What Happens in the Upper Room Won’t Stay in the Upper Room [Acts 1 & 2]

Sermon Summary

In today's gathering, we explored the concept of "stolen valor" and its spiritual counterpart, "stolen spiritual valor." Just as some falsely claim military achievements for personal gain, there are those who claim spiritual depth without genuine commitment. This is a call to authenticity in our faith journey. We delved into the significance of the "upper room" as a place of divine encounter and transformation, drawing from various biblical accounts where the upper room served as a setting for miraculous events and spiritual breakthroughs. From the Old Testament stories of Ehud and Elijah to the New Testament accounts of the Last Supper and Pentecost, the upper room symbolizes a sacred space where God meets His people.

The upper room is not just a physical location but a metaphor for the elevated spiritual place where we meet God. It requires effort, akin to climbing a mountain, as seen in the lives of Moses and Jesus. This effort signifies our willingness to separate ourselves from distractions and seek God earnestly. The early church's experience in the upper room on the day of Pentecost serves as a powerful example of unity, prayer, and perseverance. They gathered in one accord, prayed continuously, and were filled with the Holy Spirit, leading to boldness and transformation.

This message challenges us to find our own "upper room," a place where we can encounter God and be transformed. It calls us to move beyond superficial faith and engage in genuine, obedient, and persistent prayer. The transformation experienced by the early disciples is available to us today if we are willing to seek God with the same fervor and unity. As we labor together in faith, God promises to meet us, fill us with His Spirit, and empower us for His work.

“The transformation experienced by the early disciples is available to us today if we are willing to seek God with the same fervor and unity.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [02:00] - Introduction to Stolen Valor

• [05:30] - Spiritual Stolen Valor

• [09:04] - The Upper Room in Scripture

• [13:32] - Moses and the Mountain

• [17:45] - Jesus and the Mountain

• [21:00] - The Early Church's Upper Room

• [25:25] - Unity and Prayer in the Upper Room

• [28:15] - Transformation of the Disciples

• [31:30] - The Call to Our Upper Room

• [33:18] - Invitation to Salvation

• [36:00] - Closing Prayer and Reflection

Key Takeaways

1. Authenticity in Faith: Just as stolen valor disrespects true military heroes, claiming spiritual depth without genuine commitment disrespects true faith. We must strive for authenticity in our relationship with God, ensuring our actions align with our claims of faith. [09:04]
   

2. The Upper Room as a Sacred Space: The upper room represents a place of divine encounter and transformation. Throughout scripture, it is a setting for miraculous events, symbolizing the need for a dedicated space where we can meet God and experience His power. [13:32]
   

3. Effort and Elevation in Seeking God: Like climbing a mountain, seeking God requires effort and a willingness to rise above distractions. This spiritual elevation is necessary for receiving God's revelations and experiencing His presence. [25:25]

4. Unity and Perseverance in Prayer: The early church's experience in the upper room highlights the importance of unity and continuous prayer. Their perseverance led to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, demonstrating the power of collective, persistent prayer. [31:30]

5. Transformation Through the Holy Spirit: The transformation of the disciples, from fearful followers to bold proclaimers, illustrates the power of the Holy Spirit. This same transformation is available to us if we seek God earnestly and allow His Spirit to fill and empower us. [33:18]

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Bible Reading

• Act 1:13-14 NKJV - And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James [the son] of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas [the son] of James. 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers

• Act 2:1-4 NKJV - When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and [one] sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Observation Questions

1. What were the disciples doing in the upper room according to Acts 1:13-14? How does this set the stage for what happens in Acts 2? [09:04]

2. In Acts 2:1-4, what significant event took place in the upper room, and how did it affect those present? [09:04]

3. The sermon mentioned several Old Testament stories involving the upper room. Can you recall one of these stories and its significance? [09:04]

4. How does the sermon describe the concept of "stolen spiritual valor," and what are some examples given? [09:04]

Interpretation Questions

1. Why do you think the upper room is portrayed as a place of divine encounter and transformation in both the Old and New Testaments? [09:04]

2. The sermon emphasizes the importance of unity and perseverance in prayer. How does this relate to the experience of the early church in the upper room? [31:30]

3. How does the sermon challenge the idea of superficial faith, and what does it mean to engage in genuine, obedient, and persistent prayer? [31:30]

4. What does the transformation of the disciples from fearful followers to bold proclaimers teach us about the power of the Holy Spirit? [25:25]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on your own faith journey. Are there areas where you might be claiming "spiritual depth" without genuine commitment? How can you strive for greater authenticity in your relationship with God? [09:04]

2. The sermon calls us to find our own "upper room." What steps can you take to create a dedicated space and time for encountering God in your daily life? [31:30]

3. Consider the distractions in your life that might be hindering your spiritual elevation. What practical steps can you take to rise above these distractions and seek God more earnestly? [13:32]

4. How can you foster unity and perseverance in prayer within your small group or church community? What role can you play in encouraging collective, persistent prayer? [31:30]

5. The sermon highlights the transformation available through the Holy Spirit. In what areas of your life do you desire transformation, and how can you actively seek the Holy Spirit's empowerment? [25:25]

6. Think about a time when you felt spiritually stagnant. What changes can you make to ensure you are continually growing and being transformed in your faith journey? [31:30]

7. How can you apply the lessons from the early church's experience in the upper room to your own life and community? What specific actions can you take to live out these lessons? [31:30]

• Full Transcript

  It's good to be in the house of the Lord this morning. Let's open up our Bibles this morning. We look into the Word of God, Acts chapter 1 and 2. I want to preach this morning a message God put on my heart for this moment in our congregation.
  
  There's a man named Frank Dux, and he is a martial artist, best known for claiming to have participated in and won a secret underground martial arts tournament called the Kumite, which allegedly inspired a movie from 1988 starring Jean-Claude Van Damme named Bloodsport. I'm not recommending the movie, but it is supposedly a true life story of this man Frank Dux. He claimed that he was a covert military operative having completed secret missions for the United States government, although his service records indicate that he never served in combat. According to his military record, he never left San Diego. He had an injury by falling off a truck when he was told to paint. All of the medals that he presented were mismatched to non-Marine Corps ribbons, and one journalist found that the Kumite trophy that he displayed in his home so proudly was actually made by a local trophy shop in the San Fernando Valley.
  
  This is one prominent example of some people who participate in something called stolen valor. Anybody ever heard of that? Stolen valor is when someone will falsely claim military service or exaggerate one's rank or achievements, even impersonating a veteran for personal gain. It can include lying about serving in combat, wearing unearned medals or uniforms, or falsely claiming to have been in elite units like the Navy SEALs, Green Beret, or Army Rangers. And I know that some of you who are here as military members, none of you gets your blood boiling worse than people impersonating heroes who are not actually heroes.
  
  But why is this such a temptation? Because there is a social status and there is a certain respect that we give to people who have served in the military, especially those in elite units or combat roles. And when people falsely claim a military background, they do so to impress others or gain credibility or feel a sense of importance. Also, people like Frank Dux had a whole Hollywood movie adapted according to his story to become famous, gain money, and get jobs that might prioritize veterans. There's also romantic benefits. The opposite sex may look upon people like that and be more attracted to them, being more noble or impressing others in this way. But it's truly offensive. Stolen valor is offensive because it disrespects true veterans and people who have made true sacrifices—people who have fought in foxholes and places around the world that we would not want to be.
  
  And so these cases of stolen valor, there are groups that work to expose who these people are and reveal inconsistencies in their false claims. I want to tell you this morning there is also a problem in the kingdom of stolen spiritual valor. There are people, there are men and women who claim to be greater than they are, who claim, "I'm a prayer warrior," but haven't seen a prayer room in years. There are people who claim to be Bible scholars and Bible students who never let a scripture touch their heart in years. There are people who claim to be true followers of Jesus, but the followers they're only following when other people are around or when they are accountable to eyes watching them.
  
  I want to tell you that is one of the most difficult things as a pastor to deal with—people who are stealing the valor of true faith. And I want to preach a message I've titled, "What Happens in the Upper Room Doesn't Stay in the Upper Room." What we don't need this morning is we don't need posers; we don't need imposters. We need God to transform us this morning. Can you say amen?
  
  I want to read from Acts chapter 1, two verses, and then from Acts chapter 2. Follow with me this morning.
  
  Acts 1, verse 13: "When they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying."
  
  Verse 14: "All these continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers."
  
  Now chapter 2, verse 1: "When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. There appeared to them divided tongues as of fire, and one sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled—how many were filled? All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance."
  
  Let's pray for a moment.
  
  Lord, I thank you for the people gathered in this room today. God, we are grateful for your salvation and for your mercy and your grace. Praying, God, bring anointing to this message and to the ears that would hear it, Lord, that we would be challenged, changed, and transformed as we encounter your presence in this place. We give you glory in Jesus' mighty name. Most people would say amen.
  
  This message is inspired because guess where we are today? We're in an upper room, aren't we? And I thought—well, my wife helped me think—that what better way to introduce our congregation to a new building than to contemplate what happens in the upper room? What could happen here today if we would do what they did?
  
  I want to look at the idea of the upper room, seeking God in the upper room. What I was amazed to find is that throughout scripture there is a pattern; there is a consistency when it comes to people meeting in the upper room. The upper room is a place where God reveals his power, where transformation takes place, where destinies can be changed. Both in the Old and in the New Testament, there are sacred spaces that become places for divine encounters.
  
  I did a study every time the Bible mentioned the words "upper room," and I was amazed to find what kind of results came from that search. In Judges chapter 3, there's a story about Ehud, who is a hero of Israel, and how he secretly assassinates the king of Moab named Eglon. He shows up in this place and secretly takes out the king, the enemy of God's people. It shows us that the upper room is a place where we can gain the victory over Satan. It's a place where we can come against the works of hell.
  
  There's another story in 1 Kings chapter 17. The prophet Elijah brings the widow's son into an upper room after he had died. Elijah carries him to an upper room, stretches himself on the boy, and prays over him, and that boy is resurrected from the dead. Life and power of God poured out on him—where? In an upper room.
  
  Also, Elisha in 2 Kings chapter 4, the Shunammite woman has a son, and she had prepared an upper room to host the prophet where she could care for and feed him in his travels. He would often stay there, and later when her son dies, she brings him to that upper room where the prophet Elisha is able to restore that boy again—another miracle in an upper room.
  
  David, when his son, after the incident with Bathsheba, she gives birth to a son, and that son, the Bible says, God strikes the son and kills him. It's there in an upper room where David surrenders to the Lord. David prays in an upper room. This is in 2 Samuel 18, and it's a lesson in surrender. Our greatest cries can be heard by God in an upper room.
  
  Daniel chapter 6 also, the Bible says that they passed a law against praying. This is the only way they can accuse the prophet Daniel. When Daniel knew that they signed this law, he went home, he went into an upper room, he opened the windows, knelt down, and three times prayed, gave thanks as a protest against the laws of the land. The upper room—a place of power and victory and standing against the wicked laws of his generation.
  
  In the New Testament, we see the Last Supper in Luke chapter 22. Jesus tells his disciples, "Go, and you will find an upper room prepared already and waiting for us where we will meet." You know that from John chapter 13 until almost the entire second half of the book of John takes place in an upper room where Jesus is giving his final words and instructions to his disciples.
  
  Then in the book of Acts chapter 9, there is a disciple, Tabitha, who is raised from the dead. Where? In an upper room. And finally, the subject of our scripture today, the upper room is where the Holy Spirit was given by God to the church to empower her to reach the world for Jesus. All of these things occurred in the upper room.
  
  And really what it's pointing to, it reflects a reality. It reflects a spiritual reality that to reach God, to reach his power, to take part in what God is doing, there must be a place that we meet with him. It reminded me of Moses. How many times does the Bible mention Moses and mountain climbing? Now, I'm amazed because Moses, when God called Moses at the burning bush, how old was he? Anybody know? He was 80 years old. That was when the journey with God began for Moses.
  
  And time after time, we see it in Exodus in chapter 3, verse 1, then chapter 19. It says Moses was called by God up the mountain. Have you ever tried to climb a mountain? Ain't nothing easy about climbing a mountain, especially if you are 90 or 100 years old. And when God said, "Come up the mountain, Moses," I wonder what Moses was thinking about.
  
  Look, I'm 43 years old. I don't want to climb no mountain. Man, it's hard. Just last summer, we climbed the mountain up there, Peaks of Otter, and I almost died. I saw my life flashing before my eyes. And God said to Moses, a 90-plus-year-old man, "Moses, I want you to meet me at the top of the mountain." What is that about? God, can't we just have lunch right here? Is that okay?
  
  No, there's a spiritual reality about this. This also with the upper room that God is calling us up to a place to meet with him. Exodus 24, verse 12: "The Lord said to Moses, 'Come up to me on the mountain, and I will give you tablets of stone.'" See, God, there's a reality about the kingdom of God and about our relationship with God that God calls us up to an elevated place so that we can receive from him.
  
  God did not give the Ten Commandments to Moses when he was chilling in his tent at the bottom of the mountain. He said, "You're coming up here. I want to meet with you, Moses. I want you to make space and time for me. I want you to labor to get up there."
  
  Also, Jesus—we know about Jesus. He was a mountain climber too. He was a little younger than Moses, but God also, we see Jesus climbing mountains. Matthew 5:29, he went up the mountain and sat down there. Matthew 17:1, after six days, Jesus took Peter, James, and John, led them on a high mountain—not just any mountain, a high mountain. John 6:15, Jesus perceived that they were going to come and take him by force. He departed to the mountain by himself alone.
  
  Why? Why the mountain? Why labor? Why stress? Why exercise your muscles? Why can't we just have a meeting here? There's something about the elevated place. There's something about the upper room that God says, "There, I'll meet with you. There I will prepare you. As you seek me and pray, there will be supernatural encounters. There will be miraculous restoration. There will be commission. There, in the upper room, you will hear from me."
  
  I want to declare this is our upper room today. As we are laboring for this building, as we are believing God, as we are giving finances, it's not easy. Nothing about this is easy. But I want to tell you there is a reward as we are laboring together, climbing this mountain. God has something for us. Can you say amen? There is transformation for those who will set themselves apart to meet with God.
  
  So how do we receive this transformation this morning? How can we experience what the book of Acts church did? Can I just remind you that wasn't a separate church; it's one and the same. The church that began in the book of Acts still continues to 2025. We are part of what started there on the day of Pentecost.
  
  Now, how do we receive the same transformation? I want to tell you those disciples gathered together—a small group of them, not many more than are here this morning. Those people gathered there—what were they doing? Were they sitting around making sandwiches? Were they playing, working, and making a living? What does the Bible say? They were praying. They followed specific steps at the command of Jesus.
  
  So let's examine them quickly. Chapter 2, verse 1: The Bible says, first of all, they were in one accord. Somebody said maybe they were Mexicans because they all fit in one accord. Just kidding. Or maybe Filipinos, I don't know. But what does that mean? They were in one accord. It means they were together. They were together in spirit, they were together in heart, they were together in purpose, they were together in obedience to the Lord.
  
  Why were they there in the first place? Because Jesus told them to be there. He said, "We're following the commandment of the Lord." They're without divisions; they're without distractions. And somebody said this is the first miracle of the book of Acts—that the people of God would be united.
  
  Give us that same spirit of unity, that God would remove divisions and distractions from his body. Oh, how God is able to move when we would set aside our divisions, our pet projects, when we would set aside our hatred and bitterness toward others, and we would be together for the will of God.
  
  Listen to what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:10 to the church that was divided in many ways. He said, "I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, that there be no divisions among you, but that you would be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
  
  You know this to be true in your physical body. If you have a brain that says to your arm, "Arm, go up," but your arm doesn't listen to you, you have a problem. If your body doesn't do what your brain wants it to, you have a medical condition. You would be paralyzed if there is a schism between what your mind wants to do and what your body actually does.
  
  Now that's a problem, right? Difficult to live like that. It is also true in the body of Christ. When our mind, who is Jesus—He is the head—and when He says go, but the body doesn't follow, that is a paralyzed church—ineffective and unable to complete the tasks that He set before us.
  
  If we are together, this hand cannot be working against this hand. We have to be united together in purpose and in heart to surrender to our Lord. This church in the book of Acts, they had listened to the commandment of Jesus. They had all watched Him raised from the dead. It was probably not too difficult for them to obey Him at this moment because they had watched Him die and then watched Him raised back to life. And then they're about to watch Him arise back into glory.
  
  And so when He says, "I want you guys to stay here and wait. I want you to pray," Acts 1:14, then they did exactly what Jesus said. They all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.
  
  Now I want to focus in on one word of that scripture. Can you guess what it is? It wasn't just a day; it wasn't even just a few days. They continued, and the Bible says that it's 10 days that pass between Acts chapter 1 and Acts chapter 2—10 days. 10 days when they were continuing in prayer and in supplication and in faithful obedience to the Lord Jesus.
  
  How many of us give up on day one? How many of us give up on day two? How many of us get frustrated and say, "Later for this, it's not working," on day three or day four? No, the church of Jesus, they continued. You know that's why the church is still here 2025 years later—because we are a people who continue. Despite everything the world would throw at you, despite all the challenges and difficulties and persecution that might come from your family, your job, from the world, we continue. We are a people who continue.
  
  How many people pray for five minutes and then quit? No, these people prayed together in one spirit, in one accord, in the upper room for 10 days. Oh, we want to see the fire fall. Oh, how we want the presence of God. Oh, how we long to see the miracles, the signs, and the wonders in the upper room—the place that requires some effort to get to.
  
  I know y'all climbed some stairs this morning. We're used to just walking in. Are you walking in obedience to what Jesus has said? There are some things that we already know Jesus wants us to do while you're praying, "Lord, give me direction," but disobeying Him where we already know what we're supposed to do.
  
  I want to close with one last thought this morning, and that is when they went into the upper room, they came out different. They went in faithful followers; they came out bold proclaimers. This, I believe, is what God is aiming for in your life and in mine. Because once the fire fell, nothing was the same.
  
  Once it happened, the promise of the prophets long ago, the promise that Jesus gave—that once it happened, once the fire came down, once the rushing mighty wind—I want to tell you they were transformed. Acts chapter 2, verse 2: "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire, and one sat upon each one of them. And they were all—how many?—all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance."
  
  I want to tell you that prayer meeting said the whole house—in other words, it wasn't one section that got filled and the other section got left behind. No, they were all—the tongues as of fire sat on each one. You know I love that because it doesn't matter how educated they were or how stupid they were. It didn't matter how tall or short they were or fat or skinny. From the oldest to the youngest that were gathered there in the upper room, they all received a tongue of fire.
  
  It didn't depend on their actions or their abilities; it depended on their faithfulness and obedience to the word. If they were there in the room, then they received. Can I tell you there were some people that should have been there, that would have been there, that could have been there. There were some people that were followers of Jesus, but for whatever reason—maybe just had a bad day, maybe stayed home, maybe feeling not so good that day—they did not experience the same thing as the rest who were in the room.
  
  And for all that were there, listen, they were transformed. Think of just the few examples that we know about Peter. Peter, of course, who only weeks before this—this is 40 days after the death and the resurrection of Jesus, right? 40 days have passed. Now it's the day of Pentecost. And when Jesus died on the cross, you remember what happened with Peter, right?
  
  Peter's the one who denied the Lord three times. Peter, the cowardly. Peter, the failure. Peter, the denier. Peter, the one who was, when he was so confident, "Lord, I'll never betray, nor I'll never deny. Even to the death, Lord, I'll follow you." And not 24 hours later, he's denying the Lord three times, as predicted by Jesus, weeping bitterly. That probably was not fun to deal with, right?
  
  That Peter had all of that failure, all of that guilt, all of that pain in his past. Only 40 days later, what happens to him when the fire falls? He stands up boldly to proclaim the name of Jesus before the crowd on the day of Pentecost. At his word, at his preaching, empowered by the Holy Spirit, people hear, they are touched, they are cut to the heart, and they are transformed. 3,000 people that day heard the words of Peter and repented from sin, joined the church, and became part of that early movement.
  
  Peter, the same one who denied, now who's boldly preaching the name of Jesus. Stephen, another one, most likely was there on that day. Stephen, what we know about Stephen is that he was just a faithful helper. He was serving tables. He was taking care of the people that were there. He was the one, you know, you need a refill? Pour out some water? He was the one, he was the usher. You know, you need to sit over here? Everybody good? Okay, that was Stephen's ministry.
  
  But when Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit, you know what he became? He became a martyr. He stood when the crowd came against him, proclaiming the name of Jesus. They didn't want to hear it, and Stephen became the first martyr for the Lord Jesus Christ. Philip, we know that Philip was a deacon, but then he, as he was filled with the Spirit of God, became an evangelist. God was scooping him up and putting him in places for exact moments of time—the Ethiopian man who's got the scroll open to the book of Isaiah.
  
  He's an evangelist. Can I tell you the Spirit of God is able to amplify your life? It's able to take our meager efforts and make them powerful. It's like this little box over here in the corner. When I play that guitar, it's not that loud, but when I play it and the signal comes through the cable and it goes into that, it amplifies the sound and makes it sound even better. I don't even play all that well, but it sounds okay when it comes out of that speaker.
  
  I want to tell you that's a picture of your life. When you are surrendered to the Lord Jesus Christ and you are obedient and you are filled with His Spirit, He is able to use you to do greater things. Jesus predicted greater things. You think what I've done was impressive? Just wait till God fills you with His Holy Spirit and what our lives can be surrendered to Him.
  
  James was a brother of Jesus, the younger brother of Jesus. I've preached about this before, but it so encourages me because James did not believe Jesus. He was skeptical that Jesus was the Messiah. He was not a disciple during Jesus' ministry on earth. It was only after Jesus died and rose again that finally James was convinced.
  
  James, no doubt, was there with his mother Mary on the day of Pentecost, and he was filled with the Holy Spirit. And what happened to his life? He became a pillar and a pastor in the church of Jerusalem—the skeptic, the one who had a thousand questions. I know a few people like that. You know how I know? Because I'm one of them. Are you sure? How do you know? That was basically five years of my Christianity—asking every question.
  
  But James was convinced when he was filled with the Spirit. And Paul—finally, all the power of the life of Paul, who was Saul, the persecutor, Saul, the Christian killer. And when the Spirit of God touched him, oh, I want to tell you, he became a missionary church planter.
  
  And in the upper room, church, God is still pouring out His fire. God has not stopped in these 2,000 years. God has not failed to pour out His Spirit on His church. You know why? Because the work that He has called us to is bigger than us. It's bigger than me. It's bigger than you. It's bigger than the Potter's House. It's bigger than any institution or organization. The work of God requires a miracle, and that miracle happens in the upper room.
  
  When you walk in to the—when you make the effort, when you follow the lead of the Lord, you walk in one way and you walk out filled with power, direction, and purpose. Maybe this morning the Lord would speak to you. It's time to stop playing church and time to start fulfilling His calling in your life.
  
  You can't claim, "Yes, I'm filled with the Spirit," if you're not obeying. Challenge you? Where's your upper room? Where's the place that you are separated unto the will of God? Where you're contending for transformation.
  
  There's so many today talking about revival, wanting revival, thinking about revival in the past, but never making time in business. There's money to be made. There's houses to be purchased. There's so many things to do. But what about the upper room? Even ministry—ministry is no business. God is waiting for you to meet with you in the upper room.
  
  Don't we want to see Acts chapter 2 in Virginia Beach? Then first we've got to see Acts chapter 1. And I want to challenge you. Let's do some Acts chapter 1.
  
  Let's bow our heads. God's going to speak to hearts this morning. We have an altar where we're going to cry out to the living God together in this upper room.
  
  Before we close this service today, I want to give opportunity to someone who's come into this place, and maybe you'll be honest for a moment. Say, "Pastor, I'm not right with God. I've made my way here, and what I've realized is I'm not living for Him. I'm not right with Him. My heart is far from Him."
  
  Before you leave this place, you have an opportunity to trust in Jesus, the one who died for your sins, rose from the grave. Because God cares about you, He loves you, He wants to save you, and He's here by His Spirit today, convicting of sin and drawing you closer to Him.
  
  That tug you feel in your heart, that press that you feel, is, thank God, it's His mercy and His grace calling you to Himself. I'm so grateful that as a confused teenager, God called me into His presence. I didn't understand everything, but I knew this: I was a sinner, and I was lost. I was broken.
  
  When I cried out to the living God, I said, "Lord, I don't even know if you're there, but if you are, would you save me? Would you set me free?" And He heard that prayer of that confused young man, and He set my life on a different path. I was born again. Old things passed away. Everything became new.
  
  I'm asking you today, are you on the path? Has your life, has the direction of your life changed? I'm not asking how many times you've been to church. I'm not asking how many scriptures you know or how religious you are. I'm not asking how many times you've been to church. I'm asking about your relationship with the Lord Jesus. Do you have one? Are you right with Him? And if not, I want to pray with you today.
  
  Would you be courageous enough for just a moment to recognize your desperate need before the Lord and say, "Pastor, please pray for me. I need to be saved before I leave this place." If that's you, I want you to lift up your hand so I can see it. I want to pray with some people.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Embracing Friendship With God

Sermon Summary

In today's message, we explored the profound relationship that God desires to have with each of us, drawing inspiration from the story of Moses in Exodus 33. We began by reflecting on the extraordinary friendship between Ruth and Beryl, two women who maintained a pen pal relationship for over 80 years, despite living thousands of miles apart. This story serves as a powerful metaphor for the kind of relationship God wants with us—a relationship that transcends distance and circumstance.

We delved into the context of Exodus 33, where Moses finds himself in the aftermath of the Israelites' idolatry with the golden calf. Despite their rebellion, God shows mercy, largely due to Moses' intercession. This highlights the importance of prayer and intercession in our relationship with God. Moses' plea for God's presence and his desire to know God's ways underscore the necessity of seeking a deeper understanding of God beyond mere knowledge of His word.

The heart of the message is the invitation to approach God as a friend. Just as Moses spoke to God face-to-face, we too are invited to cultivate a personal and intimate relationship with our Creator. This involves open communication, honesty, and a willingness to seek God's presence even in the midst of life's messiness. We are reminded that God is not just a distant commander but a loving friend who desires to walk with us through every aspect of our lives.

In closing, we are challenged to examine our own relationship with God. Are we treating Him as a distant authority, or are we embracing the friendship He offers? The call is to draw near to God, to communicate with Him openly, and to trust in His promises. As we do so, we will find that God is faithful to meet us where we are and to guide us into a deeper, more fulfilling relationship with Him.

“We are reminded that God is not just a distant commander but a loving friend who desires to walk with us through every aspect of our lives.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [03:23] - The Story of Ruth and Beryl

• [07:24] - The Golden Calf Incident

• [10:27] - Moses' Intercession

• [12:20] - God's Grace and Mercy

• [14:47] - Building a Relationship with God

• [16:25] - Friendship with God

• [18:07] - Communication with God

• [20:04] - God's Friendship with Abraham

• [22:04] - Approaching God in Our Mess

• [24:05] - Fear God, But Don't Be Afraid

• [26:39] - God as Commander and Friend

• [28:25] - Knowing God's Way

• [29:59] - God's Higher Ways

• [31:49] - Praying God's Promises

• [33:37] - Persistence in Prayer

• [36:15] - The Persistent Widow

• [38:31] - Show Me Your Glory

• [40:11] - The Dark Room of Prayer

• [42:26] - Following God's Voice

• [44:39] - Invitation to Know God

Key Takeaways

1. The Power of Intercession: Moses' intercession for the Israelites demonstrates the power of prayer in influencing God's actions. Despite their sin, Moses reminded God of His promises, leading to mercy instead of destruction. This teaches us that our prayers can have a profound impact, and we should never underestimate the power of interceding for others. [10:27]

2. God's Grace and Mercy: The story of the golden calf reveals God's incredible grace. Despite the Israelites' rebellion, God showed mercy because of Moses' intercession. This reminds us that God's grace is available to us, even when we fall short, and that we should approach Him with confidence, knowing that He desires to forgive and restore us. [12:20]

3. Friendship with God: God desires a relationship with us that is as intimate as a friendship. Just as Moses spoke to God face-to-face, we are invited to communicate openly with God, sharing our hearts and listening for His voice. This relationship is built on honesty, trust, and a willingness to seek God's presence in our lives. [16:25]

4. Praying God's Promises: Moses' prayer for God's presence highlights the importance of praying God's promises back to Him. By knowing and claiming God's promises, we align our prayers with His will and invite His presence into our lives. This practice strengthens our faith and deepens our relationship with God. [33:37]

5. Seeking God's Glory: Moses' request to see God's glory reflects a deep desire for a personal revelation of God's presence. While we may not fully understand what it means to see God's glory, this prayer encourages us to seek a deeper understanding of God and to desire His presence in our lives. [38:31]

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Bible Reading

• Exodus 33:11 - "So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend."

• John 15:15 - "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you."

• Isaiah 41:8 - "But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend."

Observation Questions

1. In Exodus 33:11, how is the relationship between God and Moses described, and what does this imply about the nature of their communication? [14:47]

2. What was the significance of Moses' intercession for the Israelites after the golden calf incident, and how did it affect God's response? [10:27]

3. How did the friendship between Ruth and Beryl serve as a metaphor for the kind of relationship God desires with us? [03:23]

4. According to the sermon, what role does communication play in building a friendship with God, and how was this illustrated through the story of Ruth and Beryl? [18:07]

Interpretation Questions

1. What does it mean for God to speak to Moses "face to face" as a friend, and how does this challenge our understanding of prayer and communication with God? [16:25]

2. How does Moses' intercession for the Israelites demonstrate the power and importance of prayer in influencing God's actions? [10:27]

3. In what ways does the story of the golden calf highlight God's grace and mercy, and how can this understanding impact our approach to God when we fall short? [12:20]

4. How does the concept of praying God's promises, as demonstrated by Moses, encourage us to align our prayers with God's will and deepen our relationship with Him? [33:37]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on your current relationship with God. Do you see Him more as a distant authority or as a friend? What steps can you take to cultivate a more intimate friendship with Him? [24:05]

2. Consider a time when you felt distant from God due to guilt or shame. How can the story of God's mercy towards the Israelites encourage you to approach Him with confidence and seek restoration? [12:20]

3. How can you incorporate the practice of intercession into your prayer life, and who in your life might benefit from your prayers of intercession? [10:27]

4. Think about a specific promise from God that you need to claim in your life right now. How can you incorporate this promise into your daily prayers and trust in God's faithfulness to fulfill it? [33:37]

5. Reflect on a time when you sought God's presence in the midst of life's messiness. How did that experience shape your understanding of God's friendship and faithfulness? [22:04]

6. Identify one area in your life where you need to seek a deeper understanding of God's ways rather than just knowing His word. What practical steps can you take to pursue this understanding? [28:25]

7. How can you create space in your daily routine to communicate openly with God, and what changes might you need to make to prioritize this relationship? [18:07]

• Full Transcript

  We have prayed, we have worshipped, we have given, and now it's time to receive His word this morning. The word of God is powerful. The word of God has the power to transform, to convict, to set us free.
  
  And this message, again, came directly through my daily Bible reading program, which we do have, as you know, or as you may not know. Some people here, we have a church Bible reading plan that we are going through together. It's part of the YouVersion Bible app. You can join up with us if you want to get the sneak previews.
  
  If you have been keeping up on that plan, then you will have read this scripture within the last week. And God spoke to me as I read it this morning, Exodus chapter 33.
  
  I want to show you a picture of two people that, by all measures, should not know each other. They live in different countries, they live in different places, and different kinds of lifestyles. But we have a picture of two people here. Their names are Ruth and Beryl.
  
  Their relationship began in the year 1939, when Ruth had a teacher. Ruth is the one on the right side, I believe. Yeah, it doesn't matter. But it started when her teacher in elementary school started a pen pal project. And when she wrote the initial letter, the only thing she knew was that she was writing a letter to a child her age all the way across the world in the UK.
  
  Ruth is from Ontario, Canada, and Beryl from Liverpool, England. They were paired up through their teachers, and it was a match that was made in heaven. Ruth, Maggi, and Beryl Richmond, their friendship went on to stand the test of time and distance.
  
  Despite living more than 3,000 miles apart in Canada and the UK, they've been the best friends for more than 80 years. Their close relationship was forged through writing letters, primarily only writing letters to one another. They wrote about their jobs. They wrote letters about meeting and marrying their husbands. They wrote one another when they welcomed children into the world, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren.
  
  They kept each other's spirits up during the Second World War. They shared about their ups and downs with one another. And now, as of the writing of this article, both of them aged 95 years old, they hold the record for the longest-lasting pen friendship with a whopping 83 years and 172 days of correspondence.
  
  We have another photo of them holding the Guinness Book World Record achievement. And so they only met each other in person two times. The first was in 1996.
  
  Now, just think of that. 1996. Go back to that other photo, please. With the two of them. In 1996, this was close to 60 years since they began writing letters. So for 60 years, they were writing without even knowing each other, without even seeing each other face-to-face.
  
  But when they met face-to-face for the first time in 1996, Beryl thought that there was no strangeness between them, as they knew so much about one another, her son explained. It didn't feel like a meeting as they knew each other so well from all the letters they had written to one another.
  
  The pair would also chat on the phone from time to time, saying that they were thrilled. They were thrilled that the friendship is record-breaking. They said, "It's quite a surprise. We were thrilled when we got the final result. I'm thrilled that we are still in touch."
  
  Her son, Beryl, stated that it feels really nice, an achievement, one that didn't feel like hard work, as it was enjoyable and always fun to write with Beryl.
  
  So in the scripture we're about to read, we're going to read about a relationship. And as these two ladies were able to build a relationship just through writing letters, a record-breaking, Guinness World Record-holding relationship, without ever even seeing each other, without meeting for coffee, without seeing one another face-to-face, they were able to build a powerful relationship that is an example to all of us.
  
  And I want to encourage you this morning. I believe that we serve a God in heaven that wants to have a relationship with you. And we think, "Well, God is so far away from me. God is so different from me. God is so much more powerful than me."
  
  But what we see in our scripture is that there is available to you a relationship with a living God. And the same way that God spoke to Moses and Moses spoke to God, I believe we can approach the throne as well, that we can know Him and He can know us.
  
  Let's read our scripture together, just one verse, and we're going to be popping around throughout this chapter. But Exodus chapter 33, verse 11, one verse here, which says, "So the Lord spoke to Moses face-to-face as a man speaks to his friend."
  
  Let God challenge you this morning because that kind of friendship is possible for you with God.
  
  Let's pray.
  
  Father, we thank you for the opportunity to gather together. Let your word speak to us, I pray, challenge us in our hearts today as we seek the relationship that is available to us through Jesus, His blood that was shed, His spirit that was poured out. I'm praying, God, enable your people. Give us a hunger and a desire to know you more and more. We give you glory in Jesus' name. Amen.
  
  I want to talk about this relationship that is possible through the Lord Jesus. Now, just to give you some context, where are we at in this story with Moses and with the children of Israel as they are wandering? They've come out of Egypt, and you know the story. They face many challenges along the way.
  
  But immediately before this chapter is Exodus chapter 32. Exodus chapter 32 is one of the darkest moments in the history of the nation. It is the incident of the golden calf. And if you know your Bible history, you know that this is a moment of great tragedy. It's a moment of violation.
  
  Moses goes up the mountain to receive the two tablets from the Lord, the Ten Commandments. And as he's up there interfacing with God, God is giving revelation about how to live for Him, how He wants His people to live. And he's up there. He's delayed. The people thought he would come home, come back sooner. And they're afraid. They grow weary. They get unstable.
  
  And all of a sudden, there is an urge. There is a demonic urge for them to worship idols. They begin slipping back into the idolatry that they had come out of in Egypt. And they said to Aaron, "We need a God. Moses, this guy is delayed. We don't know what's going to happen to him. We need a God."
  
  So the Bible says that they all brought their earrings together and cast them into a fire. And Aaron, who should have known better, Aaron, who forms all of the donated gold into a golden calf. This golden calf then was set before them, and they began to riot, and they began to party, and they began to lose their minds, and they began to do wicked things.
  
  And they made a statement. They made a statement, and it was, maybe you can get a feel for how awful the statement was. They said these words. They said, "Behold, this is Jehovah. This is Yahweh. This is the God who brought you out of Egypt."
  
  Now, how would you feel if you were God in heaven? And there they are, dancing and partying and worshiping at a little golden statue. And they said, "This is the God that brought you out of Egypt."
  
  This is the curse of idolatry. And this is the curse that invited God's judgment. The Bible says that the anger of God began to burn hot against them. Moses is still up on the mountain. He has no idea what's going on. But God does.
  
  And God begins to speak to Moses and say, "Listen, what's happening to your people down there, your people." It's kind of like when, you know, you're mad at the kids, and you always say it's your spouse's, like, "Your kids are misbehaving." God is saying the same to Moses here. "Your people, they're down there making a mess, man. You better get down there quick."
  
  And Moses comes down to find this horrible scene. And we know the story. So that's the context. Next, as we get to chapter 33, there is a judgment. There is a terrible thing. I preached about that, the righteousness that was required, right? They had to go through the camp, and the Levites took a stand and began to judge those who were unrepentant. And we know all of that.
  
  But what's amazing to me is that the people of God have already experienced incredible grace. How do we know that? Because they're breathing. God had said to Moses, "I'm going to destroy these people. And I'm going to start over with you." Same way that happened with Noah. Remember the story of Noah? God said, "I'm done with this place. These people are wicked. They're so evil. I'm done. I'm wiping them out. Noah, I'm starting over with you."
  
  And that was God's plan again. God's plan was, "I can't handle it. I'm not taking this. Moses, they're giving credit and glory to a statue." And He said to Moses, "I'm going to kill them all. And I'm going to start over with you and your family, Moses, because you're the only one that gets it. Maybe Joshua."
  
  But we know that God showed grace and mercy to them because God didn't do that. Why? Because Moses interceded on behalf of the people. He said, "Wait a second, God. Before you go down there and go off on them, listen, you made a promise to your people. They're not my people, God. They're your people. And you made a promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
  
  And Moses reminded God of His promises. And God showed mercy to His people.
  
  So I want to say, first of all, some people have a problem approaching God in prayer. Some people, you have a problem building a relationship with God because you have a guilt complex, because you say to yourself, "I'm not that kind of person who prays every day. I'm not that kind of person. I'm not spiritual enough. I'm not religious enough. I'm not Christian enough."
  
  You know, there's a separation between me and God. And so, you know, leave that to the pastor. Leave that to more spiritual people. And what I want to say to you is that if you're still breathing, God has shown you incredible grace. God let you wake up this morning. And He lets you breathe His air.
  
  And the fact that He shows kindness to people who are not perfect, right? I don't think there's anybody here who has worshipped a golden statue of a calf, right? But if God can show mercy to them, I want to say God has shown mercy to you. He has made a space for all of us to get right with Him. That's the foundation for our relationship with God. It is God's grace.
  
  Look at chapter 32, verse 30. It says, "It came to pass that Moses interceded. He said to the people, 'You have committed a great sin, so now I will go up to the Lord. Perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.'"
  
  Moses stands in the place of the contender. He is interceding on behalf of his people. He was imperfect. Moses was not a perfect man, but at least he had the desire to intercede.
  
  Can I tell you, we have an interceder. You and I, we have a great high priest who did what Moses could not do. We have Jesus, the Son of God, who stands before the throne of God day and night, interceding on behalf of you and I as God's people.
  
  And you know what that means? That means we don't have any excuses for remaining separated from God. The same relationship that Jesus has, the same relationship that Moses had, you can have this morning.
  
  Exodus 33, verse 13. "Now, therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in your sight, show me your way that I may know you and find grace in your sight."
  
  Prayer is how we approach God. Prayer is how we build a relationship. Do you hear what it said? It said, "The Lord spoke to Moses face to face." Who's speaking there? The Lord is speaking. Moses got close enough to hear what God was trying to say.
  
  Can I ask you this morning? When's the last time you got close enough to the Lord to be able to hear what He wanted to say for your life? See, we all have to make time, provision, and space for God to move. You're here this morning. I want you to know God wants to speak to you. God has a message for you.
  
  And that message doesn't come from your television or from your iPhone. That message doesn't come from TikTok or Instagram. The message that God has for you, you don't have to wait for somebody else to deliver it. You don't have to wait for the pastor to preach on Sunday morning. Aren't you grateful God has a message for you? God has something He wants to say to you.
  
  And what He has to say to you is different than what He has to say to me. You and I, we have to build our lives on what God has to say for us. God is speaking to Moses. Is it possible that God has something to say to you?
  
  Now, what caught my attention about this scripture is how that relationship was described. It said that God spoke to Moses the way that a man speaks to his friend.
  
  How many of you have a good friend? Like somebody that you can really let it all hang out. You know what I'm saying? Like, what do they say? Let your hair down. You can really say things to them that you need to say. You got a friend like that in your life? I hope you do. Because if you don't, you are in trouble.
  
  Can I tell you, God wants to be that kind of friend to you. Some people treat God like He's the priest. Some people treat God like He's the pastor at the church. I'm not saying that because I don't want to be your friend. I'm just saying that some people, they want to keep some kind of distance.
  
  I remember what it was like when I was a new convert. And I would come to church, and Pastor Campbell would be standing there at the front door shaking people's hands as they came in. And you know what I would do? I'd go around the other side. Because when I saw my pastor, I got convicted in my sins. Because God was still working on me. And I didn't want to look into his deep blue eyes and feel convicted.
  
  And that was just my pastor. You think I had a problem with getting close to God because I was afraid of what God would do if I was in His presence. And that was reflected in my bad relationship that I had with my pastor at that time.
  
  Today, when I see my pastor, I love to shake his hand and love to get his greeting because God has helped me. I want to be close. God wants to be your friend.
  
  Jesus, listen to what Jesus said in John 15, verse 15. "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing, but I have called you friends."
  
  Jesus died to make it possible for you to be friendly with God. Do you have that this morning? You know what else marks friendship? Communication.
  
  How did these ladies build a friendship that lasted 80 plus years? They communicated. In a very crude, a very simple way, just writing letters. But they built a lasting relationship.
  
  Can I tell you something? You can build that kind of relationship with God. He wants to hear from you. He wants to speak to you. And guess what? You don't even have to write a letter. You could if you want. Some people do journaling. Some people write to God with their hand. Maybe that's easier for you to process.
  
  But I want to say to you, no matter how, listen, relationship requires communication. What would you think about me if I said I've been married to my wife for 20 years, but we never talk? Is that a good relationship? That would not be great, right?
  
  What if I say I have a best friend, my best friend in all the world, but you know what? It's been 15 years since we had a conversation. That doesn't make sense, does it?
  
  And yet there are disciples, there are Christians who go to church week in, week out, every Sunday, maybe even Wednesdays, for five years, for ten years, who never truly have an interaction with God. How can you say that He is your Lord? How can you say that He's your friend? Without communication.
  
  Listen to what God said to His people. Isaiah 41, verse 8. "You, Israel, are my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham, my friend."
  
  Isn't that amazing? When God mentions Abraham, He's prophesying through Isaiah, and He remembers, "Abraham, yeah, I remember. He's my friend." And it was shown in the interaction that Abraham had with God.
  
  You remember the story about Sodom and Gomorrah? And Abraham had a nephew living in that wicked city. And he said, God said to Himself, "I've got to tell Abraham what I'm about to do. Because he has a nephew over there. I've got to share this intel with my friend, Abraham, because that's what friends do. I'm not just going to do that behind his back. I've got to tell Abraham. Because Abraham is my friend."
  
  Can I ask you, does God speak about you like that? Can you consider God a friend? Can He consider you a friend? Because guess what? Friendships are two-way, aren't they?
  
  If I say my best friend in the whole world is Michael Jordan. Oh, really? Did you ever talk to him? No. But I've seen him on YouTube. I watched him do all the dunks. He's not my friend. I can like him. I can have respect for him. I can be aware of who he is. I can know all about him, all the statistics. But that's not the same.
  
  For friendship to work, I have to know him. He has to know me. In our scripture, in Isaiah, or excuse me, in Exodus, chapter 33, can I tell you, this is still the middle of a big mess. It's a big mess because of the golden calf, because of the way that it's happening. It's working itself out, and God's moving, and God's touching, and speaking, and all these things are happening.
  
  But I want to tell you something. Moses didn't wait for all the problems to get worked out first. Moses had a connection with God, even in the middle of the mess.
  
  The reason I say that is because so many people think to themselves, "I can't come to God like this. I can't just show up and talk to Him about what's going on right now. Doesn't He know what's going on in my life? Doesn't He know the stress? The tears I'm crying? The pain I'm feeling? I can't talk to God."
  
  Can I just remind you, that's exactly when you need to talk to God. Even more than when you're smooth sailing. Even more when all the bills are paid. When we are going through the worst situations of our lives, that is when we build our relationship with God.
  
  It's the mistake that Adam and Eve made in the garden. You remember, they made a big boo-boo. They ate of the fruit that was forbidden. And as soon as they took a bite, they felt guilty. They felt separated. And at the moment that they should have been running back to the presence of God, what do they do?
  
  "We got to get out of here. We got to run from God. He's going to be mad." And guess what? "We got to make some clothing for ourselves because now we're naked. We're shamed. And we got to cover." Like that's going to help.
  
  And they're sewing together the fig leaves, trying to make some clothes out of leaves. And that's what so many people are doing, trying to make up for their lack of relationship with God, thinking that if I just do more, if I just put on an appearance, that God will be happier with me or that I will feel less guilt as a result.
  
  Can I tell you, your guilt doesn't mean anything. Your guilt is only separating you from the Father who wants to put His arms around you. God came looking for them, even in the middle of their mess.
  
  What we should do this morning, we should fear God, right? The Bible does say we should fear God. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. That's the healthy respect. I don't want God's judgment. We should fear God, but we should never be afraid to approach God.
  
  He has made Himself accessible to you. You can approach God. Have you done that? It means nothing hidden, nothing held back, willing to expose ourselves. Willing to be honest.
  
  When's the last time you really got honest with God? "Lord, this is what I'm struggling with. This is what I'm going through. This is what's on my heart."
  
  And some people say, "Well, that seems silly. Why should I have to do that when God already knows? Doesn't the Bible say that He knows what we need even before we ask?"
  
  And some people say, "I read that scripture. That means I never need to pray. He already knows. What else am I going to say?"
  
  The problem is if we never approach God in prayer, we don't build a relationship with Him. It's like the librarian. The librarian knows all the books but doesn't know all the people. It's possible to even call yourself a Christian but be intimidated to bring your issues before the Lord.
  
  I have a friend, Pastor Greg Colon. I was talking to him about this message. And he says that he has a boss who is in the Marine Corps. And his boss was recently converted to become a Christian. Powerful transformation and all that stuff.
  
  But as a military guy, he was speaking to Pastor Greg and he made this statement. He said, "I have trouble thinking of God as anything other than my commander. It's really hard for me to think of God as father or as friend because from a military background, he says, I think of Him as commander. You tell me what to do. I'll do it."
  
  And that's a good thing to have, yes? But God is more than your commander.
  
  Listen, we were at the Pentagon the other day. I went to go take a tour a couple of weeks ago when I was up there in Manassas. And walking down the one hallway there, I was with a guy who's also a pastor in our fellowship. And he says, "Whoa, that's the commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps."
  
  It's like, "Whoa, that's the guy." He says, "He's in here maybe once or twice a year." Like, I couldn't tell him different from anybody else. But my buddy, he looked at me and he goes, "Whoa, that's the guy."
  
  And it's like he stood up straight. Right? And there's that factor of, "Whoa, I better straighten up my act."
  
  Listen, he did not view that man as his friend. He was a commander. He had authority. He had power. And that was communicated just by his presence, being in the hallway.
  
  God wants to be our commander, yes, but He wants to be more than that. How do we approach God? It's a two-way street. It said the Lord spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend.
  
  But here's where it gets really good. Because as the Lord spoke to Moses, then Moses began to speak to God. And in this scripture, we have three prayers that Moses prays. And I want you to catch them before we close.
  
  There are three things that Moses prayed for that every one of us can pray. Number one, we need to pray to know God's way. Look at verse 13. "Now, therefore, I pray. This is Moses. If I have found grace in your sight, show me your way."
  
  Everybody say, "Your way." This is not Burger King. We're not here to do it our way. "Lord, show me your way that I may know you and that I may find grace in your sight."
  
  Can I ask you, do you know God's way? Say, "Yeah, Pastor, I know. I know. I've read the Bible a few times. I've seen what the Bible says. I know what God wants."
  
  I didn't ask you if you knew God's word. Do you know His way? It's possible to know theology and scripture and have deep insights and revelation, but still not to know Him.
  
  And the way that that is revealed, you know His word, but do you know His way? How do you find out somebody's ways? You've got to spend time with them.
  
  Now, we have a place on our website where I put up a blog post every once or twice a month. And you could read every blog post that I put on the church website, but you wouldn't know me. Right?
  
  You would know a few of my thoughts. You would know a few of my revelations, things that I've said. But how do you know what kind of person I am? You've got to spend some time with me.
  
  You've got to figure out the things that make me happy and the things that make me sad and the things that make me laugh and the things that make me cry. You would know those things if you spent time with me.
  
  And I want to tell you the same is true with God, my friends. You can know the scripture. You can listen to sermons. You can attend church services and still you don't know His ways.
  
  One of my prayers that I've prayed over the years, "God, I want you to help me to learn how to love what you love and hate what you hate. I want to care about the things you care about and I don't want to care about things you don't care about."
  
  That's what it means to be friends with God. It's not just the what. It's the why and the how.
  
  Listen to what God said against Isaiah 55, verse 7. "Let the wicked forsake his way and unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord and he will have mercy on him and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." Thank God for that.
  
  Then He says, "My thoughts are not your thoughts. My ways are not your ways," says the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways. And my thoughts are higher than your thoughts."
  
  You know, it's possible to live a carnal Christian life. Is that possible, church? It's possible to call yourself a Christian, even to have some religious experiences with God, but still to be living by your ways.
  
  Your ideas, your opinions, the way that you grew up, the things. Listen, everybody, we have certain baggage, ideas, and philosophies that we bring into the kingdom like a suitcase. And we drag that up in here and we think that our way is the best way.
  
  That's why it's your way. Somebody has convinced you along the way or you learned through the school of hard knocks. This is how it's going to be.
  
  I will tell you, your ways are down here. His ways are higher. And what Moses is praying here, "Lord, I want you to show me your way." He already had the Ten Commandments. He already had the scripture. He already had the words.
  
  But, "Lord, I want your ways."
  
  The second thing I see here is that Moses began to pray God's promises. I love this so much. Look at verse 14. This is God, and He says to Moses, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."
  
  Now, there was some question about that. Because when He saw what the people did, God got so upset, His anger burned hot. He said, "I'm done with these people. My presence no longer."
  
  And you know what? We have moments like that in our lives, right? We have moments like that when we mess up, when we fall on our face, when we do wickedness, and we feel the presence of God just leaving. "I'm out of here."
  
  That's why David prayed, "Restore unto me the joy of my salvation." David royally screwed up, and the presence of God didn't mean that he was going to hell, but it meant the presence of God had left, and he felt the absence.
  
  But now God is confirming to Moses. He says, "I'll go with you. I'll be there with you. I promise you, Moses, I'm not going to leave."
  
  Now watch what Moses prays, verse 15. "Then he said to him, 'If your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here.'"
  
  The response to God's promise is that Moses said, "Yeah, you better be with us. I'm going to hold you to that one, Lord, because if you're not with us, we're dead."
  
  God made a promise, and Moses said, "Okay, if you promise it, I'm going to keep you to that promise. I'm going to pray that promise. I'm going to believe that. I'm going to receive it as my own."
  
  Listen, people of God, we have to know the word of God, because otherwise we will not know His promises. And one of the best uses of your prayer time is to find the promise that God has for your life and to pray it for yourself.
  
  "Jesus, you promised you would never leave me nor forsake me. I need you right now. You promised it. I'm receiving it. I believe for it right now. I need your presence."
  
  Whether that promise is for your blessing to set you free from addiction and sin, whether that promise regards your children to bless and cover them. Listen, you need to pray the promises of God.
  
  Moses' prayer is a reflection of God's promise to him. God already made this promise. It's not enough that God already made the promise. Moses said, "I'm going to hold you to that, Lord. I'm going to believe you."
  
  That's what the promise is for. If we're going to keep, if God is going to keep His promise in our life, it will be because, not just because of His word and His mind, but Jesus said we should ask, seek, and knock.
  
  And you know, if you're a student of the Bible, you know that those verbs in the Greek are the perfect present, which means knock and keep on knocking. Ask and keep on asking. Seek and keep on seeking. Don't stop.
  
  Don't stop believing. Don't worry, I won't sing it. Jesus said in Matthew 7, verse 7, "And it will be, it will be given to, ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks and keeps on asking will receive. He who seeks and keeps on seeking will find, and him who knocks and keeps on knocking, it will be opened."
  
  Do you believe that? Are you persistent? Some people pray three times about something, God didn't answer, I guess it's over. Jesus said in Luke 18, He spoke a parable to His disciples, and here's the reason for the parable, Luke 18, verse 1, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.
  
  Isn't that the problem with us? We pray and then we lose heart. Didn't happen. But we need to pray without losing heart, believing that His promise is real.
  
  And that parable that Jesus told was about the persistent widow who had a court battle that was unfavorable to her. And the unrighteous judge, she began to pester him day after day and night after night. "You need to avenge my cause. You need to make sure the outcome of this case is correct."
  
  And day after day and night after night. And finally, an unrighteous judge, just because of her persistence, said, "Fine, leave me alone. I'll complete your request."
  
  How much more a God in heaven who cares about you and wants to be your friend?
  
  The final prayer that Moses prayed as we close is in verse 18. He said, "Please show me your glory."
  
  This is heavy. The prayer that Moses prayed, he probably had no idea what he was asking for. And none of us really could fully understand what it means to see and to bear the glory of God.
  
  But what I see in this is a desire of Moses. "I need to know more about you. I need a personal revelation. This is not for the people, God. This is for me. I need to see your glory. I want to know you."
  
  The glory of God means His manifest presence, His holiness, His power revealed through creation in human lives and worship and divine acts.
  
  And God hears this prayer from Moses and He says, "Moses, you can't handle it. You can't handle the truth. If I showed all of my glory to you, Moses, you would die and I'm not ready for you to die yet. You still got work to do."
  
  So the answer from God to this prayer was limited. I will answer you in a partial way. So here's what we'll do, Moses. I got this little spot over here carved out in a rock. I'm going to put you in that place. You're going to close your eyes.
  
  And when I tell you to open up your eyes, I'm going to run away. And when I run away, you're going to open up your eyes and you will just see the last wisp of my glory as I'm leaving. And that is as much as you can handle.
  
  God's answers are limited. Aren't you glad that God doesn't give you every answer to every prayer? It would be so much for us to bear. We couldn't handle it.
  
  It's like the mother of James and John when she comes to Jesus and said, "Lord, I have my two boys here. And would you grant them to one, sit on your left and one hand on your right?"
  
  And what did Jesus say? "You have no idea what you're asking for. Are they able to drink from the cup that I'm going to drink from? Are you serious right now?"
  
  She thought that this was a good prayer. This was not a good prayer. Jesus said, "They can't handle it. You don't know what you're asking for."
  
  But just that moment that Moses had with the glory of God, it was enough to change him for the rest of his life. In fact, if you flip the page and go to chapter 34, it says that Moses came down from Mount Sinai.
  
  Verse 29, he had the two tablets, and Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with them. So Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses. Behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.
  
  Is there anybody like me that when you were in high school, you took a photography class? This is going back a little ways. In my photography class, we had a dark room. Yes, before digital cameras. I know, kids. Look it up. Google it. It was real.
  
  We would take pictures on this thing called film. And you would take the film, develop the film, and you would put it into this projector. And there was a light that would shine through the film. And in a dark room, only red lights, because that was the only shade of color that was not sensitive to the paper.
  
  And it would shine a very faint light, just a little flash. Click. And you would put the photosensitive paper down underneath the projection, and that's how you would make blowed-up pictures. Can you believe that? You didn't have to take it to Walgreens.
  
  But the dark room, this is where it happened. In the dark is where the image was imprinted on that photosensitive paper. And once you developed that paper, you could bring it out, and you could show the nice picture that you took.
  
  Look, when you spend time in prayer, seeking the Lord, seeking His friendship, you know what? You come out from that with a print of His character. You come out looking more like Him.
  
  And to some people, that's intimidating. To some people, there are people that are not going to understand that. People who are going to interpret it. "Oh, you're just one of those holy, holier-than-thou Bible-thumpers," right?
  
  People will think badly of you. They tried to run away from Moses. I want to tell you, God answers when He speaks to His friends.
  
  The Lord said to Moses, verse 17, "I will also do this thing that you have spoken, for you have found grace in my sight. I know you by name."
  
  The way that God answered Moses' prayers is by guiding and directing him day by day through the wilderness and in leadership. God will fill in the details.
  
  Listen, you don't have to have all the details. Some people are detail and control-oriented people. "I want to know the plan, Pastor. Can we have the plan?"
  
  The Bible said God asked Abram to go out from his hometown without even knowing where he was going. "Just leave and step out, and you're going to find exactly where I want you to go."
  
  This is what it means to be a friend of God. I don't need every detail. I don't need to work every problem out. I'm just going to follow the voice of my friend, God. He goes before us.
  
  Verse 19, He said, "Listen, God wants to show Himself to you, but we've got to make a place in our lives to speak to Him the way that a man speaks to his friend."
  
  Is that you? Maybe you've been slacking when it comes to your prayer life. Can I tell you, God's not slacking. He's waiting for you. The Bible says in Psalms that the Lord bends His ear toward those who would call upon His name.
  
  He wants to hear from you. You are as close to God as you want to be. And if you are distant from the Lord, the problem is not Him. The problem is that we are intimidated. We think that we're not worthy. We think that God doesn't have time for us.
  
  But I want to tell you, God wants to be your friend. And my challenge, my charge to you this morning is to seek the Lord while He may be found. Make God your closest friend. Don't hide behind religion. Don't hide behind religious sacrifices.
  
  He wants to know you.
  
  Let's bow our heads in prayer for just a moment. I do thank you for your attention this morning and for your listening spirit. I believe there is a God in heaven right now. He is looking down on this audience with compassion.
  
  We sang it tonight. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever would believe on Him would not perish but have everlasting life."
  
  And before we close this service with our heads bowed, our eyes closed for a moment, respecting what God wants to do in the hearts of every person here.
  
  Father, I want to ask you a very important question. Do you know Him? Do you know Him? As I mentioned, I know all about Michael Jordan. I know all about LeBron James. I know all about Steph Curry. I know about them. But I don't know them.
  
  And they don't know me. And I'm asking you here today. Do you know Him? Are you right with Him? Have you turned from sin and trusted in the Lord Jesus who died so that you can be set free?
  
  This is the good news of the gospel. That all of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. We've all broken the commandments. We've all done wickedness. We all have done things that we're ashamed of.
  
  But the good news is that God cares about you and wants to save you. And I feel the precious spirit of God moving upon somebody's heart here today. He's crying out to you. He's tugging on your heart. The Holy Spirit right now beginning to convict you of sin and drawing you into His presence by His grace.
  
  The question is, will you receive it? That's what faith is. To turn from sin and to trust that Jesus is who He says He is. Are you willing to turn from your sin and trust in Him this morning?
  
  If you are, I want to pray with you. Maybe you haven't done this before or maybe you've been running from God like the prodigal. Maybe like Adam and Eve in the garden. You've been running from God. It's time to turn to Him in faith.
  
  If that's you right now, would you do something for me? Just slip up a hand. I want to pray with you. I don't want to embarrass anybody. But right now, God's moving on your heart. Don't miss this opportunity.
  
  Would you lift up your hand so I can pray with you? Is there someone here believing the Lord to save you from your sins and trust in Him to turn from sin and believe in God with all your heart?
  
  Don't miss this opportunity and don't be ashamed from front to back, side to side. Please, if that's you, let me see your hand quickly. I'm not going to give the microphone in your face. I just want to pray with you. Would you lift up your hand? Someone here, quickly. God's going to speak to you. God's going to help you. But you've got to respond.
  
  Is that you? Lift up a hand. You want to respond. Is there anyone here?
  
  Amen. We're going to open up this altar for prayer. Church, I want to pray for this congregation. Maybe you're here today listening to this message and you say, "Pastor, if I'm totally honest, my relationship with God is not great. I don't have a friendship the way Moses did. I think of God as maker. I think of Him as judge. I think of Him as author and finisher of salvation. I think of Him as far away. I think of Him as powerful. I have respect for God. But if I'm totally honest, I'm lacking when it comes to friendship with God. I see Him as commander. But I don't see Him as my friend."
  
  And God wants to develop that relationship with you. And if we'd be honest for a few moments and bring that need to Him, I believe that He is faithful. He is faithful to find us in our moment of need.
  
  We're going to open up this altar for prayer today. And I want to encourage you as we stand up to our feet here. We're going to make space at this front altar right here. And I want to ask you if you need a closer relationship with the Lord Jesus. You need you want to pray to God the way Moses prayed, like a man face to face with his friend.
  
  If you want that in your life, I want to pray with you. Can we stand to our feet? We're going to open up this altar to pray. Say, "Lord, forgive me for being distant. Lord, forgive me for running away from You when I should have been running toward You."
  
  Would you come and join us for prayer here at this altar? Come on, let's begin to believe God together.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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What happens at Bethel

What Happens At BetheL

God’s Divine Protection for Obedient Seekers

Sermon Summary

In Genesis 35, we find Jacob on a journey back to Bethel, a place of profound spiritual significance. Bethel, meaning "house of God," is where Jacob first encountered God in a dream, seeing a ladder reaching to heaven with angels ascending and descending. This encounter marked a pivotal moment in Jacob's life, symbolizing God's presence and promises. As Jacob returns to Bethel, he is reminded of God's faithfulness and the need for obedience and sanctification.

Jacob's journey is a powerful reminder that God is not confined to a specific location. Wherever we are, God is with us. As believers, we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and God's presence dwells within us. This truth challenges us to recognize that every place can be a Bethel, a place of divine encounter, if we are open to God's presence and leading.

Jacob's story also highlights the importance of obedience and the need to rid our lives of idols. Despite his experiences with God, Jacob's household harbored foreign gods. Before returning to Bethel, Jacob instructs his family to put away these idols and purify themselves. This act of cleansing symbolizes repentance and the need to leave behind anything that hinders our relationship with God.

God's call to Jacob to return to Bethel is a call to obedience and transformation. As Jacob responds, God protects him and his family, placing a divine terror on the surrounding cities, ensuring their safety. This protection is a testament to God's faithfulness and the supernatural covering that comes with obedience.

In our lives, God calls us to obedience, promising protection and blessing. The journey to Bethel is not just a physical journey but a spiritual one, requiring us to leave behind idols and embrace God's call. As we do, we experience God's presence, protection, and the fulfillment of His promises.

“God’s protection is a testament to God’s faithfulness and the supernatural covering that comes with obedience.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [02:00] - Introduction to Jacob's Journey

• [04:31] - God's Presence Everywhere

• [06:39] - Jacob's Encounter with God

• [09:38] - The Call to Obedience

• [12:12] - Ridding Our Lives of Idols

• [14:33] - The Symbolism of Changing Garments

• [17:27] - The Importance of Sanctification

• [20:40] - God's Supernatural Protection

• [23:54] - The Safest Place in God's Plan

• [26:07] - Testimonies of God's Protection

• [28:30] - Biblical Examples of Divine Protection

• [32:03] - Confidence in God's Protection

• [34:25] - The Blessing of Obedience

• [36:44] - Responding to God's Call

• [39:16] - Invitation to Salvation

• [41:26] - Call to Believers

• [44:44] - Closing Prayer and Altar Call

Key Takeaways

1. God's Presence Everywhere: God's presence is not limited to a specific location. As believers, we carry the presence of God with us, making every place a potential Bethel, a place of divine encounter. This truth challenges us to be aware of God's presence in our daily lives and to seek His guidance and leading in every situation. [04:31]

2. The Call to Obedience: God's call to Jacob to return to Bethel is a call to obedience and transformation. Obedience to God's call requires us to leave behind idols and anything that hinders our relationship with Him. This act of obedience leads to supernatural protection and blessing. [09:38]

3. Ridding Our Lives of Idols: Jacob's instruction to his family to put away foreign gods highlights the importance of ridding our lives of idols. Idols can take many forms, including pride, possessions, and worldly desires. True repentance involves a daily commitment to turn away from these idols and pursue a life of holiness. [12:12]

4. God's Supernatural Protection: As Jacob obeys God's call, God places a divine terror on the surrounding cities, ensuring their safety. This supernatural protection is a testament to God's faithfulness and the covering that comes with obedience. It reminds us that God is watching over us and protecting us from unseen dangers. [20:40]

5. The Blessing of Obedience: Obedience to God's call leads to transformation and blessing. Jacob's journey to Bethel symbolizes a spiritual journey of transformation, where God appears, renames, reaffirms His covenant, and speaks personally to Jacob. This journey is a reminder that God's greatest blessings are hidden behind the doors of obedience. [34:25]

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Bible Reading

• Gen 35:1-5 NKJV - 1 Then God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there; and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother." 2 And Jacob said to his household and to all who [were] with him, "Put away the foreign gods that [are] among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments. 3 "Then let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone." 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods which [were] in their hands, and the earrings which [were] in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree which [was] by Shechem. 5 And they journeyed, and the terror of God was upon the cities that [were] all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.

• Gen 28:12-16 NKJV - 12 Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder [was] set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: "I [am] the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 "Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 "Behold, I [am] with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you." 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know [it]."

• Col 3:5 NKJV - 5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

Observation Questions

1. What significant event happened to Jacob at Bethel according to Genesis 28:12-16, and how did it impact his life? [06:39]

2. In Genesis 35:1-5, what instructions did God give to Jacob, and how did Jacob respond to these instructions? [09:38]

3. What does Genesis 35:5 reveal about God's protection over Jacob and his family during their journey? [20:40]

4. According to Colossians 3:5, what are some of the "idols" that believers are instructed to rid themselves of, and how does this relate to Jacob's story? [14:33]

Interpretation Questions

1. How does Jacob's journey back to Bethel symbolize a spiritual journey for believers today? What does Bethel represent in a believer's life? [34:25]

2. What does the act of Jacob instructing his family to put away foreign gods and purify themselves signify about the process of repentance and sanctification? [12:12]

3. How does the sermon illustrate the concept of God's presence being everywhere, and how does this challenge the traditional view of sacred spaces? [04:31]

4. In what ways does the sermon suggest that obedience to God leads to supernatural protection and blessing? How is this demonstrated in Jacob's story? [20:40]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on your daily life. Are there places or situations where you might not typically expect to encounter God's presence? How can you become more aware of God's presence in these everyday moments? [04:31]

2. Consider any "idols" in your life that might be hindering your relationship with God. What steps can you take to remove these idols and pursue a life of holiness? [12:12]

3. Think about a time when you felt God's protection in your life. How did this experience strengthen your faith, and how can you share this testimony with others? [20:40]

4. How can you respond to God's call in your life with obedience, even when it requires sacrifice or change? What specific actions can you take this week to align more closely with God's will? [09:38]

5. In what ways can you create a "Bethel" in your own life, a place or time dedicated to encountering God and seeking His guidance? How can this practice transform your spiritual journey? [34:25]

6. Reflect on the concept of repentance as a daily practice. How can you incorporate regular self-examination and repentance into your spiritual routine? [14:33]

7. How can you cultivate a deeper trust in God's protection and provision, especially during challenging times? What scriptures or prayers can you turn to for reassurance? [32:03]

• Full Transcript

  I want to ask you to open with me this morning the book of Genesis. We're going to look back to the story of Jacob. Genesis chapter 35. You'll join me there again. This message is inspired directly from my daily Bible reading. This was a few weeks ago that we put this message together. And I pray that it would be a blessing to you. It certainly was a blessing to me.
  
  And I hope this morning the Holy Spirit will use this scripture and this message to inspire us about who God is and about how we can serve in His kingdom. One verse of scripture that I want to share with you is Genesis chapter 35 and verse 5.
  
  As Jacob is traveling to Bethel, it says these words: "And they journeyed." Genesis 35, verse 5. "They journeyed and the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob."
  
  Father, I come by the blood of Jesus. I pray, God, for your spirit and your grace, Lord, over this service today. We are desperate and needy people before you. We need you, God, to fight our battles, to protect us, even against dangers which are seen and unseen. I'm praying, God, that you would raise us up in your will and your purpose. We thank you for the Holy Spirit and the fire that falls. We give you glory in Jesus' mighty name. Amen.
  
  The simple idea of this scripture this morning is that when we make decisions to simply obey God, to do what He has called us, what He has asked us to do, this leads to radical life change and supernatural blessing. I want to focus in for a few moments this morning on the story of Jacob.
  
  Jacob, by this time, is advanced in years. He has had a relationship. He has had experience with God. And we can read about his experiences in selected chapters throughout Genesis. In chapter 28, verse 12, we read the story of when he laid down and had a dream.
  
  Verse 12: "He dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to the heaven. There the angels of God were ascending and descending on it."
  
  Genesis 28, verse 14, God promises something to Jacob. He says, "Your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth. You shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south. And in you and in your seed, all the families of the earth shall be blessed."
  
  Verse 16: "Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.' And he called the name of that place Bethel."
  
  Now, that's going to be important for our message today—Bethel—because the name of that city had been Luz previously. Now, in our scripture, in Genesis chapter 35, Jacob is on his way back to Bethel, the same place where he had the meeting with God. The meaning of that name, that place Jacob gave to that place, is very simple. It means the house of God. Jacob is going to the house of God.
  
  And the reason why that's significant is because Jacob was not in a structure. He was not in a building. He was not in a tent. He was not in an RV. Jacob was out in the desert place. He was in a very common place. The thought of the rock that he used as his pillow was a commonplace—a common rock that you could find in any desert in the world.
  
  But Jacob, as he has this dream and this encounter with the living God, that ladder, by the way, is a picture of the Lord Jesus upon whom the blessings of God are able to be transmitted from heaven to earth. And that vision that he has, he wakes up from that dream and he says, "Whoa! The Lord is in this place, and I didn't even know it. I'm just walking, laid down, taking a nap, but God is here."
  
  And that is encouraging for us. Because what it tells us this morning, first of all, is that anywhere you are, God is with you. As believers, as people who are bought by the blood, purchased and filled with His spirit, wherever we are, there is the house of God. There is Bethel.
  
  I want to tell you, just because you walk out of the Potter's House church doesn't mean church is over. Hello? You are the church. You are the house of God. You are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Jacob says, "This is just a normal, everyday place."
  
  And you, maybe what we do often is we say, "Well, I'm just going to 7-Eleven. Nothing special happening there." But how many know you can have supernatural encounters at 7-Eleven, right, Mr. Steven? You might be saying, "I'm just going to my job, just like I go to my job every day." But not every day has to be the same. You can go to your job and have supernatural encounters.
  
  You can think, "Oh, I'm just going for a drive as normal, just driving here, there, everywhere, just going to the store." But you can go to the grocery store and have an encounter with the Holy Spirit, with the living God. Is that true this morning? Because God is everywhere.
  
  I love to tell people when I'm on outreach, and I go and I'm in Walmart and I'm passing out some flyers, and I love to tell people, "Listen, God is in Walmart. He's right here on aisle 32 next to the Cheerios. He's here and He wants to touch your life." Because God is not limited to a location.
  
  That day when Jesus died, the curtain was torn from top to bottom. The Holy Spirit of God is no longer contained in a closet in the back room of a Jewish temple in Jerusalem. No, the Holy Spirit lives in you. That's the meaning. That's why Bethel is special. The house of God is not in one place. It's where you are.
  
  Even with all of Jacob's flaws—and he had many—even with all of the problems that he created for himself, what we read about Jacob is that he has a wrestling match with God. In chapter 32, it's in this same place in Bethel where he builds an altar to God, where he has a wrestling match with the angel of the Lord.
  
  He walks away from that wrestling match. The Bible says that the angel touched his hip, and from that day forward, Jacob walked differently. You could look at the way he walked and tell God did something to that man. I want to tell you, God wants to change your walk. He wants to change how you live.
  
  We looked at it this morning in our Sunday school, that if we are truly bought by the blood, if we are truly adopted into the family, if we are truly filled with His Spirit, you're not going to walk the same. You're not going to go to the same places or hang with the same people. You're not going to use the same language, hello? Your life will change.
  
  Jacob, this is the story of his life. That day, God gave him a new name. He said, "You're not going to be known as Jacob anymore, but Israel." And there is so much wonderful truth behind that name change. You have been known as Jacob ever since you were born. You got the name Jacob. It is the one who is the deceiver.
  
  It's the one who, as he wiggled his way and strived—not always the right way—he received the blessing of the firstborn from his older brother Esau, and he kind of cheated his way into that blessing. And through his life, he is dealing with the consequences of his own character. But God says, "On this day, Jacob, your name is Israel." Amen.
  
  God is saying, "You're not going to be known as Jacob anymore." And that name has carried forward, has been the label for God's people ever since that day. Israel, the name literally means one who has struggled with God and one who has overcome. One who has fought the battle and remained in the house.
  
  It's a picture of a flawed man with many problems, but God is working on him. How many of you know that we should find some hope there? That God is working on us, so we're not walking the same. We're not what we're, we have not achieved perfection, but we're not the same as we used to be either. And that's the picture of Israel.
  
  Thank God He's bringing us to Bethel. He's not a novice. He's not a beginner. In our scripture, he receives a call from God. Genesis 35, verse 1. "Then God said to Jacob, 'Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau, your brother.'"
  
  And so God is making a call. "Jacob, I've got something for you to do. I want you to go back to Bethel and dwell there. I want you to go. Go and make an altar." God calls. Jacob responds. And isn't that always the way that it works? God calls. Jacob responds.
  
  Let me ask you, do you respond when God calls you, when He speaks to you, when He has a work for you to do, when He wakes you up in the middle of the night? So often what we do is say, "Get behind me, Satan. I'm trying to sleep right now." But God can do that. He has the right to wake you up in the middle of the night.
  
  Maybe you need to pray. Maybe there's a situation going on that you don't know about. Maybe when you don't feel like it, God will call you to witness, to study your word. Listen, I don't always feel like preaching. Hello? But God has called. God has asked. God has equipped. And God's calling is what demands our action.
  
  And when God calls Jacob, it reveals something about his house. His house is not in order. Look at verse 2, Genesis 35, verse 2. "And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, 'Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments.'"
  
  What an interesting truth to discover that, yes, God is moving in Jacob's life. Yes, there's a promise that he is inheriting. Yes, he has experience with God. But at the same time, there are idols in Jacob's house. There is something wrong with this picture. Something does not belong.
  
  There is a problem here. God wants to use the house of Jacob to be a blessing to all the nations. But as God is calling him, we discover here that there are idols in the house of Jacob. There are idols among his children, among his relatives. There are false gods. There are gods of the pagan nations around him.
  
  And what we discover here is that if we are going to go back to Bethel, we're going to have to get rid of some of those foreign gods. Jacob has enough sense. Jacob has enough understanding and revelation. And he said, "Guys, we can't stay here. If we're going to Bethel, we can't bring our idols with us."
  
  I want to tell you, we live in a time when people want to do both. We live in a time when the church wants to go to Bethel but wants to keep their idol in their pocket. "I want to keep my pride. I want to keep my possessions. I want to keep my love for money and for the world. I want to keep my filthy mouth. I want to keep all these things with me."
  
  But Jacob says, "No, no, no. We're not going to Bethel with idols in our pockets. We've got to put them behind." God gives promises. God gives destiny. But God is not the one who packs up the camels and goes down the road.
  
  It reminds us of Abraham, right? When Abraham was known as Abram, God spoke to Abram and said, "Abram, why don't you get up? Abram, why don't you get up and go down the road? There I will bless you." And it is wonderful. God has promises. God has blessing. God has fruitfulness. God has destiny.
  
  But God's not the one who packs up the suitcases. It's Abram who does that in response to God's call. I want to say to you this morning, destiny has a destination. There is a place and a time that God wants us to be. And in order to do that, we've got to leave idols behind.
  
  Exodus 20, verse 3, the first commandment: "You will have no other gods before me." Colossians 3, verse 5: "Put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is, very interesting, covetousness, which is idolatry."
  
  In Colossians, Paul instructs us that these things that we don't think of them as idols—fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desires, covetousness—we don't think of those as having little statues that we bow down to. But he says it's the same thing.
  
  When we fall in love with things of the world, fall in love with our passions, fall in love with our carnal desires, there's just as much a false god as Jacob's house carrying little idols made of wood in their pockets.
  
  And so, in order to set out to Bethel, Jacob instructs his family. "We're going to leave our idols and we're going to change our garments." We spoke this morning about how repentance is not a one-time action. "Yeah, I repented 10 years ago. That's when I gave my life to Christ." No, repentance is a lifestyle, my friends.
  
  Repentance is a daily recognition that we're going to be able to do things that we can't do in our daily lives, and we're going to say, "I didn't do everything perfect yesterday, and I need to get my heart right." Am I the only one that needs that?
  
  Jacob, who has plenty of experience with God, whose grandfather is Abraham, his father is Isaac, he's got a lifetime of experience of knowing who God is, and yet there's still idols in his house. What about you this morning? What idols is God pointing at in your life?
  
  It's not enough to feel bad about them. I'm grateful if God convicts you, but conviction is not enough. Action is required. There has to be visible change. It also says that they changed their garments. It is the symbol of leaving the old you behind.
  
  It's the picture of what we see at water baptism. The old man goes down, the new comes out of the water to serve the living God. Jacob is not just taking a shower here. It's a change. He's preparing for an encounter with God.
  
  And what is necessary for so many of God's people today is an inward cleansing. You know, when you were getting ready for church today, we try to put some effort into making ourselves presentable, right? I am not—the way that I'm looking now is different than the way I was looking at 7:45 this morning. I put some effort into this mortal flesh, unfortunately.
  
  But can I tell you, I'm going to go back to bed and I'm not going to go back to that state of chaos that I was. All of that, what I've done to make myself presentable, that is very temporary. It goes away.
  
  But can I tell you, the work that we do to be sanctified, the work that we do to mortify our flesh, the work that we do to agree with the Holy Spirit and do away with our idolatrous desires, that work continues on. We should put far more effort into presenting our souls presentable to God than we do our bodies in front of the congregation of the church. Far more.
  
  One preacher, F. Lagarde Smith, said, "To some, religion is about keeping up with appearances, an onstage show of spirituality, but nothing spiritual corruption backstage." Paul said in 2 Corinthians 7, verse 1, "Therefore, having these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of the Lord God."
  
  I just want to say this morning, obedience is simple, but not always easy. Have you discovered that yet? It is simple many times. Many times, you know, people come to me with a deep struggle of, "God, what do you want me to do? Which direction do I need to go? What job do I need to take? What person should I marry?"
  
  There are all of these decisions that we struggle with, but often, most important decisions are not that difficult. They're simple, but what I'm saying is that they're not always easy. It takes sacrifice. Righteousness is expensive, as I like to say. It's going to cost you.
  
  James 4, verse 8: "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." When God calls, He is calling us, first of all, to sanctification, to make ourselves holy in His eyes, to do away with idols.
  
  And God—here's the good news—this is not only a work that you do. The Holy Spirit lives in us to make us holy, to turn us from sin and toward righteousness. Reinhard Bonnke said, "God always works with workers and moves with movers, but He does not sit. He does not sit with sitters."
  
  Let's look at God's response to Jacob's decision. God did something. When Jacob—listen, this is the relationship between God and man. It's the partnership that we see so often in the Scripture. It's God who calls. It's Jacob who gets off of his rear end and starts looking around and says, "Get these idols out of here. We got to go."
  
  It is Jacob who does that. And as Jacob makes that decision, then the Bible says, God does something in response. God protects Jacob. And this is what inspired this message today. It so inspired me that I got excited to preach this message.
  
  Verse 5: "As they journeyed, the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob." I got to tell you, I love that Scripture. It's the picture of Jacob doing the hard but necessary work to get up and go forward into where God has called him.
  
  And what he discovers along the way—and maybe he didn't even know—as he's passing through the wilderness, going down to the house of God, to Bethel, the Bible says that there are cities. There are enemies. There are forces. There are foes along the path.
  
  And it even could have been the case that many of these would see Jacob passing by. His family, his wealth, his resources could see that God's blessing was traveling with them. And maybe it was the case that those enemies thought in their mind, "Oh, here comes Jacob. I heard about this guy. He's got some stuff. I heard he's got a big flock of sheep that he has tended over time. I've heard that he's got some wealth and some resources. I've heard that he's got a large family with him. And maybe we could take advantage."
  
  Oh, but here's the good news. God supernaturally covered them. It says that as they journeyed, the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
  
  Let me tell you what God can do for you. For those who are walking in obedience, for those who are taking care to rid their lives of idols, of perversity, of fornication and lust, to you who are doing what God has called you to do, walking in obedience, I want to tell you, God is watching out for you. God is protecting you.
  
  God is putting terror into the hearts of your enemies. The terror of God is upon those cities. God is putting fear in their hearts. Don't touch that man. As God's people are simply obeying and walking in obedience, God is putting fear into anyone around that might be thinking to attack.
  
  That God is subduing the forces of hell that we are not even aware of. That Jacob—there's no need for Jacob to take up a sword. There's no need for Jacob to have a bodyguard. There's no need for Jacob to have secret service. Because Jacob is protected by the Most High God. The fear of the Lord is on his enemies.
  
  I want to tell you this morning, obedience puts you in God's love—supernatural covering. We say this, you've probably heard this, but it is reality. The safest place in all the universe is in the middle of God's plan for your life. In His hands, who can defeat you? If He is for us, then who can be against us?
  
  Many of you might know the story of Reinhard Bonnke, a revival preacher who went across Africa and saw many millions of people turn their lives to Jesus. He tells a story in his autobiography called "The Life of Fire."
  
  Listen carefully to this story. "Soon afterward, the missionary Boneyard almost claimed me for its own. While traveling in a remote area, I exhausted my canteen and felt myself nearly dehydrating. In those days, we did not carry large quantities of bottled water as we do now. I was so driven by thirst that I ignored the wisdom to always boil water before drinking. I knew better than to do that. In my travels, I had already encountered the graves of many missionaries who had died from drinking deadly black water. But I drank straight from a well.
  
  When I arrived home that night, the awful stomach cramps began. I knew I was in a fight for my life. I began to hallucinate and drift in and out of consciousness. My appetite was gone. Annie had to work to get fluids into my body. After three terrible days of delirium, I began to see a vision. I saw something like a black blanket, a dark shroud floating over me. It seemed that I would be smothered by it. Death was near for me, I knew.
  
  Then, somehow, I could see through the blanket. On the other side, I saw the face of Jesus. And a wonderful peace flooded my heart in the midst of my delirium. In the next moment, I heard the voice of dear Sister Elise Koehler praying for me. I knew that voice from the many prayer meetings I had attended in my home church. I heard her crying out to God to spare my life. And in that moment, the fever broke, and I began a slow and steady recovery."
  
  Can I tell you something? God will protect you. You can trust Him. In the dark and difficult moments, you can trust Him. One of the pastors in our fellowship, Bob Overson, tells the story of when his brother was a missionary in Africa and went to go preach for him.
  
  And as he was traveling to the nation, I believe it was Nairobi, as he was traveling, he changed planes in some city. And as he's going through that airport, he is moved somehow to buy some little candies from the gift shop. This was weird for him because he said, "I don't eat candy," but he thought somehow it would be important.
  
  And so he buys this little package of candies, puts them in his pocket, and keeps traveling. And so then, as they are traveling, as they finally arrive in Nairobi and he meets his brother, and as they're driving, there is a roadblock. This is something common in third-world countries where the local authorities are looking to get bribes and all these things.
  
  And so they stop these two white guys on the road, right? Going to their church and giving them a hard time and harassing them, and they're looking for money. And it just so happens that as they're searching them, they find that candy that was in his pocket.
  
  And the candy that he would have never eaten on his own became the bribe to pay off the guy on the road so that they could continue on their journey. God protected them. I have been witness to so many times that God has watched out for us without even our understanding.
  
  Daniel, we serve a God who closes the mouths of lions. It is God who shut the lion's mouth. It is God who slaughtered the Assyrians during the time of Hezekiah. God went out and killed a hundred and eighty-five thousand of them without them even knowing.
  
  God is the one who protects Moses and Israel. He is the God who goes before us—Jehovah Nisi, our banner who fights and protects us. It is God that when Paul is bitten by the viper on the island of Malta, he's there making a fire. A viper comes out and bites him. It is God who somehow reaches into the hand of Paul and stops that venom from spreading.
  
  And that day, all of the local natives saw that happen and thought that he was going to die in any moment. But instead, that snake bite became the platform where Paul was able to preach, "No, I am not a God, but I have a God who is the Most High." And He is the God who protects His people.
  
  In the Great Commission, Jesus told His disciples, Mark 16, 18: "They will take up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." Are you aware of what God is doing outside? He is protecting us.
  
  I wonder one day when we get to heaven, we're going to look back and see all the times angels—God's going to put on the CCTV, the recording of our ring cameras, and show us all the times you were just walking down the street. But I'm the one who stopped that driver from falling asleep at the last second to stop from plowing you over.
  
  I wonder how many instances God is going to show us when God sent the angel to stop our tire from blowing up and careening off the road. How many times God is going to show us His divine protection and providence over us? You have to understand God protects His people. Can you say amen?
  
  Psalm 91 is a beautiful, beautiful song about God's protection that we need to rest in this morning. "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord: He is my refuge, the place of my safety. He is my God, and I trust Him. For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from every deadly disease. He will cover you with His feathers. He will shelter you with His wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
  
  So do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in the darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at your side, and ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you."
  
  Now, pastor, does that mean that I'm never going to have a bad day? No, we are subject to the world, just like anybody else. It rains on the just and the unjust. But I want to tell you, God protects. God watches over. Proverbs 28, verse 1: "The wicked run when no one is chasing, but the godly are bold as lions."
  
  The purpose of this message today, the reality of God's protection, is what does that produce in you? What it should produce is a confidence. "God, you are with me, so who can be against me? I don't have to live in fear. I don't have to be anxious. I don't have to be depressed. Lord, if you are with me, then who can be against me? I'm believing, Lord, that you're going to protect me."
  
  Jesus said, "Why do you worry about your life, what you will eat, what you will drink, what you will wear? Am I not able to provide all these for you?" We heard yesterday a powerful teaching. The answer for anxiety is faith. The answer for depression is trust. Trust in a God who is bigger than you and anything that you are facing.
  
  So let's close this morning and look at the supernatural transformation and the blessing of God from this story. Bethel in the Bible represents more than just a physical location. It is a symbol of a divine encounter and the establishment of God's presence. Jacob names this place Bethel, the house of God in Genesis 28.
  
  Now fast forward to the New Testament. The assembly of believers is Bethel on a grand scale. In 1 Corinthians 3:16, Paul declares, "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" And that means that you are the temple of God. It means the assembly is not just a gathering place; it is the living, breathing house of God.
  
  Four things that God will do at Bethel as we close.
  
  Number one, God will appear. Verse 9: "Then God appeared to Jacob again when he came from Paddan Aram and blessed him." God appears at Bethel. God appears to those who will sacrifice to move toward Him. Rick Renner says that God's greatest blessings are hidden behind the doors of obedience.
  
  Second thing, God renames Jacob to Israel. It is in this moment God said to him, "Your name is Jacob. You will not be called Jacob anymore, but Israel shall be your name." As we know, the change of name indicates a change of character. Jacob is the easy way. It's the way of the flesh. Israel is the difficult way, the one that few will choose—the straight and the narrow road. Jacob was willing to engage with God.
  
  The third thing is that God reaffirms His covenant with Jacob. Verse 11: "God said to him, 'I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation and company of nations shall proceed from you. And kings shall come from your body. The land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, I will give to you, and to your descendants, I give this land.'"
  
  And finally, God speaks personally to Jacob. Verse 13: "And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him." Billy Graham said that the highest form of worship is obedience to God and His word. Jacob sets out a pillar, pours out a drink offering.
  
  Can I tell you, the Lord is worthy of our worship.
  
  So as we close, I want to ask you to consider in your heart, have you responded to the call of God in obedience? Those places where God has already spoken to you. We're not talking about things that you don't know about. We're talking about things you do know about. He has already spoken. He has already made it clear.
  
  Are you walking in obedience? What areas still require surrender? Are you aware this morning of God's promise? Providential protection over your life. Are you aware that there are angels on every side keeping you and upholding you?
  
  Do you have a place in your life for Bethel, the house of God, to continue to go there and make sacrifices? And I ask as we close, what kind of blessing, what kind of protection, what kind of promises are waiting for you on the other side of obedience?
  
  There are so many this morning who do not experience all that God has for you because it's on the other side of obedience. I love the story of Peter who fishes all night, casting his nets. He's a pro. He's done this a thousand times, but a whole night of work and labor and toil—not one fish.
  
  And when Peter said, "Okay, Lord, at your word, I will obey," he cast the net one more time. And when he pulls on it, whoa! So many fish that he had trouble pulling them in the boat. I want to tell you, this is a picture of what will happen in your life. God spoke to Peter in a way so clear that he could understand it.
  
  "All night you worked on your own. But at my word, Peter, are you willing to obey?" In your life, I wonder, what words is Jesus speaking to you? What is He asking from you? And what blessing, what protection, what favor, what promises are waiting for you if you would simply respond to what the Holy Spirit is speaking to you now?
  
  Let's bow our heads and close our eyes. We bring the service to a close. And as God is speaking to our hearts—oh, for just a few moments today. God is so faithful. God is so good. He is here this morning by His Holy Spirit.
  
  The blood of Jesus, which was shed for the remission of sins. Before we can talk about God's blessing, we have to talk about God's judgment. We serve a holy God. We serve a righteous God. In the presence of the Lord, there is no darkness. There is no sin. There is no wickedness. He is holy. He is set apart. He is different.
  
  And what that means is if you are not holy, you will not be in God's presence. There are things that divide us from the Lord. It's words that we've said and actions that we've taken. It's just like in Jacob's house, man, there were idols in there that shouldn't have been there.
  
  And it's true that in many the lives of many people, there are things that are separating you from God. Words that you've said, actions that you've done. Thank God that He is gracious and merciful. You know what God did for sinners? He sent His Son, Jesus.
  
  The Bible says, "While we were yet sinners, Christ came and died for the ungodly." The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord. And so I'm asking you today, not asking you if you're a member of a church, or how religious you are, how many scriptures you've read, how many prayers that you prayed at bedtime.
  
  The real question is, have you surrendered? Have you turned from sin and trusted in Jesus for the salvation of your soul? And if not, you have that opportunity today to approach the throne of grace. Say, "Lord, I'm broken, I'm lost, but I need the good shepherd to come and find me."
  
  He said, "I am the good shepherd. I'm the one who leaves the 99 to go after one that is lost." And if that's you here today, you recognize that your sin has separated you from God. It's time to get your heart right. If that's you, quickly, I want to pray with you. Recognize that in your heart. Would you lift up your hand? Unsaved or backslidden in your heart, you need the love, the mercy, the forgiveness of God.
  
  Is there anyone here? You lift up a hand and say, "Pastor, pray for me. I'm not right." If that's you, I want to pray with you. Somebody right now believing God. Would you lift up a hand? "Lord, forgive me. I'm lost. I'm a sinner. I'm broken. I need the blood to wash me clean. I need the spirit to make me new. I need to be born again in Christ."
  
  One last call. Is that you? Quickly, unsaved or backslidden in your heart, you can be transformed in a moment of time. Don't leave this place without knowing the power, the life-changing power of Jesus Christ. Is there anyone at all? Quickly, with an uplifted hand.
  
  Amen. And I want to speak to believers today. This message was not a message to the uninitiated, but to those who have plenty of experience with God. Jacob was no novice. Jacob was no beginner. And yet, there were idols in Jacob's house.
  
  And it's possible to be a member of a church. It's possible to be even in ministry. It's possible to be attending church services. But there are still idols. There are still things that are dividing us from the Lord. There are still places of disobedience in our heart.
  
  There are still actions, words, and habits that do not please Him. And if we are going to experience His blessing, His fruitfulness, His protection, it means we've got to move out from that. We've got to get rid of those things that are dividing us from Him. Change our garments. Say, "Lord, I don't want to be like that. I don't want to do that. I need the blood of Jesus to wash me and set me free. I want the Holy Spirit to convict me and draw me close."
  
  And this altar is going to be an altar of sanctification and holiness. "Lord, we're leaving behind our idols. The things of this life. The life that we love so dearly. The carnality of our flesh. It's time to leave it behind and pursue the greater things of God."
  
  What blessing is waiting for us? What protection? What promises of God are waiting? If we will simply obey the voice of the Lord right now. As we stand up to our feet, this altar is open. Church of God is dealing with you. Would you come? Would you make a place here at this altar? Would you come and pray for a few moments with us?
  
  And as we pray, please, I want to ask you, if you come up to pray, please remain here at the altar while we're praying. Please remain for a few moments. So important as we reach out to the living God. Let's begin to lift up our voices in prayer.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Crossed Hands of the Greater Blessing

Sermon Summary

In Genesis 48, we encounter a profound moment where Jacob, nearing the end of his life, blesses Joseph's sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. This story is rich with symbolism and spiritual insight, revealing God's unexpected ways and the transition from the old covenant to the new. Joseph, who had endured immense suffering and emerged as a leader in Egypt, brings his sons to Jacob for a blessing. Traditionally, the firstborn, Manasseh, would receive the primary blessing. However, Jacob crosses his hands, placing the greater blessing on Ephraim, the younger son. This act signifies God's sovereignty and His tendency to subvert human expectations.

The names of Joseph's sons carry deep meaning. Manasseh means "causing to forget," symbolizing the old covenant and the law, which helps us move past the pain of our past. Ephraim means "fruitfulness," representing the new covenant in Christ, which brings abundant life and spiritual fruitfulness. The old covenant, with its laws and sacrifices, was necessary but incomplete. It pointed to the need for a greater, more perfect covenant, fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

Through the cross, Jesus accomplished what the law could not. He became the ultimate sacrifice, offering us grace and the opportunity to live a life of fruitfulness in Him. Just as Jacob's crossed hands signified a new order, the cross of Christ signifies the transition from law to grace. This story reminds us that God's ways are higher than ours, and He often chooses the unexpected to fulfill His purposes. We are called to embrace the new covenant, living not by the letter of the law but by the Spirit, bearing the fruit of a transformed life in Christ.

“God’s ways are higher than ours, and He often chooses the unexpected to fulfill His purposes.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [01:52] - Destiny and Transformation

• [03:20] - Jacob's Blessing

• [04:54] - The Significance of Names

• [07:17] - Living in the Greater Blessing

• [08:39] - Manasseh and Ephraim

• [10:57] - The Role of the Law

• [13:46] - The Old Covenant

• [14:27] - Transition to the New Covenant

• [17:22] - Fruitfulness in Christ

• [18:23] - Relationship Over Rules

• [20:04] - The Fruit of the Spirit

• [25:10] - God's Unexpected Ways

• [31:05] - The Cross and New Covenant

• [39:00] - Invitation to New Life

Key Takeaways

1. Destiny and Transformation: Destiny is not merely a destination but the transformation of our character through life's trials. Joseph's journey illustrates how God prepares us to be the right person for His purposes, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a right heart amidst adversity. [01:52]

2. The Significance of Names: The names Manasseh and Ephraim symbolize the transition from the old covenant to the new. Manasseh represents forgetting past pain through the law, while Ephraim signifies the fruitfulness of life in Christ, highlighting the progression from law to grace. [08:39]

3. The Role of the Law: The law serves as a mirror, revealing our sinfulness and need for a Savior. It is a necessary step in understanding our need for grace, but it is not the final solution. The law points us to the greater covenant fulfilled in Jesus. [13:46]

4. God's Unexpected Ways: God's plans often subvert human expectations, as seen in Jacob's blessing of Ephraim over Manasseh. This act foreshadows the new covenant, where grace supersedes the law, and God's purposes are fulfilled in unexpected ways. [25:10]

5. The Cross and New Covenant: The cross is the ultimate symbol of God's grace, where Jesus took our place, fulfilling the law and offering us a new life. Through the cross, we receive the blessing of the firstborn, becoming co-heirs with Christ in the new covenant. [31:05]

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Bible Reading

• Genesis 48:8-20 NKJV - Then Israel saw Joseph's sons, and said, "Who [are] these?" 9 And Joseph said to his father, "They [are] my sons, whom God has given me in this [place]." And he said, "Please bring them to me, and I will bless them." 10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, [so that] he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 11 And Israel said to Joseph, "I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!" 12 So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought [them] near him. 14 Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid [it] on Ephraim's head, who [was] the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh's head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh [was] the firstborn. 15 And he blessed Joseph, and said: "God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, 16 The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." 17 Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father's hand to remove it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, "Not so, my father, for this [one is] the firstborn; put your right hand on his head." 19 But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations." 20 So he blessed them that day, saying, "By you Israel will bless, saying, 'May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!' " And thus he set Ephraim before Manasseh

• Romans 5:17 NKJV - For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

• Hebrews 8:6-13 NKJV - 6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. 7 For if that first [covenant] had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. 8 Because finding fault with them, He says: "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah-- 9 "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the LORD. 10 "For this [is] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 11 "None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. 12 "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more." 13 In that He says, "A new [covenant]," He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

Observation Questions

1. What significant action does Jacob take when blessing Joseph's sons, and how does Joseph react to it? [04:54]

2. What do the names Manasseh and Ephraim mean, and how do they relate to the covenants mentioned in the sermon? [08:39]

3. How does the sermon describe the role of the law in the Old Covenant? [13:46]

4. What is the significance of the cross in the context of the new covenant, as explained in the sermon? [31:05]

Interpretation Questions

1. How does Jacob's crossing of his hands during the blessing symbolize God's unexpected ways and the transition from the old to the new covenant? [25:10]

2. In what ways does the sermon suggest that the new covenant in Christ is superior to the old covenant? [17:22]

3. How does the story of Joseph's life illustrate the concept of destiny as transformation rather than just a destination? [01:52]

4. What does the sermon imply about the importance of understanding our need for grace through the law? [13:46]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when your expectations were subverted by God's plans. How did you respond, and what did you learn from that experience? [25:10]

2. The sermon emphasizes the importance of living by the Spirit rather than the letter of the law. What practical steps can you take to cultivate a Spirit-led life this week? [18:23]

3. Consider the meaning of the names Manasseh and Ephraim. How can you apply the concept of "forgetting past pain" and "fruitfulness" in your current life situation? [08:39]

4. How can you embrace the new covenant of grace in your daily life, especially in areas where you might be relying on your own efforts? [29:28]

5. The sermon mentions the fruit of the Spirit. Choose one aspect of the fruit of the Spirit to focus on this month. What specific action could you take to cultivate it in your interactions with others? [20:04]

6. How can you ensure that your understanding of God's plans is not limited by your own expectations or traditions? [33:49]

7. Reflect on the idea that God's ways are higher than ours. How can this perspective change the way you approach challenges and decisions in your life? [38:17]

• Full Transcript

  Let's open up our Bibles to the book of Genesis, chapter 48.
  
  Once again, this message is inspired directly through my daily Bible reading. We have a Bible reading plan that our church is a part of. If you would like to be a part of that, we encourage you to do so. You can find that on our church website, but through the YouVersion Bible app.
  
  And so if you are keeping up with those daily readings, you will have already read this scripture. But it really struck my heart as I read it. This is a story that I've read many, many times. But I love when the Word of God, when the Holy Spirit reveals new truth by using His Word.
  
  How many have ever had that experience? A story you read a hundred times, but for whatever reason, God points out a new and fresh truth in His Word. And that is exactly the case with this scripture this morning.
  
  Genesis, chapter 48. It's the story of Jacob as Joseph brings his two sons to his father. Now, you know the story of Joseph, who had spent a lifetime away from his family. He had been rejected by his brothers, sold into slavery, worked as a servant in Potiphar's house, falsely accused of sexual immorality, and put in prison. Joseph has quite a story.
  
  And through all of that, God's blessing was always on him. He kept his heart right. And the story of the life of Joseph is, keep your heart right, no matter what you're going through, and God will raise you up. And that's what happened with Joseph.
  
  When the time was right, God prepared him, not only... Listen, I got a statement for you this morning. Destiny is not just the place that God is bringing you to. Destiny is the person that you're going to be when you arrive there.
  
  And that's the story of Joseph. God had prepared him through all of these difficult times to be the right person in the right place to manage the wealth and the resources of the nation of Egypt, to be a blessing to all nations around. One of those nations that needed help was Jacob and his family.
  
  As Jacob sends his other sons, Joseph's brothers, into Egypt to purchase grain. You know the story that the brothers, they are recognized by Joseph. They don't recognize him. They thought he was dead, long gone. But he knew them. He saw them. And there's a process of restoration. And there's a whole powerful story there.
  
  And so Joseph is reconciled to his brothers. But then they bring his father. They bring Jacob. And Jacob comes down to Egypt. And there is a restoration and a healing of relationship. And it's a beautiful story.
  
  And that catches us up to where we are in this chapter, in Genesis chapter 48. Now, as Jacob is about to pass away, there is something very important that Jacob has that he needs to pass on to the next generation.
  
  Jacob has the blessing of the covenant that God first gave to Abraham that was passed down to Jacob's father, Isaac, and now passed to Jacob. And now Jacob is growing old. He's getting ready to pass on into eternity.
  
  And so his role as the patriarch of the family is now to pass on that blessing to another generation. And that's where we pick up our story. In Genesis chapter 48, Joseph, who is still in Egypt managing the affairs, understands that there is power in the blessing of the patriarch.
  
  And so what he does is he brings his two sons. These are two sons that are born to him in Egypt. Their names are Manasseh and Ephraim. He is going to bring his two sons to their grandfather, Jacob, because he wants them to receive a blessing before Jacob dies.
  
  And that's where we pick up the story. If you join me in Genesis chapter 48 and verse 8. Let's read it together, verses 8 through 20.
  
  It says, "Israel," that's Jacob, "saw Joseph's sons and said, 'Who are these?'" Joseph said to his father, "They are my sons whom God has given me in this place." And he said, "Please bring them to me, and I will bless them."
  
  Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. And Israel said to Joseph, "I had not thought to see your face, but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring."
  
  So Joseph brought them from beside his knees and bowed down with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near him.
  
  Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh's head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn.
  
  So if you're getting the picture, Joseph has lined up his boys so that the firstborn would be under the right hand, and the secondborn would be under the left hand. That's because the blessing comes through the right hand. And Joseph has lined them up properly according to tradition.
  
  But when Jacob goes to bless the boys, he crosses his hands so that the blessing of the firstborn will be on the younger.
  
  Verse 15, he blessed Joseph and said, "God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless these lads. Let my name be named upon them in the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. Let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth."
  
  But Joseph is upset about this. When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him. So he took hold of his father's hand to remove it, so as to put it on Manasseh's head.
  
  And Joseph said to his father, "Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head." But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people. He also shall be great, but truly the younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations."
  
  So he blessed them that day, saying, "By you, Israel will bless, saying, 'May God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh.'" That's significant because the order should have been Manasseh and Ephraim. But the blessing goes Ephraim and then Manasseh.
  
  Then Israel said to Joseph, "Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers."
  
  Let's pray for a moment.
  
  Lord, we come by the precious, precious blood of Jesus. I pray this morning that you would help us, that you would speak to us through this profound story, the wisdom of God. I pray that you would help us today to understand your grace, your mercy, and your power that is in the new covenant of Christ.
  
  I'm praying, God, that you would speak to your people in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, "Amen."
  
  Let's look this morning at living in the greater blessing. And today I want to look, first of all, at the meaning of Manasseh. These boys were the sons of Joseph. They were born to him in the land of Egypt.
  
  And you can't understand this scripture, this story without understanding the life of Joseph. He had a rough life. He had a difficult time. He had a harder time than most likely anybody here.
  
  And yet, through all of his difficulty, his pain, his travail, his loneliness, his betrayals, his false accusations, his spending time in prison unjustly, through all of this time, God has kept him.
  
  And as God raises him up to this place of prominence, part of that is that he is able to marry a wife and have children. When this first child is born, you know that in the Old Testament, names carry great meaning.
  
  The name is going to define not only what the parents have been through, but also define the life of that child going forward. And it's interesting when you begin to study the name that Joseph gave to his two sons.
  
  The first son is named Manasseh. And that name literally means "causing to forget." The idea behind the name of his first son is that by bringing him into the world, God has blessed Joseph. And this blessing is so great that it's helping him to forget the pain of his past.
  
  That's the name, Manasseh. You have caused me, your presence, your blessing has caused me to forget the pain of my past.
  
  And what I see in these two boys is I see a revelation of the two covenants in the Word of God: the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Manasseh, causing to forget, is a necessary first step.
  
  In the same way that Joseph was able to move on from the pain of his past, God also wants Israel to move on from the pain of their past in slavery. So follow with me. This is a metaphor for the nation, God's people. And it's also going to be a metaphor for you and I.
  
  So God's people spend time. If you fast forward into the book of Exodus, you know that the nation of Israel multiplies. And for 400 years they are in slavery in Egypt.
  
  And as they are in slavery, God is going to bring Moses to be their deliverer through miracles and signs. And by the way, the blood of a perfect spotless lamb. That lamb is going to be slaughtered. God's going to bring them out of Egypt.
  
  And this is a picture, how many know, of salvation? Everybody tracking so far? Salvation is when we were in bondage to our sins. Then the blood of a sinless lamb, Jesus, dies on the cross for us.
  
  And because of the blood of Jesus, we can walk out of our slavery and into the promised land of God's blessing. So this metaphor is carrying through.
  
  In the story of the Israelites, then, under Moses as their deliverer, their leader, God brings them into the wilderness. They're wandering there. And the first place they stop is Mount Sinai.
  
  And at Mount Sinai, God gives them what? He gives them the law. It's the first of many laws. It's the two tablets that God writes on these stone tablets with His own finger.
  
  And the Bible says they receive the law that day. That is the first of many laws that Moses gives them. And God is going to give them this law. The law is a gift.
  
  So you have the book of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. These are the telling of the laws. And so God gives them the law. And the law represents for us the Old Covenant.
  
  Why did God give them the law? He wanted them, just like Joseph, who had been through a terrible time, to be able to forget the pain of their slavery.
  
  What God understands and what we need to understand is that they cannot walk into their promises until they have forgotten their pain. Are you with me? This is a powerful truth of life.
  
  The reason that the Israelites were wandering so long is because you can take the slaves out of Egypt, but it's much more difficult to take the Egypt out of the slaves.
  
  Even though they were free, they were still thinking and acting as they did back in Egypt. And so the story of the time wandering in the wilderness is that through the law, God is trying to help them to forget the pain of their slavery so that they can go into the promise of their future.
  
  And this is the same path that God has for us. God wants us to forget the pain. This is our Manasseh. Our Manasseh is the Old Covenant, the law.
  
  You know what the Bible says about the law? Romans 3, verse 20: "Therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in His sight. For by the law is the knowledge of sin."
  
  We thank God for the law. You know why? Because without the law, like Paul said, Paul says, "I would not know that I was a sinner." It is the law which brings conviction of our sins.
  
  How many have ever felt that before? When you read the Word of God, when you read the laws of God, it brings us under condemnation. And that's a good thing. But that's not enough.
  
  The law is our Manasseh. It is God trying to deliver us from the pain of our past. The Old Covenant was important, but it was temporary.
  
  The laws of Moses were pointing forward to something far greater. Hebrews 8, verse 7: "If the first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second."
  
  Because finding fault with them, He says, "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord, "when I will make a new covenant." Everybody say "new covenant."
  
  "I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah." The Old Covenant was critical, was important, without which we would not know the depth of our wickedness before the Lord.
  
  But the Old Covenant is our Manasseh. It's step one. The problem is this: There's a lot of people who get stuck at step one.
  
  Who get stuck in a cycle of Old Covenant living. And just like the Jews of history, just like the people who exist under the laws of Moses, it is a revelation of God, but it is an incomplete revelation.
  
  Think of how they expressed their faith. The Jews of the Old Testament. They have a system of sacrifices. So if I want to get my heart right with God, there's a process that I have to follow.
  
  There are feasts. These days, as a faithful Jewish man, I have to be in Jerusalem three times a year. There's a system of sacrifices. I have to either bring a lamb or a bull or a goat or a bird if I'm poor.
  
  I have to bring some animal. And as I bring that into the tabernacle, then later on into the temple, I'm going to transfer my sins onto this animal that has done nothing wrong.
  
  I'm going to hand that over to the priest. And the act of faith, the faith that they had was to slaughter those animals. The temple and the tabernacle was a place of blood.
  
  It was a place of sacrifice. It was a place where all day, every day, the blood was flowing down. And on the most holy day of the year, the Yom Kippur, the high priest would go into the most holy place and he would make one sacrifice for the entire nation, all the people of faith together that he would make a sacrifice.
  
  And he would make a sacrifice for them. But all of that is important, but it's not final. It's not enough. It's incomplete.
  
  The blood of bulls and goats and birds is a temporary cleansing. Because how many understand? As soon as those sacrifices are made, as soon as that blood is spilled, those people would come out of that temple and go right back to the same life.
  
  And the sacrifice is not final. The same is true if we try to live under the Old Covenant of the law. If all we have is Manasseh trying to forget, it is not enough.
  
  God did not send His Son Jesus simply to forget the past. But He calls us to an abundant life in Christ. And that is the New Covenant, which is, I believe, represented in this scripture through the second son, Joseph, whose name is Ephraim.
  
  Now, when we do a study on the name of Ephraim, you will discover something amazing. The name Ephraim means "fruitfulness."
  
  So with his second son, Joseph names him Ephraim. This is Genesis 41, verse 52: "The second son he named Ephraim and said, 'It is because God has made me fruitful.'" Say "fruitful."
  
  "God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering." So this is the next step. God has delivered me from the pain of my past, but more than that, this son is a forward-looking son.
  
  He said, "God has made me fruitful," symbolizing increase, abundance, newness of life. And this symbolically, metaphorically points us to the New Covenant, which is in Christ.
  
  How many know this morning, Jesus came to give us life and life more abundantly? A fruitful life. John 10, verse 10: "The thief did not come except to steal, kill, and destroy. But I have come that they may have life and that they might have it more abundantly."
  
  Jesus said, "I am the vine." John 15, verse 5: "I am the vine. You are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit." Say "much fruit."
  
  "For without me you can do nothing." Here's the simple way to understand Manasseh and Ephraim. The Old Covenant is about following rules. The New Covenant is about relationship.
  
  The Manasseh way of life is about making lists and following them. The Ephraim life is about bearing the fruit of relationship through Jesus.
  
  Through Christ, we are no longer striving; we are abiding and bearing fruit. Galatians 5, verse 22: "But the fruit of the Spirit."
  
  Anybody know? Love, joy, peace, long suffering. You know what it means to have long suffering, right? It means to suffer for a long time with a smile on your face. Kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
  
  What I'm trying to show you is that the Ephraim kind of life is the life that God wants us to live—a life of fruitfulness for the kingdom of God. And just as Ephraim received a greater blessing, so the New Covenant is greater than the old.
  
  Now, that's why this story attracted my attention because here in this story, we have so many amazing truths all wrapped up into one. God has a pattern of superseding what's supposed to happen with what He wants to happen.
  
  This goes all the way back to the very first sons that are born to Adam and Eve. We have Cain and Abel, right? Cain is the firstborn. Abel is the secondborn. And Cain is supposed to be the responsible one.
  
  But Abel brings a sacrifice to the Lord. God recognizes that sacrifice, doesn't recognize Cain's. And so Cain kills his brother Abel and he becomes a picture of wickedness throughout the Bible.
  
  We have the sons of Abraham. As Abraham made that foolish decision to sleep with his maidservant Hagar, out of that relationship comes Ishmael. Ishmael is Abraham's firstborn, yes? But that's the son of the flesh instead of the son of the promise.
  
  And later on, their faith is confirmed and Isaac is born. The promised son that God said that you will have a son and will be from your own body. You and your wife, at 90 years old, they have a child. And that's Isaac.
  
  And Isaac, when he grows, I just preached about it a couple of weeks ago, he takes the place of prominence. They have to kick Ishmael out. Remember that story? They had to say goodbye to Hagar and Ishmael.
  
  Can I just remind you? You got to say goodbye to your flesh. You got to say bye-bye. You're no longer welcome here. But I care. I care about those things. It's who I am. It's part of my personality.
  
  Yes, Abram cared about Ishmael too. That was his son. And he had to send him away. He had to say goodbye to Ishmael so that Isaac could thrive.
  
  We see it again in the sons of Isaac, twin boys that are born, Esau and Jacob. And we see Esau, who is supposed to carry the birthright through the generations.
  
  But one day he comes in. He's been out in the fields hunting all day. He's tired. And Jacob has been cooking up a stew all day. And Jacob says, "You trade to me your birthright. I'll give you a bowl of beans."
  
  And the Bible calls Esau a wicked and a carnal man because he traded the blessing of God for a bowl of stew. Again, a decision made in flesh, in weakness. And Jacob receives the birthright.
  
  It's the younger who becomes the bearer of the blessing. You see the pattern emerging. And this is the same Jacob who received that blessing that now, later on, he's about to die.
  
  And now these two sons are before him: Manasseh on his right, Ephraim on his left. And Joseph has lined them up perfectly. I can imagine Joseph thinking to himself, "Oh, yes, I love this Manasseh boy. I'm preparing him for greatness."
  
  And Joseph is bringing him to his dad. And he wants them to receive the blessing. He said, "Manasseh, make sure you're over here on the left side so that you're under dad's right hand."
  
  And he's lining them up. "Make sure you're wearing your tie, boys. Make sure you got everything together. Let's do it right."
  
  And he lines them up perfectly. And here comes Jacob. And with one move, he messes up all of Joseph's plans.
  
  What he does is he takes his hands and he crosses them. Didn't see that one coming. And when he does that, he is undermining Joseph's will, but he's doing God's will.
  
  Now, here's the point. Here's the reason why this is important for you. Sometimes we get our lives all figured out. How many have been there?
  
  We get our lives all figured out. This is the way I like it. This is how it's supposed to be, Lord. Firstborn should have the blessing. Let me put them right here.
  
  And sometimes God will throw a monkey wrench into your plans. God will cross His hands on you and say, "Wait a second. I thought it was supposed to be like this." And it turned into that. Can you handle that?
  
  We see in our scripture that Joseph starts getting upset. When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, verse 17, it displeased him.
  
  Ever been there? "Lord, no. Let it not be so, Lord." That's like Peter. When Jesus starts talking about going to the cross, and Peter says, "No, not so, Lord. Let it never be."
  
  And what does Jesus say? "Get behind me, Satan. For you are not mindful." Peter thinks he knows what's best for the plans and the purposes of God. But Peter doesn't know. He receives a rebuke.
  
  Sometimes we need a rebuke when it comes to our purposes and plans. But what we also see so powerful in this scripture, as Manasseh is a stand-in for the Old Covenant and Ephraim represents the New Covenant of grace and fruitfulness.
  
  When God, when Jacob crosses his hands, it's like God is making a statement to us. This New Covenant in Jesus supersedes and overpowers the Old Covenant.
  
  And isn't it interesting, the sign that he makes with his arms? Cross. Cross. At the cross, all of this is a foreshadowing. Without Jacob understanding, without Joseph, without even Ephraim or Manasseh understanding, all of it points forward to the superior covenant in Christ.
  
  Hebrews 8, verse 6: "But now He, Jesus, has obtained a more excellent ministry. He is a mediator of a better," say "better," "a better covenant, which was established on better promises."
  
  For if the first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Hebrews 8, verse 13: "In that, He says, a new covenant has made the first one obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away."
  
  Just the same way that Ephraim is the second born but received the first blessing. So also Jesus, the second Adam, brings a greater inheritance than the first.
  
  This is what Paul says. Paul says in Romans 5, verse 17: "By one man's offense, death reigned through the one. Much more, those who receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ."
  
  As through one man's offense, judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation. Even so, one man's righteous act, the free gift, came to all men, resulting in the justification of life.
  
  For as by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners, so by one man's obedience, many will be made righteous.
  
  Now I hope that I haven't left you with too much confusion. But the reason for this powerful message is this. When Jesus came to the scene, He did not come to throw away the Old Testament, the Old Covenant. He came to fulfill it.
  
  He came to complete it. There's a reason why you didn't bring your goat with you this morning. You didn't bring a sheep with you, or a lamb, or a, well, that's the same thing, or a bird.
  
  There's a reason why my ministry does not include sharpening knives. Because we have the greatest sacrifice of all. As Jesus laid down His life for the sheep, the great shepherd gave His life; He completes the system of sacrifice.
  
  He said, "I didn't come to do away with the law. I came to fulfill the law." And we have to, as people of God living under the New Covenant, appreciate that through the crossed hands of grace, the rightful son took our place.
  
  When Jacob crossed his hands and puts the younger son above the older, he's also making a statement. He's saying that the works of Christ are greater than anything you can do.
  
  The work that He did on the cross is more effectual and more powerful than anything we can do. We try to make up, right? We come to Christ and we get a sense of, "Man, I need to shape up. I need to try to do better. I need to make sure to meet my quotas," right?
  
  We got to do all the things and say all the right words and memorize all the right facts and get myself lined up. And that's not evil, but it's Old Covenant.
  
  Jesus came because He's the only one who could ever live the perfect life. You ever try to be perfect? Didn't work out so well, right?
  
  Jesus lived the perfect life in your place. And God, just like Jacob, God crosses His hands and places the blessing on you and I because of the life of Jesus.
  
  At the cross, there is a transfer. There is a transfer. There is a miraculous transfer. There is a transaction that takes place at the cross.
  
  Jesus, on that cross, how many know what He received? He received our sins. He received the punishment from God for our sins, something that He did not deserve.
  
  But on the cross, God is placing that punishment on the Son, Jesus Christ. And when we come to Him to turn from our sins and trust and believe that there is a transfer, the transference, the blessing that Jesus received, deserved, now is received by you and I.
  
  How crazy is that? When we trust and believe in Jesus, the transfer is that we get to put our sins, that God puts the punishment of our sins on Him, and in return, we receive a blessing.
  
  The blessing of the firstborn. Doesn't it say in Romans that we become co-heirs with Christ? The same blessing that Jesus deserved is now transferred to simple people like us.
  
  How amazing. How powerful. And just like Ephraim, he's going to spend the rest of his life saying, "Man, I was expecting that Manasseh would be the blessed one."
  
  But instead, the hands were crossed. See, grace replaces works. Ephesians 2, 8 and 9.
  
  I want to tell you, God's ways are not your ways. His thoughts are not your thoughts. We think the ones who are strong, the deserving, the powerful, the mighty, the great, they're the ones deserving.
  
  But no. Paul says, 1 Corinthians 1, 27: "God has chosen the foolish things." Thank God. Thank you, Lord, for choosing the foolish things. That's me.
  
  He chose the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise. And God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.
  
  As Jacob crossed his hands, it was not confusion. It was not old age. It was divine revelation.
  
  And he's showing us in that very primitive, and without understanding all that he was doing, he showed us how God would bring salvation, not through human effort, but through divine grace.
  
  Here's the lesson I want you to take away this morning. God doesn't follow your traditions. He doesn't do things the way you think He should. He doesn't meet all of your expectations.
  
  You know why? Because that would make you God. We so often want to serve the God that is made in our own image.
  
  "God, you've got to think like me and be like me and act like me." And that's how we become little g gods. But that's not the way it works.
  
  God will subvert your expectations. Jacob could see what Joseph could not. Even though physically he was blind, Jacob could see something in the Spirit, even though spiritually he was spiritual.
  
  This tells us we need to be led by the Spirit, and not by the flesh. Not just by what looks right on paper.
  
  Don't be surprised when God will cross His hands in your life. Expecting it to work out one way, and it works out a different way.
  
  He chooses what to the world looks least likely, and raises up the unexpected.
  
  I think about, as we close, I think about the story of David. David is the son of Abraham. David who would become the greatest king in Israel's history.
  
  And where did he come from? He was the least of all his brothers. You know what's so crazy about that story? Here comes Samuel to bless. He's going to pour out the oil on one of Jesse's sons.
  
  God has spoken to him. It's one of the sons of Jesse. You need to go down to the house of Jesse and find the son that I blessed.
  
  So Samuel takes his oil, and he says, "I'm going to bless one of those sons." And Jesse says, "Come on boys, time to line up. One of you is going to be blessed as the king of Israel today."
  
  And so he lines them all up. Number one, number two, number three, number four. Didn't even think to call David. Where's David? Who cares? It's not going to be him.
  
  He lines up all of his sons. And starting at the beginning, Samuel looks at him, he's like, "Wow! This guy's got it! Look at him, he looks like a king! He's got it all! He's got the broad shoulders. He's got the furrowed brow. He's got everything a king would need."
  
  He's taller than the rest. The only problem is, he starts to bless him, and God says, "Nope. It's not him."
  
  He says, "Well, surely then, it's got to be the second one." God says, "Nope, not him either." And he goes down the line, son after son after son, and there's nobody left, and God says, "No, it's not him, it's not him, it's not him!"
  
  Samuel finally is like, "Is this everybody?" "Oh, actually, no, there's that weird kid, David. He's out there cooking in the sun with the sheep. Do you really want us to call him? That one? The weird one who's talking about fighting the bears all the time?"
  
  He says, "Yeah, bring him. Call him." And here comes David. He comes out of the hills. Probably got wool on his clothes. His hair's all messed up. He's all sweaty and smelly.
  
  Haven't been a while since he took a bath. But here he comes into the presence of the prophet, and God says, "That's the one. Bless him, Samuel. Bless him."
  
  And right there in front of all of his older brothers, all of them looked the part. But David, David gets the blessing.
  
  Pour the oil on his head. And from that moment, God has, in God's eyes, he has received the blessing to be the king of Israel.
  
  Now, it's a while before that actually happens, right? But from that moment, David is blessed. He receives the anointing. The Holy Spirit symbolically poured out on him.
  
  And what God says is, "Don't look on the outside. Don't look at what man sees. Look at the heart."
  
  This is the crossed hands of God's purpose and plan. You might be looking at yourself this morning saying, "What could God do with somebody like me? There ain't no way."
  
  I can very distinctly remember when God called me to be a preacher of the gospel. I was not in the cards. I was not on deck. I was not even in the ballpark. I was not on the radar screen. Wasn't even on the same planet.
  
  I said, "God, is that even possible?" God said, "I've chosen the foolish things." Thank you, Lord. Thank you. I'll take that.
  
  Foolish things of the world to confound the wise. And I want to tell you, this is how God moves in our lives.
  
  I challenge you. God's plans are higher than your plans. His thoughts are higher than your thoughts. His ways are beyond your ways.
  
  You've got to learn in your life how to go with what God is doing instead of dictating to God how it's supposed to be.
  
  And in this, we will find that the grace of the New Covenant is so far superior to the laws of the old.
  
  Let's bow our heads and close our eyes. God wants to put the Ephraim blessing on your life. The blessing of fruitfulness, grace, mercy, love.
  
  In order to do that, we have to be aware and knowledgeable about our sins. The Bible truly convicts us and brings us to a point of understanding.
  
  We have all fallen short of God's glory. There is no one righteous. If we be honest for a moment, every person here, from the front to the back, the left and the right, every person, we stand guilty before a holy God.
  
  It's the Word of God that reveals that to us. It's His law which brings revelation that we have all fallen short. We've broken His commandments. We've run from God.
  
  And there is separation between us and God and our sins. If you can come to that understanding and realization, God will cause you to begin to forget your past.
  
  Forgiveness is possible because of the cross of Jesus Christ. We're here this morning because Jesus came, was sent by His Father to pay the price on that cross, defeat sin and death, and then be raised up on the third day.
  
  His resurrection gives us power over death, power over sin, power over the grave. I wonder, have you received that power?
  
  Under the old law, under the old system, we might find temporary joy, temporary satisfaction. The religion of the world can make us feel better temporarily, checking the box and going to the church service.
  
  It can be helpful to lead us, but it's not enough to save us. There is insufficiency in religion. What we desperately need is the New Covenant of grace.
  
  And if that's you, you want to receive that today by faith. The Bible says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved." That belief is a trust.
  
  Leaving all else behind and putting all of your trust in Jesus, the one who died for you. You turn from sin and trust in Jesus, the Bible says you'll be born again.
  
  Old things will pass away; everything can become new. We will no longer be dependent on a system of laws and standards. No, we will be dependent on the Spirit of God in the New Covenant.
  
  I wonder if you're here today, you're not right with God, but you want to be. I would love to pray with you. Somebody's here. God's convicting you of your sins. You're not sure about the condition of your heart.
  
  Would you come in faith, in repentance to the Lord Jesus to set you free? Is that you? Quickly, just lift up your hand. Somebody here. God's dealing with your heart. Would you respond with an uplifted hand?
  
  I want to give you new life, new possibility, new heart, a new covenant. You need that today before you leave. Could I see your hand? Is there anyone else quickly unsaved or perhaps backslidden in your heart?
  
  Maybe like the prodigal, you've been running from the Father's house. It's time to come home. Time to come home. Is that you? Quickly, the Lord's calling you. The Father waits for you.
  
  Would you receive that faith by the precious blood? Is there anyone else? Quickly, with uplifted hands. Thank God.
  
  I want to open up this altar for prayer. This altar today is a recognition. Lord, what you provided for me at that cross, just like when Jacob crosses his hands and blesses the younger instead of the older, that cross was a subversion of what was expected.
  
  The Jews always expected they would be the ones to carry the message throughout the generations. But at the cross, God opens the door for every person, Jew and Gentile, saved and unsaved, righteous and unrighteous.
  
  And He calls us all to a life, a new life, in Christ. And I want to encourage you this morning at this altar, we can lay hold of that New Covenant of grace.
  
  I don't have to follow the list of do's and don'ts. No, because when we get saved, I want to serve the Lord. My heart is changed.
  
  Amen. We're going to open up this altar for prayer with one that lifted up his hand. Would you come this morning?
  
  Let's stand up to our feet. We're going to find a place to pray for a few moments. Lord, at this altar, I want to put my trust in You, the One who sets the captives free.
  
  Would you come? We're going to pray together here at this altar. Would you find comfort in the New Covenant here at the altar?
  
  Maybe there's someone here who needs to surrender your life to the purpose and the plan of God. Maybe you sense the crossing of hands. That God is subverting your expectations this morning.
  
  Maybe God is challenging you to do something you were not expecting like He did in my life. We're going to pray for a few moments here at this altar, allowing God a few moments to speak to our hearts directly.
  
  We have an altar because we believe God can speak to us directly. He doesn't need a preacher. Would you come? We're going to pray for a few moments.
  
  We believe God to help us. Let's cry out to the Lord while we sing for a few moments.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Salvation For Your Souls [1 Peter 1:2]

salvation for your souls

The Role of the Trinity in Salvation & Sanctification

Sermon Summary

In this message, we explored the profound truth of being part of God's eternal kingdom, as highlighted in 1 Peter 1. It's easy to get caught up in the daily grind and forget the incredible privilege of being chosen by God. This passage reminds us that we are part of something far greater than ourselves, a kingdom that transcends time and space. Peter's letter, written to a persecuted church, serves as a beacon of hope and encouragement, reminding us of our identity as God's chosen people, living as foreigners in this world.

Peter emphasizes the role of the Holy Trinity in our salvation: God the Father knew and chose us, the Spirit makes us holy, and we are cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. This triune work is a source of immense grace and peace, even amidst trials. The early Christians faced severe persecution, yet Peter's words remind them—and us—that our faith is more precious than gold, refined through trials to bring glory to God.

The message also challenges us to examine our lives. Are we living as sheep, grateful for the Shepherd's guidance, or as pigs, returning to the mud of sin? True salvation transforms us, leading us to desire holiness and obedience. Sanctification is a lifelong journey, a miracle of transformation that requires our cooperation with the Holy Spirit.

In the face of life's challenges, we are called to keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Just as Peter walked on water when focused on Christ, we can overcome life's storms by maintaining our focus on Him. The trials we face are not without purpose; they refine us and prepare us for the ultimate reward—the salvation of our souls.

“True salvation transforms us, leading us to desire holiness and obedience.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [06:10] - The Inspiration of Daily Bible Reading

• [07:24] - The Privilege of Being Part of God's Kingdom

• [08:37] - Introduction to 1 Peter 1

• [10:16] - The Role of the Trinity in Salvation

• [11:58] - Living as Foreigners and Pilgrims

• [14:15] - The Reality of Persecution

• [16:14] - Theological Anchors in Times of Trouble

• [18:22] - The Comfort of Being Known by God

• [20:39] - Empathy and Encouragement

• [22:41] - Refocusing on God Amidst Struggles

• [24:25] - Keeping Our Eyes on Jesus

• [26:07] - God as Our Good Father

• [28:23] - The Comfort of God's Omniscience

• [31:17] - The Assurance of Being Chosen

• [32:20] - The Cleansing Power of Jesus' Blood

• [33:43] - The Desire for Obedience

• [35:46] - The Sheep and the Pig Analogy

• [38:13] - The Call to Righteousness

• [40:57] - The Refining Fire of Trials

• [43:30] - The Process of Sanctification

• [45:30] - The Reward of Endurance

• [47:30] - Encouragement to Stay the Course

• [48:55] - The Impact of Small Decisions

• [51:07] - The Legacy of Faithful Obedience

• [51:56] - Closing and Call to Perseverance

Key Takeaways

1. The Privilege of Being Chosen: As believers, we are part of an eternal kingdom chosen by God Himself. This identity should fill us with gratitude and purpose, reminding us that we are not alone in our struggles. Our trials are temporary, but our place in God's kingdom is eternal. [07:24]

2. The Role of the Trinity in Salvation: Our salvation is a collaborative work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father chose us, the Son cleansed us, and the Spirit sanctifies us. This divine partnership provides us with grace and peace, even amid life's challenges. [10:16]

3. Living as Foreigners: Like the early Christians, we are foreigners, called to live differently. Our faith may lead to persecution or misunderstanding, but it also sets us apart as God's chosen people, destined for a greater purpose. [11:58]

4. The Process of Sanctification: Salvation is a moment, but sanctification is a lifetime journey. It requires our active participation and cooperation with the Holy Spirit, who works in us to make us holy. This process refines us, much like gold is refined by fire. [40:57]

5. Keeping Our Eyes on Jesus: During life's storms, our focus must remain on Jesus. Like Peter, when we fix our eyes on Him, we can walk on water, overcoming the challenges that threaten to overwhelm us. Our faith is strengthened as we trust in His promises. [24:25]

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Bible Reading

• 1 Peter 1:1-2 NKJV - Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied

• Hebrews 12:22-23 NKJV - But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, 23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn [who are] registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect.

• Matthew 14:30 NKJV - But when he saw that the wind [was] boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"

Observation Questions

1. According to 1 Peter 1:1-2, what roles do the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit play in our salvation? How does this reflect the concept of the Trinity? [10:16]

2. In the sermon, how does Peter describe the early Christians' status in the world, and what does this imply about their identity? [11:58]

3. What analogy does the pastor use to describe the difference between those who are truly transformed by salvation and those who are not? [35:46]

4. How does the story of Peter walking on water illustrate the importance of keeping our focus on Jesus? [24:25]

Interpretation Questions

1. What does it mean to be "chosen" by God, and how should this influence a believer's sense of identity and purpose? [31:17]

2. How does the concept of living as "foreigners" or "pilgrims" in this world affect the way Christians should view their trials and challenges? [11:58]

3. In what ways does the process of sanctification differ from the moment of salvation, and why is it important for believers to understand this distinction? [39:31]

4. How can the story of Peter walking on water serve as a metaphor for the Christian life, particularly in times of trial and doubt? [24:25]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on your daily life: Are there areas where you might be forgetting the privilege of being part of God's eternal kingdom? How can you remind yourself of this truth regularly? [07:24]

2. The sermon challenges us to live as "foreigners" in this world. What practical steps can you take to live differently in a way that reflects your identity as God's chosen people? [11:58]

3. Consider the analogy of the sheep and the pig. In what ways do you find yourself returning to old habits or "mud"? What steps can you take to stay close to the Shepherd? [35:46]

4. How can you actively participate in the process of sanctification in your life? Are there specific areas where you need to cooperate more with the Holy Spirit? [39:31]

5. Identify a current challenge or "storm" in your life. How can you shift your focus back to Jesus, and what practical actions can you take to maintain that focus? [24:25]

6. The sermon mentions the refining fire of trials. Can you identify a recent trial that has refined your faith? How did it prepare you for future challenges? [40:57]

7. How can you cultivate a deeper sense of gratitude for the role of the Trinity in your salvation? Are there specific practices or prayers that could help you in this area? [10:16]

• Full Transcript

  And the world shall know you are my disciples because of the love you have for one another. Let that same spirit be in each one of you. Praise God. We're grateful for all that God is doing. And we're grateful to you, Ms. Nisha, for giving us the opportunity to be and to serve you because not everybody does that. So we appreciate you.
  
  Let's open up our Bibles to 1 Peter. 1 Peter chapter one. If you join me there. This message was directly inspired by my daily Bible reading plan. I want to encourage you and give a shout out; we do have a Bible reading plan for the congregation. And we want to encourage you to be a part of that. Read along with the scriptures. Take in the Bible reading together, and what a great habit that is to form in your life.
  
  This morning, as we look into the Word of God, 1 Peter chapter 1, I think it can be easy for people who are trying to serve God, trying to do what's right, trying to go to church, trying to please the Father. Sometimes it can be easy for us to forget what an amazing thing that we are a part of. It can be easy for us to get wrapped up in the daily activities to the point that we forget how amazing it is, how glorious it is that we are part of a kingdom that is bigger than all of us.
  
  In Hebrews, the author is trying to remind the people how important this thing is. And in Hebrews 12, this is not my main scripture, but it's a reminder of how important this thing is. Hebrews 12, 22. He says, "You've come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You've come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven, who have now been made perfect."
  
  He says, "When you come to salvation, you are coming. You are becoming part of something incredible, something eternal, something amazing, something that should be appreciated, something that should be valued." I want to tell you, we have something that the world doesn't have. And that should give us reason to rejoice this morning.
  
  The scripture we're about to read, we're going to find that as Peter is addressing the church, this letter, he almost in passing mentions about what God has done for them as he's going to give them instructions in further chapters. But in this verse, he says, in the first chapter, by way of introduction, he mentions something that no doubt I've read before, read many times, but something, a formulation here, which is so powerful that it caught my attention, stopped me and caused me to say, I need to preach on this.
  
  And so I want to read to you from 1 Peter 1. Join me beginning in verse 1.
  
  "This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus who is living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Asia, and Bithynia."
  
  Verse 2. "God the Father knew you and chose you long ago. His Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. So may God give you more and more grace and peace."
  
  In one verse there, Peter mentions all three persons of the Holy Trinity and what they have accomplished for us. Did you catch it? Verse 2. "God the Father knew you and chose you long ago. His Spirit made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace."
  
  This is a message I've titled "Salvation for Your Souls." Let's pray.
  
  Lord, we come by the blood of Jesus. We're so grateful to have a kingdom that is beyond any one of us, beyond all of us put together. Lord, your kingdom is worthy of contemplation, of glory. Your kingdom and the work that you have done in our lives, God, is valuable. And this is a call this morning to appreciate both what you've done, what you are doing, and what you continue to do. And I want to continue to do your promises in the future. We give you glory, this opportunity.
  
  Lord, I pray, touch the hearts of your people this morning, and we give you all praise in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, Amen.
  
  Salvation for your souls. And I want to look, first of all, at how God provides leadership for our soul. This letter, along with many letters, most letters in the New Testament, is a letter written to a persecuted people. And I want to look at how God provides leadership for our soul.
  
  This is a letter written to a persecuted people. He is addressing a group of people, as he mentions, in a certain place, the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia. You have to ask yourself, why are they there? Well, the answer is there in our Scripture. It says that they are God's chosen people living as foreigners. Everybody say foreigners. That means they're not from those places. They happen to be in those places. They are foreigners.
  
  They have found themselves in a place where they were not intended to be. In the New King James, it says that they are pilgrims, pilgrims of the dispersion. And when you look up the definition for those words, pilgrims, the word means sojourners, exiles, or temporary residents. They were living in places that were not home. They had been driven to places that were far from their natural dwelling place. They didn't want to be there, but they were there.
  
  Do you know why? The reason is because to call yourself a follower of Jesus in that time was to put a death sentence on yourself. Peter is writing to a people who are running from persecution. That is maybe the most important thing in the New King James. He's writing to a people who are running from persecution.
  
  It's going to be a little bit difficult for us to process today in 2025 in America because that's not the experience of most people. If you say, "I'm a Jesus follower," people might look at you funny, but they're not going to try to kill you, hopefully. In this time, Peter is trying to bring leadership and comfort and encouragement to a people who are living as pilgrims, sojourners, as exiles.
  
  That's what the word dispersion means. The original Greek is diaspora. We use this term to describe those who are living outside of their homeland. And so both Jewish and Gentile believers are being scattered throughout those regions that are mentioned because of their faith in Jesus.
  
  And so what we can understand from this letter is that Peter is writing to a people who are in trouble. You know why that's helpful for us? Because we find ourselves in trouble sometimes. We find ourselves in difficult moments. We find ourselves maybe not to the same level, but persecuted, spoken badly about. We find ourselves dealing with difficulty and pain.
  
  And I just want you to understand, Jesus did not save you to be comfortable. For somebody, that was a revelation this morning. What? Jesus didn't save me to be comfortable. Eventually, we will find comfort in His presence. But in this life, as long as we are in this life, Jesus said, "You will have trouble."
  
  And if you're not having trouble, it means that maybe you're not following Jesus very closely. This letter is a letter of instruction and direction that He is giving through church leadership. Can I tell you, this is why we gather. This is why in Hebrews, it also says that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together because when we come together, we find greater strength than when we are on our own.
  
  And so we gather together in the house. We gather together with the assembly. We gather together under leadership to find encouragement, strength, direction, and purpose for our lives. And what Peter, first of all, before he gives any correction, you read the rest of this book, you're going to find that he has some criticisms and some corrections and some things to offer to them.
  
  But firstly, when he is addressing them, the first thing that he approaches them with is some anchors of theology. He is going to bring some very well-needed biblical instruction to them. And why is that important? Because suffering, fear, anxiety, and worry are the most important things to them.
  
  And so he's going to bring some very well-needed biblical instruction to them. And why is that important? Because suffering, fear, anxiety, pressure from the world has the power to throw us off course. How many have ever known somebody or maybe yourself that through the pressure of persecution, that all of a sudden things get difficult, it can push us off course?
  
  It can cause us to begin questioning the foundations of our faith. And Peter is concerned about these people. He's saying, "I don't want you to wander from the truth." He's going to bring a theological anchor for them. You know what this looks like? It looks like preachers who will preach sermons that express the biblical point of view that homosexuality is a sin.
  
  Is that still in your Bible? It's still in mine. And yet, there are preachers who would preach that truth. And then, all of a sudden, they discover that a son or a daughter comes out as a homosexual. And then, all of a sudden, their theology changes. Well, the Bible, I guess, changed because somebody close to them. And there's pressure from family.
  
  It reminds me of Lot. You know, as long as Lot was in the relationship with his uncle Abram, Abram who had a relationship and a covenant with God, as long as Lot was together, Lot was born again. And so, as long as Lot was blessed, he had everything he needed. But then, one day, Lot looked down at the plains of Sodom, a place that was fertile and ready to make great harvests. He saw dollar signs flashing in his eyes.
  
  And he said, "Oh, I can go down there. It's not going to affect my family. It's not going to be hard. You know, I'll just go down there. I don't have to, you know, become one of those Sodom, Sodomy people." But when he chose to Sodom, it meant that he had to turn from Abram. There was a separation.
  
  And so this is the difficulty many times is that when we go through trouble, when we go through difficulty and pain, it can cause us to turn from the truth. And so here, Peter wants to bring them a foundation. And this is what we find in verse two. We find a whole theology course in one verse.
  
  "God the Father knew you and chose you long ago. The Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace."
  
  Can I tell you, this is encouragement. Can I remind you this morning, it is so important that you have a source of encouragement in your life. You're going to need to be encouraged from time to time. You know why? Because the world is discouraging. Living life can be discouraging.
  
  You're going to go through times of trouble. You're going to go through times of anxiety and sickness. You're going to go through times where people are looking down on you for serving Jesus. That comes with the territory. It is very common for believers to get discouraged. You know why? You know why I know that? Because sometimes I get discouraged.
  
  Sometimes great men of faith get discouraged. Great women of faith find themselves discouraged. Do you know why the Bible, so much of the Bible is, just keep going. You got this. It's encouragement because it's so easy to get discouraged. Is it because people are hacerlo often say, they're never discouraged? Not discouraged. God's people get discouraged.
  
  People say to themselves, "I can't go to church today. I'm too discouraged." It should be exactly the opposite; they should say, "I'm so discouraged, I need to go to church." We've got to have a flip in our mind. Listen, we're not coming to church because we got it all together. We're coming to church because we need Jesus. We need His Spirit. We need encouragement. We need strength from our fellow brothers and sisters.
  
  It is not the place to put on a show like everything's good. Yeah, you come. The church is, man, the church is not a shopping mall where everything's beautiful and pristine. The church is an emergency room where people are bleeding. Brother back there, man, he's about to die, but he's getting better while he's here.
  
  So, Peter wants to acknowledge their struggle. Look at verse 1. "I am writing to God's chosen people who are living as foreigners." You know, that encouraged me when I began to think about that because what Peter is saying is, "Guys, I see you. I see what you're going through. I see the price that you're having to pay. I see that you've had to say goodbye to people that you love because of Jesus, because of your faith, because of your proclamation, because of your boldness, because of your preaching. You've had to pay a price, and I see you. I know what that's like."
  
  Peter would have been experiencing the same. In fact, very few people were persecuted the way Peter was, even from the very beginning of his ministry in the book of Acts. They began speaking about Jesus, and Peter is one of the first to be thrown in prison. They laid their hands on him and not to pray for him. That means they were beating him up and persecuting him early on in the book of Acts. You can find it. He says, "I know what you're going through. I know how it feels."
  
  Sometimes, just identifying with somebody is an encouragement. When somebody comes along and says, "I see what you're going through," that's meaningful. Empathy is one of the most powerful words in the English language. To be able to identify with someone in their struggle. You're not on your own. I see your pain, and I want to share that burden with you.
  
  I'm so grateful for Nisha's testimony today because it tells me that in this congregation, there are people who have a heart like Peter. Don't go through this on your own. I see what you're going through. I want to help.
  
  The next thing he does to encourage them is he's reminding them about who God is. It says, "All praise to God." You know, in our struggles, and in our persecutions, and in our pain, we often focus on the wrong thing. We often focus on the why questions, the what if questions. We focus on why me, and why not them. We focus on all the things that really don't matter.
  
  What Peter wants to do is bring their focus back to where it needs to be on God. See, the problem of pain, and suffering, and persecution is that it has the power to take your eyes off of Jesus. Remember Peter, who knows this very well, because of all the disciples, he is the only one who sees Jesus walking on the water. He says, "Lord, if it's you, tell me to get out of the boat and come to you."
  
  You've got to love Peter because, man, he lets his mouth go before his brain. Jesus surprised him and said, "Come on, Peter." He steps out of the boat by faith. As long as his eyes are on Jesus, man, he is walking on the waves. He is walking on the trouble. He is overcoming the power of the storm, as long as his focus is on the Lord.
  
  But the Bible says he's in the middle of a storm. There's wind. There's waves. There's trouble. There's violence. And when he takes his eyes off of Jesus and onto the storm, onto the trouble, onto the difficulty, what happens? He begins to sink into the water.
  
  And the same thing happens with us, doesn't it? When we take our eyes off of the Lord, off of His word, off of His promises, off of His people, when we take our eyes off of Jesus, we begin to sink in despair. Where are your eyes looking?
  
  Matthew 14, 30. "When he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified." See, that's amazing to me because as long as he was looking at Jesus, there's no room for fear. There's no room for fear. There's no room for being terrified. When he's consumed, his mind, his heart, his mission is only, "I want to get closer to you, Jesus."
  
  But when he is diverted, when the storm becomes louder than the word of God, the will of God, he begins to sink in fear. Jesus rebuked him. Now, it's amazing because nobody else got out of the boat. But when they both got back, he was terrified. He was terrified. He was terrified. He was terrified.
  
  When they both got back in, Jesus said, "Why did you doubt? Why did you doubt? Keep your eyes on me." You're like, "Lord, don't I get any extra points? Like, I walked on the water, remember?" It doesn't help for you to walk on the water and then sink.
  
  My call this morning to encourage you is to put your eyes back on Jesus. The way that we do that is by cooperating with all of God. And this is what drew my attention to this scripture. The fact that there are all three members of the Holy Trinity here in one verse is a wonderful teaching.
  
  Number one, that we are known and chosen by the Father. Verse two, "God the Father knew you and chose you long ago." The first thing we notice about this, as Peter is bringing instruction, direction, correction, and encouragement to the church, he wants us to know God is our Father.
  
  That was a good place for an amen. Amen. Now, for some people, that is not a place for an amen because your Father treated you like trash. But I want you to know that God is not a bad Father. God is a good Father. And Jesus died in order so that God could adopt us as His children.
  
  Many people will know God as a judge, will know God as a creator, will know God as a lawgiver. So, someone to be feared, and yes, we should fear God. We can know God as a judge, someone who will bring a righteous redemption. But not everybody knows God as Father, a Father that we can approach as children.
  
  Romans 8 verse 14, "All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So, you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you have received God's Spirit. And He adopted you as His own children. And now we can call Him Abba, Father. For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children."
  
  The Father knew you. We are known. Again, verse 2, "God the Father knew you." Psalm 139 verse 1 says that, "O Lord, You have examined my heart and known everything about me. You know when I sit down, when I stand up. You know my thoughts, even when I'm far away. You see me when I travel, and when I rest at home. You know everything I do."
  
  We have to understand this morning that God knows everything, including every detail about your life. He knows every thought that has ever run through your head. He knows every word you've ever spoken. Now, for many people, and for me at one time in my life, that was a source of fear. Oh, no. God knows everything about me? And I would be horrified to consider the things that God knew about me.
  
  But now that I am His child, you know what I find in that scripture? I find comfort. You know why? Because God, You know everything about me. You know all that I've done and said. You know every thought that's gone through my head, and You didn't kill me. Lord, You still have a purpose for me. You still have a future. You still sent Your Son to die for me. You still filled me with Your Holy Spirit. I don't deserve any of that, Lord, but I receive it by faith.
  
  Lord, I am known by You, and I am loved by You. Those two things together are incredible. Being known by God is what delivers us from fear. Matthew 10, verse 24. "What is the price of two sparrows? One copper coin? Not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without the Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered."
  
  Not that God knows the number of hairs on your head, but that every single hair has its own number. This one is number 1,400. I don't know what number it is, but God does. He has the number. God knows everything about everything. And what's the conclusion that Matthew gives us? He says, "So don't be afraid. You are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows."
  
  1 John 4, verse 18. "Love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced His perfect love."
  
  So God the Father knows us. Can I tell you, God is here this morning to remind you, "I see you. I know you. I know every flaw, every imperfection. I also know every strength and every weakness. I know what's good about you, what's bad about you." God says, who said it this morning? Mason said it. He knows us more than we even know ourselves.
  
  And what that should produce in those of us who want to be close to Him is a great peace and comfort. Lord, I don't have to fear. The second thing it says here is that we are chosen. "God the Father knew you and chose you long ago."
  
  In this context, the chosen is not just about the predestination, how God chose His people, but it also means chosen for an exclusive relationship. In other words, we have been chosen. Ephesians 1, verse 4. "Before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes."
  
  What an incredible truth to understand that those who are righteous, we are set apart to have a relationship with God for all eternity. And the question is this, what good father would abandon his children? Bad fathers do that, but not good fathers. A good father, God, is not a deadbeat dad.
  
  And remember the context, these are people in persecution. It would be easy when the whole city is trying to kill you, it would be easy to say, "God, you forgot about me. God, where are you in this?" It would be easy when you're Job and you lost everything that you love. It would be easy to say, "Lord, where are you in this?"
  
  But don't make the mistake of believing that God is absent. He knew you and He chose you and He is with you. Verse 2 goes on to tell us about the Son. That's God the Father. Now we look at God the Son. Verse 2, "As a result, you have obeyed Him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus."
  
  We spoke this morning about the cross. Every disciple must make the decision to appreciate and accept the cross of Jesus. What He did for us. The sacrifice that He chose to make. Nobody took His life from Him. He gave it willingly for you and for me. Why? Because without the blood of Jesus, we could not be cleansed.
  
  Obedience is linked to cleansing. One more time. "You have obeyed Him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus." Let me make a statement to you this morning. If you are struggling in the arena of obedience, the issue is not sanctification. It's salvation.
  
  See, the saved soul, the person who is washed by the blood wants to obey the Father. Is that true? It is the person who still has not experienced salvation who is struggling to obey. Those who are saved want to do right. It doesn't mean that we are perfectly accomplishing it every time. But we are striving.
  
  Ephesians 2 verse 10. "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us new in Christ Jesus so that we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." Good things. God wants you to do good things. That's why He saves us. That's what the blood of Jesus can unlock. It's a new level of humanity. It's a new arena. He saves us. He makes us born again. He makes us new creations in Christ to do good things.
  
  I've said it before and forgive me if you've heard it. But it's the illustration of the pig versus the sheep. You can take a pig who has been waddling. Is that the right word? Wallowing. There you go. You can take a pig who has been wallowing in the mud puddle for weeks. It's out there stinking in the mud. You can bring the pig in the house. You can put it in the bathtub. You can wash it up. You can clean off all the mud. You can get some perfume. You can shave off all of its fur. You can make it look nice. You can put the perfume on and put some jewelry in its ear. You can make it look beautiful.
  
  But the problem is, as soon as you let the pig go, right back to the mud. Yes. Right back to the stink. Right back to the pit. Because that's what pigs do. A sheep, on the other hand, a sheep doesn't like the mud. If a sheep may fall into the mud puddle, he doesn't want to stay there. In fact, the mud puddle can become dangerous. Because if the mud gets into its wool, it can become infected and it can get sick. It just doesn't want to be there. It's uncomfortable.
  
  And so when you go and you rescue the sheep out of the mud, the sheep is grateful. "Thank you for getting me out of there." You can take the sheep into the bathtub. And the sheep loves it. "Oh thank you. Washing me off. For trimming the wool. Thank you. It feels good." And then when you let the sheep go, he doesn't just run back to the mud. He says, "I want to stay close to you, my shepherd."
  
  So here's the question. Are you the sheep or the pig? There are some people who come to church just on Sunday morning because they want to feel better about all the sins they did throughout the week. And as soon as you're out here like, "Whoo. Glad that's over. Let me go back to what I really want to do. What I really want to watch. The kind of music I really want to listen to."
  
  See, that's the mark that the old nature is not crucified. It's the mark that the blood of Jesus hasn't cleansed you. And it is the reason that we ought to examine ourselves really. Because guess what? You can go to church a thousand times. You can go to the bathtub a thousand times and get cleaned up a thousand times and go right back to the mud. Because nature hasn't changed.
  
  The thing that marks the new creation in Christ is that when he sets us free, man, I don't want to be in the mud puddle. I want to stay close to you, Jesus. John 3 verse 3. "Most assuredly I say to you unless you are born again you cannot see the kingdom of God." Ezekiel 36 verse 26. "I will give you a new heart. And put a new spirit within you. I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you. And cause you to walk in my statutes. And you will keep my judgments and do them."
  
  No, we will not be perfect this side of heaven. Because we all have a flesh. But as children of God, as disciples of Jesus, as those who have been washed and cleansed by his blood, as we discussed this morning, Jesus calls us to take up our cross and follow him. Follow him how? In righteousness. To do what he did. To say what he said. To think like he thought. This is the mark that we are purchased by his blood.
  
  The third thing that it says here in this scripture, verse 2, it says, "His Spirit has made you holy." There are two great miracles that God will do in your life. The first great miracle is salvation. That God takes pigs and makes them into sheep. What a miracle. What a miracle. God takes sinners and turns them into saints. That is salvation.
  
  This miracle of salvation is a miracle of a moment. It is a moment where we respond to the revelation that Jesus died for us and rose from the dead. We put our trust in him. He can make us new. It's a salvation. It is a miracle of a moment. But sanctification is the miracle of a lifetime.
  
  Don't get the idea that when you got saved, that was the end of the miracle that God wants to do for you. No. It's only the beginning. It's like getting married. Thank God for the wedding ceremony. Everybody stands. And the rings are exchanged. Vows. But then guess what? You go home with that person. And you have to have an ongoing relationship.
  
  People who come to an altar and confess Christ as salvation, but then they never talk to him again. It would be like going to a wedding, exchanging rings, and saying, "Okay. See you later." Foolish. But sanctification is the miracle of a lifetime. And the Bible says it's his Spirit that makes you holy.
  
  You know the good news about this? Sanctification is not all on you. It's his work, not your work. That should be good news for you this morning. We are called to participate. We are called to be in the work together with him. We are called in Romans 13, 14 to make no provision for the flesh. But the work of sanctification is his work. It's his work.
  
  He goes on in 1 Peter chapter 1 verse 6. He says, "You in this you greatly rejoice. Though now for a little while, if need be, you've been grieved by various trials. That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
  
  Peter says, "Look. I know you guys are being persecuted. But don't worry. Because this is the fire that refines the gold. The trouble that you're going through is the process of God making you holy and new."
  
  See, everybody wants to be Joseph when he's in charge of the whole Egyptian kingdom. But not everybody wants to go through the 25 years of trouble that Joseph had to go through to get there. Joseph, the story began with the dream that he had. And even when he told the dream, he was persecuted. They all hated him. He was rejected by his brothers, sold into slavery. He was purchased and then falsely accused.
  
  And you read the story of Joseph. And like, "Man. He's a good guy. Everywhere he goes, he's doing good things. Falsely accused. Thrown in prison. Years of his life gone." Even in prison. You know, most of us in Joseph's shoes, we'd be walking around bitter. "Man. God. All I ever did for you was good things. And this is how I get treated."
  
  You know, most of us, you know. But Joseph, at the end of his story, his brothers are there begging for mercy. And what does he say to them? He says, "You guys meant this for evil, but God meant it for good."
  
  The perspective of Joseph is, "All those years of the trouble that I went through, God was refining me and preparing me to be where I am today." Can you see that in your life? Can you see the Holy Spirit refining you, refining you through the troubles and the difficulties?
  
  Hebrews 12, verse 2. "Looking unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith." How many people have come to me with a question about the will of God? "Pastor, what is the will of God for my life?" Let's begin where the Bible begins.
  
  1 Thessalonians 4, verse 3. "The will of God is for you to be holy." Very clear. Black and white. "Be holy. Stay away from sexual sin. Learn how to control your body and live in holiness and honor, not in the lustful passion like pagans who do not know God and his ways."
  
  Step one of salvation, sanctification, is live in purity. Possess your vessel. Sanctify and be pure. Good news. It does require our participation. But the Holy Spirit does the heavy lifting.
  
  We say it like this. God loves you just the way you are. But he loves you too much to keep you that way. He wants to change you. We all come to the kingdom with some dirty diapers. And a good parent doesn't leave the child in a dirty diaper. And some of us have a whole bunch of dirty diapers that need to be changed.
  
  Sanctification is God changing your dirty diapers. Sanctification is making you into a new creation.
  
  Let's close with the blessings of obedience. Verse two goes on to say, "May God give you more and more grace and peace." Just a definition of the word grace is divine enablement. It's the thing that we can't do on our own. That's grace.
  
  Hebrews 4, 16. "Let us come therefore boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." This is what we need. This is what we need from God. We need his grace. We need him to supernaturally enable our lives.
  
  The other thing Peter says, "May God give you more and more grace and peace." Something that is so lacking in our frantic world that we live in. We live in a frenzy. Everything is going, going, going a thousand miles an hour. From God to the throne, more and more grace and peace.
  
  The ultimate deliverance that God has for us is in verse nine, same scripture, 1 Peter 1, verse nine, where it says, "The reward for trusting Him will be the salvation of your souls." This is why we're doing this thing. Man, our souls were sinful. But he wants to save them. A relationship for all eternity.
  
  And I want to close by saying this. This process is not easy. But it was never meant to be. The process of getting saved was not easy. I mean, it was easy for you. You just accepted. But in order for you to accept salvation, how many know it was not easy for Jesus?
  
  We looked at that this morning in our Sunday school. The cross that he bore for us was not easy. The salvation was not easy to provide to us, but also the work of sanctification is not easy. If all we were called to do is easy things, then, man, there would be no payoff.
  
  But if we will endure difficult things, it will be worth it. Salvation of our souls. Look at verse 6. "Be truly glad." Remember, people in persecution, people being chased out of town and stoned to death, what does he say? "Be glad." Because there is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials.
  
  Listen, don't ever get the idea that it's just going to be smooth sailing. God, you saved me for smooth sailing. For problem-free existence. No. You point to me, the person in the Bible, the righteous man or woman who had smooth sailing. Can you find one? I can't. I can't. Not even Jesus had smooth sailing.
  
  So don't get it in our heads that it's going to be easy. But listen, if we will endure many trials for a little while, verse 9, "The reward for trusting Him will be the salvation of your soul." Romans 6, 22. "Now, having been set free from sin and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness at the end, everlasting life."
  
  Somebody said it like this. "Living for God is hard at the beginning, messy in the middle, glorious at the end." Let's keep that in our hearts. Stick to the path.
  
  As saints who have gone before us, Hebrews 12, verse 1, "We are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses. So let us lay aside every weight and the sin which easily ensnares us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."
  
  It's so easy for us to look at the stories in the Bible because we can see the beginning and the middle and then the end. But for us, it's different because we're right in the messy middle. It's difficult and then it's messy and then we're like, but is it worth it?
  
  And I want to remind you and encourage you, it's worth it. Keep going. Don't give up. I was thinking about the Wright brothers. These guys who were bicycle makers in the early 1900s. And they had a crazy idea. What if we put a wing on our bicycle? And we put a motor on the back.
  
  And maybe you've seen a reconstruction. I went down to the Military Aviation Museum. They have a reconstructed version of the first airplane. And really, it's like made out of bamboo and cloth with a bicycle in the middle and an engine pushing a propeller.
  
  They had a crazy idea. Maybe if we got this wing to create that slipstream, Bernoulli effect, we could get off the ground. How crazy would that be? Can you imagine if the Wright brothers could come back and see today what their invention led to?
  
  Can you imagine what could, like, this crazy idea of a wing on a bicycle is going to one day lead to, like, fighter jets and space shuttles? This one little thing. This little idea became a spark which grew into how many thousands of flights happen every single day, taking people all around the globe.
  
  They couldn't even dream of that when they put a wing on their bicycle. But I'm telling you, that one idea led to everything that we see today in our modern world. And I want to just remind you, you have no idea what God has in store for you.
  
  You have no idea what God has in store for you. One little decision to respond to the gospel, respond to the good news of Christ, crucified and resurrected from the dead. "Lord, save me. I'm lost. I'm broken. And I need you."
  
  We make that one little move toward God, and we have no idea where that is going to take our lives. I want you to know it's worth it. I want you to know from those who have gone before, they're cheering for you, the cloud of witnesses.
  
  I want you to know the Holy Spirit is working in you to make you holy, to reform your life and change you in miraculous ways. I want you to know that there are people who are praying for you and cheering for you. Keep going. Don't give up.
  
  I see you're struggling. It's okay to struggle, but don't stay there. Our fellowship began when Pastor Mitchell made a decision to take a church, 23 people. Seven of them were his own family in a dusty country town in Arizona where there were more cows than people.
  
  And when he made that decision by faith, he caught a wave of opportunity. God poured out his spirit. Today, our fellowship is more than 4,000 churches all around the world. 4,000 churches. It's a direct result of the faith of one. One man.
  
  They stuck to the plan. They didn't give up. There were a lot of hard times, and there still are a lot of hard times. There were betrayals. There were people who spoke evil. There was division. There was backbiting. There were all kinds of difficulties. But they stuck to the plan, and thank God they did.
  
  Without that decision, this church would not be here. Without that decision, Pastor Dave and Caitlin would not be in Kempsville. Without that decision, so many people, their lives would have been different.
  
  What I'm saying is I want to encourage you, stick to the plan. Stick to the path. Run your race. And God's going to help us.
  
  Let's bow our heads this morning and close our eyes as we bring this service to an end this morning.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Running Man Of God

Running Man Of God

Our New Identity in Christ Flees evil and Pursues Righteousness

Sermon Summary

In today's gathering, we explored the profound impact of words and identity in shaping our lives and spiritual journeys. We began by acknowledging the power of words, both negative and positive, and how they can influence our self-perception and destiny. Many of us carry the weight of negative words spoken over us, but we are reminded that words of faith and encouragement can transform our lives. The Apostle Paul's letter to Timothy serves as a powerful example of this, as he speaks words of affirmation and identity over Timothy, calling him a "man of God" despite the challenges and accusations he faced.

We delved into the importance of redefining ourselves according to God's perspective rather than the world's. Our identity in Christ is not based on our past or failures but on who God says we are. This new identity empowers us to live differently, to pursue righteousness, and to flee from evil. We are called to run from false teachings, discontentment, and the love of money, which can lead us astray. Instead, we are to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness—fruits of the Spirit that grow in us as we align ourselves with God's will.

The life of Jesus exemplifies this secure identity, as He served others with humility, knowing who He was in relation to the Father. We are encouraged to embrace our identity as saints, set apart for God's purposes, and to live confidently in that truth. As we reflect on our lives, we are challenged to consider what we are running from and what we are running toward. Our pursuit should be toward a life that honors God and reflects His character.

“Our identity in Christ is not based on our past or failures but on who God says we are. This new identity empowers us to live differently, to pursue righteousness, and to flee from evil.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [32:48] - Announcements and Events

• [44:04] - The Power of Words

• [44:52] - Impact of Negative Words

• [45:38] - Speaking Words of Faith

• [46:26] - Encouragement from Paul

• [48:14] - Redefining Ourselves

• [49:11] - Timothy's Struggles

• [50:29] - Importance of Identity

• [51:35] - New Identity in Christ

• [52:57] - Who You Are Determines What You Do

• [53:49] - Embracing Our Identity

• [55:46] - Words of Faith and Encouragement

• [57:08] - The Power of Relationship

• [57:53] - The Tongue's Influence

• [59:11] - Gaining Perspective

• [01:00:43] - Jesus' Secure Identity

• [01:03:39] - Serving with Humility

• [01:05:27] - Running from Evil

• [01:10:01] - Fleeing False Teachings

• [01:14:44] - Avoiding Discontentment

• [01:18:47] - The Love of Money

• [01:22:13] - Pursuing Righteousness

• [01:25:35] - Fruits of the Spirit

• [01:29:23] - Closing Prayer and Invitation

Key Takeaways

1. The Power of Words: Words can shape our destiny, whether negative or positive. We must choose to speak and receive words of faith and encouragement, allowing them to transform our lives and align us with God's purpose. [44:52]

2. Redefining Identity: Our identity in Christ is not determined by our past or failures but by who God says we are. Embracing this new identity empowers us to live differently and pursue a life that honors God. [51:35]

3. Fleeing from Evil: As men and women of God, we are called to flee from false teachings, discontentment, and the love of money. These distractions can lead us away from God's purpose for our lives. [01:10:01]

4. Pursuing Righteousness: Our pursuit should be toward righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. These fruits of the Spirit grow in us as we align ourselves with God's will. [01:22:13]

5. Confidence in Christ: Like Jesus, we can serve others with humility and confidence when we know who we are in relation to the Father. Our security in Christ allows us to live boldly and fulfill our calling. [01:03:39]

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Bible Reading

• 1 Timothy 6:11– 'But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. '

Observation Questions

1. In 1 Timothy 6:11, Paul instructs Timothy to "run from all these evil things." What specific evils does Paul mention in the surrounding verses that Timothy should flee from? [01:09:30]

2. According to the sermon, how does Paul redefine Timothy's identity, and why is this significant for Timothy's ministry? [51:35]

3. What analogy does James use in James 3:3-5 to describe the power of the tongue, and how does this relate to the sermon’s message about the power of words? [57:53]

4. What are the fruits of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23, and how do they contrast with the works of the flesh discussed in the sermon? [01:25:35]

Interpretation Questions

1. How does Paul’s encouragement to Timothy to embrace his identity as a "man of God" serve as a model for how believers should view themselves in Christ? [55:46]

2. The sermon discusses the importance of fleeing from false teachings, discontentment, and the love of money. How might these issues manifest in a modern church setting, and what are the potential consequences if they are not addressed? [01:10:01]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that Jesus’ secure identity in relation to the Father empowered Him to serve others with humility? How can this understanding impact a believer’s approach to service? [01:03:39]

4. The sermon highlights the importance of pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. How do these pursuits align with the fruits of the Spirit, and why are they essential for a believer’s spiritual growth? [01:22:13]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when negative words affected your self-perception. How can you begin to replace those words with affirmations of your identity in Christ? [44:52]

2. Consider the areas in your life where you might be tempted by false teachings, discontentment, or the love of money. What practical steps can you take to flee from these temptations? [01:10:01]

3. How can you cultivate a secure identity in Christ that empowers you to serve others with humility, as Jesus did? Could you identify one specific way to serve someone in your community this week? [01:03:39]

4. Choose one aspect of the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) to focus on this month. What specific action can you take to cultivate it in your interactions with others? [01:25:35]

5. Reflect on your current pursuits. Are they aligned with pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness? What changes might you need to make to ensure your pursuits honor God? [01:22:13]

6. Think of a person in your life who needs encouragement. How can you use your words to speak life and faith into their situation this week? [45:38]

7. Identify a distraction that prevents you from focusing on your identity in Christ. What steps can you take this week to minimize that distraction and deepen your relationship with God? [51:35]

• Full Transcript

  Let's open up our Bibles, 1 Timothy chapter 6, if you join me there this morning. 1 Timothy chapter 6.
  
  One thing that I have marveled, I have been amazed by over the years, is the power of some key words spoken in the right moment. I don't know if you've had this experience. I hope you have. I hope you have somebody in your life that speaks good things over you.
  
  The power of words to transform your life. Because how many know we get a lot of negative words, right? Most of those negative words that are directed our way come from bullies in school, come from abusive parents or families. Negative words and criticisms come from the world. No doubt words can be used to belittle, to destroy, to denigrate, to abuse. And words are powerful. Some of you are still dealing with words that have been spoken to you when you were a child.
  
  Somebody called you worthless or useless. And for many years, it is easy for us to receive those words. And what's amazing is that words have the power to destroy, to denigrate, to abuse. And words have the power to shape your destiny. That someone speaks negative words can literally have an impact over your life to cause you to be useless and worthless. Because when you believe that, you start making decisions.
  
  The same is also true when it comes to positive words. You are able to speak over people. And people are able to speak over you words of faith and encouragement. That when we are going through difficult situations, sometimes in my life, I have been going through difficult situations. And one word, one word of encouragement from my pastor, an encouragement, I'll call him on the phone and say, "Pastor, this is what's going on." He'll say, "Let's believe God." Simple things. Doesn't have to be profound.
  
  But words of direction and purpose spoken over my life. Ladies, if you want to transform your husband, speak words of encouragement over him. Remind him that he's a good man. And even when he is discouraged and getting beat up by the world, a wife's words to her husband have the power to shape him and to give him strength.
  
  And I want to encourage you this morning because what we're going to find in our scripture is the Apostle Paul. He's writing to his, as he calls him, his beloved disciple, Timothy. And there's a verse here, there's some words that are spoken over Timothy that are meant as encouragement and strength and courage. And he gives us incredible direction for our lives. I'm praying that you'll be blessed by this message today.
  
  1 Timothy 6, verse 11. I'm reading from the New Living Translation.
  
  One verse here, but you, Timothy, are a man of God. So run from all these evil things, pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.
  
  Let's pray. Father, we come by the blood of Jesus. I am so grateful that this audience has gathered together today, your church, your people, the ones you've called and set apart for your glory. I'm praying, God, that you would use this word to transform their hearts, God, to draw us closer to you. Lift up, God, to the title that you call us. We are saints of the living God. And I'm praying, Lord, for your anointing and grace over this service in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, amen.
  
  This message I've titled, "Running Man of God." And let's look, first of all, at redefining ourselves.
  
  As I mentioned, the context of this verse is a letter being written from the Apostle Paul to his disciple, Timothy. Timothy is a younger man. He's of another generation. He's younger in the faith also. The Apostle Paul has ministered to him and brought him into the faith. He is what you could call a spiritual father to Timothy. There is care and concern. There's relationship over time.
  
  But as we, if you know the context of this letter that Paul writes to Timothy, Timothy is struggling, as every young pastor would. And he is struggling because people are talking about him. People are accusing him. People are saying evil things about him. And so Paul is writing this letter to Timothy, who is the pastor of the church in Ephesus. Paul is the one who has commissioned him and given him that role in the church and trusted him with that role of leadership.
  
  And now what Paul's role is, as he has left him there in Ephesus to lead that church as a young man, a young pastor, as Timothy begins to question and begins to maybe listen to some of the lies that are being spoken about him. You know, we all tend to do that sometimes. The tricky thing about lies is that there's always an element of truth to them. That's why they're believable.
  
  And perhaps Timothy is swirling in a sea of accusations. He's questioning whether or not this is really God's will for his life. Maybe he's even thinking of quitting. Say, "Paul, you better come back to Ephesus and put somebody else in charge because I don't think I'm equipped for this. I don't think I'm the right guy for the job."
  
  Have you ever had imposter syndrome? You think about your life and say, "God, why did you bring me to this place? I don't think I can do it. I don't think I can be the father you want me to be or the husband. I don't think I can be the wife that you've called me to be, Lord." And this is very difficult.
  
  And so often what is necessary in those times, you know, we want to pull the plug and we want to do radical extreme measures. But so often what is needed in those situations is simply a redefining of how we see ourselves.
  
  Thinking a little bit about Timothy's background, Timothy was the son of a Jewish mother and a Greek father. That means he's mixed race. That means that when the Jewish people looked at him, they would not see necessarily a Jew to the same level that they would see themselves. They would say, "Oh, you're half Greek, Timothy. What kind of Jew are you?"
  
  Also, we don't read that his father was any kind of a believer, only that he had a legacy of faith that came from his mother and his grandmother. We know all of these things about him. But he came to faith in Jesus, and he gave himself to the ministry as a young man. And we're grateful that there are young people who make decisions like that, decisions to become disciples of Jesus and even of the Apostle Paul.
  
  But see, one thing that can go missing along the way is the necessary ingredient of identity. Somebody say the word identity. It is so important how we define our own identity. Because as I mentioned before, the way we see ourselves is going to play out in the way we live our lives.
  
  What we believe about who we are will determine the kinds of decisions that we make and the kind of path our future will take. If Timothy would just believe that I'm half Jewish, I am unequipped to do the work of God, if he would believe those things about himself, he could easily throw away his ministry and the opportunity that God would give to him.
  
  And so Paul, in our scripture, is seeking to give him a new identity. A new definition of who he is, even if he can't believe it at first. Definition and identity is critical.
  
  Listen carefully this morning. Jesus didn't just die to change your actions and behaviors. The reason Jesus died on the cross and shed His blood is to change who you are. To give you a new nature. A new identity. A new identity in Christ.
  
  Some of you remember Evangelist Richard Brooks before he went on to be with the Lord, but he had a statement that I want to give to you this morning. You should listen carefully because it's important. Listen. He said, "It's not what you do that determines who you are, but it's who you are that determines what you do."
  
  What you believe about yourself will create the kind of life that you want to live. The kind of life that you live. Either you believe that you are broken and lost, and no wonder, you'll be broken and lost, or you'll believe that Christ has set you free and you are a new creation in Him.
  
  And that does require faith. Because how many know that the Bible calls us saints? Forty-eight times in the New Testament, Paul referred to the church as saints. You know what a saint is, right? A saint is a holy person. The Bible calls you a saint, but I'm not sure about you. When I wake up in the morning and I look at myself in the mirror, I don't always see a saint. I see a guy who is messed up. I see a guy who has fallen short. I see all of my failures and my sins of my past, but when God looks at me because of the blood of Jesus, He doesn't see what I see.
  
  He sees beyond those things into who I could be in Christ, who I am by faith in Jesus. And so Paul wants to remind Timothy of this truth. In the moment where, actually, accusations are swirling against his ministry, in a moment where the negative self-talk, the vortex, the whirlpool is spinning in Timothy's mind, he's wondering if he's up to the task. He's wondering if he was never called in the first place. He's wondering about all these things.
  
  Paul wants to bring definition to his life. And he does this by speaking words of faith over him. And I want you to catch what he says. But you, Timothy, verse 11, you are a man of God. You are men of God. Women, you are women of God. If you are saved, if you are bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus, God does not see you the way you see yourself.
  
  He doesn't see all your faults and your failures. He has separated your sins as far from you as the East is from the West. What does God see when He looks at you, oh man? He sees man of God. And that term comes with some baggage, right? It comes with some reputation. And that's why we're often afraid to embrace a title like that.
  
  Are you a man of God? Oh, I don't know. There's, you know, expectations there. I don't know if I can live up to them. Guess what? Nobody can live up to them. We can't. We can, however, submit our lives to the Holy Spirit and pursue this calling that God has put on our lives.
  
  Paul spoke this over Timothy. You are a man of God, Timothy. You better not forget that. Remember who you are. Definition came through the words of Paul. This is so important, church. This came within the context of a relationship between a spiritual father and a spiritual son.
  
  You better have some people in your life that you trust to speak over you. You better be close enough to somebody that they can speak encouragement into your life when you're on the edge, when you're on the side of the cliff ready to jump. You better have somebody that can speak sense into you when you're stuck on crazy.
  
  You ever been stuck on crazy? Like you can't change the channel? And your thinking is leading you down a path that you don't want to go. It's a path of wickedness and unbelief and carnality.
  
  Let me remind you, oh man of God, woman of God here this morning, don't you remember who you are in Christ? Embrace your identity. And this is done through relationship. So important. This is what the church exists for. We are not made to do this thing alone.
  
  This is the power of words. Remember James chapter 3 verse 3. We can make a large horse go wherever he wants by using a small bit in its mouth. Also, a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses, even though winds are strong. And in the same way, like a bit in a horse's mouth, like a rudder at the bottom of the ship, in the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches, but a tiny spark can set a great forest afire.
  
  James understands the power of words. He understands how powerful it is when we speak over our lives. What Paul is doing, he's speaking encouraging words to a discouraged young man. Timothy, remember who you are. You're a man of God.
  
  Why? Why is that so important? Because when we can allow these words to be spoken over us, we can gain greater perspective. As I said, we need to see ourselves the way God sees us.
  
  I love the story of Moses. We find Moses on the backside of the desert. After 80 years of life, what do you think Moses thought about himself? He said, I'm sure, in his mind, Moses says to himself, "I'm washed up. I'm used up. Nothing left for me. I can watch these sheep. I can take care of my family. But my life is done. All the important things that I'll ever do have already been done at 80 years old."
  
  And one day he's walking through the desert, and God meets him at a burning bush. And He tells Moses, "You are going to be my deliverer. You are going to speak for me."
  
  See, listen. God saw. He saw Moses in a way that Moses could not see himself. Here's my question for you this morning. Man of God. Woman of God. Can you gain a bigger perspective for your life? Or are you stuck with only the things you can see and understand?
  
  In that moment, all Moses could see was my little life with my little sheep, with my little family. God says, "I see opportunity for you, Moses. To do something. To do something greater." God gave Moses a new identity. "You're going to be my voice. You're going to bring the people out of bondage through my word and your actions."
  
  Think about Jesus. We also see it in the life of Jesus. You know why Jesus had such a powerful life? Because He knew His identity was rooted in His relationship to the Father. The life of Jesus is so powerful because the day that He goes to be baptized, Matthew 3, verse 17, there was a voice that came from heaven. And what did that voice say? The voice said, "This is my dearly beloved Son who brings me great joy."
  
  How would that feel for Jesus to hear the Father speaking from heaven? "This is my Son. Hey, listen up, y'all. He's got something to say." That puts Jesus on a path of knowing who He is and what He's supposed to do. "I am called by my Father to be the Messiah."
  
  I love the scripture in John chapter 13. Now we're at the Last Supper. Jesus is preparing on the next day to go to the cross. And He's having His last meal with His disciples as they celebrate the Passover together.
  
  And the Bible says these words, that as they finish their supper, Jesus takes off His outer garments and He appears to them as a servant. He pours water into a basin and begins to wash their feet. If you know anything about the traditions of the day, that was the job given to the least servant of the household. Nobody wants to wash feet. That's disgusting. Even Christians. Clean feet are kind of gross.
  
  But here are His disciples who've been walking around in the muck and the mire, no paved roads. And the only source of power, you know, power animals is animals walking up and down the street. Guess what the road is filled with? Not nice things. And they're out there in their sandals walking up and down those streets. No wonder they give this job. I mean, we don't even like doing dishes.
  
  But this job of washing the feet is gross. It's nasty. It's something that should be done by the least servant. But Jesus takes on the appearance of that lowest servant and begins to wash His disciples. Peter, he's like, "No, no, no, hold on. You can't do this to me, Jesus. I know who you are. You're the Lord and Master, the Christ, the Son of the Lamb. You don't wash my feet. I have to wash your feet."
  
  And what did Jesus say to him? "If I can't wash your feet, Peter, then you can have no part of me." He is exhibiting something to them. He is secure in who He is.
  
  How does Jesus do this without becoming embarrassed? The Bible tells us. John 13, verse 3. Jesus knew. Everybody say, "Jesus knew." What did He know? He knew that the Father had given Him authority over everything, that He had come from God and that He would return to God.
  
  Jesus has nothing to lose here. You know why? Because He knows who He is. He knows where He came from and He knows where He's going. He has security in who He is.
  
  The problem is many of us, we don't have that security of knowing who we are. That's why we are insecure. And people who are insecure are always trying to overcompensate by proving to everybody how important they are.
  
  You seen that before? Insecure people, listen, insecure people don't wash feet. Insecure people don't serve. Insecure people don't join ministry. Because they view that as a job that is beneath me. I don't have time for that. I got more important things to take care of.
  
  But Jesus, who is Lord and Master of all creation, He says, "I've got time to wash the feet of my disciples." Why? Because He is secure in who He is. "I know where I'm going. And I know where I've been. And I know who I am."
  
  He's got nothing to prove. What about you? Do you find insecurities in yourself? The proof is in how we serve others. And what Paul is trying to give to Timothy is to give him that security in knowing who he is.
  
  "Timothy, don't let these voices alter your course. Don't change your destination, Timothy. You're a man of God. So live like it. So do what you've been called to do."
  
  When the Bible calls us saints, as I mentioned, used over 40 times in the New Testament. Saint. You're a saint. You're saved. That means you're a saint. The word in Greek is very interesting. It's hagioi. It means holy ones or ones who are set apart. Sacred. Set apart for special usage.
  
  You know the story of John Newton? John Newton is the one who wrote the song "Amazing Grace," one of the most famous songs of all time. "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me." He wrote those lyrics. Do you know what his story is?
  
  John Newton, when he was a young man, was given command of a slave ship. In other words, it was his job to travel by ship to West Africa to purchase people as slaves sold by the African kings, put them, lock them up on his boat, and bring them back to England where then he would sell them again to the highest bidder.
  
  Now, you can only imagine the horror of having to do a job like that. Treating people like cattle. If they get sick, you don't do anything for them. If they die, you just toss them overboard. It's demeaning and it's wicked. And he says, "I lived that life." John Newton. That's who he was.
  
  And later on, he writes a biography and he says, "The ghosts of 20,000 slaves haunt my dreams." That man heard the gospel. He was actually the child of a minister. Grew up a church kid. He knew the gospel, but he rejected it his whole early life. Later on, he received Christ as his Savior and he went on to become a pastor and a minister.
  
  And that's why he can say those words, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found. Was blind, but now I see." You know what else is interesting about that? When he wrote that verse, he was actually losing his eyesight. In his older age, his eyes began to fail him.
  
  But he still pens those words, "I once was blind, but now I see." What a powerful story. A man found a new definition of who he was. "I am no longer a slave master. I am no longer captain of a slave trading ship. That was the old me. I have to let that go and embrace a new identity in Christ."
  
  Can I ask you, have you done that? Have you turned from who you were and become who God wants you to be? God wants to redefine your life also.
  
  So, this verse is powerful because Paul goes on to describe what a man of God does. But you, O Timothy, are a man of God. So run from all these evil things.
  
  My second point is what are we running from? Men of God. Women of God. There are some things that we need to run from. That was a good place to say amen.
  
  As men and women of God, people who are, our identities are being changed on a daily basis, there are some decisions, actions, words, and thoughts that you and I must run from. The word in the New King James is flee. Everybody say the word flee.
  
  We're not talking about a tiny bug that makes you itch. We're talking about F-L-E-E. That means run away. Run, Forrest, run. When it comes to evil, Paul did not say negotiate with it. He did not say justify it. He did not say ignore it or defend it, make excuses for it, pretend that it goes away on its own. He said flee.
  
  You need to run from this, Timothy. As a man of God, this is what men of God must do. They must flee from evil. If you went home today and found that while you were at church that there was an infestation of cockroaches in your kitchen, would you just come to your house and look across the thousands of cockroaches and say, "Huh, that's weird. I'm going to go take a nap."
  
  No, you would do something about it. You would call the bug man. You would order some cockroach gel on Amazon. Like this, you need to do something. We can't just let this remain. We got to do something about this.
  
  I'm not living with a gaggle of cockroaches. But yet, there are men and women of God. God is redefining who you are, but we allow evil to live in our lives. There are some things we got to flee from, church. There are some situations. There are some relationships. Hello? There are some people that are not helping you live for God. We should run.
  
  The word is flee. In the Greek, it's "pheugo," which means to take flight, to run away, run as fast as possible, to escape. You know what happens when we negotiate with evil? It leads to us falling into it rather than conquering it.
  
  So rather than negotiating with sin and trying to face it head-on, instead, we should just get up and run. Remember the story of Joseph? Joseph in the Old Testament, as Potiphar's wife starts putting the moves on him, she says, "My husband's not at home. You come and lie with me."
  
  This is like the perfect scenario for every young man that he dreams about. But Joseph is a man of God. And she grabs hold of his coat, and he starts running. "I'm out of here." Leaves her with his coat in her hand. He ran so fast, he didn't even think to take his coat. He said, "I'm not doing this. I'm not going to negotiate with you, Potiphar's wife. Let's have a reasonable conversation about this."
  
  No, he ran out of her presence. Let your feet fly. You know, my grandfather, we call them Cliffordisms. He had some sayings that he would always say. And my grandfather was always, you know, in his youth, he was a tall, skinny guy.
  
  And he said when he was in World War II, he always told us, he was in the army in World War II. And he was one of only, like, 20. And out of his whole brigade, he was a truck driver. So many of them died. He was one of only 20 that came back with his group.
  
  And so, you know, the question was, "Grandpa, how did you survive when so many died?" And he would say, "My feet never let my face get hurt." There's some wisdom in that. That when it got dangerous, he knew how to run.
  
  That's not cowardice. You know, some people say running from a fight is cowardice. No, not when you know you're going to lose. You trying to face evil like you think you can defeat it with your own smarts and intellect.
  
  So there are three things that Paul mentions in this scripture. What are these things? Verse 11 again says, "Run from all these evil things." Well, there are three specific things that Paul mentions in the context of this chapter.
  
  The first thing that he mentions that we must flee from is false teachings. 1 Timothy 6, 4 and 5. "Anyone who teaches something different is arrogant and lacks understanding. Such a person has an unhealthy desire to quibble over the meaning of words. It stirs up arguments which end in jealousy, division, slander, and evil suspicions. These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt and they have turned their backs on the truth."
  
  Paul is calling out something that's happening there in the Ephesian church, that there is a spirit of controversy being stirred up, arguments and divisions, people who are declaring false gospels. And Paul says, "Timothy, you don't get wrapped up in this. You need to flee. It is unacceptable. This is a cockroach in the church. You don't allow divisions and strife to remain in the house of God. You need to learn how to judge this, Timothy, and in those that you lead."
  
  We, how many know we're supposed to be unified? We're supposed to be one body. What happened in the amens? False teachings and stirring up of arguments. Paul says, "You got to be careful about this. Flee, Timothy."
  
  The second thing he mentions is discontentment. Verse six, "True godliness with contentment is great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world. We can't take anything with us when we leave. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content."
  
  The evil that Paul mentions to run from is the evil of ingratitude or discontentment. Why is this such a dangerous thing that we must run from? Because ingratitude is self-focused. Gratitude is God-focused.
  
  Do you remember how Satan tempted Eve? Remember that? Genesis chapter three, when the Bible says they had freedom to eat any fruit they wanted. They had the pick of every tree. And you got to think about before sin, man, what kind of fruit did they have access to? We only can imagine.
  
  And in that garden, they could eat whatever they wanted. But guess what the devil came telling her? "God didn't give you everything. He's holding out on you, Eve." Genesis three, verse five, "God knows that the day you eat of this fruit, your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it. And you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
  
  The devil puts this in front of Eve, and she has everything that she wants. But the devil says, "You don't have enough." Can I tell you, the enemy uses that strategy on God's people and on the church. That's something we must flee. We must run from it.
  
  "No, Lord Jesus, you have blessed me. I'm not going to let the devil lie to me and say I don't have enough. That the world has more to offer to me. That homeboy down the street is going to fulfill my life."
  
  If the devil can strip you into discontentment, then he can deceive you into disobedience. That was good. I better say that one more time. One more time. I'll say amen to myself.
  
  "If the devil can strip you into discontentment, then he can deceive you into disobedience." Flee this evil, Timothy.
  
  The third thing that Paul mentions that we must flee as men and women of God is the love of money. I thought it was quiet before. Now it's going to get quiet.
  
  Verses nine and ten, same chapter. "But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people craving money have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."
  
  I looked up that phrase in the Greek, "pierced themselves." You know what? The original definition of this word, it goes like this: "Torture your own soul with sorrows."
  
  The love of money, the desire—I'm not saying we shouldn't be good financial stewards. The Bible does teach that also. Don't waste what God has put in your hands. But if the desire of your life is just to be rich, to heap up a pile of money, flee. Flee. Run away from this.
  
  Why? Why is this such a danger? Why is this a cockroach in the life of the man or the woman of God? Why? Because it diverts your attention, your love, your joy. It takes it away from the blesser and gives it to the blessing instead.
  
  What did Paul say? He said, "This love of money." He didn't say money is the root of evil. He said the love of money is the root. Think about the word root. You ever had a problem with roots?
  
  In my neighborhood, there are these giant trees that were planted back in the 70s. And they're right next to the sidewalk. And over time, as those trees grew, those roots grew with them. And there was a time in my neighborhood when you couldn't ride a bike on those paths. Remember that, Jaylee?
  
  Because the roots had grown under the sidewalks and caused them to bulge. Right? The roots. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. This can grow into many branches.
  
  Don't worry. We'll get through this real quick. Think about Hollywood. Think about what people in Hollywood have allowed themselves, sold their souls. Many of them sold their bodies to achieve fame and fortune. Why? For a bank account?
  
  The love of money is a root. People who win the lottery. Man, it's almost a punishment to win the lottery. You look at what happens to people after they win the Powerball and get $500 million out of nowhere. And they have no idea what to do with it.
  
  And all of a sudden, every friend and every enemy comes knocking on their door. And the suicide rate of lottery winners. Drug addiction. You say, "Oh, all I need is money." All I need is more money. No. You need more Jesus.
  
  You say, "Pastor, if I won the lottery..." No, you would. There's a reason why God doesn't give some of us some money. Because He knows if you had it...
  
  So do you notice any of these? Do you notice any of these evils in your life? Stirring up, contention, discontentment, or love of money? Run. Run, Forrest, run. Don't put up with it. Don't allow it in your life.
  
  Now, as we close, I've got to close quick. The life of the man of God, the woman of God, is not just running from things. There are things that we are running towards. Hello?
  
  Hello? This is what Paul says in our scripture. "Oh, man of God, Timothy, run from these evil things." Then he says, "Pursue." Everybody say, "Pursue." That means chase after.
  
  "Pursue righteousness, a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness." Oh, this is good. We're not just running from evil. We are running toward a new kind of life.
  
  The word pursue in the Greek, "dioko," it means follow after carefully. You know what I thought about when I was studying that word? I thought about a young man as he is pursuing a young woman. He ain't going to leave her alone.
  
  I can remember back in the old days, my wife, my girl at the time, she couldn't get rid of me. I was pursuing her. There's a reason why young men pursue young women.
  
  The word pursue, listen, as men of God, as women of God, there are things that we must pursue. Romans 14, 19, Paul says in Philippians 3, verse 12, "I have not attained, I am not already perfected, but I press on." Same word, "dioko," I pursue. "I pursue that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold. I press toward the goal, dioko, I pursue the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
  
  Can I ask you, what are you running towards? What is the pursuit of your life? What's the goal? What is the finish line? Because for some of us, it is something way out in left field or something that has no meaning in the Kingdom.
  
  Paul says, "What do we run toward? What do we pursue?" The first thing he says is the word righteousness. Somebody say righteousness. What is righteousness? Why are we running toward righteousness? It is living in the way that is morally upright and in alignment with God's standards. This is our first priority.
  
  If we are men of God, if we are women of God, what are we pursuing? We're pursuing righteousness. "Seek first the kingdom and what? His righteousness," Jesus. He said, "Matthew 6, 33, seek first the kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
  
  The next thing he mentions is godliness. And this is wrapped up, I believe, in righteousness, exhibiting a reverent awareness of God's sovereignty and committing to a life that honors Him.
  
  And the rest of these that Paul mentions are faith, love, patience, and gentleness. All of these are fruits of the Spirit. In other words, if we are men of God, if we are women of God, the fruits of the Spirit begin to grow in us.
  
  In Galatians 5, Paul describes the difference between works of the flesh and the fruits of the Spirit. See, the works of the flesh are obvious. They're the things your flesh wants to do. Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, and on and on he goes.
  
  Our carnal desire wants to do evil, yes? That's works of the flesh. A work is something that you know how to do, and that has a consequence. But in contrast to that, in Galatians, Paul speaks about the fruit of the Spirit.
  
  How many know fruit is not something that you do? Fruit is not something that you do. Fruit is something that you receive. It's something that grows. It's a seed that plants and becomes a tree, and then branches, and then fruit.
  
  Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. Paul mentions faith and love and gentleness. These are fruits of the Spirit of the living God in you.
  
  Man of God, woman of God, pursue righteousness, godliness, and these are the fruits which will grow from your life. So let me ask you, as we reflect, let's give it a time period. Let's reflect on the last week of our lives. Since the last Sunday that we gathered, how have you been doing in the arena of love?
  
  I know we love our people. We love our families, hopefully. But what about the family of God? Could you give half a flip about somebody on the other row? What's going on in their life? What about not just our friends and family, but what about, Jesus said, your enemies? Love your enemies and do good to them.
  
  See, that's not something our flesh does. We don't do that. That's against our flesh. That's something that's a fruit. It's something that grows. When the Spirit of God is alive in us, the love of God, even toward enemies, begins to grow. It's a fruit of the Spirit.
  
  Patience. See, I've got to pause for a moment to make sure, because while I'm pausing, all of you are like, "Come on, hurry up. I've got a lunch to eat, Pastor."
  
  Fruit of the Spirit is patience. Patience, even through trials and difficulty, gentleness, approaching others with humility and kindness, avoiding harshness or aggression. You know, the Holy Spirit will make you gentle. That doesn't mean weak. It means we're patient and gentle and kind.
  
  Have you been kind in the last week? Can I just be honest with you? God's trying to work on me with kindness. It doesn't come naturally to me. I'm usually a little more sharp toward people, more than I need to be. Why are you smiling, Amanda?
  
  And the final call is to keep going. Verse 12. "Fight the good fight, Timothy, for the true faith. Hold tightly to eternal life, to which God has called you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses."
  
  Oh, man of God, bring new definition to your life. The evidence of that is that we are running away from evil and we are running toward righteousness. The fruit of the Spirit grows in our life, and as we do that, we must continue in the faith.
  
  Do not grow weary while doing well, church. We can make it to the finish line. Somebody say amen.
  
  So I charge you, I challenge you, know who you are in Christ. Run from what is evil and run toward what is good.
  
  Let's bow our heads and close our eyes for just a moment. As we bring this service to a close, what a blessing. A God in heaven who is showing us, gives us an example of who we are in Christ. Jesus is our example.
  
  Every day we're supposed to be changing from glory to glory into His likeness and His image. The world should look at you and see the life of Jesus, the thoughts of Jesus, the words of Jesus, the ways of Jesus. The world should look at how you speak, what you say, how you treat people, and say, "Wow, that's how Jesus treated people."
  
  This morning, before we close, we're going to have some time for prayer. I believe God has spoken to some people about running from evil and running toward righteousness, about redefining who we are in Christ.
  
  But before we open the altar for prayer, I believe there's someone here that's...morning, and if you'd be honest for a moment, you'd say, "Pastor, I'm not sure that I'm right with God. I'm not sure that I'm living for God. My sins are destroying me, and that's what the Bible says. The wages of sin is death. The default destination of our lives without Jesus is separation from God for all eternity, judgment for our sins.
  
  You're going to stand before God one day, every single one of us, and on that day, either you will pay the price for your own sins because God is just, or the price for your sins will be paid by Jesus. By virtue of faith, we put our trust in Him.
  
  So you're here today. Say, "Pastor, I'm not sure that my heart is right with God. I want to turn from my sins." If you want that today, please don't miss it. Please don't miss what God has for you. He wants to redefine your life.
  
  Jesus says you must be born again if you want to see the kingdom of God. We can't do it in our own strength or in our own intellect. We need the Spirit of God to transform us, new creations in Christ, and you're here today saying, "Pastor, I'm religious, but I'm not right with God. I know some scriptures, but I'm not saved."
  
  And if that's you, I want to pray with you quickly as we close this service. Honest hearts today. You want to lift up your hand. "Pastor, remember me in prayer. I need salvation." Is that you? Quickly slip up your hand. Thank you, dear. Is there someone else? Quickly. God's speaking. The Holy Spirit touching you right now. The Spirit of God is convicting you of sin and drawing you to Jesus. That's what He does.
  
  Don't miss this opportunity to pray and receive Christ as your Savior and your Lord. Is there someone else? Quickly, "Pastor, pray for me. I need Jesus." Is that you? Come on. Is there someone else? Quickly lift up your hand. Honest hearts right now. Young man on the front, is there someone else? God's dealing with your heart.
  
  Maybe backslidden, maybe prodigal. Maybe there's someone here who left the Father's house, went to the far country. You've been living in sin, and what you know is wrong. You want to get your heart right. Time to come home. Is that you? Quickly. Anyone else? Quickly lift up a hand. Honest hearts, is that you? Let me pray for you.
  
  Somebody here, lift up a hand. Say, "Pastor, please, I need Jesus." Is that you? Quickly. Quickly, I need forgiveness. Amen. Honest hearts.
  
  If you lifted up your hand, would you come and join me? I want to pray with you. Over here on the left, would you come? We're going to pray with you. I have somebody pray with you. Young man up here, you want to pray? You want to pray? You want to find a place? Young man, you can come too. Let's believe God right now. You can kneel down. God's going to help you.
  
  Man, come and pray with these boys. Thank you, Jesus. Church, I want to open up this altar for prayer. Some of you have believed, but you don't know the lies of the enemy. Some of you have had definition on your life. It doesn't belong. Would you come?
  
  Oh, man of God, woman of God, let's come receive definition from Jesus. Some of you have things you need to run from. There are some cockroaches, some evil in your life that you've been allowing. It's time to say goodbye to those things. I'm fleeing. I'm running. I'm not going to put up with it.
  
  Some of you, there's some things you need to run towards. Not enough to just run away from the world. We got something to run towards. We got something to run towards. We got something to run towards. We got something to run towards.
  
  Would you come and join us here at this altar? Come on, church. Let's begin to lift up our voices in prayer, believing God to help us speak to us. Would you come? We're praying together as we sing a song of praise.
  
  We're praying together as we sing a song of praise. Would you come? We're praying together as we sing a song of praise. Would you come? We're praying together as we sing a song of praise.
  
  Salvation is more than mercy. Salvation is grace. Salvation is God inviting us into His family. We have a seat at His table. We are sons and daughters of the King, man.
  
  And some of us are living as second-class citizens of heaven. Let me tell you, there ain't no such thing. There ain't no such thing. You're either His child or you're not.
  
  So quit staying in the barn out back and come in for dinner time, man. Let's live like He is our Father, like Christ is our elder brother. And we've joined His family, and there's a place for you.
  
  So quit beating yourself up, because in Christ there is no longer condemnation. Leave that to God. Leave that to the voice of hell. But use your voice to proclaim, "I'm a man of God. I'm a woman of God."
  
  Use your voice to bless others, to speak faith and confidence over them. Let's believe God together. Let's lift up our hands in surrender to the Lord and say this prayer.
  
  Say, "God in heaven, forgive me for defining myself in ways that don't bless you, that don't honor you, for believing the voices of hell and negative self-talk. I cast those things away. And today, by faith, I choose to believe your words about me, that I'm your child, that you have set me free. I'm no longer bound. God, you've made me into a saint of the Lord.
  
  You're the living God. I'm not finished, but I'm not who I was. And thank you, Lord. You've set before me a path to follow. Help me today to run from evil, from those things that I know are causing problems in my life and drawing me away from you. I'm fleeing from those things.
  
  And in Jesus' name, I am pursuing your heart, the fruits of the Spirit. Lord, I need your presence in my life every moment. So strengthen me by the Holy Spirit in Jesus' mighty name. Amen.
  
  Let's give Him praise right now. Lord, we thank you. Can I tell you, God wants to raise you up as a confident son and daughter of the King.
  
  Oh, the Lord knows that the church is filled with ambivalence, filled with people who couldn't care one way or another, filled with people who are weak and compromised. But God's will for us is not that we would be weak and compromised, that we would be confident in who we are in Christ.
  
  We would be confident in who we are in Christ. We would be confident in who we are in Christ, pursuing His heart. That's my desire, my prayer for each and every one of you, that we can be transformed into who God wants us to be.
  
  We're closing in prayer today, and we do want to once again invite you back for our service tonight. Again, we'll be coming together for prayer at 6 p.m. Service tonight begins at 7. We've got another word that I believe God would speak to us tonight.
  
  Let's come with the victory. Let's bring someone who needs Jesus. As you go, wherever you go today, to the grocery store, to the restaurant, bring an invitation. You never know, God will lead you to someone who needs Him. Can you say amen?
  
  Let's bring somebody tonight. Call a friend, speak to a neighbor, tell someone that needs Jesus. Be in the service with me tonight. You never know what God would do if you would invite somebody.
  
  Let's close with a word of prayer, believing God to help us as we go out from this place. Amen. Brother Mason, will you close us in prayer today?
  
  Hey, y'all, we got a very special birthday in the house today. Can we sing happy birthday to Miss Dania? She's turning 16? 16? Let's wish her a big happy birthday.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Why Plant?: Planting Seeds of Faith for Kingdom Growth [Acts 13:2-3]

Why Plant?

Planting Seeds of Faith for Kingdom Growth

Acts 13:2-3

Sermon Summary

In this sermon, we explored the unique calling to plant churches, a mission rooted deeply in the early church's practices, as seen in Acts 13. This calling is not merely a strategy but a divine mandate to expand God's kingdom by sending out our best to establish new pioneer churches. We reflected on the example of Barnabas and Saul, who were set apart by the Holy Spirit for a specific work, illustrating the necessity of being open to God's direction and willing to sacrifice for the greater good of His kingdom.

Planting churches is similar to a farmer's decision to plant seeds rather than consume them. While eating the seeds might provide immediate satisfaction, planting them yields a far greater harvest over time. This metaphor underscores the long-term vision and discipline required to see the fruits of our labor in God's kingdom. It challenges us to consider whether we are willing to invest in the future by planting seeds of faith, even when it means letting go of valuable resources and people.

We also discussed the importance of each individual's role within the church. Just as every part of the body has a function, so does every member of the church. Whether through giving, administration, evangelism, or other gifts, each person is called to contribute to the mission of the church. This requires a shift from being mere spectators to active participants in God's work.

Furthermore, we emphasized the need for obedience to the Holy Spirit's leading. Just as Saul and Barnabas were called to new ventures, we too must be ready to pivot and follow God's direction, even when it disrupts our plans. This obedience is crucial for the church to fulfill its mission in these last days, as we anticipate a great revival and the outpouring of God's Spirit.

Finally, we were reminded of the cost of discipleship and church planting. It involves sacrifice, but it is a sacrifice that leads to exponential growth and the expansion of God's kingdom. As we pray and fast, seeking God's will, we are called to support this mission with our resources and our lives, trusting that God will provide and guide us in this endeavor.

“We must shift from being spectators to active participants in God’s work.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [28:07] - Praise and Worship

• [39:02] - Announcements and Events

• [46:15] - Offering and Stewardship

• [48:56] - Introduction to Church Planting

• [51:04] - The Vision of Planting

• [55:52] - The Challenge of Planting

• [57:54] - The Farmer's Choice

• [01:02:05] - The Call of Barnabas and Saul

• [01:06:23] - Finding Your Role

• [01:10:37] - Obedience to the Spirit

• [01:15:19] - The Holy Spirit's Guidance

• [01:18:26] - The Cost of Church Plantin

• [01:23:02] - The Expansion of God's Kingdom

• [01:28:32] - The Story of Elisha

• [01:32:50] - The Call to Action

Key Takeaways

1. The Call to Plant: Planting churches is a divine mandate, not just a strategy. It requires us to send out our best, trusting that God will use them to expand His kingdom. This mission is rooted in the early church's practices and is essential for reaching new communities with the gospel. [01:02:05]

2. Seeds of Faith: Like a farmer choosing to plant seeds rather than consume them, we are called to invest in the future of God's kingdom. This requires vision, discipline, and a willingness to sacrifice immediate gains for long-term growth. [57:54]

3. Active Participation: Every member of the church has a role to play. We are not called to be spectators but active participants, using our unique gifts and skills to contribute to the mission of the church. [01:06:23]

4. Obedience to the Spirit: We must be open to the Holy Spirit's leading, ready to pivot and follow God's direction even when it disrupts our plans. This obedience is crucial for fulfilling the church's mission in these last days. [01:10:37]

5. The Cost of Discipleship: Church planting involves sacrifice, but it leads to exponential growth and the expansion of God's kingdom. As we pray and fast, we are called to support this mission with our resources and our lives. [01:23:02]

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Bible Reading

• Acts 13:2-3: 'While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. '

Observation Questions

1. What specific work were Barnabas and Saul set apart for by the Holy Spirit according to Acts 13:2-3? How does this relate to the church's mission today? [01:02:05]

2. In the sermon, the act of planting churches is compared to a farmer's decision to plant seeds. What are the implications of this metaphor for the church's mission? [57:54]

3. How does the sermon describe the role of each church member in contributing to the mission of the church? [01:06:23]

4. What examples from the sermon illustrate the necessity of being open to the Holy Spirit's leading, even when it disrupts personal plans? [01:10:37]

Interpretation Questions

1. How does the example of Barnabas and Saul in Acts 13:2-3 illustrate the importance of obedience to the Holy Spirit in church planting? [01:02:05]

2. The sermon mentions the cost of discipleship and church planting. What are some specific sacrifices mentioned, and how do they contribute to the growth of God's kingdom? [01:23:02]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that every church member can actively participate in the mission of the church, rather than being a spectator? [01:06:23]

4. How does the sermon challenge the traditional view of church growth and expansion, particularly in the context of sending out the best people for church planting? [01:18:26]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on the metaphor of planting seeds. Are there areas in your life where you are consuming rather than planting? How can you shift your focus to invest in long-term growth for God's kingdom? [57:54]

2. Consider your unique gifts and skills. How can you actively contribute to the mission of the church rather than being a spectator? Identify one specific way you can get involved this month. [01:06:23]

3. The sermon emphasizes obedience to the Holy Spirit's leading. Is there an area in your life where you feel the Holy Spirit is prompting you to change direction? What steps can you take to follow that leading? [01:10:37]

4. Church planting involves sacrifice. What resources or comforts might you be holding onto that God is calling you to release for the sake of His kingdom? [01:23:02]

5. How can you support the mission of church planting in your community, whether through prayer, financial support, or other means? Identify one specific action you can take this week. [01:25:48]
   

6. The sermon discusses the importance of being open to the Holy Spirit's guidance. How can you cultivate a lifestyle of prayer and fasting to better discern God's will for your life? [01:16:36]
   

7. Reflect on the story of Elisha and the mantle. Is there a "mantle" or calling that God has placed on your life that you have been hesitant to accept? What steps can you take to embrace that calling? [01:30:42]

• Full Transcript

  Acts chapter 13. If you joined me there this morning, Acts chapter 13. I want to begin this morning by showing you a video, if we could get that queued up. Uh, this, uh, as I mentioned already, we had a conference, a Bible conference in Prescott, Arizona. As you can see on the screen, that's Pastor Greg Mitchell. And this is our Friday night of Bible conference. If you have been to a conference, you know that this is the focus and the heartbeat of our fellowship, of our churches. And on Friday night, Thursday night, we announce new missionaries as they're going out into cities and nations around the world. We make those announcements Thursday night of the conference. And then Friday night, the closing night of the conference, we make announcements for new couples that are going out domestically as well. And then we pray for them. We commission them. We pray God's blessing and covering over them as we send them out into the mission field for the work of God.
  
  And so I want to show you this is something that absolutely is mind-blowing. It's a milestone for our fellowship. Now, just to give you a little context, I got saved in Chandler, Arizona under Pastor Joe Campbell. I was saved in the year 1998. And I was 17 years old when I started coming to, well, 16 when I started coming, 17 when I really got saved and gave my life to Christ and started living for Him seriously. And so in 1998, I can remember pretty clearly when I got saved, there were about 1,700 churches in our fellowship, 1,700 around the world. As of this conference, since that time, our churches, our fellowship have multiplied, have expanded rapidly. And so I want to show you what happened this Friday night. This is just a three-minute video. I'm going to show you what happened.
  
  I want to say today that this is a work of God. What you are part of is more than just our Sunday morning and Sunday night and Wednesday night gatherings. You are part of a move of God. We are connected to the church in Prescott by covenant. We are connected because of our mother church in Chandler, Arizona. What happens there sets the tone and the effect on our congregation as well. And so this morning, I want to preach a message about why we plant. We are not here to glorify a man or even a ministry or the name of a church. We are here to glorify Jesus and what He is doing in the earth. But I want to give a message this morning about why we plant.
  
  Our focus this year and our theme is decisions make disciples. Now you can make an argument about why planting churches is foolish. Many people do not believe in what we do. Many churches do not do this sort of thing. Why? Because planting churches is hard. Planting churches is expensive. Planting churches means that we take the best people that we have in our congregation and we send them away. Rather than holding on and using them in our congregation, allowing God to use their lives to multiply our congregation, we choose to have a multiplication of smaller churches around the world rather than a very few amount of bigger churches. We choose to do that for a reason. And I want to give you the vision and the purpose why we do that and why this is such an important part of our fellowship because I want you to take ownership of this vision this morning.
  
  Why we do what we do. The scripture we have is Acts chapter 13. Every farmer comes to a moment, a decision that he must make when the time comes to plant. Every farmer understands that when it comes time for planting season, you have to plant something. So farmers spend most of the harvest and the winter season preparing their seeds, right? Every farmer has a cache, a store of seeds that they are going to plant. Now the thing about seeds is interesting. Seeds are fascinating. The thing about seeds is this. You can eat the seeds if you wanted to. You can eat the seeds if you wanted to. You can eat the seeds if you wanted to. If you have a bag full of seeds, seeds on their own have nutritional value. You could survive on seeds if you wanted to. If you have a bag of apple seeds, it's, you know, it's not that much, but you could swallow the seeds and you could get enough to survive.
  
  But the choice that every farmer has is either to eat the seeds or to plant the seeds. And someone who is wise does not eat their store of seeds. Because if a seed is properly placed, properly grown, properly cared for, if that seed is put into the ground, then the harvest that comes forth is far greater than the nutritional value of just one seed. And so the wise farmer must plant. But guess what? Planting is a lot harder than eating seeds. Planting requires investment of time and energy over generations. A tree does not grow in one season or in one year. A tree takes at least four to five years before it begins to bring forth a harvest. And so planting requires greater vision. Planting requires greater discipline. Planting requires greater intentionality and effectiveness and discipline over time.
  
  My question for us this morning as a church, are we going to eat the seeds ourselves or are we going to choose to plant? Now this church, for many years, we did not have the opportunity to plant a church until a couple of years ago. Our brother and sister, their family, Pastor Dave and Mrs. Caitlin, they were part of our congregation going back from before I was the pastor here. They were saved and discipled in this congregation. And a couple of years ago, again, our best couple in the church, our most faithful couple, our couple who was one of our most generous givers, we sent them away to go plant a new church. And if you were here when that happened, you understand. That was difficult. They left behind needs, a whole of ministry. They were both, both of them were serving, were fulfilling roles, were doing things in our congregation. And to send them into the harvest field to go pioneer a new church, that was hard for us, wasn't it? There was a price that we paid.
  
  I want to tell you, this is where destiny is unlocked. And I want to preach a message this morning. Why do we plant? Acts chapter 13, verses 2 and 3. This example comes from the example of the early church. Let's read it together. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your spirit and your grace. We thank you that you are a God that calls us to plant. A God who calls us to plant. Calls the church to multiply. Lord, I pray, let us receive this revelation and let us put our hearts and our minds into this work. And we give you glory, Lord, that you are a God who saves wicked people into righteousness. You are a God who restores the backslider, the broken, the lost. You are a God who brings them into fellowship with yourself. God, you are the God who is building your church. You've called us to make disciples, raise them up into usefulness for your kingdom, and then to plant churches. God, put this vision and this heart in every person that is here. This work is difficult. This work is expensive. This work requires vision. Lord, so you plant it in the hearts of your people this morning. In Jesus' mighty name, God's people would say, amen.
  
  Why do we plant? In our scripture, we read about the early church, and you, there is this same truth that is at work in the congregation there in Antioch. Both of these men that are mentioned, Barnabas and Paul, in this scripture, he is called Saul. And the Bible says of both of these men that they were very fruitful and effective ministers of the gospel. Both of these men were highly useful to the kingdom, useful to the church. No doubt that in the congregations where they served, that they had a great influence and great effectiveness for the gospel of Jesus Christ. No doubt that both of these men, Barnabas especially, that name, Barnabas, his name literally means the son of encouragement. Man, as a pastor, I pray for those people. We need Barnabas in our congregation, someone that can encourage and stir up the faith of people around them. Can God call you to be a Barnabas, someone who encourages and stirs up faith in others, who drives out discouragement and fear? We need some good Barnabas in the congregation.
  
  Saul, we know the influence that he had. Saul being a Pharisee who then was converted and became a disciple of the Lord Jesus with his knowledge, with his wealth of biblical understanding and revelation could be a powerful tool in the hands of the Holy Spirit. Here's Barnabas, who is an encourager of people. Saul, who is an incredible intellect and leader in the early church. There is no doubt in my mind, these are the kind of people that every pastor would pray for to have in their congregation. We need these kinds of people, people who have intellect, who have discipline, who have had genuine experiences with the Lord Jesus, who have been converted, who are not divisive, who are not tearing others down, who are helping together to build the house of God and to cause it to grow and to thrive. We need people like this in our churches. We need people who are givers and not takers. We need people who are on the field, in the game, and not only spectators. Hello?
  
  So often the church falls into this unfortunate ratio like there is at a football game where you have 22 football players on the field at any given time, and they are the ones doing the difficult things and playing the plays, and then you have 10,000 fans who are eating hot dogs. And unfortunately, sometimes the church can look like that, where you have a tiny minority of people who are caring for the church. And then you have 10,000 fans who are eating hot dogs. And then you have 10,000 fans who are carrying the weight of ministry, and you have a whole lot of other people who are spectating. And I believe that that is not the vision that the Word of God gives to the church, that we are called, how many understand, to be active and involved as the Lord would lead us and give us revelation, that He would prepare us not just to be spectators on Sunday mornings, but to get involved and to embrace the ministry that God has given to us.
  
  Every one of you have a place in God's kingdom. Every one of you have a gift, a skill that you can offer to the church. You have something in your hands, just like Moses. When God called Moses, He thought that he had nothing to offer. He looked at himself and said, Lord, what can I do? I'm a man of slow speech, slow of understanding. What am I going to do? I'm a has-been. I'm a washed-up, old Egyptian. I'm a guy trained, but Lord, it's been 40 years since I had any dream. And God said to Moses, what is that in your hand? He looked in his hand. Oh, it's nothing, just a shepherd's staff. This is what I use to lead the sheep. And God said to Moses, I'm going to use that staff to help you lead God's people. Fast forward, they're standing in front of the Red Sea, escaping from Egypt, and God says to Moses, use the staff I gave you, Moses. Use that to part the waters, open up the pathway.
  
  The lesson from the life of Moses is God doesn't need much. He only needs what you have. What is it that you have this morning? What gift has God given to you to use for His kingdom? God doesn't save us just for us, for our benefit, and so that we can have a comfy place in heaven. God saves us for a work. Your calling is different from my calling. Everyone has a unique calling, a unique gift, a unique skill, a unique personality that you are called to put it in the hands of the Lord for Him to use as He sees fit. I want to first of all challenge you. We are not called to be spectator Christians, but to find our place so that we can have a place in heaven. Some of you are gifted for giving. Some of you are gifted for administration. Some of you are gifted for evangelism. Some of you are gifted for music ministry. Some of you are gifted for things that right now are untapped resources.
  
  And I want to challenge you first of all to understand God didn't save you just for you to have a place to go when you die. It's not just fire insurance, hello? We are saved to be useful and profitable to God. We are saved to be useful and profitable to God. Profitable for the kingdom of God. When Saul first got saved, he asked two questions that are very important for every person. Question number one, who are you, Lord? I want to know who you are. I want to know you personally. Second question, what do you want me to do for you? And if you would honestly, with an open heart, approach the throne of grace and ask those two questions, I am confident that the Lord will give you answers. Who are you, Lord? I want to know who you are. I need revelation of your heart and your mind for my life. Second question, Lord, is there something that I could be doing for you? I believe there's an answer to that question for your life.
  
  And the answer to that might be different for you than it is for me. That's good. We need a variety of workers with a variety of skills and gifts, just like the body. The body has many members, but together we are able as hands and feet and eyes and mouth and nose and hair and all of the parts that you have, some of them have lesser roles than others. But in the body of Christ, we all have a role to play. We have a part that we are called to. And as each of us embrace that this morning, we are able to accomplish God's will. This was true for Saul, for Barnabas, that they were incredible blessings to their local church. But in our scripture, something happens. There's a shift. The Bible says that as they prayed and as they fasted, that the Lord called them. Did you see that?
  
  Verse 2, while they were worshiping, and worshiping the Lord and fasting, it's the Holy Spirit who says, Can I ask you? First of all, before we continue, does the Holy Spirit have the right to redirect your life? Does the Holy Spirit have the authority to tell you that you need to change directions? But Lord, I like the direction I'm going. I understand what I'm doing now. So did Barnabas and Saul. They had ministry. They had a work that they were doing. But the Holy Spirit said, I've got something else for you. Set apart for me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work to which I have called them. Listen, we as a church, corporately, and you as a Christian, individually, we must be open to the direction of the Holy Spirit.
  
  For a long time, Dave and Caitlin Smale, they were part of our church. They were part of our congregation. They were a great blessing here. They're still a great blessing to our congregation. But there came a time when the Holy Spirit said something different. We must be able to pivot according to the Holy Spirit. This is not about the plans or the desires of men. This is not about the will of where you want to live or where you want to go. This is about obedience to the Holy Spirit. And there are times when the Holy Spirit will say, set them apart so that they can do the work to which I have called them in our fellowship. We believe in church planting. We believe in the principle of sending the best that we have. And it is a central mission of the church. If we are going to multiply, if we're going to see in our last days, I believe God is positioning us for the revival that the Bible predicts in the last days. How many believe that? That there is, before Jesus returns, there will be a revival.
  
  There will be a great pouring out of the Spirit of God onto the earth. And that is going to result in many people getting saved. We've been seeing it in waves throughout the last hundred years. But I believe this is all a leading up to something even greater, a worldwide, a global, a cultural-wide revival in which God begins to save people on massive scales. And if that happens, God is going to need a church to be in place in local communities where new believers are able to receive the revival that God pours out and be able to do the will of God. It's the Holy Spirit who separated Barnabas and Saul. Now think of everything. This is only the beginning of Saul's ministry. But if we focus in on Saul for a moment, just think about all the things that Saul went on to do. All of the churches he went on to pioneer. He went on to do. He went on to do. He went on to do. He went on to do. He went on to pioneer. All of the places he went on to preach. All of the names of the books we have in the New Testament. Corinthians, Ephesians, Galatians, Romans. All of these are the names of cities where Paul would go to preach the gospel. And as he preached, people got saved. And those people gathered together and formed a church. Thessalonica. It goes on and on. Ephesus. These are all cities where Paul would go. And all of this, listen, occurred after the Holy Spirit spoke to him.
  
  So here's the question I want you to think about. What if the church did not obey the call to send? What if the pastor got in the way of what the Holy Spirit... You say, does that ever happen? It happens. Sometimes the pastor can be the greatest hindrance in the church. I pray it's not me. But I want to tell you, the pastor of the church in Antioch could have been very upset about this. I don't want to send Saul. I don't want to send Barnabas. They're the best men I have. But if they didn't obey, I wonder what could have happened in Ephesus, in Corinth, in Thessalonica, in all of these places where Paul went to go preach. All of these letters. Not only would those churches have been affected, but we would probably not have all the same letters in the New Testament. It's because the church obeyed that the will of God began to unfold in that first church generation.
  
  I want to tell you, this is true in the story that we read in Acts. It's true in my life. It was as I surrendered my heart, as my wife and I began to pray, and fast, and lay hold of God, and seek His direction, that we responded to the calls that were set before us. I never had a plan to go to Virginia Beach. I never had a plan to become a missionary. I never even had a plan to be a pastor. That was not in my thinking. But it was the Holy Spirit that led us, and guided us, and brought us to where we are today. Can the Holy Spirit speak to you?
  
  In Genesis, the father of our faith, Abram, it says these words about him, that God called him to a land where he did not know where he was going. Abraham, you go down to Canaan. God led and directed his life. In Acts 16, Paul had a vision. He had a plan to go into Asia, but the Holy Spirit gave him a vision. A man from Macedonia, saying, come and help us. Paul had a plan to go one direction. The Holy Spirit said, I want you to go the other direction. And the Bible says that immediately, in Acts 16, that they made adjustments to their plan. Can the Holy Spirit make adjustments to your plan?
  
  We must prioritize seeking the will of God through the same means that the early church did, worship through fasting and prayer. Are you a person of worship? Do you fast for His direction? Do you pray, Lord, show me the way for my life? And then it's not enough just to know the way, it is about obedience. Church planting is God's idea, not man's idea. And there will be time. We are in a fellowship where we are going to be in a fellowship where we are going to be in a fellowship where we believe in church planting. 4,000, I want you to think about that milestone. On that, we're seeing an image now that we have just launched the 4,000th church from our fellowship. That means 4,000 times pastors have said to someone in their congregation, a family, a couple, the Holy Spirit has said, separate unto me. And 4,000 times that call has been answered.
  
  Has it done perfectly? Not every time. But I want to tell you that spirit of obedience is something, it is a thriving, beating heart of our fellowship. And it is something that must be alive in our congregation as well. Do we believe God to plant other churches? My prayer since arriving here in 2010, Lord, if you will give us the resources and if you will give us the personnel, we will send them. But that is more than just the calling of a pastor. It requires God to speak to people. The church must have a vision for this. And you say, Pastor, it's so hard to plant a church. Yes, it is. But that's what we're called to.
  
  In order to plant a church, we must have the people that send and the people that go. Neither one of those is easy. But it is what we're called to as the Holy Spirit leads us. You know, it blows my mind. There are mega churches, and I don't want to call any of them out by name, but there are churches that gather thousands of people together on Sunday mornings. And, you know, I know that God is moving in large churches like that. I know that people are getting saved. I know that there are those who are being discipled. I know that there are those who are being discipled in those congregations. But it's amazing to me that when a large mega church like that announces, we're going to plant another church in another area of our city.
  
  And they make a grand spectacle of a building. They make a grand palace. And they erect from the ground millions and millions of dollars to build a beautiful facility and a campus. As I'm... You know, we use some software for our church, our text messaging software and various things. And often what I'll see in these softwares is a place where you can enter in different campuses. Say, you know, where do you want this message to go? Campus 1, Campus 2, name your campuses. I'm like, can I even call our church a campus? That doesn't sound right. But this is what many churches put their focus in. And so they erect a large building on the other side. They erect a large building on the other side of town and say, we're going to open up this congregation. We're going to make this available for a new area of our city.
  
  And so you're telling me you have a church of 1,000 people, 1,500 people on Sunday morning. You're telling me not one person is able to go and be the pastor over there? And what many churches are doing is they have a screen the same size as the stage. And when the pastor is preaching in one location, they're beaming his image over to the other location. And you have another 500 people watching him from that location. Is that what God has called us to? Is spreading the fame of some person's personality? You're telling me not one other person is qualified to preach in that brand new congregation? Not one family could rise up and take the leadership in that place?
  
  Where much of the church world is getting it wrong is right here. Because we are called to discipleship and church planting just like the early church was. And it's true. We pay a price for this. Our churches tend to be on the smaller side. And you might look around at what we have here this morning. You might look around and say, what's the big deal? Why? Is this even worth doing? And I want to tell you, when you multiply what you see this morning, by 4,000, what Pastor Mitchell was saying, 4,000 Sunday morning services, 4,000 Saturday outreaches, 4,000 disciple-making centers, I want to tell you, that is exponential growth. And that is something worth giving our lives to.
  
  I want to close with this idea that planting churches expands the kingdom of God. Our scripture says, you know, often when couples are planted, when we have our Thursday night and our Friday night church planting services, it is not uncommon to see tears. It's not uncommon for the couples that are going, as they're walking up to the stage to be announced, announced and prayed for, it's not uncommon that you'll see tears streaming down their face. Why? Because they're paying a price. It is also not uncommon when a change is being made, a pastor is moving from one city to another, perhaps that the church that is being left behind, that there will also be tears of church members to say goodbye to their pastor if he's going to be a missionary.
  
  It's very common to pay a price, but I want to tell you it's worth it. Planting the seed is more difficult than eating the seed, but it's worth it over time. Are we as a congregation willing to pay the price? Christ. Church planting ensures that the gospel continues to expand where Christ is not yet known. I believe that the Holy Spirit in these last days, the Holy Spirit still has a plan for the United States of America. God still wants to save Americans. You know, there are places where we do not have fellowship churches. We were just looking on the map yesterday, a couple of days ago. There are still states in America where we do not have churches. There are still cities right here in Virginia. Hey, Virginia Beach, what do we have? We have three churches in Virginia Beach. Now, I'm not saying we're the only church. I'm not saying we're the only thing that God is doing. I understand that, but I want to tell you what we have in our fellowship is a faithful witness to the world around us.
  
  We have a unique calling, winning souls, making disciples, and planting churches. I want to tell you this is something that God is blessing. This is not Pastor Adam's desire. This is not just the passion of Pastor Mitchell and Pastor Campbell. This is something that God is blessing. God is doing it, and it is expanding and growing and making impact. It's God's idea. The church has to support it. We have to gain a vision. We have to hear the Holy Spirit. We have to hear it as He leads us. So, as we close, I want to ask this congregation to pray, to fast. We're praying for couples to rise up. In our fellowship, we send couples. We send families. There's a reason for that. We don't send out individuals. We don't send out single people. We send out families.
  
  So, we're praying for God to raise up couples that can go into the harvest field. We're praying for God to raise up couples that can go into the harvest field, that God would speak to them. We're also praying for the finance and resources. Listen, there's a reason why we don't build million-dollar facilities. There's a reason why we don't get burdened down by tons of debt. We want to stay mobile. There's a reason why we're looking for a church building of a certain size. It's not too big. We don't want to get burdened just by maintaining a facility. Our vision is so much bigger than just a physical building. Our vision is, God, we need the resources to plant churches, to invest, to send them.
  
  So, I want to ask this congregation to join me in prayer and fasting, to give and to go. We need the men, and we need the money. We need the resources. We need the resources, and we need the people. I also want to encourage you to consider giving for church planting efforts. I know we're in the middle of a building project. There's lots of expenses there. And thank God for good buildings, but a building doesn't win anybody to heaven. It's what we do in the building that's more important.
  
  And finally, I want to ask you to consider, Lord, would you lead me? Perhaps, to be one of those who is set apart, and to go as the Holy Spirit leads. In the Old Testament, there's a story, as we close, a story about Elijah and Elisha. It's very instructive, as we consider this. One day, Elijah, we know that he is coming to the end of his ministry. God has spoken to him, and he says, Elijah, I know you're discouraged. He speaks to him in the midst of the cave. You know, there's the fire, there's the wind, the earthquake, and God was not in those things. But then a still, small voice, and he hears the voice of God, and God says, Elijah, I have commissioned you that you are going to raise up another worker.
  
  And so Elijah takes that instruction, and thank God that discouraged workers still have a place in God's kingdom. You found yourself discouraged. You found yourself saying, what's the point? Is my life worth anything? God says, yes, I have a point for you. We can still raise up an Elisha. So Elijah goes, and he, the Bible says he has something called a mantle. In those days, the prophets would wear a garment over their shoulders to mark their position as a prophet. That everyone would look on them and see that God has used them to speak prophecy over people's lives. And so Elijah, as he's following the will of God, he comes to a man named Elisha. Two different people, Elijah, Elisha. I know that can be tricky. But he sees this young man, Elisha, and the Bible says a few things about Elisha, very interesting.
  
  The Bible says that he has 12 yoke of oxen. What does that mean? That means he's a very successful young farmer. Normally, a farmer would only have one or two animals to plow their fields. The fact that he has 12 yoke of oxen, that means for one yoke you have two animals. That means 24 oxen. These things are expensive to maintain and to purchase and to use. He's got not just his farm, he is a successful owner of multiple farms that he is a successful young man. 12 yoke of oxen. And one day, Elijah, he's walking by and he sees this man, Elisha. The Holy Spirit speaks to Elijah and the Bible says he takes the oxen and he takes the oxen and he takes the oxen and he takes the oxen and he takes that mantle, that garment, and he throws it onto the shoulders of Elisha.
  
  And the message is clear that the mantle, the ministry of Elijah is being passed on to Elisha. Now, just think about that. Elisha was not expecting this. He had not followed Elijah up to this point. He had plans and purposes for himself and they were not evil. But one day, the direction of Elisha's life changed because a mantle was put upon him. And when that mantle was received by Elisha, some things changed. Immediately, the Bible says he took the yokes. This is the farming equipment that goes on the back of the oxen. They're made of wood. The Bible says he takes those yokes and he burns them. This would be like selling your local business. He takes the yokes and he burns them. And on the great fire that is produced by the yokes, the Bible says he takes the oxen and he cooks them. And he has a feast. Man, what a barbecue. Why did he do that? Because he understood the calling of my life has now changed.
  
  I'm going in a new direction. And I can't let the distraction of my farming business get in the way of my calling to be a prophet. I see a lot of young men like Elisha having great potential in the world, great potential in business, great potential when it comes to the things of this world. Can God put a mantle on you? That was expensive, what Elisha did. He paid a price, his career, his income. To go and follow Elijah, he paid a high price. I want to tell you as a young man, a young man in my life, I made a decision to follow the call of God even before I understood all that it entailed. I went to my pastor and I said, I want to be a disciple. I believe God has called me. I found a place at the altar where the Lord spoke to me and called me to ministry. I said, pastor, God is calling me to this. What do I have to do next? And I paid a high price. I still pay a price.
  
  But I'm asking you, is there someone here that God is calling? He's putting a mantle on your life. If you run from that, you run from the blessing of God. And I want to challenge this. This congregation, we need the men, we need the money, we need the people, and we need the resources to plant churches. This is the vision God has given us, and this is how we win the world. We don't just broadcast on television and radio and internet advertising and YouTube and TikTok. All of those things may be useful to get out a message, but the way that we build the church is by planting, and that's difficult. Can we choose together to receive that mantle?
  
  Let's bow our heads and close our eyes for just a moment. The Lord is speaking to us. The Lord is calling us to the mission of planting. As we reflect this morning on what the church was doing in the book of Acts and what we are called to do, is it possible you've come here this morning, you're not right with God. You're not right with God. Those who find themselves in church services like this one, and hearing good messages about what God did and what the Holy Spirit did in times past, what He has done in our fellowship, but listen, all of that is meaningless unless you're saved and right with God. And I want to ask you before we close this service, is there someone here, if you died today and stood before the Lord, you're not going to stand before me or any church leader, you're going to stand before Jesus.
  
  He's going to take account of your life, and you'll be judged based on every word and action that you have said and done. On that day, if you step into eternity, will you be right with Him? Will your sins be forgiven? Or will you be found guilty of sin? The Bible says we've all fallen short of God's glory. Nobody deserves heaven. We've all broken His laws. And we all stand in judgment before Him, if we're honest. But I have good news for you. For God so loved the world, He gave His only Son, so whoever would believe on Him would not perish but have everlasting life. The good news is that God loves sinners. He proved it by sending His Son, Jesus, to die for us. And if you're here, you're not sure about the condition of your soul. The first step to knowing God's will for your life is to surrender to Him, to believe that Jesus is who He says He is, Lord of all creation.
  
  You're here today. You're ready to surrender. You're ready to turn your life from sin unto righteousness. Maybe this life has beat you up. Maybe this world has left a foul taste in your mouth, and that's what it does. But I want to tell you, God's plan for your life is good. He has a purpose. He does not create junk. And He is here this morning to rescue and to redeem the lost. If that's you this morning, I want to pray for you. You're here. You're not right with the Lord, but you want to be. Would you do one thing quickly for me today? You lift up your hand. Pastor, pray for me. I need salvation. Thank you, young man. Is there someone else? Right now, God's dealing with you. The Holy Spirit is speaking to you right now. Maybe your heart beating inside your chest. I remember what that feels like. It almost feels embarrassing. But I want to tell you, we're not here to embarrass you. We want to lead you to the Savior who can set you free. If that's you, is there someone else? Quickly. Not right with the Lord, but you want to be. Would you lift up your hand? Don't miss this opportunity. Life is short. Thank you, young man. Someone else. God's speaking to you. You want to respond in faith. Pastor, pray for me. I'm not right with God. I'm not on my way to heaven. Oh, but I want to be. Oh, I believe God has a plan. He made me for His purposes. Would you lift up your hand so I can pray with you? Is there someone else? Quickly. Thank you, young man. Someone else. God's speaking to you. God brought you here for this moment so that you could turn your life. You can become a new creation in Christ. Old things pass away. Everything becomes new. You need that before you leave this place. One last call. Someone else. Right now. God's dealing with you. Would you lift up your hand? Can I pray with you? Let's believe God right now.

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Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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True Disciples: Understanding the Call to Discipleship [Mat 28:18-20]

Understanding the Call to Discipleship

Matthew 28:18-20

Sermon Summary

As we embark on a new year, we are reminded of the importance of discipleship in our Christian journey. The theme for this year, "Decisions Make Disciples," calls us to reflect on the choices we make as followers of Christ. Discipleship is not merely about being busy with church activities; it is about spiritual reproduction and fruitfulness. Just as a mule, despite its strength and hard work, cannot reproduce, we must ensure that our efforts in the church lead to the making of new disciples.

Jesus' Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20 is a call to action for all believers. He has given us all authority to go and make disciples of all nations. This is not a suggestion but a commandment, a testament to His last will for us. Discipleship involves being a follower, a learner, and an imitator of Christ. It requires us to leave behind our old ways and fully commit to following Jesus, just as His first disciples did.

Being a disciple means being a student of Jesus, constantly learning and growing in our faith. It requires humility, recognizing that we do not know everything and that we must continually seek His wisdom and guidance. Moreover, discipleship is about imitation, striving to live like Christ in every aspect of our lives. This is why Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit, to empower us to become more like Him each day.

The church plays a crucial role in discipleship, not by saving souls, but by nurturing and guiding believers to grow in their faith. This involves a commitment to love one another, as Jesus commanded, and to work together in unity for the kingdom of God. Discipleship is a journey of surrender, where we lay down our desires and ambitions to follow Christ wholeheartedly.

As we move forward this year, let us embrace the call to discipleship with renewed vigor and dedication. Let us make decisions that align with God's will and purpose for our lives, knowing that true discipleship comes with a cost but is ultimately worth it because of the price Jesus paid for us.

“Discipleship involves being a follower, a learner, and an imitator of Christ.”

— Pastor Adam

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[33:45] - Announcements and Upcoming Events
[40:32] - Testimonies and Building Updates
[44:46] - Prayer for Comfort and Strength
[46:02] - Introduction to Discipleship
[47:20] - The Importance of Reproduction
[50:12] - The Great Commission
[50:59] - Authority and Purpose
[51:28] - Misconceptions of Church Growth
[53:28] - What is a Disciple?
[55:17] - Following Jesus
[57:36] - Personal Sacrifices
[59:00] - Continuous Learning
[01:02:20] - The Role of Humility
[01:07:13] - The Church's Role in Discipleship
[01:13:15] - The Cost of Discipleship

Key Takeaways

1. Discipleship as Reproduction: Discipleship is about spiritual reproduction and fruitfulness, not just hard work. Like mules, which cannot reproduce, we must ensure our efforts lead to making new disciples. This requires intentionality and focus on spiritual growth and multiplication. [47:20]

2. The Great Commission: Jesus' command to make disciples is a testament to His last will for us. It is a call to action for all believers, emphasizing the importance of discipleship in fulfilling God's purpose. This involves going beyond mere church attendance to actively engaging in the mission of making disciples. [50:12]

3. Being a Follower, Learner, and Imitator: Discipleship involves following Jesus, learning from Him, and imitating His life. It requires humility, recognizing our need for continual growth and transformation. This journey demands leaving behind old ways and fully committing to Christ. [55:17]

4. The Role of the Church: The church plays a vital role in discipleship by nurturing and guiding believers. It is not about saving souls but about helping them grow in faith and become more like Christ. This involves a commitment to love and unity within the body of Christ. [01:07:13]

5. The Cost of Discipleship: True discipleship comes with a cost, requiring us to forsake all for the sake of Christ. It involves surrendering our desires and ambitions to follow Him wholeheartedly. Despite the challenges, the journey is worth it because of the price Jesus paid for us. [01:13:15]

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Bible Reading

• Matthew 28:18-20: 'And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.’

Observation Questions

1. What is the significance of Jesus stating that "all authority has been given to me" in Matthew 28:18? How does this authority relate to the command to make disciples? [50:12]

2. In the sermon, the pastor compares discipleship to the inability of mules to reproduce. What point is being made with this analogy? [46:02]

3. According to the sermon, what are the three key aspects of being a disciple of Jesus? [55:17]

4. How does the pastor describe the role of the church in the process of discipleship? [01:07:13]

Interpretation Questions

1. Why does the pastor emphasize that discipleship is not just about church activities but about spiritual reproduction and fruitfulness? How does this perspective challenge common views of church involvement? [47:20]

2. The sermon mentions that discipleship involves leaving behind old ways. What might this look like in a believer's life today? [55:17]

3. How does the pastor interpret the cost of discipleship, and why is it considered worth it despite the challenges? [01:13:15]

4. What does it mean to "abide" in Jesus' word, and how does this relate to being a true disciple? [01:07:13]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a recent decision you made. How did it align with the call to discipleship as described in the sermon? What might you do differently next time? [44:46]

2. The pastor talks about the importance of humility in discipleship. Identify an area in your life where you struggle with humility. What steps can you take to seek Jesus' wisdom and guidance in this area? [59:52]

3. Consider the analogy of the mule. Are there areas in your spiritual life where you feel busy but not fruitful? How can you shift your focus towards spiritual reproduction? [46:02]

4. The sermon emphasizes the role of the church in nurturing disciples. How can you contribute to this process within your church community? [01:07:13]

5. The pastor mentions the cost of discipleship. What is one specific thing you might need to forsake to follow Jesus more closely? How can you begin to take steps in that direction? [01:13:15]

6. Think about someone in your life who might be open to learning about Jesus. How can you intentionally engage them in a conversation about faith this week? [50:12]

7. The sermon highlights the importance of love and unity within the church. How can you actively promote these values in your interactions with fellow believers? [01:08:41]

• Full Transcript

  So I want to ask you to open up your Bible with me as we look into the Word of God again. We are beginning a new year with a theme called "Decisions Make Disciples." We started our new Sunday school just this morning at 9:45, and each week we're going to be studying a decision that is demanded from those who choose to follow Jesus.
  
  Throughout this next year, it will be a series of decisions that we want to encourage you that the Bible calls us to. This message, I want to set the theme and the thinking of this coming year as we take a turn into discipleship.
  
  You say, why is this so important, Pastor? What is the deal with discipleship? Well, how many here have ever seen a mule? A mule is not a horse. A mule is not a donkey. A mule is a cross between a horse and a donkey, okay?
  
  And mules have great strength. They are hard workers. Mules have done a lot of amazing things on the farm. They can carry supplies. They can plow fields. They can pull wagons. They can transport people. But one thing that's true about mules is that they cannot reproduce.
  
  You cannot have two mules that are not mules make a baby mule. They only come about as a process between mules, between horses and donkeys, rather. And they do not produce more like themselves.
  
  I believe this is an unfortunate consequence of the world that we're living in, specifically many churches in the world today that are full of hard workers, full of people laboring, full of people doing a lot of good things. And we congratulate the workers, the laborers. We thank God for people who put in work. They teach classes. They serve the physical needs. They clean. They cook. We outreach. We do many, many other things.
  
  But let us never become like the mule, unable to reproduce who we are. Discipleship is about reproduction. It's about spiritual fruitfulness. Jesus said, I will build my church. But he also said, go and make disciples. And that is the job that each and every one of us have before us this morning.
  
  I want to focus in a message I've titled "True Disciples." Matthew chapter 28. This familiar text as Jesus sends his church into the Great Commission. Matthew 28, verses 18 through 20. Let's read together.
  
  And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
  
  Let's pray. Lord, we're grateful for the opportunity another year to serve you. I'm praying, God, that you would help us to catch the vision that you have laid before us for discipleship, to make disciples, to teach the nations. And God, we're believing you today. Help us to be fruitful and effective for your kingdom. We give you glory in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, amen.
  
  True disciples. Let's look at this call to make disciples. This is such a critical part of the Christian life. And this is a very strong statement. As you know, last words are important.
  
  We have in our leadership something called a last will and testament. And what that is, is a legal document that will communicate your wishes and your desires upon the day that you die. It's essentially your last words, your last desires.
  
  In the scripture we read, this is a form of Jesus' last words to his disciples before he returns to heaven. These are our marching orders. This is our standing commandment. And that is to go and make disciples.
  
  Now, Jesus starts with a statement. He says, "All authority has been given to me." How much authority is that? All authority. In other words, there is no power that God has that Jesus does not have.
  
  Jesus has been given all authority in his resurrected condition. It seems right to God to put all power into the hands of his son, Jesus. All authority has been given to him. The work of the cross has sealed his position as the king of the universe. His death and his resurrection was enough to be glorified to the place of power and prominence.
  
  Jesus said in Revelation 1:17, "Do not be afraid. I am the first. I am the last. I am he who lives and was dead. And behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of death."
  
  How much power does Jesus have? All power and all authority and all strength. There is no strength that the Father has that Jesus does not have. That's a lot of power. That's a lot of authority.
  
  My question I want you to think about: What does Jesus do with that authority? There's a lot of things that he could do. There's a lot of potential that he has. There's a lot of opportunities.
  
  But there's one thing that Jesus said that he was going to do with this powerful authority. He is not going to go and entertain the nations with great music. He's not going to go and fill buildings with smoke machines and fancy lights.
  
  This is a time when the church has thought that the way to build an audience is to become a place of entertainment. We'll just entertain people better than the world can, and that will draw people in. We'll stir up emotions. We'll make people feel good. We'll give them a little religious scratch for their itch.
  
  It's a generation of mega churches. And if you don't have a hundred people, then it's not going to be a good time. And if you don't have a hundred, it must be a failure.
  
  I want to tell you, Jesus is not interested in the huge crowds. In fact, sometimes Jesus made sure the crowd was smaller when there were those who were following him for the wrong reasons.
  
  Jesus could have used his authority and his power to do many wonderful things, to go build houses and send doctors and win favor and people be open to the gospel. And these are strategies that parachurch organizations have used over time, and none of these things are evil. But these are not the purpose, the point of the church of Jesus Christ.
  
  Jesus' words, his last will and testament, was this: I want you to take my authority that I have received from the Father. I'm giving it to you for one reason, and that is not to preach sermons, not to have big, large cathedrals, not to be popular. The strategy is this: Make disciples.
  
  This is the plan. This is the goal. This is what the church should be doing every day. Our focus is winning souls and making disciples. We can't save anybody. Is that true? Evangelism is us planting seeds. We should be involved in that.
  
  But when those seeds sprout, the church's goal, the church's desire, the church's purpose by the authority of the Lord Jesus is to make disciples. What's your focus this morning? What's your desire? If it is something else, then you've missed the desire of Jesus, his last will and testament.
  
  Acts chapter 6, verse 7 says that the word of God spread. And listen, the number of disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and many of the priests were obedient to the faith. When the word of God spreads, discipleship should soon follow.
  
  So that brings up a very important question then: What is a disciple? What is a disciple? What do you mean? What does the Bible mean when we think about disciples?
  
  So the Jews in the first century that Jesus would be speaking to would have had a much better understanding of what it meant. The Greek word disciple normally means to follow a particular teacher or a religious philosophical school of thinking. It was the task of the disciple to learn, to study, and then pass along the sayings and the teachings of their teacher.
  
  In rabbinic Judaism, a disciple is one who is committed to the interpretations of scripture and the religious tradition given him by his rabbi or his teacher. And through a process of learning, through a process of following, through a process of understanding and revelation, they would set meetings and time for question and answer, instruction, repetition, memorization.
  
  A disciple is one devoted to the teachings of their teacher. Does that make sense, everybody?
  
  So what can we conclude? A true disciple, number one, is a follower. This is the first definition of what it means to be a disciple.
  
  When Jesus came to his first followers, isn't it amazing? We call them followers, right? What were the first words he said? He said, "Follow me."
  
  So our first way that we find to become disciples is to follow. Ten times Jesus commanded his disciples to follow him. Mark chapter 1, as he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."
  
  They immediately left their nets and followed him. When he had gone a little farther from there, he saw James and John, his brother, who were in the boat mending their nets. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with hired servants and went after him.
  
  Again, our theme this year is "Decisions Make Disciples." I want you to see that we all, if we are serious about serving Jesus, the first call is this: follow him. Where is he going? I want to go there too.
  
  His call was for them to follow. And to follow Jesus means we're not following other things. Is that true?
  
  So some of us in this place, we made a decision to marry, right? When I was 19 years old, I married my wife, Taya. Isn't she beautiful over there?
  
  When I made the decision to marry Taya, there were a whole lot of other decisions that came along with that, right? That one decision means I am not pursuing any other women. And I have not been pursuing any other women for the entire time. That was a decision that I made.
  
  I'm following her. I'm following her needs; the needs of our home and our household. As a husband, as a father, that's what I am called to do. I'm not responsible for your house. I'm responsible for my house because I made that decision.
  
  To follow this purpose of my life means that I couldn't follow other things, right? There was a time in my life when I was struggling with the call to preach the gospel, to become a pastor. There was a time that I believed that this was God's will, but I was struggling about whether to do that or not.
  
  In order to follow the calling that was on my life, that means there were other things that I had to give up. There were other dreams and desires and careers that I could not do because I was following the will of God to where God was taking me.
  
  I want to say for every single one of you, the decision to follow Jesus means that there will be something to give up. For Simon and for Andrew, they gave up their nets. For James and John, sons of Zebedee, they left their father. It was very personal. They left their father mending the nets. That means the labor that they were doing now had to be put on somebody else.
  
  Can I ask you, are you following? What have you left behind to follow him? Following means we are leaving behind something.
  
  Some people, we enjoy the religion, we enjoy the songs, we enjoy the fellowship, we enjoy the preaching perhaps, but when it comes time to lay something down for the sake of the gospel, we become unwilling. That's not what disciples do. Disciples are followers.
  
  This is not just a one-time decision. Oh yeah, 10 years ago, 20 years ago, I decided. No, it is an ongoing decision. I am following him, and sometimes he doesn't go where I want him to go. Sometimes I have to subvert my will for his. I have to give up my desires for his. That's what it means to be a follower, a disciple.
  
  Are we actively leaving our nets, our boats, our father, like James and John did, to follow Jesus?
  
  The second thing we learn about the gospel is that they are learners. This is the most basic definition of the word disciple. Someone who is a learner. Maybe a better word is a student.
  
  So a disciple is a follower. A disciple is a student. In other words, he is studying. He is learning. He is gaining information, but more than just information, revelation.
  
  Do you know what you need in order to learn something? Now we're going to talk about the Bible. Do you know what you need in order to learn something? In other words, you need to learn something: humility. You have to understand that you don't know everything.
  
  Have you figured it out yet? In fact, I think the longer I live, the more I figure out how little I know. There are things that we know that we don't know. There are also things that we don't know that we don't know.
  
  And the purpose, the point of this is for all of us to figure out this morning that we still have things to learn from Jesus. Is that true?
  
  Which one of us has figured it all out? Anybody here? Have you reached the pinnacle of achievement of knowing all that there is to know from Jesus? Of course not.
  
  No matter how long you've been saved, either five minutes or five decades, we still need to learn from him. And guess what? Sometimes we need to relearn a few things because we'll learn them and then forget them. And God has to teach us again.
  
  So a disciple has to stay in the position of humility, which says, I am still learning. I am still gaining. I am still trying to understand. I haven't figured it all out.
  
  When we reach that point, when you are the smartest person in the room, say, I've got it. Yeah, I've heard that one before. You reach a point where you cannot learn, and that is not what disciples do.
  
  Matthew 10, verse 24, a disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. When the church begins to critique and criticize the methods and the teachings of Jesus, we are no longer able to learn.
  
  He is still our master. He is still our Savior. He is still our Lord, and he is still our teacher. I want to tell you, we are not only learning from the Word of God, from the pastor, from the sermons, from the teachings, from YouTube. We are learning from Jesus.
  
  That is the mark of a disciple. There would be times when Jesus would set aside simply to teach, to simply begin to unveil revelation to his disciples. They would sit at his feet and listen.
  
  That story of Mary and Martha, where Jesus was at their house in Bethany. And he's teaching, and the wisdom of God is pouring out through him to the disciples. And Mary has chosen to sit at his feet and hear his teaching.
  
  Martha, she's busy with all the household chores. She's cooking and cleaning and being the hostess with the mostess. And there are some of us in here that tend to be more like Martha. If I'm busy, that means I'm doing something for God.
  
  But just because we're busy doesn't mean we're doing God's work, and doesn't mean that we're disciples. Jesus said that Mary has chosen the better part. Mary has chosen to be a disciple, a learner.
  
  Martha, why don't you come leave the dishes? The dishes can be done later. Come sit and hear what I have to say. Can you hear that this morning? The call to continue your journey of learning.
  
  The third thing a disciple is... is an imitator. A disciple is a follower, a learner, and an imitator. It is said that if you want to have success in any field, you should find someone who is already successful and then make yourself like them.
  
  If you get hired at a new job, what you should do is look for the best employee who's doing your job, figure out how they do it, and then make yourself like them. If you get hired at a new job, what you should do is look for the best employee who's doing your job, figure out how they do it, and repeat their success.
  
  Don't try to reinvent the wheel. Don't try to start over from scratch. If you want to be a good chef, maybe you're baking cakes. Well, you should do a search of Virginia Beach and find the best cake shop in Virginia Beach and go observe.
  
  Say, I'm not here to take anything from you. I just want to see what has made you successful. How do you do this? I want to observe. I want to see what has made you successful.
  
  Now, I would say it again and try to make yourself like them to fail with you really. Volunteer my time. Young people, it's a great opportunity. You want to learn how to do a certain job. You look up on Google, Virginia Beach, and find the top-rated place that is doing what you want to do. Go offer to be a volunteer and see what it is that makes those people successful.
  
  As you do that, you will learn what they do, and so you will learn how to be successful yourself if you imitate. Too often, the church is trying to recreate the methods, trying to supplant what Jesus taught us.
  
  Disciples are not just called to learn and to follow, but to be like Him. Is that true? Again, Luke 6:40, a disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.
  
  Jesus is encouraging us to be like Him. Isn't that the definition of what it means to be a Christian? It means to be like Christ, to live the way He lived, to speak the way He spoke, to think the way He thought, to treat people the way He treated people, to love what He loved and hate what He hated.
  
  This is the definition of what it means to be a Christian. This is why Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit, by the way, because in our own strength and in our own ability, we cannot do this.
  
  But by the power of His Spirit, He enables us each and every day to become more and more like Him. That is discipleship. Discipleship is a work of the church.
  
  We saw this in the movie last night. Thank God that He saves us. Thank God He sets us free. There are things that only God can do. We're not trying to take that place. The church cannot save people. The church cannot reform the heart, the inner man.
  
  But what are we called to do? When the Bible said, when Jesus says to us, "You go and make disciples," what does that mean? It means that we, as the church, we have a part to play in the discipleship of others.
  
  We have a part to play. We have a part to play in the discipleship of others. When it comes to submitting and surrendering our lives to others around us, together we are seeking with one accord to do the will of God.
  
  And this is all in a work of love. This is not a power play. This is not politics. This is not one person having authority over another. This is servanthood.
  
  I, as a pastor, my job is to equip you to do what God has called you to do, to reproduce. I don't just want a bunch of busy robots doing church business. I want disciples of Jesus, and I want my life to be a blessing to you in that way.
  
  Jesus taught in John chapter 8. He said, "If you abide," John 8:30, "If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed." It's a whole interesting thought here that we don't have time for, but the word abide means to rest in or to make your home in.

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Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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The Need for Warriors: Training disciples for Kingdom rescue [Genesis 14:14-16]

The Need for Warriors:

Training disciples for Kingdom rescue

Genesis 14:14-16

Sermon Summary

In service, I preached on discipleship and the call to be and train warriors for God's kingdom. We are reminded of the importance of discipleship, a process that transforms us into the likeness of Christ. Discipleship is not merely about conversion but about growing in relationships and community, becoming more like Jesus daily.

We jumped into the story of Abram from Genesis 14, where Abram mobilized 318 trained men to rescue his nephew Lot. This narrative serves as a powerful metaphor for our spiritual journey. Just as Abram trained warriors in his household, we are called to be trained in spiritual warfare, equipped to fight the battles of faith. The Christian life is not a passive one; it requires active engagement, training, and readiness to wage the good warfare against spiritual forces. We are reminded that our battles are not against flesh and blood but against spiritual powers, and we must be prepared to fight with the weapons of faith, prayer, and the Word of God.

The call to discipleship is a call to action. It is about being trained and training others, creating a culture of discipleship within our church. This involves making intentional decisions to follow Jesus, to learn from Him, and to teach others. As we look forward to the coming year, we are challenged to embrace this theme of "Decisions Make Disciples," committing ourselves to be both learners and teachers in the faith. We are encouraged to cultivate relationships that foster growth and accountability, ensuring that our church is where new believers can thrive and mature in their walk with God.

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[45:05] - God's Provision and Partnership
[46:07] - New Building Opportunity
[49:02] - Call to Discipleship
[50:44] - Theme for 2025: Decisions Make Disciples
[52:09] - Spiritual Warfare
[53:32] - Victory in Christ
[54:30] - The Need for Warriors
[57:06] - Holy Ghost Confidence
[58:04] - Embracing the Battle
[59:12] - Lot's Captivity and Our Compassion
[01:01:14] - Abram's Response
[01:06:21] - Training Warriors
[01:13:05] - Training in the Local Church
[01:19:41] - The Power of Relationships
[01:23:30] - Spirit of Discipleship
[01:28:38] - Call to Prayer and Commitment

Key Takeaways

1. God's Provision and Partnership: The new building opportunity is a divine provision, emphasizing the importance of partnerships in expanding God's kingdom. This partnership is not just about physical space but about fulfilling God's vision for our congregation. [45:05]

2. The Call to Discipleship: Discipleship is a lifelong journey of becoming more like Jesus. It involves intentional decisions and relationships within the community of faith. We are called to be more than converts; we are called to be disciples who make disciples. [50:44]

3. Spiritual Warfare: The Christian life is a battle against spiritual forces. We must be trained and ready to fight with the weapons of faith, prayer, and the Word of God. Victory is not automatic; it requires active engagement and readiness. [53:32]

4. Training in the Local Church: Just as Abram trained warriors in his household, we are called to train and be trained within the local church. This training is essential for spiritual growth and for equipping believers to fulfill their God-given purpose. [01:13:05]

5. The Power of Relationships: Discipleship and spiritual growth occur within the context of relationships. We need mentors, peers, and those we can mentor. These relationships are vital for accountability, encouragement, and growth in the faith. [01:19:41]

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Bible Reading

• Gen 14:14-16 NKJV - 14 Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained [servants] who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 He divided his forces against them by night, and he and his servants attacked them and pursued them as far as Hobah, which [is] north of Damascus. 16 So he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the people.

• 1Ti 1:18 NKJV - 18 This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,

  Mat 11:12 NKJV - 12 "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

Observation Questions

1. In Genesis 14:14-16, what actions did Abram take when he learned about Lot's capture, and what was the outcome of his actions?

2. According to 1 Timothy 1:18, what charge does Paul give to Timothy, and how does it relate to the concept of spiritual warfare?

3. How does Matthew 11:12 describe the nature of the kingdom of heaven, and what does this imply about the attitude of its followers?

Interpretation Questions

1. What does Abram's mobilization of 318 trained men suggest about the importance of preparation and readiness in spiritual battles? [01:06:21]

2. How does the concept of "decisions make disciples" challenge the traditional view of discipleship as merely a passive process? [50:44]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that spiritual warfare is an active and ongoing process for believers? [53:32]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when you felt unprepared for a spiritual challenge. What steps can you take to be better equipped for future spiritual battles? [01:06:21]

2. The sermon emphasizes the importance of relationships in discipleship. Identify one person in your life who could benefit from a mentoring relationship. How can you initiate this connection? [01:19:41]

3. Consider the theme "decisions make disciples." What intentional decisions can you make this week to grow in your faith and help others do the same? [50:44]

4. How can you incorporate the practice of prayer and the study of God's Word into your daily routine to strengthen your spiritual readiness? [53:32]’

5. The sermon highlights the need for a warrior mentality in the Christian life. What specific area of your life requires a more proactive and courageous approach? [54:30]

6. Reflect on the partnerships in your life that help expand God's kingdom. How can you strengthen these partnerships or form new ones? [45:05]

7. How can you create a culture of discipleship within your local church or community, and what role can you play in this process? [01:13:05]

• Full Transcript

  Amen. This church is a living house of God, living stones. Each one of us is part of the family of God, a member in the body of Christ. And we are grateful for each and every one of you tonight.
  
  There was one more QR code that I wanted to show this evening, and that is to join our new Bible plan. As you know, for the past few years, we've been having a yearly Bible program that we've been going through in the Bible app. And for 2025, we also have a new plan that we're all beginning.
  
  And I want to just give you the link for that if you haven't connected with it already. We have a QR code up there. I think, did you get that, Amanda? Sent it before the service.
  
  Anyways, sometime during the service, a QR code will appear. And if you want to join our Bible plan for the year 2025, we want to encourage you to join us. And another year in the Word of God, we desperately need that. Can you say amen?
  
  Amen. So grateful that we have tools like this available. The Bible app has been a great blessing to me, to keep me on track, reading the Word of God, and staying accountable.
  
  Amen. Let's open up our Bibles. Tonight, we're looking at Genesis chapter 14. I want to look at a story here, a story from the life of Abram.
  
  And there's a little detail in this story that is quite powerful when you begin to consider it. As Saban mentioned, we're starting a new Bible study starting next Sunday, and this is kind of a precursor to that.
  
  It's going to go along with a theme, a theme that I've prayed about, a yearly theme that I would like us as a church to focus on in the next year, 2025, and that is the theme of decisions make disciples. Disciples, and we are a church that believes in winning the lost through evangelism.
  
  A church can win a lot of people, and thank God over the years, God has given us many, many people that have come through our congregation and prayed at the altar. That is a wonderful thing, and that is nothing short of a miracle.
  
  However, God wants us to be more than just new converts. Can you say amen? Amen. The process that begins when we get saved is the process of discipleship, and that is where we are changing from glory to glory into His likeness and image.
  
  Now, you might have been saved for five minutes or for five decades. However long you've been saved, how many know we all are called to become more like Jesus? And that process of becoming more like Jesus is what we call discipleship.
  
  And discipleship is something that is done in the context of relationship, friendships, fellowship, within the context of a community and a church. And I believe that God would put this on our hearts for the next year.
  
  I believe that God has challenged me personally to take a step up in discipleship. And I want to ask you to join me this year to believe God that we make new steps in discipleship as we step forward in God's will.
  
  In the scripture we're about to read, we're going to read about Abram and his servants that are trained in his house. And they are trained to do warfare.
  
  1 Timothy 1:18, Paul charges his son in the faith. He says that you would wage the good warfare. Paul saw Timothy as a warrior in the kingdom of God. He saw him as a fighter. Not fighting against flesh and blood, as it says in Ephesians, but we are fighting against powers and principalities of the air.
  
  There's a spiritual battle, isn't there? Every day you are targeted by hell. We have an enemy, and he wants to kill, steal, and destroy. But we are on the winning side. Can you say amen?
  
  We serve a God who is on His throne. We serve a resurrected Savior. And when we are serving Him, we have access to victory. Victory over the demonic. Victory over the world. Victory over our flesh.
  
  But that does not come without a fight. It does not come automatically. We don't win the victory in this war by default. There have to be some people who are willing to wage the good warfare.
  
  There have to be somebody, men and women alike, old and young, who have the capacity, the ability, and the availability to wage a good warfare. The problem is that many Christians are acting like they are on a spiritual vacation.
  
  There are many who would consider themselves spiritual civilians, not warriors. But the Bible says that when we are saved, we are enlisted into the Lord's army. We should act like it. We should think like warriors. We should think like we are soldiers.
  
  Matthew 11, verse 12, from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. It's a powerful revelation there.
  
  But I want to look at this story from Genesis chapter 14, and I want to stir up some Holy Ghost righteousness in God's people tonight.
  
  Genesis 14, beginning with verse 14, when Abram heard that his nephew Lot had been captured, he mobilized 318 trained men who had been born into his household. Then he pursued Keterleomar's army and led them to the city of Bethlehem.
  
  And he led his army until he caught up with them at Dan. And there he divided his men and attacked during the night. Keterleomar's army fled, but Abram chased them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.
  
  Abram recovered all the goods that had been taken, and he brought back his nephew Lot with his possessions and all the women and other captives.
  
  This message tonight, the need for warriors. Let's pray.
  
  Lord, we come by the precious blood of Jesus. Lord, you saved us. You called us. You set us apart for your glory. Lord, we are called to be servants, to be friends. You've called us to be stone, living stones in your house, members of one body.
  
  God, you've also called us to wage a good warfare, to fight a good fight. I'm praying, God, that you would raise up a holy people in this place willing to fight the battles of your kingdom.
  
  I'm praying, God, that you would raise up women and men with courage and strength to fight and win battles for your kingdom. And we give you glory tonight in Jesus' mighty name. God's people said, amen.
  
  Did you feel it tonight? When Brother Andre said, let's pray, you know what I felt in my spirit? I said, come. I felt a spirit of let's go. Let's do something for God.
  
  And I believe that God would give us a Holy Spirit confidence. I'm not talking about ego. I'm not talking about pride. But what God's people need is a Holy Ghost confidence in who God has called us to be and what God has called us to do.
  
  In this life, we will have battles. You will have battles. You will have financial battles. You will have relationship battles. You will have personality struggles. Yes? Not everybody gets along. That's part of life.
  
  You will have family battles for your family, for your career, for many, many things, for your personality, for your mental stability. We will battle many, many things.
  
  I want to say tonight, it is not evil. It is not unusual for us to have a battle. Some people are surprised that a battle comes to their doorstep. Wait a second. I thought I was following Jesus. I thought all the battles have already been won.
  
  And many times, you can get discouraged just because a battle shows up. But be not discouraged tonight. God never told you. God never told you. God never told us that we would not battle.
  
  He did tell us, though, that He would be with us through the battle. In the scripture that we read tonight, Abram is God's man. God has chosen him and called him to be a friend and a promise receiver from the Lord God.
  
  And in this story, this narrative of Abram's life, there is this occasion when his nephew, Lot, was captured. Now, it's a long, complicated story that I don't want to fully explain. But the bottom line is this: a war breaks out.
  
  And this war is between five kings on one side and four kings on the other side. And they're battling it out for land and territory and possessions, the same reasons why wars have been fought for thousands of years of human history.
  
  This is an earthly battle between earthly kings for earthly gains. Lot is not on one side or another. Neither side is fighting for the kingdom of God, only for self and earthly kingdoms.
  
  And yet, it is during this battle that Lot and his family are dragged into the fight. He is captured. He's in the wrong place at the wrong time.
  
  There's a little lesson that we can learn here before we go forward. Where was Lot living? In Sodom. He had seen the green pastures and the beautiful fields and the opportunities to make a lot of money down there in Sodom.
  
  And he chose his path in a land of wickedness. And who knows if the reason why he got captured in this fight is because he made a bad decision to follow his money instead of following his uncle.
  
  And there's a good lesson for us. Sometimes we find ourselves wrapped up in unnecessary battles because we are pursuing the wrong priorities in life. Hello?
  
  When you find anything other than Jesus at number one, you'll get wrapped up and caught up in battles that you should have nothing to do with.
  
  I find that people get caught up in relationships that they have no business being in because they're not seeking first the kingdom. I find that people sometimes end up at jobs that you have no business working at that job. You have no business going to that place.
  
  And yet there you are because we've made decisions that are outside of seeking first the kingdom.
  
  And so, in parentheses, back to the story. It is during this battle between five earthly kings over here and four earthly kings over there, they're battling it out, and Abram's nephew, his name is Lot, is taken as a casualty of war.
  
  And this is where Abram finds himself. He is a family member to Abram. No doubt, Abram cares about him. Lot had lived in Abram's household. He was family.
  
  Abram, at an old age, did not have his own children. Perhaps, to him, Lot was kind of like a son, someone that he trusted, someone that he cared for, him and his family.
  
  And so there he is. In this story, Lot represents to us a full category of people. There are many people like Lot in our world today.
  
  Many people who are caught up in battles that really they have nothing to do with. There are those who have been captured by mentalities, captured by inherited curses, captured by bad decisions, captured in poverty, captured in failing systems, captured in a failed justice system, captured in so many things to no fault of their own.
  
  And I want you to understand that. Wonder, can you see them? Do we still think about them? Today is our World Evangelism Sunday, the last Sunday of the month. And you know, there are some Lot people groups out there in the world, out there in nations that do not know Jesus.
  
  Jesus came for the captured ones. You remember his proclamation on the day when it was his turn to read the Torah, and they opened up the scroll to the book of Isaiah. And on that day, he proclaimed his mission statement for why did I, why did Jesus come?
  
  And one of those things was to set the captives free. Jesus came to earth because there are a bunch of people who are held captive. Ultimately, we are held captive because of sin.
  
  And if we are on the side of Jesus, if we are on the side of God's kingdom, then our heart also needs to be who is still in captivity that needs freedom.
  
  How many of you remember when you were in captivity? You were in bondage to your sins. It's not so long ago that you forgot. I can still remember how bound I was in my sins, feeling like I was in a prison of my own making.
  
  And even though I was not in a prison cell physically, I was in a prison cell of my mind. Spiritually, I was a captive. Like one of those slaves born during that 400 years of captivity where your great-great-great-great-grandpa was a slave. And you see no hope of getting out.
  
  Listen, there's a lot of people in our world that that is what, that is their daily life. Just like Lot, caught up in a battle that he didn't start and he didn't finish. He wasn't involved in. He's just caught up in the middle of it.
  
  Do we have compassion? Do we have compassion? Do we have compassion for the captives? Do we see them? Do we hear them? Do we pray for them?
  
  There's a story in the New Testament when the apostle Peter finds himself in prison. And this is what the Bible says about this. This is Acts chapter 12, verse 3. When Herod Agrippa saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter.
  
  Taking place during the Passover celebration, he imprisoned him and placed him under the guard of four squads, four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial, but watch.
  
  Verse 5, while Peter was in prison, the church prayed earnestly for him, fervently, round-the-clock prayer. Thank God that there was a church who cared about Peter.
  
  Our guy, he's a Christian. He's a Christian. He's a Christian. He's a Christian. He's a Christian. He's in prison. We've got to pray. We've got to believe. And fervently they prayed.
  
  Do you have a family member who's in prison spiritually? Do you have a family member who is captive by their sins, by their unbelief, by their cynicism, atheism, demonic oppression?
  
  We should continue to pray earnestly for those. Can you say amen? But we should do more than pray.
  
  In our scripture, we're reading about Lot. And Abram has a response. Abram's response was not to sit back on his chair and fold his hands and bow his head and say, Lord, I hope you get Lot out of there.
  
  Lord, I just pray that you would just open up a door. Somehow, Lord, that you would set Lot free. No, the Bible says that Abram was prepared to do something.
  
  And we don't often think of Abram in this light. But this scripture reveals that Abram was a warrior. Not only a warrior, but a trainer of warriors.
  
  Let's look at this scripture, verse 14. He mobilized 318 trained men who had been born into his household. What can we learn from this?
  
  Abram, in addition to being a successful farmer, business person, follower of the voice of God, receiver of the promise, in addition to all those things, Abram also had another notch on his belt, which was he trained men in war.
  
  He had his own personal army, 318 strong. And when the time came... When the time came for them to be deployed, he did not withdraw from the fight. Abram knew when to pull the trigger.
  
  He said, I'm prepared for this. I don't have to just sit and pray. I can do something. He mobilized 318 trained men. What a powerful thing that is.
  
  What a powerful thing the kingdom of God needs is trained warriors. Now, don't get me wrong. I am not talking about taking up M16s this evening. What we need is some men who are trained in John 3:16s. Come on.
  
  We need some people who are trained in the Word of God. Trained in prayer. Trained in discipleship and ministry. Trained in how to lead someone to Jesus and teach them how to live for God.
  
  This is the kind of warriors we are seeking, both men and women. And to do this is not automatic. You know, we have an elite fighting force in the U.S. Navy called the SEALs. Most of you know exactly what that is.
  
  It is a rigorous training. Just to be considered to go to the BUDS program, you have to pass a screening test. Just to be considered. You know what the screening is? I looked it up.
  
  In order to be considered to become a SEAL and go to the BUDS training, you have to perform the following. Are you ready for this? 500-yard swim in 12 minutes, 30 seconds. 50 push-ups in 2 minutes. 50 sit-ups in 2 minutes. 10 consecutive pull-ups in 2 minutes. And a 1.5-mile run in 10 minutes, 30 seconds.
  
  There's probably only a few people in this room who would even come close. That's only the first step, the first test to be a candidate for the BUDS program.
  
  If you are selected and receive a passing score, the attrition rate fluctuates, but at average, only 20% graduate from BUDS. That means 80% fail. 80%. That's hard.
  
  The average candidate spends over a year in formal training courses before being awarded the special training. That's a special warfare operator naval rating.
  
  And if they are selected to be a Navy SEAL, the next thing that happens is, guess what? Even more hard stuff. Eight weeks of naval recruit training. Eight weeks of naval special warfare prep school. 24 weeks of basic underwater demolition. Five weeks of parachute jump school. 26 weeks of SEAL qualification.
  
  Then, if they make it through all of that, only then will they receive the Navy SEAL trident. And after that, is 18 months of pre-deployment before you ever face any action. That's hard.
  
  Why would anyone do this? Because some people are programmed to be warriors. And thank God that there are. Thank God that there are some men who are willing to sacrifice their bodies, their families, their time, their lives, and they're willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the Navy SEALs.
  
  And they're willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the Navy SEALs. And they're willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the Navy SEALs. And they're willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the Navy SEALs.
  
  And they're willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the Navy SEALs. That's what I'm talking about when I'm talking about training.
  
  When the Bible says that Abram had 318 trained men, I want to tell you that training is not automatic, and it is not easy. The word in Hebrew is the word chanik.
  
  And if we translate that word, we get trained, instructed, trained servant, experienced. The root word of that comes from the same word where we get javelin or spear. The idea is an initiation, a dedication.
  
  It's the same word, the root word of Hanukkah, which is the festival of dedication. You know the story there. And so these trained men, they had been initiated, dedicated. They had surrendered their hearts and their lives into the hands of Abram to train as a person of war.
  
  And I want to tell you, this says a lot about Abram. It says that he's a leader, someone who knows how to prepare his house for battle. What does it say?
  
  One more time as we read that scripture. Verse 14, when Abram heard that his nephew Lot had been captured, he mobilized 318 trained men who had been born where? In his household.
  
  So where had they been trained? Under his hands. In other words, Abram did not send these men off to BUDS training. He didn't send them off to another king to learn how to fight somewhere else.
  
  Abram is the one who trained them in his household. This is a powerful principle. He didn't send them to some outside warrior school. He trained them in his own house.
  
  This was a powerful discovery of Pastor Mitchell. And when he began to plant churches, the Prescott Church back in the 1970s, something happened at the time. And still to this day, the expectation is that if you're going to pioneer a church or become a pastor, that we have to send these people off to cemetery. I mean seminary.
  
  And we have to train them how to be pastors. And that has always been the way that things are done in the church world here in America. So Pastor Mitchell has these men that are saved. They're radical for God. They're disciples.
  
  And now they want to respond to the call and become pastors. So he does what everybody does. Send them off to cemetery. I mean seminary.
  
  And when they go to seminary, they come back and they've lost the fire. They've lost the passion. They've lost something. And so Pastor Mitchell determined in his heart, he says, you know, when I read the Bible, I don't see Jesus sending his disciples off to another school.
  
  I don't see Jesus. I don't see the early church sending them off to some Bible training program. I don't see him sending them off to another school. I don't see Jesus sending them to the temple to train under the Pharisees or the Sadducees.
  
  You know what we see in the New Testament? We see Jesus training his men. And we see those men training other men. And that training is occurring in the context of the local church.
  
  And what this did for Pastor Mitchell and what it has done for our fellowship over the last 50 years is it has accelerated the work of God. We are approaching now 4,000 churches around the world. 4,000 churches.
  
  I was just thinking about this the other day. When I came into the church in the year of our Lord, previous century, 1998 is when I got saved. And when I got saved, there was only about 1,400 churches in the fellowship at that time.
  
  So I'm not that old. But in that amount of time, our fellowship has more than doubled. How does that happen? It happens when men of God, women of God will put themselves in a position of being trained in the house of the local church.
  
  That was the secret for Abram. 318 trained in his own household. That is powerful. It's a miracle. And it gives great dignity to the local church.
  
  You know what it means? It means we have enough to train workers and warriors right here. This church has what we need to train men of God and women of God to do the work of God, to be the rescuers and the warriors.
  
  I want to tell you, I'd rather have 300 trained men from our own house than an army of thousands that I don't know. We find this pattern in the Word of God.
  
  We find that the principle of training that in 2 Timothy, where Paul says, Timothy, I want you to take the things that I've shown to you, and I want you to teach those to others who will be able to teach others also.
  
  And right there in that one scripture, we have the four generations of discipleship. So Paul has taught Timothy. Timothy is charged to train other people who are going to then train other people.
  
  And unfortunately, I think that there's a breakdown in the church, and even in our church, when it comes to discipleship. We're not just called to get saved and to heap up on ourselves all kind of intelligence and blessing and revelation, and thank God that God helps us.
  
  But the reason we get saved is not just for us. It's to be trainers. Who are we training to fight for the kingdom of God? Abram trained these men in his own house.
  
  We need trained warriors. We need men who will submit themselves. We need women who will surrender their hearts to the work of training to be warriors.
  
  But I want to tell you something. Those of us who have some experience in the Word of God and in the will of God, you know what else we need? We need warrior trainers. We need trained warriors, and we need warrior trainers.
  
  We need the servants, and we need the leaders. And if we will, if we will submit to this need, I want to tell you, the rescue will be successful.
  
  Verse 16, Abram, listen carefully, Abram recovered all the goods that had been taken. He brought back his nephew Lot with his possessions, all the women, and all the other captives.
  
  This is powerful. There are two times in the Word of God where it identifies Lot not only as nephew, but if you look at that Hebrew word in the original text, the word is not just nephew, it's brother.
  
  He brought back his brother Lot, his close family member. And thank God for that, because you know what? There had been a rift between these two.
  
  They're in this scripture through the ritual rescuing of Lot out of his captivity, there is also the idea that there is a relationship that is restored. That because, thank God, Abram had these trained men in his house, he was able to rescue Lot.
  
  And he not only rescued him from his captivity, but he rescued a relationship. Through this rescue, the relationship of Abram and Lot found healing. Proverbs 17:17, a brother is born for adversity.
  
  Can I tell you, in my life, I have had some brothers that have saved my life spiritually. When I have been going through things, I thank God that I have a network of people that I can call on.
  
  People that I trust. I have a pastor that I trust. Thank God, I've had the same pastor from the first day I got saved. There is power in that.
  
  I can call him. Sometimes if my mind is circling and swerving and in all kinds of chaos and insanity, and I make one phone call, and Pastor Campbell's prayers, our relationship over the years, he is able to bring me back to sanity in about 30 seconds.
  
  Thank God that I have that. Not only that, I have brothers in my life. I have brothers in my life. I have brothers in my life. I have brothers in my life.
  
  In the faith, I have fellow pastors and evangelists and people that I have trust in, and they are able to speak into my life, and I am able to ask them questions.
  
  By the way, that's a mark. That's a mark that you're still learning something. Are you asking questions? People that you trust.
  
  I'm amazed at some people that never have a question. Got it all figured out. I already learned it, Pastor. You know, when I'm around my pastor, you know what I'm constantly trying to do?
  
  I'm constantly trying to think of a question I can ask him, because my pastor has so much wisdom, and I have so much respect for him. His battles over the years, his experiences, that's worth something to me.
  
  Whatever ministry that I have is a direct outflow of my relationship with Pastor Campbell and with other trusted people that are in my life.
  
  We want to see the captives rescued. We want to see an army raised up, but I want to tell you, armies don't happen on their own. They don't happen in isolation.
  
  The army of God relies on relationships. It relies on rank and submission and obedience to commands. All of you who have been in the military, and even if you haven't, you understand the concept that an army cannot function without rank, cannot function without submission and surrender.
  
  Not everybody gets to make the calls, right? Somebody's got to follow the calls. And so it is in the kingdom. God calls some to leadership and some to being followers.
  
  It's okay to be a follower. In fact, the reason that we can become good leaders is when we become good followers. If we will do this, I want to tell you, the same kind of victory that Abram found, rescuing Lot and all of those who were captive, I want to tell you, we want to see spiritual victory, right?
  
  We want to see spiritual captives being rescued and redeemed from the hands of the enemy. But God is not going to rescue lost souls and bring them into a chaotic church.
  
  He's not going to bring new converts into a place that is not conducive for converts to grow. This is why we have to be a family.
  
  I'm so grateful that Brother Philip that I went to lunch with today, he made that statement to me and he said, when I came to your church, I felt like I was home. That was beautiful to me.
  
  It spoke to me that there is a spirit in our congregation, a spirit of family. It's more than just a family. It's more than just church on Sunday, hello?
  
  It's not just religion. It's not just a facade. It's not just putting up a front and putting on a performance. If we're going to have that, it means we're going to have to be willing both to train and to be trained.
  
  Have you already figured it all out? Or is there still room for discipleship in your life? I know there's still room for discipleship in my life. I haven't got it. I haven't figured it out yet. I'm still learning.
  
  Please. Our theme for the next year, decisions make disciples. And I want to encourage you over these next few months as we kind of hone in on what that means, would you join me to begin examining what kind of decisions can you make to be a disciple?
  
  Not just of local authority and leadership within the church, that's important, but ultimately disciples of Jesus. Followers, learners, imitators.
  
  We need warriors. It's not easy, but it's not meant to be. Let's bow our heads. We're going to close our eyes tonight.
  
  I thank you for the opportunity to examine the word of God with you tonight. A powerful story from the life of Abram, 318 trained in his own house. Trained for warfare. Trained for rescue.
  
  I have good news for you. We are on the winning side. We have a commander-in-chief who knows what he's doing. We have a mighty savior, Jehovah Nisi, the Lord who fights for us. The Lord, our banner, who goes before us.
  
  And tonight, before we open this altar for prayer, I'm challenging you to a spirit of discipleship in this coming year. But we cannot embrace discipleship unless first, we find ourselves in a right relationship with God.
  
  And before we contemplate what kind of decisions will lead to discipleship in our lives, I want, I wonder, are you right with God? Are you living for him? Are your sins forgiven?
  
  And before we do other things, tonight I want to give an opportunity for someone who's not saved, not living for God, not sure about the relationship you have with him.
  
  Jesus died so that we can have a relationship with God. And tonight, before we open up this altar for prayer, if you're not right with God, I want to pray with you.
  
  If you're not serving him, you're not living for him, but your sins are before you. You're feeling a weight and a burden on your shoulders of sin and condemnation. Jesus is here to set us free tonight.
  
  He wants to set the captive free. And your captivity to sin can be broken in a moment. He can open prison doors.
  
  If you need that tonight, before we pray, I want to ask you to respond with an uplifted hand. Say, Pastor, I'm not right with the Lord, but I want to be. Is that you? Quickly, you'd slip up your hand.
  
  Unsaved, you're not right with God. Would you respond with an uplifted hand tonight? God's dealing with you. Is there anyone at all?
  
  Say, Pastor, pray for me. I need Jesus. I need his love. I need his mercy. I need his grace. I'm lost. I'm broken. Would you respond in faith right now? Lift up your hand so I can see it.
  
  Amen. Then tonight, as we open up this altar for prayer, a simple message, the need for warriors.
  
  See, most of the church has a civilian mentality. I just want to survive. I just want to be happy. I just want to take my ease and eat, drink, and be merry and be blessed and be filled.
  
  I want to tell you, the kingdom of God is not for the faint of heart. Jesus said, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force.
  
  There is a battle. There's a battle for spiritual dominance. There's a battle for souls. There's a battle for righteousness. There's a battle for discipline in your life, a battle for prayer, a battle for righteousness.
  
  And tonight, we've got to have a warrior mentality. We've got to be willing to train and to be trained.
  
  And if God has spoken to you tonight, I want to open up this altar for prayer. You want to make 2025 a year of discipleship for your life, to be trained and to train others, to seek God's will for your life, to seek out the rescue of those who are captive.
  
  This is how it happens through discipleship. And tonight, as we put our focus in the next year, if you want to join me in that, I want to ask you to come and pray.
  
  God, we desperately need a spirit of discipleship. Would you stand up to your feet with me? We're going to open up this altar for prayer.
  
  God, I want to be a disciple. I want to give myself to discipleship. I want to be trained and to be a trainer.
  
  Lord, I'm asking you, God, fill us, trained warriors, skilled in the art of rescuing the captives. Would you come? Parents, you can train your children, family members, church leaders.
  
  We need people tonight to respond to the call. Let's cry out to the Lord. Let's pray to the Lord for a few moments here. Come on, church, let's lift up our voices.
  
  The spirit of discipleship at work in our lives and in our congregation. Let's believe God tonight. Father, we thank you.
  
  Oh, we're crying out to you, Father. Oh, your spirit and your grace. Raise us up, oh God. Raise us up in your will. Raise us up in your every heart tonight, washing and cleansing, purifying, I pray.
  
  Oh, come on, let's worship the Lord tonight. Lift up your hands.
  
  Oh, when you said, it is finished. It is finished. Death has lost. Death has lost. Now forever I will stand and I will stand and sing hallelujah.
  
  It is finished. Come on, let's give him praise tonight. God, we thank you.
  
  Let me remind you tonight, Jesus said, I will build my church. That's his job. Building of the church is his job. That's what he does.
  
  But Jesus said in the Great Commission, you go and make disciples. He builds his church; we make disciples. And every one of us is called to this.
  
  When you are training your children, that is a form of discipleship in the church. When you are showing someone how to do the work of the kingdom, that is discipleship.
  
  When you are showing someone, helping them to get free from their sin, which so easily besets, to live righteous and holy, that is discipleship. Nobody here is perfect. Nobody here has it all figured out.
  
  But here's what we have to focus in on. I believe what we can make a priority for the coming year is discipleship. You know, Jesus only spent three years with his disciples.
  
  Can you imagine? Three years, and then I'm out of here. I'm going to send you the Holy Spirit, and that's all you need prepared for ministry.
  
  God help us if you only had three years of salvation under your belt. Could you be fruitful in what God has called you to do? That's what we're looking for, church.
  
  And if you say, Pastor, how do you know? How do you know that it works? How do you know that this vision is successful? Because I saw it. I was a part of it.
  
  In my mother church in Chandler, Arizona, it is a discipleship machine. People get saved. Lots of people get saved. But there is an expectation. There is an atmosphere. There's a culture of discipleship.
  
  And I want to see that replicated here in our congregation. And it's going to take all of us. But I believe that God has good things for us.
  
  God has rescue of captives in our future if we will give ourselves to this work. Let's lift up our hands tonight. I want to pray with you.
  
  I want to believe God for a spirit of discipleship. Let's pray together. Say, God in heaven, oh, thank you, Lord, for saving me and setting me free from the captivities of my sins.
  
  I thank you, Lord, for saving me from the captivities of my sins. I thank you that you've set me free to serve you.
  
  And with this salvation, Lord, I want to serve you. I want to do your will. The will of God is righteousness, seeking obedience to please my Father in heaven.
  
  And I thank you for the church, the training ground, that you've given to me with a resource of other people that I can learn from, that I can seek.
  
  Lord, help me to be humble, to be a learner. Lord, that I can continue to learn how to live for you. And God, give me a position to train others in this kingdom.
  
  I give you glory tonight in Jesus' mighty name. Amen. Let's give him praise once again.
  
  Wage the good warfare. That's, I believe, what God is calling us to tonight. Amen.
  
  And I'm so grateful for this congregation. I'm so grateful over the years for the opportunity to minister.
  
  And, you know, I feel like, just like a successful parent, if a parent is successful, they are working themselves out of a job, right?
  
  We are training our children to go away from us. And also, a successful parent, ministry is also training itself out of the job.
  
  You know, I've been leading the worship services here for too long. Can I be honest with you? This is not me whining and complaining.
  
  This is me admitting that I have failed in training up new people to do what I have held on to for too long. And I believe that there's many examples of that, that we can train others to take our place, and the kingdom of God will be blessed, benefited because of that.
  
  Amen. So tonight I want to ask you to pray. Pray for this coming New Year as we put our focus once again on the topic and the priority of discipleship.
  
  And we're going to close in prayer tonight. Thank you for being here. We're going to believe God as we go from this place.
  
  We're going to have a wonderful time Tuesday night for our New Year celebration. Please come back and join us for that.
  
  Again, there is a sign-up sheet. We do need some people to sign up. I know that most everybody's going to be here, but we don't have everybody signed up for a dish that you're going to be bringing for the potluck dinner.
  
  So please take a look at that list. Even if you're not going to perform in the talent show, you can put your name and what you're planning to bring. That would be helpful so we can make a plan.
  
  And then also remember your wrapped gifts that you can bring with you. The celebration is going to be from 7 to 10 p.m. We're going to have a wonderful time.
  
  Lots of good things in store. And we're excited for another coming year that we can serve Jesus. Can you say amen?
  
  Glory to God. We're going to close in prayer tonight. Brother Mason, would you close us off this evening? Amen.

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Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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No Time to Delay: Immediate Obedience Needed [Matthew 1:18-21]

No Time to Delay:

Immediate Obedience Needed [Matthew 1:18-21]

Matthew 1:18-21

Sermon Summary

In this service, we explored the story of Mary and Joseph, focusing on their obedience to God's will despite their challenges and uncertainties. Their story is a powerful reminder that God's will requires our response and trust. Just as Mary and Joseph had to act promptly and without delay, we are called to respond to God's call in our lives with faith and trust. The will of God is not automatic; it requires our active participation and willingness to step out in faith, even when the path is unclear.

We also discussed the importance of trusting God with our lives, futures, and decisions. Trusting God means acknowledging that His ways are higher than ours and that He can direct our paths when we lean not on our own understanding but on His wisdom. This trust is crucial, especially when God calls us to make life-altering decisions or step into new territories of faith and obedience.

As we approach the new year, we are reminded of the importance of discipleship and the call to follow Jesus wholeheartedly. This involves making conscious decisions to leave behind anything that hinders our walk with Him and to embrace the new life He offers. Our spiritual success is measured not by our achievements but by our obedience to God's call.

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[02:55] - Joy to the World
[04:37] - Angels We Have Heard on High
[06:06] - Gloria in Excelsis Deo
[07:39] - Come to Bethlehem
[09:34] - Peace Has Come
[11:10] - All Creation Glorifies
[14:36] - Announcements
[32:12] - The Gift of Jesus
[33:04] - God's Will and Timing
[37:48] - Trusting God's Plan
[41:03] - No Time for Delay
[47:19] - Responding to God's Call
[52:18] - Trust in the Lord
[01:06:16] - The Call to Discipleship
[01:22:05] - God's Provision and Timing
[01:31:17] - Making Room for God's Plan
[01:36:16] - Closing Prayer

Key Takeaways

• The Gift of Jesus: Christmas is a celebration of the greatest gift—Jesus Christ, who came to save us from our sins out of God's mercy and love, not because of our righteousness. This gift is a reminder of God's overwhelming generosity and His nature to give the best gifts. [32:12]

• Obedience to God's Will: The story of Mary and Joseph teaches us the importance of responding promptly to God's call. God's will requires active participation and trust, even when the path is unclear. Delaying our response can hinder the fulfillment of His plans in our lives. [41:03]

• Trusting God: Trusting God means acknowledging His sovereignty and wisdom. We are called to trust Him with our lives, futures, and decisions, knowing that His ways are higher than ours. This trust is essential for navigating life's uncertainties and stepping into God's will. [52:18]

• The Call to Discipleship: Following Jesus requires making conscious decisions to leave behind anything that hinders our walk with Him. Discipleship involves embracing the new life He offers and being willing to step into new territories of faith and obedience. [01:06:16]

• God's Provision and Timing: God's provision is always timely and sufficient for His purposes. Just as He provided for Mary and Joseph, He will provide for us as we step out in faith and obedience. Our spiritual success is measured by our obedience to God's call. [01:22:05]

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Bible Reading

• Matthew 1:18-25 NKJV - 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just [man], and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." 24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

• Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV - 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

• Genesis 12:1-3 NKJV - 1 Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

Observation Questions

1. What was Joseph's initial reaction to Mary's pregnancy, and how did his response change after the angel's visit? [41:03]

2. How does the sermon describe the role of trust in God's plan, especially when making life-altering decisions? [50:40]

3. What examples from the sermon illustrate the importance of timely obedience to God's call? [01:21:20]

4. How does the story of Mary and Joseph highlight the necessity of responding to God's will, even when the path is unclear? [47:19]

Interpretation Questions

1. In what ways does Joseph's obedience to the angel's command reflect the broader theme of trust in God's plan? How might this apply to modern believers? [41:03]

2. How does the sermon suggest that trust in God can impact our decision-making processes, especially in uncertain times? [50:40]

3. What does the sermon imply about the relationship between God's provision and our willingness to step out in faith? [01:22:05]

4. How does the sermon connect the concept of discipleship with making conscious decisions to follow Jesus? What might this look like in a believer's life today? [01:06:16]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when you felt called to make a significant decision. How did you discern whether it was God's will, and what role did trust play in your decision-making process? [50:40]

2. Consider the story of Mary and Joseph. Are there areas in your life where you feel God is calling you to respond promptly? What steps can you take to ensure you don't delay? [41:03]

3. The sermon emphasizes the importance of trust in God's provision. Identify a current situation where you need to trust God more. What practical steps can you take to lean on His understanding rather than your own? [52:18]

4. Discipleship involves leaving behind anything that hinders our walk with Jesus. What is one thing you feel God is asking you to leave behind as you enter the new year? How can you take a step towards this change? [01:06:16]

5. Reflect on the idea that God's will is not automatic and requires our active participation. How can you be more intentional in seeking and responding to God's will in your daily life? [47:19]

6. The sermon mentions the importance of making room for God's plan. Is there an area in your life that is too full for God to work? How can you create space for His purposes? [01:31:17]

7. Think about a decision you are currently facing. How can you apply the principles of trust and obedience from the sermon to this situation? What might be the first step in aligning your decision with God's will? [01:21:20]

• Full Transcript

  Adam Dragoon (00:00.214)

  much. Let's open up our Bibles. Once again, we're going to turn our attention to this most important story at this time of year, Matthew chapter 1.

  And as I've been praying for this service today, I've been asking God to help us.

  The last few Sundays, if you've been here, I've been preaching on the topic of God's will. I preached a couple of Sundays ago about the mystery of knowing God's will. Last week, a message about dreams and visions that lead us into God's will. And I kind of want to continue that theme. This was not purposeful or planned, but just studying the Word of God leading me this direction.

  this morning, and I want to continue with the theme of stepping into God's will for our lives from the story of Mary and Joseph. It's a very powerful, powerful story. And to get your mind moving in the direction I believe the Scripture would have us to go this morning, I want to show you a three-minute video. There is a company you probably know called SpaceX who is innovating.

  in a very powerful way, creating rockets and vehicles which are designed to go into orbit and deliver payload. And ultimately, the vision of SpaceX is to make humanity an interplanetary species, in other words, to put people on Mars. And so they've been doing test flights of their launch vehicle, and this was the most recent one. This is just a three-minute

  Adam Dragoon (01:47.63)

  video that is kind of a summary of that recent launch. Go ahead and play that.

  Adam Dragoon (01:58.958)

  All flight crew members, this is the final go-no-go poll for operations. Raptor 1. Raptor 2. Go. Stage 1. Go. Stage 2. Go. Flight directors go for launch.

  Adam Dragoon (02:16.813)

  have the time.

  Adam Dragoon (02:37.079)

  Vehicles watching downrange.

  Adam Dragoon (02:46.221)

  Thank

  Adam Dragoon (02:50.697)

  Start up. Stage separation. Booster, respect,

  Adam Dragoon (03:01.464)

  Confirming 30 seconds to make that decision.

  10 seconds tail-catch decision. Hot stage, separation confirmed. Flight director is go for booster return. Operator go vote is set true. We are go for catch.

  Adam Dragoon (03:21.759)

  In hot for booster touch.

  Adam Dragoon (03:26.829)

  booster FTS is saved

  Adam Dragoon (03:40.556)

  I can't

  Adam Dragoon (04:32.168)

  Vila has caught the booster. Ship avionics power from trade nominal. Starship has entered the atmosphere. Starship is approaching the peak heating phase of entry. Mantic brake start up.

  Adam Dragoon (05:13.548)

  So how amazing is that? You did not see any computer generated images on that screen. That was all real life. That vehicle that landed on the tower is 200 feet tall. That's like a 20 story building. And it's pretty incredible to think about how much technology and how much has to go right in order to make that happen. And

  I was just thinking about that in the context of this scripture because in order to see what we just saw on that screen, there's about 10,000 things that have to go right. Not only do they all have to go right at the same time, but they have to go right in a particular order. For example, you saw that when the rocket reached the pinnacle of its flight, that there was a separation that occurred, right?

  that the flight vehicle or the payload is separated and the booster rocket falls back to Earth. So what I mean to say is that there is a particular moment that it is right for the separation to happen. You don't want that separation to happen while it's launching, right? Or you can't have a successful landing on the chopsticks is what they call them, if that separation has failed for some reason. And what I mean to

  to show you this morning is not only do 10,000 things have to go right, but they have to go right in order. There's a step one, there's a step two, there's a step three, and who knows what is the list of all the things that have to go right, and they have to go right in order to make all of that possible. There is a parallel in our scripture this morning and in the Christmas story. That there is a timing.

  to the will of God that must occur. Not only are Mary and Joseph going to have to respond to the call of God, not only is Joseph going to have to receive these dreams that we talked about last week, but he is going to have to respond to them and act in a particular moment at a particular time, and he cannot delay. And that's what I want to focus in on this morning is

  Adam Dragoon (07:37.767)

  I believe the people of God that if you're here this morning, it means you've got a heart that is sensitive to God's will. I hope that you're here this morning because you are trying to do God's will. But often the mistake of believers is that we want to do God's will, but we want to do it on our own terms. We want to do it in the way we understand. And because of that, I believe many of God's people, including myself from time to time,

  We tend to delay. We tend to put things off. We tend to write things out of the script that God had there from the beginning. And I want to encourage you this morning with a message I've titled, No Time for Delay. And once again, as we turn to this familiar story, Matthew chapter one, verse 18, now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. After his mother Mary was betrothed,

  to Joseph before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. And Joseph, being her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife.

  that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a son and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Verse 22, so all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, Behold the virgin shall be with child and bear a son they will call his name Immanuel, which is translated God with us.

  Then Joseph, listen, this is the key that I want to focus in on this morning. Joseph being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took to him his wife and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn son. And he called his name Jesus. No time for delay. Let's pray. Father, we come by the blood of Jesus. And once again,

  Adam Dragoon (09:58.078)

  We thank you for your grace and your mercy. We thank you Lord that there is a place in your kingdom for people like us. Lord that you have called us and you have saved us and you have set us apart from this world for your glory and for your purpose. That there is a calling upon every person's life. Individual calling, yes, and indeed a corporate calling together as a body of Christ. I'm praying God that we would realize.

  and we would understand the important part that we have to play as we respond to your Word and your truth. We give you glory this morning in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, Amen. I want to look at God's interventions. There are people in this world who would consider themselves deists. What that means is that God, that there must be a God, that there is some kind of supernatural

  prime mover that people who are not atheists, they are convinced by the natural world that this place had to come from somewhere. That there is a designer. And if we look in the world and we see design, then that means there must be a designer. Just like if you look at a painting, it is logical to conclude that there was a painter. Or if you look at a sculpture,

  It is logical to conclude that that came from a sculptor, someone who sculpted that thing. And it is also logical to conclude that if we find design in creation, if we find magnificent purpose in everything that the cosmos contains, that it makes sense to believe in a designer, that there is a God who put this into motion.

  But how many know there's a large gap between believing that there is a God and then believing that God is involved in the affairs of men on a day-to-day basis. It is possible to be a deist and think that God is somewhere off in the clouds, arms folded, not involved. He started things off, but like a cosmic watchmaker, sent the creation off into existence and has not intervened since then.

  Adam Dragoon (12:19.089)

  It takes a lot of faith to believe that, by the way. When you have seen the life changes of people that I have seen as a pastor, it is hard to believe that God is not involved in this world. I believe in a God who is involved. I believe the Bible reveals a God who intervenes in the affairs of this world. I believe that there is a God who can change the course of your life. That there is a God.

  who can supernaturally intervene in the affairs of men you know this this most recent presidential election there is a there is some things that happened that natural man cannot explain one turn of a head determines the outcome of an entire election in the united states incredible to think about that love him or hate him that there is a there is something about that situation god was involved

  It's like an open miracle that everyone could see. And I believe it's not just the affairs of who is rising up in power and who is being voted in to office. I believe that God gets involved in your life personally, in your marriage, in your family, in the affairs of what you are doing. Every person here, you are unique, just like we all have a unique fingerprint that we can identify.

  Biologically, we also have a unique spiritual identity with God that he creates us all with purpose and with importance with a job to do that was true of Joseph and Mary that's also true about you and if God's will is going to come to pass if this world is going to Step forward if this if if the will of God is going to be done

  on earth as it is in heaven like we pray, that means many times that God has to intervene. I want you to think about this. The will of God is not automatic. Right? The will of God doesn't just happen by default. It doesn't just play out without anyone's input that God waits

  Adam Dragoon (14:46.034)

  for a response. know that God is sovereign. We know that he's in control. And whether people respond to him or not, God's got plans for every purpose. But what I want to say to us here this morning is that there will be unique moments in time in your life when God asks you to step out by faith into something that is perhaps dangerous or uncomfortable or out of your ordinary.

  Mary and for Joseph it is true with both of them God intervened in the course of their life. They were not evil people They were not living in sin. They were not Cursing the name of God. No, they were faithful young people that were living in their time doing their part for their society but in the course of their life God intervened and he needed their response

  Look at first of all Mary's amazing response. You know the story in Luke chapter 1. the angel appears to Mary and he says, do not be afraid Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son. You shall call his name Jesus. What a surprise. Mary is betrothed to a husband. She's probably a very young girl.

  probably 14, 15, 16 years old in that age range. And this would be very surprising to her and to everybody else that the Holy Spirit is going to conceive a child in her womb. This has never been done before and it's never been done since. And yet it was the will of God. And what's amazing to me, she asks one question, how is this gonna be? Can you please explain a little more?

  The angel replies, this will be the work of the Holy Spirit. In verse 38, this is how Mary responds. Behold, the maidservant of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word, and the angel departed from her. This is what God looks for in your life. I believe that God has some surprises in store for you.

  Adam Dragoon (17:08.114)

  How many you lived through a few of God's surprises in your life? You lived through a few unanticipated decisions that you had to make. That God led you to a place that you never expected and could never dream of on your own. And what God is looking for in those moments, He's not looking to explain everything to you. He's not looking to give you the five-point plan, the MO. He's not looking to give you all the mission details.

  All he's looking for is, let it be according to your word unto me. That's what he's looking for in you, and that's what he's looking for in me. These are some life altering decisions. And I just want to say right here,

  You can trust God.

  Thank you, Ms. Teresa. I got one amen. You can trust God. Why? Because God is trustworthy. If we are going to respond to God in these life-altering decisions, in these miracle interventions, these pivot points of life, these moments where it's...

  It can't happen two weeks before. It can't happen two weeks after. The will of God must happen now. And if we are going to make decisions like that, we have to trust Him. We have to trust that He knows what He's doing. Can I ask you this morning, do you trust God? Do you trust Him with your life? Do you trust Him with your future? Do you trust Him with your money?

  Adam Dragoon (18:52.945)

  Do trust Him with your family? Do you trust Him with your career? Do you trust God? You know, this is the same God who created the universe just by speaking. Like, He's also the same God who keeps the entire universe from spinning out of control into chaos. If God can take care of those things,

  If he can hold the universe in its place, I want you to know you can trust him with the decisions of your life. Proverbs 3 verses 5 and 6, trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and listen, here's where it has to do with our scripture this morning, he shall direct your path.

  When you trust God, He is able to direct you. You ever seen those guys if you've been on the airplane a few times? There's guys out there on the tarmac and they've got those orange cones in their hands. What are they doing? They're waving the cones and they're giving direction to the pilot because the pilot, he's only got a short view. He can only see just to his side and in front. He can't see everything that's behind. And so the pilot is leaning on the understanding

  of those that are

  Adam Dragoon (20:24.535)

  And when he is leaning on the understanding of other people, he's able to line that airplane exactly where it's supposed to go. See, this is what happens with many believers when they are leaning on their own understanding and not trusting in God is we end up in a place you were not supposed to be. We end up on a path that was made by our own understanding instead of on

  His understanding. And it's often because we fail to trust Him. We fail to do what Mary did and say, Lord, let it be to me according to your word. If we don't trust Him, we'll end up on a path that is not God's intentions. First Kings chapter 8 verse 56 says, blessed be the Lord who has given rest to His people.

  according to all that he promised. Listen to this. There has not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised through his servant Moses. Can I tell you? We serve a God who has never failed. He has never failed to lead people in the right direction. You say, well, pastor, you don't know what I'm going through. You don't know what's happened in my life.

  you don't know how jacked up my family is or the situation i came from you don't know my money house of the year my money problems are you know god might work for other people but you don't know what i'm going through

  I to tell you, we serve a God who has never broken a promise. He has never failed His word. The only times that we experience failure and loss is when we don't listen to Him, when we do our thing instead of His thing.

  Adam Dragoon (22:19.482)

  I want to just share a couple of stories with you at this point to remind you of how God has been faithful. You remember last year, you're part of this congregation, you remember Pastor Rocky Colona came into our church and did a powerful revival. During that revival, he raised up an offering for a church van. Before that time, we had been, every time we needed a van, we were either borrowing a van from another church or we were renting a van to the tune of $150 a day, which is very expensive.

  And so we prayed, we asked God, God, would you help us to get a van so that we can use it for your kingdom? Pastor Rocky Colona received an offering for that purpose, and the people of God responded. Some of you gave in that offering. What a powerful thing. We raised about $5,000, maybe $6,000 for a van at that time. But you know $6,000 is not, it's a good amount of money.

  But to buy a 15 passenger van for a church, you know, it's not quite all the way there. And so I'm thinking, at the time, I'm thinking maybe this will be a down payment. The church has to go in debt to get a van. Or I'm thinking, okay, maybe we can find, you know, the junkyard special and get a van that's not working and then maybe put some money into repairing it and getting it in working condition.

  Maybe that's what this $6,000 is for. And to be honest with you, there was an amount of time, maybe a month, maybe six weeks, where I was very troubled about this. I didn't know what to do. The way was not clear. And we were praying. Now, it's easy to look back on this situation having known the outcome and thinking, Pastor, why were you so upset? But I want to be honest with you, I was kind of upset. I was kind of just wondering what was going to happen.

  One day I get a phone call. And that phone call was from a brother, David Pintor, that many of you know, former member of our church. He's now going to a different church. And he says, he says, so I heard you're looking for a van. I yeah, we're looking for a van. What's the deal? He says, well, I know a pastor, a guy that I've known since I was in high school. He's a pastor now at a church. They're looking to get rid of a van.

  Adam Dragoon (24:47.074)

  Hey, praise the Lord, that's what we're looking for. So I called this man and you know, he's got not just one van, he's got two church vans that they're not using. They use them maybe once a month. It's not worth all the upkeep to keep these vehicles. And so I go, I do a test drive on the van. It's in good shape, it's got low miles. Like I said, they've only been using it on Sunday mornings to pick people up and drop people off after the service.

  It's got like 105,000 miles to 2005, and I'm thinking, praise God, we've got money to purchase a van like this. And so we do around the block, I drive it, seems like it's in pretty good shape, and then we get back to the church parking lot, I ask the pastor, so what are you thinking for a price? And the man looked at me.

  And he said, we want to gift it to you.

  Adam Dragoon (25:48.836)

  Can I tell you, right in that moment, God was telling me, you were worried about this for six weeks, and I had this van lined up for you the whole time. You need to trust me, Pastor Adam.

  Adam Dragoon (26:08.42)

  and we received that van as a gift we were able to take that money and put it toward repairs and get it in perfect tip-top working condition still working on a paint job though just so you know

  But that van has become an incredible blessing to this congregation. Most of you have ridden in that van on trips to North Carolina, outreaches, various things that we do. What a blessing. I want to tell you, that's just a small example. What are you worried about today? What are the things that are stressing you out?

  What are the things that you are curious, how is this going to work out? Like Joseph and Mary, like man, I'm going to become pregnant. That comes with a whole lot of problems, right? In those moments, we're to have to learn to trust him, that his ways are higher than our ways, that his thoughts are higher than our thoughts.

  Adam Dragoon (27:08.195)

  Secondly, this morning I want to remind you that in these most important moments that responses are necessary. Focusing in once again on Joseph, verse 19, I want to read you two scriptures back to back which are surprising. It's Matthew 1, verse 19, and verse 24 if you're following along. Here's those two verses back to back. Then Joseph, her husband being a just man,

  and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. So just to explain that a little bit, these two people had been betrothed to one another in the Jewish custom. They probably had, since they were children, had an agreement between the two families that when these children come to age, they're gonna marry each other. They would have known each other. They would have been familiar with one another. They would have...

  been preparing already for a future marriage. And now, because she is pregnant, Joseph is a just man. He says, I can't marry someone who is in that condition. That's against my convictions. And so he would have had the right in that time to publicly accuse her and to bring her before the elders. And if she's found guilty of crime, that she could have stood trial.

  and maybe even executed as a result of being found pregnant serious consequences

  But Joseph's not a guy like that. His mind is, we're going to deal with this quietly, but I'm not going to marry you. We're going to just break this off. Obviously, you're not the right girl for me. That's verse 19. Now read verse 24. Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took to him his wife.

  Adam Dragoon (29:10.093)

  Do you see how that is a 180 degree opposite change? That Joseph was walking this way toward breaking the thing off. He had a dream, he woke up from that dream, he did what the Lord commanded, he had to turn around and say, Mary, I was wrong, we're getting married, here's your ring, let's do this thing.

  He had to change his direction in order for the purpose and the plan of God to go forward. I want to tell you there are going to be lots of moments like that in your life when God is going to help you to course correct. Isn't this exactly how we get saved? Is not this the very definition of repentance? This is how we gain entry into the kingdom of God.

  We were all once a stray, lost sheep, and Jesus came to find us. And in that condition, when we were running away from Jesus, we didn't want to live for Him, but He found us, we turned our lives around by faith, and we said, now, Lord, I want to serve you. Isn't that repentance? Repentance means a change of mind. I'm going one way. I realize this way is destroying me.

  So by the grace of God and by the blood of Jesus, I'm able to turn around and go back the other way. Thank God. That's conversion. That's how you gained injury into this kingdom. This is like Saul on the road to Damascus. Think of the incredible miracle of his conversion. The Bible says he's breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. He's going into Damascus to go kill some folks.

  The Lord meets him. He has an encounter with the resurrected Christ. He is knocked off of his horse. And now when he gets up back on his feet, now he's still going to the same city, but his purpose is entirely different. Yes? Now he's going to meet with them. I need prayer from these people. I need them to minister to me. I need someone to help me to learn how to live for this Jesus that appeared to me on the road.

  Adam Dragoon (31:30.452)

  A complete 180 of his life now saw the persecutor becomes Paul the Apostle, church planter and epistle writer. We have two-thirds of the books of our New Testament from that same man who wanted to kill Christians when we first met him in Scripture. What a turnaround.

  We see the example of Jesus when he began to choose his disciples in Matthew chapter 4. Now think about these disciples is that most of them they began as disciples of John, John the Baptist. We know for sure Andrew and Peter they were familiar. They had witnessed the ministry of John the Baptist and were following some of his ways. But then Jesus approaches them in Matthew chapter 4 and he says,

  In verse 19, follow me and I will make you fishers of men. When they approached John about this, they said, John, is it okay for us to go be with Jesus? John said, please, please, he's the one. John was willing for them to turn away from his ministry in order to serve Jesus. Now, John was not doing evil things, but it was God's will for them to make

  transition, right? To step out from under John's ministry and to begin to follow Jesus. That is a decision for discipleship. I want to say, maybe this is little sneak preview, but in our New Year's Eve service, in our celebration on New Year's Eve next week, I'm going to be revealing the theme for our next year. And it's going to be a focus on discipleship.

  I believe God's been dealing with me about focusing in on this decision for discipleship. And I see that reflected in that story. These men were hungry for God. They were following John. But Jesus came and said, follow me. And the Bible says immediately they left their nets and they followed him. They had to make a distinct decision. I can pick one.

  Adam Dragoon (33:49.566)

  or the other. this critical moment, this separation has to take place. The booster has brought them so far, but now it's time to separate off into a new level of ministry following Jesus and learning from him. Can I tell you, every believer here, there's going to be a moment of your life when you realize following Jesus means that you're going to have to cut some things off of your past. Some ways of thinking. Maybe even some people.

  maybe even some lines of work that you're not going to be able to serve God and continue in this. Follow me. And immediately they left their nets. There's nothing wrong with nets. There's nothing sinful about being a fisherman. But in that moment, Jesus is asking them to walk away. That's what discipleship looks like. Discipleship means making conscious decisions to walk away from things that are not God's will.

  will step into a new level of following Jesus. We also see this

  in decisions of destiny, Abraham. We see it at the very first word we hear about Abram in the Bible. It's Genesis 12 verse 1. Now the Lord said to Abram, get out of your country from your family and from your father's house to a land that I will show you. God says, Abram, time to get up and go. Where we going, Lord? I'll tell you when you get there. And by faith Abram had to gather up his house, his family, his flocks,

  and step out going in a direction without knowing the destination. What a powerful story. No wonder later on, this is many years later now after he's received the promise and God speaks to Abram again, now his name has been changed to Abraham. And in Genesis 22 it says that it came to pass that God tested Abraham and said, he said, here I am.

  Adam Dragoon (35:55.125)

  He said, take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on the mountains of which I shall tell you. Now that would be a hard thing to hear from God, wouldn't it? God spoke to Abraham. God didn't speak to Isaac. God didn't speak to Sarah.

  God spoke to Abraham to sacrifice his son on an altar.

  Adam Dragoon (36:26.858)

  God had never asked something like this before. It was a test. We know now it was a test. But to Abraham, it was not a test. It was reality.

  And Abraham had a choice, either to obey or disobey.

  And what I love about this story is that Abraham didn't sit on it. He didn't wait. He didn't consult. He didn't have to pray for six weeks about the will of God. He knew the will of God. It says in the next scripture, verse three, that Abraham rose early. Everybody say the word early.

  he rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey and took two of his men and Isaac his son, split the wood and arose. He made up his mind. I'm not going to wait. I'm not going to delay. There's a reason God spoke to me about this. I don't know what it is, but I'm going to do it.

  Can I ask you, are you able to do that? Make up your mind to do the will of God even when you don't know how it's going to all play out. Make up your mind to be faithful to prayer. Make up your mind to give a tithe and an offering beside. Make up your mind to cut off some unhealthy habits off of your life. But there's going to be a price to pay. Yes, there will be a price to pay. But it's worth it.

  Adam Dragoon (37:58.143)

  Sometimes in ministry, there's a price to pay. We read in Acts chapter 18 about a man named Apollos. The Bible has lots of good things to say about Apollos. Listen carefully. Acts 18, 24, a certain Jew named Apollos, born in Alexandria, an eloquent man, mighty in the scriptures, came into Ephesus. And this man had been instructed in the way of the Lord. Being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord.

  though he only knew the baptism of John. There's a lot of good compliments in there about Apollos, right? He spoke well, he's mighty in scriptures, he's an instructor, he's fervent in spirit, he's teaching according to the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. But then there was a couple of people there, Aquila and Priscilla in the church of Ephesus. And when they heard him, watch this, they took him aside.

  and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

  So, Apollos, who is doing great things for God, but here's this couple from the church in Ephesus that says, hey Apollos, can we take you out to eat for lunch this week after church? Come on, let's go have a good conversation. And they had to explain to Apollos the way of God more accurately. You know what would happen today in our generation if that happened? Pastor Apollos came in and preached a kind of off the wall sermon.

  up past recalls would say who do you think you are trying to correct me

  Adam Dragoon (39:41.097)

  Can't you see the results of my ministry? Can't you see my fervent spirit? That I preach with power of the Holy Ghost.

  Many people in ministry are not able to receive that kind of instruction. But thank God that Apollos did. He had to make a course correction according to the Word of God and he humbled himself and put himself under the ministry of the local congregation. That is powerful. Are you able to do that?

  Adam Dragoon (40:17.545)

  There was also, as we close, an occasion from the apostle Paul. We know that his desire was to go into Asia. But in Acts 16 verse 9, a vision appeared to Paul. The man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, come to Macedonia and help us. had to intervene in the plans of Paul. He says, I want to go this way. But in his dream, God says, I want you to go that

  And the Bible says after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to, say immediately. He didn't wait. He didn't delay. His trust was in the will of God for that moment. I think the mistake that the church often makes is waiting. It's not that we're living in sin. It's not that we're doing evil necessarily, but we delay.

  Adam Dragoon (41:17.638)

  My wife and I were younger. I'll tell you the story of how we ended up as missionaries in Bulgaria.

  We were both 24 years old. We had spent time in our mother church training for the ministry. In our churches, we have a program for ministry. We learn on the job how to serve God's people by doing the job. It's called on the job training, right? You've heard of that before. In our fellowship, we don't send people off to seminary classes because we believe in the dignity of the local church that here within the church is the best training grounds

  for future ministry. That's the way the early church did it. That's the way we do it in our fellowship. And so we had spent, I got saved when I was 17 years old. We got married when we were 19 years old. And I spent the years from 19 to 24 under the leadership of my pastor in the Door Church of Chandler, Arizona, learning how to do ministry, learning how to work with people, learning how to preach, learning how to run an outreach, learning how to do these.

  being corrected. And finally the time came for us to go and to pioneer a new church. And the whole year we were discussing with Pastor Campbell where we're going to go. We finally came to a decision. Pastor, you've been preaching about big cities in America. At the time, on Pastor Campbell's heart was the bigger cities of America where many millions of people live and there were not many churches from our fellowship in those places. One of those cities was Chicago.

  During that year we had gone on a mission strip or on a impact team to Chicago and while we were there God led me and spoke to me and said this is a place where we could really do some good ministry for the Lord, Chicago, Illinois. So with the direction of pastor and with his blessing that's the decision we made. We felt God had led us that way. And so we went to a Bible conference. Some of you have been to a Bible conference and on

  Adam Dragoon (43:17.05)

  Friday night we were announced past Adam and Taya Dragoon going into the city of Chicago, Illinois. Everybody shouts, yay! And we nervously walk up to the stage to get prayed for as they're going to send us into that city. That was in August of 2005. And so the next couple of months, you know what we started doing? We started preparing to go to Chicago. We sold our house, we sold our cars, we sold, we got rid of a bunch of stuff.

  getting ready to get a moving van and fast forward a couple of months. Now it's the month of October. We're almost ready to go. We're attending a revival service in another church. Pastor Campbell is there preaching. It's in Phoenix, Arizona. And before the service begins, it's after the prayer meeting, but before the service begins, pastor comes and he says, can I talk with you for a moment? I said, sure. We walk outside of the building and this was like,

  This was like in ghetto town, central Phoenix, Arizona, with all like gang members and scary and dark. And he, we walk around the church building into a little alleyway. Do you remember this? And it was, it was dark. And it was, we were like, pastor, what's going on here? So we walk around the corner and he says these words. He says, there's an opportunity. There's a need. It's in the nation of Bulgaria.

  He said, do you know where Bulgaria is? I said, I don't even know what a Bulgaria is. Had no idea even what continent it was on.

  We were 24, 25 years old, and Pastor Campbell said, if you're willing to go, then I'm willing to send you and support you. We in the Chandler Church. He said, I need to know by Sunday. That was on a Thursday night. Need to know by Sunday. Turns out that there was a church in Rusea, Bulgaria, a church that had been established. People had already started coming. A building had already been acquired. Equipment was already there.

  Adam Dragoon (45:23.408)

  But the pastor had to come back to the states. And so there's a need for somebody to take this church. That need was passed through the Gravevine. Pastor Suspansky tells Pastor Campbell, you got anybody that can fill this need? And the thing was, it was not that we were this great and mighty, you know, ministry couple. All it was, so we were available. In that moment, we had already sold our stuff. We were available. We were flexible.

  And so as we went home, this is days before Google, we opened an encyclopedia, Children Ask Your Parents, what that is, and we found the letter B.

  Where is this place? And we read about Bulgaria, a nation in Eastern Europe, just came out from under communism.

  And we said yes before we fully understood what we were doing. The next morning I went to Pastor Campbell. I went to prayer. And I prayed it through and I asked God, God is this what you want us to do? And when I went in Pastor Campbell's office my only question was, why would you want us for a huge job like this? We're young, we haven't been pastors before. There's other people definitely more qualified.

  And Pastor Campbell, I'll never forget, he looked at me and he said, it's not about your ability, it's about your availability. If you're willing, I'm willing to send you. Can I tell you, that shaped the course of our lives. That was in 2005. We're coming up on 2025. I can guarantee you I would not be standing here unless I responded to that decision back then.

  Adam Dragoon (47:13.606)

  That led to a ministry for four and a half years in Bulgaria. That led to a time coming back to the states. That led to a time when there was an opening similar here in the Virginia Beach Church in 2010. That led to us having to respond. Will you be able to call? Listen, we didn't come back and wait. We moved directly back from Bulgaria to Virginia Beach, Virginia. And now we've been here for close to 15 years. I'm saying all of that to tell you this.

  we had no idea how it was going to work out.

  But we responded in confidence that God knew what He was doing. As we close, verse 21 of our scripture says, she will bring forth a son, you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Can I tell you, obeying the call of God brings Jesus to the world.

  Adam Dragoon (48:11.878)

  That was a good place for an amen. Obeying the will of God brings Jesus to a lost world. Rick Renner, a pastor, his quote is this, our spiritual success isn't measured by what we do, but rather by our obedience to do exactly what God asks us to do. This story was repeated in the life of Joseph.

  as God gave him dreams in exact moments. Now it's time to get up and go to Egypt.

  And Joseph didn't wake up and go, hmm, let me take a couple of weeks to think about that. This might sound like a good idea, but I'm not sure. If he would have delayed, Jesus could have died because the death warrant went out. He had to move immediately. Same thing after Herod's death there in Egypt. He has another dream. Time to go back. There is a time.

  Adam Dragoon (49:17.167)

  God provided for them. We know that God sent some Magi to go visit the young Jesus. And the Bible says that one of their gifts, you remember what they brought as gifts? They brought gold. How do you think they had the money to travel? These were a couple of peasants. The money to travel and to take care of themselves.

  down in Egypt and then travel back. Well, God provided for them. He brought a gift of gold. And they filled up their money bags and they said, thank you, Mr. Magi. Thank you, Lord. You provided so that I could do your will in your time. And as we close, just listen, I'm confident that God has brought you, perhaps, to a moment where He's calling you out.

  into an unknown, into an adventure, into a place where you're not sure the outcome. 2025 could be a new frontier for you spiritually. Will you respond? Will you say, Lord, I'm going to trust you even though I don't know how it's all going to work out? Can we pray the same prayer like Mary? Let it be to me according to your word. Let's bow our heads and close our eyes for just a moment.

  Adam Dragoon (50:45.125)

  Thank God for His word and thank God for His grace. Thank God that He has not left us to ourselves. With our heads bowed and our eyes closed for just a moment, we're going to bring this service to an end. We're going to pray together. Before we do that, I want to present the greatest opportunity that you've ever had, and that is for your sins to be forgiven.

  Before we close this service, you're going to have the chance to respond to God's call. God's call is that every man will be saved. That no man will be separated from Him forever. We know the will of God, first of all, is for us to be saved. He is not willing that anyone would perish, but that all would come to the life-saving knowledge of the Savior.

  If you're here today, you recognize your desperate need before God. The Bible says we've all sinned. We've all fallen short. We've all broken commandments. We've all hurt people. We've all hurt ourselves. We've all hurt God through our failures and our evil actions.

  But God's not done with you. He loves you and He sent His son Jesus to die for you. That's the miracle that we celebrate at Christmas, the gift of God to people like us who don't deserve it. And if you're here this morning, you say, Pastor, I want to receive that gift. I want to receive salvation by faith in Jesus. It's not automatic. You can't sit there and wait for the Lord to save you automatically.

  There is a response that is necessary. And that response is called faith. Lord, I trust you. And I'm going to turn from my sins. I'm going to believe your word is true. I don't know how it's all going to work out. But Lord, I'm asking you to save me today. And if that's you, that prayer, that desire is on your heart, I wonder, would you signify that? It takes a little courage. But would you lift up your hand right now and say, Pastor, pray for me?

  Adam Dragoon (52:56.0)

  I need this salvation you're talking about. need. I don't need more religion. I don't need another church service. I need Jesus and I need his grace on my life. If that's you, please let us know. We just want to we want to pray with you without anybody looking around for a moment. You respond, Pastor, pray for me. I'm not right with God, but I want to be. Is that you? Quickly slip up your hand. Maybe you are wandering. Maybe you're one of those prodigals.

  You know the Father's house. You've been there. You've lived there. But you've stepped away from the Lord. You've stepped into a far country. You find yourself confused and lost. Prodigal son, prodigal daughter, the Father's not done with you. He waits for you. And if you would respond tonight, make up your mind, as the prodigal son did in that famous parable, he came to himself and he said, maybe my Father would have mercy on me. And I want to tell you,

  The Father had much more than mercy. He had grace. He had blessing. To the one that would respond, is that you? Quickly lift up your hand. I want to pray with you unsaved or backslidden in your heart. Time to come home. Is that you? Let me see your hand. Somebody here, God's speaking to you. Don't miss this opportunity. The timing is important. The reason God is speaking to you now, not yesterday, and maybe not tomorrow, but today, today is the day of salvation.

  Don't wait till tomorrow if God is speaking to you now. Please don't miss this opportunity. You lift up your hand. Is there someone here quickly? With an uplifted hand I want to pray with you. Thank God. And I want to speak to God's people. We're going to open up this altar for prayer. The altar is a place of surrender. The altar is a place where our selfish plans go to die. Can I tell you the decisions that I've made over the years as a pastor?

  Things have had to die at the altar. My own plans, my own ideas, my own ways, my own thinking have had to die. And those things die at an altar. That's why we have an altar. We don't come here to sacrifice animals. We come here to give up on our own ideas. To ask God to make room for His purpose and His plan in our lives.

  Adam Dragoon (55:17.707)

  As we stand together to our feet, we're going to open up this altar for prayer. God's leading you. Maybe there's a decision that needs to be made in your life. God's been dealing with you, showing you His purpose and plan. It is not time to delay. It is time to respond in faith. As we open up this altar for prayer, would you come and join us? We're going to lift up our lives before the Lord. We're going to pray. We're going to lift up our voices. We're going to lift up our hearts. We're going to believe God to speak to us and lead us.

  Would you come and join us here for a few moments of prayer at this altar as we cry out to the Lord. Amen. I want to pray with you this morning. We want to stand up to our feet as we receive God's instruction and plan for our life. Right where you are, would you stand to your feet? Take your time to pray if you need to at this altar. if you could pray with us this evening, we're going to, or this morning, we want to believe God together. I just want to remind you.

  In this film we're going to watch on Wednesday, it depicts that moment that Mary and Joseph come into Bethlehem and you know that they couldn't find room at an inn.

  Adam Dragoon (56:29.753)

  The Son of God is arriving on earth, but there's no room to receive him.

  And there's a powerful lesson there that the will of God, the purpose of God wants to be born in your life. God wants to birth something new in your life. Is there room? Is there room for the plan of God in your life? Is there room for revelation? Or are you at a place, Lord, I don't need you to speak, I got things worked out. Listen, this inn is full. Sorry, keep moving.

  Adam Dragoon (57:09.048)

  I want to pray because we serve a God who fills empty vessels. Right? The miracle that Elijah did was he said, bring as many water pots as you can and as many as you can find, God will fill them all up. And when the water pot stopped, so did the miracle. The idea here this morning is that many people, God cannot pour His purpose into your life because it's already full.

  You've already got too much going on. You've already got your will. You've already got your dream. You've already got your plan. There's no room at the end. Let's open up some space for God. Can you say amen? He is worthy. His plans are better than our plans. His ways are higher than our ways. His thoughts. Let's lift up our hands together as a sign of surrender and say this prayer. Say, God in heaven, I thank you.

  for sending Jesus to be my Savior. I repent of leaning on my own understanding and not trusting in You. Remind me today that You are trustworthy. I can trust You with my life, with my family, with my future. You know what You're doing, Lord.

  And even when I don't understand, even when I can't see how it's going to work out.

  I'm asking you to help me trust you. I believe, but help my unbelief. And this morning, I put my life in your hands. Let it be to me according to your word. Don't let me delay. Let me respond with confidence in you. And I thank you for the blood of Jesus.

  Adam Dragoon (59:17.003)

  that washes me clean. It's in His name we pray. Amen. Come on, let's give the Lord praise that He deserves.

---

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Written with Love by Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Divine Guidance: Dreams and Visions Explained [Matthew 1:18-21]

Divine Guidance: Dreams and Visions Explained

Matthew 1:18-21

Sermon Summary

This Sunday, we examined the pivotal role that dreams and visions play in the biblical narrative and how they remain relevant in our lives today. We reviewed the Christmas story, highlighting how dreams were pivotal in guiding Joseph and others in the Nativity Story. Joseph's dreams were crucial in protecting Jesus and fulfilling God's plan, demonstrating the importance of being receptive to divine guidance through dreams.

Throughout the Bible, dreams and visions have been instrumental in revealing God's will, from Abraham's covenant to Joseph's dreams in Genesis and Daniel's interpretations to the visions of the Apostle John in Revelation. These instances underscore the significance of dreams as a means for God to communicate with His people, especially when other avenues are unavailable.

In the New Testament, dreams and visions continue to play a vital role, as seen in the lives of figures like Saul of Tarsus and Cornelius. The early church experienced a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit, marked by dreams and visions, as prophesied by Joel and affirmed by Peter on the day of Pentecost.

However, it's essential to approach dreams with discernment. Not every dream is from God, and we must weigh them against the truth of Scripture. While dreams can be subjective, they can also be a powerful tool for divine guidance when aligned with God's Word.

In our lives today, God may still use dreams and visions to guide us, especially when His Word is not readily available. We must remain open to His leading, ensuring we do not ignore or dismiss the dreams He gives us. As we seek God's will, let us be faithful to the revelations we have received and trust Him to guide us to His purposes.

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Watch/Listen

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Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[44:15] - Offering and Building Fund
[45:52] - Story of the Persian Migrant
[48:24] - Dreams in the Christmas Story
[51:52] - Joseph's Dreams
[53:32] - Wise Men's Dream
[55:44] - Joseph's Role in the Nativity
[57:46] - Biblical Examples of Dreams
[01:01:45] - New Testament Visions
[01:03:23] - Pentecostal Blessing of Dreams
[01:08:47] - Discernment in Dreams
[01:12:39] - Warnings Against False Dreams
[01:15:09] - Modern Examples of Dreams
[01:18:44] - Responding to God's Dreams
[01:20:44] - Invitation to Salvation
[01:23:42] - Altar Call and Prayer
[01:24:48] - Closing Prayer and Encouragement

Key Takeaways

• The Role of Dreams in the Christmas Story: Dreams were crucial in guiding Joseph and others in the nativity narrative, demonstrating the importance of being receptive to divine guidance. Joseph's obedience to his dreams protected Jesus and fulfilled God's plan. [48:24]

• Biblical Precedent for Dreams and Visions: Throughout the Bible, dreams and visions have been instrumental in revealing God's will, from Abraham's covenant to the visions of the Apostle John. These instances underscore the significance of dreams as a means for God to communicate with His people. [57:46]

• New Testament Examples: In the New Testament, dreams and visions continue to play a vital role, as seen in the lives of figures like Saul of Tarsus and Cornelius. The early church experienced a powerful outpouring of the Holy Spirit, marked by dreams and visions. [01:03:23]

• Discernment in Dreams: Not every dream is from God, and we must weigh them against the truth of Scripture. While dreams can be subjective, they can also be a powerful tool for divine guidance when aligned with God's Word. [01:12:39]

• Openness to Divine Guidance: In our lives today, God may still use dreams and visions to guide us, especially in situations where His Word is not readily available. We must remain open to His leading, ensuring that we do not ignore or dismiss the dreams He gives us. [01:18:44]

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Bible Reading

• Mat 1:18-25 NKJV - 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just [man], and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." 24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

• Gen 37:5-11 NKJV - 5 Now Joseph had a dream, and he told [it] to his brothers; and they hated him even more. 6 So he said to them, "Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: 7 "There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf." 8 And his brothers said to him, "Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?" So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. 9 Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, "Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me." 10 So he told [it] to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What [is] this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?" 11 And his brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter [in mind].

• Act 2:17-18 NKJV - 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.

Observation Questions

1. In the Christmas story, how did Joseph respond to the dreams he received, and what were the consequences of his actions? [48:24]

2. What role did dreams play in the lives of biblical figures like Joseph in Genesis and Daniel? How did these dreams impact their lives and the lives of others? [57:46]

3. How did the early church experience the outpouring of the Holy Spirit through dreams and visions, as prophesied by Joel and affirmed by Peter? [01:04:51]

4. What warnings does the Bible give about false dreams and visions, and how should believers discern the truth? [01:12:39]

Interpretation Questions

1. Why might God choose to communicate through dreams and visions, especially in situations where His Word is not readily available? [01:10:20]

2. How can believers discern whether a dream is from God or just a product of their subconscious mind? What role does Scripture play in this discernment process? [01:08:47]

3. In what ways did Joseph's obedience to his dreams protect Jesus and fulfill God's plan? How does this illustrate the importance of being receptive to divine guidance? [51:52]

4. How does the prophecy from Joel about dreams and visions in the last days challenge or encourage believers today? [01:04:51]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when you felt God was speaking to you through a dream or vision. How did you respond, and what was the outcome? [01:18:44]

2. How can you ensure that you are open to divine guidance in your life, especially when it comes in unexpected forms like dreams or visions? [01:19:39]

3. What steps can you take to weigh your dreams against the truth of Scripture to discern if they are from God? [01:12:39]

4. In what ways can you cultivate a heart that is receptive to God's leading, even when it challenges your current plans or comfort zone? [01:16:51]

5. How can you support others in your community who may be experiencing dreams or visions from God, ensuring they feel encouraged and guided in their spiritual journey? [01:15:09]

6. Consider the role of dreams and visions in the early church. How can your small group or church community create an environment that is open to the Holy Spirit's leading in similar ways? [01:03:23]

7. Identify a specific area in your life where you feel God might be leading you through a dream or vision. What practical steps can you take this week to explore and act on this guidance? [01:18:44]

• Full Transcript

  Matthew chapter 1. And again, the pastor's challenge with the Christmas season every year is to mine the depths of the Word of God and to bring forth some truth from the Christmas story.
  
  I'm grateful this morning that the Word of God is an unsearchable resource of truth and righteousness and wisdom and understanding.
  
  And every time we turn our attention to it, we find incredible resources and things that we need from God.
  
  So if you join me together, Matthew chapter 1, turning back to the Christmas story.
  
  I want to tell you, first of all, a story of a Persian migrant.
  
  This story is told by a pastor.
  
  And he speaks about this Persian migrant who came to a refugee center at 6 a.m. one day, visibly shaken and upset.
  
  He told this story to the pastor. He said, during the night, I saw someone dressed in white raise up his hand and say to me, "Stand up and follow me."
  
  The Persian man said, "Who are you?"
  
  The man in white clothing replied, "I am the Alpha and the Omega. I'm the way to heaven. No one can go to the Father except through me."
  
  Now this Persian man, of course, being of Islamic background, had never heard those words before, was not familiar with the Scripture.
  
  And he began to ask this Persian pastor, "Who is this man? What am I going to do? Why did he ask me to follow? How shall I go? Please tell me what this means."
  
  In response, the pastor held out his Bible and asked, "Have you ever read this book before?"
  
  He said, "No, I've never read this book. Do you know what it is?"
  
  He said, "No."
  
  The pastor then opened the Scripture to the book of Revelation and showed him the Scripture where it said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end."
  
  The man instantly began to cry and said, "How can I accept him? How can I follow him?"
  
  The pastor led him in prayer. Peace came over his life.
  
  The pastor gave that man a Bible, told him to hide it because Muslims in the camps could cause him trouble.
  
  The man replied, "This Jesus that I met today, he's more powerful than the Muslims in the camp."
  
  In one hour, the man returned with ten more of his friends and told the pastor, "All of these people want a Bible too."
  
  No one had trained him how to be an evangelist.
  
  And yet there he was, bringing people to Jesus because he had had a powerful vision of the resurrected Savior.
  
  I want to preach this morning a message about dreams and visions and a message titled, "When Dreams Are Necessary."
  
  Because when I approached the Christmas story, once again, the story of Mary and Joseph and how Jesus was born into this situation, the wise men, all of the things that we celebrate during this time of year, I was struck at how often in the Christmas narrative are the occasions, the appearances of dreams and visions and why it was necessary for men and for women to follow the dreams and the visions that God gave to them.
  
  And I want to preach a message titled, "When Dreams Are Necessary."
  
  Let's begin in Matthew 1, verse 18.
  
  The Bible says these words: "Behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.'"
  
  Let's pray.
  
  Father, we come by the precious blood of Jesus, and as your word is spoken over our lives, God, that we be able to hear.
  
  Lord, I believe that there are people here who have received dreams and visions of your will for their life, God, your purpose of decisions that must be made.
  
  And I'm praying, God, that we would not just throw these things away, but God, that we would consider your will and your purpose as it is revealed, even through dreams and through visions.
  
  I'm praying, God, give us wisdom and discernment in these things, and we give you glory in Jesus' mighty name.
  
  God's people would say, amen.
  
  When God speaks through dreams.
  
  And let's look, first of all, at the role of dreams and visions in the Bible.
  
  We certainly cannot ignore the very pivotal and important role that dreams played, especially in this Christmas story.
  
  It's very difficult for us to overstate how important it was that these men, especially Joseph, would listen and obey the dreams that they received.
  
  No fewer than five absolutely critical dreams are recorded by the Holy Spirit in the Word of God.
  
  And I want you to think about these dreams.
  
  There are five of them that are recorded for us.
  
  And as I remind you of each one of these dreams, I want you to think about two things.
  
  Number one, what if these dreams were ignored or excused?
  
  Number two, I want you to think, what if these dreams were not taken seriously enough to make an impact in their waking life?
  
  These are very crucial and critical.
  
  First of all, we read about Joseph in our scripture that we read.
  
  The message that Joseph received in a dream was this: "Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. Do not put her away, but you take her to yourself, and you protect her, you watch over her, because that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit."
  
  What if Joseph said to himself, "I had some bad pizza last night? That's a crazy dream. Going to ignore that one."
  
  He would have missed his role and purpose as protector and provider to Mary.
  
  Also, in the Christmas story, we read a second important dream in Matthew 2, verse 12.
  
  This is a dream that the wise men had.
  
  When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
  
  So we have these wise men recorded.
  
  We don't know whether it was only one who dreamed or all three who had a dream at the same time, but they were divinely warned by God not to return to King Herod.
  
  God was keeping them.
  
  What if they had just thrown that away?
  
  What if they had just thrown it in their back pocket?
  
  What if they had just thrown it in their back pocket and said, "Well, don't pay attention?"
  
  No, they did pay attention, and it was for their good.
  
  We also read about Joseph who had a second dream in Matthew chapter two, verse 13.
  
  After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.
  
  "Get up and flee to Egypt with the child and his mother," the angel said.
  
  "Stay there till I tell you to return because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."
  
  Now this was a message from God given to Joseph in his second dream.
  
  And the outcome of this dream is that God is going to protect Jesus from death.
  
  Like, that's pretty important.
  
  And as I mentioned in one of my previous messages, there is a whole generation of baby boys that were killed by King Herod.
  
  Jesus is the only one of his particular age in all of Israel, in all of Judea, because God divinely warned Joseph in a dream to flee down to Egypt.
  
  The third dream that Joseph had is also in Matthew 2, verse 19.
  
  When Herod finally died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph.
  
  "Get up," the angel said.
  
  "Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel because those who were trying to kill the child are dead."
  
  So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel.
  
  And finally, the fourth dream we read about from Joseph is in Matthew 2, verse 22.
  
  When he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod's son, he was afraid to go there.
  
  Then after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee.
  
  And the Bible records, so the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth.
  
  This fulfilled what the prophets had said, saying, "He will be called a Nazarene."
  
  And with this final dream that is recorded in the scripture from Joseph, God spoke to him in this fourth and final dream that you need to go up to Galilee to dwell in the city of Nazareth.
  
  Because this, as Matthew records it, he says, this will fulfill the scriptures, a prophecy from the Old Testament, which says he shall be called a Nazarene.
  
  Now, you cannot say that Joseph was able to figure all this stuff out on his own.
  
  Joseph was not that smart.
  
  But what Joseph was able to do was to allow God to speak to him in his dreams.
  
  Each and every one of these plays a crucial role in guiding the events of the nativity story, protecting Jesus and putting him into the place exactly where he needs to be.
  
  You might even say that the primary role of Joseph in the Christmas story is this: responding to the dreams that God gave him.
  
  And that is a powerful way to interpret the story.
  
  Joseph as protector, provider.
  
  Yes, I'm actually going to be preaching on marriage tonight, so come back ready to hear from that, hear from the Word of God, from the story of Joseph and Mary, some powerful truths about marriage.
  
  So a little sneak preview for our evening service.
  
  But Joseph, I believe his primary ministry was this: being a faithful responder to dreams and visions.
  
  And the Bible does have a prominent record of people responding to dreams and visions all throughout the Bible.
  
  Please allow me some patience this morning as I remind you of how many stories there are of God's speaking to important moments in time through dreams and through vision.
  
  It starts with the founder, the father of our faith, Abraham, in Genesis 15, verse 1, that God spoke to Abram in a vision to reinstate the covenant, reminding him that he would have a son and be the father of many nations.
  
  Then in Genesis chapter 28, we read about Jacob.
  
  Jacob, we know, had angered his brother by taking the rights of the firstborn.
  
  And the Bible says as he is traveling through the wilderness, he lays down his head on a rock in the middle of the desert.
  
  And the Bible says he has a dream.
  
  You remember?
  
  And in this dream, he sees a ladder which stretches into heaven on which the angels were ascending and descending.
  
  It was during that dream that he had a wrestling match with the angel of the Lord and received God's promise that day that Abraham's blessing would be carried through his life.
  
  A powerful vision, a dream from God.
  
  Joseph, of course.
  
  Joseph in Genesis.
  
  It's no accident that Joseph in the Bible, husband of Mary, is a dreamer because his namesake from the Old Testament, Joseph, was also one of the Bible's most famous dreamers and a dream interpreter.
  
  He first recorded his dreams in Genesis chapter 37.
  
  We know the dreams that he dreamed actually got him into trouble with his family.
  
  He dreamed that he saw a dream.
  
  He saw a dream.
  
  He saw a dream.
  
  He saw a dream.
  
  He saw a dream.
  
  He saw a dream.
  
  He saw a sheaf, a gathering of grains in the center, and around this gathering of grains were 12 other gatherings.
  
  These sheaves, as they're called, and all of the sheaves were bowing down, and he interpreted this dream that he himself was that central group of grain and the other groups of grain were his older brothers, and they were all bowing down before him, and even the sun and the moon, which represented his mother, his father, bowing down to him.
  
  And he's explaining this dream, and at the time sounded totally crazy, and they all wanted to kill him.
  
  And yet through this dream, God was predicting the future of Joseph's life, an incredible story.
  
  We have young Samuel in 1 Samuel chapter 3.
  
  God spoke to him through a vision and told him that judgment was coming on the sons of Samuel's mentor, the priest, Eli.
  
  And young Samuel was faithful to relay that information.
  
  God spoke to Samuel throughout the rest of his life.
  
  King Solomon, if you'll remember, King Solomon had a powerful dream in 1 Kings chapter 3, verse 5, the famous dream where God spoke to Solomon and asked him, "Ask what you wish me to give you."
  
  God appeared to Solomon, and Solomon replied in his dream and chose, "Lord, that you would grant me wisdom to lead your people."
  
  And God gave him that incredible wisdom.
  
  Daniel, of course, Daniel chapter 2 and chapter 4.
  
  God put Daniel in a position of great power and influence by being able to interpret the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar.
  
  Powerful revelation.
  
  Then as we turn to the New Testament, there is also a great record there of dreams and visions.
  
  We've looked in the last weeks about Zacharias, the priest.
  
  God used a vision to tell Zacharias that he would soon have a son.
  
  Not long after that, they had John the Baptist.
  
  Joseph, of course, the four dreams that he had, I've already spoken about.
  
  Then we have in Matthew chapter 27, we have the record of the wife of Pontius Pilate.
  
  Pontius Pilate, of course, is the governor that is going to condemn Jesus.
  
  He's going to condemn Jesus.
  
  He's going to condemn Jesus.
  
  He's going to condemn Jesus to the cross.
  
  But the Bible records that his wife sent him an urgent message during the trial, and she was encouraging her husband to let Jesus go.
  
  Why did she send him this message?
  
  Because she had had a dream, maybe more like a nightmare, that had convinced her Jesus was innocent.
  
  Pilate should have nothing to do.
  
  So here's a case when Pilate ignored the dream.
  
  He said, "I'm not listening to that. I'm wise. You're foolish. Whatever your dream is, not listening to that."
  
  And Pilate condemns Jesus to death.
  
  What a powerful picture.
  
  We have Saul of Tarsus.
  
  How do you explain a man who is persecuting the church, who is driving men and women into prison?
  
  How do you explain the fact that in a moment of time, the direction of his life changes?
  
  Where he no longer is persecuting the church, but becomes an apostle and a church planter.
  
  How can you explain?
  
  The reason is because he saw a vision.
  
  He had a vision of the resurrected Jesus where Jesus spoke to him in Acts chapter 9.
  
  Then we have the record of Ananias.
  
  Ananias, of course, is the one that God has selected to pray for Saul, the persecutor.
  
  How do you explain someone who is the enemy or who has been targeted by Saul?
  
  All of a sudden now Ananias wants to help him.
  
  Why?
  
  Because in Acts chapter 9, verse 10, Ananias had a vision from God.
  
  And God spoke to him to pray for Saul that his eyes would be opened.
  
  In Acts chapter 10, listen, I'm telling you, the story of the new church is filled with visions and dreams.
  
  Cornelius, who's not even a Jew, he is a Gentile.
  
  And yet here is a man, the Bible says in Acts chapter 10, that he feared the God of the Jews, and God gave him a vision.
  
  And in this vision, he saw an angel.
  
  And this angel told him to go and find Simon Peter and send for him to listen to that message.
  
  Cornelius obeyed the vision.
  
  Peter preached to him, and his household full of non-Jewish believers were saved by the grace of God.
  
  Of course, Peter, during his ministry, the early ministry of the church was pronounced specifically to the Jews.
  
  Jesus said, "I came first for my brethren, the Jewish people."
  
  But how many know that the will of God was for more than just the Jews?
  
  God wanted to save all people, Jews and Gentiles alike.
  
  But Peter, he was so focused on the Jewish ministry, God had to open his eyes to begin ministering outside of Jewish circles.
  
  To do that, God gave Peter a vision.
  
  And the Bible says he was not asleep; he was awake, a waking vision.
  
  And in this vision, there was a net being lowered from heaven, a net full of animals that were specifically animals that were not allowed to be eaten under the laws of Moses.
  
  And in this vision, God spoke to Peter and said, "Take, Peter, and eat these things."
  
  Peter said, "No, I don't want to do that. Lord, I've never eaten such things."
  
  And the point was, God told Peter, "Do not call unclean what I have called clean."
  
  This is the vision that opened up the ministry of the church through Peter to the Gentile believers.
  
  How many times did Paul have visions in his missionary career?
  
  One vision sent him to preach the gospel in Macedonia.
  
  Another vision, Acts chapter 18, encouraged him to stay in the city of Corinth.
  
  Also, he speaks of a man who had a vision even of the third heaven.
  
  Many people say it's probably Paul himself in 2 Corinthians 12 who had a vision of heaven itself, things which could not be uttered, things that I cannot explain to you, he says, but they were seen in a vision.
  
  In fact, we have a whole book of the Bible that is essentially one long vision.
  
  Vision from God, and that is the book of Revelation.
  
  The Apostle John, the Bible says that as he was praying and as he was worshiping, God began to show him things which were to come in the future.
  
  We study the book of Revelation because a man was faithful to record the vision that God gave him.
  
  Okay, so that was a pretty exhaustive list in the Bible, and I appreciate your patience to allow me to remind you of how many times God uses dreams and visions to speak to and to lead God's people in the biblical narrative.
  
  We can only conclude that these things are very prominent.
  
  These things are very pivotal, that as these people in the Bible responded to those dreams and visions, that God began to pour out His Spirit.
  
  In fact, dreams and visions are recorded as part of the Pentecostal blessing on the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2.
  
  We know the story that the church is gathered in prayer in the upper room, and there as they're praying, they hear the sound of a rushing mighty wind.
  
  The tongues, as of fire, come and gather upon each and every one of them.
  
  They begin speaking out new languages, which the crowd is able to hear the gospel being preached in their own language.
  
  They thought, "It's nine o'clock in the morning. These people are crazy. They're drunk."
  
  The crowd that was gathered for the harvest there that day.
  
  But Peter, the Bible says, Peter stepped forward on that day, filled with the Holy Spirit, and he said, "Listen carefully, all fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem.
  
  These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o'clock in the morning is too early for that.
  
  No, what you see is predicted long ago by the prophet Joel."
  
  And now he is quoting the prophet Joel, and this is what he says: "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
  
  Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men, listen, will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams."
  
  And this is part of the last day.
  
  This is the last day's blessing that God is pouring out His Spirit on the church, so that men and women alike, old and young alike, will see the visions and will dream dreams, and God will begin to move in this particular way.
  
  Now, this prophecy from the prophet Joel is fantastic because it is opposite from the pattern that we see in the Bible.
  
  Usually, it's young men who are dreaming the dreams, and it is old men who are seeing the visions.
  
  But in this prophecy, it's young men who are dreaming the dreams, and it is old men seeing visions.
  
  But in this prophecy, it is reversed.
  
  Young men seeing visions, old men dreaming dreams.
  
  Now, having said all of that, we have to understand that there is also a balance.
  
  Dreams must be kept in their place.
  
  Let me first of all say, not every dream that you have is from God.
  
  How many of y'all had some crazy, wacky dreams?
  
  Okay, some of those are just your subconscious.
  
  You know, the people who understand and study the brain, they've been figuring this out over the last 20 to 30 years, is that sleep is so important for your brain because it is while you're sleeping, your REM sleep, they say, that your memories of the day are being compiled and set aside into your long-term memory.
  
  And sometimes dreams are a byproduct of that, which is an amazing thing.
  
  But I want to say that not every dream is from God.
  
  I mean, y'all, I've had some crazy, crazy, insane, psycho, crazy dreams.
  
  And not everything is from the Lord, okay?
  
  I've woken up and, you know, and been in a frantic state and tell my wife, you know, I dreamed this and that and crazy, and she's looking at me like I was from another planet.
  
  Okay, so let me just say, personally, in my own life, probably 80, 90% of the dreams that I dream, I don't count them as being from the Lord.
  
  They're probably just my brain activity in my night, okay?
  
  But does God speak through dreams?
  
  There is no indication in the Bible that God has stopped using dreams as an avenue to speak to His people.
  
  The simple answer is yes, God does speak through dreams, but we have to be careful how we apply this.
  
  Every dream that God speaks to, we have to remember that we have a mirror to which to weigh it against.
  
  This is how I know my dreams are crazy often and not from God, is because they don't agree with Scripture.
  
  They're not confirmed by Scripture.
  
  So we have to understand that the Bible has been completed.
  
  We have a gift now that people in the Bible didn't have, which is we have His revelation.
  
  And so primarily the way that God uses dreams is when there is no other avenue for God to speak.
  
  If someone doesn't read the Bible, or if someone lives in a Muslim nation, we've been reading for the last 10 or 15 years incredible accounts of how God is saving people in Muslim countries by appearing in dreams and in visions.
  
  The reason is because missionaries cannot get to those nations, because the Bible is not common in those places.
  
  And so Jesus can still save people through dreams and visions.
  
  And so yes, we being people of the book, we being people of God's revelation, we have a gift that others might not have, so we are not as dependent on dreams and visions from God.
  
  There are a few problems that we have to be reminded of.
  
  First of all, dreams and visions are subjective.
  
  What I mean by that is that if you have a dream, and you come and say to me, "Pastor, I've had a dream from the Lord," like, how am I supposed to contradict that?
  
  If you say it's from the Lord, I have to believe you, right?
  
  Somebody says, "I've heard from God," how am I supposed to counteract that?
  
  The only way I can say is if something is obviously in your dream that goes against Scripture, but dreams and visions are subjective.
  
  The Bible warns about this, Deuteronomy 13, verse 1: "Suppose there are prophets among you, or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles, and those signs or miracles occur, then say, 'Come, let us worship other gods, gods you've not known.' Do not listen to them. The Lord God is testing you."
  
  He's saying, "Watch out for those who say they've dreamed dreams, but then they're saying, 'Worship other gods.' That's not from God."
  
  Jeremiah warned about this in his time.
  
  He says, "I'm against, I'm against false prophets," Jeremiah 23, verse 32.
  
  "Their imaginary dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send or appoint them, and they have no message at all for my people. I, the Lord, have spoken."
  
  So there are warnings, obviously.
  
  People can use dreams to abuse the people of God, and we should not obviously just receive every dream as if it's from the Lord.
  
  Zechariah 10, 2: "Household gods give worthless advice. Fortune tellers predict lies. Interpreters of dreams pronounce falsehoods that give no comfort."
  
  Not every dream is from the Lord, and not everyone who says, "I've had a dream from the Lord," should be accepted, okay?
  
  Are we, everybody clear on that?
  
  The issue is that people in the Bible, they did not have the revelation of God's word like we do, but we have a great gift.
  
  And so, where do dreams and visions fall in our lives today?
  
  How much credence, how much faith, how much response should we give to dreams and visions?
  
  Well, I believe that in the absence of clear direction, God is able to use dreams and visions to guide us into His will.
  
  And this is the point of this scripture today.
  
  There are always two opposing dangers that we need to balance.
  
  Danger number one is this: taking the Lord's name in vain and causing confusion by falsely claiming dreams and visions when you actually haven't had them from the Lord, okay?
  
  It is easy for you to make up a story, "I had a dream about this and that," and abuse that for your own personal will.
  
  That is danger number one.
  
  But there's also, on the opposite side, a second danger, which I believe is also common, unfortunately, in the world, and that is when God does give us a dream or a vision and it's clear and God has spoken to you, but we often ignore it or diminish it or run away from it or say, "That's not important to me."
  
  And we don't receive God's direction.
  
  Let me share with you another example of a powerful dream.
  
  There was a husband of a woman who became a Christian.
  
  He was a Christian.
  
  He had traveled to Greece, but she lived in Iran.
  
  He would call her from the refugee camp nearly every day to share the gospel with her.
  
  She decided that she needed to get a divorce because she could not be married to a Christian and remain a faithful Muslim.
  
  So she decided, "I'm going to look up all the verses in the Quran about Jesus."
  
  And she was shocked that Jesus was in the Quran, which led her then to find a Bible to do further study.
  
  One day as she was reading the Bible, she recounted, "I was by myself alone in my room. In one moment, the whole room became white, and I felt completely clean. At that moment, by trusting in Jesus, I became a Christian."
  
  God moved through a vision.
  
  One more story.
  
  There was a family on a boat traveling from Turkey to Athens.
  
  And this family, on their way, they lost their seven-year-old daughter who had fallen into the water.
  
  Everyone on that crowded boat was searching for her, couldn't find her.
  
  Suddenly, she appeared on the other side of the boat where no one expected her, and she was repeating the same words over and over.
  
  She said, "A man who walked on the water brought me to the other side of the boat."
  
  Everyone heard her saying these words and dismissed her as silly or imagining things.
  
  And when they arrived at their destination, they met a Christian who made a fire and wanted to speak with them.
  
  That day, without knowing what happened, he asked if they would like to know about a God who walked on water.
  
  He said, "I had never used that illustration as I evangelized to people before. But somehow God led me to say those specific words, a God who walked on water."
  
  And they asked him, "Who are you?"
  
  He said, "I'm a Christian. What do you mean by walking on water?"
  
  He opened up the Bible and read the story of Jesus walking on the water.
  
  They all began to cry and say, "Our daughter fell off the boat. We thought she was crazy because she was dry on the other side. We had no understanding."
  
  She kept saying these words, "It was a man who walked on the water that took me to the other side."
  
  God speaks through visions and dreams.
  
  Listen, I believe the reason I'm preaching this sermon this morning is because I believe I have experienced it myself when God has spoken to me through a dream.
  
  But because it does not fit into my idea for my life, I want to crumple it up and throw it away and forget about it.
  
  I have had times that I knew God was leading me to step forward into a new level, a new destiny, a new purpose, a new future.
  
  But because it was difficult or uncomfortable or outside of what I thought was normal.
  
  Listen, this goes exactly with my message from last week when they named their son John instead of naming him Zechariah.
  
  That was the normal, the course of life.
  
  But they had to step outside of the boundaries in order to obey the Spirit of God.
  
  I want to ask you today.
  
  What has God led you to do?
  
  Has God given you a dream? A purpose?
  
  Have you begun to excuse or rationalize the vision God has put in your life?
  
  Maybe God has given you a dream, a vision for a future ministry.
  
  Maybe a pastoral ministry.
  
  Maybe for a vocation, a job that God would lead you to.
  
  Maybe it's for a family, a future.
  
  Maybe it's for a ministry in the church.
  
  But I'm telling you, I believe that there are so many people God would put a dream or a vision on your heart.
  
  But we often crumple that up and throw it away thinking it doesn't mean anything.
  
  I recognize not every dream is from God.
  
  This does take discernment and wisdom.
  
  It does take filtering through the revelation of God's Word.
  
  But I want to encourage you today.
  
  I want to warn you.
  
  Don't ignore the dreams from God.
  
  Don't ignore the visions that God would give.
  
  If Joseph would have thrown away those visions, it would have cost Jesus his life.
  
  I want to ask you, how many things, how many dreams have died in the church of Jesus because people did not respond?
  
  This is a mark of a Pentecostal faith, is that old men will dream dreams, young men will see visions.
  
  That this is a mark of God moving in the last days.
  
  That people begin to have incredible experiences with God.
  
  And I want to encourage you, let's believe God.
  
  Let's contend that God would bring these dreams into reality.
  
  That as we believe God's Word, I want to encourage you this morning.
  
  Be open to the dreams from the Lord.
  
  Let's bow our heads.
  
  We're going to bring this service to a close, and I thank you for your attention this morning.
  
  Thank God we don't need a dream and we don't need a vision to know God's will.
  
  God's will is for you to be saved.
  
  God is not willing that any would perish, but that all would come to a life-changing knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.
  
  We know that for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever would believe on Him would not perish, but have everlasting life.
  
  We don't need a dream.
  
  We don't need a vision.
  
  We don't need a message painted in the clouds to know that God loves us.
  
  He loves you.
  
  He died.
  
  He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for you.
  
  Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God, the Father.
  
  To know Him is to know God.
  
  And I wonder if you've come here this morning, your heart not right with God.
  
  You be honest for a moment.
  
  Say, "Pastor, I'm not living right. I'm living in sin. I need to repent of my sins. I need to trust in Jesus to save me."
  
  Before we do anything else, we need to get our hearts right.
  
  If that's you, take a moment right now and ask, if I die today, what would happen to me?
  
  Would I be in the presence of God for all eternity, or would I be separated from Him?
  
  Listen, it is not God's will to be separated from Him.
  
  God's will is that you would be saved and sanctified and set free from sin so that you could serve the living God.
  
  If you need that today, please don't miss this opportunity.
  
  The good news is that the Lord Jesus Christ wants to save you.
  
  Because of His death on the cross, His resurrection on the third day, you can be miraculously saved.
  
  If that's you this morning, don't miss this opportunity.
  
  Can I pray with you?
  
  Is there someone here?
  
  With an uplifted hand, you'd say, "Pastor, please pray for me. I need Jesus. I need His mercy. I need His grace. I need His love. I'm tired of running from God. I'm tired of carrying the weight of my sins."
  
  Would you respond by faith today, with an uplifted hand right now?
  
  I want to pray with somebody.
  
  Is that you, quickly, unsaved, or maybe backslidden in your heart, maybe like the prodigal son?
  
  You're one of those who has run from God, spent all of His inheritance on riotous living, and He was separated from His Father in a far country.
  
  It is possible for us to know the goodness of living for Jesus, but to be separated from Him because of our sins.
  
  Is that you today?
  
  It's time to come home.
  
  The Father is waiting for you.
  
  Don't miss this opportunity.
  
  Is there anyone at all?
  
  Quickly, you'd slip up your hand.
  
  Unsaved or prodigals, would you lift up your hand right now?
  
  I want to pray with you.
  
  Is there someone here?
  
  You're believing God to set you free.
  
  Is that you?
  
  Can I pray with you?
  
  Anyone here?
  
  Quickly, you'd lift up your hand.
  
  Say, "Pastor, please pray for me. I need Jesus. I need His love and mercy in my life."
  
  Thank God.
  
  We're going to open up this altar for prayer.
  
  And you've heard the word that I preached.
  
  I'm preaching about dreams and visions from God.
  
  Not every dream is from God.
  
  Sometimes it's just the byproducts of your brain while you're sleeping.
  
  I understand that.
  
  But I believe God is still able to speak through dreams and visions.
  
  And I believe by faith that the reason God would turn my attention to the dreams of the Christmas story is because someone is here listening to my voice.
  
  God has given you a very specific dream.
  
  You've been wrestling.
  
  You've been questioning.
  
  "Lord, is this from you?"
  
  And with discernment, with wisdom, but with the word of God in one hand and with a dream in your mind, you'd say, "I believe God is leading me."
  
  I want to encourage you to respond to those dreams and those visions.
  
  We're going to stand up together.
  
  We're going to open this altar for prayer.
  
  If the Lord is leading you, please, would you come and join us?
  
  Maybe you want to pray for someone else here.
  
  But let's stand up to our feet together as we open up this altar for prayer.
  
  God's leading you.
  
  Would you come?
  
  Would you come together?
  
  We need those who would respond to dreams and visions.
  
  We need God to speak in these last days.
  
  We need God to lead us.
  
  We need God to help us.
  
  We need God to show us His will.
  
  Church, would you come as we pray?
  
  Let's pour out our hearts.
  
  Prayer means words.
  
  Let's lift up these needs before the Lord.
  
  Let's respond with faith and with expectation this morning.
  
  Let's believe God to help us for a few moments while we worship together.
  
  Let's pray.
  
  Let's pray.
  
  Let's pray.
  
  Let's pray.
  
  You, you, you are...
  
  Can we stand together?
  
  We want to pray.
  
  We want to believe God.
  
  Listen, none of this is scripted.
  
  The will of God is often mysterious to seek His will.
  
  But listen, there's also some parts of this that are not mysterious.
  
  There are some parts that are obvious.
  
  Now often, God is waiting for us to respond to the things that we know before He reveals things that we do not know.
  
  What I mean by that is we know God's will is for us to be saved.
  
  We know God's will is for us to pursue holiness and righteousness.
  
  We know God's will is for us to be free from sexual perversion.
  
  We know these things.
  
  We know that we're supposed to love one another.
  
  Like, the Bible is filled with things that we already know.
  
  But what we're talking about is the next step.
  
  When we're faithful to the things that we know, then God is able to lead and to bring direction for things that we don't know.
  
  And I'm believing that God would bring guidance and leadership to your heart this morning.
  
  Can we lift up our hands together as a sign of surrender to God's will?
  
  And we're going to believe God just as He led Joseph through dreams and visions, just as He gave direction to the Apostle Paul and Ananias in the early church, that God would lead us and give us divine direction as well.
  
  Let's lift up our voices.
  
  Say, "God in heaven, I thank you for the blood of Jesus that washes me clean and gives me a place in your kingdom, in your family, and in your will.
  
  Lord, I'm asking you today to break all selfishness.
  
  God, I want to follow your will, your purpose for my life.
  
  I'm asking you to help me to be faithful with things you've already revealed.
  
  And as I am seeking your will, that you would help me to hear your word in visions and dreams.
  
  Give me discernment and wisdom according to your word by the Holy Spirit who lives in me.
  
  I'm asking you now to lead my life and guide my steps in Jesus' mighty name."
  
  Amen.
  
  Come on, let's pray.
  
  Let's give Him praise right now, Lord.
  
  Amen.
  
  Allow God to activate His will and His vision for your life.
  
  Amen.
  
  We're going to close in prayer this morning.
  
  Again, as I mentioned during the message tonight, I'm going to be preaching a message on marriage from the example of Joseph and Mary.
  
  There are some powerful truths in their relationship that I want to relay to married and single people here.
  
  And so please come back tonight ready to hear from God, whether you are married or preparing for marriage or never want to get married.
  
  Wherever you are, it's okay.
  
  We're going to hear something powerful tonight.
  
  I want to encourage you to come back.
  
  6 p.m. is prayer, and 7 p.m. the service will begin.
  
  Amen.
  
  Let God lead our lives as we close in prayer this morning.
  
  Brother Saban, will you close us off for the sake of this prayer?
  
  Amen.

---

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love, Pastor Adam Dragoon

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His Name is John! | Trusting Beyond Tradition [Luke 1:57-65]

His Name is John!

Luke 1:57-65

Sermon Summary

In this message, we explored the thought-provoking story of Zechariah and Elizabeth from the book of Luke, focusing on the birth and naming of their son, John the Baptist. This story is a powerful reminder of how God's plans often challenge cultural norms and personal expectations. Zechariah and Elizabeth faced a choice that defied tradition: naming their son John instead of following the customary practice of naming him after his father. This decision was not merely about breaking tradition but about obedience to God's specific revelation to them. It highlights the importance of discerning God's will, even when it contradicts societal norms or personal desires.

The story of Zechariah and Elizabeth teaches us that God's will is often mysterious and may not align with our understanding or expectations. It requires us to trust in His higher ways and thoughts, which are beyond our comprehension. This trust is rooted in a deep relationship with God, cultivated through prayer, devotion, and a willingness to surrender our plans to His divine purpose. The narrative also emphasizes the significance of revelation, where God unveils His plans to us in new and personal ways, though not necessarily unprecedented.

As we navigate our lives, we are encouraged to seek God's perfect will, which may involve making choices that are not merely between good and evil but between good and best. This discernment requires us to be open to new things God might be doing in our lives, even if they seem unconventional or challenging. We are reminded that God's will is not always a straightforward path but a journey of faith, requiring us to step out in obedience and trust.

---

Watch/Listen

Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[30:47] - Announcements and Events
[36:30] - Offering and New Building Update
[42:28] - The Story of Zechariah and Elizabeth
[47:43] - Obedience Over Tradition
[49:58] - Cultural Norms vs. God's Will
[51:06] - Jesus' Unexpected Arrival
[52:24] - Trusting in God's Higher Ways
[54:33] - The Mystery of God's Will
[01:01:16] - Pursuing God's Perfect Will
[01:02:35] - The Sin of Disobedience
[01:04:47] - Revelation and New Things
[01:07:08] - Joseph's Dream and God's Plan
[01:09:43] - Faith and Obedience
[01:12:28] - Knowing God's Word and Ways
[01:15:03] - Embracing New Things
[01:17:49] - Six Steps to Knowing God's Will
[01:23:42] - Trusting God's Guidance
[01:27:19] - Seeking God's Will in Our Lives
[01:31:43] - Surrendering to God's Will

Key Takeaways

• Obedience Over Tradition: Zechariah and Elizabeth's decision to name their son John, as instructed by God, illustrates the importance of prioritizing divine revelation over cultural norms. This obedience opened the door for God's blessings and reminded us that God's plans may require us to break from tradition. [47:43]

• Trusting in God's Higher Ways: God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours, often leading us into the unknown. Like Abraham, we are called to trust God even when His plans seem mysterious or counterintuitive, knowing that His purposes are ultimately for our good. [52:24]

• The Mystery of God's Will: Understanding God's will involves embracing the mystery and unpredictability of His plans. We must be willing to follow His lead, even when it disrupts our own plans or expectations, trusting that He is guiding us toward His perfect purpose. [54:33]

• Revelation and Relationship: Knowing God's will is not just about understanding His word but also about cultivating a relationship with Him. Through prayer and devotion, we learn to discern His ways and align our lives with His divine purpose. [01:12:28]

• The Role of Timing and Surrender: God's will often involves a sense of divine timing, requiring us to act promptly and decisively. Surrendering to His will means being open and ready to respond to His leading, trusting that He will equip us for the journey ahead. [01:31:43]

---

Bible Reading

Luke 1:57-66 NKJV - 57 Now Elizabeth's full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. 58 When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her. 59 So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. 60 His mother answered and said, "No; he shall be called John." 61 But they said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name." 62 So they made signs to his father--what he would have him called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, "His name is John." So they all marveled. 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue [loosed], and he spoke, praising God. 65 Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. 66 And all those who heard [them] kept [them] in their hearts, saying, "What kind of child will this be?" And the hand of the Lord was with him.

Isaiah 55:9 NKJV– For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Observation Questions

1. What was the cultural expectation for naming Zechariah and Elizabeth's son, and how did they respond? [43:52]

2. How did Zechariah communicate his agreement with Elizabeth about their son's name, and what was the immediate result of his action? [43:52]

3. What does the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth teach us about the importance of obedience to God's revelation over cultural norms? [47:43]

4. How does the sermon illustrate the concept of God's will being mysterious and often counterintuitive to human understanding? [52:24]

Interpretation Questions

1. Why might God choose to reveal His will in ways that challenge cultural norms or personal expectations, as seen in the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth? [47:43]

2. How does the sermon suggest that a deep relationship with God can aid in discerning His will, even when it seems mysterious or counterintuitive? [54:33]

3. In what ways does the sermon highlight the role of timing and surrender in following God's will, and how can this be applied to personal decision-making? [01:31:43]

4. How does the sermon use the example of Zechariah and Elizabeth to illustrate the difference between choosing what is good and what is best according to God's will? [01:02:35]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when you felt God's will was leading you in a direction that contradicted societal norms or personal desires. How did you respond, and what was the outcome? [47:43]

2. The sermon emphasizes the importance of a relationship with God in discerning His will. What specific steps can you take this week to deepen your relationship with God through prayer and devotion? [54:33]

3. Consider a decision you are currently facing. How can you apply the principle of choosing between what is good and what is best in this situation? [01:02:35]

4. The sermon discusses the role of timing in God's will. Is there an area in your life where you feel God is prompting you to act promptly? How can you ensure you are ready to respond? [01:31:43]

5. How can you cultivate a mindset of surrender to God's will, especially when it involves stepping into the unknown or the unconventional? [52:24]

6. Think about a tradition or cultural norm in your life that might be hindering your obedience to God's will. What steps can you take to align more closely with His revelation? [47:43]

7. How can you seek wise counsel from fellow believers to help discern God's will in your life, and who might you approach for such guidance? [01:20:58]

• Full Transcript

  Let's open up our Bibles this morning. We are grateful for all that God has done. If you were here last week about this time, I began the Christmas season by preaching through a story about a man, a priest named Zechariah in the book of Luke, and we're going to return to this story because I believe we can find some interesting truth again from the wife of the priest Zechariah, her name is Elizabeth.
  
  And I want to look at a moment in her life that I believe is very inspiring and helpful to us this morning. So Luke chapter one, if you'll join us there, Luke chapter one. Maybe you heard the story about the family that they every year when they began to cook the traditional Thanksgiving turkey that this family had a tradition that what they would do is every year they would take the turkey and they would always cut it in half before they would cook it.
  
  And that's kind of unusual, but that was just the tradition that this family had. We're always just going to split it right down the middle. And so instead of having one nice presentable bird that the families normally have, we're going to cut it in half. But this whole turkey is cut in half and becomes the centerpiece in that way.
  
  And so this strange ritual went on and on until one year a child decided that she was going to find out why they had such a strange tradition. Why do we cut this bird in half? And when mom heard this question from the child, she thought about that and thought that's a good question. Why do we always cut the turkey in half? And she couldn't come up with a good reason.
  
  She said, well, I cut the bird in half because my mother always cooked the turkey the same way. She cut it in half, and so I thought that was just the way that we do it. So, of course, they got Grandma on the phone. Grandma got on the phone and said, well, to tell you the truth, I can't figure out why we cut the turkey in half either. All I know is that I saw my mother do it, and that's how I did it all these years.
  
  So, why don't we ask Great-Grandma Nanny? So, they all gathered together, and they asked Grandma Nanny. They said, Grandma, we always cut the bird in half. Nobody else does that. Why do we do it? And they all huddled around waiting for some deep inspiration or some meaning behind the symbolism of cutting the bird in half.
  
  And Great-Grandma sat up, and she said, and she looked at them. She said, didn't you realize that our oven was never big enough to put a whole turkey in it? We had to cut it in half to make room. You know, not every tradition is rooted in good reasons.
  
  In the Scripture we're going to read, we're going to find an interesting moment where they're going to give John the Baptist this miracle baby that has been conceived in the womb of Elizabeth, the wife of the priest, Zechariah. And there is a good and a wholesome tradition in the Jewish community and in many other families around the world. But in that moment, they understand that the tradition is not for them.
  
  And I want to preach a message I've titled, "His Name is John." I want you to lock in your mind with me, his name is John. Let's read the Scripture, Luke chapter 1, beginning with verse 57.
  
  Now Elizabeth's time came for her to be delivered. And she brought forth the son. When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her. So it was on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child, and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zechariah, the normal, healthy family tradition.
  
  But his mother answered and said, "No, he shall be called John." But they said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name." So they made signs to his father, what he would have called him. Remember, Zechariah had been silenced for his lack of faith when the angel spoke to him in the temple. And he is still not speaking at this moment.
  
  So they made signs to his father. What would he have him called? And he asked for the writing tablet and wrote, saying, "His name is John." So they all marveled. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he spoke, praising God. Then fear came on all who dwelt around them, and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea.
  
  Let's pray. Father, we come by the precious blood of Jesus. We thank you that in this Christmas season, Lord, in this time, Lord, this is a time that we celebrate. And not every tradition is evil, but some traditions, God, according to your word, must be broken. And I'm praying, Father, that you would help us to have wisdom and discernment about your will for our lives. I'm praying, God, that you would give us that wisdom. You said, if any man lacks wisdom, that we can seek and we can ask. And Lord, that you are a good father who gives good things. I'm praying, give your people wisdom as they pray. Seek to do your will, and we give you glory in Jesus' mighty name. God's people would say, amen.
  
  His name is John. And let's look first at encountering some cultural norms. Verse 59 of our scripture says it was the eighth day. And if you know anything about Jewish culture, Jewish history, Jewish tradition, you know that baby boys experience what they call the bris. It is the day of circumcision. It's also the eighth day, is the day that baby boys experience what they call the bris. It is the day of circumcision. It is the day that baby Jewish boys receive their names.
  
  In the tradition, those two things are connected. It is the continuation of the promise which was given to Abraham. This was the mark that God spoke to Abraham and said, "This is how my people will be identified by a circumcision of the flesh." And the tradition of the Jews is that when a baby boy receives that promise, that tradition, that mark of the covenant, that that is the day they receive their name as well and how they are going to be defined for the rest of their lives.
  
  The cultural norm, of course, at the time was, as it is in many families to this day, that a son, especially a firstborn son, will receive the name of his father. And so the expectation that everyone had, that as this baby boy, this miracle child born to two people in their older years, this is kind of the Abraham and Sarah story of the New Testament, Zechariah and Elizabeth, they have a child in their latter years.
  
  And this was no doubt a joy to everyone who knew them, that they would have struggled for many years dealing with the fact that they did not have children. And finally, after all this time, here's a new baby boy to enter the world and enter their family. And everyone expected that they would be born to this boy, that this boy would receive the name of his father, Zechariah.
  
  Everyone gathered around for the birth, for the circumcision, for the naming of the boy. And so they began to get the name, get documents together. What are we going to call him? We're going to call him Zechariah. And in this moment, that is not wrong, right? It was not a bad tradition. However, we know that God had a different plan for this boy.
  
  And we know that based on what God spoke to both Zechariah and Elizabeth in verse 13, same chapter, the angel said to Zechariah, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah. Your prayers are heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son and you shall call his name John." The angel spoke.
  
  And can I just tell you, first of all, this morning, God spoke to Zechariah. He spoke to Zechariah. He spoke to Zechariah. He spoke to Zechariah. God has the right to disrupt your plans. God has the right to tell us to do things that we might think strange or inconsistent with what we know and what we understand.
  
  Zechariah no doubt would have been overjoyed and filled with compassion and love for his son to call his name the same as his own, Zechariah. But in this case, God had another plan for this. And that plan required that Zechariah and Elizabeth had to stand up against the cultural norm.
  
  And what I see in this scripture is what I see a struggle in many people who are trying to live for God in our time, in our generation, is that how many understand there are some cultural norms that are not the will of God. In fact, to do God's will, to live for him in this time, means that there are some things that we're going to have to reject what the world says.
  
  We're going to have to reject what friends and family might expect. Obviously, some of the most obvious examples is the culture of the world. John said that any man who loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. One of the marks that you are saved and changed by God is that you are willing to live for God. You are willing to go against the grain of the world. Somebody said amen.
  
  That, you know, living for yourself, right? The world says put self number one, put your self-interest number one. Well, we can't do that as believers, can we? In the kingdom of God, we follow Jesus who takes up his cross and he says to us, now take up your cross and live for me daily. Follow me daily. We don't get the right to live for ourselves.
  
  Examples like living together before marriage. This is not the will of God. We understand that, but it's such a normal practice of the culture, people who sleep together before they get married, and it becomes such a, just an automatic of the world. But Christians, we are following Jesus. We don't get to do that. We don't have that right to shack up before marriage.
  
  Listening to worldly music, addictive behaviors, wasting our time, wasting time on frivolous things. These are just some examples of how living for Jesus means living different than the rest of the world. How many know Jesus called us to be a little bit weird?
  
  That when Jesus came to the earth, he exemplified this. Didn't he? People had an idea of what they thought the Messiah would be. Especially the Jews, their people thought that the Messiah would come as a conquering king riding on a great stallion and leading the people of God in a rebellion against the Romans.
  
  But Jesus showed up and he did none of those things. He didn't come as a conqueror. He came as a suffering servant, at least the first time. They were confusing his first arrival with his second. One day Jesus is going to come back, as we sang about this morning, and he will be the conquering king. He will take his place, his rightful place as king of the universe.
  
  But when he first arrived on the scene as Messiah, he came to bear the sins and the consequences of the world. And so that took people by surprise. That was unexpected. That was not the norm that they wanted. And so the scripture says, Isaiah 55 verse 9, "So are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts."
  
  How many have figured it out already that you can't figure God out? If you could figure out God, then he wouldn't be God. There will always be a sense of mystery when it comes to doing God's will for our lives. You're just going to have to get used to that. You're going to have to get used to the idea that I can't figure out all that God is doing in my life.
  
  We have to make a commitment like Abraham did. The reason we call him the father of our faith is because God called him out to a place he did not know where he was going. But he says, "Lord, I'm willing to follow you because I trust you." That is the heart of the true believer. I don't understand everything, Lord, but I'm willing to follow anyway.
  
  And to do that means we're going to have to go against the sense of the world, the norms, the cultural standards, and even sometimes what we think is best for our lives. Think of Joseph. Joseph in the Christmas story, man, I feel bad for Joseph. He had it rough because he had everything planned out. He had his life laid out before him. He'd be betrothed to a nice girl. He's getting ready to marry her. He's got his plans laid out. And he's a carpenter. And he's got a skill. He's got a place to stay. He's got a woman laid out. And everything's on the track.
  
  He's got everything he thinks he needs. And then he hears the news. Mary's pregnant. What a monkey wrench. How many know that the will of God is often like a monkey wrench in the middle of our plans? So most of us, when we got saved, it's not that we were planning to get saved. We weren't planning, "Oh, yeah, when I turn 18 years old, I'm just going to surrender my life to Jesus, and it's going to..." No, we weren't planning that, right? I wasn't certainly, I was certainly not planning to get saved.
  
  God showed up in my life, and I had a choice to make whether to surrender or whether to reject. And I chose to surrender to Him. Thank God I did. And serving God, there's a sense of mystery behind everything that we do. The Bible is a mysterious book. Yes, we know that there are some things that are absolutely clear, right?
  
  But some things you're going to read in the Bible, and you're like, I can't figure that out. Lord, you're going to have to help me. You're going to have to show me. You're going to have to give me some revelation here. Think of the midwives in Egypt. That when the Pharaoh began to destroy all of the baby boys, and they had to reject what was expected of them. They had to stand up with civil disobedience and say, "No, we're not going to do that. We fear God before we fear you, Pharaoh. And we're going to save these baby boys."
  
  This idea of overturning what is expected and what the world is going to do, and what the world expects, this is something that Christians have to be prepared to do. Much of Jesus' ministry was, how many know, upending cultural norms. We love Jesus calling the little children to himself. We love the Jesus that's pictured in so many religious iconography where he looks like a woman with a beard. Or he looks soft. Do you know what I'm saying?
  
  But Jesus wasn't soft. There was a time that Jesus braided, he did a whip and took it to the temple and began driving out the money changers. That was savage. He turned over their money tables. Everybody expected Jesus to just go along, get along, but he didn't do that. He turned over their tables and said, "My father's house shall be called a house of prayer. You've turned it into a den of thieves." He was angry in a righteous way.
  
  How many times did Jesus upend their expectations regarding the Sabbath laws? He finds people that need healing, the man with the withered hand, and he says, "Stretch forth your hand," and the man's hand was miraculously healed. But guess what? It happened to be a Sabbath day. And to them, those priests, those rabbis, those religious people, those Pharisees, they saw Jesus healing on the Sabbath day, and it just popped a fuse in their brain. They couldn't handle it.
  
  He's working on the Sabbath, and Jesus, he's upending and overturning their cultural expectations of what the Messiah is supposed to say and what he's supposed to do. He touched the lepers. Nobody touched lepers. He healed them. He believed God for them. He entered into their world.
  
  Can I tell you serving God sometimes there is an element of mystery and we've got to do something about it. We've got to be okay with that, church. Now I'm not saying here that every trend or every cultural norm is evil. The Bible does say don't remove the ancient landmarks. We don't reject tradition just for the sake of rejecting it. There's a reason why traditions exist.
  
  But we have to be willing to examine them in the light of scripture and in the light of how the Holy Spirit leads us. Can you say amen? See, we look at these stories in the Bible and thank God we have to be willing to examine them and we have to be willing to see the whole story as it plays out. We see the benefit of beginning, middle, and the end of the story, right?
  
  We see Zechariah and Elizabeth, they were childless and barren. We see the action that happens, the angel visits them, a child is born, and we see how it plays out and how they're going to trust God. But we see the whole run of the story as it plays through and we can learn lessons from that. But guess what? We see the whole, we don't have that advantage for our own lives.
  
  I can't see everything how God is going to work everything out. I know the past, I know my testimony, I know how God has moved in my life, but I can't see how everything's going to play out, right? We don't have that advantage. And so we have to be willing to trust God that he is sovereign, that he does know what he's doing, and that he is good. Can you say amen?
  
  The will of God for Zechariah and Elizabeth and for their son was different and distinct from the good and decent cultural norm that everybody expected. And so what we have here then is not a battle of good versus evil, okay? Both choices that they would not have sinned, but the choice was between what is good and what is best.
  
  And often that's what requires the most wisdom and discernment for the Christian believer. This is what so many people struggle with when it comes to the will of God. What is the will of God for my life? The will of God is not always a black and white sin versus righteousness decision. So often the will of God is what do most people do and what is God calling me to do?
  
  And that is where it requires discernment and an open ear to heaven. Imagine how many been on a cruise? Anybody here? Okay, some blessed people, hallelujah. Okay, so if when you're on a cruise, you know, you can get, they have a lot of people on those ships or maybe even like an aircraft carrier. You know, they have a population of what, four thousand people, five thousand people?
  
  And so, you know, five thousand people leave the port and they're all on the same ship, right? But does that mean that they are all held captive? No, they're free. They're doing their duties. They're on a cruise ship that you're having a good time, you're watching shows, you're eating food, you're sleeping in your quarters, you're swimming in the swimming pool. There's a lot of things you can do on the ship, right?
  
  But everybody's moving together in the same direction. The will of God is kind of like that, that we trust the sovereignty of God that we are all traveling together in His will, but within the will of God that we do have the ability to make certain decisions about God's will for our life.
  
  Everybody with me so far? And the question this morning is not always, should I sin or should I not sin? Sometimes the question is being able to pursue God's mysterious will even when it's going to break some expectations that somebody has for me.
  
  So, my question as we think about this story with Zechariah, would it have been a sin for them to name him Zechariah Jr., ZJ? You think that's a sin? And at first when I thought about that question, I thought, I mean, it wouldn't have been a sin, right? It's the cultural norm. It's the expectation.
  
  But then I thought about the scripture in James chapter 4, verse 17, where it says, "Now listen carefully, church." The reason I believe it would have been a sin for them to name their son Zechariah is because they had received a clear word from the angel. And the angel told them specifically, "You will call his name John."
  
  Now, the norm, the cultural tradition of naming a son after the father, there's nothing wrong with that. It's normal. It's good. There's a reason for that. Maintains a certain tradition, right? And so there's a reason why most fathers would name their sons in this way.
  
  But for Zechariah to do that, it would have been a sin. It would have been wrong. He would have violated the trust of God to do that. And so this is what I'm saying. We can learn from this situation that just because something is permitted for you does not mean that God has ordained it.
  
  There's a lot of things that God would permit you. You're not going to go to hell over it, but it's not the will of God. What's important for us then, church, is that we have to seek God's perfect will for us. It takes discernment.
  
  There's a scripture in Isaiah chapter 43. We read it this morning in our Sunday school lesson. Isaiah 43 verse 19, "Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth, shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."
  
  Is it possible for God to do something new in your life? I'm not saying completely new that the world has never seen before. I'm always wary about when people come to me saying, "I read something that never has been revealed before in the word of God." Come on, buddy.
  
  Okay, there's nothing new under the sun, it says in Ecclesiastes. But there are new things that God can do in our lives. The more that I've lived for God, the more I've come to appreciate when God does something new or reveals something new in my life. Revelation.
  
  So think about the idea of revelation. The word is something is being revealed to us, right? So when you have a revelation, you read a scripture and something pops out from the Bible that you never saw there before. That is a revelation.
  
  And a revelation is not a brand new truth that the world has never seen. A revelation is simply new to you because you never saw it before. Thank God that he shows us new things, that new springs can flow in the desert wilderness of our hearts, that God can bring you to new levels of faithfulness and obedience to him.
  
  But that doesn't mean that it's something uniquely brand new that the world has never known. It's just new for you. That's why we call it revelation. It's revealed. It was there already. You just didn't see it. And God reveals it to us.
  
  The will of God requires revelation. This is what Jesus said to Peter. When Peter piped up, Jesus is asking them, "Who do men say that I am?" And Peter pipes up and he says, "You are the Messiah, the son of the living God."
  
  Now, was that true? Had it always been true? Won't it always be true? But somehow, Peter figured it out before others. And Jesus said to him, "Flesh and blood did not reveal that to you. My Father revealed it to you."
  
  It was new for Peter. It was new for the others that heard it that day. But it doesn't mean it was completely. There are some things, I believe, in our lives that God wants us to do some new things.
  
  And the reason I'm saying this is because this idea can be abused. The idea of, "Oh, God spoke to me in a unique way, Pastor, and so I'm going to go out on this tangent, this left field idea, and start a new ministry." Well, most of the time, that's just rebellion, a spirit of rebellion at work.
  
  Don't abuse the idea of God doing a new thing. But it is true that God, His will, often goes against the grain of what we expect. Think of Joseph in the Old Testament for a moment. When Joseph, God gave Joseph a dream for his future, right?
  
  And this image of the barley sheaves that, and there was 12 of them, and they're all bowing down, and even the sun, moon, and stars, they're bowing down to him. And man, what a dream that would be like. And that made no sense to anybody at the time.
  
  It didn't even make sense to him. He's just telling this dream to his brothers, and they're like, "What are you talking about, Joseph? You think we're going to bow down to you? You're just the bratty little brother. Daddy's favorite." That don't make no sense to you, to me, to nobody, even to mom and dad. They were like, "Shut up, Joseph."
  
  Got him in all kind of trouble. But that dream, that dream was a prediction of Joseph's future, wasn't it? That years passed, down the road, he ascends to the throne of Pharaoh, and he's the right-hand man in the powerful superpower of the nation, of the world at the time.
  
  And guess what? There he is. He is responsible for divvying out the wealth and resources of Egypt, and here come the brothers. What do they do? They all bow down before him. God predicted it, and it came to pass.
  
  But what I'm saying is that in that moment, it didn't make sense. Only in the course of serving God and doing his will and following closely after the Lord, only then, after time, eventually, it would make sense.
  
  This is why serving God is a mystery. In the moment, not everything is going to make perfect sense to you. You're not going to be able to figure everything about God. Thank God. I don't want a God I can figure out. That's not a God I'm interested in.
  
  I want a God who is bigger than my common sense, who is beyond my ability to imagine. Abraham, it would make absolutely no sense on a human level to take your son, your only son, up to the mountain and there sacrifice him like an animal.
  
  That makes no sense on a human level. It only makes sense that as he simply obeys, as he simply does what God told him, he lifts up the knife to murder his son, and God says, "Stop. Now I can see, Abraham, that you will withhold nothing from me, and now I am able to radically bless you."
  
  It was a test. There will be moments like this in your life when God will call you out to do something that makes no sense, that doesn't make sense to the culture, doesn't make sense to your family, doesn't make sense maybe even to people in the church?
  
  Will you have the heart to step out in faith and follow the mystery of God's Word? I want to close with the idea of knowing God's Word and God's ways. Going back to our Scripture in Zechariah, Luke chapter 1, verse 63.
  
  So we're here at this moment. They say, "Aren't we going to name the son Zechariah, right?" And Elizabeth pipes up. She says, "No, we're not going to call him Zechariah. We're calling him John. His name is John. Get it? His name is going to be John. Stop arguing with me."
  
  And all of the people, they were like, "She's crazy. She just had a child. I made something wrong with her brain." They turned to Zechariah. Remember, he's been silent. For the last, I don't know, nine, ten months maybe. God made him mute supernaturally because of his lack of faith.
  
  So they turned to Zechariah and said, "What do you say, Zechariah? What do you say about this?" He asked them for a writing tablet. He began to write, saying, "His name is John." It's John. And they all marveled.
  
  Now, what's amazing about that scripture is that it's this moment that God chooses to open his mouth back up. It's when he obeys, when he does the thing that is weird to everybody else. "His name is John." He shows it to them. "His name is John."
  
  And everybody's like, "Oh, he spoke." God opened his mouth again, and he spoke and began to praise God. You know what this tells me? This tells me that serving the Lord and doing his will is much more than just a matter of faith.
  
  It tells me much more than just following a list of do's and don'ts. Zechariah discovered something here, that doing the will of God is much more about having a relationship with him. It's not just following the commandments.
  
  It's knowing who God is. This is how Abraham is able to trust God when he tells him to do something crazy. "Okay, God, I know you. I have experience with you. I've followed you. I've done your will so many times that when you tell me to do something that doesn't make sense, God, I'm just going to follow because I know who you are, Lord."
  
  It's out of relationship that obedience begins to flow. It's not just a list of do's and don'ts. It's the moment that Zechariah writes the name. His obedience is fulfilled, and his mouth is opened.
  
  It's not just a dry religious thing. It's that he trusted God in that moment. Let me ask you, do you know the difference between God's word and God's ways? They're not always different, but they are distinct.
  
  It is possible to read the Bible from the back to the front and still not know God. You can know his word, but not know him. You can't know him personally. And so much of serving God is not just learning his word, but learning his ways.
  
  How do we learn the ways of God? How does God act? How does God think? Well, we learn his ways the same way that you learn about the ways of anybody else. You've got to spend time with them, right?
  
  You have to know the kind of person that they are. So what about you? How's your relationship? How's your relationship with God? I'm not asking how much of the Bible you've memorized.
  
  There's plenty of Christian professors who know the Bible inside and out and have a deep understanding of theology, but they don't know God. Many there will be on that day, Jesus said, who say, "'Lord, Lord, did we not do all these things in your name?' But I will say, "'Depart from me, for I never knew you.'"
  
  The way that we know the ways of God, not just his words, but his ways, is by spending time with him in prayer, in devotion, worship, to spend time seeking, devoted to his word and his truth.
  
  Sometimes serving God means doing something that's out of the ordinary, a change in your schedule, out of the ordinary. And, you know, that's hard for us because we get set in our ways. We become inflexible.
  
  We say, "Well, God never did it before, so he can't do it now." And I want to challenge you. Be open to new things. I am so grateful that we have a fellowship, we have a church, that is open to new things that God is doing.
  
  You know, if you rewind the clock back to the time when Pastor Mitchell was taking over the church in Prescott, Arizona, and, you know, he started out with 20, I think it was 24 people, and seven of them were his family, right?
  
  And he's there in this little tiny cowboy town, Prescott, Arizona, but God begins to sweep across the nation, starts saving hippies in the 1970s. Those people were very different from the normal church-going believer at that time.
  
  Very different from Pastor Mitchell, who was 40-plus years old at that time. And all these young hippies with long hair and long beards and no shoes and bringing their dogs to church. And they'd sit on the floor with their guitars and play along.
  
  But they were getting saved in miraculous ways. And thank God Pastor Mitchell was able to receive them. God was doing something new. And our fellowship was born in that environment.
  
  So as we close, I want to give you some practical ways to discovering the mystery of God's will. And this thought comes from a book written by Chuck Swindoll called The Mystery of God's Will.
  
  Chuck Swindoll, interesting about him, he was born with a genetic deficiency in one of his ears. There was a hole inside his ear. And when he was young, this caused a lot of pain and even infections in his ear.
  
  And so as he got a little bit older, the doctors told him that they should probably close this hole up and perform some surgery on there to repair this hole. And so as he was going through that, there was a time that he had hearing loss in that ear.
  
  And so he began the process of thinking this was going to be a permanent change that he's going to have to live with. So he began learning how to read people's lips. And he observes that as he began to learn this skill of reading lips, that he discovered something.
  
  It's possible to hear someone's words without looking at them. But if you're going to read their lips, you have to, like, stare intently at their face to get every word. If you can't hear the word, then you have to be able to see the lips moving.
  
  And he began to appreciate people who articulate their words in a way that was easier for him to understand. Thankfully, that was not a permanent condition, but... He equates that to the idea of learning to hear from God.
  
  It's possible for us to hear his word, but not look at his face. And learning the divine mystery of God's will is more than just reading his word, but it's looking into his face.
  
  So, six steps to knowing God's will as we close. Number one, we have to approach God with an accepting frame of mind. Meaning, "Lord, whatever you have for me, I'm ready." That's like step one. That's like entry level, "Lord, whatever you have for my life, I'm willing."
  
  Some people never make it that far. Some people are still holding on to their dream, their idea of what's best for their life. You're not going to get there. You're not going to be faithful to God's will unless you're willing, first of all, to say, "Lord, I'm open, I'm teachable, I'm sensible, I'm available." That's step one.
  
  Step two is a biblical investigation. And I say that because God's will is never contrary to his word. God will not tell you to rob the bank. I was praying last night, and God told me, "I'm going to supply for your need. So just purchase a firearm and go to the local bank of Hampton Roads. Hold up the teller there, and they're going to give you all the money that you need."
  
  The angel is not going to tell you that. He's not going to say that to you. Okay? We know that. Because the will of God is clear. Thou shalt not steal. That's easy. You don't have to pray about whether or not to rob the bank.
  
  We have to investigate the Bible. Knowing God's will, we understand that God will never speak contrary to his word. The third thing is clarification and conviction of the Holy Spirit.
  
  In other words, the will of God is not an impulse. It's not an emotion. It's not just mere inspiration, and we get all fired up about something and exciting, and, "Oh, I'll jump into it." We have to be open to hearing from the Holy Spirit, waiting patiently for the Lord. Psalm 40, verse 1.
  
  The fourth thing is determine if peace is occurring. The peace of Jesus is like an umpire that keeps the game moving. Never move ahead unless you have the peace that passes understanding, like Philippians 4, verse 7.
  
  The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your heart and mind through Christ Jesus. I've had God speak to me about things, and sometimes it's not necessarily a thing that God wanted me to do because it's a test, like Abram on the mountain.
  
  Are you willing to move? But I have experienced the peace of God, which passes understanding, about certain decisions. We have to be sensitive to that peace. If we don't sense it, we shouldn't move forward.
  
  Fifth, we should expect struggles and surprises as we experience the results of following the Lord and His mystery. And finally, the last thing, is to seek out wise counsel. This is one that's often missed. Talk over the way that God is leading you with other believers who are faithfully serving Him.
  
  There is wisdom in the multitude of counselors, Proverbs 15, 22. Doesn't mean that every time you're going to do what counselors tell you to do, but to have the confidence of people that you trust, people who have more experience in the Lord than you do.
  
  I close with this illustration. Jim Lovell, who's an astronaut in Apollo 13. Maybe you saw the movie from Ron Howard, Apollo 13 with Tom Hanks. And he tells a story in that movie about how he had gotten in trouble.
  
  There was a time when he was a Navy pilot and he was flying in a Banshee at night in combat. There were no running lights on the carrier. He's trying to land in the Sea of Japan. His radar had jammed. His homing signal was gone.
  
  And so it was leading him away from where he was supposed to be. He says, "I'm looking down at a big black ocean and my instruments are failing. So I flip on my map light. I'm going to try to read the map. And as soon as I turn on the light, he says, everything shorts out right there in the cockpit. All the instruments fail and it's completely dark."
  
  He says, "I can't even tell what my altitude was. I know I'm running out of fuel. So he says, I'm thinking about ditching into the ocean. And then in a moment, I looked out of the window and I see in the darkness, a green trail."
  
  He says, "It's like a long carpet laid out right beneath me." What was it? It was the algae in the ocean, this phosphorus light that is churned up with the ocean. And he says, "I can't even tell what my altitude was. I know I'm running out of fuel. When the carrier goes through and those big propellers stir up the water and that algae begins to glow with a phosphorus green light."
  
  He says, "I never would have seen that if the lights were on. I never would have seen that unless my map light failed." And he says, "The lesson that he got from that was you never know what is going to transpire to get you home."
  
  And this is what it's like. The mystery of trying to figure out what's going to transpire to get you home. God's will. Sometimes it's not going to make all the sense to you, but God will lead us into his will.
  
  And my prayer this morning is that like Jim Lovell, that you and I would be able to close our eyes and trust God sometimes with what he's doing. Do you have a relationship with him? One of trust.
  
  And when we do, I want to tell you, God will supernaturally equip us. It's just after this that Zechariah begins to prophesy. The Bible says he's filled with the Holy Spirit and begins to prophesy. And all of that struggle comes to pass.
  
  And God wants to help you this morning. Let's bow our heads and close our eyes for just a moment. Thank you for your patience this morning. I believe God's trying to speak to some people about his will.
  
  God's trying to reveal his will for your life. How often it goes against what we anticipated and what we expected. How often the will of God is so much greater than anything we could predict or understand.
  
  The will of God is for you to be saved, first of all. God is not willing that any man should perish, but that every man would come to the knowledge of salvation in Jesus Christ.
  
  God's will is not to send us to hell. And yet many people end up there because they never turn to Jesus in their desperation, in their sin, in their brokenness. Maybe you're here this morning and the first and greatest need of your life is to be forgiven.
  
  Maybe you came here this morning not planning, not planning to surrender your life to Jesus, but you find yourself here and he is speaking to you. The Spirit of God is convicting you of evil and wrong that you have worked in your life.
  
  The Bible says there's a way that seems right to a man, but it leads to destruction. And if you're here today, you say that you're not going to be forgiven. You're not going to be forgiven. You're not going to be forgiven.
  
  Pastor, I'm not living right. I'm living in sin. I've done things I'm ashamed of and I don't want to continue. There is a God in heaven who loves you and he proved it by sending his son Jesus to die for you.
  
  Before we leave this place, you have an opportunity. Cry out to God and ask him to forgive you and set you free. If you need that this morning, can I pray with you? Somebody here, God's speaking to you. Would you lift up your hands?
  
  Somebody here. God's dealing with your heart right now. He's knocking on the door of your heart. If anyone would open that door and let the Lord come in, become the Lord of your life. You receive Him as your Savior and your Lord.
  
  The Bible says you can be saved. Old things would pass away. Everything will become new. That happened in my life when I was 16 years old. God changed me and transformed me in a moment of time because I reached out to Him.
  
  I didn't even know if He was there or not. I said, "God, if you are there, I don't want to live like this. I don't want to continue like this. Please save me. I'm lost. I'm broken."
  
  Maybe that's you right now. And with an uplifted hand, you'd say, "Pastor, please pray for me. I'm not right with God, but I want to be. Before I leave this place, I want Jesus to set me free." Is that you? Quickly, would you lift up your hand?
  
  Somebody here. God's dealing with you. Unsaved or backslidden in your heart, maybe like a prodigal son. You're living in that far country. You're far away from the Lord, but you want to come home today.
  
  Today is the day of salvation. Don't wait for tomorrow. Would you lift up your hand? Unsaved or backslidden in your heart? Please don't miss this opportunity. Is there someone here? Anyone at all? Quickly, with an uplifted hand, you'd want to respond.
  
  Thank you. I want to speak to believers then. I want to speak to those of us who have made a commitment to Christ. We realize what He's done for us. He died on the cross so that we could be set free.
  
  And that now this life does not belong to us. We've been bought. We've been paid for. We've been purchased by the precious blood. And that means our lives do not belong to us.
  
  That means that our greatest purpose is to figure out what God wants us to do. What is your will for my life, Lord? And you might be surprised. God's will for you might be different than your will for you.
  
  God's will for you might be different than your parents' or your family's will. Might be different than any expectation. The will of God is something that we have to be open to in order to receive it.
  
  And if you're here this morning and this is something that's a concern of your heart, say, "Pastor, I want to speak to God. I want to believe God to show me His will. Reveal it to me."
  
  I want to ask you to come to this altar and pray. Could we stand up to our feet for just a moment? We're going to open this altar for prayer. If God's dealing with you, God's leading with you, you want to find God's will for your life. Would you come to this altar?
  
  We're going to pray together. Lord, lead me in your ways. Lead me in your truth. Lead me according to your word and your ways. I want you to show me, Lord, the will of God for my life, even when it goes against what some might expect.
  
  Lord, I'm trusting you to help me. Let's pray. Come on, let's let our voices be heard. By heaven this morning, let's cry out to the Lord for a few moments. Church, would you pray with me while these are here? Let's cry out to the Lord for a few moments.
  
  God, we come. Let's pray.
  
  This is a place of surrender. Pastor Mitchell, the founder of our fellowship, used to make a statement, and he said, "God will often not reveal His will to you until you are surrendered to it."
  
  The requirement to knowing God's will is, first of all, being surrendered to it. And I want to pray a prayer with you this morning, a prayer of surrender. Can we stand up to our feet together?
  
  We're going to lift up our hands. Thank God for the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. They said, "No, his name is John, because that's what the angel told us."
  
  And I believe that there are some things that God is speaking to His people this morning. There are some specific actions that God is asking you to make, but it seems weird, it seems strange, it seems out of the ordinary.
  
  But through counsel of Scripture, through seeking the will of God, through seeking His peace that surpasses understanding, through godly counsel, God is able to lead you in the mystery of His will.
  
  And I just want to pray that we would have the heart to surrender to it. Let's lift up our hands together, and I want you to pray this prayer with me. Say, "God in heaven, I thank you that you are the Lord of my life. I give you all authority, power to make decisions. I release that into your hands.
  
  I give up control over my own life, and I recognize that your ways are higher than my ways. Your thoughts are higher than my thoughts. And I surrender completely freely to your will for my life.
  
  Give me wisdom and understanding, revelation of what you want me to do with the life that you've given me. I believe, Lord, that you are faithful to speak to me as I seek your will.
  
  And I give you glory this morning, in Jesus' name. Amen. Come on, let's give Him praise right now. God, we want to make one last statement this morning, and that is, that there is a sense of timing when it comes to the will of God.
  
  We don't always have forever. There are some chapters that God is trying to move on us with expediency. There is a time and a place for the will of God. Think of Zechariah. They didn't have the liberty.
  
  Let's just wait another six months to name the boy, because we're not too sure about this. No, they couldn't do that. They had to do it now. They had to make up their mind.
  
  And sometimes there are issues of our lives that if we delay, if we wait, if we say, "I need to pray another six months, I need to believe," sometimes the will of God passes by. Jesus, he's out there on the lake walking on the water, and it says he would have passed them by.
  
  Isn't that crazy? Until they called out to him. And I believe the will of God can be like that, that there is a sense of divine timing. So I want to charge you, church, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.
  
  Stay in your word. Surround yourself with godly people that you trust that you can help. They can help you to discern the will of God for your life. And I believe that as each one of us is faithfully doing this, that the purpose of his church can go forward in the earth today.
  
  This is not about a single person. This is about the will of God playing out in all of our lives together, and God is able to use that for his kingdom, for his purpose. Amen.
  
  Amen. So grateful for all of you this morning. I'm believing God that there will be some powerful decisions made as a result of this truth revealed in our hearts today.
  
  We do want to encourage you. We're back this evening for another service. We open up the doors at 6 p.m. We can pray together. The service begins at 7 p.m. We've got another from heaven. Let's believe God to speak to us tonight. Amen.
  
  Let's close with the word of prayer, and we do appreciate each and every one of you this morning. Brother Steven, will you close us in prayer?
  
  Happy birthday for Mr. Andre back there. One, two, three, happy birthday!

---

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love, Pastor Adam Dragoon

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When God Says, "SHUT UP!"

When God Says, “SHUT UP!”

Luke 1:18-22

Sermon Summary

In this message, we explore the profound story of Zechariah and Elizabeth from Luke Chapter 1, a narrative that sets the stage for the miraculous birth of John the Baptist. This story is a powerful reminder of how God can intervene in our lives, even when we least expect it. Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous and devout, yet they faced the deep personal struggle of childlessness, a situation that often led to societal judgment and personal doubt. Despite their faithful service, they likely resigned themselves to a life without children until God intervened in a miraculous way.

Zechariah's encounter with the angel Gabriel in the temple is pivotal. It highlights the reality that no amount of religious devotion or service can prepare us for a direct encounter with God's presence. When faced with the angel's message, Zechariah's initial response was one of doubt, reflecting a common human tendency to question God's promises when they seem impossible. This doubt led to a period of enforced silence, a time for Zechariah to listen and reflect, ultimately preparing him to speak with faith and prophecy once his son, John, was born.

This narrative challenges us to consider our own responses to God's promises and interventions. It encourages us to embrace moments of silence and listening, allowing God to speak into our lives and prepare us for His purposes. As we enter the Christmas season, a time of miracles and reflection, we are reminded to be open to the unexpected ways God might work in our lives, just as He did with Zechariah and Elizabeth.

---

Watch/Listen

Message Study Guide

Youtube chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[41:57] - Opening Announcements
[46:45] - Building Fund and Support
[51:36] - Introduction to Zechariah and Elizabeth
[54:47] - When God Says, "Shut Up"
[56:40] - Zechariah's Role as a Priest
[01:00:43] - The Struggle of Childlessness
[01:03:02] - Divine Interruption by Gabriel
[01:04:24] - The Power of God's Presence
[01:06:55] - Zechariah's Doubt and God's Response
[01:09:21] - Embracing God's Promises
[01:11:41] - Silence as a Tool for Growth
[01:17:06] - Zechariah's Transformation
[01:24:34] - Zechariah's Prophecy
[01:26:57] - New Beginnings and Miracles

Key Takeaways

• Faithful Service Amidst Struggles: Zechariah and Elizabeth's story teaches us that even the most devout can face deep personal struggles. Their faithfulness amidst childlessness challenges us to remain steadfast in our service to God, trusting His timing and purposes. [51:36]

• The Power of God's Presence: Zechariah's encounter with the angel Gabriel underscores that no amount of religious routine can substitute for a genuine encounter with God's presence. This moment reminds us to be open to divine interruptions in our lives, which can transform our understanding and faith. [01:04:24]

• Silence as a Tool for Growth: Zechariah's period of silence was not a punishment but a divine tool for growth. It allowed him to listen and prepare for the role God had for him. This teaches us the value of silence and listening in our spiritual journey, enabling us to hear God's voice more clearly. [01:11:41]

• Embracing God's Promises: Despite knowing the scriptures, Zechariah initially doubted God's promise. This reflects our own struggles with faith when faced with seemingly impossible situations. We are encouraged to trust in God's promises, even when they defy our understanding. [01:09:21]

• The Potential for New Beginnings: The birth of John the Baptist was a new beginning for Zechariah and Elizabeth, illustrating that God can bring about new life and purpose in our lives, regardless of our past or present circumstances. This encourages us to remain open to the new things God wants to do in and through us. [01:26:57]

---

Bible Reading

Luke 1:18-22 NLT - 18 Zechariah said to the angel, "How can I be sure this will happen? I'm an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years." 19 Then the angel said, "I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! 20 But now, since you didn't believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time." 21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah to come out of the sanctuary, wondering why he was taking so long. 22 When he finally did come out, he couldn't speak to them. Then they realized from his gestures and his silence that he must have seen a vision in the sanctuary.

Observation Questions

1. What was Zechariah's initial reaction to the angel Gabriel's message, and how did it reflect his faith at that moment? [01:08:45]

2. How does the Bible describe Zechariah and Elizabeth's character and their service to God? [56:40]

3. What was the societal perception of childlessness during Zechariah and Elizabeth's time, and how might it have affected them personally? [01:00:43]

4. What significant change occurred in Zechariah's life after his encounter with the angel, and how did it prepare him for future events? [01:17:06]

Interpretation Questions

1. Why might Zechariah have doubted the angel's message despite his knowledge of scripture and his role as a priest? [01:09:21]

2. How does Zechariah's period of silence serve as a tool for spiritual growth, and what might this suggest about the role of silence in our own spiritual journeys? [01:11:41]

3. In what ways does Zechariah's story illustrate the potential for new beginnings, and how does this relate to the broader narrative of the Christmas story? [01:26:57]

4. How does the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth challenge our understanding of faithfulness and God's timing in our lives? [01:00:43]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a time when you doubted God's promises in your life. What steps can you take to strengthen your faith in seemingly impossible situations? [01:09:21]

2. Zechariah's silence was a period of growth and preparation. How can you incorporate moments of silence and listening into your daily routine to better hear God's voice? [01:11:41]

3. Consider the societal pressures or judgments you face. How can you remain steadfast in your faith and service to God despite these challenges? [01:00:43]

4. Zechariah and Elizabeth's story is one of new beginnings. What new beginnings might God be preparing for you, and how can you remain open to them? [01:26:57]

5. How can you create space in your life for divine interruptions, allowing God to transform your understanding and faith? [01:04:24]

6. In what ways can you actively embrace and trust in God's promises, even when they defy your understanding or expectations? [01:09:21]

7. Identify an area in your life where you need to be more open to God's timing and purposes. What practical steps can you take to align your actions with this trust? [01:00:43]

---

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love, Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Joyful Self-Forgetfulness [Philippians 4:6-8]

Joyful Self-Forgetfulness

Philippians 4:6-8

Sermon Summary

This message focused on the theme of joyful self-forgetfulness, a concept that encourages us to shift our focus from ourselves to God and others. As we approach Thanksgiving, it's a timely reminder to cultivate gratitude and humility. We explored the idea that true peace and joy are found not in self-awareness but in self-forgetfulness, where we think less of ourselves and more of God and His work in our lives. This shift in focus allows us to experience God's peace, which surpasses all understanding, guarding our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

We delved into Philippians 4:6-8, which instructs us not to worry but to pray about everything, thanking God for what He has done. This practice leads to experiencing God's peace. We also discussed the importance of fixing our thoughts on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. By doing so, we align our minds with God's will and purpose, allowing His peace to reign in our lives.

The sermon emphasized that salvation involves dethroning ourselves as the center of our lives and allowing Jesus to take His rightful place. This transformation requires us to focus on Jesus, His teachings, and His example. By doing so, we become more like Him, reflecting His glory and living a life of service to others.

We were reminded that worship is not just about singing songs but about living a life that honors God. It's about making choices that reflect His values and priorities, even when no one is watching. As we enter this week of Thanksgiving, let's commit to putting Jesus at the center of our thoughts and actions, allowing His peace and joy to fill our lives.

---

Watch/Listen

Message Study Guide

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [11:27] - Opening Prayer and Worship

• [14:13] - Worship Songs and Praise

• [17:54] - Thanksgiving and Gratitude

• [22:45] - Joy in the House of the Lord

• [26:17] - Mighty to Save

• [28:00] - Shine Your Light

• [31:50] - Running to Your Arms

• [33:23] - Embrace of God's Love

• [42:38] - Announcements and Praise Reports

• [45:00] - Upcoming Events and Opportunities

• [48:37] - Building Fund and Generosity

• [51:42] - Offering and Prayer

• [54:08] - Thanksgiving Message

• [55:33] - Self-Forgetfulness and Humility

• [56:59] - Finding Peace in God

• [57:39] - Philippians 4:6-8 Reflection

• [59:17] - Dethroning Self for Salvation

• [01:00:59] - Jesus as Savior and Lord

• [01:03:01] - Fixing Our Thoughts

• [01:07:50] - Filling Our Minds with Jesus

• [01:11:24] - The Importance of Worship\

• [01:13:00] - Heaven's Focus on Jesus

• [01:14:15] - The Dangers of Distraction

• [01:16:23] - Practicing Joyful Self-Forgetfulness

• [01:17:43] - Overcoming Self-Analysis\

• [01:19:46] - Encouraging Others

• [01:21:02] - Living Out Our Callings

• [01:23:09] - Experiencing God's Peace

• [01:25:01] - The Formula for Peace of Mind

• [01:26:38] - Abraham's Trust in God

• [01:28:41] - The Power of Gratitude

• [01:29:19] - Centering Our Lives on Jesus

• [01:30:04] - Altar Call and Prayer

• [01:33:57] - Worship and Commitment

• [01:35:32] - Running to God's Embrace

• [01:37:48] - The Command to Worship

• [01:39:57] - Closing Prayer and Invitation

Key Takeaways

• Joyful Self-Forgetfulness: True joy and peace come from thinking less of ourselves and more of God. By focusing on His work and presence, we find a deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment. [56:59]

• The Power of Gratitude: Philippians 4:6-8 teaches us to replace worry with prayer and gratitude. This practice leads to experiencing God's peace, which surpasses all understanding. [57:39]

• Dethroning Self: Salvation involves removing ourselves from the center of our lives and allowing Jesus to take His rightful place. This transformation leads to a life of service and purpose. [59:17]

• Worship as a Lifestyle: Worship is more than music; it's a way of life. By making choices that honor God, we align our lives with His will and experience His peace and joy. [01:37:48]

• Focusing on Jesus: We cannot think about Jesus enough. By centering our thoughts on Him, we become more like Him and experience the peace and joy that come from a life lived in His presence. [01:11:24]

---

Bible Reading

• Phl 4:6-8 NLT - 6 Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

  Observation Questions

• According to Philippians 4:6-8, what are the steps Paul outlines for experiencing God's peace? How does this relate to the concept of joyful self-forgetfulness discussed in the sermon? [56:59]

• What does the sermon suggest is the relationship between gratitude and experiencing God's peace? [57:39]

• How does the sermon describe the process of "dethroning self" and allowing Jesus to take His rightful place in our lives? [59:17]

• What are some of the characteristics of thoughts that we are encouraged to fix our minds on according to Philippians 4:8? How does this align with the sermon’s message? [01:03:01]
  

  Interpretation Questions

• How does the practice of prayer and gratitude, as described in Philippians 4:6-8, lead to a peace that surpasses understanding? What might this peace look like in a believer's life? [57:39]

• The sermon emphasizes the importance of focusing on Jesus to experience transformation. How does this focus help in dethroning self and living a life of service? [01:00:59]

• In what ways does the sermon suggest that worship is more than just singing songs? How can worship as a lifestyle impact our daily decisions and actions? [01:37:48]

• How does the concept of joyful self-forgetfulness challenge the common cultural emphasis on self-awareness and self-promotion? [56:03]

  
  Application Questions
  

• Reflect on your current prayer life. How can you incorporate more gratitude into your prayers this week to experience God's peace? [57:39]

• Identify an area in your life where you might be placing yourself at the center. What steps can you take to allow Jesus to take His rightful place in that area? [59:17]

• Consider the thoughts that occupy your mind daily. How can you intentionally fix your thoughts on what is true, honorable, and praiseworthy this week? [01:03:01]

• Worship is described as a lifestyle in the sermon. What specific choices can you make this week to honor God in your daily life, even when no one is watching? [01:37:48]

• The sermon mentions the dangers of distraction. Is there a specific distraction in your life preventing you from focusing on Jesus that you want to change? How can you minimize that distraction this week? [01:14:15]

• How can you practice joyful self-forgetfulness in your interactions with others this week? Identify one person you can serve or encourage without expecting anything in return. [01:19:46]

• As we approach Thanksgiving, what are some practical ways you can express gratitude to God and others in your life? [54:08]

---

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love, Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Willing Sacrifices: Lessons from Veteran's Day [Galatians 6:14-17]

Willing Sacrifices

Lessons from Veteran’s Day

Galatians 6:14-17

Summary

This message focuses on sacrifice, comparing the commitments of military personnel with those of followers of Christ. As we honor veterans, we acknowledge their sacrifices—personal freedom, time with family, and safety. These sacrifices parallel our spiritual journey. In Galatians 6, Paul mentions bearing the marks of Jesus, highlighting the willingness to endure hardship for the Gospel. This reminds us that following Christ requires sacrificing our desires and comforts for God's kingdom.

In Christ, we become new creations, similar to the transformation in military service, demanding a renewed mind and commitment to God's will. Just as military service requires sacrifices, our faith walk requires laying down our lives, plans, and comforts. Jesus set the ultimate example of sacrifice by giving His life, calling us to do the same in our pursuit of His kingdom.

Sacrifice comes with rewards; God honors our commitments. Like military service brings benefits, serving Christ yields eternal rewards. We are encouraged to persevere, confident that our sacrifices are meaningful and that God rewards those who seek Him.

Reflecting on these truths, let us be willing to make sacrifices, trusting in God's strength. Remember, sacrifices are inherent to following Jesus and show our commitment to Him. May we be inspired by our veterans and Christ's ultimate sacrifice to live sacrificially for God’s glory.

Watch/Listen

---

Message Study Guide

Key Takeaways

• Sacrifice is a fundamental aspect of both military service and the Christian life. Just as soldiers give up personal freedoms and comforts, we are called to lay down our lives for Christ, embracing the transformation into new creations in Him. [45:53]

• The marks of sacrifice, as seen in Paul's life, are a testament to our commitment to Christ. These marks, whether physical or spiritual, serve as evidence of our willingness to endure hardship for the sake of the Gospel. [01:02:50]

• Following Christ requires a willingness to sacrifice personal relationships, comforts, and desires. Jesus calls us to prioritize His kingdom over earthly ties, reminding us that true discipleship involves bearing our cross daily. [57:42]

• The sacrifices we make for Christ are not without reward. God is faithful to honor and reward those who diligently seek Him, and our sacrifices are seen and valued by Him. [01:17:11]

• Just as military service comes with benefits and honors, serving Christ comes with eternal rewards. Our willingness to sacrifice is part of the package of following Jesus, and it is a testament to our commitment to Him. [01:18:59]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome

• [35:50] - Offering and Generosity

• [40:39] - Honoring Veterans

• [42:12] - Willing Sacrifices

• [45:53] - New Creation in Christ

• [47:15] - Crucified to the World

• [48:40] - Sacrifices in Military Life

• [49:54] - Time and Family Sacrifices

• [51:07] - Loss of Privacy

• [52:18] - Career and Financial Sacrifices

• [55:50] - Impact on Relationships

• [57:08] - Sacrifices in Following Jesus

• [57:42] - Counting the Cost

• [01:02:50] - Paul's Marks of Sacrifice

• [01:17:11] - God's Reward for Sacrifice

• [01:20:11] - Willingness to Sacrifice

• [01:24:53] - Prayer and Commitment

Bible Reading

• Galatians 6:14-17 NKJV - 14 But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. 16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy [be] upon them, and upon the Israel of God. 17 From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

• Luke 14:26-27 NKJV - 26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 "And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

• John 15:13 NKJV - 13 "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.

Observation Questions

1. In Galatians 6:14-17, what does Paul mean when he says he bears the marks of Jesus on his body? How does this relate to the concept of sacrifice? [42:12]

2. According to the sermon, what are some specific sacrifices that military personnel make, and how do these compare to the sacrifices Christians are called to make? [49:54]

3. What does Jesus mean in Luke 14:26-27 when He talks about hating one's family and bearing one's cross? How does this relate to the idea of sacrifice in the Christian life? [57:42]

4. How does the sermon describe the transformation that occurs when one becomes a new creation in Christ, and how is this similar to the transformation experienced by military personnel? [45:53]

Interpretation Questions

1. How does Paul's willingness to endure physical marks for the sake of the Gospel challenge modern Christians in their understanding of sacrifice? [01:02:50]

2. What might be the spiritual significance of the sacrifices Jesus calls His followers to make, as described in Luke 14:26-27? How do these sacrifices reflect one's commitment to Christ? [57:42]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that the sacrifices made for Christ are rewarded, and how does this compare to the rewards and honors given to military personnel? [01:17:11]

4. How does the concept of being a new creation in Christ require a renewal of the mind, and what are some practical ways this renewal can manifest in a believer's life? [45:53]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on a personal sacrifice you have made for your faith. How did it impact your spiritual journey, and what did you learn from it? [01:20:11]

2. Consider the relationships in your life. Are there any that might be hindering your walk with Christ? How can you prioritize your commitment to His kingdom over these earthly ties? [58:52]

3. Identify a specific area in your life where you feel God is calling you to sacrifice. What steps can you take this week to begin making that sacrifice? [01:14:12]

4. How can the example of military personnel inspire you to embrace the sacrifices required in your spiritual journey? What practical actions can you take to demonstrate this commitment? [49:54]

5. Reflect on the rewards and honors that come with serving Christ. How does the promise of eternal rewards motivate you to endure hardships and sacrifices in your faith journey? [01:18:59]

6. Think about a time when you felt uncomfortable or challenged in your faith. How did you respond, and what might you do differently in the future to embrace these moments as opportunities for growth? [01:03:56]

7. How can you support others in your community who are making sacrifices for their faith? What specific actions can you take to encourage and uplift them this week? [01:24:53]

---

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love,

Pastor Adam Dragoon

 Did you benefit from this message? Support our ministry with a generous donation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://give.vbph.church⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Dave Johnson Revival Messages

The Ministry of Reconciliation [2 Corinthians 5:17-20] | VBPH Sermon Summary & Study Guide

The Ministry of Reconciliation

2 Corinthians 5:17-20

Summary

In this Sunday morning service, we explored the concept of reconciliation, both with God and others. We acknowledged the divisive times and the strain on relationships. The message emphasized the need to embrace the ministry of reconciliation, as outlined in 2 Corinthians 5:17-20. This passage reminds us of our transformation in Christ, making us new creations. This transformation will necessarily reflect in our interactions with others.

Reconciliation is a practical call to action. It requires letting go of past grievances and recognizing the inherent worth of every individual. This contrasts with the world’s approach, which often treats relationships as disposable. We are called to love our enemies, bless those who curse us, and pray for those who persecute us, as Jesus did.

The message also highlighted that reconciliation begins with God. He initiated salvation, offering grace and mercy even when undeserving. This divine reconciliation inspires us to seek reconciliation in our human relationships. We are called to be ambassadors of reconciliation, modeling forgiveness and healing.

As we reflect, we are challenged to examine our lives for relationships that need reconciliation. We must release bitterness and unforgiveness to God, trusting Him for justice and healing. This fulfills our role as ministers of reconciliation, embodying Christ’s love and grace in our interactions.

Watch/Listen

Key Takeaways

• Reconciliation is a divine mandate, calling us to let go of temporary grievances and embrace a new way of thinking that values every person as made in God's image. This requires a radical shift from the world's disposable view of relationships. [20:50]

• In Christ, we are new creations, and this transformation should be evident in our lives. Old ways of living, including bitterness and unforgiveness, must pass away, making room for new, Christ-like behaviors. [26:35]

• Jesus exemplified the ultimate act of reconciliation by praying for His enemies even as He was crucified. This challenges us to love and pray for those who have wronged us, trusting God to bring justice. [46:47]

• God initiated reconciliation with humanity through Christ, offering grace and mercy even when we were undeserving. This divine act should inspire us to seek reconciliation in our human relationships. [53:05]

• As ambassadors of reconciliation, we are called to model forgiveness and healing in a broken world. This requires us to be proactive in mending strained relationships, trusting God to guide us in this ministry. [57:32]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[14:22] - Introduction to Reconciliation
[16:22] - Temporary Problems, Permanent Solutions
[17:41] - Hope in Divisive Times
[19:23] - Real-Life Examples of Division
[20:50] - The Call for Reconciliation
[22:23] - Understanding 2 Corinthians 5
[23:58] - The Model of Reconciliation
[26:35] - New Creations in Christ
[28:39] - Old Things Passed Away
[30:09] - Personal Testimony of Change
[32:14] - The Transformative Touch of Jesus
[33:18] - Baptism into New Life
[34:09] - The Cost of Following Christ
[37:40] - The Struggle with Bitterness
[39:13] - Disposable Relationships
[41:25] - A New Way of Thinking
[42:14] - The Value of Every Person
[43:42] - Loving Our Enemies
[46:47] - Jesus' Example of Forgiveness
[49:10] - The Universality of Christ's Sacrifice
[51:00] - The Devil's Division
[51:59] - Salvation by Grace
[53:05] - God's Initiative in Reconciliation
[55:39] - The Gift of Salvation
[57:32] - Our Ministry of Reconciliation
[58:43] - The Challenge of Forgiveness
[01:00:00] - The Block of Bitterness
[01:01:06] - Vertical and Horizontal Reconciliation
[01:02:48] - The Call to Action
[01:04:10] - Invitation to Salvation
[01:05:57] - Prayer for Reconciliation
[01:07:49] - Altar Call and Prayer
[01:09:19] - Communion and Closing Remarks

Message Study Guide

Bible Reading:

2 Corinthians 5:17-20

Observation Questions

1. According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, what does it mean to be a "new creation" in Christ? How does this transformation manifest in a believer's life?

2. In the sermon, the pastor mentioned that reconciliation is a divine mandate. What examples were given to illustrate the world's disposable view of relationships? [39:13]

3. How did Jesus exemplify the ultimate act of reconciliation, as discussed in the sermon? What was His response to His executioners? [46:47]

4. What role does God play in the process of reconciliation, according to the sermon and 2 Corinthians 5:18-19? [53:05]

Interpretation Questions

1. The sermon emphasized that reconciliation requires a radical shift from the world's view of relationships. How might this shift challenge a believer's current way of thinking and interacting with others? [41:25]

2. Reflecting on Jesus' prayer for His enemies, what does this teach about the nature of forgiveness and love in the context of reconciliation? [46:47

3. The pastor mentioned that God initiated reconciliation with humanity. How does understanding this divine initiative impact a believer's approach to seeking reconciliation in their own relationships? [53:05]

4. In what ways does being an "ambassador for Christ" involve the ministry of reconciliation, and how can this be practically applied in daily life? [57:32]

Application Questions

1. Are there any relationships in your life where you need to seek reconciliation? What steps can you take this week to initiate that process? [01:02:48]

2. The sermon challenged us to let go of bitterness and unforgiveness. Is there a specific person or situation you need to release to God? How can you begin to do that today? [01:00:00]

3. Jesus prayed for His enemies even in His suffering. Is there someone you find difficult to pray for? What might be a simple prayer you can start with to begin this process? [46:47]

4. The pastor spoke about the importance of viewing every person as made in God's image. How can this perspective change the way you interact with people you disagree with or find challenging? [42:14]

5. As an ambassador of reconciliation, what is one practical way you can model forgiveness and healing in your community or workplace this week? [57:32]

6. Reflect on a time when you experienced God's grace and mercy. How can this memory inspire you to extend grace to others, especially those who have wronged you? [53:05]

7. The sermon mentioned the importance of not solving temporary problems with permanent solutions. Can you identify a situation where you might be tempted to do this? How can you approach it differently? [16:22]

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love,

Pastor Adam Dragoon

 Did you benefit from this message? Support our ministry with a generous donation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://give.vbph.church⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The Ministry of Refreshment [2 Timothy 1:16-18] | VBPH Sermon Summary & Study Guide

The Ministry of Refreshment

2 Timothy 1:16-18

Summary

In Sunday’s gathering, we explored the profound ministry of refreshment, drawing inspiration from the life of the Apostle Paul and his relationship with Onesiphorus. Paul, despite his immense spiritual stature and accomplishments, experienced times of deep need and hardship. He faced numerous trials, including physical beatings, shipwrecks, and imprisonment. Yet, in these moments of vulnerability, Onesiphorus emerged as a beacon of support, often refreshing Paul and not being ashamed of his chains. This narrative serves as a potent reminder that even the most spiritually mature among us require refreshment and encouragement from others.

The essence of the message is that we are all called to be like Onesiphorus, to be refreshers in the lives of those around us. This ministry of refreshment is not limited to grand gestures but can be as simple as offering a kind word, a listening ear, or a helping hand. It is about being present and supportive, especially when others are in their most challenging times. The act of refreshing others aligns us with the heart of Christ, who invites all who are weary to come to Him for rest.

Watch/Listen

“The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; ... he sought me out very zealously and found me.”

— Apostle Paul [2 Tim 1]

Furthermore, the sermon emphasized the importance of community and connection within the church. In a world where isolation is common, the church is called to be a place of refuge and support, where believers actively seek out and uplift one another. This is not just a duty but a privilege, as it allows us to participate in the divine work of bringing comfort and encouragement to those in need.

---

Chapters

[0:00] - Welcome
[06:17] - Announcements and Upcoming Events
[08:57] - The Principle of Generosity
[10:20] - Overcoming Fear with Faith
[14:11] - Introduction to 2 Timothy 1
[19:19] - The Need for Refreshment
[23:22] - Paul's Trials and Hardships
[26:31] - Onesiphorus: A Model of Refreshment
[30:39] - The Importance of Community
[35:28] - The Power of Encouragement
[39:56] - Using Our Tongue for Good
[45:34] - Seeking Out Those in Need
[47:15] - Aligning with Christ's Mission
[52:12] - The Good News of Salvation
[59:52] - Prayer for Refreshment and Blessing

Key Takeaways

1. The Ministry of Refreshment: Just as Onesiphorus refreshed Paul, we are called to be sources of encouragement and support to those around us. This ministry is vital, especially in times of spiritual dryness and hardship, and it reflects the heart of Christ, who offers rest to the weary. [19:19]

2. The Power of Community: Isolation can lead to spiritual dryness, but being part of a supportive community can provide the refreshment we need. The church should be a place where believers actively seek to uplift and encourage one another, fulfilling the law of Christ by bearing each other's burdens. [20:14]

3. Overcoming Fear with Generosity: Fear often holds us back from being generous, but the Bible teaches that true richness comes from a generous spirit. By trusting God and giving freely, we align ourselves with His principles and open the door to His blessings. [10:20]

4. The Role of Encouragement: Encouragement is a powerful tool that can transform lives. By speaking life and blessing into others, we can become a source of refreshment and strength, helping others to overcome their challenges and grow in their faith. [39:56]

5. Aligning with Christ's Mission: When we engage in the ministry of refreshment, we align ourselves with the mission of Christ, who came to seek and save the lost. This calling invites us to be proactive in seeking out those in need and offering them the love and support of Christ. [47:15]

---

Message Study Guide

Bible Reading:

• [2 Tim 1:16-18 NLT] 16 May the Lord show special kindness to Onesiphorus and all his family because he often visited and encouraged me. He was never ashamed of me because I was in chains. 17 When he came to Rome, he searched everywhere until he found me. 18 May the Lord show him special kindness on the day of Christ's return. And you know very well how helpful he was in Ephesus.

• [Mat 11:28 NLT] 28 Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.

• [Gal 6:2 NLT] 2 Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

Observation Questions:

1. What specific actions did Onesiphorus take to refresh Paul, according to 2 Timothy 1:16-18? How did these actions impact Paul during his time of need? [20:14]

2. In the sermon, what examples were given to illustrate the concept of "spiritual dryness" and the need for refreshment? [18:26]

3. How does the sermon describe the role of community in providing refreshment and support to believers? [20:14]

4. What does the pastor say about the challenges of living a life of faith, even for someone as spiritually mature as the Apostle Paul? [24:33]

Interpretation Questions:

1. How does the example of Onesiphorus challenge the common perception of what it means to serve others in the church? What does this suggest about the nature of true Christian service? [27:20]

2. In what ways does the sermon suggest that fear can hinder generosity, and how does this relate to the broader theme of refreshment? [10:20]

3. How does the pastor connect the ministry of refreshment to the mission of Christ, and what implications does this have for believers today? [47:15]

4. What does the sermon imply about the importance of seeking out those in need, and how does this align with the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 11:28? [44:58]

Application Questions:

1. Reflect on a time when you felt spiritually dry or in need of refreshment. How did you find support, and what role did others play in that process? [18:26]

2. Consider the people in your life who might be in need of refreshment. What practical steps can you take this week to be a source of encouragement and support for them? [28:01]

3. The sermon highlights the power of community in overcoming isolation. How can you actively contribute to building a supportive community within your church or small group? [20:14]

4. Fear often holds us back from being generous. Identify a specific area in your life where fear has hindered your generosity. What steps can you take to overcome this fear and trust God more fully? [10:20]

5. Onesiphorus was not ashamed of Paul's chains. Are there people in your life who are going through difficult times that you might be hesitant to support? How can you overcome this hesitation and offer them the refreshment they need? [42:08]

6. The pastor mentioned the importance of using our words to speak life and blessing. Think of someone who could benefit from your encouragement. What specific words or actions can you offer them this week? [39:56]

7. How can you align your actions with Christ's mission of seeking and saving the lost, particularly in the context of being a refresher to those around you? [47:15]

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love,

Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Discipleship in the Digital Age | Sermon Summary & Study Guide

Summary

Livestream Replay

This Sunday, we explored the profound impact of technology on our spiritual lives and how we can navigate this digital age as disciples of Jesus. We began by acknowledging the rapid technological advancements that have transformed our world, drawing parallels to historical innovations like the printing press, which revolutionized access to the Word of God. While technology itself is not inherently evil, it requires wisdom and discernment to ensure it does not replace our connection with God or become an idol in our lives.

We delved into the concept of discipleship in a digital age, emphasizing the importance of abiding in God's Word. Jesus calls us to make His teachings our home, our place of comfort and truth. In a world saturated with digital content, we must be intentional about where we direct our attention and how we spend our time. The truth of God's Word is absolute, and it is through knowing this truth that we find freedom.

“Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. ‘”

— John 8:31-32,36

Message Inspiration came from Chandler Bible Conference

Podcast Version

We also discussed the dangers of allowing technology to create a false sense of connection and community. While digital platforms offer numerous ways to connect, they can never replace the depth and authenticity of face-to-face relationships. True discipleship involves impartation, a life-to-life transfer of spiritual gifts and wisdom, which cannot be fully realized through digital means alone.

As we navigate this digital age, we must develop habits of wisdom, such as setting boundaries on our screen time, being mindful of the content we consume, and prioritizing real-life interactions. We are called to reject the dehumanization that technology can bring and to remember that we are not just products of algorithms but human beings created in the image of God.

Ultimately, our goal is to be disciples who are free in Christ, not bound by the distractions and deceptions of the digital world. By abiding in His Word and living out our faith in tangible ways, we can be effective witnesses for His kingdom in this generation.

---

Youtube Chapters

• [0:00] - Welcome

• [05:22] - Praise and Worship

• [17:47] - Announcements and Events

• [31:16] - Trunk or Treat Planning

• [32:12] - Midweek and Outreach Plans

• [32:57] - Deep Dive Bible Study

• [33:46] - Tithes and Offerings

• [36:38] - Church Planting Vision

• [40:04] - Reflections on Discipleship

• [46:59] - Technology and the Church

• [47:46] - Abiding in God's Word

• [01:00:24] - Habits of Wisdom

• [01:09:31] - The Value of Time

• [01:23:00] - Analog vs. Digital Discipleship

• [01:36:04] - Communion and Closing Prayer

Key Takeaways

1. Abiding in God's Word: To be true disciples, we must make our home in the teachings of Jesus, finding comfort and truth in His Word. This requires intentionality in a world filled with digital distractions. [47:46]

2. The Reality of Truth: Jesus teaches that there is absolute truth found in His Word, and it is this truth that sets us free. In a culture of moral relativism, we must hold fast to the truth of the Gospel. [01:01:51]

3. The Dangers of Digital Connection: While technology offers many ways to connect, it can never replace the depth of real-life relationships. True discipleship involves life-to-life impartation, which cannot be fully realized through digital means. [01:23:00]

4. Developing Habits of Wisdom: We must be intentional about how we use technology, setting boundaries and prioritizing real-life interactions. Our time is valuable, and we should use it to glorify God and build His kingdom. [01:09:31]

5. Rejecting Dehumanization: We are not just products of algorithms; we are human beings created in God's image. We must resist the temptation to let technology define us and instead live out our faith authentically. [01:13:41]

---

Message Study Guide

Observation Questions

1. What does Jesus mean when He says, "If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed"? How does this relate to the concept of discipleship in a digital age? [47:46]

2. In the sermon, what historical technological advancement is compared to the impact of modern technology on our spiritual lives? [49:04]

3. How does the sermon describe the potential dangers of digital connections compared to face-to-face relationships? [01:15:52]

4. What are some examples given in the sermon of how technology can become an idol in our lives? [01:30:39]

Interpretation Questions

1. How might the concept of "abiding in God's Word" challenge the way individuals consume digital content today? [47:46]

2. The sermon mentions the importance of setting boundaries on screen time. What might be the spiritual implications of failing to do so? [01:09:31]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that technology can create a false sense of community, and how does this impact true discipleship? [01:15:52]

4. How does the sermon interpret the idea of being "free indeed" in the context of the digital age? [01:26:36]

Application Questions

1. Reflect on your current habits with technology. Are there specific areas where you feel technology is distracting you from your relationship with God? What steps can you take to address this? [01:07:12]

2. The sermon emphasizes the importance of real-life interactions. How can you prioritize face-to-face relationships in your daily life, especially in a world dominated by digital communication? [01:15:52]

3. Consider the content you consume online. How can you be more intentional about ensuring it aligns with the truth of God's Word? [01:01:51]

4. The sermon discusses the idea of technology becoming an idol. Are there specific technologies or platforms that you find yourself overly reliant on? How can you begin to shift your focus back to God? [01:30:39]

5. How can you develop habits of wisdom in your use of technology, such as setting boundaries or being mindful of your screen time? What practical steps can you take this week? [01:09:31]

6. Think about a time when you felt disconnected from others despite being "connected" digitally. How can you foster deeper, more authentic relationships in your community? [01:15:52]

7. The sermon calls us to reject dehumanization by technology. What are some ways you can remind yourself and others that we are created in God's image, not just products of algorithms? [01:13:41]

Keep an eye on our Facebook Page for Prayer Prompts and Daily Devotionals based on this message over the next five days.

In Love,

Pastor Adam Dragoon

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Church is a Team Sport

The church is not merely a collection of individuals but a cohesive body that thrives on cooperation and mutual support. Just as a sports team or a choir requires each member to play their part harmoniously, the church needs every believer to contribute their unique gifts and talents for the common good. Division, whether caused by foolish disputes, racism, politics, or pride, is demonic and counterproductive to the mission of the church. Paul’s instruction to reject a divisive person after the first and second admonition underscores the seriousness of maintaining unity.

We explored the metaphor of the church as a team, an army, and a temple. Each metaphor highlights the necessity of working together under a common purpose and authority. Just as a team cannot win if its members are divided, and an army cannot succeed if its soldiers do not follow orders, the church cannot fulfill its mission if it is fractured by internal strife. The unity within the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—serves as the ultimate model for the church, providing a strong theological basis for our call to unity. This divine unity should be reflected in our relationships with one another, fostering an environment where the Spirit of God can dwell and work powerfully.

The Apostle Paul’s transformation from Saul, a persecutor of Christians, to a beloved church member exemplifies the power of reconciliation and unity. His story reminds us that our vertical relationship with God must translate into horizontal relationships with others. The church is called to be a living example of heaven on earth, where diversity is celebrated and unity is paramount.

In closing, we were challenged to embrace a spirit of humility and unity, to avoid foolish disputes, and most importantly, to actively seek ways to contribute to the body of Christ. By doing so, we can become a powerful, harmonious force that reflects the glory of God and advances His kingdom on earth.

Key Takeaways

1. **Unity in Diversity**: The church, like a choir, thrives on the harmonious blending of diverse gifts and talents. Each member's unique abilities contribute to a powerful collective impact that surpasses individual efforts. This unity in diversity reflects the nature of God's creation and His design for the church. [01:08:01]

2. **Rejecting Division**: Paul’s instruction to reject a divisive person after the first and second admonition highlights the seriousness of maintaining unity. Division is demonic and counterproductive to the church's mission. It is better to have fewer people united in purpose than a large, divided congregation. [01:03:19]

3. **The Church as a Team and Army**: The metaphors of the church as a team and an army emphasize the importance of working together under a common purpose and authority. Just as a team cannot win if its members are divided, and an army cannot succeed if its soldiers do not follow orders, the church cannot fulfill its mission if it is fractured by internal strife. [01:31:43]

4. **The Power of Reconciliation**: The transformation of Saul to Paul exemplifies the power of reconciliation and unity. Our vertical relationship with God must translate into horizontal relationships with others. The church is called to be a living example of heaven on earth, where diversity is celebrated, and unity is paramount. [01:27:20]

5. **Living Stones in God’s Temple**: The church is described as a temple built with living stones, each uniquely shaped and placed by God. This imagery underscores the importance of each member's role and the masterful way God fits us together to create a dwelling place for His Spirit. Our unity allows God's presence to manifest powerfully among us. [01:34:12]