WEBVTT 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:23.620 If you have your Bibles, First John is where 00:00:23.620 --> 00:00:31.059 we're going to be. Good morning. We're going 00:00:31.059 --> 00:00:33.200 to knock out a pretty big chunk of scripture 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:38.159 this morning and learn as to what it means to 00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:41.200 walk in the light that John is writing about 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:43.960 to his readers. That's the goal this morning. 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:46.399 The apostle John, if you weren't here last week, 00:00:46.960 --> 00:00:50.659 is writing to a group of early believers and 00:00:50.659 --> 00:00:53.520 addresses a world that's filled with confusion 00:00:53.520 --> 00:00:58.539 and sin and false teachings. So this is the audience 00:00:58.539 --> 00:01:01.259 that he is addressing. His message is clear in 00:01:01.259 --> 00:01:07.000 this text that God is light, and to live in fellowship 00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:12.129 with him, we must also walk in that light. We 00:01:12.129 --> 00:01:14.549 have to walk in that light honestly. We have 00:01:14.549 --> 00:01:16.849 to walk in that light humbly and lovingly, right? 00:01:16.930 --> 00:01:19.870 This isn't just a theology lesson. This is a 00:01:19.870 --> 00:01:23.650 blueprint for how we should live as authentic 00:01:23.650 --> 00:01:26.810 Christians. And so I hope that that is our goal 00:01:26.810 --> 00:01:29.290 in coming to church each and every week, that 00:01:29.290 --> 00:01:31.609 our hope, our goal is to be authentic followers 00:01:31.609 --> 00:01:36.299 of Jesus and not fake. because it does not do 00:01:36.299 --> 00:01:40.140 your soul any good to learn how to do a religion, 00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:44.379 to learn how to fit into a system of rules or 00:01:44.379 --> 00:01:48.340 order and ignore the realities of sin and how 00:01:48.340 --> 00:01:52.400 it separates you from a holy God. So if we want 00:01:52.400 --> 00:01:56.450 to be authentic, in our faith we need to understand 00:01:56.450 --> 00:02:00.349 who Jesus is what it means to walk in the light 00:02:00.349 --> 00:02:02.950 and then we need to trust that he is leading 00:02:02.950 --> 00:02:06.769 us to abundant life and so that's my goal this 00:02:06.769 --> 00:02:09.370 morning out of this text all right and so we're 00:02:09.370 --> 00:02:11.750 going to read the rest of chapter 1 this morning 00:02:11.750 --> 00:02:13.770 like we started last week and then we're going 00:02:13.770 --> 00:02:16.669 to I'm just going to kind of address and and 00:02:16.669 --> 00:02:20.050 point out the first 11 verses of chapter 2 on 00:02:20.050 --> 00:02:22.530 how we should live in light of what John describes 00:02:22.530 --> 00:02:24.819 here in chapter one. And so we're going to start 00:02:24.819 --> 00:02:27.520 in verse five of first John chapter one. If you're 00:02:27.520 --> 00:02:29.740 willing and able we'd love for you to stand as 00:02:29.740 --> 00:02:36.300 we honor the Lord's word together. John writes 00:02:36.300 --> 00:02:39.039 this is the message we have heard from him and 00:02:39.039 --> 00:02:42.020 proclaim to you that God is light and in him 00:02:42.020 --> 00:02:45.539 is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship 00:02:45.539 --> 00:02:48.979 with him while we walk in darkness we lie and 00:02:48.979 --> 00:02:51.780 do not practice the truth. But if we walk in 00:02:51.780 --> 00:02:55.340 the light, as he is the light, we have fellowship 00:02:55.340 --> 00:02:58.039 with one another, and the blood of Jesus his 00:02:58.039 --> 00:03:01.819 son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have 00:03:01.819 --> 00:03:05.099 no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is 00:03:05.099 --> 00:03:09.039 not in us. we confess our sins he is faithful 00:03:09.039 --> 00:03:12.000 and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse 00:03:12.000 --> 00:03:15.180 us from all unrighteousness if we say we have 00:03:15.180 --> 00:03:18.020 not sinned we make him a liar and his word is 00:03:18.020 --> 00:03:20.280 not in us let's pray father thank you for your 00:03:20.280 --> 00:03:24.560 word again I pray that it resonates in our hearts 00:03:24.560 --> 00:03:28.639 I pray that you will speak to us through your 00:03:28.639 --> 00:03:31.659 word may your voice be heard louder than anything 00:03:31.659 --> 00:03:33.520 else we hear today we ask all these things in 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:41.020 Jesus name amen Amen. And so right here in chapter 00:03:41.020 --> 00:03:44.139 one, verse five, John begins with a pretty bold 00:03:44.139 --> 00:03:46.680 declaration that that this is the message that 00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:49.259 we have heard. And now we're declaring it right 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:52.360 to you. So we have to remember, John walked with 00:03:52.360 --> 00:03:57.250 Jesus. touched him he heard him he he experienced 00:03:57.250 --> 00:04:00.110 the miracles and so he's saying because we experience 00:04:00.110 --> 00:04:03.569 this we are declaring it now to you and he's 00:04:03.569 --> 00:04:07.129 saying I've seen it he's saying God is light 00:04:07.129 --> 00:04:11.060 in him there's there's no darkness at all Now, 00:04:11.060 --> 00:04:15.639 light represents God's holiness, His truth, His 00:04:15.639 --> 00:04:18.680 purity. There's no shadow. There's no deceit. 00:04:18.839 --> 00:04:22.639 There's no compromise in who Jesus is. Now, this 00:04:22.639 --> 00:04:26.240 isn't just a poetic image. It's the foundation 00:04:26.240 --> 00:04:31.199 of who God is. He's the source. of all that is 00:04:31.199 --> 00:04:35.579 good, all that is just, and true. Now, the original 00:04:35.579 --> 00:04:38.959 word that John uses to explain light that he 00:04:38.959 --> 00:04:42.120 uses for light, he's not referring to actual 00:04:42.120 --> 00:04:44.800 visual light. He's not referring to the lights 00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:48.279 that we see here. He's actually referring to 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:51.959 God as the source of spiritual understanding. 00:04:52.279 --> 00:04:55.360 He's referring to God as the source of truth. 00:04:55.699 --> 00:04:58.060 And so when it says God is light, he's saying 00:04:58.060 --> 00:05:02.019 God is the source of truth. God is the source 00:05:02.019 --> 00:05:05.060 of spiritual understanding. But I want you to 00:05:05.060 --> 00:05:09.360 think about light in your life. When you flip 00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:13.100 on a switch, in a dark room, everything that's 00:05:13.100 --> 00:05:16.079 hidden or cannot be seen now becomes clear when 00:05:16.079 --> 00:05:19.920 you flip on that switch. God's light, His truth 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:25.500 exposes what is true about Him, about us, about 00:05:25.500 --> 00:05:29.420 the world around us. But it also illuminates 00:05:29.420 --> 00:05:32.920 our path forward. We know this from Psalm 119. 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:35.819 It says, your word is a lamp for my feet, a light 00:05:35.819 --> 00:05:41.199 on my path. And so John's point Is that to know 00:05:41.199 --> 00:05:46.079 God is to step into his radiant truth? Leaving 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:49.600 no room for darkness to linger that's what it 00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:53.740 means This is the reason why Paul refers to Satan 00:05:53.740 --> 00:05:57.980 as the ruler of darkness and here John Refers 00:05:57.980 --> 00:06:02.019 to God as light that those are opposing realities 00:06:02.019 --> 00:06:07.290 the definition of darkness is the absence of 00:06:07.290 --> 00:06:11.850 light. And so God and Satan are on complete opposite 00:06:11.850 --> 00:06:15.350 ends of the spectrum. And so when we are not 00:06:15.350 --> 00:06:19.730 walking in the ways of the Lord, we are walking 00:06:19.730 --> 00:06:23.209 in darkness and we are not walking in truth. 00:06:23.430 --> 00:06:26.649 And so when we're going our own way, and we're 00:06:26.649 --> 00:06:29.430 trusting our own instincts, we are walking away 00:06:29.430 --> 00:06:31.649 from the truth. Now, I want to be careful with 00:06:31.649 --> 00:06:33.949 this text because I don't want any of you to 00:06:33.949 --> 00:06:36.709 leave thinking that if you ever walk in sin, 00:06:36.990 --> 00:06:39.129 or if you ever walk in darkness, that somehow 00:06:39.129 --> 00:06:41.750 that means your salvation is in jeopardy. That's 00:06:41.750 --> 00:06:46.449 not what this text is. For instance, my bedroom, 00:06:47.410 --> 00:06:50.350 I keep messing that up, the bedroom I share with 00:06:50.350 --> 00:06:55.689 my wife, our bedroom, is in the basement. of 00:06:55.689 --> 00:06:59.009 our house. Now for some reason when we were, 00:06:59.310 --> 00:07:00.949 we had all these reasons as to why we wanted 00:07:00.949 --> 00:07:02.949 our bedroom in the basement, but for some reason 00:07:02.949 --> 00:07:05.490 when we were finishing our basement, I failed 00:07:05.490 --> 00:07:09.050 to put a light switch by my bedroom door. I only 00:07:09.050 --> 00:07:12.250 put one on the other end of the room. And so 00:07:12.250 --> 00:07:16.389 any time we have, you know, at nighttime we have 00:07:16.389 --> 00:07:19.790 to navigate through the basement in the dark 00:07:19.790 --> 00:07:22.709 just to get to the light switch. That was a dumb 00:07:22.709 --> 00:07:26.350 move on my part. Now, I know our basement pretty 00:07:26.350 --> 00:07:28.829 well. I know where we have placed the furniture. 00:07:29.009 --> 00:07:32.110 I know where to walk. You know the drill when 00:07:32.110 --> 00:07:33.829 you walk through the dark. I know these things. 00:07:34.769 --> 00:07:36.629 I know which direction I'm headed. I know where 00:07:36.629 --> 00:07:38.850 the light switch is. We know all these things. 00:07:39.189 --> 00:07:41.209 Most of the time, I can make it through just 00:07:41.209 --> 00:07:45.370 fine. No issues whatsoever. However, on occasion, 00:07:46.449 --> 00:07:51.149 we have a child who does a poor job of putting 00:07:51.149 --> 00:07:55.509 their toys away. And because those toys aren't 00:07:55.509 --> 00:08:03.329 usually on the ground, The possibility of being 00:08:03.329 --> 00:08:05.930 impaled by something on the ground whether it 00:08:05.930 --> 00:08:10.370 is a race car or Legos or whatever it is now 00:08:10.370 --> 00:08:13.389 after some tears and after a few choice words 00:08:13.389 --> 00:08:16.449 in my head I can get to the light switch to see 00:08:16.449 --> 00:08:19.370 exactly what happened and once I turn the light 00:08:19.370 --> 00:08:22.050 switch on I can then have him clean it up or 00:08:22.050 --> 00:08:24.589 at least at minimum Okay, now I know where to 00:08:24.589 --> 00:08:26.550 avoid next time when I come back through here 00:08:26.550 --> 00:08:29.610 right like we know all those things so When we 00:08:29.610 --> 00:08:33.610 think of God as light, God as light exposes the 00:08:33.610 --> 00:08:37.070 things that are in our path that are potentially 00:08:37.070 --> 00:08:41.309 destructive to us. I would hate to see what our 00:08:41.309 --> 00:08:43.309 basement would look like if we didn't have any 00:08:43.309 --> 00:08:47.549 lights on down there. If the light never touched 00:08:47.549 --> 00:08:51.929 it. The light that we have in our dark basement 00:08:51.929 --> 00:08:56.110 exposes the dirtiness that exists in a house 00:08:56.110 --> 00:08:59.120 filled with people, especially children. Right. 00:08:59.460 --> 00:09:01.559 So when the lights are on, we're like, oh, we 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:04.639 need to vacuum. Oh, we need to dust. We know 00:09:04.639 --> 00:09:06.919 when to pick things up. We know when the carpet 00:09:06.919 --> 00:09:09.039 needs a little bit of extra attention because 00:09:09.039 --> 00:09:10.860 somebody brought a drink down to the basement 00:09:10.860 --> 00:09:13.000 that shouldn't have been there. Right. We know 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:15.039 how to arrange our furniture the way we like 00:09:15.039 --> 00:09:17.080 it when the lights are on. Be almost impossible 00:09:17.080 --> 00:09:22.740 in the dark. Walking with the Lord. Exposes the 00:09:22.740 --> 00:09:26.500 dirtiness that is in our life as we have fellowship 00:09:26.500 --> 00:09:30.429 with him. It's like the lights get turned on 00:09:30.429 --> 00:09:34.370 and we can pick up or clean these different aspects 00:09:34.370 --> 00:09:36.710 of our lives that have been neglected while the 00:09:36.710 --> 00:09:40.009 lights were off. But so many people go through 00:09:40.009 --> 00:09:43.309 their entire life without ever turning on the 00:09:43.309 --> 00:09:47.090 light. They just learn to live in the obstacle 00:09:47.090 --> 00:09:49.690 course of life and avoid certain dangers because 00:09:49.690 --> 00:09:51.950 they've been hurt by those different things. 00:09:52.710 --> 00:09:55.830 Now religion will teach you how to navigate life 00:09:55.830 --> 00:09:58.710 where you are in control of the outcome. I can 00:09:58.710 --> 00:10:01.169 figure out where the obstacles are in my basement 00:10:01.169 --> 00:10:03.289 when the lights are off. I can figure that out 00:10:03.289 --> 00:10:06.850 and I can avoid those places. But a relationship 00:10:06.850 --> 00:10:10.610 with Jesus in our life exposes the things in 00:10:10.610 --> 00:10:14.169 our path that are detrimental to us walking in 00:10:14.169 --> 00:10:17.070 freedom, to us walking in confidence as we navigate 00:10:17.070 --> 00:10:20.799 life. Because we are all sinners. And the fact 00:10:20.799 --> 00:10:24.299 of the matter is, before we came to a saving 00:10:24.299 --> 00:10:27.500 knowledge of who God is, we were walking in the 00:10:27.500 --> 00:10:31.179 dark with no hope of ever finding the light switch. 00:10:31.659 --> 00:10:34.480 We were perpetually in the dark. We could learn 00:10:34.480 --> 00:10:37.259 lessons on what to avoid because we stubbed our 00:10:37.259 --> 00:10:40.840 toe or we've hurt ourselves, but we never really 00:10:40.840 --> 00:10:43.860 understood why we were avoiding it, why those 00:10:43.860 --> 00:10:46.639 obstacles were there. We just know that they 00:10:46.639 --> 00:10:50.110 caused us pain. And so we avoid those situations. 00:10:50.509 --> 00:10:54.470 With Jesus, the light gets turned on so we can 00:10:54.470 --> 00:10:59.370 actually do something about it. The light exposes 00:10:59.370 --> 00:11:02.769 the sin that is in all of us. And the more we 00:11:02.769 --> 00:11:05.490 spend time with the Lord by reading his word, 00:11:06.289 --> 00:11:08.889 by walking in relationship with him, it's like 00:11:08.889 --> 00:11:12.340 the longer the light stays on. And the longer 00:11:12.340 --> 00:11:15.639 the light stays on, we can begin to deal with 00:11:15.639 --> 00:11:18.779 the obstacles that are in our way. We have to 00:11:18.779 --> 00:11:21.799 always walk in the light. That should be our 00:11:21.799 --> 00:11:26.960 goal. To make sure that we are continuously walking 00:11:26.960 --> 00:11:30.600 in the light, there are a few things that we 00:11:30.600 --> 00:11:33.799 need to be mindful of. We need to be aware of. 00:11:33.919 --> 00:11:36.580 The first thing that John says is being aware 00:11:36.580 --> 00:11:41.039 of our sin. once it gets exposed and then actually 00:11:41.039 --> 00:11:44.759 confessing it. But here's the good news, walking 00:11:44.759 --> 00:11:49.419 in the light does not mean that we have to be 00:11:49.419 --> 00:11:53.759 perfect. It doesn't mean we are perfect. It's 00:11:53.759 --> 00:11:57.120 just about being honest. John writes, if we confess 00:11:57.120 --> 00:12:02.340 our sins, if we confess our sins, then He is 00:12:02.340 --> 00:12:05.679 faithful and just and will forgive us our sins 00:12:05.679 --> 00:12:08.539 and He's going to purify us from all unrighteousness. 00:12:08.779 --> 00:12:12.220 We have to confess our sins. Confession is not 00:12:12.220 --> 00:12:15.980 groveling. It's agreeing with God about our sin 00:12:15.980 --> 00:12:20.860 and then trusting in His grace. So Jesus, our 00:12:20.860 --> 00:12:25.769 advocate, According to 1 John chapter 2, He stands 00:12:25.769 --> 00:12:29.309 before the Father and His sacrifice covers our 00:12:29.309 --> 00:12:32.529 failures, covers our mess ups. John adds, He 00:12:32.529 --> 00:12:36.450 is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not 00:12:36.450 --> 00:12:39.769 only ours, but also the sins of the entire world. 00:12:39.950 --> 00:12:42.649 He is the atoning sacrifice according to verse 00:12:42.649 --> 00:12:46.799 2. This is the gospel. This is what we have to 00:12:46.799 --> 00:12:49.539 get into our heads. This is what we have to understand 00:12:49.539 --> 00:12:54.039 that Christ's death bridges the gap between our 00:12:54.039 --> 00:12:57.059 darkness and God's light. He's the one that connects 00:12:57.059 --> 00:13:01.360 the two. When we understand that Jesus is our 00:13:01.360 --> 00:13:05.500 advocate, it changes the dynamic. Here's kind 00:13:05.500 --> 00:13:08.179 of what it looks like. I want you to imagine 00:13:08.179 --> 00:13:11.899 a young woman just kind of standing nervously 00:13:11.899 --> 00:13:15.240 in a courtroom. Now, she's been accused of a 00:13:15.240 --> 00:13:20.620 crime that she didn't commit. She embezzled. 00:13:20.620 --> 00:13:22.720 She was accused of embezzling money from her 00:13:22.720 --> 00:13:26.120 workplace. The evidence looks bad for her. Her 00:13:26.120 --> 00:13:29.240 name is on some paperwork. Another coworker pointed 00:13:29.240 --> 00:13:30.940 the finger at her and said, she's the one that 00:13:30.940 --> 00:13:34.580 did it. She has no lawyer. She can't afford a 00:13:34.580 --> 00:13:36.940 lawyer. And so she's kind of on her own in this 00:13:36.940 --> 00:13:39.230 thing. Now, imagine that situation. You'd be 00:13:39.230 --> 00:13:41.629 terrified. She's kind of stammering through her 00:13:41.629 --> 00:13:43.429 defense. She's kind of stumbling all over her 00:13:43.429 --> 00:13:46.129 words. She's feeling the weight of the reality. 00:13:46.190 --> 00:13:48.370 She's feeling the weight of the judge's gaze. 00:13:48.850 --> 00:13:51.590 She knows she's innocent, but the case against 00:13:51.590 --> 00:13:54.809 her seems airtight, and she's out of her depth. 00:13:55.230 --> 00:13:57.570 Now, if she's found guilty, it could ruin her 00:13:57.570 --> 00:14:00.850 life, whether it be fines or jail time or a permanent 00:14:00.850 --> 00:14:03.610 record or whatever it is. But just as the gavel's 00:14:03.610 --> 00:14:06.450 about to fall, someone comes to her defense. 00:14:06.679 --> 00:14:10.480 He's a renowned lawyer, and he has taken on her 00:14:10.480 --> 00:14:14.240 case for free. He knows her story. He knows the 00:14:14.240 --> 00:14:17.440 truth. He knows her character. And so with calm 00:14:17.440 --> 00:14:22.080 confidence, he presents evidence the court hadn't 00:14:22.080 --> 00:14:25.860 yet seen. Security footage proving her innocence, 00:14:27.059 --> 00:14:30.500 a signed affidavit from a fellow coworker, and 00:14:30.500 --> 00:14:34.080 a detailed explanation of how the actual culprit 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:38.350 framed her. He speaks with authority, not because 00:14:38.350 --> 00:14:41.710 of her perfection, but because of his expertise 00:14:41.710 --> 00:14:46.870 and the commitment to her cause. The judge listens 00:14:46.870 --> 00:14:50.769 to the case and he dismisses it. She walks free, 00:14:51.230 --> 00:14:54.389 tears of relief streaming down her face. As she 00:14:54.389 --> 00:14:57.289 thanks her lawyer, he smiles and says, I was 00:14:57.289 --> 00:15:01.470 just doing my job. You were never alone in this. 00:15:01.950 --> 00:15:06.649 That is a picture of Jesus. our advocate as described 00:15:06.649 --> 00:15:09.730 in verse 1 of chapter 2 if anybody does sin we 00:15:09.730 --> 00:15:13.710 have an advocate with the father Jesus Jesus 00:15:13.710 --> 00:15:16.570 Christ the righteous one because the reality 00:15:16.570 --> 00:15:20.049 is we all stand accused before God's perfect 00:15:20.049 --> 00:15:23.769 justice guilty of sin with no defense of our 00:15:23.769 --> 00:15:27.809 own but Jesus steps in not because we are perfect 00:15:27.809 --> 00:15:32.370 not because we're innocent but because he is 00:15:32.370 --> 00:15:36.190 his sacrifice on the cross. His righteousness 00:15:36.190 --> 00:15:42.629 pays our penalty and pleads our case. He knows 00:15:42.629 --> 00:15:48.389 us. He loves us. And He intercedes before the 00:15:48.389 --> 00:15:52.129 Father ensuring that we're never alone. Because 00:15:52.129 --> 00:15:55.389 of Him we are able to walk free. Because of Him 00:15:55.389 --> 00:15:59.309 we are forgiven. Because of Jesus we are restored. 00:15:59.690 --> 00:16:03.090 That's the power of having an advocate in Jesus 00:16:03.090 --> 00:16:08.950 Christ. When we are walking in the light, hopefully 00:16:08.950 --> 00:16:14.970 we recognize our need for Jesus. And when we 00:16:14.970 --> 00:16:18.070 fail to confess all the times that we have sinned 00:16:18.070 --> 00:16:22.269 against Him, it kind of numbs us to the reality 00:16:22.269 --> 00:16:25.850 of what He did for us and what He's doing for 00:16:25.850 --> 00:16:28.730 us before the Father. Because the longer you 00:16:28.730 --> 00:16:31.210 look at something in the light, the more you 00:16:31.210 --> 00:16:34.879 notice the flaws and imperfections. If you were 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:37.440 to head over to my house right after this service, 00:16:37.539 --> 00:16:42.000 you're not invited, but if you were, if you were, 00:16:42.740 --> 00:16:46.100 and you sat in my house long enough, you would 00:16:46.100 --> 00:16:49.740 notice some things that aren't perfect, all right? 00:16:50.700 --> 00:16:53.159 You will see scuff marks on the walls where my 00:16:53.159 --> 00:16:57.120 boys have been throwing balls. You will see crumbs 00:16:57.120 --> 00:16:59.419 on the couch, even though they're not supposed 00:16:59.419 --> 00:17:03.320 to eat on the furniture. You will see coffee 00:17:03.320 --> 00:17:06.720 stains going down the stairs. You will see all 00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:10.680 these imperfections in my house Because the lights 00:17:10.680 --> 00:17:14.119 are on the longer you look at something in the 00:17:14.119 --> 00:17:18.940 light The more things get exposed now once once 00:17:18.940 --> 00:17:22.299 all those things are exposed They can be dealt 00:17:22.299 --> 00:17:25.539 with you can you can get a can of paint and fix 00:17:25.539 --> 00:17:29.269 the scuff marks you can Remind your children 00:17:29.269 --> 00:17:31.670 again. Hey, let's not eat on the couch, right? 00:17:31.869 --> 00:17:34.089 But at least you can clean it up or at least 00:17:34.089 --> 00:17:38.650 they could clean it up But without the light 00:17:38.650 --> 00:17:41.869 We're just kind of guessing as to what needs 00:17:41.869 --> 00:17:46.650 work Confession is us standing before the Lord 00:17:46.650 --> 00:17:49.730 Acknowledging that there's just some things in 00:17:49.730 --> 00:17:52.420 my life that are off There's some things in my 00:17:52.420 --> 00:17:54.900 life that are just not right. It's a moment of 00:17:54.900 --> 00:17:57.980 honesty. It's a moment of vulnerability. Because 00:17:57.980 --> 00:18:01.460 when you think about the holiness of God, and 00:18:01.460 --> 00:18:05.200 the longer you stare at it, the longer you stare 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:08.779 at the holiness of God, you realize that you 00:18:08.779 --> 00:18:12.339 have a massive need for an advocate. You have 00:18:12.339 --> 00:18:16.079 a massive need for a savior. This is why Paul 00:18:16.079 --> 00:18:20.250 calls himself the chief of all sinners. because 00:18:20.250 --> 00:18:23.529 he lived his life so much in the light that he 00:18:23.529 --> 00:18:26.490 was constantly being exposed to his sinfulness 00:18:26.490 --> 00:18:30.490 compared to the holiness of God and because the 00:18:30.490 --> 00:18:34.410 light was in him so much he could see his path 00:18:34.410 --> 00:18:36.789 illuminated he could see where God was taking 00:18:36.789 --> 00:18:39.829 him so that he could be used in powerful ways 00:18:39.829 --> 00:18:42.730 maybe the Lord isn't using you the way you want 00:18:42.730 --> 00:18:45.410 to because you're still walking in the darkness 00:18:45.410 --> 00:18:48.019 and you don't know where to go So how do we know 00:18:48.019 --> 00:18:51.759 we're truly walking in God's light? John gives 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:55.900 us a test. He says love. In verse three he writes, 00:18:56.279 --> 00:18:59.000 we know that we have come to know him if we keep 00:18:59.000 --> 00:19:03.039 his commands. And what's the command? Whoever 00:19:03.039 --> 00:19:07.200 claims to live in him must live as Christ did. 00:19:07.980 --> 00:19:12.539 So Jesus' life is marked by love. Sacrificial 00:19:12.539 --> 00:19:16.650 love. selfless love, boundary breaking love. 00:19:16.910 --> 00:19:19.190 That's how he lived his life. John drives this 00:19:19.190 --> 00:19:21.509 home in verse 10, whoever loves their brother 00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:25.809 and sister lives in the light and there is nothing 00:19:25.809 --> 00:19:30.170 in them to make them stumble. Now we need to 00:19:30.170 --> 00:19:33.369 stop right there because we need to understand 00:19:33.369 --> 00:19:37.150 as believers who our brother is. Because I think 00:19:37.150 --> 00:19:40.019 sometimes we think of our brother or sister as 00:19:40.019 --> 00:19:43.220 anybody that's in our circle, anybody that we 00:19:43.220 --> 00:19:45.359 do life with, maybe a coworker or something like 00:19:45.359 --> 00:19:48.779 that. But the original word literally means from 00:19:48.779 --> 00:19:53.839 the same womb, like an actual sibling. But in 00:19:53.839 --> 00:19:57.259 the context, however, it means a fellow believer 00:19:57.259 --> 00:20:01.180 because we are all a part of the same family 00:20:01.180 --> 00:20:03.910 in Jesus. Whether you're at this church or another 00:20:03.910 --> 00:20:06.869 church, if you are a believer in Christ, if you 00:20:06.869 --> 00:20:09.710 claim him as the savior of the world, you are 00:20:09.710 --> 00:20:12.410 part of the same family in Christ. And so John 00:20:12.410 --> 00:20:14.950 is not referring in this text to how we should 00:20:14.950 --> 00:20:19.369 be treating people, but specifically how we treat 00:20:19.369 --> 00:20:23.769 other believers. One of the main reasons that 00:20:23.769 --> 00:20:27.390 people do not come to church is because they 00:20:27.390 --> 00:20:31.490 see nothing different in Christians. They might 00:20:31.490 --> 00:20:33.410 come looking for the difference that the gospel 00:20:33.410 --> 00:20:37.069 makes, but what they find is that those in the 00:20:37.069 --> 00:20:40.029 church act no differently than those that don't 00:20:40.029 --> 00:20:42.809 come to church. We look just like the world and 00:20:42.809 --> 00:20:45.369 how we treat one another. And some will say, 00:20:45.829 --> 00:20:49.569 well, I don't hate anyone. I don't hate anyone, 00:20:49.630 --> 00:20:53.269 so therefore I'm not breaking that command. I've 00:20:53.269 --> 00:20:55.630 heard that, well, I don't hate anybody, right? 00:20:56.130 --> 00:20:59.089 But the original word actually means to detest. 00:20:59.349 --> 00:21:02.769 Now I did some research this week on what are 00:21:02.769 --> 00:21:07.329 some signs that you detest someone. So I did 00:21:07.329 --> 00:21:11.089 some body language research, and here's what 00:21:11.089 --> 00:21:14.509 I found out. If you detest someone, we tend to 00:21:14.509 --> 00:21:21.430 avoid eye contact. We ignore them. We turn our 00:21:21.430 --> 00:21:25.089 bodies away from them. Now that should be a good 00:21:25.089 --> 00:21:29.700 litmus test for how we feel about others. I mean, 00:21:29.880 --> 00:21:32.180 we all know, right? We all know what it feels 00:21:32.180 --> 00:21:36.259 like to detest someone. We know what happens 00:21:36.259 --> 00:21:39.180 with that. We know what it feels like when somebody 00:21:39.180 --> 00:21:43.039 detests us. This is how church splits happen, 00:21:43.500 --> 00:21:47.039 because it's not the spiritually mature way to 00:21:47.039 --> 00:21:51.240 handle things. We have to view the church as 00:21:51.240 --> 00:21:55.630 a family. So in my family, Many of you know this. 00:21:55.769 --> 00:21:59.230 In my family, we have six different personalities 00:21:59.230 --> 00:22:04.029 and six different preferences. We have to sacrifice 00:22:04.029 --> 00:22:07.470 something in order for us to maintain unity in 00:22:07.470 --> 00:22:11.970 our family. Now sometimes I get my way, but most 00:22:11.970 --> 00:22:15.349 times I don't. And the same could be said for 00:22:15.349 --> 00:22:17.549 anybody else in my family. Sometimes we'll get 00:22:17.549 --> 00:22:19.670 our way, but most of the time we don't because 00:22:19.670 --> 00:22:21.309 there's five other people that we're trying to 00:22:21.309 --> 00:22:26.710 compete with. But when I don't get my way, because 00:22:26.710 --> 00:22:29.970 of the love that I have for my family, I don't 00:22:29.970 --> 00:22:34.569 just leave my family. We talk about it. We come 00:22:34.569 --> 00:22:38.049 to a consensus about it. We pray through it. 00:22:38.529 --> 00:22:42.549 If we gave my kids the option to leave our family, 00:22:43.410 --> 00:22:45.829 every time they didn't get their way, there have 00:22:45.829 --> 00:22:47.730 been times in their lives where they would have 00:22:47.730 --> 00:22:51.059 taken us up on that option. They especially when 00:22:51.059 --> 00:22:52.339 they were young and they're about yeah, I can 00:22:52.339 --> 00:22:56.380 find something better somewhere else At the same 00:22:56.380 --> 00:22:58.740 time if every time one of them sinned against 00:22:58.740 --> 00:23:02.220 me or I sinned against them and we kicked them 00:23:02.220 --> 00:23:05.720 out of the family We would all end up alone. 00:23:06.160 --> 00:23:10.160 We wouldn't have anybody else around us It's 00:23:10.160 --> 00:23:12.960 one thing to be angry over sin and we should 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:15.720 be angry over sin When we see people walking 00:23:15.720 --> 00:23:19.079 in sin, when we see people unrepentant of sin, 00:23:19.279 --> 00:23:21.940 we should be angry about it. Sin should anger 00:23:21.940 --> 00:23:26.259 us. But Paul tells us in Ephesians 4 that even 00:23:26.259 --> 00:23:32.539 in our anger, we are not to sin. So in this context, 00:23:32.940 --> 00:23:36.700 when a brother or sister sins against you, if 00:23:36.700 --> 00:23:40.309 you begin to test them, Because of whatever sin 00:23:40.309 --> 00:23:44.569 they have, John tells us that we begin to walk 00:23:44.569 --> 00:23:50.769 in sin. Now in my family, no one has the freedom 00:23:50.769 --> 00:23:54.269 to just take their ball and go home. It's not 00:23:54.269 --> 00:23:57.269 an option. We fight through it. We work through 00:23:57.269 --> 00:24:00.609 it. We have hard conversations that eventually 00:24:00.609 --> 00:24:04.319 will lead to reconciliation. This is why... This 00:24:04.319 --> 00:24:06.299 is my encouragement to you. This is why when 00:24:06.299 --> 00:24:09.619 you join a church family, it should not be taken 00:24:09.619 --> 00:24:12.500 lightly. You are entering into a relationship. 00:24:13.539 --> 00:24:16.539 I didn't just bump into Sena on the street one 00:24:16.539 --> 00:24:19.799 day and be like, hey, we should get married. 00:24:22.740 --> 00:24:26.299 No, it was a process, right? I asked her on a 00:24:26.299 --> 00:24:29.660 date. She said yes, thankfully. We got to know 00:24:29.660 --> 00:24:31.960 each other. We spent time together. She learned 00:24:31.960 --> 00:24:33.700 what I was like. I learned what she was like 00:24:33.700 --> 00:24:36.339 I learned her flaws She learned my flaws and 00:24:36.339 --> 00:24:39.480 then we made a commitment to each other now when 00:24:39.480 --> 00:24:43.180 we made that commitment We took separation off 00:24:43.180 --> 00:24:47.359 the table Even in hard times it is not an option 00:24:47.359 --> 00:24:50.559 Even when we're not seeming to get along. It's 00:24:50.559 --> 00:24:54.680 not an option. We have that peace. I believe 00:24:54.680 --> 00:24:57.500 the same commitment should be made when it comes 00:24:57.500 --> 00:25:00.960 to joining a church family. You are accepting 00:25:00.960 --> 00:25:03.960 all the good that we have here, but you're also 00:25:03.960 --> 00:25:06.400 accepting all the flaws and you're committed 00:25:06.400 --> 00:25:09.420 to helping us continue to make those better. 00:25:10.460 --> 00:25:12.460 I mean, thank goodness. I thank the Lord often 00:25:12.460 --> 00:25:15.519 that Sina hasn't come up to me and said, you 00:25:15.519 --> 00:25:19.839 know what, Daniel? This guy has treated me better 00:25:19.839 --> 00:25:23.369 this week than you have. So I'm gonna go live 00:25:23.369 --> 00:25:27.069 with him now. Thank goodness she hasn't done 00:25:27.069 --> 00:25:30.210 that. Or thank goodness my kids haven't come 00:25:30.210 --> 00:25:31.630 up to me and said, hey Daniel, you know what, 00:25:31.710 --> 00:25:34.250 my friends, their parents, they bought them a 00:25:34.250 --> 00:25:36.829 nicer car than I have, and so I'm gonna go live 00:25:36.829 --> 00:25:40.529 with them now. That's not how family should work. 00:25:40.910 --> 00:25:43.049 That's not how brothers or sisters that are part 00:25:43.049 --> 00:25:46.349 of a family should work. And that is why joining 00:25:46.349 --> 00:25:50.799 a church is like a family. But but John warns 00:25:50.799 --> 00:25:53.599 anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the 00:25:53.599 --> 00:25:58.220 darkness and walks in the darkness Hate here 00:25:58.220 --> 00:26:02.859 isn't just rage. It's indifference It's bitterness. 00:26:03.200 --> 00:26:08.200 It's it's a it's refusing to forgive It's choosing 00:26:08.200 --> 00:26:12.079 to stay in the dark stumbling around blindly 00:26:12.079 --> 00:26:16.140 Love on the other hand is evidence of transformation 00:26:16.140 --> 00:26:20.029 when we love others especially those hard to 00:26:20.029 --> 00:26:21.630 love people. You know who I'm talking about. 00:26:22.089 --> 00:26:28.430 We reflect God's light. How are you doing at 00:26:28.430 --> 00:26:31.430 reflecting the light that God has instilled in 00:26:31.430 --> 00:26:34.670 you? I think there are a few tests that we can 00:26:34.670 --> 00:26:37.769 do that we can ask ourselves to see if we are 00:26:37.769 --> 00:26:41.869 truly reflecting the light or if we are stumbling 00:26:41.869 --> 00:26:44.190 around in the dark a little bit. Here's some 00:26:44.190 --> 00:26:47.390 things you can ask yourself. Is there anyone 00:26:47.390 --> 00:26:51.279 in your life that is a believer that you are 00:26:51.279 --> 00:26:56.180 avoiding? Is there anyone in your life that is 00:26:56.180 --> 00:27:00.819 a believer that you can't look in the eye? Is 00:27:00.819 --> 00:27:03.220 there anybody in your life that's a believer 00:27:03.220 --> 00:27:07.759 that you dread showing up to church today? You 00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:10.160 dread seeing them at the store. You dread seeing 00:27:10.160 --> 00:27:14.000 them wherever you are. If the answer is yes to 00:27:14.000 --> 00:27:16.319 any of those questions, then we have some work 00:27:16.319 --> 00:27:18.990 to do, don't we? We have some soul searching 00:27:18.990 --> 00:27:23.470 to do. We need to begin praying for them. We 00:27:23.470 --> 00:27:25.930 need to begin praying for our hearts that God 00:27:25.930 --> 00:27:29.309 would give us wisdom on how to handle the situation 00:27:29.309 --> 00:27:33.730 in a way that truly honors Him. If we truly want 00:27:33.730 --> 00:27:36.890 to obey His commands and we truly want to be 00:27:36.890 --> 00:27:40.650 authentic in our faith, then we cannot detest 00:27:40.650 --> 00:27:44.049 our brother. We cannot continue living that way. 00:27:44.430 --> 00:27:47.500 Now I go back to this story all the time. In 00:27:47.500 --> 00:27:49.460 my head, I don't know if, I couldn't remember 00:27:49.460 --> 00:27:51.680 if I shared this with you, but I go back to it 00:27:51.680 --> 00:27:54.099 all the time because it was the first time I 00:27:54.099 --> 00:27:57.880 really prayed about this type of situation and 00:27:57.880 --> 00:27:59.740 God answered me. It was like, blew my mind that 00:27:59.740 --> 00:28:04.299 God, oh wow, God answers prayers. I was in college 00:28:04.299 --> 00:28:08.339 and a big group of us were going to a leadership 00:28:08.339 --> 00:28:11.539 retreat with a bunch of other people. Now there 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:13.460 was this one guy that was signed up on this trip 00:28:13.460 --> 00:28:17.200 that I just could not stand. Couldn't stand being 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:20.299 around him. He annoyed me. He offended me I didn't 00:28:20.299 --> 00:28:22.319 like his voice you name it. I did not like it 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:24.539 about him I didn't like how he did his hair anything 00:28:24.539 --> 00:28:28.940 and I thought long and hard about not going on 00:28:28.940 --> 00:28:35.000 the retreat Because Martin was going We get to 00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:36.900 the retreat I decide to go they divide us into 00:28:36.900 --> 00:28:41.960 vans randomly And when I get in the van I realize 00:28:42.190 --> 00:28:45.109 Not only is Martin in my van, of all the vans 00:28:45.109 --> 00:28:47.549 I could have picked, he's in my van. And not 00:28:47.549 --> 00:28:49.950 only is he in my van, he's actually sitting right 00:28:49.950 --> 00:28:53.529 behind me. I mean, you could feel the tension 00:28:53.529 --> 00:28:57.950 coming off of me. I wanted to be anywhere else 00:28:57.950 --> 00:29:01.589 except in that seat in that van on this trip. 00:29:02.289 --> 00:29:05.190 I didn't want to be there. And I began praying 00:29:05.190 --> 00:29:09.029 right then that God would do something about 00:29:09.029 --> 00:29:13.180 that situation. No, I didn't want him dead. I 00:29:13.180 --> 00:29:17.000 didn't pray for his death, but I would for sure 00:29:17.000 --> 00:29:18.900 have been okay if he got sick in that moment 00:29:18.900 --> 00:29:20.579 and couldn't go. Like I would've been just fine 00:29:20.579 --> 00:29:24.240 with that. So I'm praying, and it was the first 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:28.039 time I felt God answered my prayer right then, 00:29:28.259 --> 00:29:31.440 and Martin just started puking. I'm just kidding, 00:29:31.579 --> 00:29:38.960 he didn't. Just kidding. Martin didn't get sick, 00:29:39.700 --> 00:29:44.000 but... In that instant, my heart completely changed 00:29:44.000 --> 00:29:48.019 towards him. It was that quick. It blew my mind. 00:29:48.660 --> 00:29:51.940 And we had a great trip. We had a great time 00:29:51.940 --> 00:29:56.160 together. We became good friends. And I think 00:29:56.160 --> 00:29:58.960 about that all the time because he hasn't been 00:29:58.960 --> 00:30:01.059 the last person that I've ever struggled with. 00:30:01.880 --> 00:30:03.920 And what I learned about that situation many 00:30:03.920 --> 00:30:08.359 years ago was not that Martin needed a change. 00:30:08.599 --> 00:30:11.359 What I learned about it was I needed to change. 00:30:12.519 --> 00:30:17.539 The heart of this text is that Jesus, who is 00:30:17.539 --> 00:30:22.880 our advocate, took our brokenness, which is all 00:30:22.880 --> 00:30:26.940 of our sin, it's all of our failures, and he 00:30:26.940 --> 00:30:29.140 made us whole through his perfect sacrifice. 00:30:29.779 --> 00:30:33.299 And because of that, he calls us to walk in the 00:30:33.299 --> 00:30:38.240 light, not as perfect people, but as a restored 00:30:38.240 --> 00:30:41.779 people who shine his light to a broken world. 00:30:42.640 --> 00:30:46.819 How are your relationships with broken people 00:30:46.819 --> 00:30:51.480 reflecting the light to the world? How is your 00:30:51.480 --> 00:30:56.240 relationship with Jesus reflected to those around 00:30:56.240 --> 00:31:02.839 you? My encouragement to you this morning would 00:31:02.839 --> 00:31:08.309 be to turn on the light and quit walking in the 00:31:08.309 --> 00:31:15.150 darkness. Whatever that looks like for you. And 00:31:15.150 --> 00:31:18.289 when the light does get turned on, what does 00:31:18.289 --> 00:31:23.309 it reveal to you? What do you need to confess? 00:31:25.769 --> 00:31:31.029 What do you need to clean up? Where do you need 00:31:31.029 --> 00:31:36.299 to get some help? Now I don't know about your 00:31:36.299 --> 00:31:40.839 children, but my children, my children mess up 00:31:40.839 --> 00:31:45.799 occasionally. And what I've learned as their 00:31:45.799 --> 00:31:52.380 dad is that when my children mess up, my heart 00:31:52.380 --> 00:31:57.279 is completely different when they come to me 00:31:57.279 --> 00:32:01.079 and they confess it themselves before they actually 00:32:01.079 --> 00:32:05.019 get caught in whatever they did. My attitude 00:32:05.019 --> 00:32:07.640 towards them is completely different if they 00:32:07.640 --> 00:32:09.480 if they come and say hey dad I messed up I did 00:32:09.480 --> 00:32:15.259 this I did that I did this as opposed to Me finding 00:32:15.259 --> 00:32:17.599 out from the grapevine or finding out that something's 00:32:17.599 --> 00:32:19.559 broken or finding out that they lied or whatever 00:32:19.559 --> 00:32:26.400 it is There's this softness in my heart That's 00:32:26.400 --> 00:32:30.390 there maybe because I remember I remember what 00:32:30.390 --> 00:32:33.789 it was like as a kid growing up to disappoint 00:32:33.789 --> 00:32:40.250 my parents, to try to hide, to try and lie, to 00:32:40.250 --> 00:32:43.849 try and cover things up because I wanted to portray 00:32:43.849 --> 00:32:49.589 some sort of perfection. When they confess to 00:32:49.589 --> 00:32:54.349 me that they've messed up, they are acknowledging 00:32:54.349 --> 00:32:57.230 to themselves and to me that they aren't perfect. 00:32:57.769 --> 00:33:01.809 And I don't expect them to be perfect. But when 00:33:01.809 --> 00:33:08.089 they hide or when they lie, that disappoints 00:33:08.089 --> 00:33:11.349 me more than the actual action or whatever they 00:33:11.349 --> 00:33:17.250 did. And when that happens, those consequences 00:33:17.250 --> 00:33:20.109 are usually greater in my house. If I find out 00:33:20.109 --> 00:33:23.309 you lied to me, the consequences are usually 00:33:23.309 --> 00:33:25.410 greater than if you just came out and told me, 00:33:25.490 --> 00:33:28.400 right? And so I'm thinking about that, my relationship 00:33:28.400 --> 00:33:30.000 with my kids, and I'm thinking about my role 00:33:30.000 --> 00:33:33.700 as a father, and I truly believe that's how God 00:33:33.700 --> 00:33:38.599 views us. When we come to him acknowledging that 00:33:38.599 --> 00:33:43.180 we have fallen short compared to his holiness, 00:33:44.319 --> 00:33:48.019 his heart is towards reconciliation. It's like 00:33:48.019 --> 00:33:51.660 he scoops us up in his arms like I do my children. 00:33:52.039 --> 00:33:54.740 And I'm just so grateful that they trusted me 00:33:54.740 --> 00:33:57.180 and recognized the fact that they are not perfect. 00:33:58.299 --> 00:34:01.160 But sometimes when we fail to acknowledge our 00:34:01.160 --> 00:34:05.640 sinfulness, the consequences are far greater. 00:34:07.920 --> 00:34:11.280 I tell you all this all the time, but we specifically 00:34:11.280 --> 00:34:14.900 pray that our children get busted in their sin. 00:34:16.760 --> 00:34:18.860 Every day I'm praying, God, bust them in their 00:34:18.860 --> 00:34:22.469 sin. Because I know in the long run that's going 00:34:22.469 --> 00:34:25.610 to be better for them. Bust them in their sin 00:34:25.610 --> 00:34:32.489 while they're still under my protection. And 00:34:32.489 --> 00:34:34.250 I'm sure my wife prays that for me, bust him 00:34:34.250 --> 00:34:39.849 in his sin. Because it's better for us in the 00:34:39.849 --> 00:34:43.170 long run. And so we have to confess these things 00:34:43.170 --> 00:34:47.070 before him, right? We have to confess these things 00:34:47.070 --> 00:34:50.230 before him and I truly believe It's that time 00:34:50.230 --> 00:34:53.590 he just wraps us up. He goes, I know, I know 00:34:53.590 --> 00:34:56.750 you're not perfect. I know you need an advocate. 00:34:57.670 --> 00:35:04.070 That's why I sent Jesus for you. And so I'm gonna 00:35:04.070 --> 00:35:06.449 pray for us and we'll sing one more song and 00:35:06.449 --> 00:35:10.510 have time to respond. But I think it's important 00:35:10.510 --> 00:35:12.429 that we just kind of stop and really think about 00:35:12.429 --> 00:35:15.989 what are we, with the light on, what is being 00:35:15.989 --> 00:35:19.550 exposed in our hearts? Where do we have doubts? 00:35:19.610 --> 00:35:22.309 Where do we have fears? What's that secret sin 00:35:22.309 --> 00:35:28.630 that we don't think anybody else knows? Need 00:35:28.630 --> 00:35:33.510 to confess that attitude. You need to confess 00:35:33.510 --> 00:35:39.730 this lie. And do you trust the Lord enough with 00:35:39.730 --> 00:35:43.150 that? So I don't know what that looks like to 00:35:43.150 --> 00:35:44.769 you. I don't know how you need to respond today. 00:35:45.789 --> 00:35:49.989 But I think all of us need to recognize the dirtiness 00:35:49.989 --> 00:35:52.949 that's in our lives and give God praise that 00:35:52.949 --> 00:35:56.409 he sent an advocate on our behalf. So I'm gonna 00:35:56.409 --> 00:36:00.489 pray for us. You respond how you feel led. I'll 00:36:00.489 --> 00:36:02.409 be up here at the front. If I can pray with you, 00:36:02.570 --> 00:36:05.469 Tim's here. He can be happy to pray with you. 00:36:07.650 --> 00:36:11.670 But let's turn the lights on. Let's lay those 00:36:11.670 --> 00:36:16.269 things before him. Let's pray. Father, I pray 00:36:16.269 --> 00:36:18.880 right now that as we... As we close out this 00:36:18.880 --> 00:36:22.900 service, I pray that you will flip the switch 00:36:22.900 --> 00:36:27.400 on every single one of our souls. That we will 00:36:27.400 --> 00:36:32.639 see the obstacles that are keeping us from walking 00:36:32.639 --> 00:36:37.199 in abundant life. That we will see the things 00:36:37.199 --> 00:36:41.440 that are dirty and need to be cleaned up. And 00:36:41.440 --> 00:36:43.239 Father, give us the courage and the obedience 00:36:43.239 --> 00:36:50.179 to do it. So God, I pray that you move powerfully 00:36:50.179 --> 00:36:55.639 in this room. I pray that you will change lives. 00:36:59.000 --> 00:37:03.760 I pray for salvation to come. Help us not walk 00:37:03.760 --> 00:37:07.440 in the darkness. Help us believe that your light 00:37:07.440 --> 00:37:11.139 is truth. Help us believe and understand that 00:37:11.139 --> 00:37:13.940 your light is spiritual enlightenment. I pray, 00:37:14.099 --> 00:37:18.530 Father, that you will enlighten us today. Have 00:37:18.530 --> 00:37:23.710 your way It's in Jesus name. I pray Thank you 00:37:23.710 --> 00:37:26.250 for listening today to five six three church 00:37:26.250 --> 00:37:28.570 a production of cornerstone church Eldridge, 00:37:28.829 --> 00:37:31.170 Iowa for more information about our church or 00:37:31.170 --> 00:37:33.710 just getting right with God Please visit us at 00:37:33.710 --> 00:37:36.489 five six three church calm. You can also find 00:37:36.489 --> 00:37:39.349 us on Facebook and Instagram Have a great week