WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.120 Welcome to 563 Church of Production of Cornerstone 00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:06.299 Church in Eldridge, Iowa. Today's sermon is about 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:08.779 the church's Sardis and Philadelphia from Revelation 00:00:08.779 --> 00:00:12.740 3, verses 7 through 13. We are glad you are here 00:00:12.740 --> 00:00:15.740 listening today. I'll give you a few minutes 00:00:15.740 --> 00:00:21.640 to find that. So I've said the last few weeks, 00:00:22.339 --> 00:00:24.879 and I'll say it again this morning, that you 00:00:24.879 --> 00:00:28.870 and I are here for a reason. It's not an accident. 00:00:29.010 --> 00:00:31.510 God has placed each and every one of us for some 00:00:31.510 --> 00:00:34.810 purpose that He wants to accomplish here at Cornerstone. 00:00:35.390 --> 00:00:38.890 And I don't know the full extent of it or what 00:00:38.890 --> 00:00:41.189 it's really going to completely look like in 00:00:41.189 --> 00:00:44.429 this place, but you and I are here for a reason 00:00:44.429 --> 00:00:49.509 in this season at this time. So what we are looking 00:00:49.509 --> 00:00:53.490 at is these churches in Revelation because these 00:00:53.490 --> 00:00:55.750 churches of revelation that Jesus is addressing. 00:00:56.130 --> 00:00:59.090 It gives us an idea of what Jesus considers really 00:00:59.090 --> 00:01:01.729 good. And then it also tells us the things that 00:01:01.729 --> 00:01:04.430 the churches ended up doing that led to their 00:01:04.430 --> 00:01:07.670 destruction. And so my hope has been throughout 00:01:07.670 --> 00:01:11.450 this study is that we can avoid what Jesus holds 00:01:11.450 --> 00:01:14.799 against these churches. and chase the things 00:01:14.799 --> 00:01:17.400 they did at first. Do those things really, really 00:01:17.400 --> 00:01:20.359 well. And so for the past few weeks, we've kind 00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:22.760 of gone one church at a time, but today we're 00:01:22.760 --> 00:01:26.060 going to tackle two of the churches because I 00:01:26.060 --> 00:01:29.579 feel like they, the Church of Philadelphia applies, 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:34.060 is the answer to the church in Sardis. And then 00:01:34.060 --> 00:01:36.659 next week we will wrap up this series by looking 00:01:36.659 --> 00:01:38.840 at the church of Laodicea. And so Revelation 00:01:38.840 --> 00:01:41.359 chapter three, we're gonna look at the church 00:01:41.359 --> 00:01:43.799 of Sardis here in just a... few minutes, but 00:01:43.799 --> 00:01:45.680 real quick, just to give you some background, 00:01:46.019 --> 00:01:49.959 Sardis is a church, and similar to the other 00:01:49.959 --> 00:01:54.400 churches, they live in a culture that is prevalent 00:01:54.400 --> 00:01:58.299 with worship to other gods. They're worshipping 00:01:58.299 --> 00:02:01.599 every god they can think of in this place. Now, 00:02:01.719 --> 00:02:05.900 from what we understand, Sardis is a large church, 00:02:06.219 --> 00:02:09.319 and to be honest, Sardis is one of the biggest 00:02:09.319 --> 00:02:13.830 fears of mine come true. Sardis is what I'm afraid 00:02:13.830 --> 00:02:18.189 of here, and I pray hard against ever becoming 00:02:18.189 --> 00:02:21.889 true in this place. And not only is it important 00:02:21.889 --> 00:02:24.889 because of the fear, but what we will find in 00:02:24.889 --> 00:02:28.069 the message of Jesus to the church in Sardis. 00:02:28.650 --> 00:02:30.750 Now, one of the problems we have in our culture, 00:02:30.870 --> 00:02:32.509 you might agree or disagree with me on this, 00:02:32.610 --> 00:02:33.909 but one of the problems we have in our culture 00:02:33.909 --> 00:02:38.229 today is that there's so much media. that the 00:02:38.229 --> 00:02:44.889 message of Jesus has been lost in a fray of moralism. 00:02:45.789 --> 00:02:48.469 And what I mean by that is that people want to 00:02:48.469 --> 00:02:55.310 connect Jesus to one simple moral aspect and 00:02:55.310 --> 00:02:59.210 boil down the gospel into one moral act. And 00:02:59.210 --> 00:03:02.189 so what ends up happening is Jesus becomes a 00:03:02.189 --> 00:03:07.389 political party. or a stance, or a social issue, 00:03:07.569 --> 00:03:10.409 or whatever it is, and that in and of itself 00:03:10.409 --> 00:03:14.729 is extremely dangerous. Anytime the word Christian 00:03:14.729 --> 00:03:18.949 becomes an adjective instead of a noun, you begin 00:03:18.949 --> 00:03:22.770 to live in some pretty dangerous waters. And 00:03:22.770 --> 00:03:25.389 I use this example, there's no such thing as 00:03:25.389 --> 00:03:29.930 Christian music, because music cannot be saved. 00:03:30.139 --> 00:03:33.159 Only people can, right? There's no such thing 00:03:33.159 --> 00:03:36.400 as a Christian auto shop because a shop cannot 00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:39.379 understand the gospel, only the people who work 00:03:39.379 --> 00:03:43.199 there. And when you begin to play that game... 00:03:43.240 --> 00:03:48.060 And when Jesus becomes this just one act or one 00:03:48.060 --> 00:03:51.360 stance or one social issue, you begin to be in 00:03:51.360 --> 00:03:54.419 some dangerous areas. Like what do you do with 00:03:54.419 --> 00:03:56.819 me right now who has access and was actually 00:03:56.819 --> 00:03:59.939 listening to this week on my phone some music 00:03:59.939 --> 00:04:03.020 that was not about Jesus? It was secular. Does 00:04:03.020 --> 00:04:05.870 that mean I'm lost? Does that mean I'm in need 00:04:05.870 --> 00:04:08.889 of a savior? Or what do you do with the so -called 00:04:08.889 --> 00:04:13.069 Christian bands that say absolutely nothing about 00:04:13.069 --> 00:04:15.729 who Jesus is and what He's done for them? Or 00:04:15.729 --> 00:04:20.750 the mechanic that has a cross or a fish on their 00:04:20.750 --> 00:04:24.410 logo, but does not operate their business in 00:04:24.410 --> 00:04:27.639 a godly manner. Do you understand what I mean 00:04:27.639 --> 00:04:30.079 when I'm talking about Christian adjectives as 00:04:30.079 --> 00:04:32.879 opposed to Christian nouns? So when you take 00:04:32.879 --> 00:04:37.000 a stance of a Christian adjective, the gospel 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:41.279 point gets missed altogether. We completely misunderstand 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.079 what the gospel is. And so what I love about 00:04:44.079 --> 00:04:48.240 this text is you're going to see the gospel message 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:51.100 in the letter to Sardis. And I'll start in verse 00:04:51.100 --> 00:04:54.790 one of chapter three. Jesus says, into the angel 00:04:54.790 --> 00:04:58.110 of the church in Sardis write, the words of him 00:04:58.110 --> 00:05:01.350 who has the seven spirits of God and the seven 00:05:01.350 --> 00:05:05.550 stars, I know your works. You have the reputation 00:05:05.550 --> 00:05:10.009 of being alive, but are dead. Now that verse 00:05:10.009 --> 00:05:15.189 right there is my greatest fear. That we will 00:05:15.189 --> 00:05:18.329 wear the banner of Jesus, we will wave the flag 00:05:18.329 --> 00:05:23.009 of the cross, but inside we are dead. In essence, 00:05:23.290 --> 00:05:26.209 they have learned the language of Christianity, 00:05:26.730 --> 00:05:29.930 but the Holy Spirit of God is nowhere inside 00:05:29.930 --> 00:05:33.529 of them. And so what has happened in Sardis is 00:05:33.529 --> 00:05:37.310 they have conformed to a pattern of religion, 00:05:37.629 --> 00:05:40.810 but have not been transformed by the message 00:05:40.810 --> 00:05:44.410 of God and his gospel. Do you understand what's 00:05:44.410 --> 00:05:48.000 going on in Sardis? that there's a major difference 00:05:48.000 --> 00:05:51.939 between being conformed into a moral pattern 00:05:51.939 --> 00:05:55.879 of behavior and being engaged with the living 00:05:55.879 --> 00:05:59.680 Christ. There's a huge difference. And so Sardis 00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:02.879 is my greatest fear because they are really well 00:06:02.879 --> 00:06:06.319 put together. There's not a lot of rough edges. 00:06:06.839 --> 00:06:09.259 People are coming to this church. Maybe they 00:06:09.259 --> 00:06:11.360 have a great building. Maybe they have the best 00:06:11.360 --> 00:06:13.819 looking people. Maybe they are growing in their 00:06:13.819 --> 00:06:16.500 knowledge of God and it looks like a pretty place. 00:06:16.839 --> 00:06:20.860 And Jesus says, although you look the part, you're 00:06:20.860 --> 00:06:24.180 dead. You're not alive. And listen, if you've 00:06:24.180 --> 00:06:27.259 grown up in church at all, you know how easy 00:06:27.259 --> 00:06:31.360 it is to get sucked into this. Surely you know 00:06:31.360 --> 00:06:35.699 how easy it is to play the game and not engage 00:06:35.699 --> 00:06:39.639 with the living God. Surely you know the pain 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:43.240 of checking off all the Christian to -do lists, 00:06:43.339 --> 00:06:46.180 your Christian checklists, and you get the whole 00:06:46.180 --> 00:06:48.819 list done, and you feel good about yourself for 00:06:48.819 --> 00:06:52.240 a second, but your soul is just shriveled up 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:55.339 and dead. Surely you understand what that's like. 00:06:56.560 --> 00:06:58.819 Now this past week was a hard week for our country. 00:06:59.980 --> 00:07:03.699 because it was a reminder that evil is prevalent 00:07:03.699 --> 00:07:08.600 in this world. We remembered 9 -11, 24 years 00:07:08.600 --> 00:07:12.459 since evil struck those towers and did that destruction. 00:07:13.699 --> 00:07:17.720 There was another school shooting and then Charlie 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:21.220 Kirk was assassinated. Now I'm not surprised 00:07:21.220 --> 00:07:25.310 by evil. It doesn't surprise me. Jesus said things 00:07:25.310 --> 00:07:29.110 are going to get worse as we get closer to the 00:07:29.110 --> 00:07:33.810 end times. And so this doesn't surprise me. I 00:07:33.810 --> 00:07:36.569 hate it. I hate the evil, but I'm not surprised 00:07:36.569 --> 00:07:41.170 by it. Here's what has been surprising and disappointing 00:07:41.170 --> 00:07:44.689 to me. Now Charlie Kirk was not perfect. Maybe 00:07:44.689 --> 00:07:49.230 you can find a sound bite of him. Maybe not reflecting 00:07:49.230 --> 00:07:53.360 Jesus in the best light. But for a Christian 00:07:53.360 --> 00:07:59.199 to dismiss him for that is wrong. He boldly proclaimed 00:07:59.199 --> 00:08:03.279 the gospel across this country in front of hostile 00:08:03.279 --> 00:08:08.279 crowds. He was a voice that stood up boldly for 00:08:08.279 --> 00:08:12.300 the unborn. He advocated for Christian values 00:08:12.300 --> 00:08:16.319 in the family. He challenged men to stand up 00:08:16.319 --> 00:08:20.470 and fight against injustice and evil. He did 00:08:20.470 --> 00:08:23.589 it better and more consistent than I've seen 00:08:23.589 --> 00:08:27.170 anybody else do in my lifetime. And yet I've 00:08:27.170 --> 00:08:30.129 seen and heard of so many different believers 00:08:30.129 --> 00:08:33.149 in Jesus who want to disassociate themselves 00:08:33.149 --> 00:08:35.669 from him because he might have offended somebody. 00:08:36.149 --> 00:08:40.669 Well guess what? The gospel is offensive. When 00:08:40.669 --> 00:08:44.509 Jesus says, I am the way, the truth, and the 00:08:44.509 --> 00:08:48.750 life, that phrase, that verse, that statement 00:08:48.750 --> 00:08:51.909 of truth is gonna be offensive to people who 00:08:51.909 --> 00:08:53.730 think they're a good enough person and they can 00:08:53.730 --> 00:08:55.870 earn their way to salvation. I don't need Jesus, 00:08:55.870 --> 00:08:58.110 I can do it on my own. It's gonna be offensive. 00:08:59.289 --> 00:09:02.990 What I have seen is so many articles and videos 00:09:02.990 --> 00:09:05.970 this week of people saying, I took Charlie's 00:09:05.970 --> 00:09:09.110 advice. And I got involved in a church and I've 00:09:09.110 --> 00:09:11.289 surrendered my life to Jesus because of what 00:09:11.289 --> 00:09:16.350 Charlie said to me. I've read a story of I was 00:09:16.350 --> 00:09:20.009 a transgender person, but the influence of Charlie 00:09:20.009 --> 00:09:24.669 made me get the help that I needed. My values 00:09:24.669 --> 00:09:28.129 about family have changed because I wanted what 00:09:28.129 --> 00:09:32.570 Charlie had in his life. I was pro -abortion 00:09:32.570 --> 00:09:35.809 before I met Charlie, but now I march for life. 00:09:36.159 --> 00:09:40.580 Now, I'm not glorifying Charlie, but using him 00:09:40.580 --> 00:09:44.019 as an example of what it means to actually live 00:09:44.019 --> 00:09:47.500 out our Christian faith. Now, I have been a Christian 00:09:47.500 --> 00:09:50.700 for longer than Charlie was even alive, and yet 00:09:50.700 --> 00:09:54.220 I have never been as bold and as impactful as 00:09:54.220 --> 00:09:58.100 he was. Charlie didn't pretend. It was who he 00:09:58.100 --> 00:10:03.940 was. He was alive and not dead. And this is the 00:10:03.940 --> 00:10:07.259 issue with Sardis. This is what they're dealing 00:10:07.259 --> 00:10:10.419 with, that they have learned to pretend. They 00:10:10.419 --> 00:10:13.940 have learned to play the part so well that they 00:10:13.940 --> 00:10:16.399 don't even realize that their souls are dried 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:21.399 up and dead. This pretending has caused their 00:10:21.399 --> 00:10:24.980 souls to dry up. So Jesus says that even though 00:10:24.980 --> 00:10:28.269 you bear my name, Even though on the outside 00:10:28.269 --> 00:10:31.750 of your building you have a cross, you have a 00:10:31.750 --> 00:10:33.669 church name, you have whatever it is, even though 00:10:33.669 --> 00:10:36.370 you do all those things and you appear to be 00:10:36.370 --> 00:10:41.629 alive, Jesus says, I'm afraid you're dead. And 00:10:41.629 --> 00:10:44.090 maybe if you've been there, there was a time 00:10:44.090 --> 00:10:46.970 in your life where you felt so far from God, 00:10:48.549 --> 00:10:52.090 you felt so far from the reality of who he was, 00:10:52.450 --> 00:10:56.049 you began to even wonder if he even existed. 00:10:56.330 --> 00:10:59.809 But you were so entwined in the culture. You 00:10:59.809 --> 00:11:02.909 were so entwined in the religion that you just 00:11:02.909 --> 00:11:06.789 kept on pretending. Now the whole life and death 00:11:06.789 --> 00:11:09.269 thing, he's not talking about physical death. 00:11:10.350 --> 00:11:14.809 This is a very spiritual talking about your soul 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:18.350 text that Jesus has here with Sardis. He's going 00:11:18.350 --> 00:11:20.830 to once again unpack this thing and it's his 00:11:20.830 --> 00:11:24.690 message. He's going to say this is the invitation. 00:11:25.469 --> 00:11:30.889 to real deep life, real deep living. This is 00:11:30.889 --> 00:11:33.990 the invitation. And then there's this way to 00:11:33.990 --> 00:11:37.350 live outside of it that's existence, but it's 00:11:37.350 --> 00:11:41.750 not life. It's what Jesus is talking about when 00:11:41.750 --> 00:11:45.990 he says that he came to give us life in abundance, 00:11:46.230 --> 00:11:48.889 came to give us life in the full, meaning translation. 00:11:49.250 --> 00:11:54.279 In Christ, there's life outside of Christ. all 00:11:54.279 --> 00:11:58.720 you have is existence. And so many people who 00:11:58.720 --> 00:12:03.720 claim Christ are just existing because they are 00:12:03.720 --> 00:12:07.639 just pretending to follow. And this is the constant 00:12:07.639 --> 00:12:10.500 message of Jesus in the gospels. This is what 00:12:10.500 --> 00:12:13.039 we need to get into our hearts. Let me tell you 00:12:13.039 --> 00:12:16.919 why this is so important. Because somewhere along 00:12:16.919 --> 00:12:21.690 the way, the message of Jesus has been hijacked 00:12:21.690 --> 00:12:26.409 by those who would say or teach or speak as if 00:12:26.409 --> 00:12:29.450 the primary purpose of God in the universe is 00:12:29.450 --> 00:12:32.230 judgment. There are so many people with that 00:12:32.230 --> 00:12:35.649 message that the primary purpose of God is judgment, 00:12:36.190 --> 00:12:40.889 instead of the glorious grace of Christ through 00:12:40.889 --> 00:12:43.690 forgiveness and salvation. That's the message 00:12:43.690 --> 00:12:47.159 of Christ. Now, I've experienced, I've experienced 00:12:47.159 --> 00:12:50.000 the other options, right? I've experienced that 00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:52.919 God is a God of judgment. I've experienced it, 00:12:53.159 --> 00:12:57.200 you've experienced it, right? Where we fail to 00:12:57.200 --> 00:13:02.360 meet the moral code of others and therefore we 00:13:02.360 --> 00:13:05.519 become unacceptable to them. Because we didn't 00:13:05.519 --> 00:13:08.320 hit some sort of standard so because of that 00:13:08.320 --> 00:13:11.580 our reputations are dragged through the mud that 00:13:11.580 --> 00:13:13.740 there is nothing that we will ever be able to 00:13:13.740 --> 00:13:17.120 do that is correct until we reach the standard 00:13:17.120 --> 00:13:21.399 that they have for morality. But here's what 00:13:21.399 --> 00:13:23.220 I've learned throughout all my years. Here's 00:13:23.220 --> 00:13:26.980 what I've learned. The law does not transform. 00:13:28.820 --> 00:13:33.679 A human version of morality does not transform. 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:38.480 But rather, it is grace that transforms the heart. 00:13:39.399 --> 00:13:42.220 That is the message of Jesus. Now I want you 00:13:42.220 --> 00:13:44.980 to turn to Matthew chapter 7. Keep your finger 00:13:44.980 --> 00:13:46.580 in Revelation 3, because we'll come back there, 00:13:46.580 --> 00:13:48.679 but I want you to see this in Matthew chapter 00:13:48.679 --> 00:13:53.240 7. Because I think this text will kind of show 00:13:53.240 --> 00:13:56.620 you and help you understand, am I alive or am 00:13:56.620 --> 00:14:00.600 I dead? Am I alive or am I... dead. This will 00:14:00.600 --> 00:14:05.059 be a great litmus test to see where you are in 00:14:05.059 --> 00:14:07.519 relation to this walk we have with the Lord. 00:14:08.179 --> 00:14:11.200 And so, in Matthew chapter 7, starting in verse 00:14:11.200 --> 00:14:16.360 13, it's a well -known passage. I'll wait till 00:14:16.360 --> 00:14:19.779 I stop hearing pages turn. I love that, by the 00:14:19.779 --> 00:14:26.220 way. Matthew 7 13 says, enter by the narrow gate. 00:14:26.840 --> 00:14:29.259 For the gate is wide and the way is easy that 00:14:29.259 --> 00:14:32.480 leads to destruction and those who enter by it 00:14:32.480 --> 00:14:34.240 are many." Now, I want to define this. I'm going 00:14:34.240 --> 00:14:37.080 to stop her there. I want to define this. Destruction 00:14:37.080 --> 00:14:41.000 is not fire coming down from heaven and striking 00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:46.179 you on the sidewalk. Instead, imagine a freshly 00:14:46.179 --> 00:14:50.070 picked apple that you take off the tree. and 00:14:50.070 --> 00:14:52.549 you throw it into the sun, and over a period 00:14:52.549 --> 00:14:56.190 of hours or days, it just kinda shrivels up and 00:14:56.190 --> 00:15:01.690 shrinks into nothing. Broad is the way of your 00:15:01.690 --> 00:15:05.049 soul being shriveled up. Broad is the way of 00:15:05.049 --> 00:15:09.049 you becoming dry and cold. So don't think of 00:15:09.049 --> 00:15:12.649 destruction as this major catastrophic thing, 00:15:12.950 --> 00:15:17.610 but think of it as your soul's... lack of ability, 00:15:18.009 --> 00:15:22.350 or your soul losing its ability to breathe. That 00:15:22.350 --> 00:15:24.350 kind of destruction does not happen overnight. 00:15:25.549 --> 00:15:29.210 It's a day by day thing. And it can come in many 00:15:29.210 --> 00:15:32.129 different forms. The destruction of your soul, 00:15:32.250 --> 00:15:34.549 the hardness of your heart, can come in many 00:15:34.549 --> 00:15:37.590 different forms. It can be coming to church and 00:15:37.590 --> 00:15:40.409 not letting anything that you hear in this place 00:15:40.409 --> 00:15:43.389 transform your heart. Of just coming in and doing 00:15:43.389 --> 00:15:47.090 the routine. It has no impact on your attitude. 00:15:47.210 --> 00:15:51.309 It has no impact on your behaviors. It can be 00:15:51.309 --> 00:15:54.990 seeing everything wrong in other people and not 00:15:54.990 --> 00:15:59.429 seeing it in yourself. It can be allowing your 00:15:59.429 --> 00:16:02.070 heart to get hardened to the things of God and 00:16:02.070 --> 00:16:05.250 to the things that you know to be true. Destruction 00:16:05.250 --> 00:16:09.009 comes when we learn the language of Christianity, 00:16:09.009 --> 00:16:13.129 but we don't implement or apply any of it. That's 00:16:13.129 --> 00:16:16.629 how the destruction of our souls happen. Now 00:16:16.629 --> 00:16:19.230 you can tell if you are on the road to destruction 00:16:19.230 --> 00:16:26.330 If you rarely if ever deny your flesh If you 00:16:26.330 --> 00:16:28.230 can look at your life and you can look back and 00:16:28.230 --> 00:16:32.029 you're like very rarely Do I actually deny my 00:16:32.029 --> 00:16:35.929 flesh? Meaning if something sounds good and you 00:16:35.929 --> 00:16:38.509 can get instant satisfaction from it. You just 00:16:38.509 --> 00:16:42.309 do it You just get it. Whether it be a drink, 00:16:42.690 --> 00:16:45.110 whether it be a pill, whether it be pornography, 00:16:45.809 --> 00:16:49.149 or a good meal, or shopping spree, or whatever 00:16:49.149 --> 00:16:51.889 it is that it is, whatever it is, you are unable 00:16:51.889 --> 00:16:55.230 to deny yourself of that instant gratification. 00:16:55.590 --> 00:16:58.870 You are on that road to destruction. I don't 00:16:58.870 --> 00:17:00.610 care how much scripture you know. I don't care 00:17:00.610 --> 00:17:02.929 how many songs, worship songs you sing in your 00:17:02.929 --> 00:17:07.109 car. The world chases instant gratification. 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:10.859 And we are called to be different. We are called 00:17:10.859 --> 00:17:15.160 to seek God and his kingdom first, before we 00:17:15.160 --> 00:17:18.160 chase after our comfort. Before we chase after 00:17:18.160 --> 00:17:20.539 our pleasure. And so yesterday I had to call 00:17:20.539 --> 00:17:24.440 Sina. And I had to, I told her, I was like, I 00:17:24.440 --> 00:17:29.480 need you to talk me off the ledge. That is my 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:32.700 way of saying to her, I need you to help me not 00:17:32.700 --> 00:17:37.240 walk in my flesh. I need you to talk me through 00:17:37.240 --> 00:17:40.859 this thing, because my flesh wanted to react 00:17:40.859 --> 00:17:43.880 a certain way to some things that were said. 00:17:45.859 --> 00:17:47.839 But deep down in my heart, I knew it wasn't right. 00:17:48.019 --> 00:17:51.259 If I reacted the way I wanted, there would have 00:17:51.259 --> 00:17:53.980 been instant gratification. There would have 00:17:53.980 --> 00:17:57.220 been five minutes of, oh, that feels good, right? 00:17:57.500 --> 00:18:00.019 That feels good to say, that feels good to defend, 00:18:00.099 --> 00:18:04.000 that feels good to whatever it is. But it wouldn't 00:18:04.000 --> 00:18:07.200 have been what was right because I was I I was 00:18:07.200 --> 00:18:11.259 acting in my flesh And I think sometimes as Christians 00:18:11.259 --> 00:18:14.700 we view the wide road as as the rest of the world 00:18:14.700 --> 00:18:17.859 because we grew up in the Christian faith And 00:18:17.859 --> 00:18:20.740 because there's so many lost people that the 00:18:20.740 --> 00:18:23.519 majority of the world is not born -again believers 00:18:23.519 --> 00:18:27.569 We must be okay right, as Christians, because 00:18:27.569 --> 00:18:30.009 many are on that road that are lost, like the 00:18:30.009 --> 00:18:32.390 rest of the world is lost. We are in the minority 00:18:32.390 --> 00:18:37.009 when it comes to Christianity. Now granted, that 00:18:37.009 --> 00:18:40.809 is true. The rest of the world that is not proclaimed 00:18:40.809 --> 00:18:43.630 faith in Jesus is lost. They are on the road 00:18:43.630 --> 00:18:46.130 to destruction. But we also have to keep in mind 00:18:46.130 --> 00:18:49.529 what Jesus says a few verses later. In Matthew 00:18:49.529 --> 00:18:53.230 chapter 7, he says, many will say to me on that 00:18:53.230 --> 00:18:56.549 day, Lord, Lord, did we not do all these things? 00:18:57.950 --> 00:19:01.650 Lord, did we not come to church every week? Lord, 00:19:01.650 --> 00:19:05.410 did we not give? Lord, did we not serve? Lord, 00:19:05.410 --> 00:19:08.630 did we not do all these things in your name? 00:19:08.730 --> 00:19:11.750 And his response is going to be, depart from 00:19:11.750 --> 00:19:16.289 me. I never knew you. You learned the game. You 00:19:16.289 --> 00:19:23.410 never knew who I... was. Translation. You knew 00:19:23.410 --> 00:19:28.430 about me. You knew some facts about me. You learned 00:19:28.430 --> 00:19:31.410 the language of your church culture but you didn't 00:19:31.410 --> 00:19:34.589 know me. That's the road to destruction. Verse 00:19:34.589 --> 00:19:37.170 14 says, for the gate is narrow and the way is 00:19:37.170 --> 00:19:39.769 hard that leads to life and those who find it 00:19:39.769 --> 00:19:43.349 are few. And so here's the invitation that we 00:19:43.349 --> 00:19:48.339 just heard from Jesus. I've got the keys. He's 00:19:48.339 --> 00:19:52.819 saying, I got the keys to life. Let's lead you 00:19:52.819 --> 00:19:55.200 out of the shallow water. Let's lead you to the 00:19:55.200 --> 00:19:58.359 deep end of the pool. I know how to get us there. 00:19:58.519 --> 00:20:01.519 I know how to lead you there. I know how to lead 00:20:01.519 --> 00:20:04.460 you to life because I own it, because I sustain 00:20:04.460 --> 00:20:07.099 it, because I create it. I know how to get us 00:20:07.099 --> 00:20:09.599 there, right? And so you have a choice. Every 00:20:09.599 --> 00:20:12.680 single one of us has a choice. You've got rich, 00:20:12.819 --> 00:20:16.690 full life over here with Jesus. Or you've got 00:20:16.690 --> 00:20:19.890 the shriveling and dying of your soul over here 00:20:19.890 --> 00:20:24.470 apart from Him. The message of Jesus is not shame 00:20:24.470 --> 00:20:28.930 on you. The message of Jesus is, hey, this way 00:20:28.930 --> 00:20:33.349 to life. This way to life. Won't you come to 00:20:33.349 --> 00:20:37.369 life? And He says it's hard. Fighting against 00:20:37.369 --> 00:20:42.910 the flesh is hard. Denying our comfort is... 00:20:42.750 --> 00:20:48.589 hard. Denying our flesh is hard. But it says, 00:20:48.809 --> 00:20:52.829 but doing so. Doing so leads to life. I can't 00:20:52.829 --> 00:20:55.829 think of anything of value in my life that has 00:20:55.829 --> 00:21:03.250 come easy. My marriage has taken some really 00:21:03.250 --> 00:21:08.210 hard work to be where we are today. Raising children 00:21:08.210 --> 00:21:12.460 is not for the faint of heart. That is a daily 00:21:12.460 --> 00:21:17.440 grind I've learned. My walk with the Lord, my 00:21:17.440 --> 00:21:19.700 growing in Christ is like a roller coaster for 00:21:19.700 --> 00:21:27.079 me. But all have immense value in my life and 00:21:27.079 --> 00:21:30.359 I will continue to put in the work in those things 00:21:30.359 --> 00:21:34.099 because it's worth it. Jesus continues in verse 00:21:34.099 --> 00:21:37.200 16, you will recognize them by the fruits. Are 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:39.359 grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from 00:21:39.359 --> 00:21:42.630 thistles? So every healthy tree bears good fruit, 00:21:42.869 --> 00:21:46.450 but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy 00:21:46.450 --> 00:21:49.930 tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased 00:21:49.930 --> 00:21:53.509 tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not 00:21:53.509 --> 00:21:55.430 bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the 00:21:55.430 --> 00:21:57.950 fire. Thus, you will recognize them by their 00:21:57.950 --> 00:22:02.490 fruits. So Jesus is gonna say, the best possible 00:22:02.490 --> 00:22:07.160 life is with me. Now, I believe this, and I don't 00:22:07.160 --> 00:22:09.900 think we say it enough because I think we just 00:22:09.900 --> 00:22:14.420 have the wrong mindset, but you can have a good 00:22:14.420 --> 00:22:18.039 marriage and not be a follower of Jesus. Like, 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:21.759 I legitimately have friends that are not walking 00:22:21.759 --> 00:22:23.680 with the Lord, and I would say they have a good 00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:26.099 marriage. Like, he even takes them on dates. 00:22:26.619 --> 00:22:29.940 Like, he takes his wife on dates. He doesn't 00:22:29.940 --> 00:22:32.839 physically abuse her. Right, they have what we 00:22:32.839 --> 00:22:35.339 would consider a really good marriage. They love 00:22:35.339 --> 00:22:40.380 each other very, very much. You can have a good 00:22:40.380 --> 00:22:43.880 marriage and not know Jesus. But you will never 00:22:43.880 --> 00:22:48.039 have what marriage is in its fullness without 00:22:48.039 --> 00:22:52.680 Him. I think you can be wealthy, believe it or 00:22:52.680 --> 00:22:59.799 not, and not know Jesus. But soul wealth is a 00:22:59.799 --> 00:23:01.950 different animal, isn't it? I'd rather be wealthy 00:23:01.950 --> 00:23:04.890 in my soul than wealthy in my bank account. Jesus 00:23:04.890 --> 00:23:07.390 says that every tree is going to bear good or 00:23:07.390 --> 00:23:10.849 bad fruit. Now, according to the scripture, good 00:23:10.849 --> 00:23:16.029 fruit is defined as love, joy, peace, patience, 00:23:16.569 --> 00:23:19.289 kindness. You know who was singing the song in 00:23:19.289 --> 00:23:21.750 their head? You've heard this before. Now I want 00:23:21.750 --> 00:23:25.049 to stop real quick and define what joy is. Because 00:23:25.049 --> 00:23:26.910 sometimes I think we think of like the cheerleaders 00:23:26.910 --> 00:23:29.750 that are still saying, you know, go team. when 00:23:29.750 --> 00:23:33.890 your team is losing 83 to 6, right? Like that's 00:23:33.890 --> 00:23:36.490 joy, they're still happy, but you know, true 00:23:36.490 --> 00:23:44.390 joy is this deep confidence in the goodness of 00:23:44.390 --> 00:23:48.750 God in our life's darkest hour. Elizabeth Elliott 00:23:48.750 --> 00:23:52.690 said it this way, said, the secret of joy is 00:23:52.690 --> 00:23:58.170 Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances. 00:24:00.079 --> 00:24:05.480 The secret to joy is Christ in me, not me in 00:24:05.480 --> 00:24:10.960 a different set of circumstances. I believe our 00:24:10.960 --> 00:24:14.599 generation's Elizabeth Elliot is now Erica Kirk, 00:24:15.539 --> 00:24:18.460 who will continue the message of her husband 00:24:18.460 --> 00:24:21.960 in boldly sharing the gospel to his audience. 00:24:24.039 --> 00:24:28.599 So love, joy, peace. Patience, kindness, gentleness, 00:24:28.779 --> 00:24:31.119 self -control, these are the fruits of living 00:24:31.119 --> 00:24:34.299 with Jesus. Verse 24, everyone then who hears 00:24:34.299 --> 00:24:36.180 these words of mine and does them will be like 00:24:36.180 --> 00:24:39.180 a wise man who built his house on the rock. And 00:24:39.180 --> 00:24:40.900 the rain fell and the floods came and the winds 00:24:40.900 --> 00:24:43.420 blew and beat that house, but it did not fall 00:24:43.420 --> 00:24:46.240 because it had been founded on the rock. So there's 00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:48.460 two things to see just out of those verses. First, 00:24:48.819 --> 00:24:50.799 the man decided to build his house on the rock. 00:24:50.859 --> 00:24:52.539 It's important that you notice that. The second 00:24:52.539 --> 00:24:55.339 thing you need to notice is the storm still came. 00:24:56.529 --> 00:24:59.109 Building your life on the rock, building your 00:24:59.109 --> 00:25:01.890 life on Jesus has not exempt you from the storm. 00:25:02.430 --> 00:25:04.970 We can build on the rock or we can build on something 00:25:04.970 --> 00:25:07.630 else according to verse 26. And everyone who 00:25:07.630 --> 00:25:11.170 hears these words of mine and does not do them 00:25:11.170 --> 00:25:13.309 will be like a foolish man who built his house 00:25:13.309 --> 00:25:15.690 on the sand. And the rain fell and the floods 00:25:15.690 --> 00:25:17.690 came and the winds blew and beat against that 00:25:17.690 --> 00:25:21.009 house. And it fell and great was the fall of 00:25:21.009 --> 00:25:25.819 it. And so Jesus invites us into life once again. 00:25:25.980 --> 00:25:28.859 You can build on the rock, you can build on me, 00:25:29.019 --> 00:25:32.319 and when the storm comes, and the storm always 00:25:32.319 --> 00:25:37.000 comes, you will stand strong. Or you can build 00:25:37.000 --> 00:25:39.819 on the sand, and when the storm comes, because 00:25:39.819 --> 00:25:43.140 the storm will come, all you will have to stand 00:25:43.140 --> 00:25:45.980 on is going to be your intellect. And intellect 00:25:45.980 --> 00:25:49.579 will always fail when sorrow becomes too great. 00:25:50.029 --> 00:25:52.529 Because there's things we just cannot understand. 00:25:52.829 --> 00:25:56.309 This is the message of Jesus. Come to good fruit. 00:25:56.549 --> 00:25:59.190 Come and build your house on the rock. Walk with 00:25:59.190 --> 00:26:02.289 me. Swim with me in the deep waters. Let me lead 00:26:02.289 --> 00:26:06.009 you to abundant life. And this is what the church 00:26:06.009 --> 00:26:09.309 in Sardis forgot. They were just pretending. 00:26:10.329 --> 00:26:17.589 So turn with me back to Revelation 3. So he says 00:26:17.589 --> 00:26:19.660 you're alive. You think you're alive, but you're 00:26:19.660 --> 00:26:22.700 dead. Verse two, wake up and strengthen what 00:26:22.700 --> 00:26:25.539 remains and is about to die. For I have not found 00:26:25.539 --> 00:26:28.940 your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember 00:26:28.940 --> 00:26:32.660 then what you have received and heard. Keep it 00:26:32.660 --> 00:26:36.319 and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come 00:26:36.319 --> 00:26:39.240 like you. I will come like a thief and you will 00:26:39.240 --> 00:26:42.319 not know at what hour I will come against you. 00:26:43.900 --> 00:26:46.240 Jesus says, Sardis church, you have forgotten. 00:26:47.690 --> 00:26:52.950 You have forgotten. Wake up. Like, is this the 00:26:52.950 --> 00:26:56.789 dream? Is this what you wanted when you started 00:26:56.789 --> 00:26:59.069 this thing? When you surrendered your life, is 00:26:59.069 --> 00:27:01.549 this what you were expecting? Wake up. He's saying 00:27:01.549 --> 00:27:05.150 pay attention to your soul. Pay attention to 00:27:05.150 --> 00:27:09.450 where you are. And so what if, what if we really 00:27:09.450 --> 00:27:15.059 did pay attention? What if we decided to check 00:27:15.059 --> 00:27:18.319 our hearts and begin to ask the question, are 00:27:18.319 --> 00:27:22.339 we on the road to destruction? What if you asked 00:27:22.339 --> 00:27:25.980 that about yourself this morning? He says, there's 00:27:25.980 --> 00:27:29.099 a call to remember. Because surely when you signed 00:27:29.099 --> 00:27:30.740 up for this thing, surely when you surrendered 00:27:30.740 --> 00:27:34.220 your life, this isn't what you signed up for. 00:27:35.380 --> 00:27:39.759 This isn't what you were chasing. Maybe you've 00:27:39.759 --> 00:27:42.920 fallen into the pattern of just pretending. So 00:27:42.920 --> 00:27:46.890 we're saying, wake up. That's the call. There's 00:27:46.890 --> 00:27:48.809 a call to remember, and that leads me to Philadelphia. 00:27:50.390 --> 00:27:52.569 Not Philadelphia, P .A. We know this, right? 00:27:53.329 --> 00:27:55.670 Philadelphia, A's your minor. Philadelphia, where 00:27:55.670 --> 00:27:58.430 Turkey is now. That Philadelphia. Verse seven, 00:27:58.509 --> 00:28:00.210 he says, into the angel of the church of Philadelphia 00:28:00.210 --> 00:28:03.529 write, the words of the holy one, the true one, 00:28:03.710 --> 00:28:06.710 who has the key of David, who opens and no one 00:28:06.710 --> 00:28:11.190 will shut, who shuts and no one opens. Now, what 00:28:11.190 --> 00:28:14.500 is that open door? Because I think this is the 00:28:14.500 --> 00:28:19.539 antidote to Sardis. The open door is the invitation 00:28:19.539 --> 00:28:26.339 to life and depth and beauty. It's the invitation 00:28:26.339 --> 00:28:32.460 from Christ for life. He says, I opened the door. 00:28:33.700 --> 00:28:37.619 You didn't open the door. I opened the door and 00:28:37.619 --> 00:28:40.359 no one can shut it. Why? Why can nobody else 00:28:40.359 --> 00:28:42.759 shut it? Because you have such little power. 00:28:43.890 --> 00:28:47.109 You're unable to. This is going to be the key 00:28:47.109 --> 00:28:52.390 to save us as a church from Sardis. And I often 00:28:52.390 --> 00:28:55.829 wonder how many, I often wonder when we sing 00:28:55.829 --> 00:28:58.069 our songs in here, and y 'all sounded so good 00:28:58.069 --> 00:29:01.269 today. You sounded so good today, but I wonder 00:29:01.269 --> 00:29:04.589 how tiny and how small it must sound in heaven. 00:29:05.160 --> 00:29:08.380 Because if all of creation proclaims the glory 00:29:08.380 --> 00:29:11.920 of God, and you've got stars that are exploding, 00:29:12.359 --> 00:29:15.059 that are twice the size of Earth, how small are 00:29:15.059 --> 00:29:20.039 we? Why would he invite us to walk into life? 00:29:20.839 --> 00:29:24.519 If you've ever stood on the coast, and you stood 00:29:24.519 --> 00:29:28.619 with the ocean in front of you, and you hear 00:29:28.619 --> 00:29:31.099 the roar, and you hear that that is declaring 00:29:31.099 --> 00:29:34.119 the greatness and goodness of who God is. It 00:29:34.119 --> 00:29:37.579 makes you feel small, because that thing could 00:29:37.579 --> 00:29:39.619 eat you up and not think twice about it, right? 00:29:40.500 --> 00:29:42.940 Or if you stand at the top of the Grand Canyon 00:29:42.940 --> 00:29:45.740 and you look down into that massive creation, 00:29:46.880 --> 00:29:50.519 you realize how small and insignificant you are 00:29:50.519 --> 00:29:55.640 to the greatness of who God is. So how do we 00:29:55.640 --> 00:29:59.119 make sure, how do we make sure and protect ourselves 00:29:59.119 --> 00:30:06.000 that we do not become Sardis? We have to remember 00:30:06.000 --> 00:30:10.400 that He is the one that opened the door. He is 00:30:10.400 --> 00:30:13.299 the one that is inviting us into life. There's 00:30:13.299 --> 00:30:14.839 nothing you can do to open the door. He's already 00:30:14.839 --> 00:30:17.059 done it. There's nothing you can do to shut the 00:30:17.059 --> 00:30:19.460 door because your sin is already forgiven if 00:30:19.460 --> 00:30:23.339 you proclaim faith in Jesus. We have to remember 00:30:23.339 --> 00:30:26.279 that. We have to go back to that and we have 00:30:26.279 --> 00:30:31.380 to be obedient to the words of Christ. And I 00:30:31.380 --> 00:30:33.880 think it's important because in our culture it 00:30:33.880 --> 00:30:45.319 is so, so easy to pretend for decades at a time. 00:30:46.940 --> 00:30:52.319 It's so easy to come to this level of morality 00:30:52.319 --> 00:30:56.000 that we create in our own heads and we start 00:30:56.000 --> 00:30:59.119 judging other people. and looking down on them 00:30:59.119 --> 00:31:01.099 because they can't seem to get to our standard. 00:31:02.559 --> 00:31:05.680 And when we do that, we fail to realize who we 00:31:05.680 --> 00:31:07.740 are before Christ and all of us are insignificant. 00:31:08.819 --> 00:31:11.240 All of us are sinners. All of us are in need 00:31:11.240 --> 00:31:16.460 of a savior. And so when we begin to elevate 00:31:16.460 --> 00:31:20.700 morality, we begin to forget about grace. And 00:31:20.700 --> 00:31:23.940 grace becomes this thing we say and talk about 00:31:23.940 --> 00:31:27.960 but don't practice. And so here's how we avoid 00:31:27.960 --> 00:31:32.220 being Sardis, is we really begin to ask ourselves. 00:31:33.720 --> 00:31:37.359 We really begin to ask ourselves, am I on the 00:31:37.359 --> 00:31:43.079 road of destruction? What are those moments in 00:31:43.079 --> 00:31:46.819 your life? If you think back to the last week 00:31:46.819 --> 00:31:49.460 or the last month, those moments where you have 00:31:49.460 --> 00:31:55.279 failed to deny your flesh. You fail to ask. God, 00:31:55.299 --> 00:31:59.400 what do you want from me in this situation? Instead, 00:31:59.420 --> 00:32:01.839 you just chase your comfort. You chase your preference. 00:32:02.259 --> 00:32:04.319 You chase whatever, because this is going to 00:32:04.319 --> 00:32:10.000 be a little hard. What is he calling you to do? 00:32:11.900 --> 00:32:15.900 And what I love about Jesus is he doesn't sugarcoat 00:32:15.900 --> 00:32:18.980 it. He says, he goes, you have to deny yourself. 00:32:20.099 --> 00:32:21.920 He doesn't say deny yourself once. He says, you 00:32:21.920 --> 00:32:27.480 have to deny yourself. Daily. Daily deny yourself. 00:32:27.680 --> 00:32:31.759 Daily deny your flesh. Daily follow me. Take 00:32:31.759 --> 00:32:35.519 up your cross. Daily. This is an every single 00:32:35.519 --> 00:32:40.400 day battle. And so my question to you is when 00:32:40.400 --> 00:32:44.279 was the last time you denied yourself and you 00:32:44.279 --> 00:32:46.660 took up the cross? Not because it was easy, but 00:32:46.660 --> 00:32:50.980 because it was hard. If we don't want to be Sardis. 00:32:53.119 --> 00:32:56.660 We have to understand that we need the Lord to 00:32:56.660 --> 00:33:02.279 speak and move in our heart Sardis is my greatest 00:33:02.279 --> 00:33:06.160 fear Because one day I'm gonna stand before the 00:33:06.160 --> 00:33:09.740 Lord I'm gonna stand before the Lord and I'm 00:33:09.740 --> 00:33:11.799 gonna give an account for how I led every church 00:33:11.799 --> 00:33:21.740 I ever stood in front of And I don't ever want 00:33:21.740 --> 00:33:25.460 to lead a church down the path of destruction. 00:33:26.900 --> 00:33:30.700 And so I'm pleading with you. I'm pleading with 00:33:30.700 --> 00:33:35.779 you to check your heart, to humble yourself before 00:33:35.779 --> 00:33:42.240 Him, to ask Him to reveal these things to you. 00:33:43.180 --> 00:33:44.880 And so we'll invite the worship team up here. 00:33:44.900 --> 00:33:47.099 Let me pray for us and I'll give you. We'll have 00:33:47.099 --> 00:33:49.019 time to respond to whatever the Lord has for 00:33:49.019 --> 00:33:52.799 us this morning. So if you bow your head and 00:33:52.799 --> 00:33:54.839 pray with me, Father, I pray right now that you 00:33:54.839 --> 00:33:58.660 will speak to our heart. I pray that you'll speak 00:33:58.660 --> 00:34:05.779 to our souls this morning. God, I thank you. 00:34:07.339 --> 00:34:09.360 I thank you that you didn't give up on Sardis. 00:34:10.139 --> 00:34:12.900 You encourage them to wake up. You encourage 00:34:12.900 --> 00:34:16.039 them to come back to this reality. You've invited 00:34:16.039 --> 00:34:19.800 us into life, not just existence, but you've 00:34:19.800 --> 00:34:22.699 invited us back into eternal life because of 00:34:22.699 --> 00:34:24.900 what you've done for us, Father. I pray that 00:34:24.900 --> 00:34:28.340 you will help us to quit pretending to not be 00:34:28.340 --> 00:34:30.940 conformed to this world, but you will help us 00:34:30.940 --> 00:34:36.440 renew our minds through your word. And so I pray 00:34:36.440 --> 00:34:40.940 in this moment that you speak. You speak to our 00:34:40.940 --> 00:34:44.420 hearts louder than anything we hear today. Give 00:34:44.420 --> 00:34:46.679 us the confidence and the boldness to walk forward 00:34:46.679 --> 00:34:52.739 in obedience. And so Father, I pray for those 00:34:52.739 --> 00:34:55.119 that are just existing. I pray that you, they 00:34:55.119 --> 00:34:58.260 hear the invitation to life, that they will call 00:34:58.260 --> 00:35:02.820 upon your name, that they will be saved. that 00:35:02.820 --> 00:35:06.079 you will transform their hearts because of the 00:35:06.079 --> 00:35:08.360 grace that you have poured out on all of us. 00:35:10.820 --> 00:35:13.320 So have your way in this place. In Jesus' name 00:35:13.320 --> 00:35:48.179 I pray. Amen. I find my rest without you I fall 00:35:48.179 --> 00:36:00.599 apart You're the one that guides my heart Lord 00:36:00.599 --> 00:36:21.880 I need defense my righteousness oh god how i 00:36:21.880 --> 00:36:34.500 need you where sin runs deep your grace is more 00:36:34.500 --> 00:37:39.369 where grace is found is where you When I cannot 00:37:39.369 --> 00:37:46.449 stand, I'll fall on you. Jesus, you're my hope 00:37:46.449 --> 00:37:55.730 instead. So teach my song to rise to you. When 00:37:55.730 --> 00:38:02.150 temptation comes my way. And when I cannot stand, 00:38:02.429 --> 00:39:23.119 I'll fall on you. We're saying that in the first 00:39:23.119 --> 00:39:27.500 service. I just felt impressed by the Lord When 00:39:27.500 --> 00:39:29.099 I was singing Lord, I need you what it you know, 00:39:29.159 --> 00:39:31.119 I just felt impressed by what does that actually 00:39:31.119 --> 00:39:35.380 mean? And I just had this this vision of like 00:39:35.380 --> 00:39:37.940 complete surrender is when we're is what we're 00:39:37.940 --> 00:39:41.539 saying Lord I need you and I just had this picture 00:39:41.539 --> 00:39:45.219 of You know essentially a criminal, you know 00:39:45.219 --> 00:39:47.699 when they come in contact with the police and 00:39:47.699 --> 00:39:50.760 They say put your hands in the air, right? Next, 00:39:50.820 --> 00:39:54.340 show me that you're surrendering. Show me that 00:39:54.340 --> 00:39:57.840 you don't have any more weapons. You're no longer 00:39:57.840 --> 00:40:00.480 guarded, right? And we put our hands in the air 00:40:00.480 --> 00:40:02.599 and then maybe they make you get on your knees. 00:40:04.280 --> 00:40:05.780 And you get on your knees and you have your hands 00:40:05.780 --> 00:40:08.159 in the air, you have your hands behind your head 00:40:08.159 --> 00:40:11.860 and that is just a completely vulnerable position, 00:40:11.940 --> 00:40:16.320 isn't it? You can't attack. It's just completely 00:40:16.320 --> 00:40:18.940 surrendering and depending on the... depending 00:40:18.940 --> 00:40:21.960 on the severity of the crime that they're, they 00:40:21.960 --> 00:40:23.679 might even have them lay on the ground and just 00:40:23.679 --> 00:40:25.800 have their own spread, just completely laying 00:40:25.800 --> 00:40:28.400 flat on the ground before them, completely surrender. 00:40:29.880 --> 00:40:32.300 And I think some of us, maybe that will be helpful 00:40:32.300 --> 00:40:35.599 to you. It was helpful to me of what it looks 00:40:35.599 --> 00:40:38.280 like to really say, Lord, I need you. This is 00:40:38.280 --> 00:40:41.219 me completely surrendered up because I think 00:40:41.219 --> 00:40:46.739 we guard ourselves. We guard ourselves. And so 00:40:46.739 --> 00:40:50.300 maybe you're at the place where you're just ready 00:40:50.300 --> 00:40:53.840 to surrender, God, this is for you, I need you. 00:40:54.159 --> 00:40:59.199 Every single hour of the day, I need you. And 00:40:59.199 --> 00:41:01.679 so I'm gonna ask Matthew to lead us in that one 00:41:01.679 --> 00:41:03.900 more time and I'm just gonna be available up 00:41:03.900 --> 00:41:06.260 here in front. I'm gonna ask Tim to be available 00:41:06.260 --> 00:41:09.380 just to pray with you if we can. But maybe some 00:41:09.380 --> 00:41:10.840 of you just need to get, you're at the end of 00:41:10.840 --> 00:41:12.840 your road. You've realized you're on the road 00:41:12.840 --> 00:41:14.739 to destruction and you just need to throw your 00:41:14.739 --> 00:41:16.880 hands in the air and get on your knees and lay 00:41:16.880 --> 00:41:18.579 on your face and say, Lord, I need you every 00:41:18.579 --> 00:41:20.800 hour. I need you to get me through this because 00:41:20.800 --> 00:41:24.280 my sheer willpower is not doing it anymore. And 00:41:24.280 --> 00:41:25.360 so I'm going to dismiss you. I'm going to ask 00:41:25.360 --> 00:41:27.139 you to leave quietly as we leave. But if you 00:41:27.139 --> 00:41:30.119 want to stay and just continue to just be in 00:41:30.119 --> 00:41:32.260 His presence in this place as Matthew sings over 00:41:32.260 --> 00:41:33.980 us, then I want to invite you to do that. If 00:41:33.980 --> 00:41:35.500 I can pray with you or Tim can pray with you, 00:41:35.579 --> 00:41:37.840 then please, please take us up on that. We'd 00:41:37.840 --> 00:41:39.760 love to walk with you on this journey. Other 00:41:39.760 --> 00:41:41.599 than that, I hope you have a great week. It's 00:41:41.599 --> 00:41:43.639 been a joy to worship with you in this place, 00:41:44.559 --> 00:41:45.800 but for those of you that want to stay, we're 00:41:45.800 --> 00:41:49.079 going to extend it a little bit longer just to 00:41:49.079 --> 00:41:51.539 surrender ourselves before him. I hope you have 00:41:51.539 --> 00:41:52.059 a good week.