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Hi. Good morning.

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Do you have your Bibles? They're going to be in Ephesians 5 this morning.

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As many of you... Did I lose my mic?

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It was on earlier, wasn't it? We're good.

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Get a teenager back there. You never know what's going to happen.

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As many of you know, I grew up in the church, and when I was growing up,

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if the church was open, I was there for whatever was going on.

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All of my friends were from the church. All of my parents' friends were from the church.

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There was a lot of good things about the church that I grew up in,

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but it wasn't a perfect church. I've yet to find one that is.

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I even hear things like, we need to get back to the New Testament church,

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because they did things right.

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If that were the case, we wouldn't have a lot of our New Testament,

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because Paul and the other writers are trying to correct the issues that the church had.

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Now, there's a lot they did right, but obviously, they had some issues, just like we do.

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One of the questions I had for a long time is, how do I really know that I'm a Christian?

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I never really had a choice it felt like. I was brought to church my whole life.

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I knew all the stories, and I knew how to behave, at least when adults were around, right?

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Like many of us do, but there were many times growing up, and even as an adult,

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I've struggled with the idea that if I didn't grow up that way,

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would I still believe that Jesus is my Savior?

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For instance, I read an article a couple weeks ago about Tiger Woods and his son Charlie,

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who's 14 years old.

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Now, Charlie, it turns out, is a pretty good golfer,

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but I began to wonder that if Charlie didn't have Tiger as his dad,

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would he still want to play golf, or does he just play golf because of who his dad is?

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So I often wondered, and maybe you have as well,

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is my salvation really my own, or is it just because my parents took me to church?

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Essentially, what I was asking is, am I truly saved by God's grace,

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or have I just learned a bunch of information?

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And as I began to study the Bible on my own and take my faith more seriously

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and really seek after the Lord, I learned the answer.

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As a Christian, you cannot ever be content with your sins.

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And if you are content with your sins, it's possible that you've just learned how to fit into a religion.

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So I want us to keep in mind this morning as we read our passage together.

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So if you'll join me as we stand together to read God's word,

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I'm going to read the first six verses together just so we're reading it in context,

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but we're really today focused on verses five through six.

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So Paul wrote,

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Therefore be imitators of God as beloved children,

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and walk in love as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us,

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a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

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But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you as is proper among saints.

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Let there be no filthiness, nor foolish talk, nor crude joking which are out of place,

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but instead let there be thanksgiving.

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For you may be sure of this,

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that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure,

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or who is covetous, that is an idolater,

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has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

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Let no one deceive you with empty words,

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for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

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Let's pray together.

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Father God, we pray that these words will seep into our hearts this morning.

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We thank you for Paul, we thank you for how you inspired him through your spirit to write him.

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I pray Father that they are just as challenging and encouraging to us as they were to the church in Ephesus.

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God, I pray that we see the joy that it is to serve you and follow you all the days of our life through this text.

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We ask all these things in your name.

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Amen.

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Amen.

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Now, this is one of those passages that you can either look upon verses 5 through 6 with fear or joy.

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Now, at first glance this passage can certainly create some fear in our lives.

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We look at our lives and we recognize just how vulnerable we are to immorality, to impurity, to covetousness.

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And we see the serious consequences to those sins.

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But as we examine this passage in more detail this morning and understand it more fully,

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I think we'll find that it is indeed a source of great joy for those of us that are followers of Jesus Christ.

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It all starts with understanding that there is a difference between a trip and a jump.

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Adrian Rogers was a pastor in Tennessee, pastor of one of the largest churches in America.

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He had books, his teachings are still featured on the radio.

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He had a phrase that he was fond of using and I think it applies to this text.

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He said, an unconverted sinner will jump into sin and love it.

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Converted sinners trip into sin and loathe it.

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Every single one of us in this room is a sinner.

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And I think that I would be on safe ground if I were to presume that every one of us at one time or another in our lives

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has been guilty of the sins that Paul just described in previous verses that we read last week.

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But in this passage Paul is very clearly writing about those who live a lifestyle

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that is consistently characterized by those sins and not those who occasionally fall into them.

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In his letter to the Galatians Paul very clearly described the difference between these two groups.

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In chapter 6 of verse 7 he writes, do not be deceived.

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God is not mocked for whatever one sows that he will also reap.

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For the one who sows to his flesh will from the flesh reap corruption.

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But the one who sows to the spirit will from the spirit reap eternal life.

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For those of us who are sons of God and have the Holy Spirit living inside of them

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that they will live their lives to please God.

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And when they do trip into sin that they will be convicted of that sin and then they will begin to loathe it.

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They will be sincerely sorry for their sin and not just sorry that they got caught.

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On the other hand those of us who are sons of disobedience will jump into sin

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because they live to please their sinful natures.

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They will love their sin because they love self more than they love God.

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That's why Paul calls the covetous man an idolater.

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Someone who lives a lifestyle that is characterized by trying to please his own selfish desires

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and has made themselves a God rather than God himself and therefore they become an idolater.

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Paul was warning his readers, he's warning you and I today,

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against those who are apparently trying to deceive themselves into thinking

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that they could still pursue an immoral lifestyle that was totally acceptable to their culture

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and still be followers of Jesus Christ.

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He's making the point here that that kind of lifestyle is incompatible with being a follower of Jesus Christ.

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Christianity and immorality are like oil and water.

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They just don't mix.

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And so Paul also makes it quite clear that there is a distinction between jumping into sin and enjoying it

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and tripping into sin and loathing it.

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There's a vast difference between those lifestyles.

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There's a vast difference between those, the consequences of those differing lifestyles.

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Paul tells us that those who trip do not lose their inheritance.

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If you remember back in chapter one of Ephesians, Paul tells us that we are marked with a seal.

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And that our own merit is promised Holy Spirit is our guarantee of the inheritance that we will receive.

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For those of us who are sons of God who occasionally trip into sin,

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we do not have to worry about losing our inheritance.

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Since it is the blood of Jesus on the cross and not our own merit

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that provides the inheritance in the first place.

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There's nothing that we can do to forfeit that inheritance.

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There's a moment that we become followers of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit permanently comes into our life

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as a guarantee that we will one day receive the inheritance that he has to offer.

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God doesn't write us out of his will because we are sinners.

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It is a guarantee because we have surrendered our life to Jesus.

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We will also as children of God not endure God's wrath.

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Again in chapter two, he says that we are at one time dead and our trespasses and sins.

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But those of us who have committed our lives to Jesus had that wrath removed

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and it was replaced with the mercy and grace of God.

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Now although God certainly disciplines his children when they sin,

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he does not pour out his wrath upon them.

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Those of us who are parents can certainly understand how God treats us in that way.

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When our children do something that is wrong, that will ultimately bring harm to them,

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we discipline them for their own good.

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But we would never pour out our wrath upon them.

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I'll give you an example.

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Now my kids have been potty trained for a long time and it's been wonderful.

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So for those of you that aren't quite there yet, it's wonderful.

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Now when they were wearing diapers, I didn't get upset when they wet their pants.

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It was just expected.

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However, once they were trained, I expected them to use the bathroom for those types of things.

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I don't think that's unusual for a parent to say,

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hey, why don't you go in that room and do that instead of doing it in your pants?

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So needless to say, when I find out that instead of going to the bathroom to do their thing,

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they were just peeing in the trash can or a toy box, I wasn't real happy.

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Now I know that four-year-olds have hard lives.

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And I know that they are exhausted after a long day of work.

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But I have a hard time coming to terms with the fact that they are unwilling to walk

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an additional 10 steps to the bathroom.

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So there was some discipline involved, right?

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But I didn't kick them out of the house.

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Even while we were having to clean that up, I still in that moment love them more than anything on this earth.

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But for those of us who live their lives characterized by sin,

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the consequences are much more severe.

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Those who jump into sin forfeit their inheritance, both now and in the future.

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There's a couple interesting aspects of what Paul writes in verse 5.

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First of all, he uses the present tense verb here.

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The immoral person has no inheritance.

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We would expect Paul to use a future tense verb here, right?

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The immoral person will not have any inheritance.

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But I'll just say it in my mind, I'll just say it here in a moment.

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But not only do they lose their inheritance, but they will face the wrath of God both now and in the future.

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And it's important to note verse 6 because Paul makes it clear that there's going to be times

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when people try to deceive you to believe something other than that.

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If you've not surrendered your life to Jesus,

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if you've not called upon Him as your Savior, you will face the wrath of God.

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It doesn't matter how good of a person you are.

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It doesn't matter how many puppies and kittens you have rescued.

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It doesn't matter how much money you give to worthy causes.

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Without Jesus, without the seal of the Holy Spirit as a guarantee, you will face God's wrath.

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And you also need to be aware that there's going to be people out in this world

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that are going to deceive you of that reality.

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Be careful.

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And I'm telling you that when we face, if you face the wrath of God, it's not going to be pleasant now or in the future.

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Because Paul tells us in verse 5 that there are two kingdoms.

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This is the only place in Paul's writings.

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In fact, it's the only place in the entire Bible where the phrase,

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the kingdom of Christ and of God is used.

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Paul often refers to the kingdom of Christ, and he often refers to the kingdom of God, but never at the same time.

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If we examine how Paul uses these two concepts in his writings, we can begin to understand the distinction.

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The kingdom of Christ is generally, it refers to the present.

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When Paul refers to the kingdom of Christ, he normally uses it to describe the present dominion of Jesus

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as it contrasts to the dominion of Satan on this earth.

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That concept is described in the first part of chapter 2 of Ephesians,

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but he presents it more clearly in Colossians in chapter 1 verse 13.

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He says, he has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the beloved Son,

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in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.

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In that passage, the kingdom of the Son, the kingdom of Christ, is contrasted by the kingdom of darkness,

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which is obviously a description of the sphere of influence, the domain of Satan.

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Since we know that Satan will have no place in the future kingdom of God,

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Paul must be describing the current kingdom, which is the sphere of influence,

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which is the dominion on this earth.

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It would also be consistent with Paul's use as a present tense verb in verse 5.

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So the person who lives an immoral lifestyle and jumps into sin and loves it,

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forfeits his or her right to participate in the kingdom of Christ today.

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They fail to receive the abundant life that Jesus has promised his followers.

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That is very clearly demonstrated by the statistical data that I shared with you last week

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that shows that those who are followers of God, who follow his blueprint for their sexual lives,

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are much more fulfilled and satisfied than those who choose to live in the kingdom of darkness.

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God's standard brings contentment and joy that nothing else will ever be able to.

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You can have that here on this earth now.

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The Bible isn't a rule book.

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The Bible is a cheat code so that you can understand how to get the most out of life.

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David says, your word is a lamp into my feet, a light into my path.

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You want the best life? You want the abundant life?

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Let God's word show you.

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And if you don't know where to start, you don't know where to begin.

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That's why we're here as a church.

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That is why we want you in a discipleship relationship.

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Don't wait until you are in a crisis before you ask for help, before you ask for prayer.

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Let us walk with you and help you avoid the pitfalls that come with following the world.

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Living a life of depression isn't an abundant life.

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Living in fear isn't walking in an abundant life.

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Wanting to end your marriage isn't an abundant life.

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Jesus offers hope. His word offers guidance.

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And His church is the means in which He wants you to experience it.

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For those reasons, I'm so glad that you were here this morning.

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The Kingdom of God, though, is in the future.

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When Paul uses the phrase, Kingdom of God, he normally refers to the future, the eternal reign of God.

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That passage from Galatians demonstrates how Paul uses that phrase in that manner.

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He says, now the works of the flesh are evident.

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Sexual immorality and purity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy,

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fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.

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I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

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Notice that here Paul does use a future tense verb and he refers to the Kingdom of God.

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It makes it clear once again that anyone who chooses to live an immoral lifestyle forfeits his right

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or her right to participate in the eternal Kingdom of God.

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By using the phrase, the Kingdom of Christ and of God, Paul is emphasizing the fact that we who live an immoral lifestyle

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have absolutely no parts in the Kingdom of God, either on this earth right now or in the eternal Kingdom in the future.

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The future Kingdom is something that's being offered to us.

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There will be no more forces of evil trying to ruin your day.

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There will be no more stressing over paying the bills or raising your kids.

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There will be no more health issues, no more tears, no more frustrations, no more anger,

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no more waking up sore from sleeping, no more insecurity or wondering if you were good enough,

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no more awkward conversations, no more tense meetings.

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The future Kingdom of God brings hope on the bad days and increased joy on the best days.

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As a child of God, as one who has been sealed with his Holy Spirit, your future is going to be filled with peace and worship.

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And if there's anyone in this room who has the same thoughts that I did years ago,

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have I truly been redeemed?

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Have I truly been rescued?

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Or is this just what I do on Sundays?

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I would encourage you with everything in me to come talk to me when we're done here.

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Or if you haven't struggled with those thoughts and you just know that you don't understand what is being offered to you.

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It's like I'm speaking a foreign language to you.

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Then please come see me when I'm done here.

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Eternal life is being offered to you.

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Not by me, because I'd mess it up.

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But by your Creator who loves you more than you will ever be able to comprehend.

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Now you can look at yourself and you can see your flaws, right?

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You might have even had your flaws pointed out to you by others.

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But your Creator, he thinks you're perfect.

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He thinks he did a good job.

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Your past makes no difference to him.

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Because what he is offering you is a future than anything you could ever accomplish on your own.

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Which leads me to my last point.

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Is Jesus your Savior or is he your Lord?

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Here's the real heart of the issue this morning.

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In every church, in every church, there is a person who has professed faith in Jesus Christ.

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But whose lifestyle remains consistent with the world.

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The kind of lifestyle that Paul describes in these verses.

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Is it enough to just pray a prayer or walk down an aisle and then go on living the same way you did before?

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Obviously only God knows what's in our hearts.

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But there is a crucial aspect of becoming a follower of Jesus Christ that we tend to overlook.

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We often talk about Jesus being our Savior and our Lord.

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But I'm not sure we fully understand the full implications of what those terms mean.

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There's a lot of people who don't mind having Jesus as their Savior.

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But I'm not sure that most people understand what it means to make him your Lord.

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I'm speaking from experience here.

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This is who I was.

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When I was growing up in the church, I understood what it meant for Jesus to be my Savior.

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I was baptized at 11 and was happy to declare that truth.

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But a week or so later, I was back to living the same way I did before.

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There was no significant change in my life.

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But at the time, it seemed like good fire insurance because I didn't want to go to hell.

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And so because I didn't want to go to hell, I wanted, and I understood that Jesus was my Savior,

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I wanted to walk in obedience and baptism, but I didn't want it to change my life.

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I just wanted that insurance.

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It wasn't until a couple of years later when I started college,

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and some men came alongside me and really began to unpack the gospel in full

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because when I realized that I had only proclaimed Jesus as my Savior,

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I never had any intention of making Jesus my Lord.

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I wasn't willing to give up the control of my life.

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But fortunately, I began to understand the importance of making Jesus my Lord

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as well as my Savior.

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And over a period of time, I did come to the place where I was willing to place Him in charge of my life.

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Even then, it certainly didn't mean I no longer sin,

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but making Jesus the Lord of my life had a tremendous impact on how I viewed sin in my life.

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And I'm going to be real honest with you.

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Making Jesus Lord is hard at times

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because I want to respond in certain situations from my flesh.

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Have you ever been in a situation where someone is upset at you

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and there's division

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and all of it is based on assumptions and all of it is based on lies?

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And you want to defend yourself.

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You want to set the record straight.

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You want to tell them to what for.

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You want to yell and you want to scream and you want to fight and you want to do all those things.

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But the Lord tells you, you need to swallow your pride.

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You need to keep your mouth shut.

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That's hard.

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When you have to trust that He is going to be the one to fight your battles.

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When you have to trust that He is going to be the one to bring things to light.

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Making Jesus Lord over your life is not an easy task sometimes.

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It's a daily battle.

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God, how am I going to respond in this situation?

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I want to honor you.

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I want to submit to you.

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But everything in me wants to fight that.

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What determines whether my sin is a trip or a jump is who I make the Lord of my life.

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That's exactly the point Paul is making here.

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He's telling his readers.

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He's telling you and I that they have to make a choice.

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They can either make their self the Lord of their life and be an idolater who lives a life characterized by consistent immorality.

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Or they can make Jesus the Lord of their life and live a life that is pleasing to Him.

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But you can't have it both ways.

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You can't live in two camps.

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It's oil and water.

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So this morning I want to challenge you.

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I want to challenge you to take an honest look at your life.

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Are you living a life characterized by jumping into sin and loving it?

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No conviction of sin.

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No shame.

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It's just a sabitual thing that you just keep jumping in and in and in.

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Then I'm going to challenge you because you really need to consider carefully whether you've ever made Jesus the Lord of your life.

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And if you've never really done that, I invite you to make that decision today.

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Or do you occasionally trip into sin and loathe it?

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If that's the case, that is pretty good evidence that you are a child of God.

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If you feel conviction over your sin, if you're not proud of it, if you try to stop it,

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if you've sought help for it, then that's pretty good evidence that you are a child of God.

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But maybe there's something in you.

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There's some sin that you need to confess before God this morning and turn away in your life.

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A true follower of Christ will never be content with the sin that's in their life.

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And if you are content with who you are and the lifestyle that you're living,

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I really, really, really hope that you will examine your life this morning.

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And so we're done a little early, believe it or not.

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We'll sing one more song like we always do.

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But maybe we need to take a little bit of extra time this morning

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and just really confess these things before the Lord.

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If you're not walking in abundant life,

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if your life is marked by fear or depression or anxiety, stress,

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you're not walking in abundant life.

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And there's so many people in this room that would love to show you the way.

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And so I'm going to invite the worship team up as they lead us.

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I'm going to ask Matthew to turn the lights off.

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And I'm going to challenge you that as I pray, as we worship,

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that maybe you just need to come confess some things before the Lord this morning,

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I'm going to ask our prayer team to be available.

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I'm going to sit right here in the front row that nobody ever likes to sit in, right?

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I'm going to sit right there.

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And if I can pray with you, if I can encourage you,

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if I can do anything with you or any of our prayer team members,

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will you take that step today?

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Will you make it right with Him today?

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So that you not only inherit the future kingdom,

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but you can inherit abundant life today because of Jesus.

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So let me pray for us.

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God, I pray right now that as we worship,

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that you will stir our hearts,

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that we will know that you are speaking to us,

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that we will find the sin in our lives appalling.

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Let me confess that before you this morning.

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God, I thank you for the Holy Spirit, the seal of my inheritance.

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Thank you for not riding me out of your will.

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So God, I pray that you bring conviction to this place.

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I pray you bring salvation to this place.

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And I pray God that we walk out of here rejoicing because you are good.

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Rejoicing because we are forgiven.

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Rejoicing because your way is better.

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So I got a prayer.

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What's your name?

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Laneen.