WEBVTT 00:00:00.170 --> 00:00:02.930 Over the years, Jeffrey and I have learned that 00:00:02.930 --> 00:00:05.570 the greatest battles we face are usually fought 00:00:05.570 --> 00:00:09.029 in our minds, but won with our mouths. When we've 00:00:09.029 --> 00:00:12.029 chosen to speak God's promises in the face of 00:00:12.029 --> 00:00:14.490 our fears, failures, and problems, we've seen 00:00:14.490 --> 00:00:18.289 God do what only He can do. This truth has changed 00:00:18.289 --> 00:00:21.829 our lives, and it's why we wrote Talk to Your 00:00:21.829 --> 00:00:24.530 Giants, to show you how to fight the good fight 00:00:24.530 --> 00:00:26.750 of faith, speak in agreement with God's Word, 00:00:26.890 --> 00:00:29.170 and discover the victory that comes when you 00:00:29.170 --> 00:00:39.789 stop talking Week number five in our series that 00:00:39.789 --> 00:00:43.770 we entitled Never Unnoticed. The double negative 00:00:43.770 --> 00:00:48.049 series is supposed to give us some positive affirmation 00:00:48.049 --> 00:00:52.590 that we are never unnoticed by God. Never unnoticed. 00:00:53.990 --> 00:00:56.969 And in my research this week, I researched a 00:00:56.969 --> 00:01:01.899 little bit more about candid camera. Candid Camera, 00:01:02.179 --> 00:01:06.459 get this now, get this. It first aired in 1948. 00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:13.599 And the last show that they produced, an actual 00:01:13.599 --> 00:01:17.180 new show, now it started in 48, and the last 00:01:17.180 --> 00:01:23.180 new show that they produced was in 2014. That's 00:01:23.180 --> 00:01:29.640 a long run. That's like 65 years. 65, 66 year 00:01:29.640 --> 00:01:34.959 run. on candid camera um alan font was the guy 00:01:34.959 --> 00:01:37.680 who first came up with the idea and get this 00:01:37.680 --> 00:01:43.680 it started on radio even before like in 1946 00:01:43.680 --> 00:01:46.799 i think a couple of years before and it was called 00:01:46.799 --> 00:01:51.959 candid microphone he came up with this idea alan 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:55.319 came up with this idea and he's like and it just 00:01:55.319 --> 00:01:58.200 kept going and then the last seasons that came 00:01:58.200 --> 00:02:01.159 on I think his son Peter was the one hosting 00:02:01.159 --> 00:02:05.540 the show. So it's amazing. If you haven't seen 00:02:05.540 --> 00:02:09.000 Candid Camera, you probably haven't had like 00:02:09.000 --> 00:02:12.340 TV Land or anything like that. It still floats 00:02:12.340 --> 00:02:16.439 up and down every once in a while. But I saw 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:20.599 a new episode just this morning that I wanted 00:02:20.599 --> 00:02:26.500 to share with you. Alan went to work at the DMV. 00:02:27.290 --> 00:02:31.909 Department of Motor Vehicles. And he was at the 00:02:31.909 --> 00:02:39.770 desk where people got their new tags. So, you 00:02:39.770 --> 00:02:42.810 can watch it. You can Google like best of and 00:02:42.810 --> 00:02:45.050 get on YouTube and best of Kennedy Cameron. You 00:02:45.050 --> 00:02:49.270 can see this. You might need to see it. Like 00:02:49.270 --> 00:02:53.729 the first guy, he gives him his tag. After he 00:02:53.729 --> 00:02:56.139 does paperwork, he gives him his tag. And he 00:02:56.139 --> 00:02:59.000 didn't ask for a, you know, a specialized tag 00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:03.400 or anything. But the tag says the number four 00:03:03.400 --> 00:03:13.340 and then losers. And the guy's like, I don't 00:03:13.340 --> 00:03:19.919 want this tag. I don't want this tag. And then 00:03:19.919 --> 00:03:22.199 he says, okay, well, I've got another one for 00:03:22.199 --> 00:03:24.800 you. If you don't want that one, here's another 00:03:24.800 --> 00:03:30.520 one. And the next tag was like one doofus. And 00:03:30.520 --> 00:03:37.819 then it goes to another girl, young ladies there 00:03:37.819 --> 00:03:40.199 getting her tag. And then it's like the tag that 00:03:40.199 --> 00:03:43.919 he pulls out for her is the number two. And then 00:03:43.919 --> 00:03:53.740 it says stupid, too stupid. And they just keep 00:03:53.740 --> 00:03:55.509 saying it. She's like, I don't. I want this tag. 00:03:55.590 --> 00:04:01.229 I'm not going to put that on my car. And then, 00:04:01.250 --> 00:04:04.090 you know, after he gave them like three or four 00:04:04.090 --> 00:04:07.469 different tags like that, all of a sudden he 00:04:07.469 --> 00:04:09.349 would say, well, what about this one? And then 00:04:09.349 --> 00:04:14.669 he would show them a tag that said smile. And 00:04:14.669 --> 00:04:19.389 then he would say, you're on candid camera. And 00:04:19.389 --> 00:04:22.910 then they would say, ah, you know. So I thought 00:04:22.910 --> 00:04:25.779 that was a pretty funny episode. of the motor 00:04:25.779 --> 00:04:31.040 vehicle tags that they were handing out. And 00:04:31.040 --> 00:04:33.220 then, have you heard the recent controversy over 00:04:33.220 --> 00:04:35.879 the flock cameras? People are cutting them down. 00:04:35.959 --> 00:04:40.120 I don't know that I've ever seen one. But people 00:04:40.120 --> 00:04:43.819 are like freaking out over flock cameras. And, 00:04:43.839 --> 00:04:46.540 you know, just by the name you think that it's 00:04:46.540 --> 00:04:51.439 like, okay, they're watching the geese. Flock 00:04:51.439 --> 00:04:55.060 cameras. We had a lot of Canadian geese in Myrtle 00:04:55.060 --> 00:04:58.160 Beach. They needed some flock cameras to know 00:04:58.160 --> 00:05:01.519 when to thin them out. But there's a big deal. 00:05:01.660 --> 00:05:07.819 I mean, even a Polk County, somebody in the sheriff's 00:05:07.819 --> 00:05:10.300 office, they arrested him this week. Did y 'all 00:05:10.300 --> 00:05:15.319 see that? Because he was using the flock cameras 00:05:15.319 --> 00:05:21.500 for personal information. Because he and his 00:05:21.500 --> 00:05:25.160 wife had divorced and he was like searching where 00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:28.220 she's been and all that. Because the flog camera 00:05:28.220 --> 00:05:33.839 is to track vehicles. So people are always watching. 00:05:35.160 --> 00:05:38.800 But just think of how wonderful this could be 00:05:38.800 --> 00:05:45.420 if someone stole your vehicle. Right? And then 00:05:45.420 --> 00:05:47.240 all of a sudden the police could pull it up and 00:05:47.240 --> 00:05:48.980 say, well, it's been here, and it's been here, 00:05:49.060 --> 00:05:51.959 and it's been here, and they could find your 00:05:51.959 --> 00:05:55.480 stolen vehicle a whole lot faster. And that's 00:05:55.480 --> 00:05:58.660 kind of the reason that it's there, right? It's 00:05:58.660 --> 00:06:04.620 to be a helpful tool, not just a spying device, 00:06:04.779 --> 00:06:08.939 but flock cameras. And I've heard about people 00:06:08.939 --> 00:06:10.899 seeing them and cutting them down and all kind 00:06:10.899 --> 00:06:13.319 of stuff. I mean, obviously that's illegal to 00:06:13.319 --> 00:06:17.939 cut them down. They don't want the police to 00:06:17.939 --> 00:06:21.759 know where their car's been, I guess. I'm okay 00:06:21.759 --> 00:06:23.519 with the police knowing where my car's been. 00:06:25.160 --> 00:06:29.699 But we're always being watched. I remind you 00:06:29.699 --> 00:06:31.379 about the two cameras on the back of the wall 00:06:31.379 --> 00:06:33.980 looking at the back of your heads right now. 00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:38.980 The principal, maybe the assistant principals 00:06:38.980 --> 00:06:41.899 can pull that up on their phone right now and 00:06:41.899 --> 00:06:44.720 see what's going on. So you better be smiling. 00:06:46.420 --> 00:06:49.860 Better be smiling. You're not smiling. You better 00:06:49.860 --> 00:06:52.500 be smiling because you're on camera. Actually, 00:06:52.500 --> 00:06:54.480 I'm the only face that they can see right now. 00:06:54.620 --> 00:06:57.920 So I got to make sure I'm smiling. But I'll smile 00:06:57.920 --> 00:07:03.139 a lot better if you're smiling. Back to our story 00:07:03.139 --> 00:07:06.459 in Genesis 16. See the story of Abram, Sarah, 00:07:06.579 --> 00:07:10.600 and Hagar. And we know that Sarah tried to... 00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:14.660 fulfill God's plan for Abraham. He said he'd 00:07:14.660 --> 00:07:17.199 be the father of many nations, and his descendants 00:07:17.199 --> 00:07:19.060 would outnumber the stars. He didn't have any 00:07:19.060 --> 00:07:22.220 children. And Sarai said, I want you to take 00:07:22.220 --> 00:07:25.540 my servant, Hagar. I want her to be the surrogate 00:07:25.540 --> 00:07:28.040 mother. And we know that that did not turn out 00:07:28.040 --> 00:07:30.899 well. And we know that we're actually still having 00:07:30.899 --> 00:07:37.660 problems in the world today. Hello? Thousands 00:07:37.660 --> 00:07:39.779 of years later, we're still having problems from 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:47.160 this decision. So, when Hagar became pregnant, 00:07:47.240 --> 00:07:50.439 she developed an attitude. Sarah didn't like 00:07:50.439 --> 00:07:52.920 her attitude. Obviously, she wouldn't like her 00:07:52.920 --> 00:07:54.980 attitude, right? She made her life very difficult. 00:07:55.060 --> 00:07:58.399 She ran away out into the wilderness, and the 00:07:58.399 --> 00:08:06.819 angel of the Lord, God Himself, Christophany 00:08:06.819 --> 00:08:11.980 or Theophany, God himself talked with her in 00:08:11.980 --> 00:08:16.079 the wilderness. Told her to go back. And she 00:08:16.079 --> 00:08:18.439 went back. And in this encounter, we find out 00:08:18.439 --> 00:08:28.740 that God is El Roy. El Roy. El is short for Elohim, 00:08:28.779 --> 00:08:33.299 which means the supreme mighty God. And Roy means 00:08:33.299 --> 00:08:38.679 he sees me. He's the supreme mighty God who sees 00:08:38.679 --> 00:08:43.559 me. I want you to say this with me. God is the 00:08:43.559 --> 00:08:50.779 supreme mighty God who sees me. He always sees. 00:08:52.600 --> 00:08:55.799 I mean, He gives us these names in the Old Testament 00:08:55.799 --> 00:09:01.580 so that we can know who He is, what kind of relationship 00:09:01.580 --> 00:09:06.379 He wants to be in with us. And what He is doing 00:09:06.379 --> 00:09:10.360 or wants to do in our lives. That's why He gives 00:09:10.360 --> 00:09:13.159 us all these names in the Old Testament. That's 00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:16.559 why they're written down. They're written down 00:09:16.559 --> 00:09:19.679 surrounding stories, but they are revelation 00:09:19.679 --> 00:09:29.820 of who God is. Who God is. I'm glad that He is 00:09:29.820 --> 00:09:33.940 the supreme mighty God. There are people who 00:09:33.940 --> 00:09:39.159 worship imaginary gods all over this earth. They 00:09:39.159 --> 00:09:42.639 worship people who have died and been buried 00:09:42.639 --> 00:09:46.899 and they're done. Listen, God is the supreme 00:09:46.899 --> 00:09:50.679 mighty God. He's the King of kings. He's the 00:09:50.679 --> 00:09:58.460 Lord of lords. And He came as the Word and took 00:09:58.460 --> 00:10:03.610 on flesh, Jesus. Second person of the Godhead. 00:10:03.690 --> 00:10:07.309 He took on flesh and He died on the cross. Except 00:10:07.309 --> 00:10:10.289 He didn't die just because He got old and died. 00:10:10.409 --> 00:10:13.230 He died. He willingly laid down His life and 00:10:13.230 --> 00:10:17.309 He died for us. He died for you. But He didn't 00:10:17.309 --> 00:10:23.610 stay dead. He's alive. He's alive. I know He's 00:10:23.610 --> 00:10:29.929 alive. I know He's alive. He's the supreme mighty 00:10:29.929 --> 00:10:38.750 God. Who sees me? God sees you. Everybody, this 00:10:38.750 --> 00:10:42.610 is like a new thing. It's like, am I seen? I 00:10:42.610 --> 00:10:48.230 want to be seen. I've even seen billboards of 00:10:48.230 --> 00:10:51.690 like colleges and stuff that say, we see you. 00:10:52.590 --> 00:10:56.309 Well, you're already seen. You're always seen. 00:10:58.129 --> 00:11:02.940 Because God sees you. He sees you personally. 00:11:05.120 --> 00:11:09.639 He sees every tear that you've cried. He sees 00:11:09.639 --> 00:11:13.159 every act of obedience. He sees every sacrifice. 00:11:14.299 --> 00:11:21.700 He sees every act of faithfulness. Nothing goes 00:11:21.700 --> 00:11:27.360 unnoticed by God. He sees. And He doesn't only 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:34.460 see, He responds. He responds. He responds to 00:11:34.460 --> 00:11:39.539 faith. I'll say that again. He responds to faith. 00:11:41.080 --> 00:11:44.720 2 Chronicles 16, 9 gives us another insight into 00:11:44.720 --> 00:11:48.200 the supreme mighty God who sees. It says this, 00:11:48.240 --> 00:11:50.539 the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout 00:11:50.539 --> 00:11:56.200 the whole earth to show himself strong on behalf 00:11:56.200 --> 00:12:01.639 of those whose heart is loyal to him. Loyal can 00:12:01.639 --> 00:12:06.600 be translated fully committed. This should be 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:12.019 so encouraging to all of us. You know, if we're 00:12:12.019 --> 00:12:15.320 living our lives where we are ashamed for God 00:12:15.320 --> 00:12:21.600 to see us, then, you know, it brings fear, it 00:12:21.600 --> 00:12:25.059 brings shame, it brings guilt, if that's the 00:12:25.059 --> 00:12:28.700 way we're living our lives. But we don't live 00:12:28.700 --> 00:12:33.970 our lives that way. Hello? If you lived your 00:12:33.970 --> 00:12:38.210 life that way yesterday, yesterday is gone. Today, 00:12:38.570 --> 00:12:42.450 starting today, that's not the way you live your 00:12:42.450 --> 00:12:44.309 life if you're in Christ. That's not the way 00:12:44.309 --> 00:12:49.029 we live our lives. Because when he sees you, 00:12:49.210 --> 00:12:54.950 he's looking at your heart. And when he finds 00:12:54.950 --> 00:12:58.950 a heart that's loyal to him, a heart that... 00:12:59.389 --> 00:13:01.970 loves Him, a heart that's fully committed to 00:13:01.970 --> 00:13:09.750 Him, we have a promise. If our hearts are fully 00:13:09.750 --> 00:13:11.850 committed to God, we have a promise that we're 00:13:11.850 --> 00:13:19.210 going to see His goodness. Hello? We're going 00:13:19.210 --> 00:13:23.970 to see it. Everybody say, I'm going to see it. 00:13:24.730 --> 00:13:28.740 I'm going to see His goodness. I'm going to see 00:13:28.740 --> 00:13:32.220 His kindness. I'm going to see His faithfulness. 00:13:33.539 --> 00:13:37.919 I'm going to encounter God. Because my heart's 00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:40.799 loyal to Him. I love God more than I love anything 00:13:40.799 --> 00:13:45.639 in this earth. So I expect to see His goodness. 00:13:47.899 --> 00:13:51.919 Hallelujah. That's where we need to be today. 00:13:53.519 --> 00:14:00.379 That's where we can be today. I'm preaching myself 00:14:00.379 --> 00:14:04.080 happy. It's a bad preacher that can't preach 00:14:04.080 --> 00:14:08.139 himself happy every once in a while. Notice what 00:14:08.139 --> 00:14:10.059 God's looking for, not talent, not influence. 00:14:10.360 --> 00:14:13.259 He's searching for hearts that are fully committed 00:14:13.259 --> 00:14:18.580 to him. And he doesn't simply observe, he responds. 00:14:20.580 --> 00:14:22.639 And this is week number five, and I think it's 00:14:22.639 --> 00:14:25.740 going to be the last week. I can't guarantee 00:14:25.740 --> 00:14:31.700 you that it's the last week. Because I, I mean, 00:14:31.720 --> 00:14:34.740 I have at least three or four more sermons, maybe 00:14:34.740 --> 00:14:37.860 ten more sermons, ten more stories that we could 00:14:37.860 --> 00:14:41.759 just keep going here, but look at the person 00:14:41.759 --> 00:14:45.799 beside you and say, I'm getting it. See, the 00:14:45.799 --> 00:14:47.620 reason why we need to extend it is if you're 00:14:47.620 --> 00:14:55.039 not getting it. Because if you're going home 00:14:55.039 --> 00:14:57.059 and saying, you know, he just keeps preaching 00:14:57.059 --> 00:15:02.039 the same thing. Well, I'm going to preach the 00:15:02.039 --> 00:15:05.779 same thing until you get it. I could probably 00:15:05.779 --> 00:15:08.179 preach this series through the rest of the year. 00:15:09.460 --> 00:15:11.659 I could probably even put a Christmas spin on 00:15:11.659 --> 00:15:15.879 it during December. I could put a Thanksgiving 00:15:15.879 --> 00:15:20.620 spin on it. We could just stay right here. Because 00:15:20.620 --> 00:15:23.259 there's so many stories in the Bible where God 00:15:23.259 --> 00:15:26.799 sees the hearts of people and then lets us know 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:30.450 what's going on. And then we see the result of 00:15:30.450 --> 00:15:32.649 what's happened in their hearts, what was going 00:15:32.649 --> 00:15:37.330 on in their hearts. We see the result. Sometimes 00:15:37.330 --> 00:15:42.370 it's good, sometimes it's bad. And we've had 00:15:42.370 --> 00:15:44.669 one bad one in this one, the rich young ruler 00:15:44.669 --> 00:15:47.789 who loved his stuff more than he loved Jesus. 00:15:48.809 --> 00:15:51.649 He was living for his stuff more than he wanted 00:15:51.649 --> 00:15:56.950 to follow Jesus. That was a bad encounter, but... 00:15:57.230 --> 00:15:59.490 All the rest of them have been good, and today's 00:15:59.490 --> 00:16:02.330 going to be good too. We've been studying these 00:16:02.330 --> 00:16:06.029 accounts where God sees the hearts of people, 00:16:06.149 --> 00:16:09.669 and then he lets us know what's going on in their 00:16:09.669 --> 00:16:13.330 heart. Philippians chapter 4, verses 10 through 00:16:13.330 --> 00:16:17.809 20. For those of you who were at the Citrus Ridge 00:16:17.809 --> 00:16:22.269 Bible study, this is going to be familiar. Philippians 00:16:22.269 --> 00:16:27.870 4, verses 10 through 20. And this is Paul writing. 00:16:29.330 --> 00:16:35.789 He's in prison. If we were in prison, we probably 00:16:35.789 --> 00:16:38.950 wouldn't be writing about joy and rejoicing and 00:16:38.950 --> 00:16:49.750 praising God. We'd be saying, woe is me. But 00:16:49.750 --> 00:16:52.269 Philippians is known as the book of joy and rejoicing. 00:16:53.250 --> 00:16:57.259 And he's writing it. From prison. Hallelujah. 00:17:00.259 --> 00:17:05.539 How I praise the Lord. He says. That you are 00:17:05.539 --> 00:17:10.160 concerned about me again. He's talking to the 00:17:10.160 --> 00:17:15.359 believers in Philippi. He said. I praise God. 00:17:16.460 --> 00:17:19.259 That you're concerned about me. They didn't have 00:17:19.259 --> 00:17:26.779 cell phones. They didn't even have. A very serious 00:17:26.779 --> 00:17:33.779 mail delivery program. I mean, he was a long 00:17:33.779 --> 00:17:38.059 way away from Philippi. We'll find out why he 00:17:38.059 --> 00:17:39.819 knew that they were concerned about him again 00:17:39.819 --> 00:17:42.099 as we continue to read. I know you've always 00:17:42.099 --> 00:17:44.819 been concerned for me, he said, but you didn't 00:17:44.819 --> 00:17:48.400 have the chance to help me. Didn't have the chance 00:17:48.400 --> 00:17:52.940 to help me. And then he says this, not that I 00:17:52.940 --> 00:17:58.049 was... ever in need. How many of you can probably 00:17:58.049 --> 00:18:00.329 look at Paul's life and you could say, well, 00:18:00.430 --> 00:18:02.109 there were definitely some times that he was 00:18:02.109 --> 00:18:09.829 in need. He needed some help. But he didn't go 00:18:09.829 --> 00:18:15.890 about it that way. He didn't say, oh, I'm going 00:18:15.890 --> 00:18:20.630 under if you don't help me. Did he? Never said 00:18:20.630 --> 00:18:23.819 anything like that. He says, not that I was ever 00:18:23.819 --> 00:18:27.900 in need. For I have learned how to be content. 00:18:28.160 --> 00:18:30.779 Everybody say content. With whatever I have. 00:18:30.940 --> 00:18:35.279 Wherever I am, whatever I have, I've learned 00:18:35.279 --> 00:18:46.460 a huge spiritual principle. I've learned how 00:18:46.460 --> 00:18:52.849 to be content. With whatever I have. Even though 00:18:52.849 --> 00:18:57.630 I'm in prison, I've learned to be content. Even 00:18:57.630 --> 00:19:04.650 in prison. Even when they give me 39 lashes with 00:19:04.650 --> 00:19:09.990 a cat of nine tails and rip my back open, I'm 00:19:09.990 --> 00:19:18.569 good. I'm good. Did he hurt? Yeah, it hurt. But 00:19:18.569 --> 00:19:23.039 it didn't ever change his attitude. Somebody 00:19:23.039 --> 00:19:28.079 smile. It didn't ever change his attitude. No 00:19:28.079 --> 00:19:29.420 matter what he went through, it didn't change 00:19:29.420 --> 00:19:36.579 his attitude. Can somebody say, Lord, help me, 00:19:36.579 --> 00:19:41.380 Jesus. Lord, help me, Jesus. Because the things 00:19:41.380 --> 00:19:43.559 I go through aren't near as bad as some of the 00:19:43.559 --> 00:19:45.400 things Paul went through, but they always change 00:19:45.400 --> 00:19:52.579 my stinking attitude. Come on. Then he says this, 00:19:52.660 --> 00:19:55.380 I know how to live on almost nothing, he said, 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:59.940 or with everything. I've learned the secret. 00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:02.380 Everybody say a secret. I've learned the secret 00:20:02.380 --> 00:20:08.180 of living in every situation, whether it's with 00:20:08.180 --> 00:20:15.640 a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 00:20:16.940 --> 00:20:22.200 I've learned a secret. Learned a secret. Here's 00:20:22.200 --> 00:20:25.759 the secret that he learned. I can do everything 00:20:25.759 --> 00:20:34.859 through Christ who strengthens me. Somebody say 00:20:34.859 --> 00:20:39.599 that with Paul. I can do everything through Christ 00:20:39.599 --> 00:20:47.119 who strengthens me, who gives me strength. Now, 00:20:48.859 --> 00:20:52.619 This is a Bible verse that's most commonly misquoted 00:20:52.619 --> 00:20:55.279 out of context, and probably about any other 00:20:55.279 --> 00:21:00.019 Bible verse in the Bible. Because anytime people 00:21:00.019 --> 00:21:02.839 face something, it's like, you know, I'm going 00:21:02.839 --> 00:21:05.160 to go, me and my football team are going to go 00:21:05.160 --> 00:21:06.700 play, and before we play, I'm going to say, I 00:21:06.700 --> 00:21:09.940 can do all things through Christ, I can be the 00:21:09.940 --> 00:21:13.539 best football player on the team. You know, I 00:21:13.539 --> 00:21:18.319 can do this. I can do it. And the emphasis on 00:21:18.319 --> 00:21:24.859 the I can do it. Whatever we face, I can do it. 00:21:25.700 --> 00:21:29.779 But is that what Paul was saying? Is that what 00:21:29.779 --> 00:21:34.380 he was saying? Let's keep it in context. I think 00:21:34.380 --> 00:21:41.200 what he's saying is this. You know what? Listen, 00:21:41.339 --> 00:21:45.880 guys in Philippi. Listen to me. I've learned 00:21:45.880 --> 00:21:52.750 a secret. I've learned an awesome secret. I've 00:21:52.750 --> 00:21:55.450 learned that I can face every challenge that 00:21:55.450 --> 00:22:01.109 comes my way without complaining, without quitting. 00:22:03.049 --> 00:22:06.049 And the reason why I can face every challenge 00:22:06.049 --> 00:22:08.549 that comes my way without complaining or quitting 00:22:08.549 --> 00:22:20.359 is because I am in Christ. I'm in Christ. Oh, 00:22:20.380 --> 00:22:27.299 I wish somebody would smile. Because when we 00:22:27.299 --> 00:22:32.700 are connected in Christ the way that it's available 00:22:32.700 --> 00:22:37.619 to us, when we understand who we are and what 00:22:37.619 --> 00:22:42.420 we have in Christ, then when we face challenges, 00:22:42.579 --> 00:22:44.920 how many of you faced a challenge this past week? 00:22:46.559 --> 00:22:48.339 Everybody go ahead and raise your hand. I mean, 00:22:48.359 --> 00:22:50.299 we've all faced some kind of challenges this 00:22:50.299 --> 00:22:53.200 past week. Some people even had both their hands 00:22:53.200 --> 00:22:58.460 up. Double challenge. See, you're not, you got 00:22:58.460 --> 00:23:07.059 your feet up. Look, in Christ, we can face any 00:23:07.059 --> 00:23:09.000 challenge that comes our way, every challenge 00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:11.839 that comes our way, without complaining or quitting, 00:23:11.940 --> 00:23:18.680 just like Paul did. Paul's just, I mean, if Jesus 00:23:18.680 --> 00:23:21.839 was saying this, if he said it, we should be 00:23:21.839 --> 00:23:24.640 able to stand on it. But we might have this thing, 00:23:24.740 --> 00:23:26.920 this thought in the back of our head, like, well, 00:23:27.000 --> 00:23:30.460 he's God. You know, he can do this because he's 00:23:30.460 --> 00:23:37.279 God. Paul is completely human just like you are. 00:23:39.440 --> 00:23:42.099 And listen, if he can do it, if he can have it, 00:23:42.160 --> 00:23:48.599 I can do it. And I can have it. I love preaching 00:23:48.599 --> 00:24:00.079 to myself. I love it. Because at this point, 00:24:00.160 --> 00:24:02.839 I mean, I'm so fired up. It don't matter if you 00:24:02.839 --> 00:24:08.900 get anything or not. I'm leaving full. And I 00:24:08.900 --> 00:24:12.940 hope you can leave full too. Think about it. 00:24:12.960 --> 00:24:16.670 The challenge that you're facing. Because you 00:24:16.670 --> 00:24:25.509 are in Christ, you can overcome. You can be more 00:24:25.509 --> 00:24:28.089 than a conqueror in Christ. I mean, that's one 00:24:28.089 --> 00:24:34.970 of the... More than a conqueror. Not just a conqueror. 00:24:36.309 --> 00:24:47.140 More than a conqueror. Hallelujah. Verse 14. 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:51.559 I'll get off of that toe and get on another one. 00:24:53.279 --> 00:24:57.420 Even so, Paul says to the Philippian believers, 00:24:57.700 --> 00:25:01.680 he says, even so, you have done well to share 00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:08.119 with me in my present difficulty. I can do all 00:25:08.119 --> 00:25:14.640 things through Christ. I'm content. But you sure 00:25:14.640 --> 00:25:18.180 are a blessing to me. He said, you sure are a 00:25:18.180 --> 00:25:23.839 blessing. As you know, get this, you Philippians 00:25:23.839 --> 00:25:26.579 were the only ones, everybody say only ones. 00:25:28.220 --> 00:25:34.119 Only ones. Who gave me financial help when I 00:25:34.119 --> 00:25:39.579 first brought you the good news. And then traveled 00:25:39.579 --> 00:25:45.740 on to Macedonia. No other church did this. How 00:25:45.740 --> 00:25:47.500 many of you know Paul planted a lot of churches? 00:25:49.819 --> 00:25:54.039 I mean, just think about every book that he's 00:25:54.039 --> 00:25:57.220 writing letters to the churches that he's planting. 00:25:57.460 --> 00:26:01.720 And he's saying, hey, up to this point, you Philippians, 00:26:01.740 --> 00:26:07.940 you're the only ones who partnered with me, who 00:26:07.940 --> 00:26:10.779 gave me financial help. Some of the other churches 00:26:10.779 --> 00:26:13.630 took up offerings to send to... the believers 00:26:13.630 --> 00:26:16.289 in Jerusalem who were going through severe persecution 00:26:16.289 --> 00:26:20.970 and there came a famine. But these people, these 00:26:20.970 --> 00:26:32.109 Philippian believers were the only ones who said, 00:26:32.150 --> 00:26:38.670 Paul, this is for you and your work. Look, they 00:26:38.670 --> 00:26:40.730 didn't just give to Paul, they partnered with 00:26:40.730 --> 00:26:44.960 Paul. Everybody say kingdom partnership. Let's 00:26:44.960 --> 00:26:48.279 say it again. Kingdom partnership. They weren't 00:26:48.279 --> 00:26:51.279 just giving to Paul. They were partnering with 00:26:51.279 --> 00:26:56.759 Paul. They were saying, Paul, you know, you came 00:26:56.759 --> 00:27:02.480 to us and shared the gospel. And it's changed 00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:06.140 our world and changed our lives. And we know 00:27:06.140 --> 00:27:11.529 how important it is. So we want to be a part 00:27:11.529 --> 00:27:18.589 of you continuing that in other places. And this 00:27:18.589 --> 00:27:20.710 is what we're going to find out. God counted 00:27:20.710 --> 00:27:26.789 both Paul and the believers in Philippi. He counted 00:27:26.789 --> 00:27:30.369 both of them as participants in the mission. 00:27:33.009 --> 00:27:36.549 Participants in the mission. Listen, you don't 00:27:36.549 --> 00:27:40.720 have to preach a sermon. To participate in what 00:27:40.720 --> 00:27:43.200 the sermon accomplishes in somebody else's lives. 00:27:43.480 --> 00:27:47.339 You don't have to preach the sermon. You don't 00:27:47.339 --> 00:27:51.099 have to personally go spend years on the mission 00:27:51.099 --> 00:27:53.500 field or even go on a 10 -day mission project 00:27:53.500 --> 00:27:58.420 to another country to participate in what happens 00:27:58.420 --> 00:28:05.279 there. You don't have to go. You know, you don't 00:28:05.279 --> 00:28:08.829 have to, like, teach the children. and share 00:28:08.829 --> 00:28:12.230 the gospel with them to participate when their 00:28:12.230 --> 00:28:15.789 lives are changed by the gospel. You don't have 00:28:15.789 --> 00:28:22.670 to be the one presenting the message. That's 00:28:22.670 --> 00:28:28.049 good if you are, right? It's available to all 00:28:28.049 --> 00:28:31.710 of us, but you can be a part of it. Listen, when 00:28:31.710 --> 00:28:35.049 you serve, when you give, when you pray, when 00:28:35.049 --> 00:28:38.730 you support God's work, his kingdom work in the 00:28:38.730 --> 00:28:42.269 earth, you become a partner in the fruit of it. 00:28:45.490 --> 00:28:48.009 Kingdom generosity allows you to participate 00:28:48.009 --> 00:28:55.569 in something bigger than yourself. How many of 00:28:55.569 --> 00:28:59.569 you want to do more than you can do? Something 00:28:59.569 --> 00:29:06.210 bigger than you can do just on your own? We do 00:29:06.210 --> 00:29:10.650 that through kingdom partnership. Many people, 00:29:10.829 --> 00:29:17.750 tens of thousands of people, had received from 00:29:17.750 --> 00:29:22.670 Paul, but only one group out of everyone who 00:29:22.670 --> 00:29:27.150 received, out of all those cities, Ephesus, Galatia, 00:29:27.210 --> 00:29:32.369 just think about all those, Corinth, only one 00:29:32.369 --> 00:29:38.549 city, was giving back consistently. The Philippians 00:29:38.549 --> 00:29:41.529 weren't just consumers of Paul's ministry. Everybody 00:29:41.529 --> 00:29:45.730 say consumer. They weren't just consumers. They 00:29:45.730 --> 00:29:49.490 became a part of the mission. They became contributors 00:29:49.490 --> 00:29:55.809 to the mission. Being a consumer, and this is 00:29:55.809 --> 00:30:04.250 so prevalent. People being consumers at church. 00:30:06.710 --> 00:30:12.089 I'm coming to get what I can get. And if the 00:30:12.089 --> 00:30:13.869 preacher says something that I don't necessarily 00:30:13.869 --> 00:30:16.049 like this week, there's another one right down 00:30:16.049 --> 00:30:20.730 the road that I'll go try next week. Hello? That's 00:30:20.730 --> 00:30:24.029 what we're living today. And if the preacher 00:30:24.029 --> 00:30:26.509 down the road don't tell me what I want to hear 00:30:26.509 --> 00:30:30.329 and give me warm fuzzies every Sunday, then I'll 00:30:30.329 --> 00:30:38.210 just... find one online that'll do it. That who 00:30:38.210 --> 00:30:44.869 always says what I want to hear. What can I get 00:30:44.869 --> 00:30:46.890 out of it? What can my family get out of it? 00:30:46.970 --> 00:30:53.769 How convenient is it for me? There's a difference 00:30:53.769 --> 00:30:59.490 between consumerism and partnership. Because 00:31:01.480 --> 00:31:04.160 What I'm about to describe to you is where mature 00:31:04.160 --> 00:31:07.660 believers come to the point where they find themselves 00:31:07.660 --> 00:31:15.140 and they say, look, let's do this together. You 00:31:15.140 --> 00:31:18.460 know? Instead of you going home and saying, you 00:31:18.460 --> 00:31:20.480 know what, the preacher talks about 100 ,000 00:31:20.480 --> 00:31:26.099 people, and boy, I hope he reaches them. I really 00:31:26.099 --> 00:31:29.619 don't think he can reach 100 ,000, but... Hope 00:31:29.619 --> 00:31:39.240 he reaches at least 50. That's consumerism. When 00:31:39.240 --> 00:31:42.500 it becomes partnership is this. When you go home 00:31:42.500 --> 00:31:46.519 and you think about 100 ,000 people up and down 00:31:46.519 --> 00:31:49.960 the road that we turn off of to get here, when 00:31:49.960 --> 00:31:52.700 you start having a heart for those 100 ,000 people 00:31:52.700 --> 00:31:58.049 and you start saying, That's part of why I am 00:31:58.049 --> 00:32:07.970 existing in life. That's part of who I am. When 00:32:07.970 --> 00:32:10.849 you're just as passionate about it as anybody 00:32:10.849 --> 00:32:16.430 else in the room. There are people lost and dying 00:32:16.430 --> 00:32:19.230 and headed to an eternity separated from Christ. 00:32:19.509 --> 00:32:26.220 And I'm concerned to the point that I want to 00:32:26.220 --> 00:32:28.339 partner up with a group of people who want to 00:32:28.339 --> 00:32:33.779 reach them. Hey, let's do this together. Because 00:32:33.779 --> 00:32:36.019 one of us can't do it by ourselves. I mean, it 00:32:36.019 --> 00:32:44.420 takes us. Let's do this together. I'll get off 00:32:44.420 --> 00:32:48.259 of that toe and I will get on that one. Verse 00:32:48.259 --> 00:32:56.619 60. Even when I was in Thessalonica, You sent 00:32:56.619 --> 00:33:02.160 help more than once while he was in Thessalonica. 00:33:04.019 --> 00:33:08.140 The believers in Philippi just kept partnering 00:33:08.140 --> 00:33:10.660 with Paul because they understood something. 00:33:10.740 --> 00:33:14.460 And Paul's about to point it out that they were 00:33:14.460 --> 00:33:19.779 a part of everything that Paul did. Heaven was 00:33:19.779 --> 00:33:25.799 counting it differently. Paul, we're not there, 00:33:26.019 --> 00:33:34.420 but we're going to help you be there. They gave 00:33:34.420 --> 00:33:40.680 to help Paul to partner with him. They wanted 00:33:40.680 --> 00:33:43.140 him to be able to focus on the mission that God 00:33:43.140 --> 00:33:49.319 had called him to. And we see every time in Paul's 00:33:49.319 --> 00:33:51.440 letters that he wasn't just always by himself. 00:33:53.259 --> 00:33:56.759 There were people with him. There were people 00:33:56.759 --> 00:34:00.359 on these missionary journeys with him. He would 00:34:00.359 --> 00:34:02.579 pick up people and take them from other churches. 00:34:02.660 --> 00:34:05.240 They would travel with him to experience that. 00:34:05.299 --> 00:34:11.760 They would go on mission with Paul. So it wasn't 00:34:11.760 --> 00:34:16.440 just him. It was like the whole team. He was 00:34:16.440 --> 00:34:18.440 responsible for those people who he said, come 00:34:18.440 --> 00:34:20.800 on, let's go. I want you to go with me for the 00:34:20.800 --> 00:34:26.619 next six months. He was responsible for them 00:34:26.619 --> 00:34:32.239 too. Now, how many of you know that Paul was 00:34:32.239 --> 00:34:36.000 a tent maker? Does anybody know that? Paul was 00:34:36.000 --> 00:34:41.139 a tent maker. He never said, let's take up an 00:34:41.139 --> 00:34:45.119 offering for me. He never said that. Because 00:34:45.119 --> 00:34:47.039 he wanted to be able to teach on it and teach 00:34:47.039 --> 00:34:50.960 directly on it. But the Philippians were giving. 00:34:52.780 --> 00:34:54.760 Paul made tents, but the Philippians realized 00:34:54.760 --> 00:34:57.500 something. They realized that Paul could do more 00:34:57.500 --> 00:34:59.619 to advance the kingdom of God if he didn't have 00:34:59.619 --> 00:35:05.840 to spend all of his time making tents. None of 00:35:05.840 --> 00:35:10.699 the other places got it. But they got it. They're 00:35:10.699 --> 00:35:14.639 like, Paul, we don't want you making tents. We 00:35:14.639 --> 00:35:19.219 want you advancing the kingdom of God. They gave 00:35:19.219 --> 00:35:23.510 to support God's work. Because they wanted other 00:35:23.510 --> 00:35:26.570 people to have the opportunity to know Jesus 00:35:26.570 --> 00:35:34.090 and to become established in truth. They were 00:35:34.090 --> 00:35:36.170 partners with that. That's what Paul wanted. 00:35:37.170 --> 00:35:39.590 He wanted people to know Jesus and for them to 00:35:39.590 --> 00:35:43.190 be established in the truth. But the Philippians 00:35:43.190 --> 00:35:46.909 wanted the same thing. Now listen, verse 17, 00:35:46.969 --> 00:35:50.489 he says, I don't say this because I want a gift 00:35:50.489 --> 00:35:59.980 from you. Rather, listen to what he says. I want 00:35:59.980 --> 00:36:09.139 you to receive a reward for your kindness. So 00:36:09.139 --> 00:36:14.980 what was he most excited about? Just think about 00:36:14.980 --> 00:36:20.019 it. He was most excited about what God was going 00:36:20.019 --> 00:36:25.659 to do in their lives. than he was the gift that 00:36:25.659 --> 00:36:27.780 they actually sent. He was more excited about 00:36:27.780 --> 00:36:32.820 what God was going to do in them. Paul knew that 00:36:32.820 --> 00:36:35.780 God was seeing their hearts and seeing their 00:36:35.780 --> 00:36:39.579 motives, and God is a rewarder of those who diligently 00:36:39.579 --> 00:36:43.300 seek him. Right? We've looked at those verses 00:36:43.300 --> 00:36:47.059 during this. Paul knew that God was going to 00:36:47.059 --> 00:36:52.159 show himself strong in them. He was expecting 00:36:52.159 --> 00:36:58.119 it. I want you to receive the reward for your 00:36:58.119 --> 00:37:04.480 kindness. Not that I seek the gift. This is the 00:37:04.480 --> 00:37:06.800 New King James Version of that same verse we 00:37:06.800 --> 00:37:11.079 just read. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek 00:37:11.079 --> 00:37:18.940 the fruit that abounds to your account. Paul 00:37:18.940 --> 00:37:24.000 isn't fundraising. He's teaching a spiritual 00:37:24.000 --> 00:37:29.269 principle. Their giving was producing fruit. 00:37:29.369 --> 00:37:31.289 Their partnership, their kingdom partnership 00:37:31.289 --> 00:37:35.489 was producing fruit that was credited to their 00:37:35.489 --> 00:37:46.070 account. How many accounts do you have? Huh? 00:37:47.190 --> 00:37:50.909 Who has a banking account? Who's got a credit 00:37:50.909 --> 00:37:53.789 card so you got a credit account? Who's got a 00:37:53.789 --> 00:37:56.710 savings account? Who's got a retirement account? 00:37:58.610 --> 00:38:04.329 Did you know you had another account? You have 00:38:04.329 --> 00:38:13.690 a heavenly account. Hello? Every single one of 00:38:13.690 --> 00:38:22.389 us have a heavenly account. How much attention 00:38:22.389 --> 00:38:25.579 do you... put on your banking, credit, savings, 00:38:25.659 --> 00:38:31.539 and retirement account? Is your attention to 00:38:31.539 --> 00:38:41.880 your heavenly account even close? Got to move 00:38:41.880 --> 00:38:45.539 to another toe? I got to stay here a minute because 00:38:45.539 --> 00:38:48.380 Jesus is going to get on the other toe. Matthew 00:38:48.380 --> 00:38:52.030 6, 19. It says this, don't store up treasures 00:38:52.030 --> 00:38:56.730 here on earth where moths eat them and rust destroys 00:38:56.730 --> 00:39:04.909 them and where thieves break in and steal. Don't 00:39:04.909 --> 00:39:07.269 have your main focus on your earthly accounts, 00:39:07.670 --> 00:39:11.670 is what Jesus is saying. He's saying, store your 00:39:11.670 --> 00:39:16.329 treasures in heaven where moths and rust cannot 00:39:16.329 --> 00:39:19.409 destroy and thieves... Do not break in and steal. 00:39:20.809 --> 00:39:23.989 And then he says, because wherever your treasure 00:39:23.989 --> 00:39:28.989 is, that's where the desires of your heart are 00:39:28.989 --> 00:39:35.130 going to be. I don't even have to preach that. 00:39:35.190 --> 00:39:36.989 That's just straight out of the mouth of Jesus 00:39:36.989 --> 00:39:41.150 right there. And it's right in agreement with 00:39:41.150 --> 00:39:44.590 what Paul just said. Paul is thanking them for 00:39:44.590 --> 00:39:47.780 their offering. But he's letting them know something. 00:39:47.900 --> 00:39:50.079 Here's what he's teaching. He says, they're both 00:39:50.079 --> 00:39:55.079 temporary and eternal accounts. And what you 00:39:55.079 --> 00:39:59.820 are doing in your kingdom partnership is you're 00:39:59.820 --> 00:40:06.659 paying attention to your heavenly account. And 00:40:06.659 --> 00:40:09.360 things are being added to your heavenly account. 00:40:12.099 --> 00:40:15.019 How many of you know this life is just like a... 00:40:16.750 --> 00:40:19.849 It's just a breath and then it's over. And eternity 00:40:19.849 --> 00:40:27.630 just never stops after that. Because of that 00:40:27.630 --> 00:40:31.769 reality, how many of you think we should be concerned 00:40:31.769 --> 00:40:35.090 about our heavenly account? Because everything 00:40:35.090 --> 00:40:36.909 in your earthly accounts is just going to stay 00:40:36.909 --> 00:40:45.010 here. It's not going anywhere. I met a lady one 00:40:45.010 --> 00:40:48.489 time, she said, when I... When I die, I put it 00:40:48.489 --> 00:40:51.730 in my will that I want all my bank accounts emptied 00:40:51.730 --> 00:40:54.010 out in the cash, and I want the cash put in my 00:40:54.010 --> 00:40:59.369 casket. Because I'm going to take it with me. 00:41:02.269 --> 00:41:05.630 You know what I told her? I said, you're going 00:41:05.630 --> 00:41:08.909 to be dead. Your kids are going to take all your 00:41:08.909 --> 00:41:11.710 cash out of your account, and then they're going 00:41:11.710 --> 00:41:15.130 to put an IOU in your casket. That's what's going 00:41:15.130 --> 00:41:17.469 to happen. There's going to be a little piece 00:41:17.469 --> 00:41:22.050 of paper that says, I owe you, you know, $200 00:41:22.050 --> 00:41:29.190 ,000. Paul's thanking them for their offering. 00:41:29.210 --> 00:41:32.650 He's letting them know that there are temporary 00:41:32.650 --> 00:41:41.710 and eternal ramifications. The temporary is in 00:41:41.710 --> 00:41:45.820 this world. The people that Paul is going to 00:41:45.820 --> 00:41:49.639 be able to share the gospel with, the people 00:41:49.639 --> 00:41:52.019 that Paul is going to be able to encourage, the 00:41:52.019 --> 00:41:57.039 people, I mean, the time that Paul is going to 00:41:57.039 --> 00:41:58.860 have to write these letters that we're still 00:41:58.860 --> 00:42:05.139 reading today. But then there are eternal ramifications 00:42:05.139 --> 00:42:13.219 in heaven. I want you to think about this. Imagine 00:42:13.219 --> 00:42:17.239 when you go to heaven. And you're just walking 00:42:17.239 --> 00:42:20.159 around. You're looking for your family members. 00:42:20.380 --> 00:42:23.699 You're looking for your friends. You're saying 00:42:23.699 --> 00:42:27.179 hey to people. Heaven's a happy place. Everybody's 00:42:27.179 --> 00:42:29.559 just going to be smiling. Everybody's going to 00:42:29.559 --> 00:42:38.480 be friendly. What's it going to do to your heart 00:42:38.480 --> 00:42:40.940 when somebody says, you know, hey, we've never 00:42:40.940 --> 00:42:52.269 met. Since I got here, I realized that you helped 00:42:52.269 --> 00:42:56.590 make it possible for me to know Jesus. And I 00:42:56.590 --> 00:43:00.809 might not be here today if it wasn't for you. 00:43:04.730 --> 00:43:06.809 I mean, those Philippian believers are already 00:43:06.809 --> 00:43:08.449 there, and they've had people come up to them 00:43:08.449 --> 00:43:11.489 and say, thank you for partnering with Paul. 00:43:13.670 --> 00:43:15.570 Because I wouldn't be here today if he wouldn't 00:43:15.570 --> 00:43:24.230 have come tell me about Jesus. Same thing. Same 00:43:24.230 --> 00:43:31.929 thing. Should happen to all of us. Earth may 00:43:31.929 --> 00:43:40.670 measure what you give. And it may not. It might 00:43:40.670 --> 00:43:46.960 be that nobody ever... you know, appreciates 00:43:46.960 --> 00:43:52.760 or shows appreciation for what you give. Earth 00:43:52.760 --> 00:43:58.900 may measure what you give. Listen, heaven records 00:43:58.900 --> 00:44:04.159 what your giving accomplishes. Heaven records 00:44:04.159 --> 00:44:15.500 it. Verse 18. At the moment, Paul says, I have 00:44:15.500 --> 00:44:22.599 all I need. And more than I need. I am generously 00:44:22.599 --> 00:44:28.280 provided with the gifts that you sent. You sent 00:44:28.280 --> 00:44:32.559 to me with Epaphroditus. Now listen to what he 00:44:32.559 --> 00:44:37.820 says. He says, they are a sweet smelling sacrifice 00:44:37.820 --> 00:44:48.840 that is acceptable and pleasing. To God. Now 00:44:48.840 --> 00:44:52.619 Paul's already talked about. There's something 00:44:52.619 --> 00:44:55.460 going on in their heavenly account. But. Now 00:44:55.460 --> 00:45:02.099 he says. The gifts. The offerings. Were a sweet 00:45:02.099 --> 00:45:05.320 smelling sacrifice. That is acceptable and pleasing 00:45:05.320 --> 00:45:08.480 to God. Paul received the financial support. 00:45:08.599 --> 00:45:11.440 For the. for the personal and logistical needs 00:45:11.440 --> 00:45:19.820 of His mission. When we give in the offering, 00:45:20.000 --> 00:45:22.619 we're not taking another offering. Everybody 00:45:22.619 --> 00:45:28.559 say, whew! When we give in the offering at church, 00:45:28.780 --> 00:45:35.119 somebody the other week said, you mean Polk County 00:45:35.119 --> 00:45:39.050 charges you to meet in the school? We thought 00:45:39.050 --> 00:45:44.050 that they just let us meet here. That's our biggest 00:45:44.050 --> 00:45:51.610 single expense. Weekly expense. When we give 00:45:51.610 --> 00:45:53.289 an offer to the Adulation Church, it goes towards 00:45:53.289 --> 00:45:57.309 keeping everything going. Renting the facility. 00:45:57.909 --> 00:46:02.760 The outreach events that we've done. I mean, 00:46:02.780 --> 00:46:04.739 you know, you might look at an outreach event 00:46:04.739 --> 00:46:06.579 or a concert, and you might say, boy, that was 00:46:06.579 --> 00:46:08.099 nice, and the preacher took a love offering. 00:46:08.519 --> 00:46:14.639 But it's never happened without a big part of 00:46:14.639 --> 00:46:19.000 what has come in goes on top of that love offering. 00:46:20.420 --> 00:46:23.199 Because we take care of the people, plus receive 00:46:23.199 --> 00:46:27.699 a love offering, as a blessing above that. And 00:46:27.699 --> 00:46:29.300 you might say, well, I just thought they just 00:46:29.300 --> 00:46:34.300 came for a love offering. I'll just go ahead 00:46:34.300 --> 00:46:36.960 and tell you. No one who's come here to do a 00:46:36.960 --> 00:46:39.159 concert has ever came for just a love offer. 00:46:41.420 --> 00:46:45.440 Even though we receive a love offer. Advertising. 00:46:47.179 --> 00:46:50.500 How many of you have gone on Google and searched 00:46:50.500 --> 00:46:55.960 church near me and a Laysan church came up? Well, 00:46:56.000 --> 00:46:59.739 Google don't say, because you're a church, we 00:46:59.739 --> 00:47:06.159 just want to bless you. No. That costs money 00:47:06.159 --> 00:47:15.980 every week. Every week. Production. I mean, just 00:47:15.980 --> 00:47:19.159 the things. The cakes and the coffee and the, 00:47:19.239 --> 00:47:21.380 you know, to be able to give away the coffee 00:47:21.380 --> 00:47:25.800 mugs and all this stuff. Everything. We never 00:47:25.800 --> 00:47:29.000 go to Amazon and say, you know, when we have 00:47:29.000 --> 00:47:30.800 communion, we don't. Don't say, oh, we're having 00:47:30.800 --> 00:47:32.840 communion, so just send us a bunch of cups, right? 00:47:34.519 --> 00:47:36.880 We do that, but they say, okay, send me money, 00:47:36.940 --> 00:47:46.400 we'll send you the cups. I mean, it's hard to 00:47:46.400 --> 00:47:53.780 see a lot of detail, but... I mean, I don't want 00:47:53.780 --> 00:48:01.159 to scare you. But we pay... It's not prescriptions, 00:48:01.159 --> 00:48:04.880 it's prescriptions. I don't know. Prescription 00:48:04.880 --> 00:48:08.960 service, whatever. There's about seven computer 00:48:08.960 --> 00:48:13.679 programs, subscriptions. Hallelujah, thank you. 00:48:16.300 --> 00:48:18.320 There's at least, I think it might be more than 00:48:18.320 --> 00:48:22.239 this, but there's at least seven subscriptions 00:48:22.239 --> 00:48:26.059 for programs and art and all this stuff that 00:48:26.059 --> 00:48:29.079 we got to pay every month just to be able to 00:48:29.079 --> 00:48:34.119 pull it off. And I've got friends that say, no, 00:48:34.219 --> 00:48:35.980 we don't have to do it, but I've got friends 00:48:35.980 --> 00:48:38.480 in other places that say, you know what? Y 'all 00:48:38.480 --> 00:48:40.760 look a whole lot bigger than you actually are. 00:48:46.699 --> 00:48:48.420 How many of you believe if you're doing something 00:48:48.420 --> 00:48:50.159 for God, you need to do it to the best of your 00:48:50.159 --> 00:48:55.820 ability? You need to do it with excellence? Not 00:48:55.820 --> 00:48:59.480 with just get by. God, I mean, if I'm going to 00:48:59.480 --> 00:49:01.519 do something for God, it's going to be... the 00:49:01.519 --> 00:49:11.559 best I can do it. Listen, what left the hands 00:49:11.559 --> 00:49:15.460 of Philippians, what left your hands today as 00:49:15.460 --> 00:49:21.639 you gave an offering, listen, it's not just taking 00:49:21.639 --> 00:49:25.559 care of Paul and his needs, it's not just taking 00:49:25.559 --> 00:49:28.880 care of the needs that we have as a body here 00:49:28.880 --> 00:49:35.289 on earth. No, it's bigger than that. Because 00:49:35.289 --> 00:49:39.650 when an offering leaves your hand to partner 00:49:39.650 --> 00:49:43.389 with God in his kingdom work in this earth, it 00:49:43.389 --> 00:49:54.530 arrives before God as worship. And nobody's smiling. 00:49:58.190 --> 00:50:00.130 You just think you're smiling on the inside. 00:50:03.329 --> 00:50:08.889 It's worship. It's not only when we sing a song 00:50:08.889 --> 00:50:12.309 or lift our hands or clap our hands or move a 00:50:12.309 --> 00:50:14.989 little bit more than normal. It's not just those 00:50:14.989 --> 00:50:18.469 things. It's also giving rises up as a sweet 00:50:18.469 --> 00:50:23.809 smelling aroma to God. It's worship to God. When 00:50:23.809 --> 00:50:25.969 it begins in our hearts and we acknowledge Him 00:50:25.969 --> 00:50:29.210 as our source and we're thanking Him and showing 00:50:29.210 --> 00:50:35.349 our love for Him by bringing an offering, I don't 00:50:35.349 --> 00:50:37.809 want you to just give and say, well, okay, I 00:50:37.809 --> 00:50:45.070 helped church out. God receives our offerings 00:50:45.070 --> 00:50:48.789 as worship. They are tangible expressions of 00:50:48.789 --> 00:50:52.570 our thankfulness, of our honor, of our love for 00:50:52.570 --> 00:50:59.440 Him. Back then with the Philippians and today 00:50:59.440 --> 00:51:09.980 in Four Corners, Florida. Verse 19. Everybody 00:51:09.980 --> 00:51:18.139 say, always a promise. Paul says, this same God 00:51:18.139 --> 00:51:26.739 who takes care of me. Will supply all your needs. 00:51:28.820 --> 00:51:34.599 From his glorious riches. Which have been given 00:51:34.599 --> 00:51:43.059 to us. In Christ Jesus. Here's the promise. You've 00:51:43.059 --> 00:51:48.119 given. You've given to supply. The needs that 00:51:48.119 --> 00:51:50.679 I have. And I have more than enough now. You 00:51:50.679 --> 00:51:57.340 have given. And you know what? Same God who spoke 00:51:57.340 --> 00:52:02.079 to you to partner with me. Same God is going 00:52:02.079 --> 00:52:05.699 to supply all your needs from His glorious riches. 00:52:09.719 --> 00:52:12.159 Now listen, Paul isn't throwing out another random 00:52:12.159 --> 00:52:16.519 quotable promise. Because in just these verses, 00:52:16.739 --> 00:52:18.960 in these ten verses, we've seen two things that, 00:52:18.980 --> 00:52:22.809 oh, I can do all things through Christ. who strengthens 00:52:22.809 --> 00:52:24.949 me. My God will supply all my needs according 00:52:24.949 --> 00:52:28.070 to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus. He's 00:52:28.070 --> 00:52:30.190 not just throwing out little cute phrases that 00:52:30.190 --> 00:52:35.269 we can memorize and quote. It's bigger than that. 00:52:37.050 --> 00:52:41.610 He's expressing His faith and confidence in God 00:52:41.610 --> 00:52:46.650 who has seen their generosity and He's going 00:52:46.650 --> 00:52:54.860 to respond to them. He's confident. He's confident. 00:52:55.880 --> 00:52:57.980 Listen, same God that takes care of me is going 00:52:57.980 --> 00:53:09.659 to take care of you. This is the most direct 00:53:09.659 --> 00:53:12.159 sermon I've preached on money in five and a half 00:53:12.159 --> 00:53:19.699 years. That's okay. Listen, we don't give in 00:53:19.699 --> 00:53:21.940 the offering to encourage God to do something 00:53:21.940 --> 00:53:25.079 for us. We don't give to encourage Him to be 00:53:25.079 --> 00:53:27.500 faithful. God, I'm going to give this because 00:53:27.500 --> 00:53:31.300 I want you to be faithful. No, we give because 00:53:31.300 --> 00:53:36.159 we're convinced that He is faithful. I needed 00:53:36.159 --> 00:53:38.679 more amens than that. We give because we're convinced 00:53:38.679 --> 00:53:49.320 that He is faithful. We're confident. That God 00:53:49.320 --> 00:53:54.639 keeps His promises. And if I step into my part, 00:53:54.840 --> 00:53:56.980 I don't have to worry about God doing His part 00:53:56.980 --> 00:54:04.500 or not. Hallelujah. Listen, God saw their offerings. 00:54:06.099 --> 00:54:10.440 And God received their giving as worship. And 00:54:10.440 --> 00:54:12.639 God will meet all their needs. He will supply 00:54:12.639 --> 00:54:17.449 all their needs. It's just basically... What 00:54:17.449 --> 00:54:22.510 we just read, right? And over this series, we've 00:54:22.510 --> 00:54:26.789 seen a widow who only had two mites, but she 00:54:26.789 --> 00:54:30.909 trusted God. She knew that what she had in her 00:54:30.909 --> 00:54:35.150 hand couldn't meet her needs, but she knew that 00:54:35.150 --> 00:54:38.190 she could just trust God and say, God, I'm not 00:54:38.190 --> 00:54:41.610 trusting these two little coins. I'm trusting 00:54:41.610 --> 00:54:44.610 you. And Jesus was standing there and he went, 00:54:44.690 --> 00:54:50.550 hey guys, look at this. Then there was the young 00:54:50.550 --> 00:54:53.409 man who treasured his possessions more than Jesus. 00:54:53.829 --> 00:54:59.210 God saw his heart. Jeffrey, share with us. There's 00:54:59.210 --> 00:55:02.190 a woman whose recognition of the forgiveness 00:55:02.190 --> 00:55:07.809 and the grace of God overflowed in love and worship 00:55:07.809 --> 00:55:18.400 through her gift. Alabaster box. Last week. We 00:55:18.400 --> 00:55:22.059 looked at Cornelius. A man who was sincerely 00:55:22.059 --> 00:55:25.840 seeking God. And he was acting on the revelation 00:55:25.840 --> 00:55:29.380 that he had. And he was praying to God and he 00:55:29.380 --> 00:55:31.880 was giving the best way he knew how. Giving to 00:55:31.880 --> 00:55:35.519 help God's people. And it got God's attention. 00:55:44.940 --> 00:55:50.070 This week. God saw a gathering of called out 00:55:50.070 --> 00:55:53.489 ones. Everybody say church. Church is people. 00:55:53.610 --> 00:55:58.590 It's not a meeting or an organization. It's a 00:55:58.590 --> 00:56:02.670 gathering of called out ones who not only received 00:56:02.670 --> 00:56:08.070 the gospel, but became committed to advancing 00:56:08.070 --> 00:56:13.090 the gospel. They became committed to the kingdom 00:56:13.090 --> 00:56:17.820 of God in this world. Now, before they came to 00:56:17.820 --> 00:56:21.699 Christ, they were just about themselves. But 00:56:21.699 --> 00:56:24.360 after they came to Christ, they're like, well, 00:56:24.360 --> 00:56:28.760 that's the most important thing. That's the most 00:56:28.760 --> 00:56:31.659 amazing thing. That's the eternal thing that 00:56:31.659 --> 00:56:38.239 has happened in my life. How could we not want 00:56:38.239 --> 00:56:49.800 that for everybody else? How could we not want 00:56:49.800 --> 00:56:52.739 that for the 100 ,000 people today that aren't 00:56:52.739 --> 00:56:58.219 in church? How could we not want that? To the 00:56:58.219 --> 00:56:59.900 degree that we're going to do something about 00:56:59.900 --> 00:57:04.860 it. Because it's one thing to say that we want 00:57:04.860 --> 00:57:06.699 it, but it's another thing to do something about 00:57:06.699 --> 00:57:15.320 it. The Philippians would never see every person 00:57:15.320 --> 00:57:20.820 Paul would reach. They couldn't see every congregation. 00:57:20.940 --> 00:57:23.760 They might have shared letters at some point. 00:57:23.820 --> 00:57:26.199 We're pretty sure that everybody started sharing 00:57:26.199 --> 00:57:28.519 these letters and passing them among the churches. 00:57:28.619 --> 00:57:31.840 But they couldn't see how strong that church 00:57:31.840 --> 00:57:34.239 was. I mean, it wasn't like, you know, every 00:57:34.239 --> 00:57:36.639 different church was on TV and they could just 00:57:36.639 --> 00:57:38.380 tune in and watch and see how they were doing. 00:57:38.500 --> 00:57:43.039 I mean, people never even traveled. There are 00:57:43.039 --> 00:57:45.340 people in Philippi who never traveled to Ephesus 00:57:45.340 --> 00:57:49.719 or Galatia. They wouldn't see that. They couldn't 00:57:49.719 --> 00:57:53.199 see it. They couldn't see every life that was 00:57:53.199 --> 00:57:58.840 changed. And they certainly couldn't imagine 00:57:58.840 --> 00:58:02.440 that thousands of years later, a church in Florida 00:58:02.440 --> 00:58:08.260 would be reading about their generosity. But 00:58:08.260 --> 00:58:17.400 God saw it. God saw it all. And even what's taking 00:58:17.400 --> 00:58:20.900 place here today is going towards their account 00:58:20.900 --> 00:58:29.820 in heaven. 2 ,000 years later, those believers 00:58:29.820 --> 00:58:31.739 in Philippi, all of a sudden their account's 00:58:31.739 --> 00:58:39.139 growing in heaven. Their giving was never unnoticed. 00:58:39.940 --> 00:58:42.900 Their partnership was never unnoticed. Their 00:58:42.900 --> 00:58:48.000 worship was never unnoticed. And neither is yours. 00:58:50.079 --> 00:58:55.639 The supreme mighty God sees you personally. Sees 00:58:55.639 --> 00:59:00.179 it all. Every tear, every act of obedience, every 00:59:00.179 --> 00:59:03.320 sacrifice, every act of faithfulness. Nothing 00:59:03.320 --> 00:59:08.699 goes unnoticed by Him. And because of that, we 00:59:08.699 --> 00:59:12.340 can say glory. Everybody say glory. Now all glory 00:59:12.340 --> 00:59:17.579 to God our Father. All glory. You're worthy of 00:59:17.579 --> 00:59:20.199 all the glory, all the honor, all the praise. 00:59:21.900 --> 00:59:30.460 All glory to you. Amen. Forever and ever and 00:59:30.460 --> 00:59:38.780 ever and ever. Let it be. Let it be. How many 00:59:38.780 --> 00:59:40.360 of you agree with that and can say amen? That 00:59:40.360 --> 00:59:44.280 means I agree with that. All glory to God. Forever 00:59:44.280 --> 00:59:47.980 and ever. This online worship experience was 00:59:47.980 --> 00:59:50.400 brought to you by the friends and partners of 00:59:50.400 --> 00:59:51.079 Elation Church.