Genuine Worship And Striving For The Crown

[0:00] Welcome. Thank you for choosing to listen to another faith-building message by Pastor David Entry. Faith comes by hearing and by hearing the Word of God.

[0:12] May your knowledge of Jesus Christ increase as you listen. Be blessed. In Hebrews chapter 12, thank you Jesus.

[0:22] Verse 22, it says that, But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.

[0:39] When we are born again, we are introduced into all kinds of spiritual realities. It might not be physical. So when you read the text, it starts from verse 18.

[0:51] Verse 18 says that, For ye are not come unto mountains that might be touched, and that burns with fire, nor unto blackness and darkness of tempest.

[1:04] Now, with the Israelites, you see, God has always had a way of dealing with His people. So in the days of Israel, He dealt with them, as in the Old Testament days, He dealt with them slightly different, based on physical norms, material norms.

[1:21] So the presence of God was like, it was in the tabernacle with the ark of the covenant. Even though God is bigger than that, it was symbolic of His presence with them in the days of Israel.

[1:37] And there was a particular place, the temple, that's where they were supposed to go and offer worship. They were all supposed to gather around the tabernacle. There were norms, there were rituals, there were forms, there were postures, there were ceremonial attires, there were customs that they had to adhere to in dealing with God.

[1:56] But for those of you who have been following the teachings, the woman said, okay, now the contention has been, which particular mountain are we supposed to worship? You Jews say, is this in Jerusalem? But our fathers also said in Jerusalem, according to John chapter 4, verse 16 down.

[2:11] So the woman asked Jesus, which mountain? Then Jesus said, the time is coming and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For God is a spirit, and those that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.

[2:25] The point here is that Jesus Christ clearly told them that the worship of the Father has switched from physical location or from forms and material things, tangible things.

[2:38] So being a true worshipper is not predicated on the tangible things you can see and touch. That is why we do not need images necessarily, images in our places of worship necessarily.

[2:52] The reason why we have crosses in places is because in Christianity, the cross is so symbolic. But even the physical cross is not what we need.

[3:03] The point or the center of our worship has not got to do with physical norms, has not got to do with material settings. The center of our worship has everything to do with, first of all, the condition of our hearts.

[3:16] And the God we know and who we are for, we focus the worship, the true worshipper. Please, I want to encourage everybody, try and revisit that message again. Listen to it over and over.

[3:28] It will open your eye into certain depths that you initially did not see. Because remember, faith comes by hearing and hearing. So the first hearing doesn't really work.

[3:41] Say something. You have to hear again. You have to hear again. You have to hear again. So as I was teaching there that time, I said, the more you're hearing, the more the faith comes.

[3:54] So faith has a lot to do with after the first hearing. The first hearing doesn't do it. It's after the first hearing. Romans 10, 17. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

[4:07] So it's so important to understand. So Jesus came and told them that worship is not based on forms anymore. Worship is based on the spirit and the truth.

[4:19] So according to Hebrews, what I was just reading, in Hebrews chapter 12, verse 18, it says that you have not come to a mountain that can be touched. Our worship is not based on what can be touched.

[4:32] Then he went on to speak a bit more. Verse 22, he said that, so you can connect verse 18 straight to verse 22. He said, but here come unto Mount Zion, unto the city of the living God.

[4:43] Where is it? It is not physical. The city of the living God. Unto the heavenly Jerusalem. This Jerusalem is not tangible, physically touchable. Yeah, yeah. All right?

[4:54] Unto the heavenly Jerusalem. Unto the God, the judge of all. Unto the spirits of just men made perfect. And so you are dealing with people's spirits. This is the intensity of our worship.

[5:06] So even though we can't see each other physically, we can connect with each other spiritually. Hallelujah. So what? In the modern day New Testament, the New Testament post-resurrection walk with God.

[5:21] It is not based on physical locations and norms, but it is based on spiritual reality. That is why the Holy Spirit had to come. So the Holy Spirit comes and he's in me.

[5:32] He's in you. He's in her. He's in him. He's in us. He's in them. That is what makes us one body. Yes. Now, when it comes to the local church, the local church is the physical and visible, tangible representation of the big Christian body, the universal church.

[5:51] And so right now, I know most of you here, most of you here know me. You know somebody and we are all part of the Carys family. That makes us a local church. Amen. And it's important.

[6:02] And when God has a message to the church, he doesn't give it first to the universal church. He sends it into the local church. And then from the local church, it impacts the universal church.

[6:13] So as I quoted this morning, Revelation chapter 2, verse 7. Can I do my normal thing I like? Revelation chapter 2. Revelation chapter 2, verse 7. Revelation chapter 2, verse 11.

[6:25] Revelation chapter 2, verse 17. Revelation chapter 2, verse 29. Revelation chapter 3, verse 6. Revelation chapter 3, verse 13. Revelation chapter 3, verse 22. All these things.

[6:36] He says, watch this. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He didn't say to the body of Christ. By saying to the churches. Because if it's to the churches, that means individual church.

[6:49] 1, church 2, church 3, church 4, church 5, church 6, church 7, church 8, church 5. That is what makes the churches. Right? That means he's talking to individual churches. Yes, yes.

[7:01] But when he started the letter, he said to the church of Ephesus. Revelation chapter 2, verse 1. The church of Ephesus. So a particular church. He's assigned the letter straight to a particular church.

[7:12] But it's meant for not the body of Christ. But it's meant for the churches. Once we say churches. Watch this. I'm about to say something very important. Once you hear the word churches.

[7:22] You are talking about those who are alive. Yes. Once you hear the big word. I'll build my church. It's talking about everybody who has been born again from the day Jesus left and until now.

[7:36] Wow. Including Paul. They are all part of the church. But as soon as you talk about churches. You are talking about the living saints. Those of us who are alive. Wow. Those who are dead and gone.

[7:48] Theologians. Church history. Or church scholars. And church fathers call them. They call them the church triumphants. They have triumphed. They have lived their life. And they have gone. They have passed the pattern over to us.

[7:59] And we are supposed to upheld the purpose of God on earth. And win souls. And call the other people God is calling. Call them back home. Amen. Amen. Amen. He said you have come to the spirit of just man made perfect.

[8:14] So when we gather like this. Even though we can't see each other. Our spirits are interconnected. Because we are one. We are one. Ephesians chapter 4 from verse 3. He said endeavor to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.

[8:27] For there is one God. One baptism. One faith. One father. One hope. We share a lot of things in common. Seven things that will make us one. The oneness we have.

[8:38] It is like the blood that flows in your toe. Is not different from the blood that is flowing in your ears. Yes. So it's except blood from your ear. The blood genotype will not be different from the blood that is flowing in your eyes.

[8:50] It's the same life. It is one life. That is why the body has oneness. It's one body. We also are one body. That means that the power of God that is flowing through you is the same thing that flows through me.

[9:02] Amen. It's the same thing that flows through her. It's the same thing that flows through her. We are one. We are one. We don't have to be at one place to be one. We are one by virtue of our connection to Jesus.

[9:13] By virtue of the fact that we are born again and we are all the sons of God. Hallelujah. Somebody shout hallelujah. Hallelujah. Watch this. He said, Hebrews chapter 12 again, verse 23.

[9:26] To the general assembly of the church of the firstborn. Now, this is what made me come here. We have come into the general assembly. It is always good not to exempt yourself from the general assembly.

[9:36] Wow. Wow. General assembly. Do that. It's a general assembly. It's nice. I don't even know why somebody will exempt themselves if it's not for critical, necessary, legitimate reasons.

[9:49] Yes. Yes. Yes. Why? You want to exempt yourself. We are sharing the same blessedness of the favor of God. Come on. Amen. I see God doing something new in your life.

[10:00] Amen. So shall it be. There's a short word that is on my heart which I want to speak to you all. It's in 1 Corinthians chapter 9.

[10:10] I'm reading from verse 24. The Bible says that, Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize, so run that he may obtain.

[10:23] People who run a race, all run, but one receives the prize. So what should you do? You should run in such a way that you will receive the prize.

[10:35] There is prize ahead. There is a blessing ahead. The blessing of God is coming on you. Amen. Blessing ahead. You will, as I said earlier on, you won't have to explain to people how God is blessing.

[10:49] They will see it. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. He said, don't you know that those who run in a race all run, but run receive the prize.

[11:03] Then he says that soul ran. That soul ran. You have to run in a way, in such a way that you will receive the prize. Amen. Verse 25 says that, and every man that strives for mastery is temperate in all things.

[11:19] Now, they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we are incorruptible crown. Now, that means that when people run, the athletes, who send boats, Mo Farah and those guys, when they are running, they actually are, they discipline themselves so that they can win that prize.

[11:36] They can win the gold medal. There's nobody who wins a gold medal by accident. Wow. Okay. Okay. All right. You have to work for it.

[11:48] So he says that if they work for it, so we also, he said, they even work for gold medal that when you die, that's it. You can't get it again. It will perish.

[11:59] It can be stolen. You can miss it. You can lose it. Yes. Yes. Yes. It's called, it's a perishable crown. But we, we, we are doing, he said, watch this. Look at the verse 25 again.

[12:11] He said, every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we are incorruptible crown. Wow. So that means that we are also striving for masteries.

[12:24] Hmm. They are striving for masteries. We are striving for masteries, but their masteries, the resource of their masteries is different from the resource. Their resource is corruptible. In other words, it is not eternal.

[12:35] It's temporal. But the resource of what we are contesting for is it has eternal weight of glory. According to 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 17. It has eternal weight of glory.

[12:47] It's heavy in glory. Hallelujah. So we do it for a corruptible crown. We don't do it for, but even those who are doing it for a corruptible crown, watch this.

[12:58] The Bible said they are temperate in all things. Do you know what it means to temperate? They are patient. They are controlled. Brother, control your desires.

[13:08] Control. Control. Control. Control your emotions. Control. Why? Because you are contesting for a crown.

[13:20] Wow. Amen. It's the way. I do this based on, I feel, I feel, I feel. You are contesting for a crown. So if you are contesting for a crown, it is necessary.

[13:32] It behooves, it behooves you to be temperate in all things. Sometimes somebody may even upset you. Somebody may annoy you. But it is necessary and it behooves you to be temperate.

[13:44] Amen. And you receive grace to be temperate. Amen. Amen. Let me read it. I want to read it from the Amplified Bible. The Amplified Bible says that, do you not know that in a race, all the runners compete, but only one receive the prize.

[13:59] That's verse 24. Let me go to verse 25. Now, every athlete who goes into training conducts himself temperately and restricts himself in all things. There needs to be a certain level of restriction in getting the crown.

[14:13] Restriction is part of winning the trophy. Yes. Wow. Wow. Anyone who ever wins a trophy has restricted himself. Wow. Oh, yeah.

[14:24] I don't know why God laid this on my heart. To bring it to somebody's attention, that restriction is necessary because of who you are. And so the point I'm making here is that you have got a greater crown.

[14:36] Amen. Because of that, you must be controlled and restricted in every area of your life. Wow. You can do whatever you feel like doing, Roy.

[14:47] Oh, no. No, no. No, no. No, no. You can do everything you want to do. Others are doing it, but you, sorry, I can't do it. I'm a representative of God. I'm Jesus's ambassador.

[14:58] So I can do it. Yes. Yes. Yes. I can do this. Yes. So back to King James, he said that you have to be temperate in office. Verse 26. He said, I therefore so not as unsettling, so fight I, not as one that beats the head.

[15:15] I'm not fighting endlessly. I am targeted in my restrictions. I know what I'm doing. Look at best. He said, but I keep under my body and bring it into subjection.

[15:29] Lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast away. God forbid. Let me read it from the Amplified Bible.

[15:42] It says that, therefore, I do not run uncertainly or without definite aim. I do not box like one beating the head and striking without an adversary.

[15:56] But like a boxer, I buffet my body, handle it roughly, discipline it by hardship. I do not say it. I do not say it. I do not say it.

[16:07] I do not say it. For fear that after proclaiming to others the gospel and the things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit, not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit.

[16:27] I see. Nice. If I don't do this, you see, for those of us who are doing this church team, you can't just do church and then you behave well.

[16:39] Rather than that you teach it of faith, it will come across like counterfeit. Counterfeit. Counterfeit. But I know you are not a counterfeit. Amen.

[16:50] You are the real deal. Yes. Yes. Yes. I am the real deal. You can do the name of Jesus. Amen. So this is the scripture God laid on my heart that we are in a race. You have to discipline yourself so you can run effectively.

[17:02] You can run towards the mark. Yes. Press on. Philippians chapter 3, verse 14. I press on towards the mark of the high calling of Christ.

[17:14] The Lord laid on my heart. I'm telling you that this scripture, it says that run in such a way that you may obtain the prize. Thank you. Run. Live your Christian life in such a way that you will be the one who is obtaining the prize in the name of Jesus Christ.

[17:29] Amen. Thank you for listening. To hear more from David Entry, follow him on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Why don't you subscribe to our YouTube channel at Karis Church and subscribe to our podcast so you are always up to date.

[17:47] Be blessed.