What up Crossing family? It is so good to see you guys.
I want to take just a little bit of time here on the front end
and just be praying for our churches, all across this
region. As we've been kind of going
through some interesting, whether our kit cut campus
didn't have power on Thursday and so AJ Furman, you know,
moved them into the lobby, was unloading, generators it.
So that way he can run fans, because they also didn't have
air conditioning. He's going to preach the sermon
he stepped off a Is pickup truck Rift.
A six-inch hole in his pants. Preach my sermon and cowboy
boots and shorts like a true redneck.
God bless him there with us today and then our Jacksonville
campus, doesn't have power or Internet.
So they're traveling to Pike County and they're watching
online. And then I think some of them
are joining us from the lobby. It's just a bit of a mess.
I know that we're not the only church impact and I also know
that there's different people in our region who are Got a lot
more than limbs that they got to figure out.
So I just want to spend a little bit of time, praying on the
front. It would you guys join me?
God, I'm just asking that today. You'd be with all the churches
in our region who are trying to point people to you.
Now, that you would make a way for people who are far from you
to be found in, you got them also, just asking that you be
with all the people who have a lot of work, but they still have
to get done to try and get their business or to get their home up
and fully functioning. Gotta pray that this would be an
opportunity for Christians to be the very best behavior and use
this dark moment as an opportunity to be a light got.
Also, just ask you beautiful, all the people who are joining
us at all of our different locations and watching online
God, that you would stir our hearts to in your name.
I pray. Amen.
Today, I'm going to be talking to you from one of the top three
chapters in all of scripture. In my opinion, like, if you were
doing a Mount Rushmore of best, Ders, Romans 5 is on it.
I mean, you've got Romans 8, which I'm going to be talking
about our own well, which I'll be doing in a couple of weeks
and you've got second Corinthians chapter 5, which is
a Humdinger. I mean, it's great.
I don't Humdinger means, I hope that's okay.
And it really is, it's a top-three.
Romans 5 is a fantastic chunk of scripture.
In fact, if I'm not careful, if I just read it, and you guys are
getting experience that this week is, you guys are doing your
devotion. It can be emotional when you
read it, it just has that kind of power.
And my hope is that today you will have a defining moment,
take place in your life that it would draw you further along in
your intimate, personal relationship, with Jesus Christ.
That the trajectory of your life, would be altered that your
commitment to Christ will and his mission would be deepened
and your love for God would increase and before we jump all
the way into that. I'm Do a specific.
Shout out to those of you here at 4th Street, to those of you
joining us in Macomb and Kirksville.
Those of you hanging out with Crystal fever that 929.
And those of you in Pike, County, and Hannibal, and Lima,
and Mount Sterling and Keokuk and Monmouth and Jacksonville.
But I want to say a special word to those of you who are joining
us from the crossing inside. Something was happening, as I
was writing this message and you guys were just on my heart and
so, you know, the rest of you guys can kind of just listen in,
but I just want to talk to you to those of you.
Who are part of the crossing family, in are crossing inside
Ministry, I want to remind you, that it is not over.
Some of you who are listening to this message, who are in jail
right now. One day, you are going to get
out and I want you to use your time on the inside to devote
yourself to the teachings of Jesus.
So that you're prepared to make a difference.
When you get the opportunity to live on the outside, I want you
to use this season to fast forward your spiritual growth,
So, that way, you will be prepared to point people to
Jesus, not just on the inside but you'll be ready to
transition to being a Difference Maker for him on the outside.
And to those of you who are part of the crossing inside, and you
are never getting out. I want you to hear me.
There are so mates and those on your block who were dealing with
extreme emotional, psychological, spiritual pain,
and confusion. And I want you to be digging
deep in God's word, so that you can be an Example to follow and
you can be equipped to be their Pastor.
Your reputation should be the best among your fellow inmates.
And the guards I want you to give God a good name and
reputation inside the prison and jail walls.
And I want you to know that while you do that, as a
Crossing, all across this region, we remain in your corner
and we are rooting for you. And to those of you who are
watching online from wherever you are watching, And for
whatever reason you are watching, whether you're sick,
or you're traveling with sports, or whatever it is, maybe you're
just outside of our region and you haven't found a church home
yet. We are so glad that you are
making time for Jesus today at the very beginning of the sermon
series. We kind of talked about the book
of Romans and we broke it down into three big chunks.
That chapters 1 through 8 are Pillars of Truth where we learn,
how God can be trusted and that we can build our life.
Around it. And then in chapters 9 through
11, what it looks like to trust God, when others don't, some of
you feel like that's the reality you're living in your trying to
follow God. But the people around, you
aren't how do we do that. Chapters 9, through 11 are going
to talk about it? And then chapters 12 through 16,
we're going to talk about being noticeable, neighbors neighbors
that make a difference that show up in ways in other people's
lives to point people to Jesus. And in chapter 1 we learn that
God can be trusted because his gospel True.
The gospel tells us that we are all sinners.
But that Jesus is a good savior. You and I are jacked up.
Turn to your neighbor. Say you're jacked up.
You are telling the truth. Okay, nobody, okay, nobody gets
it, right, nobody has it, right? We are jacked up messed up,
sinful people, but Jesus is a mighty Savior and our Salvation
is not based on us, our salvation, In is based on him,
that is the good news, but the good news comes after the bad
news, we're jacked up. But God can uncheck yep,
whatever that looks like chapter.
Till we learned that God can be trusted because his patience and
his kindness lead us to repentance because God has been
patient and kind with us you and I must be patient and kind with
others with the hopes that they too will.
I'll come to repentance in other words, our strategy to helping
people come and do a relationship with Jesus Christ
should match. God, strategy, for helping us
come into an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
You got to ask yourself, why would you have a different
strategy than God strategy to get people to God?
So as Christians, this is tough news, it's not bad news, it's
tough news, you and I have to work at being patient and kind.
Quick gut check the people were described you right now, what
they do, this is one of the most patient and kind people I know,
then you get an F for failure. Okay, we need to have God
strategy. If we want to get people to God,
chapter 3, God can be trusted because he is faithful.
When we are not. He provided a way that we could
not you and I cannot fix this. You and I cannot make things
right. Therefore, we can't boast in.
Ourselves about how awesome we are.
We can only boast about how awesome God is because God's,
the one who made away in chapter 4, we learned that God can be
trusted because he justifies us through faith, then he forgives
and covers our sins, and never counts our sins against us.
How good is your god? Now you're ready for Romans
chapter 5. Therefore versus one since we
have our one and two since we have been justified through
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord.
Jesus Christ through whom we have gained access by faith into
this grace, in which we now stand.
And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.
Therefore, since we have been Justified, I'd Through faith.
Now when, if you've come to The Crossing for a long time, you
probably know this. If you haven't, we're just going
to fill you in. Anytime, you read the word
justified in scripture, the easiest way to understand that
word is this? Excuse my penmanship?
is just As if I had never sinned, if you look at all the
wet word, read words, I just felt Justified doo-doo-doo-doo
doo-doo-doo-doo okay. Just as if I had never sent
because of Jesus death on the cross and Resurrection from the
grave you and I have been Justified our slate has been
wiped clean as if it never happened.
Some of you, you have kids, when they come in, from a long
weekend. Like, for just celebrate
Memorial Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, and they trashed
her whole house, right? And then someone goes about your
house cleaning, it all up, as if it never happened.
High schoolers. When your parents said that they
could trust you and you went out of town and they went out of
town for a weekend because you're not the kind of person
who throw party. But you threw a party and then
you cleaned up as if it never happened.
That is what God went about and did on your behalf when it came
to your sin, he made it as if it had never happened.
Now, how many of you guys are English people like, you know,
you were good at English in school, not like speaking
English, you know like English classes.
Yeah. Because we need to pay attention
to the tenses in here. I didn't figure Our we attracted
the crowd of people that are challenging all.
Yeah, we love English majors, and if you're an English major,
I'm glad you're here. Don't email me.
I don't read. Good.
Okay, right, slow. I don't read fast.
Okay. So if you're not an English
major, you got to pay attention to the tenses in the scripture
because the tenses are intense, those little joke for the Nerds,
okay? Because when you read through
this, what you're going to find out is that there are past tense
actions that have present tense power.
It's already happened. It's already taken place but it
has power in my present reality. Look at what happens here.
Therefore, since we have been Justified, that means I am
justified because of something that has taken place.
I am forgiven and I take hold of this justification by having
faith in what Jesus Christ did on my behalf.
You step into this reality of being justified, when you start
an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ,
you begin this relationship. When you really believe that God
made you loved you and sent his son Jesus to make things, right.
On your behalf and then you turn away from your sinful behavior
of you being in charge and you start and living for yourself.
And you start, or you decide to start living for Jesus, you make
him the Lord of your life. He's the one who's in control.
This leads you to wanting to be obedient in the area of baptism
and all of the ways that Jesus calls us to live.
And when you get baptized, when Your obedient area of baptism.
When you are being baptized, you experienced the washing away of
your sins, you model, the death burial and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. You also live out the example
that Jesus did when Jesus himself was baptized and you are
doing what he commanded his followers to do, which was to be
baptized. How can you call yourself a
follower of Jesus if you're not going to follow?
The commands and the teachings of Jesus, that this is just part
of what it means to be a Christian.
And when this happens, we become Justified and that makes us at
and with this happens through faith.
And we end up with at peace with God, there is no longer any War.
Once we were enemies with God, now he has made peace between us
and God through Jesus. And but hear me just because we
are at peace does not mean we will not face discipline.
Some of you might be gone. Well, if I'm at peace with God,
why is there this thing that I'm having to navigate?
Because God is disciplining you? Well, why is God disciplining
you? Well, I'm glad you asked ready.
Look what it says in Proverbs 3:11-12.
My son do not despise the Lord's.
Everybody say this word? Discipline and do not resent his
rebuke. Because the Lord say this next
word, disciplines those, he Oh God.
Disciplines you because he loves you.
That's why Paris parents. You know this when you love your
kid, you care about how they're going to turn out and when
they're doing things that are going to make them turn out the
way they shouldn't turn out. You discipline them.
How many of you how many of you are?
Perfect. Yeah, I saw a couple husband's
trying to raise their wife's hand.
She keeps telling me. She is.
Yeah, but that, but it, but she's not right.
That's just not how it works. So if we're not perfect, that
means we're going to do things. We shouldn't do.
And when we do things, we shouldn't do.
God is going to discipline us? He's going to correct us.
He's going to try and make us and mold us more into His Image.
We are at peace with God, but we are not excused from God's
discipline because God loves us. And wants what's best for us.
Now as God we finds us and Moses into His Image.
He does something even better than this, he keeps because keep
going the text. Therefore since we have been
justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord,
Jesus Christ through whom we have gained access here.
It is by faith again into his into this grace in which we now
stand. And we boast in the hope of the
glory of God. This Grace this space that Paul
is referring to is this new Justified reality?
It is a state of peace between us and God this grace is a room
that we enter through Jesus Christ.
He is our refuge, our Firm Foundation.
Jesus is the door into this space of Grace here.
God invites us into the intimate settings of his kingdom.
How do I explain this? How many of you Have friends
that you don't let in the house you meet him in the driveway.
Like you see him, you see him coming down the gravel road for
those of you who are country bumpkins, you you see?
Okay, well, I think that's Billy's Truck.
Come on, honey, Billy's here and you meet him outside.
Oh, good to see you. Billy glad you're here.
Oh, wish wish you could stay longer but we gotta do some
stuff and they never, they don't even know what the inside of
your house. Looks like they're their mailbox
friends, like that will just talk at the mailbox.
Then you have some people that you let come in.
To the house into the like the living room.
Like oh yeah you can come in God you're here.
Yes you get him. Something nice to you know to
drink or eat. You know you're super glad
they're there but there's a small subset of people.
Hang with me that you would let you use your master bathroom.
But you let them walk into your house into your bedroom, where
all the clothes are not put away, by the way and use your
restroom. I don't have any friends that
are that close. They've never been, like,
Clayton Hughes the master, right?
There'd always be like, nope, you can go when you go home,
that's when you can go here is what here is what God is doing.
He's inviting you into this space of Grace.
How close do you have to be to use the Stir, bad bathroom
family. There I'll be okay.
This isn't in the sermon. There are four bathrooms in my
house. There are four people that live
in my house. All four of us, use my bathroom.
I wake up in the morning because I'm a man.
I go kids pooping on it on his iPad.
She's in my space of Grace. Soon.
As he gets done, the seat. Doesn't even get a chance to
cool down. Next kid comes in And then, of
course, I'll be using the restroom of my wife will come in
to start doing her makeup and hair.
And she's like, I cannot believe you're in here Mike.
We married each other. This is ours.
He has one. He has one.
This is for other people. I don't know who that, but I
want to use God. Invites you into the space of
Grace, okay. You will not forget Romans 5 now
because we have experienced this piece, this results in the big
things of life being. Taken care of.
All that's left are the little things.
Because we are at peace with God, all that's left are little
things now, I'm not saying that little things aren't real
things, I'm not saying that little things aren't hard
things, and I'm not saying that little things aren't hurtful
things, but in the grand scheme of things, God has Justified you
purified. You saved you from your sin made
a place for you. In heaven to spend eternity.
He solved your eternity but yes there's still some stuff that
you and I are going to have to navigate here in the physical
realities of life. But we have we tend to have such
an upside-down view of the things of God.
Here's what God saying. I've paid off your house but you
still have to vacuum. Like there's still some stuff
you're going to have to navigate in the realities of life and we
are. So upside down.
When it comes to this kind of stuff, we make the spiritual
reality small and we make the physical realities big.
That's why it's so hard for us to live out.
God's plan and God's purpose. For our lives.
We spend and save like this world is all that matters
instead of God's Eternal Kingdom.
We navigate stress and hardship with our eyes focused on
physical realities and not the spiritual ones, but because I am
at peace with God. And my in heaven, is my future
home. I can be more generous.
I can be more forgiving. I can be more dependent on him
and less dependent on myself. Then Paul goes on and he takes
us Down a pretty interesting Road.
Romans chapter 3, 5 3 through 5, not only.
So but we also glory in our, if I say that word sufferings I
don't make any sense, he unpacks it because we know that
suffering produces perseverance. This patient endurance,
perseverance produces character and character, produces
everybody say this, hope and hope does not put us to shame
because God's love has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Hear me just because we have this Firm Foundation.
This is State of Grace. This Justified reality does not
mean that we won't have hardships.
Christians might suffer more. Not only do we have to navigate
the general hardships of life, but Christians suffer because of
Satan and persecution, Christians have to navigate
doubts about God, and how can life be so hard if God is so
good. They end up rethinking things,
wrestling through spiritual and physical realities.
It's not the atheist, but the Christian who has to ask, why
God, why did this happen? What about all the things you
promised? Why is life so hard?
What about all of my unanswered prayers?
Shins will supper, I want to absolve you of the idea that
once you come into a relationship with Jesus Christ,
life becomes easy. And that the evidence in your
life that God is in your life, is that your life is pain free?
I want you to be absolved of that reality to be a Christian
might mean, not only do you suffer.
It might mean you suffer more and he says we suppose we're
supposed to Rejoice. I mean rejoicing in Hope is one
thing, but rejoicing in our suffering that don't make no
sense. But he says, look at what
suffering does suffering produces.
It produces inside of you and me, this perseverance, this
patients, the ability for you and I to Bear up underneath,
whatever comes along, believing that God will come through, or
get them through. We're going to get more into
this into Romans chapter 8 but I'm willing to wager that all
across this region at all of our different campuses and probably
every single row. There are some of you who can go
you've been through hard things, how many of you have suffered
And how many of you can say, God got you through it, produces
something in US, it writes Our Testimony, it increases, our
story. Why should I rejoice in
suffering while I'll tell you a couple of reasons, one Jesus
suffered, the one who never sinned.
Who never did anything wrong? Still suffered.
So that means that well I might suffer to check this out.
Gods are Jesus suffering created a path?
To find an intimate personal relationship with Jesus Christ
for you. And for me, maybe our suffering
could do the same. What I'm saying is maybe some of
you should consider staying in your difficult marriage.
Some of you, when you navigate your difficult diagnosis, you
should be prepared to suffer. To point people that God is
still good. Even when the medical answers,
aren't those of you navigating financial hardship, dealing with
beaten being misunderstood, some of us should suffer while we
love our enemies. Why?
Because when Jesus suffered, and made a way for other people to
find Jesus and how we suffer gives other people an
opportunity to come to him as well.
The sermon you were looking for, hang on this suffering, produces
something else in us. A proven character suffering and
trials reveal character much like storms, reveal the quality
of the workmanship on a home, I wrote this before the storms so
if your house got blown over or there's a tree limb in your
living room sorry about your Builder.
Okay, what happens is when we go through the trials in the
hardships of life, it reveals our faith and our dependence on
God you guys know this there's a difference between have you how
many of you have heard marriage advice from people who've never
been married? Then they cute like us.
I've never I've never heard somebody so dumb right and then
you get marriage of you here. Marriage advice from engaged
people, we will never be like that.
Like we've looked at my mom and dad and we've looked at his mom
and dad and we're never gonna be that.
Until he folds the towel one time wrong.
And you are your mom? Okay.
That's exactly how long it takes, right.
And then there's people who've been married a really long time
and you know the quality of that kind of advice.
Like there's just different. They have a different level
security. They've been married long
enough, you know, when you first got married, you had that fight
and you're like, oh my goodness. I think we're going to get a
divorce and then now you've been married so long and you
fighting, like, she's going to talk to me in a month or two.
Like she's too old to date. She ain't going anywhere like
we're just I'm not. Whoa, I'm not talking about me,
I've just I I wouldn't do that. Okay, I've been trained.
Okay, you know, you don't know how much I have to vacuum at
home just to be able to have these sermon moments with you.
Okay, my suffering, produces a way for you to come to Faith,
okay? I got was full Laundry the other
year and anyhow, I'll get okay, there's a difference.
People who've been through some stuff in their marriage.
Have some stuff to say, their characters been revealed and
refined over time. And that's what happens in your
faith. It just because you're going
through the hardships of life doesn't mean your life isn't
getting better or more refined more into the image of God, take
the fights of the people who are just dating take the fight to
those who are engaged, take the fight to those who are still on.
Their Honeymoon and then look at what's happening inside of a
marriage. That's been through some stuff.
Which advice do you want? Who do you want counseling?
You I want the people who've been through it.
Notice like to sleep on the couch, the floor, and outside.
Like the people have been through all the phases of
marriage, I want those people to speak into it, and this
suffering purifies us because it takes the things that we've
been, depending, upon away, this proven character produces hope,
because after you've Been through some things and you come
out the other side, you have more help about getting through
the things that lie ahead. Furthermore, Our Hope in the
glory of Heaven becomes even more real to us as our victories
increase. So does Our Hope in a god who's
never once lost a battle, we have a confidence as we go
through life and he says, therefore we will not be put to
shame. Hear me Crossing family.
We will not be put to shame. We will not be disappointed.
Even though you might be mocked for your faith ridiculed for
your faith, your hope is solidly based, Thinking Noah.
No was told by God to build an ark and what Noah started,
building the ark and everybody around and what's a narc it's
about what's a boat it's something that floats on big
bodies of water. Why do you need that?
Because it's going to rain what's rain?
Water is going to come down from heaven.
It's going to fill everything around us.
Day after day. Week after week, month after
month, year after year, Noah was living out his hope in God, that
one day, the rains were going to come and people were going to
need a boat. And it looked like he was the
biggest fool up until it started to rain.
His Hope was not put to shame and neither will yours.
Now I'm ready to preach my sermon.
The next three verses in my opinion, are the best.
Three verses to answer the question?
How do I know that? God loves me.
If you want to know how to bookmark, these three verses.
If you're looking for your tattoo verse Romans, 5:8 is a is
a top three tattoo verse How do I know that?
God loves me. You might be going to Clayton
already. Got the John 3:16 tattoo.
That's why God gave you two arms.
Okay, two arms, two legs, two eyelids.
I don't care because John 3:16 tells us that God loves us and
how he loves us. But these verses show us what
was going on behind the scenes because it tells us about when
God was loving us. Romans 5 verse 6.
You see at just the right time when we were still powerless
Christ died for the everybody say that ungodly.
Very rarely. Will anyone die for a righteous
person though? For a good person.
Someone might possibly Dare To Die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this while we
were still sinners Christ died for us.
You see when we were powerless when we were weak, when we were
without strength, when we were helpless, who did Christ die for
he died for the ungodly. Look at how different God is
from you and me, there's some of you are going.
Well, I would, I would jump in front of a bus and save my wife.
Good for you. There's some of you moms you
were gone. Well I would jump in front of a
bus for my little grandbaby. Well good for you.
Very rarely will someone died for a good person or a righteous
person but none of us. Not one of us would die for the
ungodly. Not one of us, would take the
place of those who harmed us, divorced us, abused us.
Those on death row. But there was someone who was
willing to die for the weak and the wicked.
You see how good is our God? Our God is so good.
He made the first move when we were at our worst.
Our God was at his best. That's how good he is.
That's why we gather. That's why we worship.
That's why we praise. That's why we give that's why we
invite. That's why we serve because he's
just that good and you might be going.
Clayton, I'm pretty good. I'm cool because you love win,
everybody. Say when we love, when we love,
when we love, when others love us back, we love when they do
what we want them to do. We love when they care about our
needs. We love when they care about our
once. We love when we love after
everybody say, after we love after they prove themselves
worthy, we love. After a grand gesture, We love
after they've made things right? We love after they prioritized
us. You might be going to Clayton.
I love while I would agree with you.
You love while I love while. I love wild things are going.
Okay, I love wild. Things are going my way.
I love while they are on good behavior while they're in good
standing, while they're loving us back.
But do you see how good our God is that while we were still
Sinners? That's when he made the move, if
you want to know how good God is, is he loved you while you
were still rebelling, still enemies, still running away,
still pushing away, still being stingy, still being greedy,
still being hateful and hurtful still lying and cheating and
gossiping he loved you while you were still Till lusting still
abusing still being two-faced to still being hypocritical.
God, so our God loves you. How do I know he loves you that
God, demonstrated his love for us in this that while we were
still sinning, He sent Jesus to die on the cross.
For my sins, he took my punishment made it as though I
never sinned. Brought me into a Justified
reality in a state of grace. That's how good our God is.
God, can be trusted. because he was at his very best when you
and I were at our very worst God can be trusted because you and I
will not face the wrath of God, that we deserve for our sins
because Jesus has already done that in my place.
You see it? Just the right time.
When we were still powerless. Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely, will anyone die for a righteous person though?
For a good person. Someone might possibly dare to
die, but God demonstrates his own love for us in this while we
were still sinners Christ died for us and I don't know how you
ever get over that, we're moving to a time of decision.
We serve a God who made the first move.
Therefore as Christians, we need to be people who make the first
move, but I want to clear some stuff up specifically to those
of you who've never started an intimate personal relationship
with Jesus Christ. And Jennifer nice relationship.
I made all the first moves I asked her out.
I held her hand, I gave her a kiss.
She did not get down on one knee and asked me to marry her.
She's not that stupid. The reason the reason we got
married is I wore down to be honest with you that's what I
and manipulation. Okay, I got sighs.
Okay, there's no, what yet I'm a doll.
All of the moves, her moves have always been a response to my
moves. And today, if you're wanting to
start an intimate personal relationship with Jesus Christ,
I want you to know, you are not making the first move, God has
been making all of the first moves and you are simply
responding to the greatest first moves of all time.
Don't believe me. Here's what I'm saying.
God wanted you. And so he made the first move
and he created you. The Bible says that he knit you
together in your mother's womb, which means that he had a plan
and a purpose for your life. Before you were you he was
thinking about you and it was his thinking about you that
caused him to create you. God made the first move in,
making you before you drew your first breath.
Before, you could speak before, you can say your first cuss
word, he sent his son, Jesus to die, on the cross, to pay for
the cuss word, you hadn't even said yet.
That's how good he is. And before you get even show up
for church and sing your first worship song before, you could
raise your hand, and pray, your first prayer before you ever had
any intention. To draw your heart back to him,
he had already made all the moves, And somehow you show up
for church. And you think to yourself, well,
I got to get this figured out and I got to get this, right?
And my got to stop doing this and I got a dial this back and I
got to start doing this more and then I can start my relationship
with Jesus, but don't you get it?
While you were still Sinners, that's all he needed to know.
Is that you needed him, and he had already made a way.
He's not waiting for you to get things, right?
He already sent his son Jesus because you couldn't get them,
right? He doesn't need you to get your
act together because he knows, you can't get your act together
without the Holy Spirit, who he will send to, you upon your
baptism where he will put in you the power.
You need to accomplish the things.
Has he calls you too? He's not waiting for you to get
it wrong because he's already paid for it.
He's not waiting for you to get it right, because he doesn't
expect it. He's just waiting for you.
And that's the only response you could possibly give him.
Is you? Here I am all jacked up and
messed up and whatever word you want to put in.
And God goes. Yeah.
I've been waiting for this moment.
Since before I made you. and if you're here today, and you've
never started an intimate personal relationship with Jesus
Christ, Don't put it off. And just a few moments, there's
too many people around you. Stay in and saying and some are
going to come to the steps and pray.
There's me somebody over by the Baptist.
Who would love a chance to talk with you about what that looks
like. Don't put it off.
But there's some of you you're going not yet.
Not today. Not now.
And I just want you to know. He's still going to be waiting
on you and so will this church? He's still going to be rooting
for you. So this church, The only
difference is going to be. How much more pain and hurt and
sorrow and frustration? Are you going to experience
between now and then because there's nothing that you can fix
or do to get you into a better spot because the spot you need
to be in to find. Jesus is the spot where you
recognize your Center? Don't put it off.
To those of you who already have a relationship with Jesus
Christ, remember that? I like you.
And you kind of like me because what I'm going to say to you
now, you're like I did not see this coming.
This is the part of the sermon. You're going to go.
I didn't like that part. I liked the first part.
But if we serve a God who made the first moves, and that means
that we need to be Christians who make the first move.
Have a troubled marriage. I want you to love them. while
they're still being a bad spouse just like, God did Have a kid
Who's acting out of pocket? I want you to love them while
they're out of pocket because that's how God moved for you.
Have a boss, A co-worker and employee who's giving you fits.
I want you to love them while they give you fits because
that's how God moved for. You have somebody who harmed you
hurt you betrayed you I want you to love them while because
that's how God moved for you. If we are going to be people who
have been impacted by the first move of God, then we have to be
people who make the first move on behalf of God.
God, in other people's lives. You're like I like the first
part of the sermon when it was like man, God's awesome and I
can still be jacked up. But if we really love God, we
should want to model what he did in our life for others.
You're going to Clayton, I don't have that kind of strength.
You don't need to have that kind of strength, he's your strength.
Clean. I don't I don't have that kind
of energy. He'll be your energy.
I don't have that kind of hope he'll be the hope, but I'm going
to ask you to do. If you're a Christian, is it
come down here and get down on your knees and ask God to help
you write a better story. A story that recognizes that
while you were still a sinner Christ died for you, a story
that's asking God to give you the strength to love the people
around you while they're still sinning.
To love until God releases you. To love until God redeems.
The situation. Would you stand with me?
God, my prayer in this moment. I feel like I pray all the time,
but it's just because it's the prayer I want answered.
Gotta I want you to do something that only you can do in this
room. I want you to do something that
only you can do that. Only, you can take the credit
for God I'm asking you to make it incredibly clear for every
person in here, exactly what it is that they are supposed to do
and God that you would give them the courage and the strength to
walk it out. Do something in this Church?
Father, do something in me. That only you get the credit for
You know my pray. Amen.