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Hey everybody, this is Pastor 
John Ewart from Inglewood 

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Baptist Church in Rocky 
Mountain, North Carolina. 

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Thank you so much for tuning 
into our podcast. 

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You're going to hear from God 
today as we share from his word 

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about important issues facing 
your life that can guide you 

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according to the Bible. 
Well, good morning, Inglewood. 

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I've asked that the live feed 
continue as we enter into just a

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moment of prayer. 
And there's a reason why I 

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wanted to actually stay on this 
time. 

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I want us to pray for some of 
our friends who are overseas. 

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They have not received positive 
news as of our latest updates 

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and I've been messaging with 
them this morning. 

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And so we want to continue to 
pray that God will will set some

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of our friends free. 
And in the meantime, the gospel 

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is still being spread where they
are, which we're thankful for 

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that. 
But the other thing is yesterday

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was one of our friends 
birthdays. 

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And so without saying any names 
or places or anything like that,

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when I count to 3, they're 
actually watching right now, 

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some of them. 
And I want you to say happy 

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birthday. 
We love you. 

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How about that on three? 
You ready everybody? 

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You ready, 123 And I know that 
they hear you and they feel you.

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And we're going to continue to 
pray. 

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Also, please know that we've 
done all we can to contact a 

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help on various levels to try to
reach out to remedy the 

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situation. 
And we pray that help is in 

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motion and on the way. 
And if that level doesn't work, 

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we'll go to DEFCON 4. 
But anyway, so for now, we're 

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praying that God will continue 
to work. 

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In the meantime, it's been 
fascinating to see how the 

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gospel has been spread. 
Second thing I want to pray for 

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is right now as we are speaking,
the launch service at First Love

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Fellowship and our church plant 
in Tarboro is taking place. 

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And so some folks have worked 
tirelessly and invited thousands

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of people. 
I think some of our our members 

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are even over there this 
morning, but but we want to pray

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for them as Jonathan shares the 
word of God and that church 

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plant kicks off officially right
now. 

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And then the third thing that we
want to lift up is I, I know 

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that some of our church members 
have been affected by some of 

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the recent developments in our 
city government crisis. 

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And so out of the 100 or so 
employees who have been let go, 

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some of them are actually folks 
here. 

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And so we want you to know that 
we support you and we know this 

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is a difficult time, perhaps a 
confusing time. 

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And so we want to be the church 
family to you, and we are going 

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to pray for you and others as 
well. 

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So let's go to the Lord in 
prayer. 

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Father, we are very thankful 
that nothing that takes place in

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our world catches you off guard,
that in your perfect sovereignty

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and knowledge, Lord, you knew 
long ago what we would be 

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praying about right now. 
Father, we pray for our friends 

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overseas. 
Lord, I pray that that 

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miraculously like we've seen in 
your word, that that freedom 

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would be granted, that justice 
would be served, that in a way 

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that would allow them to go and 
to be with their family. 

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Father, that you would continue 
to allow your gospel to spread 

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even after their physical 
presence is set free. 

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Lord, now that that seeds been 
planted, Father, we pray that 

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that crop will continue without 
them and pray, Father, that they

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will be able to to to be out 
and, and return home. 

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Father, I pray for the family, 
the family that is there, the 

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family that is here that you 
would comfort them and encourage

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them. 
Know that we are praying every 

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time we meet for them and about 
them and, and many of us are 

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praying in between constantly 
for them. 

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And so, Father, I just pray that
you'll work powerfully. 

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Father, we rejoice also in what 
you're doing in Tarboro right 

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now. 
And Father, I thank you for so 

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many who've worked so hard for 
this moment. 

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I pray, Father, that the 
thousands that were invited, 

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that they will come, that you 
will bring those who need to 

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hear your word. 
That, Father, someone will be 

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saved in Tarboro this morning. 
And the others will want to be a

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part of a new church, starting 
to help it, to help it grow, to 

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help it build. 
And Father, I also want to lift 

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up those who are hurting, 
confused, bewildered, 

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frustrated, who've lost their 
jobs. 

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That Father, You would give 
wisdom to our leadership here, 

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that there would be honesty and 
integrity about that leadership 

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as well. 
If there is anything that needs 

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to be brought to light, that you
would do so. 

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I don't know, Father, I just 
pray for that. 

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But I pray mainly for the folks 
who've lost their jobs, Lord, 

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that you would help them to find
employment. 

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Lord, You would support them. 
Maybe for some, Father, they'll 

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look back and say this was a 
moment when God actually opened 

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a new door for me in my life. 
And so, Father, I pray that you 

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would help them to see that very
clearly from you. 

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So, Lord, we lift up our city. 
We lift up our leaders. 

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We thank you for them. 
Pray, Father, that you'll just 

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guide them and help us, Father, 
to find the best ways to pray 

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for them and support them. 
So, Lord, bless us. 

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Bless our time now that we might
learn from your word and that 

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you might bless us from it. 
The Lord, we would be challenged

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to be stronger disciples because
of it. 

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Lord, thank you in Christ's 
name, Amen. 

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I do want to encourage you to be
here Wednesday night. 

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This Wednesday night will be a 
little different. 

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This is our fall adult prayer 
service. 

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We'll meet in here. 
Hundreds of us will be in here 

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Wednesday night and we're going 
to pray. 

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One of the things that we want 
to do with these 7 essentials of

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discipleship that we're talking 
about is we actually want to 

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continue to teach and to talk 
about these things. 

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So this Wednesday night, we'll 
actually be reinforcing the 

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abiding and prayer with 
dependence and anticipation time

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as we meet together here at 
6:30. 

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And I can't encourage you enough
about next Sunday night, as 

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you've already seen in the video
and Pastor Jordan has shared 

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with you. 
So I look forward to seeing you 

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there. 
So you know, we're from the 

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Ozarks, which basically means 
that Teresa and I are 

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hillbillies. 
That's what we really are. 

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We're from we're from a pretty 
small place. 

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And so growing up, it was a big 
deal to go to the big city. 

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The big city for us, the big, 
big city was Tulsa. 

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I mean, that was like New York, 
the bigger city or a smaller big

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city was Muskogee, OK, which 
that was even a special trip. 

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And so, you know, you got to go 
to the big city and buy things 

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every now and then at stores 
that you just didn't have back 

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in the small town. 
And so one of these days, one of

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these trips, I, I bought 
something at a fancy store. 

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I was really proud of, excited 
about it, brought it home and a 

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friend and friend was that what 
is that? 

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And what was a thermos bottle? 
It was a thermos bottle. 

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And, and, and, and I told him, I
said, the guy at the store said 

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that this thing, it's supposed 
to keep cold things cold and hot

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things hot. 
I was pretty amazed at that. 

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I don't understand how that 
worked. 

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And so the guy says, really it 
says that sounds incredible what

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you got in it. 
And I said 3 coffees and a 

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popsicle. 
So hot, cold, tough to be both 

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at the same time, isn't it? 
But lukewarm, lukewarm won't get

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it. 
We want to be more like Jesus, 

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or I pray we do. 
And I pray we we genuinely, I 

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pray we genuinely want to join 
him on his mission to bring him 

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glory and to be used by him to 
redeem the nation's. 

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I look forward to seeing what 
God's going to do with us in 

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2026, but I also look forward to
seeing what he's going to do 

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today and tomorrow. 
And I pray that Inglewood exists

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to make disciples who love him 
and love others and will help 

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fulfill that mission. 
So once again, I, I invite you 

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to come live the church's vision
with us to, to learn about the 

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seven essentials of 
discipleship. 

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We're just laying very basic 
foundation blocks right now for 

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what we're going to be teaching 
much more in depth about later. 

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the US Census actually came out 
with some research not too long 

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ago and they were studying the 
15 largest metropolitan areas of

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the United States of America and
they found that the least 

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religious metropolitan area out 
of those 15 was Seattle, WA. 

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It may not be a surprise to some
of you and and it's interesting 

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because it barely beat out San 
Francisco and so the the state 

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of Washington as a whole is 
nearly as non religious as 

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Seattle. 
So there's a state. 

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It was there. 
In fact, the Seattle Times wrote

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that Washington ranked as the 
5th least religious state. 

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Maine and Vermont were at the 
top, both at around 69%, 

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followed by Oregon 65% and New 
Hampshire 64%. 

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Mississippi had the lowest share
of non religious people with 

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only 30%. 
But it's interesting because 

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Seattle ranked up there is that 
this this metropolitan area was 

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right there at that 64 
percentile mark. 

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And I always thought that was 
interesting because you've heard

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me share with you and I've done 
this across the state of North 

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Carolina in multiple places that
in our assessment study of our 

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community around us, that 
there's 74% of people who live 

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within 10 miles or where you're 
seated right now who are not 

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attending any church or 
religious service. 

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So you're actually on a mission 
field right now with a higher 

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percentage of non religious 
people than Seattle, WA. 

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That was a pause for you to let 
that sink in. 

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So I need you to understand that
that that I believe with all my 

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heart that some church in the 
Rocky Mount area is going to get

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that they're going to be 
burdened by that and they're 

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going to be faithful and to grow
because of that. 

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And they're going to bring God 
glory and he's going to use them

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to heal broken lives and restore
people's lives. 

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And I just pray that we are that
church. 

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That's what I've been praying 
that Inglewood would be that 

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church. 
I need you to understand that 

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church closer closures, churches
closing are outpacing church 

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planting now. 
And that's a switch over from 

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over the last decade. 
So more churches are closing now

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than are being planted. 
And so if something that isn't 

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done, something even worse is 
going to happen, more than 80% 

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of the churches in America are 
plateaued, are declining. 

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And most churches who are 
growing are only growing because

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80% of the churches are 
declining. 

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I don't know if you just caught 
what I said. 

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The reason most churches grow is
because they're getting members 

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from other churches that are 
declining. 

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So in other words, the size of 
the total flock isn't 

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increasing. 
In fact, churches that grow 

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because of evangelism are only 
three to 4%. 

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Of all the churches in the 
United States of America, only 

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three to 4% grow by evangelism. 
So when you see somebody getting

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baptized up here, when you hear 
about somebody trusting in 

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Jesus, I need you to not ever 
take that for granted. 

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That puts us in a three to four 
percentile to where most 

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churches are just not seeing 
that. 

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So don't ever take it for 
granted. 

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And this is such an important 
part of our future that that I 

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will begin teaching personal 
evangelism training here on 

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midweek on Wednesday, October 
29th. 

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Now, those of you who've been 
coming, hundreds of people been 

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coming for the doctrinal studies
and you all love it. 

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But I just want you to know I've
been setting you up for this 

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because the whole reason I want 
you to know what you believe and

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why you believe in how you can 
share it with somebody is so 

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that you will share it with 
somebody. 

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And, and so I need you here. 
Don't decline. 

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We know who you are. 
We have photographic evidence. 

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I don't even know who I am half 
the time, so don't worry. 

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But in all seriousness, there's 
going to be a step by step 

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natural relational way of 
sharing the gospel. 

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This is not about memorizing 
some 32 point gospel outline. 

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I'm not going to give you some 
new gizmo or gadget to try to 

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share the gospel with. 
This is about how do I actually,

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honestly with integrity, develop
a relationship with my lost 

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friend or family member who is 
lost? 

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And how do I help them step by 
step in a very relational, 

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natural, enter to a dialogue 
with me about who I love, Jesus 

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Christ and help them to 
understand this thing called the

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gospel. 
And so I need you here. 

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You need to be here. 
I'm too scared. 

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I don't want to do that. 
I've never done that in my life.

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I'm too afraid to do that. 
I don't even care about doing 

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that. 
Well, hush and be here. 

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You'll learn. 
So how can I join inviting 

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people to my connect group or 
inviting them to church along 

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with inviting them to Jesus? 
And what an opportunity we have.

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I don't know if you realize this
or not, but if you go to, if you

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go to our, our primary cultural 
indicator and, and we all share 

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it and it's our primary cultural
indicator, Walmart, you'll know 

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00:13:00,880 --> 00:13:03,640
that Christmas is just around 
the corner already. 

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If you go to, if you go to the 
Walmarts right now, as we call 

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it back home, we're going up to 
the Walmarts. 

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You know, the Christmas trees 
are out, the decorations are 

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out. 
And it's really interesting 

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because this this evangelism 
training is going to lead us 

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right into this season. 
And this is still a season where

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people talk about Jesus. 
So it's an incredible 

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opportunity that God's given us 
to share with people. 

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So we're going to have 
conversations with them about 

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about our Lord. 
So come be trained with 

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practical and specific guidance 
in time to share with him about 

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other with others. 
So come and be here and then 

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continue to invite them here 
because I promise if you bring 

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them here, they'll hear the 
gospel. 

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Because part of what we have to 
acknowledge as disciples, as 

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followers of Christ, we're 
empowered by the Holy Spirit to 

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do this. 
This is part of our purpose. 

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This is part of our fulfillment 
of who God wants us to be. 

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If you remember a long time ago 
in the book of Acts chapter one,

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verse 8, you know this verse, it
says, but you will receive power

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00:14:01,440 --> 00:14:05,280
when the Holy Spirit has come 
upon you and you will be my 

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00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:08,280
witnesses in Jerusalem and all 
Judea and Samaria to the end of 

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the earth. 
So a disciple of Jesus, a real 1

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is living out evangelistically 
with boldness and love. 

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And notice how that's worded. 
It's worded this way very 

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intentionally. 
This isn't just something you 

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do. 
I'm, I'm not going to just try 

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to teach you how to do 
evangelism. 

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I've said this 1000 times. 
I want to teach you to be 

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evangelistic. 
Those are not the same thing. 1 

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is a state of being 24/7. 
This is just who I am. 

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If you know me, you're going to 
hear about my relationship with 

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Jesus. 
It's a true characteristic of a 

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disciple. 
So this morning I want us to go 

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to a passage of 1000 sermons in 
Romans chapter 10. 

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Now you've probably heard some 
of these verses many times, but 

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I'm not sure anybody has ever 
taken you through the whole. 

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00:14:55,160 --> 00:14:57,320
And that's what you need to see.
You need to see the bigger 

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context here and not just the 
few verses that you often quote.

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Even some of you may quote them 
in gospel presentations. 

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So it's easy to pick out a verse
or two, but let's examine the 

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whole context in the passage 
here, Paul is writing to a 

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church he did not plant. 
That's important. 

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He didn't plant the church at 
Rome, but he still loved the 

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00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:17,040
church at Rome, believed in the 
church at Rome. 

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00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:19,120
And so we have this great book 
of theology. 

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I'm, I'm reading Romans in my 
personal quiet time right now. 

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00:15:23,040 --> 00:15:24,760
And, and it's interesting to see
it again. 

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00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:28,480
And, and this is a great book of
theology, but it's also theology

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00:15:28,480 --> 00:15:31,280
applied. 
And often times I know scholars 

288
00:15:31,280 --> 00:15:34,680
who like to study the theology 
part, they don't necessarily pay

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00:15:34,680 --> 00:15:36,440
enough attention to the 
application part. 

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00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:41,240
And so we need to do that. 
So being, knowing and doing are 

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00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:43,280
all parts of holistic 
discipleship. 

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00:15:43,520 --> 00:15:46,800
And we're going to continue to 
teach those parts as we expand 

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00:15:46,800 --> 00:15:49,080
our teaching and application of 
the seven essentials in the 

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00:15:49,080 --> 00:15:51,000
months ahead. 
This Wednesday night's a prime 

295
00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:54,000
example of this where we we're 
going to expand abiding and 

296
00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:55,920
prayer. 
Next month, next Sunday, I'm 

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00:15:55,920 --> 00:15:57,160
going to be preaching about 
missions. 

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00:15:57,160 --> 00:15:59,920
Sunday night, missions night, 
the month of November, missions 

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00:15:59,920 --> 00:16:02,600
month, we're going to be 
expanding about how do we 

300
00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:04,680
participate in missions. 
I'm going to have some special 

301
00:16:04,680 --> 00:16:06,120
guests here. 
So guess what, You're not even 

302
00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:07,960
going to have to listen to me 
for a couple of weeks out of 

303
00:16:07,960 --> 00:16:09,440
November. 
It'll be a great time. 

304
00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:13,920
So we're just getting started 
laying the foundation. 

305
00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:18,720
So Paul was teaching them how 
true salvation needed to work 

306
00:16:18,920 --> 00:16:21,120
and it had to take place by 
grace. 

307
00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:23,400
But that wasn't the end of his 
lessons. 

308
00:16:23,920 --> 00:16:27,840
So he also shares with them the 
incredible truth that we need to

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00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:31,080
share this salvation of grace 
with the world around us. 

310
00:16:31,080 --> 00:16:32,680
So how in the world do we do 
that? 

311
00:16:32,680 --> 00:16:37,160
Romans 10/1 starts us and he 
says, brothers, my heart's 

312
00:16:37,160 --> 00:16:42,800
desire and prayer to God for 
them is that they may be saved. 

313
00:16:43,560 --> 00:16:45,600
So the very first point, very 
simply, there's nothing 

314
00:16:45,600 --> 00:16:48,280
complicated about today. 
I wanted to be practical for you

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00:16:48,480 --> 00:16:51,960
is we need to pray passionately 
for we need to pray passionately

316
00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:55,840
for the lost to be saved. 
So here's Paul, the teacher of 

317
00:16:55,840 --> 00:16:58,000
sovereign election back in 
Chapter 9. 

318
00:16:58,440 --> 00:17:01,880
Chapter 9 gets pretty deep and 
here's this, this teacher of 

319
00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:06,079
sovereign election now 
testifying that his prayer and 

320
00:17:06,079 --> 00:17:10,839
that his burden or his passion 
to God was that Israel might be 

321
00:17:10,839 --> 00:17:13,160
saved. 
Even though he's known as an 

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00:17:13,160 --> 00:17:16,920
apostle to the Gentiles, He 
never forgot his own people and 

323
00:17:16,920 --> 00:17:20,720
he cared about his own people. 
And so he still believed praying

324
00:17:20,720 --> 00:17:23,680
for the salvation of his own 
countrymen was part of his 

325
00:17:23,680 --> 00:17:26,480
responsibility. 
And, and this is something that 

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00:17:26,480 --> 00:17:28,560
effective evangelistic churches 
do. 

327
00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:31,240
I've actually had the privilege 
of pastoring 2 churches. 

328
00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:33,160
That's actually a statistical 
category. 

329
00:17:33,400 --> 00:17:36,040
I've actually had the privilege 
of pastoring 2 churches that 

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00:17:36,040 --> 00:17:39,080
would be recognized as the most 
effective evangelistic churches 

331
00:17:39,080 --> 00:17:41,320
in North America. 
And that and that represents the

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00:17:41,320 --> 00:17:44,680
top 3% of Southern Baptist 
churches, top 1% of evangelical 

333
00:17:44,680 --> 00:17:46,760
churches to where we've reached 
a lot of people. 

334
00:17:47,280 --> 00:17:50,400
And so that privilege of seeing 
that happen, of watching God do 

335
00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:54,680
that, we prayed for lost people.
We prayed about their lostness. 

336
00:17:54,680 --> 00:17:57,600
So welcome to reach, welcome to 
what your Connect groups are 

337
00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:00,160
starting right now. 
And it's going to be developed 

338
00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:02,880
even further. 
And be here Wednesday night as 

339
00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:06,560
we pray for family, we pray for 
friends, we pray for lostness. 

340
00:18:07,120 --> 00:18:10,360
So Paul cared passionately about
his people. 

341
00:18:10,360 --> 00:18:12,800
Don't miss this. 
This was his heart's desire. 

342
00:18:12,880 --> 00:18:16,960
The word, the idea is passion. 
The word idea here is burden. 

343
00:18:17,120 --> 00:18:21,320
His heart's overwhelmed that he 
pray for the salvation of the 

344
00:18:21,320 --> 00:18:23,320
Hebrews. 
He's praying about their 

345
00:18:23,320 --> 00:18:25,960
spiritual condition. 
And it just forces me and I've 

346
00:18:25,960 --> 00:18:29,400
asked churches all around the 
world this question, how 

347
00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:34,040
burdened are you for the 
salvation of your people? 

348
00:18:36,040 --> 00:18:39,760
How passionate are you about 
whether or not the people of the

349
00:18:39,760 --> 00:18:42,440
Rocky Mount area are saved or 
not? 

350
00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:45,600
Do you think about it? 
Do you care about it? 

351
00:18:45,600 --> 00:18:47,920
Is it a part of your heart's 
desire? 

352
00:18:48,080 --> 00:18:49,960
Is it actually something you're 
involved with? 

353
00:18:50,120 --> 00:18:52,760
Because if we're to make Jesus 
known, we must be passionate, 

354
00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:56,480
must be part of our hearts 
desire that that salvation is 

355
00:18:56,480 --> 00:18:58,960
for those around us. 
So look at verse 2. 

356
00:19:00,360 --> 00:19:03,520
For I bear them witness that 
they have a zeal for God, but 

357
00:19:03,520 --> 00:19:06,880
not according to knowledge. 
For being ignorant of the 

358
00:19:06,880 --> 00:19:10,160
righteousness of God and seeking
to establish their own, they did

359
00:19:10,160 --> 00:19:12,080
not submit to God's 
righteousness. 

360
00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:14,920
For Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone 

361
00:19:14,920 --> 00:19:18,040
who believes so. 
So Paul acknowledged that even 

362
00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:20,840
though the Hebrews might have 
been religious, that religious 

363
00:19:20,840 --> 00:19:24,160
doesn't get it done there. 
There are people who are in 

364
00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:26,360
church every single Sunday and 
they're lost. 

365
00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:30,160
There are people who are church 
members and they're lost. 

366
00:19:30,160 --> 00:19:31,400
I don't have to guess about 
that. 

367
00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:33,440
I've, I've talked to too many of
them over the years. 

368
00:19:35,120 --> 00:19:36,880
I don't know how many times 
we've heard the baptismal 

369
00:19:36,880 --> 00:19:39,720
testimony right up there where 
somebody stood right up here and

370
00:19:39,720 --> 00:19:41,280
read it. 
I grew up in the chair. 

371
00:19:41,280 --> 00:19:43,280
I thought I was a Christian. 
I believed I was. 

372
00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:46,840
And then I realized it wasn't. 
I mean, we've heard it over and 

373
00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:49,080
over and over and over again. 
Being religious, going to 

374
00:19:49,080 --> 00:19:51,920
church, going through the ritual
doesn't save you. 

375
00:19:52,600 --> 00:19:56,600
They would not submit to God and
they needed the gospel, Paul 

376
00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:59,240
said. 
And so we're surrounded by 

377
00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:02,000
people likely convinced. 
I mean, they're in their own 

378
00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:04,120
minds right now. 
They're convinced of their own 

379
00:20:04,120 --> 00:20:07,800
truths and that they don't need 
the real truth of God. 

380
00:20:08,560 --> 00:20:11,360
They live off opinions. 
They live off conjecture, often 

381
00:20:11,360 --> 00:20:14,560
the ones they read online 
staking their eternities upon 

382
00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:21,360
falsehoods of ignorant lostness.
And then you all know that there

383
00:20:21,360 --> 00:20:24,720
are others that already believe 
they are Christians. 

384
00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:28,480
I mean, we've heard this 
testimony, this would be part of

385
00:20:28,480 --> 00:20:30,760
Teresa's testimony. 
If somebody had asked Teresa 

386
00:20:30,760 --> 00:20:32,800
before she was saved if she was 
a Christian or not, she said, of

387
00:20:32,800 --> 00:20:34,560
course I am. 
She wasn't. 

388
00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:39,560
I mean, people all around us who
would call themselves that, but 

389
00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:42,320
they really have never had a 
personal experience with Jesus 

390
00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:45,280
Christ as their Savior and Lord.
We hear that in these 

391
00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:47,640
testimonies all the time. 
We need to pray for him 

392
00:20:47,640 --> 00:20:50,320
Inglewood. 
We need to pray for him by name,

393
00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:54,200
by street, by business, by 
class, and we need to come and 

394
00:20:54,200 --> 00:20:57,200
learn how to share with him at 
midweek and and with one another

395
00:20:57,200 --> 00:20:59,920
in our connect groups. 
Because Paul continues in this 

396
00:20:59,920 --> 00:21:01,440
passage, he's not anywhere near 
done. 

397
00:21:01,440 --> 00:21:04,000
He says, look, there are two 
kinds of righteousness we need 

398
00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:05,640
to talk about beginning in verse
5. 

399
00:21:06,400 --> 00:21:09,000
He says for Moses writes about 
the righteousness that's based 

400
00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:12,040
on the law that the person who 
does this command does the 

401
00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:15,440
commandments shall live by them.
But the righteousness based on 

402
00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:18,680
faith says, do not say in your 
heart who will ascend into 

403
00:21:18,680 --> 00:21:22,320
heaven, that is to bring Christ 
down, or who will descend into 

404
00:21:22,320 --> 00:21:24,720
the abyss, that is to bring 
Christ up from the dead. 

405
00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:27,840
But what does it say? 
The word is near you in your 

406
00:21:27,840 --> 00:21:31,320
mouth and in your heart. 
That is the Word of Faith that 

407
00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:34,120
we are proclaimed. 
Now what did he just say? 

408
00:21:35,400 --> 00:21:36,880
What? 
What does all that mean? 

409
00:21:38,840 --> 00:21:41,240
Well, the second thing we need 
to understand is that we need to

410
00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:45,280
understand the high expectation 
to live evangelistically. 

411
00:21:46,040 --> 00:21:50,160
See, one form of righteousness 
had its origin in the law, but 

412
00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:52,800
nobody could fulfil all the law.
That became the problem. 

413
00:21:52,960 --> 00:21:56,280
It becomes so twisted, so 
perverted in the Jewish 

414
00:21:56,280 --> 00:21:59,760
religion, it'd become more of a 
weight and albatross around 

415
00:21:59,760 --> 00:22:04,880
their necks that than a source 
of real salvation and and some 

416
00:22:04,880 --> 00:22:09,240
other real lasting solution had 
to be presented. 

417
00:22:09,360 --> 00:22:12,560
There's a real problem. 
And so righteousness based on 

418
00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:16,280
faith was and is the answer. 
It always was. 

419
00:22:16,280 --> 00:22:19,200
In fact, before the 1st service 
this morning, I was asked out 

420
00:22:19,200 --> 00:22:21,000
there in the larynx, what do you
call that place? 

421
00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:26,320
The narthex, the lobby, that big
room out there, the entryway. 

422
00:22:28,040 --> 00:22:30,280
I was asked by somebody, how 
were people saved in the Old 

423
00:22:30,280 --> 00:22:31,560
Testament? 
Basically, great question. 

424
00:22:31,560 --> 00:22:34,640
It was a good conversation. 
And when you read Hebrews 11, 

425
00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:37,240
you'll, you'll see that Abraham 
was saved by faith. 

426
00:22:38,440 --> 00:22:40,400
So, so it's always been this 
way. 

427
00:22:40,400 --> 00:22:43,000
It was just the way it worked 
became different when Christ 

428
00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:45,080
came. 
So and what Paul is saying is 

429
00:22:45,080 --> 00:22:47,720
this and this, this may seem 
confusing in verses 6:00 and 

430
00:22:47,720 --> 00:22:52,720
7:00, but we don't have to storm
heaven or hell and try to force 

431
00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:56,640
God's hand to save us. 
We couldn't even if we tried. 

432
00:22:57,200 --> 00:23:00,840
So we can't save ourselves. 
So we require somebody else to 

433
00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:02,840
save us. 
And Christ has already done 

434
00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:04,400
that. 
So Christ has already come. 

435
00:23:04,600 --> 00:23:06,400
Christ has already died on our 
behalf. 

436
00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:08,160
Christ has already risen from 
the dead. 

437
00:23:08,160 --> 00:23:09,560
So we don't treat. 
We don't have to try to make 

438
00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:12,320
that happen again. 
It's already taken place. 

439
00:23:12,800 --> 00:23:15,720
So we don't have to create or 
force our own salvation. 

440
00:23:15,800 --> 00:23:21,080
We need to have faith in what 
Christ has already done and then

441
00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:25,000
we need to proclaim it. 
We proclaim as gospel of grace 

442
00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:26,760
and faith. 
Verse 8 says at the very last 

443
00:23:26,760 --> 00:23:29,360
word that this, this is the Word
of Faith that we proclaim. 

444
00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:31,200
And the way that word proclaim 
is written. 

445
00:23:31,200 --> 00:23:32,520
This doesn't get you off the 
hook. 

446
00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:35,120
This makes it worse. 
The hook gets deeper because 

447
00:23:35,120 --> 00:23:38,160
it's present, continuous. 
And so in other words, if we 

448
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:41,800
proclaim and we continuously 
proclaim, we never stop 

449
00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:44,160
proclaiming. 
You can't shut us up from 

450
00:23:44,160 --> 00:23:49,360
proclaiming. 
And I think of my, I think of 

451
00:23:49,360 --> 00:23:53,600
our friends right now who in a 
very dark and difficult place 

452
00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:56,880
for proclaiming the gospel. 
And we already have record of 

453
00:23:56,880 --> 00:23:58,400
people being saved in that 
place. 

454
00:23:59,280 --> 00:24:01,240
And what we don't know is what 
God's going to do with those 

455
00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:03,320
people already saved and how 
that's going to spread other 

456
00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:07,200
people being saved. 
And so they're over there in, in

457
00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:09,640
bondage in a dark place, sharing
the gospel. 

458
00:24:09,800 --> 00:24:13,800
And we sit here in Rocky Mount, 
NC in freedom. 

459
00:24:16,440 --> 00:24:18,440
You're not going to be punished 
for being a Christian in North 

460
00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:25,480
Carolina yet that if things 
continue, if the church doesn't 

461
00:24:25,480 --> 00:24:33,640
do its job, if we give up. 
So proclamation of the gospel 

462
00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,080
should be this habitual act of 
the believer. 

463
00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:38,480
This is an essential to our 
lives. 

464
00:24:38,560 --> 00:24:40,240
Something you live with boldness
and love. 

465
00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:42,760
It's a state of being. 
It's 24/7. 

466
00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:45,480
You know, I, I, especially in 
seminary life, I'd have people 

467
00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:46,920
that I'm really not into 
evangelism. 

468
00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:50,240
I like studying the word, like 
teaching the word. 

469
00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:51,760
I really like digging deep into 
the word. 

470
00:24:51,880 --> 00:24:54,320
Well, Amen to you. 
But that's the most immature 

471
00:24:54,320 --> 00:24:56,040
discipleship I've ever heard 
described. 

472
00:24:56,280 --> 00:25:02,880
You big baby. 
True discipleship is a cycle. 

473
00:25:04,240 --> 00:25:07,840
True discipleship has fruit. 
True discipleship leads to other

474
00:25:07,840 --> 00:25:10,360
disciples. 
And you can sit there all day 

475
00:25:10,360 --> 00:25:13,120
long and teach me, talk to me 
about how deep a teacher you 

476
00:25:13,120 --> 00:25:14,320
are. 
But if you're not sharing what 

477
00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:16,600
you're learning and you're 
studying with anybody else, 

478
00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:23,680
you're missing the whole point. 
Studies, in fact, indicate that 

479
00:25:23,680 --> 00:25:29,480
as few as 2 to 5%, and I argue 
is closer to the two of active 

480
00:25:29,480 --> 00:25:32,920
church members in the United 
States of America actually 

481
00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:37,840
proclaim their faith to others. 
Only two to 5% of active church 

482
00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:40,800
members. 
That means that 95 to 98% do 

483
00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:44,320
not. 
And we wonder why the churches 

484
00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:47,680
are closing every week. 
We wonder why in the next few 

485
00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:51,960
years, 1/3 of all the churches 
are, excuse me, 1/4 of all the 

486
00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:54,120
churches in the United States of
America will be closed. 

487
00:25:55,440 --> 00:26:02,160
It's coming. 
And if we don't get it, some 

488
00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:04,240
church has to get it. 
See. 

489
00:26:04,520 --> 00:26:09,280
So, believers, you don't have 
the right to remain silent and 

490
00:26:09,280 --> 00:26:11,200
you must not with the 74% around
you. 

491
00:26:11,440 --> 00:26:14,280
I mean, it's thousands of lost 
souls right here, right here. 

492
00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:15,920
We don't, we don't have to go to
some weird place. 

493
00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:18,160
You saw a video. 
Listen, I'm going to bring you. 

494
00:26:18,360 --> 00:26:20,160
You can't. 
I'm telling you on that at 26, 

495
00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:22,400
you're not going to believe it. 
I'm going to, I'm going to help 

496
00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:24,160
us go to places you've never 
been before. 

497
00:26:24,160 --> 00:26:25,960
Inglewood. 
We're going to go see some of my

498
00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:30,640
friends overseas in 26 in some 
interest, interesting places, 

499
00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:33,760
OK? 
And I'm going to get you to go. 

500
00:26:34,120 --> 00:26:37,200
If I have to go with you, I'll 
get you to go. 

501
00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:41,200
You need to be here. 
It's going to be a fun night. 

502
00:26:41,200 --> 00:26:42,280
We're going to review 
everything. 

503
00:26:42,280 --> 00:26:44,320
As Jordan said, it's going to be
a celebration. 

504
00:26:44,320 --> 00:26:45,440
It's going to be just a fun 
night. 

505
00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:47,800
You come that night. 
But listen, there are thousands 

506
00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:52,560
of them right now and more and 
more, 50,000 of them are coming.

507
00:26:54,880 --> 00:26:59,920
What are we going to do? 
If you think that you're alive 

508
00:26:59,920 --> 00:27:08,000
today and in this place at this 
exact moment just for you, you 

509
00:27:08,000 --> 00:27:13,800
are missing the mission of God. 
You are here at this exact 

510
00:27:13,800 --> 00:27:16,960
moment at this exact place at 
for an exact reason. 

511
00:27:17,120 --> 00:27:21,560
So pray for and share with them 
and let's bring God great glory 

512
00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:25,280
and let's watch him pack the 
House of people. 

513
00:27:26,280 --> 00:27:29,400
So Paul constantly proclaimed 
the gospel and that's an 

514
00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:31,600
expectation for us as well. 
It's a part of who we are and 

515
00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:33,000
here's why. 
Look at verse 9. 

516
00:27:33,000 --> 00:27:35,560
These are verses you might know.
These are verses that some of 

517
00:27:35,560 --> 00:27:38,720
you would use, some of you have 
memorized because if you confess

518
00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:41,960
with your mouth that Jesus is 
Lord and believe in your heart 

519
00:27:41,960 --> 00:27:44,400
that God raised him from the 
dead, you will be saved. 

520
00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:47,960
I mean, it's the gospel for with
the heart 1 believes and is 

521
00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:50,920
justified, and with the mouth 1 
confesses and is saved. 

522
00:27:51,360 --> 00:27:53,680
So the third thing we need to 
look at, and there's only 16 

523
00:27:53,680 --> 00:27:56,080
points to the sermon. 
So you get, the third thing we 

524
00:27:56,080 --> 00:28:01,040
need to recognize is that we 
need to know what and to whom to

525
00:28:01,040 --> 00:28:03,640
share. 
There's a gospel message that 

526
00:28:03,640 --> 00:28:06,360
needs to be shared. 
There's truth here that must be,

527
00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:09,400
must be told. 
So the gospel is both a 

528
00:28:09,400 --> 00:28:14,040
recognition of these truths and 
it's also a declaration of these

529
00:28:14,040 --> 00:28:17,080
truths. 
So it's not enough just to to 

530
00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:19,920
hear them. 
They have to change you. 

531
00:28:20,800 --> 00:28:22,960
So confessing Jesus as Lord. 
Curious. 

532
00:28:23,160 --> 00:28:25,480
This is that word in the Greek 
Old Testament and the Sept. 

533
00:28:25,480 --> 00:28:30,200
It's used 6000 times or more to 
translate the Hebrew name for 

534
00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:33,160
God, Yahweh. 
So you've got to understand the 

535
00:28:33,160 --> 00:28:34,920
power of what is being said 
here. 

536
00:28:35,560 --> 00:28:39,040
So we are to confess, we are to 
agree with, we are to say the 

537
00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:42,800
same thing as that's what that 
word means, that Jesus is Lord. 

538
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,800
And that means we're 
proclaiming, we are declaring 

539
00:28:45,880 --> 00:28:51,080
that Jesus is God and has 
absolute authority over my life.

540
00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:54,760
In fact, a more literal 
translation of the Greek here 

541
00:28:54,880 --> 00:29:00,840
would say, if on your lips is 
the confession, Jesus is Lord. 

542
00:29:02,040 --> 00:29:04,440
This is who I am, This is my 
identity. 

543
00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:08,200
This is what has happened to me.
In fact, listen to Jesus. 

544
00:29:08,200 --> 00:29:10,080
He shared about this in Matthew 
chapter 10. 

545
00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:13,320
He said, So everyone who 
acknowledges me before men, I 

546
00:29:13,320 --> 00:29:16,160
also will acknowledge before my 
Father who is in heaven. 

547
00:29:16,400 --> 00:29:23,680
But whoever denies me before 
men, I will also deny before my 

548
00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:27,320
Father who is in heaven. 
So confessing Christ is not 

549
00:29:27,320 --> 00:29:29,920
simply some private matter. 
You know, it's really funny. 

550
00:29:29,920 --> 00:29:31,920
Let me tell you. 
A lie of Satan religious is 

551
00:29:31,920 --> 00:29:34,040
private. 
That's a lie. 

552
00:29:35,320 --> 00:29:38,040
That's a lie. 
You know, that's all the people 

553
00:29:38,040 --> 00:29:39,200
say. 
Well, that's a very personal and

554
00:29:39,200 --> 00:29:40,560
private thing. 
Well, yeah, I understand you 

555
00:29:40,560 --> 00:29:42,920
need to personally accept Jesus 
Christ as your Lord and Savior, 

556
00:29:42,920 --> 00:29:45,480
but there's absolutely nothing 
in biblical Christianity that 

557
00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:47,760
then says you're not supposed to
tell people about that. 

558
00:29:48,520 --> 00:29:51,960
It's the opposite. 
This is not a private matter. 

559
00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:55,400
This is a public matter. 
This is public identification. 

560
00:29:55,560 --> 00:29:58,440
This is public declaration. 
You can argue with me if you 

561
00:29:58,440 --> 00:30:01,280
want to, but go to the Bible and
you're going to be wrong. 

562
00:30:02,520 --> 00:30:05,760
I don't make this stuff up. 
So listen, we've celebrated 

563
00:30:05,760 --> 00:30:08,480
multiple people being baptized. 
We've got more on the way. 

564
00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:11,800
I know of more on the way. 
And maybe you need to join them.

565
00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:14,320
Maybe you need to contact the 
pastor of church office and say 

566
00:30:14,320 --> 00:30:16,480
I need to be baptized, I know I 
need to be baptized. 

567
00:30:16,680 --> 00:30:20,280
And then invite your lost 
friends and family and, and have

568
00:30:20,280 --> 00:30:22,840
them sit here and you share your
testimony through baptism and 

569
00:30:22,840 --> 00:30:25,480
I'll share the gospel with them.
I remember one time, Teresa will

570
00:30:25,480 --> 00:30:27,480
tell you right over here in the 
church one time had, and you 

571
00:30:27,480 --> 00:30:30,280
remember the atheist Dave, 
atheist Dave sitting right over 

572
00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:32,520
here because he had to come, 
didn't have a choice because his

573
00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:35,240
daughter and his dad were 
getting baptized together. 

574
00:30:35,440 --> 00:30:38,480
So had grandpa and granddaughter
getting baptized together, and 

575
00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:40,440
two weeks later David's getting 
baptized. 

576
00:30:41,920 --> 00:30:43,720
Now here's what you do. 
You bring your friends and 

577
00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:45,520
neighbors. 
We'll have a whole splash zone 

578
00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:48,200
up here and you get them all 
lined up in here every week, and

579
00:30:48,200 --> 00:30:49,520
then some of them will get 
saved. 

580
00:30:49,600 --> 00:30:51,960
Then they get baptized. 
They'll bring more people to the

581
00:30:51,960 --> 00:30:54,520
splash zone, and we'll just keep
rotating the splash zone. 

582
00:30:58,640 --> 00:31:03,360
But you got to bring them, you 
got to tell them, and you've got

583
00:31:03,360 --> 00:31:06,920
to step forward. 
See, we got to believe first in 

584
00:31:06,920 --> 00:31:09,000
our heart. 
So it is internal, it's 

585
00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:11,120
personal. 
This is not a superficial act. 

586
00:31:11,120 --> 00:31:14,040
This is interchange. 
This is reality, this is truth, 

587
00:31:14,280 --> 00:31:17,160
right? 
And, and to believe with one's 

588
00:31:17,160 --> 00:31:20,040
heart means to commit oneself at
the deepest level. 

589
00:31:20,320 --> 00:31:23,640
And it's not just verbal, it's 
not just intellectual, it's, 

590
00:31:23,640 --> 00:31:26,520
it's staking your entire being 
upon this truth. 

591
00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:31,080
So it matters that we believe 
and it matters what we believe. 

592
00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:34,640
And so believing in the absolute
authority and lordship of Jesus 

593
00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:38,120
Christ and his which 
resurrection is the very center 

594
00:31:38,120 --> 00:31:40,200
of our faith, because without 
the resurrection, there's no 

595
00:31:40,200 --> 00:31:43,360
hope. 
So we recognize this gospel that

596
00:31:43,360 --> 00:31:47,600
the Father raised the Son to 
validate his claim over sin and 

597
00:31:47,600 --> 00:31:51,080
death and to authenticate who 
Jesus really is. 

598
00:31:51,520 --> 00:31:54,280
And then we're saved because 
we're justified by him. 

599
00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:58,080
We're made right we and he 
intercedes on our behalf, and 

600
00:31:58,080 --> 00:32:02,320
that internal change happens. 
Then we have to let it all out 

601
00:32:03,960 --> 00:32:08,480
and identify with Him publicly 
and tell the world so. 

602
00:32:08,480 --> 00:32:13,440
Notice how believing and 
confessing or proclaiming are 

603
00:32:13,440 --> 00:32:17,000
inseparable. 
You don't get to choose. 

604
00:32:17,600 --> 00:32:20,840
If you're a Christian and you 
never share your faith, you've 

605
00:32:20,840 --> 00:32:24,800
got to hear me say this to you. 
Your discipleship is incomplete.

606
00:32:28,040 --> 00:32:29,320
Am I trying to put pressure on 
you? 

607
00:32:29,600 --> 00:32:33,000
Absolutely. 
Come be trained. 

608
00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:37,080
Let us help you take that step. 
I'm too shy. 

609
00:32:37,160 --> 00:32:39,640
Listen, I've had seminary 
students who've never showed the

610
00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:42,640
gospel in their entire life, 
Masters level seminary students,

611
00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:45,600
and they'll confess that to me. 
They're they're introverted, 

612
00:32:45,600 --> 00:32:46,800
they're shy. 
I don't know how to do this. 

613
00:32:46,800 --> 00:32:48,680
This scares me to death. 
I'm not talking about standing 

614
00:32:48,680 --> 00:32:51,360
on the street corner with a, 
with a loudspeaker gang. 

615
00:32:51,880 --> 00:32:54,000
I'm talking about how do I 
develop a relationship with my 

616
00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:57,520
friends. 
If you don't know how to have a 

617
00:32:57,520 --> 00:33:03,960
friend, we'll talk about that. 
The class I used to want to 

618
00:33:03,960 --> 00:33:06,440
teach at seminary was how to 
have a normal interpersonal 

619
00:33:06,440 --> 00:33:08,120
relationship without acting like
a geek. 

620
00:33:08,240 --> 00:33:09,800
That's what I wanted to teach at
the seminary. 

621
00:33:13,640 --> 00:33:16,160
So notice how believing and 
confessing go together. 

622
00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:20,160
This gospel of grace and faith 
is a message that we constantly 

623
00:33:20,160 --> 00:33:21,920
proclaim because of our 
discipleship. 

624
00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:24,840
Listen to verse 11 for the 
Scripture says everyone who 

625
00:33:24,840 --> 00:33:26,720
believes in him will not be put 
to shame. 

626
00:33:26,960 --> 00:33:29,160
For there is no distinction 
between Jew and Greek. 

627
00:33:29,160 --> 00:33:32,560
For the same Lord is Lord of 
all, bestowing his riches on all

628
00:33:32,560 --> 00:33:35,000
who call on him. 
For everyone who calls on the 

629
00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,120
name of the Lord will be saved. 
So what's really cool about this

630
00:33:38,120 --> 00:33:41,440
is that the righteousness that 
God imparts is open to 

631
00:33:41,440 --> 00:33:43,240
everybody. 
That's the other cool thing 

632
00:33:43,240 --> 00:33:44,840
about the gospel. 
It's not just for some people. 

633
00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:47,000
And you got to remember who 
Paul's talking to here. 

634
00:33:47,120 --> 00:33:49,920
He's a lot of the book of Romans
is written to to Jewish 

635
00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:53,280
background believers, and so 
he's rocking writing to these 

636
00:33:53,280 --> 00:33:56,080
Jewish mindset sometimes who 
often thought they were the only

637
00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:57,080
ones who ought to have 
something. 

638
00:33:58,040 --> 00:34:01,040
And so we see this idea that his
free pardon is assured to 

639
00:34:01,040 --> 00:34:03,160
everyone who calls on the name 
of the Lord. 

640
00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:06,680
Notice how many times there's an
everyone or an all all have one 

641
00:34:06,680 --> 00:34:09,320
way of salvation because there's
only one way to salvation. 

642
00:34:09,320 --> 00:34:12,560
You can only come to the Father 
except except through Jesus. 

643
00:34:13,280 --> 00:34:16,280
So there's no distinction. 
We also all have sinned. 

644
00:34:17,199 --> 00:34:21,719
We also all need to be saved. 
We also all must be saved. 

645
00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:25,960
And so that means that we must 
seek them all and we need to 

646
00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:28,560
welcome them all and share with 
them all. 

647
00:34:29,440 --> 00:34:33,600
So we don't simply stand in the 
world bearing witness to Christ 

648
00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:35,600
because we've been justified by 
him. 

649
00:34:36,040 --> 00:34:40,120
We actually stand in Christ and 
then we're bearing witness to 

650
00:34:40,120 --> 00:34:45,639
the world because of him. 
Abide in him, be in Christ, be 

651
00:34:45,639 --> 00:34:48,199
filled with His Spirit. 
Look at verse 13. 

652
00:34:49,199 --> 00:34:51,679
For everyone who calls on the 
name of the Lord will be saved. 

653
00:34:51,840 --> 00:34:54,600
How then will they call on Him 
and Him and whom they've not 

654
00:34:54,600 --> 00:34:56,639
believed? 
And how are they to believe in 

655
00:34:56,639 --> 00:34:59,720
Him of whom they have not heard?
And how are they to hear without

656
00:34:59,720 --> 00:35:02,720
someone preaching? 
It gets pretty practical. 

657
00:35:02,760 --> 00:35:09,280
Here's this theology applied now
point #4 there's only a couple 

658
00:35:09,280 --> 00:35:13,760
more. 
Really recognize the urgent 

659
00:35:13,760 --> 00:35:19,000
responsibility to share. 
Don't miss this, this powerful 

660
00:35:19,280 --> 00:35:20,800
passage right here. 
If you know what he's doing, 

661
00:35:20,920 --> 00:35:23,120
he's actually quoting Joel 
chapter 2. 

662
00:35:24,080 --> 00:35:26,600
And in Joel chapter 2, 
everything that he's saying 

663
00:35:26,600 --> 00:35:29,520
about Jesus was said about 
Yahweh. 

664
00:35:30,040 --> 00:35:33,120
So guess who Jesus is? 
He's God. 

665
00:35:34,600 --> 00:35:38,480
So one calls out of a sense of 
inadequacy, I can't. 

666
00:35:38,480 --> 00:35:41,760
God, you can, only you can. 
I'm inadequate. 

667
00:35:41,760 --> 00:35:45,400
I can't do this myself. 
And it literally means to invoke

668
00:35:45,400 --> 00:35:48,280
Him as Lord. 
See, when we declare His 

669
00:35:48,280 --> 00:35:51,880
position and authority over us, 
we declare our allegiance to 

670
00:35:51,880 --> 00:35:55,200
Him, our recognition of the 
reality of who He really is. 

671
00:35:55,480 --> 00:35:58,840
It's our we're stating our 
complete dependency upon Him. 

672
00:35:59,880 --> 00:36:02,960
This is a life. 
Then we must proclaim him to 

673
00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,240
others so that they can see this
urgent need. 

674
00:36:05,360 --> 00:36:08,120
This is desperate. 
You've got to call out and call 

675
00:36:08,120 --> 00:36:11,160
upon him. 
This is a life or death 

676
00:36:11,240 --> 00:36:13,680
conversation. 
You know, it's interesting. 

677
00:36:13,680 --> 00:36:15,800
I'm going to teach a series down
the road called Heaven, Hell and

678
00:36:15,800 --> 00:36:20,440
the Hereafter, or what happens 
the the 2nd that I die and we're

679
00:36:20,440 --> 00:36:22,200
going to talk about the 
afterlife. 

680
00:36:22,400 --> 00:36:23,480
And it's always interesting to 
me. 

681
00:36:23,480 --> 00:36:25,160
People love to talk about 
heaven, but I'm not sure 

682
00:36:25,160 --> 00:36:26,480
everybody believes in hell 
anymore. 

683
00:36:27,760 --> 00:36:31,080
Across the US, the studies show 
that that far fewer people 

684
00:36:31,080 --> 00:36:32,880
believe in hell than believe in 
heaven. 

685
00:36:32,880 --> 00:36:34,720
Well, let me tell you something.
Hell, it's real. 

686
00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:39,280
People are going to die. 
This is life or death. 

687
00:36:40,720 --> 00:36:43,560
There's an old story, It's a 
true story about an old chief, a

688
00:36:43,560 --> 00:36:46,520
Fijian tree from Fiji, A Fijian 
tribal chief. 

689
00:36:47,640 --> 00:36:50,920
And he became a believer along 
with a lot of his people. 

690
00:36:51,440 --> 00:36:53,960
And an unbeliever came to him 
and mocked him and says, you're 

691
00:36:53,960 --> 00:36:56,400
a great chief. 
And it's really a pity that 

692
00:36:56,400 --> 00:36:59,120
you've been so foolish as to 
listen to these missionaries who

693
00:36:59,120 --> 00:37:00,440
only want to get rich off of 
you. 

694
00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:05,000
And no, no one today believes in
any more in that old book called

695
00:37:05,000 --> 00:37:07,240
the Bible. 
Neither do men listen to that 

696
00:37:07,240 --> 00:37:09,400
old story about Jesus. 
People know better now. 

697
00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:10,960
And I'm sorry that you've been 
so foolish. 

698
00:37:12,080 --> 00:37:14,200
Well, the chief chief's eyes 
kind of flash. 

699
00:37:15,320 --> 00:37:18,920
He's an older man at that point.
And he says, you see that big 

700
00:37:18,920 --> 00:37:22,920
stone over there? 
Yeah, well, on that stone we 

701
00:37:22,920 --> 00:37:25,360
used to smash the heads of our 
victims to death. 

702
00:37:25,360 --> 00:37:28,800
Do you see that oven over there 
he goes. 

703
00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:31,320
In that oven we used to roast 
their bodies for our great 

704
00:37:31,320 --> 00:37:34,440
feasts. 
If it had not been for those 

705
00:37:34,440 --> 00:37:37,880
good missionaries, if it had not
been for that old book, and if 

706
00:37:37,880 --> 00:37:40,440
it not been for the great love 
of Jesus, which has changed us 

707
00:37:40,440 --> 00:37:43,320
from savages into God's 
children, you'd never leave this

708
00:37:43,320 --> 00:37:46,080
spot. 
Thank God for the gospel, 

709
00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:47,880
otherwise you'd be dead right 
now. 

710
00:37:50,440 --> 00:37:53,960
Men and women are urged to call 
upon the Lord, urgently call 

711
00:37:53,960 --> 00:37:56,120
upon the Lord. 
Their eternal lives depended 

712
00:37:56,120 --> 00:37:59,040
upon it, but they must believe. 
They must believe. 

713
00:37:59,040 --> 00:38:00,640
And you've heard me talk about 
believe. 

714
00:38:00,640 --> 00:38:03,160
It's just a verb form of the 
noun for faith. 

715
00:38:03,880 --> 00:38:07,040
So they need to faith, they need
the faith in Jesus. 

716
00:38:07,040 --> 00:38:09,880
It's more than knowledge, it's 
more than even understanding, 

717
00:38:09,880 --> 00:38:13,720
it's dependency, it's control. 
You got to give up control, it's

718
00:38:13,720 --> 00:38:16,320
reliance, it's trust, it's 
submission. 

719
00:38:16,600 --> 00:38:22,480
So to call upon the Lord without
faith is empty verse 9 again. 

720
00:38:22,480 --> 00:38:25,040
Because if you confess with your
mouth that Jesus is Lord and 

721
00:38:25,040 --> 00:38:27,160
believe in your heart that God 
raised him from the dead, you 

722
00:38:27,160 --> 00:38:30,040
will be saved. 
For with the heart 1 believes 

723
00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:34,320
and is justified, and with the 
mouth 1 confesses and is saved. 

724
00:38:35,520 --> 00:38:40,880
The lost around us right now 
must faith in Christ. 

725
00:38:41,440 --> 00:38:44,720
But how are they going to do 
that unless we teach them what 

726
00:38:44,720 --> 00:38:48,000
that is? 
Over half the world's population

727
00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:51,480
Right now, 59% of the world's 
total population has no access 

728
00:38:51,480 --> 00:38:55,320
to the gospel. 
Now, next week we're going to 

729
00:38:55,320 --> 00:38:56,960
start, we're going to launch our
missions month. 

730
00:38:56,960 --> 00:38:58,840
We're going to start talking 
about how do we reach the whole 

731
00:38:58,840 --> 00:39:01,600
world. 
But right now, let's talk about 

732
00:39:01,600 --> 00:39:02,800
how we're going to reach our 
neighbor. 

733
00:39:04,480 --> 00:39:06,240
And, and, and here's the 
frustrating part. 

734
00:39:06,360 --> 00:39:08,840
When we talk about the world, 
it's billions of people and that

735
00:39:08,840 --> 00:39:11,240
number is just increasing. 
It's not decreasing. 

736
00:39:11,360 --> 00:39:12,880
But here's what you've got to 
understand. 

737
00:39:12,920 --> 00:39:15,200
The same things happening in 
Rocky Mount. 

738
00:39:15,920 --> 00:39:20,000
There are more lost people today
in the Rocky Mount era area than

739
00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,880
there were yesterday. 
And tomorrow there'll be more 

740
00:39:23,880 --> 00:39:27,480
than today and it's going to 
continue to increase. 

741
00:39:27,480 --> 00:39:29,120
We've got to do something about 
this. 

742
00:39:30,280 --> 00:39:31,800
It's happening all across Nash 
County. 

743
00:39:31,800 --> 00:39:34,120
It's going to continue. 
And how can they believe if 

744
00:39:34,120 --> 00:39:36,120
nobody tells them? 
Karl Henry has a famous 

745
00:39:36,120 --> 00:39:37,440
sentence. 
He says this. 

746
00:39:37,440 --> 00:39:41,600
The gospel is only good if it 
gets there in time and we've got

747
00:39:41,600 --> 00:39:44,400
to take it to him. 
So saving faith depends upon 

748
00:39:44,400 --> 00:39:46,120
knowledge. 
It depends upon hearing. 

749
00:39:46,280 --> 00:39:48,480
It depends upon understanding 
the word of God. 

750
00:39:48,800 --> 00:39:51,640
And don't assume this is a wrong
assumption. 

751
00:39:51,640 --> 00:39:54,480
It's false. 
Don't assume that everybody you 

752
00:39:54,480 --> 00:39:57,720
know has heard. 
In fact, statistically, the 

753
00:39:57,720 --> 00:40:01,640
opposite is likely true. 
In the United States of America,

754
00:40:01,800 --> 00:40:07,800
most lost people, by far most 
lost people have never, ever had

755
00:40:07,800 --> 00:40:11,160
anybody share a gospel 
presentation to them in a 

756
00:40:11,160 --> 00:40:15,520
loving, personal way. 
So don't assume your next door 

757
00:40:15,520 --> 00:40:19,480
neighbors are Christian. 
Assume they're not and assume 

758
00:40:19,480 --> 00:40:22,280
they've never heard like you 
could share with them. 

759
00:40:22,960 --> 00:40:24,720
So let me state this as clearly 
as I can. 

760
00:40:24,720 --> 00:40:27,600
Let me let me muster of all my 
academia here, let me come up 

761
00:40:27,600 --> 00:40:29,680
with the fanciest words I can 
possibly muster. 

762
00:40:29,800 --> 00:40:31,600
Here's what I here's what I've 
got to say. 

763
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:36,640
Those of us who know Christ in 
the gospel must communicate that

764
00:40:36,720 --> 00:40:38,520
to those who don't. 
How about that? 

765
00:40:39,640 --> 00:40:44,520
That clear enough? 
Because they they need to hear 

766
00:40:44,520 --> 00:40:48,480
to believe. 
But how are they when almost 

767
00:40:48,480 --> 00:40:49,760
everybody in the church is 
silent? 

768
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:54,800
Don't just call me to come visit
your friend. 

769
00:40:54,800 --> 00:40:58,280
You go see your friend. 
I'll go with you if I can. 

770
00:40:59,440 --> 00:41:01,400
But listen, you need to 
understand that this is how 

771
00:41:01,400 --> 00:41:04,640
Teresa and I were both saved. 
You would not know us. 

772
00:41:04,920 --> 00:41:07,040
You may not care for me, but I 
know everybody likes her. 

773
00:41:07,040 --> 00:41:10,400
So if, if, if you like her, you 
need to understand you would 

774
00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:14,520
have never known her because we 
were saved. 

775
00:41:14,680 --> 00:41:20,960
Because individual regular 
church folks, not a pastor, not 

776
00:41:20,960 --> 00:41:24,880
a Deacon, not a Sunday school 
teacher, just regular old church

777
00:41:24,880 --> 00:41:28,520
folks personally shared the 
gospel with each of us 

778
00:41:28,520 --> 00:41:30,240
separately. 
Now, we weren't a couple in 

779
00:41:30,240 --> 00:41:32,960
those days with years apart, 
different places, different 

780
00:41:33,240 --> 00:41:36,800
locate all kinds of stuff. 
But if it wasn't for those folks

781
00:41:37,840 --> 00:41:41,360
to come to us and share the 
gospel with us, just regular 

782
00:41:41,360 --> 00:41:46,000
folks from different churches, I
would have never heard a 

783
00:41:46,000 --> 00:41:50,240
preacher. 
I mean, I'm not kidding you. 

784
00:41:50,240 --> 00:41:52,000
The first time I would have 
heard a sermon, I'd been in the 

785
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:54,560
casket and I couldn't hear hurt.
I couldn't hear much, right? 

786
00:41:54,560 --> 00:42:01,680
I didn't go to church. 
So if it wasn't for individuals 

787
00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:07,160
who came to us, who cared, who 
were bold and loving and 

788
00:42:07,160 --> 00:42:13,000
burdened enough to come share 
the gospel with us, I'm thankful

789
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:15,880
for Brother Galbraith and 
brother Brother Dreadful Water. 

790
00:42:20,000 --> 00:42:23,480
We need to somebody and that's 
exactly what we need to learn 

791
00:42:23,480 --> 00:42:25,560
how to do. 
I'm reminded of an old story. 

792
00:42:25,560 --> 00:42:28,320
Hudson Taylor was a famous 
historic missionary to China. 

793
00:42:28,320 --> 00:42:30,760
If you don't know who Hudson 
Taylor is, and he had an elderly

794
00:42:30,760 --> 00:42:32,160
Chinese man, this is a true 
story. 

795
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:35,600
Elderly Chinese man come to him 
one time and he was sitting in a

796
00:42:35,920 --> 00:42:39,600
in a in an inn. 
And the old man walks up to him 

797
00:42:39,600 --> 00:42:41,000
and says, are you a foreigner? 
He goes, yeah, I'm an 

798
00:42:41,000 --> 00:42:42,440
Englishman. 
He goes, are there are those 

799
00:42:42,440 --> 00:42:44,120
books in that bag? 
And he goes, yes, they are. 

800
00:42:44,120 --> 00:42:46,040
And he says, are you a teacher 
of foreign religion? 

801
00:42:46,040 --> 00:42:47,760
He goes, yeah, I teach the Jesus
religion. 

802
00:42:49,040 --> 00:42:52,120
And the older Chinese man then 
said to Hudson Taylor that he'd 

803
00:42:52,120 --> 00:42:54,840
been a seeker for truth for many
years, but he couldn't find a 

804
00:42:54,840 --> 00:42:57,640
religion that would take away 
the burden of his guilt. 

805
00:42:58,440 --> 00:43:02,120
And a few nights before, he'd 
had a vision that had come to 

806
00:43:02,120 --> 00:43:05,120
him in which a man dressed in 
white told him to go to Hang 

807
00:43:05,120 --> 00:43:08,640
Chao, and there he would find a 
foreigner sitting in the end 

808
00:43:08,640 --> 00:43:10,720
with a bag of books on the table
in front of him. 

809
00:43:11,960 --> 00:43:14,760
And the Chinese man said they 
went to in, after, in, after, 

810
00:43:14,760 --> 00:43:17,320
in, after, in. 
And finally the last in he came 

811
00:43:17,320 --> 00:43:19,120
to. 
His last hope was this in. 

812
00:43:20,440 --> 00:43:23,240
And Taylor preached the gospel 
to him and gave him a Bible. 

813
00:43:23,720 --> 00:43:26,320
And two days later, he visited 
the man's home and found that he

814
00:43:26,320 --> 00:43:29,280
destroyed all his idols and that
he was rejoicing in Jesus Christ

815
00:43:29,280 --> 00:43:37,080
as his Savior. 
Our world is in massive, urgent 

816
00:43:37,280 --> 00:43:40,000
need. 
There's a Hebrew word that 

817
00:43:40,000 --> 00:43:42,800
describes our world right now. 
It's a mess. 

818
00:43:43,160 --> 00:43:47,840
And I'm telling you it's a mess.
And it's getting darker and 

819
00:43:47,840 --> 00:43:50,880
darker. 
And the church has to do its 

820
00:43:50,880 --> 00:43:55,480
job. 
We're partly responsible for 

821
00:43:55,480 --> 00:44:02,080
this, and so it must call, it 
must believe, it must hear. 

822
00:44:02,280 --> 00:44:05,120
But someone needs to share 
before it's too late. 

823
00:44:06,320 --> 00:44:10,520
They need a friend who cares 
enough to pray and to share. 

824
00:44:10,520 --> 00:44:13,920
Verse 15. 
And how are they to preach 

825
00:44:13,920 --> 00:44:16,080
unless they're sent as it is 
written? 

826
00:44:16,080 --> 00:44:18,280
How beautiful are the feet of 
those who preach? 

827
00:44:18,280 --> 00:44:21,880
The good news #5 is a question. 
Am I willing to share with a 

828
00:44:21,880 --> 00:44:25,600
lost person? 
Christianity begins with the 

829
00:44:25,600 --> 00:44:29,400
words follow me. 
It ends with the words go where 

830
00:44:29,400 --> 00:44:31,960
do I fit in? 
And and it says that we're to 

831
00:44:31,960 --> 00:44:33,560
preach this, to preach the good 
news. 

832
00:44:33,680 --> 00:44:36,960
That means to herald. 
We're we're royal, royal, royal 

833
00:44:36,960 --> 00:44:41,720
can't say the word royal heralds
of the king and his Kingdom. 

834
00:44:42,600 --> 00:44:45,040
So we not only send people out, 
we're going to do that. 

835
00:44:45,040 --> 00:44:46,680
It's going to be our prayer. 
We're thankful for what's going 

836
00:44:46,680 --> 00:44:49,000
on in Tarboro right now. 
We're going to continue to send 

837
00:44:49,000 --> 00:44:52,320
people out to share, but we also
got to send ourselves and go 

838
00:44:53,160 --> 00:44:56,120
that word send apostolo is the 
word we get apostle from and it 

839
00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:59,200
means to be sent out. 
And so we recognize it's that 

840
00:44:59,200 --> 00:45:02,080
that we're sent by a higher 
power with a certain message, a 

841
00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:05,920
certain mission provided by that
authority and we're commanded to

842
00:45:05,920 --> 00:45:07,760
be heralds. 
And this is one of the reasons 

843
00:45:07,760 --> 00:45:11,360
we end our service with John 
2021 that says Jesus said to 

844
00:45:11,360 --> 00:45:14,440
them, peace be with you. 
And as the Father has sent me, 

845
00:45:14,960 --> 00:45:19,560
Even so I'm sending you. 
So how can we send out another 

846
00:45:19,560 --> 00:45:22,440
to show the gospel so they might
hear, believe and call upon the 

847
00:45:22,440 --> 00:45:26,160
name of the Lord? 
Doctor Kevin Ezel, our former 

848
00:45:26,160 --> 00:45:28,920
pastor and a friend of mine 
who's president of North 

849
00:45:28,920 --> 00:45:31,280
American Mission Board, once 
said this. 

850
00:45:31,280 --> 00:45:34,120
He says, may we count our 
success not by how many we keep,

851
00:45:35,200 --> 00:45:40,480
but by how many we send. 
Will we respond to the lostness 

852
00:45:40,480 --> 00:45:44,080
of our community? 
Will we respond to the high 

853
00:45:44,080 --> 00:45:46,160
discipleship expectations of our
Lord? 

854
00:45:46,640 --> 00:45:49,080
I mean, what an honor to be 
saved, what an honor to be 

855
00:45:49,080 --> 00:45:52,320
called, what an honor to be 
indwelt by the Holy Spirit, What

856
00:45:52,320 --> 00:45:55,640
an what an honor to be filled, 
what an honor to be gifted. 

857
00:45:55,920 --> 00:46:00,120
So we certainly don't want to 
dishonor him with our silence. 

858
00:46:01,600 --> 00:46:05,400
If you don't know what to say, 
come on Wednesdays and I'll 

859
00:46:05,400 --> 00:46:07,120
teach you. 
You've been too afraid you'll be

860
00:46:07,120 --> 00:46:08,360
here. 
We'll talk about that. 

861
00:46:09,160 --> 00:46:12,000
This task requires too much 
immediate attention in action. 

862
00:46:12,000 --> 00:46:13,520
Listen, I know folks who are 
introverted. 

863
00:46:13,520 --> 00:46:15,360
They're too scared to do this. 
Listen, we're going to help you 

864
00:46:15,360 --> 00:46:17,040
walk through that. 
We can't write it off. 

865
00:46:17,040 --> 00:46:19,040
We can't expect somebody else to
do this. 

866
00:46:19,160 --> 00:46:21,440
We can't just pawn it off. 
We can't just ignore it. 

867
00:46:21,640 --> 00:46:25,240
People are dying in need. 
So you need to be here to be 

868
00:46:25,240 --> 00:46:27,800
trained. 
And we just need to see what 

869
00:46:27,800 --> 00:46:32,240
kind of dent God can put in the 
74% by using Englewood Baptist 

870
00:46:32,240 --> 00:46:38,880
Church verse 16. 
But they have not all obeyed the

871
00:46:38,880 --> 00:46:45,000
gospel. 
There's a sentence, Isaiah says,

872
00:46:45,000 --> 00:46:47,960
Lord, who has believed what he 
has heard from us. 

873
00:46:48,440 --> 00:46:50,680
So faith comes from hearing and 
hearing through the word of 

874
00:46:50,680 --> 00:46:53,680
Christ. 
But I ask, have they not heard? 

875
00:46:53,680 --> 00:46:56,600
Indeed they have, for their 
voices gone out to all the earth

876
00:46:56,600 --> 00:46:58,680
and their words to the ends of 
the world. 

877
00:46:58,880 --> 00:47:01,000
But I asked, did Israel not 
understand? 

878
00:47:01,160 --> 00:47:04,760
First Moses says I will make you
jealous of those who are not a 

879
00:47:04,760 --> 00:47:07,920
nation with a foolish nation. 
I'll make you angry. 

880
00:47:08,720 --> 00:47:12,080
Then Isaiah's so bold as to say 
I've been found by those who did

881
00:47:12,080 --> 00:47:14,960
not seek me. 
I have shown myself to those who

882
00:47:14,960 --> 00:47:17,120
did not ask for me, but of 
Israel. 

883
00:47:17,120 --> 00:47:22,040
He says all day long I've held 
out my hands to a disobedient 

884
00:47:22,520 --> 00:47:25,640
and contrary people. 
The last thing I just want to 

885
00:47:25,640 --> 00:47:30,720
share with you simply this We 
need to grieve that not all will

886
00:47:30,720 --> 00:47:37,560
believe it ought to bother you. 
It ought to bother us that no 

887
00:47:37,560 --> 00:47:40,560
matter how hard Paul prayed and 
proclaimed, not all the 

888
00:47:40,560 --> 00:47:42,480
Israelites accepted the good 
news. 

889
00:47:44,120 --> 00:47:49,280
The lost around us may not 
respond either, but that doesn't

890
00:47:49,280 --> 00:47:52,560
need to stop us. 
Unbelief will always be an 

891
00:47:52,560 --> 00:47:56,880
obstacle, but we got to move 
forward because our love for 

892
00:47:56,880 --> 00:47:59,800
this is not just our love for 
those people. 

893
00:48:00,360 --> 00:48:02,440
We need to love others. 
We need to love them. 

894
00:48:02,720 --> 00:48:07,640
But a primary motivation for us 
is because we love Jesus and I 

895
00:48:07,640 --> 00:48:13,600
can't not tell you about him. 
We go in faith, not fear, and 

896
00:48:13,600 --> 00:48:16,560
we're going to succeed because 
we have, as this passage says, 

897
00:48:16,560 --> 00:48:19,000
the word of Christ. 
You may know this word. 

898
00:48:19,000 --> 00:48:21,520
This is the spoken word of or 
about Christ. 

899
00:48:21,520 --> 00:48:26,000
It's the Rhema, the Rhema word, 
the spoken word. 

900
00:48:26,840 --> 00:48:29,720
So when the gospel is preached, 
it's God himself who speaks. 

901
00:48:29,720 --> 00:48:33,000
It's God himself who calls, it's
God himself who saves. 

902
00:48:33,080 --> 00:48:35,920
So we need to move out and speak
his words so others hear and 

903
00:48:35,920 --> 00:48:37,520
believe. 
And we're going to try to equip 

904
00:48:37,520 --> 00:48:40,080
you to do that. 
So evangelism is a test that 

905
00:48:40,080 --> 00:48:44,160
will never end for us. 
Until we die or until he 

906
00:48:44,160 --> 00:48:46,720
returns. 
We have to constantly, 

907
00:48:46,720 --> 00:48:51,120
continuously proclaim the great 
painter Norman Rockwell died. 

908
00:48:51,120 --> 00:48:55,440
And when they went to his house,
to a studio, there was one last 

909
00:48:55,440 --> 00:48:57,480
unfinished painting on that 
easel. 

910
00:48:58,920 --> 00:49:02,600
And the painting was of a 18th 
century missionary, John 

911
00:49:02,600 --> 00:49:05,400
Sargent, who worked with Native 
Americans here. 

912
00:49:06,480 --> 00:49:09,720
And it was a painting of of the 
missionary John Sargent trying 

913
00:49:09,720 --> 00:49:13,200
to convert a Stockbridge Indian 
chief. 

914
00:49:13,400 --> 00:49:18,480
It just wasn't done. 
We have an unfinished task 

915
00:49:18,600 --> 00:49:22,880
before us. 
Unfinished people out there. 

916
00:49:23,560 --> 00:49:28,080
Maybe you're unfinished here. 
You're not saved, you're not 

917
00:49:28,080 --> 00:49:30,440
complete yet. 
You're, you haven't surrendered 

918
00:49:30,440 --> 00:49:34,560
completely to Jesus yet. 
And, and, and I'm telling you, 

919
00:49:34,560 --> 00:49:38,120
some church in the Rocky Mount 
area is going to be used by God 

920
00:49:38,120 --> 00:49:41,600
to join his mission to be 
faithful and to grow and to 

921
00:49:41,600 --> 00:49:44,960
bring him great glory. 
And he's going to use them to 

922
00:49:44,960 --> 00:49:46,760
redeem and to restore broken 
lives. 

923
00:49:46,920 --> 00:49:50,400
And again, I just beg him. 
I pray that it's Inglewood. 

924
00:49:53,400 --> 00:49:58,560
But first, you might need to 
hear, you might need to confess,

925
00:49:59,600 --> 00:50:03,880
you might need to believe. 
So brothers, my heart's desire 

926
00:50:03,880 --> 00:50:09,560
and prayer to God for you and 
for the Rocky Mount area is that

927
00:50:09,560 --> 00:50:14,000
you might be saved and everyone 
who calls on the norm name of 

928
00:50:14,000 --> 00:50:19,720
the Lord will be. 
So let's pray together. 

929
00:50:22,800 --> 00:50:27,400
Father, I thank you that you've 
entrusted us with the ministry 

930
00:50:27,400 --> 00:50:31,120
of reconciliation. 
You've entrusted us with the 

931
00:50:31,120 --> 00:50:35,480
gospel. 
I don't know how Satan has done 

932
00:50:35,480 --> 00:50:38,200
it. 
You do, of course. 

933
00:50:39,960 --> 00:50:43,360
I don't know how Satan has 
twisted it to where we believe 

934
00:50:43,360 --> 00:50:46,400
somehow that once we're saved, 
once we get the gospel, that 

935
00:50:46,400 --> 00:50:50,240
somehow it's just for us. 
And that's what it's all about. 

936
00:50:50,240 --> 00:50:53,160
It's about my salvation. 
It's about my eternal life. 

937
00:50:53,160 --> 00:50:58,520
It's about my fire insurance 
when that wasn't ever the 

938
00:50:58,520 --> 00:51:04,920
intention. 
You save us so that we can help 

939
00:51:04,920 --> 00:51:10,200
others to know you. 
You want us to be your disciples

940
00:51:10,200 --> 00:51:13,600
so that we can live 
evangelistically and do that 

941
00:51:13,600 --> 00:51:17,920
with boldness and love. 
Help us to fight the lie. 

942
00:51:19,200 --> 00:51:22,960
I know people are afraid. 
Sometimes. 

943
00:51:22,960 --> 00:51:25,440
I think we're more afraid of 
what lost people might think of 

944
00:51:25,440 --> 00:51:27,440
us than we are about what you 
think about us. 

945
00:51:29,760 --> 00:51:35,200
Forgive us for that idolatry. 
Help us, Father, to take your 

946
00:51:35,200 --> 00:51:39,040
love, your truth to a world 
around us boldly. 

947
00:51:40,320 --> 00:51:44,320
Thank you for those who are 
already doing that now, Father, 

948
00:51:44,320 --> 00:51:46,800
there may be someone right here 
in this room right now. 

949
00:51:46,800 --> 00:51:49,360
They they're not ready to do 
that because they don't even 

950
00:51:49,360 --> 00:51:53,160
know you. 
They haven't received the gospel

951
00:51:53,160 --> 00:51:57,520
themselves yet. 
So, Father, I pray that as that 

952
00:51:57,520 --> 00:52:01,000
gospel has been shared in your 
word today, that Lord, they 

953
00:52:01,000 --> 00:52:03,520
would recognize that you're very
real, that you love them, You 

954
00:52:03,520 --> 00:52:05,160
created them, you have a purpose
for them. 

955
00:52:05,160 --> 00:52:09,680
And that right now they would 
pray, confessing their sin to 

956
00:52:09,680 --> 00:52:13,120
you, telling you that they're 
sorry for their sin and that 

957
00:52:13,120 --> 00:52:16,000
they know they can't save 
themselves from their sin. 

958
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:19,760
And that they would ask Christ 
to come into their heart to 

959
00:52:19,760 --> 00:52:22,560
forgive them, to be their Lord, 
to be their Savior, to commit to

960
00:52:22,560 --> 00:52:25,000
live for him. 
And then, Father, I pray that 

961
00:52:25,000 --> 00:52:29,400
they would come tell us others 
need to identify publicly. 

962
00:52:29,400 --> 00:52:32,240
They've done this privately, but
they've never identified private

963
00:52:32,320 --> 00:52:34,320
publicly. 
They need to be baptized. 

964
00:52:34,320 --> 00:52:38,560
They need to join the church. 
Others need to pray. 

965
00:52:39,960 --> 00:52:43,160
Father, I pray right now that 
you would burn our minds, burn 

966
00:52:43,160 --> 00:52:46,480
in our hearts, the face, the 
name of someone we know who 

967
00:52:46,480 --> 00:52:50,920
doesn't know you, the Lord. 
We can't escape it. 

968
00:52:51,440 --> 00:52:55,080
They're right there and placing 
us a burden for them. 

969
00:52:56,800 --> 00:52:59,560
A moment, Father, when we have a
time of response. 

970
00:52:59,560 --> 00:53:01,760
Maybe, Father, people need to 
come and pray for them. 

971
00:53:02,760 --> 00:53:06,560
Maybe they need to come and pray
for our friends overseas who are

972
00:53:06,560 --> 00:53:11,480
sharing about you there, even 
when some of us won't share 

973
00:53:11,480 --> 00:53:14,600
here. 
So Father, help us. 

974
00:53:15,240 --> 00:53:18,760
Help us to respond to you. 
Help us to serve you. 

975
00:53:19,200 --> 00:53:23,880
Help us to be your disciples in 
Christ's name, Amen. 

976
00:53:24,560 --> 00:53:27,000
Stand with me if you would. 
We're going to sing together. 

977
00:53:27,000 --> 00:53:28,720
They're going to be some pastors
here. 

978
00:53:28,720 --> 00:53:30,640
We'd love to visit with you if 
you'd like that. 

979
00:53:30,640 --> 00:53:33,080
You can also just come and pray 
at these steps. 

980
00:53:33,320 --> 00:53:35,800
There's also a room right over 
here called the Next Steps Room.

981
00:53:35,800 --> 00:53:38,880
And there are people in there, 
dedicated, trained people who 

982
00:53:38,880 --> 00:53:40,240
love you. 
And they'd love to have a 

983
00:53:40,240 --> 00:53:43,200
private, discreet conversation 
with you about whatever God's 

984
00:53:43,200 --> 00:53:45,080
laid on your heart. 
Maybe you just want somebody to 

985
00:53:45,080 --> 00:53:48,520
come and pray with you there. 
And so you can go to straight to

986
00:53:48,520 --> 00:53:49,800
that room. 
You don't have to come up here. 

987
00:53:50,440 --> 00:53:53,040
You can go straight over there 
or you can come here. 

988
00:53:53,120 --> 00:53:55,840
Whatever the Lord leads you to 
do, just respond. 

989
00:54:01,080 --> 00:54:02,720
Thank you so much for listening 
today. 

990
00:54:02,720 --> 00:54:04,040
And I also hope that you'll go 
to 

991
00:54:04,040 --> 00:54:07,840
ourwebsite@englewoodbaptist.com 
as well as our app and find many

992
00:54:07,840 --> 00:54:10,200
other resources that will bless 
you and your families. 

993
00:54:10,360 --> 00:54:11,400
Thank you once again.