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[0:00] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. This is the next message in our series on the book of John entitled, Jesus is God.

[0:15] That is a great Bible truth that we all ought to know from the bottom of our hearts. We embrace the cross. It's the cross where Jesus died. It's the cross that we live our lives based on that.

[0:26] We embrace the cross and grace what Jesus did on the cross of Calvary for us. Take your Bibles if you would and go with me to Hebrews chapter, or Hebrews John chapter 12. By now you would think I would know we're in the book of John.

[0:38] You would think that I should know that. John chapter 12 if you would. I'm just so grateful this morning for the Lord Jesus and what he's done. I thank him for dying on a cross and shedding his blood on Calvary's tree so I could be saved.

[0:51] If it wasn't for him I would not be saved nor would any of you. Jesus did it all. I thank him for giving us his word. Without his word we wouldn't know what to do. We wouldn't know how to live.

[1:02] We wouldn't have it written on our hearts. We wouldn't have the Holy Spirit working in it. I thank him for a church. A church where his word can be preached and where we can worship together. And I just thank God for that. I thank him for sending each of you and putting us together.

[1:15] A group of people from different places and different backgrounds. But he formed a church. And that's wonderful and beautiful. And I thank God for that. I thank him for all the different people he's brought together. And I thank God for you and how you have sacrificed financially.

[1:30] And you've given to send missionaries around the world. And you've given to keep this ministry going for six years. And God's just been good to us. And you ought to praise the Lord for this morning. And just say thank you Lord Jesus.

[1:40] How many of you thank him and say amen? It's been great. And he's been good. And it's a wonderful thing to serve him. Now I want to talk to you this morning about fruitfulness coming out of death.

[1:51] Now that's the opposite of what we think. We think that when something or someone dies it's over. But Jesus is about to die. And he's going to make it very clear.

[2:02] Fruitfulness comes out of death. And if you're a born again Christian. If you love Jesus and are going to serve him. You'll find out that your fruitfulness comes out of death. Read with me verse 23.

[2:12] And then we'll pray. The Bible says in verse 23. And Jesus answered them saying the hour is come. You ought to underline that in your Bible. The hour is come that the son of man should be glorified.

[2:26] Father I pray you would speak today. Jesus I pray that your name would be glorified. Holy Spirit I pray that you would convict people. And I pray you'd let us fall in love with you. I pray God that you'd help us today to die.

[2:37] So that you could use us. To put aside our preferences. And our plans. And our goals. And to honor you Lord Jesus. That your name might be great. And I'll give you praise and honor and glory.

[2:48] For it all in Jesus precious name. Amen. Well you might mark beside this verse. It's time to die. Jesus said in the verse. The hour is come.

[2:59] He hasn't been talking like that anywhere else in the gospel. Up until now. Every time he said it's not time yet. It's not time yet. This isn't a morbid statement. This isn't a statement like okay.

[3:10] It's time for me to die. He's going to have some physical feelings about dying. And that's going to be discussed later. But basically he's saying well. It's time. I'm here. I came for this reason.

[3:21] And it's about to happen. It's time to die. So if you would think with me. Think with me. I want you to open your Bible to Luke 24. 24 25. And I want to just show you a couple of things.

[3:33] Let me just say the Jewish people were probably hoping. When he said the time has come. They were probably hoping. He means he's about to take over. He's going to overthrow the Romans. And he's going to set up an earthly kingdom.

[3:44] Because when people look at the Bible. And they look at God. And they look at Jesus. They're expecting something temporal. Something temporary. Something that's happening right now. They're expecting something that they can feel.

[3:56] And see it as tangible. But Jesus had come not to set up a kingdom. But to die. He did not come to set up a kingdom. He came to die. He came to buy our salvation.

[4:08] It was time for him to die. And he knew that. Now in Luke chapter 24. He's already died. And he has been buried. And he's risen again. And he's walking down the road.

[4:19] Timaeus with some guys. And I want you to notice what he says. Now you need to understand today. Because when you watch TV. And when you see movies about Easter. And movies about Jesus. The basic idea is that Jesus was a good guy.

[4:32] He had a really funny birth. A miraculous birth. Maybe he was born a virgin. Maybe he wasn't. There was a star. Maybe there wasn't. Maybe there wasn't an angel singing. And maybe shepherds came. And well at least we all know the story.

[4:42] And it could sound like a fable. And then he went about doing good. He was a good teacher. He was a good speaker. He healed people. He helped people. He was a good guy. And then one day these big bad mean Roman guys.

[4:55] And these big bad mean religious people grabbed him. And crucified him. And poor little Jesus. Often effeminate and sissy Jesus. Was grabbed and put to death.

[5:06] Well that's just completely Hollywood. It is not Bible. The Bible story is. He came saying. I'm here to die. And now it's all happened.

[5:17] And look if you went at Luke chapter 24. Look if you went at Luke chapter 24. And verse 25. The Bible said. Then said he unto them. Oh fools. And slow of heart to believe.

[5:28] All that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things. And to enter into his glory. And beginning at Moses. And all the prophets. He expounded of them. All the scriptures concerning himself.

[5:40] I just want you to imagine. They don't really know yet that he is Jesus. They think he's dead. They think he's buried. And he's walking down the road. It is the risen Christ. And he's walking down the road with these guys.

[5:52] And as he goes walking down the road. They're saying. Man this is sad isn't it? Jesus died. And we was expecting great things. We thought he was going to set up a kingdom. We had all these great ideas. And all these great plans. And it's all over. And he looks up and says.

[6:03] Man I am not believing you guys. You are slow. You are not very intelligent. You are not very faithful. You don't understand the basic stuff. He said let me just show you. I'll start in the book. A book of Genesis.

[6:13] And I'm going to take you through the Bible. And I'm going to show you that. The Christ. Jesus. Had to suffer those things. The first thing I want you to realize this morning is. Jesus came to die on purpose.

[6:27] You need to know he came to die on purpose. When he came to the earth. He came to die on purpose. In Matthew 20. 28. He came to give his life a ransom for many. When he set up the Lord's Supper.

[6:37] In Matthew chapter 26 verse 28. He's sitting there with them. He's still alive. They don't really know he's going to die. Though he's told them over and over. And he's setting up the Lord's Supper the first time. And he says. This is my blood of the New Testament.

[6:49] Which is shed for the remission of many. He said. Hey guys. This cup here is going to represent my blood. They don't even figure that out. What in the world is he talking about? This must be some kind of Da Vinci code going on here.

[7:01] We don't get it. How can that grape juice be his blood? What's going to happen? He said. This is my blood. Which is shed for you. I'm here to die. And I'm about to die. And I'm going to die on purpose. In John chapter 12.

[7:12] You remember the lady came. And she poured ointment on his feet. And Judas got all upset. And said. What are you doing? Why are you wasting all the money on the ointment? And Jesus said to him. In John chapter 12. In verse 7.

[7:23] He said. Then said Jesus. Let her alone. Against the day of my burying. It's only about a week. He said. Guys. Guys. She's putting that ointment on my feet.

[7:34] Because I'm fixing to die. And they're going to bury me. In John chapter 10. Verses 15 through 18. He said this to them. He's just talking to his disciples. He said.

[7:44] Guys. Let me explain something to you. I came to lay down my life. Nobody's going to take it away from me. I lay it down on my own desires.

[7:55] And my own purpose. And I will pick my life back up. And again. My father told me to do this. It's my father's will that I do this. I've come to die. Jesus came to die.

[8:07] And he wasn't the least bit embarrassed about that. Somehow you got this feeling. That it was an accidental death. It was a murderous crowd. It was a bunch of guys.

[8:17] Who caught a guy walking through Grant Park. And downtown Atlanta. And beat the poor guy up. And he died. And so he made up a story to go along with it. No, no, no, no, no, no. He came. Said. I'm going to die. I am here to die.

[8:30] You remember when he was walking down the road. With the disciples one day. And Peter. He's talking. And he says. He says. I'm going to Jerusalem. And they're going to kill me. And Peter said. Whoa. That ain't happening. Let's just stop the story right there.

[8:42] Put it in his tracks. Stop the story. We're not going to go back to Jerusalem. We're not going to let them kill you. Do you understand? That's not going to happen. And Jesus. Looks at Peter. And says. Get you behind me. Satan. He said.

[8:53] You don't like spiritual things. You don't have a spiritual flavor in your mouth. You don't enjoy truth. The truth is. I came to die. The truth is. That I came to die.

[9:04] That's in Luke. It's in Mark chapter 8. Verses 31 through 33. So there are these two comings. And Jesus came to die. So I just want you to understand this morning. In John chapter 12.

[9:16] The Bible says. The hour. Is come. It's time. I'm here. I'm here. To die. We're throwing the lever. We're pushing the button.

[9:27] We're paying the cross. We're pulling the trigger. It's time. I came. To die. Now that's very important. It's very important for you. We're going to get to a practical application.

[9:40] The way I live today. But let me just say this. If Jesus died by mistake. Then your salvation wouldn't be real. Do you understand that? If he came down.

[9:51] This can't be some story. That the apostles all made up. Hey we were about to set up a kingdom. And I was going to sit on his right hand. And he was going to sit on his left hand. And we had two swords. And we were ready to go into battle.

[10:01] And I chopped off that guy's ear. And they still got him killed. And oh man. We got to steal him out of the grave. We got to act like he didn't really die. We got to tell everybody that it didn't really happen. And we got to make up some story to go along with this.

[10:13] And if that's the truth. Then everything we're doing here is a sham and a game and nothing. But if. Jesus is the Christ.

[10:24] The son of God. Come to earth. On purpose. To die. And he died to pay sin's debt. Then I can be saved.

[10:36] How many of you believe he came on purpose? Say amen. That's what the Bible says. How many of you know that he was for real God in human flesh? Amen. How many of you realize he came to pay your sin debt? That's what happened.

[10:46] He came to die. Had he not died. Heaven. Would be empty. For all eternity. Because no human being. I'm saying of humans.

[10:57] To still be God. The father. God. The son. God. The holy spirit. There'd still be the angels and the cherubim. There'd be all the. All the. Angelic beings. But we wouldn't be there. Jesus death. Brought salvation.

[11:08] To all of us. In Hebrews chapter 9. In verse 28. The Bible says. So Christ was once offered. To bear the sins of many. And unto them that look unto him. Shall he appear the second time. Unto salvation.

[11:19] The writer of Hebrews had it right. Jesus came the first time. To pay for sin. He's coming back. To bring our salvation. The second time. The second thing. I want you to look at. Take your Bible. Look at John. Chapter 12.

[11:30] If you would. In verse 24. When he said that. Maybe they don't understand it. Maybe they don't get it. So he says this to them. He gives them an illustration. To help them understand it.

[11:41] He says. Verily. Verily. I say unto you. Except a corn of wheat. Fall into the ground and die. It abideth alone. But if it die. It bringeth forth. Much fruit.

[11:53] He said. You know what. If you don't. If. If. If. If. If. If a grain of wheat. Doesn't die. And if a grain of wheat. Isn't buried. Then it won't bring forth fruit. I don't know if you've ever been around.

[12:04] A garden. How many of you do gardening. Hold your hand up. You ever done gardening. Very few of us do gardening. In Alpharetta. It's too easy to go to Publix. Our gardening is Publix. Our garden is Walmart.

[12:15] Or Kroger. But you know. If you. If you're. If you're working on a garden. I mean. You take this plant. And this. A seed. And you throw it in the ground. And you bury that seed. In the cold. Earth.

[12:25] And you leave it in there. In the earth. Ready to be. Buried. Dead. And gone. But you know. What's going to happen. That one piece of corn. If it was corn. Because I'm a. We used to raise corn. That one grain of corn.

[12:37] Will end up producing. Something like. 1400 kernels of corn. Minimum. From that one piece of corn. That one dies. And many come. And so Jesus gave them. An illustration. That he could.

[12:47] That they could get grass. Through his death. Jesus brought life. To many. You are saved. You're going to heaven. You have eternal life. Because of what Jesus did.

[12:58] On the cross of Calvary. His death. Brought salvation. But now Jesus is going to move. From I died. To talk to you. And he's going to say. Death.

[13:09] Brings forth fruitfulness. If Jesus hadn't died. There wouldn't be fruit. Of us being saved. If Jesus hadn't died. There wouldn't be eternal life. If Jesus hadn't died.

[13:20] Sins wouldn't be forgiven. If Jesus hadn't died. No one would go to heaven. And that's true. And he's telling them that. But he's fixing to move. In these verses. To say this. Guys.

[13:30] You that believe in Jesus. It's through death. That you reach fruitfulness. It's through death. That you reach fruitfulness. If you protect your life. You squelch.

[13:42] Your fruitfulness. If you protect your life. You squelch. Your fruitfulness. Human beings are about saving life. We're about CPR.

[13:53] And boats. That are rescue boats. And lifeguards. We're about anything we can. To preserve human life. And any other kind of life. That we can. We're all about saving face.

[14:04] And saving dignity. And not embarrassing. And Jesus is all about in this verse. If you want to really be fruitful. You're going to have to die. You know.

[14:15] I doubt it's very comfortable. In the mind of a piece of corn. If you could talk to that piece of corn. Or that piece of wheat. That grain of wheat. If you could talk to that grain of wheat. And say to that. We're about to take you away from everybody else that you know.

[14:27] We're about to bury you underground. And pour dirt on top of you. And leave you underground. And bury you. And walk away. I imagine the corn would say. The wheat would say. Please. Don't bury me.

[14:37] Please. Don't cover me with dirt. Please. Don't forget me. Please. Don't leave me. But the secret to that grain of wheat. Bringing forth fruit. Is that it must die.

[14:50] I doubt that's very comfortable. But you and I know this. Do you realize that we honor and respect. People who give their lives today. We honor and respect people that give their lives.

[15:03] A guy named Arlen Dean Williams Jr. Was a passenger on Air Florida Flight 90. And it crashed and take off in 1982. In Washington D.C. Killing 78 people. There are only six people that survived the crash.

[15:16] And they were trying to get him out. The water was frozen. There are chunks of ice everywhere. And this guy had no idea. He did not know anybody else. And if you are old enough to remember the story. He didn't know anybody else. And they finally fly a helicopter across.

[15:27] And they drop a rope down. And he is strong enough to grab the rope. And be pulled out. But instead of doing that. He handed the rope to somebody else. And he pushed it. And helped them get up. And he found another person that was weak.

[15:38] And he gave them the rope. And helped pull them up. And he gave the rope to another. And he helped pull them up. And they would pull all these people out. But one. And when they came back. The guy who had given the rope. To save everybody else's life.

[15:48] Was dead. They named streets after him. Families honored him. The president honored him. He was fruitful because he died.

[16:00] His life made a difference. But he gave his life. We honor that. It's amazing. It's amazing that we all understand. It's amazing that we all understand. That when you give your life for a cause. You may die.

[16:10] You may lose. But in the long run. There will be great things. 56 people signed the Declaration of Independence. Most of them will either be dead. Or broke. Before they form a country. And we still honor them today.

[16:21] A guy named Nathan Hale stood up. And when they were ready to kill him. He said. I only have one regret. And that is that I only have one life. That I can give. For my country. We honor the guys that were heroes on 9-11.

[16:34] They ran in. And many of them died saving other people. They died giving their life to save other people. Here's what the Bible said. Jesus said. I came to die. I came to die.

[16:45] I died on purpose. It's intentional. I mean to die. Jesus said. By the way. If you don't understand. Here's the big truth. If the grain of wheat doesn't fall into the ground. And get buried. It brings forth no fruit.

[16:56] If Jesus doesn't die. There will be no salvation. If Jesus doesn't die. There will be no church. If Jesus doesn't die. The church will have no existence. The Bible will have no meaning. None of it works.

[17:07] Jesus has got to die. And we look back on that. And I think it's easy. I think we all look back on it. And say. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's because you're not there. Peter loved him. He was like Peter's buddy.

[17:19] Peter and him walked down the road for three years. They talked and chewed the fat. Sent around the campfire. And drank coffee together. John was like the closest thing you can imagine. Mary and Martha and Lazarus.

[17:31] They were all buddies. And when he would look at them and say. I'm fixing to go die. They were like. No way. Don't die. We don't want you to die. We love you. It's a generic.

[17:42] And it's cold. And it's factual. To hear about Arlen Williams dying. Or we read about Nathan. And we say. That's great. But not if it's my son. Not if it's my family member.

[17:53] Not if it's somebody. I know they knew Jesus. And Jesus looked at him and said. Guys. I have to die. If I don't die. There'll be no fruit. If I don't die.

[18:04] If I'm not buried. There'll be no fruit. Then he moves. And the verses. Are you reading with me? Take your Bible. And go to John. Chapter 12. And verse 25. Now he moves straight to you.

[18:14] And there's no doubt. He's talking about the two of us. He said. He that loves his life. Shall lose it. And he that hates his life. In this world. Shall keep it.

[18:26] Under eternal life. Now here's the wild thing. I need you to look this way. Just a second. You see. When you become a Christian. There's something weird. That's supposed to go on in our lives.

[18:37] We are saved. We're made a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold. All things are become new. But did you know. No longer is your life. Your life. No longer are your plans. Your plans.

[18:47] You actually are supposed to. True born again. People are supposed to say. It's no longer what I want. It's what you want. I'll not seek my life. My passions. My dreams.

[18:58] My goals. But I'll seek yours. I'll no longer live my life. According to my dreams. And my plans. But I'll seek them. According to yours. Something extremely interesting.

[19:08] In the Bible. Human. Human nature. Is the opposite. Of the divine nature. The way we think of things. Is completely the opposite. Of the way God thinks of things. He says. Through death.

[19:19] You get fruitfulness. Through losing your life. You find your life. And maybe you ought to mark some of these down. And maybe you ought to meditate them. On them later. But in Jesus's economy. To go up.

[19:30] You must go down. In Jesus's economy. To live. You must die. To get. You must give. To be whole. You must be broken. To lead.

[19:40] You must serve. To find. You must lose. Read with me the verse again. Would you? John chapter 12. Verse 25. He that loveth his life. Shall lose it.

[19:52] He that hateth his life. In this world. Shall keep it. Under eternal life. I hope you'll understand. What that means. In just a second. What sounds pretty wild. Doesn't it? If you love your life. You're going to lose it.

[20:02] If you hate your life. You're going to win it. The life. You must hate. Is what we might call. Your ego. It's your thinking. Planning. And charting. Your future.

[20:13] It's your independent. Will. Do you remember. What it says. In Isaiah chapter 53. When it talks about. People needing to be saved. It's also mentioned. In Romans. Chapter. Chapter 3. You know what it says.

[20:24] In every man. Went his own way. Every man. Did his own thing. There was a famous song. I lived it my way. I did things my way. And that's the. That's the human song.

[20:36] That's the human being song. Is I live my. My way. I'll do things. My way. I'll do what. I want to do. And that's the song. But Jesus. Hold on a minute.

[20:47] If you love your life. You're going to lose it. And if you hate your life. You're going to. Find it. He said. The idea of loving your life. Is that you prefer. Your interest. Over God's.

[20:58] Would you look this way. Just a second. Well I think that is so true. I think many of us. Are still. We're born again Christians. But we're kind of like. Now God. I got my plan. And I got my dream. And I got my goals.

[21:08] And Lord. This is what I'm going to do. And this is where I'm going to go. And this is who I'm going to be. And this is me. Right here. And God. I'll work you in. When I can. I'll see if I can't give you. A few Sunday mornings.

[21:19] I'll see if I can't get a few minutes in for you. I'll see if I can't throw ten bucks. Your way. Every now and then. But God. I got my plans. You understand God. I got my plans. It's natural for me.

[21:29] To have my plans. It's natural. For me to want to do my stuff. Life. Jesus says. In verse 25. He that loves his life. Shall lose it. And he that hates his life in this world.

[21:42] Shall keep it. The idea of hating your life. Is that you would give preference to another. To prefer what Jesus wants. Over what you want. And if you've ever been on Marta.

[21:55] Or a bus. Or somewhere. Somewhere. And. You know. There's that seat that says. For handicapped people. And all the seats are taken. And you're in perfectly good shape.

[22:06] Except you. Are tired. And you walk over. And you're sitting there. And in comes somebody hobbling. And you're like. I'm not looking. If I don't make eye contact.

[22:18] If nobody says anything. I'll protect me. And they can stand. Or maybe. A lady comes in. Or an older lady comes in. And you don't stand up. Because you're protecting.

[22:29] Your interest. How many of you ever been guilty. That don't say a word. I don't want you lying. We've been guilty of it. Amen. I've been guilty of it. Amen. Here's what Jesus said. Hate your life. In this world.

[22:41] Give up your preferences. And your goals. By the way. This works out. In the way you drive down the interstate. I mean. Do you want to know what road rage is? Loving your life. Bless God.

[22:52] I have every right. You do not have a right. To merge right here. Well. Sometimes I think to myself. If I just had a machine gun. If I could just be Arnold Schwarzenegger.

[23:04] And ride down the road. Shooting tires out of big trucks. That cut into my lane. Because I have a right. To do this. And Jesus said. He that loves his life.

[23:14] Shall lose it. And he that hates his life. Shall keep it. Under eternal life. Living in Peru. It's a little different. In Peru. The basic rule is.

[23:25] Don't give an inch. To anybody. I remember the first time. I'd gotten my first vehicle. In Peru. And we drove down to this main. It's this main road. And cars are going up and down.

[23:36] And I. There aren't many cars. And I pulled to the edge of the thing. And there's a bunch of guys. Sitting in the car with me. And I waited for everybody to get. I was waiting for them. To give me an opening. I'd lived in America. In America. When you pull up. They give you an opening.

[23:48] And they. Five minutes went by. There wasn't any openings. Ten minutes went by. There weren't any openings. And the guy sitting beside me. He said. Stick your nose in there. I said. Well that's not very nice. He said.

[23:58] Stick your nose in there. So here comes a guy. And I saw. I had about two inches. I stuck my nose in real quick. And he slammed on his brakes. And he honked his horn. And I honked back at him. And I was going. I'm bigger than you are anyway. You little Peruvian.

[24:10] And then. He's there mad. And everybody else is going. And the guy said. Well come on. Get on in. Get on in. So I pushed on in. To the second lane. And then as soon as I got my chin. I stuck my nose in. And I worked my way across four lanes of traffic.

[24:22] Then I got back to America. After living that way for 19 years. You people. Are ridiculous. You got the zipper effect. One.

[24:33] One car. Then another. I was coming down. Mullinax. I was coming down Mullinax. And Filer Road cuts into Mullinax. And I looked up there. And there's nine million cars. Between me and the corner.

[24:44] And they keep letting another car in there. There's going to be 18 million cars. Before it's over. When I got up there. And it was time for me. To let the other guy in. I went. I said. That's one that ain't getting in here.

[24:55] Say amen. You can laugh all you want. You. You know. You're pretty good about traffic. But you're not pretty good. When it's Jesus wanting your money. Preacher.

[25:09] Don't you dare mention that offering stuff. That'll freak them out. Hey. Don't you mention that being faithful to church stuff. Don't you mention them. Letting Jesus rule in their life. Don't you mention letting them lose their life. You see what he's saying here.

[25:21] He said. You want to find your life. You must lose your life. The idea. Of preferring Jesus over your family. Your possessions. Your goals. Your plans. Your desires.

[25:31] Even your own. Life. Jesus said. Die to yourself. He that loves his life. Shall lose it. He that hates his life in this world. Shall keep it.

[25:42] Well you know. If you. I was. Where were we. I think. Robert and I were bringing some tables down or something. And there was this guy. And he was in a four wheel Jeep.

[25:53] And I know he was Peruvian. Because I lived with those Peruvian people a long time. And this guy had turned his left. He was in the turning lane. And he had his blinker on to turn left. Out of the turning lane. Where it shouldn't have been in the first place.

[26:04] And the guy in the Jeep. He got it right up there behind him. And I don't know if he put it in four wheel drive or not. But he jumped up on the curb. Run across the grass. And came down in front of him. I said. Yes. Peruvian. Amen. You see.

[26:17] We protect ourselves. And Jesus said. Hey. Fruitfulness. Comes out of. Death. Fruitfulness. Comes out of you. Not protecting your life.

[26:28] But honoring him. In Luke chapter 16. And verse 13. He said. No servant can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one. And love the other. Or else he will hold the one. And despise the other. You can't serve God in mammon.

[26:40] You can't serve God in money. You can't serve God in things. Would you look at me a second. How many of you believe that verse say amen. How many of you hate God. How many of you despise God.

[26:53] I mean look at the verse. That's not a very nice verse. I mean he could have been a little kinder on that verse. He could have put a little leeway in that verse. He could have put a little political correctness in that verse.

[27:04] But I mean he's ridiculous. Tell us. He said. No man. Can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one. And love the other. Or else he'll hold the one.

[27:15] And despise the other. You guys got to choose. I'm like. Well come on man. All right. I choose on Sunday. But let's leave Monday alone. How about Friday night and Saturday night being my nights.

[27:26] How about if I give 10%. I get to keep 90%. How about if I love my 90%. And I'll let you have my 10%. That's not what he said. You see he said. Lose your life. In Matthew chapter 10 verses 37 through 39.

[27:40] He said. He that loveth father or mother more than me. More than me. Is not worthy of me. He that loveth son or daughter more than me. Is not worthy of me. He that taketh not his cross and followeth after me.

[27:52] Is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it. He that loses life for my sake shall find it. Who gets preference in your life? Who gets preference? Who do you choose as being most important?

[28:06] Luke 14 26 through 33. He said. If any man come to me and hate not his father. Verse 27. He must bear his cross. Verse 33. He forsakes all.

[28:17] It's not really. See the point of hate. Isn't that you go around. Yelling and cursing your mother. It's just that you got a choice. Do what God wants. Or do what mama wants. Do what Austin wants.

[28:28] Or do what God wants. There are. My biggest battle is not with what my mom and daddy want. What my brother and sister want. Even what my wife wants. My biggest battle is. Austin's got big dreams for Austin. And Austin's looking for his comfort.

[28:40] And Austin's looking for himself. And Austin's all about himself. Well you just. You just mention missions conference. And watch how many people don't want to come. You just mention.

[28:51] We're going to. We're going to talk about surrendering your life to missions. And the parents squeeze up. There's this. Preachers talk about this tightness in the air. And we talk about having liberty when you preach. Liberty means there's looseness.

[29:02] And people are kind of agreeing with you. And you're feeling like God's moving in you. And this tightness is when there's no liberty. It's like. When you say. When you say. You ought to give your life to people. And you can feel it.

[29:14] You know it's like when you take it up at the offering plate. You ever notice what. Have you ever seen what an offering basket. A little bitty offering basket. You can do it to a row of people. I mean it's like. When it gets to the next row though.

[29:26] You go. Made it through another one. Say amen. Fact is. Guess what. Don't look at the usher. Say amen. No eye contact. Say amen. He said.

[29:37] What do you choose? You give up yourself and what you want. And give yourself to what he wants. You sign the bottom of a blank sheet of paper. And say. Here's your will.

[29:48] Most Christians do this. Father. I want to serve you. And I want to honor you. And I want my life to be for you. Now here's. Let me just explain the details. Let me give my side of the contract.

[29:59] Then I'll be glad to hear your side. Number one. I want a beautiful wife. Number two. I want a healthy life. Number three. I want beautiful children. And healthy children. I need a good retirement.

[30:10] I need a good vehicle. I need a good place to live. And I. And I. And I need. Well. Let me just put a two or three blanks in here. I'm going to add some other stuff in later. Because I'm not even sure I got it all figured out. And Lord.

[30:20] There's an inch on the bottom. You can put in your will. You go ahead and add your will. And I'll be glad to go along with what you want. As long as it doesn't contradict any foregoing statements. That's basically how we work with God.

[30:32] You see. Here's what Jesus said. He said. Guys. My hours come. And if I don't die. You don't live. And if a grain of. If a corn of wheat.

[30:42] And a grain of wheat is dropped. Is not dropped in the ground. And doesn't remain alone. And doesn't die. And is not buried. It brings forth no fruit. And if you guys love your lives more than you love Jesus.

[30:53] You lose your life. And if you guys hate your life. And decide. My life is not for me. My things aren't for me. They're for Jesus. Then you'll find your life. Well. We're like. Hey.

[31:03] Move off that subject. Let's get to another verse. Let's get to that one. That says it's all of grace. And he's good to me. Let's get to that. But Jesus said.

[31:14] No. You let me have a blank sheet of paper. I'll write in the details. Then you sign your name. To what I say. Or better yet. Why don't you just sign your name.

[31:26] And say. You can have my children. You can have my money. You can have my health. You can have my future. You can have anything and everything you want. I surrender all.

[31:37] All. All to Jesus. I surrender. Embrace. The cross. And say God. Not my will. But yours.

[31:48] John chapter 12. Verse 26. If you would. If any man serve me. Let him follow me. And where I am. There shall also my servant be. If any man serve me.

[31:59] Him will my father honor. If any man serve me. Let him follow me. Did you see that? If you serve him. You follow him.

[32:10] You imitate him. How many. Look at me just a second. I'm almost done. How many of us are following Jesus? I mean really. We say. He's our model.

[32:21] We're following him. We're obeying him. You can do that. By. By. By serving. By serving others. In Matthew chapter 25. In verse 40. He said. You give a little cup of water.

[32:31] In my name. I don't forget that. I keep records. But see. Most of us want to be served. We don't want to serve. We are to follow him. If you love him. If you serve him. You follow him.

[32:42] We ought to serve. We. We ought to do good works. In Ephesians chapter 2. Verse 10. It says. We are his workmanship. Created in Christ Jesus. Under good works. Which God hath before ordained.

[32:53] That we should walk in them. But we've quit the good work thing. We've quit the good work thing. They might have done that in the old days. But we're not into much. We're not into much stuff. That requires anything out of us.

[33:04] Jesus said. Hey. If you serve me. Follow me. Do what I do. Act like what I act. We ought to live holy lives. That's what we'd do if we followed him. We'd leave here this week. Said. I want to live a holy life.

[33:15] I want to seek him. I read a quote this week. For his kingdom to come. Mine must go. For his kingdom to come. Mine must go.

[33:27] If we're going to follow Jesus. We have to be faithful to his word. If we're going to follow Jesus. We'll be faithful to his word. Last thing. Here's the promises. Look at you at verse 26 again.

[33:39] If any man serve me. Let him follow me. And where I am. There shall also my servant be. If any man serve me. Him will my father. Honor. What great promises.

[33:49] Two great promises. Now listen. Here's two great promises. He said. If you serve. He says. Let him follow me. Where I am. There shall also my servant be.

[34:00] What a great promise. If I'm following him. I'll be where he is. By the way. If you're following him. He is where you are right now. Because he is with you. He lives in you.

[34:11] And in the deepest trial. You're going through. And the biggest mess you're dealing with. He's there. He said in John chapter 14. In verse 3. I go to prepare you a place. And if it weren't so. I would tell you.

[34:22] And he said. I'm preparing a place. So that where I am. There you may be also. Do you understand? He desires. And wants a place. A relationship. A closest to us. And those of us that.

[34:33] Those of us that serve him. He's with us. He's with us. And we're with him. We want to follow him. We want to be where he is. We want to be doing what he does.

[34:44] Interesting. In just a few minutes. In this passage of scripture. If you kept reading. Jesus will walk into town. He'll be crucified. If you follow him.

[34:54] You'll be with him. He'll be with you. Then there's one last thing. That he says in that verse. And that is this. He said. He said he would honor us.

[35:06] He said he would honor us. Look if you would at John. Look if you would at John chapter 12. Verse 26. If any man serve me. Let him follow me. And where I am. There shall also my servant be. If any man serve me.

[35:17] My father will honor him. Here's the deal. With him. The way up. Is down. The way to get.

[35:29] Is to give. The way to live. Is to die. The way to be whole. Is to be broken. Everything we do human wise. In human men.

[35:40] Human eyes. Looks like a. Ridiculous loss. We hate our life. We give it up. But here's what he promised. Him will my father honor. Not one of us.

[35:50] Will serve him. That his father won't honor. You won't give. That he won't honor. You may not get all that money now. And you may not get a big bunch of blessings. And there's no promise of a prosperity gospel.

[36:01] At all in the scriptures. But God knows exactly who you are. He knows which of you love him. And follow him. He knows which of you love your lives. And which of you hate your lives. He knows which of you are willing to die.

[36:13] And be buried. So you can be fruitful. Fruitful. He says. Hey. I've come to die. And if I don't die. There'll be no fruit. And then he says. And if you don't die. There'll be no fruit.

[36:24] As born again Christians. We could make an impact on this world. We could make an impact on our community. We could make an impact on our family. If we would die. Will you die?

[36:38] Will you say. I'm going to quit seeking my life. And I'm going to seek his life. Isn't that radical? Radical. Wild.

[36:49] Crazy. Die to yourself. Live to Jesus. Don't seek yours. Seek his. Follow him. Live the life he has for you. Let God.

[37:00] Make a difference. Father in heaven. I love you. And I praise you. For what I. The opportunity I had to preach your word. The chance I've had to share truths. I know they've been radical. And I know that for a celebration Sunday.

[37:12] It might have put a quietness across the room. But God. I know that the Holy Spirit of God is working. You are working in hearts. And you're convicting men and women of the need. To lose their life.

[37:22] To hate their life. So they can find it. That they would be willing to die to themselves. And their plans. That they would be willing to follow you. And serve you. God. Would you do a work in our midst today? Would you.

[37:33] Cause some Christians to surrender all. Would you cause some Christians to say. From here out. I want to do what God wants me to do. I want to live my life according to. God's plan. And God's program. God.

[37:43] Would you let them do that today? Would you work in hearts? And God. There's some here today. That aren't saved. They're not born again. And if they died. They don't know they'd go to heaven. And the truth is. That the truth is. They've gone in their own way. But the Holy Spirit is convicting them.

[37:54] And showing them their sin. I pray you'd save them right now. I pray dear God. That today would be the day. That they turn from their sin. And they receive the free gift of grace.

[38:05] That you have for them. You have been listening to Austin Gardner. Pastor of Vision Baptist Church. For contact information.

[38:17]  Location. Service times. Or more audio and video recordings. Log on to www.visionbaptist.com