1 00:00:01,560 --> 00:00:04,040 Hey everybody, this is Pastor John Ewart from Inglewood 2 00:00:04,040 --> 00:00:05,920 Baptist Church in Rocky Mountain, North Carolina. 3 00:00:05,920 --> 00:00:08,119 Thank you so much for tuning into our podcast. 4 00:00:08,360 --> 00:00:11,320 You're going to hear from God today as we share from his word 5 00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:15,120 about important issues facing your life that can guide you 6 00:00:15,120 --> 00:00:21,480 according to the Bible. Well, good morning, Inglewood. 7 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:25,680 Great to see everybody take your Bibles and turn to Luke chapter 8 00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:28,840 14, if you will. I'll be there with you in a 9 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:31,200 moment. Appreciate you all being here 10 00:00:31,200 --> 00:00:32,880 very much. Please take a look inside of 11 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:35,240 that worship guide. There are several announcements 12 00:00:36,160 --> 00:00:38,360 there that are important. Look at the work days for 13 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:40,080 Tarboro. One of them is this coming 14 00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:42,600 Saturday. And so for those who are be 15 00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:46,520 interested, that's the one that not everyone has to be skilled, 16 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:49,320 but we need some skilled labor and then we need some Gophers 17 00:00:49,320 --> 00:00:52,360 and some grunts to help with the skilled labor that we're going 18 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:55,880 to be working on the building more this this first one. 19 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,480 But then on the 27th of September, it's for everybody. 20 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:02,560 Also, we want to welcome our new children's director. 21 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:04,560 Next week. Laura will be with us. 22 00:01:04,879 --> 00:01:08,040 We'll introduce her to you. We look forward to that. 23 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:12,120 This past week, I had the privilege of visiting with Tim 24 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:15,400 Looper, our chairman of Deakins. And we every week I go out with 25 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:18,880 a Deacon and we go see some of our our members and shut 26 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:20,240 insurance especially. But we had to. 27 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:22,600 I had the privilege of meeting one of our charter members, 28 00:01:23,280 --> 00:01:27,360 Teresa Braswell, who just turned 95. 29 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:30,360 You can find her name out on the stone out front. 30 00:01:30,880 --> 00:01:33,640 And she was telling me that this Sunday is actually quite 31 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:35,280 special. This Sunday marks the 32 00:01:35,280 --> 00:01:39,440 anniversary of the very first organizational meeting back in 33 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:44,600 1962 to consider forming a church that became known as 34 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:47,080 Inglewood Baptist Church. And so we're thankful for that 35 00:01:47,080 --> 00:01:50,080 legacy and the foundation of all those who've worked so hard all 36 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:52,720 these years. And I just pray that we will 37 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:56,800 continue that legacy well. And so thank you for that. 38 00:01:57,240 --> 00:01:59,520 This Wednesday night in our core training study, I'm going to be 39 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:01,960 sharing about the different views of the second coming of 40 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:03,560 Christ. For those who are interested in 41 00:02:03,560 --> 00:02:05,480 that. We've been having some great 42 00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:09,199 times talking about some of our primary and secondary doctrines. 43 00:02:09,199 --> 00:02:11,880 And so we're going to be talking about that this Wednesday night. 44 00:02:11,880 --> 00:02:14,040 Been a good crowd. You all come join them. 45 00:02:14,520 --> 00:02:19,880 A friend suggested to me when I was preparing my sermon that I 46 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:22,840 remember an advertisement he saw for a washing machine. 47 00:02:23,600 --> 00:02:28,040 It it went along the lines of after it spins dry, it shuts 48 00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:31,400 itself off automatically. So I'm going to think through 49 00:02:31,400 --> 00:02:34,280 that, see where God leads this morning. 50 00:02:34,280 --> 00:02:36,840 Last week I threw about a seven point sermon on you. 51 00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:39,400 So this week I thought I would throw it just a 2 point sermon 52 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:44,280 on you and you can say Amen to that if you want to, but I don't 53 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:46,960 know how many sub points there might be under those two points. 54 00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:50,840 So we never know. So we need his direction to move 55 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:52,120 forward. Appreciate you being here. 56 00:02:52,480 --> 00:02:54,920 I've been sharing this series to kind of warm us up, lay the 57 00:02:54,920 --> 00:02:57,600 foundation for the next one for our fall studying. 58 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:02,200 Been asking some key, vital foundational questions to set 59 00:03:02,200 --> 00:03:04,680 the stage because we've been walking. 60 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:07,640 And I know sometimes on this side, it's hard to know all the 61 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:09,080 time what's going on behind the scenes. 62 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:12,080 But are your leadership's been working hard through some 63 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:14,080 assessment and identification issues? 64 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:17,360 We've been talking about and discovering who we have been as 65 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:21,320 a church, where we really are right now and, and who we need 66 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:24,360 to become and who we should be and who we should be producing. 67 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:26,080 So we've been talking about that. 68 00:03:26,080 --> 00:03:28,960 But once again, this morning, I want to invite you in this 69 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:32,200 series to to come be the King's Bride. 70 00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:35,320 As we talk about his church, we talk about his people. 71 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:37,800 These sermons all build on one another. 72 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:40,600 It may not seem that way to you, and I can understand that if 73 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:43,680 you've missed some more times or weeks, but but they've been 74 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:45,680 building on one another. If you missed them, I'd go back 75 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:48,760 and and watch them As I've been asking vital questions about 76 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:52,080 salvation, about church, about baptism, about church 77 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:54,800 membership. And now the next biblical step, 78 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,880 let me just simply ask you, why be a disciple? 79 00:03:58,640 --> 00:04:01,280 That's this morning. What's this whole discipleship 80 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:06,280 thing about and why now? Next Sunday we will be observing 81 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:10,480 the Lord's Supper to remember what Christ has done for us and 82 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:14,280 to proclaim what he has done for us and to commit to what he has 83 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:17,360 next for us. And so I just encourage you 84 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:20,880 biblically, because the Bible tells us to do this, to examine 85 00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:24,000 our hearts and prepare ourselves to take the Supper in a worthy 86 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:27,080 manner. And then in two weeks I will 87 00:04:27,080 --> 00:04:29,640 begin this new fall sermon series I've been talking about 88 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:33,080 for six months. I feel like and, and that, and 89 00:04:33,080 --> 00:04:36,600 then building toward this and that series is called Come, Come 90 00:04:36,600 --> 00:04:39,840 live the church's vision, the seven essentials of 91 00:04:39,840 --> 00:04:41,600 discipleship. Because we're going to discuss 92 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:44,560 not only our new mission and vision statements, but we're 93 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:48,680 also going to be looking at what how we specifically define what 94 00:04:48,680 --> 00:04:52,960 it means to be a true disciple of Jesus Christ and how that 95 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:55,840 needs to guide our planning and our programs and even our 96 00:04:55,840 --> 00:04:59,160 special events on the church calendar, even on a week to week 97 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:01,200 basis. So how should all of our 98 00:05:01,200 --> 00:05:03,840 ministries, how should all of our programs, how should our 99 00:05:03,840 --> 00:05:08,640 personnel now, should our schedules work together to help 100 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:13,240 us and our families know exactly what the next steps are in 101 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:16,360 discipleship and how to achieve these essentials to become more 102 00:05:16,360 --> 00:05:18,440 like Christ? I can stand up here all day long 103 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:22,000 and say be like Jesus, but we've got to know what that means. 104 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:24,520 What does that look like, who we need to be, What do we need to 105 00:05:24,520 --> 00:05:26,040 know, what do we need to be doing? 106 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:31,040 And so like train tracks guiding us in One Direction, connecting 107 00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:35,440 us together with one heart, one mind, and one spirit, we need 108 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:40,160 these definitions as we're working toward what discipleship 109 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,480 really means. And we also want to just 110 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:45,320 remember that our ultimate goal, the ultimate goal of salvation, 111 00:05:45,320 --> 00:05:48,000 the ultimate goal of church participation, the ultimate goal 112 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:53,360 of discipleship is to truly know God and, and to be like God. 113 00:05:54,360 --> 00:05:58,520 The theologian Ji Packer, and without a doubt his most famous 114 00:05:58,520 --> 00:06:02,960 book, Knowing God wrote this. He says what were we made for to 115 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:07,400 know God What aim should we set for ourselves in life to know 116 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:09,640 God? What is the best thing in life 117 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:13,120 bringing more joy, delight and contentment than anything else 118 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:18,120 knowledge of God and I often think back to the story in 119 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:21,160 Genesis. I I think of Adam and Eve before 120 00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:26,240 Genesis chapter 3 and you know, after the fall, after they send 121 00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:29,320 they heard God walking in the garden. 122 00:06:29,720 --> 00:06:32,760 And I often think about the intimacy that Adam and Eve 123 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:38,560 enjoyed with God before that time, before the fall and the 124 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:42,480 incredible time they had him with him in perfection and in 125 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:45,920 sinlessness. But then something was wrong and 126 00:06:45,920 --> 00:06:50,280 they knew something was wrong. Adam and Eve were aware of their 127 00:06:50,280 --> 00:06:54,720 sin and the and the Bible says that they hid from the Lord God 128 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:59,640 and instead of walking with God, they had their entire lives up 129 00:06:59,640 --> 00:07:02,680 to that point. They were now hiding from God, 130 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:07,480 cowering in shame and guilt. You know, the Holy Spirit will 131 00:07:07,480 --> 00:07:10,240 convict us of our sin. That's part of what his job is, 132 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:12,480 part of what he does. He'll convict us for our 133 00:07:12,480 --> 00:07:16,080 incompleteness. He'll convict us for our guilt 134 00:07:16,080 --> 00:07:20,240 before a very perfect God. But God still calls out to them 135 00:07:20,320 --> 00:07:24,920 and he calls out to us. Where are you now? 136 00:07:24,920 --> 00:07:26,400 God knew exactly where they were. 137 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:28,440 He hadn't lost them. He knew they were over there 138 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:31,920 cowering in the bushes. That's not the point of the 139 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:35,120 story. We can't hide from God, but we 140 00:07:35,120 --> 00:07:38,960 serve a God who calls out. He calls that question out to 141 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:40,800 all of us. Where are we? 142 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:44,720 He seeks us to know Him. He seeks that none of us would 143 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:46,880 perish. So it's an important question. 144 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:51,480 Where am I in my walk, in my knowledge, in my relationship 145 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:54,400 with God this morning? He wants you to be saved. 146 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:57,680 He wants you to be forgiven. He wants you to be cleansed. 147 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:01,520 He wants you to walk with Him. He wants to you to know Him 148 00:08:01,520 --> 00:08:05,960 intimately and and I don't mean some superficial periodical 149 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:07,880 walk, which is part of the problem today. 150 00:08:07,880 --> 00:08:11,320 This is this is not a when I feel like it or when I have 151 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:14,080 nothing else to do type of message this morning. 152 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:18,400 I'm talking about an intimate, continuous, real discipleship 153 00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:21,560 walk with God. And so the question for us today 154 00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:24,200 is, do I really want that? Do I really want to be a 155 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:27,280 disciple? And if so, we must know what one 156 00:08:27,280 --> 00:08:29,800 of those is. What is a disciple? 157 00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:32,440 And that's part of what we're going to be talking about in 158 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:35,200 defining. We need clear destination 159 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:38,480 destinations and directions. So, so we need to know what that 160 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:39,760 is. How do we define true 161 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:42,280 discipleship? So listen to this this morning 162 00:08:42,280 --> 00:08:45,200 and then plan to be here for this next sermon series because 163 00:08:45,200 --> 00:08:48,840 I'm going to share these very specific descriptions for you 164 00:08:49,120 --> 00:08:51,880 because we need those in order to move forward in the way God 165 00:08:51,880 --> 00:08:54,400 wants us to. But we also will bring great 166 00:08:55,080 --> 00:08:59,080 God, great glory, not only when we become the best disciple that 167 00:08:59,080 --> 00:09:02,880 we can become, but also when we are making other disciples, 168 00:09:02,880 --> 00:09:05,600 which is part of this as well. We, we don't want to just make 169 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:08,080 converts. We want to make disciples. 170 00:09:08,520 --> 00:09:14,760 So are you making disciples? Is Inglewood really making 171 00:09:14,760 --> 00:09:16,960 disciples? And, and how do we know? 172 00:09:17,840 --> 00:09:21,520 So your church leadership has prayerfully been working 173 00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:25,040 together to develop biblical definitions, biblical goals, so 174 00:09:25,040 --> 00:09:27,520 to speak, that will help answer that question. 175 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:31,520 We're also developing methods to teach and to give practical 176 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:34,720 opportunities for these discipleship essentials to be 177 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:37,200 achieved. Our connect groups that you hear 178 00:09:37,200 --> 00:09:41,640 me talking about a lot, our family ministries, all the age 179 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:45,040 graded ministries that we have, our reach strategy, which will 180 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:48,720 help us to reach and to pray and to minister together and and our 181 00:09:48,720 --> 00:09:52,520 midweek times on Wednesdays are all designed to be vital parts 182 00:09:52,520 --> 00:09:55,160 of this because you know what percentage I'm expecting? 183 00:09:55,680 --> 00:09:59,600 What percentage am I expecting? That's right. 184 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:05,520 In New Testament Greek, many of you know that the word for 185 00:10:05,520 --> 00:10:09,120 disciple is a word mathatase. But that's not just a student. 186 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:12,160 I've worked in academic life a lot, and I know what a student 187 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:15,520 is. This is a trained one who 188 00:10:15,520 --> 00:10:20,920 imitates the master teacher. This is a trained one who not 189 00:10:20,920 --> 00:10:24,560 only listens and learns the teachings of the master teacher, 190 00:10:24,680 --> 00:10:27,840 but then bases their life and their actions upon those 191 00:10:27,840 --> 00:10:29,640 teachings. They're imitators. 192 00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:32,240 They're not simply students and learners. 193 00:10:32,560 --> 00:10:35,200 So, so this is a person who is transformed. 194 00:10:35,400 --> 00:10:40,880 This is the transformed life who abides in and who imitates Jesus 195 00:10:40,880 --> 00:10:43,800 Christ. You know, I'm, we're from 196 00:10:43,800 --> 00:10:47,080 Oklahoma. That probably explains a lot. 197 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:50,080 But anyway, so I'm from Oklahoma, but when you're from 198 00:10:50,080 --> 00:10:53,680 Oklahoma, it's and, and you like football, you don't have a 199 00:10:53,680 --> 00:10:56,800 professional football team. So your colleges are your teams 200 00:10:56,800 --> 00:10:59,040 usually. And for a lot of Oklahomans, 201 00:10:59,040 --> 00:11:01,880 it's the OU Sooners. And so we're OU Sooner fans, 202 00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:04,880 even though neither one of us went to OU to go to school. 203 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:06,640 We have a granddaughter who's going there now. 204 00:11:06,640 --> 00:11:09,240 But, but, but anyway, so I have a bunch of OU shirts. 205 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:12,120 I have a bunch of OU hats. I have, I have OU football 206 00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:15,720 shirts and I have OU football jerseys that I could wear if I 207 00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:17,280 wanted to when I'm cheering on the team. 208 00:11:17,400 --> 00:11:20,200 But just because I wear an OU football jersey doesn't mean 209 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:21,920 that I'm playing football for OU. 210 00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:26,920 It's just a label. It's just a facade. 211 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:30,760 And so for some, Christianity can be that way. 212 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:34,280 Is it, is it just a label? I'm a Christian, you know, is 213 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:36,840 that, is that, or is this a walk of life? 214 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:40,920 You can call yourself one and you might even recount how 215 00:11:40,920 --> 00:11:43,560 you've been a member of a church for years, but that doesn't 216 00:11:43,560 --> 00:11:46,080 necessarily mean you're walking with God or that you're really a 217 00:11:46,080 --> 00:11:49,120 disciple. So what are the steps to being a 218 00:11:49,120 --> 00:11:53,440 true disciple of Jesus Christ and achieving these essentials 219 00:11:53,440 --> 00:11:54,560 that we're going to be addressing? 220 00:11:54,560 --> 00:11:57,240 So I need to share this introductory message to you out 221 00:11:57,240 --> 00:12:00,360 of Luke chapter 14 to help us because at this stage of his 222 00:12:00,360 --> 00:12:02,520 ministry, there's a lot of people following Jesus. 223 00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:05,600 He's got the crowds coming, the multitudes are still coming, but 224 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:08,640 he knows that many of them are coming just to see his miracles. 225 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:10,720 They're coming to here as teaching and they're coming to 226 00:12:10,720 --> 00:12:13,840 here as miracles, but they're not willing to really make the 227 00:12:13,840 --> 00:12:16,400 commitment and they don't really understand the Kingdom 228 00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:20,080 commitment that he's demanding. And I'm afraid that some come to 229 00:12:20,080 --> 00:12:22,680 church like that, that this is Christianity to you. 230 00:12:22,680 --> 00:12:25,680 This is all that it is. I, I came to church Check. 231 00:12:25,760 --> 00:12:29,440 I must be a Christian. And so there's some people that 232 00:12:29,440 --> 00:12:32,200 kind of like the show, but they don't want any part of the 233 00:12:32,200 --> 00:12:33,800 sacrifice. They don't want any part of the 234 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,120 service, right? But to be a true disciple, we 235 00:12:37,120 --> 00:12:40,720 must make certain proactive decisions of commitment, and 236 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:41,920 that's what we have to talk about. 237 00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:44,720 This is a tough passage. We're expected to take steps 238 00:12:44,720 --> 00:12:47,080 with the help of, and only by the power of the Holy Spirit or 239 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:50,320 the way we can do it, to follow Him and to live for Him. 240 00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:54,320 So in verses 16 through 24 of this chapter, Jesus is just 241 00:12:54,320 --> 00:12:57,760 listing all the excuses everybody's giving him for not 242 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,000 following him. You know, they want to, they 243 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:02,600 want to see the show, but we're not going to follow you. 244 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:04,640 We can't do that. We can't give up this or we 245 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:06,360 can't give up that, or we can't give up this. 246 00:13:06,520 --> 00:13:08,160 And he's listening all these excuses. 247 00:13:08,640 --> 00:13:12,720 And man, over the years I've heard a truckload of reasons why 248 00:13:12,720 --> 00:13:16,240 someone can't or someone won't when it comes to salvation or 249 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:18,480 when it comes to baptism, or when it comes to church 250 00:13:18,480 --> 00:13:21,440 membership, or when it comes to service or when it comes to 251 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:25,360 discipleship. It's as if we believe we get to 252 00:13:25,360 --> 00:13:28,920 load up our lives with everything else this world has 253 00:13:28,920 --> 00:13:33,680 to offer first, and if there's any leftover time, we might give 254 00:13:33,680 --> 00:13:36,400 it to Him. And so discipleship simply 255 00:13:36,400 --> 00:13:38,720 can't. It becomes a secondary option 256 00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:42,600 when it's convenient. Well, Jesus was just getting 257 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:44,360 started. I encourage you to buckle up 258 00:13:44,360 --> 00:13:45,920 because this is an interesting passage. 259 00:13:46,160 --> 00:13:50,680 Look at verse 25 of Luke 14. Now great crowds accompanied 260 00:13:50,680 --> 00:13:52,360 him, and he turned and said to them. 261 00:13:52,720 --> 00:13:55,680 And remember, he's just been listing all of these excuses 262 00:13:56,120 --> 00:13:59,800 right before this. If anyone comes to me and does 263 00:13:59,800 --> 00:14:03,520 not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and 264 00:14:03,520 --> 00:14:06,800 brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be 265 00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:09,960 my disciple. So point number one, I just want 266 00:14:09,960 --> 00:14:13,320 to share with you is we need, we must decide the level of our 267 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:18,000 commitment Enough in a sense, Jesus says to the multitudes 268 00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:20,400 enough. It's time to understand what 269 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:23,760 following me really means and what it really demands. 270 00:14:23,960 --> 00:14:26,480 It's time to make a choice. It's time for a commitment. 271 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:29,400 It's time to define who you really are and what you really 272 00:14:29,400 --> 00:14:31,920 believe. Am I going to be your highest 273 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:34,960 priority? And it's a great question for us 274 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:40,520 as we face this future for us. So decision number one that we 275 00:14:40,520 --> 00:14:45,360 have to make is will I love Jesus more than anyone or 276 00:14:45,360 --> 00:14:48,800 anything else. Verse 26, that word hate. 277 00:14:48,920 --> 00:14:51,320 There's no pulling punches here, Misael. 278 00:14:51,720 --> 00:14:54,200 We get our word misery. We, you can see that in there. 279 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:57,480 It's a strong word in Greek. It means to detest. 280 00:14:57,800 --> 00:15:01,560 It means to persecute in hatred. It means to abhor. 281 00:15:01,680 --> 00:15:05,320 Its deep seated hostility. That's how I'm supposed to feel 282 00:15:05,320 --> 00:15:09,640 toward my family. What I mean, how confused. 283 00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:12,400 Their eyes must have got big. Their mouth must have dropped 284 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:12,960 open. What? 285 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:15,000 What are you talking about right? 286 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:19,800 Am I to abhor my family for the sake of Christ? 287 00:15:20,560 --> 00:15:27,120 Well we also know the Bible says in first John 315 everyone who 288 00:15:27,120 --> 00:15:30,160 hates his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer 289 00:15:30,160 --> 00:15:35,280 has eternal life abiding in him. So obviously Jesus doesn't mean 290 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:38,040 to actually hate our family. That's not what he's saying. 291 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:40,320 So y'all don't can't get off the hook. 292 00:15:40,320 --> 00:15:43,400 Y'all still have to love your in laws and you still have to love 293 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:45,240 that. That weird Uncle Ralph out 294 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:46,880 there, you know you don't get off. 295 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:50,840 Still got to do that. But Jesus is speaking in 296 00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:54,080 hyperbole. He's expressing something in the 297 00:15:54,080 --> 00:15:58,400 most radical language possible. So they pay attention because 298 00:15:58,400 --> 00:16:01,600 all these getting excuses, I'm going to make you all pay 299 00:16:01,600 --> 00:16:04,240 attention by telling you something shocking. 300 00:16:04,960 --> 00:16:09,400 He wants us to love Him so that all of our other relationships 301 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:13,720 pale in comparison. So when conflict arises between 302 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:17,560 personal or family desires or the world's demands, and it will 303 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:21,120 demand every bit of you and, and those are competing with 304 00:16:21,120 --> 00:16:23,680 Christ's mission. A disciple has no problem 305 00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:27,560 understanding what must be done. The greatest way to love your 306 00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:30,920 family, the greatest way to love your neighbors is to be 307 00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:33,040 radically in love with Jesus Christ. 308 00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:38,120 And that means your schedule and your priorities must be defined 309 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:42,920 by truths other than what the world wants to and will pull out 310 00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:45,560 of you. It will fill your life. 311 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:48,800 So discipleship is a commitment that's full time. 312 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:50,640 It affects every area of our life. 313 00:16:50,840 --> 00:16:52,840 It's a commitment that nothing should modify. 314 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:55,600 It's an it's a commitment that nothing should interrupt. 315 00:16:55,920 --> 00:17:00,240 Nothing must compete with your walk with God and win nothing. 316 00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:03,640 Nothing should be used as an excuse like he's been hearing to 317 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:07,640 refuse to do what Christ has called you to do. 318 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:12,520 Will you love Jesus more than anyone or anything else? 319 00:17:13,119 --> 00:17:16,599 A few chapters later, in Luke chapter 18, Jesus meets a rich 320 00:17:16,839 --> 00:17:20,359 ruler and, and, and he asked him what he must do to inherit 321 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:22,640 eternal life. And Jesus told him that he must 322 00:17:22,640 --> 00:17:26,400 continue to follow God's word, but he also must live out God's 323 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:29,960 word by giving God his highest priority and displaying that by 324 00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:33,080 giving away his earthly wealth, his earthly goods. 325 00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:36,400 Jesus knew his connection to that wealth. 326 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:38,120 Jesus knew what was in his heart. 327 00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:41,640 He knew what to say to him because he knew that that was 328 00:17:41,640 --> 00:17:44,680 his priority. Jesus knew that this would 329 00:17:44,920 --> 00:17:47,520 compete with his loyalty to Christ. 330 00:17:48,040 --> 00:17:52,400 And the rich man walked away sad, unable to make that 331 00:17:52,400 --> 00:17:54,520 commitment. And the disciples responded to 332 00:17:54,520 --> 00:17:55,800 it. In Luke 1825. 333 00:17:55,800 --> 00:17:58,720 It says for, for it is easier for a camel to go through the 334 00:17:58,720 --> 00:18:01,600 eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of 335 00:18:01,600 --> 00:18:03,000 God. And those who heard it said 336 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:06,840 then, then who can be saved? But he said was impossible with 337 00:18:06,840 --> 00:18:10,880 man is possible with God and Peter said, see we have left our 338 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:14,040 homes and followed you and he said to them truly I say to you, 339 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:17,480 there's no one who has left house or wife or brothers or 340 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:20,800 parents or children for the sake of the Kingdom of God who will 341 00:18:20,800 --> 00:18:24,640 not receive many times more in this time and in the age to come 342 00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:27,560 eternal life. God will bless our commitment 343 00:18:27,560 --> 00:18:31,560 when it's authentic, when it's intimate and the crowd again 344 00:18:31,560 --> 00:18:34,000 must have just been had a puzzled look on their face with 345 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:37,280 all of this. But but Jesus was just getting 346 00:18:37,280 --> 00:18:41,160 started back in Luke 14. Look at verse 27. 347 00:18:41,680 --> 00:18:45,560 He says whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me 348 00:18:45,800 --> 00:18:50,160 cannot be my disciple. Decision number one that we had 349 00:18:50,160 --> 00:18:53,280 to make is why I love Jesus more than anyone or anything else. 350 00:18:53,280 --> 00:18:58,080 And decision 2 is am I willing to sacrifice for Jesus. 351 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:02,160 People often use this expression incorrectly. 352 00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:06,160 I have arthritis, but I guess that's just my cross to bear, 353 00:19:07,520 --> 00:19:11,680 and that's not what it means. I certainly appreciate and feel 354 00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:15,240 sympathy for the pains of this earthly life, but the expression 355 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:17,840 to bear a cross was clearly understood in a much more 356 00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:20,000 literal way by this crowd that first heard it. 357 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:22,760 They would have known what he meant in that context. 358 00:19:22,760 --> 00:19:26,760 Very simply. To bear a cross meant to die, to 359 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:30,360 be put to death, to bear the cross meant to pay that you were 360 00:19:30,360 --> 00:19:33,200 willing to pay with your life and your dedication to Christ. 361 00:19:34,040 --> 00:19:37,480 He's that important, He's that high of a priority. 362 00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:41,040 But the question is, is are we that committed to Christ? 363 00:19:41,160 --> 00:19:44,880 It seems so radical, too radical probably for today's world, for 364 00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:48,600 this culture, it would see so foreign to us and too much. 365 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:52,520 But Jesus always knew by the means by which he would die. 366 00:19:52,640 --> 00:19:55,880 He also knew that many who would call themselves his followers 367 00:19:55,920 --> 00:19:59,840 would suffer death through persecution and martyrdom. 368 00:19:59,960 --> 00:20:04,440 And they still do today, all around the world in huge 369 00:20:04,440 --> 00:20:07,080 numbers. Christians are being killed 370 00:20:07,080 --> 00:20:11,440 today, so to become his disciple, to really walk with 371 00:20:11,440 --> 00:20:15,440 him, we too must be willing to die, both spiritually and even 372 00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:18,360 physically if necessary. But I'm just afraid this is too 373 00:20:18,360 --> 00:20:21,840 much. It's too much to comprehend for 374 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:27,240 the comfortable American church, which for so many has simply 375 00:20:27,240 --> 00:20:31,320 become a choice of convenience. Many are simply not ready for 376 00:20:31,320 --> 00:20:34,800 this. Some some seem to want to reduce 377 00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:37,400 their relationship with Christ into something they get to 378 00:20:37,400 --> 00:20:40,920 control instead of getting on board with His mission and 379 00:20:40,920 --> 00:20:42,840 purpose. It's like they want to play and 380 00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:44,480 control their own little toy trains. 381 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:46,880 We got that little switch where they turn it on and they turn it 382 00:20:46,880 --> 00:20:51,880 off whenever they feel like it. This church and her purpose are 383 00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:56,440 not mine. I'm not here because I believe I 384 00:20:56,440 --> 00:21:00,040 have a purpose for this church. I'm here because I believe God 385 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:03,640 has a purpose for His church. It's not up to us to manipulate 386 00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:06,720 or control. So you know, you, this crowd 387 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:09,600 must have set back, wow, Jesus, man, these are some tough things 388 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:11,760 you're telling us. These are tough decisions to 389 00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:14,120 make. Exactly. 390 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:17,840 That was the whole point. Exactly. 391 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:21,360 So how do we walk like that with God? 392 00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:25,600 How do we follow him and pay whatever price we must? 393 00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:28,120 Our will must be surrendered to him. 394 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:32,280 And, and, and we got to we got to remember what's coming up. 395 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:35,520 And I'm going to help you define what it means to walk like this 396 00:21:35,520 --> 00:21:39,440 with him in these next weeks. But also remember the words I 397 00:21:39,440 --> 00:21:42,440 shared with you a couple of weeks ago when I baptized 398 00:21:42,440 --> 00:21:45,160 somebody I quote out of Romans 6. 399 00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:48,040 Let me read part of that again. In Romans 63 it says, do you not 400 00:21:48,040 --> 00:21:51,240 know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus 401 00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:54,680 were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with 402 00:21:54,680 --> 00:21:57,880 Him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was 403 00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:00,840 raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too 404 00:22:00,840 --> 00:22:05,040 might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with 405 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:08,480 Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with 406 00:22:08,480 --> 00:22:12,640 Him in a resurrection like His. We know that our old self was 407 00:22:12,640 --> 00:22:17,000 crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought 408 00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:19,760 to nothing, so that we would be no longer. 409 00:22:19,920 --> 00:22:23,600 We would no longer be enslaved to sin, for one who has died has 410 00:22:23,600 --> 00:22:26,560 been set free from Sinner. Or maybe a verse that you've 411 00:22:26,560 --> 00:22:31,000 memorized from years ago. Galatians 220 I've been 412 00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:34,800 crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but 413 00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:39,960 Christ who lives in me and the life I now live in the flesh. 414 00:22:41,080 --> 00:22:46,560 I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave 415 00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:50,720 himself for me. Some, however, it just seems 416 00:22:51,000 --> 00:22:53,320 they seem to believe that Christianity is somehow kind of 417 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:56,800 a free ride that you can get on and off whenever you desire. 418 00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:59,360 Friends, that's a hobo. That's not a disciple. 419 00:23:02,600 --> 00:23:06,040 Will you walk intimately with God at all costs? 420 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:09,280 What is your level of commitment? 421 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:13,040 Just attending. I'm glad you're here. 422 00:23:13,680 --> 00:23:19,040 Salvation, but that's about it. Baptism, but no more membership. 423 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:22,200 I mean, what else do you want? Preacher tithing. 424 00:23:22,840 --> 00:23:26,480 Easy now. Connect groups. 425 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:33,080 I'm in one so quit bugging me. Serving in ministry, Living out 426 00:23:33,080 --> 00:23:36,160 100%. Where are you? 427 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:41,960 The power and freedom to live as true disciples is found not just 428 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:45,880 in what you do, but in dying to self because of what Christ has 429 00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:48,560 done for you. And next week, when we take the 430 00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:54,400 Lord's Supper and remember what He's done for us, how would you 431 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:57,960 commit yourself to be who He seeks for you to be? 432 00:23:59,520 --> 00:24:00,920 How can we go to that next level? 433 00:24:01,880 --> 00:24:04,960 How can we go to a higher level? We have to decide the level of 434 00:24:04,960 --> 00:24:06,920 our commitment. But Jesus wasn't done yet. 435 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:10,960 Look at verse 28. For which of you desiring to 436 00:24:10,960 --> 00:24:14,680 build a tower does not first sit down and count the cost, whether 437 00:24:14,680 --> 00:24:18,280 He is enough to complete it. Otherwise, when He has laid a 438 00:24:18,280 --> 00:24:22,280 foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to 439 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:26,120 mock him, saying this man began to build and was not able to 440 00:24:26,120 --> 00:24:29,520 finish. So point #2 just a 2 point 441 00:24:29,520 --> 00:24:34,040 sermon. We must decide to complete the 442 00:24:34,040 --> 00:24:37,520 journey well. Will we finish well? 443 00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:41,160 Jesus shared the first two commit requirements to follow 444 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:42,520 him. But but this was not a 445 00:24:42,520 --> 00:24:45,400 commitment that ever ends. Discipleship is not some hasty 446 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:48,120 decision. To bear a cross means will being 447 00:24:48,120 --> 00:24:50,000 willing to die for the sake of the gospel. 448 00:24:50,160 --> 00:24:53,040 But we also must be just as committed to live for the 449 00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:57,000 gospel. Will we finish well? 450 00:24:58,040 --> 00:25:01,400 Will you continue to commit to becoming a true disciple? 451 00:25:01,720 --> 00:25:03,760 We must continually commit ourselves. 452 00:25:03,880 --> 00:25:07,800 This is an intentional pathway of discipleship that never, ever 453 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:09,480 ends. And we're going to teach you 454 00:25:09,480 --> 00:25:11,880 what that means over these next few weeks and offer 455 00:25:11,880 --> 00:25:15,040 opportunities in our program to help you stay on track and to 456 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:18,400 continue that journey of spiritual growth work regardless 457 00:25:18,400 --> 00:25:20,640 of where you begin. What stage is your beginning 458 00:25:20,640 --> 00:25:22,360 point? I cannot overstate how 459 00:25:22,360 --> 00:25:24,760 significant it is for you to be here every single week over 460 00:25:24,760 --> 00:25:27,960 these next few weeks because we want to make disciples who make 461 00:25:27,960 --> 00:25:30,880 disciples who make disciples. And that's not going to happen 462 00:25:30,880 --> 00:25:32,920 by accident. That's not going to happen by 463 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:35,280 luck. We have to budget for it with 464 00:25:35,280 --> 00:25:40,240 our time, our focus, our energy, our giftedness, and our 465 00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:43,440 resources. But Jesus wasn't done. 466 00:25:43,960 --> 00:25:48,280 Look at verse 31. Or what king going out to 467 00:25:48,280 --> 00:25:51,560 encounter another king in war, will not sit down 1st and 468 00:25:51,560 --> 00:25:54,440 deliberate whether he is able with 10,000 to meet him who 469 00:25:54,440 --> 00:25:58,120 comes against him with 20,000. And if not, while the other is 470 00:25:58,120 --> 00:26:01,320 yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of 471 00:26:01,320 --> 00:26:03,760 peace. So therefore any one of you who 472 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:08,560 does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. 473 00:26:10,120 --> 00:26:12,640 So we will. I love Jesus more than anyone or 474 00:26:12,640 --> 00:26:15,240 anything else. Am I willing to sacrifice for 475 00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:19,880 Jesus and decision #3 am I going to persevere in my commitment to 476 00:26:19,880 --> 00:26:26,280 Christ no matter the price? See to it that you don't have 477 00:26:26,280 --> 00:26:29,080 1/2 finished tower that that can't describe your life. 478 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:30,960 It can't describe the history of Inglewood. 479 00:26:30,960 --> 00:26:32,480 It can't describe our ministry here. 480 00:26:32,760 --> 00:26:35,840 Learn and live out the essentials of a true disciple. 481 00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:39,040 And then we're going to reinforce that and, and live 482 00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:42,200 that out together. And for now, this morning I I 483 00:26:42,200 --> 00:26:46,240 want you to hear some important discipleship questions that a 484 00:26:46,240 --> 00:26:50,560 sister church, a well known church in Alabama, often uses. 485 00:26:50,560 --> 00:26:54,040 Listen to these questions. How will I fill my mind with 486 00:26:54,040 --> 00:26:58,400 truth? How will I fuel my affections 487 00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:02,600 for God? How will I share God's love as a 488 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:07,280 witness in the world? How will I show God's love as a 489 00:27:07,280 --> 00:27:11,880 member of a church? How will I spread God's glory 490 00:27:11,880 --> 00:27:16,320 among all peoples? How will I make disciples among 491 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:19,440 the few people? These aren't questions to take 492 00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:21,720 lightly. Discipleship is not simply an 493 00:27:21,720 --> 00:27:25,040 expectation of you being fed. And for some, that's what it's 494 00:27:25,040 --> 00:27:27,280 all about. This isn't just about whether 495 00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,000 you're being fed or not. This is a question about whether 496 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:33,680 or not you're feeding others. Who are you feeding? 497 00:27:34,720 --> 00:27:37,040 Who are you helping along the way? 498 00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:41,160 Don't simply walk an aisle. Don't simply get dunked in some 499 00:27:41,160 --> 00:27:42,800 water. Don't simply join a church and 500 00:27:42,800 --> 00:27:45,080 then and then expect your commitment to somehow be 501 00:27:45,080 --> 00:27:47,400 fulfilled. This is not about a decision 502 00:27:47,400 --> 00:27:49,040 made today and forgotten tomorrow. 503 00:27:49,080 --> 00:27:52,160 This is a life. True discipleship is a never 504 00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:54,960 ending lifelong decision of obedience and perseverance. 505 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:58,120 He not only wants to save you, He wants to gift you, He wants 506 00:27:58,120 --> 00:28:01,920 to equip you, He wants to call you, and He wants to use you and 507 00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:06,480 His purpose for His glory. So discipleship affects the 508 00:28:06,480 --> 00:28:10,560 whole person. It affects all of us and their 509 00:28:10,560 --> 00:28:15,080 whole life, our whole life as God transforms us. 510 00:28:15,080 --> 00:28:17,440 Listen to what Paul had to write, a troubled church. 511 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:20,000 Second Corinthians chapter 3, he says. 512 00:28:20,000 --> 00:28:25,120 And we all with unveiled face beholding the glory of the Lord 513 00:28:25,120 --> 00:28:29,960 are being transformed into the same image from 1° of glory to 514 00:28:29,960 --> 00:28:33,200 another for this comes from the Lord who is the spirit. 515 00:28:33,200 --> 00:28:36,400 We are being transformed. It's continuous. 516 00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:38,640 It doesn't end. It's a process that's in 517 00:28:38,640 --> 00:28:42,360 process. And as I stated earlier, it it's 518 00:28:42,360 --> 00:28:44,480 it's not something that's going to come to an end as long as 519 00:28:44,480 --> 00:28:46,760 there's time here. This is a journey and there's 520 00:28:46,760 --> 00:28:48,800 going to be several destinations along the way. 521 00:28:48,960 --> 00:28:50,800 I use train tracks. So think of that think of 522 00:28:50,800 --> 00:28:54,080 several train stations along the way like racing down those 523 00:28:54,080 --> 00:28:58,760 railroad tracks to known understood, valued, sought after 524 00:28:58,880 --> 00:29:00,360 this. Here's my next step of 525 00:29:00,360 --> 00:29:02,600 discipleship that then there's my next step of this. 526 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:05,800 This is what my kids need in discipleship and how this church 527 00:29:05,800 --> 00:29:08,360 is going to help, you know, not only know what those are, but 528 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:11,280 how do I get there? That's what this is going to be 529 00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:13,880 about. And don't just believe that 530 00:29:13,880 --> 00:29:15,360 about you, but have an impact on others. 531 00:29:15,360 --> 00:29:18,240 Bring others on the journey. Get them here. 532 00:29:18,240 --> 00:29:23,160 Fill this house because the bearing of the cross ought to 533 00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:26,720 lead to the bearing of the crops as we see fruit. 534 00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:31,680 John 15-8 Jesus said by this my father is glorified that you 535 00:29:31,680 --> 00:29:37,000 bear much fruit. And so prove to be my disciples. 536 00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:40,840 You know these disciples who followed Jesus were unique. 537 00:29:40,840 --> 00:29:44,920 They turned their world upside down because their hearts had 538 00:29:44,920 --> 00:29:47,520 been turned right side up and they proved their discipleship 539 00:29:47,520 --> 00:29:50,840 as they bore great fruit. So don't just be a label with no 540 00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:53,000 life. Don't just be a subscriber with 541 00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:55,560 no substance, not just be in a tender with no action. 542 00:29:56,360 --> 00:30:01,080 Be a disciple who's defined, dedicated and determined, 543 00:30:01,400 --> 00:30:06,520 striving to achieve the essentials of a true disciple. 544 00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:10,840 An interesting verse in the Gospel of Matthew is Matthew 545 00:30:10,840 --> 00:30:15,160 548. It says you therefore must be 546 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:19,240 perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. 547 00:30:19,240 --> 00:30:22,000 And in English that word perfect is often hard for us because 548 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:25,360 that might mean sinless to us. But what that word teleos really 549 00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:27,680 means is complete. All the parts are there. 550 00:30:28,080 --> 00:30:31,360 Think of a ripe piece of fruit with every single piece. 551 00:30:31,360 --> 00:30:33,640 It's all perfect in there. We had a watermelon the other 552 00:30:33,640 --> 00:30:36,480 day that was vine ripen. I mean, you know how you go to 553 00:30:36,480 --> 00:30:37,520 the store and you get one of those? 554 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:40,120 You know, you thump on them like you act like you know what 555 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,360 you're doing, and everybody you know is impressed with you 556 00:30:42,360 --> 00:30:44,520 because you're thumping. And then you take it home and 557 00:30:44,520 --> 00:30:46,880 it's about white and nothing grainy inside. 558 00:30:47,200 --> 00:30:51,440 Man, we had one the other day. Red and juicy grew on the vines 559 00:30:51,440 --> 00:30:53,960 of a church member gave it to. I'm telling you what, that's the 560 00:30:53,960 --> 00:30:57,120 best watermelon. I digress. 561 00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:03,800 Another meaning of this word is to carry out the purpose for 562 00:31:03,800 --> 00:31:08,200 which you were designed. Are you carrying out the 563 00:31:08,200 --> 00:31:12,960 specific purpose for which God specifically designed you, or do 564 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:18,080 you have any idea what that is? Do you know why you exist? 565 00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:21,320 Do you know why you were created? 566 00:31:22,360 --> 00:31:25,000 My friends, You were created to be saved, to be called, to be 567 00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:29,080 gifted, to be discipled, and then to disciple others, to know 568 00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:33,960 Him, to serve him. So prepare yourself next Sunday 569 00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:36,800 for a day of commitment. Kind of a line in the sand as we 570 00:31:36,920 --> 00:31:39,080 observe the Lord's Supper. And we're going to commit 571 00:31:39,080 --> 00:31:43,040 ourselves to discipleship, to following Him in a new way. 572 00:31:43,040 --> 00:31:46,960 We're going to proclaim and remember what He has done for us 573 00:31:46,960 --> 00:31:50,640 as our motivation. I almost brought it, but it's 574 00:31:50,640 --> 00:31:54,440 just kind of a huge thing. I have an old, old book at home. 575 00:31:55,160 --> 00:31:58,200 I got it from my parents who got it from their parents. 576 00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:01,840 Been around a while. And it's a big thick book. 577 00:32:01,840 --> 00:32:04,560 You know, it's a, it's a coffee table type book kind of thing. 578 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:08,320 And it's, it's really old and it's, it's a, it's a set of the 579 00:32:08,320 --> 00:32:13,000 lithograph lithographic printings of John Audubon's bird 580 00:32:13,160 --> 00:32:15,680 drawings. Now, you may not know what I 581 00:32:15,680 --> 00:32:18,640 just said. If you've ever heard of the 582 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:22,440 Audubon Society, this is the guy that was named after. 583 00:32:22,720 --> 00:32:26,160 He was a naturalist who went to great lengths to paint very 584 00:32:26,160 --> 00:32:31,520 detailed images of birds. Part of what he did and and he 585 00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:35,160 was he was into it. He counted his physical comforts 586 00:32:35,160 --> 00:32:37,320 as nothing. He would go into the swamps to 587 00:32:37,320 --> 00:32:39,920 set of these birds. He would he would sit motionless 588 00:32:39,920 --> 00:32:42,760 all night long in the dark, in the fog, just to get a glimpse 589 00:32:42,760 --> 00:32:45,240 of some species of bird. He would get in the stagnant 590 00:32:45,240 --> 00:32:48,880 swamp waters up to his chin. Water moccasins would swim in 591 00:32:48,880 --> 00:32:52,040 front of his face as he stood sat there just to get one more 592 00:32:52,040 --> 00:32:55,480 detail of that species of bird and he was so excited. 593 00:32:55,560 --> 00:32:57,960 He beamed with excitement. As you know their interviews 594 00:32:57,960 --> 00:33:00,640 that are that were written about it, he'd beam with excitement. 595 00:33:00,640 --> 00:33:03,400 He's just got one more detail about the colour or the beak or 596 00:33:03,400 --> 00:33:04,800 the foot or something of some bird. 597 00:33:07,520 --> 00:33:12,680 It's a beautiful book of birds. But if a man could be so 598 00:33:12,680 --> 00:33:19,880 dedicated, so committed for bird paintings, how much more 599 00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:25,000 committed could we be? Discipleship's never cheaper. 600 00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:27,880 Easy. How are you growing in your 601 00:33:27,880 --> 00:33:32,680 personal discipleship right now? Jesus came and he talked with 602 00:33:32,680 --> 00:33:35,000 the new authority, Then he delegates that authority to his 603 00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,080 disciples, and now we continue. That's what Paul's talking about 604 00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:41,000 and some of the last things he ever writes to his spiritual son 605 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:43,920 Timothy in Second Timothy 22. And he says, and what you have 606 00:33:43,920 --> 00:33:48,120 heard from me in the presence of many witnesses in trust to 607 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:52,440 faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 608 00:33:53,160 --> 00:33:55,880 So Timothy was to take what Paul had shared with him and share it 609 00:33:55,880 --> 00:33:58,360 with others. God's Word is always our primary 610 00:33:58,360 --> 00:34:00,760 source has to be. So be in your connect group 611 00:34:00,760 --> 00:34:02,280 every week. Come to the worship service 612 00:34:02,280 --> 00:34:04,760 every week, be in the midweek every week so we can study it 613 00:34:04,760 --> 00:34:08,520 more and more together. Paul was his secondary source 614 00:34:08,679 --> 00:34:12,000 and a mentor of his. And so that's another image, an 615 00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:14,560 example for us. And then Timothy was to share 616 00:34:14,560 --> 00:34:16,880 and disciple with others who would be faithful with the 617 00:34:16,880 --> 00:34:18,840 gospel and biblical teachings to others. 618 00:34:19,199 --> 00:34:23,000 And the idea here is that it would be repeated over and over 619 00:34:23,159 --> 00:34:26,320 and over again and never stop. It's a message that must be 620 00:34:26,320 --> 00:34:29,320 passed on person to person, generation to generation. 621 00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:31,880 And now, Inglewood, it's our responsibility. 622 00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:36,000 So who are you discipling right now? 623 00:34:38,560 --> 00:34:40,440 Who are you discipling right now? 624 00:34:41,880 --> 00:34:43,880 You're not finished just because you're dedicated. 625 00:34:44,920 --> 00:34:46,639 You're not finished just because you're committed. 626 00:34:46,639 --> 00:34:49,520 You must bear fruit. So are you simply wearing a 627 00:34:49,520 --> 00:34:57,640 label or are you a Mathetes, A disciple, an imitator of the 628 00:34:57,640 --> 00:35:01,560 Lord Jesus Christ? A few years ago, my family had 629 00:35:01,560 --> 00:35:03,920 the opportunity. My brother was a medical doctor 630 00:35:03,920 --> 00:35:06,680 in Nashville, and he arranged this with us and my family 631 00:35:06,680 --> 00:35:09,520 because we're Oklahoma fans. We, we wanted to watch Oklahoma 632 00:35:09,520 --> 00:35:13,200 play Tennessee in Knoxville. And so we, we drove to Knoxville 633 00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:16,480 and met my brother and his family and, and you know, the, 634 00:35:16,560 --> 00:35:19,480 the man, these, these tickets today for college games, man, 635 00:35:19,480 --> 00:35:20,920 that's a lot. It's a lot of money. 636 00:35:21,080 --> 00:35:23,280 And so, you know, we're excited. We're going to have good seats. 637 00:35:23,280 --> 00:35:24,240 We're going to have a lot of fun. 638 00:35:24,400 --> 00:35:26,720 We're on the top row. I mean the top row. 639 00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:30,680 I mean, the only thing behind us is the guardrail to keep you 640 00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:36,520 from killing yourself. And there we are in OU gear, our 641 00:35:36,520 --> 00:35:43,240 maroon OU gear in a sea of orange, all singing good old 642 00:35:43,240 --> 00:35:46,680 Rocky Top. Right now. 643 00:35:46,680 --> 00:35:50,040 This is one of the largest set. There's 105,000 people in this 644 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:53,080 football stadium, 1 of the larger stadiums in in the 645 00:35:53,080 --> 00:35:56,680 collegiate sports. And that thing sways when you're 646 00:35:56,680 --> 00:35:58,480 up there on the top. I mean, this thing's moving. 647 00:35:58,720 --> 00:36:01,200 I mean, they're stomping their feet and clapping and singing a 648 00:36:01,400 --> 00:36:03,360 good old out. So sick of that song, singing 649 00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:09,000 that song. We saw them earlier. 650 00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:11,480 They're tailgating everywhere. They got boats out in the river, 651 00:36:11,480 --> 00:36:14,160 decorated out, lit up, all decorated, having party boats 652 00:36:14,160 --> 00:36:15,480 out there, all kinds of stuff in there. 653 00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:17,440 They're they're, they're camping, they're eating, they're 654 00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:19,280 singing. I mean, they're full of passion, 655 00:36:19,280 --> 00:36:21,280 they're full of fun. They're full of excitement, 656 00:36:21,560 --> 00:36:24,920 cheering, a sense of unity, a belonging among them all, 657 00:36:24,920 --> 00:36:35,040 cheering for a common purpose. I just pray our love for Christ 658 00:36:35,040 --> 00:36:41,320 and his church compare. I just pray that passion and 659 00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:44,400 that excitement, that sense of united purpose. 660 00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:49,120 I pray that the church would sway and that the community 661 00:36:49,120 --> 00:36:52,520 would sway because of what Christ is doing in his church 662 00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:57,440 with that kind of passion, that kind of common purpose and 663 00:36:57,440 --> 00:37:01,440 enthusiasm. So decide today whom you'll 664 00:37:01,440 --> 00:37:04,960 serve Inglewood. Remember what he's done to bring 665 00:37:04,960 --> 00:37:10,680 you here. Quite a legacy, but it's time to 666 00:37:10,680 --> 00:37:13,040 decide. Father, thank you. 667 00:37:14,880 --> 00:37:17,800 Thank you that you give us another opportunity to respond. 668 00:37:19,360 --> 00:37:21,680 We're alive today. We're here today. 669 00:37:21,720 --> 00:37:23,320 That means we still have purpose. 670 00:37:23,640 --> 00:37:26,720 That means we still have a reason. 671 00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:28,920 That means we still have an opportunity. 672 00:37:30,120 --> 00:37:34,480 For some, it's salvation. They heard Marie's testimony 673 00:37:34,480 --> 00:37:37,040 read earlier and they recognize I need to do that too. 674 00:37:37,640 --> 00:37:40,200 I'm not walking with God in a personal way. 675 00:37:40,920 --> 00:37:43,720 I really have never asked Jesus Christ into my heart to be my 676 00:37:43,720 --> 00:37:47,040 Lord and Savior. Or maybe they've seen this 677 00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:51,160 testimony of today of baptism. Next week we're going to baptize 678 00:37:51,160 --> 00:37:53,120 3 more and they say I need to do that. 679 00:37:53,120 --> 00:37:55,120 I need to publicly identify with Christ. 680 00:37:55,120 --> 00:37:56,720 I've never done that. I need to do that. 681 00:37:56,920 --> 00:37:59,800 I've trusted in Him, He saved me, but I've never been 682 00:37:59,800 --> 00:38:02,960 baptized. Maybe I need to join the church. 683 00:38:02,960 --> 00:38:06,360 Maybe that's it. Maybe I need to commit to serve 684 00:38:06,360 --> 00:38:08,800 in a new way. Maybe I need to commit to pray 685 00:38:08,800 --> 00:38:11,880 for others in a new way. So in a moment, Father, as we 686 00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:16,600 sing out as pray, we'll respond. Father, there'll be pastors here 687 00:38:16,600 --> 00:38:18,800 and they can come and talk to one of us or they can just come 688 00:38:18,800 --> 00:38:21,480 to these steps and pray. I also pray that they would go 689 00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:24,600 to our next steps room and just visit with people who who are 690 00:38:24,600 --> 00:38:28,120 trained, who are ready to love them and, and just have private, 691 00:38:28,120 --> 00:38:30,600 discreet conversations with them about what you're doing in their 692 00:38:30,600 --> 00:38:33,840 heart. So Father, whatever we need to 693 00:38:33,840 --> 00:38:39,120 do, it's time. Time to draw a line in the sand, 694 00:38:39,120 --> 00:38:44,280 time to decide, time to commit, time to truly be a disciple. 695 00:38:45,240 --> 00:38:48,840 Thank you, Father in Christ's name, Amen. 696 00:38:48,840 --> 00:38:50,080 I'm going to invite you to stand. 697 00:38:50,080 --> 00:38:51,440 The worship team is going to lead us. 698 00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:53,800 They'll be pastors here. You can come pray. 699 00:38:53,800 --> 00:38:55,760 You can come talk to us. I encourage you, if you want to 700 00:38:55,760 --> 00:38:58,480 go straight to that room over there, the next steps room, 701 00:38:58,480 --> 00:39:00,560 there are people there. There's going to love you. 702 00:39:00,560 --> 00:39:03,120 They're going to talk with you, going to pray with you, going to 703 00:39:03,120 --> 00:39:05,080 help. You can go straight over there. 704 00:39:05,080 --> 00:39:06,360 You don't have to come to us first. 705 00:39:06,360 --> 00:39:09,240 Just go right there. But whatever you need to do, do 706 00:39:09,240 --> 00:39:15,840 it as we surrender to Him. Thank you so much for listening 707 00:39:15,840 --> 00:39:17,560 today, and I also hope that you'll go to 708 00:39:17,560 --> 00:39:21,360 ourwebsite@englewoodbaptist.com as well as our app and find many 709 00:39:21,360 --> 00:39:23,720 other resources that will bless you and your families. 710 00:39:23,880 --> 00:39:24,920 Thank you once again.