WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.540 So today I'm going to talk about being rooted and grounded in love. 00:00:07.540 --> 00:00:12.160 So I'm going to read a passage from Ephesians. 00:00:15.040 --> 00:00:20.359 It's Ephesians chapter 3, verses 14 through 21. 00:00:20.359 --> 00:00:26.359 I'm going to read this and then I'm going to talk about some other stuff and I'm going to read this again at the end for some contracts. 00:00:26.359 --> 00:00:29.940 So Ephesians chapter 3, verses 14 through 21. 00:00:30.879 --> 00:00:33.159 This is Paul praying for the Ephesian church. 00:00:33.359 --> 00:00:40.640 For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:48.500 that according to the riches of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his spirit in your inner being. 00:00:49.280 --> 00:00:55.100 So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you being rooted and grounded in love, 00:00:55.100 --> 00:01:03.679 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 00:01:04.099 --> 00:01:10.519 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 00:01:10.519 --> 00:01:16.099 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, 00:01:16.679 --> 00:01:18.780 according to the power at work within us, 00:01:19.420 --> 00:01:26.539 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. 00:01:26.540 --> 00:01:26.859 Amen. 00:01:26.859 --> 00:01:26.980 Amen. 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:32.000 I was praying this week about what to share, and I was kind of bouncing around through a lot of different topics, 00:01:32.219 --> 00:01:36.260 and this is the one that I landed on. 00:01:36.260 --> 00:01:45.120 And this one statement, being rooted and grounded in love, was what really hit home. 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:49.780 And I think the backdrop is we just planted this church, we're only a couple months in, 00:01:50.700 --> 00:01:56.160 and thinking about foundations, thinking about building on solid foundations, 00:01:56.159 --> 00:02:07.399 thinking about foundations of a building being the plumb line and the support and the most important part of the whole building, 00:02:08.519 --> 00:02:11.639 and thinking about how I just don't think like that. 00:02:12.300 --> 00:02:15.019 I think, oh man, it's another day. 00:02:15.159 --> 00:02:15.620 All right, let's go. 00:02:16.560 --> 00:02:17.680 All right, next day. 00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:18.599 All right, let's go. 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:19.159 Next day. 00:02:19.719 --> 00:02:22.079 And I just sort of have this inbox management. 00:02:22.180 --> 00:02:23.120 I got problems coming in. 00:02:23.120 --> 00:02:27.099 I got crying out to God like, Lord, I have my problems, you know, 00:02:27.460 --> 00:02:31.680 and just sort of keeping up and just not really thinking about eternity, 00:02:31.860 --> 00:02:36.879 not really thinking about what it is that I'm doing right now and the decision I'm making right now, 00:02:37.400 --> 00:02:39.420 how they affect this foundation. 00:02:40.719 --> 00:02:43.680 And I just haven't really been thinking about it. 00:02:44.280 --> 00:02:45.340 That's for Josh to think about. 00:02:45.920 --> 00:02:49.219 He's the church planning, elder apostle guy. 00:02:49.360 --> 00:02:51.060 He'll deal with the foundation stuff. 00:02:51.060 --> 00:02:52.140 He'll do what he says. 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:53.319 It'll be good. 00:02:55.439 --> 00:02:56.319 That's just not true. 00:02:57.479 --> 00:02:58.479 It's not reality. 00:03:00.280 --> 00:03:07.539 And that's what's on my heart is to talk about how being rooted and grounded in love is part of this foundation. 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:14.520 You can just say being rooted and grounded in Christ because that's the substantiation of love. 00:03:14.520 --> 00:03:21.560 Love is not some Greek philosophical, you know, abstraction about doing good for other people. 00:03:21.719 --> 00:03:22.500 Love is a person. 00:03:23.400 --> 00:03:24.820 And that's what he's talking about. 00:03:24.860 --> 00:03:29.620 That's why he says in verse 17, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. 00:03:31.360 --> 00:03:33.540 That you being rooted and grounded in love. 00:03:33.660 --> 00:03:34.280 Like these go together. 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:36.400 There's basically two sides of the same point. 00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:40.340 So anyway, that was kind of the thought. 00:03:41.140 --> 00:03:44.780 And then zooming out and applying that thought to our group. 00:03:44.900 --> 00:03:49.860 So this is really for mainly for those people who are part of this church planning team coming out of Bellicose, 00:03:49.960 --> 00:03:51.659 but it applies to Christians generally. 00:03:52.020 --> 00:03:53.439 So we all get something out of it. 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:56.480 Thinking about those people specifically, 00:03:56.479 --> 00:04:01.879 the thought that has come to my mind 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:05.359 while I'm thinking about this foundation is 00:04:05.359 --> 00:04:08.979 there's a verse in 1 Peter 4 verse 8 that says, 00:04:09.120 --> 00:04:14.699 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly since love covers a multitude of sins. 00:04:16.779 --> 00:04:21.240 And I think the church we left did a really good job with that. 00:04:22.039 --> 00:04:25.560 There was an environment of love that covered a lot of sins. 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:26.240 Okay. 00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:29.459 And which is great. 00:04:29.639 --> 00:04:30.160 That's awesome. 00:04:31.500 --> 00:04:33.920 And with every awesome thing, there's like perverse consequences. 00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:34.480 Right. 00:04:34.959 --> 00:04:42.259 And I think there's a perverse consequence of having been in a church that's really healthy, 00:04:42.259 --> 00:04:46.100 that practices love, that covers over a multitude of sins, 00:04:46.100 --> 00:04:48.819 is that it's your sins. 00:04:49.560 --> 00:04:50.399 It's us. 00:04:50.399 --> 00:04:56.979 Our sins are included in that list of sins that are being healthily, maturely overlooked. 00:04:58.339 --> 00:05:07.679 And, you know, the, and when I say overlooking sins, when it says love covers a multitude of sins, 00:05:07.719 --> 00:05:09.739 it doesn't mean it ignores a multitude of sins. 00:05:10.199 --> 00:05:15.419 Mature, healthy church love, when it talks about covering a multitude of sins, 00:05:15.420 --> 00:05:18.640 it's talking about like being long suffering with sinners. 00:05:19.180 --> 00:05:19.660 All right. 00:05:20.020 --> 00:05:23.759 It means overlooking offenses, not quick to take offense. 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:25.960 Can you believe that person did that man? 00:05:26.240 --> 00:05:28.420 You know, like that's, that's an immature attitude. 00:05:29.379 --> 00:05:31.340 A mature loving attitude overlooks. 00:05:31.780 --> 00:05:33.819 It has a habit of doing this for the sake of Christ. 00:05:33.819 --> 00:05:38.319 We know that we were forgiven just an insane amount of wickedness. 00:05:38.980 --> 00:05:40.219 And we see that. 00:05:40.459 --> 00:05:41.899 And in light of that, we're like, you know what? 00:05:43.459 --> 00:05:44.899 Praise the Lord for the blood of Jesus. 00:05:45.519 --> 00:05:47.339 I'm not going to be, I'm not going to jump on this. 00:05:47.560 --> 00:05:49.060 You know, I'm going to pray about it. 00:05:50.219 --> 00:05:52.539 Forgiveness, the application of Christ's blood. 00:05:52.620 --> 00:05:56.159 This is what it means to, for love to cover a multitude of sins. 00:05:56.240 --> 00:05:57.939 And in a healthy church, this is just ongoing. 00:05:57.939 --> 00:06:04.160 It doesn't mean ignoring sin and just a hear no evil, see no evil mentality of sin. 00:06:04.219 --> 00:06:05.680 No, like we address it. 00:06:06.079 --> 00:06:09.439 But there's a mature way of addressing it through Christ. 00:06:09.660 --> 00:06:11.500 And we've experienced that. 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:13.920 So anyway, what's the downside? 00:06:14.079 --> 00:06:15.139 What's the perverse consequence? 00:06:16.920 --> 00:06:19.199 If we're immature, we might not know it. 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:23.259 Because we've been around a bunch of mature people overlooking our sin for a long time. 00:06:24.100 --> 00:06:24.360 All right. 00:06:24.680 --> 00:06:26.819 And sin has natural consequences. 00:06:26.819 --> 00:06:28.699 The Bible says the wages of sin is death. 00:06:29.159 --> 00:06:29.360 All right. 00:06:29.540 --> 00:06:32.259 So death is the natural consequence of our own sin. 00:06:33.000 --> 00:06:36.759 Well, if you're in a really good family and a really great support structure, 00:06:38.099 --> 00:06:43.240 an unintended consequence might be you're protected from the consequences of sin, 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:45.060 the death that's a natural byproduct of your sin. 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:47.300 You don't get it on the chin when you screw up. 00:06:47.740 --> 00:06:49.120 You know, you got a support structure there. 00:06:49.420 --> 00:06:53.740 And when you're coming out of a really good church for years and years and years, 00:06:53.740 --> 00:07:01.639 you might have, and we do, we have huge weak spots that we might not even know about. 00:07:02.400 --> 00:07:02.620 All right. 00:07:02.780 --> 00:07:07.420 And in that church, it didn't really impact things that much. 00:07:07.460 --> 00:07:08.620 It didn't impact the culture that much. 00:07:08.680 --> 00:07:09.920 Obviously, it impacts the culture. 00:07:09.920 --> 00:07:15.480 But it impacts the culture proportionate to our influence in the culture. 00:07:16.680 --> 00:07:18.560 But in a church like that, it's not that much. 00:07:19.720 --> 00:07:20.900 In a church like this, it's huge. 00:07:21.640 --> 00:07:21.759 All right. 00:07:22.340 --> 00:07:27.680 So that's the thought. 00:07:27.680 --> 00:07:32.420 That's the thought that's been in my mind is if we've been in a good church for a long time, 00:07:33.420 --> 00:07:41.759 that there might be huge gaps in our maturity that have been hidden, 00:07:42.160 --> 00:07:47.120 that have been covered over graciously by the maturity and leadership of other brothers and sisters 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:48.780 in the place we came from. 00:07:49.920 --> 00:07:52.220 So kind of digging into that topic a little bit more. 00:07:52.220 --> 00:07:56.140 1 Corinthians 13, 11 ties maturity with love. 00:07:56.960 --> 00:07:59.900 It says, when I was a child, I spoke like a child. 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:01.260 I thought like a child. 00:08:01.580 --> 00:08:02.700 I reasoned like a child. 00:08:03.040 --> 00:08:05.260 But when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 00:08:06.200 --> 00:08:12.460 So a church with leaders that are walking in mature love creates a culture of this sin covering in a good way 00:08:12.460 --> 00:08:15.120 that we can benefit from passively. 00:08:15.260 --> 00:08:16.020 We don't need to do anything. 00:08:16.440 --> 00:08:17.340 We're just there. 00:08:17.339 --> 00:08:22.919 And so we benefit from all this wonderful fruit that's being created, you know, not created, 00:08:23.079 --> 00:08:26.939 but is being cultivated by maturity. 00:08:27.060 --> 00:08:29.919 Other people being mature for us. 00:08:31.599 --> 00:08:39.139 Those leaders who are mature in love, they took uncomfortability on themselves to make us comfortable. 00:08:39.600 --> 00:08:41.579 You know, they laid down their life, the sheep. 00:08:41.580 --> 00:08:47.340 And, you know, we may have just been there enjoying it and reaping the benefits of it. 00:08:48.000 --> 00:08:49.240 And that's great. 00:08:49.900 --> 00:08:51.780 But it can delude you. 00:08:52.460 --> 00:08:58.040 It can delude you into thinking that just because I went to a good church or maybe I listened to good teaching, 00:08:58.120 --> 00:09:01.600 maybe like my podcast list is full of all the correct teachers, you know. 00:09:02.060 --> 00:09:05.780 I'm just like, you know, I'm aligned with the right people, right? 00:09:06.620 --> 00:09:07.600 It doesn't mean anything. 00:09:07.960 --> 00:09:09.100 It doesn't mean I'm a mature believer. 00:09:09.460 --> 00:09:10.100 It doesn't mean something. 00:09:10.200 --> 00:09:10.800 It doesn't mean nothing. 00:09:11.699 --> 00:09:15.279 But Herod rejoiced to hear John the Baptist preach and he killed him. 00:09:15.759 --> 00:09:23.479 So just because I like to listen to good things doesn't mean anything really about whether those things have landed and produced transformation. 00:09:24.519 --> 00:09:32.439 You know, James says, you know, the guy who looks into the law of liberty and then forgets, you know, then doesn't do it. 00:09:32.459 --> 00:09:35.459 It's like someone who just looks into a mirror and forgets what he even looks like, you know. 00:09:35.879 --> 00:09:36.699 It doesn't profit. 00:09:36.700 --> 00:09:41.460 So anyway, I'm deviating a little bit. 00:09:41.460 --> 00:09:48.759 But Galatians 2, Galatians chapter 6 verses 2 through 5 says, bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. 00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:53.660 For if anyone thinks he is something when he's nothing, he deceives himself. 00:09:53.659 --> 00:09:57.019 But let each one test his own work. 00:09:57.779 --> 00:10:00.419 Speaking here a little bit, he's saying, drill down a little bit more. 00:10:00.559 --> 00:10:02.759 Test your own work. 00:10:03.339 --> 00:10:03.659 All right. 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:06.980 Let each one test his own work. 00:10:07.179 --> 00:10:11.120 And then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not his neighbor. 00:10:11.959 --> 00:10:13.539 For each one will bear his own load. 00:10:13.579 --> 00:10:14.299 He's speaking to this. 00:10:14.399 --> 00:10:20.019 He's saying, hey, this is falling after a whole chapter where he's unpacking what it means to walk by the spirit. 00:10:20.019 --> 00:10:33.899 And he kind of brings it to bear and says, hey, like there can be a dynamic where the people around you are walking by the spirit and it results in just a wonderful, awesome culture. 00:10:34.600 --> 00:10:35.620 And you're doing nothing. 00:10:36.620 --> 00:10:36.779 OK. 00:10:36.960 --> 00:10:42.120 You're just drafting off of other people in front of you doing the hard work. 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:45.659 And it flies under the radar, you know. 00:10:48.200 --> 00:10:50.580 And he's he's challenging us to think about this. 00:10:50.840 --> 00:10:51.580 Think about your own work. 00:10:51.659 --> 00:10:52.840 Think about what God told you to do. 00:10:54.039 --> 00:11:02.399 And this this is this is the unavoidable, perverse consequences of having mature believers along with them, immature believers. 00:11:02.840 --> 00:11:03.060 All right. 00:11:03.899 --> 00:11:05.299 And this happened with Jesus, too. 00:11:05.320 --> 00:11:09.180 And he called this out in the parable in Luke 13, verse 24 through 27. 00:11:09.179 --> 00:11:14.699 He says, strive to enter through the narrow door for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 00:11:15.159 --> 00:11:23.099 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door and you begin to stand outside, knock at the door, saying, Lord, open to us. 00:11:23.620 --> 00:11:24.659 Then he will answer you. 00:11:25.379 --> 00:11:27.399 I do not know where you come from. 00:11:28.839 --> 00:11:34.299 Then you will begin to say, we ate and drank in your presence and you taught in our streets. 00:11:34.859 --> 00:11:37.699 But he will say, I tell you, I do not know where you come from. 00:11:37.700 --> 00:11:40.480 Come depart from me, all you workers of evil. 00:11:40.820 --> 00:11:47.100 So what did their what was their natural response to being said? 00:11:47.180 --> 00:11:48.120 I don't know you. 00:11:49.160 --> 00:11:52.040 You're like I was I was in your church. 00:11:52.100 --> 00:11:52.640 You were doing ministry. 00:11:52.700 --> 00:11:55.240 I was like there and you were like I was like one of the I was one of the guys. 00:11:55.300 --> 00:11:56.700 I was I was in the crowd, man. 00:11:57.600 --> 00:11:58.060 Doesn't matter. 00:11:58.840 --> 00:11:59.000 No. 00:11:59.000 --> 00:12:01.379 And he's speaking of unbelievers here. 00:12:01.960 --> 00:12:05.200 But we need to test ourselves to see whether we're in the faith. 00:12:05.580 --> 00:12:08.340 Are we producing fruit in keeping with repentance? 00:12:09.679 --> 00:12:12.519 And this can apply to believers as well. 00:12:12.559 --> 00:12:14.159 When we think about just Christian maturity. 00:12:14.879 --> 00:12:15.700 We still have a flesh. 00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:16.919 Our flesh likes to sin. 00:12:17.379 --> 00:12:19.379 Our flesh doesn't like to do what God wants us to do. 00:12:19.379 --> 00:12:28.960 We don't like we don't wake up one morning at a point of sanctification where it's just like, man, I love taking up my cross and denying myself every single day until Jesus comes back. 00:12:29.320 --> 00:12:29.879 I love it. 00:12:30.419 --> 00:12:31.039 You know, no. 00:12:31.559 --> 00:12:32.939 Our flesh is always like, all right. 00:12:32.940 --> 00:12:35.580 How do I balance this? 00:12:35.620 --> 00:12:42.480 So I do the bare minimum amount of righteousness with the, you know, the maximum amount of righteousness with a minimum amount of effort. 00:12:42.860 --> 00:12:43.740 How do I work that out? 00:12:44.040 --> 00:12:44.500 You can't. 00:12:44.980 --> 00:12:47.900 But our flesh thinks you can every single day. 00:12:49.560 --> 00:12:53.600 And so when we think of Christian maturity, we can apply some of these verses to ourselves and be like, wait a minute. 00:12:53.600 --> 00:13:02.440 Am I using the maturity of the people around me to just get by and to coast? 00:13:03.700 --> 00:13:06.000 It used to work, quote unquote. 00:13:06.139 --> 00:13:07.300 It used to work in your old church. 00:13:07.379 --> 00:13:09.720 It will not work in this because there's just not that many people. 00:13:10.300 --> 00:13:10.440 Okay. 00:13:10.840 --> 00:13:18.340 So if you are refusing the work of the Holy Spirit in your life, it has massive impacts on the foundation. 00:13:18.820 --> 00:13:19.759 We're trying to go up here. 00:13:20.639 --> 00:13:22.040 Specifically the foundation of love. 00:13:22.039 --> 00:13:27.699 So I want to walk through some examples of immaturity that I think apply specifically to our church. 00:13:27.899 --> 00:13:28.120 Okay. 00:13:28.579 --> 00:13:31.659 So if you're thinking, is he talking about me? 00:13:31.699 --> 00:13:32.599 Yes, I'm talking about you. 00:13:32.860 --> 00:13:33.939 I'm talking about myself too. 00:13:34.019 --> 00:13:38.740 This is not like, this is a, probably most of these apply to me too. 00:13:38.879 --> 00:13:44.279 So, you know, I'm not throwing stones, but I kind of, I'm throwing stones at you and me. 00:13:46.500 --> 00:13:48.179 So we need to recognize our immaturity. 00:13:49.639 --> 00:13:50.980 So some examples. 00:13:52.039 --> 00:13:54.919 Number one, impatience with other people's spiritual progress. 00:13:55.959 --> 00:13:56.879 I think it's a great one. 00:13:56.879 --> 00:14:05.539 This is for everyone who thinks that they're a little bit more progressed and everyone else is kind of trailing behind them. 00:14:06.740 --> 00:14:10.620 This, this attitude is the mark of a teacher, not a father. 00:14:10.620 --> 00:14:14.360 This is the mark of a hired hand, not a shepherd. 00:14:15.440 --> 00:14:18.000 You are frustrated with other people. 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:19.799 What's their problem? 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:22.240 Why can't they get excited about it? 00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:23.460 Why can't they get a vision for the lost? 00:14:23.539 --> 00:14:25.919 Why can't they get a vision for, you know, building Christ's church? 00:14:26.039 --> 00:14:26.879 You know, what's the deal? 00:14:27.460 --> 00:14:27.740 You know? 00:14:27.740 --> 00:14:29.220 All right. 00:14:29.220 --> 00:14:33.480 Do you know yourself? 00:14:34.480 --> 00:14:39.320 Do you know how merciful and patient God has been included? 00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:41.120 I mean, you're suspended over hell. 00:14:41.120 --> 00:14:45.440 And he snatched you out of the fire. 00:14:46.000 --> 00:14:48.720 Your wit could have been quenched so many times. 00:14:49.440 --> 00:14:49.980 He didn't do it. 00:14:51.399 --> 00:14:52.419 He promised he would. 00:14:52.419 --> 00:14:59.699 Maybe on the other side of the coin, you got lack of patience on one side. 00:15:00.179 --> 00:15:02.199 The other side of the coin, you got lack of steadfastness. 00:15:04.059 --> 00:15:09.699 You might be in a pattern of always looking to other people to fill you up. 00:15:10.539 --> 00:15:13.639 Rather than going to the one who's the baptizer of the Holy Spirit. 00:15:14.099 --> 00:15:18.339 In Matthew 25, I'm not going to turn there, but there's a parable of the ten virgins. 00:15:18.340 --> 00:15:26.840 Jesus is sharing this parable as kind of a backdrop for waiting for Jesus to return, the last days. 00:15:27.700 --> 00:15:28.440 There's ten virgins. 00:15:29.120 --> 00:15:29.940 Five are foolish. 00:15:30.420 --> 00:15:31.280 Five are wise. 00:15:31.899 --> 00:15:33.639 The wise virgins, they bring oil. 00:15:33.740 --> 00:15:35.060 They're waiting for the bridegroom to come. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:36.840 They take oil with them, with their lamps. 00:15:37.560 --> 00:15:38.780 And the foolish ones don't. 00:15:39.500 --> 00:15:40.399 The bridegroom comes. 00:15:40.519 --> 00:15:40.920 It knocks. 00:15:41.040 --> 00:15:41.440 It's time. 00:15:42.060 --> 00:15:43.460 The foolish ones, they all wake up. 00:15:43.500 --> 00:15:45.400 And the foolish ones say, hey, give us this. 00:15:45.400 --> 00:15:46.440 They go to the wise ones. 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:47.420 They say, give us some oil. 00:15:48.340 --> 00:15:50.480 And the wise ones are like, no, there won't be enough for both of us. 00:15:50.580 --> 00:15:52.280 You got to go get it yourself. 00:15:53.420 --> 00:15:54.200 And they missed it. 00:15:55.180 --> 00:15:58.720 So that's a thing we do. 00:16:00.620 --> 00:16:02.220 Jesus rebuked the Pharisees. 00:16:02.300 --> 00:16:05.639 He said, you search the scriptures thinking that in them you'd have eternal life. 00:16:05.680 --> 00:16:07.240 They speak of me and you won't come to me. 00:16:07.500 --> 00:16:09.420 You refuse to come to me that you might have life. 00:16:09.419 --> 00:16:19.159 Jesus has not designed his church to be sort of like, you know, one person has the oil and, you know, the Holy Spirit and you go get it by proxy. 00:16:19.299 --> 00:16:20.000 That's not how it works. 00:16:20.620 --> 00:16:28.779 We are filled with the spirit to bear witness to each other about Jesus so that we turn each other to Jesus and we can go get filled up ourself. 00:16:28.779 --> 00:16:31.799 So lack of steadfastness. 00:16:31.860 --> 00:16:32.319 What's the point? 00:16:32.639 --> 00:16:34.379 What's the fruit this produces, this attitude? 00:16:35.620 --> 00:16:36.919 You lose steam like that. 00:16:37.579 --> 00:16:41.379 You know, you didn't hear a positive, encouraging, you know, sermon that week. 00:16:41.639 --> 00:16:41.899 Oh. 00:16:43.339 --> 00:16:43.720 No. 00:16:44.139 --> 00:16:45.299 You woke up feeling grumpy. 00:16:45.519 --> 00:16:45.799 Oh. 00:16:46.980 --> 00:16:48.759 You need someone to pray for you all the time. 00:16:48.819 --> 00:16:50.600 You need someone to give you encouraging words. 00:16:50.600 --> 00:16:58.180 And it's just like, like all those things are awesome, but you're basically living a vicarious Christian life through other believers. 00:16:58.879 --> 00:16:58.980 You know. 00:17:00.720 --> 00:17:07.980 You have the author and perfecter of your salvation who lives in you through the Holy Spirit and who's our bread. 00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:11.640 And we are appointing each other to him. 00:17:13.759 --> 00:17:15.140 Another one is you can't be alone. 00:17:15.779 --> 00:17:18.240 It's another example of immaturity. 00:17:18.599 --> 00:17:20.200 And it kind of feeds into that a little bit there. 00:17:20.200 --> 00:17:25.559 You're just, you know, you don't know what it is to be content alone with the Lord. 00:17:26.240 --> 00:17:28.039 So you got to fill your time with other people. 00:17:28.559 --> 00:17:37.039 And this one can especially live in a church that really emphasizes the body aspect of the church of doing, you know, the kingdom of God and all of life together. 00:17:37.720 --> 00:17:41.559 Well, you can hide that sin for a long time before someone picks up on it. 00:17:43.220 --> 00:17:48.279 You know, this is like, I don't know if you've ever experienced this, but like, or maybe you experience this now. 00:17:48.279 --> 00:17:50.839 You're driving the car and you can't, you can't stand silence. 00:17:51.359 --> 00:17:53.079 You always got to have something off no matter what. 00:17:53.799 --> 00:17:54.319 You got a podcast. 00:17:54.559 --> 00:17:55.259 You got music. 00:17:55.379 --> 00:17:56.299 You have all those things are great. 00:17:56.299 --> 00:18:02.859 But if you can't stand silence, you're probably running away from God. 00:18:04.700 --> 00:18:05.819 You're probably running away from God. 00:18:06.819 --> 00:18:07.919 All those things are lawful. 00:18:08.399 --> 00:18:16.419 But if you can't sit alone with the Lord and you got to fill up your time with content and noise and people, 00:18:16.420 --> 00:18:21.660 maybe the Lord's trying to get a hold of you, you know. 00:18:23.019 --> 00:18:25.500 Jesus went out with the people. 00:18:26.200 --> 00:18:27.480 He went in with his father. 00:18:28.580 --> 00:18:34.140 When it was costly to spend time alone, he would pay the cost to spend that time alone. 00:18:34.140 --> 00:18:37.460 So, we need to check ourselves, you know. 00:18:37.900 --> 00:18:39.380 Are we content being alone with the Lord? 00:18:39.560 --> 00:18:47.140 Or, are we using other people and constant hanging out and constant doing things with, you know, the body 00:18:47.140 --> 00:18:53.040 to just dull that voice, that still quiet voice who's knocking on the door and said, 00:18:53.120 --> 00:18:56.360 Hey, I got some things in your marriage I want you to deal with. 00:18:56.359 --> 00:18:59.599 I got some things in the Lord I'm wanting to show you. 00:18:59.959 --> 00:19:00.899 And you're ignoring it. 00:19:01.379 --> 00:19:03.859 And you're hiding your immaturity and your sin. 00:19:04.459 --> 00:19:08.319 Your responsibilities at your job, at work, and with your kids. 00:19:09.879 --> 00:19:11.899 With life together. 00:19:13.359 --> 00:19:13.679 All right? 00:19:14.099 --> 00:19:14.579 Lord knows. 00:19:14.659 --> 00:19:15.359 He searches the heart. 00:19:17.899 --> 00:19:18.819 Flip side of the coin. 00:19:19.500 --> 00:19:21.459 You can't be together with other people, you know. 00:19:22.679 --> 00:19:23.959 This is more like me. 00:19:24.219 --> 00:19:25.259 You know, this is my role. 00:19:26.359 --> 00:19:28.139 You're careful how you hang out with people. 00:19:28.359 --> 00:19:29.119 You're very calculated. 00:19:29.599 --> 00:19:31.579 You know, you only got so much relational juice in the tank. 00:19:32.079 --> 00:19:35.559 You're very keyed in on how much is there, you know. 00:19:35.599 --> 00:19:41.899 And so, you mete out your commitments to make sure it never exceeds the amount of, you know, hangout capital you got. 00:19:42.679 --> 00:19:46.679 Rather than trusting in the Holy Spirit to give us everything we need for life and godliness. 00:19:46.879 --> 00:19:51.359 Including love in our hearts and the bandwidth to receive people. 00:19:51.359 --> 00:19:55.279 Jesus received people to the extent where his family just thought he was crazy. 00:19:55.279 --> 00:19:56.619 He's like, he's gone out of his mind. 00:19:58.039 --> 00:19:58.980 That's the grace of God. 00:19:59.059 --> 00:20:02.899 He didn't do that as a man apart from the grace of God. 00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:08.899 He did it filled with the Holy Spirit, full of the enabling power to be open to people. 00:20:08.900 --> 00:20:17.920 And there are ways of doing this where you're physically present for everything, but you're hiding. 00:20:18.720 --> 00:20:20.060 You're not opening up your heart. 00:20:21.019 --> 00:20:24.880 It's all activity-based, you know, or ministering-based. 00:20:25.180 --> 00:20:32.380 These are the people who can really fly under the radar because they're so effective for God. 00:20:32.380 --> 00:20:33.420 They share. 00:20:33.820 --> 00:20:34.800 They minister. 00:20:35.020 --> 00:20:35.900 They always have a word. 00:20:36.600 --> 00:20:40.680 And for some reason, you just never find out about their problems, you know. 00:20:41.040 --> 00:20:43.340 They never confess their sins with you. 00:20:43.720 --> 00:20:45.380 You might see they're having some marriage trouble. 00:20:45.460 --> 00:20:45.820 They're fighting. 00:20:45.960 --> 00:20:50.180 It's just like, oh, man, I've never even heard what specifically they fight about. 00:20:50.680 --> 00:20:51.360 I have no idea. 00:20:52.220 --> 00:20:53.020 Because they're hiding it. 00:20:53.700 --> 00:20:54.560 It's too embarrassing. 00:20:54.559 --> 00:20:59.039 The Lord wants to do away with this stuff. 00:20:59.599 --> 00:21:04.039 This is, if we walk in the light and see us in the light, we have fellowship with one another. 00:21:04.419 --> 00:21:06.819 And the blood of Jesus cleanses us from our sin. 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:09.940 We don't got to be embarrassed about our sin because the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. 00:21:10.200 --> 00:21:10.599 We're sinners. 00:21:13.899 --> 00:21:16.419 Similarly, on the same vein, holding people at arm's length. 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:19.079 Kind of went into that already. 00:21:20.460 --> 00:21:21.240 Here's another one. 00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:25.240 Full of good ideas and suggestions, but no hard work to accomplish them. 00:21:25.700 --> 00:21:29.240 These are like the armchair, you know, prophets, you know. 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:30.819 Just like, hey, we should do this. 00:21:30.880 --> 00:21:31.480 We should do that. 00:21:31.559 --> 00:21:32.859 Like, I say that. 00:21:32.940 --> 00:21:33.380 I have a joke. 00:21:33.460 --> 00:21:37.819 I say, when someone says we, I say, do you mean in the dad sense of the word we? 00:21:38.039 --> 00:21:40.299 Because sometimes I say we and I really mean my voice. 00:21:40.720 --> 00:21:42.200 You know, I mean, you go do it. 00:21:42.799 --> 00:21:44.000 We need to do this. 00:21:44.440 --> 00:21:46.120 And then I need to, like, think about, wait a minute. 00:21:46.119 --> 00:21:51.559 Am I passive-aggressively telling the other person that I'm saying this to go do it for me? 00:21:52.719 --> 00:21:54.239 Or do I really mean we? 00:21:54.359 --> 00:21:56.119 I mean, hey, I'm throwing out this good idea. 00:21:56.199 --> 00:21:56.939 What do you think about it? 00:21:56.939 --> 00:21:59.099 All right, let's work hard together to go do this. 00:22:00.819 --> 00:22:07.039 So, anyway, this is another side of immaturity. 00:22:07.599 --> 00:22:08.219 We should. 00:22:09.019 --> 00:22:10.559 We should do these things. 00:22:11.439 --> 00:22:11.699 All right. 00:22:12.339 --> 00:22:13.139 Think it through. 00:22:13.140 --> 00:22:19.500 Remember, James 4, 417 says, whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it's sin. 00:22:20.220 --> 00:22:20.460 All right. 00:22:21.120 --> 00:22:27.060 A lot of times our good ideas, we throw them out there because we want someone else to do it. 00:22:27.480 --> 00:22:32.740 We see something that's off in the church and we say, hey, that needs fixed. 00:22:33.600 --> 00:22:34.580 I don't want to fix it, though. 00:22:34.600 --> 00:22:35.120 You fix it. 00:22:36.180 --> 00:22:36.940 It's immaturity. 00:22:36.940 --> 00:22:44.559 Ownership, maturity, love sees the problem and assumes that's my job. 00:22:44.559 --> 00:22:48.839 I need to actually take care of that problem. 00:22:49.599 --> 00:22:50.460 I'd love to get input. 00:22:51.019 --> 00:22:52.720 I'd love to get alignment from the rest of the body. 00:22:52.919 --> 00:22:54.099 Like, hey, what do you think? 00:22:54.139 --> 00:22:56.519 Is this an important enough problem to go solve? 00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:57.319 This is a good idea. 00:22:57.980 --> 00:23:05.480 But not offload it on them and cause a burden to be upon their shoulders that I should take up on my shoulders. 00:23:05.480 --> 00:23:07.579 Just another example. 00:23:11.220 --> 00:23:15.620 We talked about drafting, but I'm going to drill on that a little bit more. 00:23:15.880 --> 00:23:18.339 Letting other people lead in hard things and coasting behind them. 00:23:18.720 --> 00:23:21.240 I think this is a huge one for all of us coming out of Bellicose. 00:23:21.839 --> 00:23:22.059 All right. 00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:27.279 We had awesome leaders who did hard things and made our life easy and we coasted behind them. 00:23:28.920 --> 00:23:30.960 And it's easy to hide there by being a good helper. 00:23:31.960 --> 00:23:32.220 All right. 00:23:32.220 --> 00:23:40.900 You're always there to help, but you won't help to the extent that you're leading in difficulty and letting other people draft behind you. 00:23:41.839 --> 00:23:44.180 And this is this is that next level. 00:23:44.299 --> 00:23:45.180 Now we're planting a church. 00:23:45.480 --> 00:23:47.880 There's no one in front of us other than Josh. 00:23:47.920 --> 00:23:48.819 He's going to be here for a while. 00:23:49.039 --> 00:23:49.339 All right. 00:23:49.980 --> 00:23:50.380 So. 00:23:51.420 --> 00:23:52.299 It's on us. 00:23:52.839 --> 00:23:54.519 You know, Galatians 6, verse 3 through 5. 00:23:54.680 --> 00:23:55.700 We're going to circle back to that. 00:23:56.079 --> 00:23:59.200 If anyone thinks he's something when he's nothing, he deceives himself. 00:23:59.660 --> 00:24:00.440 This is what happens. 00:24:00.480 --> 00:24:01.039 It's the dynamic. 00:24:01.039 --> 00:24:06.099 If someone else is going in front of you, they're the leader of the pack, like in a bike race, you know, the one front. 00:24:06.420 --> 00:24:10.119 They're taking all the wind and they're working twice as hard and you're right behind them. 00:24:10.180 --> 00:24:12.339 You're like, man, we're both basically the same. 00:24:13.159 --> 00:24:14.579 We're doing the same amount of work. 00:24:14.639 --> 00:24:15.339 We're in this together. 00:24:15.779 --> 00:24:19.519 No, you're doing hardly anything and they're in front of you. 00:24:20.859 --> 00:24:22.480 So we need to think about that. 00:24:22.480 --> 00:24:32.640 You know, we need to think about have I become accustomed to that kind of just lazy operation because there's other more mature people around to take it for me. 00:24:33.200 --> 00:24:33.720 I know I am. 00:24:35.299 --> 00:24:35.980 There's another one. 00:24:36.079 --> 00:24:36.799 Vacation life. 00:24:37.140 --> 00:24:39.099 This is just living for the next fun thing. 00:24:39.759 --> 00:24:40.579 This is the American dream. 00:24:40.579 --> 00:24:43.439 I live for the weekend and we think, OK, we're Christians. 00:24:43.539 --> 00:24:44.139 We don't do that. 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:48.179 If you're not thinking about and fighting against it, you are 100 percent doing it. 00:24:48.439 --> 00:24:49.179 You're just doing it. 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:53.500 OK, if you don't see that your flesh is oriented towards. 00:24:55.279 --> 00:24:56.539 Relaxation through vacation. 00:24:56.539 --> 00:25:01.659 You know, just applying that as kind of a general principle across life. 00:25:02.539 --> 00:25:06.460 You know, this can just be like, oh, I can't wait to get home from work and crack open a cold one and watch Netflix. 00:25:06.779 --> 00:25:08.819 You know, nothing, nothing wrong with beer. 00:25:09.759 --> 00:25:10.759 Nothing wrong with Netflix. 00:25:11.980 --> 00:25:12.539 What am I? 00:25:12.779 --> 00:25:13.720 What am I using? 00:25:16.200 --> 00:25:17.440 Julie's like that one plays to you. 00:25:17.619 --> 00:25:17.879 OK. 00:25:19.319 --> 00:25:21.519 First Corinthians 10 verse seven. 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:24.559 It talks about the Israelites. 00:25:24.559 --> 00:25:30.359 This is when Moses was up on the mountain receiving the law of God. 00:25:30.500 --> 00:25:34.859 They gave themselves over to making this golden calf and worshiping it. 00:25:35.079 --> 00:25:41.740 But it's interesting in the New Testament, when Paul refers back to that, he calls it idolatry. 00:25:43.099 --> 00:25:52.220 And the the attribute of idolatry he he points to is that they made a golden calf and were worshiping. 00:25:52.220 --> 00:25:55.819 He says they sat down to eat and drink and they rose up to plump. 00:25:57.160 --> 00:25:59.640 That was what they look forward to eating and drinking and playing. 00:25:59.980 --> 00:26:00.920 That's just their whole life. 00:26:01.539 --> 00:26:03.319 This is immaturity for a Christian. 00:26:03.880 --> 00:26:05.740 You know, this is what Gentiles actually live for. 00:26:05.799 --> 00:26:06.600 They live for this. 00:26:07.740 --> 00:26:09.440 We can live for that, too, in practice. 00:26:09.440 --> 00:26:12.080 Here's another one. 00:26:12.640 --> 00:26:13.680 It's a little more offensive. 00:26:14.240 --> 00:26:18.620 Valuing your family, specifically your extended family, over your spiritual thing. 00:26:19.940 --> 00:26:21.440 Now, you might say, OK, wait a minute. 00:26:21.880 --> 00:26:22.480 Divine order. 00:26:22.940 --> 00:26:24.320 Man can't take care of his own family. 00:26:24.380 --> 00:26:25.620 How can you take care of the church of God? 00:26:26.100 --> 00:26:27.799 I'm talking about that's the balance for this. 00:26:27.799 --> 00:26:33.639 I'm talking about the other side where, you know, Matthew 12, verses 46 through 50. 00:26:34.079 --> 00:26:36.279 Jesus, his mother and brothers come. 00:26:38.460 --> 00:26:40.859 And they want something from him. 00:26:40.940 --> 00:26:42.859 They want this this relationship. 00:26:43.000 --> 00:26:44.740 They want him to come out and do what they're doing. 00:26:45.339 --> 00:26:46.839 And he says, who are my mother and brothers? 00:26:48.039 --> 00:26:49.639 Those who hear the word of God and do it. 00:26:49.640 --> 00:26:55.460 And this communicates to us our value system as Christians. 00:26:56.759 --> 00:27:02.740 If we're born again, we've passed out of our earthly family and into a heavenly family. 00:27:02.960 --> 00:27:05.000 And we want to bring our earthly family into it, OK? 00:27:05.320 --> 00:27:07.600 We want them to be born again. 00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:08.820 We want them to be part of it. 00:27:09.240 --> 00:27:15.800 But there is a pull to still operate with this value system where everything's about our family 00:27:15.800 --> 00:27:18.840 in a way that fights against the law. 00:27:18.839 --> 00:27:20.500 You know, I have this with my family. 00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:26.599 I, like, if we don't think this applies to us, we don't think about it, it for sure does, OK? 00:27:27.079 --> 00:27:31.980 The way this, the way we're victorious in any of these things is the Holy Spirit brings conviction. 00:27:32.399 --> 00:27:33.259 We recognize it. 00:27:33.379 --> 00:27:34.059 We repent. 00:27:34.379 --> 00:27:36.919 And then let the Holy Spirit renew these areas. 00:27:37.439 --> 00:27:44.740 So, grumbling and complaining that's not as good as you used to have it relationally here at this new church versus your old church. 00:27:45.039 --> 00:27:45.339 All right? 00:27:45.919 --> 00:27:46.399 No doubt. 00:27:47.079 --> 00:27:47.359 OK? 00:27:47.359 --> 00:27:47.439 OK. 00:27:48.919 --> 00:27:50.759 We've had this for a short amount of time. 00:27:50.859 --> 00:27:52.479 Some of these relationships are more long-lasting. 00:27:52.619 --> 00:27:53.039 Others aren't. 00:27:53.719 --> 00:27:53.919 All right? 00:27:56.339 --> 00:28:00.419 These are the same attitudes the Israelites had coming out of Egypt. 00:28:00.420 --> 00:28:04.640 And it's not like Bellicose is Egypt and we're coming out into the promised land. 00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:06.700 But we got, like, these things still apply. 00:28:06.820 --> 00:28:08.279 Our flesh has the same reactions. 00:28:08.440 --> 00:28:09.940 Like, man, it was awesome. 00:28:10.519 --> 00:28:11.279 These people suck. 00:28:12.360 --> 00:28:12.640 Whatever. 00:28:13.140 --> 00:28:14.160 Those people suck, too. 00:28:14.160 --> 00:28:23.900 And the Lord did a wonderful work by his Holy Spirit in making love and relationships form over the years that were wonderful. 00:28:24.040 --> 00:28:24.820 And, of course, we miss it. 00:28:24.819 --> 00:28:29.179 But he's going to do the same thing here because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 00:28:29.819 --> 00:28:31.879 This one we got to take by faithful, you know. 00:28:31.880 --> 00:28:34.360 And we're never going to have that optimism. 00:28:34.620 --> 00:28:46.760 And we're never going to have that optimism with each other and new people that we're on mission to unless we give up that turning around and just being like, man, I wish it was as good as we had. 00:28:47.160 --> 00:28:48.040 We'll never get there. 00:28:48.039 --> 00:28:53.240 Last one is a lack of concern for the lost. 00:28:56.480 --> 00:29:00.039 You know, Jesus in Matthew 25. 00:29:00.720 --> 00:29:01.559 Is it in Matthew 25? 00:29:02.099 --> 00:29:12.119 Yeah, in Matthew 25, he talks about doing things for people who basically can't repay you at all as unto Jesus. 00:29:12.579 --> 00:29:13.940 That's our attitude towards loss. 00:29:13.940 --> 00:29:20.980 We don't say we don't we're not fundamentally motivated to be on mission to people because there's a bunch of sinners who are going to go to hell. 00:29:21.140 --> 00:29:21.820 That's part of it. 00:29:22.600 --> 00:29:24.220 It's because it's for Jesus sake. 00:29:24.720 --> 00:29:25.480 It's for him. 00:29:25.980 --> 00:29:26.779 We do it to them. 00:29:27.220 --> 00:29:28.420 It's under Jesus. 00:29:30.500 --> 00:29:30.860 And. 00:29:32.140 --> 00:29:34.860 It's easy to get locked up in our own world, just not have a vision for this. 00:29:35.140 --> 00:29:40.740 I'm especially oriented away, I think, even with my natural giftings, but just my flesh. 00:29:41.500 --> 00:29:41.820 It's. 00:29:42.640 --> 00:29:43.799 I need the Lord to help me. 00:29:44.340 --> 00:29:45.720 To have a heart for people who are lost. 00:29:47.340 --> 00:29:49.840 So anyway, this is not exhaustive list. 00:29:49.940 --> 00:29:51.440 This is just some things I thought of. 00:29:53.180 --> 00:29:55.759 But the fact of the matter is we can't hide from any of this stuff anymore. 00:29:56.180 --> 00:29:59.299 You were probably able to hide a lot of that stuff. 00:29:59.320 --> 00:30:04.160 If you struggle with some of that stuff, you were able to hide it way better in your old church than you are here. 00:30:04.940 --> 00:30:06.580 Because now it has immediate fruit. 00:30:07.460 --> 00:30:09.519 You have a pattern of that for a few months. 00:30:09.779 --> 00:30:10.100 Wow. 00:30:10.100 --> 00:30:11.720 It really impacts everybody. 00:30:11.720 --> 00:30:16.200 1 Timothy 5 verse 24 through 25 says, 00:30:16.319 --> 00:30:18.660 The sins of some people are conspicuous. 00:30:18.720 --> 00:30:20.120 That means they're easy to see. 00:30:20.660 --> 00:30:22.140 Going before them to judgment. 00:30:22.140 --> 00:30:24.280 But the sins of others are clear later. 00:30:25.300 --> 00:30:27.080 So also good works are conspicuous. 00:30:27.160 --> 00:30:30.060 And even those that are not cannot remain hidden. 00:30:30.059 --> 00:30:33.519 Maybe at Bellicose you got warned about certain sins. 00:30:34.000 --> 00:30:36.139 Maybe you had people challenge you on certain things. 00:30:37.419 --> 00:30:40.799 But you never really felt the weight of real consequences. 00:30:40.799 --> 00:30:44.099 Because you're in this good family. 00:30:44.279 --> 00:30:44.799 Propped you up. 00:30:45.399 --> 00:30:47.139 Well, here you're going to feel it. 00:30:47.139 --> 00:30:48.039 And other people are going to feel it. 00:30:48.059 --> 00:30:48.799 We're all going to feel it. 00:30:49.919 --> 00:30:50.779 I think a good question. 00:30:50.940 --> 00:30:53.839 Josh has asked this question before. 00:30:53.859 --> 00:30:54.680 I think it's a great question. 00:30:55.399 --> 00:30:58.680 If everyone lived like you, would you want to be part of our church? 00:30:58.680 --> 00:31:04.320 If everyone in our church lived like you live, would you want to be part of it? 00:31:05.080 --> 00:31:05.360 All right. 00:31:05.700 --> 00:31:07.279 My immediate answer to that is no. 00:31:07.960 --> 00:31:10.460 There's immediately things I think of like, ooh, no, I would not. 00:31:10.820 --> 00:31:15.039 If everyone lived like me, like I'm definitely relying on some other people 00:31:15.039 --> 00:31:18.580 filling in on areas of my own immaturity right now. 00:31:19.440 --> 00:31:20.920 Those are the things we need to repent from. 00:31:20.920 --> 00:31:25.860 So anyway, that's the bad side. 00:31:26.200 --> 00:31:30.779 That's the, this is the, these are the things we need to grow up in. 00:31:32.400 --> 00:31:33.220 God's plan. 00:31:33.900 --> 00:31:34.700 What's God's plan? 00:31:34.779 --> 00:31:35.440 What's the positive? 00:31:35.900 --> 00:31:36.860 This is the problem. 00:31:36.900 --> 00:31:37.960 What's the answer to this problem? 00:31:38.720 --> 00:31:43.140 One is he challenges us to imitate our leaders and grow up to be like them 00:31:43.140 --> 00:31:46.500 in the things that are according to Christ. 00:31:46.880 --> 00:31:48.660 Paul says, follow me as I follow Christ. 00:31:48.660 --> 00:31:52.720 Um, Hebrews 13 verse seven through eight says, remember your leaders. 00:31:52.840 --> 00:31:56.779 Those who spoke to you, the word of God, consider the outcome of their way of life 00:31:56.779 --> 00:31:58.759 and imitate their faith. 00:31:59.740 --> 00:32:02.720 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 00:32:03.940 --> 00:32:09.300 So like all the good things we appreciate about our old church, the leadership 00:32:09.300 --> 00:32:16.980 and the culture, the thing he's challenging us to do is to recognize we don't have 00:32:16.980 --> 00:32:18.380 a different Jesus than they have. 00:32:18.660 --> 00:32:19.220 We don't. 00:32:19.680 --> 00:32:20.580 We have the same Jesus. 00:32:21.300 --> 00:32:23.440 We also don't have a different nature than they have. 00:32:23.840 --> 00:32:24.220 We don't. 00:32:24.519 --> 00:32:25.259 We have the same nature. 00:32:25.740 --> 00:32:26.540 We're still sinners. 00:32:27.140 --> 00:32:28.340 We're saved by grace. 00:32:28.519 --> 00:32:34.400 The same God who saved them by grace and worked in them the things that they 00:32:34.400 --> 00:32:35.220 couldn't do themselves. 00:32:35.840 --> 00:32:36.840 He's going to do with us. 00:32:36.839 --> 00:32:41.599 And the promise is Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 00:32:41.799 --> 00:32:47.019 I don't have to look back and be like, well, that's cool for, you know, the Christopherson 00:32:47.019 --> 00:32:47.379 family. 00:32:48.220 --> 00:32:49.500 But me, yeah. 00:32:49.500 --> 00:32:51.519 It's not the case. 00:32:51.740 --> 00:32:52.599 He's the same. 00:32:52.640 --> 00:32:53.460 It's the same Jesus. 00:32:54.720 --> 00:32:58.660 Which circles back here to this promise in Ephesians. 00:32:59.660 --> 00:33:01.019 I'm just going to read it again. 00:33:01.680 --> 00:33:04.519 This is what Paul's praying for for the church. 00:33:04.519 --> 00:33:09.759 For this reason, I bow my knees before the father from whom every family in heaven and on earth 00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:10.180 is named. 00:33:10.960 --> 00:33:15.920 That according to the riches of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power 00:33:15.920 --> 00:33:20.800 through his spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith 00:33:20.800 --> 00:33:26.460 so that you being rooted and grounded in love may have strength to comprehend with all the saints 00:33:26.460 --> 00:33:32.279 what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ that surpasses 00:33:32.279 --> 00:33:35.680 knowledge that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 00:33:37.039 --> 00:33:39.120 We've talked about the baptism of the Holy Spirit a lot. 00:33:39.580 --> 00:33:41.300 I think we just need to talk about it more. 00:33:41.299 --> 00:33:48.940 Like, he's saying, the reason I'm bowing my knees before God is so that you would be strengthened 00:33:48.940 --> 00:33:49.960 with power by the Holy Spirit. 00:33:50.740 --> 00:33:55.700 There's not a 42-step list to counteract all the points that I went through. 00:33:56.359 --> 00:33:59.980 God's answer is, be strengthened with power by the Holy Spirit. 00:34:00.279 --> 00:34:01.059 It's a free gift. 00:34:01.799 --> 00:34:01.899 Okay? 00:34:02.419 --> 00:34:05.720 You had, our sins were innumerable. 00:34:07.039 --> 00:34:07.259 You know? 00:34:07.740 --> 00:34:09.900 You could, they're innumerable. 00:34:09.900 --> 00:34:11.660 They're massive. 00:34:13.059 --> 00:34:20.220 God didn't have, like, an innumerable number of solutions that matched the innumerable number 00:34:20.220 --> 00:34:20.820 of our sins. 00:34:21.039 --> 00:34:22.519 He had one solution, Christ. 00:34:23.119 --> 00:34:24.300 What he did for us on the cross. 00:34:24.380 --> 00:34:25.900 His blood took care of all of it. 00:34:26.099 --> 00:34:30.539 In the same way, when we think of our innumerable points of immaturity, 00:34:31.240 --> 00:34:32.280 God has one solution. 00:34:33.059 --> 00:34:33.960 The Holy Spirit. 00:34:33.960 --> 00:34:34.960 God has one solution. 00:34:34.960 --> 00:34:37.480 That we would be filled and strengthened with the Holy Spirit. 00:34:37.800 --> 00:34:40.240 That Christ Jesus would live in our hearts through faith. 00:34:40.699 --> 00:34:43.400 And that he would love people through us. 00:34:44.260 --> 00:34:44.420 You know? 00:34:44.599 --> 00:34:46.519 And so, anyway, I think that's really it. 00:34:46.599 --> 00:34:50.980 And this is, this is a very simple, it's a very simple truth. 00:34:51.059 --> 00:34:52.019 It's a very simple solution. 00:34:52.019 --> 00:34:58.139 But, I think the challenge is sometimes not necessarily that we understand what the solution 00:34:58.139 --> 00:34:58.480 is. 00:34:59.000 --> 00:35:01.320 Is we just don't see that we even have a problem in the first place. 00:35:01.699 --> 00:35:01.960 Okay? 00:35:02.619 --> 00:35:06.780 Because our mom and dad, quote unquote, protected us from it. 00:35:07.599 --> 00:35:08.679 Well, now we're out of the house. 00:35:08.759 --> 00:35:09.219 We moved out. 00:35:09.280 --> 00:35:10.280 We got to pay all our own bills. 00:35:11.179 --> 00:35:11.380 You know? 00:35:11.739 --> 00:35:13.139 You got to pay car insurance now. 00:35:13.880 --> 00:35:15.119 You know, metaphorically speaking. 00:35:15.119 --> 00:35:18.579 If you wreck your car, you got to pay for it. 00:35:18.619 --> 00:35:19.359 We got to pay for it. 00:35:19.380 --> 00:35:20.619 Mom and dad aren't going to pay for it anymore. 00:35:21.719 --> 00:35:26.039 And the Lord's grace is sufficient for all of that. 00:35:27.119 --> 00:35:29.380 But we do need to take a step back and think about it. 00:35:29.400 --> 00:35:30.579 I think we really need to take a season. 00:35:31.259 --> 00:35:34.199 I think it would be helpful just to pray and say, Lord, all right. 00:35:35.299 --> 00:35:36.400 I went to an awesome church. 00:35:36.460 --> 00:35:36.920 That's awesome. 00:35:38.039 --> 00:35:41.639 But that also means there's probably some gaps. 00:35:42.139 --> 00:35:44.059 Other people were taking the load for me. 00:35:44.059 --> 00:35:46.299 And just say, Lord, what is it? 00:35:46.880 --> 00:35:48.159 I don't want to be blind to it. 00:35:48.320 --> 00:35:51.380 We're in the foundation setting stages of our church right now. 00:35:52.179 --> 00:35:55.699 The culture that we have right now is going to grow. 00:35:56.440 --> 00:35:57.820 It's not going to change. 00:35:58.199 --> 00:35:59.119 It's going to grow. 00:36:00.159 --> 00:36:00.360 You know? 00:36:00.759 --> 00:36:01.699 We need to think about that. 00:36:01.820 --> 00:36:05.440 We need to think about what is the culture that I want? 00:36:06.299 --> 00:36:07.980 What kind of church would I like to go to? 00:36:09.480 --> 00:36:12.420 Most of the time, it actually just lined up with what the Bible speaks about. 00:36:12.420 --> 00:36:16.579 Because the Spirit bears witness and says, man, that's what I want. 00:36:16.659 --> 00:36:18.680 I want a church that preaches the simplicity of Christ. 00:36:19.579 --> 00:36:26.659 I want a church that preaches the free grace of God that's not a license to sin, that makes us like Jesus. 00:36:27.599 --> 00:36:30.860 I want to go to a church that has the power of God present. 00:36:30.960 --> 00:36:32.340 It's not just talk, but power. 00:36:32.880 --> 00:36:33.079 You know? 00:36:33.079 --> 00:36:35.319 I want to go to church where people prophesy. 00:36:35.460 --> 00:36:40.079 People, somebody comes in, and one of my friends I've been on mission to for a long time, I can't get through. 00:36:40.380 --> 00:36:44.900 They come in, and my brother says something, and they just get their book read. 00:36:45.920 --> 00:36:47.659 That doesn't happen because we're a bunch of smart people. 00:36:47.719 --> 00:36:51.819 That happens because Jesus is here through the power of the Holy Spirit living in us. 00:36:52.239 --> 00:36:54.099 I want to go to a church like that, you know? 00:36:54.099 --> 00:37:03.960 And the fact of the matter is, if I'm sitting here protecting myself from maturity, it's not going to happen. 00:37:04.960 --> 00:37:11.779 We're all just going to keep coasting and just be another hypocrite, a bunch of hypocrites. 00:37:11.780 --> 00:37:14.120 But that's not what the Lord has for us. 00:37:15.140 --> 00:37:15.920 A hundred percent. 00:37:17.940 --> 00:37:25.100 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 00:37:27.320 --> 00:37:28.940 I love this last little bit. 00:37:29.140 --> 00:37:33.740 I thought about reading this kind of just a benediction, this last two verses, because it really is. 00:37:34.100 --> 00:37:35.900 Ephesians 3, verse 20 through 21. 00:37:35.900 --> 00:37:43.920 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think. 00:37:44.559 --> 00:37:45.360 This is awesome. 00:37:46.720 --> 00:37:50.220 More than all the things that we are asking and that we're even thinking about right now. 00:37:50.340 --> 00:37:50.800 That's amazing. 00:37:52.059 --> 00:37:54.300 According to the power of work within us. 00:37:55.740 --> 00:38:00.180 To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations. 00:38:00.840 --> 00:38:01.579 Forever and ever. 00:38:01.680 --> 00:38:01.880 Amen. 00:38:02.380 --> 00:38:04.320 What's in front of us is better than what we liked. 00:38:04.720 --> 00:38:04.900 Okay? 00:38:04.900 --> 00:38:07.720 That's not to say this church is going to be better than Belkos. 00:38:07.820 --> 00:38:07.980 No. 00:38:09.180 --> 00:38:09.920 They're going to do great. 00:38:10.000 --> 00:38:10.680 The Lord's going to bless them. 00:38:11.079 --> 00:38:15.440 For us, though, it's going to be better because the Lord calls to do something different. 00:38:16.139 --> 00:38:16.760 Way better. 00:38:17.539 --> 00:38:17.840 All right? 00:38:18.800 --> 00:38:22.880 He's doing a work in and through us, the church, for his glory. 00:38:23.920 --> 00:38:26.579 The Lord is jealous for the name of Jesus to be exalted. 00:38:27.240 --> 00:38:28.300 He's jealous for it. 00:38:28.480 --> 00:38:29.059 And it will be. 00:38:29.380 --> 00:38:30.240 He says it will. 00:38:30.820 --> 00:38:33.660 He says, be still and know I am God. 00:38:33.659 --> 00:38:35.359 I will be exalted. 00:38:35.619 --> 00:38:36.379 He's going to do it. 00:38:37.480 --> 00:38:37.679 So. 00:38:38.940 --> 00:38:40.980 But let's realize how he's going to do it. 00:38:41.559 --> 00:38:41.739 Okay? 00:38:42.460 --> 00:38:43.239 He's going to come in. 00:38:43.279 --> 00:38:44.159 He's going to clean house. 00:38:44.980 --> 00:38:55.239 He's going to say, when I'm feeling a little bit picked on by the Holy Spirit, I'm feeling a little bit ouchy because there's an area of my life I protected my whole life. 00:38:55.879 --> 00:38:56.179 Somehow. 00:38:56.179 --> 00:38:57.619 I managed to get by my whole life. 00:38:58.239 --> 00:39:00.599 And he's pulling up the shades. 00:39:00.699 --> 00:39:01.879 He's saying, that's got to go. 00:39:03.159 --> 00:39:04.819 That's falling short of the glory of God. 00:39:05.599 --> 00:39:07.440 And I'm like, but what about that guy? 00:39:09.679 --> 00:39:11.639 Spirit says, what's that to you? 00:39:11.839 --> 00:39:12.559 You follow me. 00:39:12.559 --> 00:39:13.559 Spirit says, what's that to you? 00:39:13.559 --> 00:39:17.380 We need to realize that that's how he's going to work with every single one of us. 00:39:18.519 --> 00:39:21.039 And that's what produces the culture of love. 00:39:22.259 --> 00:39:26.840 That's what produces a foundation of being rooted and grounded in love. 00:39:28.119 --> 00:39:31.500 He is bringing things into alignment with his son. 00:39:31.500 --> 00:39:36.079 And that's what produces love. 00:39:37.059 --> 00:39:38.940 You know, laying down our lives for each other. 00:39:39.860 --> 00:39:41.000 And that's the culture. 00:39:41.139 --> 00:39:44.980 Like, he wants to set that foundation, being rooted and grounded in that love. 00:39:45.960 --> 00:39:47.579 And it will grow. 00:39:48.159 --> 00:39:48.599 Okay? 00:39:48.820 --> 00:39:53.900 The house that grows on top of that, we're going to have a culture that is just founded in love. 00:39:55.179 --> 00:39:59.440 Because we're letting him come in and clean house. 00:39:59.440 --> 00:39:59.480 Yes. 00:40:00.139 --> 00:40:02.119 So, that's really what I had on my heart. 00:40:03.360 --> 00:40:08.139 I think the Lord wants to let us understand a little bit better where we're really at. 00:40:09.960 --> 00:40:17.980 And just because we went to a great church doesn't mean you got a whole bunch of maturity by proxy. 00:40:18.360 --> 00:40:18.579 Okay? 00:40:19.119 --> 00:40:23.300 It does mean that in certain areas, but there's probably areas where it's just not the case. 00:40:24.079 --> 00:40:27.320 And we need to come before the Lord and say, Lord, what do you want?