WEBVTT 00:00:09.899 --> 00:00:12.679 Hey everyone, this is Josh from Encounter Church 00:00:12.679 --> 00:00:15.279 Henley and thanks so much for tuning into our 00:00:15.279 --> 00:00:19.000 podcast. Our prayer is that through this podcast 00:00:19.000 --> 00:00:20.879 you can have an encounter with Jesus that will 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:24.379 change your life. And now get ready for an inspiring 00:00:24.379 --> 00:00:29.280 message from our preaching team. Okay, today's 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:33.979 reading comes from Genesis Genesis 2, starting 00:00:33.979 --> 00:01:03.049 at verse 1. along with his son Isaac. Then he 00:01:03.049 --> 00:01:04.790 chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering 00:01:04.790 --> 00:01:07.049 and set out for the place God had told him about. 00:01:07.670 --> 00:01:09.909 On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked 00:01:09.909 --> 00:01:12.890 up and saw the place in the distance. Stay there 00:01:12.890 --> 00:01:15.290 with the donkey, Abraham told the servants. The 00:01:15.290 --> 00:01:17.409 boy and I will travel a little farther. We'll 00:01:17.409 --> 00:01:19.569 worship there and then we'll come right back. 00:01:20.189 --> 00:01:22.609 So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering 00:01:22.609 --> 00:01:24.689 on Isaac's shoulders while he himself carried 00:01:24.689 --> 00:01:27.909 the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked 00:01:27.909 --> 00:01:29.890 on together, Isaac turned to Abraham and said, 00:01:30.030 --> 00:01:33.700 Father? Yes, my son, Abraham replied. We have 00:01:33.700 --> 00:01:35.799 the fire and the wood, the boy said. But where 00:01:35.799 --> 00:01:38.400 is the sheep for the burnt offering? God will 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:40.319 provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son, 00:01:40.540 --> 00:01:43.019 Abraham answered. And they both walked on together. 00:01:43.959 --> 00:01:45.620 When they arrived at the place where God had 00:01:45.620 --> 00:01:47.859 told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged 00:01:47.859 --> 00:01:50.439 the wood on it. Then he tied his son Isaac and 00:01:50.439 --> 00:01:52.659 laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And 00:01:52.659 --> 00:01:54.599 Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as 00:01:54.599 --> 00:01:57.400 a sacrifice. At that moment, the angel of the 00:01:57.400 --> 00:02:00.939 Lord called to him from heaven. Abraham, Abraham. 00:02:01.099 --> 00:02:04.340 Yes, Abraham replied, here I am. Don't lay a 00:02:04.340 --> 00:02:07.060 hand on the boy, the angel said. Do not hurt 00:02:07.060 --> 00:02:09.400 him in any way, for now I know that you truly 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:11.939 fear God. You have not withheld from me even 00:02:11.939 --> 00:02:15.259 your son, your only son. Then Abraham looked 00:02:15.259 --> 00:02:18.099 up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. 00:02:18.219 --> 00:02:20.759 So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt 00:02:20.759 --> 00:02:24.080 offering in place of his son. Abraham named the 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:27.240 place Yahweh -Yirah, which means the Lord will 00:02:27.240 --> 00:02:30.439 provide. To this day people still use that name 00:02:30.439 --> 00:02:33.620 as a proverb, on the mountain of the Lord it 00:02:33.620 --> 00:02:36.719 will be provided. Then the angel of the Lord 00:02:36.719 --> 00:02:39.560 called again to Abraham from heaven. This is 00:02:39.560 --> 00:02:42.099 what the Lord says, because you have obeyed me 00:02:42.099 --> 00:02:44.500 and have not withheld even your son, your only 00:02:44.500 --> 00:02:47.439 son, I swear by my own name that I will certainly 00:02:47.439 --> 00:02:49.879 bless you. I'll multiply your descendants beyond 00:02:49.879 --> 00:02:52.599 number like the stars in the sky and the sand 00:02:52.599 --> 00:02:54.860 on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer 00:02:54.860 --> 00:02:57.479 the cities of their enemies and through your 00:02:57.479 --> 00:02:59.479 descendants all the nations of the earth will 00:02:59.479 --> 00:03:03.000 be blessed all because you have obeyed me. This 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:08.759 is the word of the Lord. Beautiful, thanks Nathan. 00:03:11.259 --> 00:03:13.879 Well hey, good afternoon church. How are we? 00:03:15.800 --> 00:03:18.139 Good, good, good. I'm well, thank you, Dan. Did 00:03:18.139 --> 00:03:20.340 you ask how I was going? Yeah, yeah, yeah, cool. 00:03:20.500 --> 00:03:24.120 I'm very well, thank you. If I don't know you, 00:03:24.180 --> 00:03:26.759 if we haven't yet met yet, my name is Angus. 00:03:26.840 --> 00:03:29.219 I'm part of the team here at Encounter Henley. 00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:32.759 I love this church. We have such amazing people 00:03:32.759 --> 00:03:35.120 here and we worship such an amazing God, don't 00:03:35.120 --> 00:03:41.000 we? Yes, we do. Well, before I jump into the 00:03:41.000 --> 00:03:49.490 word, I'd like to pray. God, may your Holy Spirit 00:03:49.490 --> 00:03:55.110 come. Father, may you feel this place. God, as 00:03:55.110 --> 00:03:59.689 I speak, as I preach your word, God, may you 00:03:59.689 --> 00:04:03.930 be glorified. God, may it be your words, your 00:04:03.930 --> 00:04:07.889 truth, your wisdom. God, may we be challenged. 00:04:08.949 --> 00:04:11.569 But above all else, may we know your great love 00:04:11.569 --> 00:04:19.009 that you have for us. In your name. Amen. Well 00:04:19.009 --> 00:04:22.949 when I was 13 I started playing guitar. I started 00:04:22.949 --> 00:04:25.470 having lessons at school and that was when I 00:04:25.470 --> 00:04:28.389 really started to fall in love with music. I 00:04:28.389 --> 00:04:30.389 listened to music on the radio when I was driving 00:04:30.389 --> 00:04:31.949 with my parents and stuff like that but I never 00:04:31.949 --> 00:04:35.009 really had a deep appreciation for music until 00:04:35.009 --> 00:04:37.949 I started learning guitar and I just fell in 00:04:37.949 --> 00:04:39.810 love with music. I was listening to it all the 00:04:39.810 --> 00:04:43.730 time and an artist that I really loved in particular 00:04:43.730 --> 00:04:51.300 was Ed Sheeran. That wasn't even a joke. I loved 00:04:51.300 --> 00:04:54.259 Ed Sheeran. He was so good. He still is pretty 00:04:54.259 --> 00:04:58.019 good, but I started listening to him in 2014, 00:04:58.139 --> 00:05:01.360 which is right when Multiply came out. And for 00:05:01.360 --> 00:05:05.000 me, Multiply is just like peak Ed Sheeran. Like, 00:05:05.000 --> 00:05:09.000 it's just been downhill since then. Divide was 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:11.879 good. Equals was okay. Subtract was a step in 00:05:11.879 --> 00:05:14.180 the right direction. The new album's all right. 00:05:14.740 --> 00:05:16.939 But Multiply is where it's at. You know, maybe 00:05:16.939 --> 00:05:19.899 it's just because I was like 15 and super angsty 00:05:19.899 --> 00:05:22.959 and a lot of his songs just really resonated 00:05:22.959 --> 00:05:26.199 with me, minus the drugs and the alcohol, obviously. 00:05:28.339 --> 00:05:30.600 But I loved Ed Sheeran. I couldn't get enough. 00:05:31.579 --> 00:05:33.620 I was listening to him all the time and I was 00:05:33.620 --> 00:05:35.439 doing like assignments on him and stuff. I learned 00:05:35.439 --> 00:05:40.100 a lot about Ed Sheeran and he has quite a story. 00:05:40.339 --> 00:05:42.000 So I'm going to talk a little bit about Ed Sheeran 00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:45.439 for a bit. At 16 years old, some of you might 00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:49.019 already know his story, but at 16 he moved out 00:05:49.019 --> 00:05:52.439 of his family home in Suffolk and he caught a 00:05:52.439 --> 00:05:54.600 train to London with nothing but a rucksack filled 00:05:54.600 --> 00:05:57.920 with clothes and his guitar and he pursued a 00:05:57.920 --> 00:06:02.040 career in music. In his biography he describes 00:06:02.040 --> 00:06:04.379 how he would bounce around London, staying on 00:06:04.379 --> 00:06:07.079 people's couches if he could, but a lot of the 00:06:07.079 --> 00:06:09.360 time he was actually... left outside to just 00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:12.040 kind of fend for himself in the elements. He 00:06:12.040 --> 00:06:15.199 was essentially homeless and he'd given up the 00:06:15.199 --> 00:06:17.740 comfort of a house. He'd given up the comfort 00:06:17.740 --> 00:06:20.720 of his friends and the company of his family 00:06:20.720 --> 00:06:25.420 to pursue his dream of becoming a musician. And 00:06:25.420 --> 00:06:27.779 he spent a few years doing it rough before he 00:06:27.779 --> 00:06:30.680 made his break and released his first studio 00:06:30.680 --> 00:06:33.860 album Plus which propelled him onto the international 00:06:33.860 --> 00:06:36.829 stage. to the artists we all know and love today. 00:06:37.129 --> 00:06:39.850 Not everyone loves him but that's okay. But he 00:06:39.850 --> 00:06:43.069 was committed. He was so committed to this dream 00:06:43.069 --> 00:06:46.009 of becoming a musician that he ran away from 00:06:46.009 --> 00:06:50.069 home and he slept on the streets, he begged for 00:06:50.069 --> 00:06:55.269 money and it cost him a lot but he eventually 00:06:55.269 --> 00:07:00.129 reached where he wanted to go. Last week we heard 00:07:00.129 --> 00:07:04.149 from Tex who preached that Anything you truly 00:07:04.149 --> 00:07:07.389 want in life that's worth having is going to 00:07:07.389 --> 00:07:12.610 come at a cost. Everything we want in life comes 00:07:12.610 --> 00:07:17.389 at a cost. Sometimes it's a big thing, sometimes 00:07:17.389 --> 00:07:21.129 it's a small thing. For example, if you want 00:07:21.129 --> 00:07:23.810 KFC for lunch, it's going to cost you about 16 00:07:23.810 --> 00:07:26.889 bucks for a zinger box. And it might also cost 00:07:26.889 --> 00:07:30.860 you a slim waistline. If you want money, You 00:07:30.860 --> 00:07:33.720 need to sacrifice some time to work at a job. 00:07:34.660 --> 00:07:36.000 To move your way up the corporate ladder, you 00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:38.680 might have to sacrifice some more time. Time 00:07:38.680 --> 00:07:42.800 with your family, with loved ones. Friendships 00:07:42.800 --> 00:07:46.420 and relationships cost time and energy. Parents 00:07:46.420 --> 00:07:48.139 in the room can attest to the fact that kids 00:07:48.139 --> 00:07:51.759 cost a lot of effort, a lot of time, and a lot 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:56.379 of money. Rocking up here to church this afternoon 00:07:56.379 --> 00:08:00.740 has cost you your Sunday afternoon. I could be 00:08:00.740 --> 00:08:04.360 playing PlayStation right now. But I'm trying 00:08:04.360 --> 00:08:09.480 to be obedient. Everything we choose to do comes 00:08:09.480 --> 00:08:13.699 at a cost every single day. Saying yes to one 00:08:13.699 --> 00:08:18.000 thing and saying no to another. We make sacrifices 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:21.540 all the time. And being a Christian, the Christian 00:08:21.540 --> 00:08:25.899 life is no exception. Sometimes we have to choose 00:08:25.899 --> 00:08:29.220 to commit when it costs, which is what we're 00:08:29.220 --> 00:08:32.750 looking at. today. If you missed last week, we 00:08:32.750 --> 00:08:35.210 are making our way through a three -part series, 00:08:35.289 --> 00:08:37.789 this is part two, of a three -part series called 00:08:37.789 --> 00:08:41.909 A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. And this 00:08:41.909 --> 00:08:45.309 series is massively important. Success and faith 00:08:45.309 --> 00:08:48.389 is not about checkpoints or milestones like many 00:08:48.389 --> 00:08:51.450 other things in life. For example, you know you're 00:08:51.450 --> 00:08:54.230 successful at work when you get offered a promotion 00:08:54.230 --> 00:08:59.059 or you hit all your KPIs. You know you're successful 00:08:59.059 --> 00:09:02.899 at sports when you get a win. But success in 00:09:02.899 --> 00:09:06.879 faith is different. Success in faith is marked 00:09:06.879 --> 00:09:10.419 by a long obedience in the same direction, a 00:09:10.419 --> 00:09:15.019 lifetime of choosing God over ourselves, over 00:09:15.019 --> 00:09:17.360 our lives, over our friends, over our family, 00:09:17.460 --> 00:09:21.039 over everything else, choosing God, a long obedience 00:09:21.039 --> 00:09:23.620 in the same direction. It's the small decisions 00:09:23.620 --> 00:09:27.360 made day to day, choosing commitment, and obedience 00:09:27.360 --> 00:09:31.080 to a life alongside Jesus. It means committing 00:09:31.080 --> 00:09:34.480 to community like we heard last week, even when 00:09:34.480 --> 00:09:37.820 the community sucks, sometimes even when you 00:09:37.820 --> 00:09:43.700 suck. And it also means committing when it costs. 00:09:44.940 --> 00:09:47.799 If you're a committed follower of Jesus, or if 00:09:47.799 --> 00:09:49.559 you're new to faith, exploring what it looks 00:09:49.559 --> 00:09:53.039 like for you, there's something in here for you. 00:09:53.179 --> 00:09:56.379 I think there's a challenge for all of us. this 00:09:56.379 --> 00:09:59.259 message. If you've been a Christian for a while 00:09:59.259 --> 00:10:02.120 you would know that it can be difficult to say 00:10:02.120 --> 00:10:04.159 at any given day whether you're being successful 00:10:04.159 --> 00:10:08.000 or not. But looking back on our lives and seeing 00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:12.220 where we were a month ago, a year ago, 10, 20, 00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:16.200 50 years ago, that's when we start seeing the 00:10:16.200 --> 00:10:18.519 progress and the markers and saying actually 00:10:18.519 --> 00:10:23.120 maybe I'm doing this Christian thing right. It's 00:10:23.120 --> 00:10:26.909 a long faithful walk of obedience as we make 00:10:26.909 --> 00:10:29.850 our way through life that determines our success 00:10:29.850 --> 00:10:34.470 in faith. Now this message might be a little 00:10:34.470 --> 00:10:37.629 bit challenging. I know for me as I was preparing 00:10:37.629 --> 00:10:40.250 it, as I was getting it ready, God certainly 00:10:40.250 --> 00:10:42.850 challenged me. He said, Angus, you need to start 00:10:42.850 --> 00:10:44.690 living some of this stuff out. So I'm preaching 00:10:44.690 --> 00:10:48.509 to myself first. But if you're new here, if you're 00:10:48.509 --> 00:10:52.110 visiting, we love you. God loves you. You're 00:10:52.110 --> 00:10:54.789 welcome here. I pray this challenge doesn't scare 00:10:54.789 --> 00:11:00.029 you but it's a challenge that's worth pursuing. 00:11:00.909 --> 00:11:03.230 It's a challenge that's worth tackling head -on 00:11:03.230 --> 00:11:05.950 saying actually maybe this is a life that's better 00:11:05.950 --> 00:11:09.230 for myself than what I can create for myself. 00:11:11.990 --> 00:11:14.450 And after all we don't want to be a church that 00:11:14.450 --> 00:11:17.230 shies away from a challenge. We want to be a 00:11:17.230 --> 00:11:19.610 church where we sharpen each other like iron 00:11:19.610 --> 00:11:22.110 sharpens iron, challenging each other, pushing 00:11:22.110 --> 00:11:25.470 each other, deeper into faith, deeper into our 00:11:25.470 --> 00:11:28.450 relationship with Jesus, because that's the life 00:11:28.450 --> 00:11:31.350 that has been promised, and it's a life that 00:11:31.350 --> 00:11:35.090 is great. And it's a life filled with joy, filled 00:11:35.090 --> 00:11:37.850 with love, filled with peace, not absent of suffering, 00:11:38.549 --> 00:11:44.129 but a life that is worth living. So are we ready 00:11:44.129 --> 00:11:47.590 to be challenged Church? Dan is, Dan gave me 00:11:47.590 --> 00:11:53.639 a nod. Alright Dan, this is for you. All right, 00:11:53.700 --> 00:11:56.340 our Bible reading today is a famous story from 00:11:56.340 --> 00:11:58.639 Genesis, as Nathan read out beautifully for us, 00:11:58.940 --> 00:12:02.000 where Abraham is instructed by God to sacrifice 00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:07.340 his son Isaac. Now, I'm not a parent, but I'm 00:12:07.340 --> 00:12:09.919 pretty sure sacrificing your child is not exactly 00:12:09.919 --> 00:12:13.100 something you'd be very keen on doing. And when 00:12:13.100 --> 00:12:16.639 we look at the story of Abraham before this story 00:12:16.639 --> 00:12:20.659 where he sacrifices Isaac, we see that Abraham 00:12:20.659 --> 00:12:23.299 and his wife Sarah weren't able to conceive. 00:12:24.159 --> 00:12:26.799 For whatever reason Sarah couldn't fall pregnant. 00:12:28.139 --> 00:12:37.179 And it was 25 years of waiting, praying, crying 00:12:37.179 --> 00:12:40.399 before they were finally given this son, Isaac. 00:12:42.539 --> 00:12:46.279 Imagine waiting 25 years for an answer to your 00:12:46.279 --> 00:12:50.080 prayer. I'm 27. That's like my whole lifetime. 00:12:51.350 --> 00:12:54.610 Like when I'm at the Maccas drive -thru, if I'm 00:12:54.610 --> 00:12:57.950 waiting more than 10 minutes, I get pretty agitated. 00:12:58.610 --> 00:13:03.090 And that's not even that important. If I'm waiting 00:13:03.090 --> 00:13:06.549 that long for a child, I know I'd be holding 00:13:06.549 --> 00:13:10.009 on to that child for dear life. I would never 00:13:10.009 --> 00:13:15.210 let that child go. And if God asked me to sacrifice 00:13:15.210 --> 00:13:20.250 that child, I would be ready to riot. I would 00:13:20.250 --> 00:13:22.889 be so ticked off like, God, you've just made 00:13:22.889 --> 00:13:27.190 me wait 25 years for this son and now you're 00:13:27.190 --> 00:13:31.509 asking me to sacrifice him. Can you imagine the 00:13:31.509 --> 00:13:35.070 confusion, the heartache that Abraham would be 00:13:35.070 --> 00:13:45.250 going through? But Abraham does as God asks. 00:13:46.220 --> 00:13:49.059 He goes to the mountain he binds Isaac to the 00:13:49.059 --> 00:13:52.059 altar and right as he's about to go through with 00:13:52.059 --> 00:13:55.039 this command God sends an angel to steady his 00:13:55.039 --> 00:14:00.360 hand and say Abraham you're okay But Abraham 00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:03.600 was ready to commit even when it would have cost 00:14:03.600 --> 00:14:06.639 him the thing he wanted and prayed for the most 00:14:06.639 --> 00:14:13.059 He was ready I Wonder what that thing is for 00:14:13.059 --> 00:14:20.509 you What is your Isaac church? It could be something 00:14:20.509 --> 00:14:23.330 that you've wanted and prayed for for a long 00:14:23.330 --> 00:14:27.250 time. Something that you're just holding on to, 00:14:27.629 --> 00:14:29.590 that you love dearly. It could be a really good 00:14:29.590 --> 00:14:35.929 thing. What is your Isaac? God knew that the 00:14:35.929 --> 00:14:39.169 thing Abraham wanted most was a son. And so when 00:14:39.169 --> 00:14:43.490 he asks Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, He's actually 00:14:43.490 --> 00:14:47.830 asking, Abraham, are you committed? Are you willing 00:14:47.830 --> 00:14:51.049 to commit even when it costs, even if it costs 00:14:51.049 --> 00:14:56.169 you the thing that you love the most? And in 00:14:56.169 --> 00:14:59.289 our own lives, God asks us that exact same question. 00:15:00.350 --> 00:15:05.809 Are you ready to commit when it costs? I want 00:15:05.809 --> 00:15:07.870 you to imagine this thing that you love the most. 00:15:09.879 --> 00:15:12.720 If God asked you today to place it on the altar, 00:15:13.740 --> 00:15:17.279 just like Abraham did for Isaac, would you do 00:15:17.279 --> 00:15:23.340 it? Would you be willing to make the sacrifice, 00:15:23.820 --> 00:15:27.539 to lay it down? Would you be more inclined to 00:15:27.539 --> 00:15:29.580 hold on and say, God, you can have anything else 00:15:29.580 --> 00:15:37.360 but this? If God asked you to make that choice, 00:15:37.500 --> 00:15:43.600 how? Would you respond? The walk of faith, life 00:15:43.600 --> 00:15:47.759 as a Christian, it comes at a cost. There's no 00:15:47.759 --> 00:15:50.700 way around it. Nowhere in the Bible does it say 00:15:50.700 --> 00:15:56.700 anything along the lines that we won't have to 00:15:56.700 --> 00:16:03.419 pay a price. Nowhere in the Bible does it say 00:16:03.419 --> 00:16:05.320 that when we choose to follow Jesus, we keep 00:16:05.320 --> 00:16:11.120 living our life the exact same way. Jesus doesn't 00:16:11.120 --> 00:16:14.720 shy away from this fact either. In Matthew chapter 00:16:14.720 --> 00:16:18.100 16, Jesus says to his disciples, if any of you 00:16:18.100 --> 00:16:21.740 wants to be my follower, you must give up your 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:28.580 own way. Take up your cross and follow me. Some 00:16:28.580 --> 00:16:35.960 translations say you must deny yourself. Jesus 00:16:35.960 --> 00:16:41.309 says to lay down our desires. lay down our wants 00:16:41.309 --> 00:16:47.429 and take up our cross. In his book, The Cost 00:16:47.429 --> 00:16:49.649 of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer says it 00:16:49.649 --> 00:16:52.169 like this. He says, when Christ calls a man, 00:16:52.250 --> 00:17:01.169 he bids him come and die. Pay a price when we 00:17:01.169 --> 00:17:06.069 give our lives to Jesus. We say no to our flesh. 00:17:06.380 --> 00:17:09.299 We deny ourselves in favor of what God has promised 00:17:09.299 --> 00:17:12.180 us because we believe that God's way is greater. 00:17:12.539 --> 00:17:15.579 His way is better for us than what we could do 00:17:15.579 --> 00:17:20.559 or create for ourselves. Every one of us, if 00:17:20.559 --> 00:17:23.859 we're committed Christians, part of our long 00:17:23.859 --> 00:17:26.660 obedience in the same direction involves letting 00:17:26.660 --> 00:17:31.740 go, making a sacrifice. Elizabeth Elliott, she 00:17:31.740 --> 00:17:34.319 writes that there is no ongoing spiritual life. 00:17:34.480 --> 00:17:38.180 without the process of letting go. At the precise 00:17:38.180 --> 00:17:43.559 point where we refuse, growth stops. The minute 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:46.380 we stop handing things over to God, as soon as 00:17:46.380 --> 00:17:49.400 we start saying no to God, we limit ourselves. 00:17:49.619 --> 00:17:54.160 We put a cap on our spiritual growth. Growth 00:17:54.160 --> 00:17:58.940 always starts with surrender. Like plants, we 00:17:58.940 --> 00:18:03.599 need to be pruned so that we can grow. God doesn't 00:18:03.599 --> 00:18:05.440 just want some of our lives. He doesn't just 00:18:05.440 --> 00:18:09.180 want fragments of it. He wants us to offer everything 00:18:09.180 --> 00:18:15.160 we have. Sometimes, and I've felt like this before, 00:18:15.400 --> 00:18:18.460 it can feel like the Christian life is about 00:18:18.460 --> 00:18:21.119 adding things. You know, you gotta read your 00:18:21.119 --> 00:18:23.579 Bible. You gotta pray more often. You gotta come 00:18:23.579 --> 00:18:25.980 to church on Sundays. You gotta attend RDGs. 00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:29.023 You gotta come to Heart and Souls. You gotta... 00:18:29.019 --> 00:18:30.859 You got to do all this stuff. You got to serve 00:18:30.859 --> 00:18:32.420 on a Sunday. You got to do this. You got to do 00:18:32.420 --> 00:18:33.960 that. You got to do this. You got to do that. 00:18:34.480 --> 00:18:39.500 But in reality, the Christian life is about subtracting. 00:18:39.859 --> 00:18:42.380 It's about denying ourselves in favor of what 00:18:42.380 --> 00:18:46.940 God calls us to. It's making less of ourselves 00:18:46.940 --> 00:18:50.220 so that we can take up our cross and be obedient 00:18:50.220 --> 00:18:54.799 to Christ. But this can be really hard. Really, 00:18:54.819 --> 00:18:57.480 really hard. Sometimes denying ourselves and 00:18:57.480 --> 00:19:00.500 choosing the life that God sets before us is 00:19:00.500 --> 00:19:03.380 really difficult. And like I said, I'm preaching 00:19:03.380 --> 00:19:06.059 to myself first here. This has been an ongoing 00:19:06.059 --> 00:19:10.519 challenge for me and it still is. In a world 00:19:10.519 --> 00:19:12.720 where we're told to indulge, to feel good, to 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:16.539 do everything but deny ourselves, when we hear 00:19:16.539 --> 00:19:21.339 Jesus tell us to bear our cross, it's uncomfortable. 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:28.329 And it's hard. It doesn't sit well for us because 00:19:28.329 --> 00:19:30.890 it goes completely against our flesh. It goes 00:19:30.890 --> 00:19:33.029 completely against the cultural narrative that 00:19:33.029 --> 00:19:37.430 we're told. It's difficult to make these sacrifices 00:19:37.430 --> 00:19:43.150 and it can hurt. Choosing to commit when it costs 00:19:43.150 --> 00:19:49.309 can hurt. Denying our flesh, laying down our 00:19:49.309 --> 00:19:52.130 own desires in favour of what God wants can hurt. 00:19:54.549 --> 00:19:58.509 Sometimes we can even wonder, is it worth it? 00:20:00.009 --> 00:20:05.769 God never hides the cost from us. He never hides 00:20:05.769 --> 00:20:09.109 that cost from us. But at the same time, He doesn't 00:20:09.109 --> 00:20:13.410 leave us wanting. He always gives us a reason 00:20:13.410 --> 00:20:16.650 to hope. He always gives us something to aspire 00:20:16.650 --> 00:20:19.910 to and say, yes, this costs you a lot, but look 00:20:19.910 --> 00:20:24.029 at this. In his letter to the Roman Church, Paul 00:20:24.029 --> 00:20:27.589 writes about this tension. He tells us about 00:20:27.589 --> 00:20:31.069 what happens when we face these trials, the internal 00:20:31.069 --> 00:20:34.410 work that God does within us. Romans chapter 00:20:34.410 --> 00:20:37.710 five verses three to five says, we can rejoice 00:20:37.710 --> 00:20:40.529 too when we run into problems and trials for 00:20:40.529 --> 00:20:44.150 we know that they help us develop endurance. 00:20:45.410 --> 00:20:48.450 Living a life of long obedience in the same direction, 00:20:49.089 --> 00:20:54.140 it requires endurance. Our faith journeys aren't 00:20:54.140 --> 00:20:57.079 sprints, they're marathons like the city to bay. 00:20:59.960 --> 00:21:05.380 We need endurance and problems, trials, suffering, 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:10.400 sacrifice, laying ourselves down. It helps us 00:21:10.400 --> 00:21:16.259 develop this endurance. The passage goes on. 00:21:16.980 --> 00:21:20.420 Endurance develops strength of character. The 00:21:20.420 --> 00:21:22.539 longer we go, the longer we're obedient, the 00:21:22.539 --> 00:21:25.339 more we start to become like crust, the more 00:21:25.339 --> 00:21:28.640 we're shaped and transformed. You know, later 00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:30.819 on in Romans, Paul talks about the transforming 00:21:30.819 --> 00:21:33.799 of our mind, the renewing of our mind as we become 00:21:33.799 --> 00:21:40.339 more like crust. Character strengthens our confident 00:21:40.339 --> 00:21:45.000 hope of salvation. And this next part's really 00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:48.700 good. This hope will not lead to disappointment. 00:21:50.670 --> 00:21:54.029 We will not be let down. We will not be unfulfilled. 00:21:54.109 --> 00:21:57.069 We will not be disappointed. For we know how 00:21:57.069 --> 00:22:00.170 clearly God loves us because he has given us 00:22:00.170 --> 00:22:04.789 the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. 00:22:07.269 --> 00:22:15.049 Josh, come give me some spirit keys. Church, 00:22:15.210 --> 00:22:20.119 our sacrifices are not in vain. When we make 00:22:20.119 --> 00:22:22.779 the decision to commit to God, even when it costs 00:22:22.779 --> 00:22:27.460 us, it is not in vain. As we make these sacrifices, 00:22:27.519 --> 00:22:30.640 when we choose to commit when it costs, we walk 00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:34.059 away better off. Our character is built, our 00:22:34.059 --> 00:22:37.920 faith is strengthened. This is what obedience 00:22:37.920 --> 00:22:39.880 in the same direction looks like, committing 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:44.819 when it costs, choosing the cross over comfort. 00:22:46.089 --> 00:22:49.210 Even if we don't want to, even if we're desperate 00:22:49.210 --> 00:22:52.710 to hold on to it, but still choosing to say, 00:22:52.750 --> 00:22:55.430 God, not my will, but yours be done instead. 00:22:56.930 --> 00:22:59.230 This is exactly what Jesus prayed the night that 00:22:59.230 --> 00:23:03.309 he was betrayed. He knelt in the garden of Gethsemane 00:23:03.309 --> 00:23:06.529 and he prayed for another way. He knew that he 00:23:06.529 --> 00:23:09.829 had to die. He knew that he had to bear his cross. 00:23:10.789 --> 00:23:14.529 He knew that he had to be that sacrifice. He 00:23:14.529 --> 00:23:18.519 prayed. And he prayed. He prayed for the cup 00:23:18.519 --> 00:23:20.759 to be taken from him. He prayed for God to do 00:23:20.759 --> 00:23:27.299 something else. God, find another way. But then 00:23:27.299 --> 00:23:34.180 he prays, not my will, but yours. And he was 00:23:34.180 --> 00:23:37.720 betrayed. He was tried. He was found guilty. 00:23:38.619 --> 00:23:41.819 He was stripped, beaten, flogged, made to carry 00:23:41.819 --> 00:23:44.480 a cross up a hill. and He was nailed to that 00:23:44.480 --> 00:23:46.420 same cross and He hung on that cross until He 00:23:46.420 --> 00:23:50.799 died. When Jesus tells us to bear our cross, 00:23:50.819 --> 00:23:56.259 He knows exactly what that means. God is well 00:23:56.259 --> 00:23:59.680 acquainted with sacrifice, Church, because He 00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:04.579 sacrificed His Son for us. Where Isaac was spared, 00:24:05.339 --> 00:24:13.289 Jesus was not. God, Jesus, made the choice. to 00:24:13.289 --> 00:24:18.309 commit when it costs. But it didn't cost him 00:24:18.309 --> 00:24:20.609 a job. It didn't cost him some money, some time, 00:24:20.690 --> 00:24:25.509 a relationship. It cost him his life. And he 00:24:25.509 --> 00:24:28.730 knew it had to end this way. But still, he made 00:24:28.730 --> 00:24:32.470 that choice. He chose to commit. And the reward, 00:24:32.470 --> 00:24:36.789 what was gained, far outweighed that sacrifice, 00:24:37.349 --> 00:24:41.670 church. The forgiveness of sin, the coming of 00:24:41.670 --> 00:24:44.579 the Holy Spirit, The opportunity for all people 00:24:44.579 --> 00:24:47.319 to come into relationship with God. The promise 00:24:47.319 --> 00:24:52.680 of eternal life and the hope of salvation. All 00:24:52.680 --> 00:24:55.539 because Jesus chose to commit when it costed 00:24:55.539 --> 00:25:03.900 him. Everything. And we now get to reap that 00:25:03.900 --> 00:25:07.839 reward. We now get to be blessed through that 00:25:07.839 --> 00:25:10.480 sacrifice. Through the greatest act of love this 00:25:10.480 --> 00:25:14.349 world has ever seen. The love that God has for 00:25:14.349 --> 00:25:18.450 us far outweighs what it cost him for us to be 00:25:18.450 --> 00:25:22.730 in relationship with him. The love that God has 00:25:22.730 --> 00:25:28.130 for us far outweighs the sin that we carry. And 00:25:28.130 --> 00:25:32.390 it's this love that fuels our obedience. We don't 00:25:32.390 --> 00:25:35.769 choose faith because it's easy. Nowhere in the 00:25:35.769 --> 00:25:40.160 Bible does it say faith is easy. We don't choose 00:25:40.160 --> 00:25:42.140 faith because it makes us feel good, although 00:25:42.140 --> 00:25:47.000 it can, but we don't always feel good. We choose 00:25:47.000 --> 00:25:49.599 faith because we know how much God loves us. 00:25:49.839 --> 00:25:52.980 We recognize the price that He paid, the sacrifice 00:25:52.980 --> 00:25:56.619 that was made for our freedom, for our lives. 00:25:58.059 --> 00:26:02.839 And we choose to step into that. And yes, it 00:26:02.839 --> 00:26:08.009 will cost us. It will mean we need to make sacrifices 00:26:08.009 --> 00:26:10.930 and it will mean we need to commit when it costs. 00:26:13.130 --> 00:26:15.569 It means we need to choose to bear our cross, 00:26:16.509 --> 00:26:22.250 but it is worth it, Church. It is worth it. Like 00:26:22.250 --> 00:26:24.930 we read in Romans just before, our hope will 00:26:24.930 --> 00:26:30.210 not lead to disappointment. Real faith is not 00:26:30.210 --> 00:26:34.089 measured by what we say yes to, but rather, what 00:26:34.089 --> 00:26:40.369 we're willing to lay down. Jesus was willing 00:26:40.369 --> 00:26:45.769 to lay down his life and he did. What are you 00:26:45.769 --> 00:26:50.549 willing to lay down? There's a challenge here 00:26:50.549 --> 00:26:57.950 for all of us. What is your Isaac? Paul says 00:26:57.950 --> 00:27:00.369 in Romans 12 that we need to offer ourselves 00:27:00.369 --> 00:27:05.200 as a living sacrifice. God doesn't just want 00:27:05.200 --> 00:27:07.960 some of us. He doesn't just want a little bit 00:27:07.960 --> 00:27:12.079 of us. He loves us so much that He wants all 00:27:12.079 --> 00:27:18.700 of us. He wants our good stuff. He wants our 00:27:18.700 --> 00:27:20.680 gifts. He wants our talents, but He also wants 00:27:20.680 --> 00:27:28.940 our flaws, our shortcomings. All of us, our entire 00:27:28.940 --> 00:27:36.220 being, just like Jesus modeled for us. I just 00:27:36.220 --> 00:27:37.680 want to invite everyone to close their eyes for 00:27:37.680 --> 00:27:45.539 a second. I just want to take a moment of reflection 00:27:45.539 --> 00:27:51.680 for everyone. What is God calling you to lay 00:27:51.680 --> 00:28:02.640 down? What is God calling you to lay down? What 00:28:02.640 --> 00:28:08.779 is your Isaac? What is it that you've been holding 00:28:08.779 --> 00:28:15.839 onto, refusing to let go of? Is it your finances? 00:28:17.720 --> 00:28:23.779 Is it your work? Your family? Maybe it's a sin 00:28:23.779 --> 00:28:26.299 that you know you've been holding onto and it's 00:28:26.299 --> 00:28:35.460 been holding you back. There's freedom. I know 00:28:35.460 --> 00:28:37.160 for me, God's challenge has been how I'm spending 00:28:37.160 --> 00:28:42.839 my time, the things I choose to do with my time. 00:28:46.920 --> 00:28:50.079 What are you holding onto? What do you need to 00:28:50.079 --> 00:28:53.079 let go of? What is God calling you to put on 00:28:53.079 --> 00:28:56.559 the altar? And if you've got that thing in mind, 00:28:57.339 --> 00:29:00.700 if you know what it is, I want you to imagine 00:29:00.700 --> 00:29:05.670 handing it over to God. Lay it down in the altar 00:29:05.670 --> 00:29:12.269 and pray God not my will but yours Let it go 00:29:12.269 --> 00:29:20.130 Place your trust into a God of love After Abraham 00:29:20.130 --> 00:29:23.529 was relieved from sacrificing Isaac he named 00:29:23.529 --> 00:29:28.390 the mountain And it means on the mountain of 00:29:28.390 --> 00:29:34.150 the Lord it will be provided Maybe you're holding 00:29:34.150 --> 00:29:37.029 onto something because you feel like, I need 00:29:37.029 --> 00:29:41.509 this in my life, God. I need this. Maybe God's 00:29:41.509 --> 00:29:45.890 saying, actually, you don't. He will provide. 00:29:46.990 --> 00:29:56.410 He's got your back. God, not my will, but yours 00:29:56.410 --> 00:30:07.779 be done. Loving God, we thank you for your love. 00:30:10.220 --> 00:30:12.619 Your great love that sent you to the cross to 00:30:12.619 --> 00:30:17.220 die. You paid the ultimate price, you paid the 00:30:17.220 --> 00:30:19.380 ultimate sacrifice so that we could step into 00:30:19.380 --> 00:30:25.640 a life of love, a life of freedom. God, you don't 00:30:25.640 --> 00:30:28.460 ask us to do anything that you have not done 00:30:28.460 --> 00:30:33.880 first yourself. God, I pray that for all of us 00:30:33.880 --> 00:30:40.289 here. Give us the courage, give us the strength 00:30:40.289 --> 00:30:45.630 to lay this thing down at your altar. There is 00:30:45.630 --> 00:30:52.069 no waste at your altar, Jesus. God, where there 00:30:52.069 --> 00:30:55.269 needs to be freedom, may there be freedom. Where 00:30:55.269 --> 00:30:57.430 chains need to be broken, may you break those 00:30:57.430 --> 00:31:06.589 chains. Help us to surrender, Jesus. Help us 00:31:06.589 --> 00:31:10.589 to let go of the things that we hold so dearly 00:31:10.589 --> 00:31:14.829 onto and help us to hold on to you, Jesus. You 00:31:14.829 --> 00:31:24.569 are all that we need. Thank you, Jesus, for your 00:31:24.569 --> 00:31:29.650 love, for your sacrifice, for the life that you 00:31:29.650 --> 00:31:33.430 promised us, this salvation that we have, this 00:31:33.430 --> 00:31:40.009 eternal life in heaven with you. Father, we thank 00:31:40.009 --> 00:31:43.450 you. We give you praise, we give you honour, 00:31:43.490 --> 00:31:49.349 we give you glory. In your name, amen. Well, 00:31:49.349 --> 00:31:51.450 we're going to jump back into a time of worship. 00:31:54.430 --> 00:31:57.670 Here at Encounter Henley, we love prayer. If 00:31:57.670 --> 00:32:02.450 you haven't noticed, we love prayer. And if there's 00:32:02.450 --> 00:32:05.990 been something in this message or in this service 00:32:05.990 --> 00:32:09.720 that you feel like you need prayer for, I'm gonna 00:32:09.720 --> 00:32:13.420 be at the back. I would love to pray for you. 00:32:14.539 --> 00:32:17.819 Tap someone next to you. Say, hey, can you pray 00:32:17.819 --> 00:32:21.980 for me? Or maybe you wanna pray for them. We 00:32:21.980 --> 00:32:24.339 love to pray here at Encounter Henley. And if 00:32:24.339 --> 00:32:28.700 you feel like you need some prayer, we don't 00:32:28.700 --> 00:32:31.039 want you to stay in that space. We want you to 00:32:31.039 --> 00:32:35.079 get that prayer. So find someone, get prayed 00:32:35.079 --> 00:32:38.319 for, pray for someone. There are people here 00:32:38.319 --> 00:32:40.480 that would love to pray for you.