1 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:10,559 Got so overjoyed by the kids, I forgot, I 2 00:00:10,559 --> 00:00:13,599 was supposed to put this on. So I'm down here fumbling around and Kevin's up 3 00:00:13,599 --> 00:00:16,385 here and I'm like, what's you up there for? And then he said, his friend, 4 00:00:16,385 --> 00:00:18,945 and I'm like, I was hoping to talk about James at that moment and I 5 00:00:18,945 --> 00:00:22,785 was like, no, he's talking about me. Can you get this thing on? So 6 00:00:22,785 --> 00:00:26,465 if this thing pops off, like in the middle, it's just, it's just gonna have 7 00:00:26,465 --> 00:00:28,780 to land on the floor and we'll just have to roll without it. He warned 8 00:00:28,780 --> 00:00:32,299 me, he said, we may lose power Saturday night. I said, hey, I can scream. 9 00:00:32,299 --> 00:00:35,760 I may lose, not have a voice Sunday, but I can scream. 10 00:00:36,940 --> 00:00:40,540 Wow. Wow, welcome tonight, Saturday night, and 11 00:00:40,540 --> 00:00:44,235 I'm expecting God to do something in in my heart 12 00:00:44,235 --> 00:00:47,995 tonight. I I hope that you came expecting Him to do 13 00:00:47,995 --> 00:00:51,695 something. I got to tune in online and hear Barbie's message 14 00:00:52,235 --> 00:00:55,690 Thursday and then at Justin last night, and, 15 00:00:56,010 --> 00:00:59,150 just incredible how God, how the Spirit, I think, 16 00:00:59,450 --> 00:01:03,290 coordinates behind the scenes. I mean, states away, cities away, 17 00:01:03,290 --> 00:01:06,810 right? And He coordinates behind the scenes, and so you're here tonight for a 18 00:01:06,810 --> 00:01:10,545 reason. I believe we're all here tonight for a 19 00:01:10,545 --> 00:01:14,305 reason. And, and there's somebody that's not 20 00:01:14,305 --> 00:01:17,825 here tonight that I think will be 21 00:01:17,825 --> 00:01:19,925 impacted by what's gone on 22 00:01:21,180 --> 00:01:24,700 Thursday, Friday, and tonight because of you being 23 00:01:24,700 --> 00:01:28,480 here, because of what God's going to do in you 24 00:01:28,700 --> 00:01:32,460 and through you. And so we'll dig in. I know we're gonna 25 00:01:32,460 --> 00:01:36,240 have a scripture up on the screen. Before I do, let's just, let's pray 26 00:01:36,704 --> 00:01:39,844 and, and just ask God's Spirit just to move freely. Father, 27 00:01:42,064 --> 00:01:44,965 we just come before You, and Lord, I, 28 00:01:45,905 --> 00:01:49,744 I couldn't even begin to start guessing all the back stories in 29 00:01:49,744 --> 00:01:53,570 this room. But there's a congregation here, Lord, and you said where 30 00:01:53,570 --> 00:01:57,170 two or three are gathered, you're in our midst. And we've 31 00:01:57,170 --> 00:01:59,509 already felt you at work, Lord, through the worship, 32 00:02:01,009 --> 00:02:04,710 through your Spirit, Lord, the liberty that is here. 33 00:02:07,145 --> 00:02:10,925 But now, Lord, we just wanna tune in with You individually, one on one, 34 00:02:12,025 --> 00:02:15,625 and just say, Holy Spirit, shine a 35 00:02:15,625 --> 00:02:16,845 light in my heart. 36 00:02:21,060 --> 00:02:22,760 Holy Spirit, be my one thing. 37 00:02:26,660 --> 00:02:30,180 Holy Spirit, let me not come in here and just sit again in 38 00:02:30,180 --> 00:02:31,960 another service, but Holy Spirit, 39 00:02:35,754 --> 00:02:39,595 would you stir the embers deep in my heart? Would you blow on those 40 00:02:39,595 --> 00:02:42,495 coals? Would you light that fire again that I once had? 41 00:02:46,235 --> 00:02:50,040 God, I just pray that you'll take any words I'm not supposed 42 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:53,500 to say out and insert whatever words I'm not even planning to say in, 43 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:56,780 and Lord, just help people to see you 44 00:02:59,880 --> 00:03:02,380 be glorified tonight, Father, I pray. Amen. 45 00:03:04,265 --> 00:03:07,805 We're going to Luke, Luke chapter number 46 00:03:07,864 --> 00:03:11,705 23. Luke chapter 47 00:03:11,705 --> 00:03:15,549 number 23, verse number 21. We're 48 00:03:15,549 --> 00:03:19,250 gonna read this together, and I'm, I'm gonna do this like Barbie did it. 49 00:03:22,189 --> 00:03:25,870 I'm gonna do this like Barbie did it, because I've 50 00:03:25,870 --> 00:03:29,565 learned that if you speak enough, people can get 51 00:03:29,565 --> 00:03:33,084 tone deaf, right? And you're gonna hear me all night long. So I'm gonna not 52 00:03:33,084 --> 00:03:36,765 say it. I'm gonna say it quietly. I'm gonna like whisper it, okay? And you 53 00:03:36,765 --> 00:03:39,805 all are gonna say it, but I gotta hear you. What did you say, gusto? 54 00:03:39,805 --> 00:03:43,620 Is it what Kevin says, gusto? So say it with gusto, but 55 00:03:43,620 --> 00:03:47,460 let's read this together. So ready? Let's stand for God's word and we'll we'll 56 00:03:47,460 --> 00:03:51,240 begin here. Pilate addressed them. Once more, 57 00:03:51,460 --> 00:03:55,060 his eyes. And to release Jesus. They kept 58 00:03:55,060 --> 00:03:58,360 shouting, Crucify, crucify him. 59 00:03:58,855 --> 00:04:02,695 A third time he said to them, what? What 60 00:04:02,695 --> 00:04:06,375 evil has he done? I have found in him no 61 00:04:06,375 --> 00:04:10,075 guilt deserving death. I will therefore punish 62 00:04:10,455 --> 00:04:14,060 and release him. But they were urgent demanding 63 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:17,180 with loud cries that he should be crucified 64 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:21,740 and their voices prevailed so Pilate decided 65 00:04:22,040 --> 00:04:25,765 that their demand should be granted. He released 66 00:04:25,765 --> 00:04:29,305 the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection 67 00:04:29,685 --> 00:04:33,285 and murder for whom they asked, but he 68 00:04:33,285 --> 00:04:36,885 delivered Jesus over to their will. And 69 00:04:36,885 --> 00:04:40,230 as they led him away, they seized one, 70 00:04:40,370 --> 00:04:43,890 Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the 71 00:04:43,890 --> 00:04:47,730 country and laid on him the cross to carry 72 00:04:47,730 --> 00:04:51,170 it behind Jesus. Thank you so much. You may be 73 00:04:51,170 --> 00:04:51,670 seated. 74 00:04:55,245 --> 00:04:58,925 This wraps up the mock trial. This wraps up 75 00:04:58,925 --> 00:05:02,605 the betrayal. This wraps up 76 00:05:02,605 --> 00:05:06,205 really Jesus' earthly ministry up to this point. This 77 00:05:06,205 --> 00:05:07,585 wraps up his freedom. 78 00:05:10,260 --> 00:05:13,320 And Pilate, Pilate got it. 79 00:05:14,100 --> 00:05:17,460 I study, and I can't believe. I mean, Pilate got it. He's 80 00:05:17,460 --> 00:05:20,820 like, he didn't do anything three 81 00:05:20,820 --> 00:05:24,285 times. Tried to convince them to let Him 82 00:05:24,285 --> 00:05:27,824 release Him. But they were more urgent, 83 00:05:28,845 --> 00:05:32,604 and they haul Him out. And the Romans who had 84 00:05:32,604 --> 00:05:35,905 perfected crucifixion, they now are, it's on their timetable. 85 00:05:36,539 --> 00:05:39,919 They're now performing this. They're marching them up 86 00:05:40,220 --> 00:05:43,440 to Golgotha. And because of the brutality, 87 00:05:44,539 --> 00:05:47,819 because of all of the things that he had had, even before the Romans took 88 00:05:47,819 --> 00:05:51,664 him into their jurisdiction, the high priest had men 89 00:05:51,664 --> 00:05:55,365 there who, all night in Caiaphas' house, had him under arrest, 90 00:05:55,585 --> 00:05:59,284 and had flogged and beat him, and had already done, and then the Romans 91 00:05:59,345 --> 00:06:02,164 took and added their torture to him, 92 00:06:03,185 --> 00:06:05,284 beaten and bruised like no other. 93 00:06:07,500 --> 00:06:11,259 And He's on the road. He's staggering under 94 00:06:11,259 --> 00:06:12,879 the load of the cross. 95 00:06:15,740 --> 00:06:18,400 And then in verse number 23, 96 00:06:21,205 --> 00:06:22,745 or verse number 26. 97 00:06:28,565 --> 00:06:32,105 And as they led him away, they seized one, 98 00:06:34,300 --> 00:06:37,740 Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the 99 00:06:37,740 --> 00:06:41,199 country, and laid on him 100 00:06:42,139 --> 00:06:45,759 the cross to carry it behind Jesus. 101 00:06:47,595 --> 00:06:51,115 Now the title I was praying over leading up to this conference 102 00:06:51,115 --> 00:06:54,794 was, what's the one thing I'm believing 103 00:06:54,794 --> 00:06:58,635 God for? And I went to the Old Testament, 104 00:06:58,635 --> 00:07:02,080 and I went to Caleb. I want that 105 00:07:02,080 --> 00:07:05,680 mountain. It belongs to me. And I went to 106 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:09,440 Hannah, who got on her knees and believed God for 107 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:13,120 a son, and I went to all these Old 108 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:15,539 Testament. I said, Lord, which one is it gonna be? 109 00:07:17,405 --> 00:07:21,025 And then on my devotions, I stumbled across this verse, and immediately, 110 00:07:23,325 --> 00:07:27,085 I felt that's the verse. It was like, 111 00:07:27,085 --> 00:07:29,265 Simon of Cyrene? Like what? 112 00:07:32,130 --> 00:07:35,330 And so I changed the title a little bit, and I hope by the end 113 00:07:35,330 --> 00:07:38,690 of tonight, we can see that the one thing I'm 114 00:07:38,690 --> 00:07:40,070 believing God for 115 00:07:42,289 --> 00:07:44,710 and one step closer to the cross 116 00:07:46,195 --> 00:07:48,215 can be the exact same thing. 117 00:07:50,275 --> 00:07:53,255 Because they picked one. 118 00:07:53,955 --> 00:07:57,395 This, Jerusalem's teeming with about, they 119 00:07:57,395 --> 00:08:00,840 estimate, 200,000 to a million people. It's 120 00:08:00,840 --> 00:08:03,979 Passover time, teeming with people. 121 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:08,060 What is a sleepy city at Passover 122 00:08:08,199 --> 00:08:10,939 becomes a thriving, bustling 123 00:08:11,639 --> 00:08:15,245 metropolis, teeming with people, packed 124 00:08:15,245 --> 00:08:19,005 streets you can't even get through. And 125 00:08:19,005 --> 00:08:22,785 on the road to Golgotha, out of hundreds 126 00:08:23,325 --> 00:08:27,085 of thousands of people, they 127 00:08:27,085 --> 00:08:30,800 picked one. Says they picked one, 128 00:08:31,020 --> 00:08:33,919 Simon of Cyrene. They picked one. 129 00:08:34,700 --> 00:08:38,380 Just do something to kinda wake you, 130 00:08:38,380 --> 00:08:41,659 wake yourself. Just squeeze your hand or just touch your leg or just look at 131 00:08:41,659 --> 00:08:44,895 the person next to, next to you and say, one. You're one. 132 00:08:45,435 --> 00:08:49,135 You're one. You are here for a reason. 133 00:08:50,154 --> 00:08:53,135 You are here for a reason. 134 00:08:53,915 --> 00:08:57,275 I do not think Simon appreciated that moment being pulled out of a 135 00:08:57,275 --> 00:09:00,920 crowd. I mean, since the Romans pulling him out of a crowd, 136 00:09:00,980 --> 00:09:04,820 I don't think any Jew, Jewish person, anybody for that matter around the 137 00:09:04,820 --> 00:09:08,660 world with the oppressive force the Romans were appreciated being pulled 138 00:09:08,660 --> 00:09:12,260 out of the crowd to be conscripted to carry someone else's cross, a 139 00:09:12,260 --> 00:09:13,800 criminal at that. 140 00:09:16,085 --> 00:09:18,825 But they pulled one, Simon of Cyrene, 141 00:09:20,245 --> 00:09:24,005 who is coming in from the country. So that term 142 00:09:24,005 --> 00:09:26,905 coming in from the country can mean several things. He could have been a craftsman. 143 00:09:28,680 --> 00:09:31,980 He could have been out lodging outside 144 00:09:32,040 --> 00:09:35,800 Bethany, some of the close by cities. Many of the pilgrims lodged 145 00:09:35,800 --> 00:09:39,240 around Jerusalem. Scholars believe he was one of the 146 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:42,975 dispersed Jews in Cyrene who is coming in from the country 147 00:09:43,035 --> 00:09:46,175 to Passover. Cyrene. 148 00:09:47,035 --> 00:09:50,875 North Africa. One thousand miles 149 00:09:50,875 --> 00:09:54,390 away. Okay, I 150 00:09:54,390 --> 00:09:57,210 drove from Virginia, five hundred maybe, 151 00:09:57,910 --> 00:10:01,589 right? Nine hour trip, not too bad. Central time, 152 00:10:01,589 --> 00:10:05,290 gain an hour, I'll take it, right? But imagine, 153 00:10:05,589 --> 00:10:09,405 back then, a thousand miles, most of the 154 00:10:09,405 --> 00:10:13,245 time on foot. If you were well-to-do, you might have had a burrow, you 155 00:10:13,245 --> 00:10:17,005 might have had some means, you might have even had a chariot. If 156 00:10:17,005 --> 00:10:20,205 you were really wealthy, you could have maybe taken a ship and cut some time 157 00:10:20,205 --> 00:10:23,990 out. Went through some of the Suez Canal, whatever. They don't 158 00:10:23,990 --> 00:10:27,110 think they had this, but went went by way of went by way of the 159 00:10:27,110 --> 00:10:30,710 water, right? But chances are, he was 160 00:10:30,710 --> 00:10:34,470 coming in from the country. He had just completed this pilgrimage. I can 161 00:10:34,470 --> 00:10:38,115 only wonder, back in Cyrene, North Africa, 162 00:10:38,115 --> 00:10:41,495 now Libya, the country, I could only wonder 163 00:10:42,195 --> 00:10:45,955 as Passover drew near. I don't know, was this his 164 00:10:45,955 --> 00:10:49,750 first Passover? Was this the first one 165 00:10:49,810 --> 00:10:53,569 that he had saved all his life for? Was this 166 00:10:53,569 --> 00:10:57,250 the prized pilgrimage? Was this it? What 167 00:10:57,250 --> 00:11:01,009 sacrifices did his family go through so he could make 168 00:11:01,009 --> 00:11:04,775 this pilgrimage? This was the thing the Jewish people would do, 169 00:11:04,775 --> 00:11:07,675 go to Jerusalem, if they could, for Passover. 170 00:11:08,535 --> 00:11:12,295 How holy an event. How life changing an 171 00:11:12,295 --> 00:11:15,895 event, right? I mean, this is like the mission. This is the calling. 172 00:11:15,895 --> 00:11:19,620 Maybe as a young boy, he was taught Torah, 173 00:11:19,620 --> 00:11:23,380 and he dreamt all his life. This is the one thing. 174 00:11:23,380 --> 00:11:27,139 This is my bucket. You ever have a bucket list item? Like, this is my 175 00:11:27,139 --> 00:11:30,899 bucket list item. I wanna go to The Alps. This is my 176 00:11:30,899 --> 00:11:34,334 bucket list. I wanna go skydiving from, you name 177 00:11:34,334 --> 00:11:38,154 it. Anybody been skydiving? Not me. I 178 00:11:38,175 --> 00:11:41,475 like my feet on the ground. Hallelujah, amen. 179 00:11:42,975 --> 00:11:46,735 Bucket list item. I could just imagine bucket list item, and I also 180 00:11:46,735 --> 00:11:50,530 believe that bucket list item for Simon of Cyrene was 181 00:11:50,530 --> 00:11:54,130 probably rooted in some love for Adonai. I could just 182 00:11:54,130 --> 00:11:57,970 imagine him going and dreaming all along the journey a thousand nights as the stars 183 00:11:57,970 --> 00:12:01,665 came out, and he would camp alongside the road, probably in a caravan because they 184 00:12:01,665 --> 00:12:05,345 traveled for safety back then. I could just imagine he's sitting there 185 00:12:05,345 --> 00:12:09,105 going, Adonai in heaven, thank you for this opportunity. I can't 186 00:12:09,105 --> 00:12:12,704 even imagine what's going through Simon's mind as he's 187 00:12:12,704 --> 00:12:16,400 nearing the city, as maybe he had just enough for some lodgings that may be 188 00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:20,240 a cheap in outside because those hotels in the inner city are just 189 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:23,840 too expensive. So I'm gonna stay outside. Maybe he had a 190 00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:27,325 friend close by. I don't know. But on this 191 00:12:27,325 --> 00:12:30,225 particular day, he's coming in from the country. 192 00:12:31,245 --> 00:12:32,785 He's coming in for the country. 193 00:12:39,565 --> 00:12:43,280 This would have been taken about a month. K? I 194 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:47,060 just want us to think. What have we in our life 195 00:12:48,080 --> 00:12:51,920 dreamt about, worked on, worked 196 00:12:51,920 --> 00:12:55,520 towards? What's the business that we've poured blood, sweat, and 197 00:12:55,520 --> 00:12:59,185 tears into? What's the personal sacrifices you've made? 198 00:13:02,605 --> 00:13:04,065 And in a moment's notice, 199 00:13:06,205 --> 00:13:10,045 hey, he seized. It says they seized 200 00:13:10,045 --> 00:13:13,840 him. This wasn't like, hey, sir. No, they had 201 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:17,600 a time schedule to keep. They seized him, and as soon as he 202 00:13:17,600 --> 00:13:21,280 sees, he's, he knows what, what this means. And it says, and 203 00:13:21,280 --> 00:13:22,660 they laid on him, 204 00:13:24,800 --> 00:13:27,905 not a cross, the cross. 205 00:13:29,005 --> 00:13:32,545 They laid on him the cross. 206 00:13:33,405 --> 00:13:37,025 I want us to think about the word laid, laid on him. 207 00:13:41,690 --> 00:13:45,450 I wonder if Simon along the road prayed, Lord, let your will 208 00:13:45,450 --> 00:13:48,750 be done. I wonder if he was praying, 209 00:13:49,130 --> 00:13:52,825 God, I wanna see you. I wonder if in his 210 00:13:52,825 --> 00:13:54,125 mind, he was thinking, 211 00:13:56,185 --> 00:14:00,025 temple, Shekinah glory, the 212 00:14:00,025 --> 00:14:03,865 story of Solomon. I don't know what was going through his mind. 213 00:14:03,865 --> 00:14:07,600 I don't know what image he had in his mind, what 214 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:11,360 his destination towards fulfilling that one 215 00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:14,639 thing he was believing God for. I don't know what that looked like, and I 216 00:14:14,639 --> 00:14:18,480 don't know in your mind what that one thing you're believing God for in 217 00:14:18,480 --> 00:14:21,935 your mind looks like, but what I know from my own experience 218 00:14:21,995 --> 00:14:25,775 is I've often believed God for something 219 00:14:26,635 --> 00:14:30,335 that fit a version or a vision I had 220 00:14:30,715 --> 00:14:34,475 of me serving God. And it wasn't a bad 221 00:14:34,475 --> 00:14:38,290 vision. It wasn't a bad vision, but it was my 222 00:14:38,290 --> 00:14:41,810 vision. And in my own 223 00:14:41,810 --> 00:14:44,310 experience, I have 224 00:14:45,410 --> 00:14:48,885 driven to pick something up to make that 225 00:14:48,885 --> 00:14:52,725 vision happen and to carry something that I had to 226 00:14:52,725 --> 00:14:56,565 carry, that I thought I needed to carry to 227 00:14:56,565 --> 00:15:00,404 make this vision of pleasing God happen. I don't know. Again, he's 228 00:15:00,404 --> 00:15:03,225 on his journey, his pilgrimage, most likely his pilgrimage, 229 00:15:05,830 --> 00:15:09,510 but in this instance, he didn't pick anything 230 00:15:09,510 --> 00:15:12,570 up. He was seized, 231 00:15:13,910 --> 00:15:17,050 and they laid the cross 232 00:15:17,590 --> 00:15:21,115 on him. I just want us to think for a minute. 233 00:15:22,775 --> 00:15:26,535 What is that thing that I am striving for, that thing 234 00:15:26,535 --> 00:15:30,235 that's stressing me out, that thing that's causing anxiety, maybe causing 235 00:15:30,375 --> 00:15:34,150 discord in my marriage, maybe something happening within, and 236 00:15:34,150 --> 00:15:37,670 I'm like, But God, this is what I This is the thing I'm believing God 237 00:15:37,670 --> 00:15:41,430 for. I've prayed for this. This isn't the way I'm envisioning this to 238 00:15:41,430 --> 00:15:45,030 go, God. Like, what is going on here? I didn't Or maybe a relationship broke 239 00:15:45,030 --> 00:15:48,415 up, split up, whatever, and you're like, God, this was supposed to be it. This 240 00:15:48,415 --> 00:15:51,855 was the thing I was believing you for, God. I just wanted a family. I 241 00:15:51,855 --> 00:15:55,615 just wanted this. God, I just had, this was the vision I wanted. In 242 00:15:55,615 --> 00:15:59,460 that moment, I can only imagine what's going through Simon's mind. Wait 243 00:15:59,460 --> 00:16:03,300 a minute, I'm going that way. Passover's that 244 00:16:03,300 --> 00:16:03,800 way. 245 00:16:07,300 --> 00:16:09,560 And a cross is being laid on him. 246 00:16:15,105 --> 00:16:18,865 Instead of trying to pick something up, or as we try to pick 247 00:16:18,865 --> 00:16:22,245 something up, I believe I've often missed 248 00:16:22,600 --> 00:16:26,360 what God was actually trying to lay on me, and I'll 249 00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:30,040 tell you a personal story. We, as you know, my 250 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:33,640 wife's gone through two rounds of breast cancer. She's been in remission for two 251 00:16:33,640 --> 00:16:37,365 years. Praise God. But I will tell you, 252 00:16:38,645 --> 00:16:42,084 I only had recently admitted this, and I was afraid to admit it to 253 00:16:42,084 --> 00:16:45,625 her. But we just celebrated 254 00:16:45,685 --> 00:16:49,524 eighteen years, and we were down in Amelia Island, and 255 00:16:49,524 --> 00:16:53,250 I asked her, I said, what do you need this vacation to be? And she 256 00:16:53,250 --> 00:16:57,010 said, just deep conversation. I said, all 257 00:16:57,010 --> 00:17:00,130 right. So I'm like, God, what are we gonna talk about? Like, what do we 258 00:17:00,130 --> 00:17:03,730 need to talk about? And, and we talked about some 259 00:17:03,730 --> 00:17:07,570 stuff. I mean, we talked about some deep stuff, and we choked up some 260 00:17:07,570 --> 00:17:11,325 stuff, and I talked about stuff that I had previously been afraid to 261 00:17:11,325 --> 00:17:14,385 talk about. And one of the things I told her, 262 00:17:15,325 --> 00:17:18,705 you know, I've tried to, I've tried to be at every appointment with her, 263 00:17:19,165 --> 00:17:22,819 but one of the things I admitted to her was sitting 264 00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:26,500 in UVA, holding her paper, 265 00:17:27,599 --> 00:17:31,040 being wait, waiting to be called back, and looking 266 00:17:31,040 --> 00:17:31,540 down. 267 00:17:35,625 --> 00:17:39,305 You see all her prescriptions. You see her 268 00:17:39,305 --> 00:17:42,665 hormone, the Lupron, the Lexrozole. You see the stuffed tamoxifen, and then you see the 269 00:17:42,665 --> 00:17:46,345 big note up here, allergic to this, and going back 270 00:17:46,345 --> 00:17:49,645 to the time they gave her that and seeing her almost die. 271 00:17:50,549 --> 00:17:54,309 I'm sitting there looking at the piece of paper, and I finally admitted 272 00:17:54,309 --> 00:17:57,850 to her that everything inside of me 273 00:17:58,070 --> 00:18:01,909 in that moment, from the get go 274 00:18:01,909 --> 00:18:05,605 of her diagnosis, and even now, every injection, every quarter, every time 275 00:18:05,605 --> 00:18:09,285 we go up there, every oncologist visit, every time we go up 276 00:18:09,285 --> 00:18:12,905 there, it's actually easier now that I've admitted it, but 277 00:18:14,085 --> 00:18:17,385 everything inside of me wanted to run away. 278 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:23,000 Everything inside of me wanted to run 279 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:26,780 away. I was afraid to tell her that. 280 00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:30,520 I really was. But I told her, and she said, Baby, 281 00:18:30,520 --> 00:18:34,195 that's okay. She said, I felt the 282 00:18:34,195 --> 00:18:37,815 same way. She just, she kinda laughed a little bit, like give you some comedic 283 00:18:37,875 --> 00:18:41,635 relief. But the last time I was up there, 284 00:18:41,635 --> 00:18:44,855 this was just a couple weeks ago, while I still felt the, 285 00:18:45,235 --> 00:18:47,975 ah, I hate this. This is unjust. 286 00:18:49,529 --> 00:18:53,289 Why? I also looked at that piece of paper, and I 287 00:18:53,289 --> 00:18:56,809 thought about heaven's Lamb. As he stepped from heaven's 288 00:18:56,809 --> 00:19:00,570 throne, he said, I'll go. He's the Lamb 289 00:19:00,570 --> 00:19:04,295 slain before the foundation of the world. What did that council 290 00:19:04,295 --> 00:19:07,915 room meeting look like when the Father turned to the Son and said, 291 00:19:08,775 --> 00:19:12,535 Here's my plan, and nobody can know about it? When He handed over the 292 00:19:12,535 --> 00:19:16,120 piece of paper with all of the prescriptions and all the things that were 293 00:19:16,120 --> 00:19:19,960 never supposed to be in the body of the holy God, to take on 294 00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:23,640 flesh blasphemy, what? To step down 295 00:19:23,640 --> 00:19:27,320 onto earth, our creation, what? To go 296 00:19:27,320 --> 00:19:30,780 take on the wrath, your wrath for sin on what? 297 00:19:34,875 --> 00:19:38,175 We have a high priest who understands 298 00:19:39,275 --> 00:19:42,955 what it feels like to want to run away when 299 00:19:42,955 --> 00:19:46,655 he was in the garden, prayed, if at all possible, 300 00:19:47,630 --> 00:19:51,070 let this cup pass from me. But if 301 00:19:51,070 --> 00:19:54,909 not, not my will, but yours be done. And 302 00:19:54,909 --> 00:19:58,350 I wonder in that moment of Simon having this cross laid on 303 00:19:58,350 --> 00:20:02,190 him, if everything inside of him didn't want to run 304 00:20:02,190 --> 00:20:05,914 away. I guarantee you it did. Like, what's going through his, his 305 00:20:05,914 --> 00:20:09,755 mind? But I like the next part of the 306 00:20:09,755 --> 00:20:11,775 verse. He says, 307 00:20:13,434 --> 00:20:15,455 they laid on him the cross to carry 308 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:21,120 behind Jesus. Behind 309 00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:24,960 Jesus. He did nothing. 310 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:28,660 He was grabbed. The cross is laid on him. 311 00:20:31,085 --> 00:20:34,144 And without even knowing who he was following. I don't believe, 312 00:20:34,764 --> 00:20:38,284 from everything I've researched or studied, I don't believe he knew at that moment who 313 00:20:38,284 --> 00:20:41,825 he was following. He just had to follow behind 314 00:20:42,250 --> 00:20:45,710 the convict. He just had to follow behind Jesus. 315 00:20:46,730 --> 00:20:50,330 So have you ever been at that time where you were 316 00:20:50,330 --> 00:20:53,309 given something to carry you did not wanna carry in your life, 317 00:20:54,409 --> 00:20:58,135 and you just thought, God, you 318 00:20:58,135 --> 00:21:01,115 started with the why, then you went through the how. 319 00:21:02,855 --> 00:21:06,695 Why me? Denial, anger, all the good stuff. Then you 320 00:21:06,695 --> 00:21:10,135 got through that. You came to surrender, at least part surrender or 321 00:21:10,135 --> 00:21:13,980 maybe somewhat surrender? Mine came a little 322 00:21:13,980 --> 00:21:17,440 further down our journey. I think I shared that last time I was here. 323 00:21:17,980 --> 00:21:20,240 But then all of a sudden, it's like, okay, God, how? 324 00:21:22,220 --> 00:21:24,960 And I think the answer's right there, behind Jesus. 325 00:21:26,455 --> 00:21:30,054 Behind Jesus. He's felt it 326 00:21:30,054 --> 00:21:33,495 already. He knows exactly the pain. He knows 327 00:21:33,495 --> 00:21:37,335 exactly the temptation. He knows exactly what it is. He knows 328 00:21:37,335 --> 00:21:40,870 exactly how to fight for you. He knows exactly how to overcome the 329 00:21:40,870 --> 00:21:44,630 enemy. Even as he's beaten, bruised, and bloodied, and can 330 00:21:44,630 --> 00:21:48,390 barely walk to get up to Golgotha to finish the work of a high 331 00:21:48,390 --> 00:21:52,070 priest for us, he knew his cross was right 332 00:21:52,070 --> 00:21:55,875 behind him, and all Simon had to do in that moment was follow behind Jesus. 333 00:21:57,615 --> 00:21:58,835 Follow behind Jesus. 334 00:22:01,695 --> 00:22:05,295 I also noticed that Simon put the cross down, or they took it off his 335 00:22:05,295 --> 00:22:08,435 back. Some crosses are ours to carry. 336 00:22:09,130 --> 00:22:12,510 So I think, I believe we're born and into 337 00:22:13,210 --> 00:22:16,490 a sin nature, into a broken world, and I think that we have a cross. 338 00:22:16,490 --> 00:22:20,090 Each one of us have a cross. Hebrews says that sin that grips 339 00:22:20,090 --> 00:22:23,804 us continually, right? I think each one of us have a bent to 340 00:22:23,804 --> 00:22:27,105 something that is a cross to carry, probably permanently. 341 00:22:28,125 --> 00:22:31,565 But I believe there's also crosses in our lives to carry for a season, and 342 00:22:31,565 --> 00:22:34,684 this is one of them. He laid that cross down. But see, I don't believe 343 00:22:34,684 --> 00:22:38,450 Simon left that day. I don't think he left that day. Now 344 00:22:38,450 --> 00:22:40,710 if, as he was walking, I could only imagine, 345 00:22:42,530 --> 00:22:46,210 I could only imagine the question, Simon, 346 00:22:46,210 --> 00:22:49,970 why are you carrying that cross? I was speaking at an event, and a 347 00:22:49,970 --> 00:22:53,545 mortgage banker came up to me afterwards, and he's like, and I was just giving 348 00:22:53,545 --> 00:22:56,585 a sales talk, but he came up afterwards. He says, You're a believer, aren't you? 349 00:22:56,585 --> 00:22:59,385 I was like, Yes, sir, I am. He said, Well, I'm a minister of the 350 00:22:59,385 --> 00:23:02,925 word. I'm like, That's amazing. What? He's like, Yeah, man. Mortgage 351 00:23:02,985 --> 00:23:06,605 banker by day and minister of the word by night. I'm like, That's awesome, man. 352 00:23:06,745 --> 00:23:09,799 And, he had this earring with a cross, 353 00:23:10,980 --> 00:23:14,340 and I grabbed his earring. I have a tendency to grab people's earrings, but I 354 00:23:14,340 --> 00:23:18,100 grabbed people, I grabbed his earring, and I was 355 00:23:18,100 --> 00:23:21,559 like, I love that. Why do you wear that? 356 00:23:22,934 --> 00:23:26,535 And he told me the story, lost a brother, gave his life to 357 00:23:26,535 --> 00:23:30,054 Christ, got the cross, and now it's a conversation piece, 358 00:23:30,054 --> 00:23:33,815 conversation starter. But I asked why he wear that. He said, You know what? 359 00:23:33,815 --> 00:23:37,255 He said, I, and he kinda was there for the sales and marketing stuff too. 360 00:23:37,255 --> 00:23:40,990 So he's like, You know what? He's like, I've thought about, like, 361 00:23:40,990 --> 00:23:44,450 man on the street, like, I thought about going out, like, to a big city 362 00:23:44,510 --> 00:23:47,630 and just finding somebody who has, like, a cross. You know, everyone's like wearing a 363 00:23:47,630 --> 00:23:51,470 cross. He said, I thought about going and just stopping people on the street 364 00:23:51,470 --> 00:23:54,645 and, like, recording. Just do a reel of it. And like, why are you wearing 365 00:23:54,645 --> 00:23:58,165 that cross? Why are you wearing that cross? He said, because I bet you there'll 366 00:23:58,165 --> 00:24:00,885 be stories like mine, but he said, I bet you there'll be people like, ', 367 00:24:00,885 --> 00:24:03,525 what? Oh, that's a cross. Like, you know, grandma gave it to me. You know, 368 00:24:03,525 --> 00:24:07,225 whatever. And he said, I would just love to hear the story. Why are you 369 00:24:07,830 --> 00:24:11,590 wearing that cross? And I could just imagine if somebody had asked Simon 370 00:24:11,590 --> 00:24:15,429 that day, why are you wearing that cross? I 371 00:24:15,429 --> 00:24:18,490 don't know that he was around when Jesus said, 372 00:24:20,470 --> 00:24:24,145 unless you deny yourself, just 373 00:24:24,145 --> 00:24:27,985 back to Luke nine, unless you deny yourself and take up 374 00:24:27,985 --> 00:24:31,665 your cross daily and follow me, you 375 00:24:31,665 --> 00:24:35,265 can't be my disciple. Like, Jesus was using 376 00:24:35,265 --> 00:24:38,640 cross terminology to his students. No other rabbi would do that. 377 00:24:38,880 --> 00:24:42,720 Cross terminology? This is an acceptance of Rome. This is an 378 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:46,560 acceptance of this brutality, this day. Why are you talking 379 00:24:46,560 --> 00:24:47,540 about a cross? 380 00:24:50,160 --> 00:24:53,985 Unless you deny yourself, take up 381 00:24:53,985 --> 00:24:57,665 your cross daily and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But at that moment 382 00:24:57,665 --> 00:25:01,185 in time, I bet you Simon had shock and confusion going through his mind. 383 00:25:01,185 --> 00:25:04,085 Remember, Passover is that way, not that way. 384 00:25:05,105 --> 00:25:07,690 Fear of the Romans for sure. I I mean, I would have been afraid of 385 00:25:07,690 --> 00:25:10,889 the Romans every time I got, you know, it's like when you're going down I-twenty 386 00:25:10,889 --> 00:25:14,409 4, about 95 miles an hour, and you see that cop car behind you, what 387 00:25:14,409 --> 00:25:18,250 happens naturally? What seizes your gut? Fear, right? 388 00:25:18,250 --> 00:25:21,645 You're like, Oh, you look down, oh, no, I was just seven two. 389 00:25:21,645 --> 00:25:24,845 Whew, okay. Felt like it was 390 00:25:24,845 --> 00:25:28,605 95. I do have a story. I moved back from Germany when I was 18. 391 00:25:28,605 --> 00:25:32,365 I got my job up in Smyrna, Tennessee. I was running, I was 392 00:25:32,365 --> 00:25:36,030 a gopher guy, and I was running something up to Nashville, and I 393 00:25:36,030 --> 00:25:39,550 drove a clunker. So then when I got in the company truck, GMC, back then, 394 00:25:39,550 --> 00:25:43,170 it was 02/2008, so it was like a 02/2006 GMC Sierra, 395 00:25:43,390 --> 00:25:46,910 I get in that thing. That thing was smooth, man. I mean, my clunker, you 396 00:25:46,910 --> 00:25:49,470 had to press the gas all the way down to get to 70. This thing, 397 00:25:49,470 --> 00:25:53,125 you just like touch the gas, you're 95. And I'm 95, and I have a 398 00:25:53,125 --> 00:25:56,725 Iowa driver's license. I had just moved here, and I wasn't even in Iowa alone. 399 00:25:56,725 --> 00:26:00,485 I had come from Germany, so state trooper. My introduction to Tennessee was a 400 00:26:00,485 --> 00:26:03,925 state trooper right between So by the way, Sam Ridley Parkway and 401 00:26:03,925 --> 00:26:07,580 Amityville Road, there's that little turnaround right there. Just, oh, 402 00:26:07,580 --> 00:26:10,800 I learned quickly. That was the spot. They were always there. 403 00:26:11,660 --> 00:26:15,340 So I quickly learned, but no, at 95. So he was very 404 00:26:15,340 --> 00:26:18,460 gracious to me that day. I mean, I would look like a toddler, really. I 405 00:26:18,460 --> 00:26:21,820 was 18. You know what I looked like when I was 18. 18 and and, 406 00:26:22,505 --> 00:26:26,345 or not, yeah, yeah, still 18. I was about to turn 19. And, he 407 00:26:26,345 --> 00:26:29,945 wrote me up for 90. He kept it right at 20. He was very gracious. 408 00:26:29,945 --> 00:26:32,185 I could have lost my life. Could have been out of a job, like it 409 00:26:32,185 --> 00:26:35,945 was very gracious, but anyway. I could just see the shock and confusion, the fear 410 00:26:35,945 --> 00:26:39,530 of the Romans. I think he probably had some pity for the 411 00:26:39,530 --> 00:26:43,290 condemned man. But I think what probably grabbed Simon 412 00:26:43,290 --> 00:26:46,810 the most, Simon, why are you carrying that cross? I could 413 00:26:46,810 --> 00:26:50,570 imagine his first response would be, I don't know. I don't even 414 00:26:50,570 --> 00:26:54,075 wanna be here. I'm supposed to be somewhere else. 415 00:26:55,575 --> 00:26:59,415 But I think then he heard Jesus, because it says they 416 00:26:59,415 --> 00:27:02,375 laid on him a cross to carry behind Jesus, and there followed him a great 417 00:27:02,375 --> 00:27:06,075 multitude of people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for him. 418 00:27:06,960 --> 00:27:10,799 Convicted criminals in that day and age, they were usually the 419 00:27:10,799 --> 00:27:14,480 refuse, like they didn't have anybody. They were being 420 00:27:14,480 --> 00:27:18,320 led out to be crucified, and I think what probably struck Simon was, who 421 00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:20,900 are all these women? Who is this great multitude? 422 00:27:22,605 --> 00:27:26,365 What's the commotion for this guy? What's different 423 00:27:26,365 --> 00:27:29,965 about this guy? And then Jesus turns to them and 424 00:27:29,965 --> 00:27:32,385 actually prophesies. He says, don't weep for me. 425 00:27:33,660 --> 00:27:37,360 Weep for your kids, the city. He's prophesying about the fall of Jerusalem. 426 00:27:37,900 --> 00:27:41,520 Weep for them. And then he goes up, 427 00:27:42,060 --> 00:27:45,660 all the way up to the cross, and I believe Simon probably heard the words. 428 00:27:45,660 --> 00:27:48,240 The first words Jesus said was, Father, forgive them. 429 00:27:49,675 --> 00:27:53,355 Father, forgive them. And then the sky grows 430 00:27:53,355 --> 00:27:56,815 dark, it grows black. He says his other statements from the cross, and then 431 00:27:57,115 --> 00:28:00,715 he says the last thing is, Father, into your hands, I commend my, my 432 00:28:00,715 --> 00:28:04,360 spirit. And of course the ground is shaking, and everything 433 00:28:04,360 --> 00:28:08,040 else is happening. The veil of the temple is torn. And I think that 434 00:28:08,040 --> 00:28:11,400 day, Simon realized, I miss 435 00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:14,220 church. I miss Passover. 436 00:28:15,135 --> 00:28:18,515 But I think in that moment, he realized 437 00:28:19,135 --> 00:28:22,975 that he was at the ultimate Passover. He had 438 00:28:22,975 --> 00:28:26,735 just witnessed the Passover lamb. And I 439 00:28:26,735 --> 00:28:30,340 think if Mark records it correctly over in 440 00:28:30,340 --> 00:28:33,860 Mark chapter 15, verse 21, he 441 00:28:33,860 --> 00:28:37,620 says, and I wanna read this real quick. His account, of course, 442 00:28:37,620 --> 00:28:41,160 Mark is more of a Summation Gospel. He says, and they compelled a passerby, 443 00:28:41,300 --> 00:28:44,784 Simon of Cyrene, who is coming in from the country, the father 444 00:28:44,784 --> 00:28:48,085 of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. 445 00:28:49,825 --> 00:28:53,205 I was like, whew, when I started studying this, I'm like, woah. 446 00:28:53,904 --> 00:28:57,605 Scholars believe that's Rufus who was in the early church, 447 00:28:58,039 --> 00:29:01,480 who Paul says, Greet Rufus and his mother, who's been like a mother to me. 448 00:29:01,480 --> 00:29:04,200 He doesn't even talk about Simon. I don't know if Simon ended up giving his 449 00:29:04,200 --> 00:29:07,980 life for the gospel. I'm not sure. Could have been a martyr. 450 00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:11,894 Scholars don't know. They speculate, but Paul references Rufus. And 451 00:29:11,894 --> 00:29:15,515 for Mark, who was in the early church, the very first church, to reference 452 00:29:16,294 --> 00:29:20,054 the sons' names was he was making a reference to somebody they knew. 453 00:29:20,054 --> 00:29:23,034 The early church would have known these boys. 454 00:29:24,534 --> 00:29:27,919 Think about this. Think about the ramifications 455 00:29:31,740 --> 00:29:33,760 of wanting to run-in, run away 456 00:29:35,820 --> 00:29:39,440 but deciding to stay, not because I have the power, 457 00:29:39,660 --> 00:29:43,335 I don't, but because all I have to 458 00:29:43,794 --> 00:29:47,635 do is walk behind Jesus. I just have to 459 00:29:47,635 --> 00:29:50,934 follow my high priest who already bore everything, 460 00:29:51,235 --> 00:29:54,534 who understands every pain, who understands betrayal, 461 00:29:55,000 --> 00:29:58,840 who understands the person who turned their back on you, who understands the person 462 00:29:58,840 --> 00:30:02,520 who walked away after years, the person, who understands every 463 00:30:02,520 --> 00:30:05,179 situation, every emotion, 464 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:10,375 every grief. He's been touched with it. The 465 00:30:10,375 --> 00:30:14,155 feeling of our infirmity, he has been touched with, all I have to do 466 00:30:14,855 --> 00:30:18,375 is decide to stay. And Simon, I believe that day 467 00:30:18,375 --> 00:30:22,090 decided to stay. And then here his boys are in the church, 468 00:30:22,309 --> 00:30:25,929 in the early church. I believe that day, his family changed. 469 00:30:29,509 --> 00:30:32,649 So I wanna ask this question. 470 00:30:33,190 --> 00:30:36,765 Like, what's most important, the month or those 471 00:30:36,765 --> 00:30:40,145 minutes leading up to the cross? The month of journeying, 472 00:30:40,365 --> 00:30:44,125 pilgrimaging to Jerusalem? The 473 00:30:44,125 --> 00:30:47,345 month of traveling in for Holy Week 474 00:30:48,240 --> 00:30:51,380 or those minutes leading up to the cross? And I would dare say both. 475 00:30:52,720 --> 00:30:56,160 I would dare say both. I I I meet a lot of Christians who come 476 00:30:56,160 --> 00:30:59,920 out of some denomination, and they're hurt. They're bruised 477 00:30:59,920 --> 00:31:03,425 by religion. They've been hurt by some leader that they put on a 478 00:31:03,425 --> 00:31:05,685 pedestal, and then when they walked away, they got, 479 00:31:08,225 --> 00:31:11,745 they got hurt. And I see people get 480 00:31:11,745 --> 00:31:14,965 stopped by that, or they kinda shame their past, 481 00:31:15,409 --> 00:31:19,090 the church they were brought up in, or, but I would dare say 482 00:31:19,090 --> 00:31:22,210 this tonight, and maybe this is the one thing, maybe this is the one thing 483 00:31:22,210 --> 00:31:25,970 we need to believe God for, is acceptance of 484 00:31:25,970 --> 00:31:29,429 everything, good and bad, up to this point, 485 00:31:29,570 --> 00:31:33,035 that got me closer to the 486 00:31:33,035 --> 00:31:36,875 cross. That month of journey, that month of pilgrimage was 487 00:31:36,875 --> 00:31:40,155 just as important. Could you imagine, had he not been coming in that intersection at 488 00:31:40,155 --> 00:31:43,775 that time, he wouldn't have been seized. 489 00:31:44,580 --> 00:31:47,860 And I'm sure in the, in the seizure, he didn't appreciate anyway, but looking back 490 00:31:47,860 --> 00:31:51,539 on this being seized, he then saw the clarity of what God, 491 00:31:51,539 --> 00:31:55,380 Adonai, and heaven was up to in his life. So I would 492 00:31:55,380 --> 00:31:58,679 dare say that the month of maybe religious obedience to him 493 00:31:59,695 --> 00:32:02,995 was just as important to get Him to that place 494 00:32:04,095 --> 00:32:07,615 of those minutes of conscription, which then resulted 495 00:32:07,615 --> 00:32:09,875 in relationship with the Savior, 496 00:32:11,539 --> 00:32:14,600 which resulted in life change. So 497 00:32:16,500 --> 00:32:20,179 I'll just say, don't disregard the month. Maybe you've been in a winter 498 00:32:20,179 --> 00:32:23,320 season. Maybe you've been in a mundane season. 499 00:32:24,034 --> 00:32:27,395 Maybe you've been in just that season of saying, God, I don't know what you're 500 00:32:27,395 --> 00:32:30,755 doing. God, I don't even sense you right now in my 501 00:32:30,755 --> 00:32:34,375 life. Somebody said, If you can't sense 502 00:32:34,434 --> 00:32:37,895 God's hand, trust his heart. 503 00:32:38,860 --> 00:32:42,159 If you can't sense God's hand, trust 504 00:32:42,539 --> 00:32:46,380 His heart. If it's not good, He 505 00:32:46,380 --> 00:32:49,840 is not done. And I think that month, 506 00:32:50,059 --> 00:32:53,875 that winter, that mundane plotting towards Jerusalem was just 507 00:32:53,875 --> 00:32:57,554 as important for that one moment. I think nowadays, we 508 00:32:57,554 --> 00:33:00,914 want things fast. Anybody like me, you want 509 00:33:00,914 --> 00:33:04,755 things fast, and the emergence of technology, I won't 510 00:33:04,755 --> 00:33:07,975 even say the emergence. It is now on a runaway train, 511 00:33:08,370 --> 00:33:12,210 technology is, and I think it's only making that treadmill run faster. We 512 00:33:12,210 --> 00:33:15,970 want things faster. We expect things faster. Right? Amazon, praise the 513 00:33:15,970 --> 00:33:19,810 Lord. Right? Boom. You don't even have to hit buy now. It just say, you 514 00:33:19,810 --> 00:33:22,945 just, when we click it, it doesn't say buy now to us. You know what 515 00:33:22,945 --> 00:33:26,784 it says to us? It says put in my mailbox tomorrow, or put in my, 516 00:33:26,784 --> 00:33:29,745 fly it in a drone in my kitchen in two hours. Right, whatever. That little 517 00:33:29,745 --> 00:33:33,585 yellow button, we have come to expect things that fast, and everything about 518 00:33:33,585 --> 00:33:36,950 God and what He's doing in our life is he is not in a 519 00:33:36,950 --> 00:33:40,710 rush. God is not in a rush. If 520 00:33:40,710 --> 00:33:44,149 you're in that season, you're like, Tim, I didn't even feel like showing up 521 00:33:44,149 --> 00:33:47,909 today. Tim, I can't even do, I, I can't even right 522 00:33:47,909 --> 00:33:50,595 now. Then all I wanna tell you, 523 00:33:52,095 --> 00:33:55,635 I understand. You don't need a pep talk. 524 00:33:56,255 --> 00:33:59,155 You don't. You don't need, it's all gonna work. You know. 525 00:34:01,210 --> 00:34:04,010 But I will tell you something that cannot be taken away, because my words, you 526 00:34:04,010 --> 00:34:06,910 can forget. But he said, 527 00:34:07,610 --> 00:34:11,390 he said, Fear not. I've redeemed 528 00:34:11,530 --> 00:34:15,050 you. I've called you by name. You are 529 00:34:15,050 --> 00:34:18,815 mine. You are mine. You are graven on 530 00:34:18,815 --> 00:34:22,415 my hands. You know what graven on his hands mean? That's even better than that 531 00:34:22,415 --> 00:34:25,935 tad. Like, okay, Sharpie. You know how these, like, we used to do, like, 532 00:34:25,935 --> 00:34:29,135 bus, run buses into Murfreesboro and get kids and pull them out. We always put 533 00:34:29,135 --> 00:34:32,520 Sharpie, number of the bus they rode on their hand, right? And hopefully, they didn't 534 00:34:32,520 --> 00:34:34,679 go try to wash it off, because then when they came out, they were like, 535 00:34:34,679 --> 00:34:37,160 Were you on my bus? What are you gonna do? Gotta get you home. I 536 00:34:37,160 --> 00:34:40,520 mean Sharpie's one thing, right? You got stick on 537 00:34:40,520 --> 00:34:43,880 tattoos. You know when you got cool enough to put on a stick on tattoo, 538 00:34:43,880 --> 00:34:46,664 you're like, I got a tattoo, you know? You're like showing your buddies. It's the 539 00:34:46,664 --> 00:34:50,344 stick on kind, but you know, you got, and then there's the tattoo, right? 540 00:34:50,344 --> 00:34:52,904 That's the permanent. That one got you kicked out of the church. You know what 541 00:34:52,904 --> 00:34:55,704 I mean? It was like, there was the tattoo, right? And then, so there's the 542 00:34:55,704 --> 00:34:57,085 tattoo. That's permanent. 543 00:34:59,450 --> 00:35:02,010 So I went back to my mom one day, because we grew up like, it 544 00:35:02,010 --> 00:35:05,369 was like tattoos were a thing, or not a thing, or we're not cool. So 545 00:35:05,369 --> 00:35:08,250 I went back to my mom one day, told her about a tattoo I wanna 546 00:35:08,250 --> 00:35:11,370 get. She's like, Joe, Tim, don't, if you do, don't tell your dad. I don't 547 00:35:11,370 --> 00:35:14,695 know. I was like, well, I was reading Isaiah where it said that God has 548 00:35:14,695 --> 00:35:18,535 graven us on his hands, and I think, like, that's tattoo material right there. That 549 00:35:18,535 --> 00:35:21,255 like backs up that belief. And so I was like, go, and I had like 550 00:35:21,255 --> 00:35:24,955 the doctrine down, man. It was great. But no, no, it's all joking aside. 551 00:35:25,175 --> 00:35:29,000 Graven on his hands? Now 552 00:35:29,000 --> 00:35:32,840 I think the graven on his hands are those nail holes. I think 553 00:35:32,840 --> 00:35:36,680 the graven on his hands are the nail pierced hands. I 554 00:35:36,680 --> 00:35:40,140 think when he sees the nail pierced hands, he sees you. 555 00:35:40,605 --> 00:35:44,445 He sees your face. He sees your face. When he sees the 556 00:35:44,445 --> 00:35:47,805 graven on his hands, he sees your face. You know when he says he can't 557 00:35:47,805 --> 00:35:51,565 even pluck, he, the enemy can't even pluck you? Like, I'm in, you're in my 558 00:35:51,565 --> 00:35:54,605 hand, and I'm in my Father's hand, and the enemy can't pluck you out of 559 00:35:54,605 --> 00:35:57,580 my hand. Like, I'm like, I used to think, yeah, because the enemy can't pry 560 00:35:57,580 --> 00:36:00,940 God's fingers off and Jesus' fingers off, like he's not strong enough. But here here's 561 00:36:00,940 --> 00:36:04,619 the thing. Even if he did, through some trick or gimmick, God, the 562 00:36:04,619 --> 00:36:08,400 fingers pried open, he can't pluck you out of his hands, because you're graven 563 00:36:08,859 --> 00:36:12,655 in his hands. So you can't just Tonight, don't take my word 564 00:36:12,655 --> 00:36:16,415 for it. You can, k? I get excited about it, 565 00:36:16,415 --> 00:36:20,195 because listen, I've been through the depression, I've been through the anxiety, 566 00:36:20,655 --> 00:36:24,015 and all I had to go on, the only anchor of my soul was I 567 00:36:24,015 --> 00:36:27,670 was graven in his hands. So I can maybe convince you, 568 00:36:27,670 --> 00:36:30,950 but I want him to speak to you tonight. I want you to hear from 569 00:36:30,950 --> 00:36:33,530 him. He said it. I can believe it. 570 00:36:36,950 --> 00:36:40,755 You say, Tim, I wanna believe God for something 571 00:36:40,755 --> 00:36:44,595 I don't know what to believe God for. How 572 00:36:44,595 --> 00:36:48,275 about one step closer to the cross? How about 573 00:36:48,275 --> 00:36:52,010 that be our prayer? If I don't know what. Sometimes you get around somebody 574 00:36:52,010 --> 00:36:55,690 full of faith, and they're like, I'm believing God for this and this and this, 575 00:36:55,690 --> 00:36:59,450 and I'm like, amen. It's like, what are you believing 576 00:36:59,450 --> 00:37:03,210 God for, brother? I'm like, this phase 577 00:37:03,210 --> 00:37:05,310 of my life, this season of my life, man, 578 00:37:08,135 --> 00:37:11,335 it's not lose my temper, like right now. You know what I mean? It's like 579 00:37:11,335 --> 00:37:15,175 just, just for, just to get 580 00:37:15,175 --> 00:37:18,855 through the next moment. Right? But again, 581 00:37:18,855 --> 00:37:22,369 everyone, every season, measures of grace, measures of faith, 582 00:37:22,369 --> 00:37:25,829 like God, God leads us along. Here's what I wanna say. 583 00:37:28,289 --> 00:37:32,069 Your steps are not compared 584 00:37:32,450 --> 00:37:35,974 to your brother or sister's steps. Your steps 585 00:37:36,835 --> 00:37:40,454 are only compared to what he has 586 00:37:41,154 --> 00:37:44,835 to lay on you for this season. What 587 00:37:44,835 --> 00:37:48,375 if Simon didn't walk, didn't move? Like, 588 00:37:49,700 --> 00:37:53,059 we wouldn't have had the ultimate Passover. Your 589 00:37:53,059 --> 00:37:56,839 steps, whether it's a few steps up Golgotha's 590 00:37:56,980 --> 00:38:00,819 Hill or whether it's a long journey that you're in for Jesus, wherever 591 00:38:00,819 --> 00:38:04,585 it's leading you, they matter. You matter. You were talking 592 00:38:04,585 --> 00:38:08,265 about your vision, your dream, and then, it was 593 00:38:08,265 --> 00:38:11,145 confirmed, like, what's God speaking to you? And it's like you were to come alongside 594 00:38:11,145 --> 00:38:14,185 and help. And it's like I was, you know, just talked to ministry leaders all 595 00:38:14,185 --> 00:38:17,865 over, but we were talking, sharing some meals and just seeing the spirit 596 00:38:17,865 --> 00:38:21,410 of just community and volunteering and people pouring 597 00:38:21,410 --> 00:38:25,250 out and sweeping floors and just pouring their spirit into this place for this 598 00:38:25,250 --> 00:38:29,010 conference to happen. I'm like, that is You're saying, Yes, God. 599 00:38:29,010 --> 00:38:32,744 I will take style. I'll carry this cross. Like, there's a cross. Paul the 600 00:38:32,744 --> 00:38:36,585 Apostle says, Bury ye one another's burdens. There's a cross. If you don't know what 601 00:38:36,585 --> 00:38:39,464 cross to carry, if you don't, Jesus, I wanna take up a cross daily and 602 00:38:39,464 --> 00:38:42,505 follow you, but what is that? I will dare say, if he did, if yours 603 00:38:42,505 --> 00:38:45,540 is not clear to you, say, Lord, one step closer to the cross. I'll say 604 00:38:45,540 --> 00:38:49,140 one step close to the cross is bearing somebody else's burden, a brother or 605 00:38:49,140 --> 00:38:52,820 sister's burden. So I think sometimes instead of like, what am I believing 606 00:38:52,820 --> 00:38:56,660 God for? Sometimes, I'll be honest, take a step back from that statement. 607 00:38:56,660 --> 00:39:00,260 I've been believing God for something for me, for my vision that I thought would 608 00:39:00,260 --> 00:39:04,095 please Him, instead of taking a step back and saying, God, I wanna take 609 00:39:04,474 --> 00:39:07,855 one step closer, one step toward your cross. 610 00:39:08,315 --> 00:39:11,835 I wanna take up my cross daily. You say, Tim, I have a lot of 611 00:39:11,835 --> 00:39:15,035 things in my life, in my mind that I wanna do for God. I don't 612 00:39:15,035 --> 00:39:18,500 know which one to do first. I love the verse that says the 613 00:39:18,500 --> 00:39:22,340 steps of a good person are ordered by the Lord. 614 00:39:22,340 --> 00:39:25,000 I didn't do well in math, but when I got to that, 615 00:39:26,420 --> 00:39:30,180 exercise of ordering the integers, any mathematicians in the room, any 616 00:39:30,180 --> 00:39:33,965 good math people, You had to order, you had those 617 00:39:33,965 --> 00:39:37,085 like element sets, and you had to order the integers, right? And if you didn't 618 00:39:37,085 --> 00:39:40,445 have any numbers in there, what was it called? An empty and null 619 00:39:40,445 --> 00:39:44,125 set. There was nothing to order. And I think that 620 00:39:44,125 --> 00:39:47,570 that's what I wanna just, if anything, challenge all of us with 621 00:39:47,570 --> 00:39:51,330 is if you don't know what to do, if you don't know what, like 622 00:39:51,330 --> 00:39:54,470 God, I I have all the Just just take one step. 623 00:39:55,250 --> 00:39:58,710 I see so many people, myself included, who get paralyzed or 624 00:39:58,965 --> 00:40:02,805 paralysis by analysis, which, what's the right thing to do here? What's, 625 00:40:02,805 --> 00:40:05,925 what's, and we just don't lean into the thing right in front of us. It's 626 00:40:05,925 --> 00:40:09,525 like, just start leaning in, because it says God is the one who 627 00:40:09,525 --> 00:40:13,205 orders our steps. He's gonna rearrange them for you. He's gonna order them for you. 628 00:40:13,205 --> 00:40:16,840 You're not gonna get them. Simon got there right on time, right at the 629 00:40:16,840 --> 00:40:18,940 intersection, right in the nick of time. 630 00:40:21,080 --> 00:40:23,880 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. What's the one thing 631 00:40:23,880 --> 00:40:27,320 you're believing God for? Could it be just 632 00:40:27,320 --> 00:40:31,165 simply one step toward the cross? You know one thing I noticed? 633 00:40:31,705 --> 00:40:34,925 In Scripture oftentimes, you see Simon 634 00:40:35,545 --> 00:40:38,365 of Cyrene, the son of. 635 00:40:40,505 --> 00:40:43,965 In this verse, it just said, Simon of Cyrene, 636 00:40:44,265 --> 00:40:47,140 the father of these two sons. 637 00:40:47,920 --> 00:40:51,540 There was no son of here. This was Simon's 638 00:40:51,680 --> 00:40:55,380 moment, I believe, to change family 639 00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:59,040 legacy. This was Simon's moment to say 640 00:40:59,040 --> 00:41:02,685 yes to another way, to this distraction, 641 00:41:02,825 --> 00:41:06,665 this disruption, and go, and ultimately receive the 642 00:41:06,665 --> 00:41:10,505 ultimate Passover and change his family forever. You may be here saying, But my 643 00:41:10,505 --> 00:41:14,279 dad, but my mom, that's 644 00:41:14,279 --> 00:41:17,960 what's so beautiful at Jesus' cross. It wipes out. It 645 00:41:17,960 --> 00:41:21,400 doesn't take away the pain of it, the trauma, things that are still there, but 646 00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:25,160 he bore it all. He took it all. It is our chance 647 00:41:25,160 --> 00:41:28,964 to say yes to following Jesus. It's our chance to 648 00:41:28,964 --> 00:41:32,724 say, when Jesus said, Follow me, take up your cross daily and 649 00:41:32,724 --> 00:41:36,425 follow me, it's our chance to say, I'm at a crossroads, yes. 650 00:41:37,525 --> 00:41:41,250 You say, Tim, I want so badly to surrender. I want 651 00:41:41,570 --> 00:41:43,510 so badly to say yes. 652 00:41:46,130 --> 00:41:49,750 I just wanna leave you with this. Remember 653 00:41:50,850 --> 00:41:54,290 to surrender. And I don't mean go 654 00:41:54,290 --> 00:41:57,695 home in little cliche, it's kinda cool, right? Right? Remember to 655 00:41:57,695 --> 00:42:01,075 surrender. Tim, today, remember to surrender. That's okay. 656 00:42:01,615 --> 00:42:05,235 If that works, that's cool, little mantra. But here's what I want 657 00:42:05,615 --> 00:42:09,295 you to think about. Think about all the times Jesus 658 00:42:09,295 --> 00:42:12,310 told the disciples, I tell you this now, 659 00:42:13,570 --> 00:42:17,250 so that when I rise, when the Son of Man is 660 00:42:17,250 --> 00:42:20,850 lifted up, you will remember my words. And the women came to the 661 00:42:20,850 --> 00:42:23,925 tomb, and the angel said to them some words. 662 00:42:25,045 --> 00:42:28,725 And then, it says, they remembered, he said, Did he not tell 663 00:42:28,725 --> 00:42:32,105 you? Blah, blah, blah, blah. The women said, Then 664 00:42:32,245 --> 00:42:35,925 they remembered his words. Here's what I 665 00:42:35,925 --> 00:42:39,700 wanna encourage all of us, as we go to bed 666 00:42:39,700 --> 00:42:42,280 tonight, get ready to come in and worship tomorrow, 667 00:42:43,300 --> 00:42:45,960 ask God to bring back to your mind 668 00:42:46,980 --> 00:42:50,755 the people, the lighthouses, the 669 00:42:50,755 --> 00:42:53,495 intersections, the voices, 670 00:42:54,755 --> 00:42:58,595 His still small voice, the things that we've been 671 00:42:58,595 --> 00:43:01,955 hearing for the last six months, nine months, a 672 00:43:01,955 --> 00:43:05,640 year. He speaks. God does 673 00:43:05,640 --> 00:43:09,480 not stop speaking. Tim stops listening. Tim's 674 00:43:09,480 --> 00:43:13,099 moving too fast to remember. But if we'll stop 675 00:43:13,400 --> 00:43:16,859 and look back, I bet you Simon, in that moment, 676 00:43:17,320 --> 00:43:21,035 fought back. Wait pierced for 677 00:43:21,035 --> 00:43:24,635 our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. Father, forgive them, they know not what 678 00:43:24,635 --> 00:43:28,474 they do. I think Simon was there saying with the 679 00:43:28,474 --> 00:43:32,155 centurion, Surely, this man is the son of God. I think 680 00:43:32,155 --> 00:43:35,250 to surrender, we must remember 681 00:43:35,789 --> 00:43:39,490 all of the moments as he's brought us to this moment. 682 00:43:39,869 --> 00:43:43,710 You are here for a reason. So as 683 00:43:43,710 --> 00:43:47,485 we end tonight, I think of that old song that says, Jesus, I, 684 00:43:47,485 --> 00:43:51,165 my cross, have taken, all to leave and follow 685 00:43:51,165 --> 00:43:54,845 thee. And tonight, can we say that? As the band 686 00:43:54,845 --> 00:43:58,525 gets ready to play, and I guess Kevin comes in, or somebody comes in 687 00:43:58,525 --> 00:44:02,010 and prays and closes us out, can we just maybe just tonight, just say, 688 00:44:02,010 --> 00:44:05,370 God, help me to remember. Help me to 689 00:44:05,370 --> 00:44:08,730 remember. Lord, help my one thing to 690 00:44:08,730 --> 00:44:12,490 be a step closer to your cross. To take it 691 00:44:12,490 --> 00:44:15,545 up my cross, there's a cost involved. 692 00:44:16,964 --> 00:44:18,505 Help me to count the cost. 693 00:44:20,484 --> 00:44:23,785 Jesus, on my cross, I've taken all to leave, 694 00:44:24,645 --> 00:44:27,944 follow thee. I'll tell you, I'll tell you, 695 00:44:29,000 --> 00:44:32,760 there is nothing that gives you more peace. There is 696 00:44:32,760 --> 00:44:36,200 nothing that gives you more joy. And it is so counter 697 00:44:36,359 --> 00:44:39,900 Listen, this world offers it. They present a gimmick. 698 00:44:40,359 --> 00:44:43,865 Go try it out. Go try it out. You probably already have. 699 00:44:44,805 --> 00:44:48,645 It doesn't last. It's worthless. It's 700 00:44:48,645 --> 00:44:51,545 a fleeting joy. But Jesus, 701 00:44:52,725 --> 00:44:56,405 the lamb of God, the one who bore it 702 00:44:56,405 --> 00:45:00,210 all for us, us, fills us with 703 00:45:00,210 --> 00:45:03,810 everything, with purpose. Let's take up our cross, let's follow behind 704 00:45:03,810 --> 00:45:06,550 Him, and let's trust Him with it. Thank you so much.