Hey guys, this is Tracy. If at any time you'd
like to connect with HTV, go to htv .church forward
slash connect. If you feel called to give, go
to htv .church forward slash give. And if at
any time you feel called to make a change in
your life, text change me to 970 -00. Enjoy the
message. All right. So we're jumping into a new
series for the month of July called Promise Keeper.
And we're going to be looking at several promises
that Jesus gave us, spoke to us, handed to us
to receive and to stand on. I want to start by
asking you a very simple question. Why are you
here? Why did you come to HDV today? What are
you hoping for? What do you want God to do in
your life this morning? What do you need God
to do in your life today? See, there's several
different groups of people that gather here today.
Some of you, your life has been radically changed
by the love and grace of God, and you're here
to worship. You're here to connect with Jesus
and to give back. Just being honest, some of
you are here because you feel obligated to be
here. Summer started. You've already missed several
weeks. You have a lot of things to do. Now you're
here out of obligation. You're checking a box.
Hey God, I'm here. I was there. Some of you are
obligated to be here because you were invited
to be here. And you don't want to let someone
down. Maybe you're a teenager. Maybe you're an
adult son or daughter. Others of you, again,
just being honest, you don't want to be here.
You were told that you had to be here. You were
told that your life would be better if you were
a part of a church, a part of a community of
faith. And now begrudgingly, you're sitting here.
You want me to get it done fast. So you can get
out of here and get home wherever home is. Why
did you come here today? What are you hoping
for? What do you want God to do in your life?
See, we all have to realize the answer to that
question is directly related to what God can
and can't do in your life this morning. So I
want to challenge you. No matter why you're here,
Be open to what the Holy Spirit wants to do in
your life. That if you attune a ear, if you open
your heart to receive all that God has for you,
then you could leave here different. You could
leave here free of the pain that you're carrying
in your heart. And some of you are thinking,
well, Chris, how do you know there's pain in
my heart? Well, according to the WHO or the World
Health Organization, there is now more than 1
billion people living in our world today that
have a mental health disorder. 32 % of American
adults are experiencing anxiety or depression,
and that number rises to 42 % amongst high school
students. According to a recent study from the
University of Michigan, the use of antidepressants
amongst those ages 12 to 14 are up 66 % since
2016. See, all these statistics are alarming,
but they're statistics. And we have to realize
those statistics are individual lives that are
filled with dashed hopes, lost dreams, grief,
Infertility, unfair bosses, negative teachers,
upcoming job interviews. And it's not just the
catastrophic events in life that prompt anxieties
and despair. It's those constant nagging struggles.
A broken water heater, a broken down car, a nagging
dishwasher that needs reset every two weeks.
Hey God, where's peace? To be found. AI has invaded
our world. There is economic uncertainty, wars
and rumors of wars, division, hate. And this
question in the back of our minds, it says over
and over and over again, why? Why am I here?
Why am I struggling? Why am I so full of negativity
and doubt? Why am I stressed and overwhelmed?
Believe it or not, people in our society are
now attending calm retreats so they can now pay
for a moment of peace. There are wellness resorts
and digital detox camps where a person can spend
$1 ,600 to guarantee they will not be in cell
phone service. Listen, if that's you, give me
your phone. I'll only charge you $1 ,200, and
I'll make sure that you're out of service by
turning it off. At the everyday level, divorce
rates are skyrocketing. Now, believe it or not,
one out of every four children, that's 25%, in
the United States are growing up in single -family
homes. At the national level, we have riots in
the streets, raids against people, school shootings,
finger pointing, and nothing ever changes. We
live in a world with endless councils, accords,
treaties, organizations, unions. We have the
UN, the NATO, EU, AU, all of these established
to maintain, foster, and establish peace. Yet
peace isn't possible. John Lennon wrote these
words in his song Imagine. You may say I'm a
dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday
you'll join us and the world will live as one.
We may sing that song, believing it with a light
held up above our head in a concert, declaring
it. We want peace. The world needs it, is desperate
for it. But here's the reality. For every peace
agreement that's signed, another one is broken.
The change does not happen because humanity's
in control. And see, God speaks to this truth
in the Bible when he says this peace that the
world longs for is like fool's gold. It's fake.
But Jesus has a promise that speaks directly
to this issue. In fact, in John chapter 14, it
was the Thursday night of Passion Week. Jesus
is having a conversation with his disciples.
He had already released Judas to do his thing
and betray him. And he's eating dinner with the
11 remaining disciples. In a matter of hours,
he's going to be betrayed, arrested, tried, beaten,
and crucified. He has told his disciples multiple
times throughout the Bible, throughout the Gospels,
I'm going to die. That's why I came. I'm going
to die. He says to them, I'm going to Jerusalem.
They're begging him, don't go, don't go. But
Jesus says, no, it must happen. It has to happen.
Now in John 14, the disciples' spirits, they're
scraping the ground. They're depressed, broken.
They're full of despair. The one they thought
was the Messiah is now going to die. And Jesus,
in this moment of great turmoil and trouble,
he begins to loft out these promises to his disciples.
See, he wanted to lift and encourage these men.
He wanted to give them comfort and peace and
strength, confidence, that they will be able
to proclaim Jesus boldly after the resurrection.
See, he knew he was going to die, and he knew
the church needed to be established. He knew
these men needed to stand on these promises.
And the last one that he shares with the disciples
is a gift. A gift that he's going to give them
and is available to you and me, every single
one of us gathered. But the question is, why
are you here? Because see, if you're begrudgingly
here, nothing's going to change. But if you open
yourself up to God's spirit, everything can change.
Because see, remember those disciples. They're
full of doubt, despair, negativity, anxiety,
fear. Like many of us that gather here every
single Sunday simply trying to navigate daily
life. And that introduction leads us to our first
thought. See, Jesus promises us peace as a gift.
Jesus' promise of peace is a gift. By show of
hands, humor me. How many of you ever said, I
just need a minute of peace? I know if you're
a parent, your hand better be up. Because if
not, you're lying. We need a moment of peace.
And I can guarantee you, your life is a lot like
mine. You got a crazy schedule. You got bills
to be paid. You got a house to clean, a house
to fix, food to cook, dishes to do, kids to drive
everywhere. Should have stopped at two, but I
had six. Emails to return, texts to make, difficult
people to deal with. All of us. Have so much
going on and we need a little peace. And I want
to remind you that before Jesus died, he named
you in his will. See, Romans 8 tells us that
we're actually heirs of God. Heirs of God. And
to be named in his will means that we, if you're
in a relationship with Jesus, have been legally
designated. To receive an inheritance. So to
those in a relationship with Jesus, Jesus literally
willed us, gave us his peace. And he shows us
this in John chapter 14 when he was telling his
disciples, hey, hey, I'm going to have to go
away, but I'm going to come back to you. And
then he says this in verse 27. I'm leaving you
with a gift. Peace of mind and heart. And the
peace I give is a gift the world cannot give,
so do not be troubled or afraid. The NIV translation
reads this way. Peace I leave with you. Notice,
my peace I give to you. Five words in that verse
that has the potential to change your life today.
Jesus said, my peace I give to you. And notice,
peace isn't earned. You don't have to do anything
for it. Peace isn't manufactured, meaning you
don't have to put a mask on. Peace can't be bought.
Peace is simply received. So Jesus, in the midst
of his own personal storm, remember, he's going
to go suffer and die for us, offers peace. That
transcends any of the turmoil that we experience
in this world today. And if we're honest, our
lives are constantly swinging between peace and
anxiety. It's like we experience this peace for
a minute. I just need a little peace. And then
we're back to anxiety. It's like, oh, peace,
it feels so good. Hey, mom. I need my butt wiped.
Back to anxiety. And we laugh, but it's true.
So why are you here? Do you want peace today?
Because Jesus is offering it to us. In fact,
notice, after Jesus had risen from the grave,
See what he says to his followers. John 20, 19
to 21 and 26. That's Sunday. The disciples were
meeting behind locked doors because they were
afraid of the Jewish leaders. I would say that
was stressed. Suddenly Jesus was standing there
among them. Notice his words. Peace be with you,
he said. As he spoke, he showed them the wounds
in his hands and his side. They were filled with
joy when they saw the Lord. And again, Jesus
said, peace be with you. As the father has sent
me, so I'm sending you. Of course, Thomas wasn't
there. And Thomas says, I need to see that to
believe it. I'm a doubter. So Jesus shows up
eight days later and we read in verse 26, a week
later, his disciples were in the house again
and Thomas was with them. And through the doors,
though the doors were locked, Jesus came and
stood among them and said, peace be with you.
Now some of you are thinking, that's no big deal,
Chris. He's just greeting them with peace be
with you. Dude was walking through the walls.
There was no door opened. He just showed up.
Peace. That's no big deal, Chris. Yeah, it is.
Because if I walk through that wall, you all
are running. You're like, I don't do no David
Blaine. I'm out of here. So don't tell me it's
no big deal. It's a real big deal. That is why
in Judges 6, verse 24, God is called Yahweh Shalom.
Remember, God's name is not God. God is his title.
That's what he is. God is given names throughout
the Bible that represents his character. And
see, in Judges, Yahweh Shalom speaks to God being
peace. Meaning, he doesn't just provide peace
or give peace. He is peace. That is why Paul
refers to God as the God of peace in 12 out of
his 13 letters that were written to us. Paul
writes and says, the peace of God, or peace,
be with you. So please understand that this peace
that we're talking about today and desiring in
our lives, it's a gift. And it's to be received.
You say, well, Chris, how do I receive it? Open
it up. Believe in it. Don't just let that gift
that he's given you. Imagine being given a gift
on your birthday and you sit it down on your
feet. You're like, I'm not opening that. I don't
need it. Don't want it. You do. There's always
excitement in writing that paper off, opening
that up, wondering what it's going to be, anticipation.
Same goes with the peace that Jesus is offering
you today. You've got to be willing to open it
up. You've got to be willing to receive it, which
leads us to our second thought. You see, God's
peace, though, is different than the world's
peace. Notice what Jesus says. I'm leaving you
with a gift. Peace of mind and heart and the
peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.
There's a big difference between worldly peace
and godly peace. See, worldly peace is kind of
like a pseudo peace. It's kind of fake, temporary,
if you will. It helps you cope. That's why some
of you used to smoke. You know, that peaceful
feeling that you used to get makes everything
groovy. Heck, some of you are still stuck on
it. Let's just be honest. It's not illegal anymore.
And ultimately, this drug promises to get you
high, to feel good for a little while until you
screw up your life. The drink tells you you can
drown yourself in sorrows. Vacations tell you
if you just make it to the beach, if you just
climb that mountain, you can have a little relief.
And it's true. We experience peace, but then
you come back to reality. It's hard. had a little
more peace. I know. I just need more money. If
I had a little more money, I could pay the bills.
I could be nice. I could be generous. Listen,
there's not enough money in the world that's
going to fill the void of the peace that you're
longing inside your heart. Worldly peace is different
than godly peace. So some of you are like, okay,
all right. What's godly peace? Let me describe
it for you. You can find it in Isaiah chapter
26. And before I do, let me give you a little
context about the verses I'm about to read. Isaiah
was prophesying into a culture just like ours.
You could almost say it was the equivalent of
a complicated economy, high interest rates, debt,
and a political system in utter turmoil. There
were wars and rumors of wars. And Isaiah prophesied
into a culture with great uncertainty. Everyone
was afraid. And in the middle of this, In the
middle of this turmoil, he says, you're going
to break out into real worship. Let's read what
he said, Isaiah 26, 1 through 3. In that day,
everyone in the land of Judah will sing this
song. Our city is strong. God is good. We are
surrounded by the walls of God's salvation. Open
the gates to all who are righteous. Allow the
faithful to enter. You will keep in perfect peace
all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are
fixed on you. How many of you want some perfect
peace today? Right? That's what I want. I want
some perfect peace. And see, that word peace
actually comes from a Hebrew word. It was a Jewish
greeting. Then you walk up to someone and you
say, shalom. Shalom. And when they said that,
it's kind of like saying, hey, what's up? Shalom.
It's a way to say hello. Now, that word shalom,
it means wholeness, completeness. It means fullness
of peace. So if I was to come up to you and say,
shalom, I'm saying, may you have the fullness
of God's peace on your life. That's a pretty
powerful statement, isn't it? Might change the
way we greet one another. May you be at peace
with yourself. May you be at peace with your
circumstances. Shalom. But because God is good
and because Jesus is the prince of peace, May
you be at perfect peace. Now notice, though,
in the original text, when Isaiah said, may you
be kept in shalom, he just didn't say shalom.
He actually said, shalom, shalom. The same word
back to back. He's saying, may God give you a
double portion. May God give you your peace and
even more of that peace. And that's how the translators
then translated shalom to shalom to perfect peace.
Jesus says, my peace, my peace, I give to you.
And some of you might say, okay, thanks, Jesus.
If you're giving me your peace, why am I still
so anxious? Why am I still overwhelmed? After
all, Jesus, my children are not making the best
choices. My bank account doesn't have enough
in it to pay the bills. There's not enough time
in the day to accomplish everything that needs
done. I've recently been betrayed to and lied
to by a close friend. How, Jesus, can I be peaceful
then? How can I have peace in my heart when it's
overwhelmed with stress and it's beating so fast?
How do I find this peace? Well, the prophet tells
us. The scriptures tell us. You will keep in
perfect peace. But notice what it doesn't say.
It doesn't say you will keep in perfect peace,
all of you who obsess about the news. Did it
say that? No. All of you, right, you will keep
in perfect peace if you look at everything on
social media that you don't like and share it
with all your friends, you get them mad too.
It doesn't say that. Scripture says you will
be kept in perfect peace all whose thoughts are
fixed on God. In other words, you'll be kept
in this heavenly kind of peace, the peace that
the world does not understand when your thoughts,
that's right, in that skull, are focused on who?
God. So this verse shows us the battle begins
in our mind. How many of you know you've got
a battle going on in your mind? If you don't
know that, newsflash, you do. I know you do.
You say, how do you know, Chris? Because I do.
I have just as many battles in my mind as you
do. Just because I'm leading this church doesn't
mean that I'm not tempted. It doesn't mean that
I don't have struggles. It doesn't mean that
my mind is not at war with itself. And Isaiah
reminds us, you will be in perfect peace when
your thoughts are fixed on God. And that word
fixed is a cool word in Hebrew. I want to teach
it to you. You want to learn a little Hebrew?
All right. It's the word samach. Everybody say
it. Samach. You got to get that N there. Samach.
It's like you got something in your throat. Samach.
There you go. There you go. And this is what
it means. It means to completely and fully rest
on God. Think of it this way. You'll have perfect
peace when your mind is leaning on Jesus. You'll
be kept in perfect peace when your mind is fixed
on the truth that you read in the Bible, the
power of God's goodness. So I want you to reflect.
I want you to look in the mirror, and I want
you to be honest with yourself. What's your mind
fixed on? Might be that promotion, winning the
big game. Having a child. And see, what happens
is, oftentimes our mind gets fixed on the worst
case scenarios. Right? You're not able to have
a child yet. Oh, I'm infertile. I'm never going
to have a child. I'm never going to have this.
It's like the world's coming to an end. Our mind
continues to get stuck on these repetitive lies
and fears that create anxiety and depression.
That's where anxiety and depression comes on.
So what your mind is fixed on matters. Because
what consumes your mind controls your life. How
do I know that? Well, Paul tells us that in Philippians
4 .8. And now, dear brothers and sisters, one
final thing. One final thing. Meaning he's ending
the letter. Fix your thoughts. Up here in your
mind, what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely,
and admirable. Think about the things that are
excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting
into practice all you learned and received from
me. Everything you heard from me and saw me doing.
Then the God of peace. will be with you. Five
words that can change your life today. My peace
I give to you. My peace I give to you, which
leads to our third and final thought. See, true
peace is found in the presence of God. I am leaving
you with a gift, peace of mind and heart, and
the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.
So notice what he says, don't be troubled or
afraid. See, Jesus promises the disciples Right?
He basically says to them, you're going to face
storms. The troubles are going to come your way.
He even said, in this world you're going to have
trouble. He promises we're going to have trouble.
But he also says you don't have to be ruled by
them. See, peace isn't the absence of trouble.
Peace is confidence in God's presence during
the problems. It's kind of like a snow globe.
Now, I know it's not in season. It's July, but
there's Christmas in July, right? So I don't
have a snow globe, but I have an infant toy,
okay? Just like a snow globe. Everyone see that?
And just like a snow globe, you shake it, and
what happens to the globe? All the snow or the
rain stirs up, and it gets nasty, and it's a
storm. And you know what the world tells us?
The world tells us, oh, when you're in a storm,
just be patient. It will all pass and settle.
Don't worry about it. You'll make it through.
Here, take some medication. It'll make you feel
better. But what Jesus says is, no, in the midst
of the storm, I'm there with you. I'm in the
midst of the storm. You don't have to avoid the
storm. You take me into the storm. I don't know
who this is for, but someone here is tired of
this pseudo world peace. You're tired of this
promise of peace that the world tries to give
you when you realize that it's just not possible.
That the only true peace is shalom, shalom, which
is the perfect peace of God. And Paul, describes
the perfect peace of God from a Roman prison
awaiting possible execution. Now, I don't know
about you, but if I was on death row, I may be
a little worried. I may be a little stressed.
I may have some fear. And I may be overwhelmed
with the guilt and shame of what caused me to
be on death row. Now, we all know that Paul didn't
do anything egregious or a sin that caused him
to be on death row, but he was. And notice what
he writes in Philippians 4, 6 through 7, just
two verses before verse 8. He says, don't worry
about anything. Handcuffed to a soldier. Instead,
pray about everything. Tell God what you need.
Thank him for all he's done. Then, what are you
going to experience? God's peace, which exceeds
anything we can understand. His peace will guard
your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
See, when you take what's on your heart and you
give it to God, that's where true peace comes
from. A peace from God's kingdom that allows
us to express gratitude towards God for this
life that we've been given. When we give it back
to him. Notice what David wrote in Psalm 139.
Remember, David was a man after God's own heart.
He wrote these words in verses 13 to 14, 15 through
18. You made all the delicate inner parts of
my body and knit me together in my mother's room.
Thank you, God, for making me so wonderfully
complex. Your workmanship is marvelous how well
I know it. Notice how he declares to God his
goodness. He's grateful for his life. You watched
me as I was being formed and under seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
You saw me before I was born. Every day of my
life was recorded in your book. Every moment
was laid out before a single day had passed.
How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
They cannot be numbered. I can't even count them.
They outnumber the grains of the sand, and when
I wake up, you're still with me. I mean, David
is declaring the wonders of God. He's praising
his name. He's grateful and celebrating God.
Now listen to how he ends Psalm 139. Search me,
O God. Know my heart. Test me and know my anxious
thoughts. See, this tells us that even though
we may worship, even though we may be passionate
about Jesus with our whole heart, it doesn't
prevent us from having anxious thoughts. It tells
us that even though we may know God is in control
of this world, we may not be able to sleep at
night because we're worrying about our kids,
our finances, our jobs, or our health. The battle
that we fight in our minds is an everyday struggle
that we will go through just like the Jesus followers
before us. All of us need a little more Jesus.
And I want to challenge you. I want you to realize
anxiety is not a sin. Anxiety is not a sin. It's
simply a signal. from our bodies that we need
to reconnect to God. That's all it is. Which
leads to our action steps overcoming these anxious
thoughts. And the amazing thing is, not only
did Jesus give us the gift, which we have to
receive and open, he actually modeled for us
how to handle and deal with the anxiety that
we struggle with every single day. Let's look
at Mark 14. This is before Jesus is about to
be arrested. They went to the olive garden called
Gethsemane, and Jesus said, sit here while I
go and pray. He took Peter, James, and John with
him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed.
So notice Jesus was overwhelmed, full of anxiety
and stress. He told them, his three closest friends,
my soul is crushed with grief to the point of
death. Stay here and keep watch with me. So think
about it. Jesus, the son of God, shared with
his three closest friends that he was overwhelmed
and anxious. Notice, Jesus, he doesn't ignore
it. He doesn't try harder to get rid of it. He
doesn't avoid it and put on a mask. He doesn't
even run from it. What does he do? He names it
out loud to his friends. He speaks it, which
leads us to our first step to overcoming anxiety.
Church, You gotta name it. You name your anxiety.
He took Peter, James, and John with him. He was
troubled. And notice what he said to his three
friends. My soul is crushed with grief to the
point of death. See, this tool is so simple that
we all can do it. When we are struggling with
anxiety, we have to declare, I feel anxious about,
and then you say it. You speak it out loud. Whatever
it is, we name it. Even in our anxiousness, even
in our stress, you name the anxiety, and when
you name it, it loses its power. You say, Chris,
what do you mean? Well, see, when we speak it
out loud, that means we bring that anxiety into
the light, and when we bring the anxiety, the
fear, the doubt into the light, what can God
then do? God can move. God can change us. So
we're going to practice it. So what I want you
to do, if you don't know the person sitting beside
you, introduce yourself to them right now. Go
ahead. If you know them, don't say a word. This
isn't a halftime break. Okay, thank you. Stop.
Bring it back. Bring it back. Thank you. Now,
here's what I want you to do. To the person you
just introduced yourself to, or the person you
already know, I want you to take turns. I want
you to look at each other, and I want you to
say, I feel anxious about fill in the blank.
Does everyone understand what we're doing? Nacho,
do you get it? Do you have someone you know?
All right, thank you for looking there. Go. This
is not a therapy session. Just simply share it.
Take turns. You're not giving advice. You're
not praying for anybody. Okay, bring it back.
Now, here's the crazy thing. When I told you
all to do that, what did I see on many of your
faces? Smiles. Smiles. You began to smile. And
why do you think it is you began to smile? Because
you spoke it out. You got rid of it. You brought
it into the light, thus giving us the ability,
as Paul wrote, don't worry about anything. Pray
about everything. Tell God what you need and
thank him for all he's done. Now, some of you
are thinking, well, Chris, it says talk to God.
Yes, I agree with that. It's true. But when we
agree with others, when we bring others into
the truth and agree together, there's power in
agreement. We discussed last week where two or
three are gathered together. Who's there? Jesus.
Jesus is there. So therefore, we bring people
into the midst of it. We speak it to God, we
speak it to others, and there's power in the
statement, and it makes change possible. We're
actually putting into practice what Paul challenged
us to do in 2 Corinthians 10 .5. We demolish
arguments in every petition that sets us up against
the knowledge of God, and we take captive every
thought into making obedience to Christ. We're
taking captive thoughts when we're speaking them
out and telling God, telling others what we're
struggling with. And when we speak it out, then
God can move in our life. God can change us.
The negativity goes. God's peace comes. Again,
anxiety is not a sin. It's a signal. All right,
you did better in the first gathering, but still
terrible. It's a signal. That we need to go to
God and get in his presence, which leads us to
our second step. You transfer it. You transfer
it. We take the anxiety out of our control. We
give it to God. Remember, Jesus spoke out his
stress to his friends. And then, continuing on,
verse 35, 36, going a little further. He fell
to the ground and prayed that if possible, the
hour might pass from him. Abba, Father, he said.
Everything is possible for you. Take this cup
from me, yet not what I will, but what you will.
See, Jesus didn't avoid his stress. Who did he
give it to? Gave it to his friends, and then
he gave it to God. He spoke it, and then he transferred
it, which means we get into his presence, and
we allow God to change us, John 14. Very truly,
I tell you, whoever believes in me and will do
the works that I've been doing, and they will
do even greater things than these, because I
am going to the Father. And I will do whatever
you ask in my name so that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything
in my name, and I will do it. So my question
to you this morning is this. Do you think and
believe that God wants you free of stress, doubt,
fear, anxiety, and worry? You're darn right he
does. Because our God is shalom, shalom. And
he desires that we walk in perfect peace with
him, though we're not going to have peace around
us in this world. One day we will experience
nothing but peace in his kingdom. Because after
all, he told us that he's going to prepare a
room for us. And not only will he prepare a room
for us, but he will come back to take us to be
with him. Right? So now we're going to put it
into practice with God. And today is communion
Sunday. So don't stand yet. If you need an element,
put one hand up quickly. If you need gluten -free,
put two hands up. All right, let's move quick.
Got one hand here. A couple of hands here in
the middle. A couple of hands over there. Just
so you guys know, every first Sunday of the month
at HCV, we practice communion together. So therefore,
when it's the first Sunday of the month and you
come through the vegetable, that's right, I can't
pronounce it, but that's okay. You know what
I mean. Make sure you get a communion element.
I like to make fun of myself. Kelsey, Mike, can
I have one? Thank you. All right, let's stand
together. So here's what we're going to do to
close. Just so if you're new here, we do communion
one Sunday a month, first Sunday of the month.
And at HTV, we believe this is a supernatural
encounter with the living God. This is an ordinance
that Jesus commanded us to do to remember his
actions on the cross. Therefore, this is an opportunity
for you to literally meet the living God. We
take this seriously. And we believe that God
can change your life through it. The bread, what
I want you to do today, representing Jesus' broken
body, I want this bread to be what it is that
you're worried about, what you're anxious about,
what you're overwhelmed about. So before we eat
it, I want you to think about it, and I want
you to give it to God and say, God, this is it.
This is it. This is pulling me down. I'm worried.
I'm stressed. Whatever it may be. And then with
the juice, before we drink the juice, I want
you to transfer it back to God. Give it back
to him. And then say, God, forgive me for the
mistakes I made in this past day, week, month,
whatever it may be. Lay it down, give it back
to God, and receive his grace and forgiveness.
Amen? On the night he was betrayed, Jesus took
bread. He broke it. He gave it to his disciples
and said, take, eat. This is my body, which is
broken for you, and do it. In remembrance of
me. Let's eat and give it to God. Likewise, after
supper, he took the cup of wine, said, this is
my blood which is shed for you and for many for
the forgiveness of sins. Drink it often. When
you do, do it in remembrance of me. And this
is where you transfer it back to God. Seek that
forgiveness for holding on to control. Give it
back to God. Transfer it back. and then receive
his grace. Amen? Let's drink. Jesus, we're grateful
for a Sunday where we can get real with you.
We're grateful for a Sunday where we can gather
together and learn about your promises. God,
may we all be different than when we walked into
this place. And if there's anyone here, God,
that's not in a relationship with you, God, I
just pray you give them the boldness to pray
this prayer right now. And some of you are thinking,
well, Chris, you pray this prayer every week.
I sure do. You know why? Because when I stand
before God, I don't want God to look back at
me and say, but you didn't give him an opportunity.
Every time we gather, you're going to be given
an opportunity, and I'll do it over and over
and over again because I want to win the many
for God's kingdom. Amen? So if you're distant,
far from God, not in a relationship with him
or walked away from him, pray these words with
us and welcome home. Let's pray. Jesus. I'm broken.
I'm full of doubt, shame, regret, sin. Change
me. Forgive me. I believe you're God's son. I
believe you died for me. I believe you're alive
today. Make me new. Set me free. Fill me with
your spirit. Help me, God, to serve others. In
Jesus' name. Amen. So if you prayed that prayer,
see me, see Rudy. We want to give you some next
steps. I'm going to that door. So that's going
to remain closed. So anybody on this half, you
might as well just chill. Because I'm going to
say goodbye to you, whether you like it or not.
This is going to be a great series. Invite your
friends. The month of July is all about God's
promises. Amen. Have a great rest of your week.
Nice.