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That the challenge that it was 
to us as a church. 

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I thank you for that. 
I pray that you'd help us to 

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continue to go forward for you 
this morning and, and, and for 

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the rest of our lives. 
But this morning, God, I pray 

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that you would help us as we 
look into this passage and look 

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at some of these verses that 
maybe there are some people who 

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are still sitting on the 
sidelines, some people who 

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should be in the game, some 
people who should be involved in

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the Christian life that are just
not doing it. 

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God made this message be a 
challenge to us this morning to 

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help us to do as much as we can 
for as long as we can for 

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Christ. 
Thank you again for all that you

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do for us. 
In Jesus name, Amen. 

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First thing I want you to see is
this. 

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If you're going to get in the 
game, you got to get on the 

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team. 
You have to get on the team, all

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right? 
The first and most important 

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part of getting into the game is
getting onto the team. 

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If you're not on the team and 
you run out of the field, guess 

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what happens? 
You get tackled, you get drugged

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back over to the sideline, you 
get drugged down to the jail, 

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and you probably sit there 
overnight and pay a fine, right?

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If you're not on the team, 
you're not getting on the field.

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Going to church is very 
important. 

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I wouldn't be a pastor if I 
didn't think that going to 

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church was important. 
But there there'll be a lot of 

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people that find themselves in 
hell one day who went to church 

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every single Sunday, right? 
Just because you show up at the 

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stadium to watch the game 
doesn't mean you're part of the 

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team, doesn't mean you're on the
field, right? 

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Doesn't mean that you have any 
involvement other than sitting 

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there watching everything that's
happening. 

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And I think that's what's going 
to happen with so many people. 

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They're going to they're going 
to stand before God and they're 

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going to say, but God, I went to
church every week. 

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God, I, I gave money to the 
church. 

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God, I got baptized. 
God, I did this and I I did it 

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in your name. 
And he's going to say depart 

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from me. 
I never knew you because you 

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never got on the team. 
You were never part of the team.

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It's like going to work and 
never getting paid. 

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It's like being a being a second
string water boy. 

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You might, you might consider 
yourself to be part of the team,

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but you're not really doing much
right. 

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You're there, but you're not 
really on the team. 

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The way that Jesus described it 
to Nicodemus in John chapter 3, 

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probably the most familiar verse
of any verse in the Bible is 

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John 316. 
And if I ask you to quote it, 

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most of you could probably do 
it. 

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For God so loved the world that 
he gave his only begotten Son, 

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that whosoever believeth in him 
should not perish, but have 

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everlasting life. 
Most of you were saying that 

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along with me. 
It's a very familiar verse. 

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But do you know in John chapter 
3, the context of that passage 

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where Jesus is leading up to 
saying that? 

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And those are the words of 
Christ. 

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He's talking to Nicodemus. 
And Nicodemus was a very wealthy

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man and he comes to Jesus and he
says, what do I need to do to 

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inherit eternal life? 
And as part of what Jesus said, 

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he gave him those words in John 
chapter 3 and verse 16. 

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But Jesus told Nicodemus, ye 
must be born again. 

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You must be born again now for 
us. 

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Doesn't sound that crazy because
we've heard that phrase before, 

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probably many times, right? 
But could you imagine being 

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Nicodemus and hearing that for 
the first time? 

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You must be born again. 
And Nicodemus had that exact 

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same thought. 
What did he say? 

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He said, how do you be born 
again? 

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Do I get back in my mother's 
womb and be born? 

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He said, I mean, I've already 
done that once. 

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How do I get born again? 
And Jesus said, no, no, one of 

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those is a physical birth. 
Yes, you're born, you're born a 

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physical in a physical way, but 
you must be born again. 

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And your and your second birth 
is a spiritual birth and you 

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have to be born again. 
That's what Jesus is saying. 

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You have to accept Jesus Christ 
as your savior and become part 

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of his family. 
When you're when you're born 

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again, you become part of the 
body, the church. 

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And you might be singing, it's 
sitting here thinking, how do I 

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get born again? 
How do I get saved? 

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How can I know for sure that I 
can go to heaven when I die? 

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How do I know that I, that I'm 
on the team? 

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00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:39,360
How do I know that I can be a 
part of that? 

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Well, I'm glad you asked because
the Bible says in Romans chapter

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3 and verse 23. 
And by the way, the way to 

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heaven is very simple. 
So many religions have 

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complicated the gospel because 
they say you, you need the death

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of Christ in the cross, plus 
this, this, this, this, this, 

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this and this. 
And if you're in good standing 

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00:03:57,480 --> 00:03:58,760
with our church, when you die, 
you. 

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Can go to heaven. 
Right, That's a lot of that's a 

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00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:05,080
lot of do's. 
Do this, do this, do this, do 

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this, do this. 
Jesus Christ says it's already 

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00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:11,360
been done. 
What you need has already been 

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done. 
I'm just a man I'm nobody. 

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00:04:14,040 --> 00:04:17,640
I can't forgive your sins. 
You can't come to me and ask me 

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00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:20,800
to forgive all of your sins and 
I can say you're forgiven. 

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00:04:21,160 --> 00:04:23,600
I can't do that. 
I'm just a man like you are 

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00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:25,960
right? 
There's only one who can forgive

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00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:29,480
sins and that's Jesus Christ and
He already did it. 

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00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:33,840
Everything that you need to do 
has already been done, but you 

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have to come to Him because we 
are sinners. 

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00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:40,000
And Romans chapter 3 and verse 
23 says for all have sinned and 

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come short of the glory of God 
because you have one sin on your

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account. 
Even if it was only one, I'd be,

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00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:48,920
I'm highly suspect if you say 
it's only one. 

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00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:52,440
But even if you only had one, 
it's enough to keep us out of 

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00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:55,840
heaven, right? 
Because sin cannot enter heaven.

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God is absolutely holy. 
He's absolutely just, and he 

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must judge sin. 
Even if the only sin that you 

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00:05:02,440 --> 00:05:04,960
ever committed was to lie and 
say that you've never sinned, 

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00:05:06,080 --> 00:05:07,680
that's sin. 
That's on your account. 

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00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:12,200
And it's enough to keep us out 
of heaven because all have 

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sinned and come short of the 
glory of God, right? 

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Doesn't matter how hard you try,
doesn't matter how good of a 

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00:05:18,280 --> 00:05:19,960
person you are. 
It doesn't matter how bad of a 

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00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:23,240
person you are. 
We're all the same in God's 

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eyes. 
One sin is the same as another. 

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00:05:25,800 --> 00:05:29,200
Or we talk about the little 
white lies and these are small 

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00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:32,720
sins and these are big sins, and
we like to categorize all of 

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00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:37,680
those things. 
But before God, all of our sins 

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00:05:37,680 --> 00:05:41,040
are the same. 
Sin is a sin, and it's enough to

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00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:43,880
keep you out of heaven. 
And that's what I'm saying, 

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00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:46,800
there's a lot of people who 
might be sitting in church all 

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00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:49,760
the way all across this country 
and maybe even across the world 

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who are saying I've been 
faithful. 

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00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:53,160
I've been sitting here for a 
long time. 

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00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:54,920
I've been listening to every 
message. 

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I've been going out and doing 
things in Jesus name. 

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But they've never had their sins
forgiven, and they're going to 

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find themselves in hell someday 
because you don't get to heaven 

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by being a good person. 
In fact, the Bible makes that 

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00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:12,040
very clear. 
Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 8 

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00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:16,160
and 9 says for by grace are you 
saved through faith, and that 

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not of yourselves. 
It is a gift of God, not of 

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works, lest any man should 
boast. 

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So this church is over here 
telling you you have to do this.

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And this church is over telling 
you, over here telling you, you 

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have to do this and this and 
this and this, and all of those 

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00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:36,160
works combined should be enough 
to get you into heaven someday. 

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And by the way, you'll never 
know if you've you've made it 

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there until you get there and 
find out. 

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00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:44,120
Oh, I was just a little bit 
short, right? 

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You'll never know because how do
you know when your good works 

145
00:06:48,200 --> 00:06:50,280
have outweighed your bad works? 
How do you know when you've done

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00:06:50,280 --> 00:06:52,600
enough? 
How do you know if you truly are

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00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:56,880
in good standing with the church
until you stand before God? 

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Then it's too late. 
You can't do anything about it 

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00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:01,720
then, right? 
I'm thankful that the Bible says

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in first John chapter 5 and 
verse 13 that ye may know that 

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00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:08,600
you have eternal life. 
I can know for sure that I'm on 

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my way to heaven. 
I can know for sure that Jesus 

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Christ is my Savior. 
I can know for sure that my sins

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are forgiven. 
How is that? 

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Well, because the Bible says in 
Romans chapter 6 and verse 23 

156
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for the wages of sin is death, 
right? 

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00:07:23,080 --> 00:07:26,320
So all of that sin that we 
talked about the, the, the sin 

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that we've all committed, that 
is that has made us come short 

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of the glory of God. 
Well, if you're short of the 

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00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:36,320
glory of God, the only other 
alternative in there. 

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00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:40,920
Is to spend an eternity in hell.
If you don't make it all the way

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00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:46,560
to heaven, to fall short is to 
spend an eternity in hell. 

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And that's not, that's not good 
news. 

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I hate to tell you that, but 
what kind of friend would I be 

165
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if I knew that you were on your 
way to hell without Jesus 

166
00:07:54,440 --> 00:07:56,760
Christ? 
If I knew that without your sins

167
00:07:56,760 --> 00:07:59,520
being forgiven, you were going 
to spend an eternity in that 

168
00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:03,400
horrible place? 
And I didn't tell you that it's 

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00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,520
bad news, but you need to know 
the bad news in order to realize

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that there is good news. 
And the good news is that Jesus 

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Christ did die in the cross to 
pay for your sins. 

172
00:08:12,120 --> 00:08:15,840
He did make a bridge with the 
cross from here to heaven so 

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that you can walk across the 
bridge that he built. 

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And get there someday. 
All the rest of those are man 

175
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made bridges and they make it 
about halfway across and then 

176
00:08:26,040 --> 00:08:29,400
you drop off the edge, right? 
Because they can't get you 

177
00:08:29,400 --> 00:08:33,280
there. 
The wages of sin is death, but 

178
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the gift of God is eternal life 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

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That's good news. 
That's wonderful news. 

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And so how do you accept Jesus 
Christ as your Savior? 

181
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Well, the Bible says that if 
thou shalt confess with thy 

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mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt 
believe in thine heart, that God

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hath raised him from the dead, 
thou shalt be saved. 

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For with the heart men believeth
unto righteousness, and with the

185
00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:01,440
mouth confession is made unto 
salvation. 

186
00:09:01,600 --> 00:09:06,200
For whosoever shall call upon 
the name of the Lord shall be 

187
00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:08,960
saved. 
That's somebody who is who who 

188
00:09:08,960 --> 00:09:11,440
fell overboard and they're 
drowning in the water. 

189
00:09:12,040 --> 00:09:16,200
And they cry out for help. 
Somebody save me, Somebody help 

190
00:09:16,200 --> 00:09:18,960
me. 
And they throw a life preserver 

191
00:09:18,960 --> 00:09:20,920
over the. 
Edge and they say grab on to 

192
00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:25,000
this and we'll pull you in. 
Well, that seems too easy. 

193
00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:28,400
Can't be that easy. 
I mean, surely you want me to do

194
00:09:28,400 --> 00:09:30,480
something? 
Let me let me let me give you 

195
00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:31,680
some. 
Let me see if I have some money 

196
00:09:31,680 --> 00:09:34,360
in my pocket that I can give you
before you before I grab on to 

197
00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:36,880
the life preserver. 
Or let me see if I can find 

198
00:09:36,880 --> 00:09:39,560
somebody else to see if I can 
drag somebody else along with me

199
00:09:39,560 --> 00:09:41,000
and maybe see if I can help 
them. 

200
00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:43,680
Let me see if I can do some 
other good things. 

201
00:09:43,680 --> 00:09:46,160
And and actually, when you pull 
me in, I promise I'll do all of 

202
00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:48,640
those other things as long as 
you promise that you'll save me,

203
00:09:49,680 --> 00:09:52,160
right? 
Not somebody who's drowning. 

204
00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:57,080
Guess what they're doing. 
Somebody help me save me. 

205
00:09:57,160 --> 00:09:58,600
Here, grab under this life 
preserver. 

206
00:09:58,600 --> 00:10:00,400
Yes, Sir. 
Pull me in. 

207
00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:02,360
Right. 
And that's what happens for 

208
00:10:02,360 --> 00:10:04,360
those of us who are drowning in 
our sin. 

209
00:10:04,960 --> 00:10:07,120
You don't have to do all these 
other things. 

210
00:10:07,120 --> 00:10:10,120
You don't have to to be in good 
standing with some church. 

211
00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:15,960
That's why I hate religion. 
Religion has nothing to do with 

212
00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:19,240
your relationship with Christ. 
Now I'm a Baptist because I 

213
00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:22,320
believe in the Baptist doctrine 
is the closest doctrine to the 

214
00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:26,480
word of God, but it doesn't have
anything I'm not getting. 

215
00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:28,520
I'm not getting to heaven 
because I'm a Baptist. 

216
00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:30,600
I'm not getting to heaven 
because I'm doing what the 

217
00:10:30,600 --> 00:10:32,240
church is telling me I have to 
do. 

218
00:10:32,640 --> 00:10:35,680
I'm getting to heaven because I 
have a relationship with Jesus 

219
00:10:35,680 --> 00:10:39,040
Christ. 
It's not about religion, it's 

220
00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:43,640
about relationship. 
It's not about do, do, do, do, 

221
00:10:43,640 --> 00:10:46,480
do. 
I've already done what Christ 

222
00:10:46,480 --> 00:10:49,320
says I have to do. 
I've accepted Jesus Christ as my

223
00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:51,840
savior. 
I was drowning in my sin and I 

224
00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:55,520
said somebody save me. 
And Jesus said I died on the 

225
00:10:55,520 --> 00:10:59,280
cross here. 
This is the gift of eternal life

226
00:10:59,840 --> 00:11:03,800
through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Just reach out and accept it. 

227
00:11:04,400 --> 00:11:07,320
It's a gift, right? 
If somebody if if, if I were to 

228
00:11:07,360 --> 00:11:10,680
offer to give this Bible to 
Jackson for for for. 

229
00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:13,600
For his birthday, let's say his 
birthday is coming up. 

230
00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:16,160
I said, Jackson, I got AI got a 
present for you. 

231
00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:21,000
Here you go. 
Give me a dollar first and then 

232
00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:25,400
I'll give you this gift. 
Guess what? 

233
00:11:25,400 --> 00:11:27,200
It's not. 
It's a gift. 

234
00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:29,240
He had to do something for it, 
right? 

235
00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:32,960
Even if I charged him a penny 
for it, it's still not a gift. 

236
00:11:33,040 --> 00:11:34,960
He had to do something in order 
to get it. 

237
00:11:35,560 --> 00:11:38,120
And if you have to do something 
to get it, it's not free. 

238
00:11:38,760 --> 00:11:40,200
Right? 
Which is always why it's funny 

239
00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:44,200
to me when you see something 
that says a free gift, right? 

240
00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:47,200
Free gift with purchase. 
Oh, you're going. 

241
00:11:47,320 --> 00:11:50,280
To are you going to give me a, 
you know, an expensive gift? 

242
00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:52,200
You know, are you going to 
charge me for it? 

243
00:11:52,200 --> 00:11:54,800
If you charge me for it, it's 
not a gift, right? 

244
00:11:54,800 --> 00:11:59,040
And that's what the Bible says. 
The gift of God is eternal life.

245
00:11:59,600 --> 00:12:05,520
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
If it comes through Him, it's 

246
00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,440
absolutely free. 
If it comes through religion or 

247
00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:10,760
a church or anything else, it's 
going to cost you a lot. 

248
00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:14,400
In fact, it's going to cost you 
so much that you can never 

249
00:12:15,000 --> 00:12:18,520
obtain it. 
You can't get salvation through 

250
00:12:18,520 --> 00:12:21,280
a church. 
You can't get salvation through 

251
00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:23,760
a man. 
You can't get salvation through 

252
00:12:23,760 --> 00:12:28,240
some book other than God's Word,
but you can have it through 

253
00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,160
Christ. 
That's how you get in the game. 

254
00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:35,600
High Point University, you 
probably, if you're following 

255
00:12:35,600 --> 00:12:38,400
March Madness at all, they 
stunned everyone and the 

256
00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:41,640
tournament on Thursday night, 
they beat Wisconsin. 

257
00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:45,200
And did you know that 97% of 
people's brackets were busted 

258
00:12:45,200 --> 00:12:48,560
after the first game? 
Because only 3% of people 

259
00:12:48,560 --> 00:12:50,640
actually picked High Point to 
beat Wisconsin in the 

260
00:12:50,640 --> 00:12:53,200
tournament. 
Then they went and they played 

261
00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:55,120
last night. 
They almost beat Arkansas last 

262
00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:56,640
night. 
But one of the one of the 

263
00:12:56,640 --> 00:12:59,360
players on the team by the name 
of Chase Johnson, he wears the 

264
00:12:59,360 --> 00:13:03,480
number 99, which is pretty rare 
for a Basketball Jersey. 

265
00:13:03,480 --> 00:13:05,680
You know, you don't see numbers 
that high. 

266
00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:08,240
He's actually, he's a 
three-point specialist. 

267
00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:09,800
He shoots threes. 
He's a guard. 

268
00:13:09,800 --> 00:13:11,080
And I don't know how much he 
plays. 

269
00:13:11,080 --> 00:13:12,720
It's not like I followed High 
Point through their whole 

270
00:13:12,720 --> 00:13:13,880
season. 
I'd never even heard of him 

271
00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:15,960
until they got into the 
tournament and beat Wisconsin 

272
00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:20,080
right. 
But he made his first layup of 

273
00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:22,880
the season with 11 seconds left 
in the game against Wisconsin, 

274
00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:24,720
and that turned out to be the 
game-winning shot. 

275
00:13:25,560 --> 00:13:27,600
So his name got out there and 
everything else. 

276
00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:29,520
They were doing interviews with 
him and everything and somebody 

277
00:13:29,520 --> 00:13:31,280
said, why do you wear the number
99? 

278
00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:34,440
And he said, well, I wear the 
number 99 because every time I 

279
00:13:34,440 --> 00:13:37,680
put that jersey on, it reminds 
me that Christ left the 99 to 

280
00:13:37,680 --> 00:13:42,000
come after me. 
That's the gospel. 

281
00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:46,120
That's what Christ did for. 
Us he left the 90 and 9 to come 

282
00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:49,640
out and find you and maybe 
that's the exact reason why 

283
00:13:49,640 --> 00:13:52,080
you're here this morning 
somebody invited you or you 

284
00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:56,520
decided to come for whatever 
reason and you're here that is 

285
00:13:56,520 --> 00:13:59,400
Christ leaving the 99 and 
looking for you. 

286
00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:02,000
He would do whatever it takes 
to. 

287
00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:03,880
Find you and bring you back into
the fold. 

288
00:14:04,960 --> 00:14:09,480
But I tell you this, if you want
to win in life, and if you want 

289
00:14:09,480 --> 00:14:12,280
to win in the Christian life, 
you'll never do it until you get

290
00:14:12,280 --> 00:14:14,440
in the game. 
You'll never win the prize. 

291
00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:16,400
You'll never see eternal life in
heaven. 

292
00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:18,120
Your sins will never be 
forgiven. 

293
00:14:18,360 --> 00:14:20,600
You'll never get in the game if 
you don't get on the team. 

294
00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:25,040
So #1 to get in the game, you 
have to get on the team #2 get 

295
00:14:25,040 --> 00:14:28,360
on the field. 
Once you accept Christ as your 

296
00:14:28,360 --> 00:14:29,600
Savior, it's time to get 
involved. 

297
00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:32,200
Perhaps you've been saved? 
For just a short time. 

298
00:14:32,200 --> 00:14:33,640
Or maybe you've been saved for a
little while. 

299
00:14:33,640 --> 00:14:35,720
Doesn't matter, it's time to get
out on the field. 

300
00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:39,440
I don't know if I should admit 
this or not, but I'm a fan of 

301
00:14:39,440 --> 00:14:42,600
the Chicago Bears. 
And could you imagine what it 

302
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,280
would look like if if all the 
members of the Chicago Bears got

303
00:14:46,280 --> 00:14:48,800
all dressed up in their 
uniforms, They had their helmets

304
00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:51,960
on, their jerseys, and they ran 
out onto the field and the ref 

305
00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:54,040
blew the whistle to start the 
game and they ran up into the 

306
00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:56,320
stands and sat down there to 
watch the game with everybody 

307
00:14:56,320 --> 00:15:00,120
else? 
Wouldn't be much of A game if 

308
00:15:00,120 --> 00:15:01,760
the players don't get on the 
field, is it? 

309
00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:04,800
That that would be, that would 
be ridiculous to see all of them

310
00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:06,400
run up in the stands and sit 
down. 

311
00:15:07,680 --> 00:15:09,960
Players belong on the field, 
right? 

312
00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:12,600
And Christians belong on the 
field as well. 

313
00:15:12,600 --> 00:15:15,440
We were not designed to be 
spectators. 

314
00:15:15,440 --> 00:15:17,360
In fact, turn over to first 
Timothy chapter 6. 

315
00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:19,880
We were designed to be 
participants. 

316
00:15:19,880 --> 00:15:23,080
We were designed to be, if 
you're on the team, the goal is 

317
00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:26,560
to get in the game, right? 
I remember when I was young, I 

318
00:15:26,560 --> 00:15:32,760
was in 7th grade and the I 
played soccer growing up and I 

319
00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:36,240
remember being in 7th grade and,
and a lot of these older guys 

320
00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:38,400
were out there playing and I 
wanted to be on the field, 

321
00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:40,200
right? 
You know what it did? 

322
00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:42,240
It made me work harder so I 
could get out there. 

323
00:15:42,240 --> 00:15:44,520
I don't want to, who wants to, 
who wants to go to every game 

324
00:15:44,520 --> 00:15:47,080
and sit on the bench? 
That's not why you get on the 

325
00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:48,560
team. 
You get on the team so you can 

326
00:15:48,560 --> 00:15:50,960
get out there and play so you 
can get out there and help the 

327
00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:54,360
team win, right? 
First Timothy chapter 6 and 

328
00:15:54,360 --> 00:15:57,280
verse #11 But thou, O man of 
God, flee these things and 

329
00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:00,640
follow after righteousness, 
godliness, faith, love, 

330
00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:04,680
patience, meekness, fight the 
good fight of faith, lay hold on

331
00:16:04,680 --> 00:16:07,920
eternal life, where unto thou 
art also called and has 

332
00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:11,680
professed a good profession 
before many witnesses see we've 

333
00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:15,720
been, we've been thrust into a 
war, a spiritual battlefield. 

334
00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:21,160
We fight it every single day, 
and warriors belong on the 

335
00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:23,640
battlefield. 
We sing it as a kid and then 

336
00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:25,120
maybe doesn't even register with
you. 

337
00:16:25,280 --> 00:16:27,880
I'm in the Lord's army. 
Yes, Sir. 

338
00:16:27,880 --> 00:16:29,920
I'm going to do what God wants 
me to do. 

339
00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:33,120
But I'm in the army and the army
joins. 

340
00:16:33,120 --> 00:16:36,040
They join the army so they can 
fight, right? 

341
00:16:36,600 --> 00:16:39,240
Well, Johnny's a Marine. 
He didn't join the Marine so 

342
00:16:39,240 --> 00:16:41,440
that he can wear the uniform and
walk around and look pretty, 

343
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:47,360
although he does. 
He joined the Marines so he can 

344
00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:50,400
get out there and fight when 
he's called upon to fight. 

345
00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:53,840
That's why you join. 
You get on the team to get in 

346
00:16:53,840 --> 00:16:55,960
the game. 
You get in the army to get on 

347
00:16:55,960 --> 00:16:58,040
the battle. 
That's why you do it. 

348
00:16:59,000 --> 00:17:02,040
So how much sense does it make 
for us as Christians to get on 

349
00:17:02,040 --> 00:17:04,640
the team and then sit on the 
sidelines and do nothing? 

350
00:17:05,839 --> 00:17:08,760
If you want to get in the game, 
you've got to get on the field 

351
00:17:09,280 --> 00:17:11,200
first. 
Peter chapter 5 and verse #8 The

352
00:17:11,200 --> 00:17:14,119
Bible says be sober, be 
vigilant, because your 

353
00:17:14,119 --> 00:17:17,560
adversary, the devil as a 
roaring lion, walketh about 

354
00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:23,079
seeking whom he may devour, whom
resist steadfast in the faith, 

355
00:17:23,079 --> 00:17:25,800
knowing that the same 
afflictions are accomplished in 

356
00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:27,119
your brethren that are in the 
world. 

357
00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:30,320
We have an enemy that wants to 
destroy us. 

358
00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:33,480
If you're just sitting on the 
sideline, he's going to come 

359
00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:34,920
over there and he's going to 
destroy you. 

360
00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:38,920
You know, if you're in a battle,
you can't say time out, time 

361
00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:41,560
out, time out. 
I'm taking a break for a minute.

362
00:17:41,560 --> 00:17:43,400
I'm going to go sit over here on
the sidelines. 

363
00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:45,080
You guys go ahead and fight. 
I'll be over here. 

364
00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:48,280
That's not what the enemy says. 
Hey, that's an easy target, 

365
00:17:48,400 --> 00:17:49,520
right? 
It's like shooting fish in a 

366
00:17:49,520 --> 00:17:51,120
barrel. 
You're sitting on the sidelines,

367
00:17:52,120 --> 00:17:54,080
right? 
The devil is out there doing the

368
00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:57,280
same thing. 
You can't say time out, time 

369
00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:58,560
out. 
Don't attack me today. 

370
00:17:59,120 --> 00:18:00,600
Don't don't come after me. 
I'm not. 

371
00:18:00,600 --> 00:18:02,160
I'm not ready for the battle 
today. 

372
00:18:02,560 --> 00:18:04,360
I wasn't prepared. 
Time out. 

373
00:18:04,680 --> 00:18:07,320
No, the devil says easy target, 
right? 

374
00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:09,840
Who do the lions go after in 
Africa? 

375
00:18:11,360 --> 00:18:16,520
The lame, the young, the weak, 
the fat, right? 

376
00:18:16,520 --> 00:18:18,040
Because they're easy targets, 
right? 

377
00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:22,200
That's why they go after them. 
If you're not doing anything for

378
00:18:22,200 --> 00:18:24,160
the Lord, and if you're not 
preparing yourself for the 

379
00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:26,640
battle, then who's he going to 
come after first? 

380
00:18:27,360 --> 00:18:29,760
You're an easy target. 
Why wouldn't he take you out, 

381
00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:32,880
right? 
We cannot take a passive 

382
00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:35,200
approach to our faith. 
We have to be alert. 

383
00:18:35,200 --> 00:18:38,520
We have to be determined. 
So you get involved in church 

384
00:18:38,760 --> 00:18:43,200
after you're saved by using the 
spiritual gifts that God gave 

385
00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:46,240
you will accelerate your 
spiritual growth immensely. 

386
00:18:46,400 --> 00:18:49,040
God gives everybody spiritual 
gifts. 

387
00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:52,520
Some He gives the ability to 
teach, some He gives the gifts 

388
00:18:52,520 --> 00:18:54,840
of helps. 
God gives a lot of different 

389
00:18:54,840 --> 00:18:57,320
gifts for people to be able to 
use. 

390
00:18:57,720 --> 00:18:59,640
Some people He gave the ability 
to sing. 

391
00:18:59,640 --> 00:19:01,920
Some people He gave the ability 
to play an instrument. 

392
00:19:02,200 --> 00:19:05,400
And it's our responsibility to 
develop those gifts and use them

393
00:19:05,400 --> 00:19:07,800
for the best of our ability, for
God's glory. 

394
00:19:08,200 --> 00:19:11,000
Who cares if you have a gift of 
being able to speak if you're 

395
00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:14,840
just doing it at public events? 
Who cares if we have the ability

396
00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:16,800
to sing if all you're doing is 
going around and singing the 

397
00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:19,200
national anthem? 
Hey, use your ability for those 

398
00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:22,000
things. 
But God gave you the ability so 

399
00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:27,480
you can use them in His service.
God designed us that way. 

400
00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:30,960
Don't head for the grandstands 
when you enter the Kingdom of 

401
00:19:30,960 --> 00:19:32,520
God. 
Head for the playing field. 

402
00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:36,000
Once you get it on the team, 
once you know Christ is your 

403
00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:38,280
savior, jump in and get 
involved. 

404
00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:43,280
You'll never find a a bored 
follower of Jesus Christ. 

405
00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:46,840
Bored church attenders, yes, but
not a true follower of Jesus 

406
00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:49,160
Christ. 
That's where the excitement is. 

407
00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:52,680
That's where the action is. 
It's fun being saved. 

408
00:19:53,680 --> 00:19:55,480
Nobody ever won a game from the 
sidelines. 

409
00:19:55,480 --> 00:19:59,800
Get on the field and get in the 
action, Michael Jordan, and 

410
00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:03,760
don't argue with me. 
The greatest player of all time 

411
00:20:03,760 --> 00:20:06,400
on the basketball court said 
this. 

412
00:20:06,520 --> 00:20:10,520
I play to win and I will not let
anything get in the way of me 

413
00:20:10,720 --> 00:20:13,160
and my competitive enthusiasm to
win. 

414
00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:16,720
By the way, that, you know, 
there's, there's that argument 

415
00:20:16,720 --> 00:20:19,120
all the time about who's better,
Michael Jordan. 

416
00:20:20,200 --> 00:20:22,120
Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, 
right? 

417
00:20:22,120 --> 00:20:23,400
Those are kind of the three at 
the top. 

418
00:20:23,400 --> 00:20:25,280
Then maybe you can throw in 
Larry Bird and some of these 

419
00:20:25,280 --> 00:20:28,200
other guys in there too, you 
know, But I just happened to see

420
00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:33,760
a video yesterday that somebody 
posted of, of Kobe, Michael 

421
00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:36,600
Jordan and LeBron all in 
different times, you know, and 

422
00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:39,200
Michael Jordan going for a layup
and somebody hit him right in 

423
00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:41,320
the mouth with their elbow and 
his head. 

424
00:20:41,400 --> 00:20:44,080
I mean, his slow motion, you can
see his head kind of knocked on 

425
00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:46,400
one side, but he makes the 
layup, he stops, he just kind of

426
00:20:46,400 --> 00:20:49,320
grabs his jaw a little bit, rubs
it, and he goes back to the free

427
00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:51,320
throw line. 
You know, Kobe Bryant, he's 

428
00:20:51,320 --> 00:20:53,640
standing there defending 
somebody and this guy does this 

429
00:20:53,640 --> 00:20:55,880
with his elbow and actually hit 
him in the chin and they brought

430
00:20:55,880 --> 00:20:57,560
his elbow back and hit him in 
the chin again. 

431
00:20:57,560 --> 00:20:59,080
And then he knocked the ball out
of his hand. 

432
00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:02,800
LeBron James went up for a 
layup, slow motion, didn't even 

433
00:21:02,800 --> 00:21:05,480
get hit, and he fell down on the
court and grabbed his face like 

434
00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:08,320
he was dying, rolling around on 
the floor. 

435
00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:10,600
The whole other team went to the
other end and he was still 

436
00:21:10,600 --> 00:21:13,120
laying on the floor and the slow
motion showed that he didn't 

437
00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:16,200
even get hit. 
That's the difference. 

438
00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:17,560
That's why Michael Jordan. 
'S the best. 

439
00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:22,680
But anyway, Michael Jordan led 
his his team to six NBA 

440
00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:24,800
championships. 
And by the way, I was, I was 

441
00:21:24,800 --> 00:21:27,440
growing up during that time. 
I was, I was grade school, high 

442
00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:29,680
school during the times that 
Michael Jordan was winning all 

443
00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:34,120
of his championships, but he was
named the MVP of the finals 

444
00:21:34,120 --> 00:21:37,560
every single year that he played
in those championships. 

445
00:21:37,560 --> 00:21:42,800
And in 2001, a panel of sports 
experts named Michael Jordan the

446
00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:44,880
greatest athlete of the 20th 
century. 

447
00:21:46,400 --> 00:21:48,880
But you know that Michael Jordan
was cut from his high school 

448
00:21:48,880 --> 00:21:52,560
basketball team. 
He tried out for basketball in 

449
00:21:52,560 --> 00:21:54,120
high school, and he got cut from
the team. 

450
00:21:55,120 --> 00:21:59,000
And then he didn't even start 
when he got into college. 

451
00:21:59,480 --> 00:22:01,240
But you know what? 
He determined that he was going 

452
00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:04,240
to be the best player that he 
could be. 

453
00:22:04,600 --> 00:22:08,840
Nothing was going to get in the 
way of his basketball dreams. 

454
00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:12,600
He went out and every single 
day, through all the rest of 

455
00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:14,840
high school and all the way 
through college, he shot at 

456
00:22:14,840 --> 00:22:20,040
least 300 shots a day. 
That's why Michael Jordan became

457
00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:22,520
the best. 
And that's just basketball. 

458
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:24,360
He did it to obtain a 
corruptible crown. 

459
00:22:24,360 --> 00:22:26,320
Guess what's going to happen 
with those trophies that Michael

460
00:22:26,320 --> 00:22:28,520
Jordan won. 
Someday they're going to be 

461
00:22:28,520 --> 00:22:30,360
burned up. 
I'm sure he's got him in a 

462
00:22:30,360 --> 00:22:32,040
trophy. 
Case somewhere in his house and 

463
00:22:32,040 --> 00:22:34,960
he looks at him and he enjoys 
the memories, but that's all it 

464
00:22:34,960 --> 00:22:36,720
is. 
It's a memory, right? 

465
00:22:36,840 --> 00:22:39,600
And it's going to fade. 
What happens if Michael Jordan 

466
00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:42,480
gets old and gets dementia and 
can't even remember what those 

467
00:22:42,480 --> 00:22:45,520
trophies are? 
But even if he does it, and he 

468
00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:49,200
remembers those trophies on the 
day that he dies, guess what 

469
00:22:49,200 --> 00:22:52,680
happens on the day that he dies?
You can't take it with you when 

470
00:22:52,680 --> 00:22:55,800
you go. 
They're corruptible crowds. 

471
00:22:56,680 --> 00:22:58,240
It takes discipline, it takes 
work. 

472
00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:01,840
It's not easy, but maybe that's 
why so few Christians actually 

473
00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:05,320
really make an attempt to get 
involved for the Lord. 

474
00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:07,240
Maybe that's why they really 
don't make that much of an 

475
00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:09,280
attempt to be at church when the
doors are open. 

476
00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:12,000
Maybe that's why they really 
don't make an attempt to get 

477
00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:14,560
involved in the work of the 
ministries of the church, the 

478
00:23:14,560 --> 00:23:16,000
world. 
'S going to hear a message, the 

479
00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,800
message of the gospel through 
the church, and the church only 

480
00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:21,760
functions through those who are 
willing to jump in with both 

481
00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:23,160
feet. 
Get in the game and get 

482
00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:25,120
involved. 
How do you think the world is 

483
00:23:25,120 --> 00:23:28,880
going to know about Christ? 
They're not just going to start 

484
00:23:28,880 --> 00:23:31,120
looking for answers and pull out
the Bible and find it now. 

485
00:23:31,120 --> 00:23:33,360
They could, but that doesn't 
happen very much because they 

486
00:23:33,360 --> 00:23:36,640
don't even know where to look 
unless somebody shows them. 

487
00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:39,240
And the only people that can 
show them are the people who 

488
00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:44,520
know where you can find it. 
It's the responsibility of the 

489
00:23:44,560 --> 00:23:47,760
church to share the gospel. 
You cannot take it with you when

490
00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:49,480
you go. 
The only thing you can take to 

491
00:23:49,480 --> 00:23:54,680
heaven with you is other people.
Everything that we give our 

492
00:23:54,680 --> 00:23:57,640
lives to is going to be left 
behind here someday. 

493
00:23:58,760 --> 00:24:01,680
The only thing that I can take 
to heaven with me is other 

494
00:24:01,680 --> 00:24:08,280
people, My wife, my kids. 
My wife was saved before I was. 

495
00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,520
But my kids, we've seen them 
accept Christ as their Savior, 

496
00:24:12,520 --> 00:24:15,040
one at a time. 
A lot of you, we've seen you 

497
00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:16,960
accept Christ as your Savior one
at a time. 

498
00:24:17,200 --> 00:24:19,520
The people that you work with, 
the people who live next door to

499
00:24:19,520 --> 00:24:22,000
you, your friends, your 
neighbors or your coworkers, the

500
00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:23,360
people that you meet out on the 
street. 

501
00:24:23,360 --> 00:24:25,440
That's why we're giving out 
these cards with the gospel on 

502
00:24:25,440 --> 00:24:28,840
them, because how are they ever 
going to hear if Christians 

503
00:24:28,840 --> 00:24:32,080
don't get in, get in the game 
and tell people about Christ, 

504
00:24:35,200 --> 00:24:41,840
how got to get on the team? 
But you got to get in the game. 

505
00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:48,040
Turn over to Hebrews chapter 10.
If you want to get in the game, 

506
00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:50,200
you got to have to going to have
to get on the field. 

507
00:24:51,160 --> 00:24:54,040
But a coach just doesn't put 
just anyone that comes walking 

508
00:24:54,040 --> 00:24:55,640
out on the field. 
He's looking for somebody that's

509
00:24:55,640 --> 00:25:00,720
in shape, all right? 
That's why if I went and tried 

510
00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:02,960
out for the Chicago Bears right 
now, they'd probably laugh at me

511
00:25:02,960 --> 00:25:07,320
and say there's a league up the 
road for you, for the old men. 

512
00:25:11,160 --> 00:25:16,440
We have to have the right diet, 
feeding on the Word of God and 

513
00:25:16,440 --> 00:25:20,160
exercise. 
Prayer cannot neglect to get 

514
00:25:20,160 --> 00:25:24,720
together with the team for the 
training sessions, right? 

515
00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:26,960
I remember when I was growing 
up, you missed a practice. 

516
00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:30,240
You didn't start the next game. 
Doesn't matter how good you are,

517
00:25:30,800 --> 00:25:35,320
you be at practice unless you 
were deathly ill or you had a 

518
00:25:35,320 --> 00:25:37,160
broken leg. 
You be at. 

519
00:25:37,160 --> 00:25:41,200
Practice or you don't start the 
next game right? 

520
00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:43,960
Hebrews chapter 10, verse 24. 
And let us consider one another 

521
00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:48,200
to provoke unto love into good 
works, not forsaking the 

522
00:25:48,200 --> 00:25:51,240
assembling of ourselves 
together, as the manner of some 

523
00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:56,160
is, but exhorting one another. 
And so much the more as ye see 

524
00:25:56,160 --> 00:25:59,280
the day approaching. 
What's the day he's talking 

525
00:25:59,280 --> 00:26:00,560
about? 
It's the coming of Christ. 

526
00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:04,080
Christ is coming back, and it's 
probably going to be soon. 

527
00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:07,920
He says don't forsake the 
assembling of yourselves 

528
00:26:07,920 --> 00:26:10,560
together. 
In fact, do it more the closer 

529
00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:14,840
we get to the coming of Christ. 
Then you think about a team that

530
00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:18,240
that is making their way toward 
a championship during the 

531
00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:20,160
playoffs. 
You think they said, oh great, 

532
00:26:20,520 --> 00:26:22,800
we made the playoffs. 
That means we must be pretty 

533
00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:23,720
good. 
We don't need to. 

534
00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:27,800
Practice, we'll just, we'll just
see what happens because we've 

535
00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:31,760
been good all year, right? 
We got a game next week, but 

536
00:26:31,960 --> 00:26:33,640
that's all right. 
You guys just go ahead and take 

537
00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:36,400
some time, you know, if you want
to go home and relax, get some 

538
00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,000
pizza, have some, have some 
Mountain Dew and you'll be good.

539
00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:41,760
But just make sure you're here 
in time for the game, right? 

540
00:26:41,800 --> 00:26:44,040
No, they don't say that. 
They say, hey, this is when we 

541
00:26:44,040 --> 00:26:46,400
really need to focus. 
The big game is coming. 

542
00:26:47,040 --> 00:26:49,640
The day is going to be here. 
We're playing for the Super Bowl

543
00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:51,680
championship. 
We need to be here every day. 

544
00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:54,840
All hands on deck, focus ready 
to go, right? 

545
00:26:54,840 --> 00:26:57,720
That's what they say. 
And yet Christians, the coming 

546
00:26:57,720 --> 00:26:59,880
of Christ, I mean, that's, 
that's like our Super Bowl, 

547
00:27:00,320 --> 00:27:01,880
right? 
It's bigger than the Super Bowl.

548
00:27:01,960 --> 00:27:05,760
Jesus Christ is coming back. 
It's the greatest event in all 

549
00:27:05,760 --> 00:27:07,760
of history other than his coming
the first time. 

550
00:27:07,800 --> 00:27:12,000
He's coming again and he says 
you better be ready for the day 

551
00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:14,280
that I come been. 
A. 

552
00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:17,440
Christian a long time. 
I've heard everything there is 

553
00:27:17,440 --> 00:27:19,280
to hear in church. 
I don't really need to do 

554
00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:21,320
anything else. 
I guess I'll just sit around and

555
00:27:21,320 --> 00:27:25,240
wait for the day to come. 
No, that's not what he says. 

556
00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:29,760
He says, get together, exhort 
one another, prepare for the 

557
00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:33,560
coming of Christ, be there 
together, encourage one another 

558
00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:36,400
to keep living for the Lord. 
Don't forsake the assembling of 

559
00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:39,320
yourselves together. 
In fact, as the day gets closer,

560
00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:42,480
do it more. 
Get together more, exhort each 

561
00:27:42,480 --> 00:27:46,080
other more, Be here when you 
have the opportunity to be here.

562
00:27:46,280 --> 00:27:49,080
We have to remember that the 
ultimate goal is not to just get

563
00:27:49,080 --> 00:27:50,680
out and play for the sake of 
playing. 

564
00:27:50,840 --> 00:27:54,040
The ultimate goal is to become 
more like Christ in every way. 

565
00:27:55,800 --> 00:27:58,200
Turn over to Ephesians chapter 
4, and I don't mean this to 

566
00:27:58,200 --> 00:28:00,800
sound disrespectful in any way, 
but he's our head coach. 

567
00:28:02,120 --> 00:28:04,800
He understands the team. 
He knows what the team needs 

568
00:28:04,800 --> 00:28:08,040
more than anybody else does. 
He knows what the team needs to 

569
00:28:08,040 --> 00:28:10,440
be successful. 
He knows what is going to make 

570
00:28:10,440 --> 00:28:13,640
us better. 
And he uses his word as the 

571
00:28:13,640 --> 00:28:15,720
playbook. 
He tells us this is what you 

572
00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:16,960
need to do. 
Hebrews. 

573
00:28:17,160 --> 00:28:21,520
Sorry, Ephesians chapter 4 and 
verse #15 But speaking the truth

574
00:28:21,520 --> 00:28:25,200
in love may grow up into Him in 
all things, which is the head. 

575
00:28:25,400 --> 00:28:28,680
Even Christ, from whom the whole
body, fitly joined together and 

576
00:28:28,680 --> 00:28:32,080
compacted by that which every 
joint supplieth according to the

577
00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:35,680
effectual working in the measure
of every part, maketh increase 

578
00:28:35,680 --> 00:28:38,600
of the body unto the edifying of
itself in love. 

579
00:28:38,960 --> 00:28:43,480
Jesus Christ is the head, but 
you're the body, You are what 

580
00:28:43,480 --> 00:28:47,160
makes it go right. 
Wouldn't work very well if it 

581
00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:50,920
was just the head, would it? 
You ever seen a head run around 

582
00:28:50,920 --> 00:28:55,200
on a football field? 
There's some problems, right? 

583
00:28:55,560 --> 00:28:57,680
You can have all the knowledge 
right here, but if you don't 

584
00:28:57,680 --> 00:29:00,480
have arms and legs and A and a 
body to get out there and do the

585
00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:03,960
work, then it doesn't matter, 
right? 

586
00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:07,360
But we have arms and legs and 
torsos and everything else in 

587
00:29:07,360 --> 00:29:10,960
between that are saying I'm not 
that important anyway. 

588
00:29:10,960 --> 00:29:14,200
I don't really need to be there.
No, you're part of the body. 

589
00:29:14,200 --> 00:29:16,560
If you know Christ is your 
Savior and you do need to be 

590
00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:20,000
there, we're counting on you to 
be a part of the body so that 

591
00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:22,480
you can get out there and play 
and be a part of the team. 

592
00:29:22,960 --> 00:29:25,720
We need you. 
The ultimate goal is for our 

593
00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:28,080
hearts to be In Sync with His 
heart. 

594
00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,720
The heartbeat of Christ is for 
souls to be saved. 

595
00:29:32,720 --> 00:29:36,160
And over and over and over we 
read in the Bible that His heart

596
00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:39,520
was moved with compassion 
because they were like sheep 

597
00:29:39,520 --> 00:29:46,640
without a shepherd. 
Jesus had a heart for people to 

598
00:29:46,640 --> 00:29:49,840
come to know Christ as their 
Savior, and our heart and his 

599
00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:52,560
heart ought to be In Sync with 
one another. 

600
00:29:53,360 --> 00:29:56,920
Our heart ought to be the heart 
of Christ for the lost. 

601
00:29:56,920 --> 00:29:59,640
Our heart ought to be the heart 
of Christ for souls who need 

602
00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:04,040
Him. 
I saw a picture of a husband and

603
00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:07,280
wife standing together with with
with tears in their eyes. 

604
00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:11,920
It was an older white couple, 
and the wife was actually had 

605
00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:15,640
her ear up to the chest of a 
younger black man. 

606
00:30:16,520 --> 00:30:19,600
And it turns out that what 
happened was this white couple's

607
00:30:19,600 --> 00:30:24,040
son had died in a car accident 
and they got him to the 

608
00:30:24,040 --> 00:30:27,240
hospital. 
Obviously he was already dead, 

609
00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:30,760
but they were able to use his 
heart and they gave his heart to

610
00:30:30,760 --> 00:30:35,320
this young man and he had the 
successful surgery and he was 

611
00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:36,800
doing well. 
And the two of them met 

612
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:39,480
together. 
And so this lady put here her 

613
00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:41,880
ear up to the chest of that 
young man, and she could hear 

614
00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:45,360
her son's heartbeat in his 
chest. 

615
00:30:47,200 --> 00:30:48,600
Isn't that the way that it ought
to be? 

616
00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:51,320
I went when I saw that picture a
few weeks ago. 

617
00:30:51,320 --> 00:30:53,600
I thought, wouldn't it be great 
if God could put his ear on my 

618
00:30:53,600 --> 00:30:55,200
chest and hear the heartbeat of 
His son? 

619
00:30:56,560 --> 00:30:57,840
Wouldn't that be a wonderful 
thing? 

620
00:30:58,720 --> 00:30:59,800
But that's the way it ought to 
be. 

621
00:31:00,680 --> 00:31:05,400
His heartbeat is for the lost. 
He has a desire to see them come

622
00:31:05,400 --> 00:31:08,640
to know Christ as their Savior. 
What is your heartbeat? 

623
00:31:10,160 --> 00:31:14,560
Is it for money or things, stuff
that's not going to last? 

624
00:31:14,720 --> 00:31:18,400
Or is your heartbeat the same as
the heartbeat of Jesus Christ? 

625
00:31:19,360 --> 00:31:23,240
That's how it's supposed to be. 
Hey, get on the team, but then 

626
00:31:23,240 --> 00:31:27,040
get in the game first. 
Peter chapter 4 and verse 10 

627
00:31:27,040 --> 00:31:30,120
says as every man hath received 
the gift. 

628
00:31:30,120 --> 00:31:33,840
Even so, minister the same one 
to another as good stewards of 

629
00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:37,840
the manifold grace of God. 
Manifold means many and varying.

630
00:31:37,840 --> 00:31:39,760
Your gift is different than 
mine. 

631
00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:41,520
A-Team needs more than a 
quarterback. 

632
00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:44,480
All you had was a quarterback. 
There wouldn't be very many 

633
00:31:44,680 --> 00:31:46,200
touchdowns that were scored with
their. 

634
00:31:47,640 --> 00:31:50,000
You need a running back and a 
cornerback and somebody who's 

635
00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:53,600
really good at defense and 
somebody who's really good at 

636
00:31:53,600 --> 00:31:55,720
offense and somebody who's 
really good at catching the ball

637
00:31:55,720 --> 00:31:58,600
and somebody who's really good 
at throwing the ball and a coach

638
00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:00,840
on the sidelines telling 
everybody else what to do and 

639
00:32:00,840 --> 00:32:03,080
calling the play. 
You need everybody on the team 

640
00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:05,920
to make the team function the 
way that it should. 

641
00:32:05,920 --> 00:32:08,240
We all have different gifts and 
but when we put them together, 

642
00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:11,160
we have a strong team. 
What if the quarterback just 

643
00:32:11,160 --> 00:32:16,200
decided he wasn't going to show 
up that day or the coaches like 

644
00:32:16,920 --> 00:32:19,480
you guys got this? 
I'm just going to sit out and at

645
00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:22,320
home and watch the game on TV, 
right? 

646
00:32:22,560 --> 00:32:25,600
It doesn't function the way that
it should function if everybody 

647
00:32:25,600 --> 00:32:27,240
that's on the team is not 
involved. 

648
00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:30,800
In the game. 
So get on the team, but get on 

649
00:32:30,800 --> 00:32:34,400
the field #3 and we'll move 
quickly because I want you to 

650
00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:36,360
see this number three. 
Get in the zone. 

651
00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:40,440
Turn over to Romans chapter 12. 
Get on the team, get in the 

652
00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:43,400
game, but get in the zone. 
An athlete that's at the top of 

653
00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:47,240
his game is, is, is an athlete 
that has eliminated all the 

654
00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:49,480
distractions. 
You go to their coverage. 

655
00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:51,760
I can guarantee you you're not 
going to find Twinkies and 

656
00:32:51,760 --> 00:32:53,560
Oreos, right? 
You're not going to go to the 

657
00:32:53,560 --> 00:32:57,640
fridge and find Coke and 
Mountain Dew or Pilk. 

658
00:33:00,480 --> 00:33:02,000
Trey brought this in the other 
day. 

659
00:33:02,560 --> 00:33:05,240
He said you got to try this. 
It's a combination of Pepsi and 

660
00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:08,920
milk. 
Call it Pilk, nastiest thing 

661
00:33:08,920 --> 00:33:10,560
you've ever had in your life. 
Don't try it. 

662
00:33:13,440 --> 00:33:15,800
But you won't find that in an 
athlete's refrigerator. 

663
00:33:15,800 --> 00:33:21,400
I can promise you that. 
They learned to train their 

664
00:33:21,400 --> 00:33:24,520
minds to say no to the things 
that are going to keep them from

665
00:33:24,520 --> 00:33:26,800
being in the best shape possible
for that game. 

666
00:33:26,800 --> 00:33:28,720
You have to train and discipline
your mind as well. 

667
00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:31,040
In fact, the Bible says this in 
Romans chapter 12 and verse 

668
00:33:31,040 --> 00:33:34,040
number one. 
I beseech you, brethren, beseech

669
00:33:34,040 --> 00:33:36,600
you therefore, brethren, by the 
mercies of God, that you present

670
00:33:36,600 --> 00:33:42,280
your bodies a living sacrifice, 
holy, acceptable unto God, which

671
00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:45,520
is your reasonable service, and 
be not conformed to this world, 

672
00:33:45,520 --> 00:33:48,920
but be transformed by the 
renewing of your mind, that you 

673
00:33:48,920 --> 00:33:52,760
may prove what is that good and 
acceptable and perfect will of 

674
00:33:52,760 --> 00:33:56,000
God. 
That word renew comes from the 

675
00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:59,120
Greek word that means to 
renovate or to tear something 

676
00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:01,240
down in order to raise something
up. 

677
00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:04,240
What needs to come down in your 
life? 

678
00:34:05,680 --> 00:34:08,199
Oh, there's a lot of things that
need to be torn down in order 

679
00:34:08,199 --> 00:34:10,840
for us to build those things up 
in a way that's pleasing to 

680
00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:13,480
Christ, right? 
A lot of these high school 

681
00:34:13,480 --> 00:34:17,480
athletes get into college and 
the coaches are saying, man, all

682
00:34:17,480 --> 00:34:20,760
right, we've got to, we've got 
to break down all the old things

683
00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:23,800
so we can build you up into the 
way that we need you to be for 

684
00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,159
this team, right? 
The military is the same way. 

685
00:34:26,280 --> 00:34:29,080
Everything that you thought you 
knew, erase it all out of your 

686
00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:30,520
mind. 
We're going to break you down. 

687
00:34:30,520 --> 00:34:33,159
We're going to tear you down to 
nothing and then build you up 

688
00:34:33,159 --> 00:34:36,040
into something that's strong 
that we can use for the 

689
00:34:36,040 --> 00:34:38,280
military, right? 
And God has to do the same 

690
00:34:38,280 --> 00:34:41,719
things to us. 
Tear down the walls, build up, 

691
00:34:41,719 --> 00:34:44,880
construct, renew your mind in 
the spirit of the Lord with a 

692
00:34:44,880 --> 00:34:47,719
heart of a champion. 
And I don't think that in 

693
00:34:47,719 --> 00:34:51,360
opposing most Christians, the 
devil's game plan is to plainly 

694
00:34:51,360 --> 00:34:53,960
tell them not to do things for 
Christ, right? 

695
00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:56,760
The devil doesn't come out and 
say, all right, new plan, don't 

696
00:34:56,760 --> 00:34:59,440
do anything for God because 
you're going to say, no, I want 

697
00:34:59,440 --> 00:35:02,920
to do something for God, right? 
I don't think he'd defeat a 

698
00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:03,960
whole lot of Christians that 
way. 

699
00:35:03,960 --> 00:35:06,680
I think his main game plan is to
keep us distracted. 

700
00:35:09,400 --> 00:35:14,720
How many Christians get 
distracted by things that don't 

701
00:35:15,360 --> 00:35:18,680
really matter? 
Not unimportant. 

702
00:35:19,400 --> 00:35:22,600
You got to make money. 
You got to live right. 

703
00:35:22,680 --> 00:35:25,600
It's not unimportant. 
Got to have a job. 

704
00:35:25,760 --> 00:35:31,640
Not unimportant hobbies. 
Not unimportant other things 

705
00:35:31,640 --> 00:35:35,400
that we involve our lives in. 
Not necessarily unimportant 

706
00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:39,280
things, but things that keep us 
distracted, things that keep us 

707
00:35:39,280 --> 00:35:41,600
from doing exactly what God 
wants us to do. 

708
00:35:41,880 --> 00:35:44,600
And you know what, An athlete 
that's distracted might still 

709
00:35:44,600 --> 00:35:46,840
get out there and play, but he's
not going to play to the best of

710
00:35:46,840 --> 00:35:50,360
his ability. 
He might still make a decent 

711
00:35:50,360 --> 00:35:53,560
play every now and then, but 
he's not going to make the the 

712
00:35:53,560 --> 00:35:56,360
game-winning shots. 
He's not going to be there in 

713
00:35:56,360 --> 00:35:59,600
the clutch when it really 
matters because he's distracted,

714
00:36:00,640 --> 00:36:01,920
right? 
You could always tell when 

715
00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:04,520
somebody had something going on,
some of these good players, and 

716
00:36:04,520 --> 00:36:07,560
they just have a bad game. 
And then you find out later, 

717
00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:10,400
yeah, this happened in my life 
and, you know, blah, blah, blah,

718
00:36:10,400 --> 00:36:15,840
they were distracted. 
There's an old Peanuts cartoon, 

719
00:36:15,840 --> 00:36:20,200
and you've seen those mostly. 
But Lucy comes to Linus, and she

720
00:36:20,200 --> 00:36:23,000
says, go change the channel on 
the TV. 

721
00:36:23,840 --> 00:36:26,240
And he said, who are you to come
in here and tell me you can walk

722
00:36:26,240 --> 00:36:29,320
right in here and take over. 
She said. 

723
00:36:29,320 --> 00:36:31,640
He said, what makes you think 
that you can tell me what to do?

724
00:36:31,640 --> 00:36:36,000
And she said, these five fingers
right here, she said, 

725
00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:39,400
individually they're nothing. 
But when I curl them together 

726
00:36:39,400 --> 00:36:43,920
like this in a single unit, they
form a weapon that is terrible 

727
00:36:44,400 --> 00:36:47,080
to behold. 
And Linus said, what channel do 

728
00:36:47,080 --> 00:36:50,880
you want me to turn it to? 
And as he was walking away, he 

729
00:36:50,880 --> 00:36:53,200
looked at his fingers and he 
said, why can't you guys get 

730
00:36:53,200 --> 00:37:00,400
organized like that? 
My point is this, what did God 

731
00:37:00,400 --> 00:37:03,520
that his church would get 
organized into a powerful group 

732
00:37:03,520 --> 00:37:08,160
of believers who know the power 
that they have through Jesus 

733
00:37:08,160 --> 00:37:10,880
Christ? 
What to God that we have a 

734
00:37:10,880 --> 00:37:13,680
church full of people who would 
have set aside the world's 

735
00:37:13,680 --> 00:37:16,960
entertainment, the world's 
mindset, the world's movies, the

736
00:37:16,960 --> 00:37:19,720
world's distractions, the 
world's music, and all of those 

737
00:37:19,720 --> 00:37:23,920
things and, and come together. 
Boy, the, the church could be 

738
00:37:23,920 --> 00:37:28,680
such a powerful force in this 
world today, but the church is 

739
00:37:28,680 --> 00:37:31,680
largely asleep because we're 
distracted. 

740
00:37:32,760 --> 00:37:37,160
That's I think that's one of the
devil's biggest successes. 

741
00:37:38,160 --> 00:37:41,560
Could you imagine if everybody 
in this church and in all the 

742
00:37:41,560 --> 00:37:44,280
churches in this area and in all
the churches in the country 

743
00:37:44,600 --> 00:37:47,960
actually got serious about 
living for the Lord, There would

744
00:37:47,960 --> 00:37:49,960
be nothing that could stop the 
church. 

745
00:37:51,880 --> 00:37:55,320
But all throughout the country, 
whole churches full of people 

746
00:37:55,320 --> 00:38:00,720
are distracted by everything 
that the devil introduces. 

747
00:38:00,720 --> 00:38:03,040
And they bite onto it hook, line
and sinker. 

748
00:38:03,320 --> 00:38:05,880
And the devil just jerks them 
around wherever he wants them to

749
00:38:05,880 --> 00:38:07,520
go. 
And they follow because they're 

750
00:38:07,520 --> 00:38:09,520
distracted and they have no 
power. 

751
00:38:09,920 --> 00:38:11,880
And the world doesn't take the 
church seriously. 

752
00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:17,800
Herm Edwards, maybe you 
recognize that name. 

753
00:38:17,800 --> 00:38:19,280
He played and he coached in the 
NFL. 

754
00:38:19,280 --> 00:38:21,880
He coached for The Jets. 
He coached for the the Chiefs. 

755
00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:26,560
And then he actually coached in 
college for a while with Arizona

756
00:38:26,560 --> 00:38:28,600
State. 
When it came to his thoughts on 

757
00:38:28,600 --> 00:38:30,760
teamwork, somebody asked him 
about that one time and he said 

758
00:38:30,760 --> 00:38:32,040
this. 
The players that play on this 

759
00:38:32,040 --> 00:38:34,640
football team will play for the 
name on the side of the helmet 

760
00:38:35,400 --> 00:38:36,760
and not in the back of the 
jersey. 

761
00:38:38,760 --> 00:38:41,720
See, so many, so many Christians
today are playing for the name 

762
00:38:41,720 --> 00:38:43,640
on the back of the jersey 
instead of the name on the side 

763
00:38:43,640 --> 00:38:46,800
of the helmet. 
What kind of kind of accolades 

764
00:38:46,800 --> 00:38:50,560
can I have who can recognize me?
Well, I'll do some things for 

765
00:38:50,560 --> 00:38:52,760
Christ. 
As long as I get recognition for

766
00:38:52,760 --> 00:38:56,000
it, As long as I can serve in a 
position where everybody sees me

767
00:38:56,000 --> 00:39:00,760
serving, then I'll do it. 
That's not what God's looking 

768
00:39:00,760 --> 00:39:03,520
for. 
Whose team are you on? 

769
00:39:04,200 --> 00:39:08,400
Because we're A-Team. 
No one person has ever gone out 

770
00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:10,040
and won a football game by 
themselves. 

771
00:39:11,040 --> 00:39:14,360
You need everybody, everybody 
working together, everybody 

772
00:39:14,360 --> 00:39:17,520
plowing forward together. 
I want to give you this last 

773
00:39:17,520 --> 00:39:18,840
like turn over to Romans 
chapter. 

774
00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:20,400
Sorry to first Peter chapter 
one. 

775
00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:26,520
I'll read you Romans chapter 1. 
Get on the team that's the most 

776
00:39:26,520 --> 00:39:31,120
important part get in the game 
get in the zone Leslie get 

777
00:39:31,120 --> 00:39:33,440
excited. 
Have you ever seen somebody that

778
00:39:33,440 --> 00:39:35,320
was embarrassed to support their
favorite team? 

779
00:39:35,640 --> 00:39:38,000
Not not a true fan anyway, 
right? 

780
00:39:38,120 --> 00:39:40,880
They could be O in 10 and a true
fan is still going to get out 

781
00:39:40,880 --> 00:39:44,640
there, paint his face up, wear 
the jersey, put the little 

782
00:39:44,640 --> 00:39:47,640
finger on and. 
Right, because that's what 

783
00:39:47,640 --> 00:39:51,080
that's what true fans do. 
They act like fanatics and 

784
00:39:51,080 --> 00:39:52,200
that's that's what it's all 
about. 

785
00:39:52,200 --> 00:39:55,040
It's amazing how you can get 
70,000 people into a stadium 

786
00:39:55,720 --> 00:39:58,160
right in the middle of a 
snowstorm where you're so high 

787
00:39:58,160 --> 00:40:01,040
up you can't even see the field.
If there wasn't a snowstorm and 

788
00:40:01,040 --> 00:40:03,920
they're still shouting and, and 
and and going crazy for their 

789
00:40:03,920 --> 00:40:07,560
team and their team is O and 10 
right? 

790
00:40:07,960 --> 00:40:09,920
They have no problem because 
they're, they're truly a fan. 

791
00:40:09,920 --> 00:40:12,120
But then you try to get God's 
people excited about the things 

792
00:40:12,120 --> 00:40:13,040
of God, and you can barely get 
a. 

793
00:40:13,040 --> 00:40:14,920
Grunt out of them. 
Right. 

794
00:40:14,920 --> 00:40:17,280
Isn't that amazing? 
I've seen it happen so many. 

795
00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:19,840
I mean, every single time. 
Now, obviously we don't have 

796
00:40:19,840 --> 00:40:22,120
cameras in here that are panning
the crowd, right? 

797
00:40:22,120 --> 00:40:25,480
But every single time when when 
there's a basketball game going 

798
00:40:25,480 --> 00:40:27,520
on, I mean, just just pay a 
little bit of attention to it 

799
00:40:27,520 --> 00:40:30,480
during March Madness, the camera
gets on somebody and what do 

800
00:40:30,480 --> 00:40:34,040
they do? 
Like everything they can do to 

801
00:40:34,200 --> 00:40:36,800
to look really, really stupid 
for the five seconds that 

802
00:40:36,800 --> 00:40:39,600
they're on camera, right? 
I want everybody to know that 

803
00:40:39,600 --> 00:40:43,680
I'm a fan of this team, right? 
And then? 

804
00:40:43,760 --> 00:40:46,000
You hear preaching from the word
of God, and if the camera pans, 

805
00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:52,920
everybody's like this. 
Good thing we don't have cameras

806
00:40:52,920 --> 00:40:56,320
on the crowd, right? 
In most places, that's the way 

807
00:40:56,320 --> 00:41:00,080
that it is. 
Why can you get so excited about

808
00:41:00,080 --> 00:41:03,480
a football game that you're 
going to forget about, 

809
00:41:04,680 --> 00:41:08,600
especially if they lose? 
And yeah, it's something that we

810
00:41:08,600 --> 00:41:12,600
have the, the, the most reason 
to get excited. 

811
00:41:13,640 --> 00:41:16,520
We can barely get people to get 
up out of bed and get to church 

812
00:41:16,520 --> 00:41:19,720
and get to get to the outreach 
and, and do something for 

813
00:41:19,720 --> 00:41:21,680
Christ. 
Why is that? 

814
00:41:23,400 --> 00:41:25,000
I'll tell you why. 
It's because most people are not

815
00:41:25,000 --> 00:41:28,800
on the team. 
You're not even on the team. 

816
00:41:28,800 --> 00:41:31,360
It's hard to get excited about a
game if you're not on the team. 

817
00:41:33,040 --> 00:41:35,040
Hard to get excited if you know 
you're not going to get on the 

818
00:41:35,040 --> 00:41:38,320
field, right? 
It's hard to get excited if 

819
00:41:38,320 --> 00:41:41,560
you're not disciplined and not 
not doing what it takes to 

820
00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:46,120
really, truly live for the Lord.
To get excited you got to be 

821
00:41:46,120 --> 00:41:53,880
doing those other things. 
What are we going to do about 

822
00:41:53,880 --> 00:41:56,200
getting excited about the things
of God? 

823
00:41:56,800 --> 00:42:00,360
What we're doing here is the 
most exciting thing in the world

824
00:42:00,360 --> 00:42:05,000
if you truly know Jesus Christ. 
Romans chapter one verse 16 says

825
00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:07,320
for I am not ashamed of the 
gospel of Christ, for it is the 

826
00:42:07,320 --> 00:42:11,840
power of God unto salvation to 
everyone that believeth. 

827
00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:14,000
First Peter chapter one. 
I'm going to end with these 

828
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:16,280
verses. 
First Peter chapter 1 and verse 

829
00:42:16,280 --> 00:42:20,520
#3 Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which 

830
00:42:20,520 --> 00:42:24,040
according to his abundant mercy 
has begotten us again unto a 

831
00:42:24,040 --> 00:42:27,680
lively hope by the resurrection 
of Jesus Christ from the dead. 

832
00:42:27,800 --> 00:42:30,560
If this doesn't, pastor. 
Andy said if this doesn't get 

833
00:42:30,560 --> 00:42:36,680
you if, let me try again. 
If this doesn't get you excited.

834
00:42:36,680 --> 00:42:39,640
Your wood is wet. 
To an inheritance, verse 4 

835
00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:43,360
incorruptible and undefiled. 
That faith is not a way You see 

836
00:42:43,360 --> 00:42:45,240
how excited I am about it. 
Can't you get the words out? 

837
00:42:45,800 --> 00:42:49,360
Reserved in heaven for you who 
are kept by the power of God 

838
00:42:49,360 --> 00:42:52,680
through faith unto salvation, 
ready to be revealed in the last

839
00:42:52,680 --> 00:42:55,040
time, wherein you greatly 
rejoice. 

840
00:42:55,200 --> 00:42:57,920
Though now for a season, if need
be, you're in heaviness through 

841
00:42:57,920 --> 00:43:01,240
manifold temptations, that the 
trial of your faith, being much 

842
00:43:01,240 --> 00:43:04,440
more precious than of gold that 
perishes, though it be tried 

843
00:43:04,440 --> 00:43:08,040
with fire, might be found unto 
praise and honor and glory at 

844
00:43:08,040 --> 00:43:11,440
the appearing of Jesus Christ, 
Whom having not seen you love, 

845
00:43:11,600 --> 00:43:15,480
and in whom, though now you see 
I'm not yet believing you, shall

846
00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:19,160
you rejoice with joy unspeakable
and full of glory. 

847
00:43:20,080 --> 00:43:23,640
The day is coming when we're 
going to see Jesus Christ, and 

848
00:43:23,640 --> 00:43:26,520
most people are going to be so 
discouraged to see Him. 

849
00:43:26,680 --> 00:43:29,520
I want to be excited to see Him 
because I've been fighting for 

850
00:43:29,520 --> 00:43:31,440
Him. 
I've been disciplined in my 

851
00:43:31,440 --> 00:43:33,400
Christian life. 
I've been moving forward the way

852
00:43:33,400 --> 00:43:34,640
that He wants me to move 
forward. 

853
00:43:34,800 --> 00:43:37,120
I've been training and I've been
practicing and I've been showing

854
00:43:37,120 --> 00:43:39,840
up at the practices and I've 
been showing up and getting in 

855
00:43:39,840 --> 00:43:41,800
the games. 
That's why I want to be excited 

856
00:43:41,800 --> 00:43:44,520
when he comes back. 
I want to live my life that way.

857
00:43:44,680 --> 00:43:48,800
I love my God, I love Jesus 
Christ, I love this church. 

858
00:43:48,800 --> 00:43:52,640
I love being on this team. 
Why would I not want to be 

859
00:43:52,640 --> 00:43:55,600
involved in it? 
It's not something that I do. 

860
00:43:55,640 --> 00:44:02,000
This is who I am. 
Identity is not in politics or 

861
00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:04,480
music or movies or in anything 
else in the world. 

862
00:44:04,480 --> 00:44:07,000
That's in Jesus Christ. 
I've made-up my mind that I'm 

863
00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:09,040
unashamed. 
That's, that's how we all need 

864
00:44:09,040 --> 00:44:11,040
to be. 
It's time to get excited about 

865
00:44:11,040 --> 00:44:14,640
the things of God. 
Oral Hershiser, maybe you 

866
00:44:14,640 --> 00:44:18,120
recognize that name from the 
past, but when he was in his 

867
00:44:18,120 --> 00:44:21,560
first season as a pitcher for 
the Dodgers, he had great 

868
00:44:21,560 --> 00:44:24,160
talent, but he hadn't been able 
to translate that talent into 

869
00:44:24,160 --> 00:44:28,160
success in the field. 
And so early in the 1984 season,

870
00:44:28,160 --> 00:44:29,880
he was struggling with his 
control. 

871
00:44:29,880 --> 00:44:33,080
And finally the the manager of 
the Dodgers at that time was 

872
00:44:33,080 --> 00:44:36,240
Tommy Lasorda. 
And he called this young 

873
00:44:36,240 --> 00:44:38,160
pitcher, Oral Hersheiser, into 
his office. 

874
00:44:39,440 --> 00:44:43,840
And he had what what Oral 
Hersheiser Lehrer called a a 

875
00:44:44,080 --> 00:44:47,840
verbal confrontation. 
And it was pretty much 1 sided. 

876
00:44:47,840 --> 00:44:50,600
And actually he called it later 
on the sermon on the mound. 

877
00:44:52,720 --> 00:44:57,240
But Tommy Lasorda told Oral 
Hershiser that he was capable of

878
00:44:57,240 --> 00:44:59,640
so much more than what he was 
actually producing. 

879
00:45:00,360 --> 00:45:04,520
His numbers were OK, but he knew
that he could be a dominant 

880
00:45:04,520 --> 00:45:07,680
pitcher, but he just wasn't 
dominating as a pitcher. 

881
00:45:08,720 --> 00:45:12,280
And so instead of getting upset 
and leaving the team and going 

882
00:45:12,280 --> 00:45:15,680
to find another team who'll pay 
him more money, he decided that 

883
00:45:15,680 --> 00:45:18,520
he was going to get serious 
about what this coach had told 

884
00:45:18,520 --> 00:45:21,120
him. 
So he started working and he 

885
00:45:21,120 --> 00:45:23,840
worked and he worked and he 
worked and he worked very hard. 

886
00:45:24,480 --> 00:45:25,760
And he took that rebuke to 
heart. 

887
00:45:25,760 --> 00:45:28,680
And he approached the game with 
a with a very new attitude. 

888
00:45:28,960 --> 00:45:34,120
And just three seasons later in 
1988, which is the 8788 season, 

889
00:45:34,120 --> 00:45:37,320
he won the Cy Young Award as a 
pitcher. 

890
00:45:38,960 --> 00:45:43,200
And he led the Dodgers to a 
World Series title in 1988. 

891
00:45:44,560 --> 00:45:47,640
See, if if if he had not 
responded properly to his 

892
00:45:47,640 --> 00:45:52,440
manager's rebuke, it no doubt 
would have probably never heard 

893
00:45:52,440 --> 00:45:55,400
of his name, never would have 
won a Cy Young Award, probably 

894
00:45:55,400 --> 00:45:57,800
never would have led the Dodgers
to the World Series in that 

895
00:45:57,800 --> 00:46:00,240
year. 
See, I don't want you to think 

896
00:46:00,240 --> 00:46:02,240
that I'm yelling at you this 
morning, but I want you to 

897
00:46:02,240 --> 00:46:05,000
understand that most Christians 
have so much more potential than

898
00:46:05,000 --> 00:46:06,960
what they're actually 
accomplishing for Christ right 

899
00:46:06,960 --> 00:46:11,680
now. 
Is that you? 

900
00:46:11,680 --> 00:46:15,640
Do you have a lot of potential 
for Christ, but you're just not 

901
00:46:15,640 --> 00:46:18,280
living up to that potential 
because you've been distracted. 

902
00:46:19,000 --> 00:46:20,680
You've let yourself get 
sidelined. 

903
00:46:20,680 --> 00:46:22,440
You've put yourself on the 
sideline. 

904
00:46:23,680 --> 00:46:26,360
Can we count on you to get in 
the game? 

905
00:46:26,360 --> 00:46:28,240
Do you know Jesus Christ as your
Savior? 

906
00:46:28,240 --> 00:46:30,680
Because if you don't know Christ
as your Savior, you're not even 

907
00:46:30,680 --> 00:46:33,840
on the team and you can't get on
the in the game and get 

908
00:46:33,840 --> 00:46:35,560
involved. 
You can't make a difference if 

909
00:46:35,560 --> 00:46:38,360
you're not even on the team. 
You need to know Jesus Christ as

910
00:46:38,360 --> 00:46:43,880
your Savior first and foremost. 
But once you're on the team, 

911
00:46:43,880 --> 00:46:46,480
it's time to get on the field. 
It's time to sweat. 

912
00:46:47,280 --> 00:46:50,520
It's time to get dirty. 
Warriors belong on the 

913
00:46:50,520 --> 00:46:53,320
battlefield. 
Athletes belong in the game. 

914
00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:55,120
That's why you get involved in 
the 1st place. 

915
00:46:55,120 --> 00:46:58,600
Get in the zone. 
Set aside the weights as the 

916
00:46:58,600 --> 00:47:00,080
Bible talks about in Hebrews 
chapter 12. 

917
00:47:00,080 --> 00:47:02,320
Set aside the weights that are 
slowing you down. 

918
00:47:03,040 --> 00:47:05,600
You know an athlete will train 
with weights, but when he gets 

919
00:47:05,600 --> 00:47:08,720
out there to play the game, he 
takes all those weights off. 

920
00:47:08,720 --> 00:47:12,240
He is as light as he can 
possibly be to the point where a

921
00:47:12,240 --> 00:47:14,760
lot of these swimmers shave 
their heads and their legs and 

922
00:47:14,760 --> 00:47:17,080
everything else. 
I mean, you think a piece of 

923
00:47:17,080 --> 00:47:19,680
hair is going to slow you down? 
They think it does. 

924
00:47:20,120 --> 00:47:22,960
They get rid of everything 
that's going to keep them from 

925
00:47:22,960 --> 00:47:26,160
being the best that they can be,
right? 

926
00:47:28,200 --> 00:47:31,520
And yet we as Christians, we get
out there and we're like, I got 

927
00:47:31,520 --> 00:47:33,120
a lot of baggage, but that's all
right. 

928
00:47:33,120 --> 00:47:36,720
God can still use me with my 
baggage, and he can. 

929
00:47:36,720 --> 00:47:38,640
But he expects you to get rid of
it. 

930
00:47:40,160 --> 00:47:44,400
He expects to be working toward 
lightening that load so that you

931
00:47:44,400 --> 00:47:47,520
can be as effective as you can. 
And he says that laying aside 

932
00:47:47,520 --> 00:47:51,520
every weight and the sin which 
does so easily beset us, let us 

933
00:47:51,520 --> 00:47:54,760
run with patience the race that 
is set before us. 

934
00:47:55,880 --> 00:47:58,480
Get excited. 
We serve a risen Savior. 

935
00:47:58,600 --> 00:48:01,920
We serve the King of kings and 
the Lord of Lords. 

936
00:48:02,040 --> 00:48:03,000
What a. 
Privilege. 

937
00:48:03,000 --> 00:48:06,320
That is, you're not just playing
for the United States of 

938
00:48:06,320 --> 00:48:08,160
America. 
You're not just representing 

939
00:48:08,160 --> 00:48:11,160
this country at the Olympics. 
You are representing the King of

940
00:48:11,160 --> 00:48:12,920
Kings and the Lord of Lords. 
What is? 

941
00:48:13,280 --> 00:48:17,680
What is there to not get? 
Excited about or the greatest 

942
00:48:17,680 --> 00:48:20,720
team ever assembled with the 
greatest leader we could ever 

943
00:48:20,720 --> 00:48:24,160
want. 
We should be accomplishing a lot

944
00:48:24,160 --> 00:48:28,840
for the cause of Christ. 
Once you get in the game, once 

945
00:48:28,840 --> 00:48:30,720
you get in the game, get on the 
team. 

946
00:48:30,920 --> 00:48:32,920
But. 
Then get involved, get excited, 

947
00:48:33,320 --> 00:48:37,280
get busy. 
Serving the Lord, that's what 

948
00:48:37,280 --> 00:48:41,960
he's given us to do. 
Are you in the game or if you 

949
00:48:41,960 --> 00:48:43,440
let yourself be on the 
sidelines? 

950
00:48:44,640 --> 00:48:45,840
It's a question for you this 
morning. 

951
00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:47,440
That's a decision that you're 
going to have to make. 

952
00:48:48,840 --> 00:48:50,160
Let's pray. 
Father, again, we thank you so 

953
00:48:50,160 --> 00:48:51,960
much for your goodness. 
Thank you for the opportunity we

954
00:48:51,960 --> 00:48:53,360
have to be here together this 
morning. 

955
00:48:54,040 --> 00:48:58,000
I thank you for the privilege of
being able to preach your word. 

956
00:48:59,000 --> 00:49:01,520
But now God, your word has gone 
forth and I trust that the Holy 

957
00:49:01,520 --> 00:49:06,640
Spirit has done the work in the 
hearts of the people that are 

958
00:49:06,640 --> 00:49:09,480
here. 
For those that are not saved, I 

959
00:49:09,480 --> 00:49:14,440
trust that the Holy Spirit has 
convicted them of their need for

960
00:49:14,440 --> 00:49:16,640
you. 
And if you are God, I pray that 

961
00:49:16,640 --> 00:49:18,560
they would respond. 
I pray that they would, that 

962
00:49:18,560 --> 00:49:21,440
they would come and let us show 
them how they can be saved. 

963
00:49:22,720 --> 00:49:26,640
For those who are saved, the 
Holy Spirit no doubt has 

964
00:49:26,640 --> 00:49:31,240
convicted some hearts about the 
need to get involved and about 

965
00:49:31,240 --> 00:49:33,800
the need to do everything that 
we can for you. 

966
00:49:33,800 --> 00:49:37,120
With the time that we have left,
that should help them to 

967
00:49:37,120 --> 00:49:39,880
respond. 
God, may we all respond to the 

968
00:49:39,880 --> 00:49:42,600
message this morning and may we 
all have a greater desire to 

969
00:49:42,600 --> 00:49:44,600
please you, a greater desire to 
live for you. 

970
00:49:45,560 --> 00:49:48,720
May you help us this morning. 
Thank you again for all you do 

971
00:49:48,720 --> 00:49:50,360
for us in Jesus name, Amen.