1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,000 Well, how's everybody doing? 2 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:04,000 Good, it's good to see all of you. 3 00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:08,000 As he said, I am Pastor Mark Finnegan. 4 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Actually, I've been going to Harvest for 30 years. 5 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:17,000 Actually got saved 21 years ago. 6 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:20,000 And actually, I got, yes, I'm glad, 7 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:23,000 I'm glad a couple of people are excited about that. 8 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:27,000 But actually, I got saved at the Harvest Crusade, believe it or not. 9 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:30,000 I was actually working in San Bernardino, 10 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:35,000 and one of my co-workers, he just came up to me with an invite, 11 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:39,000 said, hey Mark, I want to invite you to the Harvest Crusade. 12 00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:41,000 And I said, to the Harvest Crusade? 13 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:47,000 I said, wait, is that that thing that they put on at Angel Stadium each and every year? 14 00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:50,000 And he actually got excited knowing that I knew about the crusade. 15 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:56,000 I said, wow, yes, that's what it is, the crusade. 16 00:00:56,000 --> 00:00:57,000 I want to invite you. 17 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:03,000 And I said, wait, wait, is that where like 40,000 Christians gather together? 18 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:05,000 Yes, I want to invite you. 19 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:06,000 Will you come? 20 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,000 I said, you're out of your mind. 21 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:10,000 There's no way I'm going to a crusade. 22 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:14,000 I don't know what all you do there, what you all gather around and sing kumbaya. 23 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:17,000 I don't know, but I'm not going. 24 00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:20,000 So I actually declined his invitation. 25 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:24,000 But I could not decline what the Holy Spirit was doing in my life. 26 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:27,000 And his name was Larry, and I'll never forget Larry. 27 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:30,000 I'm so thankful that he invited and he planted that seed. 28 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:37,000 But then weeks leading into the crusade, I just felt like just a strong desire that I needed to be there. 29 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:42,000 And so I went home, I was living with my live-in girlfriend for three years. 30 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:46,000 And I said, hey, honey, I think we need to go to the Harvest Crusade. 31 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:47,000 And she said, what? 32 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:48,000 The Harvest Crusade? 33 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,000 I said, yeah, I feel like we need to be there. 34 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:55,000 And so we went, we didn't go with my friend Larry. 35 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:57,000 We went all on our own. 36 00:01:57,000 --> 00:02:01,000 And I remember we were sitting out in left field there. 37 00:02:01,000 --> 00:02:03,000 And I don't remember all the music that was playing. 38 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:05,000 Well, I do remember one of the bands was The Cry. 39 00:02:05,000 --> 00:02:07,000 Does anybody remember The Cry? 40 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:08,000 Yeah, a few of you. 41 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:11,000 They were playing, but I don't remember any of the other bands. 42 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:18,000 But I remember when Greg opened up his Bible and he preached the word of God. 43 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:21,000 Man, it hit me like a ton of bricks. 44 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:23,000 And I just knew I needed to respond. 45 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:25,000 And so I got up out of my seat. 46 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:26,000 I said, forget my live-in girlfriend. 47 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:29,000 I'm going to go make a commitment to follow Jesus Christ. 48 00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:34,000 And I got up and I, yes, praise the Lord, right? 49 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:38,000 And as I got to the field, I kind of felt someone, you know, when somebody's too close to you, 50 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:40,000 kind of look back, it's my live-in girlfriend. 51 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:44,000 She's actually committing her life to Jesus Christ as well. 52 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:46,000 And so we prayed to receive Christ. 53 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:51,000 And you're probably wondering, well, Mark, what happened to that live-in girlfriend? 54 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:53,000 Well, I'm still living with her. 55 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:56,000 But we got married one week later. 56 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:59,000 Yes, so praise the Lord for that. 57 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:06,000 And so, yeah, I've been going to the church for 30 years, been on staff for 21 of those years. 58 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:10,000 And I'm just excited to see what the Lord's going to do. 59 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:12,000 We have Phil Wickham that's going to be there. 60 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:14,000 We have Chris Tomlin, Brooke Ligerwood. 61 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,000 Also, we're doing a tailgate event. 62 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:19,000 It starts at 2.30 out in the parking lot for all the youth. 63 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:22,000 So all you youth can then come out as well. 64 00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:25,000 But here's why I brought up that story. 65 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:33,000 It says in 2 Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 20, it says, what's your name? 66 00:03:33,000 --> 00:03:34,000 What's your name? 67 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:38,000 Mike? Nick? Okay, Nick. 68 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:42,000 It says in 2 Corinthians 5.20, to you, Nick. 69 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:43,000 Here's what it says. 70 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:53,000 It says, he, speaking of God, is making his plea through Nick that others may be reconciled. 71 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:56,000 But that's not just for Nick. 72 00:03:56,000 --> 00:03:59,000 God's speaking that to me as well. 73 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:02,000 But that's not just for me. 74 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:06,000 God is speaking that through all y'alls. 75 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:07,000 Did you hear what it said? 76 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:09,000 Tell him, Nick. I mean, here's what it says. 77 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:20,000 It says, he, speaking of God, is making his plea through all y'alls that others may be reconciled. 78 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:21,000 Wow. 79 00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:27,000 Well, I've entitled my message this morning, Prayer and Share. 80 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:30,000 And we're going to be looking at Colossians chapter 4. 81 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:33,000 We're going to look at verses 2 through 3. 82 00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:37,000 But again, for all my note takers, I've entitled the message Prayer and Share. 83 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:45,000 But before I jump in the message, I want to tell you of a story of this schoolteacher who was out of work. 84 00:04:45,000 --> 00:04:51,000 And she lived in England, and so she's out of work, so she's sending out her resumes to everyone. 85 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:55,000 Well, one makes it from England all the way over to Switzerland. 86 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:57,000 It was about a five-hour flight or something like that. 87 00:04:57,000 --> 00:04:59,000 And so they call her. 88 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:00,000 That was the only people that called her. 89 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:04,000 The school director called her and said, hey, I'd like you to interview for the position. 90 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,000 Well, she jumped on a plane and she flew over there. 91 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:10,000 She loved the position, loved everything about it. 92 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:13,000 She just, yes, I'll take the job. 93 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:16,000 And so she's talking to the school director afterwards. 94 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:19,000 She goes, oh, no, I mean, I've never been here. 95 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:22,000 I don't know where to look for a place to live. 96 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,000 Well, the school director, he actually tells her, he goes, it's funny you bring it up. 97 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:30,000 He says, my good friend has a place for rent, apartment for rent. 98 00:05:30,000 --> 00:05:32,000 If you want to go take a look at it, we can. 99 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:34,000 So they go look at the apartment. She loved it. 100 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:36,000 She signed the lease on the spot. 101 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:40,000 So she's ecstatic for her new venture in Switzerland. 102 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:43,000 So she's flying back home to England. 103 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:50,000 But she suddenly doesn't remember seeing a bathroom in or near the apartment that she was going to rent. 104 00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:52,000 Now, let me set this up. 105 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:57,000 In England, they call the bathroom the water closet or the WC. 106 00:05:57,000 --> 00:06:02,000 So she suddenly just emails the school director back. 107 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:04,000 She says, pardon me. 108 00:06:04,000 --> 00:06:07,000 I don't recall. I don't know why I'm talking like this. 109 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:09,000 But anyway, just pardon me. 110 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:15,000 I don't recall seeing a WC in or near the apartment I'm going to rent. 111 00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:17,000 Please advise. 112 00:06:17,000 --> 00:06:20,000 Well, he gets this email and says, WC. 113 00:06:20,000 --> 00:06:23,000 What's a WC? He didn't know. 114 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:26,000 And so he's asking everyone, do you know what a WC is? 115 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:29,000 Oh, I don't know what a WC is. 116 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:32,000 He's asking everyone. No one knows what a WC is. 117 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:37,000 Well, he finally asks his minister friend, do you know what a WC is? 118 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:40,000 And he says, well, of course I know what a WC is. 119 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:43,000 She's got to be talking about the Wayside Church. 120 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:46,000 So here's how he answered her back. 121 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:55,000 He said, yes, there is a WC, but it's located nine miles from the apartment in the middle of a beautiful row of trees. 122 00:06:55,000 --> 00:07:01,000 He went on to say, he says, it seats almost 150 at one time. 123 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:05,000 It's open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. 124 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:10,000 He goes on and says, some people bring their lunch and make a day of it. 125 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:13,000 On Thursdays, he said, there's an organ accompaniment. 126 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:15,000 The acoustics there are something else. 127 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:18,000 The slightest sound can be heard by everyone. 128 00:07:18,000 --> 00:07:21,000 Then he said, it may interest you. 129 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:25,000 My daughter met her husband at the WC. 130 00:07:25,000 --> 00:07:30,000 Then he said, sadly, my wife hasn't been able to attend regularly. 131 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:33,000 It's been about six months since she last went. 132 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:37,000 Naturally, he said, it pains her not to go more often. 133 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:43,000 Wow. I would say a slight misunderstanding, wouldn't you? 134 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:47,000 What about that scripture I just read to you guys? 135 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:58,000 That he, speaking of God, is making his plea through all of us that others may be redeemed. 136 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:01,000 I mean, there's got to be a misunderstanding, right? 137 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:04,000 Or what about Mark 16, 15? 138 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:08,000 I mean, these are words to us from our commander in chief. 139 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:10,000 And what does he say? 140 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:17,000 He says, go into all the world and preach the gospel. 141 00:08:17,000 --> 00:08:20,000 I don't think there's a misunderstanding there, do you? 142 00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:22,000 Or what about Mark 1, 17? 143 00:08:22,000 --> 00:08:24,000 This is Jesus speaking. 144 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:31,000 He said, follow me and I'll make you all fishers of men. 145 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:34,000 I think it's pretty clear, right? 146 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,000 No misunderstanding. 147 00:08:36,000 --> 00:08:42,000 Well, again, we're going to be in Colossians chapter 4, verses 2 through 6. 148 00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:44,000 As a matter of fact, let's read it together. 149 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:46,000 Let me find it here. 150 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:50,000 Colossians 4, verses 2 through 6. 151 00:08:50,000 --> 00:08:52,000 And here's what it says. 152 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:56,000 If you return there, it says this. 153 00:08:56,000 --> 00:09:05,000 It says, continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving. 154 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:19,000 Meanwhile, praying also for us that God would open to us a door for the word to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I'm also in chains. 155 00:09:19,000 --> 00:09:25,000 Verse 4, that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. 156 00:09:25,000 --> 00:09:31,000 Walk in wisdom towards those who are outside redeeming the time. 157 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:40,000 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. 158 00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:42,000 Wow. 159 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:49,000 Do you want to be more effective in sharing with others? 160 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:51,000 Well, listen to this. 161 00:09:51,000 --> 00:10:00,000 Before you can reach out to others, before you can reach out to man with the gospel, we first must reach up to God through prayer. 162 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:07,000 Listen, the power of your invite starts with the power of prayer. 163 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:10,000 We need to be praying people. 164 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:13,000 A famous pastor said this once. 165 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:17,000 He said, I wish to humble any one of y'all. 166 00:10:17,000 --> 00:10:23,000 If I wish to humble any one of you, I shall just question you about your prayer life. 167 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:26,000 I thought, wow, that's so true. 168 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:28,000 But we all know the importance of prayer, right? 169 00:10:28,000 --> 00:10:30,000 I mean, I can call on any of you. 170 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:34,000 Hey, would you come on up here and share a few minutes on the importance of prayer? 171 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:39,000 I mean, we could all get up here with no notes and talk about the importance of prayer. 172 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:42,000 We know about praying. 173 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:44,000 We ask about it. 174 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:45,000 We encourage it. 175 00:10:45,000 --> 00:10:47,000 We believe it. 176 00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:50,000 We'll even post things on our social media about it. 177 00:10:50,000 --> 00:10:53,000 But let me ask you a question. 178 00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:59,000 How often are you actually setting time aside to literally get on your knees 179 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:04,000 and pray for those who need to come to faith in Christ? 180 00:11:04,000 --> 00:11:05,000 But look what it says here. 181 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:08,000 It says to pray earnestly. 182 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:13,000 Look, it says in my Bible right here, continue earnestly in prayer. 183 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:17,000 That means when you pray or when I pray, here's what the word actually means. 184 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:22,000 It means to be persistent in it, to hold fast to it. 185 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:24,000 To do it often. 186 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,000 Don't let go of it. 187 00:11:26,000 --> 00:11:29,000 Continue in it. 188 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:31,000 Wait on and remain in. 189 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:33,000 That's what the word means. 190 00:11:33,000 --> 00:11:38,000 But listen, not only to continually pray, pray often be persistent. 191 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:39,000 But look what it says. 192 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:41,000 Being vigilant in it. 193 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:46,000 That word, it means to stay awake while praying. 194 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:48,000 Quick poll. 195 00:11:48,000 --> 00:11:52,000 How many of you think it actually works to stay awake when you pray? 196 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:54,000 Yes, we all do, right? 197 00:11:54,000 --> 00:11:58,000 But when do you find yourself doing most of your serious praying? 198 00:11:58,000 --> 00:12:04,000 Isn't it not at night, at the end of the day, when you're all comfy in your bed, 199 00:12:04,000 --> 00:12:06,000 but then what ends up happening? 200 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:10,000 You end up falling asleep before you end up finishing your prayer, right? 201 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:11,000 I mean, does this sound familiar? 202 00:12:11,000 --> 00:12:15,000 So you just, you have your work day. 203 00:12:15,000 --> 00:12:18,000 You work late, you get home late. 204 00:12:18,000 --> 00:12:24,000 Or you just maybe don't work, maybe just have the things of the day you have to do. 205 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:25,000 Just whatever. 206 00:12:25,000 --> 00:12:27,000 You know your busy day. 207 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:30,000 And when you get home from work or whatever, you don't clock out. 208 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:31,000 You have to clock back in. 209 00:12:31,000 --> 00:12:33,000 Some of us have kids. 210 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:34,000 We've got to fix dinner. 211 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:36,000 We've got to get in the bath. 212 00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:40,000 You know, just the craziness of the day. 213 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:41,000 So then you have dinner. 214 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:43,000 You've got to take out the trash. 215 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:44,000 You've got a mobile on. 216 00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:46,000 You've got to get to doing all this stuff. 217 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:49,000 And then you figure, okay, I'm beat now. 218 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:50,000 I've got to take a shower. 219 00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:53,000 And the next thing you know, it's like 9.30, going on 10 o'clock. 220 00:12:53,000 --> 00:12:56,000 And you finally rest in your bed. 221 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:59,000 So you get in your cozy bed. 222 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:01,000 You've got your one or two pillows. 223 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:03,000 How many of you are more than two pillow people? 224 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:05,000 Yes, okay. 225 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:07,000 Just want to make sure who I'm talking to here. 226 00:13:07,000 --> 00:13:10,000 But you get your cozy blanket. 227 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:12,000 Now you're all tired. 228 00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:17,000 You've got to turn on your fan. 229 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:19,000 How many of you are fan people? 230 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:21,000 Yes, you are all weird. 231 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:22,000 I don't know why. 232 00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:24,000 It's always about half the congregation. 233 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:25,000 Half of you are weird. 234 00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:27,000 My wife is weird as well. 235 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:29,000 So you're in good company. 236 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:32,000 But I don't get you. 237 00:13:32,000 --> 00:13:35,000 I mean, she will turn on the fan even in the winter. 238 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:37,000 I mean, I kind of understand it in the summer, right? 239 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:38,000 It's blazing hot out. 240 00:13:38,000 --> 00:13:40,000 But in the winter, I mean, she'll have the fan. 241 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:42,000 I can't fall asleep without it. 242 00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:43,000 I need to hear the noise. 243 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:45,000 So anyways, so you got your banki. 244 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:47,000 You got your two or three pillows. 245 00:13:47,000 --> 00:13:50,000 You got your fan blowing on you. 246 00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:52,000 And then that's when you're going to pray? 247 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:54,000 I mean, maybe you've done this. 248 00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:56,000 I most certainly have. 249 00:13:56,000 --> 00:14:07,000 You'll pray, Lord, I just pray for you. 250 00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:11,000 I pray for them. 251 00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:13,000 I mean, has that happened to you? 252 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:15,000 No, no, it doesn't happen to you guys. 253 00:14:15,000 --> 00:14:18,000 You guys are too godly, right? 254 00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:21,000 Did you know that actually happened to the disciples? 255 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:24,000 Actually, it's recorded in Mark 14. 256 00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:26,000 It's recorded in Mark 14, verse 32 through 14. 257 00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:27,000 Let me just read to you. 258 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:28,000 You can turn there. 259 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:32,000 It says, they came to the place which was named Gethsemane. 260 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:33,000 Let me just set this up for you. 261 00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:34,000 This is Gethsemane. 262 00:14:34,000 --> 00:14:39,000 This is the place right before Jesus can be betrayed, tried, and crucified. 263 00:14:39,000 --> 00:14:43,000 In another gospel, this is a serious, serious time. 264 00:14:43,000 --> 00:14:47,000 It says that he sweat as it were great drops of blood. 265 00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:49,000 Okay, so now I've set this up. 266 00:14:49,000 --> 00:14:51,000 This is a very, very serious time. 267 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:55,000 It says, he came to the place which was named Gethsemane, 268 00:14:55,000 --> 00:15:01,000 and Jesus said to his disciples, sit here while I pray. 269 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:05,000 And then it says, he took Peter, James, and John, he took his three boys with him, 270 00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:11,000 and it says, he began to be troubled, deeply distressed. 271 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:19,000 And then he said to them, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. 272 00:15:19,000 --> 00:15:22,000 Stay here and watch. 273 00:15:22,000 --> 00:15:28,000 That word watch, that word watch is the same word that we're using in Colossians, 274 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:30,000 chapter four, for be vigilant. 275 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:33,000 It says, stay here and watch. 276 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,000 Stay here and be vigilant. 277 00:15:36,000 --> 00:15:39,000 Stay here and stay awake. 278 00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:43,000 And then it says, he went a little further, and he fell on the ground. 279 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:47,000 And he prayed, if it were possible at this hour, my pastor, and he said, 280 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:50,000 Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. 281 00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:52,000 Take this cup from me. 282 00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:55,000 Nevertheless, not what I will, but what you will. 283 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:59,000 And then when he came back, what do you think he found his disciples doing? 284 00:15:59,000 --> 00:16:00,000 Sleeping. 285 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:03,000 It says right there, he came back and he found them sleeping. 286 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:08,000 And he said to Peter, Simon, are you sleeping? 287 00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:10,000 Could you not watch? 288 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:12,000 Could you not be vigilant? 289 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:15,000 Could you not stay awake one hour? 290 00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:20,000 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. 291 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:24,000 The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 292 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:27,000 And then it goes on to say, he went away and he prayed and spoke the same words. 293 00:16:27,000 --> 00:16:31,000 And when he returned, what do you think he found them doing again? 294 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:32,000 Sleeping. 295 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:34,000 When he returned, he found them asleep again. 296 00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:35,000 Now they have an excuse. 297 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:38,000 They said our eyes were heavy, but they didn't know how to answer him. 298 00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:39,000 An awkward moment. 299 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:45,000 But then he came the third time and said to them, are you still sleeping and resting? 300 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:46,000 It's enough. 301 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:48,000 The hour has come. 302 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:51,000 Behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed in the hands of sinners. 303 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:52,000 Rise, let us be going. 304 00:16:52,000 --> 00:16:55,000 See, my betrayer is at hand. 305 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:57,000 Wow. 306 00:16:57,000 --> 00:17:03,000 The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak, isn't it? 307 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:08,000 So how can we be more vigilant in our prayers? 308 00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:11,000 How can we stay awake in our prayers? 309 00:17:11,000 --> 00:17:14,000 How can we watch in our prayers? 310 00:17:14,000 --> 00:17:16,000 Here's three fast facts for you. 311 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:20,000 Why don't you try praying with your spouse? 312 00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:24,000 Before you go to bed, you just tell your spouse, we're going to pray. 313 00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:28,000 Before I fall asleep, we are going to pray. 314 00:17:28,000 --> 00:17:30,000 Try praying with your spouse. 315 00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:34,000 I mean, you tell her, hey, if I start falling asleep, you look up, you see me fall asleep, 316 00:17:34,000 --> 00:17:36,000 you have the authority to whack me. 317 00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:39,000 I mean, do anything you can, keep me awake. 318 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:44,000 I mean, but do you remember that you used to pray often with your spouse? 319 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:46,000 What happened? 320 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:47,000 That's true. 321 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:51,000 We used to pray for a lot of my family. 322 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,000 We used to pray for this and that. 323 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:56,000 I don't know what happened. 324 00:17:56,000 --> 00:18:01,000 Get with your spouse today and you tell her we're going to pray for this or that or this. 325 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:04,000 We're going to pray every night. 326 00:18:04,000 --> 00:18:06,000 Well, I don't have a spouse, Mark. 327 00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:08,000 What do you want me to do? 328 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,000 Get a prayer partner. 329 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:14,000 You call them up and say, hey, do you mind if I'm going to call you every night at nine o'clock 330 00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:16,000 and we're going to pray together. 331 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:19,000 That's how important it is. 332 00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:20,000 Here's another one. 333 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:23,000 Try praying aloud if you're alone. 334 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:24,000 I used to do this. 335 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:25,000 I asked my wife. 336 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:31,000 I would just go in my bedroom, shut the door, and I would be on the side of my bed, 337 00:18:31,000 --> 00:18:34,000 not cuddled up with my blankie and my two pillows and the fan. 338 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:35,000 Nope, none of that. 339 00:18:35,000 --> 00:18:38,000 Just stand up and you pray aloud. 340 00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:42,000 You're not going to fall asleep if you're stand up praying aloud, are you? 341 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:48,000 Lord, I don't know what to do with this situation. 342 00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:51,000 I need you to intervene, please, Lord. 343 00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:53,000 So maybe pray aloud. 344 00:18:53,000 --> 00:18:55,000 Or here's another one. 345 00:18:55,000 --> 00:19:00,000 How about actually writing down your prayer request? 346 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:01,000 What? 347 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:03,000 You mean like what, a prayer journal? 348 00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:04,000 I'm a guy. 349 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:05,000 I don't prayer journal. 350 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:07,000 No, you prayer journal. 351 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:09,000 I mean, you can even write it on your phone. 352 00:19:09,000 --> 00:19:10,000 You didn't even write it down. 353 00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:12,000 We all have smartphones. 354 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:17,000 Let's allow them to be smart for once and write down our prayer request. 355 00:19:17,000 --> 00:19:22,000 I mean, I have prayer requests that I was praying for like eight years ago. 356 00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:25,000 And I just recently looked at them. 357 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:27,000 I was like, oh my goodness. 358 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:30,000 God answered that prayer. 359 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:33,000 And I completely forgot about it. 360 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:40,000 So it's good to write down your prayer request because then it also gives you the chance to give God the glory 361 00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:41,000 for the prayers that he's answered. 362 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:43,000 That's always good, right? 363 00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:45,000 You remember it happened to the ten lepers. 364 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:47,000 Remember the ten lepers that came up to Jesus? 365 00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:48,000 Oh, hell yes. 366 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:49,000 And so what did he do? 367 00:19:49,000 --> 00:19:51,000 He healed them, sent them to the temple. 368 00:19:51,000 --> 00:19:55,000 How many came back to give him glory for the work that he had done? 369 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:56,000 One. 370 00:19:56,000 --> 00:19:58,000 Where's the other nine? 371 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:02,000 So it's good to write down our prayer requests. 372 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:07,000 So being vigilant means when you pray to stay awake. 373 00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:09,000 That's what the word means. 374 00:20:09,000 --> 00:20:18,000 But the word also gives a broader implication, meaning to stay alert for specific needs that you should pray for. 375 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:23,000 So, for instance, the Crusades this Saturday. 376 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:25,000 Let me ask you a question. 377 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:29,000 Who have you physically invited? 378 00:20:29,000 --> 00:20:35,000 Who have you been praying for to come to this event? 379 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:43,000 I mean, we need a ton of Larry's like the co-worker that invited me. 380 00:20:43,000 --> 00:20:45,000 I didn't go with him, but he was praying for me. 381 00:20:45,000 --> 00:20:47,000 I guarantee you. 382 00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:51,000 Why would I just have a sense to go to the Crusade? 383 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:55,000 I guarantee you he was praying for me. 384 00:20:55,000 --> 00:21:02,000 Listen, your invitation, you praying for others, it's a spiritual, spiritual matter. 385 00:21:02,000 --> 00:21:07,000 The Bible says no one comes to him unless he is drawn. 386 00:21:07,000 --> 00:21:15,000 The Bible says that all are blinded by the God of this world, being Satan. 387 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:19,000 Our invitation is a spiritual matter. 388 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:26,000 The power behind your invite starts with the power of your prayers. 389 00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:29,000 But don't be generic about them. 390 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:31,000 You be specific about them. 391 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:37,000 So when I ask you, who are you praying for to come to the Crusade? 392 00:21:37,000 --> 00:21:39,000 You don't be generic. 393 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:45,000 Oh, well, I'm going to pray for my co-workers. 394 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:47,000 I'm praying for all my co-workers. 395 00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:48,000 No. 396 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:50,000 You be specific. 397 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:55,000 You say, man, I'm praying for my buddy John at work. 398 00:21:55,000 --> 00:21:57,000 And so you pray for him. 399 00:21:57,000 --> 00:22:00,000 Lord, I pray for John at work. 400 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:01,000 Lord, you know he's going through. 401 00:22:01,000 --> 00:22:03,000 I was passing by and I heard him talking to Mike. 402 00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:05,000 He's having problems in his marriage. 403 00:22:05,000 --> 00:22:06,000 Lord, would you intervene? 404 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:09,000 Use this to draw him to yourself. 405 00:22:09,000 --> 00:22:14,000 You see the difference between being generic and being specific? 406 00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:16,000 Who are you going to bring to the Crusade? 407 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:21,000 Who are you praying for to come to the Crusade? 408 00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:22,000 My family, yes. 409 00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:23,000 Yeah, Pastor Mark. 410 00:22:23,000 --> 00:22:26,000 I'm praying for my family. 411 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:28,000 No, you be specific. 412 00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:33,000 Lord, I'm praying for Debbie, my sister. 413 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:37,000 Lord, you know she's not walking with you. 414 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:39,000 Lord, and I love her so much. 415 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:42,000 But Lord, you love her more than I do. 416 00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:45,000 Lord, draw her into a relationship with you. 417 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:48,000 That's being specific. 418 00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:51,000 Listen, I have a challenge for you, and you all got one of these. 419 00:22:51,000 --> 00:22:54,000 You should have got one of these when you came in this morning. 420 00:22:54,000 --> 00:22:57,000 You handed them out, I think, about a month ago. 421 00:22:57,000 --> 00:23:03,000 But I want one of these in each of your hands, because I want to challenge you. 422 00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:08,000 Even if you wrote down five people already, write down five different people. 423 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:11,000 Write down the same five people. 424 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:16,000 And I want to encourage you to write them down, and then you take this home. 425 00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,000 You can put it in your Bible. 426 00:23:18,000 --> 00:23:20,000 You can stick it up on the mirror in your bathroom. 427 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:26,000 And if you just pray for them for a week, or some of you have been praying for a month, whatever. 428 00:23:26,000 --> 00:23:29,000 You pray for them earnestly and often. 429 00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:31,000 And God will hear your prayers. 430 00:23:31,000 --> 00:23:34,000 He may answer it to where they come to the crusade. 431 00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:39,000 He may answer it where you have those five people sitting next to you every Sunday hearing the gospel here. 432 00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:42,000 Or you may even have the opportunity to preach the gospel. 433 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:44,000 But pray for them. 434 00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:48,000 But listen, this is cool because you can write the five names down, 435 00:23:48,000 --> 00:23:51,000 but then we give you another opportunity to write it down again. 436 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:55,000 And then this is perforated, so you'll just bend it, tear it off. 437 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:59,000 And then you can dump it in the offering box, the prayer box, as you leave. 438 00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:04,000 And then that way, Nathan will have a ton of these that he'll be praying for you as well. 439 00:24:04,000 --> 00:24:09,000 Praying for all the people who you have listed. 440 00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:12,000 So let me ask you something. 441 00:24:12,000 --> 00:24:18,000 Would you be willing to just pray for a week? 442 00:24:18,000 --> 00:24:26,000 Would you be willing to write down the five names of people who are going to hell? 443 00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:30,000 And say, you know what? I'm going to commit to pray for them. 444 00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:33,000 I'm going to pray for them often for this whole week. 445 00:24:33,000 --> 00:24:37,000 I mean, if you are willing to do that, raise up your hand. 446 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:41,000 I'm serious. Raise up your hand. Everybody raise up your hand if you're willing to do that. 447 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,000 Keep it up. Keep it up. 448 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:46,000 Just a little accountability. 449 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:49,000 I'll send that to you later so you can, you know. 450 00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:53,000 Listen, we are to pray specifically for them. 451 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:56,000 And pray earnestly and often. 452 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:00,000 And then you invite them to the crusade like Larry did. 453 00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,000 And you'll see what the Lord will do. 454 00:25:03,000 --> 00:25:08,000 John Piper said this. He said, pray the locks off people's hearts. 455 00:25:08,000 --> 00:25:10,000 I like that. 456 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:17,000 There was a man who committed to pray often for, he had five friends. 457 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:19,000 His name was George Mueller. 458 00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:22,000 He was a godly guy. He lived in the 1800s. 459 00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:25,000 He had a wonderful ministry to orphans. 460 00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:29,000 But after Mueller, he became a Christian. 461 00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:31,000 He had five unbelieving friends. 462 00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:35,000 And he called them his target group. 463 00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:38,000 And he prayed for them every day. 464 00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:40,000 And listen to this. 465 00:25:40,000 --> 00:25:46,000 It was five years of him faithfully praying for his target list, for his five people. 466 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:51,000 Five years of him praying before the first one came to Christ. 467 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:53,000 Wow. 468 00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:55,000 But it doesn't stop there. 469 00:25:55,000 --> 00:26:01,000 It was ten years later of him faithfully praying for his five, or now his four people, 470 00:26:01,000 --> 00:26:05,000 praying for them, that ten years, it's unbelievable, 471 00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:09,000 ten years before his second friend came to Christ. 472 00:26:09,000 --> 00:26:13,000 Twenty-five years before his third friend came to Christ. 473 00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:15,000 And check this out. 474 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:21,000 Fifty years of him praying before his fourth friend came to Christ. 475 00:26:21,000 --> 00:26:31,000 And lastly, after Mueller's death, his last friend was converted two years after he had passed away. 476 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:33,000 Wow. 477 00:26:33,000 --> 00:26:35,000 That's being specific. 478 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:40,000 Have a target group and pray for them earnestly and often. 479 00:26:40,000 --> 00:26:42,000 Now look what Paul says next. 480 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:44,000 It's in verse three. 481 00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:45,000 Look what Paul says. 482 00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:48,000 He says, hey, basically, since we're on the topic of prayer, 483 00:26:48,000 --> 00:26:49,000 look what he says. 484 00:26:49,000 --> 00:26:53,000 He says, will you pray for us too? 485 00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:55,000 Now, where's Paul? 486 00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,000 He's in heaven, right? 487 00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:00,000 So we don't need to pray for his ministry anymore. 488 00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:02,000 But that doesn't mean we don't still pray for ministry. 489 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:04,000 Look what he says to pray for. 490 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:08,000 He says, pray for an open door. 491 00:27:08,000 --> 00:27:10,000 Or that just means opportunities. 492 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:11,000 Pray for an open door. 493 00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:18,000 Pray for opportunities to speak the word, to speak the mystery of Christ. 494 00:27:18,000 --> 00:27:21,000 Basically, to speak the gospel. 495 00:27:21,000 --> 00:27:29,000 You see, Paul was aware that there was a difference between those ordinary times of preaching the gospel. 496 00:27:29,000 --> 00:27:35,000 But then he also knew there were those extraordinary times of preaching the gospel. 497 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:42,000 I mean, he even notes it a couple times through his books in 1 Corinthians, chapter 16, 9 and 10. 498 00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:44,000 He says, I'm going to stay here in Ephesus. 499 00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:45,000 Why? 500 00:27:45,000 --> 00:27:50,000 He says, man, a wide door of effective work has opened to me. 501 00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:52,000 But there'll be many adversaries. 502 00:27:52,000 --> 00:27:54,000 Also in 2 Corinthians 2, 12. 503 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:55,000 He says this. 504 00:27:55,000 --> 00:28:06,000 He says, when I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, he says a door was opened for me in the Lord. 505 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:10,000 Have you ever had a door open for you like that? 506 00:28:10,000 --> 00:28:13,000 Were you just like, this is crazy. 507 00:28:13,000 --> 00:28:18,000 I mean, I'm just here to buy my Avian water and three apples. 508 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:24,000 But God, he opened this door for me to talk to the clerk, to talk to the person behind me. 509 00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:27,000 You've had those instances, haven't you? 510 00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:29,000 I mean, you can fill in the blank. 511 00:28:29,000 --> 00:28:32,000 I mean, we've all had them. 512 00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:38,000 I remember when we went handing out invitations and we were handing out invitations. 513 00:28:38,000 --> 00:28:42,000 We were done with the day and we thought we would all go to dinner. 514 00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:44,000 It was about 10 of us. 515 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:45,000 About 10 of us, yeah, right. 516 00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:47,000 And we all went to dinner. 517 00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:50,000 And I thought, whew, I'm done. 518 00:28:50,000 --> 00:28:57,000 Did a good work for the Lord, passing out invitations, going door to door, sharing the gospel. 519 00:28:57,000 --> 00:28:58,000 Now I'm done. 520 00:28:58,000 --> 00:29:03,000 Now I get to have my, finally have my wet burrito, which I love. 521 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:05,000 But God had another opportunity. 522 00:29:05,000 --> 00:29:10,000 I didn't see it, but my buddy next to me, he saw it. 523 00:29:10,000 --> 00:29:15,000 And so he says, hey, talk to our waitress. 524 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:18,000 He says, hey, how are you doing? 525 00:29:18,000 --> 00:29:19,000 She says, fine. 526 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:20,000 Can I take your order? 527 00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:21,000 I'm like, okay, be quiet. 528 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:22,000 I want her to get to me. 529 00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:23,000 I want my wet burrito. 530 00:29:23,000 --> 00:29:24,000 It'll take about 25 minutes. 531 00:29:24,000 --> 00:29:25,000 Don't talk to her. 532 00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:29,000 He says, hey, we're going to be praying here for our mail. 533 00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:32,000 Think we can pray for you for anything? 534 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:43,000 All of a sudden her bottom lip starts quivering and she starts tearing up and she starts sharing how he can pray for her, her son or her daughter. 535 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:46,000 I can't remember what it was, her son or her daughter. 536 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:50,000 And then he ends up sharing the gospel with her. 537 00:29:50,000 --> 00:29:54,000 And then he turns to me and says, hey, Mark, pray with her and deliver her to the Lord. 538 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:56,000 But do you see? 539 00:29:56,000 --> 00:30:01,000 I mean, what if I was to shut him down and say, no, no, no, no, no, don't do that. 540 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:04,000 No, he looks for those opportunities. 541 00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:10,000 We all should be looking for opportunities, but not only just looking for God to open a door. 542 00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:14,000 No, you look for him to blow the hinges off the door. 543 00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:19,000 Listen, God wants to open doors in your life. 544 00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:22,000 He wants you to share the gospel. 545 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:24,000 Hear me on this. 546 00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:40,000 In order for you to share with those who need to be saved, you've got to see that the power of your invite, in order for it to come to fruition, you must, as we've learned, you've got to pray for man. 547 00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:46,000 And you've got to pray that God would open a door for them as well. 548 00:30:46,000 --> 00:30:48,000 Look what he says here. 549 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:52,000 He says, pray that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. 550 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:53,000 That's what my Bible says. 551 00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:54,000 Is that what your Bible says? 552 00:30:54,000 --> 00:30:59,000 It says, pray that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. 553 00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:06,000 Another translation says, pray that I may proclaim it clearly. 554 00:31:06,000 --> 00:31:11,000 Paul felt a necessity to preach the gospel. 555 00:31:11,000 --> 00:31:14,000 It was a burden that he had. 556 00:31:14,000 --> 00:31:17,000 As a matter of fact, in Romans 1-16, he says, what did he say? 557 00:31:17,000 --> 00:31:20,000 He says, I'm not ashamed of the gospel. 558 00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:23,000 He's not ashamed of the gospel? 559 00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:32,000 I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it's the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes. 560 00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:35,000 Are you ashamed of the gospel? 561 00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:40,000 I mean, in here, none of us would say, no, we're all for the gospel. 562 00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:48,000 But when people look at your life, the way you act Monday through Friday, Monday through Saturday, 563 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:53,000 I mean, you have to ask yourself, am I ashamed of the gospel? 564 00:31:53,000 --> 00:32:01,000 But look at also in 1 Corinthians 9-16, he says, for if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of. 565 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:04,000 He says, for the necessity is laid on me. 566 00:32:04,000 --> 00:32:09,000 He says, yes, woe to me if I do not preach the gospel. 567 00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:11,000 Wow. 568 00:32:11,000 --> 00:32:17,000 Could you say woe to me if I don't preach the gospel? 569 00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:22,000 Do you find it a necessity to preach the good news? 570 00:32:22,000 --> 00:32:30,000 Did you know that this is a poll that there's actually a couple of them, and they've been the same for quite a while. 571 00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:38,000 But here it is, 95% of all you, every single one of the believers, 572 00:32:38,000 --> 00:32:47,000 95% of all Christians have never led not even one person to Christ. 573 00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:49,000 Wow. 574 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,000 And that's a sad statistic, isn't it? 575 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:55,000 Let me turn it on you. 576 00:32:55,000 --> 00:33:01,000 When was the last time you shared your faith with somebody? 577 00:33:01,000 --> 00:33:03,000 Pastor Greg Laurie has said this. 578 00:33:03,000 --> 00:33:12,000 He says that all of us should be able to clearly share the gospel in three minutes or less at the drop of a hat. 579 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:14,000 Could you do that? 580 00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:21,000 I mean, could you just, I mean, if I was to call on any of you right now, hey, stand to your feet and just share the gospel. 581 00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:25,000 You don't even need to take three minutes. I mean, you can share the gospel in like one minute. 582 00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:28,000 I mean, could you do that? 583 00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:31,000 We got time. Let's try it. 584 00:33:31,000 --> 00:33:36,000 I'm going to call on one of you and I'm going to have you stand to your feet and you share the gospel with me. 585 00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:39,000 Okay. 586 00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:42,000 Whoa, you getting a little nervous? 587 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:48,000 Some of you are like, look, now I've got to tie my shoe now and don't make eye contact with him. 588 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:50,000 Why? 589 00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:53,000 Because you can't share the gospel inside here. 590 00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:57,000 How in the world are you going to share it outside these doors? 591 00:33:57,000 --> 00:34:00,000 We must be able to share the gospel. 592 00:34:00,000 --> 00:34:02,000 But what is the gospel? 593 00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:04,000 Well, what's the word mean? 594 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,000 Good news. 595 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:11,000 But before we can share the good news with them, you need to know what the bad news, right, to share with them is. 596 00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:20,000 And here it is that some are and you were in a bad position. 597 00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:23,000 I mean, Romans 3 23, it says it. 598 00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:25,000 You need to know this. 599 00:34:25,000 --> 00:34:31,000 All have sinned and fallen short of God's standards of his glory. 600 00:34:31,000 --> 00:34:36,000 Ephesians 2 1 says we were all dead in our trespasses. 601 00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:38,000 That's bad news. 602 00:34:38,000 --> 00:34:41,000 And the wages of that sin is death. 603 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:44,000 Romans 6 23. 604 00:34:44,000 --> 00:34:49,000 The wages of our sin is eternal separation from God. 605 00:34:49,000 --> 00:34:52,000 That's definitely bad news. 606 00:34:52,000 --> 00:34:55,000 But there's also some good news, right? 607 00:34:55,000 --> 00:34:57,000 Ephesians 2 5. 608 00:34:57,000 --> 00:35:06,000 Even when we were dead in our trespasses, he, speaking of God, made us alive together with Christ for by grace we have been saved. 609 00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:08,000 Or how about John 3 16? 610 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:10,000 I mean, we all know John 3 16, right? 611 00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:12,000 Matter of fact, let's all quote it together. 612 00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:25,000 For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. 613 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:27,000 That's the good news. 614 00:35:27,000 --> 00:35:35,000 Yeah, but I mean, that John 3 16, I don't really like to use that scripture because, 615 00:35:35,000 --> 00:35:42,000 I used to use it when I was a newb leader, but now I've been walking with the Lord for a while and I like to use big boy scriptures. 616 00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:43,000 So what are some scriptures? 617 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:45,000 No, no, no, no, no. 618 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:48,000 You use that scripture. 619 00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:58,000 Matter of fact, it says in 1 Corinthians 1 21, listen to this, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 620 00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:01,000 This is the message that we're supposed to give. 621 00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:06,000 But here's the problem, I've even caught myself doing this. 622 00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:17,000 We will share or more comfortable in sharing what Christ can do for somebody in this world rather than what he's done for them on the cross of Calvary. 623 00:36:17,000 --> 00:36:21,000 We'll say things like, you need to commit your life to the Lord. 624 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:23,000 You're like, why? 625 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:27,000 Well, he'll help you get out of this certain mess that you're in. 626 00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:30,000 That's not the gospel. 627 00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:36,000 Listen, sharing the gospel is about commuting salvation alone through Jesus alone. 628 00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:42,000 The gospel message is on how Christian isn't on how Christianity can make our lives better, right? 629 00:36:42,000 --> 00:36:45,000 You need to give your life to the Lord. 630 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:46,000 Why? 631 00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:48,000 Well, he can improve your marriage. 632 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:50,000 He can help you raise your kids. 633 00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:53,000 He can help you kick all your bad habits. 634 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:55,000 That's not the gospel. 635 00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:59,000 Now, we've all had Christ clean up our lives, right? 636 00:36:59,000 --> 00:37:03,000 How many of us have had our lives cleaned up by the Lord, right? 637 00:37:03,000 --> 00:37:05,000 Yes, we have. 638 00:37:05,000 --> 00:37:07,000 But that's not the gospel. 639 00:37:07,000 --> 00:37:13,000 As many pastors have said, he catches his fish before he cleans them. 640 00:37:13,000 --> 00:37:23,000 Listen, if we fail to confront the people with the truth of their sin and their need for salvation in Jesus alone, we've missed it. 641 00:37:23,000 --> 00:37:33,000 Our souls aren't won through promises of a better life here and now, but through the power of the gospel as the only solution for their sin. 642 00:37:33,000 --> 00:37:35,000 So now we know what the gospel is. 643 00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:42,000 I mean, how are we going to earn the right to take it outside these doors and to share it with the world? 644 00:37:42,000 --> 00:37:43,000 Look at verse 5. 645 00:37:43,000 --> 00:37:44,000 It says it. 646 00:37:44,000 --> 00:37:50,000 It says, look at, walk in wisdom towards those who are outside. 647 00:37:50,000 --> 00:37:54,000 Walk in wisdom towards those who are nonbelievers. 648 00:37:54,000 --> 00:38:00,000 Walk in wisdom means simply make godly decisions. 649 00:38:00,000 --> 00:38:07,000 Because if you don't, those outsiders, those nonbelievers, they'll reject your message. 650 00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:10,000 So you know the five people I had you pray for? 651 00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:11,000 I can show you the picture. 652 00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:14,000 I got you all right here. 653 00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:24,000 I mean, if you were to actually invite those five to the Harvest Crusader or to church, let me ask you something. 654 00:38:24,000 --> 00:38:36,000 Would they accept your invitation because they see that your life is radically changed by Jesus for the better? 655 00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:43,000 I mean, would they actually respond because your life is different? 656 00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:47,000 Basically, are you walking in wisdom? 657 00:38:47,000 --> 00:38:52,000 We have a responsibility for the, before the world today. 658 00:38:52,000 --> 00:38:55,000 Don't tell people you're a Christian. 659 00:38:55,000 --> 00:39:02,000 But then when you, they look at your life, they prove you to be a liar. 660 00:39:02,000 --> 00:39:05,000 And that would be horrible, right? 661 00:39:05,000 --> 00:39:12,000 If your gospel isn't touching others, you need a question because it probably hasn't touched you yet. 662 00:39:12,000 --> 00:39:14,000 I like what C.H. Spurgeon said. 663 00:39:14,000 --> 00:39:19,000 He said, a man's life is always more forcible than his speech. 664 00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:20,000 Did you get that? 665 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:25,000 A man's life, so what he does is always stronger than what he says. 666 00:39:25,000 --> 00:39:33,000 And he goes on to say, when men take stock of him, they reckon his deeds as dollars, but his words as pennies. 667 00:39:33,000 --> 00:39:42,000 If his life and doctrine disagree, the mass of onlookers accept his practice, but reject his preaching. 668 00:39:42,000 --> 00:39:44,000 Wow. 669 00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:53,000 Our character should not only affect us, but it should be infecting others. 670 00:39:53,000 --> 00:39:57,000 They said that there's two reasons why someone won't go to church. 671 00:39:57,000 --> 00:40:00,000 One is they don't know any Christians. 672 00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:03,000 The other is they do. 673 00:40:03,000 --> 00:40:06,000 That's a sad commentary, isn't it? 674 00:40:06,000 --> 00:40:17,000 Where our life actually pushes someone away from Christ, away from coming to church, rather than drawing them to. 675 00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:20,000 That's sad, sad commentary. 676 00:40:20,000 --> 00:40:27,000 Our character should be inviting the world around us without us even saying a word. 677 00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:36,000 2 Corinthians 3, 2 says that, listen to this, it says, we are all walking epistles. 678 00:40:36,000 --> 00:40:40,000 Not many people are going to pick up a Bible and start reading it. 679 00:40:40,000 --> 00:40:43,000 But everyone is reading into your life. 680 00:40:43,000 --> 00:40:45,000 Let me ask you a question. 681 00:40:45,000 --> 00:40:48,000 What are they reading into? 682 00:40:48,000 --> 00:40:49,000 You're an open book. 683 00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:52,000 What are they reading? 684 00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:55,000 Is your life driven by the Bible? 685 00:40:55,000 --> 00:41:01,000 Is your life during the week lining up with what you're learning here on Sundays? 686 00:41:01,000 --> 00:41:05,000 Are you practicing what your preacher is preaching? 687 00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:09,000 We'll say, oh, I want to share the gospel with my boss. 688 00:41:09,000 --> 00:41:10,000 I've been praying for my boss. 689 00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:13,000 I want to share the gospel with my boss. 690 00:41:13,000 --> 00:41:17,000 You're talking about the same boss who you've been slacking at work at. 691 00:41:17,000 --> 00:41:20,000 Why would he want to listen to you? 692 00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:22,000 Oh, I want my family member. 693 00:41:22,000 --> 00:41:23,000 I want them to come to Christ. 694 00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:25,000 I want to share the gospel. 695 00:41:25,000 --> 00:41:26,000 Really, you want to share the gospel. 696 00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:32,000 You're talking about that same family member that you've been using bad language in front of. 697 00:41:32,000 --> 00:41:34,000 Oh, I want my spouse. 698 00:41:34,000 --> 00:41:35,000 Oh, that's great. 699 00:41:35,000 --> 00:41:39,000 The one that you lose your temper constantly with. 700 00:41:39,000 --> 00:41:40,000 Oh, here's a good one. 701 00:41:40,000 --> 00:41:43,000 Oh, I want my co-worker to come to Christ. 702 00:41:43,000 --> 00:41:48,000 You're talking about that same co-worker that you've been flirting with. 703 00:41:48,000 --> 00:41:53,000 We are bad witnesses and we wonder why they decline our invitation. 704 00:41:53,000 --> 00:41:55,000 Guard your testimony. 705 00:41:55,000 --> 00:41:59,000 Be wise with the dealings with unsaved. 706 00:41:59,000 --> 00:42:00,000 But lastly, look at it. 707 00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:05,000 It says in verse five, redeeming the time. 708 00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:09,000 This literally means to buy up your opportunities. 709 00:42:09,000 --> 00:42:11,000 That's what the word means, redeeming the time. 710 00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:13,000 Buy up your opportunities. 711 00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:15,000 Now, I'm going to share something with you. 712 00:42:15,000 --> 00:42:17,000 I probably shouldn't. 713 00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:20,000 But I'm going to share it with you. 714 00:42:20,000 --> 00:42:22,000 I love to shop. 715 00:42:22,000 --> 00:42:25,000 But I'm not this any old shopper. 716 00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:27,000 I'm a shoe shopper. 717 00:42:27,000 --> 00:42:29,000 I love to shoe shop. 718 00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:31,000 But I'm not any old shoe shopper. 719 00:42:31,000 --> 00:42:33,000 I'm a certain shoe shopper. 720 00:42:33,000 --> 00:42:36,000 I will only buy those bargains. 721 00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:38,000 So I will go into a Norseman's rack. 722 00:42:38,000 --> 00:42:41,000 I'll go directly to the clearance rack and I will look at the shoe. 723 00:42:41,000 --> 00:42:45,000 And if it's like 30, 40 percent off, I will try it on. 724 00:42:45,000 --> 00:42:47,000 I don't even care if it doesn't even fit me right. 725 00:42:47,000 --> 00:42:49,000 I will pop on it. 726 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:51,000 And so you'll see me walking around. 727 00:42:51,000 --> 00:42:53,000 I'll be kind of like, you know, walk around. 728 00:42:53,000 --> 00:42:55,000 It doesn't fit right. 729 00:42:55,000 --> 00:42:58,000 It's a little uncomfortable, but I can't help it. 730 00:42:58,000 --> 00:43:00,000 I just have to buy it. 731 00:43:00,000 --> 00:43:02,000 That's a lame analogy. 732 00:43:02,000 --> 00:43:05,000 But that's what this word means. 733 00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:09,000 It means to buy up your opportunities. 734 00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:11,000 Buy them up. 735 00:43:11,000 --> 00:43:13,000 And they may be a little small. 736 00:43:13,000 --> 00:43:19,000 It may be a little uncomfortable in sharing the gospel, but you got to pop on it. 737 00:43:19,000 --> 00:43:25,000 How many opportunities have you passed up? 738 00:43:25,000 --> 00:43:27,000 How many? 739 00:43:27,000 --> 00:43:33,000 I mean, before we even let our feet hit the ground, we should be praying, 740 00:43:33,000 --> 00:43:36,000 Lord, open a door for me today. 741 00:43:36,000 --> 00:43:41,000 Give me an opportunity to preach your word. 742 00:43:41,000 --> 00:43:44,000 You've called us all to preach the gospel, Lord. 743 00:43:44,000 --> 00:43:47,000 I want to be not just a hearer of the word. 744 00:43:47,000 --> 00:43:50,000 I want to be a doer of the word. 745 00:43:50,000 --> 00:43:53,000 So, Lord, give me an opportunity today. 746 00:43:53,000 --> 00:43:59,000 You pray that every day for a week, and I guarantee you God will do something. 747 00:43:59,000 --> 00:44:02,000 I mean, look at Paul when he wrote this letter. 748 00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:07,000 He was in chains, but he still had a pen. 749 00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:11,000 He was in prison, but he still had a witness. 750 00:44:11,000 --> 00:44:15,000 Make the most of every opportunity. 751 00:44:15,000 --> 00:44:17,000 Life is short. 752 00:44:17,000 --> 00:44:23,000 People are living and more tragically dying without Christ. 753 00:44:23,000 --> 00:44:28,000 Psalm 90-12 says, teach us to number our days. 754 00:44:28,000 --> 00:44:30,000 Number your days. 755 00:44:30,000 --> 00:44:37,000 Pray for those specifically and share the gospel at any chance you get with them. 756 00:44:37,000 --> 00:44:39,000 Pray for those open doors. 757 00:44:39,000 --> 00:44:40,000 Amen? 758 00:44:40,000 --> 00:44:41,000 Amen. 759 00:44:41,000 --> 00:44:43,000 Let's pray. 760 00:44:43,000 --> 00:44:50,000 Father, we are so thankful that we have a house that we can come into, 761 00:44:50,000 --> 00:44:53,000 and we love coming here. 762 00:44:53,000 --> 00:44:56,000 Oh, not just for the nice air conditioner. 763 00:44:56,000 --> 00:45:03,000 No, Lord, we love coming here because we love to get encouragement from other believers. 764 00:45:03,000 --> 00:45:08,000 We love to worship you, and oh, Lord, the worship was so good. 765 00:45:08,000 --> 00:45:14,000 But we also love hearing from you through your word. 766 00:45:14,000 --> 00:45:25,000 I know this was a convicting message, and I pray that it would convict people. 767 00:45:25,000 --> 00:45:28,000 It convicted me when I was writing it. 768 00:45:28,000 --> 00:45:34,000 And I pray that, Lord, you would give them the boldness, empower them with your Spirit 769 00:45:34,000 --> 00:45:41,000 to go out and start inviting as many people as possible to the crusade, to church, 770 00:45:41,000 --> 00:45:46,000 even invite them into a relationship with you, Lord. 771 00:45:46,000 --> 00:45:51,000 I pray that they would preach the gospel like crazy. 772 00:45:51,000 --> 00:45:56,000 May this be a church that is not of that 95% that have never led a person to Christ, 773 00:45:56,000 --> 00:46:02,000 maybe switched around, and may it only be 5%. 774 00:46:02,000 --> 00:46:07,000 So fill us all with your Holy Spirit, Lord. 775 00:46:07,000 --> 00:46:09,000 Help us to do your work. 776 00:46:09,000 --> 00:46:12,000 So we commit the rest of our time to you. 777 00:46:12,000 --> 00:46:16,000 We commit this week to you, and we ask it all in Jesus' name. 778 00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:17,000 Amen. 779 00:46:17,000 --> 00:46:18,000 Amen. 780 00:46:18,000 --> 00:46:21,000 God bless you guys.