1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,520 What up, crossing family? I am so excited to be with you 2 00:00:03,520 --> 00:00:05,680 today. If no one told you last week or 3 00:00:05,680 --> 00:00:07,480 so far this week, I want you to know this. 4 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:10,480 I love you. I look forward to spending time 5 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:12,600 with you each and every single week. 6 00:00:12,600 --> 00:00:15,640 Last week I had the opportunity to go and visit one of our 7 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:20,920 locations and I am just amazed at what God is allowing us to do 8 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:23,600 and be part of all across this region. 9 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:27,160 Jerry and Allison were celebrating 25 years at this 10 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:30,390 church and if you don't know that, that's a big deal. 11 00:00:31,150 --> 00:00:34,070 Everything we have come to know and appreciate at this church 12 00:00:34,070 --> 00:00:37,070 started in their hearts and it came about because of their 13 00:00:37,070 --> 00:00:40,750 faith that God would make away. I want to welcome all of you 14 00:00:40,750 --> 00:00:43,270 joining from our different locations, those of you joining 15 00:00:43,270 --> 00:00:46,790 online and those of you part of our inside family. 16 00:00:47,070 --> 00:00:50,310 I also want to wish a special welcome to those of you joining 17 00:00:50,310 --> 00:00:54,030 us for the first time or the first time in a long time. 18 00:00:54,350 --> 00:00:59,310 We are so incredibly glad that you are here, and our hope is 19 00:00:59,310 --> 00:01:01,870 that our time together today will either point you to want to 20 00:01:01,870 --> 00:01:06,630 start or maybe start again an intimate personal relationship 21 00:01:06,630 --> 00:01:10,190 with Jesus Christ. My story is very similar to many 22 00:01:10,190 --> 00:01:13,430 of the people that are sitting in the row with you right now, 23 00:01:13,910 --> 00:01:16,830 that starting a relationship with Jesus Christ is the single 24 00:01:16,830 --> 00:01:18,510 greatest decision that I ever made. 25 00:01:18,910 --> 00:01:22,230 And my biggest regret is that I didn't start it earlier. 26 00:01:22,550 --> 00:01:25,750 And if you want more information about our church or how to take 27 00:01:25,750 --> 00:01:28,310 those next steps in your relationship with Jesus Christ, 28 00:01:28,900 --> 00:01:32,220 I would encourage you to take advantage of the QR code in 29 00:01:32,220 --> 00:01:34,180 front of you. A staff member at one of our 30 00:01:34,180 --> 00:01:37,060 locations will obviously point to that later on at the end of 31 00:01:37,060 --> 00:01:38,820 service. But I want you to know that that 32 00:01:38,820 --> 00:01:41,620 is a resource that we update on a regular basis. 33 00:01:41,620 --> 00:01:45,060 In fact, I want to point out two things on the QR code real 34 00:01:45,060 --> 00:01:46,260 quick. If you guys want to throw it up 35 00:01:46,260 --> 00:01:50,500 there, the first one is we have a marriage retreat going on this 36 00:01:50,500 --> 00:01:52,300 fall. I think we have three or four of 37 00:01:52,300 --> 00:01:54,820 them. When you click on there, I was 38 00:01:54,940 --> 00:01:57,300 talking with someone this week. You're not signing up for all 39 00:01:57,300 --> 00:02:00,490 five, you just are picking the weekend that you want to go the 40 00:02:00,490 --> 00:02:01,930 overnight. Now let me tell you why you 41 00:02:01,930 --> 00:02:05,530 should think about a marriage retreat. 1 marriages are one of 42 00:02:05,530 --> 00:02:10,530 the biggest factors on your level of happiness, enjoyment 43 00:02:10,530 --> 00:02:13,410 and success. And depending on who you 44 00:02:13,410 --> 00:02:16,810 married, sometimes your marriage could have problems. 45 00:02:17,490 --> 00:02:21,010 And kind of like your vehicle, it needs routine maintenance. 46 00:02:21,450 --> 00:02:23,530 And if you put it off for a really long time and then the 47 00:02:23,530 --> 00:02:25,250 wheels fall off, you're stranded on the side of the road. 48 00:02:25,250 --> 00:02:28,000 And you're like, so you don't have to wait for your marriage 49 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:31,040 to fall apart before you make some strategic investments in 50 00:02:31,040 --> 00:02:32,960 it. And I've never met somebody who 51 00:02:32,960 --> 00:02:36,480 goes, you know what, We were just putting too much time in 52 00:02:36,480 --> 00:02:37,640 trying to make our marriage better. 53 00:02:37,720 --> 00:02:39,760 Okay. I've never, I've never met that 54 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:41,840 person. So I want to encourage you. 55 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:44,640 This is not for people who, I mean, if you're in crisis, you 56 00:02:44,640 --> 00:02:46,200 can go, but if you're going, you know what? 57 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:50,400 I just love this girl and I want to have a better relationship 58 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:51,960 with her. Sign up. 59 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,280 Second thing that I want to point out on that QR code is 60 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:58,960 RISE, our women's Conference. This is going to be a great day 61 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:01,760 for you ladies to focus on your relationship with God. 62 00:03:01,800 --> 00:03:04,440 Let me tell you the truth. Your husband, your future 63 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:09,080 husband, your exhusband needs a more godly version of you. 64 00:03:09,440 --> 00:03:11,920 So bring your friends, your daughters, bring them back from 65 00:03:11,920 --> 00:03:15,080 college, bring your high school girls, and I want you to go on a 66 00:03:15,080 --> 00:03:19,230 spiritual journey together. We prioritize sending our kids 67 00:03:19,230 --> 00:03:21,750 to camp because we know that time away dedicated to the Lord 68 00:03:21,750 --> 00:03:24,430 is good for the soul. We just came off of our men's 69 00:03:24,430 --> 00:03:28,350 conference and the men will testify that us refocusing and 70 00:03:28,350 --> 00:03:31,710 realigning our lives to God is a beneficial thing. 71 00:03:31,710 --> 00:03:33,830 And ladies, it will be a benefit to you. 72 00:03:34,270 --> 00:03:37,790 Sign up early so that way we can do a really good job of loving 73 00:03:37,790 --> 00:03:39,510 and leading well through that event. 74 00:03:39,990 --> 00:03:43,110 For those of you who are hanging out for a while, or those of you 75 00:03:43,110 --> 00:03:46,610 who are here for the first time, we are in the 3rd and final part 76 00:03:46,610 --> 00:03:48,810 of our study in the Book of Romans. 77 00:03:48,810 --> 00:03:51,490 I told you at the very beginning you kind of break the Book of 78 00:03:51,490 --> 00:03:54,890 Romans into three big chunks. Pillars of Truth In chapters one 79 00:03:54,890 --> 00:03:58,210 through 8, God can be trusted. Then the second chunk is 80 00:03:58,210 --> 00:04:00,570 chapters 9 through 11. Trust in God when others don't. 81 00:04:00,930 --> 00:04:03,770 As a Christian, you are going to find yourself in places where 82 00:04:03,770 --> 00:04:06,730 you have to trust God and the people around you aren't. 83 00:04:06,970 --> 00:04:09,290 How do you navigate those moments? 84 00:04:09,610 --> 00:04:12,370 And then we're in this final chunk called noticeable 85 00:04:12,770 --> 00:04:17,839 neighbors now. A faith that never goes public, 86 00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:22,920 a faith that nobody ever notices, a faith that doesn't 87 00:04:22,920 --> 00:04:26,680 make a difference, that doesn't bring about change, is not the 88 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:29,960 kind of response that our God deserves, or the kind of 89 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:36,000 response that God accepts. Our faith in Jesus should point 90 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:40,320 a watching and waiting world to Jesus. 91 00:04:40,880 --> 00:04:44,340 The world we are living in right now and you guys know this to be 92 00:04:44,340 --> 00:04:48,860 true, is tearing itself apart and only God can put it back 93 00:04:48,860 --> 00:04:51,380 together. And he does this through people 94 00:04:51,380 --> 00:04:55,660 like you and people like me, living for him and being 95 00:04:55,660 --> 00:04:58,180 transformed by him. I'm going to say something that 96 00:04:58,180 --> 00:05:00,580 might frustrate you. Ready. 97 00:05:01,860 --> 00:05:07,940 If following Jesus isn't changing you, you might not be 98 00:05:07,940 --> 00:05:12,420 following Jesus because he's perfect. 99 00:05:13,330 --> 00:05:16,170 And if you're hanging out with him and you're looking at you 100 00:05:16,730 --> 00:05:18,650 and you're going, I'm pretty awesome. 101 00:05:19,810 --> 00:05:22,290 I don't see anything that needs to change in my life. 102 00:05:23,410 --> 00:05:26,090 Whoever you're hanging out with isn't him. 103 00:05:27,210 --> 00:05:29,930 Because anytime you interact with Jesus, you're going to be 104 00:05:29,930 --> 00:05:34,010 interacting with somebody who's wiser, greater, kinder, better 105 00:05:34,010 --> 00:05:36,850 at loving, sacrificing. He is going to raise the 106 00:05:36,850 --> 00:05:39,650 standard on you constantly. And so if you're going, you know 107 00:05:39,650 --> 00:05:41,010 what? I'm kind of plateaued. 108 00:05:41,480 --> 00:05:43,400 I really don't have any stories of faith. 109 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:46,560 I don't have any stories of me trusting me growing. 110 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:50,800 The person you're following probably isn't him. 111 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:55,000 There are two images that Jesus uses to drive this home. 112 00:05:55,280 --> 00:05:58,760 He talks about Christians are supposed to be a lamp on a stand 113 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:02,000 and a city on a hill. That Christians are supposed to 114 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:05,400 stand out as being different. We serve as a guide and a 115 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:08,050 waypoint. The way we work, the way we 116 00:06:08,050 --> 00:06:11,850 manage, the way we lead, the calendar we keep, the way we 117 00:06:11,850 --> 00:06:15,890 forgive, the way we navigate hardships all point to the hope 118 00:06:16,130 --> 00:06:20,610 and the healing of Jesus. When I was in Bible college, 119 00:06:21,410 --> 00:06:25,410 there was a saying that when you preach you should either make 120 00:06:25,410 --> 00:06:35,040 them sad, mad or glad. And sometimes you're like, I 121 00:06:35,040 --> 00:06:38,040 feel like he you get more than those you make us sad and mad. 122 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:41,440 Well, I have good news for this message today. 123 00:06:41,440 --> 00:06:47,240 My hope is to make you mad, madder, sad, sadder. 124 00:06:47,240 --> 00:06:49,960 And if you're still awake at the end of the sermon, I'll try and 125 00:06:49,960 --> 00:06:52,880 make you glad okay. So I'm just telling you upfront, 126 00:06:53,240 --> 00:06:56,680 you know, we're just going to get through Romans 13 together. 127 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,000 I believe it has a good word for us, but it's a hard word. 128 00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:02,200 You're like, I don't. I don't know what you're talking 129 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:03,640 about. Let me read the first Chuck 130 00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:08,480 Couple of verses. I'll start with Mad Romans 113, 131 00:07:08,480 --> 00:07:12,800 one through 5. Let everyone be subject to the 132 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:18,720 governing authorities for which there is no authority except 133 00:07:18,720 --> 00:07:23,760 that which God has established. The authorities that exist have 134 00:07:23,760 --> 00:07:28,460 been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels 135 00:07:28,460 --> 00:07:31,660 against the authority is rebelling against what God has 136 00:07:31,660 --> 00:07:34,860 instituted. And those who do will bring 137 00:07:34,860 --> 00:07:40,580 judgment on themselves. For rulers who hold no terror 138 00:07:40,580 --> 00:07:43,940 for those who do right, or hold no terror for those who do right 139 00:07:44,100 --> 00:07:47,820 but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from the 140 00:07:47,820 --> 00:07:52,100 fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you 141 00:07:52,100 --> 00:07:56,810 will be commended. For the one in authority is 142 00:07:56,810 --> 00:08:03,370 God's servant for good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, 143 00:08:03,970 --> 00:08:07,850 for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. 144 00:08:08,530 --> 00:08:13,570 They are God's servants, agents of wrath to bring to bring 145 00:08:13,570 --> 00:08:20,330 punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore it is necessary to 146 00:08:20,690 --> 00:08:22,170 everybody. I'm not going to make you say 147 00:08:22,170 --> 00:08:23,250 the word. Let's just get through these 148 00:08:23,330 --> 00:08:28,050 couple verses. OK, submit to the authorities, 149 00:08:29,130 --> 00:08:34,049 not only because of possible punishment, but also as a matter 150 00:08:34,289 --> 00:08:40,090 of conscience. I promise you, I would make you 151 00:08:40,090 --> 00:08:43,210 mad. So let's work our way through 152 00:08:43,210 --> 00:08:44,730 it. God's Word is good from 153 00:08:44,730 --> 00:08:47,210 beginning to end. There's a good thing inside of 154 00:08:47,210 --> 00:08:48,810 you, But let's just deal with the fact that we're a little 155 00:08:48,810 --> 00:08:51,730 sad. Some of you may have seen people 156 00:08:51,730 --> 00:08:56,930 post these very verses right after an election, OK? 157 00:08:57,410 --> 00:09:01,650 And you know, our world is such a better place when people post 158 00:09:01,650 --> 00:09:04,210 their political hot takes. And I'm thankful that they do 159 00:09:04,210 --> 00:09:05,530 that. But I've. 160 00:09:06,050 --> 00:09:09,730 And I know it's interesting to me though, that Republicans only 161 00:09:09,730 --> 00:09:14,010 post this after Republican wins and Democrats only post this 162 00:09:14,010 --> 00:09:17,170 after a Democrat wins. But you never see a Republican 163 00:09:17,170 --> 00:09:20,210 posted after a Democrat wins, and you rarely see a Democrat 164 00:09:20,210 --> 00:09:23,050 posted after a Republican wins. So in other words, we only like 165 00:09:23,050 --> 00:09:24,490 this verse when it's our candidate. 166 00:09:25,900 --> 00:09:28,660 When Trump ascended to the office, submit to our governing 167 00:09:28,660 --> 00:09:30,780 authorities, everybody. I mean, those are the rules we 168 00:09:30,780 --> 00:09:33,060 got to play by. But when Barack Obama was in the 169 00:09:33,060 --> 00:09:35,820 office, this guy's an evildoer. He's the sponest Satan. 170 00:09:35,940 --> 00:09:39,380 OK, that's crazy. Christians are better than that. 171 00:09:39,420 --> 00:09:42,780 Here is what he's going after. Because I'm a glutton for 172 00:09:42,780 --> 00:09:44,140 punishment. I'll just tell you up the front. 173 00:09:44,340 --> 00:09:46,540 Next year I'm going to do a whole sermon series on 174 00:09:47,220 --> 00:09:49,860 Christians response to politics. And if there's any of you guys 175 00:09:49,860 --> 00:09:53,530 left here, I hope you guys, my God, I hope. 176 00:09:53,530 --> 00:09:54,690 I hope. I mean, it'll be great. 177 00:09:54,730 --> 00:09:57,010 It'll probably be a small group, but John will still be leading 178 00:09:57,010 --> 00:09:59,010 worship. And we'll have worship guys at 179 00:09:59,010 --> 00:10:01,890 all of our locations. Some of you might be going, how 180 00:10:01,890 --> 00:10:03,650 could God allow Trump to be president? 181 00:10:04,370 --> 00:10:06,610 How could God allow Joe Biden to be president? 182 00:10:07,090 --> 00:10:09,410 Some of you are more sophisticated than that. 183 00:10:09,690 --> 00:10:11,730 And you're going, I'm not really worried about Joe. 184 00:10:11,730 --> 00:10:13,410 And I'm really not worried about Don. 185 00:10:13,690 --> 00:10:16,410 I'm. I'm worried about how does this 186 00:10:16,410 --> 00:10:19,690 verse play into what I've seen in the history of my life? 187 00:10:21,130 --> 00:10:23,930 What about the genocidal and communist leaders? 188 00:10:24,650 --> 00:10:28,170 Did God really establish Hitler of Germany, Stalin of the Soviet 189 00:10:28,170 --> 00:10:31,530 Union, Kim Jong Un of President Day, North Korea, Paul Pott of 190 00:10:31,530 --> 00:10:35,210 Cambodia, or the massacres that were happening in Rwanda? 191 00:10:37,210 --> 00:10:39,810 Hold on a second. What is happening here? 192 00:10:40,490 --> 00:10:44,810 How could God establish these people and we're supposed to 193 00:10:44,810 --> 00:10:49,610 submit to them? I want to remind you, Paul is 194 00:10:49,610 --> 00:10:57,810 writing this to a church where in Rome Romans were 195 00:10:57,810 --> 00:11:01,010 systematically persecuting Christians. 196 00:11:01,970 --> 00:11:07,330 Jesus Christ, whom we serve and worship, died on a Roman cross. 197 00:11:07,930 --> 00:11:12,610 Roman emperors earned master's degrees in torturing Christians. 198 00:11:13,530 --> 00:11:16,610 It is important here to differentiate what Paul is 199 00:11:16,610 --> 00:11:18,930 saying and what Paul is not saying. 200 00:11:20,150 --> 00:11:22,750 Paul is not saying submit no matter what. 201 00:11:23,950 --> 00:11:27,870 He is saying that as long as what you are being asked to do 202 00:11:28,630 --> 00:11:33,310 is not a violation of God's word and purposes, you should obey. 203 00:11:34,350 --> 00:11:37,990 I should obey. There are a lot of examples in 204 00:11:37,990 --> 00:11:42,910 scripture of people disobeying political rulers governing 205 00:11:42,910 --> 00:11:46,630 authorities for the sake of God's word and God's purposes. 206 00:11:46,630 --> 00:11:49,420 Let me give you some examples to those of you who've read your 207 00:11:49,420 --> 00:11:51,260 Bible. There's the midwives who are 208 00:11:51,260 --> 00:11:54,020 instructed by Pharaoh to kill all the young boys. 209 00:11:54,140 --> 00:11:58,140 They refused to do so. Daniel and his comrades asked 210 00:11:58,140 --> 00:12:02,500 politely to not partake in the dietary customs of Babylon. 211 00:12:02,500 --> 00:12:04,740 When they were captured, they said, would you at least give us 212 00:12:04,740 --> 00:12:06,740 a chance? They are respectful, but they 213 00:12:06,740 --> 00:12:09,630 asked to disobey when they were told that they needed to bow 214 00:12:09,630 --> 00:12:14,230 down to the idol in the desert. They refused to do so when they 215 00:12:14,230 --> 00:12:16,230 made it illegal for the people to pray. 216 00:12:16,430 --> 00:12:19,350 Daniel still went to the window and prayed three times a day. 217 00:12:19,590 --> 00:12:21,630 There are certain times when a Christian draws a line in the 218 00:12:21,630 --> 00:12:24,630 sand and says it doesn't matter what the government says, I'm 219 00:12:24,630 --> 00:12:28,110 not going to violate God's word. However, before you guys turn 220 00:12:28,110 --> 00:12:32,270 this into a rally, most of the times that we want to pick a 221 00:12:32,270 --> 00:12:34,870 fight with the government about what the Bible says, it's out of 222 00:12:34,870 --> 00:12:38,630 biblical ignorance. The Bible's never told that. 223 00:12:38,750 --> 00:12:40,630 Our country's never told you not to pray. 224 00:12:42,350 --> 00:12:44,910 Most of the time our issues with our government are about things 225 00:12:44,910 --> 00:12:49,510 we just don't like, not about things that are biblical and not 226 00:12:49,510 --> 00:12:52,070 biblical. Peter and John give us a clear 227 00:12:52,070 --> 00:12:54,750 example of what to do when the authorities try to put the 228 00:12:54,750 --> 00:12:57,110 screws to you. They just healed a man and they 229 00:12:57,110 --> 00:13:00,190 were told by the authorities, don't speak about God anymore. 230 00:13:00,470 --> 00:13:02,910 But look what it says in Acts chapter 4, verse 18. 231 00:13:03,190 --> 00:13:07,850 Then he called them in again and commanded them not to speak or 232 00:13:07,850 --> 00:13:10,050 teach at all in the name of Jesus. 233 00:13:10,810 --> 00:13:14,250 But Peter and John replied, which is right in God's eyes, to 234 00:13:14,250 --> 00:13:16,610 listen to you or to listen to him. 235 00:13:18,130 --> 00:13:21,490 You be the judges. As for us, we cannot help 236 00:13:21,490 --> 00:13:24,090 speaking about what we have seen and heard. 237 00:13:24,690 --> 00:13:26,890 If you're going to tell me I can't talk about Jesus, I can't 238 00:13:26,890 --> 00:13:29,770 help you there because in light of everything I've seen Jesus 239 00:13:29,770 --> 00:13:32,850 do, and in light of everything that Jesus done in me, I can't 240 00:13:32,850 --> 00:13:35,270 keep my mouth quiet about him. Or how about this one? 241 00:13:35,270 --> 00:13:36,830 In Acts chapter 5, it happens again. 242 00:13:37,350 --> 00:13:40,230 The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the same 243 00:13:40,230 --> 00:13:42,910 hedron to be questioned by the high priest. 244 00:13:43,430 --> 00:13:46,510 This is what they said to them. We gave you strict orders not to 245 00:13:46,510 --> 00:13:50,430 teach in his name, he said. Yet you have filled Jerusalem 246 00:13:50,430 --> 00:13:53,630 with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of 247 00:13:53,630 --> 00:13:56,470 this man's blood. Peter and the other apostles 248 00:13:56,470 --> 00:14:00,710 replied, we must obey God rather than human beings. 249 00:14:01,190 --> 00:14:03,740 So there's a time and a place where you go, you know what, 250 00:14:03,740 --> 00:14:06,500 this is the line in the sand, and you're telling me not to 251 00:14:06,500 --> 00:14:09,740 fulfill the Great Commission. You're telling me not to fulfill 252 00:14:09,740 --> 00:14:11,940 the Greatest Commandment. And I can't. 253 00:14:12,180 --> 00:14:16,420 Whatever you got to do to me, do to me because my duty is to God. 254 00:14:17,060 --> 00:14:19,860 But most of the times when we are frustrated with the 255 00:14:19,860 --> 00:14:22,180 government, it is not over a Great Commission issue. 256 00:14:23,140 --> 00:14:26,340 I mean we we caught all kinds of Flack on whichever side you were 257 00:14:26,340 --> 00:14:29,060 during the pandemic. The bottom line is, is the 258 00:14:29,060 --> 00:14:32,220 churches in China have never met corporately, and they can't stop 259 00:14:32,220 --> 00:14:34,940 growing. You could have had church in 260 00:14:34,940 --> 00:14:36,980 your home if you knew how to disciple people. 261 00:14:37,620 --> 00:14:42,060 So we took more of a stand on this constitution than we did on 262 00:14:42,060 --> 00:14:44,420 the biblical practice of making disciples. 263 00:14:45,300 --> 00:14:47,900 Because if we actually knew how to disciple people, even if they 264 00:14:47,900 --> 00:14:50,780 closed the church tomorrow, boarded this place up, there are 265 00:14:50,780 --> 00:14:54,780 some of you who are capable and qualified to point other people 266 00:14:54,780 --> 00:14:58,170 to Jesus, but a lot of us would rather show up and watch other 267 00:14:58,170 --> 00:15:00,650 people point people to Jesus than actually have to point 268 00:15:00,650 --> 00:15:04,770 people to Jesus ourselves. I haven't even got to the matter 269 00:15:04,770 --> 00:15:05,970 yet. That was just the mad. 270 00:15:05,970 --> 00:15:10,370 OK, everybody still breathing? OK, we got shots for you on your 271 00:15:10,370 --> 00:15:12,250 way out to make you go. At least church was fun. 272 00:15:12,250 --> 00:15:18,770 OK, hear me? Paul is saying that 273 00:15:18,770 --> 00:15:22,970 organizational authority is one of God's gifts to mankind. 274 00:15:24,090 --> 00:15:28,610 Leadership matters. Submission matters. 275 00:15:28,770 --> 00:15:31,170 Parents, you know this. When it comes to raising your 276 00:15:31,170 --> 00:15:35,490 kids, parenting matters. Moms matter. 277 00:15:35,490 --> 00:15:38,890 Dads matter. Authority matters. 278 00:15:39,250 --> 00:15:46,850 Submission to authority matters. This week one of my kids called 279 00:15:46,850 --> 00:15:50,570 me and said can you turn the air down upstairs? 280 00:15:50,570 --> 00:15:53,930 It's hot up here. And I'm, I'm like, looking at 281 00:15:53,930 --> 00:15:56,090 the, you know, temperature. I'm like, it's 72, you know, 282 00:15:56,090 --> 00:15:58,770 you're fine. And he's like, it's just really 283 00:15:58,770 --> 00:16:00,650 hot. And I go, are you underneath 284 00:16:00,650 --> 00:16:03,410 your blankets or are you going to use your blanket? 285 00:16:03,410 --> 00:16:05,330 He goes, yeah, OK, OK, well, hold on a second. 286 00:16:05,370 --> 00:16:08,010 Here, take the comforter off and just sleep with the sheet. 287 00:16:08,010 --> 00:16:09,570 And he goes, what about my other blanket? 288 00:16:09,890 --> 00:16:12,650 So my kid called me from upstairs underneath the sheet 289 00:16:12,650 --> 00:16:14,970 and two blankets and his solution. 290 00:16:15,650 --> 00:16:20,130 Turn the turn the air down, Dad. OK, parenting matters. 291 00:16:21,150 --> 00:16:24,230 There needs to be order and there needs to be consequences 292 00:16:24,230 --> 00:16:26,190 for the violation of those orders. 293 00:16:26,670 --> 00:16:29,830 There needs to be level objectivity and consistency in 294 00:16:29,830 --> 00:16:33,950 how justice is carried out. If there were no laws, no 295 00:16:33,950 --> 00:16:38,230 standard, no adherence to laws, no consequences for disregarding 296 00:16:38,230 --> 00:16:41,470 the laws, we would be in an even greater mess. 297 00:16:42,350 --> 00:16:46,550 Paul is saying that we should obey not just because of the 298 00:16:46,550 --> 00:16:49,750 threat of punishment, which is how all laws, all laws come with 299 00:16:49,750 --> 00:16:52,480 a weapon. If you don't, you will. 300 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:57,840 If you don't follow the speed limit, you will get a ticket. 301 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:02,360 If you get try to run from the police, you will get arrested. 302 00:17:02,720 --> 00:17:06,160 If you resist arrest, like everything they do comes with a 303 00:17:06,160 --> 00:17:09,599 sword, because there are rules, there are consequences. 304 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:12,599 And if there aren't, if there are is no standard, there is no 305 00:17:12,599 --> 00:17:15,880 adherence, there is no consequences, then the whole 306 00:17:15,880 --> 00:17:18,839 world would fall apart, even rapidly, than it all all the way 307 00:17:19,079 --> 00:17:22,040 already is. Paul is saying that we should 308 00:17:22,040 --> 00:17:25,960 obey not just for the threat of punishment, but is part of our 309 00:17:25,960 --> 00:17:32,040 check. This devotion to Jesus, our 310 00:17:32,040 --> 00:17:38,080 obedience, our good citizenship, should flow from an obligation 311 00:17:38,200 --> 00:17:41,360 to God. It sends a strong message. 312 00:17:41,760 --> 00:17:48,520 Christians are different. This doesn't mean that we don't 313 00:17:48,520 --> 00:17:52,920 leverage our vote, vocalize our opposition, take advantage of 314 00:17:52,920 --> 00:17:55,680 moments to bring about changes to laws that may or may not 315 00:17:55,680 --> 00:17:57,280 violate our Christian conscience. 316 00:17:57,760 --> 00:18:01,200 However, it does mean that all of these positions should be 317 00:18:01,200 --> 00:18:06,160 rooted in our understanding of God and His Word and the example 318 00:18:06,160 --> 00:18:09,440 of Jesus Christ. Most of the time we are just 319 00:18:09,440 --> 00:18:11,360 frustrated with what we see in the world. 320 00:18:11,360 --> 00:18:14,200 We are not balancing it based on what do we see in Scripture? 321 00:18:14,640 --> 00:18:16,800 Now that you're mad, let's get madder. 322 00:18:18,120 --> 00:18:27,570 Our struggle is sometimes we think God and country. 323 00:18:29,930 --> 00:18:31,770 God and country. The cross. 324 00:18:31,850 --> 00:18:35,330 Red white and blue. OK, I'm, you know, I got tattoo 325 00:18:35,330 --> 00:18:36,810 on my right arm with Jesus Christ. 326 00:18:37,210 --> 00:18:42,730 Got tattoo on my left hand. OK, this is what the Christian 327 00:18:42,730 --> 00:18:59,230 worldview is God and country. Let me explain. 328 00:19:02,390 --> 00:19:05,070 Think through the Pledge of Allegiance. 329 00:19:06,950 --> 00:19:19,870 I pledge allegiance to the flag of the I wonder how I can pledge 330 00:19:19,870 --> 00:19:25,060 allegiance if I've already been bought and paid for by the cross 331 00:19:25,060 --> 00:19:28,780 of Jesus Christ. Hear me. 332 00:19:29,380 --> 00:19:32,460 I am an American, and I am proud to be an American. 333 00:19:34,140 --> 00:19:39,620 But we are way better Americans than we are Christians. 334 00:19:41,660 --> 00:19:44,780 We are more proud of our political party than the Prince 335 00:19:44,780 --> 00:19:48,450 of Peace. We spend more on fireworks than 336 00:19:48,450 --> 00:19:51,450 we do on advancing the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. 337 00:19:52,130 --> 00:19:54,810 We know every word to the National Anthem, America the 338 00:19:54,810 --> 00:19:58,410 Beautiful and Lee Greenwood's God Bless the USA, which I've 339 00:19:58,410 --> 00:20:01,770 seen him in concert when I went to see Kenny G Yeah, that's how 340 00:20:01,810 --> 00:20:06,610 uncool I am. We know all the words to those 341 00:20:06,610 --> 00:20:09,530 songs, but we say we have a hard time memorizing scripture. 342 00:20:10,850 --> 00:20:13,890 Some of you are frustrated with things that I have just said to 343 00:20:13,890 --> 00:20:16,500 you. And that is probably because you 344 00:20:16,500 --> 00:20:25,180 are a better American than you are a Christian saying the 345 00:20:25,180 --> 00:20:27,580 Pledge of listen, I don't have a problem saying the Pledge of 346 00:20:27,580 --> 00:20:33,620 Allegiance. I'm just saying God and all the 347 00:20:33,620 --> 00:20:39,620 way down here, like, right here is America. 348 00:20:40,820 --> 00:20:43,500 Come on. Rednecks, lifted, trucks, 349 00:20:43,500 --> 00:20:44,980 fireworks. Get her done. 350 00:20:45,220 --> 00:20:51,420 It's cool, but it's not even close to a God who sent his one 351 00:20:51,420 --> 00:20:54,060 and only son to die on the cross for our sins. 352 00:20:54,340 --> 00:20:58,260 Amen. All right, now let's get sad. 353 00:21:01,620 --> 00:21:05,340 This is why you have to pay taxes for the authorities or God 354 00:21:05,340 --> 00:21:08,420 servant to give their full time to governing. 355 00:21:09,980 --> 00:21:13,020 Give to everyone what you owe them. 356 00:21:13,180 --> 00:21:17,060 If you owe taxes, pay taxes. If revenue, revenue, if respect 357 00:21:17,060 --> 00:21:19,780 and respect, if honor, then honor. 358 00:21:20,980 --> 00:21:25,140 Remember, Paul was telling the Christians in Rome to pay taxes 359 00:21:25,260 --> 00:21:28,900 to an ungodly, unfriendly, dangerous empire. 360 00:21:29,940 --> 00:21:32,820 Taxes inside of this verse would be like your income tax. 361 00:21:33,260 --> 00:21:36,220 Revenue in that verse would be like your tariffs or property 362 00:21:36,220 --> 00:21:41,640 taxes, or sales taxes. In short, Christians pay taxes. 363 00:21:42,440 --> 00:21:45,560 They even pay taxes to governments they don't agree 364 00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:49,680 with or approve of. Christians pay. 365 00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:53,480 If we owe respect, we give respect. 366 00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:58,440 If we owe honor, we owe honor, Christians pay. 367 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:02,000 We're different. Other people might have a past 368 00:22:02,000 --> 00:22:06,000 due balance, not Christians. Our word means something. 369 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:10,280 God is our Savior. He bought and purchased us, and 370 00:22:10,280 --> 00:22:13,520 we are a reflection of Him. So the way we handle our 371 00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:16,400 finances, the way we handle ourselves around other people, 372 00:22:16,560 --> 00:22:19,200 is different. Other people are late, but we 373 00:22:19,200 --> 00:22:21,480 don't make obligations we can't keep. 374 00:22:21,800 --> 00:22:25,440 And when we meet people, we treat them in a way that 375 00:22:25,440 --> 00:22:29,000 acknowledges their position, their service, and their 376 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:32,200 accomplishments. You can disagree with their 377 00:22:32,200 --> 00:22:35,600 actions. You can dislike their motives, 378 00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:38,520 you can even despise their policies. 379 00:22:38,800 --> 00:22:42,760 But you should respect them and honor them, because Jesus Christ 380 00:22:42,760 --> 00:22:45,680 died for them and God created them. 381 00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:49,000 One of the rules we have here on staff, One of our core values 382 00:22:49,000 --> 00:22:51,840 for our staff is we treat people with a high level of respect. 383 00:22:52,480 --> 00:22:56,680 No matter how stupid many stupid pills somebody takes, they are 384 00:22:56,680 --> 00:22:59,680 made in the image of God, purchased by the exact same 385 00:22:59,680 --> 00:23:03,160 blood that I was purchased by. God loves them, and so I need to 386 00:23:03,160 --> 00:23:06,230 treat them with respect. And so you're like, but hold on 387 00:23:06,230 --> 00:23:08,230 a second. I would much rather overthrow 388 00:23:08,230 --> 00:23:10,750 the government. I'd much rather lead a 389 00:23:10,750 --> 00:23:14,430 rebellion. But listen, when we're doing 390 00:23:14,430 --> 00:23:18,950 that, we are oftentimes leading those on secondary issues, and 391 00:23:18,950 --> 00:23:21,310 our primary job is to point people to Jesus. 392 00:23:23,030 --> 00:23:27,110 If we're going to go to jail, do so because of your commitment to 393 00:23:27,110 --> 00:23:31,350 Christ, not your tax returns and taking too many stupid pills? 394 00:23:33,710 --> 00:23:43,720 Sadder this sermon delivers, Let no debt remain outstanding 395 00:23:44,120 --> 00:23:48,720 except the continuing debt. To love one another, For whoever 396 00:23:48,720 --> 00:23:51,560 loves others has fulfilled the law. 397 00:23:52,320 --> 00:23:55,640 The commandments you shall not commit, adultery you shall not 398 00:23:55,640 --> 00:24:00,040 murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet, and whatever 399 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:03,600 other command there may be are summed up in this one command. 400 00:24:04,150 --> 00:24:10,750 Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no harm to a neighbor. 401 00:24:11,070 --> 00:24:14,110 Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. 402 00:24:14,790 --> 00:24:20,110 Why is this so sad? Because many of us, myself 403 00:24:20,110 --> 00:24:23,670 included, would like a little more leeway when it comes to 404 00:24:23,670 --> 00:24:30,070 loving, In addition to us keeping up on our payments, our 405 00:24:30,070 --> 00:24:33,730 financial obligations, demonstrating that our word is a 406 00:24:33,730 --> 00:24:38,010 good word, an honorable word, we are told that we never get out 407 00:24:38,010 --> 00:24:40,210 of our love debt. Some of you, you've paid off a 408 00:24:40,210 --> 00:24:42,290 car note. Some of you, you've paid off 409 00:24:42,290 --> 00:24:44,570 credit card debt. Some of you can't wait till you 410 00:24:44,570 --> 00:24:48,130 pay off your mortgage. You never get out of love debt. 411 00:24:49,450 --> 00:24:53,130 You never pay off the balance. It is a bill that comes due 412 00:24:53,130 --> 00:24:58,050 every year, every month, every week, every day, every hour. 413 00:24:59,570 --> 00:25:05,260 There's only one debt. We have to love people, and we 414 00:25:05,260 --> 00:25:08,340 like to love certain people, don't we? 415 00:25:09,100 --> 00:25:13,140 Yeah, of course we do. We like to love people that like 416 00:25:13,140 --> 00:25:19,420 our love, appreciate our love, have the stuff you like, have 417 00:25:19,420 --> 00:25:22,140 power, have something to offer you. 418 00:25:22,140 --> 00:25:28,180 But what about what about what about the people we don't like, 419 00:25:29,670 --> 00:25:33,590 Who can't give you anything? Who have nothing to offer you? 420 00:25:35,230 --> 00:25:37,950 I'm supposed to treat them the way I would want to be treated 421 00:25:38,350 --> 00:25:41,430 too? I got to be honest with you. 422 00:25:41,430 --> 00:25:46,950 God, I like loving you. And I like loving the people 423 00:25:46,950 --> 00:25:54,390 that are nice to me. I'm not a big fan of loving some 424 00:25:54,390 --> 00:25:56,950 of the people I meet in the store. 425 00:25:58,840 --> 00:26:01,840 There's certain people that I don't like having to love that I 426 00:26:01,840 --> 00:26:05,160 see on TV. There's certain people when I'm 427 00:26:05,160 --> 00:26:10,760 driving that I want to point to Jesus, I have to love them too. 428 00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:17,000 Paul gets real specific. You can tell that he's writing 429 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:21,520 to people who take stupid pills. It's hard to say you love 430 00:26:21,520 --> 00:26:26,680 someone when you're cheating on them, having sex with somebody 431 00:26:26,680 --> 00:26:28,930 else's spouse. And I love you, man. 432 00:26:29,850 --> 00:26:31,850 Actually, consequently, I kind of love your wife. 433 00:26:32,050 --> 00:26:34,290 OK? It's hard to say that. 434 00:26:34,650 --> 00:26:36,370 It's hard to say you love somebody. 435 00:26:37,530 --> 00:26:41,890 It's hard to say that you love someone when you're trying to 436 00:26:41,890 --> 00:26:45,930 kill them, when you're trying to steal from them. 437 00:26:47,730 --> 00:26:50,890 Then he says, coveting This one's a little bit more close to 438 00:26:50,890 --> 00:26:52,890 home. This might be all of our secret 439 00:26:52,890 --> 00:26:55,450 sins. Because when you and I covet 440 00:26:55,450 --> 00:26:58,470 something, we're wishing that we had what they have. 441 00:27:00,070 --> 00:27:03,190 They pull up in a nice truck, and I wish I had that truck. 442 00:27:04,190 --> 00:27:05,510 Why does that guy have that truck? 443 00:27:05,510 --> 00:27:08,070 And I have this truck? I wish I had that truck. 444 00:27:08,070 --> 00:27:09,950 He doesn't deserve that truck. I deserve that truck that he 445 00:27:09,950 --> 00:27:14,510 has. Tell me if this isn't us, we're 446 00:27:14,510 --> 00:27:16,790 okay with other people having a high salary. 447 00:27:16,950 --> 00:27:21,070 As long as ours is higher, we're okay with other people having a 448 00:27:21,070 --> 00:27:24,310 nice house. As long as our house is nicer. 449 00:27:25,280 --> 00:27:28,600 I don't have a problem with you going on nice vacations as long 450 00:27:28,600 --> 00:27:35,000 as my vacation is nicer. I don't care if you have a good 451 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:38,320 marriage as long as my marriage is nicer. 452 00:27:39,200 --> 00:27:46,240 You can have a hot wife. As long as my wife is hotter you 453 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:52,760 you can have a great retirement. As long as my retirement is 454 00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:58,270 nicer and when I find out that you have something that I don't 455 00:27:58,270 --> 00:28:01,990 have, I think you don't deserve it and I deserve the things that 456 00:28:01,990 --> 00:28:05,470 you have. How can you love somebody when 457 00:28:05,470 --> 00:28:08,390 you want bad things to happen to them so that way better things 458 00:28:08,390 --> 00:28:15,990 happen to you? When we do this, we raise 459 00:28:15,990 --> 00:28:19,670 ourself up on a platform. And that is the opposite of 460 00:28:19,670 --> 00:28:24,340 love. Because love wants better things 461 00:28:24,380 --> 00:28:27,620 for others. That when they have something 462 00:28:27,620 --> 00:28:31,420 nice, we rejoice with them, we're excited for them. 463 00:28:31,660 --> 00:28:35,220 Oh, that's great news. I'm so happy for you. 464 00:28:36,260 --> 00:28:39,740 And you get back in your jalopy and you drive home. 465 00:28:41,860 --> 00:28:44,780 Now hear me Because some of you, you don't ever listen to the 466 00:28:44,780 --> 00:28:46,500 whole sermon. You just listen to the jokes. 467 00:28:47,620 --> 00:28:52,960 I don't want you to confuse this, this kind of love as the 468 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:57,560 absence of boundaries, the absence of responsibilities, or 469 00:28:57,560 --> 00:28:59,520 the absence of speaking hard truths. 470 00:29:00,680 --> 00:29:03,800 Love means that we are seeking what is in their best interest. 471 00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:07,520 We are modeling ourselves after Jesus Christ. 472 00:29:07,880 --> 00:29:11,000 We desire for them to grow and experience the riches that are 473 00:29:11,000 --> 00:29:15,520 found in life with Christ, and we are willing to sacrifice our 474 00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:18,600 good for their good. Parents. 475 00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:22,450 You get this. We naturally give up things for 476 00:29:22,450 --> 00:29:26,210 the betterment of our kids. What Paul is saying, what God is 477 00:29:26,210 --> 00:29:28,850 trying to get across to us, is take that same level of 478 00:29:28,850 --> 00:29:35,490 sacrifice that you have for your kids and spread it around God's 479 00:29:35,490 --> 00:29:39,650 desire. Jesus's hope is that his people, 480 00:29:39,890 --> 00:29:42,650 you and me, would be known for our love. 481 00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:48,080 And if you do not have to get uncomfortable, sacrifice, give 482 00:29:48,080 --> 00:29:52,680 up things, push through pain or emotions, you may not be loving 483 00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:55,160 as well as you would like to think that you are. 484 00:29:56,240 --> 00:29:59,240 If the only way you love is the way you like it, and when it's 485 00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:02,240 convenient for you, you might not be modeling the way of 486 00:30:02,280 --> 00:30:04,040 Jesus. You've made it. 487 00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:06,560 Let's at least get glad for a little bit. 488 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:13,650 Romans 13, verse 11 through 14 And do this understanding the 489 00:30:13,650 --> 00:30:16,610 present time. The hour has already come for 490 00:30:16,610 --> 00:30:19,690 you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation 491 00:30:19,690 --> 00:30:22,050 is near now than when we first believed. 492 00:30:22,610 --> 00:30:26,370 The night is nearly over, the day is almost here. 493 00:30:26,610 --> 00:30:31,330 So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of 494 00:30:31,330 --> 00:30:34,210 light. Let us behave decently as in the 495 00:30:34,210 --> 00:30:38,250 daytime, Not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual 496 00:30:38,250 --> 00:30:41,850 morality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 497 00:30:42,010 --> 00:30:45,770 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ and do not 498 00:30:45,770 --> 00:30:49,570 think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh. 499 00:30:50,130 --> 00:30:53,570 Here Paul offers us a better way to live. 500 00:30:54,250 --> 00:30:57,210 He urges us to pick the way of light instead of dark. 501 00:30:57,610 --> 00:31:01,170 He calls us to act decently instead of acting out. 502 00:31:01,770 --> 00:31:04,890 He says there's a better way than carousing and being driven 503 00:31:04,890 --> 00:31:07,690 by your appetites. There's a better way to live 504 00:31:07,690 --> 00:31:10,410 than being drunk all the time and having sex all the time with 505 00:31:10,410 --> 00:31:12,820 different people. There's a better way than 506 00:31:12,820 --> 00:31:16,660 fighting and rioting and quarreling and being jealous. 507 00:31:16,740 --> 00:31:20,300 There's a better way. In all of my life I have never 508 00:31:20,300 --> 00:31:23,700 met someone who has fully given themselves to this kind of 509 00:31:23,700 --> 00:31:28,060 behavior, who's thankful my life was just really going downhill. 510 00:31:28,740 --> 00:31:30,900 Then I started getting drunk all the time, having sex with all 511 00:31:30,900 --> 00:31:33,260 kinds of different people and getting in fights, and it's been 512 00:31:33,300 --> 00:31:37,100 up and to the right. I never met that person that 513 00:31:37,100 --> 00:31:38,300 once. You know what? 514 00:31:38,300 --> 00:31:41,100 I was just, it was really going downhill. 515 00:31:41,510 --> 00:31:44,670 And then I just moved upstairs from a bar and just said I want 516 00:31:44,670 --> 00:31:46,550 a part of everything that's happening. 517 00:31:46,710 --> 00:31:49,590 Never met that person. You know, my marriage was going 518 00:31:49,670 --> 00:31:52,830 just really downhill. And then I just started sleeping 519 00:31:52,830 --> 00:31:55,350 with other people's wives. And I'll be honest with you, 520 00:31:55,350 --> 00:31:57,310 that might be the best thing that's ever happened to my 521 00:31:57,310 --> 00:31:59,830 marriage. I've never heard that testimony. 522 00:32:00,750 --> 00:32:04,390 Here Paul is saying there is a better way to live, and the 523 00:32:04,390 --> 00:32:08,910 better way to live is God's way of living, that there is a 524 00:32:08,910 --> 00:32:12,120 better way of living in the light and clothing ourselves in 525 00:32:12,120 --> 00:32:15,400 the Lord Jesus Christ. He's saying put on Christ. 526 00:32:16,160 --> 00:32:18,840 How would he live? How would he behave? 527 00:32:19,120 --> 00:32:22,120 How would he treat others? How would he spend his time? 528 00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:23,960 How would he organize his calendar? 529 00:32:24,120 --> 00:32:26,040 How would he arrange his priorities? 530 00:32:26,120 --> 00:32:31,360 How would he focus his energy? I have never met anybody who is 531 00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:33,800 glad that they stopped following Jesus's better way. 532 00:32:35,160 --> 00:32:38,600 Not once. And Paul tells us to do this. 533 00:32:38,960 --> 00:32:42,120 And he leads off by saying understanding the present time. 534 00:32:42,960 --> 00:32:45,520 He is not talking about what time it is on the clock. 535 00:32:46,080 --> 00:32:50,360 He's talking about the importance of the hour in light 536 00:32:50,360 --> 00:32:54,320 of this moment. Think of how people behave after 537 00:32:54,320 --> 00:32:58,400 a health scare, in light of these recent realities, they 538 00:32:58,400 --> 00:33:00,640 start turning all kinds of things around. 539 00:33:00,880 --> 00:33:03,320 I'm going to start dieting and exercising today. 540 00:33:03,760 --> 00:33:07,120 It's when they start using the word today instead of tomorrow. 541 00:33:07,900 --> 00:33:09,540 They're going. We got to start right now. 542 00:33:09,580 --> 00:33:12,620 It starts right now. Or you meet people who are 543 00:33:12,620 --> 00:33:15,740 getting ready to graduate from college or have a big promotion 544 00:33:15,740 --> 00:33:19,740 coming up, or or getting ready to take a big test in light of 545 00:33:19,740 --> 00:33:22,260 what's coming, in light of the present realities. 546 00:33:22,460 --> 00:33:25,660 This is the time not to give up. It's the time to step up and 547 00:33:25,660 --> 00:33:27,540 press in. Have you ever noticed that 548 00:33:27,540 --> 00:33:30,060 people, everybody starts behaving around Christmas bonus 549 00:33:30,060 --> 00:33:33,100 time, like you get all kinds of words of encouragement. 550 00:33:33,100 --> 00:33:34,300 Oh boy. I'll tell you what, I just 551 00:33:34,300 --> 00:33:35,740 really appreciate the way you lead. 552 00:33:36,060 --> 00:33:37,700 And I'll be Have you lost weight? 553 00:33:37,940 --> 00:33:40,540 My goodness, you're attractive. Anyhow, I'm going to go back to 554 00:33:40,540 --> 00:33:43,060 work, right? Everybody starts like, hey, it's 555 00:33:43,060 --> 00:33:45,460 November, we got to start being nice to the boss because it's 556 00:33:45,460 --> 00:33:48,260 Christmas bonus time. Or one of my favorites is the 557 00:33:48,260 --> 00:33:52,100 Midwest Spring Break diet, where everybody eats their last meal 558 00:33:52,100 --> 00:33:54,220 on Super Bowl Sunday and then starve themselves because 559 00:33:54,220 --> 00:33:57,300 they're going to Cancun. And they think that somehow when 560 00:33:57,300 --> 00:34:00,980 they bring that pasty white body outside, everybody wants to look 561 00:34:00,980 --> 00:34:04,000 at it, OK? They ain't looking at you. 562 00:34:04,520 --> 00:34:07,280 If they don't look at you all year, they ain't looking at you 563 00:34:07,280 --> 00:34:10,679 there, OK? Just the truth is you don't look 564 00:34:10,679 --> 00:34:13,159 better with less on. That's just who you are. 565 00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:17,239 Or for some of you who are young people, you got the LGN Diet. 566 00:34:17,520 --> 00:34:19,360 When you're getting ready to go on your honeymoon, you got the 567 00:34:19,360 --> 00:34:21,440 Look Good Naked Diet. You're like, you know what? 568 00:34:21,760 --> 00:34:24,280 We got a big moment coming. We got to be ready for it In 569 00:34:24,280 --> 00:34:25,679 light of these present realities. 570 00:34:25,679 --> 00:34:30,400 I'm going for a run, He's saying, in light of these 571 00:34:30,400 --> 00:34:34,500 present realities of the fact that Jesus has died on the 572 00:34:34,500 --> 00:34:38,020 cross, resurrected from the grave, and is one day coming 573 00:34:38,020 --> 00:34:42,100 back in light of this reality, in light of this present time, 574 00:34:42,219 --> 00:34:46,900 how you and I live matters. What we do matters because of 575 00:34:46,900 --> 00:34:48,699 watching. World is watching. 576 00:34:49,100 --> 00:34:52,620 And they are wanting some help. They're wanting some hope. 577 00:34:52,820 --> 00:34:56,980 They're wanting a North Star. And how we respond in this 578 00:34:56,980 --> 00:35:01,460 present moment matters more than you could ever know. 579 00:35:01,780 --> 00:35:02,820 Remove them to a time of decision. 580 00:35:10,420 --> 00:35:15,740 Jon Bon Jovi has a lyric. You guys all know it. 581 00:35:16,700 --> 00:35:18,220 Cut through the heart and you're to blame. 582 00:35:18,220 --> 00:35:23,460 Darling, you give love a yeah. And to those of you who are in 583 00:35:23,460 --> 00:35:28,100 here, who started a relationship with Jesus Christ, we probably 584 00:35:28,100 --> 00:35:34,420 owe you an apology. As Christians, we've given Jesus 585 00:35:34,420 --> 00:35:38,180 a bad name. We've hurt you, We've let you 586 00:35:38,180 --> 00:35:39,860 down. We've caused you harm. 587 00:35:41,260 --> 00:35:44,100 But I want you to know that he hasn't. 588 00:35:45,340 --> 00:35:49,500 He is the one who is responsible for all of the good in us, and 589 00:35:49,500 --> 00:35:52,220 we are responsible for all of the bad. 590 00:35:54,380 --> 00:35:58,890 And I can tell you the deep down inside we all have the desire to 591 00:35:58,890 --> 00:36:02,490 live the life that God purchased and the God called us to. 592 00:36:04,610 --> 00:36:08,490 But man, we mess up. And I'm just, I tell you that 593 00:36:08,570 --> 00:36:10,770 not to make an excuse or permission slip. 594 00:36:10,770 --> 00:36:12,650 I'm telling you, those of you who don't have a relationship 595 00:36:12,650 --> 00:36:15,330 with Jesus, when you start following Jesus, you're going to 596 00:36:15,330 --> 00:36:16,810 read through the Bible, and you're going to realize that 597 00:36:16,810 --> 00:36:20,250 that's kind of par for the course that everybody you're 598 00:36:20,250 --> 00:36:22,250 going to read about in Scripture, with the exception of 599 00:36:22,370 --> 00:36:28,710 Jesus, screwed it up, screwed it up bad. 600 00:36:30,390 --> 00:36:33,870 But God has used imperfect people to bring Jesus into this 601 00:36:33,870 --> 00:36:39,070 world, and by God's grace, we're hoping that he will allow us to 602 00:36:39,070 --> 00:36:42,990 be a part of your story. And if you're here today and 603 00:36:42,990 --> 00:36:45,390 you've never started an intimate, personal relationship 604 00:36:45,390 --> 00:36:47,910 with Jesus Christ, I can tell you there's nothing better. 605 00:36:47,910 --> 00:36:51,030 And if you have questions about what that is, if you've been 606 00:36:51,030 --> 00:36:53,780 putting it off in just a few moments, I at least want to 607 00:36:53,780 --> 00:36:57,020 encourage you to to ask the question whether you're here in 608 00:36:57,020 --> 00:36:58,220 this room or you're watching online. 609 00:36:58,220 --> 00:37:00,380 If you're watching online, you can click on the button that 610 00:37:00,380 --> 00:37:04,620 just appeared in the chat. You don't have to leave here 611 00:37:04,620 --> 00:37:07,100 without some answers, without some clarity about how to move 612 00:37:07,100 --> 00:37:08,900 forward in your relationship with Jesus. 613 00:37:11,380 --> 00:37:13,500 To those of you who are Christians, some of you are 614 00:37:13,500 --> 00:37:15,540 going Clayton doesn't know the lyrics to Jon Bon Jovi. 615 00:37:17,340 --> 00:37:21,660 It shot through the heart. If I had quoted a Bible verse, 616 00:37:21,660 --> 00:37:23,300 would you have been that? Would you have caught me? 617 00:37:27,660 --> 00:37:29,980 If I had taught bad theology this today, would you have 618 00:37:29,980 --> 00:37:35,220 caught me? Maybe we're better Americans 619 00:37:35,220 --> 00:37:38,460 than we are Christians. And maybe the reason it's so 620 00:37:38,460 --> 00:37:41,820 hard for us to reach the people we deeply care about is because 621 00:37:41,820 --> 00:37:44,860 we're more committed to our Constitution than the word of 622 00:37:44,860 --> 00:37:52,770 God. So, Christians, while it is 623 00:37:52,770 --> 00:37:56,450 inevitable that we will fail, maybe we should spend a little 624 00:37:56,450 --> 00:37:59,450 bit of time owning that. There are times when we have not 625 00:37:59,450 --> 00:38:08,250 given Jesus the honor, the reputation that he deserves. 626 00:38:09,370 --> 00:38:12,210 Maybe we've given him a bad name. 627 00:38:13,410 --> 00:38:16,650 So would you join me in spending a little bit of time on your 628 00:38:16,650 --> 00:38:20,990 knees in prayer, apologizing to him that in light of everything 629 00:38:20,990 --> 00:38:25,230 that he has done for us, we have represented him so poorly? 630 00:38:26,670 --> 00:38:29,110 And I think God loves it when his people say they're sorry. 631 00:38:30,750 --> 00:38:32,790 Don't you like it when you when someone tells you they're sorry? 632 00:38:32,790 --> 00:38:37,070 And then maybe we could ask God to realign our focus and help us 633 00:38:37,070 --> 00:38:40,670 do better. Would you stand with me, God? 634 00:38:40,670 --> 00:38:45,670 This moment is waiting. It's waiting because every 635 00:38:45,670 --> 00:38:50,520 single one of us is on the edge of making a move towards you or 636 00:38:50,520 --> 00:38:53,680 staying right where we are. Every one of us has an 637 00:38:53,680 --> 00:38:56,400 opportunity to get outside of our comfort zone, to take a step 638 00:38:56,440 --> 00:39:00,360 of faith, to ask a question that we don't know the answer to, to 639 00:39:00,360 --> 00:39:03,200 push ourself in an area that we've kind of given ourself 640 00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:06,680 permission slips and God, I'm praying that you would nudge 641 00:39:06,720 --> 00:39:09,080 every single one of us. Give every single one of us the 642 00:39:09,080 --> 00:39:10,960 strength and the courage to take that step. 643 00:39:11,480 --> 00:39:12,960 And I pray. Amen.