WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:10.539 I'll go all out, and try to stop you, and there's 00:00:10.539 --> 00:01:37.640 no way I love that song. Do you remember singing 00:01:37.640 --> 00:01:39.459 that song, Adam, do you remember singing that 00:01:39.459 --> 00:01:42.319 song on a bus in the UP? Do you remember singing 00:01:42.319 --> 00:01:46.129 that? We sang that song on a bus in the UP. I 00:01:46.129 --> 00:01:47.310 think it was one person on the bus who didn't 00:01:47.310 --> 00:01:48.430 really like the singing all that much, but then 00:01:48.430 --> 00:01:50.109 they got off. And then everybody was excited 00:01:50.109 --> 00:01:52.189 about the singing. And then we got off. We apologized 00:01:52.189 --> 00:01:54.769 to the bus driver. And he was like, oh, no, this 00:01:54.769 --> 00:01:55.750 is the best thing that's happened to me all day. 00:01:55.890 --> 00:01:58.609 So I was all right with a bunch of teenagers 00:01:58.609 --> 00:02:01.650 in the UP on a bus on a mission trip. That song, 00:02:01.930 --> 00:02:03.829 every time I hear it, it flashbacks to that moment 00:02:03.829 --> 00:02:06.670 in time. Praise the Lord. So two things, kind 00:02:06.670 --> 00:02:08.770 of homework real quick, housework, if you will, 00:02:08.770 --> 00:02:10.009 real quick that I want to cover. So the first 00:02:10.009 --> 00:02:12.830 thing is, you see this here Bible? This is... 00:02:13.039 --> 00:02:14.860 what I have affectionately termed my preaching 00:02:14.860 --> 00:02:17.759 Bible. And I love this Bible, and it's got lots 00:02:17.759 --> 00:02:19.620 of sermon notes written right on the pages and 00:02:19.620 --> 00:02:21.240 stuff like that, and I have preached many a sermon 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:23.199 out of this Bible. Not because it's better than 00:02:23.199 --> 00:02:25.400 any other Bible, but because when this was in 00:02:25.400 --> 00:02:27.219 my hand, the Lord said I could use it to preach, 00:02:27.340 --> 00:02:30.659 and so praise God for it. So this morning, for 00:02:30.659 --> 00:02:33.199 the last probably nine months, I have been using... 00:02:34.319 --> 00:02:35.840 This Bible and that Bible and everything else. 00:02:35.879 --> 00:02:37.860 I did not know where this Bible was. And then 00:02:37.860 --> 00:02:40.139 yesterday, Warren and I were texting back and 00:02:40.139 --> 00:02:42.120 forth, and he let me know about some folks he 00:02:42.120 --> 00:02:43.479 picked up this morning. So I'm going to drive 00:02:43.479 --> 00:02:45.400 the church van in the morning. So then this morning 00:02:45.400 --> 00:02:46.699 when I went in the church van, I thought, well, 00:02:46.719 --> 00:02:48.180 I better make sure it's not too messy because 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:50.439 it always has some issues. The church van does. 00:02:50.719 --> 00:02:52.500 And I looked in the back seat, and lo and behold, 00:02:52.580 --> 00:02:54.180 guess what was in the back seat of the church 00:02:54.180 --> 00:02:55.919 van? There it is. Nine months I've been without 00:02:55.919 --> 00:02:58.560 this Bible. So the sermon will be twice as long 00:02:58.560 --> 00:03:00.780 today as normal. No, it's not actually going 00:03:00.780 --> 00:03:03.500 to happen. I'm just warning you. The things that 00:03:03.500 --> 00:03:05.599 happen in the life of the pastor will strangely 00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:07.719 affect the sermon on Sunday morning in ways that 00:03:07.719 --> 00:03:09.479 we don't understand. The second thing I want 00:03:09.479 --> 00:03:11.680 to share with you is we left the book of Judges 00:03:11.680 --> 00:03:14.639 some time ago. We were working through. We started 00:03:14.639 --> 00:03:17.340 in verse 1, chapter 1. We worked through, and 00:03:17.340 --> 00:03:21.180 we got as far as chapter 11, and we stopped at 00:03:21.180 --> 00:03:23.389 a certain point. And we're not going to pick 00:03:23.389 --> 00:03:25.050 up at exactly the point that we stopped. But 00:03:25.050 --> 00:03:26.669 I just want to give you this kind of like a boiled 00:03:26.669 --> 00:03:30.449 down reminder. The book of Judges is about God's 00:03:30.449 --> 00:03:32.349 people. It's about a people who are called to 00:03:32.349 --> 00:03:35.789 be God's people. And over time, they would drift 00:03:35.789 --> 00:03:37.729 into doing things that they never should have 00:03:37.729 --> 00:03:39.550 been doing in the first place. Mainly, they were 00:03:39.550 --> 00:03:41.469 taking on the ideas of the people that lived 00:03:41.469 --> 00:03:44.009 around them. They were culturally affected. They 00:03:44.009 --> 00:03:46.569 were affected by other idol worship and that 00:03:46.569 --> 00:03:48.789 kind of thing. Things that just weren't right. 00:03:48.889 --> 00:03:51.469 And they kept adding it in, adding it in. So 00:03:51.469 --> 00:03:53.229 it's not that they didn't believe in God. Understand 00:03:53.229 --> 00:03:54.870 that. This is not that they didn't believe in 00:03:54.870 --> 00:03:57.830 God, but that they had a syncretistic way of 00:03:57.830 --> 00:03:59.150 living. You know what I mean? They were trying 00:03:59.150 --> 00:04:03.110 to syncretize God with false religion. And we 00:04:03.110 --> 00:04:04.590 have some false religions in America that would 00:04:04.590 --> 00:04:06.509 love to do that for you. For example, money. 00:04:06.909 --> 00:04:09.409 The pursuit of money. Not money itself, but the 00:04:09.409 --> 00:04:11.150 pursuit of money is the root of all evil. And 00:04:11.150 --> 00:04:14.050 so in America, if you're after the almighty dollar... 00:04:14.250 --> 00:04:17.230 That very much becomes a religion. And it becomes 00:04:17.230 --> 00:04:19.110 about that, even to the point that you will betray 00:04:19.110 --> 00:04:21.850 what you believe in in other ways. So this is 00:04:21.850 --> 00:04:24.970 what they were doing. They were syncretizing 00:04:24.970 --> 00:04:28.089 the worship of God with all these other forms. 00:04:28.350 --> 00:04:31.610 And what that always resulted in was more and 00:04:31.610 --> 00:04:33.569 more sinful behavior. Then they would cry out 00:04:33.569 --> 00:04:35.569 to God. God would let judgment fall upon them. 00:04:35.629 --> 00:04:37.089 Then they would cry out to God, please save us. 00:04:37.129 --> 00:04:38.930 And then God would send a judge. And we talked 00:04:38.930 --> 00:04:41.649 about how the judges are almost more like deliverers 00:04:41.649 --> 00:04:44.029 or savior pictures. They weren't even always 00:04:44.029 --> 00:04:46.430 judges. They didn't necessarily judge legal cases. 00:04:46.589 --> 00:04:48.230 In some cases, our military leaders didn't necessarily 00:04:48.230 --> 00:04:52.290 judge legal cases, things like that. But they 00:04:52.290 --> 00:04:55.629 judged in the fact that they led the nation. 00:04:55.850 --> 00:04:58.269 And so they were kind of like deliverers or saviors. 00:04:58.470 --> 00:05:01.430 If we really wanted to Christianize the book, 00:05:01.490 --> 00:05:03.589 we could call it the Book of Saviors, but they 00:05:03.589 --> 00:05:05.810 didn't want to do that. They called them judges, 00:05:05.870 --> 00:05:09.069 so that's what they were. I say all that to say, 00:05:09.189 --> 00:05:11.930 we're back in the book of Judges today, finally, 00:05:11.930 --> 00:05:14.649 after taking the break. We didn't take a break 00:05:14.649 --> 00:05:16.470 from preaching, obviously. We spent all that 00:05:16.470 --> 00:05:19.149 time on the death, burial, and resurrection of 00:05:19.149 --> 00:05:21.370 Christ, and Easter, and all that. And now we're 00:05:21.370 --> 00:05:23.269 going back to the book of Judges. So grab your 00:05:23.269 --> 00:05:24.949 Bibles, if you would. Give me a little who to 00:05:24.949 --> 00:05:28.269 holler amen as we go to Judges chapter 11. Thank 00:05:28.269 --> 00:05:29.829 you very much. For those of you who don't know 00:05:29.829 --> 00:05:32.050 it, we usually do that. That marks the moment 00:05:32.050 --> 00:05:36.250 in time where what we read will be not my ideas, 00:05:36.449 --> 00:05:39.579 nothing that I've written. but simply what God 00:05:39.579 --> 00:05:42.220 says in his word. Now, these events, of course, 00:05:42.259 --> 00:05:44.759 are orchestrated by God, and they are sad events. 00:05:45.019 --> 00:05:47.399 What we're about to read about is a pretty rough 00:05:47.399 --> 00:05:50.240 time in the history of God's people. So we're 00:05:50.240 --> 00:05:53.120 in chapter 11, verse 29. It starts out pretty 00:05:53.120 --> 00:05:55.420 good. It says, Now the Spirit of the Lord came 00:05:55.420 --> 00:05:57.740 upon Jephthah, so that he passed through Gilead 00:05:57.740 --> 00:06:00.339 and Manasseh. Then he passed through Mizpah of 00:06:00.339 --> 00:06:02.500 Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he went on 00:06:02.500 --> 00:06:04.579 to the sons of Ammon. And Jephthah made a vow 00:06:04.579 --> 00:06:07.579 to the Lord. So right up until this point, it's 00:06:07.579 --> 00:06:09.420 going pretty good, right? He's got the Holy Spirit 00:06:09.420 --> 00:06:11.620 on him. He's doing God's work. They're having 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:14.379 victories, having successes, rallying troops, 00:06:14.560 --> 00:06:16.540 that kind of thing. Then it says in verse 30, 00:06:16.660 --> 00:06:18.680 And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, 00:06:18.860 --> 00:06:22.120 If thou wilt indeed give the sons of Ammon into 00:06:22.120 --> 00:06:25.079 my hands, then it shall be that whatever comes 00:06:25.079 --> 00:06:27.120 out of the doors of my house to meet me when 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:30.360 I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it 00:06:30.360 --> 00:06:32.779 shall be the Lord's, and I will offer it as a 00:06:32.779 --> 00:06:35.250 burnt offering. So the idea of a burnt offering 00:06:35.250 --> 00:06:36.970 is to take something that's valuable to you and 00:06:36.970 --> 00:06:39.189 dedicate it to God. In theory, God is essentially 00:06:39.189 --> 00:06:40.949 receiving that thing. You no longer have it, 00:06:40.970 --> 00:06:43.470 so you're receiving it. This is not a God command. 00:06:43.670 --> 00:06:45.290 It's not a God thing. It's not anything that 00:06:45.290 --> 00:06:48.810 should be done by a godly person. But it was 00:06:48.810 --> 00:06:51.149 common in the culture in the day. Now remember, 00:06:51.209 --> 00:06:53.389 Jephthah's a judge. The Holy Spirit is on him. 00:06:53.410 --> 00:06:55.329 He's doing Holy Spirit work. He's gathering forces. 00:06:55.449 --> 00:06:57.910 He's defeating God's enemies. He's doing God 00:06:57.910 --> 00:07:00.569 work. And then he goes all of a sudden and... 00:07:00.860 --> 00:07:03.240 makes this commitment to dedicate whatever comes 00:07:03.240 --> 00:07:04.699 out of his house. Now, first of all, it comes 00:07:04.699 --> 00:07:07.060 out of his house, meaning not like carried out 00:07:07.060 --> 00:07:09.000 by someone, comes out, actively comes out. So 00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:12.040 this is going to be most likely an animal, right? 00:07:12.079 --> 00:07:14.319 He's thinking a sheep, a goat, whatever. You 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:15.399 open the door and they're always running for 00:07:15.399 --> 00:07:17.019 the door. They're always first ones out the door 00:07:17.019 --> 00:07:20.060 kind of thing. And so my guess is that's what 00:07:20.060 --> 00:07:22.160 he's thinking. But this is not the kind of command 00:07:22.160 --> 00:07:25.060 that God would have given him. So this is of 00:07:25.060 --> 00:07:28.399 his own idea, right? Now, a lot of times people 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:31.490 call this a rash decision. It's a quick, oh, 00:07:31.610 --> 00:07:33.209 I'm going to do this. It'll be cool. I'm going 00:07:33.209 --> 00:07:35.610 to honor God this way. It'll be fast. It won't 00:07:35.610 --> 00:07:37.069 really cost me all that much, and God will really 00:07:37.069 --> 00:07:39.889 be honored like all those false gods are honored 00:07:39.889 --> 00:07:41.790 to you. It'll be just like that. But I'm here 00:07:41.790 --> 00:07:43.670 to tell you this is not a rash decision at all. 00:07:43.829 --> 00:07:45.910 This did not happen in that instant. This did 00:07:45.910 --> 00:07:47.910 not happen just like that. He didn't say, oh, 00:07:48.029 --> 00:07:49.870 I'm just going to do what everybody else does 00:07:49.870 --> 00:07:51.870 and make a vow, and I'm going to make it about 00:07:51.870 --> 00:07:53.939 the first thing that comes out of my house. Watch 00:07:53.939 --> 00:07:56.899 as the story unfolds and realize this is not 00:07:56.899 --> 00:08:00.180 actually a rash or emotional or quick. Rash means 00:08:00.180 --> 00:08:02.079 not thinking about the ramifications of your 00:08:02.079 --> 00:08:04.579 actions, right? This is not rash at all. It's 00:08:04.579 --> 00:08:07.339 done out of the kind of person that Jephthah 00:08:07.339 --> 00:08:10.459 was. All right, so just from 31 then. Then it 00:08:10.459 --> 00:08:12.079 shall be that whatever comes out of the doors 00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:14.300 of my house to meet me when I return in peace 00:08:14.300 --> 00:08:16.639 from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord's, 00:08:16.639 --> 00:08:18.420 which wouldn't have been bad to stop right there. 00:08:18.560 --> 00:08:21.000 And he says, and I will offer it as a burnt offering. 00:08:21.180 --> 00:08:23.800 And that's where it all goes wrong, 32. So Jephthah 00:08:23.800 --> 00:08:25.899 crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against 00:08:25.899 --> 00:08:28.199 them, and the Lord gave them into his hand. Now, 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:30.319 don't think that God gave them into his hand 00:08:30.319 --> 00:08:32.460 because of the promise that he made, right? The 00:08:32.460 --> 00:08:34.600 Holy Spirit was on him to do this job. God gave 00:08:34.600 --> 00:08:36.700 them into his hand because God... was going to 00:08:36.700 --> 00:08:39.179 do that. So the promise was completely extra 00:08:39.179 --> 00:08:42.080 and unnecessary. Verse 33. He struck them with 00:08:42.080 --> 00:08:45.360 a very great slaughter from Erewar to the entrance 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:50.039 of Minith, 20 cities, and as far as Abel, Korah, 00:08:50.080 --> 00:08:53.860 Mim. So the sons of Ammon were subdued before 00:08:53.860 --> 00:08:56.360 the sons of Israel. Verse 34. Then Jephthah came 00:08:56.360 --> 00:08:59.480 to his house at Mizpah. Behold, his daughter 00:08:59.480 --> 00:09:02.039 was coming out to meet him with tambourines and 00:09:02.039 --> 00:09:04.639 with dancing. Now she was his one and only child. 00:09:04.860 --> 00:09:08.429 He starts, Besides her, he had neither son nor 00:09:08.429 --> 00:09:10.950 daughter. And when it came about, when he saw 00:09:10.950 --> 00:09:14.090 her, that he tore his clothes and said, Alas, 00:09:14.090 --> 00:09:16.830 my daughter, you have brought me very low. I 00:09:16.830 --> 00:09:19.450 love how he kind of blames it on her for coming 00:09:19.450 --> 00:09:20.970 out first. He should have let the goat out first. 00:09:21.149 --> 00:09:23.610 You have brought me very low, and you are among 00:09:23.610 --> 00:09:26.070 those who trouble me. For I have given my word 00:09:26.070 --> 00:09:29.470 to the Lord, and I cannot take it back. That's 00:09:29.470 --> 00:09:32.110 true. He's got that part right anyway. So she 00:09:32.110 --> 00:09:34.490 said to him, My father, you have given your word 00:09:34.490 --> 00:09:37.309 to the Lord. Do to me as you have said, since 00:09:37.309 --> 00:09:39.690 the Lord has avenged you of your enemies, the 00:09:39.690 --> 00:09:42.029 sons of Ammon. Now there's a lot of death in 00:09:42.029 --> 00:09:45.350 their world. And so she's not freaking out necessarily 00:09:45.350 --> 00:09:48.529 right away because that's not an uncommon feeling 00:09:48.529 --> 00:09:50.570 for them to realize that all the soldiers that 00:09:50.570 --> 00:09:52.009 died, even though this was a great victory, many 00:09:52.009 --> 00:09:53.529 soldiers died. And they're hearing about so -and 00:09:53.529 --> 00:09:54.950 -so died and so -and -so died and somebody's 00:09:54.950 --> 00:09:56.509 brother died, somebody's kid. There's a lot of 00:09:56.509 --> 00:09:59.149 death. But this is really faithfulness. This 00:09:59.149 --> 00:10:01.009 is strong faithfulness for her to say, okay, 00:10:01.070 --> 00:10:03.750 dad, you made a promise to God. Well, I guess 00:10:03.750 --> 00:10:06.019 I'm stuck. See how God has been so faithful? 00:10:06.200 --> 00:10:08.779 That also tells you there, it's not totally unexpected. 00:10:09.279 --> 00:10:12.000 She realizes that things like this have probably 00:10:12.000 --> 00:10:14.860 happened before. She's adjusted mentally to the 00:10:14.860 --> 00:10:18.340 idea that she could be sacrificed for a victory. 00:10:18.600 --> 00:10:20.379 Now you know that there is a false god called 00:10:20.379 --> 00:10:22.419 Molech, and they sacrifice the firstborn child 00:10:22.419 --> 00:10:25.539 in the fire, usually as a baby, not as a grown 00:10:25.539 --> 00:10:27.919 child. And so she's heard of Molech worship. 00:10:28.100 --> 00:10:30.740 She's heard of that being done. She's consenting 00:10:30.740 --> 00:10:33.480 to it because their family accepts that. Their 00:10:33.480 --> 00:10:35.720 family accepts that that's a possibility. It's 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:39.320 crazy, but we can see that they have this concept 00:10:39.320 --> 00:10:42.240 already ground into them. 37. And she said to 00:10:42.240 --> 00:10:44.799 her father, let this thing be done for me. Let 00:10:44.799 --> 00:10:47.539 me alone two months. I may go to the mountains 00:10:47.539 --> 00:10:51.340 and weep because of my virginity, I and my companions. 00:10:51.659 --> 00:10:54.019 She's going to go off and have a good time for 00:10:54.019 --> 00:10:55.379 a couple months because she's never going to 00:10:55.379 --> 00:10:57.320 be with a man. She's never going to have a child. 00:10:57.620 --> 00:11:01.159 Then he said, go. So he sent her away for two 00:11:01.159 --> 00:11:03.659 months. Now, listen, this is a true test of faithfulness. 00:11:03.700 --> 00:11:05.039 Because if she comes back, she's going to be 00:11:05.039 --> 00:11:07.500 killed. She's going to be burnt, right, for God. 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:09.659 So he sends her away for two months. And she 00:11:09.659 --> 00:11:12.240 left with her companions and wept on the mountains 00:11:12.240 --> 00:11:14.200 because of her virginity. It's not like they 00:11:14.200 --> 00:11:16.179 were up there having all kinds of partying and 00:11:16.179 --> 00:11:18.519 she was losing her virginity, for example. And 00:11:18.519 --> 00:11:20.259 it came about at the end of two months that she 00:11:20.259 --> 00:11:22.700 returned to her father, who did to her according 00:11:22.700 --> 00:11:24.919 to the vow which he had made. And she had no 00:11:24.919 --> 00:11:27.240 relations with a man. There it is very clearly 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:30.149 stated. Thus it became a custom in Israel so 00:11:30.149 --> 00:11:32.529 that the daughters of Israel went yearly to commemorate 00:11:32.529 --> 00:11:35.029 the daughter of Jephthah, the Gileadites, four 00:11:35.029 --> 00:11:37.950 days in the year. So notice her faithfulness 00:11:37.950 --> 00:11:42.710 affects her people for generations. Now his foolish 00:11:42.710 --> 00:11:45.990 decision to make that commitment doesn't go on 00:11:45.990 --> 00:11:47.590 like people go, oh, I want to do that too, right? 00:11:47.669 --> 00:11:50.169 I want to commit my firstborn daughter to be 00:11:50.169 --> 00:11:52.929 burned alive so I can have it. People don't follow 00:11:52.929 --> 00:11:56.110 his example. But they do celebrate her faithfulness 00:11:56.110 --> 00:11:58.039 for generations to come. I want you to understand 00:11:58.039 --> 00:12:00.980 then, there's a subtle shift that happens in 00:12:00.980 --> 00:12:03.440 the human heart. So subtle that you can miss 00:12:03.440 --> 00:12:05.580 it if you're not careful. While you're still 00:12:05.580 --> 00:12:08.659 talking about God, this thing can happen. And 00:12:08.659 --> 00:12:10.820 it's a dangerous thing. The sermon title today 00:12:10.820 --> 00:12:14.159 is Progenitor Me. A progenitor is a person who 00:12:14.159 --> 00:12:16.059 starts something, right? That's what a progenitor 00:12:16.059 --> 00:12:18.159 is. So God is the ultimate progenitor. He started 00:12:18.159 --> 00:12:20.500 literally everything, right? Time, space, matter. 00:12:20.659 --> 00:12:23.480 We start thinking, we start shifting our thinking 00:12:23.480 --> 00:12:26.519 sometimes from God, what are you doing? A famous 00:12:26.519 --> 00:12:28.460 Christian author said, look at what God is doing 00:12:28.460 --> 00:12:31.320 and go and join him in it. God's doing something. 00:12:31.480 --> 00:12:33.000 Wherever that's happening, just go jump in there 00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:35.019 and let God use you to do whatever you want to 00:12:35.019 --> 00:12:38.419 do. But our shift moves from, God, what are you 00:12:38.419 --> 00:12:40.840 doing? To, God, let me tell you what I'm going 00:12:40.840 --> 00:12:43.279 to do for you. That's what happened in the life 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:45.200 of Jephthah. See, instead of him going, I'm going 00:12:45.200 --> 00:12:46.879 to gather people and I'm going to go defeat armies 00:12:46.879 --> 00:12:48.820 like God said, Holy Spirit's on me. He started 00:12:48.820 --> 00:12:51.120 thinking, okay, now that I'm in this position 00:12:51.120 --> 00:12:52.960 to do something great for God, now what am I 00:12:52.960 --> 00:12:56.120 going to do? And he said, Let me tell you what 00:12:56.120 --> 00:12:58.039 I'm going to do for you, God. I'm going to sacrifice 00:12:58.039 --> 00:13:01.100 my daughter if you give me this victory. That 00:13:01.100 --> 00:13:04.139 shift is what I'm calling progenitor me. You 00:13:04.139 --> 00:13:07.220 start to originate something. God is still in 00:13:07.220 --> 00:13:09.559 the conversation, but he's no longer the source. 00:13:10.189 --> 00:13:13.330 He has now become just one voice amongst many. 00:13:13.450 --> 00:13:15.649 See, he still believed in God. He still went 00:13:15.649 --> 00:13:18.110 out and risked his life. He still took on the 00:13:18.110 --> 00:13:20.169 great battle, rallied people to the battle cry, 00:13:20.330 --> 00:13:22.590 felt the Holy Spirit, I'm sure. The Holy Spirit 00:13:22.590 --> 00:13:24.429 settled on him, so I'm sure he felt that. He 00:13:24.429 --> 00:13:27.289 still did all that. But at the same time, he 00:13:27.289 --> 00:13:29.470 started saying, see, now watch what I'm going 00:13:29.470 --> 00:13:31.590 to do. See how I'm going to do it differently. 00:13:31.889 --> 00:13:33.549 This is very dangerous because in the church, 00:13:33.570 --> 00:13:34.809 for example, we talk about, well, I like to worship 00:13:34.809 --> 00:13:36.809 a certain way. I don't like that kind of music, 00:13:36.830 --> 00:13:38.970 or I do like that kind of music. If that kind 00:13:38.970 --> 00:13:40.730 of music glorifies God and that kind of music 00:13:40.730 --> 00:13:42.110 glorifies God, you don't get to say, I don't 00:13:42.110 --> 00:13:45.090 like that kind and I like that kind. The kind 00:13:45.090 --> 00:13:47.330 of music we like is the kind that glorifies God. 00:13:47.570 --> 00:13:50.129 And so we start to put our own ideas in there. 00:13:50.190 --> 00:13:51.690 I don't like it when people talk a certain way 00:13:51.690 --> 00:13:54.090 or do a certain thing. Or I prefer it when people 00:13:54.090 --> 00:13:55.970 dress a certain way or people show up at a certain 00:13:55.970 --> 00:13:58.330 place at a certain time. We start letting our 00:13:58.330 --> 00:14:00.470 preferences drive. When your preferences are 00:14:00.470 --> 00:14:03.210 driving, you're becoming a progenitor. It's when 00:14:03.210 --> 00:14:06.490 you become the originator of the plan. God's 00:14:06.490 --> 00:14:08.450 still in the conversation, but he's not the source 00:14:08.450 --> 00:14:11.129 anymore. He's just one voice. And I submit to 00:14:11.129 --> 00:14:13.590 you, there was only one time ever when God was 00:14:13.590 --> 00:14:16.190 just one voice. And that was in the very beginning 00:14:16.190 --> 00:14:19.309 when he said, let there be light. Judges 11 shows 00:14:19.309 --> 00:14:21.830 us just how dangerous this can be. See the first 00:14:21.830 --> 00:14:25.090 thing. When I become the origin, God becomes 00:14:25.090 --> 00:14:28.190 just one influence. When I'm making the plans 00:14:28.190 --> 00:14:30.409 and I'm not consulting God about what the plans 00:14:30.409 --> 00:14:32.710 are, then what am I going to use to make the 00:14:32.710 --> 00:14:35.139 plans? Everything I see? Everything I've heard, 00:14:35.279 --> 00:14:37.159 everything I've watched, everything I've done, 00:14:37.259 --> 00:14:39.539 everything I've experienced, the good, the bad, 00:14:39.539 --> 00:14:42.059 and the ugly. And all of those things become 00:14:42.059 --> 00:14:45.559 factors in my making my plans. It's how I walk 00:14:45.559 --> 00:14:47.980 my life out on a daily basis, right? I know that 00:14:47.980 --> 00:14:50.620 if I get in my car and I take the necessary turns, 00:14:50.679 --> 00:14:53.519 I'll arrive at my house. And so sometimes I get 00:14:53.519 --> 00:14:55.759 in the car on autopilot and I take the necessary 00:14:55.759 --> 00:14:58.100 turns and I arrive at my house. Sometimes when 00:14:58.100 --> 00:15:00.340 I'm not even going to my house because I'm not 00:15:00.340 --> 00:15:02.059 thinking and I'm like, just take the necessary 00:15:02.059 --> 00:15:04.409 turns and I'll arrive there. But what if I wasn't 00:15:04.409 --> 00:15:05.950 going there? I'm going somewhere else, and I'm 00:15:05.950 --> 00:15:07.769 pulling into my driveway. Oh, crud, I was going 00:15:07.769 --> 00:15:09.889 to the store. Oh, crud, I was going to go pick 00:15:09.889 --> 00:15:12.110 that up. I was going to go drop that off. Whatever. 00:15:12.570 --> 00:15:15.570 But because we get on autopilot, programmed, 00:15:16.049 --> 00:15:18.789 we just kind of do what we do, and God is no 00:15:18.789 --> 00:15:21.009 longer influencing. At other times, I've been 00:15:21.009 --> 00:15:22.509 driving in my car, and God will say, turn right 00:15:22.509 --> 00:15:25.429 here. But God, that's not the way home. And God, 00:15:25.549 --> 00:15:27.830 when he's really nice, he'll say, I know, we're 00:15:27.830 --> 00:15:29.570 not going home. But sometimes he'll say, I said 00:15:29.570 --> 00:15:31.570 turn right here. What is your problem today? 00:15:32.019 --> 00:15:34.399 And I go, okay, Lord, we're turning right. And 00:15:34.399 --> 00:15:36.360 I can only imagine that my life has been saved 00:15:36.360 --> 00:15:38.159 and things have been done, for sure, accomplished 00:15:38.159 --> 00:15:40.759 because of those moments in which God originates 00:15:40.759 --> 00:15:42.659 a plan that seems contrary to what was already 00:15:42.659 --> 00:15:45.080 going on and I'm jumping on the plan with God. 00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:47.799 But when I become the origin, I'm in the car 00:15:47.799 --> 00:15:49.600 and I'm going like, oh, I'm going to drive home. 00:15:49.779 --> 00:15:51.320 And God says, turn right here. I'm like, no, 00:15:51.460 --> 00:15:53.419 that's not the best way home, God. Your God PS 00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:55.759 must be off. You don't know how to get me where 00:15:55.759 --> 00:15:58.399 I need to be. I'm going to go where I'm going 00:15:58.399 --> 00:16:00.860 to go. And then I'm at home and I'm going, something 00:16:00.860 --> 00:16:03.039 feels off. Something doesn't feel right. I don't 00:16:03.039 --> 00:16:04.700 think I'm supposed to be here right now. Because 00:16:04.700 --> 00:16:07.480 God was trying to take me somewhere and I originated 00:16:07.480 --> 00:16:10.139 an alternative plan. The Spirit of the Lord comes 00:16:10.139 --> 00:16:13.159 upon Jephthah. God has already moved. God has 00:16:13.159 --> 00:16:15.580 already initiated. And then Jephthah makes a 00:16:15.580 --> 00:16:18.139 vow. He doesn't stop himself. He doesn't hold 00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:22.059 back. He doesn't inquire to God about this. Would 00:16:22.059 --> 00:16:24.220 this be a good idea? He doesn't seek additional 00:16:24.220 --> 00:16:26.419 wisdom. He doesn't talk to a priest. He doesn't 00:16:26.419 --> 00:16:29.019 read his Bible. He doesn't do anything to determine 00:16:29.019 --> 00:16:31.679 whether or not this course of action would be. 00:16:31.720 --> 00:16:33.840 Now, in that sense, it's rash, right? In that 00:16:33.840 --> 00:16:36.139 sense, it's rash. But he's doing it out of his 00:16:36.139 --> 00:16:38.740 programming. He's in robot mode. We've got to 00:16:38.740 --> 00:16:41.879 glorify God. Man, what more can we do to glorify 00:16:41.879 --> 00:16:43.519 God? It's got to be bigger. We've got to add 00:16:43.519 --> 00:16:47.000 more bang pow what? Or otherwise we're not truly 00:16:47.000 --> 00:16:48.720 honoring the Lord. So here's what I'm going to 00:16:48.720 --> 00:16:50.360 do. I'm going to give up whatever comes out of 00:16:50.360 --> 00:16:53.299 my house. He adds, I read a story about a man 00:16:53.299 --> 00:16:57.000 who once inherited a fully restored classic car 00:16:57.000 --> 00:16:59.799 from his dad. The engine was perfect, all original 00:16:59.799 --> 00:17:02.559 parts rebuilt by a master mechanic. But the son 00:17:02.559 --> 00:17:05.240 thought, I can make this even better. And he 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:07.019 started to just tweak it a little bit. He adjusted 00:17:07.019 --> 00:17:09.259 the timing, swapping out some parts with newer 00:17:09.259 --> 00:17:11.059 things. He's like, it doesn't have to all be 00:17:11.059 --> 00:17:13.599 original parts. I just want the best car I can 00:17:13.599 --> 00:17:16.079 possibly have. He improved it. Pretty soon, the 00:17:16.079 --> 00:17:18.180 car wouldn't start. Not because the foundation 00:17:18.180 --> 00:17:21.019 of the car was bad, but because he couldn't leave 00:17:21.019 --> 00:17:24.480 it alone. He couldn't just let it be. See, God 00:17:24.480 --> 00:17:28.440 is not... all about your happiness, or all about 00:17:28.440 --> 00:17:31.259 your desires being fulfilled, or all about your 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:33.740 plans coming to fruition? Do you understand that 00:17:33.740 --> 00:17:35.700 if from the moment you sat here today and heard 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:38.099 this sermon, that if what was necessary for God 00:17:38.099 --> 00:17:40.279 to bring you into heaven when you die, is that 00:17:40.279 --> 00:17:43.119 literally nothing else goes right in your life. 00:17:43.180 --> 00:17:44.740 Now, that's never true. We often think nothing 00:17:44.740 --> 00:17:47.000 is going right, right? In the middle, I had a 00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:48.420 pretty rough week this week, and I had things 00:17:48.420 --> 00:17:50.700 breaking down. Like, oh, that's broken too. Oh, 00:17:50.720 --> 00:17:52.539 crud, that's going to be ours to fix. I've got 00:17:52.539 --> 00:17:53.920 to pay this person to fix that because there's 00:17:53.920 --> 00:17:55.940 no way I have time. This kind of stuff was happening 00:17:55.940 --> 00:17:57.500 for the last week. And in the middle, I thought, 00:17:57.559 --> 00:18:00.799 you know what? This wouldn't be happening if 00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:02.440 I didn't have so much stuff. This wouldn't be 00:18:02.440 --> 00:18:04.119 happening if I didn't have a house and cars. 00:18:04.579 --> 00:18:06.200 I wouldn't be dealing with relationship struggles 00:18:06.200 --> 00:18:08.890 if I didn't have so many relationships. And I 00:18:08.890 --> 00:18:12.230 know people that are, often it's old, but lonely. 00:18:12.490 --> 00:18:14.269 I don't have anybody. If you're thinking about 00:18:14.269 --> 00:18:16.109 somebody in your life that frustrates you and 00:18:16.109 --> 00:18:18.849 you just can't figure out how to get them to 00:18:18.849 --> 00:18:23.289 calm down or do what you want or not come after 00:18:23.289 --> 00:18:25.190 you all the time, not get under your skin all 00:18:25.190 --> 00:18:26.430 the time, whatever, I want you to think about 00:18:26.430 --> 00:18:28.750 how lucky, how blessed, how incredibly blessed 00:18:28.750 --> 00:18:30.869 you are that you have somebody in your life. 00:18:30.970 --> 00:18:32.529 I don't know what the percentages are, but it's 00:18:32.529 --> 00:18:35.369 over double digits. Americans that do not have 00:18:35.369 --> 00:18:38.799 somebody to call or visit today. That's millions 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:41.900 of people in this country alone that do not have 00:18:41.900 --> 00:18:43.819 anybody. You have somebody that frustrates you, 00:18:43.920 --> 00:18:45.640 whoo, aren't you blessed, isn't it? Turn that 00:18:45.640 --> 00:18:47.440 around right away. It turns it around, doesn't 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:49.400 it? Boy, I'm glad I have friends. Boy, I'm glad 00:18:49.400 --> 00:18:50.859 I have family members, even the ones that drive 00:18:50.859 --> 00:18:54.940 me absolutely nuts, right? God. had already spoken 00:18:54.940 --> 00:18:57.880 through his spirit. Victory was already in motion. 00:18:58.079 --> 00:19:01.839 But progenitor me says, what God started isn't 00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:04.480 enough. I need to contribute. And in that moment, 00:19:04.519 --> 00:19:07.960 God's voice gets crowded out by fear of losing, 00:19:08.200 --> 00:19:11.539 desire to control, pressure to perform, personal 00:19:11.539 --> 00:19:15.039 sense of justice. And God is no longer the origin. 00:19:15.160 --> 00:19:17.839 He's become just one influence. And I submit 00:19:17.839 --> 00:19:20.500 to you that if you take your eyes off God, and 00:19:20.500 --> 00:19:22.640 start worrying about all those other things and 00:19:22.640 --> 00:19:24.920 making plans to deal with them all, that eventually 00:19:24.920 --> 00:19:26.960 they will become so prominent, so important, 00:19:27.039 --> 00:19:29.440 so eye -filling, that in the crowd you won't 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:31.700 even be able to see God or hear God. He'll be 00:19:31.700 --> 00:19:35.019 lost as just one influence among many. Second 00:19:35.019 --> 00:19:37.599 thing to see in there then is that what I originate 00:19:37.599 --> 00:19:41.200 reflects everything shaping me, not just God. 00:19:41.259 --> 00:19:44.019 When I start something, whatever it is, even 00:19:44.019 --> 00:19:46.400 if God says, go and do this, and I say, okay, 00:19:46.440 --> 00:19:48.720 God, how exactly? And God's like, just do it. 00:19:48.819 --> 00:19:52.759 I'm just telling you, do it. So when I'm witnessing 00:19:52.759 --> 00:19:55.319 and somebody makes it obvious that they're willing 00:19:55.319 --> 00:19:57.859 to hear the gospel and I'm just sort of spewing 00:19:57.859 --> 00:19:59.420 words as fast as I can trying to get it out. 00:19:59.460 --> 00:20:01.900 I'm so excited that this person might be saved. 00:20:02.000 --> 00:20:02.960 And God just said, that's what you've got to 00:20:02.960 --> 00:20:03.940 do. You've got to be a witness. Just tell people 00:20:03.940 --> 00:20:05.960 about Jesus. Just do it. And it's sloppy and 00:20:05.960 --> 00:20:08.119 it's messy. And they go, well, this person's 00:20:08.119 --> 00:20:13.079 just a human. But those words, they almost seem 00:20:13.079 --> 00:20:15.619 a little unhuman, a little something more than 00:20:15.619 --> 00:20:17.839 human. There's some wisdom in there. And they 00:20:17.839 --> 00:20:22.299 start to turn. What I originate reflects everything 00:20:22.299 --> 00:20:24.460 that's shaping me, not just God. And that's the 00:20:24.460 --> 00:20:26.319 way that God wants it. Because God has brought 00:20:26.319 --> 00:20:29.759 all of those other things into my life to shape 00:20:29.759 --> 00:20:35.500 me. But he must remain reigning supreme. He has 00:20:35.500 --> 00:20:38.519 to be in charge. So yes, you can have a car if 00:20:38.519 --> 00:20:40.279 you can have a car. And God will decide that, 00:20:40.339 --> 00:20:41.460 really. You can say, well, tomorrow I'm going 00:20:41.460 --> 00:20:44.259 to buy a car. You can plan all day, set the appointment, 00:20:44.420 --> 00:20:46.279 go visit with the guys, save up the money, be 00:20:46.279 --> 00:20:48.500 able to pay cash. And between now and then, God 00:20:48.500 --> 00:20:50.880 can ruin that plan. What was it? You text me, 00:20:50.920 --> 00:20:53.240 right? You want to make God laugh? Share your 00:20:53.240 --> 00:20:56.640 plans with God, right? So God can frustrate all 00:20:56.640 --> 00:20:59.339 of our best ideas if he wants to. And so it doesn't 00:20:59.339 --> 00:21:02.359 matter what you think you want to do. God has 00:21:02.359 --> 00:21:05.599 to remain supreme. Not just as a voice, but the 00:21:05.599 --> 00:21:08.660 supreme voice. Jephthah's vow is revealing. It 00:21:08.660 --> 00:21:11.779 sounds spiritual. Hyper -spiritual even. He's 00:21:11.779 --> 00:21:13.299 doing what most people would not do. He doesn't 00:21:13.299 --> 00:21:15.000 have to. He's already going to win. He doesn't 00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:16.140 have to give anything, but he's going to give 00:21:16.140 --> 00:21:18.230 his daughter. Or whatever comes out of his house 00:21:18.230 --> 00:21:21.190 first. But it's deeply distorted. Whatever comes 00:21:21.190 --> 00:21:23.250 out of my house, I will offer it. Where does 00:21:23.250 --> 00:21:25.349 that come from? It doesn't come from God's law. 00:21:25.589 --> 00:21:27.809 It's not from God's character. It comes from 00:21:27.809 --> 00:21:30.609 a world shaped by pagan thinking. Where people 00:21:30.609 --> 00:21:33.750 bargaining with God was a normal thing. So if 00:21:33.750 --> 00:21:36.069 you do the right thing, you get from God what 00:21:36.069 --> 00:21:38.150 you want. And if that's what you think is true 00:21:38.150 --> 00:21:40.210 about the God of the universe, you don't understand 00:21:40.210 --> 00:21:42.450 the God of the universe. If you think that you 00:21:42.450 --> 00:21:44.569 will always get good coming to you because you 00:21:44.569 --> 00:21:46.440 chose to do the right thing, I'm going to submit 00:21:46.440 --> 00:21:48.019 to you that half the time you think that's true, 00:21:48.099 --> 00:21:49.700 you did what you thought was the right thing 00:21:49.700 --> 00:21:51.819 that wasn't even the right thing. You see, the 00:21:51.819 --> 00:21:53.619 sin of the people in the book of Judges has always 00:21:53.619 --> 00:21:56.000 not been they sinned in this way, they were wicked 00:21:56.000 --> 00:21:57.500 in this way. It's not even that they were syncretistic. 00:21:57.660 --> 00:22:01.779 The problem is they did right what they thought 00:22:01.779 --> 00:22:04.859 was right in their own eyes. So you're walking 00:22:04.859 --> 00:22:07.000 around judging what you think is right and God's 00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:08.380 saying turn right and you're turning left because 00:22:08.380 --> 00:22:10.920 you think that's right when in reality you're 00:22:10.920 --> 00:22:13.940 ignoring God. The decision that he made comes 00:22:13.940 --> 00:22:16.480 from a world shaped by pagan thinking where people 00:22:16.480 --> 00:22:18.799 bargained with gods all the time. Think about 00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:20.980 a young athlete that steps up to the free throw 00:22:20.980 --> 00:22:23.799 line in a championship game. He bounces the ball 00:22:23.799 --> 00:22:26.000 a couple of times. He licks the bottom of his 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:28.039 shoes. You've seen it, right? He stands on the 00:22:28.039 --> 00:22:30.000 foul line. He bounces the ball a couple of times. 00:22:30.140 --> 00:22:32.240 He puts it up. He's about ready to go. He bounces 00:22:32.240 --> 00:22:34.200 the ball again. He puts it up. And he says to 00:22:34.200 --> 00:22:37.680 God, he says, God, if you let me make this shot. 00:22:38.039 --> 00:22:39.920 I'll go to church every Sunday for the rest of 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:42.319 my life because this is the foul point that's 00:22:42.319 --> 00:22:44.779 going to win the game. And he's bargaining with 00:22:44.779 --> 00:22:47.900 God. That's not faith. That's negotiation, like 00:22:47.900 --> 00:22:49.900 you might do with another human being who has 00:22:49.900 --> 00:22:52.559 their own desires and motives that are ungodly. 00:22:52.759 --> 00:22:55.460 You can negotiate with people because they have 00:22:55.460 --> 00:22:56.920 desires and motives, because everything that 00:22:56.920 --> 00:22:59.160 they originate is affected by their views, and 00:22:59.160 --> 00:23:01.140 you can resonate with their views, which is why 00:23:01.140 --> 00:23:03.240 we have them, by the way. So then when I'm sitting 00:23:03.240 --> 00:23:05.519 in the... the restaurant and sharing with the 00:23:05.519 --> 00:23:08.339 waitress, God willing, many times more, if I 00:23:08.339 --> 00:23:10.980 can find one point, one common denominator between 00:23:10.980 --> 00:23:13.160 her and I, between her story and my story, and 00:23:13.160 --> 00:23:15.420 I can hone in on that, and I can say, This is 00:23:15.420 --> 00:23:17.420 how God used that in my life. And if that resonates 00:23:17.420 --> 00:23:19.059 with her, then that brings her one step closer 00:23:19.059 --> 00:23:21.119 to knowing who God is. That's why those things 00:23:21.119 --> 00:23:22.900 are there. The gospel travels through lines of 00:23:22.900 --> 00:23:25.019 relationship and the things that God has given 00:23:25.019 --> 00:23:27.880 us in our life. And we can negotiate with people 00:23:27.880 --> 00:23:29.940 who have those similar lines. Won't you hear 00:23:29.940 --> 00:23:31.839 the gospel from me? Won't you hear about Jesus? 00:23:31.839 --> 00:23:33.700 That's what the negotiation can be. Because they 00:23:33.700 --> 00:23:35.940 have desires. They have those things too. But 00:23:35.940 --> 00:23:38.700 we don't do that with God. It didn't come from 00:23:38.700 --> 00:23:40.839 scripture. It came from pressure, fear, and cultural 00:23:40.839 --> 00:23:44.740 ideas about earning favor. When I become the 00:23:44.740 --> 00:23:47.200 originator, my plans are never pure. They're 00:23:47.200 --> 00:23:48.920 a mixture. They're a mixture of what I've seen 00:23:48.920 --> 00:23:51.640 growing up, what I'm afraid of losing, what I 00:23:51.640 --> 00:23:53.619 think will work, what culture has normalized. 00:23:54.220 --> 00:23:57.099 God's voice may be in there. I hope it is. But 00:23:57.099 --> 00:23:59.980 it's blended. And a plan that is part God and 00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:02.539 part everything else will never lead you where 00:24:02.539 --> 00:24:05.859 you want to go. Never lead you where you think 00:24:05.859 --> 00:24:07.880 it will lead you. There's a third thing to see 00:24:07.880 --> 00:24:10.500 in the text then. It is what begins with me. 00:24:10.970 --> 00:24:14.410 ends in consequences that I cannot control. How 00:24:14.410 --> 00:24:16.130 many times, you ever do this? How many times 00:24:16.130 --> 00:24:18.289 you start the ball rolling and later you go, 00:24:18.369 --> 00:24:20.829 oh, that happened because I did this. And there 00:24:20.829 --> 00:24:22.089 was that happened, that happened, that happened, 00:24:22.150 --> 00:24:23.769 but it started rolling. Now all of a sudden, 00:24:23.789 --> 00:24:25.869 I got a problem here. I didn't say something 00:24:25.869 --> 00:24:28.670 when they did that. And now that's all the way 00:24:28.670 --> 00:24:30.470 up here and a really bad thing is happening. 00:24:30.650 --> 00:24:34.450 Or I failed to, what begins with me ends in consequences 00:24:34.450 --> 00:24:37.829 I cannot control. God gives the victory. The 00:24:37.829 --> 00:24:41.670 battle is won. And then Jephthah's daughter walks 00:24:41.670 --> 00:24:44.809 out. Tambourine in hand, celebration in her heart. 00:24:44.930 --> 00:24:48.470 And in a moment, victory turns into devastation. 00:24:48.569 --> 00:24:51.029 He should have been hugging her, dancing, celebrating. 00:24:51.130 --> 00:24:53.650 Yes, yes, God gave the victory. Instead, he's 00:24:53.650 --> 00:24:55.869 breaking the news that he went on ahead and made 00:24:55.869 --> 00:24:57.890 a vow that she would be killed. I know a father. 00:24:57.990 --> 00:25:00.069 In fact, if I was going to name, I could probably 00:25:00.069 --> 00:25:02.430 name five right now. But I know men who've taken 00:25:02.430 --> 00:25:06.400 jobs, career paths, whatever. that promised more 00:25:06.400 --> 00:25:09.180 money, more stability, more opportunity. On paper, 00:25:09.339 --> 00:25:11.339 they look like a blessing. God provided this, 00:25:11.400 --> 00:25:13.819 it's going to be great. But then it demanded 00:25:13.819 --> 00:25:16.339 all their time. It demanded nights, weekends, 00:25:16.519 --> 00:25:19.619 constant travel. Years later, he's got the house, 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:22.380 he's got the income, his kids all grew up healthy, 00:25:22.579 --> 00:25:24.299 had the medicine that they needed, had the food 00:25:24.299 --> 00:25:26.259 that they needed, everything like that. But the 00:25:26.259 --> 00:25:29.200 relationship between that man and his children, 00:25:29.339 --> 00:25:31.079 that man and the kingdom, that man and kingdom 00:25:31.079 --> 00:25:33.369 values, and that man and God has suffered. The 00:25:33.369 --> 00:25:35.130 truth is, most jobs, while you do them, you can't 00:25:35.130 --> 00:25:36.990 spend the time with God that you should be spending 00:25:36.990 --> 00:25:39.230 with God. Even though you can, while you're working, 00:25:39.289 --> 00:25:40.650 spend time with God, but most of the time you 00:25:40.650 --> 00:25:42.750 can't. Not the way you would. Get alone, under 00:25:42.750 --> 00:25:44.890 a tree, just you and your Bible, pray, talk to 00:25:44.890 --> 00:25:46.910 God, and see what happens. It's totally different 00:25:46.910 --> 00:25:47.990 than while you're talking to Him while you're 00:25:47.990 --> 00:25:50.170 driving your car, or while you're fixing something 00:25:50.170 --> 00:25:52.269 on the job, or while you're making sure you're 00:25:52.269 --> 00:25:54.170 on time, or while you're making sure you didn't 00:25:54.170 --> 00:25:57.069 miss something on the grocery list. Yeah, it's 00:25:57.069 --> 00:25:59.220 totally different. So time and again, people 00:25:59.220 --> 00:26:01.740 choose a pathway that makes a lot of logical 00:26:01.740 --> 00:26:04.779 sense. But if I do this, I will get this result. 00:26:05.019 --> 00:26:06.960 And it's clear that God would want me to get 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:10.059 that result. The truth is, he got what he pursued, 00:26:10.160 --> 00:26:13.220 but he lost what he didn't account for. Progenitor 00:26:13.220 --> 00:26:16.640 me always assumes I can see far enough, I can 00:26:16.640 --> 00:26:19.859 manage the outcome, I can contain the cost. But 00:26:19.859 --> 00:26:22.880 what we originate outside of God does not stay 00:26:22.880 --> 00:26:26.569 contained. Once it starts burning, it burns everything 00:26:26.569 --> 00:26:28.930 in the vicinity. Once it starts accumulating, 00:26:28.970 --> 00:26:32.170 it accumulates like Sylvia Cynthia Snout who 00:26:32.170 --> 00:26:33.569 wouldn't take the garbage out and eventually 00:26:33.569 --> 00:26:35.890 it filled the whole state and there was no taking 00:26:35.890 --> 00:26:37.029 the garbage out because there was nowhere to 00:26:37.029 --> 00:26:39.869 take it out to. It's like that. It just keeps 00:26:39.869 --> 00:26:42.250 expanding. If you originated, it keeps expanding 00:26:42.250 --> 00:26:45.910 and the impact is long -standing. It spills. 00:26:45.910 --> 00:26:48.390 It spreads. It touches people we never intended 00:26:48.390 --> 00:26:51.349 it to touch. Jephthah won the battle and lost 00:26:51.349 --> 00:26:54.460 something far greater. That brings us then to 00:26:54.460 --> 00:26:58.720 our conclusion. It is the gospel answer to progenitor 00:26:58.720 --> 00:27:02.660 me. The me that starts things instead of doing 00:27:02.660 --> 00:27:04.779 the things that God would have me do. Or maybe 00:27:04.779 --> 00:27:06.839 in addition. Maybe you're saying, I'm doing all 00:27:06.839 --> 00:27:08.099 the things that God would have me to do, but 00:27:08.099 --> 00:27:09.579 I've got these other things that I started that 00:27:09.579 --> 00:27:13.259 weren't of God. If we're honest, this isn't just 00:27:13.259 --> 00:27:17.000 Jephthah's story. It's ours. We've all made decisions 00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:20.319 without seeking God. We've all tried to help 00:27:20.319 --> 00:27:23.039 God out. to get us where God was trying to take 00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:25.740 us. We've all created plans that felt right but 00:27:25.740 --> 00:27:28.380 ended wrong. And here's the hard truth. We've 00:27:28.380 --> 00:27:31.359 all lived as the originator at times. But the 00:27:31.359 --> 00:27:33.779 gospel tells us something powerful. When we stepped 00:27:33.779 --> 00:27:37.460 in as the flawed origin, so when we stepped in 00:27:37.460 --> 00:27:40.660 as the starter, as the creator, kind of shouldered 00:27:40.660 --> 00:27:44.059 God out of the way, Jesus Christ stepped in as 00:27:44.059 --> 00:27:46.539 the perfect substitute. Consider this comparison. 00:27:47.539 --> 00:27:50.920 Jephthah made a vow that could be called rash. 00:27:51.500 --> 00:27:55.440 certainly was ungodly. Jesus fulfilled a perfect 00:27:55.440 --> 00:27:59.299 will. Jephthah sacrificed someone else. Jesus 00:27:59.299 --> 00:28:03.640 gave himself. Jephthah acted out of fear. Jesus 00:28:03.640 --> 00:28:07.480 acted in full obedience to God. The funny thing 00:28:07.480 --> 00:28:10.559 about rebellion is that it pretends to be a certain 00:28:10.559 --> 00:28:12.480 sort of faithfulness. Wait a minute, rebellion, 00:28:12.700 --> 00:28:14.220 faithfulness, they seem to be opposites. But 00:28:14.220 --> 00:28:16.059 the thing that rebellion does that makes it so 00:28:16.059 --> 00:28:18.920 easily embraced... is it pretends to be a certain 00:28:18.920 --> 00:28:20.859 sort of faithfulness. People say things like, 00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:23.220 well, I'm just being true to myself. This is 00:28:23.220 --> 00:28:25.880 just who God made me. This is the way I'm wired. 00:28:26.119 --> 00:28:28.740 That's the way I walk. That's the way our family 00:28:28.740 --> 00:28:31.299 is. That's the way our culture is. That's the 00:28:31.299 --> 00:28:34.059 way things work, implying that you know well 00:28:34.059 --> 00:28:36.400 how things work and differently from God or from 00:28:36.400 --> 00:28:38.769 other people. Sometimes we say to ourselves, 00:28:38.910 --> 00:28:40.930 well, I'm giving more than anyone else would 00:28:40.930 --> 00:28:43.329 give. Other times we present it as wisdom saying, 00:28:43.410 --> 00:28:46.250 this just makes sense. I submit to you that the 00:28:46.250 --> 00:28:48.410 greatest things that God has ever done would 00:28:48.410 --> 00:28:51.670 make no sense in the mind of a man or a woman. 00:28:51.849 --> 00:28:54.289 Trusting God and coming to God on the terms that 00:28:54.289 --> 00:28:58.279 God laid out for us. was, and is all that is 00:28:58.279 --> 00:29:01.019 required. And in the middle of concocting our 00:29:01.019 --> 00:29:04.519 own plan or providing our own solutions, we lose 00:29:04.519 --> 00:29:07.539 the one measure of relationship that matters, 00:29:07.759 --> 00:29:11.000 faithfulness. Listen to me. When you stand before 00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:13.400 God, if you want to hear a well -done, good, 00:29:13.420 --> 00:29:16.940 and faithful servant, there is only one measure 00:29:16.940 --> 00:29:20.099 in this lifetime that matters, and that is faithfulness. 00:29:20.140 --> 00:29:23.619 Faithfulness is obedience over time. It is obedience 00:29:23.619 --> 00:29:26.490 in moments of temptation. It is obedience when 00:29:26.490 --> 00:29:28.650 an idea comes that masquerades as opportunity, 00:29:28.869 --> 00:29:31.609 but is actually disobedience. Do you remember 00:29:31.609 --> 00:29:33.369 a guy, some of you may, some of you may not, 00:29:33.509 --> 00:29:36.609 a guy named Haman? So Haman was the villain in 00:29:36.609 --> 00:29:38.529 the story of Esther, in the whole book. He was 00:29:38.529 --> 00:29:41.630 the villain. And basically, Haman hated Esther's 00:29:41.630 --> 00:29:44.829 family, and in particular, Mordecai. Mordecai 00:29:44.829 --> 00:29:48.670 didn't bow to anybody, just God. He was a devout 00:29:48.670 --> 00:29:50.490 Jewish man, believed in the Lord and the Lord 00:29:50.490 --> 00:29:53.319 only. So Haman gets a plot going, and first of 00:29:53.319 --> 00:29:56.000 all, he's going to hang Mordecai on gallows at 00:29:56.000 --> 00:29:59.880 his house. And then he gets the king, Ahasuerus, 00:29:59.880 --> 00:30:02.359 his name is hard to pronounce, but anyway, gets 00:30:02.359 --> 00:30:06.319 the king to pass a law that says that the people 00:30:06.319 --> 00:30:08.380 can attack the Jews on a certain day, and that 00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:10.480 whoever they kill, they get to keep all their 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:12.180 stuff. So he killed a guy who lives down the 00:30:12.180 --> 00:30:13.980 street, he could keep his house, his cattle. 00:30:14.419 --> 00:30:16.440 slaves, everything he's got. If he's got anything, 00:30:16.559 --> 00:30:18.240 any Jew you kill, you get to keep everything 00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:20.740 he had. It's a murderous society for a day. In 00:30:20.740 --> 00:30:23.900 the third chapter of the book of Esther, Haman 00:30:23.900 --> 00:30:26.819 is described as Haman the Agagite. Does anybody 00:30:26.819 --> 00:30:28.440 know what that means? Nod your head if you know 00:30:28.440 --> 00:30:30.140 what that means. Any Bible scholars in the room? 00:30:30.220 --> 00:30:32.960 It's a tough one. Okay, so Agag was the king 00:30:32.960 --> 00:30:36.200 of the Amalekites. The Amalekites, God ordered 00:30:36.200 --> 00:30:39.220 Saul to wipe them out. The Amalekites were the 00:30:39.220 --> 00:30:41.920 people, and they are descendants of Esau. Remember 00:30:41.920 --> 00:30:45.329 Esau, Jacob, the rivalry, right? And so the Amalekites 00:30:45.329 --> 00:30:47.569 were descendants of Esau. And when the Israelites 00:30:47.569 --> 00:30:50.829 came out of Egypt, the Amalekites attacked the 00:30:50.829 --> 00:30:53.049 people that were on the edges and the weak and 00:30:53.049 --> 00:30:55.250 the older, the infirm, people that couldn't protect 00:30:55.250 --> 00:30:57.170 themselves or that were scragglers. They attacked 00:30:57.170 --> 00:30:59.289 and killed them and took their stuff, right? 00:30:59.390 --> 00:31:01.549 So they killed, who knows, tens of thousands 00:31:01.549 --> 00:31:05.230 of elderly women, children, pregnant women, whatever 00:31:05.230 --> 00:31:06.809 they could get a hold of that were on the outer 00:31:06.809 --> 00:31:09.490 edges as this mass is coming out of Egypt. Terrible, 00:31:09.509 --> 00:31:12.230 terrible thing. And God declared that he would 00:31:12.230 --> 00:31:14.740 wipe them out for that. evil that they had done. 00:31:14.880 --> 00:31:17.420 And then he told Saul to do it. He told King 00:31:17.420 --> 00:31:20.019 Saul, go in there, kill them all. Don't take 00:31:20.019 --> 00:31:21.980 any other stuff. Raise everything, destroy everything. 00:31:22.059 --> 00:31:23.339 Everything that's in there is under the ban. 00:31:23.420 --> 00:31:25.839 Nobody gets anything. Kill them all. So Saul 00:31:25.839 --> 00:31:29.119 and the people kept some of the best plunder 00:31:29.119 --> 00:31:33.680 to supposedly sacrifice to God. And he kept Agag, 00:31:33.680 --> 00:31:37.180 the king, alive. And he lived almost as a guest 00:31:37.180 --> 00:31:40.299 in his house. Not like as a slave under the table. 00:31:40.380 --> 00:31:42.940 We don't have that record. In fact, when Agag 00:31:42.940 --> 00:31:46.160 is brought in by Samuel later. Agag says, see, 00:31:46.220 --> 00:31:48.160 wasn't the horrible time, isn't it past now? 00:31:48.420 --> 00:31:50.519 And he's just like, he's in a really good mood. 00:31:50.619 --> 00:31:52.920 The text says he's in a good mood. He's jovial. 00:31:53.079 --> 00:31:54.940 So in other words, he's been having a good time 00:31:54.940 --> 00:31:57.460 in the house of Saul. And he realizes he's not 00:31:57.460 --> 00:31:59.059 going to be punished because Saul has spared 00:31:59.059 --> 00:32:02.900 him, right? But Samuel says to Saul, God, because 00:32:02.900 --> 00:32:04.980 you have failed to follow the commands of God, 00:32:05.180 --> 00:32:07.640 the kingdom will be ripped from you. You will 00:32:07.640 --> 00:32:13.279 no longer be king of Israel. Agag and cuts him 00:32:13.279 --> 00:32:16.339 to bits, into pieces. Now, that's what God originally 00:32:16.339 --> 00:32:18.720 ordered for Agag, and it's pretty gruesome. He 00:32:18.720 --> 00:32:20.220 could have just died in combat, but he didn't, 00:32:20.220 --> 00:32:22.440 and now he's prospered. Now, I don't know whether 00:32:22.440 --> 00:32:25.759 Agag's descendant that remains, son or daughter, 00:32:25.880 --> 00:32:28.359 whichever it was, was fostered while he was living 00:32:28.359 --> 00:32:31.539 in Saul's house or not. But what I do know is 00:32:31.539 --> 00:32:35.460 that Saul was ordered to kill all of the Amalekites, 00:32:35.619 --> 00:32:39.519 Agag, and all of his descendants, and did not 00:32:39.519 --> 00:32:43.519 do so. Then Agag's descendants, one Targum says 00:32:43.519 --> 00:32:48.799 16 generations later, produces Haman, the Agagite, 00:32:48.900 --> 00:32:51.519 who then is going to hang Mordecai, the Jew, 00:32:51.759 --> 00:32:54.519 and offers a time at which the entire Jewish 00:32:54.519 --> 00:32:57.079 nation that's in captivity will be wiped out. 00:32:57.220 --> 00:33:00.640 When you are the progenitor, you will start things 00:33:00.640 --> 00:33:03.819 in motion that will have lasting ramifications, 00:33:03.980 --> 00:33:08.099 not only for you, but potentially for generations 00:33:08.099 --> 00:33:13.220 to come. When you watch TV instead of reading 00:33:13.220 --> 00:33:17.259 your Bible at night and your kids or your spouse 00:33:17.259 --> 00:33:21.180 or whoever see you watching TV instead of cracking 00:33:21.180 --> 00:33:25.079 open the Word of God, someday, at best, they 00:33:25.079 --> 00:33:28.140 will watch TV instead of reading their Bibles. 00:33:28.200 --> 00:33:31.000 At best. But it can be far worse than that because 00:33:31.000 --> 00:33:33.200 through lack of knowledge of what a godly man 00:33:33.200 --> 00:33:36.700 or woman looks like, they can live as an ungodly 00:33:36.700 --> 00:33:39.500 man or woman. They may spend their lives in jail 00:33:39.500 --> 00:33:41.960 or running a crack house, or it might be your 00:33:41.960 --> 00:33:44.519 grandkids or your great -grandkids or five or 00:33:44.519 --> 00:33:47.160 ten generations later, but somebody down the 00:33:47.160 --> 00:33:48.480 road. Do you understand that the guy who runs 00:33:48.480 --> 00:33:51.240 a crack house on your street probably has a great 00:33:51.240 --> 00:33:54.039 -great -great -grandfather who was a devout Christian 00:33:54.039 --> 00:33:56.779 man? At one point in time, the Great Awakening 00:33:56.779 --> 00:33:59.380 hit America, and it became so prevalent that 00:33:59.380 --> 00:34:02.240 in small towns all over America, there was no 00:34:02.240 --> 00:34:05.160 alcohol sales anywhere, and the United States 00:34:05.160 --> 00:34:08.780 of America, by populist vote, amended the Constitution, 00:34:09.119 --> 00:34:11.820 not made a law, amended the Constitution of the 00:34:11.820 --> 00:34:15.119 United States of America against sales of alcohol. 00:34:15.840 --> 00:34:18.980 So when they were voting against, they went to 00:34:18.980 --> 00:34:21.460 the polls and voted against alcohol, they then 00:34:21.460 --> 00:34:23.480 went home and did whatever at home, not saying 00:34:23.480 --> 00:34:25.719 they drank, did whatever at home, and then generations 00:34:25.719 --> 00:34:28.719 later, their children, five, ten generations 00:34:28.719 --> 00:34:32.840 later, opened crack houses, ran brothels, ran 00:34:32.840 --> 00:34:36.880 bars, right? When you are the progenitor, And 00:34:36.880 --> 00:34:38.920 you run on ahead of God or run outside of God, 00:34:38.980 --> 00:34:40.780 don't do what God wants you to do. Your plans 00:34:40.780 --> 00:34:43.619 have lasting ramifications. So I'm not asking 00:34:43.619 --> 00:34:46.719 you today, asking you to choose one progenitor 00:34:46.719 --> 00:34:49.500 that is God, let God alone be in charge of your 00:34:49.500 --> 00:34:52.699 life. I'm not asking you to make a better decision 00:34:52.699 --> 00:34:55.079 for you today. I'm not asking you to reclaim 00:34:55.079 --> 00:34:57.139 the rest of your life, although that will exactly 00:34:57.139 --> 00:34:59.820 be what happens. We're literally talking about 00:34:59.820 --> 00:35:02.280 the benefit, the prosperity, the success, the 00:35:02.280 --> 00:35:05.659 blessing, the heaven -bound nature of generations 00:35:05.659 --> 00:35:09.050 to come. Better you suffer, better you go without, 00:35:09.210 --> 00:35:11.190 better you deny yourself all the wants and desires 00:35:11.190 --> 00:35:13.989 you could possibly have and let God instead be 00:35:13.989 --> 00:35:16.630 the progenitor so that your kids can go to heaven, 00:35:16.769 --> 00:35:19.090 so that your grandkids and great -grandkids can 00:35:19.090 --> 00:35:21.010 go to heaven, so that your neighbor's kids can 00:35:21.010 --> 00:35:21.809 go to heaven. You say, well, I don't have any 00:35:21.809 --> 00:35:24.269 kids. Your co -workers are in the same boat. 00:35:24.590 --> 00:35:27.409 When you go to work and spit foul language like 00:35:27.409 --> 00:35:30.010 a sailor right alongside them and don't talk 00:35:30.010 --> 00:35:33.269 about Jesus, they and their kids are missing 00:35:33.269 --> 00:35:35.199 an opportunity to go to heaven. Because you're 00:35:35.199 --> 00:35:36.460 not telling them about Jesus. They don't want 00:35:36.460 --> 00:35:38.280 to hear it anyway. You don't know that. So I 00:35:38.280 --> 00:35:39.719 tried to tell them before and they didn't want 00:35:39.719 --> 00:35:41.679 to know. I had a dear friend of mine I went to 00:35:41.679 --> 00:35:43.300 high school with for two and a half years. I 00:35:43.300 --> 00:35:44.760 didn't talk to him about Jesus because he told 00:35:44.760 --> 00:35:47.059 me in no uncertain terms. I did not want to hear 00:35:47.059 --> 00:35:48.519 it. I don't want to talk about it. I want nothing 00:35:48.519 --> 00:35:50.239 to do with it. I'm not a Christian, nor will 00:35:50.239 --> 00:35:53.280 I be. I prayed for him pretty much every day 00:35:53.280 --> 00:35:54.420 for two and a half years. And then I wrote him 00:35:54.420 --> 00:35:55.900 a letter. And the first line of the letter was, 00:35:55.980 --> 00:35:57.579 I'm writing you this letter because you told 00:35:57.579 --> 00:35:59.300 me I'm not allowed to talk to you anymore about 00:35:59.300 --> 00:36:01.599 Jesus. In which I clearly explained the gospel. 00:36:02.159 --> 00:36:04.420 And he said, well, I've changed my position now. 00:36:04.739 --> 00:36:07.099 I am open to hearing what you have to say. I 00:36:07.099 --> 00:36:09.519 don't know. I know Elvis Presley's brother tells 00:36:09.519 --> 00:36:11.920 a story where he dated a girl in high school 00:36:11.920 --> 00:36:14.460 and she wouldn't go out with him. She was a devout 00:36:14.460 --> 00:36:16.320 Christian. And she wouldn't go to restaurants. 00:36:16.480 --> 00:36:18.280 She wouldn't go to movies. Nothing. This is back 00:36:18.280 --> 00:36:20.039 in the day when we understood what dating is 00:36:20.039 --> 00:36:22.960 actually for, right? And so she wouldn't go out 00:36:22.960 --> 00:36:25.079 with him. But she would go to church. And he 00:36:25.079 --> 00:36:27.420 would go to church with her if he was willing. 00:36:27.559 --> 00:36:29.699 Then he could go to church with her and she would 00:36:29.699 --> 00:36:31.199 take him. But he didn't want to go to church. 00:36:31.369 --> 00:36:33.030 He didn't want nothing to do with God. So then 00:36:33.030 --> 00:36:35.989 she let him go because she had to have a man. 00:36:36.050 --> 00:36:37.769 She was devout to God. She had to have a man 00:36:37.769 --> 00:36:39.989 who was devout to God. Otherwise, that's a marriage 00:36:39.989 --> 00:36:42.389 that you don't want to have, right? And so she 00:36:42.389 --> 00:36:46.789 said, well, 25 years later, he walked into that 00:36:46.789 --> 00:36:48.670 little church. She wasn't there. She was long 00:36:48.670 --> 00:36:50.469 gone, moved to another state or whatever. But 00:36:50.469 --> 00:36:54.079 there was a gray -haired old lady crew. And they 00:36:54.079 --> 00:36:56.500 recognized him when he walked in. He had never 00:36:56.500 --> 00:36:59.119 been in the church ever before. And for 25 years, 00:36:59.199 --> 00:37:01.199 that church had prayed for him to come to Christ. 00:37:01.380 --> 00:37:03.880 And when he walked in, they recognized him. And 00:37:03.880 --> 00:37:05.639 they gathered around him. And they said, you've 00:37:05.639 --> 00:37:07.699 come here to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord 00:37:07.699 --> 00:37:09.679 and Savior, right? And he didn't know that's 00:37:09.679 --> 00:37:11.260 why he was going. He just knew he had nothing 00:37:11.260 --> 00:37:13.820 left. He was spent. His insides were all empty. 00:37:14.019 --> 00:37:16.739 And he's like, I gotta. I got to go. So I'm going 00:37:16.739 --> 00:37:19.280 to go back in my old hometown. He'd been all 00:37:19.280 --> 00:37:21.460 over the world, back in my own hometown, and 00:37:21.460 --> 00:37:23.000 I'm going to go. And he went in there, and they 00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:24.500 gathered around him, and he accepted Christ. 00:37:24.780 --> 00:37:27.699 And then he preached that story all over the 00:37:27.699 --> 00:37:30.239 U .S., including I sat in one of his sermons 00:37:30.239 --> 00:37:32.239 and listened to it. What I'm saying to you is 00:37:32.239 --> 00:37:35.199 I'm not asking you to have Jesus as your progenitor 00:37:35.199 --> 00:37:37.460 just for your salvation, although it's that important. 00:37:38.090 --> 00:37:40.789 We see Jesus at the cross. He says, not my will, 00:37:40.849 --> 00:37:43.449 but yours be done. Jesus, who was God in the 00:37:43.449 --> 00:37:46.130 flesh, God the Son, who could command the storms 00:37:46.130 --> 00:37:48.849 and still the waves and heal the paralytic and 00:37:48.849 --> 00:37:52.190 brought people back to life. Jesus said, no, 00:37:52.269 --> 00:37:56.010 God the Father is the progenitor. Not my will, 00:37:56.190 --> 00:37:58.969 but His will be done. And because of that, our 00:37:58.969 --> 00:38:01.219 faith... Failures can be forgiven. Our missteps 00:38:01.219 --> 00:38:04.860 can be redeemed. 2 ,000 years later, almost our 00:38:04.860 --> 00:38:07.780 future can be reoriented. And I submit to you, 00:38:07.780 --> 00:38:09.880 it's not just our future, but the future of all 00:38:09.880 --> 00:38:12.179 the people in our lives and generations to come. 00:38:12.440 --> 00:38:15.480 From originator to follower. So the question 00:38:15.480 --> 00:38:18.139 isn't just, where have I messed up? And we ask 00:38:18.139 --> 00:38:20.000 that a lot. Things aren't going right. Where 00:38:20.000 --> 00:38:22.619 have I messed up? The question is, who's originating 00:38:22.619 --> 00:38:25.000 your life right now? Who's got the reins? Who's 00:38:25.000 --> 00:38:27.239 in the driver's seat? Who's originating your 00:38:27.239 --> 00:38:29.500 life? And you've got to know. It's got to be 00:38:29.500 --> 00:38:31.659 him. And if you've never done it, if you've never 00:38:31.659 --> 00:38:33.780 said, okay, God, I'm going to let you alone be 00:38:33.780 --> 00:38:35.500 in charge of my life, which, by the way, would 00:38:35.500 --> 00:38:37.780 not even be possible if it were not for the sacrifice 00:38:37.780 --> 00:38:40.260 of Jesus, then do it. And say, okay, from now 00:38:40.260 --> 00:38:42.239 on, God alone will be the originator of my life. 00:38:42.340 --> 00:38:44.980 For those who don't know Christ, it's about a 00:38:44.980 --> 00:38:47.480 surrender. Trust in what he has already done. 00:38:47.800 --> 00:38:50.500 Stop trying to author your own salvation and 00:38:50.500 --> 00:38:52.840 receive his. But for those of us who already 00:38:52.840 --> 00:38:55.960 know him, where have you taken the pen back from 00:38:55.960 --> 00:38:58.820 God? Where in your life? Did you make a decision 00:38:58.820 --> 00:39:01.559 or are you making decisions and not praying over 00:39:01.559 --> 00:39:04.679 those decisions? Not consulting the word. Faithful 00:39:04.679 --> 00:39:06.780 brothers and sisters in Christ, have you chosen 00:39:06.780 --> 00:39:09.599 a direction without scripture? A plan that you're 00:39:09.599 --> 00:39:12.139 forcing instead of following faithfulness is 00:39:12.139 --> 00:39:15.159 not a good plan at all. And remember, faithfulness 00:39:15.159 --> 00:39:18.690 is not flashy. It is obedience over time. Obedience 00:39:18.690 --> 00:39:21.409 in the face of temptation. Obedience at the moment 00:39:21.409 --> 00:39:22.949 at which you think, well, here is an alternative 00:39:22.949 --> 00:39:26.110 and it makes more sense than doing what God wants 00:39:26.110 --> 00:39:29.789 me to do. It looks like waiting when you want 00:39:29.789 --> 00:39:32.409 to act, listening when you want to speak, obeying 00:39:32.409 --> 00:39:34.789 when you don't understand. The safest place in 00:39:34.789 --> 00:39:37.389 your life is not where you are in control. It's 00:39:37.389 --> 00:39:40.969 where God is the originator of what is right 00:39:40.969 --> 00:39:43.230 now happening. You're completely aware of it 00:39:43.230 --> 00:39:47.250 and submissive to his outcomes. Lay it. down 00:39:47.250 --> 00:39:50.469 lay down the plan lay down the pressure lay down 00:39:50.469 --> 00:39:54.170 the need to make it happen god is not asking 00:39:54.170 --> 00:39:58.929 you to originate he's asking you to obey because 00:39:58.929 --> 00:40:02.070 saul did not obey you think god did not know 00:40:02.440 --> 00:40:04.400 about Haman, the Agagite, while Saul was alive 00:40:04.400 --> 00:40:06.559 16 generations before, God sure knew. Because 00:40:06.559 --> 00:40:08.980 Saul did not obey and killed the Agagites, who 00:40:08.980 --> 00:40:11.860 were of the Amalekites, who were the people that 00:40:11.860 --> 00:40:14.219 killed the weak coming out of Egypt. Because 00:40:14.219 --> 00:40:17.519 Saul did not obey, he created a risk for all 00:40:17.519 --> 00:40:19.300 of God's people. And you say, well, Saul was 00:40:19.300 --> 00:40:20.980 a king. He was a big deal. You know, Saul wasn't 00:40:20.980 --> 00:40:22.699 a big deal before he was a king. In fact, in 00:40:22.699 --> 00:40:24.380 that same chapter 15, Samuel reminds him, you 00:40:24.380 --> 00:40:26.340 had nothing, and God made you king of all of 00:40:26.340 --> 00:40:28.500 Israel. So that'd be you. I'm not a king. You're 00:40:28.500 --> 00:40:30.820 not a king. Understand that the decision to let 00:40:30.820 --> 00:40:33.809 God originate what's going on in your life affects 00:40:33.809 --> 00:40:35.690 your family, affects all the people that you 00:40:35.690 --> 00:40:37.550 know, and all the people that know the people 00:40:37.550 --> 00:40:39.070 that you know, and the people that know the people 00:40:39.070 --> 00:40:41.050 that you know that you know. See? It spreads. 00:40:41.389 --> 00:40:45.150 Now, in 30 years of being a Christian, it's weird, 00:40:45.309 --> 00:40:47.469 but I've led three people named Kendra to Christ. 00:40:47.650 --> 00:40:49.110 Three separate people, three different times, 00:40:49.150 --> 00:40:51.269 that prayed to accept Christ. One of them, an 00:40:51.269 --> 00:40:54.829 Islamic man, was there, and when she was praying 00:40:54.829 --> 00:40:56.829 to accept Christ, he prayed along with us. And 00:40:56.829 --> 00:40:59.070 that's definitely not a Christian religion. Right? 00:40:59.190 --> 00:41:01.510 Three times. And I don't know them. They don't 00:41:01.510 --> 00:41:02.929 come to church here. I don't know where they 00:41:02.929 --> 00:41:05.070 go to church. I don't know what they're doing. 00:41:05.190 --> 00:41:07.510 Two of them were waitresses. I met them because 00:41:07.510 --> 00:41:09.869 I was out eating out dinner. Three women named 00:41:09.869 --> 00:41:12.469 Kendra. But they know people. And if they're 00:41:12.469 --> 00:41:14.230 following God, they'll be found obedient and 00:41:14.230 --> 00:41:15.969 they'll be sharing the gospel. And I wonder if 00:41:15.969 --> 00:41:18.630 they'll win anybody to Christ named Kendra. I 00:41:18.630 --> 00:41:20.550 may not know until I get to heaven. I'm asking 00:41:20.550 --> 00:41:22.650 you, if you're here today and you're not, you're 00:41:22.650 --> 00:41:25.559 originating your life, stop it. Commit it to 00:41:25.559 --> 00:41:27.960 God and let him do it. Let him take care of it. 00:41:28.000 --> 00:41:30.000 He's got more resources, more wisdom, more strength, 00:41:30.099 --> 00:41:32.139 more experience, everything. He's got more of 00:41:32.139 --> 00:41:33.920 everything. Let him do it. Turn your life over 00:41:33.920 --> 00:41:36.079 to God through Jesus Christ, the Son. If you're 00:41:36.079 --> 00:41:38.340 here today as a Christian, I came in here as 00:41:38.340 --> 00:41:40.320 a Christian, but now I see areas where I've kind 00:41:40.320 --> 00:41:42.949 of taken control. Stop that. Don't do it anymore. 00:41:43.409 --> 00:41:45.969 Submit those areas of your life over to God through 00:41:45.969 --> 00:41:47.809 Jesus Christ and say, what would God have me 00:41:47.809 --> 00:41:49.809 do? What does obedience look like here? You can 00:41:49.809 --> 00:41:51.730 never go wrong with reading your Bible, praying, 00:41:51.849 --> 00:41:54.429 serving, giving, loving others, sharing the gospel. 00:41:54.489 --> 00:41:55.829 These are commands of scripture. You can never 00:41:55.829 --> 00:41:57.730 go wrong doing those things. Do what God commanded 00:41:57.730 --> 00:42:00.170 you to do and stop coming up with alternatives. 00:42:00.650 --> 00:42:02.469 I ask the praise team to come forward then and 00:42:02.469 --> 00:42:04.769 lead us in our closing hymn. And as we sing, 00:42:04.889 --> 00:42:07.190 if the Lord has spoken to you in some way. You 00:42:07.190 --> 00:42:09.170 respond. If you're accepting Jesus Christ as 00:42:09.170 --> 00:42:10.690 your Lord and Savior for the first time today, 00:42:10.849 --> 00:42:12.949 I want you to come right up here and tell me 00:42:12.949 --> 00:42:15.130 that. Okay, I'm turning my life over to you. 00:42:15.210 --> 00:42:16.710 Doesn't matter if somebody thought you did it 00:42:16.710 --> 00:42:19.170 already before, whatever. This is the first time 00:42:19.170 --> 00:42:20.429 you're truly turning your life over to the Lord, 00:42:20.449 --> 00:42:23.550 letting God be your present for it. He'll start 00:42:23.550 --> 00:42:25.590 everything. He'll set the plans. He'll set the 00:42:25.590 --> 00:42:28.070 direction. If that's what you're doing, then... 00:42:28.329 --> 00:42:29.710 You come today and let me know that, and we'll 00:42:29.710 --> 00:42:31.590 pray together. If you're here today as a Christian 00:42:31.590 --> 00:42:33.550 already, I am a Christian, but I've got a few 00:42:33.550 --> 00:42:35.070 things in my own hand. I've been writing my own 00:42:35.070 --> 00:42:37.769 story. I've been making things for you. And you 00:42:37.769 --> 00:42:39.130 realize you've got to stop doing that because 00:42:39.130 --> 00:42:41.230 the ramifications go far beyond what we can see. 00:42:41.469 --> 00:42:43.030 Then you make that commitment. Then you move 00:42:43.030 --> 00:42:45.590 forward. We'll pray together. And you say, I'm 00:42:45.590 --> 00:42:47.210 going to turn my life back over to the Lord. 00:42:47.309 --> 00:42:50.409 I'm done with my own plans. I'll consult my plans 00:42:50.409 --> 00:42:52.289 with the Lord's plans. Realize that sometimes 00:42:52.289 --> 00:42:54.949 it will seem rash. I had to make a quick decision, 00:42:55.010 --> 00:42:57.320 so I just made a quick decision. Because the 00:42:57.320 --> 00:42:58.940 truth is, you wouldn't have had to make that 00:42:58.940 --> 00:43:00.780 quick decision if you had prepared in advance 00:43:00.780 --> 00:43:02.559 and spent a little time with the Lord, spent 00:43:02.559 --> 00:43:04.659 a little time preparing yourself. You might never 00:43:04.659 --> 00:43:07.000 have gotten that situation, but if you did, you 00:43:07.000 --> 00:43:09.239 might have already had the answer, and the decision 00:43:09.239 --> 00:43:11.780 might not have had the same rash. Our prayer 00:43:11.780 --> 00:43:13.820 time with God is an ongoing conversation. She 00:43:13.820 --> 00:43:15.699 talks to Him all the time, and every time you 00:43:15.699 --> 00:43:17.519 pick up, talk to Him again. I would say, sorry, 00:43:17.559 --> 00:43:19.159 God, I was off the phone for a minute here, but 00:43:19.159 --> 00:43:21.260 I'm back now because the Word calls us to be 00:43:21.260 --> 00:43:23.269 praying without sleep. and keep the conversation 00:43:23.269 --> 00:43:25.110 going. Now, you've got that conversation going, 00:43:25.190 --> 00:43:26.670 you know the mind of Christ, 1 Corinthians 2, 00:43:26.889 --> 00:43:28.789 and when that weird thing happens, you'll know 00:43:28.789 --> 00:43:30.889 it. You'll already know what God wants, and it 00:43:30.889 --> 00:43:32.949 won't be a racket. So just stand with me as we 00:43:32.949 --> 00:43:34.869 sing this song, as the Lord is speaking to your 00:43:34.869 --> 00:43:58.250 heart in some way, and we respond. We believe 00:43:58.250 --> 00:44:11.829 that we have life in the name of Jesus. We believe 00:44:11.829 --> 00:44:19.989 though we have never seen. We believe and choose 00:44:19.989 --> 00:44:52.829 to follow our King. Go King Jesus! We believe 00:44:52.829 --> 00:45:04.329 that he's coming again. We believe. Oh, we believe. 00:45:10.269 --> 00:45:14.809 Sing one more verse. We believe that he's coming 00:45:14.809 --> 00:45:18.889 again. The Lord is speaking into your heart right 00:45:18.889 --> 00:45:19.110 now.