1 00:00:02,200 --> 00:00:05,920 Oh, crossing family, it is so good to be with you. 2 00:00:05,920 --> 00:00:08,119 I want to welcome you joining from all of our different 3 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:11,920 locations and we are in the middle of a very special season 4 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:13,960 as a church. We've been setting all time 5 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,680 attendance records at specific locations and as a church as a 6 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:20,840 whole, and we are seeing more new people than ever before in 7 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:23,760 the history of our church. In fact, already this year we 8 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:29,120 have celebrated 338 baptisms. Isn't that incredible? 9 00:00:31,280 --> 00:00:35,400 There is no doubt about it. God is drawing people to Him, 10 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:39,320 and by His grace, you and I are getting an opportunity to join 11 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:43,440 him in his saving work. And I want to just kind of give 12 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:47,480 you some tools and tips for each of us to be able to make the 13 00:00:47,480 --> 00:00:50,520 most of this season that we're in as a church. 14 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:53,400 I want to encourage you one if you would. 15 00:00:53,400 --> 00:00:57,360 Would you continue to park far away and that way when people 16 00:00:57,360 --> 00:00:59,480 show up for our church late or show up for our church for the 17 00:00:59,480 --> 00:01:02,600 first time, they get the very best spots? 18 00:01:02,680 --> 00:01:06,000 Second thing I want to encourage you to do is prioritize your 19 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,640 kids. When you make a decision to show 20 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:11,360 up for church, you are making that decision for them. 21 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:15,360 And when you decide not to make church a priority, they can't 22 00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:18,200 drive. At least they shouldn't be, and 23 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:21,440 so they rely on you. And if you're not making regular 24 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:24,960 spiritual investments in your kids, you are actually making 25 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:28,240 them go 2 weeks without a spiritual investment when they 26 00:01:28,240 --> 00:01:32,200 are at the key areas developmentally for them to grow 27 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:34,000 in a relationship with Jesus Christ. 28 00:01:34,200 --> 00:01:36,880 You can also prioritize your kids by making sure that you 29 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:39,480 sign them up for camp because it's a great for them to be able 30 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:42,800 to eliminate the distractions of the world and focus on God. 31 00:01:42,800 --> 00:01:45,840 The other thing you can do is take advantage of our kids 32 00:01:45,840 --> 00:01:47,240 service. And the reason I want to talk to 33 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:50,400 you about that is on my best day as a communicator, I can't 34 00:01:50,400 --> 00:01:53,920 navigate, you know, from three all the way to 88. 35 00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:56,040 And if you're older than 88, I'm so glad you're here. 36 00:01:56,240 --> 00:01:57,800 But I was just trying to draw a random number. 37 00:01:57,800 --> 00:01:59,520 So I don't want you to think that like you know when you're 38 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:01,040 89, we're like we're done with you. 39 00:02:02,160 --> 00:02:04,880 But I do want to say this is when you are bringing your kids 40 00:02:04,880 --> 00:02:08,199 in here, it is going to be very difficult for them to be able to 41 00:02:08,199 --> 00:02:12,040 connect in a way that will help them grow the most. 42 00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:15,000 So you're actually hurting your kid by having your kid in here. 43 00:02:15,200 --> 00:02:17,120 Now I know you might be going, but Clayton, I love sitting with 44 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:19,400 my kid and having that. Listen, I I get all that. 45 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:22,080 But I want you to know that when your kids with you, it's really, 46 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,360 really hard for you to be able to learn and grow. 47 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:28,560 And it's also really, really hard for the people around you 48 00:02:28,560 --> 00:02:30,560 to learn and grow when your kid is next to you. 49 00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:33,120 And so if you want to love God, love yourself, and love others, 50 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:35,720 one of the best things you can do and love your kid is actually 51 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:38,080 take them to an age appropriate environment where they will 52 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,200 learn about God in a way that will matter to them the most and 53 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:45,240 be the most meaningful for them. And we have safe, secure places 54 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:47,840 where people have background checks and are trained in all of 55 00:02:47,840 --> 00:02:49,640 our locations. For your kid to be able to get 56 00:02:49,640 --> 00:02:51,840 the very best out of service and you might be going, Clayton, 57 00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:54,760 forget you. I'm bringing my kid to church 58 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:57,920 and I'm going to get the least amount out of it as humanly 59 00:02:57,920 --> 00:02:59,240 possible. I get it. 60 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:01,840 OK, then what I'm going to encourage you to do is sit in 61 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:05,440 the very back of all of our auditoriums so that way your kid 62 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:08,400 is only a distraction to you. When you bring your kid into 63 00:03:08,400 --> 00:03:10,720 service and you sit all the way towards the front, you are 64 00:03:10,720 --> 00:03:13,160 actually hurting the people that Jesus is trying to help. 65 00:03:13,360 --> 00:03:15,560 And I want you to do build a better job of that. 66 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:17,080 Now I'm saying all this in the camera. 67 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:18,920 I'm not looking at anybody. So if you're here in this 68 00:03:18,920 --> 00:03:21,560 auditorium or at one of the locations, nobody knew that this 69 00:03:21,560 --> 00:03:23,520 was happening and nobody's looking at you, judging you. 70 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:25,680 We're all rooting for you. And we're saying this because we 71 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:27,920 love you, love your kid, and want you to get the best out of 72 00:03:27,920 --> 00:03:31,080 church. 3rd is you can find a place to serve because God wants 73 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:34,600 to do a work through you. 4. Continue to invite people, 74 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:37,280 invite them to our services. Invite them to our golf outings 75 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:39,720 where you can meet other people and make a difference. 76 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:41,440 Because all the money from the golf outings are going to help 77 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:44,480 kids be able to go to camp scholarships because we want 78 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:47,320 every kid that wants to go to be able to go. 5. 79 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:49,960 Continue to pray for people and pray for opportunities. 80 00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:52,520 Cover this church. Cover the staff. 81 00:03:52,520 --> 00:03:54,560 Cover the services. Cover the new people that are 82 00:03:54,560 --> 00:03:58,280 showing up in prayer. We want to be a praying church, 83 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:01,000 and then six leverage your generosity for Kingdom 84 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:03,400 advancement, whether that's through camp scholarships or 85 00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:05,080 whether that's through regular giving. 86 00:04:05,440 --> 00:04:07,960 Our desire as a church is for people to find an intimate, 87 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:11,800 personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and we want to be so 88 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:14,960 good at helping people find an intimate, personal relationship 89 00:04:15,120 --> 00:04:18,079 with Jesus Christ that we make this region the hardest region 90 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:21,000 to get to hell from. And every single one of us have 91 00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:23,360 a part to play. And if you're here today for the 92 00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:26,680 first time or the first time in a long time, we are so glad that 93 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:29,000 you are here. And we believe that you being 94 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:32,280 here is not an accident. We believe that God loves you 95 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:35,880 and wants to have an intimate personal relationship with each 96 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:38,680 and every single one of you. And you might be going, yeah, 97 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:40,680 that sounds great for everybody else. 98 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:43,880 But there's no way that that could be true for me because I 99 00:04:43,880 --> 00:04:47,440 am too much of a mess up. I failed way too many times. 100 00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:50,080 And if you're thinking that, you're going to feel like you're 101 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:53,160 in the middle of a miracle today, because we are actually 102 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:57,200 talking about that very thing today, we are going to talk 103 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,280 about what do you do when you've failed. 104 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:04,960 We are in a series called Jesus Is Better Than You Thought With 105 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:09,360 the tagline, When life Happens, God's Way is the best way. 106 00:05:09,920 --> 00:05:13,560 And the challenge of this series is to find out what happens when 107 00:05:13,560 --> 00:05:17,080 you let God write the rest of your story, that when you turn 108 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:20,800 the pin of your life over to him to see what happens when he gets 109 00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:24,160 to write the rest of your story. Some of you, you've been writing 110 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:25,920 your own story for a really long time. 111 00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:28,840 You're multiple chapters and and if you were to be honest, it's 112 00:05:28,840 --> 00:05:31,800 not going great. I want us to find out what 113 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:34,480 happens when we take the pin of our life, turn it over to him. 114 00:05:35,120 --> 00:05:37,440 I wrote this sermon for those of you who've messed up. 115 00:05:38,120 --> 00:05:40,880 This sermon is for those of you who are in a marriage, and your 116 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:44,160 marriage never ended up looking like what you had hoped it would 117 00:05:44,160 --> 00:05:46,720 look like. This sermon is for the husband 118 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:49,120 who's cheated for the wife who's had an affair. 119 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:52,960 This sermon is for the mother who's constantly criticizing her 120 00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:57,080 kids and cries at night because she can see that the her hurtful 121 00:05:57,080 --> 00:06:00,760 words are stealing the joy as she sees it wiped off her kids 122 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:03,360 face. This sermon is for the father 123 00:06:03,360 --> 00:06:06,360 who struggles to control his anger and he can feel distance 124 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:09,960 growing between him and his kids at At night the mother cries. 125 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:12,200 If they only knew how much I loved them. 126 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:15,520 If only I can figure out a better way to say the things I'm 127 00:06:15,520 --> 00:06:17,760 saying. It's the father who had Knights 128 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:19,680 Grind. If only my kids understood how 129 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:22,760 many good things I want for them, if only I could get 130 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:25,160 control of my anger and my temper. 131 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:30,720 This sermon is for the person who prioritized success in the 132 00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:33,840 in the workplace but didn't realize that it would create a 133 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:36,480 failure in the home. This sermon is for the person 134 00:06:36,480 --> 00:06:40,440 watching on the crossing from the crossing inside, and you're 135 00:06:40,440 --> 00:06:42,440 doing time for a crime that you committed. 136 00:06:43,320 --> 00:06:45,280 I know there are extenuating circumstances. 137 00:06:45,280 --> 00:06:48,600 There might have been a drug addiction or dire circumstances, 138 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:51,720 or you're under the influence of extreme pressure, but you did 139 00:06:51,720 --> 00:06:54,040 something you never thought you would do or you did something 140 00:06:54,040 --> 00:06:56,200 you plan to do. But either way, now you're doing 141 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:00,000 time for what you did, and you never thought your life would 142 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:04,360 end up with you here. This sermon is for the person 143 00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:06,960 who's burned through every important relationship. 144 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:10,600 Your attitude, your gossip, your toxic behavior, your 145 00:07:10,600 --> 00:07:14,920 unwillingness to apologize, to get help, get coaching has left 146 00:07:14,920 --> 00:07:20,320 you in devastating isolation. This sermon is for the person 147 00:07:20,320 --> 00:07:25,160 who's failed spiritually. Not only are you angry and hurt 148 00:07:25,160 --> 00:07:27,880 over the outcome of your decisions, you thought it was 149 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:29,600 going to get easier. You thought it was going to get 150 00:07:29,600 --> 00:07:31,360 better when you started your faith journey. 151 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:36,720 This sermon is for the person who recently got baptized and 152 00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:40,000 then found yourself struggling with the same sins all week 153 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:42,840 long. This sermon is for the person 154 00:07:42,840 --> 00:07:45,800 who's had a prayer like this or thoughts like this. 155 00:07:46,040 --> 00:07:50,240 If I had real faith, I wouldn't be so hateful. 156 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:52,880 If I had a real faith, I wouldn't be so angry. 157 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:56,320 If I had real faith, I would trust God more and I wouldn't be 158 00:07:56,320 --> 00:07:58,960 so anxious. If I had real faith, my 159 00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:02,240 depression wouldn't be getting the best of me every single day. 160 00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:05,600 If I had real faith, I wouldn't still struggle with pornography 161 00:08:05,600 --> 00:08:07,520 or having sex outside of marriage. 162 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:10,240 If I had real faith, I wouldn't be such a failure. 163 00:08:10,240 --> 00:08:13,520 If I had real faith, I wouldn't have failed in the 1st place. 164 00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:17,520 What do you do when, even with the best of intentions, you 165 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:21,400 still make a mess of it? What do you do when you failed 166 00:08:21,440 --> 00:08:25,840 personally and relationally and spiritually? 167 00:08:26,920 --> 00:08:29,560 I remind our Church of this verse about every three months, 168 00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:32,880 and I'm going to keep doing it because I want you to know that 169 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:36,799 you are in the middle of a spiritual war all the time. 170 00:08:37,640 --> 00:08:40,679 God gives us wisdom and insight into this through Jesus. 171 00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:44,159 These words are recorded in John chapter 10, verse 10. 172 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:46,960 Jesus is speaking here and this is what he says. 173 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:52,240 The thief that Satan comes to steal and kill and destroy. 174 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:56,640 I have come that they may have life and have it to the full. 175 00:08:57,200 --> 00:08:59,560 Life to the full is God's best way. 176 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,240 He has a better way for you and I to live. 177 00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:05,880 But Satan wants to steal, kill and destroy that life. 178 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:10,440 In fact, Satan goes into OverDrive every time you move in 179 00:09:10,440 --> 00:09:14,280 the direction of Jesus. He he gets alerted every time 180 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:18,240 you try to move in the direction and become more like Jesus. 181 00:09:19,040 --> 00:09:23,960 The week after your baptism might be the hardest week of 182 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:26,880 your life. The temptation might be the 183 00:09:26,880 --> 00:09:29,720 strongest, the battle might be the fiercest. 184 00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:34,520 In fact, our invitation time, in my opinion, is the most 185 00:09:34,520 --> 00:09:37,000 spiritually contested moment of each week. 186 00:09:37,800 --> 00:09:40,640 Every single week, at all of our locations, we get to a point in 187 00:09:40,640 --> 00:09:42,720 the sermon where I say we're moving to a time of decision, 188 00:09:42,720 --> 00:09:44,480 and then the campus pastors are myself. 189 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:48,520 We get an opportunity to talk to people in a passionate way about 190 00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:52,080 choosing Jesus, turning an area of their life over to Jesus, 191 00:09:52,080 --> 00:09:55,160 starting a life and an intimate, personal relationship with 192 00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:57,520 Jesus. And I believe that that is the 193 00:09:57,520 --> 00:10:00,760 most spiritually contested moment every single week for 194 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:04,120 every single one of us, because the moment we start having that 195 00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:06,960 conversation, many of you, there's a voice that goes off in 196 00:10:06,960 --> 00:10:09,640 your head that's telling you to do the exact opposite. 197 00:10:10,200 --> 00:10:11,680 This is probably what it sounds like. 198 00:10:12,400 --> 00:10:14,840 You hear us talking about starting an intimate, personal 199 00:10:14,840 --> 00:10:17,720 relationship with Jesus Christ. And Satan goes, oh, that's good 200 00:10:17,720 --> 00:10:20,560 for everybody else, but that's not for you. 201 00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:24,560 And he starts to run you through the highlight reel of everything 202 00:10:24,560 --> 00:10:26,680 that's wrong in your life and everything that you've done. 203 00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:29,120 And he tries to convince you that you could never have the 204 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:32,320 love of God. But overtime, eventually you go, 205 00:10:32,320 --> 00:10:33,920 you know what? That's not true. 206 00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:36,600 That's a lie from Satan. You can't steal what God's 207 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:38,920 trying to do in my life. And you say you know what, I'm 208 00:10:38,920 --> 00:10:41,720 going to start a relationship with Jesus and Satan goes, OK, 209 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:43,840 if you want to start a relationship with Jesus, that's 210 00:10:43,840 --> 00:10:45,240 great. Let's just put it off for a 211 00:10:45,240 --> 00:10:48,040 little while. Let's wait till next week, next 212 00:10:48,040 --> 00:10:50,040 month, next year. Let's wait till you get done 213 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:51,960 with your divorce. Let's wait till you get done 214 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:54,320 with your financial problems. Let's wait till you get done 215 00:10:54,320 --> 00:10:56,880 with your job, done with your move until you get a couple of 216 00:10:56,880 --> 00:10:59,400 your sins ironed out. And when you're not as stressed 217 00:10:59,400 --> 00:11:01,440 out, he goes, yeah, you know, start your relationship with 218 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:03,400 Jesus. But but get yourself together 219 00:11:03,400 --> 00:11:05,640 1st. And finally you realize that 220 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:08,800 he's just trying to steal you, starting your relationship with 221 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:09,720 Jesus. And you go, You know what? 222 00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:12,560 I don't have to wait till I have my whole life together. 223 00:11:12,760 --> 00:11:15,520 I'm going to the one who can put my life back together. 224 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:18,200 And so, you know, I'm starting my relationship with Jesus. 225 00:11:18,200 --> 00:11:20,560 And he goes, OK, that's great. And as soon as you start your 226 00:11:20,560 --> 00:11:23,760 relationship with Jesus Christ, he throws temptations after you. 227 00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:26,440 Then he puts you in the midst of hardship, and then all of a 228 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:29,120 sudden he gets you to doubt the decision that you made. 229 00:11:30,480 --> 00:11:33,360 He never stops trying to steal and kill and destroy. 230 00:11:33,360 --> 00:11:35,920 And so you're walking your relationship with Jesus Christ, 231 00:11:35,920 --> 00:11:38,640 and the moment you fail, Satan capitalizes on it. 232 00:11:39,880 --> 00:11:41,680 Were you even serious about your faith? 233 00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:47,840 Do you even have real faith? Can God really be trusted if 234 00:11:47,840 --> 00:11:52,280 this is how your life is turning out and he tries to steal and 235 00:11:52,280 --> 00:11:55,280 kill and destroy? That's why over and over again 236 00:11:55,280 --> 00:11:58,600 in Scripture, the Bible calls us to persevere in our faith. 237 00:11:59,080 --> 00:12:00,560 You're going to get knocked down. 238 00:12:01,400 --> 00:12:03,840 You're going to find yourself flat on your back from time to 239 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:07,320 time. And so Satan tries to steal it. 240 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:09,480 And then Satan goes one step further. 241 00:12:09,640 --> 00:12:13,400 How could you possibly do what you did and say that you love 242 00:12:13,400 --> 00:12:20,440 God at the same time you find yourself in a wrestling match 243 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:23,520 with Satan and Satan's going? How could God ever love you 244 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:25,440 again? Because after you said you loved 245 00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:31,040 him, you did what you did. What do you do when you find 246 00:12:31,040 --> 00:12:34,240 yourself at the bottom of a hole that you never intended to dig? 247 00:12:34,240 --> 00:12:38,320 I want to walk you through 2 examples of two people's lives 248 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:43,800 that were or two people that lives that were in ministry with 249 00:12:43,920 --> 00:12:45,920 Jesus. You're going to know who both of 250 00:12:45,920 --> 00:12:48,480 them are. They were both hand picked by 251 00:12:48,600 --> 00:12:51,400 Jesus. When Jesus came and he set out 252 00:12:51,400 --> 00:12:55,200 to do his earthly ministry, he called 12 people to be his 253 00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:57,960 disciples, people he was going to spend the most amount of time 254 00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:00,640 with people who are going to get the absolute most access. 255 00:13:00,880 --> 00:13:05,200 One of them was Peter. Peter was hand picked by Jesus. 256 00:13:05,800 --> 00:13:09,200 He got to go and spend three years and watch Jesus do 257 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:12,960 ministry and perform miracles. He got to listen to all of 258 00:13:13,040 --> 00:13:15,680 Jesus's sermons. He sat under the best teaching 259 00:13:15,680 --> 00:13:20,560 of anybody ever, of all time, and he was even sent by Jesus to 260 00:13:20,560 --> 00:13:25,080 go out and perform miracles and cast out demons. 261 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:29,600 And the night before Jesus was crucified, they were having a 262 00:13:29,600 --> 00:13:32,720 meal together. And this strange exchange took 263 00:13:32,720 --> 00:13:38,160 place between Peter and Jesus. It starts in Matthew, chapter 264 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:41,280 26. Then Jesus told them, this very 265 00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:43,440 night you will all fall away on account of me. 266 00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:46,200 For it is written, I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of 267 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:49,440 the flock will be scattered. But after I have risen, I will 268 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:52,320 go ahead of you into Galilee, Peter replied. 269 00:13:52,560 --> 00:13:58,760 Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will. 270 00:13:59,840 --> 00:14:06,120 Truly I tell you, Jesus answered this very night before the 271 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:13,280 rooster crows, you will disown me three times. 272 00:14:14,800 --> 00:14:19,680 But Peter declared, even if I have to die with you, I will 273 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:24,840 never disown you. And all the other disciples said 274 00:14:24,840 --> 00:14:29,280 the same. Surely enough, later that night 275 00:14:29,280 --> 00:14:32,720 Jesus is arrested. The disciples have deserted him 276 00:14:32,880 --> 00:14:36,520 and Peter goes to the courtyard not far from where Jesus was 277 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:38,680 being tried by the religious elites. 278 00:14:39,280 --> 00:14:41,840 And Peter was recognized by a girl and the girl said, hey, 279 00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:43,720 aren't you one of the followers of Jesus? 280 00:14:43,920 --> 00:14:46,080 And he said, I don't know what you're talking about. 281 00:14:46,240 --> 00:14:49,520 That's one. He goes a little further into 282 00:14:49,520 --> 00:14:52,080 the courtyard and another girl comes up and goes, Hey, aren't 283 00:14:52,080 --> 00:14:54,600 you one of the guys that used to run with Jesus? 284 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:55,920 Don't you? Don't you? 285 00:14:55,920 --> 00:14:58,600 Are you one of his followers? Are you one of his disciples? 286 00:14:58,600 --> 00:15:03,400 He said no. He denied following Jesus a 287 00:15:03,400 --> 00:15:06,920 second time. Finally he was asked again and 288 00:15:06,920 --> 00:15:11,120 accused of knowing Jesus, and this is his response. 289 00:15:11,880 --> 00:15:17,560 Then he began to call down curses and he swore to them. 290 00:15:17,880 --> 00:15:24,960 I don't know the man. And immediately a rooster 291 00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:30,240 crowed. Then Peter remembered the word 292 00:15:30,320 --> 00:15:34,080 Jesus had spoken before. The rooster crows. 293 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:42,480 You will disown me three times. And he went outside and he wept 294 00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:46,880 bitterly. Let's look at a second person. 295 00:15:47,880 --> 00:15:49,560 You know him too. His name? 296 00:15:49,880 --> 00:15:51,960 Judas. Check this out. 297 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:57,640 Judas was hand picked by Jesus brought into his inner circle of 298 00:15:57,640 --> 00:16:00,640 ministry. He got to hear the greatest 299 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:02,320 teaching that has ever been taught. 300 00:16:03,080 --> 00:16:06,400 He got to see the miracles performed by Jesus. 301 00:16:06,680 --> 00:16:13,240 In fact, Jesus sent Judas out to perform miracles and he did. 302 00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:19,680 And Judas cast out demons. He did great things for God. 303 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:30,160 And then that very same night, right before Peter has his 304 00:16:30,160 --> 00:16:37,000 conversation with Jesus, Jesus begins to talk to them, and he's 305 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:41,360 talking to them about one of you is going to betray me. 306 00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:46,920 And they each go around the table and they're going, surely 307 00:16:46,920 --> 00:16:55,680 not I, Lord, definitely not me. And Jesus says the one who dips 308 00:16:55,800 --> 00:17:00,120 his hand into or puts his hand into the dip with me is the one 309 00:17:00,120 --> 00:17:08,359 who will betray me. And Judas goes, surely not I, 310 00:17:08,680 --> 00:17:15,319 Lord. And sure enough, Jesus looks at 311 00:17:15,319 --> 00:17:20,079 him and goes. You've said it is so and so then 312 00:17:20,079 --> 00:17:24,839 Judas went out and he betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. 313 00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:29,400 He gathered an army and he took them, and he betrayed Jesus with 314 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:33,080 a kiss on the cheek to signify to the to the army that this is 315 00:17:33,080 --> 00:17:34,800 the one that they were supposed to arrest. 316 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:37,120 And so they go, and they find Jesus in the Garden of 317 00:17:37,120 --> 00:17:38,600 Gethsemane after he's been praying. 318 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:41,840 It's dark. He's alone and they take him. 319 00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:44,400 The story picks up in Matthew 27. 320 00:17:44,800 --> 00:17:47,400 Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of 321 00:17:47,400 --> 00:17:51,320 the people made their plans on how to have Jesus executed. 322 00:17:52,360 --> 00:17:56,880 So they bound him, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, 323 00:17:57,120 --> 00:18:00,880 the governor. When Judas, who had betrayed 324 00:18:01,200 --> 00:18:06,640 him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with 325 00:18:06,640 --> 00:18:11,480 remorse and returned the 30 pieces of silver to the chief 326 00:18:11,480 --> 00:18:16,480 priests and the elders. I have sinned, he said. 327 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:20,840 For I have betrayed innocent blood. 328 00:18:22,800 --> 00:18:24,400 There are three things to notice here. 329 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:28,920 The first one is Jesus knew their sin, which means he knows 330 00:18:28,920 --> 00:18:33,080 my sin. Before Peter denied him, Jesus 331 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:34,920 said Peter, you're going to deny me. 332 00:18:35,800 --> 00:18:40,080 Before Judas betrayed him, he said, Judas, you're going to 333 00:18:40,080 --> 00:18:43,800 betray me. Jesus knew their sin, which 334 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:47,880 means he knows my sin. Hebrews tells us there's lots of 335 00:18:47,880 --> 00:18:50,000 verses that do it, but Hebrews has a great way of saying it. 336 00:18:50,280 --> 00:18:53,840 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. 337 00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:57,360 Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes. 338 00:18:57,560 --> 00:18:59,960 Of whom to whom we must give an account. 339 00:19:00,560 --> 00:19:03,800 In other words, you can keep your sin from your friend. 340 00:19:03,800 --> 00:19:07,320 You can keep your sin from your spouse, but you can't keep your 341 00:19:07,320 --> 00:19:12,480 sin from Jesus. Jesus knows every single sin. 342 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:14,840 He knows the sins that you're committing. 343 00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:16,760 He knows the sins you're going to commit. 344 00:19:17,000 --> 00:19:19,000 He knows the sins you've committed in your past. 345 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:21,560 He knows the sins that you're sorry for. 346 00:19:21,680 --> 00:19:23,600 He knows the sins that you've forgotten. 347 00:19:23,880 --> 00:19:26,480 Have you ever had a sin that you forgot, like a boomerang sin? 348 00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:30,720 Like you forgot that you did that thing, and then you're 349 00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:33,000 hanging out with somebody and they remind you of the thing 350 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:35,000 that you did a long time ago. And you're like, Oh my goodness, 351 00:19:35,440 --> 00:19:37,760 I can't believe I did that. It's like a boomerang sin. 352 00:19:39,520 --> 00:19:41,920 Do you know that there's never once been a sin that you 353 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:44,160 committed? And Jesus was, like, completely 354 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:47,840 caught off guard. God was surprised, like you're 355 00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:50,560 just going through your life and you do your sin and God's up in 356 00:19:50,560 --> 00:19:54,080 heaven and goes, wow, I did not see that coming. 357 00:19:54,680 --> 00:19:56,160 Hey, Jesus, come here. Did you see it? 358 00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:58,360 No, I didn't see it. Holy Spirit, did you know that? 359 00:19:58,360 --> 00:20:00,400 No, I didn't. You've never caught them off 360 00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:03,040 guard. So when he says that, he's 361 00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:06,160 forgiven you of your sins. He's actually forgiving you for 362 00:20:06,160 --> 00:20:08,000 all of your sins. Some of you are going, you know 363 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:09,120 what? I'm going to be great. 364 00:20:09,120 --> 00:20:11,320 I'm going to do fantastic. I'm. 365 00:20:11,320 --> 00:20:14,080 I'm going to have a really, really, really great week. 366 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:17,880 And Jesus, like actually got to be honest with you, next Tuesday 367 00:20:17,880 --> 00:20:21,440 is going to be a rough one, right? 368 00:20:22,200 --> 00:20:25,760 You are going to mess up, turn to your neighbor and say you are 369 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:29,040 going to screw up some of you. You cheated. 370 00:20:29,240 --> 00:20:31,720 You said you are a screw up and that's a different thing. 371 00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:36,760 We we have the best of intentions, don't we? 372 00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:40,720 You, you come to church, you get done with the invitation time 373 00:20:40,720 --> 00:20:42,440 and every single one of us is like, yeah, you know what? 374 00:20:42,600 --> 00:20:44,320 This is going to be a great week, man. 375 00:20:44,320 --> 00:20:46,800 I'm going to live for Jesus. You're walking out of the church 376 00:20:46,840 --> 00:20:47,880 and you're going, oh, this can be a week. 377 00:20:47,880 --> 00:20:49,160 I'm going to be praying for people. 378 00:20:49,160 --> 00:20:50,560 I'm going to be reading my Bible. 379 00:20:50,680 --> 00:20:52,760 Things are going to be great. I'm going to be one of the best 380 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:58,160 people for Jesus I've ever been. And it gets get in the car for 381 00:20:58,160 --> 00:21:01,880 the love of God. You finally get them all in the 382 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:05,080 car and your wife goes, well, you go, hey, where do you want 383 00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:06,480 to go for lunch? She goes wherever you want to 384 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:07,840 go. You're like, OK, we're going to 385 00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:09,120 McDonald's. Ah, not there. 386 00:21:09,120 --> 00:21:10,480 OK. Oh, we're going to Hardee's. 387 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:12,080 Nope, not there. OK, we're going to Culver's. 388 00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:13,840 Nope, not there. Well, then why did you say where 389 00:21:13,840 --> 00:21:22,680 I wanted to go, you psycho. It was a great sermon. 390 00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:26,880 It was so good. You first, right? 391 00:21:28,040 --> 00:21:30,640 Jesus is not surprised by your sins. 392 00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:33,640 You need to know that. So when you read scripture and 393 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:38,760 he says come to me, when he says he loves you, he has a total 394 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:42,120 view of you. And there's some of you. 395 00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:50,080 Your response to your sin is going to determine your reward 396 00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:57,120 because you are going to sin. And your response to your sin 397 00:21:57,240 --> 00:22:01,520 matters. Judas was filled with remorse. 398 00:22:02,280 --> 00:22:06,000 Peter wept bitterly, Psalm, 38, says. 399 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:10,880 I confess my iniquity. I am troubled by my sin. 400 00:22:11,880 --> 00:22:15,400 When you and I come to grips with our sinful behavior, there 401 00:22:15,400 --> 00:22:19,720 should be a part of us that is deeply concerned about our sin. 402 00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:24,360 Moved by our sin. More than just emotionally, but 403 00:22:24,360 --> 00:22:29,520 definitely emotionally, we should hate the sin that's in 404 00:22:29,520 --> 00:22:32,560 our life. We should be frustrated by it, 405 00:22:32,840 --> 00:22:35,760 angered by it. I can't believe I did it again. 406 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:41,920 But all too often we try to downplay our sin. 407 00:22:42,760 --> 00:22:46,440 We try to act like our sin isn't a big deal, just everybody 408 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:53,040 else's sin is the big deal. First, John chapter 18 says if 409 00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:57,760 we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth 410 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:04,360 is not in us. When you say my sin's not that 411 00:23:04,360 --> 00:23:09,160 big of a deal, my sin's not that big of an issue or I don't 412 00:23:09,160 --> 00:23:12,920 really sin that much in my life. What that is, is that's pride. 413 00:23:14,480 --> 00:23:17,760 You have pride in your heart, and there's only one thing that 414 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:20,960 God can do with a prideful heart and that's break it. 415 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:24,600 Pride is the single most devastating sin. 416 00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:29,080 It destroys everyone who has it, and he hurts everyone close to 417 00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:32,880 the one who has it. If you compare yourself to 418 00:23:32,880 --> 00:23:36,040 others, that's pride. If you can't say you're sorry, 419 00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:38,160 that's pride. If you're unwilling to make 420 00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:40,480 changes in how you operate, that's pride. 421 00:23:40,760 --> 00:23:44,520 You are being deceived and the truth of God is not in you. 422 00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:48,920 And the reason this matters is because the truth of Christ is 423 00:23:48,920 --> 00:23:52,600 what sets us free. And so not only are you in 424 00:23:52,600 --> 00:23:56,960 denial about your bondage, you remain in bondage because the 425 00:23:56,960 --> 00:23:59,040 truth of Christ has not come into you. 426 00:23:59,880 --> 00:24:02,120 I said this a little bit last week, but I want to keep driving 427 00:24:02,120 --> 00:24:04,680 this home. When you have a limited view of 428 00:24:04,680 --> 00:24:07,520 your sin, you will have a limited view of the cross. 429 00:24:08,560 --> 00:24:10,400 And if you have a limited view of the cross, you'll have a 430 00:24:10,400 --> 00:24:13,560 limited view of the holiness of God, the greatness of God, the 431 00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:15,720 goodness of God, and the love of God. 432 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:22,680 But the deeper you come to realize the weight, the hurt 433 00:24:23,760 --> 00:24:27,680 that your sin has caused, the greater you will understand the 434 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:32,120 sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross on your behalf, and the 435 00:24:32,120 --> 00:24:35,120 better you'll have a picture of the holiness and the greatness 436 00:24:35,120 --> 00:24:37,520 and the goodness and the holiness of our God. 437 00:24:38,360 --> 00:24:40,520 And the better you'll have an understanding of His love for 438 00:24:40,520 --> 00:24:43,280 you. If you're like Oh my sins are 439 00:24:43,280 --> 00:24:48,080 just teeny weeny itty bitty super cute and furry, Oh my 440 00:24:48,120 --> 00:24:49,560 goodness, it's just a widow bitty sin. 441 00:24:50,520 --> 00:24:58,560 It's your itty bitty sins create an itty bitty cross and an itty 442 00:24:58,560 --> 00:25:02,200 bitty sacrifice. You just need God a little. 443 00:25:03,320 --> 00:25:04,840 You just need a little bit of blood. 444 00:25:05,680 --> 00:25:07,280 You just need a little bit of salvation. 445 00:25:07,280 --> 00:25:10,280 You're basically perfect. You just need a little Jesus. 446 00:25:10,480 --> 00:25:12,840 You just need some salt and pepper Jesus. 447 00:25:14,080 --> 00:25:17,080 And so then God is not really all that holy because the chasm 448 00:25:17,080 --> 00:25:19,080 between you and God is just as itty bitty. 449 00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:27,440 But when you see the full weight of your sin and how bad you've 450 00:25:27,440 --> 00:25:31,640 been and how evil you've been, you start to realize what you've 451 00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:35,320 been saved from and what it costs to be saved by it and what 452 00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:38,080 Christ actually went through on our behalf. 453 00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:41,600 And then you go, Oh my goodness, he's so holy. 454 00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,520 There's no way I could ever get to him because of who I've been. 455 00:25:45,680 --> 00:25:48,680 The chasm's too far. That means the cross is way 456 00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:51,880 bigger than I thought it was. Oh my goodness, God is good 457 00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:55,400 because I was so bad and yet he still moved on my behalf. 458 00:25:55,600 --> 00:25:58,640 No wonder when the Bible says He loves me, He loves me. 459 00:25:58,640 --> 00:26:01,640 Because how could he have ever gone through what he went 460 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:04,120 through on my behalf when I was this bad? 461 00:26:04,280 --> 00:26:07,760 Your view of sin will change your view of your salvation. 462 00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:14,040 Do you ever wish, like me that you're going to be, That you'd 463 00:26:14,040 --> 00:26:16,000 be married for just a little bit in heaven? 464 00:26:16,440 --> 00:26:17,800 I'll tell you why I want to be married in heaven. 465 00:26:18,040 --> 00:26:20,000 Not that Jennifer wants to spend eternity with me. 466 00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:22,040 I'm a lot to take in. You guys have already. 467 00:26:22,320 --> 00:26:23,360 You like? Yeah, we get it. 468 00:26:23,360 --> 00:26:26,440 We we've been sending her cards. We only pray for her. 469 00:26:26,440 --> 00:26:29,800 I get it. I just want to be married to 470 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:31,440 Jennifer in heaven for a little bit. 471 00:26:33,440 --> 00:26:35,680 Because I wanted to know what it would have been like to be with 472 00:26:35,680 --> 00:26:40,840 me when sin wasn't in my life. I just want to be a parent to my 473 00:26:40,840 --> 00:26:45,240 kids for a little bit so they could see what it would be like 474 00:26:45,240 --> 00:26:48,960 to have a dad who didn't sin, who didn't screw it up. 475 00:26:50,320 --> 00:26:54,120 I have hurt my wife, I have hurt my kids. 476 00:26:54,480 --> 00:26:58,280 My sin has had an impact on them, and I desperately wish 477 00:26:58,320 --> 00:27:02,760 that they could have experienced a fully transformed, a fully 478 00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:08,360 sinless version of myself. That's because I hate my sin. 479 00:27:11,160 --> 00:27:14,160 Your response to your sin will determine your reward. 480 00:27:15,080 --> 00:27:18,040 It's more than just emotional, it's more than just seeing it as 481 00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:20,280 a big deal. The Bible's actually very clear 482 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,800 about what you and I are supposed to do when we sin. 483 00:27:23,040 --> 00:27:27,280 Acts Chapter 3, verse 19 says repent then and turn to God so 484 00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,920 that your sins may be wiped out and that times of refreshing may 485 00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:34,320 come from the Lord. Repentance is a turning away 486 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:36,880 from and a turning towards something. 487 00:27:37,440 --> 00:27:42,280 So repentance means I'm turning away from my sin and I am moving 488 00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:45,960 now in the direction of Jesus. If I was having an affair, I'm 489 00:27:45,960 --> 00:27:49,040 turning away from the person that I'm having an affair with, 490 00:27:49,360 --> 00:27:51,760 and I'm turning back in the direction of my commitment to 491 00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:54,200 God and my wife. I'm repenting. 492 00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:57,280 I'm saying more than just I'm going in a different direction 493 00:27:57,280 --> 00:27:59,320 now. I no longer want to be even 494 00:27:59,320 --> 00:28:02,800 remotely associated with this because I'm wanting to be who 495 00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:05,680 God called me to be. Maybe it's pride and you're 496 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:07,320 going, you know what? I'm no longer going to try to? 497 00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:10,920 I create a world that is bent on serving me. 498 00:28:11,120 --> 00:28:14,640 I'm repenting of being that kind of person, that hurtful, 499 00:28:14,800 --> 00:28:18,400 hateful, prideful person. I don't want to be this person 500 00:28:18,400 --> 00:28:21,360 anymore and I want to turn towards in the direction 501 00:28:21,360 --> 00:28:25,360 repenting of it to be who God created me to be and leverage 502 00:28:25,360 --> 00:28:28,920 myself in the service of God and his Kingdom and others. 503 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:33,160 I'm moving away from my sin, which I don't want, and I'm 504 00:28:33,160 --> 00:28:36,560 moving in the direction of Jesus, who I do want. 505 00:28:37,000 --> 00:28:40,240 And he says that times of refreshing will come from the 506 00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:42,560 Lord. Forgiveness will come from the 507 00:28:42,560 --> 00:28:44,800 Lord. Your response determines your 508 00:28:44,800 --> 00:28:47,440 reward. Proverbs 28 says this. 509 00:28:47,840 --> 00:28:52,640 Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who 510 00:28:52,640 --> 00:28:55,920 confesses and renounces them finds mercy. 511 00:28:57,680 --> 00:28:59,400 Raise your hands if you want to prosper. 512 00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:02,480 If you didn't, raise your hand. Weird. 513 00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:07,160 If you conceal your sin, you won't. 514 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:10,480 If you confess it, you're on the path to it. 515 00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:17,720 How many of you want mercy? Yeah, If you conceal it, you're 516 00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:21,120 not. If you confess it, you're on the 517 00:29:21,120 --> 00:29:23,120 path to it. First. 518 00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:26,480 John 19 says if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to 519 00:29:26,480 --> 00:29:30,200 forgive us our sins and purify us from unrighteousness. 520 00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:34,760 James 516 says therefore confess your sins to each other and pray 521 00:29:34,760 --> 00:29:37,000 for each other so that you may be healed. 522 00:29:38,240 --> 00:29:41,800 Your response determines your reward, your sins wiped out. 523 00:29:41,800 --> 00:29:45,520 Refreshing from the Lord finds mercy, finds forgiveness, gets 524 00:29:45,520 --> 00:29:49,520 purity gains healing. These are if you respond by 525 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:54,360 confessing and repenting. These are your rewards. 526 00:29:57,080 --> 00:29:59,480 How could you not want it? You might be going Clayton. 527 00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:00,840 I love it. I love it. 528 00:30:00,840 --> 00:30:02,360 I'm going to repent. Sounds great. 529 00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:04,440 I'm going to tell God about it, which is kind of weird because 530 00:30:04,440 --> 00:30:06,720 he already knows about it. But I think God's saying I need 531 00:30:06,720 --> 00:30:08,280 you to know that I know about it. 532 00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:10,920 I need you to know what I'm forgiving you for. 533 00:30:11,400 --> 00:30:12,360 But then I want you to do something. 534 00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:13,520 That's going to be a little bit of a stretch. 535 00:30:13,800 --> 00:30:15,360 I want you to tell other people about it. 536 00:30:15,520 --> 00:30:16,960 You're like God. I love the vertical part. 537 00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:19,560 I'm not so sure I like the horizontal part, but I want you 538 00:30:19,560 --> 00:30:22,160 to know that the Bible says that when we confess it vertically, 539 00:30:22,160 --> 00:30:25,000 we get forgiveness. When we confess it horizontally, 540 00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:29,800 we get healing. You get accountability, you get 541 00:30:29,800 --> 00:30:31,920 help. You get people praying for you. 542 00:30:32,280 --> 00:30:34,160 There's a guy recently who's saying, listen, I don't want to 543 00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:36,520 look at porn anymore. Would you be praying for me? 544 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:39,920 He confessed it and I started praying and he's getting victory 545 00:30:40,080 --> 00:30:42,480 not because of my prayers, but because he's doing what God 546 00:30:42,480 --> 00:30:45,640 called him to do. Somebody else was going, man, 547 00:30:45,640 --> 00:30:49,320 I've been gambling way too much at way too high a stakes, and 548 00:30:49,320 --> 00:30:51,160 it's got a serious stranglehold on me. 549 00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:53,960 I don't want to be this guy. I haven't gone a day without 550 00:30:53,960 --> 00:30:57,400 serious gambling in a long, long time and I'm trying to change 551 00:30:57,400 --> 00:31:00,400 the course of my family on that. And he's like, would you be 552 00:31:00,400 --> 00:31:01,960 praying for it? And reached out to about four or 553 00:31:01,960 --> 00:31:03,640 five guys and we all started praying for it. 554 00:31:04,240 --> 00:31:07,120 That when you confess your sins to other people, that is the 555 00:31:07,120 --> 00:31:10,400 opposite of pride. You're saying, hey, I'm a screw 556 00:31:10,400 --> 00:31:13,040 up and just so you know, your friends and family already know 557 00:31:13,040 --> 00:31:16,240 you're a screw up. All you're doing is telling them 558 00:31:16,240 --> 00:31:19,680 that what they thought about you is 100% true instead of living 559 00:31:19,680 --> 00:31:21,840 in denial. And then you're giving them an 560 00:31:21,840 --> 00:31:24,000 opportunity to pray for you instead of judge you. 561 00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:28,680 You're inviting them in to Createspace for healing. 562 00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:32,760 On a recap, when we confess our sins and we repent our sins. 563 00:31:32,760 --> 00:31:36,200 When I say confess God and others, the rewards are your 564 00:31:36,200 --> 00:31:38,080 sins are wiped out. Sounds good to me. 565 00:31:38,480 --> 00:31:39,840 You get refreshing from the Lord. 566 00:31:39,840 --> 00:31:43,240 Sounds really good for me. You receive mercy, forgiveness, 567 00:31:43,360 --> 00:31:47,000 purity, and healing. But if you don't, you don't get 568 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:50,680 these. So choose wisely. 569 00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:54,280 The final thing I'll tell you is even when you've messed up, God 570 00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:56,000 can still write the rest of your story. 571 00:31:57,480 --> 00:32:01,040 Peter stayed in community, saw the resurrected Jesus, was 572 00:32:01,040 --> 00:32:04,400 transformed by the event eventually restored by Jesus. 573 00:32:04,600 --> 00:32:07,720 He went on to preach the very first sermon, the first gospel 574 00:32:07,720 --> 00:32:12,000 message on Pentecost, and thousands were saved that day. 575 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:16,000 Peter went from being an absolute failure who completely 576 00:32:16,000 --> 00:32:23,040 denied knowing Jesus to making it 1500 miles to Rome where they 577 00:32:23,040 --> 00:32:26,040 said, Peter, you better stop talking about Jesus, he said. 578 00:32:26,040 --> 00:32:29,240 I can't. If you don't stop talking about 579 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:33,640 Jesus, we're going to kill you then get to kill him because I 580 00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:37,000 refuse to stop talking about Jesus. 581 00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:41,360 He went from denying that he ever knew him to refusing to 582 00:32:41,360 --> 00:32:45,240 stop proclaiming his name and his power and his resurrection. 583 00:32:45,480 --> 00:32:48,040 They said we're going to crucify you, then you better get to 584 00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:50,640 crucifying me. I just have one request. 585 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:54,360 If you're going to kill me by crucifixion, at least crucify me 586 00:32:54,360 --> 00:32:58,000 upside down, because I'm not worthy of dying the same way my 587 00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:01,480 Lord and Savior died. That's how he went. 588 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:05,080 He went from being an absolute failure in the middle of a mess 589 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:07,720 to being a guy who died for his message. 590 00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:13,080 But Judas? Judas committed suicide. 591 00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:18,320 Judas never let God write the rest of his story. 592 00:33:19,040 --> 00:33:22,760 He kept the pen, Peter, in the midst of his failure, in the 593 00:33:22,760 --> 00:33:25,400 midst of his mess, turn it over to Jesus, and God used him to 594 00:33:25,400 --> 00:33:27,520 proclaim the gospel message until the day he died. 595 00:33:28,640 --> 00:33:31,400 But Judas kept the pen and it LED straight to death. 596 00:33:32,720 --> 00:33:35,320 If Judas had, after he had thrown the 30 pieces in the 597 00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:39,160 temple, had walked 500 yards to the cross, he would have heard 598 00:33:39,160 --> 00:33:41,320 Jesus say, Father, forgive him, for they don't know what they're 599 00:33:41,320 --> 00:33:46,840 doing. He would have found the grace 600 00:33:46,840 --> 00:33:53,000 and mercy of Jesus. Wouldn't that have been the best 601 00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:56,560 story ever told? When your friends gone, there's 602 00:33:56,560 --> 00:34:01,560 no way God could ever love me. You would go, oh, you should 603 00:34:01,560 --> 00:34:06,680 hear the story of Judas. He was the one who denied Jesus. 604 00:34:07,440 --> 00:34:09,800 He was the one who who betrayed Jesus. 605 00:34:09,880 --> 00:34:12,040 He was the one who sold Jesus out. 606 00:34:12,199 --> 00:34:16,360 He was the one who put the plans for the crucifixion in motion. 607 00:34:16,840 --> 00:34:24,600 Nobody's been as bad as Judas. And then they go on to tell you 608 00:34:24,600 --> 00:34:27,639 that Judas went to the cross and heard Jesus and received 609 00:34:27,639 --> 00:34:30,440 forgiveness, and God went on to use him to do mighty and amazing 610 00:34:30,440 --> 00:34:33,400 things. That story was never told 611 00:34:35,600 --> 00:34:37,199 because Judas never let God write it. 612 00:34:39,159 --> 00:34:41,679 If Satan takes the pen in your life, it is over. 613 00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:45,920 But when you turn the pen of your life over to Jesus, even in 614 00:34:45,920 --> 00:34:51,239 the middle of a mess, your story is just getting good. 615 00:34:51,239 --> 00:34:54,280 I don't want you to think about that as we're moving to a time 616 00:34:54,280 --> 00:35:00,560 of decision. If you're here today and you've 617 00:35:00,560 --> 00:35:03,440 never started an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus 618 00:35:03,440 --> 00:35:06,520 Christ, I just want to spend a little bit of time just talking 619 00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:11,160 to you for a second. I need you to know you're 620 00:35:11,160 --> 00:35:12,880 surrounded by some messed up people. 621 00:35:14,360 --> 00:35:17,240 They've all made messes. They're not better than you. 622 00:35:17,960 --> 00:35:19,520 They're, but they are different than you. 623 00:35:19,520 --> 00:35:22,960 And the difference between them and you is that they know where 624 00:35:22,960 --> 00:35:26,560 to take their messes. I grew up in school and we had 625 00:35:26,560 --> 00:35:28,840 to wear pants at the school. I went to pants all the time. 626 00:35:29,280 --> 00:35:31,680 So when it was time for the presidential fitness thing and 627 00:35:31,680 --> 00:35:33,840 we had to do the eraser run, we were wearing pants. 628 00:35:34,120 --> 00:35:37,280 You know how hard it is to run fast in jeans to start a fire? 629 00:35:37,480 --> 00:35:40,360 It's not safe, especially if you're wearing corduroys. 630 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:43,640 Someone could get killed. And so you're out there trying 631 00:35:43,640 --> 00:35:45,400 to run a mile in your in your pants. 632 00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:48,080 And you when it was time to play basketball, you're doing it in 633 00:35:48,080 --> 00:35:49,840 pants. When it was time for you to run 634 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,200 around and have fun playing football, you're doing it in 635 00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:53,600 pants. And you know what happened to my 636 00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:56,120 pants all the time? My pants got absolutely 637 00:35:56,600 --> 00:35:59,440 destroyed, Grass stains everywhere. 638 00:35:59,440 --> 00:36:01,320 And you know what I would do when I came home? 639 00:36:01,760 --> 00:36:04,760 I'd come home and I'd take my pants off and I put them in the 640 00:36:04,760 --> 00:36:09,320 little basket and then a couple days later that basket would 641 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:12,560 just disappear like this. I don't know what we have, like, 642 00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:15,840 I don't know what it was. And then like a couple days 643 00:36:15,840 --> 00:36:18,960 after that, they would reappear in my room and they would, my 644 00:36:18,960 --> 00:36:25,800 jeans would be perfectly folded. It's magic, and all the stains 645 00:36:25,800 --> 00:36:28,480 would be gone. Now I want to talk to moms for a 646 00:36:28,480 --> 00:36:30,000 second. Moms, help me out with this 647 00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:32,120 message. And I'm not talking to you, 648 00:36:32,120 --> 00:36:35,440 young Pinterest moms. I'm not talking to you. 649 00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:37,200 You're not. You're not. 650 00:36:37,280 --> 00:36:40,680 You're not, you're not amazing. And I'll tell you why you're not 651 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:43,280 amazing because you can go to the store and you can buy four O 652 00:36:43,280 --> 00:36:45,400 9. I'm talking to, like, the moms 653 00:36:45,400 --> 00:36:47,520 who used to have shoulder pads. I'm talking to you right now. 654 00:36:48,400 --> 00:36:49,960 OK, you you've been around for a bit. 655 00:36:50,280 --> 00:36:54,200 OK, you you, you had a phone with a with a 15 foot cord next 656 00:36:54,200 --> 00:36:56,400 to your refrigerator. That's who I'm talking to. 657 00:36:56,600 --> 00:37:00,000 OK, Yeah, you you put a kid on your lap and drove down the 658 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:02,960 freeway with no airbags. I'm talking to those moms. 659 00:37:03,480 --> 00:37:06,560 Is there a special like which book that you get when you get 660 00:37:06,560 --> 00:37:08,120 married? Like where? 661 00:37:08,120 --> 00:37:12,520 Like how you do sorcery stuff. Because I could take my jeans 662 00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:16,520 that were completely covered in grass stains and my mom would 663 00:37:16,520 --> 00:37:18,560 make it like it had never happened. 664 00:37:20,600 --> 00:37:22,240 Is she a wizard? I don't know. 665 00:37:22,680 --> 00:37:24,880 We didn't have. We didn't have four O 9 where 666 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:27,400 you just spray your shout and oh, not four O 9. 667 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:30,240 You could tell I don't do the laundry some Some of you young 668 00:37:30,240 --> 00:37:32,000 moms are like, this guy's an idiot. 669 00:37:32,320 --> 00:37:34,600 He's an idiot. You don't use four O 9 on that 670 00:37:34,600 --> 00:37:36,160 watch. It's going to be like a new You 671 00:37:36,160 --> 00:37:38,600 also don't eat Tide pods. OK, so I win. 672 00:37:39,080 --> 00:37:41,120 All right, Your generation doesn't know you're not supposed 673 00:37:41,120 --> 00:37:43,840 to eat laundry soap, so I'm still smarter than you. 674 00:37:44,760 --> 00:37:47,560 OK, talk. My mom would just make it 675 00:37:47,560 --> 00:37:50,440 disappear. You know what I didn't do? 676 00:37:51,760 --> 00:37:56,320 I didn't come home in 6th grade and try and start scrubbing out 677 00:37:56,320 --> 00:38:00,040 the stain. I'd have only made it worse. 678 00:38:01,360 --> 00:38:04,840 I knew enough to know that when I had messed up, when I had a 679 00:38:04,840 --> 00:38:08,680 stain in my life, I knew to take it to the one who could fix it. 680 00:38:09,600 --> 00:38:13,680 If I could fix it, it wouldn't have happened in the 1st place. 681 00:38:14,400 --> 00:38:17,440 If I could fix it, God wouldn't have saw fit to give me a mom. 682 00:38:18,320 --> 00:38:21,960 When you try to fix your own sins, your own stains, you only 683 00:38:22,120 --> 00:38:26,840 make it worse. You are in effect saying I don't 684 00:38:26,840 --> 00:38:29,120 need Jesus in my life. I got it. 685 00:38:29,800 --> 00:38:31,800 Which is the highest form of pride. 686 00:38:33,120 --> 00:38:35,400 What you're doing is you are in the middle of a hole that you've 687 00:38:35,400 --> 00:38:37,800 dug and you're saying I'm going to dig my way out. 688 00:38:40,280 --> 00:38:44,640 But the Bible says that though our sins be like scarlet, he 689 00:38:44,640 --> 00:38:49,720 will make them white as snow. What Jesus in effect saying 690 00:38:49,880 --> 00:38:56,000 bring your sins to me. And if you're here today, this 691 00:38:56,000 --> 00:38:59,720 is the spiritually contested moment where Satan is going to 692 00:38:59,720 --> 00:39:03,240 try to steal, kill, and destroy the life that God has created 693 00:39:03,240 --> 00:39:06,680 for you and destined you for. If you've never started an 694 00:39:06,680 --> 00:39:10,600 intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you can come 695 00:39:10,600 --> 00:39:14,080 to him today, you can start it today, and you can find 696 00:39:14,080 --> 00:39:16,640 forgiveness today. And the Bible says that when we 697 00:39:16,640 --> 00:39:19,320 step into a relationship with him, he will give us the power 698 00:39:19,320 --> 00:39:23,160 of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and he will wash away our sins. 699 00:39:24,560 --> 00:39:27,000 And if you're here today and you want that, you want to start 700 00:39:27,000 --> 00:39:29,760 asking questions about it, you want to move in the direction of 701 00:39:29,760 --> 00:39:30,600 it. There's going to be somebody 702 00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:32,880 right over there, underneath that or underneath that screen, 703 00:39:33,160 --> 00:39:35,280 next to the baptistery, who would love to talk to you about 704 00:39:35,280 --> 00:39:36,920 it. If you don't want to talk to 705 00:39:36,920 --> 00:39:38,680 them, talk to somebody who's sitting next to you. 706 00:39:39,120 --> 00:39:41,960 But don't put off a decision that could change absolutely 707 00:39:42,280 --> 00:39:45,160 everything for you. To the rest of you, to the 708 00:39:45,160 --> 00:39:48,160 people who already have a relationship with Jesus Christ, 709 00:39:48,880 --> 00:39:52,440 You are going to mess up. But as you grow in your 710 00:39:52,440 --> 00:39:55,080 relationship with Jesus Christ, you're never going to become 711 00:39:55,080 --> 00:39:57,280 sinless. But we should start sinning 712 00:39:57,280 --> 00:40:00,760 less. We should be molded and shaped 713 00:40:00,760 --> 00:40:05,240 into the character of Christ. But what do you do when you mess 714 00:40:05,240 --> 00:40:07,720 up? Now you're on your faith here, 715 00:40:07,720 --> 00:40:09,880 and you're trying to do the things that God calls you to do. 716 00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:14,800 What do you do when you mess up? Proverbs 24 says this, for 717 00:40:14,800 --> 00:40:18,520 though the righteous falls seven times, they rise again. 718 00:40:19,480 --> 00:40:22,160 But when the wicked stumble, calamity strikes. 719 00:40:23,200 --> 00:40:27,360 Judas made a mistake, and he never got back up, and he let 720 00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:32,000 his sin get the best of him. But Peter held out hope that God 721 00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:35,760 could still restore him, that God could still redeem him, that 722 00:40:35,760 --> 00:40:38,680 God could use him again. And so I came here today with 723 00:40:38,680 --> 00:40:42,440 one simple message to those of you who are Jesus followers, and 724 00:40:42,440 --> 00:40:44,320 you find yourself in the middle of a mess. 725 00:40:44,560 --> 00:40:49,040 I want you to know when you fall down, get up, the righteous get 726 00:40:49,040 --> 00:40:51,280 up. They might fall seven times. 727 00:40:51,440 --> 00:40:53,200 They might fall seven times in a month. 728 00:40:53,400 --> 00:40:55,080 They might fall seven times in a week. 729 00:40:55,240 --> 00:40:57,080 They might fall seven times in an hour. 730 00:40:57,200 --> 00:41:00,760 The righteous get back up. They believe, deep down in the 731 00:41:00,760 --> 00:41:04,360 core of their being, that God's still good, that his mercies are 732 00:41:04,360 --> 00:41:08,760 new every single morning, That you can't outrun his love, you 733 00:41:08,760 --> 00:41:11,440 can't outrun His grace. So the righteous get up. 734 00:41:11,840 --> 00:41:13,280 Oh yeah. Their sin may have laid them 735 00:41:13,280 --> 00:41:15,840 flat on their back, but they're not staying on their back. 736 00:41:16,040 --> 00:41:18,880 The righteous get back up. And today, if you are in an 737 00:41:18,880 --> 00:41:22,400 intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the Holy 738 00:41:22,400 --> 00:41:25,600 Spirit has come into you. Your story is not over. 739 00:41:25,720 --> 00:41:28,920 You have the power to get back up, and God can write a better 740 00:41:28,920 --> 00:41:30,720 story. Would you stand with me while we 741 00:41:30,720 --> 00:41:33,480 pray God, do a work in this church? 742 00:41:33,880 --> 00:41:37,160 Do a work that only you can do in ways that only you can do it 743 00:41:37,320 --> 00:41:39,440 in lives that desperately need it. 744 00:41:41,640 --> 00:41:46,320 God, we want to see you move. We want to see you moving other 745 00:41:46,320 --> 00:41:49,040 people, but we definitely want to see you moving us. 746 00:41:49,720 --> 00:41:52,080 We don't want the change to happen in everybody else. 747 00:41:52,080 --> 00:41:54,080 We want the change to start with us. 748 00:41:55,120 --> 00:41:58,200 And so God would you grace us with that privilege. 749 00:41:58,480 --> 00:42:00,400 In your name, I pray. Amen.