1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,440 Welcome to the Potter's House Salmon Arm podcast. We are a Bible-Believing Church located 2 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:16,680 in beautiful British Columbia, Canada. We are proudly part of the Christian Fellowship 3 00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:21,920 Ministries with 3,000 churches around the world. We are a church focused on world evangelism, 4 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:27,300 discipleship and church planting. Here we will share recent sermons from P.H.S.A. Church 5 00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:31,880 and other sermons from throughout our fellowship. I am Pastor David Bickford and I will be your 6 00:00:31,880 --> 00:00:36,420 host for this podcast. I thank you for listening today and we hope these messages are a blessing 7 00:00:36,420 --> 00:00:42,240 to you and bring you closer to God. 8 00:00:42,240 --> 00:00:52,720 Hey, and welcome back to the Potter's House podcast and seminar in British Columbia. My 9 00:00:52,720 --> 00:01:01,080 name is David Bickford and I am the pastor here at the Potter's House. Today's message 10 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:08,100 I have put together is called, God Wants Your Heart. The subheading for this message is, 11 00:01:08,100 --> 00:01:13,760 the rest will come in time. I think it's important for us to always recognize that as in our 12 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:19,160 Christian walk that we always want to try to make things a lot more difficult than they 13 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:26,000 really need to be. As long as you are moving towards Christ with a desire to become just 14 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:33,440 like the name Christian in titles, to be more Christ-like, then that is the right path. 15 00:01:33,440 --> 00:01:40,960 With that, I am not putting aside theology. I do believe all that stuff is important. 16 00:01:40,960 --> 00:01:46,880 But my point is that if you give him your heart, the rest will come in time. So our 17 00:01:46,880 --> 00:01:54,200 text that we will be working off of today is going to be John 3, 16-17. So if you have 18 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:58,880 your Bible, if you are following along, you can turn to that portion of scripture. That 19 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:04,700 will be our launching off point. Before I get into that, I want to go into a few illustrations 20 00:02:04,700 --> 00:02:09,720 that I found that I believe are important or that kind of help us with this message. 21 00:02:09,720 --> 00:02:16,160 The first one is a quote from Steve Jobs. It says, here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, 22 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:21,120 the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs and square holes, the ones who see things 23 00:02:21,120 --> 00:02:25,800 differently. They're not fond of the rules. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify 24 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:31,240 or vilify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. 25 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:36,120 They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as crazy ones, we see the 26 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:40,660 genius because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are 27 00:02:40,660 --> 00:02:44,360 the ones who do. 28 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:50,600 Now with that, I don't want to reference too heavily the thought of being a rule breaker 29 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:57,080 because in Christ Jesus, he is the fulfillment of the law. And so he did not break the law, 30 00:02:57,080 --> 00:03:02,280 but he fulfilled the law. But still, we'll come back to that. I do believe there is quite 31 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:09,400 a bit of wisdom from this quote from Steve Jobs. And we'll be able to pull this in and 32 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:12,040 use the scripture to kind of get a little bit more clarity. 33 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:17,640 I found another one though for an illustration. It's called a Google search for Gaga changed 34 00:03:17,640 --> 00:03:24,000 my life gets four million results. Lady Gaga identifies the world or identifies with the 35 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:29,120 world's misfits. So this is a little bit of a longer one, but it's a and here's the editor's 36 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:33,240 note. It's easy to focus on what we don't like about the lifestyle and songs of the 37 00:03:33,240 --> 00:03:38,600 pop singer Lady Gaga. But this story reveals why millions of young people identify with 38 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:44,440 her and why the church might be missing an opportunity to love the world's misfits. So 39 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:50,240 the article reads Lady Gaga has sold over 64 million singles and won five Grammy Awards. 40 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:54,480 She's one of the most popular social media voices in the world with more than 33 million 41 00:03:54,480 --> 00:04:00,560 Twitter followers and 55 million Facebook fans. The pop singer also has attracted millions 42 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:07,320 of fans around the globe who claim that she has changed their lives for the better. A 43 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:12,760 Google search for Gaga changed my life gets four million results marketing expert Jackie 44 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:18,800 Hubba argues that many of Gaga's fans identify with her concerns or concern for outcasts 45 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:24,880 and the misfits and an emotional MTV interview. Lady Gaga recounts some of the shame and humiliation 46 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:30,840 from high school that helped mold her and her life and left lasting deep scars. The 47 00:04:30,840 --> 00:04:35,640 boys picked me up and threw me in the trash can on the street on the corner of my block 48 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:41,000 while all other girls from the school were leaving and could see me in the trash. Everybody 49 00:04:41,000 --> 00:04:45,720 was laughing and I was even laughing. I had that nervous giggle. I remember even one of 50 00:04:45,720 --> 00:04:51,280 the girls looking at me. Are you about to cry? You're pathetic. Out of her own feelings 51 00:04:51,280 --> 00:04:56,480 of being a misfit Lady Gaga has created a community of outcasts. When old friends attended 52 00:04:56,480 --> 00:05:01,760 one of her shows, they told her Gaga your fans are all of the misfits. They are all 53 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:07,200 the kinds of kids in school that everybody made fun of. She later told MTV all the weird 54 00:05:07,200 --> 00:05:13,560 kids the artistic kids all the bad ones and I love that because that's who I was. We're 55 00:05:13,560 --> 00:05:19,960 all together and they get it. It's our own little world. In Romans 12 16 it says live 56 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:26,040 in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Never be wise 57 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:32,200 in your own sight. So let's look at our scripture this morning our primary text which is John 58 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:38,760 3 16 through 17 and it says for God so loved the world for God so loved the world that 59 00:05:38,760 --> 00:05:43,800 he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal 60 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:49,860 life. This is my favorite part though for God did not send his son into the world to 61 00:05:49,860 --> 00:05:55,880 condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him. The message is 62 00:05:55,880 --> 00:06:03,320 one of redemption. It's not it's not a it's not one of condemnation. It's one of salvation 63 00:06:03,320 --> 00:06:08,780 is one of taking someone who's sinking in the sea that is the world of sin and throwing 64 00:06:08,780 --> 00:06:13,200 them a lifeline and pulling them out of the predicament that they find themselves in. 65 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:20,520 It's it's the saving of people who feel like they are misfits but really what they are 66 00:06:20,520 --> 00:06:27,680 is they're just lacking Christ in their lives oftentimes. In Matthew 9 10 it says 9 10 through 67 00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:33,520 13 and Jesus reclined at the table in the house behold many tax collectors and sinners 68 00:06:33,520 --> 00:06:38,320 came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this 69 00:06:38,320 --> 00:06:43,160 they said to the disciples why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners. But when 70 00:06:43,160 --> 00:06:47,720 he heard it he said those who are well have no need for a physician but those who are 71 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:54,120 sick go and learn what this means. I desire mercy and not sacrifice for I came not not 72 00:06:54,120 --> 00:07:01,800 to call the righteous but the sinners. The importance here is that we are called to look 73 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:09,960 beyond what is considered the right people or the the popular people in our society. 74 00:07:09,960 --> 00:07:14,760 We are called to look beyond that and to see all people the way Jesus sees people seeing 75 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:21,080 people in need as the people that we are supposed to go out in minister to. So why does God 76 00:07:21,080 --> 00:07:25,240 pick the misfits the outcasts and the oddballs then because that's what he did in his time 77 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:31,120 in society is he went to the he went to the parts of the Jewish community that were being 78 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:36,840 neglected by the Pharisees and Sadducees at the time. Throughout the entirety of the Bible 79 00:07:36,840 --> 00:07:40,840 we see this trend the trend is that God's choice for the oddballs and the rejects and 80 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:45,920 the misfits this permeates both the Old and the New Testament after the fall of man being 81 00:07:45,920 --> 00:07:50,400 cast into the garden it became clear that many of the earth shakers in the kingdom of 82 00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:56,720 God were characters they were oddballs. The story of Noah gives us a picture of a man 83 00:07:56,720 --> 00:08:02,380 and his family building a massive ship away from the ocean and the sea. What kind of man 84 00:08:02,380 --> 00:08:08,160 would have the faith to start a project of this type then to go on for years building 85 00:08:08,160 --> 00:08:12,560 while being mocked and ridiculed by all his community. He would have hired help to help 86 00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:17,040 him build this and they would have been like this is the dumbest thing ever but at least 87 00:08:17,040 --> 00:08:21,320 I'm getting paid right they would have been mocking him even while working. We can look 88 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:26,280 at this story and move into our day and age by looking at those who've created unimaginable 89 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:32,220 creations in our time like Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Henry Ford, Nikola Tesla and many others 90 00:08:32,220 --> 00:08:38,080 the true truly oddball innovators of our time. We can see that it takes these type of men 91 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:42,640 and women to push the boundaries in our society. Now when we go back to the Word of God we 92 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:49,000 see this thread continued we have the fathers of our faith Abraham as we venture further 93 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:55,760 we have Jacob, Joseph, Moses, the judges, King David, the prophets, even Mary and Joseph. 94 00:08:55,760 --> 00:09:00,140 God works through the outcasts he works with these oddballs because it is those who are 95 00:09:00,140 --> 00:09:06,720 willing to preach unashamed of the gospel and to rise above their humble beginnings 96 00:09:06,720 --> 00:09:13,160 and fully serve our savior. My first point here is that God's always picking these oddballs 97 00:09:13,160 --> 00:09:18,920 and the God's Old Testament picks really start to highlight a trend for us. Imagine having 98 00:09:18,920 --> 00:09:25,700 a conversation with Jacob explaining your God to a polytheistic pagan. Most of the world 99 00:09:25,700 --> 00:09:30,580 worshiped many gods and carried idols with them everywhere. Now if you ask Jacob to explain 100 00:09:30,580 --> 00:09:35,480 his God you can picture him saying I do not carry idols for my God for he is a spirit 101 00:09:35,480 --> 00:09:40,640 and invisible to man except that time when I wrestled him and he broke my hip and changed 102 00:09:40,640 --> 00:09:45,960 my name to Israel. How crazy does that sound in the context of the time and how much more 103 00:09:45,960 --> 00:09:52,400 crazy does it sound to our ears today? Joseph is similar when you consider his dream of 104 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:59,800 ruling over his brothers and his father who was Jacob Israel. In fact it was so out there 105 00:09:59,800 --> 00:10:05,160 that his father even rebuked him at the time. He was such a reject, a misfit, an oddball 106 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:10,680 that his brothers sold him into captivity. This didn't deter Joseph though. He clung 107 00:10:10,680 --> 00:10:18,020 to his faith and was truly risen up and the godly dream was realized when he was the salvation 108 00:10:18,020 --> 00:10:24,000 for not only his family but for the entire kingdom of Egypt. He became the second highest 109 00:10:24,000 --> 00:10:31,520 governor of Egypt just under the Pharaoh. So we've looked so far at Noah, Jacob, and 110 00:10:31,520 --> 00:10:37,800 Joseph but we have not even scratched the surface. We have Moses. I met God at a fiery 111 00:10:37,800 --> 00:10:45,440 shrub. In the book of Exodus we get introduced to Moses given up by his mother and by God's 112 00:10:45,440 --> 00:10:51,120 hand adopted into the Pharaoh's house. He was raised as a prince but became an outlaw 113 00:10:51,120 --> 00:10:56,160 and a murderer. Fleeing into the wilderness after being rebuked by his Hebrew brothers 114 00:10:56,160 --> 00:11:02,520 he stayed in the desert finding a wife and becoming a shepherd. It was here that he encountered 115 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:07,760 the burning bush. It was in this obscurity that he met with God and from that place of 116 00:11:07,760 --> 00:11:13,800 obscurity that he was led back to free his people from Egyptian rule. Moses was called 117 00:11:13,800 --> 00:11:20,260 out of the shadows but he remained an oddity to those he served. It was clear that God 118 00:11:20,260 --> 00:11:25,920 was with him but regardless he was still very isolated. Later on we have King David, the 119 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:31,920 lion slayer, the giant destroyer and his sinner and more. So my favorite character in all 120 00:11:31,920 --> 00:11:37,880 the Bible is David and it's not because my name is David. It's more than that. Yes I 121 00:11:37,880 --> 00:11:41,440 know that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are the primaries in the Bible but 122 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:47,440 it's the story of David that shows us how we can serve God with humility and despite 123 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:54,600 our own failings. David was taken from the fields. His own dad overlooked him when the 124 00:11:54,600 --> 00:12:00,200 prophet Samuel asked to see the sons of Jesse. He was the son that rose up for Israel and 125 00:12:00,200 --> 00:12:07,280 defeated Goliath and he was rewarded with hate from King Saul. Hiding and running from 126 00:12:07,280 --> 00:12:13,760 Saul until Saul's death, once coronated as king he succumbed to temptation and became 127 00:12:13,760 --> 00:12:21,420 an adulterer and conspired to kill the husband of Bathsheba his friend. It is through all 128 00:12:21,420 --> 00:12:26,840 of David's ups and downs that we see how we can still come to the Lord for forgiveness. 129 00:12:26,840 --> 00:12:32,720 We can praise our Lord, worship our Lord and when we mess up we can repent and be forgiven. 130 00:12:32,720 --> 00:12:38,840 David's life was very difficult but he is noted in the Bible as a man after God's heart. 131 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:44,880 His ultimate claim to fame is not his nobility, his royalty, but rather that he was a servant 132 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:53,720 of the Lord. We then have the prophets Elijah, Elisha, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and John the Baptist. 133 00:12:53,720 --> 00:13:00,800 In 1 Kings 19 through 21 it says, So he departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat 134 00:13:00,800 --> 00:13:07,660 who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen in front of him and he was with the twelve. Elijah 135 00:13:07,660 --> 00:13:12,680 passed by him and cast his cloak upon him and he left the oxen and ran after Elijah 136 00:13:12,680 --> 00:13:16,880 and said, Let me kiss my father and my mother and then I will follow you. And he said to 137 00:13:16,880 --> 00:13:22,440 him, Go back again for what have I done to you? And he returned from following him and 138 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:27,760 took the yoke of oxen, sacrificed them and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen 139 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:32,200 and gave it to the people and they ate. Then he arose and went after Elijah and assisted 140 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:40,200 him. These are some weird, weird stories. That's like Elisha, Elijah's second, you know, 141 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:47,200 this is origin story. It's like weird stories. Jeremiah 1 5, before I formed you in the womb, 142 00:13:47,200 --> 00:13:53,200 I knew you and before you were born, I consecrated you. I appointed you a prophet of nations. 143 00:13:53,200 --> 00:13:57,960 Ezekiel 3 17, Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever 144 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:03,200 you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them a warning for me. Ezekiel 3 26 through 145 00:14:03,200 --> 00:14:08,840 27, and I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth so that you shall be mute 146 00:14:08,840 --> 00:14:14,240 and unable to reprove them for they are rebellious house. But when I speak with you, I will open 147 00:14:14,240 --> 00:14:18,880 your mouth and you shall say to them, thus says the Lord God, he who will hear, let him 148 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:23,400 hear and he who will refuse to hear, let him refuse for their rebellious house. 149 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:29,040 Now here's a guy, he's a prophet, but every time he's not talking the words of God and 150 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:34,160 when he is not prophesying, he's got his tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth so he can't 151 00:14:34,160 --> 00:14:42,680 talk. That's a pretty odd guy. This brings me to my second point, which is Jesus in the 152 00:14:42,680 --> 00:14:49,480 New Testament picks this thread of picking people who the world might not think are the 153 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:57,160 right choices, but God can see past that and can see through that and see the perfect choice 154 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:05,120 even amongst the oddballs, if you will. So we have John the Baptist in Matthew 3 1 through 155 00:15:05,120 --> 00:15:09,600 6. In those days, John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, repent for the 156 00:15:09,600 --> 00:15:14,680 kingdom of heaven is at hand for this is he who was spoken by the prophet Isaiah when 157 00:15:14,680 --> 00:15:19,880 he said the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make his path 158 00:15:19,880 --> 00:15:24,960 straight. Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist and 159 00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:29,720 his food was locusts with wild honey. And then Jerusalem and all of Judea and all the 160 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:34,480 region about the Jordan were going out to him and they were baptized by him and the 161 00:15:34,480 --> 00:15:39,440 river Jordan confessing their sins. So the first thing we get to see is we get to see 162 00:15:39,440 --> 00:15:47,040 this oddball out in the wilderness preaching about repentance and baptism. And then we 163 00:15:47,040 --> 00:15:53,720 have all the disciples, the fishermen, Simon Peter, son of Jonah or Jonas was a fisherman 164 00:15:53,720 --> 00:15:58,960 and an impetuous man. He was emotional always and he spoke whatever was on his mind and 165 00:15:58,960 --> 00:16:04,880 he was very impulsive. Andrew son of Jonas, the brother of Simon Peter, like his brother, 166 00:16:04,880 --> 00:16:08,640 he was also a fisherman, lived in Bethesda, Capernam. Originally he was a disciple of 167 00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:13,560 John the Baptist, but left to follow Jesus. So here we got another guy. Here's a guy. 168 00:16:13,560 --> 00:16:17,560 He's not only a fisherman, which fishermen were looked pretty down upon in Jewish society. 169 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:22,000 It's a pretty low labor position, but not only that, but he follows that crazy guy on 170 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:28,880 the desert, desert eating locusts with honey. James son of Zebedee and Salome brother of 171 00:16:28,880 --> 00:16:33,320 apostle John James the greater was the first martyr among the 12 disciples and the only 172 00:16:33,320 --> 00:16:40,520 one recorded in the Bible. Another fisherman as well. And then John son of Zebedee, brother 173 00:16:40,520 --> 00:16:47,000 of the, of James that we just said. And he was also known as John the evangelist. He 174 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:54,760 wrote the gospel of, of a first John, second John, third John and revelation. 175 00:16:54,760 --> 00:17:02,600 Judy status also known as Jude or Libyus was the son of Alpheus and Cleo Cleophas and Mary. 176 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:07,600 He lived in Galilee and was a brother of James the younger. And he was also called Judas 177 00:17:07,600 --> 00:17:14,600 the zealot. So like Simeon or Simon, he was an intense and violent nationalist with the 178 00:17:14,600 --> 00:17:19,280 dreams of world power and domination by the chosen people. So these are the fishermen, 179 00:17:19,280 --> 00:17:24,460 but these are the guys like, you're like, man, these guys are weirdos already. The lesser 180 00:17:24,460 --> 00:17:31,160 known ones like Philip, they say he becomes a living personality in the gospel of John. 181 00:17:31,160 --> 00:17:36,780 Then we have Bartholomew, who's also called Nathaniel, who was a true Israelite and there's 182 00:17:36,780 --> 00:17:42,100 nothing false that anybody can say about him. But these are like lesser known guys. James 183 00:17:42,100 --> 00:17:47,980 is also James the less, who's son of Alpheus and Mary. And he was also like the brother 184 00:17:47,980 --> 00:17:51,880 of Jude who lived in Galilee. He was the oldest amongst the 12 disciples, but unlike James 185 00:17:51,880 --> 00:17:56,920 the greater, he is one of the most obscure apostles. So here we got, we got some weirdos 186 00:17:56,920 --> 00:18:01,400 like the fishermen. And then we got these guys that are like rejects or like just kind 187 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:06,760 of out loud skirts. Nobody cares who they are. But then we come now to the disreputable 188 00:18:06,760 --> 00:18:12,040 apostles. We have Matthew also known as Levi was the son of Alpheus who lived in Capernay 189 00:18:12,040 --> 00:18:17,320 and he was a publican, a tax collector, one of the most despised people in Jewish culture. 190 00:18:17,320 --> 00:18:25,200 He worked for the, you know, the oppressive Romans collecting taxes. Thomas, did him as 191 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:29,480 often referred to as doubting Thomas lived in Galilee. He was a pessimist, a Bill Wilder 192 00:18:29,480 --> 00:18:33,200 man, a man who couldn't believe until he'd seen. And so we always have that story about 193 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:39,240 the doubting Thomas. He didn't believe unless he could see. And then last we have a, we 194 00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:43,960 have Simon the zealot who was a Canaanite who lived in Galilee. He is also one of the 195 00:18:43,960 --> 00:18:48,360 less known disciples of the Bible. But interestingly, his name was only mentioned three times in 196 00:18:48,360 --> 00:18:52,600 the Bible. So we don't know about him except that he was a zealot. Zealots were part of 197 00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:59,080 that fanatical Jewish nationalist group who had a heroic disregard for the suffering involved 198 00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:02,880 and the struggle for what they regarded as the purity of their faith. These were, these 199 00:19:02,880 --> 00:19:09,480 were extremists, religious extremists of the time, if you will. But they were crazed with 200 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:14,760 hatred for the Roman Empire. And then of course I didn't touch on it too much, but you have 201 00:19:14,760 --> 00:19:21,480 Judas Iscariot, who's the betrayer. Interesting thing about Judas is that he's the most famous 202 00:19:21,480 --> 00:19:29,360 or reputable of the disciples. He was someone that was considered good with money. He was 203 00:19:29,360 --> 00:19:36,980 their treasurer. And so it's, it's very interesting though, that he is the one who, who's most 204 00:19:36,980 --> 00:19:43,000 reputable who ends up being the one to betray our Lord. And this brings me to my final point, 205 00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:50,320 the rest will come. The least likely apostle, the special apostleship of Paul, who is also 206 00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:56,040 known as Saul. There's however this special apostolic office that we have given to a man 207 00:19:56,040 --> 00:20:00,760 named Paul who had never shared the public ministry of Jesus, but stood witness to the 208 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:06,280 grace of God. The apostle to the Gentiles, it is this unique purpose of Paul. He wasn't 209 00:20:06,280 --> 00:20:13,040 part of the 12, but the 12 apostles accepted him as someone sharing their tasks and responsibilities. 210 00:20:13,040 --> 00:20:18,640 Second Peter 315. Paul, a former persecutor of Christians, encountered Jesus through a 211 00:20:18,640 --> 00:20:23,520 blinding light that speaks to him on his way to Damascus. After this encounter, he lived 212 00:20:23,520 --> 00:20:29,280 a changed life, declaring the grace of God and his good news. Paul was not part of the 213 00:20:29,280 --> 00:20:33,800 12, but was considered as an apostle for those who do not belong to the tribe of Israel, 214 00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:38,720 the Gentiles, because of his calling, other nations received God's salvation. Paul was 215 00:20:38,720 --> 00:20:43,880 the least likely to be called by Jesus, but regardless, he came face to face with our 216 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:49,820 savior and this meeting left Paul blind and all his beliefs shaken. This led to his powerful 217 00:20:49,820 --> 00:20:55,440 conversion and he moved from persecutor and killer of Christians to one of the most devout 218 00:20:55,440 --> 00:21:00,280 and important preachers of the gospel. As the apostle to the Gentiles, it is Paul that 219 00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:05,760 we have most to thank for his ministry and bringing the good news to the Gentile world 220 00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:10,120 and his challenging of even Peter to live according to the words of Jesus and the mission 221 00:21:10,120 --> 00:21:15,680 of Christ. So we oddballs and misfits by looking at all these characters, it's important to 222 00:21:15,680 --> 00:21:19,440 know that this is only, only scratches the surface. There are a number of other women 223 00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:23,780 who follow Jesus and other men who are called to, you know, who God called. Many of these 224 00:21:23,780 --> 00:21:28,920 were prostitutes, Gentiles, and others that society deemed unworthy. The key to all of 225 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:33,040 this is that we were never beyond redemption and salvation. That is why even if we are 226 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:38,260 at the end time, we are called to push forward. We are meant to recognize the time continually 227 00:21:38,260 --> 00:21:43,220 moving forward with a purpose of Christ. We are called to preach to every living creature. 228 00:21:43,220 --> 00:21:47,920 You cannot shut down when you are fearful, when you feel unworthy. It is in Christ in 229 00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:54,400 you that empowers us and wills us to work through it and his will to work through us. 230 00:21:54,400 --> 00:22:00,280 So we must remember all these outcasts and misfits and understand that God loves all 231 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:07,000 of us and it is often the most unlikely people that God chooses for the highest and most 232 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:12,600 impactful ministries. Like Moses in the wilderness or David in the fields, God chooses those 233 00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:19,680 who will give them their heart. Jesus Iscariot had all the training and skills, but he refused 234 00:22:19,680 --> 00:22:26,060 to give Jesus his heart. And it was here where he became willing to betray our Savior. So 235 00:22:26,060 --> 00:22:33,120 Jesus chooses us and he has chosen you too. In Ephesians 2, 8-10, for by grace you have 236 00:22:33,120 --> 00:22:38,400 been saved through faith and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God, not a result 237 00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:44,240 of the works so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ 238 00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:50,560 Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand so that we should walk in them. 239 00:22:50,560 --> 00:22:56,640 So in closing, every head bowed, every eye closed. If you are driving keep your eyes 240 00:22:56,640 --> 00:23:03,640 open, keep your hands ten and two. For everybody else, every head bowed, every eye closed. 241 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:08,040 It's time to give Jesus Christ your heart. Give him your heart fully and all the rest 242 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:14,400 will come in time. He will strengthen you, he will help you, he will uplift you and he 243 00:23:14,400 --> 00:23:19,760 knows that it is not easy. He knows that there are times when we will falter, but he will 244 00:23:19,760 --> 00:23:24,280 be there to pick you up again and again. Give him your heart because he has already given 245 00:23:24,280 --> 00:23:29,520 you his life as a sacrifice that you might be saved. If this message has resonated with 246 00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:33,480 you and you want to give your life to Jesus Christ, you signify that with an uplifted 247 00:23:33,480 --> 00:23:38,520 hand. I can't see it, but God can. And just say after me, dear Lord, I know that I am 248 00:23:38,520 --> 00:23:44,480 a sinner, but I know that you sent your son Jesus and he died on the cross for me. I turn 249 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:50,960 from my sin and I accept him as my Lord and my Savior. In Jesus name, amen. That simple 250 00:23:50,960 --> 00:23:56,680 prayer is a prayer of salvation. It's a recognition of sin, a recognition of Christ's divinity 251 00:23:56,680 --> 00:24:02,600 and his Lordship over your life. I pray that this message will have impacted you and I'm 252 00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:08,440 going to close in a quick prayer before we go. I do pray that the Lord touches you today. 253 00:24:08,440 --> 00:24:13,000 Dear Lord God, I give you all the praise and glory. I thank you for picking me, the oddball 254 00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:19,040 that I am, the reject that I am, and knowing Lord God that you see past all of our issues 255 00:24:19,040 --> 00:24:24,040 and our problems and that it is in your holy name that you have given us a better purpose. 256 00:24:24,040 --> 00:24:28,360 In Jesus name, I pray. Amen. Thank you for listening and I can't wait for you to come 257 00:24:28,360 --> 00:24:35,360 back next time. 258 00:24:58,360 --> 00:25:05,360 Amen.