WEBVTT 00:00:01.550 --> 00:00:04.509 a lot of time on each verse, but we're just trying 00:00:04.509 --> 00:00:08.609 to help you capture the spirit of what the apostle 00:00:08.609 --> 00:00:11.849 Paul was saying to these believers in Rome. And 00:00:11.849 --> 00:00:15.490 I hope that we can see ourselves in the word 00:00:15.490 --> 00:00:18.309 of God, because I do believe, even though this 00:00:18.309 --> 00:00:21.809 letter was written to specific people many, many 00:00:21.809 --> 00:00:24.649 years ago, it does speak to our lives. You'll 00:00:24.649 --> 00:00:27.829 see almost instantly today that you can latch 00:00:27.829 --> 00:00:32.109 onto it and let it help you live for God. with 00:00:32.109 --> 00:00:35.090 all the strength and confidence that he has for 00:00:35.090 --> 00:00:39.490 us. Romans 3, verse number one, Paul says to 00:00:39.490 --> 00:00:43.070 the believers in Rome that are from a Jewish 00:00:43.070 --> 00:00:45.770 background, and I'd rather you think of that 00:00:45.770 --> 00:00:49.649 in terms of the Old Testament children of Israel 00:00:49.649 --> 00:00:53.409 and not necessarily the nationality. In fact, 00:00:53.729 --> 00:00:56.549 it'll become obvious that he is appealing to 00:00:56.549 --> 00:01:00.429 their spiritual heritage when he references their 00:01:00.429 --> 00:01:04.670 Jewish heritage. So what advantage then has the 00:01:04.670 --> 00:01:08.930 Jew or what is the prophet of circumcision that 00:01:08.930 --> 00:01:14.349 mark upon each of those people of God much in 00:01:14.349 --> 00:01:18.189 every way chiefly because to them were committed 00:01:18.189 --> 00:01:23.329 the oracles of God. For what if some did not 00:01:23.329 --> 00:01:27.090 believe, what if there were some that Old Testament 00:01:27.090 --> 00:01:30.189 people of God that chose not to believe God, 00:01:30.829 --> 00:01:34.230 will their unbelief make the faithfulness of 00:01:34.230 --> 00:01:39.370 God without effect? Certainly not. Indeed, let 00:01:39.370 --> 00:01:44.530 God be true, but every man a liar. As it is written, 00:01:45.189 --> 00:01:49.150 that you may be justified in your words and may 00:01:49.150 --> 00:01:53.650 overcome when you are judged. It's as if Paul 00:01:53.650 --> 00:01:57.250 was writing and saying, God, every now and then 00:01:57.250 --> 00:02:00.290 people are gonna question how you do what you 00:02:00.290 --> 00:02:04.430 do and why things are the way they are, but you're 00:02:04.430 --> 00:02:08.930 gonna pass every test. You are God and God alone 00:02:08.930 --> 00:02:12.610 and you are faithful. So I'd like to preach for 00:02:12.610 --> 00:02:16.870 just a little bit and I'm gonna throw a few remarks 00:02:16.870 --> 00:02:20.449 at future Noah, but I believe that there's a 00:02:20.449 --> 00:02:25.969 word for all of us. as I preach faith in God's 00:02:25.969 --> 00:02:31.210 faithfulness. Faith in God's faithfulness. Let's 00:02:31.210 --> 00:02:33.389 ask the Lord to speak to our hearts right now. 00:02:33.490 --> 00:02:36.949 Lord Jesus, as time has slipped away a little 00:02:36.949 --> 00:02:40.330 bit, God, I want you to help me to share what 00:02:40.330 --> 00:02:44.289 you have given me for your people in just these 00:02:44.289 --> 00:02:47.370 brief remarks. Let something get ahold of us 00:02:47.370 --> 00:02:52.500 that helps us to respond to your word. to believe 00:02:52.500 --> 00:02:56.759 you for great things. God, across this congregation 00:02:56.759 --> 00:03:00.539 and even those that are online, let every one 00:03:00.539 --> 00:03:05.460 of us be captured by the reality of your faithfulness 00:03:05.460 --> 00:03:09.740 and let us respond to this moment, every need 00:03:09.740 --> 00:03:12.979 that we have, every opportunity you have given 00:03:12.979 --> 00:03:18.199 us to put our lives into your hands and to believe 00:03:18.199 --> 00:03:23.360 you for something supernatural. In Jesus' name 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:27.819 we pray. Can you say amen? God bless you, may 00:03:27.819 --> 00:03:34.879 be seated. In the interest of time, I want to 00:03:34.879 --> 00:03:38.280 make a statement that for this message really 00:03:38.280 --> 00:03:41.800 sums up what you're going to read when you read 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:45.840 Romans two and the first part of Romans chapter 00:03:45.840 --> 00:03:49.020 three. Here it is, it's really important that 00:03:49.020 --> 00:03:54.789 we think about this today. Your heritage is not 00:03:54.789 --> 00:03:59.789 the truest gauge of your relationship with God. 00:04:00.449 --> 00:04:04.150 In fact, if you go back to Romans 2, he says, 00:04:04.210 --> 00:04:06.469 this is from a translation a little bit more 00:04:06.469 --> 00:04:10.949 modern, when the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed 00:04:10.949 --> 00:04:14.550 even though they never have had God's written 00:04:14.550 --> 00:04:18.740 law. nature becomes their law, their conscience 00:04:18.740 --> 00:04:22.920 becomes their law, but the Jews who have God's 00:04:22.920 --> 00:04:27.800 law will be judged by that law when they fail 00:04:27.800 --> 00:04:32.660 to obey it. Go down with me to verse number 17. 00:04:33.079 --> 00:04:37.899 You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God's 00:04:37.899 --> 00:04:42.959 law and you boast about your special relationship 00:04:42.959 --> 00:04:47.040 with him. And this is absolutely true that the 00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:51.620 Old Testament reveals that God used his relationship 00:04:51.620 --> 00:04:55.319 with Israel, the Old Testament Jewish people 00:04:55.319 --> 00:05:00.240 to reveal his love and plan for all of humanity. 00:05:00.500 --> 00:05:04.680 But somewhere in the process, of God moving in 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:09.579 the lives of ancient Israel. Through their heritage, 00:05:09.899 --> 00:05:14.060 they started to believe that they had a special 00:05:14.060 --> 00:05:18.399 place in God just because of their tradition. 00:05:18.819 --> 00:05:23.300 In fact, verse 28, for you are not a true Jew 00:05:23.300 --> 00:05:27.319 just because you were born of Jewish parents 00:05:27.319 --> 00:05:31.060 or because you have gone through the ceremony 00:05:31.060 --> 00:05:36.079 of circumcision. No, a true Jew is one whose 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:40.779 heart is right with God. and true circumcision 00:05:40.779 --> 00:05:44.779 is not merely obeying the letter of the law, 00:05:44.879 --> 00:05:50.639 rather it is a change of heart produced by the 00:05:50.639 --> 00:05:54.980 spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:59.680 praise from God and not from people. And so can 00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:03.819 you imagine the Apostle Paul writing to Jewish 00:06:03.819 --> 00:06:07.680 believers and basically saying, you're not a 00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:10.980 Jew just... because you were born a Jew. He's 00:06:10.980 --> 00:06:15.339 trying to get them beyond their heritage to a 00:06:15.339 --> 00:06:19.459 place where their hearts can be changed by the 00:06:19.459 --> 00:06:23.500 Spirit of God. So can I say beyond even a history 00:06:23.500 --> 00:06:28.240 lesson, traditions can come from truth. And we 00:06:28.240 --> 00:06:32.259 thank God for every tradition that comes from 00:06:32.259 --> 00:06:37.540 truth, but tradition without transformation is 00:06:37.540 --> 00:06:41.209 not. enough even if that tradition comes from 00:06:41.209 --> 00:06:47.050 truth. What we need is our hearts to be changed. 00:06:47.399 --> 00:06:53.220 Faith in our heritage is not the same as faith 00:06:53.220 --> 00:06:57.399 in God's faithfulness. If you want to put that 00:06:57.399 --> 00:07:01.360 into our context, all of us can be guilty of 00:07:01.360 --> 00:07:05.740 saying, well, I'm Pentecostal. My mom was Pentecostal. 00:07:05.779 --> 00:07:08.759 Her mom was Pentecostal. That wasn't true of 00:07:08.759 --> 00:07:11.519 my family, but you understand what I'm saying. 00:07:11.639 --> 00:07:14.680 Someone might say, well, I'm Catholic. My family 00:07:14.680 --> 00:07:17.769 was Catholic. Their family was... Catholic, we've 00:07:17.769 --> 00:07:20.930 always been, we're Catholic, or I'm Baptist, 00:07:20.990 --> 00:07:24.430 I've always been Baptist, my grandma was Baptist, 00:07:24.470 --> 00:07:27.629 you know where I'm going with this. That's what 00:07:27.629 --> 00:07:31.350 Paul is saying. He's saying, thank God for your 00:07:31.350 --> 00:07:35.410 heritage as an Old Testament Jew that's been 00:07:35.410 --> 00:07:39.889 handed the word of God and traditions that point 00:07:39.889 --> 00:07:44.449 people to the Lord, but your faith in your heritage 00:07:44.449 --> 00:07:50.399 is not the same. as your faith in God's faithfulness. 00:07:50.879 --> 00:07:54.639 Your faith in your knowledge is not the same 00:07:54.639 --> 00:07:59.240 as your faith in God's faithfulness. Your faith 00:07:59.240 --> 00:08:03.399 in your service, the things you do in the name 00:08:03.399 --> 00:08:08.259 of your religion is not the same as faith in 00:08:08.259 --> 00:08:12.860 God and his faithfulness. He was saying, and 00:08:12.860 --> 00:08:17.639 I believe it extends to us today, we need hearts 00:08:17.639 --> 00:08:22.230 that are forever more changed. changed by the 00:08:22.230 --> 00:08:26.889 Spirit of God. We celebrate heritage and knowledge 00:08:26.889 --> 00:08:31.750 and service. These are so valuable. He wasn't 00:08:31.750 --> 00:08:35.669 impugning them for their Jewish heritage as if 00:08:35.669 --> 00:08:39.210 to say you need to stop being Jewish. No, he 00:08:39.210 --> 00:08:43.009 was saying don't trust in that as though that's 00:08:43.009 --> 00:08:47.289 the same as a relationship with God. I want to 00:08:47.289 --> 00:08:50.570 say whether you call yourself a A Baptist or 00:08:50.570 --> 00:08:54.750 a Buddhist don't trust in that label or that 00:08:54.750 --> 00:08:58.889 tradition as though that's the same as a relationship 00:08:58.889 --> 00:09:02.690 with God. You can call yourself Pentecostal and 00:09:02.690 --> 00:09:05.889 hang on to every one of those traditions that 00:09:05.889 --> 00:09:08.830 comes from the truth of the Word of God. But 00:09:08.830 --> 00:09:12.110 every now and then, look at your heart and say, 00:09:12.129 --> 00:09:16.409 Jesus, are you still changing me? I don't know 00:09:16.409 --> 00:09:19.480 how you feel, but it's just about... Every day 00:09:19.480 --> 00:09:23.799 I've got to say, create in me a clean heart, 00:09:23.960 --> 00:09:29.500 oh God, and renew a right spirit in me. Praise 00:09:29.500 --> 00:09:33.200 God. If you don't say that much, just live through 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:37.039 the holidays. And by the time you spend enough 00:09:37.039 --> 00:09:39.159 time with all the people you love, you'll need 00:09:39.159 --> 00:09:43.059 to say, God, give me a pure heart. It's weird 00:09:43.059 --> 00:09:46.559 how that works that way. But that's what the 00:09:46.559 --> 00:09:49.639 Apostle Paul is saying. In fact, if you study 00:09:49.639 --> 00:09:53.940 the life of the Apostle Paul, if anybody believed 00:09:53.940 --> 00:09:58.399 in the heritage of being a Jew that laid claim 00:09:58.399 --> 00:10:02.120 to the Old Testament, teaching of the law, and 00:10:02.120 --> 00:10:05.220 certainly the traditions that were founded in 00:10:05.220 --> 00:10:09.379 truth, Acts 22 and verse three, the Apostle Paul 00:10:09.379 --> 00:10:15.429 said, I am indeed a Jew born in Tarsus of Felicia 00:10:15.429 --> 00:10:18.990 brought up in the city at the feet of Gamaliel. 00:10:19.669 --> 00:10:23.210 I was taught according to the strictness of our 00:10:23.210 --> 00:10:27.580 Father's law and was zealous toward God. as all 00:10:27.580 --> 00:10:31.639 of you are today, but he goes on to say, I had 00:10:31.639 --> 00:10:35.259 a vision, I heard a voice, and then a preacher 00:10:35.259 --> 00:10:39.200 gave me a Bible study and I come to know Jesus. 00:10:39.460 --> 00:10:43.340 And when I come to know Jesus, I started to experience 00:10:43.340 --> 00:10:47.919 a change in my heart that affected my life. In 00:10:47.919 --> 00:10:52.220 fact, Acts 22 and verse 26, he said, now the 00:10:52.220 --> 00:10:56.820 preacher said arise and be baptized. and wash 00:10:56.820 --> 00:11:01.820 away your sins calling on the name of the Lord. 00:11:02.190 --> 00:11:06.970 We celebrate the heritage of baby Noah being 00:11:06.970 --> 00:11:11.169 dedicated in a Pentecostal church on a beautiful 00:11:11.169 --> 00:11:14.610 Sunday in November, just six months after he 00:11:14.610 --> 00:11:17.929 was born. I believe a lot of what's being put 00:11:17.929 --> 00:11:20.909 in his heart from his parents comes from the 00:11:20.909 --> 00:11:24.330 word of God. But I gotta tell you, if all it 00:11:24.330 --> 00:11:28.570 is is heritage, it's not enough. If all it is 00:11:28.570 --> 00:11:33.210 is tradition, it's not enough. Noah grows up 00:11:33.210 --> 00:11:36.409 just a little while longer and he recognizes 00:11:36.409 --> 00:11:40.950 there is a savior whose name is Jesus. He went 00:11:40.950 --> 00:11:45.750 to the cross to die for my sins. He rose up and 00:11:45.750 --> 00:11:49.070 not only did he rise from the dead, he came back 00:11:49.070 --> 00:11:52.850 to his people to fill them with his spirit. All 00:11:52.850 --> 00:11:56.250 of a sudden, that's more than just tradition. 00:11:56.570 --> 00:12:01.049 That's more than just heritage. That's transformation. 00:12:02.880 --> 00:12:09.440 that happens in all of our hearts amen and certainly 00:12:09.440 --> 00:12:13.450 as those of us and so many of us can point to 00:12:13.450 --> 00:12:17.710 our response to Calvary, to the death, the burial, 00:12:17.850 --> 00:12:21.190 and the resurrection of Jesus. We can look back 00:12:21.190 --> 00:12:24.450 to the time that we repented of our sins. We 00:12:24.450 --> 00:12:27.710 were baptized in Jesus' name. We were filled 00:12:27.710 --> 00:12:30.909 with the Holy Ghost. We spoke with other tongues, 00:12:30.909 --> 00:12:33.870 and from that initial evidence of being filled 00:12:33.870 --> 00:12:36.570 with the Spirit, we've endeavored to walk in 00:12:36.570 --> 00:12:40.129 the Spirit and see the fruit of the Spirit develop 00:12:40.129 --> 00:12:44.220 in our lives. and trying to be led by the Spirit 00:12:44.220 --> 00:12:47.840 and experience the gifts of the Spirit. But how 00:12:47.840 --> 00:12:51.279 many of you know that we could sometimes allow 00:12:51.279 --> 00:12:55.960 all of this to slip into just a heritage or a 00:12:55.960 --> 00:12:59.899 tradition? And so Paul was not saying, you Jews 00:12:59.899 --> 00:13:03.539 don't stop being Jews. He wasn't saying, you 00:13:03.539 --> 00:13:06.740 Pentecostals, you need to stop being Pentecostals. 00:13:06.820 --> 00:13:09.559 No, he was just saying, keep your tradition, 00:13:09.700 --> 00:13:13.960 but make sure your heart Hold on to your heritage, 00:13:14.519 --> 00:13:17.840 but make sure your heart is being changed, because 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:21.460 at the end of the day, it is a changed heart 00:13:21.460 --> 00:13:26.299 that is going to help us be everything that God 00:13:26.299 --> 00:13:31.899 has promised us that we can be. If I walk by 00:13:31.899 --> 00:13:37.600 faith into more of God, it will be because his 00:13:37.600 --> 00:13:43.019 faithfulness is changing my heart. day by day 00:13:43.019 --> 00:13:47.759 by day. But if we would be honest about the human 00:13:47.759 --> 00:13:52.419 condition, sometimes our heritage. backfires 00:13:52.419 --> 00:13:56.399 on us. And we literally limit our journey into 00:13:56.399 --> 00:14:01.200 more of what the Lord has for us because we don't 00:14:01.200 --> 00:14:05.840 feel the urgency to walk by faith because we 00:14:05.840 --> 00:14:09.659 cling to our heritage. We just kind of look back 00:14:09.659 --> 00:14:13.360 on the calendar. I accepted the Lord and I accepted 00:14:13.360 --> 00:14:17.200 his plan and I put my faith in him and I repented 00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:20.340 and I was baptized. I was filled with his spirit. 00:14:20.809 --> 00:14:24.789 good to go, Paul was speaking to those precious 00:14:24.789 --> 00:14:28.669 Jewish believers and saying, I know that you 00:14:28.669 --> 00:14:32.690 have a heritage, but is your heart really being 00:14:32.690 --> 00:14:35.870 transformed? If we would take a little journey 00:14:35.870 --> 00:14:39.690 back to the first time you heard about Calvary, 00:14:39.850 --> 00:14:43.350 how many of you know it was the message of God's 00:14:43.350 --> 00:14:46.990 faithfulness that provoked you to put your faith 00:14:46.990 --> 00:14:51.230 in Jesus and repent of your sins? and be baptized 00:14:51.230 --> 00:14:54.470 in his name and be filled with his spirit. It 00:14:54.470 --> 00:14:58.529 was your faith in God's faithfulness that led 00:14:58.529 --> 00:15:02.730 you to believe whatever God has for me. I want 00:15:02.730 --> 00:15:06.490 it in my life. I'm asking you today, let's grab 00:15:06.490 --> 00:15:10.649 ahold of that same faith in God's faithfulness 00:15:10.649 --> 00:15:14.889 and pray together. Fill me with your spirit and 00:15:14.889 --> 00:15:18.929 lead me by your spirit. Help me to walk in the 00:15:18.929 --> 00:15:22.740 spirit of. Why? Because he's got more for us. 00:15:22.960 --> 00:15:26.240 He's got more blessings and more direction from 00:15:26.240 --> 00:15:29.580 his word. He's got things like separation from 00:15:29.580 --> 00:15:33.340 the world and discipleship to become more like 00:15:33.340 --> 00:15:37.399 him. And even evangelism to reach others with 00:15:37.399 --> 00:15:42.159 the gospel of Jesus Christ. All of that is our 00:15:42.159 --> 00:15:47.059 response to the faithfulness. of God, would you 00:15:47.059 --> 00:15:50.460 close your eyes and raise your hands and say, 00:15:50.480 --> 00:15:56.539 Jesus, I am not enamored with my heritage today. 00:15:56.759 --> 00:16:02.059 I am captured by your faithfulness. I am not 00:16:02.059 --> 00:16:06.779 trapped in my traditions today. I am captured 00:16:06.779 --> 00:16:13.460 by your faithfulness. My response to your faithfulness 00:16:13.460 --> 00:16:17.379 is not what makes me right with you. It is your 00:16:17.379 --> 00:16:21.240 faithfulness that changes my heart a little bit 00:16:21.240 --> 00:16:25.200 more today and a whole lot more tomorrow. Here 00:16:25.200 --> 00:16:30.360 I am, Jesus. I want more than tradition. I want 00:16:30.360 --> 00:16:34.279 transformation. I thank you for the truth, but 00:16:34.279 --> 00:16:40.600 let it change me, God, every single day. Can 00:16:40.600 --> 00:16:46.779 you say in Jesus' name? Paul said to one young 00:16:46.779 --> 00:16:49.779 preacher, and we read about it in Titus chapter 00:16:49.779 --> 00:16:54.220 three. He says in verse four, when the kindness 00:16:54.220 --> 00:16:58.360 and the love of God our savior toward man appeared, 00:16:59.320 --> 00:17:03.519 not by works of righteousness which we have done, 00:17:03.980 --> 00:17:08.039 but according to his mercy. He saved us through 00:17:08.039 --> 00:17:12.099 the washing of regeneration and renewing of the 00:17:12.099 --> 00:17:16.359 Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly 00:17:16.359 --> 00:17:20.980 through Jesus Christ. our Savior, what's happened 00:17:20.980 --> 00:17:25.339 here, that having been justified by His grace, 00:17:25.619 --> 00:17:29.660 we should become heirs according to the hope 00:17:29.660 --> 00:17:33.440 of eternal life. If you look closely at those 00:17:33.440 --> 00:17:37.019 words, you will see that faith in Jesus leads 00:17:37.019 --> 00:17:41.900 to repentance and baptism in Jesus' name. Certainly 00:17:41.900 --> 00:17:45.940 the washing of regeneration and renewing of the 00:17:45.940 --> 00:17:49.359 Holy Ghost being filled with the spirit, yes, 00:17:49.720 --> 00:17:52.420 with that initial evidence of speaking with other 00:17:52.420 --> 00:17:55.720 tongues, but it goes beyond that. My brothers 00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:00.000 and sisters, that is not just heritage. That's 00:18:00.000 --> 00:18:03.700 the faithfulness of God. That's not just tradition 00:18:03.700 --> 00:18:07.599 handed down from generations of Christians. That 00:18:07.599 --> 00:18:11.920 is the faithfulness of God that any human being 00:18:11.920 --> 00:18:16.039 at any time and any place could stumble into 00:18:16.039 --> 00:18:19.109 a church house. or even make an altar somewhere 00:18:19.109 --> 00:18:22.329 in their own house, and they can call on the 00:18:22.329 --> 00:18:26.630 name of Jesus in sincerity, and he will instantly 00:18:26.630 --> 00:18:30.670 forgive every person that repents. That's not 00:18:30.670 --> 00:18:34.349 just heritage, that's faithfulness, the faithfulness 00:18:34.349 --> 00:18:38.289 of God. Oh yes, it still happens today. That's 00:18:38.289 --> 00:18:41.410 why the robes are right out back, and the water's 00:18:41.410 --> 00:18:44.269 already been worn, because when you're baptized 00:18:44.269 --> 00:18:48.950 in Jesus' name, your sins are washed away. That's 00:18:48.950 --> 00:18:52.869 not just tradition, that's God's faithfulness. 00:18:53.109 --> 00:18:57.289 That's not just heritage, that's God's faithfulness. 00:18:57.630 --> 00:19:00.710 And anybody that comes to the altar today and 00:19:00.710 --> 00:19:03.329 say, you know what, I'm trying to be a good Baptist, 00:19:03.549 --> 00:19:06.690 but I'd love to be filled to overflowing with 00:19:06.690 --> 00:19:09.690 the Holy Spirit. I'm trying to be a good Catholic, 00:19:09.809 --> 00:19:13.089 but I'd love to be filled to overflowing with 00:19:13.089 --> 00:19:15.740 the Holy Spirit. My goodness, I'd like to. to 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:19.160 be a good Pentecostal, but I cannot do it without 00:19:19.160 --> 00:19:22.759 being filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit. 00:19:22.920 --> 00:19:26.740 I can promise you that regardless of your tradition, 00:19:27.079 --> 00:19:31.759 God's faithfulness can reach any Catholic, any 00:19:31.759 --> 00:19:36.140 Pentecostal, any Baptist, any Moravian, because 00:19:36.140 --> 00:19:44.099 our faith is in God's faithfulness. You say amen. 00:19:44.940 --> 00:19:49.380 And so he goes on to say in writing to Titus, 00:19:49.819 --> 00:19:53.579 this is verse eight, this is a faithful saying, 00:19:54.400 --> 00:19:58.980 and these things I want you to affirm constantly 00:19:58.980 --> 00:20:06.039 that those who have believed in God should be 00:20:06.039 --> 00:20:11.339 careful to maintain good works. These things 00:20:11.339 --> 00:20:17.680 are good and profitable. to men. It's as though 00:20:17.680 --> 00:20:22.000 Paul would try to warn. those original Christians, 00:20:22.000 --> 00:20:25.500 and in this little part of the whole book, he's 00:20:25.500 --> 00:20:28.539 referencing those that are clinging to their 00:20:28.539 --> 00:20:31.859 Jewish heritage and their tradition. By the time 00:20:31.859 --> 00:20:34.839 we get a little bit further in the book, he really 00:20:34.839 --> 00:20:38.200 nails this down, and he's not preaching against 00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:41.880 heritage or against tradition, but he is preaching 00:20:41.880 --> 00:20:46.500 for transformation. The ultimate evidence of 00:20:46.500 --> 00:20:50.859 a changed heart is that we are careful. to maintain 00:20:50.859 --> 00:20:54.599 good works, but our faith is not in our good 00:20:54.599 --> 00:20:58.500 works. Our faith is in the faithfulness of God. 00:20:58.720 --> 00:21:01.759 Why do people pray? It's not just because they 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:05.240 have faith in their prayers, they have faith 00:21:05.240 --> 00:21:08.579 in the faithfulness of God. Why do people bring 00:21:08.579 --> 00:21:12.099 their tithes, their offerings, they give to missions, 00:21:12.359 --> 00:21:15.259 they help out in the community? It's not because 00:21:15.259 --> 00:21:18.880 we expect that there is faith in those good deeds. 00:21:18.640 --> 00:21:22.940 that's gonna save us a thousand times, no. But 00:21:22.940 --> 00:21:26.160 if we have faith in the faithfulness of God, 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:29.640 we're gonna be careful to give, careful to pray, 00:21:29.960 --> 00:21:33.599 careful to serve. Why? Because I am so confident 00:21:33.599 --> 00:21:36.839 that he's a faithful God and every one of those 00:21:36.839 --> 00:21:40.700 acts of faith is an opportunity for me to link 00:21:40.700 --> 00:21:43.579 up with the promise of the Lord. This is not 00:21:43.579 --> 00:21:47.940 just some old stendier stuff or some old pasture. 00:21:47.849 --> 00:21:51.329 tradition or heritage and now it's kind of musty 00:21:51.329 --> 00:21:53.869 and it's just kind of something I pull out of 00:21:53.869 --> 00:21:56.990 the closet or out of the odd attic a couple times 00:21:56.990 --> 00:22:00.569 a year or even every Sunday. No, God forbid, 00:22:00.809 --> 00:22:04.789 I believe in the faithfulness of God and every 00:22:04.789 --> 00:22:08.369 day that I give my heart to him, he is faithful 00:22:08.369 --> 00:22:16.150 to change us to be more like him every day. I 00:22:16.150 --> 00:22:21.500 fail. but I keep on growing because he is faithful. 00:22:22.359 --> 00:22:28.700 I fall, but I get right back up because he is 00:22:28.700 --> 00:22:33.019 faithful. I sin, but I go right back to that 00:22:33.019 --> 00:22:36.380 altar and repent and he forgives me every time 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:43.019 because he is faithful. My faith is in God's. 00:22:42.990 --> 00:22:47.309 faithfulness. I'm not trusting in my own faithfulness. 00:22:47.490 --> 00:22:51.089 I am trusting in His faithfulness, and that's 00:22:51.089 --> 00:22:54.230 gonna keep me praying, keep me serving, keep 00:22:54.230 --> 00:22:58.049 me giving, keep me living for Him. Because He's 00:22:58.049 --> 00:23:01.430 faithful, I will worship. Because He's faithful, 00:23:01.609 --> 00:23:06.509 I will sacrifice. Because He's faithful, even 00:23:06.509 --> 00:23:10.490 when I'm not faithful. Oh, what a privilege it 00:23:10.490 --> 00:23:14.589 has been for me. to take baby Noah in my arms 00:23:14.589 --> 00:23:19.410 today and dedicate him. I believe God's hand 00:23:19.410 --> 00:23:25.890 is upon him. Until Jesus comes, we know that 00:23:25.890 --> 00:23:29.720 even before the womb. God had a plan for Noah 00:23:29.720 --> 00:23:33.039 and he'll keep working in his life every day. 00:23:33.480 --> 00:23:35.940 But we don't ever want this to just be tradition 00:23:35.940 --> 00:23:38.660 for Noah. We don't ever want this just to be 00:23:38.660 --> 00:23:41.200 heritage. And not that that's not beautiful and 00:23:41.200 --> 00:23:44.099 it doesn't have its place, but oh, thank God 00:23:44.099 --> 00:23:46.920 for parents that will teach him as he gets old 00:23:46.920 --> 00:23:49.519 enough to understand the reason why we go to 00:23:49.519 --> 00:23:52.400 church is because God is faithful. The reason 00:23:52.400 --> 00:23:55.700 why we worship is because God is faithful. The 00:23:55.700 --> 00:23:57.940 reason why when you go to that church, sometimes 00:23:57.940 --> 00:24:00.640 you'll see people jumping and running and hollering. 00:24:00.680 --> 00:24:05.000 It's because God is faithful. It's not just our 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:08.680 heritage or our tradition. We have a God that 00:24:08.680 --> 00:24:12.200 has been so faithful to us and we want to transmit 00:24:12.200 --> 00:24:15.539 to anyone at any time. If you need a healing, 00:24:15.980 --> 00:24:19.279 put your faith in the faithfulness of God. If 00:24:19.279 --> 00:24:22.759 you need a miracle on any given Sunday, put your 00:24:22.759 --> 00:24:25.819 faith in the faithfulness of God. If you look 00:24:25.819 --> 00:24:28.369 back at the last week or two and you feel like 00:24:28.369 --> 00:24:31.029 you've fallen and you failed or you went into 00:24:31.029 --> 00:24:33.869 some sort of sinful attitude or even action. 00:24:34.049 --> 00:24:37.630 Put your faith into the faithfulness of God and 00:24:37.630 --> 00:24:41.170 he will restore you today. Oh let's pass that 00:24:41.170 --> 00:24:45.289 on from generation to generation not as a tradition, 00:24:46.410 --> 00:24:51.970 not as a heritage alone, but as a congregation 00:24:51.970 --> 00:24:55.970 that is filled with hearts that are being changed. 00:24:56.109 --> 00:24:59.609 by the presence of God. Would you stand with 00:24:59.609 --> 00:25:02.549 me today, and could you bow your heads right 00:25:02.549 --> 00:25:05.349 where you're standing, and could you pray that 00:25:05.349 --> 00:25:09.650 old prayer from the psalmist, creating me a clean 00:25:09.650 --> 00:25:13.670 heart, oh God, and renew a right spirit in me. 00:25:14.630 --> 00:25:18.049 Cast me not away from thy presence. Take not 00:25:18.049 --> 00:25:22.730 thy holy spirit from me. Jesus, thank you for 00:25:22.730 --> 00:25:26.539 every part of my tradition. that's founded in 00:25:26.539 --> 00:25:30.779 truth and the heritage that gives us this privilege 00:25:30.779 --> 00:25:35.900 to have a company of believers that represent 00:25:35.900 --> 00:25:41.220 who you are and what you do. But Jesus, don't 00:25:41.220 --> 00:25:44.960 let any of my traditions become rituals. Don't 00:25:44.960 --> 00:25:49.259 let anything of my heritage become history. Oh 00:25:49.259 --> 00:25:54.259 God, I want my heart to be changed every day. 00:25:54.490 --> 00:25:59.170 a little bit more of Jesus. Every day, a little 00:25:59.170 --> 00:26:03.950 bit more of Jesus. Can you say in Jesus' name? 00:26:04.910 --> 00:26:07.130 We have just a few minutes here today, but we 00:26:07.130 --> 00:26:10.089 do have time to spend a little bit of time at 00:26:10.089 --> 00:26:14.029 the altar. And I want to see someone in this 00:26:14.029 --> 00:26:16.950 congregation that you have a need that nobody 00:26:16.950 --> 00:26:19.809 else knows about, but you would put your faith 00:26:19.809 --> 00:26:23.670 in the faithfulness of God. He is a healer. He 00:26:23.670 --> 00:26:26.509 is a prayer answering God. I know in a crowd 00:26:26.509 --> 00:26:29.220 this size, there could be someone. that you've 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:31.640 been plagued by thoughts of your own weaknesses 00:26:31.640 --> 00:26:34.460 and sins. You love the Lord, that's never been 00:26:34.460 --> 00:26:37.440 an issue, but you know that there's a temptation 00:26:37.440 --> 00:26:40.599 that keeps dragging you down. In just a moment 00:26:40.599 --> 00:26:42.599 when we all come to the altar, we're not gonna 00:26:42.599 --> 00:26:45.099 know who's coming for what reason, so you can 00:26:45.099 --> 00:26:47.799 come and know nobody's judging me. I am just 00:26:47.799 --> 00:26:51.339 coming because my faith is in the faithfulness 00:26:51.339 --> 00:26:54.460 of God. I don't know everybody's story today, 00:26:54.700 --> 00:26:57.700 but I beg you if you are in this sanctuary and 00:26:57.700 --> 00:27:00.819 you have Never put your faith in Jesus and repented 00:27:00.819 --> 00:27:03.779 of your sins even for the very first time. Would 00:27:03.779 --> 00:27:06.359 you meet me at this altar? Let's pray together. 00:27:06.759 --> 00:27:09.660 Just kind of let me know when you get here. Oh, 00:27:09.799 --> 00:27:13.380 pastor, I need to repent of my sins. I want to 00:27:13.380 --> 00:27:16.339 give my life to the Lord. I want Jesus to be 00:27:16.339 --> 00:27:19.420 my savior. If you are here today and you have 00:27:19.420 --> 00:27:22.759 never been baptized in Jesus' name, forget about 00:27:22.759 --> 00:27:26.299 the label you call yourself, whether it's a Methodist 00:27:26.299 --> 00:27:28.380 or whether... whether it's someone that follows 00:27:28.380 --> 00:27:31.140 after the teaching of Islam, or whether it's 00:27:31.140 --> 00:27:34.140 even a Pentecostal, but you've never been baptized 00:27:34.140 --> 00:27:38.200 in Jesus' name, could you put your faith in the 00:27:38.200 --> 00:27:41.420 faithfulness of God and don't let your label, 00:27:41.660 --> 00:27:44.920 don't let your tradition, don't let your heritage 00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:48.920 keep you from all of your sins being washed away. 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:53.059 There is only one savior regardless of the religion 00:27:53.059 --> 00:27:56.420 that went to the cross and died, so his blood. 00:27:56.400 --> 00:27:59.660 could cover and literally blot out our sins. 00:27:59.900 --> 00:28:04.819 His name is Jesus. And if we never see you again, 00:28:05.099 --> 00:28:08.039 it would still be our privilege to baptize you 00:28:08.039 --> 00:28:11.660 in Jesus' name. Because around here, that's not 00:28:11.660 --> 00:28:15.779 just tradition. That's transformation. That's 00:28:15.779 --> 00:28:18.839 transformation. And if you have served the Lord, 00:28:19.079 --> 00:28:21.440 but you have never been filled with his spirit 00:28:21.440 --> 00:28:24.200 as others are coming. For other reasons, would 00:28:24.200 --> 00:28:26.680 you come meet me right in front of this pulpit 00:28:26.680 --> 00:28:30.000 area and raise your hands and say, Jesus, I want 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:33.039 to be filled with your spirit today. He will 00:28:33.039 --> 00:28:36.279 transform your heart. Thank you for coming. Everybody 00:28:36.279 --> 00:28:39.259 that can come, why don't you come? Everybody 00:28:39.259 --> 00:28:42.440 that can come, why don't you come? From all across 00:28:42.440 --> 00:28:45.259 this sanctuary, thank you for coming. If you're 00:28:45.259 --> 00:28:48.220 worshiping with us online, right where you are, 00:28:48.420 --> 00:28:51.140 could you make an altar of prayer and just pray, 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:55.359 Jesus, don't let my Christianity just be heritage 00:28:55.359 --> 00:28:59.319 and tradition. Don't let it be limited to a label 00:28:59.319 --> 00:29:03.019 that I call myself, a Baptist. or a Pentecostal, 00:29:03.059 --> 00:29:06.640 or Catholic, or Methodist. Oh, thank God for 00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:09.579 your heritage, but don't let that stop you from 00:29:09.579 --> 00:29:13.539 growing forward in a place where Jesus is regularly 00:29:13.539 --> 00:29:17.359 changing your heart. It's not enough to be called 00:29:17.359 --> 00:29:20.500 a Jew spiritually, physically. It's not enough 00:29:20.500 --> 00:29:23.700 to be called a Christian spiritually, physically. 00:29:24.079 --> 00:29:28.079 Somebody has gotta say, Jesus, change my heart 00:29:28.079 --> 00:29:36.569 more. Every day, every day. Thank you so much 00:29:36.569 --> 00:29:39.210 for coming to pray. Those of you that know how 00:29:39.210 --> 00:29:42.210 to pray with others, I ask you to please be led 00:29:42.210 --> 00:29:46.190 by the Spirit. There is a heart change taking 00:29:46.190 --> 00:29:50.390 place. There is a heart change taking place. 00:29:50.990 --> 00:29:55.029 Come on, appeal to the faithfulness of God. Don't 00:29:55.029 --> 00:29:57.970 think about your faithfulness or lack thereof. 00:29:58.250 --> 00:30:02.259 Just appeal to the faithfulness of God. Don't 00:30:02.259 --> 00:30:06.039 focus on your weaknesses or your failures. Focus 00:30:06.039 --> 00:30:10.279 on the faithfulness of God. Let him give you 00:30:10.279 --> 00:30:14.380 what you need to overcome today in Jesus.