1 00:00:05,624 --> 00:00:09,438 What a blessing to be able to have a cafe team that serves 2 00:00:09,438 --> 00:00:13,060 so well, and coffee and all of that out there. God is, 3 00:00:13,252 --> 00:00:16,857 God is really, really faithful. How are you guys doing today? Are we 4 00:00:16,938 --> 00:00:20,735 good? Well, praise the Lord. Um, 5 00:00:21,424 --> 00:00:24,806 if you guys will keep the llama back there, um, 6 00:00:25,270 --> 00:00:28,075 we No animals today. No animals today. 7 00:00:29,117 --> 00:00:32,724 Well, good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning. Man, what gorgeous 8 00:00:32,788 --> 00:00:36,411 weather outside. Man, I have just so enjoyed it. We 9 00:00:36,411 --> 00:00:39,745 enjoyed some time outside yesterday, and man, 10 00:00:40,403 --> 00:00:44,025 God is good whether it storms or it's sunshine. I'm just glad He 11 00:00:44,170 --> 00:00:48,001 chose sunshine today. Amen? Amen. Well, we have 12 00:00:48,257 --> 00:00:52,072 a lot of activity going on in the church, so a lot for you 13 00:00:52,072 --> 00:00:55,327 to be a part of, so I wanted to kind of go through that first 14 00:00:55,327 --> 00:00:58,148 before we jump into where I feel like the Lord's taking us today. Okay, first 15 00:00:58,148 --> 00:01:01,210 of all, I didn't have a slide made for this, so Landon decided to wear 16 00:01:01,242 --> 00:01:04,848 his shirt today. If you'll stand up, Palm Sunday is next 17 00:01:04,848 --> 00:01:08,535 weekend, and so this wasn't 18 00:01:08,535 --> 00:01:12,383 intentional today, but 19 00:01:12,383 --> 00:01:15,845 yeah, Palm Sunday is next Sunday, and we hope that you'll join us for that. 20 00:01:15,925 --> 00:01:19,564 Following that, we are going to be having a Good Friday service on 21 00:01:19,676 --> 00:01:23,155 April 3rd. It will be 7 o'clock to 8 o'clock here in the 22 00:01:23,155 --> 00:01:26,553 ministry center. We invite you to come. We're going to partake in communion, 23 00:01:27,467 --> 00:01:30,497 and it's going to be a real special time together. So I hope that you'll 24 00:01:30,513 --> 00:01:33,767 plan to be a part of that gathering, and then we're going to have an 25 00:01:33,863 --> 00:01:37,598 Easter gathering here, and it's going to be at 9 and 11. 26 00:01:37,646 --> 00:01:41,381 Now, if you look around the room right now, you guys are cozy 27 00:01:41,477 --> 00:01:44,411 with about one chair in between some of you or whatnot. I 28 00:01:45,565 --> 00:01:48,338 believe that there's going to be some people that show up on 29 00:01:49,332 --> 00:01:53,019 that Sunday, so I encourage you, if you have the capacity, 30 00:01:53,035 --> 00:01:56,417 if your family dynamics work in this way, 31 00:01:57,203 --> 00:02:00,794 to come to the early gathering so we can make room for the visitors who 32 00:02:00,794 --> 00:02:04,336 come on Easter. I would I would greatly appreciate that. That's just an 33 00:02:04,336 --> 00:02:07,975 invitation to do that. You don't have to do that, but if you, if it, 34 00:02:08,248 --> 00:02:10,652 you know, if it just is a matter of you getting up a little early 35 00:02:10,668 --> 00:02:13,393 and coming, that would serve us well because we want to make sure we have 36 00:02:13,393 --> 00:02:16,888 enough room for the people who will be visiting on that day. And if you 37 00:02:16,984 --> 00:02:19,950 bring some people on that day, we hope that you would invite them back the 38 00:02:19,950 --> 00:02:23,733 following week to see Mike Goodwin. This is not just a comedy show. This is 39 00:02:23,733 --> 00:02:26,971 actually going to be tying into a message toward the end, and I'm excited about 40 00:02:27,019 --> 00:02:30,786 what he's going to bring, and an opportunity for you to bring those friends 41 00:02:30,786 --> 00:02:34,297 that you've invited to be, be to be with us 42 00:02:34,938 --> 00:02:38,737 here during the Easter season. And then the following week, if they stick 43 00:02:38,737 --> 00:02:42,552 around, we'd invite them to be a part of the Newcomers Luncheon so 44 00:02:42,552 --> 00:02:45,935 they can learn who we are, what we're about, learn our 45 00:02:45,935 --> 00:02:49,638 pastors, and we get to meet them in a more intimate 46 00:02:49,638 --> 00:02:53,373 setting. And then on May 15th, there is a 47 00:02:53,373 --> 00:02:56,995 Legacy Conference, and this is for those ages 50 and 48 00:02:56,995 --> 00:03:00,666 above. And the reason I'm putting this up now is because that group 49 00:03:00,682 --> 00:03:04,289 needs you to register in April, and so we 50 00:03:04,353 --> 00:03:06,150 wanted to go ahead and make sure that I just wanted to make sure that 51 00:03:06,150 --> 00:03:09,987 you were aware of this opportunity to be a part of their annual conference, and 52 00:03:09,987 --> 00:03:13,632 so you can register for that on the app as well. Okay, if that's good, 53 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:17,421 say yeah. All right, well, we are going to talk about being 54 00:03:17,534 --> 00:03:21,082 hated today. It's a great— aren't you glad you came to church? Uh, 55 00:03:21,387 --> 00:03:25,000 we are Hated But Secure, Abiding in Christ. Guys, could you 56 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:26,542 just look at somebody and smile? 57 00:03:32,504 --> 00:03:34,827 Good, because that's the last time you're going to do that for the next 30 58 00:03:34,827 --> 00:03:38,393 minutes. No, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, I'm kidding. No, 59 00:03:38,651 --> 00:03:42,314 today I believe the Lord's given a real solid word for us, 60 00:03:42,491 --> 00:03:45,816 and so let's stand. We're going to read from 3 passages of 61 00:03:45,816 --> 00:03:49,577 scripture, and I'm excited about where we're at, 62 00:03:49,593 --> 00:03:53,038 and I hope that the scriptures we're reading today you're familiar with. 63 00:03:53,311 --> 00:03:56,766 John 13, John 15, and Ephesians 6. We're not reading the 64 00:03:56,766 --> 00:04:00,563 entire chapters, those are the places we're taking them from. Let's read with some gusto 65 00:04:00,563 --> 00:04:04,400 today. Here we go. 'If the world hates you, keep in 66 00:04:04,432 --> 00:04:08,125 mind that it hated me first. If you belonged 67 00:04:08,125 --> 00:04:11,144 to the world, it would love you as its own. 68 00:04:11,963 --> 00:04:15,704 As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I 69 00:04:15,832 --> 00:04:19,654 have chosen you out of the world. That's why the 70 00:04:19,750 --> 00:04:23,250 world hates you. Remember what I told you: 71 00:04:23,764 --> 00:04:27,424 a servant is not greater than his master.' "if they 72 00:04:27,536 --> 00:04:31,382 persecuted me, they will persecute you also. 73 00:04:31,959 --> 00:04:34,571 Be strong in the Lord and in the might— 74 00:04:35,869 --> 00:04:39,586 put on the full armor of God so that you can take 75 00:04:39,634 --> 00:04:43,288 your stand against the devil's schemes. For our 76 00:04:43,336 --> 00:04:47,134 struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against 77 00:04:47,182 --> 00:04:50,995 the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers 78 00:04:51,172 --> 00:04:54,844 of this dark world, and against the against the spiritual forces 79 00:04:54,940 --> 00:04:58,185 of evil in the heavenly realms. A new 80 00:04:58,314 --> 00:05:02,056 command I give you: Love one another. As I 81 00:05:02,185 --> 00:05:05,767 have loved you, you must also love one another. 82 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:09,124 By this everyone will know that you are my 83 00:05:09,253 --> 00:05:12,963 disciples, if you love one another. Father, I thank you for your 84 00:05:13,028 --> 00:05:16,256 Word, and I thank you that it is true. I thank you that its 85 00:05:16,947 --> 00:05:20,626 work in our lives can change us, and so I just pray, Lord, that you 86 00:05:20,642 --> 00:05:24,207 would do that. Let the that are mine fall to the ground, but the things 87 00:05:24,207 --> 00:05:27,869 that you have to stick with us, may they do that and 88 00:05:27,885 --> 00:05:30,583 change us. In Jesus' name, amen. You may be seated. 89 00:05:33,426 --> 00:05:37,088 Have you ever noticed that it doesn't take much for people to get upset 90 00:05:37,184 --> 00:05:40,990 anymore? It doesn't take much for people to get upset anymore. I mean, 91 00:05:41,039 --> 00:05:44,524 you can post something completely harmless and somehow someone is offended. 92 00:05:45,776 --> 00:05:49,405 You post a picture of your lunch and people are like, Well, must be 93 00:05:49,405 --> 00:05:53,078 nice. You say you like a certain restaurant and you 94 00:05:53,078 --> 00:05:56,880 open yourself to a debate you didn't sign up for. We 95 00:05:56,880 --> 00:06:00,345 live in a world where everyone has an 96 00:06:00,458 --> 00:06:04,211 opinion, and not only that, probably what's worse is 97 00:06:04,244 --> 00:06:07,853 that with our opinions, we're really loud with our opinions too. 98 00:06:08,398 --> 00:06:12,232 You have an opinion, I have an opinion, but here's 99 00:06:12,329 --> 00:06:15,923 the thing, there's a difference There's a difference between 100 00:06:16,036 --> 00:06:19,553 people being irritated with you and people 101 00:06:19,713 --> 00:06:23,118 opposing what you stand for. There's a difference. 102 00:06:23,584 --> 00:06:26,282 And if you follow Jesus long enough, 103 00:06:27,422 --> 00:06:31,020 you will experience both. Throughout history, 104 00:06:31,534 --> 00:06:35,196 there are people who stood for something meaningful, and they were almost 105 00:06:35,372 --> 00:06:39,018 every time misunderstood for it. Dr. Martin Luther 106 00:06:39,018 --> 00:06:42,711 King stood for equality, and and he was hated 107 00:06:42,759 --> 00:06:46,306 for it. This is Corrie ten Boom. She 108 00:06:46,306 --> 00:06:49,580 chose forgiveness when hate would have been an 109 00:06:49,580 --> 00:06:52,934 appropriate option. This is Dietrich 110 00:06:53,287 --> 00:06:57,107 Bonhoeffer. He stood against all sorts of evil, and 111 00:06:57,107 --> 00:06:59,787 it cost him his life. Here's the point. 112 00:07:00,750 --> 00:07:04,168 History remembers people who stood in the middle of 113 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:07,859 tension and how they responded to it. 114 00:07:08,773 --> 00:07:12,314 It remembers people who are in the middle of tension and 115 00:07:12,378 --> 00:07:15,903 how they responded to it. And if you are a 116 00:07:15,903 --> 00:07:19,556 believer in Jesus Christ here this morning, then you 117 00:07:19,668 --> 00:07:23,226 are living in, in the context of a world that 118 00:07:23,354 --> 00:07:26,943 does not believe the same things you believe. And 119 00:07:27,039 --> 00:07:30,676 therefore, as a believer, you are living 120 00:07:30,869 --> 00:07:34,570 in a place of tension. You should be living in a 121 00:07:34,570 --> 00:07:37,825 place of tension. Because we're living in this world that says 122 00:07:37,921 --> 00:07:41,403 everything other than what you ascribe or 123 00:07:41,403 --> 00:07:45,237 say that you believe. Now, most of us 124 00:07:45,237 --> 00:07:48,846 don't even like being disliked in a group text, right? 125 00:07:49,231 --> 00:07:53,065 Have you ever sent somebody a text and they have 126 00:07:53,161 --> 00:07:56,883 those stinking read receipts on? And you 127 00:07:56,947 --> 00:08:00,492 see they've read it? This is the worst. Then you see the 128 00:08:00,557 --> 00:08:04,375 bubbles, and then the bubbles go away, and And then they don't say anything 129 00:08:04,391 --> 00:08:07,905 else. And you want to throw your 130 00:08:08,002 --> 00:08:11,773 phone against the wall, but you didn't pay your 131 00:08:11,773 --> 00:08:15,399 insurance payments, so that didn't work out. But you're just 132 00:08:15,399 --> 00:08:19,090 so upset you want to lose your mind. See, we don't even like 133 00:08:19,235 --> 00:08:22,861 low-level rejection. Like, I'm talking about when 134 00:08:22,861 --> 00:08:26,359 somebody walks by you and they give you that side-eye, and you know they're thinking 135 00:08:26,392 --> 00:08:30,114 something negative, and you're like, "What's going on? What'd I do this time?" Right? I 136 00:08:30,243 --> 00:08:31,975 offend my wife every morning with my breath. 137 00:08:34,638 --> 00:08:37,974 But here Jesus is talking about 138 00:08:38,263 --> 00:08:41,984 full-on hate. This is what 139 00:08:42,048 --> 00:08:45,673 Jesus says. He says this, "If the world hates you, keep in 140 00:08:45,673 --> 00:08:48,544 mind that it hated me 141 00:08:49,330 --> 00:08:52,025 first." But in the same teaching, 142 00:08:52,699 --> 00:08:56,356 Jesus also says this, "They will know you 143 00:08:56,532 --> 00:09:00,353 are my disciples by your by the way you love. Now, 144 00:09:01,123 --> 00:09:04,864 wait a second, Jesus. Are you telling me as 145 00:09:04,961 --> 00:09:08,638 a follower of yours I'm going to experience 146 00:09:08,750 --> 00:09:12,459 times of hatred, but they're going to 147 00:09:12,523 --> 00:09:15,269 know who you are by the way I love them? 148 00:09:16,939 --> 00:09:20,520 That's hard, because if I get an 149 00:09:20,616 --> 00:09:24,435 inkling that Scotty hates me, My flesh 150 00:09:24,547 --> 00:09:27,127 side says, "I don't care much about you either, bruh." 151 00:09:28,954 --> 00:09:32,703 Right? I mean, if Robert comes up there, up here, and 152 00:09:32,735 --> 00:09:36,533 decides to just slug me in the mouth, in front of all 153 00:09:36,597 --> 00:09:39,369 these people, I'm going to turn the other cheek, okay? But what's going on in 154 00:09:39,369 --> 00:09:43,151 my flesh, Robert, is I want to bear tackle you to the ground. Right? I 155 00:09:43,151 --> 00:09:46,756 mean, am I speaking to anybody but me today? I mean, the 156 00:09:46,772 --> 00:09:50,521 flesh inside me goes, "Wait a second, if you hate me, 157 00:09:50,826 --> 00:09:53,090 "and I know you hate me." 158 00:09:54,760 --> 00:09:58,437 My flesh says, "I hate you too!" You 159 00:09:58,710 --> 00:10:02,403 know what I mean? I hate you too! But here Jesus is saying that 160 00:10:02,403 --> 00:10:06,177 they're going to know that I'm a follower by the way I 161 00:10:06,337 --> 00:10:10,110 love. There's this tension here. There's this tension that we've 162 00:10:10,110 --> 00:10:13,932 got to wrap our heads around because 163 00:10:14,285 --> 00:10:18,091 it doesn't feel natural and it almost feels impossible 164 00:10:18,620 --> 00:10:22,217 to execute. Here's the thing, if 165 00:10:22,297 --> 00:10:26,135 you look like Jesus, you're probably going 166 00:10:26,167 --> 00:10:29,523 to be treated like Jesus. And if you 167 00:10:29,619 --> 00:10:33,152 remember the story, if you're familiar with scripture, 168 00:10:34,099 --> 00:10:37,647 Jesus didn't get treated very well by the world. He didn't really get 169 00:10:37,647 --> 00:10:40,586 treated very well by us. And so, 170 00:10:41,806 --> 00:10:45,080 While the world may not hate you as an 171 00:10:45,256 --> 00:10:48,915 individual person, the world 172 00:10:49,268 --> 00:10:53,023 hates the one you reflect in your life. The world 173 00:10:53,039 --> 00:10:56,794 hates the one that you reflect in your life. Let's look at a definition of 174 00:10:56,810 --> 00:11:00,645 hate that we'll work with today as we're unpackaging this. Hate is 175 00:11:00,757 --> 00:11:04,352 the willful rejection, resistance, and 176 00:11:04,512 --> 00:11:08,171 opposition to a person because their faith, their 177 00:11:08,219 --> 00:11:10,161 life, truth, or identity 178 00:11:10,931 --> 00:11:14,608 exposes what is contrary in us. 179 00:11:15,282 --> 00:11:18,944 So in other words, hate is my rejection 180 00:11:19,281 --> 00:11:22,863 of you because when we get up close to each other, 181 00:11:23,216 --> 00:11:26,364 something in you is illuminated that I don't agree with. 182 00:11:27,006 --> 00:11:30,732 And so because I don't agree with it, I resent you, I 183 00:11:30,845 --> 00:11:34,619 reject you, I oppose you. That's the 184 00:11:34,635 --> 00:11:38,040 definition of hate we're going to work with here today. 185 00:11:38,714 --> 00:11:41,184 And I And what Jesus is saying is 186 00:11:42,498 --> 00:11:46,185 the world hated Him in this way, and if you are a 187 00:11:46,185 --> 00:11:49,584 believer in Christ Jesus and you follow Jesus, 188 00:11:50,113 --> 00:11:53,271 it's likely that you're going to experience moments in your life 189 00:11:53,945 --> 00:11:57,616 where you are also hated. Guys, when 190 00:11:57,632 --> 00:12:01,415 we bring truth to the table, we 191 00:12:01,896 --> 00:12:05,230 bring light. The Word is is 192 00:12:05,503 --> 00:12:09,301 light. Would you say that? The Word— the Word 193 00:12:09,333 --> 00:12:12,874 is light, and light does something that darkness 194 00:12:12,874 --> 00:12:16,159 cannot do. It does something that darkness doesn't 195 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:20,470 like. Light obliterates the darkness. It's 196 00:12:20,470 --> 00:12:24,219 not like you've got two equal players up here and they're combating 197 00:12:24,251 --> 00:12:27,745 for the win. Light is always going to win. If you 198 00:12:27,921 --> 00:12:30,773 introduce light into a dark situation, 199 00:12:31,447 --> 00:12:35,234 Light is always going to win the 200 00:12:35,234 --> 00:12:38,892 fight. Light is always— light is good! Would you tell your neighbor, 201 00:12:38,924 --> 00:12:42,679 "Light is good!" Guys, I'm going to tell you something. I'm 202 00:12:42,759 --> 00:12:46,386 getting older. I'm getting older. I know 203 00:12:46,386 --> 00:12:49,996 some of you are older than me, praise God! And, um, but I'm 204 00:12:49,996 --> 00:12:53,558 getting older, and I used to— so in this room here, 205 00:12:53,767 --> 00:12:56,912 I've been here for many, many years. I was here when this building was built. 206 00:12:57,521 --> 00:13:01,164 And when it is dark outside, and you walk in this room, and there 207 00:13:01,308 --> 00:13:04,776 are no lights on, This is a very dark room, 208 00:13:05,787 --> 00:13:09,448 and I used to be able to walk in that door and 209 00:13:09,577 --> 00:13:13,157 walk across over here to the backstage without turning on any 210 00:13:13,173 --> 00:13:16,304 lights until I smacked into the pole one day. 211 00:13:18,006 --> 00:13:21,282 And because of that pain— see, there's wisdom in pain. I don't have time for 212 00:13:21,298 --> 00:13:25,055 this message, but there's wisdom in pain. Pain is a teacher to get you 213 00:13:25,071 --> 00:13:28,909 back to wisdom. They don't like each other, okay? So pain will 214 00:13:28,909 --> 00:13:32,602 fight you to get you back to wisdom, and so something said to me, "Kevin, 215 00:13:32,618 --> 00:13:35,845 you better turn on a light when you walk in this place." So now I've 216 00:13:35,845 --> 00:13:39,602 got my cell phone, and I can't find the button, so I'm 217 00:13:39,667 --> 00:13:43,183 going like this, you know, trying to get it. But something else has 218 00:13:43,215 --> 00:13:46,410 happened too, and I don't know, y'all have to tell me, those who are older 219 00:13:46,442 --> 00:13:50,264 than me. There's something that happens now that I'm walking, now as I'm 220 00:13:50,264 --> 00:13:53,812 walking through like a dark area, not only am I trying to, to 221 00:13:53,812 --> 00:13:57,114 illuminate my path, but I'm also like losing my 222 00:13:57,258 --> 00:14:01,073 balance. Does that happen to anybody? Like, I'm like, I'm going 223 00:14:01,105 --> 00:14:04,921 like this. I mean, the floor's not moving. It's a level floor, but I'm 224 00:14:04,937 --> 00:14:08,527 kind of like this with my cell phone. Guys, light is 225 00:14:08,623 --> 00:14:12,390 good. Light is good. I had my first experience. We 226 00:14:12,390 --> 00:14:16,061 were out with the Sevières, had my very first experience with this the other night. 227 00:14:16,718 --> 00:14:20,437 I sat with the Sevières. Are the Sevières in here? We sat at dinner together. 228 00:14:21,208 --> 00:14:24,579 And I can't believe I did this. We got all of the drinks, all of 229 00:14:24,579 --> 00:14:28,417 the stuff's there, and I say, "I'm so sorry, 230 00:14:29,011 --> 00:14:32,704 could you move us into that section where the lights are 231 00:14:32,704 --> 00:14:36,365 brighter, where we could see each other?" I never thought in a million years 232 00:14:36,542 --> 00:14:40,186 I would request that. We move everything over there, and within 15 233 00:14:40,186 --> 00:14:41,840 minutes, they dim those lights. 234 00:14:43,944 --> 00:14:46,095 That tip was cut in half real fast. 235 00:14:49,135 --> 00:14:52,666 Light is good. Here's the thing, we don't mind following 236 00:14:52,698 --> 00:14:55,613 Jesus, we just don't like what it costs us on a social level. 237 00:14:57,854 --> 00:15:01,337 So what we'll do is we take the truth of God's Word and we soften 238 00:15:01,337 --> 00:15:04,853 it. We'll dilute it. We'll blur 239 00:15:04,918 --> 00:15:08,594 conviction. We'll stay quiet so 240 00:15:08,594 --> 00:15:09,618 that we're accepted. 241 00:15:12,525 --> 00:15:16,123 Eric Harding, Elder Eric, gave an incredible message on 242 00:15:16,123 --> 00:15:19,609 Thursday. I encourage you to go back and listen to it. And in his message, 243 00:15:19,673 --> 00:15:23,432 he was inviting us to remain steadfast as salt and light in 244 00:15:23,432 --> 00:15:26,902 this world, remaining true to God's Word, the 245 00:15:26,902 --> 00:15:30,275 foundation of God's Word. And that's the same 246 00:15:30,291 --> 00:15:33,295 encouragement that I have for us today, is that we would remain 247 00:15:33,327 --> 00:15:36,957 steadfast in the truth. Jesus 248 00:15:37,005 --> 00:15:40,395 never called you to be light, He 249 00:15:40,475 --> 00:15:44,089 called you to be faithful. I'm 250 00:15:44,089 --> 00:15:47,703 talking to church folks today. He didn't 251 00:15:47,703 --> 00:15:51,397 call you to be liked. Now, being liked is a bonus. I 252 00:15:51,397 --> 00:15:54,979 like being liked by you guys. I hope you 253 00:15:55,011 --> 00:15:58,705 like being liked by me. But that was not what He 254 00:15:58,769 --> 00:16:02,495 called us to do. He called us, He called us to be faithful. 255 00:16:02,801 --> 00:16:06,575 In other words, if your goal is approval, truth will 256 00:16:06,575 --> 00:16:10,396 feel optional. If your goal is 257 00:16:10,573 --> 00:16:13,591 to be approved, truth will be— and guys, this is where 258 00:16:14,346 --> 00:16:17,702 mature believers are separated from 259 00:16:17,879 --> 00:16:21,283 immature believers. Vonda Coble, come to the stage please, quickly. 260 00:16:23,980 --> 00:16:27,400 If your goal is to be approved, then 261 00:16:27,513 --> 00:16:30,868 truth is going to feel optional. Now, here's the thing. 262 00:16:31,446 --> 00:16:35,268 I want you to understand that the context of this 263 00:16:35,396 --> 00:16:39,218 message, you can make up in your brain— come on over here— make up in 264 00:16:39,250 --> 00:16:42,509 your brain, you can make up in your brain that this has everything to do 265 00:16:42,606 --> 00:16:44,308 with those who are not saved. 266 00:16:46,459 --> 00:16:50,281 But there's something interesting that happens in John 15 that my friend 267 00:16:50,313 --> 00:16:52,946 had a revelation of, and I want her to share quickly that revelation 268 00:16:53,685 --> 00:16:56,912 about the world being in Oh, 269 00:16:57,955 --> 00:17:01,131 okay. She's like, "Remind me of the revelation, please." 270 00:17:02,190 --> 00:17:05,816 Light is good. Light is good. The revelation that God gave me 271 00:17:05,880 --> 00:17:09,506 was at the top, and I don't have my glasses, but at the 272 00:17:09,506 --> 00:17:13,324 top of John 15, it reads— read it 273 00:17:13,356 --> 00:17:17,110 for me, sir. Sure. "I am the 274 00:17:17,110 --> 00:17:20,912 true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch 275 00:17:20,912 --> 00:17:24,345 in me that bears no fruit, while every You can stop right there. In me. 276 00:17:24,522 --> 00:17:27,955 So the entire theme of John 15 lets me know he's talking to 277 00:17:27,955 --> 00:17:31,676 Christians because other people are not in him if he's not 278 00:17:31,724 --> 00:17:35,301 talking to Christians. So the entire thing is about me, is about Christians. 279 00:17:35,750 --> 00:17:39,456 So when I got to the back, we've been studying at our school 280 00:17:39,745 --> 00:17:42,921 about John 15, and the end part talks about, 281 00:17:44,461 --> 00:17:48,118 you will be hated because they hated me. And I went, ooh, 282 00:17:48,567 --> 00:17:52,240 that's gonna be interesting when we get there. So I have already been thinking, okay, 283 00:17:52,256 --> 00:17:55,948 Lord, what is it that you want us to share in that 284 00:17:55,948 --> 00:17:59,689 section. And so, I'll use you as you're up here with 285 00:17:59,721 --> 00:18:02,547 your new pink tennis shoes. Don't think I didn't see 'em. Come on up. I 286 00:18:02,579 --> 00:18:06,368 didn't have mint or green ones this morning. Okay, it's 287 00:18:06,368 --> 00:18:10,126 okay, it's okay. So, there are places in my brother 288 00:18:11,025 --> 00:18:14,429 that the Lord has not refined just yet, okay? 289 00:18:15,215 --> 00:18:17,608 And when they're not refined, where are they from? 290 00:18:18,989 --> 00:18:22,824 The world. Okay, so there may be places in him that 291 00:18:22,824 --> 00:18:26,594 are not refined that may be refined in me. Now, of course, you know there 292 00:18:26,594 --> 00:18:30,268 are places in me that are not refined, but anyway, so in 293 00:18:30,364 --> 00:18:33,958 those places that are not refined in him 294 00:18:34,872 --> 00:18:38,530 but are refined in me, he will hate in 295 00:18:38,643 --> 00:18:42,092 me those places because they're of the 296 00:18:42,156 --> 00:18:45,381 world, but they're refined in me. 297 00:18:45,862 --> 00:18:49,555 Right? And same here. If there are 298 00:18:49,555 --> 00:18:53,119 places in me that are still of the world because they're not 299 00:18:53,344 --> 00:18:57,068 surrendered to God, it's not been pruned, it hasn't been 300 00:18:57,100 --> 00:19:00,616 cut off just yet, I will hate 301 00:19:00,616 --> 00:19:04,405 him because they're refined in him. 302 00:19:05,850 --> 00:19:09,044 Thank you. Yes, thank you. Can you put that up? Thank you. So 303 00:19:12,897 --> 00:19:15,894 This is where the mature and immature believers divide. 304 00:19:17,642 --> 00:19:20,463 Because when you react out of your flesh— 305 00:19:22,435 --> 00:19:26,057 I'm at a table, we all know Jesus, and we start 306 00:19:26,121 --> 00:19:29,953 gossiping, and not one person at the table is 307 00:19:29,985 --> 00:19:33,624 strong enough to say, "Wait a minute, stop this. This is not 308 00:19:33,672 --> 00:19:37,359 right." Not one person willing to say— that is a 309 00:19:37,423 --> 00:19:41,174 group of immature believers that's got the world in them, and here's 310 00:19:41,206 --> 00:19:44,268 the thing, I'm attracted to other people that carry the same thing in the the 311 00:19:44,300 --> 00:19:45,999 world that let me get away with the things I want to do in my 312 00:19:46,015 --> 00:19:49,591 flesh. I'll go to breakfast with those 313 00:19:49,639 --> 00:19:53,071 people, but I'll probably shy away from the one that I know is going to 314 00:19:53,151 --> 00:19:56,871 render me truth in an area that I'm still being refined in. 315 00:19:57,497 --> 00:20:01,169 So this isn't just for, "Oh, they didn't ask Jesus in their 316 00:20:01,169 --> 00:20:04,937 heart." The world will hate you. 317 00:20:05,562 --> 00:20:09,154 There could be believers that have the world in them that also carry 318 00:20:09,186 --> 00:20:13,034 that vein of opposition, rejection, towards 319 00:20:13,098 --> 00:20:15,968 you because of what you are carrying. 320 00:20:17,427 --> 00:20:21,082 You don't have to rest in people's approval when you are secure 321 00:20:21,354 --> 00:20:25,089 in the Lord. This is what John 10 says in verse 27. 322 00:20:25,137 --> 00:20:28,712 We talked about this last week. "My sheep listen to my voice. 323 00:20:29,610 --> 00:20:33,040 I know them, and they follow me. I give them 324 00:20:33,233 --> 00:20:36,375 eternal life, and they shall never perish." 325 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:40,933 Listen to this. No one will snatch them out 326 00:20:40,997 --> 00:20:44,706 of my hand. My Father, who has given 327 00:20:44,706 --> 00:20:48,126 them to me, is greater than all. No one can 328 00:20:48,158 --> 00:20:51,915 snatch them out of my Father's hand. In 329 00:20:51,915 --> 00:20:55,480 other words, the truth, the 330 00:20:55,544 --> 00:20:59,334 light, the foundation, the rock 331 00:20:59,783 --> 00:21:02,593 does not need your help. 332 00:21:03,814 --> 00:21:07,268 In order to be the authority in the conversation. 333 00:21:07,992 --> 00:21:11,575 The Word stands by itself, and though the world hates you 334 00:21:11,768 --> 00:21:15,142 for bringing it to the table, the world can't do 335 00:21:15,367 --> 00:21:18,597 anything to you because you're in your Father's grip. 336 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:23,080 He says, "I'm not going to let them go. You can't be snatched 337 00:21:23,160 --> 00:21:26,647 out of His hand." No matter what it is, no matter how— now, 338 00:21:27,033 --> 00:21:30,372 you do have to get over the fact that that some people are going to 339 00:21:30,468 --> 00:21:34,091 hate you. People that have been running with you, do you know that there are 340 00:21:34,091 --> 00:21:36,624 seasons with relationships for a reason? 341 00:21:37,938 --> 00:21:41,706 And sometimes, as we're running in seasons, you have to say, 342 00:21:42,170 --> 00:21:45,954 "I'm ready to start walking into a greater season that you 343 00:21:45,954 --> 00:21:49,785 cannot come with me because God has not worked out of you what 344 00:21:49,865 --> 00:21:53,231 I have now been pruned of so that I can continue to move 345 00:21:53,247 --> 00:21:57,049 forward." It doesn't feel good, But understand that when you stay 346 00:21:57,178 --> 00:22:00,630 in a season, in a place that you're supposed to outlive and you're supposed to 347 00:22:00,774 --> 00:22:04,579 outrun, then you do danger to both you and the individual. 348 00:22:04,948 --> 00:22:08,785 You stunt your growth. You bring about dangerous paths and 349 00:22:08,978 --> 00:22:12,703 dangerous patterns. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? So the people that you 350 00:22:12,815 --> 00:22:16,428 are hanging with, texting with, going out with, 351 00:22:16,990 --> 00:22:20,538 all of those people, you have to ask yourself with discernment, "Holy 352 00:22:20,538 --> 00:22:23,571 Spirit, help me." to filter this 353 00:22:23,571 --> 00:22:26,925 relationship, to understand, "Is this in 354 00:22:27,038 --> 00:22:30,729 keeping with the spiritual maturity with which you have called me to? 355 00:22:31,034 --> 00:22:34,548 With the leveling that I am at, those are the people that I need to 356 00:22:34,580 --> 00:22:37,004 be running with." Now, let me tell you something. When you step out of that 357 00:22:37,004 --> 00:22:40,245 season, you don't go back and say, "I'm gone! I'm out of here! See you 358 00:22:40,278 --> 00:22:43,535 later!" Okay? Now, sometimes you gotta confront it, 359 00:22:44,835 --> 00:22:48,334 but how you confront it's important. We're going to talk about that in just a 360 00:22:49,127 --> 00:22:52,786 "Wait a minute. No one can snatch them out of my 361 00:22:52,818 --> 00:22:56,578 hand," He says. You can survive being misunderstood or 362 00:22:56,578 --> 00:23:00,061 rejected because your security has been established. If you're not 363 00:23:00,061 --> 00:23:03,671 secure, listen, if you're not secure in the Lord Jesus 364 00:23:03,784 --> 00:23:07,571 Christ as a believer this morning, there is a propensity to 365 00:23:07,571 --> 00:23:11,362 do one or two things with the truth of God's Word. Either you're going to 366 00:23:11,541 --> 00:23:15,243 compromise the truth, or you're or you're going to weaponize the truth. 367 00:23:16,479 --> 00:23:20,232 If you're not secure in the Lord, you're either going to compromise, which means you'll 368 00:23:20,473 --> 00:23:23,970 dilute it, you'll shift it, you'll change it to fit the 369 00:23:24,002 --> 00:23:27,788 occasion, or you will weaponize it by 370 00:23:27,788 --> 00:23:31,157 saying, "I'm going to pull this truth out to accomplish my agenda." 371 00:23:33,002 --> 00:23:36,692 Are you secure in the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you 372 00:23:36,692 --> 00:23:40,093 secure in Him? Because if you're looking for approval 373 00:23:40,687 --> 00:23:44,267 then truth in your life, and how you render it, is going 374 00:23:45,054 --> 00:23:48,314 to be optional, and neither are right. Neither are right. 375 00:23:49,454 --> 00:23:53,115 Jesus said, "They will know me by the 376 00:23:53,227 --> 00:23:57,048 way you love." He says, 377 00:23:57,305 --> 00:24:00,790 "They're going to know me," Jesus, "by the way you 378 00:24:01,095 --> 00:24:04,788 love." Notice it doesn't say, "They're going to know me by the way 379 00:24:04,852 --> 00:24:08,576 you argue." They're going to know me by the way you show 380 00:24:08,576 --> 00:24:12,300 your opinion. It says, "By your love," but here's 381 00:24:12,396 --> 00:24:15,735 the tension. Truth, when it's not 382 00:24:15,928 --> 00:24:18,881 encased in love, it feels like rejection. 383 00:24:19,780 --> 00:24:23,054 Ain't nobody got time for that. Love, 384 00:24:23,953 --> 00:24:27,661 when it's not cased in truth, can become, 385 00:24:27,806 --> 00:24:31,578 at a certain level, deception. I don't believe 386 00:24:31,578 --> 00:24:33,889 that Jesus spliced truth and love. 387 00:24:35,444 --> 00:24:38,136 I believe they were a combination, a combination 388 00:24:38,889 --> 00:24:42,719 package, and so we can also operate from that place. So 389 00:24:43,120 --> 00:24:46,453 Ephesians 6, and we read some of it today, I'm going to read it again 390 00:24:46,501 --> 00:24:49,514 to you, and I want you to put your listening ears on. Second graders, 391 00:24:49,946 --> 00:24:53,776 that's what we say in second grade. I'm in second 392 00:24:53,776 --> 00:24:56,997 grade in the Lord, so I need to put my listening ears on. Okay, listen 393 00:24:56,997 --> 00:24:59,449 to this. Finally, 394 00:25:01,004 --> 00:25:03,970 Be strong in the Lord 395 00:25:05,236 --> 00:25:08,202 and His mighty power. 396 00:25:09,580 --> 00:25:13,155 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your 397 00:25:13,203 --> 00:25:16,986 stand against the devil's schemes. For 398 00:25:17,179 --> 00:25:20,641 our struggle is not against flesh and blood, 399 00:25:21,042 --> 00:25:24,568 but against rulers, against authorities, against 400 00:25:24,568 --> 00:25:28,223 powers of the dark world, and against the spiritual forces 401 00:25:28,416 --> 00:25:32,136 of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full 402 00:25:32,489 --> 00:25:36,152 armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may 403 00:25:36,281 --> 00:25:39,558 be able to stand your ground. And 404 00:25:39,799 --> 00:25:43,156 after you have done everything to stand, 405 00:25:43,911 --> 00:25:47,670 stand firm then, with the belt of 406 00:25:47,670 --> 00:25:51,349 truth buckled around your waist, the breastplate of righteousness in place, 407 00:25:51,783 --> 00:25:55,478 your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of 408 00:25:55,478 --> 00:25:58,867 peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, 409 00:25:59,477 --> 00:26:03,133 with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 410 00:26:03,582 --> 00:26:07,431 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the 411 00:26:07,431 --> 00:26:11,200 Spirit, which is the Word of God. Would you look at your 412 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:14,247 neighbor and say, our struggle is not against flesh and blood. 413 00:26:17,359 --> 00:26:20,486 If you are fighting people, you are 414 00:26:20,486 --> 00:26:23,357 fighting the wrong battle. 415 00:26:24,255 --> 00:26:28,071 Guys, We must stop assigning a face to 416 00:26:28,184 --> 00:26:31,888 a spiritual battle. We've got to stop 417 00:26:31,888 --> 00:26:35,657 assigning faces to spiritual battle. The 418 00:26:35,657 --> 00:26:39,490 person next to you, in front of you, behind you, across 419 00:26:39,490 --> 00:26:43,162 from you, across the street, in the other car, sleeping next to you, 420 00:26:43,291 --> 00:26:47,043 it's not your enemy. You 421 00:26:47,043 --> 00:26:50,555 do not win spiritual battles by attacking people. 422 00:26:54,662 --> 00:26:58,159 Be strong in the Lord and His 423 00:26:58,336 --> 00:27:01,480 mighty power. And then it says 4 times in here, 424 00:27:01,576 --> 00:27:05,009 "Stand," "withstand," "stand 425 00:27:05,009 --> 00:27:08,394 firm," "stand." In our culture, 426 00:27:08,843 --> 00:27:12,485 standing has been redefined to mean something 427 00:27:12,613 --> 00:27:16,206 completely different. Standing sounds like, "Win 428 00:27:16,479 --> 00:27:20,139 that argument." Stand. Standing sounds 429 00:27:20,155 --> 00:27:23,800 like dominate. Standing sounds like, 430 00:27:23,945 --> 00:27:26,803 "This is how we win! This is how I win this fight!" 431 00:27:28,280 --> 00:27:31,860 But we don't have to do any of that. Standing simply refuses 432 00:27:32,278 --> 00:27:36,115 to surrender what is true. As Andy Stanley says, 433 00:27:36,388 --> 00:27:40,114 "We are not in it to win it. Our 434 00:27:40,162 --> 00:27:42,859 victory is secure in Christ Jesus." 435 00:27:44,079 --> 00:27:47,835 So the imagery that we find in Ephesians chapter 6 is 436 00:27:47,931 --> 00:27:51,495 that of a soldier full of armor. What do we 437 00:27:51,495 --> 00:27:54,978 notice about the armor in Ephesians 6? Every 438 00:27:55,395 --> 00:27:58,654 article, every piece of armor, save one, is a 439 00:27:58,782 --> 00:28:02,377 defensive piece of armor. Why is that? 440 00:28:03,116 --> 00:28:06,246 It's because the Lord, in His great wisdom, knew 441 00:28:07,273 --> 00:28:10,869 that we were going to be hated by a world that was 442 00:28:10,901 --> 00:28:14,207 going to attack us. There are going to be moments when I need the truth. 443 00:28:14,592 --> 00:28:18,189 There's going to be moments when I need to work in righteousness. There are moments 444 00:28:18,365 --> 00:28:21,849 when I'm going to need faith. There's moments when I'm going to need the helmet. 445 00:28:22,202 --> 00:28:25,766 These pieces of armor, 446 00:28:25,991 --> 00:28:29,507 and he says put on the whole armor of God, are there to 447 00:28:29,507 --> 00:28:33,296 protect us in a battle that He has already 448 00:28:33,376 --> 00:28:37,149 won. And so the imagery here is not put 449 00:28:37,149 --> 00:28:40,729 on the armor, get the sword, and go run into battle. 450 00:28:41,388 --> 00:28:44,743 The imagery here is stand firm on 451 00:28:44,856 --> 00:28:48,629 ground that your King has already taken victory over. 452 00:28:50,299 --> 00:28:54,056 You are already in the victory promised land. You have 453 00:28:54,233 --> 00:28:57,990 already won the battle. And so the truth 454 00:28:58,102 --> 00:29:01,523 stands alone because of the authority by which it 455 00:29:01,571 --> 00:29:05,376 speaks. And so it doesn't— in other words, guys, this 456 00:29:05,424 --> 00:29:09,103 is the thing. God does not need you 457 00:29:09,167 --> 00:29:11,079 to give the Word and your opinion. 458 00:29:13,199 --> 00:29:16,717 He doesn't need you to give your word and then your Facebook post. 459 00:29:18,179 --> 00:29:21,199 He doesn't need you to give the Word. Give the Word, 460 00:29:21,617 --> 00:29:25,055 period. And in every situation 461 00:29:25,472 --> 00:29:28,958 in this room, every situation in the world, every sin issue 462 00:29:29,569 --> 00:29:32,798 in the world, there is something that the Holy Scriptures say 463 00:29:33,264 --> 00:29:36,925 about those things. Here's the deal. We do not 464 00:29:36,973 --> 00:29:40,666 stand to prove Jesus is right. We stand because Jesus is right. 465 00:29:42,272 --> 00:29:45,900 We stand because Jesus is right. There's no question about it. 466 00:29:46,366 --> 00:29:49,947 There's no proving that's needed. We're already on the side of the winning 467 00:29:50,139 --> 00:29:53,897 victory in battle. Have you had anybody that's been around you and they work 468 00:29:53,897 --> 00:29:57,252 3 times as hard as they actually needed to work to accomplish the goal? 469 00:30:01,202 --> 00:30:04,911 In a way, the invitation is, "Stop 470 00:30:04,911 --> 00:30:08,733 working so hard because you're missing the point and you're 471 00:30:08,765 --> 00:30:12,346 doing it on your own strength!" Stand 472 00:30:12,378 --> 00:30:15,557 firm in the truth of God's Word. Standing 473 00:30:15,990 --> 00:30:19,073 within its own right is not a defensive posture where we go, "Well—" 474 00:30:19,603 --> 00:30:23,232 Standing is confidence in our belief that we actually believe what 475 00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:27,102 Jesus said is true. So where 476 00:30:27,214 --> 00:30:30,907 did we get the notion that Jesus needed us to go out 477 00:30:30,987 --> 00:30:32,818 and fight battles for Him? 478 00:30:34,311 --> 00:30:37,731 Somewhere that kind of creeped into our thought 479 00:30:37,731 --> 00:30:40,798 process. Like, it's as if Jesus said, "Okay, 480 00:30:42,484 --> 00:30:45,181 here's the word. Now take off and let's see how this goes." 481 00:30:48,569 --> 00:30:52,325 He knew you were going to fail. Because just as 482 00:30:52,438 --> 00:30:55,182 much as they need the truth, guess who else needs the truth? 483 00:30:56,434 --> 00:30:59,627 You need the truth. I need the truth of God's word 484 00:31:00,686 --> 00:31:04,409 in my life. So the struggle is not against flesh and blood. 485 00:31:04,473 --> 00:31:07,490 So when I have the belt of truth, I don't address truth to be accepted. 486 00:31:07,538 --> 00:31:10,956 When I have the breastplate, I don't carry false guilt. When I have the shoes 487 00:31:10,956 --> 00:31:14,583 of peace, I don't escalate conflict. The shield of faith, I don't absorb 488 00:31:14,663 --> 00:31:18,403 every hit that comes my way. The helmet of salvation, It guards 489 00:31:18,436 --> 00:31:19,399 my mind. 490 00:31:26,484 --> 00:31:29,777 If you don't suit up spiritually, you're going to show up to the battle emotionally. 491 00:31:31,608 --> 00:31:34,821 And I don't know about you, but when I show up to the battle 492 00:31:34,886 --> 00:31:38,548 emotionally, I can wreak havoc. Now, I said this in the 493 00:31:38,580 --> 00:31:40,749 first gathering, it's not in my notes, this is what I'm going to say to 494 00:31:40,749 --> 00:31:44,299 you as well. Here's another delineation between mature and 495 00:31:44,299 --> 00:31:47,897 immature. When I recognize that I have been working out of my 496 00:31:47,994 --> 00:31:51,640 emotions, and I look back and I see all 497 00:31:51,833 --> 00:31:55,543 the mess and chaos that I have caused, the hurt, the 498 00:31:55,608 --> 00:31:59,286 division, and the gossip, whatever else, dissension. 499 00:32:00,266 --> 00:32:04,057 Here I am at this point, and here's the person that started 500 00:32:04,057 --> 00:32:07,815 the whole thing, and I go, "Will you forgive 501 00:32:07,831 --> 00:32:11,603 me?" And we get on the same page. We walk 502 00:32:11,603 --> 00:32:15,419 in forgiveness, and what an immature Christian goes is, "Okay, now let's walk forward." 503 00:32:17,384 --> 00:32:21,009 And in the wake is this person, and this person, and this 504 00:32:21,009 --> 00:32:24,822 person, and this person that you caused damage to because you 505 00:32:24,951 --> 00:32:28,410 were acting out of emotion. A mature Christian goes like this, 506 00:32:30,934 --> 00:32:34,718 "I am so sorry. Will you forgive me? I caused 507 00:32:35,009 --> 00:32:38,650 gossip and dissension in this way because of something I was dealing with, 508 00:32:38,837 --> 00:32:42,080 and I shouldn't." "Would you please forgive me for the way I said and what 509 00:32:42,112 --> 00:32:45,944 I said? Would you— I said some things, those things are not actually 510 00:32:45,976 --> 00:32:49,392 true. Would you forgive me?" Out of the emotional posture that I was in. Are 511 00:32:49,408 --> 00:32:53,128 you with me? They go back and fix the collateral damage 512 00:32:53,176 --> 00:32:56,688 that was done. And guys, this is super important for mature Christians. 513 00:32:57,121 --> 00:33:00,184 We want to be a mature body. We're going to mess up. Who's going to 514 00:33:00,184 --> 00:33:03,567 mess up? I'm going to mess up. We're going to mess up. Okay, we're going 515 00:33:03,567 --> 00:33:05,941 to mess up, but we need to learn how to go back and fix the 516 00:33:05,941 --> 00:33:09,763 mess up. Address the mess-ups. Now, the Bible says 517 00:33:09,779 --> 00:33:13,232 this, "For all have sinned and 518 00:33:13,328 --> 00:33:17,070 fallen short of the glory of God." Raise your 519 00:33:17,167 --> 00:33:20,909 hand if you are included in "all." Raise your hand. 520 00:33:21,760 --> 00:33:25,261 Okay, good. It seems like we are on the same 521 00:33:25,438 --> 00:33:29,052 page, okay? So if "all" means all, and you're 522 00:33:29,148 --> 00:33:32,986 part of "all," and I'm part of "all," the scripture also 523 00:33:32,986 --> 00:33:36,423 says that we should do what? We should confess our confess our sin 524 00:33:36,921 --> 00:33:40,469 to one another. Is that true? Do we believe the scripture says that? 525 00:33:40,967 --> 00:33:44,532 It does. Okay, so we're all sinners, and the Word instructs us to 526 00:33:44,564 --> 00:33:47,904 confess our sin to one another. I want you to take the next 30 minutes— 527 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:51,677 30 seconds! 30 minutes! The next 30 seconds, 528 00:33:52,897 --> 00:33:56,414 and I want you to confess a sin that you are struggling with, or that 529 00:33:56,430 --> 00:33:59,464 you have struggled with, with somebody next to you right now. 30 seconds. 530 00:34:36,726 --> 00:34:37,575 5 seconds. 531 00:34:40,475 --> 00:34:43,712 4, 3, 2, 1. 532 00:34:44,336 --> 00:34:46,868 Okay, you bunch of sinners right here. Listen, 533 00:34:49,223 --> 00:34:52,940 mine is pride. Struggle with pride. The sin of pride. The sin 534 00:34:53,133 --> 00:34:56,628 of believing that I can do it on my own. Strength without help. 535 00:34:57,238 --> 00:35:00,592 That is a sin. All have sinned. We've just 536 00:35:00,592 --> 00:35:03,786 confessed sin to— and you might be sitting next to Jesus this morning, 537 00:35:04,460 --> 00:35:07,990 but otherwise we all confess sin. I need 2 volunteers to come quickly to the 538 00:35:07,990 --> 00:35:11,521 stage, please. Just come on up. Come on up quickly. 2. First 2. 539 00:35:11,601 --> 00:35:15,244 First 2. Okay, Palm Sunday. Come on up here. 540 00:35:17,860 --> 00:35:20,989 Okay, I need one of you to be a sinner and one of you to 541 00:35:20,989 --> 00:35:24,519 be the Holy Spirit. They're fighting to be the center. 542 00:35:26,460 --> 00:35:28,995 I'm going to let you be the Holy Spirit. "Am I being the Holy Spirit?" 543 00:35:29,172 --> 00:35:33,022 Yep. Alright, buddy. Okay, why don't 544 00:35:33,022 --> 00:35:35,509 you go sit over here. Holy Spirit, come stand over here. I want you to 545 00:35:35,509 --> 00:35:38,878 come sit. Sit right over there. Alright. 546 00:35:42,087 --> 00:35:45,359 I just want to kind of demonstrate what the Lord put on my heart about 547 00:35:45,359 --> 00:35:49,115 this message as we close out today, and perhaps maybe bring some— 548 00:35:51,379 --> 00:35:54,831 scoot over one chair for me. Okay. Let me do this. I'm going to go 549 00:35:54,831 --> 00:35:57,368 ahead and take this out. Okay, so what happens here 550 00:35:59,648 --> 00:36:03,309 is— no, I 551 00:36:03,421 --> 00:36:07,114 don't want you to sit down. Just hold that for now. Okay. So what 552 00:36:07,114 --> 00:36:10,791 happens here is my friend here has 553 00:36:10,904 --> 00:36:14,581 got a sin issue. Okay, 554 00:36:15,079 --> 00:36:18,901 he's got a sin issue just like all of us, and he's contending 555 00:36:18,997 --> 00:36:22,145 with this sin. Now, he may be saved, he may not be saved, he may 556 00:36:22,225 --> 00:36:25,838 be walking with the Lord for a long time, may not. Okay, all a variety 557 00:36:25,854 --> 00:36:29,291 of things, but the fact of the matter is that he 558 00:36:29,596 --> 00:36:33,289 is in the middle of a sin issue, and there's a 559 00:36:33,289 --> 00:36:36,533 myriad of sin issues that we could list right now. I don't have time to 560 00:36:36,533 --> 00:36:40,339 go through all of them. Gluttony, lying, sexual identity, all types of things. 561 00:36:40,612 --> 00:36:44,349 Big ones, okay? I want you— this is the reason this is blank, is because 562 00:36:44,525 --> 00:36:48,310 I want you to fill in this blank with your favorite sin. Now, don't 563 00:36:48,310 --> 00:36:51,662 do one that you struggle with, because you give yourself a lot more grace than 564 00:36:51,662 --> 00:36:54,741 you do the other people who are struggling with stuff you don't struggle with. So 565 00:36:54,741 --> 00:36:57,660 I want you to fill in the blank with your favorite sin that gets you 566 00:36:57,676 --> 00:37:00,899 all revved up when you see other people committing that sin. So you got it? 567 00:37:01,445 --> 00:37:04,395 Fill in the blank right here with your favorite sin, that top one that just 568 00:37:04,427 --> 00:37:07,991 really irks you and bugs you, okay? Okay, and so he's struggling with this 569 00:37:08,039 --> 00:37:11,719 sin, and somehow, someway, the 570 00:37:11,719 --> 00:37:15,479 Lord saw fit for me to be in proximity 571 00:37:16,218 --> 00:37:19,978 of this guy who's got this sin issue. And so 572 00:37:19,994 --> 00:37:23,802 I'm sitting here, sitting here, and I look at him and I 573 00:37:23,802 --> 00:37:27,465 see this sin, and I go, "Uh oh, 574 00:37:30,229 --> 00:37:32,189 if he touches me, I'm going to get the sin cooties." 575 00:37:36,806 --> 00:37:40,551 I need him to know that this sin is here. There's something in 576 00:37:40,551 --> 00:37:43,861 me that says I need— because the Word of God says that 577 00:37:44,841 --> 00:37:47,781 if you know the truth, the truth will set you free. 578 00:37:48,799 --> 00:37:52,065 And I'm sitting here next to somebody who I see 579 00:37:52,453 --> 00:37:56,133 through the lens of a biblical lens, I see is 580 00:37:56,246 --> 00:37:59,434 bound by whatever this sin is. And I'm what this sin issue is. 581 00:38:00,735 --> 00:38:04,524 And so I sit next to them and I go, "Hey, 582 00:38:06,033 --> 00:38:08,570 you've got, you've got an issue here, 583 00:38:09,726 --> 00:38:13,484 and I want to give you some truth about this issue." And so 584 00:38:13,740 --> 00:38:16,518 I bring the truth and I hand the truth. We're going to use this drill 585 00:38:16,566 --> 00:38:18,895 as truth, okay? And I hand the truth to them. So go ahead and take 586 00:38:18,895 --> 00:38:22,684 this truth, okay? Now, I want you to push 587 00:38:22,748 --> 00:38:26,197 the button on the Nothing's happening, right? 588 00:38:26,694 --> 00:38:29,789 Nothing's happening. Now here's the deal. 589 00:38:30,591 --> 00:38:34,151 I have given him the truth about what I see as 590 00:38:34,151 --> 00:38:37,712 sin in his life. The Word says clearly 591 00:38:38,129 --> 00:38:41,913 he should not be living this way. But in this context, in 592 00:38:41,913 --> 00:38:45,489 this posture, I have made a lot of assumptions. 593 00:38:46,404 --> 00:38:49,819 The first assumption that I've made is this guy even knows Jesus. 594 00:38:51,698 --> 00:38:55,424 Because somebody who doesn't even know the Lord is not going to care 595 00:38:55,697 --> 00:38:59,407 about the truth that you come that says, "I want to— I want you to 596 00:38:59,407 --> 00:39:02,443 stop doing what you want to do." Are you with me? 597 00:39:03,342 --> 00:39:07,084 And so here he is, and what I've done is I have 598 00:39:07,261 --> 00:39:10,826 given him information, and now he's got 599 00:39:11,035 --> 00:39:14,038 information in one hand that says, "I want to live the way I want to 600 00:39:14,086 --> 00:39:17,716 live," and information on the other hand, some book that I 601 00:39:17,716 --> 00:39:20,751 believe is the Book of Life, "Life, some book 602 00:39:22,229 --> 00:39:25,505 says you shouldn't be living this way." And he's like, 603 00:39:26,292 --> 00:39:29,922 "Okay, I'm probably going to go 604 00:39:30,388 --> 00:39:33,792 in the direction of what suits my flesh and what I want to do, because 605 00:39:33,841 --> 00:39:36,908 I don't believe in the God that you believe in, which means I don't believe 606 00:39:36,908 --> 00:39:38,402 that this is an issue at all." 607 00:39:41,068 --> 00:39:44,730 And so I look at him, and the more 608 00:39:44,858 --> 00:39:47,845 I sit with the more agitated I get 609 00:39:49,033 --> 00:39:52,774 because I did all of the work of 610 00:39:52,870 --> 00:39:56,066 preparing myself to give him truth, 611 00:39:57,607 --> 00:40:00,851 and I cannot believe that you're not going to apply the truth that I know 612 00:40:00,995 --> 00:40:04,720 to your situation. And so every time I come in contact with 613 00:40:04,752 --> 00:40:08,301 this person, all of a sudden I no longer see a face. All I see 614 00:40:08,301 --> 00:40:11,672 is this. Every single time. The 615 00:40:11,672 --> 00:40:15,357 person here is now reduced 616 00:40:15,758 --> 00:40:19,524 to a sin issue. And so I see this every time I 617 00:40:19,524 --> 00:40:23,209 go, and I go, "Why are you not waking up?" 618 00:40:23,994 --> 00:40:27,119 I say, "I'm going to get up and walk away from you. I can't spend 619 00:40:27,119 --> 00:40:30,163 any more time with you because you're not changing your life." 620 00:40:31,045 --> 00:40:34,474 I say, "I can't believe that you wouldn't do that. In fact, I tell you 621 00:40:34,490 --> 00:40:36,941 what, you have no place in this church if you're not going to change that 622 00:40:36,990 --> 00:40:39,812 behavior. Get out of the church." "Get out of this ministry! 623 00:40:41,304 --> 00:40:44,433 I'm looking at everything that you're doing, and I'm judging every single thing, and if 624 00:40:44,433 --> 00:40:46,840 you don't get it together, you're going to hell!" 625 00:40:46,952 --> 00:40:50,739 Okay? So we sit here, 626 00:40:50,771 --> 00:40:54,413 and we go after this person. Now, 627 00:40:56,162 --> 00:40:59,741 something's missing here. Something is 628 00:40:59,837 --> 00:41:03,608 missing here, because I just— we believe that this sin 629 00:41:03,608 --> 00:41:07,282 issue, there is truth to be applied to the sin issue. The Word of 630 00:41:07,299 --> 00:41:10,798 God can be applied. The truth can be applied. There's freedom for this 631 00:41:11,248 --> 00:41:14,266 young man, and I've given him truth. 632 00:41:15,246 --> 00:41:18,778 But here's the thing. Jesus never 633 00:41:18,938 --> 00:41:22,663 asked us to come with the truth and continue to 634 00:41:22,888 --> 00:41:26,339 beat them upside the head with the information. 635 00:41:27,126 --> 00:41:30,642 Here's what we are supposed to do. Relationally, 636 00:41:31,541 --> 00:41:35,359 relationally, we are relationally, we go into 637 00:41:35,407 --> 00:41:38,743 their life and we render truth, and we set 638 00:41:38,935 --> 00:41:42,367 truth on the table to do its work. 639 00:41:43,089 --> 00:41:46,922 The truth is now out in the open. "You are a glutton. 640 00:41:48,253 --> 00:41:51,733 The truth of God's Word says that this is not good for you. It is 641 00:41:51,845 --> 00:41:55,597 a sin. Sin separates us from God." All of the truth, 642 00:41:55,614 --> 00:41:58,949 straight up, just truth, truth, truth. He knows the information. 643 00:42:00,183 --> 00:42:03,756 But it's not activated in his life, because the only 644 00:42:03,853 --> 00:42:07,458 one who can change his life is not Kevin O'Dea, it's the 645 00:42:07,458 --> 00:42:11,223 Holy Spirit. And so once I put truth 646 00:42:11,223 --> 00:42:14,925 on the table, my next task is to point 647 00:42:14,925 --> 00:42:18,771 them to the one who can come alongside the 648 00:42:18,835 --> 00:42:22,104 power of the truth and make explosive things happen. 649 00:42:23,081 --> 00:42:26,928 And so from this point forward, once I've introduced truth, I need to 650 00:42:27,008 --> 00:42:30,685 introduce him, with the truth, to the Holy 651 00:42:30,717 --> 00:42:33,991 Spirit. Now, when the Holy Spirit gets involved, this is what happens. Go ahead and 652 00:42:33,991 --> 00:42:36,945 put that on there. This is what happens. 653 00:42:37,619 --> 00:42:41,311 Power has now been unlocked with the 654 00:42:41,311 --> 00:42:44,811 truth that can be transformative in his life. Push the button. 655 00:42:45,646 --> 00:42:49,257 Now we're in business. Now we're in business. The 656 00:42:49,402 --> 00:42:52,966 power has been activated, and now he can go to 657 00:42:53,174 --> 00:42:56,720 work work about addressing the sin issue in his life 658 00:42:56,944 --> 00:43:00,570 because power has coupled up with the truth, and it 659 00:43:00,650 --> 00:43:03,955 wasn't your job to change them. Are you with me? 660 00:43:04,966 --> 00:43:08,511 So, now, there's a question still that begs itself, 661 00:43:09,153 --> 00:43:12,923 okay? If I'm supposed— okay, I put truth on the 662 00:43:12,923 --> 00:43:16,307 table because I happen to know the truth about this particular issue, 663 00:43:16,853 --> 00:43:20,527 and I'm supposed to point him to the Lord. The question you should ask "Jesus, 664 00:43:20,607 --> 00:43:22,919 how do I point this young man to the Lord?" 665 00:43:25,280 --> 00:43:28,909 What did the scripture say? "They will know me by," what? 666 00:43:29,776 --> 00:43:32,794 "By the way we love." Let me tell you what that looks like. This is 667 00:43:32,907 --> 00:43:36,455 what this looks like. See, 668 00:43:36,905 --> 00:43:39,699 I also have the truth and the power of the Holy Spirit. 669 00:43:41,336 --> 00:43:44,917 This person may very much be an unlovable person, 670 00:43:45,029 --> 00:43:47,325 but 671 00:43:50,974 --> 00:43:54,782 This person, listen, this person in their 672 00:43:54,830 --> 00:43:58,413 sin may be somebody that I can't stand. 673 00:43:59,489 --> 00:44:03,185 Hurting themselves, hurting others, all of that. Do you know what the 674 00:44:03,265 --> 00:44:07,073 power of the Holy Spirit gives you the power to? Acts 675 00:44:07,105 --> 00:44:10,591 says that you will receive power 676 00:44:10,897 --> 00:44:12,871 when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. 677 00:44:15,067 --> 00:44:18,802 The Holy Spirit gives you the power to love unlovable people. 678 00:44:21,720 --> 00:44:25,230 The Holy Spirit gives you the power to do what 679 00:44:25,230 --> 00:44:28,500 Jesus was telling you to do. How does 680 00:44:28,853 --> 00:44:32,668 Peter come out of that? Peter is defending 681 00:44:32,780 --> 00:44:36,483 Jesus. It's the same thing as saying Peter was defending the gospel, 682 00:44:37,573 --> 00:44:41,004 and he comes out with that sword. And let me tell you, you could 683 00:44:41,036 --> 00:44:44,580 justify his actions to death. He was defending Jesus, 684 00:44:45,190 --> 00:44:48,595 and he cuts off the ear. What's 685 00:44:48,659 --> 00:44:52,288 Jesus' response? Go get your brothers and take 686 00:44:52,336 --> 00:44:55,966 off and stab him to death? No! He says, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, 687 00:44:56,110 --> 00:44:59,949 whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! We do not fight worldly 688 00:45:00,061 --> 00:45:03,193 problems the same way the world fights. 689 00:45:04,381 --> 00:45:08,107 And Jesus reaches down and he heals the 690 00:45:08,315 --> 00:45:11,206 ear of the one who's going to take him into custody 691 00:45:13,330 --> 00:45:16,995 But he loves those people who are 692 00:45:17,141 --> 00:45:20,092 carrying it. And our job is. And this is what it looks 693 00:45:20,092 --> 00:45:23,547 like to love people. 694 00:45:24,419 --> 00:45:27,486 We go, holy Spirit, 695 00:45:29,310 --> 00:45:32,568 give me the power that I need. Holy Spirit, come help me. Help me here. 696 00:45:37,956 --> 00:45:41,633 But He loves those people who are carrying it. And our 697 00:45:41,633 --> 00:45:44,877 job is— and this is what it looks like to 698 00:45:45,086 --> 00:45:48,570 love people. We go, 699 00:45:49,341 --> 00:45:53,018 Holy Spirit, give me the power that I need. Holy 700 00:45:53,050 --> 00:45:54,254 Spirit, come help me. 701 00:45:57,289 --> 00:45:59,488 Help me here. 702 00:46:11,187 --> 00:46:14,829 The Holy Spirit gives me the power to lay my 703 00:46:15,358 --> 00:46:18,744 life down, and when this 704 00:46:19,049 --> 00:46:22,787 brother is sitting here and 705 00:46:22,819 --> 00:46:26,397 he sees me laying my life down, 706 00:46:27,376 --> 00:46:30,809 loving him in a way that he does not deserve to be loved, 707 00:46:31,242 --> 00:46:34,657 He goes, "What kind of God do you serve 708 00:46:35,090 --> 00:46:38,665 that you would do this?" The most incredible 709 00:46:38,697 --> 00:46:42,448 God of the universe who saved my life, and He 710 00:46:42,528 --> 00:46:46,263 wants to save yours too! How 711 00:46:46,392 --> 00:46:50,223 is it that you continue to walk forward when they spit at 712 00:46:50,223 --> 00:46:53,686 you, and they talk bad about you, and you're like a doormat? Don't you 713 00:46:53,686 --> 00:46:57,502 deserve that raise, and that promotion, and that acknowledgment, but 714 00:46:57,935 --> 00:47:01,655 that person got it, but yet you continue to nail 715 00:47:01,783 --> 00:47:05,535 your life surrendered to the cross. How do you do 716 00:47:05,535 --> 00:47:09,351 that? Because I've got a best friend named the Holy Spirit, and 717 00:47:09,464 --> 00:47:12,286 I can tell you right now, it's not on my own strength, because here's the 718 00:47:12,350 --> 00:47:15,733 deal. What you don't understand is I'm this all day 719 00:47:15,893 --> 00:47:19,678 long. I was this all day long, and I needed somebody to 720 00:47:19,726 --> 00:47:23,478 come and say, "Kevin, you have got to do some business 721 00:47:23,590 --> 00:47:27,347 with this truth." You've got to do business with the 722 00:47:27,347 --> 00:47:30,863 truth, but you need the Holy Spirit to do it. So let me show 723 00:47:31,280 --> 00:47:34,604 Him to you. I'm going to show Him to you 724 00:47:35,616 --> 00:47:38,008 by loving you so good. 725 00:47:38,394 --> 00:47:42,215 Truth's there. There's no arguing about it. 726 00:47:42,279 --> 00:47:45,587 Truth's there. It's not— we're not hiding it, we're not diluting it. We're 727 00:47:45,587 --> 00:47:49,151 standing on it. I don't have to fight for it. It's there. It's got its 728 00:47:49,200 --> 00:47:53,050 own authority. And guys, if you're honest with yourself and you look at your own 729 00:47:53,115 --> 00:47:56,628 testimony and your own story, it 730 00:47:56,724 --> 00:47:59,644 has to be— come tell me if it wasn't this way— it has to be 731 00:47:59,933 --> 00:48:03,559 that someone along the path loved you. It has to be 732 00:48:03,783 --> 00:48:07,409 that the Holy Spirit got involved. I haven't met people where it's like, 733 00:48:07,585 --> 00:48:10,618 "No, those people got their swords out and cut my ear off, and I decided, 734 00:48:10,634 --> 00:48:12,190 you know, I'm just gonna be a loving Christian." 735 00:48:14,949 --> 00:48:18,642 But man, how quickly we forget that we were the one in the 736 00:48:18,642 --> 00:48:22,383 chair. Guys, 737 00:48:22,495 --> 00:48:25,771 can we do what the scripture says to a world that hates? Guess what? You're 738 00:48:25,787 --> 00:48:29,608 going to be hated. You're going to be hated. What are we going to 739 00:48:29,640 --> 00:48:33,253 do when they hate us? What are you going to do when the people in 740 00:48:33,253 --> 00:48:36,352 here, because we're flawed and broken, they hate you? 741 00:48:38,391 --> 00:48:41,795 How are you going to respond has everything to do with the 742 00:48:41,924 --> 00:48:45,697 power of the Holy Spirit in your life. Stand with 743 00:48:45,697 --> 00:48:48,025 me this morning. Thank you guys so much for helping me. 744 00:48:51,301 --> 00:48:55,058 If those who are going to pray this morning would come forward. And this morning, 745 00:48:56,294 --> 00:48:56,969 here's the call. 746 00:49:00,533 --> 00:49:04,066 Of course, this star-breathing God is available 747 00:49:05,190 --> 00:49:08,820 for every need, right, Josh? Every need, every 748 00:49:08,820 --> 00:49:11,326 single one. He knows all about you, 749 00:49:14,122 --> 00:49:17,946 and He loves you. But also today, I would 750 00:49:18,059 --> 00:49:21,786 put an extra acknowledgement to those who are 751 00:49:21,979 --> 00:49:25,482 in a relational situation 752 00:49:25,996 --> 00:49:29,113 with someone who you know is actively walking in sin, 753 00:49:30,334 --> 00:49:32,423 and you don't know what to do about it. You don't know where to turn, 754 00:49:32,439 --> 00:49:36,261 what say all of these things. You got some— you just know this is 755 00:49:36,293 --> 00:49:40,082 not good. Or maybe you're the one in the 756 00:49:40,082 --> 00:49:43,679 sinful situation and you're like, "You know what? I can only 757 00:49:43,743 --> 00:49:46,858 keep finding myself in the ditch so many times." 758 00:49:48,400 --> 00:49:51,836 The reason that we come to pray here is because these people on the stage 759 00:49:51,932 --> 00:49:53,763 have their life together and they're perfect. 760 00:49:56,299 --> 00:50:00,121 No, the people on the stage here in a lot of ways can 761 00:50:00,282 --> 00:50:03,525 empathize with you because they were on the other side of the prayer many, many, 762 00:50:03,589 --> 00:50:07,282 many times. And they know what it's like to agree with somebody 763 00:50:07,362 --> 00:50:10,783 down here and how transformative it is when you invite the power of the Holy 764 00:50:10,831 --> 00:50:14,636 Spirit into your situation. You can walk away— when 765 00:50:14,668 --> 00:50:18,409 the Word says, "Know the truth and the truth will set you free," you 766 00:50:18,586 --> 00:50:22,118 actually can go out of here doing cartwheels, unless you're Wanda. 767 00:50:22,295 --> 00:50:26,069 You can do cartwheels out the door. Full on cartwheels. But you know 768 00:50:26,069 --> 00:50:29,239 what, Vonda? I know when you see Jesus, it's going to be a full on 769 00:50:29,239 --> 00:50:32,966 cartwheel. It's going to be the best cartwheel you've ever done. Do you 770 00:50:32,982 --> 00:50:36,520 know this Jesus? Do you know the truth of God's Word? 771 00:50:36,681 --> 00:50:39,447 Guys, some of you, listen to me. I want to say this last little bit, 772 00:50:39,495 --> 00:50:42,656 and I'm going to let you come pray. It's okay to carry 773 00:50:43,075 --> 00:50:46,842 grief, and sorrow, and pain 774 00:50:47,019 --> 00:50:50,574 for a sinful, dying world around us. There is, there's sin rampant, 775 00:50:50,815 --> 00:50:54,492 cultural thing, and we know about so much more of it than they ever knew 776 00:50:54,508 --> 00:50:58,105 in the history of time. It's okay, we should be 777 00:50:58,105 --> 00:51:01,653 grieving, we shouldn't be just walking around this world like we don't know that there's 778 00:51:01,653 --> 00:51:05,314 people dying all around us. That is conviction, that's good, 779 00:51:05,427 --> 00:51:07,739 but here's the thing that you do, you don't go out with your sword, you 780 00:51:07,739 --> 00:51:10,902 start getting in relationship with those people so that you have an 781 00:51:10,950 --> 00:51:13,744 opportunity to present the truth. 782 00:51:16,200 --> 00:51:20,017 So maybe you need courage today to speak truth in a situation that 783 00:51:20,017 --> 00:51:22,856 you know is right in front of your face. He can give you that too. 784 00:51:22,920 --> 00:51:26,722 So let's worship together. If any of those situations fit you, you need something 785 00:51:27,235 --> 00:51:29,448 from the Lord, come and let's worship and pray.