All right, how many of you have enjoyed the service so far? Can you say amen with me?
Amen. Isn't that awesome? It is great to see God moving in the young people of our church and our
community, and that is kind of what we've been talking about in our series on new life, a fresh
beginning with Jesus. Much of this came from resources put out by Craig Groeschel, pastor of
Life Church in Oklahoma City, and we are a few weeks into this now, and so we are talking about
God doing a new thing. We've seen evidence of that in the baptisms. We saw the video earlier in the
service of last Sunday when two of our young people, one of our graduating seniors even, getting
baptized and giving evidence of their faith in Christ. So God is doing a new thing. Can we see it?
Yes, absolutely we can. So we talked about that a few weeks ago, and then we talked about how we need
to stop trying and start training. Let's say that together. Ready? Stop trying, start training.
How many times in our lives have we tried and tried and tried and failed and failed and failed,
and maybe God is trying to get our attention and saying, hey, stop trying so much in your own strength
and start understanding that I'm training you to be who I say you are, which leads us to our identity,
and that we do what we do because of what we think of who we are. And so instead of believing the old
lie that we believed all throughout our lives of who we are, God is instead getting our attention
saying, listen to me and believe that you are who I say you are, and then that determines your behavior.
So our behavior is born out of our identity. Well today we're going to be, I'm sorry, last week we
started this kind of sub-series within this whole series about new life in Christ, and we talked
about laying aside every weight, and we had a very visual illustration of how extra weight slows us
down, didn't we? For those of you who weren't here, you're wondering why people are laughing. That's
because I had a foot race down that aisle and that aisle against one of our fastest teenagers,
and he smoked me, all right? During the service, okay, it happened. Y'all don't want to miss what's
going on here in church because you never know what might happen during the service. Well then I loaded
him up with I don't know how much weight with a weight vest and medicine ball and kettlebells and
all this, and I barely beat him that second time through. Extra weight really makes a difference, and there
might be something in our lives that we either need to lay aside because we've been holding on to it,
maybe a bad habit, a self-destructive habit in our life, or there's something that's holding on to us
from our past, from our past, and in Philippians we read that we are to forget what lies behind
and press forward toward what lies ahead. So that brings us, that catches you up very briefly in our
series text we've been looking through. It's in your bulletin, 2 Corinthians 5 17. If anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away and see the new has come. Man, we're celebrating new
today with our graduating seniors. What an exciting thing as they embark on a new endeavor, a new journey,
a new starting point in their life, and together as a church we can do the same thing. So today
we're talking about let us run. Let's look at Hebrews chapter 12 verses 1 and 2. Hebrews 12,
1 and 2. While you turn there, you'll put a finger in Hebrews 12 and then flip over to Philippians 3.
Hebrews 12 and Philippians 3 will be bouncing back and forth between those two passages of scripture.
And as you find your place in those two passages, I want to share a couple of thoughts with you about
running. How many of you, maybe you follow me on Facebook and you saw that I've started training for
a 5k. Anybody? There's a couple of you. The rest of you, I don't blame you. Facebook, you know, isn't
always where I spend my time, but that's all right. I've recently started training for a 5k. It's the first
one in my life. I know that's shocking to you. I look like somebody who runs 5ks all the time. But it's not.
This is the first time I'll be doing this. I'm not running one next week or next month. I'm thinking
like maybe December. It's going to take a minute for me to train, all right? But I've started doing
that, just doing some slow jogs around my neighborhood, just getting started. And I have
some thoughts to share with you about running. I went for a run but came back after two minutes
because I forgot something. I forgot I'm out of shape and can't run more than two minutes.
Truth is, I ran 22 minutes straight the other day without stopping. Now, when I say run, it's like,
you know what I mean? But I didn't stop. So there you go. I don't run. And if you should ever see me
run, you should start running too because something is probably chasing me. One of my kids' teachers
told him that one day in school and I won't say who it is. That was fun. That is very true. And then
this is probably my favorite here because I wear Nike shoes. That awkward moment when you're wearing
Nike and you still just can't do it. For those of you who don't know, Nike had a commercial,
just do it, all right? Just put it in context. Listen, running, training for anything is difficult,
is it not? That's why these jokes are funny because we all know it's hard. It's difficult.
And this is a quote that I wanted to share with you. I don't know if I've ever used a quote from
Oprah Winfrey before in a message, but this one was actually pretty applicable. Running is the
greatest metaphor for life because you get out of it what you put into it. And that is so true.
Most of my life I have not run and I've gotten out of it the fruit of not running.
And just the little bit of time that I've spent over the last couple of weeks beginning to run,
beginning to train, I can actually see little fruits of that in the rest of my days.
And as I try to transform my personal lifestyle, I know many of you are also trying to do the same
thing, maybe in a different area of your life. You can see and agree that you get out of it
what you put into it. So let's see what the Word of God has to say about this. Hebrews chapter 12
and verse 1. I know we've got quite a number in here. If you're able and willing, would you join
us in standing as we just read these two verses together? Hebrews 12 and verse 1. Therefore,
since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance
and the sin that so easily ensnares us. We talked about that last week. Let us run with endurance the race
that lies before us. And now flipping back over to Philippians chapter 3. And let's read verse 13.
One thing I do, forgetting what is behind, talked about that last week, and reaching forward to what is
ahead. We're going to stop right there, and we'll pick it up there next Sunday. Actually, in two Sundays.
Sorry about that. Y'all, let's ask God to speak to us from His Word today. Lord, we ask for just that.
We thank you for every member, every regular attender, every guest who's with us this morning.
Thank you for every graduating senior. Thank you for those who couldn't be here and are joining us online.
I want to welcome all of them, and I just am grateful for them joining us in worship today.
I pray that none of this would be in vain, that you would speak to us individually, personally,
to our hearts and our lives. Show us the next step we need to take with you. In Jesus' name. Amen.
You may be seated. Number one in your bulletins, I want to challenge you, start moving. Start moving.
Y'all, that is the secret to my running a 5K, is I have to start moving, right?
If I never start moving, then I'm never going to run a 5K. What does that mean?
If I never go out and take my first run, and I'm using this free app called the Nike Run Club,
and it's free. That was the part that got me interested.
I'm not going to throw a bunch of money into it.
But listen, I've got these guided runs, and there's this coach in my ear,
and the whole thing of those first runs that I started out with a couple weeks ago is,
if you're pushing too hard, you're going to quit.
So stop pushing so hard, and just start moving.
Just get out and start moving.
Y'all, sometimes that is the exact step we need to take in our walk with Jesus,
is just start moving.
Take a step.
The reality is, if some of us opened God's Word tomorrow morning,
before we got our day started, and read one Bible verse,
that would be one more verse than we did the day before.
If we prayed one sentence to God in prayer,
that would be one more sentence than we had prayed the day before.
So we're moving, right?
We started.
It's not that you go from zero all the way to where you want to be,
or where you think you should be.
It's that you start.
You begin.
So, Hebrews 12 says,
let us run.
Philippians 3 says,
pressing forward to those things which are ahead.
Reaching forward to what is ahead.
Let us run.
Sometimes you've just got to take the first step.
Martin Luther King had a great quote,
and when I was a junior high English teacher,
one of my problem students,
I know teachers, you have never had a problem student before, right?
Nobody, they're all perfect little angels.
I'm sure you guys were all perfect angels.
I had a problem student my first year teaching.
I only taught for a couple years,
but she was just bound and determined to give me grief every day.
And so I became bound and determined to win her over.
And by the end of that first semester,
she was giving me this on a little thing that sits in my office back there
as a Christmas present.
So we really made some strides together.
But she found this and thought that I would want it.
It had special meaning for me.
And I thought it applies so well to what we're talking about today.
Faith is taking that first step,
even when you don't see the full staircase.
I don't know if I'm ever going to be able to run a 5K.
I hope so.
I hope I can run a 10K.
I hope I can run a 15K.
I don't know if I'll ever be a marathon guy.
My brother, any of y'all remember my brother preached here several months ago?
He ran a marathon one time,
and I heard what it did to his feet at the end of that.
I don't know if I want to do that.
But that's all right.
I don't have to see the whole staircase of where this is going to end for me right now.
I just take the first step.
And sometimes that's what faith looks like.
We don't know where God is going to lead us.
I guarantee you these seniors that are graduating high school
don't know where their lives are going to be five years from now,
but they don't have to.
They just take one step forward with Jesus,
and then another one,
and then another one.
And as God keeps leading them,
and as God keeps leading us,
then we arrive where he wants us to go in his timing.
It's walking together with him,
but we've got to start moving.
Philippians 3.13,
straining forward,
reaching forward,
pressing forward
to what lies ahead.
The problem is,
we get impatient,
don't we?
We get impatient.
We want it all to come at once.
In today's world in which we live,
we can get everything at the push of a button.
Our phones are there.
They're the wealth of all the information
that we never had growing up,
and all we've got to do is Google it now.
If we want to talk to somebody,
we can talk to someone instantly.
The world we live in is absolutely instant,
but some things are never meant to come overnight.
Some things are never meant to come instantly.
So we have to remember that God's timing
is better than our timing.
God's timing is perfect.
Maybe there's a relationship
that you wish would just be fixed overnight.
In the young couples,
married, adults,
whatever you want to call that class,
that the Tillers and Bryants are leading back there,
we just started a marriage seminar today.
And man, it's fantastic,
but it's realizing that
not everything is going to get fixed overnight.
Sometimes you've got to put the work in,
but it's taking the first step
in understanding that God's timing is perfect.
So start moving.
And then number two,
keep going.
Keep going.
Real basic,
real simple stuff here today,
but sometimes it's the basic and simple things
that trip us up, isn't it?
So we've got to start moving,
and then we've got to keep going.
Hebrews 12 run,
Hebrews 12 one,
going back to our main text here,
run with endurance,
the race set before us.
Let us run,
but let us run with endurance.
Let us run with sustaining that pace.
That coach who's in my ear when I start running,
he says,
if you're running at a pace
that you can't sustain for the whole run,
then slow down.
Some of you are probably expert runners,
and you're like,
that's not good advice.
Well, it is for me when I'm starting out, okay?
Maybe someday I'll get to where you are.
I'm looking around.
Do we have any expert runners?
But listen.
Wait, what just happened?
Oh, yes, Wade.
That was good, Wade.
That was good.
He's a runner at heart, man.
He is a biker.
That's true.
Listen, we run with endurance.
The main thing is that you keep running,
that you keep going.
And young people, I'll tell you,
it is so much more important
that you continue and are faithful
in your walk with Jesus
and, like, hit singles
instead of home runs all the time.
You know what I mean?
Sometimes the temptation
is to try to achieve
great, huge, big things all at once,
but do you know how great,
huge, big things are achieved?
By little by little
achieving the simple, basic things every day.
When you get to the place
where you're doing the things
that you're supposed to do
every day, day after day,
night after night,
when it's hard,
when it's annoying,
when you're tired,
when you're emotional,
when you don't want to,
then all of a sudden you arrive
at the day where you look back
and say,
oh, wow, how did I get here?
This is actually where
I always wanted to go.
But it's because I just kept moving.
I just kept going.
Philippians 3 says,
I press on.
I keep going.
Nothing's going to stop me.
Nothing's going to hold me back.
I recognize that I could stop myself.
I recognize that the devil could stop me.
I recognize that others in my life
could stop me or slow me down.
But between me and Jesus,
I'm going to rely on him
to let me keep going and press on.
Progress demands persistence,
not perfection.
And man, I thank God for that, right?
If progress with Jesus demanded perfection,
we'd all be out of luck.
None of us would get anywhere
where we're trying to go.
But progress just demands persistence.
Jesus just says,
walk with me.
Let me lead you.
Remember, you're not trying.
I'm training you on how to do this.
So we're letting God train us
and get us to where he wants us to go.
There might be young people in this room
that God wants to be a pastor.
God wants to be a missionary.
God wants to be a school teacher.
God wants to be a doctor.
God wants to be a mechanic.
God wants to work in retail,
work at Sonic.
I don't know what your future is
or where God has you
and there's a circle of people
waiting for you
to bring Jesus into their life.
But you're never going to get
where God wants you to go
unless you persist
at the things he has for you right now.
So, let me ask you this.
I've got to run down here and grab it.
Here we go.
Anybody know what the difference in this and this is?
One's white, one's black.
Glad we got that out of the way.
Now, what do these mean?
What is this?
Starting out, beginner, right?
Beginner level at some kind of martial arts.
Over here, what do we have?
Expert.
Expert, right?
Professional.
Top of the heap.
What is the difference between these two belts?
A white belt is a beginner.
A black belt is an expert.
But the truth is,
a black belt is a white belt
who never stopped training.
That's all it is.
Now, that illustration's not original to me.
I heard it from others
who probably heard it from others.
But the truth is,
that is absolutely true.
That every one of you
might be starting out as a white belt
in something in your life.
Right now,
these guys are a white belt
at being an adult,
at being on their own,
at launching out into the world
and paving their way.
They're a white belt.
But they could get to a black belt
if they never stopped training.
What does that mean
in our walk with Jesus?
You might have been a Christian
or a church member
or a tender
or someone you would say
is a Jesus follower
for many, many, many years.
But the truth is,
you're still a white belt.
Because at some point along the way,
you stopped training
and you never got
to where God wanted to take you.
Doesn't mean you don't know about God.
Doesn't mean you can't answer
a bunch of Bible trivia.
But it means that God
has not grasped your heart
and grown your faith
like he wanted to.
So you've got to back up
and start training again
and let God take you
from here to here.
There's nothing special
about this person
except they were here
and they trained and trained
and trained and trained
and they got here.
The only difference
between me right now
and me when God willing
I can run my first race
is that I don't stop training.
You know half the reason
I'm telling y'all about this
on Sundays
is because I want y'all
to hold me accountable
so I don't stop training.
because it's hard
it's not fun.
And I've tried
to get in shape before
but the difference this time
is I'm not trying
I'm training.
Training to be who God
wants me to be.
My question to you
is are you training
to be who God
wants you to be?
If you are
you're either
at a start moving phase
or you're at a keep going phase.
Either start moving
or keep going.
Galatians 6.9
says let us not grow weary
of doing good
because in due season
at the right time
we will reap
if we don't what?
Give up.
We will reap.
Y'all I don't know
what that looks like
for you.
Seniors down front
and there's a couple
in the crowd.
I don't know
what it looks like
for you to reap
the harvest
that God has for you.
But I do know
that you won't get there
if you don't start moving
and then keep going.
So in your walk
with Jesus
maybe that means
you open your Bible
and spend a little more time
than you have before.
Maybe that means
you bow your head in prayer
and spend a little more time
with God
than you did before.
Maybe it means
as you go off to college
you get involved
in a ministry
in a church
or a collegiate ministry
on your campus
and you get a little bit involved
more than you have before
and you keep growing
and keep going
in your walk
with Jesus.
Church it means
the exact same thing
for us.
I don't know
what it looks like
for you.
I'm accountable for me
and for my family
and as for me
and my family
we're going to keep going.
We're going to keep growing.
James 4.8
Would you turn there
with me very quickly?
James chapter 4
and verse 8.
It's one book over
from Hebrews 12.
James 4 and verse 8.
Draw near to God
and he will draw near
to you.
Say man I've tried.
I've tried to fix my marriage.
I've tried to get closer
to my kids.
I've tried to prioritize
God in my life
and something just always
gets in the way.
Something distracts me.
Listen.
If you draw near
to God
you will see
him drawing near
to you.
It's just
usually
we stop training.
Don't we?
At one point in time
we were moving closer
to Jesus
and then at some point
the cares of this life
the distractions
of this life
pulled us away
pulled us off the path.
But if we draw near
to him
there is a promise
from God
that he will draw
near to you.
And when God
draws near in your life
what a transformation
that makes.
When God draws near
to this church
what a difference
this church makes
in the community
in our individual lives.
together as a body
we start to see
incredible things happening.
We start to see
those baptism waters busy.
We start to see
people coming
that hadn't come
in a long time.
We start to see
relationships getting
healed and mended.
We start to see
God moving
in ways that we
never imagined
he could move
when God
draws near.
But first
we gotta take
the first step.
And then we gotta
keep going.
So
practically
how do we
draw near to God?
Number one
we prioritize
our quiet time
with Jesus.
We've been talking
about that.
How much time
do we actually
spend
in this book?
And how much
time do we
actually spend
speaking to the
one who is
always there
always ready
to listen?
Number two
we prioritize
others
over ourselves.
Boy that's a hard
one isn't it?
In American culture
it's always number
one isn't it?
It's always me
first.
But that
doesn't bear
the fruit
that God
wants for us
in our lives.
So we're
training
to spend
more time
with Jesus
we're training
to prioritize
others over
us just
like Jesus
did.
We're learning
from him.
And then number
three we're
unashamed
to speak his
name.
That's how we
draw near to
God.
When we go
out and point
someone else
to Jesus
then we are
as close to
God as we
could ever be.
Paul said
my brethren
brothers and
sisters my
heart's desire
my prayer to
God for my
people is that
they would be
saved.
That they would
know Jesus
in their life.
And that is my
prayer for my
people and I
hope that's your
prayer for your
people.
That they would
know Jesus.
They're not going
to know unless
we're unashamed
to speak his
name.
So our takeaway
this morning will
be done.
Is God help
me not to
quit.
But to take
that next step
toward being who
you are calling
me to be.
I pray that for
us as a church.
God help our
church not to
quit.
But to take the
next step toward
being the church
that he's calling
us to be.
Graduates I pray
that for you.
That you would
say God help me
not to quit.
Now that I'm
finishing high
school and I'm
moving out on
my own and
there's nobody
in my ear
reminding me hey
you should go to
church.
Hey you should go
to youth group.
Hey you should
read your Bible.
There's nobody
in your ear.
Some of you
haven't had that
anyway.
But some of you
have.
And it's going
to be a
difference.
It's going to
be a distinction
to get out
there on your
own where
nobody is
doing that.
But God help
me not to
quit but to
take the next
step as I go
to college.
To take the
next step as I
go to work.
Take the next
step as I move
out on my own
toward who you
are calling me
to be.
Then we'll get
to see the fruit.
Get to see the
blessings.
We'll get to
reap the rewards
together.
So that's my
prayer for you.
Would you bow
your heads with
me and we'll
pray right now.
God I thank you
so much for our
time together this
morning.
I thank you that
you've spoken to
us all throughout
this service.
the young people
have performed to
the best of their
ability to honor
and glorify you.
The graduates
have gotten up
and we've gotten
to see the fruit
of their hard
work over their
years of high
school.
And God that's
not to glorify
them and to
say oh wow what
incredible people
they are but it's
to reflect the
praise back to you
as each one of
these people
professes to know
you as their
savior.
That they place
their faith in
you.
And so all this
accomplishment all
these great things
bring glory back
to you God.
I pray that that
would be true of
each of our lives.
That there wouldn't
be any man woman
or child in this
room who would
walk out of here
today without having
a personal
relationship with
Jesus.
That's our prayer.
That's our hope.
That's why we
gather here each
Sunday.
And God I ask
that you would
show each of us
what our next
step is.
some of us
might need to
start beginning
just like I had
to do a couple
weeks ago.
Some of us
might need to
just take the
next step.
Just keep
moving toward
what you've
called us to
be.
God give us
patience from
you.
Help us to
understand that
you're training
us toward a
wonderful fruit,
a wonderful
blessing that you
have in store
for us.
It's in Jesus
name we pray.
Amen.
Brother Greg's
going to lead
us in one
verse of
this song.
This is a
time of
prayer.
Y'all can
keep your
seats.
But could we
enter into a
time of
prayer as a
church as he
sings over us?
And if you'd
like to sing
quietly and
join him,
that's fine.
But let's
keep our
seats, heads
bowed, you
know, kind of
an attitude of
just focusing on
the Lord right
now, focusing on
his voice.
And just for a
couple of
minutes before
we dismiss
today and
celebrate our
graduates, let's
just ask God,
what is it you
want to show us
from church
today, from
your word
today?
And I'll be
right down
front if you'd
like to come
down front and
meet with me and
pray with me.
I'm happy to do
that.
But let's go into
a time of prayer
right now.
Amen.