00:34:03,870 do we address the distractions? We have to carve out 534 00:34:03,870 --> 00:34:06,990 capacity to learn his voice. 535 00:34:07,950 --> 00:34:11,710 Lord, do you want me to do this? I'm talking about 536 00:34:11,710 --> 00:34:14,830 everything. Lord, do you want me to go to breakfast with that person? 537 00:34:15,689 --> 00:34:18,089 Do you want. What do you want me to say at this breakfast? What do 538 00:34:18,089 --> 00:34:21,209 you want me to do at lunch when I read my Bible? I see Jesus 539 00:34:21,209 --> 00:34:24,489 wake up every morning. This is what I see. Daddy, what do you want to 540 00:34:24,489 --> 00:34:28,329 do today? Kevin, how do 541 00:34:28,329 --> 00:34:31,289 I do that? I got a job. I got kids, all that stuff. You wake 542 00:34:31,289 --> 00:34:33,129 up and you start with, daddy, what do you want to do today? 543 00:34:35,369 --> 00:34:39,049 And then he takes your everyday, ordinary, step by 544 00:34:39,049 --> 00:34:42,860 step, going to work, all that stuff, life as you place it 545 00:34:42,860 --> 00:34:46,620 before him as an offering, and he meets you right there, and he speaks to 546 00:34:46,620 --> 00:34:50,300 you. We are creatures of habit. We start getting in this 547 00:34:50,300 --> 00:34:54,060 habit, and then we say, I don't need you, God, anymore. I've got 548 00:34:54,060 --> 00:34:57,820 this down. Let's 549 00:34:57,820 --> 00:35:00,420 start with this. Busyness is not a badge of honor. 550 00:35:02,980 --> 00:35:06,410 Busyness is not a badge of honor. 551 00:35:07,840 --> 00:35:11,360 God has given grace gifts to every 552 00:35:11,440 --> 00:35:14,880 person in this room. The grace gifts in 553 00:35:14,880 --> 00:35:17,840 quantity that he has given me are not the same 554 00:35:18,320 --> 00:35:22,080 quantity that he's given Justin, that he's given Wyatt, that he's 555 00:35:22,080 --> 00:35:25,840 given Vonda, that he's given Carol, that he's given 556 00:35:26,080 --> 00:35:29,800 David or any of you. The grace gifts in quantity and what they 557 00:35:29,800 --> 00:35:33,570 are differ from person to person. And so what that 558 00:35:33,570 --> 00:35:37,330 means is if I'm. If God has grace gift me in 559 00:35:37,330 --> 00:35:40,850 this season to do a lot of things, then if I 560 00:35:40,850 --> 00:35:44,490 do short of what he's asked me to do, I'm walking in disobedience. 561 00:35:45,770 --> 00:35:49,570 If God has only graced you in this season to do two things 562 00:35:49,570 --> 00:35:52,810 and you try to do seven because you see somebody else doing seven, 563 00:35:53,130 --> 00:35:56,770 you're headed toward destruction and walking in disobedience because God 564 00:35:56,770 --> 00:35:59,810 hasn't graced you to do seven things he's graced to do too. 565 00:36:00,690 --> 00:36:04,210 Read the Parable of the Talents. Five, 566 00:36:04,370 --> 00:36:08,090 two, one. It's up to him. He's the 567 00:36:08,090 --> 00:36:11,570 God of the universe. He knows what he's doing. I actually trust Him, 568 00:36:12,530 --> 00:36:13,090 Do I? 569 00:36:16,210 --> 00:36:20,050 May my actions model the truth that I trust the Holy Spirit. 570 00:36:21,490 --> 00:36:24,930 He's given each of us grace gifts. One of the things I 571 00:36:25,170 --> 00:36:29,000 particularly thankful for about our eldership and you learned about this 572 00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:32,800 last week, was that every year the elders pray 573 00:36:32,800 --> 00:36:36,280 and ask the Lord, should I actively serve in the year to come? 574 00:36:37,080 --> 00:36:39,960 Why? Because seasons change. 575 00:36:41,160 --> 00:36:44,880 The grace gift. Listen to this. This is important. The grace gift he 576 00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:48,040 has given you right now is temporary. 577 00:36:49,240 --> 00:36:52,800 It will be there for as long as he chooses for that grace 578 00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:56,440 gift to be. And when you continue to run doing that 579 00:36:56,440 --> 00:37:00,020 thing. Listen. There are had a grace gift for 10 years and they 580 00:37:00,020 --> 00:37:03,820 ran in that 11th, 12th, and 13th year. And they caused more damage 581 00:37:03,820 --> 00:37:06,860 in those three years than any fruit that was caused in those first 10 because 582 00:37:06,860 --> 00:37:09,140 they outran the grace season they were in. 583 00:37:10,900 --> 00:37:14,460 This is why it's important that we are constantly in check with the 584 00:37:14,460 --> 00:37:18,260 Holy Spirit. Lord, am I doing your will? Am I following 585 00:37:18,260 --> 00:37:21,540 your purpose? Am I supposed to be saying yes to this? Am I supposed to 586 00:37:21,540 --> 00:37:24,780 be saying no to this God? What do you have for me and what's the 587 00:37:24,780 --> 00:37:28,420 evidence? The evidence is in the fruit. The 588 00:37:28,500 --> 00:37:32,340 Holy Spirit of God is not going to be involved with something he's not called 589 00:37:32,340 --> 00:37:35,740 you to do. So there is no way for you to bear the fruit of 590 00:37:35,740 --> 00:37:39,260 the Spirit, if you're doing things that don't have his covering, does that make 591 00:37:39,260 --> 00:37:43,060 sense? And so we learn 592 00:37:43,060 --> 00:37:46,740 this. A calling without grace becomes striving without covering. 593 00:37:47,780 --> 00:37:50,920 A calling without grace becomes striving 594 00:37:51,640 --> 00:37:55,120 without covering. So we don't measure it by 595 00:37:55,120 --> 00:37:58,840 productivity or busyness or opportunity or visible success. We look, 596 00:37:58,840 --> 00:38:02,200 if peace disappears, gentleness drains. If joy dries up, 597 00:38:02,520 --> 00:38:06,320 we are living beyond grace capacity. Guys, I have to tell 598 00:38:06,320 --> 00:38:10,120 you, abiding requires the capacity to hear him and hear him 599 00:38:10,120 --> 00:38:13,800 clearly. Abiding requires the capacity 600 00:38:14,360 --> 00:38:17,700 to hear him. We just read Luke, chapter 10, Mary and 601 00:38:17,700 --> 00:38:21,540 Martha. Martha is out doing all of the things and just 602 00:38:21,540 --> 00:38:25,140 making all of the effort of preparing the room. And Mary is 603 00:38:25,140 --> 00:38:28,180 resting at Jesus feet. And Jesus says, what is best? 604 00:38:28,820 --> 00:38:32,380 Was it that Martha, the things that she was actually doing, were they wrong? Were 605 00:38:32,380 --> 00:38:35,860 they bad things? No. But what was 606 00:38:35,860 --> 00:38:39,060 needed at that moment was to be at Jesus feet. 607 00:38:40,420 --> 00:38:43,500 Oh, may we not be a people who miss the times that we're supposed to 608 00:38:43,500 --> 00:38:44,820 sit at Jesus feet. 609 00:38:47,530 --> 00:38:50,730 And so the Lord gave me an object lesson several years ago, 610 00:38:51,850 --> 00:38:55,210 and I'm gonna do that object lesson again here 611 00:38:56,810 --> 00:39:00,250 because I really felt that the Lord had given me something profound and 612 00:39:00,570 --> 00:39:04,250 he had shown me this. And maybe some of you have seen this, seen this 613 00:39:04,250 --> 00:39:07,490 illustration before, but so many times in our life, when we get to the beginning 614 00:39:07,490 --> 00:39:10,890 of the year, we look at restructuring and reprioritizing. And what 615 00:39:10,890 --> 00:39:14,510 happens is, is we will fill our life up with those frivolous, frivolous 616 00:39:14,510 --> 00:39:18,150 little things that don't really matter, that aren't really important, because 617 00:39:18,150 --> 00:39:21,110 we like those. Those taste good, feel good, look good, 618 00:39:22,150 --> 00:39:25,910 very little responsibility with them. And so we'll just kind of fill up our life 619 00:39:26,070 --> 00:39:29,750 with these frivolous little things. And then behind those things, 620 00:39:30,069 --> 00:39:33,670 we'll graduate to some of those, maybe perhaps a little bit larger 621 00:39:33,670 --> 00:39:36,870 things in life that carry a little bit more gravity, 622 00:39:38,710 --> 00:39:42,540 a little bit more importance. And so we'll be there. But then God 623 00:39:42,540 --> 00:39:46,300 gives us these big boulders in our life that are real important. The priorities, 624 00:39:46,700 --> 00:39:50,340 like reading the word, your marriage, church, going to 625 00:39:50,340 --> 00:39:54,060 church, prayer time, stewardship 626 00:39:54,060 --> 00:39:57,420 of your funding, rest. What's this one say? 627 00:39:57,420 --> 00:40:01,140 Obedience. Okay. And these may be different for every person, but there are 628 00:40:01,140 --> 00:40:04,780 boulders, there are real staples. And then after doing all this, we try to 629 00:40:04,780 --> 00:40:07,530 fit these things in, and. And they don't fit. 630 00:40:08,330 --> 00:40:11,930 And so we go, man, I'm out of line here. I'm out of priority. 631 00:40:11,930 --> 00:40:14,970 God, Lord, would you help me? Help me to structure and 632 00:40:14,970 --> 00:40:18,810 reprioritize? And he says, okay, well, the first thing that needs to happen 633 00:40:18,810 --> 00:40:21,570 is all of the things that are the big boulders, we need to put them 634 00:40:21,570 --> 00:40:24,610 in first, right? And so we go in here and we put work and prayer 635 00:40:24,610 --> 00:40:28,370 and Bible reading and going to church, marriage and family all in first. 636 00:40:28,370 --> 00:40:31,210 And look. Oh, wow, they all fit. That's great. 637 00:40:32,020 --> 00:40:35,620 Okay, so now we go behind that and we say, well, let me put 638 00:40:35,620 --> 00:40:39,260 in, like. Let me put in these. Let me put in these kind of 639 00:40:39,260 --> 00:40:40,740 slightly bigger things here. 640 00:40:44,340 --> 00:40:45,380 We'll take that one out. 641 00:40:47,780 --> 00:40:49,140 Slightly bigger things here. 642 00:40:54,740 --> 00:40:58,150 We'll put him back in there. Okay. Slightly bigger things, 643 00:40:58,150 --> 00:41:01,910 okay. And then all of those small things, we 644 00:41:01,910 --> 00:41:05,630 put those in. And isn't it interesting 645 00:41:06,270 --> 00:41:09,950 that when our priorities are in line and the big things go 646 00:41:09,950 --> 00:41:13,710 in first and we pay attention to those bigger boulders, 647 00:41:14,750 --> 00:41:18,590 everything fits. Everything fits. 648 00:41:18,910 --> 00:41:22,430 Same amount of stuff, but everything has a place. 649 00:41:23,480 --> 00:41:27,320 And wouldn't you know that when you get this at the beginning of 650 00:41:27,320 --> 00:41:31,040 the year and you achieve a lifestyle that mimics this 651 00:41:31,040 --> 00:41:31,640 right here, 652 00:41:35,960 --> 00:41:37,480 We take that and we go, 653 00:41:43,560 --> 00:41:47,280 Look at me. Aren't you proud of me? I fit 654 00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:50,980 all of the things in my jar. I can do 655 00:41:50,980 --> 00:41:54,780 all of these things because they're in proper order. Aren't I so 656 00:41:54,780 --> 00:41:58,180 good? Isn't this great? It's all 657 00:41:58,180 --> 00:42:02,020 priority. And then God says, 658 00:42:02,900 --> 00:42:04,340 but what about the unexpected? 659 00:42:06,820 --> 00:42:09,300 Some of you have red balls around you. Would you hold those up in the 660 00:42:09,300 --> 00:42:13,100 air for me if you got them? Hold them up high. Look 661 00:42:13,100 --> 00:42:16,910 around at any moment, this many unexpected 662 00:42:16,910 --> 00:42:18,590 things could happen in a day's time. 663 00:42:22,270 --> 00:42:25,550 God, I don't have room in my organized, 664 00:42:25,630 --> 00:42:29,150 packed, wonderfully organized 665 00:42:29,150 --> 00:42:32,870 life to fit any unexpected things. And God 666 00:42:32,870 --> 00:42:36,550 is saying, well, here's the problem, Kevin. You don't need me in this. You 667 00:42:36,550 --> 00:42:40,150 need me in this. And so I'm willing to let this come 668 00:42:40,150 --> 00:42:43,390 about because this is where you're gonna find me. Not in here. 669 00:42:45,480 --> 00:42:48,520 And I go, God, what do you mean? 670 00:42:49,480 --> 00:42:53,160 All my life I've just learned that you've got to put the priorities first. 671 00:42:53,560 --> 00:42:57,160 You got to put them in order. God, this is. Isn't this what 672 00:42:57,160 --> 00:43:00,600 you want from me? Like, this is all these are desires of my heart and 673 00:43:00,600 --> 00:43:04,160 all this stuff? And he says, yes, there's nothing. Listen to me. There's not 674 00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:07,960 necessarily anything wrong with what's inside here. 675 00:43:12,370 --> 00:43:15,810 But he says to me, kevin, I don't want you to wake up every day 676 00:43:15,810 --> 00:43:16,370 like this. 677 00:43:23,010 --> 00:43:24,770 I want you to wake up every day like this. 678 00:43:27,810 --> 00:43:31,450 And when you wake up every day like this, then you give 679 00:43:31,450 --> 00:43:35,290 me the opportunity to reach into your stuff and say, I want you to 680 00:43:35,290 --> 00:43:38,500 do this today. I want you to do this today. 681 00:43:39,220 --> 00:43:42,980 And when that unexpected thing comes, look at all the capacity you 682 00:43:42,980 --> 00:43:46,420 have. Because your life was spent 683 00:43:46,580 --> 00:43:50,340 making me the priority, says the Lord. Not 684 00:43:50,340 --> 00:43:54,180 your desires, not the big boulders, not all those things. Listen, 685 00:43:54,180 --> 00:43:57,860 what happens is we get really busy. We get really, really busy. 686 00:43:57,860 --> 00:44:01,320 And then we say, I'm so busy, I'm gonna start creating boundaries. 687 00:44:01,710 --> 00:44:05,350 Let me tell you something about boundaries. The Lord has not called you to 688 00:44:05,350 --> 00:44:09,030 put boundaries in your life. He's called you to obedience. And when you 689 00:44:09,030 --> 00:44:11,790 obey, the boundaries will fall where they're supposed to be. 690 00:44:12,990 --> 00:44:16,630 Obedience is the call. Listening to the Holy Spirit, 691 00:44:16,630 --> 00:44:20,430 that's the call. Putting boundaries, fashioning them for yourself because 692 00:44:20,430 --> 00:44:23,750 it feels good and it makes sense in your life is only another way for 693 00:44:23,750 --> 00:44:27,550 you to exert control in your life. Obedience 694 00:44:27,550 --> 00:44:31,370 is key. And so I'm looking at all of this as we're 695 00:44:31,370 --> 00:44:35,090 getting into the abide series, and I'm saying, God, what about it? 696 00:44:35,090 --> 00:44:38,770 How do I. What do I do? God? Because we are creatures of doers. 697 00:44:39,090 --> 00:44:42,770 We don't like being. And God says, I 698 00:44:42,770 --> 00:44:45,010 actually have something for you to do. 699 00:44:47,010 --> 00:44:48,130 I want you to repent. 700 00:44:51,650 --> 00:44:54,370 I want you to change the way you think 701 00:44:55,720 --> 00:44:57,480 about your time and your calendar. 702 00:44:59,720 --> 00:45:03,480 And then, and only then, will we begin to get to a place 703 00:45:04,120 --> 00:45:07,640 where you will actually hear my voice clearly 704 00:45:07,720 --> 00:45:11,360 and do what I'm asking you to do on any given 705 00:45:11,360 --> 00:45:14,880 day. Guys, we do the same thing with our finances. Barbie was up here talking 706 00:45:14,880 --> 00:45:17,840 about the tithe we get in this place. There are several of you who have 707 00:45:17,840 --> 00:45:21,620 been faithful tithers for years, and God's taken care of. But this is what 708 00:45:21,620 --> 00:45:25,220 you do. 10% check. 90% is just 709 00:45:25,220 --> 00:45:28,500 as packed as that jar was. And then what happens? 710 00:45:29,140 --> 00:45:32,860 I want you to give $1,000 to that person. Well, God, that 711 00:45:32,860 --> 00:45:35,780 doesn't fit in my budget. That doesn't fit in. What I. That doesn't fit in. 712 00:45:36,020 --> 00:45:38,340 There's no margin for God to move. 713 00:45:39,940 --> 00:45:43,500 Stop taking what he's given you and packing it 714 00:45:43,500 --> 00:45:46,500 out and walking away from the one who gave it to you. 715 00:45:47,290 --> 00:45:49,970 The very first thing he wants you to do when he gives you something is 716 00:45:49,970 --> 00:45:53,730 give it back to him. Because it says, God, thank you 717 00:45:53,730 --> 00:45:57,330 for what you've given me, but I trust you more with it than I 718 00:45:57,330 --> 00:46:01,050 trust myself. Repentance, 719 00:46:01,450 --> 00:46:04,090 changing the way that you think. Girls, come on out here. 720 00:46:06,250 --> 00:46:10,050 These are my daughters. I want you guys to stand right 721 00:46:10,050 --> 00:46:13,890 here, and I want you to actually face me. Okay? I just 722 00:46:13,890 --> 00:46:16,970 need to talk to you for just a second, okay? Don't worry about them. They'll 723 00:46:16,970 --> 00:46:18,410 Talk amongst themselves. Listen, 724 00:46:23,370 --> 00:46:26,930 I love you, Ruby. I love you, Nora. I love you, 725 00:46:26,930 --> 00:46:28,810 Lucy. I love you. 726 00:46:30,890 --> 00:46:34,010 And I want to ask you to forgive me this morning 727 00:46:36,410 --> 00:46:40,170 because I have not been always a present. Dad. 728 00:46:41,850 --> 00:46:45,570 I have oftentimes chosen the people that are 729 00:46:45,570 --> 00:46:49,250 sitting behind you before. I've chosen you not because the Holy 730 00:46:49,250 --> 00:46:53,090 Spirit's told me to, but because I felt some type 731 00:46:53,090 --> 00:46:55,970 of way that I've got to lean in and make sure that they know that 732 00:46:55,970 --> 00:46:59,130 I'm here for them. And I have sacrificed my time with you. 733 00:47:00,570 --> 00:47:04,130 And I want you to know that there are a million people that God could 734 00:47:04,130 --> 00:47:07,870 raise up to be a pastor of this church, but there's only one 735 00:47:07,870 --> 00:47:10,910 daddy in this universe that can be the dad to you. 736 00:47:12,110 --> 00:47:15,910 I'm tired of my cell phone coming between us. I'm 737 00:47:15,910 --> 00:47:19,630 tired of my calendar coming between us. And I know that 738 00:47:19,630 --> 00:47:23,110 from this point, I'm gonna mess up because I'm not perfect. But, 739 00:47:23,110 --> 00:47:26,030 Ruby, you know how many times in the last week you said you wanted cuddles 740 00:47:26,030 --> 00:47:29,830 from me? I love cuddling with you. I love seeing 741 00:47:29,830 --> 00:47:32,440 your laughter. I love seeing you grow in the. The Lord, 742 00:47:33,400 --> 00:47:36,960 you are a priority in my life. And the Holy Spirit 743 00:47:36,960 --> 00:47:40,600 has given you as gifts to me. And so I repent to you. 744 00:47:40,840 --> 00:47:44,600 And I ask you to forgive me as your dad 745 00:47:45,480 --> 00:47:49,240 for not being the dad I'm supposed to be. And if you will 746 00:47:49,240 --> 00:47:52,040 help me on this journey. I want to be present for everything. 747 00:47:53,080 --> 00:47:56,560 I want to spend more time together. I want to laugh together. I want to 748 00:47:56,560 --> 00:48:00,180 love together. And I know that if I walk in obedience to him, 749 00:48:00,330 --> 00:48:04,170 him in this, everything else is going to fall in place like it's supposed to. 750 00:48:05,610 --> 00:48:08,890 I love you this morning. Will you forgive me, Hadassah? 751 00:48:09,290 --> 00:48:12,730 Will you forgive me, Lucy? Will you forgive me? Will you forgive me? 752 00:48:13,130 --> 00:48:14,650 I love you, girl, so much. 753 00:48:24,330 --> 00:48:26,340 Okay, now give me kisses. I got a. Bless the people. 754 00:48:28,420 --> 00:48:29,300 I love you. 755 00:48:40,580 --> 00:48:42,340 Repentance leads to life. 756 00:48:44,020 --> 00:48:47,540 Changing the way you think leads to an abundant 757 00:48:47,620 --> 00:48:51,060 form of life that you have never experienced. 758 00:48:52,510 --> 00:48:56,070 And so this morning, the invitation. The 759 00:48:56,070 --> 00:48:59,670 invitation is to surrender your time 760 00:48:59,670 --> 00:49:03,510 to him, to allow him to align everything. And 761 00:49:03,510 --> 00:49:07,230 it's not a surrender on January 4th that you just walk away 762 00:49:07,230 --> 00:49:10,990 from, but it's a surrender to say, God, on January 5, 763 00:49:11,070 --> 00:49:14,830 I need to surrender on January 6, I need to surrender on January 764 00:49:14,910 --> 00:49:18,350 7, and so on and so on. The call that this morning 765 00:49:18,910 --> 00:49:21,550 is to say, I'm done being in control. 766 00:49:22,590 --> 00:49:26,110 And I need you, God, your grace, in my life 767 00:49:26,670 --> 00:49:30,270 to begin this journey of hearing your Holy Spirit. 768 00:49:30,910 --> 00:49:34,430 And, guys, if we will make that commitment to him, I promise you, 769 00:49:34,670 --> 00:49:37,550 he will start to take things out of the drawers we didn't even know were 770 00:49:37,550 --> 00:49:41,230 there, all of this stuff. And we will begin to clean up things 771 00:49:41,550 --> 00:49:45,360 that need to be cleaned up. Would you stand with me 772 00:49:45,360 --> 00:49:49,200 this morning, with those who are going to minister this morning and 773 00:49:49,200 --> 00:49:50,440 pray with people, Would you come? 774 00:50:04,760 --> 00:50:06,840 Living a life for the Lord is no joke. 775 00:50:09,810 --> 00:50:13,410 Committing yourself to the Lord Jesus Christ is the best thing that you will 776 00:50:13,410 --> 00:50:16,650 ever do in your life. And so if you're here this morning and you would 777 00:50:16,650 --> 00:50:20,210 say, I want to render control, I want to surrender control, I know we're going 778 00:50:20,210 --> 00:50:22,970 to need many more prayer warriors than this. If you're in leadership here, come on 779 00:50:22,970 --> 00:50:26,450 down. If you want to surrender this morning, 780 00:50:27,090 --> 00:50:30,410 take that step of faith. The God of the universe is here. Remember, we prayed 781 00:50:30,410 --> 00:50:32,850 and I said, lord, would you convict our hearts? He's here this morning, 782 00:50:33,970 --> 00:50:36,490 and all we have to do, it's not about going, you don't have to have 783 00:50:36,490 --> 00:50:39,870 the answer walking out the door. It's taking a step of faith that says is, 784 00:50:39,950 --> 00:50:43,790 it's me, God, I surrender to you. Come and pray with these 785 00:50:43,790 --> 00:50:45,390 brothers and sisters as we worship.