WEBVTT 00:00:02.250 --> 00:00:05.250 Welcome to the Life Bible Church podcast. We 00:00:05.250 --> 00:00:07.669 want to thank you for joining us today, and we 00:00:07.669 --> 00:00:10.169 hope you find today's sermon impacting as you 00:00:10.169 --> 00:00:12.689 listen to it wherever you are in your daily walk. 00:00:12.949 --> 00:00:15.929 To find service times and watch messages online, 00:00:16.210 --> 00:00:20.109 see our website at lifebiblechurch .org. Now, 00:00:20.129 --> 00:00:24.769 enjoy this week's message. Well, Lord Jesus, 00:00:24.890 --> 00:00:27.969 we are honored this morning to be in your holy 00:00:27.969 --> 00:00:33.240 presence. Lord, there is no one like you. There 00:00:33.240 --> 00:00:39.659 never will be. You are the same yesterday and 00:00:39.659 --> 00:00:43.479 today and tomorrow. You never change. You are 00:00:43.479 --> 00:00:48.420 always faithful. You are always true. Lord, as 00:00:48.420 --> 00:00:51.619 we open our hearts to the word of God this morning, 00:00:51.679 --> 00:00:55.060 we ask now that you would bring understanding, 00:00:55.539 --> 00:00:59.840 bring illumination. Lord, quicken, even as it's 00:00:59.840 --> 00:01:02.719 said in the scripture. Lord, quicken thoughts 00:01:02.719 --> 00:01:06.019 and perspectives to your people's minds. Lord, 00:01:06.120 --> 00:01:09.620 you are the master preacher teacher. Lord, help 00:01:09.620 --> 00:01:14.079 me today to deliver what is on your heart. For 00:01:14.079 --> 00:01:16.519 we welcome you here, Holy Spirit. We welcome 00:01:16.519 --> 00:01:19.879 you. that you reveal what's on the heart and 00:01:19.879 --> 00:01:25.680 mind of the Father and the Son. Lead us in his 00:01:25.680 --> 00:01:29.420 direction, his counsel, and into the fullness 00:01:29.420 --> 00:01:32.980 of his word, in Jesus Christ's holy name. And 00:01:32.980 --> 00:01:37.420 everybody said, amen, amen. Well, why don't you 00:01:37.420 --> 00:01:39.780 just say hello to your neighbor beside you, make 00:01:39.780 --> 00:01:43.299 sure that they know that you're happy that they're 00:01:43.299 --> 00:01:48.659 there. And I'd like you to turn to the Gospel 00:01:48.659 --> 00:01:53.040 of John. As you're doing that, turn to the Gospel 00:01:53.040 --> 00:01:57.120 of John. We're going to take a look at, if I 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:00.019 can get where I need to get, we're going to take 00:02:00.019 --> 00:02:03.359 a look at the woman at the well, which is a very 00:02:03.359 --> 00:02:09.939 well -exegeted passage of Scripture. There's 00:02:09.939 --> 00:02:14.599 so much that's in John 4, and we're in our... 00:02:16.090 --> 00:02:20.030 mini series, Passover to Pentecost. And I am 00:02:20.030 --> 00:02:25.349 pulling as we are looking at the reality, maybe 00:02:25.349 --> 00:02:27.129 just turn me down just a little bit, Nathan. 00:02:27.289 --> 00:02:31.270 We're looking at the reality of what God had. 00:02:32.219 --> 00:02:36.080 infused in the Old Testament with his desire 00:02:36.080 --> 00:02:40.780 to show you what God can only do and then the 00:02:40.780 --> 00:02:44.199 coupling of partnership for his kingdom. It started 00:02:44.199 --> 00:02:47.060 all the way back when he initiated Passover. 00:02:47.360 --> 00:02:50.379 And he brings it... all the way through, and 00:02:50.379 --> 00:02:54.300 as we move into a new covenant reality, certainly, 00:02:54.400 --> 00:02:59.139 as Jesus is setting the stage to not only fulfill 00:02:59.139 --> 00:03:03.439 all that was in the old, but he's, if I look 00:03:03.439 --> 00:03:07.939 through a lens, there's so many ways to, we read 00:03:07.939 --> 00:03:12.199 the gospels, but there's so many nuances of this, 00:03:12.259 --> 00:03:15.889 when we put a lens of, okay, Lord, How many times 00:03:15.889 --> 00:03:21.810 did you introduce, did you prepare, did you cause 00:03:21.810 --> 00:03:27.250 them to have an appetite to understand and embrace 00:03:27.250 --> 00:03:32.069 the Holy Spirit? Because prior to that, in the 00:03:32.069 --> 00:03:35.509 Old Testament, it was only the anointing was 00:03:35.509 --> 00:03:38.759 poured out on prophet. priest and king and a 00:03:38.759 --> 00:03:43.139 few people to do the Holy Spirit's ministry. 00:03:43.520 --> 00:03:47.300 Now there is a prepping all the way through. 00:03:47.379 --> 00:03:50.860 And Jesus' three and a half years of ministry 00:03:50.860 --> 00:03:53.960 was, if you look at it and just read it from 00:03:53.960 --> 00:03:56.020 that, and I would challenge you to do that. Sometimes 00:03:56.020 --> 00:03:59.759 when we read the scriptures, we come at it from 00:03:59.759 --> 00:04:02.840 different lenses. And of course, there's ways 00:04:02.840 --> 00:04:05.340 to do this. Of course, the first way you want 00:04:05.340 --> 00:04:08.699 to read it is set all of your prejudgments and 00:04:08.699 --> 00:04:13.319 presets aside and just read the Gospels as though 00:04:13.319 --> 00:04:16.779 you had no knowledge or input from anything and 00:04:16.779 --> 00:04:20.480 allow the Word of God to speak to you. And then 00:04:20.480 --> 00:04:24.120 as you continue to read the Gospels over and 00:04:24.120 --> 00:04:27.779 over, you can begin to put, if you will, godly 00:04:27.779 --> 00:04:31.870 filters over your... mind and go I'm going to 00:04:31.870 --> 00:04:35.889 look for every time the Lord in Matthew Mark 00:04:35.889 --> 00:04:39.370 Luke and John every time he talked about the 00:04:39.370 --> 00:04:42.129 kingdom you can put a kingdom lens on there and 00:04:42.129 --> 00:04:44.889 then in this particular case as I'm reading the 00:04:44.889 --> 00:04:48.449 gospels and immersing myself in them just for 00:04:48.449 --> 00:04:51.350 teaching the series I am looking at how many 00:04:51.350 --> 00:04:55.740 times the Holy Spirit is mentioned and is integrated 00:04:55.740 --> 00:04:59.899 in Jesus' teaching. And it is amazing. Maybe 00:04:59.899 --> 00:05:02.139 turn me down just a little more, Nathan, because 00:05:02.139 --> 00:05:07.879 I'm going to preach today. It's amazing how Jesus... 00:05:09.230 --> 00:05:12.670 highlights the Holy Spirit. It wasn't just all 00:05:12.670 --> 00:05:14.990 of a sudden, oh, he just talked about him at 00:05:14.990 --> 00:05:17.730 the end in John 20, and they talked about the 00:05:17.730 --> 00:05:22.029 kingdom at the end. No, he was constantly seeding 00:05:22.029 --> 00:05:25.050 from the moment the anointing came upon him when 00:05:25.050 --> 00:05:28.810 he started his ministry, he was constantly seeding 00:05:28.810 --> 00:05:32.589 the atmosphere, the minds, the expectation for 00:05:32.589 --> 00:05:37.269 them to understand that the Holy Spirit was and 00:05:37.269 --> 00:05:41.040 is God and was the very thing they should be 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:45.500 partnering with. Now, this is the genius of Jesus. 00:05:45.579 --> 00:05:48.480 As we're going through Passover to Pentecost 00:05:48.480 --> 00:05:51.379 and kind of the reason for Pentecost and the 00:05:51.379 --> 00:05:54.660 baptism of the Holy Spirit, which is the infilling 00:05:54.660 --> 00:05:58.079 of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of all of that. 00:05:58.160 --> 00:06:00.560 How much we'll get to this summer? I don't know. 00:06:01.800 --> 00:06:05.569 Probably not very much. But we are going to go 00:06:05.569 --> 00:06:10.569 give a platform to it in regard to where I believe 00:06:10.569 --> 00:06:14.290 God is taking Life Bible Church in our journey 00:06:14.290 --> 00:06:18.529 in this season is exactly what we dealt with 00:06:18.529 --> 00:06:23.750 at the altar call today. is do we believe and 00:06:23.750 --> 00:06:27.930 have a faith that what God has said he has given, 00:06:27.990 --> 00:06:31.250 we're willing to walk into? And it's not a faith 00:06:31.250 --> 00:06:35.629 of knowledge. It's a faith of actually receptivity 00:06:35.629 --> 00:06:39.050 and that will actually move you to partnership. 00:06:39.970 --> 00:06:42.310 Now, if you understand that that's where we're 00:06:42.310 --> 00:06:47.389 going, don't leave right now. But there is a 00:06:47.389 --> 00:06:51.269 big difference. between having knowledge and 00:06:51.269 --> 00:06:57.329 actually having a working partnership. That's 00:06:57.329 --> 00:07:00.089 what God wants of every one of us. He wants a 00:07:00.089 --> 00:07:05.170 working partnership with you. That's his desire. 00:07:06.269 --> 00:07:11.990 A working partnership. I'm gonna read a few verses 00:07:11.990 --> 00:07:15.750 here in a bit, but think of this. As Jesus highlights 00:07:15.750 --> 00:07:20.839 the nature of the Father, in revealing everything. 00:07:21.399 --> 00:07:23.680 Jesus says, if you've seen me, you've seen the 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:28.480 Father. In how he trained his disciples. In how, 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:32.860 listen, have you noticed in the three and a half 00:07:32.860 --> 00:07:36.680 years of picking men, how many know when you 00:07:36.680 --> 00:07:40.779 pick men, now wives don't answer this too loudly, 00:07:40.959 --> 00:07:43.819 but how many know when you pick men that you're 00:07:43.819 --> 00:07:50.300 gonna end up with some flaws? Anytime you choose 00:07:50.300 --> 00:07:55.639 to bring humanity in from the God perspective, 00:07:55.740 --> 00:07:58.620 you're gonna have flaws. Folks, notice the disciples 00:07:58.620 --> 00:08:03.199 in the beginning were not fully trained as of 00:08:03.199 --> 00:08:07.879 experts. Notice he gave them the most powerful 00:08:07.879 --> 00:08:16.040 ministry on planet Earth to walk in untrained. 00:08:18.600 --> 00:08:21.600 I mean, literally, Jenny and I were talking about 00:08:21.600 --> 00:08:23.240 this the other day. We were thinking about it. 00:08:23.259 --> 00:08:25.220 We go, oh, I don't know if that person's ready. 00:08:25.300 --> 00:08:26.600 I don't know if that person's ready. She goes, 00:08:26.720 --> 00:08:32.799 can I remind you that you pioneered this church 00:08:32.799 --> 00:08:41.159 at 32? I did? She goes, I was 25. Ooh. Yeah, 00:08:41.220 --> 00:08:45.330 you weren't ready. Anyway, anyway. No, I'm messing 00:08:45.330 --> 00:08:48.950 with you. The reality is God is always willing 00:08:48.950 --> 00:08:53.690 to move you into something prior than what you 00:08:53.690 --> 00:08:57.190 think you're ready for. And he's willing to trust 00:08:57.190 --> 00:09:00.049 you with something that's bigger than you are 00:09:00.049 --> 00:09:03.870 before you think you can handle it. Now listen, 00:09:04.009 --> 00:09:07.129 if he's the same yesterday, today, and forever, 00:09:07.389 --> 00:09:10.269 guess what? He's willing to do that with you. 00:09:10.470 --> 00:09:12.769 The fact is he's not just willing, he's wanting 00:09:12.769 --> 00:09:17.860 to. And this is the genius of Jesus. He is a 00:09:17.860 --> 00:09:25.200 giver of himself and he trusts you with him. 00:09:26.899 --> 00:09:31.620 Now he knows when you mess up, you have him to 00:09:31.620 --> 00:09:36.480 fix it. You mess up sin wise, you can ask for 00:09:36.480 --> 00:09:38.259 forgiveness. If you're repenting in your heart, 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:42.610 he does what? He forgives it. If you need. Healing 00:09:42.610 --> 00:09:46.110 in your body. He's the healer. Listen, it doesn't 00:09:46.110 --> 00:09:48.870 mean that we remove ourselves from consequences 00:09:48.870 --> 00:09:52.190 or all of the sowing and reaping, but to deal 00:09:52.190 --> 00:09:55.350 with the fact that it shelves us and puts us 00:09:55.350 --> 00:10:00.210 away if we ever fail is an absolute falsehood. 00:10:00.250 --> 00:10:05.009 God is constantly looking to renew, redeem, restore, 00:10:05.129 --> 00:10:09.950 and to put you out into the arena to show Christ 00:10:09.950 --> 00:10:14.909 in you. Because he's into partnership. And as 00:10:14.909 --> 00:10:18.690 we talked about this a couple weeks ago, we talked 00:10:18.690 --> 00:10:21.809 about how Jesus went through, in Matthew, he 00:10:21.809 --> 00:10:24.809 went through to try to teach the disciples how 00:10:24.809 --> 00:10:27.590 to pray. But before he ever taught them how to 00:10:27.590 --> 00:10:31.149 pray, he reminded them what he did not want them 00:10:31.149 --> 00:10:34.870 to do. He told them, do not, in Matthew 6, 5, 00:10:35.029 --> 00:10:37.710 he said, do not be like the hypocrites. That's 00:10:37.710 --> 00:10:41.990 his first thing. A hypocrite is what? Believing 00:10:41.990 --> 00:10:46.490 something, living something else. So your first 00:10:46.490 --> 00:10:49.590 rule of partnership is you can't believe something 00:10:49.590 --> 00:10:54.570 and live contrary. That's not just opposite. 00:10:54.690 --> 00:10:58.690 That means not actually manifesting the works 00:10:58.690 --> 00:11:05.889 of what you believe. That's a good word. Come 00:11:05.889 --> 00:11:09.730 on. That's why I got a big split. In my teeth, 00:11:09.830 --> 00:11:12.110 I've got punched so many times with the gospel. 00:11:13.850 --> 00:11:19.509 The reality is, you know what? That applies to 00:11:19.509 --> 00:11:23.610 every single one of us. If I actually believe 00:11:23.610 --> 00:11:29.629 this, why and where is it not manifesting in 00:11:29.629 --> 00:11:34.289 my life? I'll never forget when we went, when 00:11:34.289 --> 00:11:36.990 Jenny and I had been in ministry almost eight 00:11:36.990 --> 00:11:40.600 years. Before we had pioneered this work and 00:11:40.600 --> 00:11:42.820 the Lord called us to do this and I remember 00:11:42.820 --> 00:11:46.299 Jesus speaking to me very clearly in my heart. 00:11:46.340 --> 00:11:49.659 I was reading Mark 16, 16 through 18, reading 00:11:49.659 --> 00:11:52.320 the list of these shall be the signs that follow 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:54.659 those that believe. And he asked me, he says, 00:11:54.820 --> 00:12:01.700 are you ready to do all of them? And I thought, 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:10.179 cast out devils, nope. Heal the sick. Nope. Pick 00:12:10.179 --> 00:12:13.139 up serpents. I met him in the church, maybe. 00:12:15.539 --> 00:12:18.299 Speak in tongues. Okay, I got that one. And I 00:12:18.299 --> 00:12:21.139 thought to myself, I can do one of the four. 00:12:22.720 --> 00:12:26.570 That isn't good enough. From where he's taking 00:12:26.570 --> 00:12:28.350 me and what I'm going to have to believe for. 00:12:28.769 --> 00:12:33.029 What has been in my heart that I pulled myself 00:12:33.029 --> 00:12:36.269 from believing that I should be operating in 00:12:36.269 --> 00:12:39.389 all four of those things? Those are his commands. 00:12:40.690 --> 00:12:42.830 So Jesus said, don't be like the hypocrites. 00:12:42.850 --> 00:12:46.509 In verse 7 he said, and don't use vain repetitions 00:12:46.509 --> 00:12:50.669 as the heathen. They think that by their multitude 00:12:50.669 --> 00:12:54.379 of words, that's what will cause their God. to 00:12:54.379 --> 00:12:58.240 operate. No, no, no, no. He was trying to move 00:12:58.240 --> 00:13:01.559 what? Remove the genuine nature of relationship 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:05.440 with God and partnership. I don't have to say 00:13:05.440 --> 00:13:07.700 the same things over and over and over and over 00:13:07.700 --> 00:13:12.350 and over and over to the Father. I can pray my 00:13:12.350 --> 00:13:15.909 heart because why? I'm recognizing he's there. 00:13:15.990 --> 00:13:19.029 He's in a personal relationship and I'm in partnership 00:13:19.029 --> 00:13:22.870 with him. I don't have to meet some quota that 00:13:22.870 --> 00:13:25.710 if I say it 15 times, I mean, now forgive me 00:13:25.710 --> 00:13:29.090 here, but just forgive my picking on our Catholic 00:13:29.090 --> 00:13:31.809 brothers. I don't have to say, okay, when you're 00:13:31.809 --> 00:13:34.830 done, pray 15 Hail Marys and 20 Our Fathers. 00:13:37.730 --> 00:13:43.820 Why? It's not about repetition. It's not about 00:13:43.820 --> 00:13:47.860 religion or roteness. And that's why when he 00:13:47.860 --> 00:13:50.559 taught them how to pray, he was introducing them 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:53.600 to a father's nature and character. And the main 00:13:53.600 --> 00:13:55.820 thing that he was introducing them to, which 00:13:55.820 --> 00:13:59.039 is going to be the key as we're reading the gospels, 00:13:59.039 --> 00:14:02.620 this time just maybe with a filter of, of course 00:14:02.620 --> 00:14:04.940 you want all of the truth that's in there. But 00:14:04.940 --> 00:14:09.000 read it. read it through, and then read it again 00:14:09.000 --> 00:14:12.480 for the Holy Spirit, pulling out what was Jesus 00:14:12.480 --> 00:14:15.799 trying to set the disciples to get into their 00:14:15.799 --> 00:14:18.519 heart that was different than how they were raised 00:14:18.519 --> 00:14:21.480 to know God and to love God. It wasn't that he 00:14:21.480 --> 00:14:24.320 was saying it was bad. It's just their perspective 00:14:24.320 --> 00:14:28.460 of him was incomplete. He was introducing them 00:14:28.460 --> 00:14:32.100 to a father that was a giver, that he was a supplier. 00:14:32.990 --> 00:14:36.210 that he was a protector, a forgiver, a leader, 00:14:36.289 --> 00:14:38.610 and a deliverer. And if you look at the whole 00:14:38.610 --> 00:14:44.210 Lord's Prayer, it moves God from just being estranged 00:14:44.210 --> 00:14:48.330 and distant and us having to do things to approach 00:14:48.330 --> 00:14:51.450 and have no relationship, which was the Old Testament. 00:14:51.490 --> 00:14:55.850 Only one tribe could do that and come near. Now 00:14:55.850 --> 00:14:58.769 he was preparing the disciples, changing their 00:14:58.769 --> 00:15:01.590 minds of saying, no, you get to come near to 00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:04.330 the forgiver. You get to forgive us our debts 00:15:04.330 --> 00:15:07.389 as we forgive those. Lead us not into, you get 00:15:07.389 --> 00:15:09.950 to come into the leader, the shepherd of your 00:15:09.950 --> 00:15:13.750 soul, not into temptation, but deliver us from 00:15:13.750 --> 00:15:16.389 evil. You get to come to the one who is your 00:15:16.389 --> 00:15:19.309 sword and your shield of what David prayed. You 00:15:19.309 --> 00:15:22.470 get to come, God, give us this daily bread, a 00:15:22.470 --> 00:15:27.139 giver and a supplier. And so when we think about 00:15:27.139 --> 00:15:31.960 these categories of prayer, we see Jesus initiating 00:15:31.960 --> 00:15:35.840 a commissioning before we ever look at the great 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:38.899 commission, go into all the world, teaching them 00:15:38.899 --> 00:15:41.940 to observe all things I commanded them, preaching 00:15:41.940 --> 00:15:45.279 them repentance and all things in the name of 00:15:45.279 --> 00:15:47.600 the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. That's 00:15:47.600 --> 00:15:51.490 the great commission. But the commissioning happened 00:15:51.490 --> 00:15:54.529 before that verse called the Great Commission. 00:15:54.830 --> 00:15:57.769 The commissioning happened in the beginning of 00:15:57.769 --> 00:16:02.370 how Jesus was trying to shape them and form them 00:16:02.370 --> 00:16:06.330 to understand the Father and the new level of 00:16:06.330 --> 00:16:09.129 covenant he was bringing them into. He was bringing 00:16:09.129 --> 00:16:14.269 them into from a distance to now a close proximity 00:16:14.269 --> 00:16:18.340 and partnership. And so we see a commissioning 00:16:18.340 --> 00:16:21.460 and a linking to the responsibility of what it 00:16:21.460 --> 00:16:24.779 means to be in kingdom partnership as we activate 00:16:24.779 --> 00:16:29.940 his will, we activate his ways, and we speak 00:16:29.940 --> 00:16:35.840 and live by his words. That should be, even as 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:38.580 we heard Andy and Patty share, that should be, 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:42.559 if you've stopped memorizing scriptures, who 00:16:42.559 --> 00:16:47.139 told you to do that? Who told you that that was 00:16:47.139 --> 00:16:54.139 enough? It certainly wasn't the Lord. He didn't 00:16:54.139 --> 00:16:58.179 come down to you, Garrett, and say, thus says 00:16:58.179 --> 00:16:59.820 the Spirit of the Lord, you've learned enough 00:16:59.820 --> 00:17:05.299 of me. Do not memorize any more of my word in 00:17:05.299 --> 00:17:10.420 your heart. It's full. You'll never get a prophetic 00:17:10.420 --> 00:17:12.759 word like that. You'll never hear him say that. 00:17:13.039 --> 00:17:18.140 Why? He wants you to fill your heart with his 00:17:18.140 --> 00:17:21.579 word. To meditate on it. And to meditate means 00:17:21.579 --> 00:17:25.319 what? To bring it up and to remind yourself of 00:17:25.319 --> 00:17:32.319 what he said. Not meditate in this, oh. If you 00:17:32.319 --> 00:17:36.079 go to a place of nothingness, that's called sin. 00:17:38.059 --> 00:17:41.759 Let me just speak to this new age crapola, which 00:17:41.759 --> 00:17:47.700 is the Greek word. Going to a place of nothingness 00:17:47.700 --> 00:17:54.619 is not peace. It's actually a form of being deceived 00:17:54.619 --> 00:17:58.339 and deluded. True meditation of what the Bible 00:17:58.339 --> 00:18:00.980 says is you meditate on his word, which what? 00:18:01.039 --> 00:18:04.900 You recall his word and you bring it into your 00:18:04.900 --> 00:18:08.240 mind and you allow his principles, his truth 00:18:08.240 --> 00:18:12.299 to saturate you, which brings you into his peace. 00:18:13.400 --> 00:18:16.799 Anything that tries to empty yourself out of 00:18:16.799 --> 00:18:20.640 nothing and to keep nothing in is antichrist. 00:18:21.900 --> 00:18:25.339 Because Christ wants to fill you with his word, 00:18:25.500 --> 00:18:29.140 his presence, his goodness, and his grace. You 00:18:29.140 --> 00:18:32.319 don't keep the spirit of God out. You welcome 00:18:32.319 --> 00:18:36.299 his word. You welcome his life. You welcome his 00:18:36.299 --> 00:18:39.559 thoughts. For the thoughts of God are thousands 00:18:39.559 --> 00:18:43.259 daily. Our job is to allow his thoughts to begin 00:18:43.259 --> 00:18:46.759 to fill us and shape us so that we what? Walk 00:18:46.759 --> 00:18:51.000 lives that are pleasing to him. Folks, that is 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:56.259 Christianity. That's real Christianity. Anything 00:18:56.259 --> 00:19:01.180 outside of that is subset Christianity. It is 00:19:01.180 --> 00:19:06.559 man saying, I don't have to. You're welcome. 00:19:06.839 --> 00:19:13.200 Moving on. And listen, do you understand that 00:19:13.200 --> 00:19:15.980 this is where persecution comes from right here? 00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:23.299 The calling out of what is substandard. To actually 00:19:23.299 --> 00:19:26.680 live. Folks, that's not radical Christianity. 00:19:27.099 --> 00:19:33.119 That is just basic Christianity. Now, why I said 00:19:33.119 --> 00:19:35.119 that, I knew I was going to say something. I 00:19:35.119 --> 00:19:38.079 want to just give a great, just take a quick 00:19:38.079 --> 00:19:41.879 pause here. Dakota, where are you at? Dakota, 00:19:41.879 --> 00:19:45.720 right there. He just graduated from Ranger School. 00:19:46.160 --> 00:19:58.140 Come on and just give him a big hand. I looked 00:19:58.140 --> 00:19:59.960 at him, he came in the doors this morning. I 00:19:59.960 --> 00:20:04.359 was going to get a cup of coffee. Strong, thin, 00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:09.500 hair. Everything about it just made me sick. 00:20:09.660 --> 00:20:13.440 No, no, just kidding. And the reality is to be 00:20:13.440 --> 00:20:17.480 able to go to that school and the top of fitness, 00:20:17.579 --> 00:20:19.420 to jump out of airplanes, to do all the stuff, 00:20:19.480 --> 00:20:21.619 to be part of our National Guard in the state 00:20:21.619 --> 00:20:23.279 of Washington, I'm really proud of you. Great 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:32.720 job. Great job. Now, why did I stop there? Because 00:20:32.720 --> 00:20:36.099 I need you to understand that just even in that 00:20:36.099 --> 00:20:38.819 illustration, just in that moment, Dakota taking 00:20:38.819 --> 00:20:42.400 something beyond basic and saying, I want to 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:46.240 move to a level of going further and deeper because 00:20:46.240 --> 00:20:51.539 there's more. See, every single one of us should 00:20:51.539 --> 00:20:54.079 have something inside of us that says, I don't 00:20:54.079 --> 00:20:57.900 want just to live at the lowest common denominator. 00:20:58.759 --> 00:21:03.539 I want to go to kingdom school. I want to live 00:21:03.539 --> 00:21:07.400 in kingdom partnership. I want to, if you will, 00:21:07.539 --> 00:21:13.619 be a Jesus ranger. Come on. Not afraid of anything, 00:21:13.779 --> 00:21:18.240 air, land, and sea. Come on. And that's the whole 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:21.900 point, is that God's plan and purpose for us 00:21:21.900 --> 00:21:25.920 from the very start of his Seed understanding 00:21:25.920 --> 00:21:31.079 of bringing salvation to us, quickening us, is 00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:34.740 meant to bring us into discipleship that would 00:21:34.740 --> 00:21:39.619 lead us into the life of more. You see, our Heavenly 00:21:39.619 --> 00:21:41.940 Father, we can put this on the screen, our Heavenly 00:21:41.940 --> 00:21:47.680 Father is the giver of supreme gifts. He's the 00:21:47.680 --> 00:21:51.000 supreme gift giver, which means if he's the supreme 00:21:51.000 --> 00:21:54.769 gift giver, his gifts are supreme. That means 00:21:54.769 --> 00:21:58.349 all good gifts. Think of it. Every good gift 00:21:58.349 --> 00:22:02.930 that we have is from the father is full of light 00:22:02.930 --> 00:22:06.190 and life and is good. That's what it says in 00:22:06.190 --> 00:22:08.210 James. Let's just look at the scripture. James 00:22:08.210 --> 00:22:14.450 1 17. Every good gift and perfect gift is from 00:22:14.450 --> 00:22:18.049 above coming down from the father of lights. 00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:24.099 in whom there is no variation or shadow due to 00:22:24.099 --> 00:22:29.599 change. Man, that is incredible. First of all, 00:22:29.619 --> 00:22:33.059 it's a promise to us saying, listen, God's goodness 00:22:33.059 --> 00:22:36.680 and his nature, he doesn't have a sliding scale 00:22:36.680 --> 00:22:40.980 of how he visits you in the morning or the evening. 00:22:42.160 --> 00:22:45.809 There's no change with him. He didn't wait for 00:22:45.809 --> 00:22:47.809 one generation to say, well, I really love that 00:22:47.809 --> 00:22:53.430 generation, but this generation, no, no, no. 00:22:53.450 --> 00:22:57.869 Every good and perfect gift comes down from the 00:22:57.869 --> 00:23:01.990 father of lights of whom there's no variation, 00:23:02.069 --> 00:23:06.309 meaning that every gift is pure. Every gift is 00:23:06.309 --> 00:23:10.329 true. Every gift is holy. That means you can't. 00:23:10.759 --> 00:23:15.460 Find something that's adverse with what God says 00:23:15.460 --> 00:23:19.759 he gives. And any attempt to do so. Please hear 00:23:19.759 --> 00:23:23.539 me on this. Any attempt to do so is actually 00:23:23.539 --> 00:23:29.680 speaking falsehood against his gift. Please look 00:23:29.680 --> 00:23:32.970 at the scripture. See, I'm trying to uncover 00:23:32.970 --> 00:23:36.690 some of the old things that we were raised with 00:23:36.690 --> 00:23:38.609 for some of us that have been in Christianity 00:23:38.609 --> 00:23:41.789 for a long time. Sometimes we pick up things 00:23:41.789 --> 00:23:45.369 and we pick up cliches and we buy philosophies 00:23:45.369 --> 00:23:49.029 that are built on human experience rather than 00:23:49.029 --> 00:23:52.930 the truth of God's word solidifying it and then 00:23:52.930 --> 00:23:55.349 trying to find our experience with that truth. 00:23:56.940 --> 00:24:02.140 We've got to remove this idea that because somebody 00:24:02.140 --> 00:24:04.619 had a bad experience or somebody didn't have 00:24:04.619 --> 00:24:08.019 this or that, that the gift that God says is 00:24:08.019 --> 00:24:14.279 from him isn't really good anymore. Oh, my, my, 00:24:14.279 --> 00:24:22.059 my. Of his own will, verse 18, of his own will, 00:24:22.140 --> 00:24:26.960 he brought us forth by the word of truth. That 00:24:26.960 --> 00:24:30.839 we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. 00:24:33.099 --> 00:24:35.019 So what are we saying? Well, we're saying, first 00:24:35.019 --> 00:24:38.119 of all, that our heavenly father's nature is 00:24:38.119 --> 00:24:42.819 a gift giver. Second, we are made in his likeness 00:24:42.819 --> 00:24:47.160 and his image. And that is a big deal. There 00:24:47.160 --> 00:24:51.460 is no variation with that. When we read it in 00:24:51.460 --> 00:24:56.410 Genesis 1, 26 and 27, it says, let us. Make man 00:24:56.410 --> 00:24:59.950 in our image after our likeness. God created 00:24:59.950 --> 00:25:03.829 man in his own image in the image of God. He 00:25:03.829 --> 00:25:06.349 created them male and female. He created them. 00:25:06.450 --> 00:25:10.069 Listen, after sin in the garden, God did not, 00:25:10.170 --> 00:25:14.630 Father did not stop being the creator and Father 00:25:14.630 --> 00:25:22.170 did not stop being Father. He can't change. He's 00:25:22.170 --> 00:25:26.849 still creator. He's still father. He's still 00:25:26.849 --> 00:25:33.809 giver. That's his nature. He's giver. The father 00:25:33.809 --> 00:25:37.529 continues to do what? Bring us back to what? 00:25:37.630 --> 00:25:40.450 In the Holy Spirit, what are we getting? What 00:25:40.450 --> 00:25:43.970 is God trying to restore in the New Testament 00:25:43.970 --> 00:25:47.170 that had previous generations had not been restored? 00:25:47.369 --> 00:25:50.769 Bringing us back to original purpose. Original 00:25:50.769 --> 00:25:55.880 purpose was what? Partnership with God. Walking 00:25:55.880 --> 00:25:59.900 with him, talking with him, and extending his 00:25:59.900 --> 00:26:03.700 will and his ways on the earth. You know, that 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:06.740 was the original intention. That's what the new 00:26:06.740 --> 00:26:10.880 covenant is about. Partnering, walking, fellowship, 00:26:11.119 --> 00:26:15.660 and extending his will through what? His word 00:26:15.660 --> 00:26:20.099 and his ways on the earth. I don't know how you 00:26:20.099 --> 00:26:23.700 could deviate from that. Because that was original 00:26:23.700 --> 00:26:27.460 purpose, when death came in because of sin. I'm 00:26:27.460 --> 00:26:30.599 not here to, I don't have time to extrapolate 00:26:30.599 --> 00:26:33.059 the difference between death and sin, but there's 00:26:33.059 --> 00:26:37.480 two different things. Sin came in, and because 00:26:37.480 --> 00:26:43.339 of sin, death had reign. But the reality is, 00:26:43.500 --> 00:26:50.680 prior to sin and death, men didn't think, oh. 00:26:51.849 --> 00:26:55.730 I wonder if there's another option. I wonder 00:26:55.730 --> 00:26:57.910 if there's an option just to believe that God 00:26:57.910 --> 00:27:01.130 is in the garden, but not actually walk in fellowship 00:27:01.130 --> 00:27:07.309 with him. I wonder if a man thought, sorry, I'm 00:27:07.309 --> 00:27:11.750 not trying to make anybody feel stupid, but if 00:27:11.750 --> 00:27:17.069 you feel ignorant today, maybe that's okay. Right? 00:27:17.210 --> 00:27:19.470 There's a big difference. Ignorant is uninformed. 00:27:20.809 --> 00:27:23.049 Stupid is just not believing what God's word 00:27:23.049 --> 00:27:37.210 said is true. Yep, there you go. You see, the 00:27:37.210 --> 00:27:43.130 reality is this. You have to understand what 00:27:43.130 --> 00:27:47.650 God's will is for your life. And you have to 00:27:47.650 --> 00:27:51.119 have that so clear. And it doesn't come as though 00:27:51.119 --> 00:27:54.519 a personal package for you. It comes by bringing 00:27:54.519 --> 00:27:57.740 you, you get the personal package after you accept 00:27:57.740 --> 00:28:05.140 the actual tour that he's providing. How many 00:28:05.140 --> 00:28:07.200 have ever been on a cruise before in this room? 00:28:07.299 --> 00:28:12.400 Anybody ever been, okay. Notice that you go in 00:28:12.400 --> 00:28:15.980 the general vicinity, but then they offer these 00:28:15.980 --> 00:28:21.329 things like personalized packages. That is in 00:28:21.329 --> 00:28:27.609 addition to what your general cruise is. Folks, 00:28:27.650 --> 00:28:29.569 that, if I could just say in a crude analogy, 00:28:29.750 --> 00:28:33.430 that is actually what Christianity is like. You 00:28:33.430 --> 00:28:38.130 get saved to get on the cruise to move you in 00:28:38.130 --> 00:28:40.589 the general will of God and the purpose. Once 00:28:40.589 --> 00:28:44.450 you embrace that and get on the ship, then the 00:28:44.450 --> 00:28:49.410 nuances of personalized visitation and personalized 00:28:49.410 --> 00:28:52.750 understanding of what his specific will is for 00:28:52.750 --> 00:28:55.910 you comes further into alignment. But if you 00:28:55.910 --> 00:28:59.150 want to stand on the dock and just say, I want 00:28:59.150 --> 00:29:00.950 to know what the will of God is by not getting 00:29:00.950 --> 00:29:03.250 on the ship or embracing the will of God, you'll 00:29:03.250 --> 00:29:05.470 never experience the personalization of what's 00:29:05.470 --> 00:29:09.170 supposed to happen. You actually have to get 00:29:09.170 --> 00:29:13.170 on the ship of what? Realizing what the scripture's 00:29:13.170 --> 00:29:16.630 intent was. It's to bring you back into fellowship, 00:29:16.769 --> 00:29:20.170 relationship, and to cause you to partner with 00:29:20.170 --> 00:29:23.190 God's will on the earth. And that's why Jesus 00:29:23.190 --> 00:29:25.670 had to spend such time in prayer with the disciples. 00:29:25.910 --> 00:29:29.150 He had to bring them back to your kingdom come, 00:29:29.369 --> 00:29:33.190 your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 00:29:33.690 --> 00:29:38.000 Now, If we understand that, and put this slide 00:29:38.000 --> 00:29:41.519 up there, that salvation is a gift from God and 00:29:41.519 --> 00:29:48.220 that this was Jesus' mission. This is the true 00:29:48.220 --> 00:29:53.680 mission of Jesus Christ as first priority. To 00:29:53.680 --> 00:29:59.579 bring about a reconciliation and a bridge to 00:29:59.579 --> 00:30:02.480 allow people to experience what they were cut 00:30:02.480 --> 00:30:06.359 off from because of what happened. in man's willful 00:30:06.359 --> 00:30:10.480 choice. So what is God primarily doing? He's 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:13.599 reestablishing as a gift giver righteousness, 00:30:14.039 --> 00:30:19.319 sanctification, justification, redemption, and 00:30:19.319 --> 00:30:23.059 restoration. Those are all gifts to you in salvation. 00:30:23.759 --> 00:30:28.000 That's a perfect gift to you. Sanctification, 00:30:28.380 --> 00:30:32.470 justification. righteousness, redemption, restoration, 00:30:32.650 --> 00:30:36.630 all of those things we cannot access except through 00:30:36.630 --> 00:30:39.329 the blood of Jesus Christ and except through 00:30:39.329 --> 00:30:44.069 we believe by faith that he is God's answer to 00:30:44.069 --> 00:30:50.150 bridge that gap in which we have no hope to close 00:30:50.150 --> 00:30:54.569 it without him. This is what it says in Ephesians. 00:30:54.630 --> 00:30:56.970 You guys know this, but listen, think of it just 00:30:56.970 --> 00:31:00.700 with the lens of Holy Spirit. For by grace you 00:31:00.700 --> 00:31:06.640 have been saved through faith. Notice the highlight 00:31:06.640 --> 00:31:10.720 here. That the Apostle Paul is writing, as the 00:31:10.720 --> 00:31:12.819 Holy Spirit is writing to the Ephesian church 00:31:12.819 --> 00:31:16.599 about how much is in their inheritance in Christ. 00:31:16.779 --> 00:31:18.819 He says, listen, you need to understand something. 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:22.599 You've been, by grace, God's divine enablement, 00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:29.339 you have been saved through faith. So faith, 00:31:29.539 --> 00:31:31.880 every one of us here that professes Jesus Christ, 00:31:32.140 --> 00:31:39.119 you had to access it through what? Faith. Yes? 00:31:39.960 --> 00:31:42.920 God provided, he gave you a measure of faith. 00:31:43.119 --> 00:31:46.319 He provided the blood of his son as propitiation 00:31:46.319 --> 00:31:49.400 for atonement. He also released the spirit of 00:31:49.400 --> 00:31:53.099 grace that would come, what? Draw you to himself 00:31:53.099 --> 00:31:55.539 because he's loved you before you were ever even 00:31:55.539 --> 00:31:58.460 aware of him so that you might encounter his 00:31:58.460 --> 00:32:02.759 word and truth, but you can't just accept it 00:32:02.759 --> 00:32:06.660 mentally. You actually have to confess it. That's 00:32:06.660 --> 00:32:09.359 what Romans 10, nine is. If I believe in my, 00:32:09.480 --> 00:32:12.599 heart and confess with my mouth that God has 00:32:12.599 --> 00:32:15.519 raised Jesus from the dead I shall be saved what 00:32:15.519 --> 00:32:19.220 was the issue it has to go in you and through 00:32:19.220 --> 00:32:24.440 you to believe and then you apprehend it Even 00:32:24.440 --> 00:32:26.920 though it's been released already from Calvary. 00:32:26.960 --> 00:32:30.519 Here we are 2 ,000 years later. It's been released 00:32:30.519 --> 00:32:34.500 from Calvary and the risen tomb of God. And it's 00:32:34.500 --> 00:32:37.740 been available. The only way it becomes available 00:32:37.740 --> 00:32:41.059 for you to walk in it is that you have to accept 00:32:41.059 --> 00:32:48.859 what is actually given by faith. So every one 00:32:48.859 --> 00:32:51.700 of you that loves Jesus and has said, I'm a born 00:32:51.700 --> 00:32:54.059 again believer, I've been born from above, had 00:32:54.059 --> 00:32:58.400 to do what? You had to receive that truth and 00:32:58.400 --> 00:33:04.480 that spiritual reality by what? Faith. By what? 00:33:04.779 --> 00:33:07.440 Faith. Okay, half of you are getting it. By what? 00:33:07.779 --> 00:33:11.720 Faith. By faith. Do you know how everything else 00:33:11.720 --> 00:33:16.420 that Jesus gives is accepted? Okay, six of you. 00:33:17.390 --> 00:33:23.890 By what? Faith. Every good and perfect gift doesn't 00:33:23.890 --> 00:33:27.470 change how you receive it. You have to receive 00:33:27.470 --> 00:33:33.589 it by what? Faith. It is fundamentally the very 00:33:33.589 --> 00:33:37.970 currency of the kingdom. And when, and here's 00:33:37.970 --> 00:33:41.210 what happens, when doubt and unbelief, oh my 00:33:41.210 --> 00:33:45.430 goodness. Just looking at Troy makes me say doubt 00:33:45.430 --> 00:33:50.329 and unbelief. No, just kidding. When doubt and 00:33:50.329 --> 00:33:56.089 unbelief come in, what happens? You begin to 00:33:56.089 --> 00:34:04.390 wonder whether you want to receive it. And so 00:34:04.390 --> 00:34:07.849 one of the reasons that we don't walk in kingdom 00:34:07.849 --> 00:34:11.510 partnership is that there are places in our mind 00:34:11.510 --> 00:34:14.369 and our heart that the teaching of Jesus Christ's 00:34:14.369 --> 00:34:17.889 word is so absolutely real. And it's not just 00:34:17.889 --> 00:34:22.050 one odd verse. It's verse after verse after verse 00:34:22.050 --> 00:34:25.730 after verse. But somewhere, doubt and unbelief 00:34:25.730 --> 00:34:28.849 creeped in through wrong philosophy or an argument 00:34:28.849 --> 00:34:31.429 of somebody else's experience. And what did it 00:34:31.429 --> 00:34:35.289 do? It put a pin that stopped faith from moving 00:34:35.289 --> 00:34:40.179 forward. And therefore you hear it here, but 00:34:40.179 --> 00:34:43.239 you, because of doubt and a belief and a mindset, 00:34:43.360 --> 00:34:46.500 you haven't really been able to receive it. And 00:34:46.500 --> 00:34:50.860 then you try to receive something cerebrally 00:34:50.860 --> 00:34:56.960 versus from the heart. Let me, are we getting 00:34:56.960 --> 00:34:59.989 this? Because we're moving forward. And you've 00:34:59.989 --> 00:35:03.090 got to begin to see that this is the language 00:35:03.090 --> 00:35:06.710 and the atmosphere of heaven in order to partner 00:35:06.710 --> 00:35:13.409 with the kingdom. This is not an issue this morning 00:35:13.409 --> 00:35:15.989 of whether or not you're saved. You're saved 00:35:15.989 --> 00:35:18.349 by the grace of God, by the blood of Jesus, and 00:35:18.349 --> 00:35:21.150 you had to have faith to do it. This is now... 00:35:21.469 --> 00:35:24.969 After you're saved, how do you hook up to the 00:35:24.969 --> 00:35:28.329 will of God and the will of God for your life 00:35:28.329 --> 00:35:32.269 in kingdom partnership? Your job is to begin 00:35:32.269 --> 00:35:35.369 to ask the Lord through his word and through 00:35:35.369 --> 00:35:43.630 his spirit, where do I not believe? That's why 00:35:43.630 --> 00:35:46.449 Jesus... let's just go back to it that's why 00:35:46.449 --> 00:35:49.809 Jesus would tell the disciples before he ever 00:35:49.809 --> 00:35:53.110 taught them to pray don't do these two things 00:35:53.110 --> 00:35:58.489 because if you bring this into your prayer you 00:35:58.489 --> 00:36:01.110 bring the nature of hypocrisy into your prayer 00:36:01.110 --> 00:36:07.300 or you bring culture's mandate of how they think 00:36:07.300 --> 00:36:10.539 God will hear them through superstition and through 00:36:10.539 --> 00:36:13.099 the number of times of how they pray. You know, 00:36:13.119 --> 00:36:15.019 just kind of praying with your tongue and your 00:36:15.019 --> 00:36:21.860 foot up and, you know. No. You'd be shocked at 00:36:21.860 --> 00:36:25.980 how many cultures of the world and ideas that 00:36:25.980 --> 00:36:29.260 are out there in religion of how their God might 00:36:29.260 --> 00:36:31.909 answer their prayer. All you have to do is look 00:36:31.909 --> 00:36:35.409 at Elijah on Mount Carmel and see how the people 00:36:35.409 --> 00:36:37.789 who followed Baal, what they thought they had 00:36:37.789 --> 00:36:41.190 to do to actually get their God's attention. 00:36:41.449 --> 00:36:44.769 Fact is, if you want to think Elijah was always 00:36:44.769 --> 00:36:49.130 in the spirit of sweetness and softness, his 00:36:49.130 --> 00:36:52.590 taunt to them was, talk louder. He's relieving 00:36:52.590 --> 00:36:56.650 himself in the heavenly toilet. That's what that 00:36:56.650 --> 00:37:00.690 Hebrew means. He was relieving himself so he's 00:37:00.690 --> 00:37:05.150 gone to take a number two and your prayers aren't 00:37:05.150 --> 00:37:12.070 hitting him. Elijah was mocking them. I take 00:37:12.070 --> 00:37:19.590 great joy in that. So you need to understand 00:37:19.590 --> 00:37:27.269 the nature here. The nature here is what? I got 00:37:27.269 --> 00:37:33.190 to begin to ask the Lord where I really am stuck 00:37:33.190 --> 00:37:38.590 not receiving what you have said is true. And 00:37:38.590 --> 00:37:41.670 that's why having a lens of the Holy Spirit to 00:37:41.670 --> 00:37:46.170 see it afresh. Lord, you promised the Holy Spirit. 00:37:46.230 --> 00:37:48.769 You promised he was good. He's of your nature. 00:37:48.909 --> 00:37:55.599 He's part of the Trinity. He can't. be bad. He 00:37:55.599 --> 00:38:00.139 can't even be kind of bad. He has to be wholly 00:38:00.139 --> 00:38:04.119 good because he's God good, God holy, God righteous, 00:38:04.280 --> 00:38:08.199 God true. And everything he does is God perfect. 00:38:09.380 --> 00:38:13.880 Where have I pigeonholed him to somehow say he's 00:38:13.880 --> 00:38:21.579 not who he says he is? How about God is the nature 00:38:21.579 --> 00:38:25.019 of a gift giver. Romans 11, 28, concerning the 00:38:25.019 --> 00:38:27.500 gospel. Now this is a big one. Concerning the 00:38:27.500 --> 00:38:31.579 gospel, they, who's the they? Israel, are enemies 00:38:31.579 --> 00:38:36.000 for your sake. Meaning right now, Paul was talking 00:38:36.000 --> 00:38:39.739 about right now, natural Israel is persecuting 00:38:39.739 --> 00:38:44.579 you who have faith in Jesus as the Messiah. But 00:38:44.579 --> 00:38:48.480 concerning election, meaning what? The foreknowledge 00:38:48.480 --> 00:38:51.679 of God and his purpose of who he wants to be 00:38:51.679 --> 00:38:55.739 saved. They are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 00:38:56.119 --> 00:38:59.579 And then he makes this question. For the gifts 00:38:59.579 --> 00:39:05.920 and the callings of God are irrevocable. The 00:39:05.920 --> 00:39:10.880 word irrevocable in the English is different. 00:39:11.949 --> 00:39:15.050 Because in the Greek, it defines it with this. 00:39:15.110 --> 00:39:18.090 It means irrevocable, and the Greek means without 00:39:18.090 --> 00:39:27.010 regret. Or without repentance. Meaning there's 00:39:27.010 --> 00:39:32.909 no changing of the way God thinks. When there's 00:39:32.909 --> 00:39:35.070 a foreknowledge and election, it means that he 00:39:35.070 --> 00:39:39.380 refuses to... think a different way because it's 00:39:39.380 --> 00:39:46.739 been fixed and firm in his mind. This is the 00:39:46.739 --> 00:39:51.280 whole point. It's not contingent on your action 00:39:51.280 --> 00:39:54.980 or even your belief. It is what he says it is 00:39:54.980 --> 00:40:02.260 regardless. which makes it irrevocable, not because 00:40:02.260 --> 00:40:06.760 it's made irrevocable by man. It's irrevocable 00:40:06.760 --> 00:40:11.579 in God because he changes not. And if he swore 00:40:11.579 --> 00:40:15.800 by himself, he cannot undo what he swore. It 00:40:15.800 --> 00:40:20.230 is now. Not regrettable even though he regrets 00:40:20.230 --> 00:40:24.429 the behavior and he hates the sin. His promise 00:40:24.429 --> 00:40:27.510 to his foreknowledge because he's eternal. Just 00:40:27.510 --> 00:40:30.449 like the same principle why you get your gifts 00:40:30.449 --> 00:40:34.409 and why you get the grace of God is that he swore 00:40:34.409 --> 00:40:38.769 by himself and he doesn't ever regret or change 00:40:38.769 --> 00:40:42.510 his mind how he feels about you or what he chooses 00:40:42.510 --> 00:40:46.030 to give you through the Holy Spirit. That's a 00:40:46.030 --> 00:40:50.559 big deal. Because one of the greatest lies is 00:40:50.559 --> 00:40:54.139 this. One of the greatest lies is that when you 00:40:54.139 --> 00:40:57.360 decide, if you decided to backslide or you decided 00:40:57.360 --> 00:41:00.159 to allow something that where you began to not 00:41:00.159 --> 00:41:02.980 live and you turned away for a season, the biggest 00:41:02.980 --> 00:41:05.920 lie of the accuser that will come to your door 00:41:05.920 --> 00:41:10.980 is saying, well, you need to just give up on 00:41:10.980 --> 00:41:13.840 hope that God can use you now. Just be content. 00:41:14.059 --> 00:41:16.980 The fact that he's forgiven you and you're back 00:41:16.980 --> 00:41:24.500 in. That whole lie of, I can't be used again 00:41:24.500 --> 00:41:28.340 in the things of the kingdom. I can't flow in 00:41:28.340 --> 00:41:30.380 kingdom partnership if I've walked away or I 00:41:30.380 --> 00:41:33.519 backslid or I've made some mistakes that I just 00:41:33.519 --> 00:41:35.639 need to be content with. God just saved me and 00:41:35.639 --> 00:41:38.260 that's enough. Well, principally, yes, it is 00:41:38.260 --> 00:41:40.119 enough. If that's all he did would save you. 00:41:40.159 --> 00:41:42.570 It's more than enough. But that is never the 00:41:42.570 --> 00:41:45.590 nature of the gift giver, what he says in the 00:41:45.590 --> 00:41:48.110 scriptures. The gifts that he's given you and 00:41:48.110 --> 00:41:51.849 set aside for you are not based on your behavior. 00:41:52.130 --> 00:41:57.250 It's based on his character. And therefore, he 00:41:57.250 --> 00:42:02.190 does never, does he regret giving of himself 00:42:02.190 --> 00:42:08.050 to you. Of every dimension. Why? Because he's 00:42:08.050 --> 00:42:12.300 good. He's full of light and every gift he gives 00:42:12.300 --> 00:42:15.980 is not on your qualification. If it was, none 00:42:15.980 --> 00:42:19.519 of us could get saved. And I would just say this, 00:42:19.539 --> 00:42:23.300 use this philosophy and filter in everything. 00:42:23.500 --> 00:42:26.579 If God gave you salvation through faith, which 00:42:26.579 --> 00:42:29.179 you did not deserve, it was by grace. You have 00:42:29.179 --> 00:42:32.019 to use the same filter with what all the other 00:42:32.019 --> 00:42:35.139 gifts that God wants to give you. He didn't change 00:42:35.139 --> 00:42:42.139 filters halfway through. Now notice what he says 00:42:42.139 --> 00:42:44.260 here. I'm actually getting to John 4. We're here. 00:42:47.800 --> 00:42:51.280 Notice what he says. Now, God would never regret. 00:42:51.579 --> 00:42:54.559 He would not repent of giving gifts of himself. 00:42:55.559 --> 00:42:59.400 Because every gift you get from God is from himself. 00:43:01.079 --> 00:43:05.920 Please hear me say that. You get a gift of him. 00:43:08.139 --> 00:43:11.139 In anything that the Holy Spirit does and gives 00:43:11.139 --> 00:43:16.059 you, it's from him. Can we partner with it and 00:43:16.059 --> 00:43:20.019 malign it and make mistakes with it and jack 00:43:20.019 --> 00:43:26.159 it up? Yes. Let me just say that again. Can you 00:43:26.159 --> 00:43:30.480 mess it up? Again, pretty weak. Can you mess 00:43:30.480 --> 00:43:38.650 it up? Okay, did the disciples mess it up? Did 00:43:38.650 --> 00:43:42.809 God just say, he did say, how long must I be 00:43:42.809 --> 00:43:47.829 with these? He did say that. But he didn't say, 00:43:47.929 --> 00:43:56.010 revoked. Canceled. Stupid. He didn't say that. 00:43:57.329 --> 00:44:02.670 Never said that. He corrected it. He rebuked 00:44:02.670 --> 00:44:09.150 them. Why? Because he loved them and he didn't 00:44:09.150 --> 00:44:13.869 want his gift maligned, mistreated, or misrepresented. 00:44:15.590 --> 00:44:19.550 So when you don't want to be corrected or rebuked 00:44:19.550 --> 00:44:22.510 in the spirit of God's word and wholeness of 00:44:22.510 --> 00:44:26.090 it, you want to actually do something different 00:44:26.090 --> 00:44:31.119 than him. Part of what keeps that gift clean 00:44:31.119 --> 00:44:34.420 is your willingness to actually be adjusted and 00:44:34.420 --> 00:44:38.840 shifted based on the purity of his word. All 00:44:38.840 --> 00:44:43.800 right, moving on. Now, John chapter four, you're 00:44:43.800 --> 00:44:48.000 there. Verse 10. I want to focus on this in the 00:44:48.000 --> 00:44:51.679 five minutes I have left. Jenny, if you want 00:44:51.679 --> 00:44:59.980 to come and give me some believing music. Jesus 00:44:59.980 --> 00:45:03.340 answered her and said, I'd love to give you the 00:45:03.340 --> 00:45:06.000 10 verses, but I can't right now. He said, now 00:45:06.000 --> 00:45:08.699 listen, I want this to be a highlight as you 00:45:08.699 --> 00:45:14.300 go through John 4 again. If you knew, everybody 00:45:14.300 --> 00:45:20.079 say knew. If you knew the gift of God and who 00:45:20.079 --> 00:45:24.159 it is that is saying to you, give me a drink, 00:45:24.360 --> 00:45:29.880 you would have asked him, And he would have given 00:45:29.880 --> 00:45:33.980 you living water. Now, I don't want to move into 00:45:33.980 --> 00:45:36.619 the gift of living water. I want to focus on 00:45:36.619 --> 00:45:41.960 the, if you knew. Jesus was getting at something 00:45:41.960 --> 00:45:45.300 with the woman at the well here. He was revealing 00:45:45.300 --> 00:45:49.820 himself. This is why, in my opinion, this is 00:45:49.820 --> 00:45:54.440 one of the reasons of why this dialogue is so 00:45:54.440 --> 00:45:58.360 long in the book of John. You know, you think 00:45:58.360 --> 00:46:02.019 about the book of John. It's an incredible book, 00:46:02.099 --> 00:46:06.059 but man, most of the book is about the last week 00:46:06.059 --> 00:46:11.980 of Jesus in his time before he goes to the cross 00:46:11.980 --> 00:46:14.820 and after. I mean, three quarters of the book, 00:46:14.820 --> 00:46:19.099 or at least two thirds, is about from chapter, 00:46:19.239 --> 00:46:23.159 I think, like 11 forward, is about the last week. 00:46:23.460 --> 00:46:28.699 So in the first 11 chapters, There's three years 00:46:28.699 --> 00:46:34.320 and chapter four takes up, I mean, literally 00:46:34.320 --> 00:46:40.000 almost all except one small part of the whole 00:46:40.000 --> 00:46:43.559 chapter of John is given to this woman at the 00:46:43.559 --> 00:46:47.559 well. So there's way more in four that Jesus 00:46:47.559 --> 00:46:51.719 was highlighting. And he was saying, if you knew. 00:46:52.440 --> 00:46:55.739 Why was he saying, I got to get you to understand 00:46:55.739 --> 00:47:01.659 a lady that isn't part of Israel, but has been 00:47:01.659 --> 00:47:04.980 estranged from Israel and now is more Gentile 00:47:04.980 --> 00:47:09.400 than she was Jewish. If you knew God as a gift 00:47:09.400 --> 00:47:15.659 giver, if you knew what was the heart of the 00:47:15.659 --> 00:47:20.139 father, because what happened every time he tried 00:47:20.139 --> 00:47:24.460 to reveal truth? Every time she had an argument 00:47:24.460 --> 00:47:30.519 to try, not offensively, but her mind and her 00:47:30.519 --> 00:47:34.500 heart brought up arguments to every point that 00:47:34.500 --> 00:47:38.460 Jesus was working his way onto the inside to 00:47:38.460 --> 00:47:42.380 change her perspective. He was revealing to her 00:47:42.380 --> 00:47:49.159 how many areas, her belief, her unbelief, the 00:47:49.159 --> 00:47:53.539 culture. of her day, the culture of her community 00:47:53.539 --> 00:47:57.699 had separated her from knowing the truth of who 00:47:57.699 --> 00:48:05.000 Jesus really was. And a lot of us, a lot of us 00:48:05.000 --> 00:48:12.739 are in that boat. The Father's nature, as Jesus 00:48:12.739 --> 00:48:15.909 was revealing to the Samaritan woman, was to 00:48:15.909 --> 00:48:19.650 give of himself. If you knew the gift of God, 00:48:19.789 --> 00:48:24.949 he was saying what? God is here to give you of 00:48:24.949 --> 00:48:30.030 himself. She couldn't, she could hardly, she 00:48:30.030 --> 00:48:32.550 couldn't fathom it in the beginning of the conversation. 00:48:33.550 --> 00:48:38.300 She couldn't fathom it. Always had to take a 00:48:38.300 --> 00:48:41.039 step back and say, well, I know you say this 00:48:41.039 --> 00:48:44.360 and we say that. What are you, a Jew talking 00:48:44.360 --> 00:48:46.500 to me as Samaritan? Don't you know that the well 00:48:46.500 --> 00:48:49.460 is deep? Are you great? I mean, every single 00:48:49.460 --> 00:48:54.860 argument was highlighting arguments and doubt 00:48:54.860 --> 00:49:00.940 and unbelief and a disbelief that God would actually 00:49:00.940 --> 00:49:08.150 come down and find her or him. And want to give 00:49:08.150 --> 00:49:14.650 something to us. You see, that's the whole point. 00:49:15.050 --> 00:49:18.329 That if God wants to give something to you, he 00:49:18.329 --> 00:49:23.610 doesn't change. Doesn't change. He still wants 00:49:23.610 --> 00:49:27.449 to give gifts to you. He still wants to bring 00:49:27.449 --> 00:49:30.210 grace to you. He still wants to actually bring. 00:49:30.449 --> 00:49:32.769 Hey man, it's great to see you guys. Blessings 00:49:32.769 --> 00:49:36.949 on you. He still wants to actually. move into 00:49:36.949 --> 00:49:40.630 your life, remove doubt and unbelief. I mean, 00:49:40.630 --> 00:49:43.289 a lot of it here. No, I'm just messing with you. 00:49:43.349 --> 00:49:46.889 He wants to remove doubt and unbelief to do what? 00:49:46.969 --> 00:49:51.590 To give you himself in that place. You see, the 00:49:51.590 --> 00:49:55.010 goal of the Samaritan woman wasn't just to get 00:49:55.010 --> 00:49:58.489 her to worship at some mountain different than 00:49:58.489 --> 00:50:03.530 what she believed. The goal was to get her to 00:50:03.530 --> 00:50:07.510 bypass all of the philosophies that seemed so 00:50:07.510 --> 00:50:11.269 rigid in how she could approach God and begin 00:50:11.269 --> 00:50:14.690 to believe that God would actually give something 00:50:14.690 --> 00:50:18.849 to her because his nature doesn't see on the 00:50:18.849 --> 00:50:22.010 outside. He's always looking on the heart to 00:50:22.010 --> 00:50:26.489 give of himself. I'd like to close this morning. 00:50:27.130 --> 00:50:32.010 And if you would, just bow your heads for a moment 00:50:32.010 --> 00:50:42.099 and let's just... Wait on the Lord. Holy Spirit, 00:50:42.199 --> 00:50:54.119 we thank you. Lord, you are heaven's great administrator, 00:50:54.639 --> 00:50:59.460 facilitator, and giver of the Father's and the 00:50:59.460 --> 00:51:06.530 Son's heart, words, and love and i invite you 00:51:06.530 --> 00:51:13.150 i honor you as as the one who is both the spirit 00:51:13.150 --> 00:51:18.889 of truth you are the great counselor you are 00:51:18.889 --> 00:51:24.550 the great advocate attorney you are and bring 00:51:24.550 --> 00:51:31.250 the spirit of peace you are the one who brings 00:51:31.250 --> 00:51:34.530 conviction of sin, and you are the one that says, 00:51:34.710 --> 00:51:37.949 I'll never leave you or forsake you. I will come 00:51:37.949 --> 00:51:42.489 to you. I will not leave you orphan. Lord, every 00:51:42.489 --> 00:51:46.909 part of that is good. Every part of that is the 00:51:46.909 --> 00:51:50.429 nature of the Father and the Son, and that is 00:51:50.429 --> 00:51:57.510 who you are. You are God, Holy Spirit. But your 00:51:57.510 --> 00:52:03.429 assignment on the earth is to magnify the Lord 00:52:03.429 --> 00:52:14.389 Jesus Christ. To lift him up. To fill those that 00:52:14.389 --> 00:52:17.050 have received him so that they could honor him, 00:52:17.210 --> 00:52:23.429 worship him, and partner with him. But your first... 00:52:23.949 --> 00:52:27.210 if we could say it in human terms, your first 00:52:27.210 --> 00:52:32.250 priority for us is to draw people to him. If 00:52:32.250 --> 00:52:34.829 you're here this morning and you've not accepted 00:52:34.829 --> 00:52:41.110 Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, he's drawing 00:52:41.110 --> 00:52:47.159 you even now. He loves you. He's the one that 00:52:47.159 --> 00:52:50.159 the Bible says knows the Father's heart, even 00:52:50.159 --> 00:52:53.880 the deep things of God. And he draws you to the 00:52:53.880 --> 00:52:58.179 Father through the Son. The Son is what made 00:52:58.179 --> 00:53:01.760 a way to the Father. Jesus becoming the door 00:53:01.760 --> 00:53:05.380 that you enter through him and his name alone 00:53:05.380 --> 00:53:09.119 and his work alone. Do we get reconciled to the 00:53:09.119 --> 00:53:12.699 Holy Father? And the Holy Spirit is here to draw 00:53:12.699 --> 00:53:15.800 people to him. Whether you have You've never 00:53:15.800 --> 00:53:19.019 taken that step. The Spirit of God is active. 00:53:19.099 --> 00:53:23.619 It's here. He's drawing his creation to him. 00:53:24.239 --> 00:53:27.480 Or maybe you found yourself, even in the preaching 00:53:27.480 --> 00:53:30.860 of this word this morning, you might have been 00:53:30.860 --> 00:53:33.099 irritated, but then it moved from irritation 00:53:33.099 --> 00:53:36.940 to, is there something lacking? Have I stepped 00:53:36.940 --> 00:53:42.679 away? And that's the point that the Holy Spirit 00:53:42.679 --> 00:53:47.159 would say, don't stay in the far away position. 00:53:47.579 --> 00:53:53.719 Come back to relationship through my love and 00:53:53.719 --> 00:53:58.960 my grace. If you're in any one of those categories 00:53:58.960 --> 00:54:03.239 in just a few moments, I'm going to ask you to 00:54:03.239 --> 00:54:05.599 just lift your hand over your head and keep it 00:54:05.599 --> 00:54:10.190 lifted. I'm going to send somebody back to you 00:54:10.190 --> 00:54:14.230 to pray with you. If you're here this morning 00:54:14.230 --> 00:54:16.670 and you want to accept the Lord Jesus Christ 00:54:16.670 --> 00:54:20.510 as your savior, if you're here and you know you've 00:54:20.510 --> 00:54:22.849 walked away from the place of where he called 00:54:22.849 --> 00:54:25.329 you and you found yourself drifting and you've 00:54:25.329 --> 00:54:28.050 believed the lies of the accuser that you've 00:54:28.050 --> 00:54:30.929 had to just settle for mediocrity, if that's 00:54:30.929 --> 00:54:33.250 you and God is drawing you back, would you just 00:54:33.250 --> 00:54:35.690 be so kind right now and just say, that's me, 00:54:35.789 --> 00:54:38.940 I'm lifting my hand, I need. I need, yeah, just 00:54:38.940 --> 00:54:45.019 lift it up. Thank you, sir. I need, I need, right 00:54:45.019 --> 00:54:53.699 there. I need Jesus now. I need, right there, 00:54:53.719 --> 00:54:58.559 yes, right here. Thank you. I need Jesus now. 00:54:59.659 --> 00:55:02.380 I wanna come back into that fellowship. I wanna 00:55:02.380 --> 00:55:05.199 be introduced to the one. Who gave himself to 00:55:05.199 --> 00:55:08.579 me. I come back into alignment. I come for the 00:55:08.579 --> 00:55:11.900 very first time. Lord to engage you. And to invite 00:55:11.900 --> 00:55:15.679 you into my life. To be Lord and Savior. Lord 00:55:15.679 --> 00:55:20.239 cause me to be born again. It's not a flesh birthing. 00:55:20.380 --> 00:55:23.980 It's a spirit. Lord I'm being born from above. 00:55:24.139 --> 00:55:27.500 That I might learn to hear your voice. And walk 00:55:27.500 --> 00:55:31.519 in your truth. Is there anyone else? Before I 00:55:31.519 --> 00:55:37.320 close this. Come on. You have to move to him. 00:55:37.340 --> 00:55:43.659 I can't see him. Is there anyone else? Thank 00:55:43.659 --> 00:55:47.980 you, Jesus. So Father, you know what's going 00:55:47.980 --> 00:55:50.139 on in hearts today. I thank you for those that 00:55:50.139 --> 00:55:52.659 are responding. And I thank you for this church. 00:55:52.719 --> 00:55:56.179 I thank you for the people that are hungry and 00:55:56.179 --> 00:56:00.800 desirous to follow you, to love you. Lord, they're 00:56:00.800 --> 00:56:06.170 here because they want more of you. I'm asking 00:56:06.170 --> 00:56:08.429 you to bless them. I'm asking you to fill them. 00:56:09.170 --> 00:56:13.210 I'm asking you to strengthen them. Even as we 00:56:13.210 --> 00:56:17.489 pray today, let strength and joy fill their heart 00:56:17.489 --> 00:56:22.170 and their mind as we move together as a family 00:56:22.170 --> 00:56:27.130 and the house of the Lord in the joy of the journey 00:56:27.130 --> 00:56:30.389 of being your disciples. We love you, Jesus, 00:56:30.489 --> 00:56:40.760 and we bless you. In Jesus' holy name. We are 00:56:40.760 --> 00:56:45.159 so grateful for those who tune in each week and 00:56:45.159 --> 00:56:48.440 have given generously to this ministry. If you 00:56:48.440 --> 00:56:51.019 would like to give, click the link in the episode 00:56:51.019 --> 00:56:54.139 description below. You can also help us by subscribing 00:56:54.139 --> 00:56:56.679 to this podcast and sharing it with your friends 00:56:56.679 --> 00:57:00.059 and family. Lastly, if you are in need of prayer, 00:57:00.219 --> 00:57:06.019 send us a text message at 541 -625 -1365. We 00:57:06.019 --> 00:57:07.219 would love to pray with you.