Well, good morning Crossing Church.
How are you doing today? I hope you're ready to get into
the word and just let the Holy Spirit just roll over you and
reveal things to you. Because when we're in his word,
it becomes a very fertile place. For our hearts, our lives are
impacted in the world. Our purpose, the things that God
has given us, I want to welcome all of our campuses that are
joining all over this region. So thankful for each and every
one of you today, if you're inside.
Online. We're also so thankful for you
and we're in this series in John, and I was studying.
And some things started kind of rising up occurring to me.
And I'm, so I'm going to take a moment and just be transparent
with you. I've always had a bit of a
problem being positive about people who have achieved great
success in Ministry. It's probably born out of some
feelings of inadequacy or inferiority.
Probably a defense mechanism. That's just inside of me.
So in the past you know, being in little churches for much of
my Ministry was so easy to prop myself up by finding fault, with
some aspect of what some of these other churches had done,
you know, just a point out some you know, some some way that
they had done something a little less than what they should have
done, that all changed in my life in 2007.
When I was invited to go to a conference of ministers for
large churches, you see being we're being in West Central and
in Indiana where I was before here.
And then, here, this is not the same as Metro areas and things
along those lines. And so, whatever.
I had done or whatever the church had done that, I was
serving went relatively unnoticed and then all of a
sudden, it was noticed. And I was invited to this
conference and that was a very strange feeling for me because I
felt like an outsider, I felt inferior.
These people are walking around and they're like Titans to me.
They're like these larger-than-life personalities
on these big stages. And I don't know how to respond
and deep down inside my heart. You know, I knew that I'd had
these thoughts about them because, you know, of these
feelings that I have, but it was, Amazing, what happened?
They welcomed me and they encouraged me and they sat down
with me and they were real with me.
And it was a weird experience for me because I didn't know how
to deal with that. I had kind of used some of that
negativity to kind of fuel me to like I'll Stick it to the Man,
you know, I'll show you and then all of a sudden you know there
I'm the man. And is weird. and but it would
have showed me in that experience was just how
self-focused that I had been and how that had fueled a complete
misunderstanding of those people that I now know, and I have
relationships with and I cherish them And I am so thankful that
God gave me the grace of that wake-up.
Call 15 years ago to show me how wrong I was and how I was
limiting. The things that God wanted to do
in me and through me that having a network of people like that
around me that I could I could experience that.
Is that connecting with any of you that maybe you've kind of
done that as well or my just a total jerk up here.
Well, maybe I am but maybe you are too.
I don't. No.
Well how many wonderful things are there about Jesus and
following him, that we may never see because there is something
some obstacle in the way that blocks our ability to either see
him or that, which we, he would want us to see, because it would
enhance our faith. Enhance our Effectiveness for
the kingdom of God, in our families, with our friends, with
our coworkers, And I think John wants to point that out to us.
And that's really what I want to share today.
You know that John didn't write just the Book of John.
He wrote first second, third John, he wrote Revelation as
well, right. But when I you think of that
term Revelation or the revealing, I really feel like
that the Gospel of John is like a second Revelation because it's
revealing who Jesus really is. This is what I really appreciate
about John's gospel, is why I encourage People to read it
first when they're first discovering, what it means to
have an intimate personal relationship with Jesus Christ
because it is so revealing about him in so many different layers
and levels. It's so this is go back two
weeks. Two weeks ago, I discussed this
Foundation that John lays for us that that Jesus isn't just his
best friend. He's not just a Rabbi, he's not
just a great teacher, not even just a savior.
I mean he is God in human form. What a weighty concept, what a
huge concept, and he describes that by revealing, that that
Jesus is the creator that he was part of that whole creative
process that he was the author of life.
Nothing was made without him, nothing exists, without him
that. He's the glory of God, the
representation of his glory. So if you want to witness the
glory of God, you look at Jesus. And that's how you connect with
that that he's the light of the world that he gives light to, to
all the world. And and we.
So we have these huge concepts of God being these so big, and
Jesus being. So amazingly, large, the
vastness of the universe. And in the second week, we
discussed. How even with the vastness of
all that Jesus is just as much Lord of all the smallest of
things, the tiny things. Things that go unnoticed by
everyone else. The people that would go
unnoticed by everyone else, except for him, and it reveals
so much about the character of Jesus, about the nature of
Jesus. And most of all the love of
Jesus that he has for us. So today John is going to lead
us into some more specific context to understand who his
best friend really is and he's going to use it in words that
Jesus used to describe himself. Like he went, you know, he's
Jesus, right? The son of man, right?
But he uses these terms, these descriptive terms these
personifications in the Book of John that really helped us to
understand him better. They will reveal deeper truths
about the person that we desire to have an intimate personal
relationship with so, John reveals this in his gospel.
Butts to so many people. He's revealing a Jesus that they
never knew. They missed it and they missed
him because there was some obstacle, in the way, some, some
light that needed to be turned on a switch that needed to be
found on the wall so that they can see it.
So they could receive it. So they could receive Jesus.
But missed it. So here's the first one.
Jesus describes himself as the bread of life.
How many of you heard that before that?
Jesus is the bread of life. It's from John chapter 6,
verses, 32, and following. It says, Jesus said to them very
truly. I tell you it is not Moses who
has given you the bread from Heaven.
That's that's a story of the manna that fed the nation of
Israel in the wilderness but it is my father who gives you the
true bread from heaven. For the bread of God, is the
bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the
world sir. They said, always give us this
bread. Jesus, declared I am the bread
of life. I'm the bread is what he's
saying. Whoever comes to me will never
go hungry and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Wow, big promise. Now, Jesus spoke these words at
the end of a 24-hour, period, that was packed with emotion,
that was packed with drama. And if you take the four gospels
and you look at this period of time, like you A Harmony of the
gospels, it'll Amaze. You what happens in a day in the
life of Jesus. You know, we have so many days
that go by and there really isn't much that happens, but
just take a moment and understand a day in the life of
Jesus. So this happens in a morning.
So I want we want to go back to the previous morning, the
previous morning, Jesus is in the same town, he's in
Capernaum, and just got up, just start the day and he has
Messengers that come to him. That tell him that John the
Baptist has been beheaded How's that for a great way to start
your day at Jesus, who done Ministry with him, he was
related to him. They were cousins.
He was the herald. That announced the coming of the
king, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world in any
years that he's been beheaded. Not only does he hear that but
here's a threat that goes along with it that Herod has beheaded
John the Baptist and now he's coming for you.
How would you like to start your day that way and while he's
managing the truth of that a while back?
He's 72 out to be ambassadors to go, share the good news of the
kingdom of God, to heal to cast out demons and he gave him, this
power to be able to do that in that very same day, right?
After he hears this about John, here they come over the hills
and it's not just 72. Oh no, they brought a whole
bunch of people with them about Sent, can you imagine that?
I'm in the town of Capernaum was a town during Jesus time of
about 1,200 people. Can you imagine 20,000 people
converging on a town of 1,200? And you know what they want,
they want to see the man that they've heard about.
They want, they want to see him, do what they had seen, like,
some of that from the 72, they want to experience Jesus, and so
they drop everything, and they come all the way over to
Capernaum to see him. But, you know, Jesus is really
not in the mood. He doesn't really want to spend
a lot of time with them. He wants some time to decompress
from what he's just hurt. So he tells his Apostles, let's
get in the boat. Let's go across the lake.
Let's go across the Sea of Galilee which is like a big lake
and, and, and let's do that. And so he gets in the boat with
his disciples. They go across the lake.
They're experienced fisherman, experienced in Saline.
But, you know, those people are not going to be denied and they
walk across all the way on the shoreline very long way.
Because They want time with Jesus.
Oh, Jesus gets out of the boat on the other side of the Sea of
Galilee and there's 20,000 people there.
Great. So, instead of being able to
take a breath because of what he experienced early in the
morning, he starts teaching and healing all day.
Now, you already know this about Jesus.
John's already revealed this, that Jesus wouldn't look at a
crowd. Like, I'm looking at right now
and just go, all you are healed. He wouldn't do that.
He would go to each one. Wouldn't he?
He'd hear their story? He would talk to them, he would
interact with them because he loved people that way, and then
he would heal them and he would go to another one.
And he will, you go to another one and he would.
Can you imagine doing that all day?
Can you imagine teaching in between the healing?
Can you imagine doing that all day long?
I mean, how tiring would that be especially when you started in
this deficit position and so he does that all day long.
The Sun starts going down. The apostles tell Jesus.
You need to send these people away because they need to eat.
so Jesus says, you give him something to eat and they're
like, what do you We don't have any money, there's not a
Kentucky Fried Chicken around here.
I don't know what we're going to do.
They find some kids got Five Loaves and two fishes in lunch.
They go. Here's what we found for 20,000
people. Jesus Takes Five Loaves and two
fish, and prays a prayer. And that food begins to
multiply, they start handing it out.
Everyone gets their fill, the Bible, says 5,000 men.
Doesn't take into account, all the women, all the children.
Feeds all of them and when they take up the leftovers, there are
twelve basketfuls of leftovers. Incredible.
Now it's getting really late and so Jesus tells his Apostles, why
don't you just get in the boat you go on back across over to
Capernaum. I'm just going to spend some
time here in solitude Pray to my father.
So they get in the boat but like it does on the Sea of Galilee
often. There's a storm that rises up in
a wind that rises up and even though they're experienced
fisherman and experienced in a boat and sailing, they can't
make it back to Capernaum. So it's the Third Watch of the
night, the middle of the night and they're looking out across
the waves and they see something, and it kind of freaks
them out. Of course, if you are out in the
middle of the night and there was a storm and you saw
something In the middle of a body of water that would
probably freak you out as well. And the closer that whatever
this thing is gets, they begin to recognize that.
It's not a thing. It's a person and that person Is
Jesus walking on the water. Now, now when it's storming on
the Sea of Galilee, you're really not walking on the water,
you're walking on the crest of waves.
And here he is. You have unit.
Gets close to the boat. They're trying to have a,
they're having a hard time deciding.
What should I be afraid? Should I be excited?
Should I be as what should I be? I don't know.
Well, Simon Peter that crazy dude he just says, Hey, Jesus
bid me to come on the waters. I can walk on the water with you
and Jesus was okay, come on. As long as he keeps his eyes on
Jesus. He's walking on the water that
power of Jesus emanates to him and he has this ability to walk
on water. But when he notices the wind and
the waves, he takes his eyes off.
Jesus and Jesus has to perform a water rescue.
And get him out of the water back in the boat.
Then Jesus has the ability to stop those waves and to get that
boat back to Capernaum, right? About Dawn.
And guess what's waiting for him on shore?
Twenty thousand people looking for breakfast.
Fish. And chips was great last night.
What do you do for breakfast? Jesus.
I want you to understand that in that 24 hour period, these
people were not Jesus enemies. He loved them.
He saw them as sheep without a Shepherd.
He wanted to heal them. He wanted to teach them but like
us, Jesus in his Humanity was tired.
And yet he pushes it aside to minister to them.
I just need for you to understand, they were not his
enemies. They weren't trying to hurt him
or discredit him or anything. And so then Jesus begins by
teaching this truth, from John chapter 6, which sounds great at
the beginning, right? That I'm the bread of life.
If you eat this bread, you'll never be hungry.
Again, you'll never be thirsty again.
And then he starts talking about who he is.
Is and how that relates to the bread of life and it starts to
get weird. The the teaching starts to get
weird and he starts losing people.
They start looking like your dog does when you talk to them.
Like huh. And then he gets to this part
near the end of the John 6 bread of life sermon where he says
this. Unless you eat my flesh and
drink my blood, you have no life in you.
But if you eat my flesh and drink, my sounds like a great
Halloween sermon, if you eat my flesh and drink, my blood, I
will raise you up from Death to life on the last day.
And by that time, he's lost a mall.
All of them because the Bible says they all left him, 20,000
people, Who are so excited to see him in a 24-hour period.
All leave him. And mentally and emotionally the
12 leave him as well. Even the 12 now, they didn't
leave leave Because Jesus asked him are you going to leave me as
well and they go why we are where we going to go?
What are we going to do? You have the words of life?
So the only difference between the 12 that stayed and the
20,000 that left Was that even though they didn't understood,
they weren't going to abandon Jesus, they stayed because of
what they did know about Jesus. You know what?
How does that apply to you? What is John want you to know
about you? Sometimes you're not going to
get the answers to your questions?
Are you carrying some of those right now?
Big at Big questions? That don't have answers God,
why, why did this happen to me? Why did this happen in my
family? Why is this occurring right now
in our world? Why is this happening in our
community? Maybe there are these questions
that go out and you want answers and silence?
You get no answer. Not at least right away.
Maybe we'll get it. Maybe will understand it when
we're a little older, maybe when we're more equipped to receive
it. The apostles didn't get an
answer. For the questions that rose up
in the bread of life sermon, but they got it later.
Three years later. They got it in the last
passover. So Jesus is celebrating
Passover. To Eve is before right, before
he dies on the cross, and there's bread and there's wine
that's used in the Passover meal and he lifts up the bread and he
breaks it. And he says this, this is my
body. Which is broken for you.
Take it, eat it. Do this in remembrance of me.
Don't you think some of those guys were going?
But you remember when he said, unless you eat my flesh and we
didn't get that After the meal, he lifts up the cup of wine and
he says, this is the blood of the New Covenant that I'm
shedding for you. The you're shedding your blood,
he didn't understand that. But he was calling the the wine
in the cup, his blood and he says drink all of it.
It's a new covenant. And you have to think that the
lights were coming on, like, oh, this was the thing that he told
us about, and now I'm maybe beginning to understand what he
meant, but for the 20,000 people that didn't stay with Jesus, he
was the Jesus that they never knew.
Not in this way. Only ones, only the ones who
stayed had the privilege of understanding.
I don't want Jesus and John doesn't want Jesus to be the
Jesus, you never knew. Do you know him as the bread of
life? Is he your bread of life?
Is he your daily bread? When he was being tempted by the
devil and the devil commanded him to make stone make stones
and change them into bread? He said, man shall not live by
bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of
God. Is he your word?
Is that word that proceeds from his mouth better than bread to
you? Or is he the Jesus?
You never knew. Second one living water look at
John chapter 7, verses 37 and following on the last and
greatest day of the festival. Jesus, stood and said, in a loud
voice. Let anyone who is thirsty?
Come to me, and drink whoever believes in me, as the scripture
has said, rivers of Living Water will flow from within, then he
calls himself The Living Water by this.
He meant the spirit whom those who believed.
Him were two later receive up to that time.
The spirit had not been given you know, if it had overshadowed
people but it never indwelt anyone.
Since Jesus had not yet been glorified which means died been
buried, and rose from the dead on hearing these words.
Some of the people said, surely this man is a prophet.
Other said, he's the Messiah still others.
How can the Messiah Come From Galilee?
I love this. It tells you how much people
didn't know about, Jesus? Does not the scripture.
Say the Messiah will come from David's, descendants, which by
the way he did, and you can read that in Matthew, 1 and Luke 3,
and from Bethlehem, the town were Jesus live, which you can
read in Luke 2, right? That's the people were divided.
They were arguing even though Jesus was from Bethlehem, they
were arguing, some wanted to seize him.
But no one laid a hand on him, this happened at the Feast of
booths or the Feast of Tabernacles.
That was a commanded feast in the Old Testament and it was
designed To help the Israelites. Remember when God was with them
in the wilderness, When they were living in tents and and
they all encamped around the Tabernacle that's makeshift
Temple. And God was there with them and
he was a pillar of fire night and he was a cloud by day.
And so you remember that that's how he provided warmth and
that's in a desert and that's how he provided shade In the
Heat of the day time. And of course the manna that
fell down from heaven, you know man.
It doesn't mean bread. It means what is it?
Did you know that? That's that I'm not kidding.
It's Hebrew for. What is it?
Mana. So they were remembering, this
Feast, you may also remember that when they were in the
wilderness when they were thirsty, God told Moses to speak
to Iraq. This is really kind of
interesting. You know, I want you to speak to
a rock really, they're thirsty. You want me talking to a rock?
Yeah. Speak to a rock and then I'm
going to bring water out of it. But instead of doing what God
Said, Moses took his staff and struck the Rock and then took
credit away from God. Because he said, shall I bring
water out of this rock for you? He couldn't bring.
You couldn't do that. And for that reason, God
punished him disciplined him and said, he could look into the
promised land, but he was not going to be allowed to go in.
So here in the story of Jesus Calling himself the Water of
Life, you actually see this Feast is Festival actually being
fulfilled. Jesus is God in human form.
John's already told you that and he is living with these people.
He is dwelling with these people.
God, with us Emmanuel. He's there.
Right in the wilderness of their lives.
In the thirstiness of their souls.
And he says, I'm the Living Water.
If you drink of me, you will never be thirsty again.
John further relates that Jesus was referring not just to
himself, but to the Holy Spirit, the spirit of God that was
coming. But how many of them would be
there when he was teaching this on, the Feast of booths of the
Feast of Tabernacles? How many of them would be there
at Pentecost? After Jesus had risen?
Ascended into heaven. When the Holy Spirit actually
did come down. Once again.
That would be the Jesus. They never knew.
Because intimacy with Jesus comes when we receive the Holy
Spirit, even if they heard him, talk about the Water of Life,
unless they had experienced, the reality of that coming to past,
they would never know. Him, that way only the ones who
invited the Holy Spirit to come into their life, would
understand how a River of Life could flow from them.
See, that's what the that's what Peter said in the very first
sermon. We just sang about how how the
Church of Christ was born in the spirit.
Lit, the flame. Did you hear those words?
When they all looked at Peter and the rest of the Apostles and
said, what do we do? And he said, repent and be
baptized every one of you. In the name of Jesus Christ, for
the remission of your sins and you will receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit. And 3000 said, yes.
That day. But for everyone else.
It was the Jesus. That they never knew is Jesus
your living water? Is he making the desert of your
life Bloom? Is he making the desert of your
past Bloom? Is he the fountain that washes
away your sins. Or is he the Jesus you never
knew. Third illustration, that John
gives us Jesus calls himself, the light of the world, John
8:12, to 14, when Jesus spoke again to the people.
He said, I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will
never walk in darkness, but will have the light of Life.
The Pharisees challenged him. Here you are appearing as your
own witness. Your testimony is not valid
basically calling him a liar. Jesus answered, even if I Fie on
my own behalf. My testimony is valid for I know
where I came from and I know where I'm going.
You see they didn't He did they didn't but you have no idea
where I came from or where I'm going.
No, they didn't know about him and they didn't know about
themselves. Jesus answered, even if I
testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid for.
I know where I came from and I know where I'm going.
You have no idea where I come from or where I'm going.
You see, Jesus is teaching and he's being challenged by the
Pharisees which was common during his ministry and he
promises this awesome thing. You'll Never Walk in darkness,
you'll have the light of life See the truth about these
Pharisees was they were walking in darkness.
They were walking in darkness and they didn't have any light
to share with anyone and they didn't have any life to share
with anyone. We go on in John 8, verse 19 to
20, and they asked him. Where is your father?
You do not know me or my father. Jesus replied.
If you knew me you would know my father also talking about the
darkness that they're walking in and the fact I have no life or
light to give he spoke these words while teaching in the
temple courts near the place where the offerings were put
yet. No one sees him because his hour
had not yet. Come look at the 27th of the
30th verse They did not understand that he was telling
them about his father. So Jesus said, when you have
lifted up the son of man, you know what?
That's referring to you, right? The cross then you'll know that
I'm, he and that I do nothing on my own but I speak just what the
father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me,
he's not left me alone. For I always do what pleases
him. Even as he spoke many believed
in him. when you get the most benefit of a light, Is it is it
when you like hold it down, maybe if you want to look at
something really close. But if you really want that
light to have an effect on the space that's around you, you
lift it up, right? And when Jesus was lifted up on
that cross, for those who believed him, he was a beacon of
light, a beacon of light of lot of life, and of hope that was
sent out into the whole world. But only received by those who
believed him for the Pharisees. This was the Jesus they never
knew. And they never knew him because
they valued the darkness that was around me.
Is this how you know, Jesus? Is he the light of Your World?
Is he dispelling? The darkness that's around.
You is he illuminating your path?
Is he the light that is lifted up on a cross to enable you to
see the world as it truly is and yourself as you truly are.
Or is he the Jesus you never knew.
You see what John's doing? He's helping you to understand
Jesus bread of life, living water light of the world, one
more. The Good Shepherd, we read about
this in John 10. I'm the Good Shepherd.
The Good Shepherd, lays down his life for the Sheep, so he's
prophesying about his death. The Hired Hand is not the
shepherd and does not own the Sheep.
So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons, the sheep and runs
away, then the wolf attacks in the flock, the flock, and
scatters it. The man runs away because he's a
Hired Hand cares. Nothing for the Sheep.
I'm the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep.
My sheep know me just as the father knows me.
And I know the father and I lay down my life for the Sheep.
I have other sheep that are not from this sheep in.
That's you because, you know, this ministry was to the Jews,
but he wasn't coming just for the Jews.
He was coming for the whole world Gentiles as well.
I must bring them also that should bring us to They too
will. Listen to my voice and there
shall be one flock, and one Shepherd.
And that beautiful, the reason, my father loves me, is that I
lay down my life, only to take it up again, that's powerful.
No one takes it from me. I lay it down of my own accord.
I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up.
Again, this command I received from my father, now, shepherding
was familiar, very familiar to the nation of Israel.
It was in their culture, goes all the way back 1,000 years
before this, even before that. But it was really made a part of
their culture, when David, who was a Shepherd boy, became a
king and wrote things like the Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not want. And he goes on.
So it became a symbol of God leading His People, Israel.
Now I'm Ask you a question from what position?
Does a shepherd shepherd. His sheep.
How does he lead his sheep? Some of you might think, well,
he leads from the front because he knows the way to go and the
Sheep follow aft. And if you if you say he that
the shepherd leads from the front, you're exactly right.
He does. He leads from the front.
You know why? Because the Sheep knows Shepherd
and they trust the shepherd. And so wherever he leads, they
follow because they know that he sustains them, he sustains them
with Green Pastures, he sustains them was Still Waters.
He he Them by having leading them to Safe places.
Some of you like I knew, I thought I knew that answer,
right? Some of you are like, oh man, I
thought I've seen pictures where the Sheep are in front and the
shepherd is actually behind them.
So if you thought that the shepherd leads from behind,
guess what? You're exactly right.
Because it's that way. He's able to minister to the
Sheep. When their obstinate, any
obstinate sheep in the room, any obstinance sheep and it left her
locations online or inside. Oh yeah, we can definitely be
obstinate. We can be you prideful.
We can be egocentric. We want what we want and we can
get distracted, you know, sheep or not, really, particularly
intelligent animals, they are they look down and they see
grass and they go. And then they eat and then they
move a little forward. There's some grass and they eat
and then they poop and then they eat it, some more.
And when you're, when you're living your life with your head
down all the time, it's easy to get distracted and then to get
lost, right? And so when the shepherd is
behind, he's able to watch for that.
And if the Shepherd of the sheep start going this way, or that
way, he's able to him, them back in and keep them in the
protection of the full flock, he keeps his eyes on them and he
protects them actually from themselves, right?
Some of you are really, really clever.
When I ask that question and you didn't think either in front or
behind, you know, you're that you're that like extra special
person. Who said, I think that the
shepherd is beside The Sheep. You're exactly right.
He is beside the Sheep, that's why he carries his rod and
staff, because if there's some Predator that wants to come in,
he makes he puts himself in between the predator and the
prey. Right.
And he uses that rod and staff to fight off the predator.
And because he's right there with them.
Next to them, he's reassuring them with his closeness that
they know he's willing to die for them.
You might be saying, well, wait a minute, Jerry a shipper can
only be at one place at one time, right?
So, maybe they move from one place to another, depending on
the circumstances and you'd be right in every case, except for
one, because our Good Shepherd can be in all three places at
once he can lead us from front, he can lead us from behind and
walk behind beside us at the same time.
But for those religious leaders, this was the Jesus.
They never knew. Jesus was leading.
But they were not going to follow.
I want to ask you today is Jesus.
The Shepherd of your soul. Is he directing your path from
before you? Is he hitting you in from behind
you. Is he protecting you from being?
Besides you does he open the gate for you so that, you know,
that you're a part of his flock? Is he the one who lays down his
life for you so that you could be saved?
Or is he the Jesus? You never knew.
Ultimately John gives you these forward pictures that Jesus
provided him so that you'll know him better.
I want you. To be my bread of life.
I want you to be the Living Water that not just flows into
me, but out of me through me and out of me to a world that's
parched with thirst. I want you to be my light, the
light of my world so that I see it and you and myself as it
truly is and I want you to be my good shepherd, Because I can't
get to my destination without you.
This is how, you know, Jesus, intimately.
And personally and I want to ask you what obstacle is in the way
of you seeing him. And following him right now so
that he can be the Jesus, you knew.
We're moving to a time, a decision.
Some of you going. That's like five chapters from
The Book of John there. Yeah, it's a lot because you
could you could do a series of sermons on a half a verse In
John, but maybe this is good for us to get the big picture.
I would imagine that. There's some people here in this
room today. That you might know about Jesus.
You might have some Notions about Jesus.
Beliefs about religion and how that should fit in your life.
so, did all of those people that never knew him They had some
presuppositions about Jesus. whether it applied to Healing,
teaching the next meal, Right, but they never really knew.
You're here today and you don't have an intimate personal
relationship with Jesus Christ. Don't let this day end.
With Jesus being the Jesus, you never knew.
Make this day that day. the day that you refuse to leave, even
if you didn't understand, even if it doesn't, all make sense to
you, The day that you say, I want to have a relationship with
you because where else am I going to go?
You have the words of Life Jesus, there's going to be
somebody right over there by that baptistry, that would love
nothing more than to talk to you about your next steps walking
with the Lord. And this day will be the most
pivotal important day of your life.
And there's only one obstacle standing in the way of you and
that outcome. And that's you So, maybe today
is the day you get yourself out of the way and let Jesus have
his way. For many of you here today
you're saying I can't, I don't I know Jesus that way.
I know him that way and I think well, that's fantastic, that's
great. But I wonder right now.
How you're actually feeling if you search your soul, are you
thirsty? Do you feel like that you're in
a dry land? Does your life feel parts right
now? Do you need to be reminded?
That he has a River of Life that he can flow into you and they
can proceed out of you. Are you hungry?
Maybe not for the things of this world and you can satisfy that
with lunch in a little bit. But I'm talking about the things
that satisfy for all time. Are you hungry?
I need something substantial. I'm not up here.
To make you feel better about yourself.
I'm not up here to give you therapy.
I'm here for one reason, and that is to tell you the word of
God, because that's the only thing that will change you.
And Jesus is the only thing that will change you.
And the Holy Spirit is the only thing that will change you.
Not me, not this church him. And that's where the power comes
from, from his word. And right now you might be
feeling hungry or thirsty or you might feel like you're stumbling
around in the darkness because you've been playing where the
darkness and the light come together a little too long and
I'm telling you come up here, you get down on your knees and
you tell the Lord, I want you to be my living bread.
I want you to be my Living Water.
I want you to light my world and he'll be your Shepherd.
He's there right now. He's with you right now in this
room right now. I want you to consider that.
Would you stand with me? Take advantage of this moment.
let this be the moment where, you know, Jesus Heavenly father,
I pray in Jesus name that you would all the obstacles.
All of the inadequacies, all the insecurities, all the ego, all
the pride. All of the stuff that we bring
into this room right now. Father, would you let it fall?
Would you tear it apart? Like you did the veil in the
temple? So that we can just see your
son. And run to him.
And let him do what only he can do in Jesus name.
Amen. And let him do what only he can
do in Jesus name. Amen.