New Faith

Now we are in a brand new series called Brand New. I'm excited about brand new because it's a brand new year and I like brand new things. And all of us, I think, like brand new things to an extent, I'm sure. I remember when I was a kid, I loved to get some brand new sneakers, right? How many of you loved to get those brand new sneakers and you'd walk around the brand new sneakers and you would see, oh there's a scratch, you know, and you kind of reach down and start licking it off.

Some of you still do that, right? I see some of you during service kind of like licking, you know, kind of rubbing your shoes. And then they had this like polished, this white polish, and you would kind of, you know, you get a scratch on it. And that white polish just didn't work. It didn't really make it look brand new because it's better to be brand new and then it looked kind of sort of new or sort of improved.

And it wasn't, but it wasn't brand new. We like new sneakers. We like new clothes. I mean, I love a fresh shirt, you know. You put it on for the first time.

There's no wrinkles in it. There's no of those little things that get on it when you wash it one time, you know. And there's something about brand new. And all of you, at least some of you or most of you have probably experienced the brand new car. Even if you haven't bought a brand new car, you've sat in a brand new car, right?

And we've got some car salesmen in here. Gray's one of those car salesmen. He'll let, he'll invite you to sit right into a brand, right in a brand new car if you really want to know what that look, that feels like, right? That smells like, how about that smell of that brand new car? Don't you just love it?

I haven't had a brand new car in like 15 years. But man, when I had my brand new car, there was something about that brand new car. I was polishing it every day. I was wiping it did you know that God loves brand new as well? He absolutely loves brand new.

In fact, the prophetic book of Revelation, God talks about making things new, making all things brand new. God's story of redemption is about making things brand new. In fact, the entire story from here and until the end is about redemption. His whole purpose is about redemption. His whole purpose is restoration, restoring all things, making all things new.

And he has a vision for everyone's life. And I want to share this with you. Revelation 21, 4 and 5, this is kind of the theme verse here for the brand new series. It says this, he will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death and no more mourning, crying or pain.

And this is the way that God always intended it to be. He always intended that we live in a state of no more crying, no more pain, where there never was crying, where there never was pain, where there never was suffering. But sin, what happened is sin came into the world and tainted that idea. What we originally intended to be is people that didn't have to worry about the mess of life that we have to deal with now, right? And from the very beginning, God is in the restoration business.

He is about redeeming and making things new. And to go on with this, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, I am making everything new. I am making everything new. God's vision is to make everything brand new.

Brand spanking new. Because God likes new. But very few people experience new. Most of us came into religion, came into church, came into Christianity, obviously giving our hearts to Christ and wanting a change. But we had this idea that we just wanted to get better in life rather than a real change.

We just, maybe I'll just improve my life. Maybe if I go to church, maybe if I give my life to Christ, maybe if I do this, and we chalk it down to a New Year's resolution. Like, I'm going to do better this year. If I seek God and I pray and I read my Bible, perhaps God will improve my life. But when we see it that way, we're doing it all wrong because what we're doing, we're changing the outside, hoping that the inside changes.

And God wants us to be changed from the inside. He wants to start from the inside. So we chalk it down to a New Year's resolution. All of you probably have made a New Year's resolution at some point in your life, haven't you? Yeah?

Yeah, you probably got one right now. But the problem with New Year's resolutions, they don't work. Right? Eighty percent of people actually drop their New Year's resolution by Valentine's Day. Yeah?

I'm going, here's just a great example of how people, and through the years, we would give a New Year's resolution one year. We say, we're going to do this. And then the next year, we kind of diminish that New Year's resolution. And then the next year, we're kind of just kind of dealing with it. Here's an example.

In 2016, I'm going to work out five times a week. Yeah, I'm going to do this. In 2016, and then 2017 comes around and says, well, I'm going to work out three times a week this year. Three times a week. So we're kind of making the reverse effect.

And then 2018 comes around. Well, I'm going to just try to pass by the gym at least once a week and look at the doors. Maybe pray a little bit about doing it. Right? 2016, some of you are like, I'm going to pay for my bank loan.

I'm going to clean it out. And in 2017, I'm going to pay for my bank loans. Right? Because we get more loans. It kind of progresses from there.

And in 2018, I'm just going to try to get out of the country because I'm not going to be able to pay this. How can I get away from here to keep from paying my loans? And that's funny and all, but it's so true. We try to improve the old self. And we ask ourselves, why is nothing changing?

I've lived this Christian life. And why is nothing changing? Why aren't I experiencing this new life that God talks about? Because we haven't really experienced brand new the way God wants us to experience brand new. He never intended for us just to get saved and live out our lives.

And hopefully, you know, by the time I get to heaven, maybe I'll experience a little bit of joy here and joy there. But oh, Lord, have you ever met those people that are like, oh, oh, woe is me. The Lord is good. But you know, they're suffering. And you know, you got those kind of people and it kind of makes you, I don't really want to follow a God like that.

Right? And that's not who God is. God does. He requires us to experience something brand new. He wants to make us brand new.

Second Corinthians 517 says this, when someone becomes a Christian, now you could just take that word, becomes a Christian, and just go all over the place with this, with what people think that means. Does it mean join a church? No. Or join the setup team of my mobile church at Salt Church? Well, we certainly need you, but that's not it.

Or become religious, or maybe I need to get baptized, or maybe I should tithe, or whatever it is. But that's ultimately not it. Here's what it says. When someone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He becomes brand new inside.

He is not the same anymore. A new life has become, has begun. But people are changing their external and not their internal. See, that's the problem. People are changing their external and not their internal.

And unfortunately, most Christians are not experiencing transformation in their lives. They're not experiencing the transformational power of Jesus Christ that gives them the joy. And I would say that probably most of you in here have probably not experienced that brand new transformation in your own life. Why can I say that? Well, there was a Barna study that said 78% of people wear the Christian label, but only 7% of people say they are actually experiencing change in their life.

That's sad. That's sad. And that really is chalked down to that one thing. People are not allowing God to change them from the inside out. It's all about the outside.

It's all about religion. It's all about the things that improve my life. So you've got to ask yourself these questions, okay? Can you, if you're following your notes, you can fill in the blank. You can change the inside, the outside in, or the inside out.

Am I going to change the outside in, or am I going to change the inside out? And we typically do the first. We change the outside. We go on a diet. We get our finances right, right?

We decide what's right and wrong outwardly, and we start from there. Well, that's going to fix my life, you know? I'm going to start going to church, and I'm going to start doing the right things. And if you change, but if you change the inside first, then everything changes. Then the outside begins to change.

We always start from the wrong end. And in 2018, I believe that this can be the best year of your life spiritually. If you begin in here. Begin with your relationship with Jesus in here. Second thing, you can do something different, or be someone different.

You could do something different, as we all want to do. We want to do something different this year. Are we going to allow God to help us be something different? We want to be someone different. You can improve the old you, or become the new you.

And my hope for you is that you become the new you. We're going to look at Hebrews here, and I want to dig into this just a little bit here in this series. And the context of Hebrews is really interesting. It's actually one of my favorite scriptures. One of my favorite scriptures.

And let me scroll through here. I'm getting a little lost here. One of my favorite scriptures. In fact, there's a great, I'm going to do a series next, later on this year, on Hebrews 12, Hebrews 11 and 12, which is one of my favorite pieces of scripture where we look back in the cloud and see the different people that have gone before us and learned from them. But the context of Hebrews and the context of the Old Testament in general is that God purposefully set up a system that didn't work in the Old Testament.

It was done through the sacrifice of bulls and lambs. People had to, a set of rules, the law provided that people had to sacrifice animals basically as blankets and coverings for their sin. So it was more of an outside covering to make people right. It was an outward righteousness. It was something God set up.

But then we have Jesus come along. The Son of God comes along and makes all the difference. He starts focusing from the inside out. So it goes through this long, theological, beautiful picture of what it means to be covered by the Lamb of Jesus Christ, by His blood and by His sacrifice. And then we get here to 16, Hebrews 10, 16.

If you're following along, it says this, This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws, get this, I will put my laws in their heart and I will write them on their mind. So He's not going to make you do right. He wants to make you right. He actually wants to put them in your heart and mind.

It's no longer about sacrifices on the outside, about bulls and lambs on the outside. It's about something that changes on the inside. He wants to make you right. He wants to lay, He's laid the laws on your minds and heart. Then He adds, there's sins and lawless acts.

I will, there's sins and lawless acts. I will remember no more. Meaning that by the blood of Jesus, they are remembered no more. They are put away. They are done with.

They are, they are forgiven. That's the end of the story. Before you had to go through a system. You had to go through these laws. You had all these paradigms to walk through.

You had to do all these things to earn favor with God. But they were living in the shadows of what was to come. And Jesus Christ comes into the picture. And He no longer, by the blood of the Lamb, He no longer has to look on us with shame because He sees beauty. He sees uniqueness.

He sees brand new. The old system could not cleanse us of our conscience. Although it cleansed us of our outward righteousness. But Jesus comes along and He forgives us. In other words, it's no longer about an outward religious formula, guys.

It's no longer about an outward religious formula. It's about an inward change. And maybe that's why you aren't experiencing much joy in your life. If you're dealing with this on the outward side of the house, if you're dealing with this outside of yourself, and you're not enjoying reading your Bible, you're not enjoying coming to church, you're not enjoying, you know, praying, perhaps you need to think about becoming brand new from the inside. Stop making it about the outside.

Stop making it about how many times I pray during the week and make it real on the inside. And then He goes through, and this kind of outlined the rest of what I want to share today, Hebrews 10, 19, and 25. He goes on to say, Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the most holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, a new and living way. See, there's that word new again. A new and living way.

Open for us through the curtain. Meaning, He's torn the veil. We can... Now boldly enter the Holy of Holies. Some versions say that.

The Most Holy of Holies. Confidence. Boldly we can enter the Holy of Holies by a new living way. Open for us through the curtain that is his body. And since we have a great priest over our house.

Who is that great priest over the house of God? That is Jesus Christ. Let us. And there's a few lettuces in here. Okay?

And we're going to use those as points to kind of ask some questions for you in the application of this. It says let us draw near to God. Because of what Jesus has done, we can now draw near to God. So he's telling us let us draw near to God with sincere hearts. Let it not be just a religion.

Let it not be just some type of faith act. Let it be real. Let it be sincere. He's asking us to draw near to God with a sincere heart and full assurance of faith. Having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty condemnation.

See? See? That guilty conscience again. We had a guilty conscience before Jesus. Now we can be made brand new inside.

No more guilty conscience. All that's taken care of. And so we can. So let us draw near to God. And then let us unswervingly hold unswervingly to the hope we profess.

Let us unswervingly hold, excuse me, let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess. What is that? That's the word of God. For he who promised is faithful. So we have all the promises we never ever have to need here in scripture.

Anytime we're going through anything. Anytime we're going through difficulties of life. Anytime we're not experiencing the joy. Anytime we're not experiencing brand new. Guess what?

We can always go. We need to hold on. We need to hold on to what he has for us. We need to hold tightly and unswervingly and keeping it. I'm believing in the word of God.

I'm believing what he said about his coming and him providing for me and him being there with me and him pursuing me and him acting on my behalf and all the things that he's given us in scripture. We hold unswervingly to the hope we profess. For he who promised is faithful. And it also says, let us consider how we may spur one another. So he takes it from holding on to the word to let us consider how we may spur one another towards love and good deeds.

Not giving up meeting together. Not giving up meeting together. Which is the fourth one. Some versions say, let us not forsake the giving up of meeting together. So we have four different areas right here.

So I want to just ask you four questions for 2018. Just this brand new faith that we're talking about today. It's brand new faith. Are you ready to experience brand new? Do you want to experience brand new this year?

Or do you just want to continue to go through your Christian life and just say, well, I've got some hell insurance and I'm good to go, right? Fire insurance. And I'm good and I'm okay. And one day I get to heaven and never really experience the joy you can have in this life. Do you want to really experience God?

Well, you've got to ask yourself this question. Am I, number one, worshiping intimately? Am I worshiping intimately? Let us draw near to God. Am I worshiping intimately?

And chances are, you may not. You may not be. You know God, but he's not your friend. He's not. He's just an acquaintance.

And maybe it's time that we press into God and really know him intimately. There's a story of the woman at the well. And many of you probably have heard or know about this story about Jesus talking to the Samaritan woman at the well. And Jesus was doing something quite audacious. First of all, he was talking to a woman.

And that was forbidden for a man in that day to talk to a woman. Secondly, he was talking to a Samaritan woman who was a half-breed. And the Jew says, you don't talk to half-breeds. Yes, they were racist. First, you don't talk to somebody who's not a Jew.

And thirdly, she was a woman that got around a little bit. Okay? And Jesus called her out on that at the well. She said, I perceive you were a prophet. Well, you know, because he read her.

Even when she didn't tell, she says, I need, you know, bring your husband with you. You know, and she's like, well, I don't have a husband. You're right. You had five before, and now the guy you're with is not your husband. And I perceive you're a prophet.

You know, yeah, you're probably a prophet. I think that's kind of funny if you kind of read it that way. I perceive you're a prophet. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But he starts to have this conversation with this woman.

And they go through a dialogue of things. And it leads to this conversation about worship. And in that day, the Samaritans believed that you worshipped on the mountain in which she was near. In that city, in that area. And that was where you met God.

And then the Jews believed that you met with God in Jerusalem, in the temple, right? So, they have this conversation about this. And he says, he says this. He says, you were misinformed. It is Jerusalem because salvation comes through the Jews.

But here's what I want to say. And it gets to this place in verse 23 of John 4. It says, yeah, a time is coming. A time is coming. I think he's talking about us now, right?

And then he says, and has now come. Meaning, he's pointing to himself. Has now come when a true worshiper, where true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. So, the Father's actually seeking intimate worshipers.

It's no longer about Jerusalem. It's no longer about this mountain. He's telling this woman it's about spirit and truth. It's about intimate worship. So, is worship limited to a church service with music on Sunday mornings?

No. Is it limited to singing? No. We like to use, you know, worship songs to help us worship. But that's not what it's about.

Is it a time of the day? No. It's all the time. Worship literally means to kiss. Get that.

To kiss. Not a romantic kiss. But a kiss. A welcoming, joyful, I love you kiss. You know, like, I'm so excited you're here today.

Can I kiss you? I know in our culture, we don't like to do that, especially if you're men. But in some cultures, they're kissing each other on the cheek and everywhere else, right? Because they understand this concept. And in this culture, they understood that concept.

A kiss, right? And we need to be people who are excited and know and love the Lord and are willing to bow down and worship. One of the greatest acts of worship is surrender. In fact, worship is surrender. You really want to know what worship is?

is surrender. But we don't like the word surrender, do we? Because we have to give up something. In fact, we may have to give up almost everything. And surrender is seen as a negative term.

It feels like, you know, I'm being submissive and passive and cowardly. And offering ourselves to God is an act of worship, but for us, it may not seem that great. But God loves us so much. He asks us to surrender to him because he wants to show us something. He wants to show us something brand new.

He wants to offer blessings. He wants the best for us. And he's asking us, well, will you step in? When you enter into a throne room of a king, you bow down. You surrender.

People in this day understood what surrender was because they knew what it was like to bow down before a king and be completely submissive to a king. Trusting that king. Putting their best into that king because they know that king knows the best for them. And a lot of times, the earthly king doesn't know the best for them. But we have a God who is capable of and knows all things and knows the best for us and has the best for us.

But for many of us, surrender seems like a negative term. So I ask you this question. First of all, if you're not willing to surrender, you've got to ask this. Can I trust God? Can I trust God?

Do I trust God? Can I trust you, God? Secondly, am I afraid to admit my limitations? You know, that's the pride question. Am I afraid to admit my limitations before God?

Because we are extremely limited in what we're capable of doing. But God is unlimited. In fact, he used that temptation. Satan used that temptation in the very first book of the Bible in Genesis. The pride question.

You can be like God. Don't you want to be like God? Eat of the fruit, Eve. Don't you want to be like him? I don't want any limitations.

I know what's best for me. I don't want to give in. I don't want to surrender. But God's inviting you to something brand spanking new. Are we willing to surrender to God?

The third thing is, do we know what surrender really is? What surrendering to God really is? Do you know what surrender is? And it doesn't mean you are a coward or a doormat by surrendering and being submissive. It does.

Here's the fact. God does not want to waste your mind. He doesn't want you to waste your talent. He doesn't want to waste your personality. He doesn't want to let any piece or any part of you go to the side.

He wants to use every bit of you. He doesn't want to make you some kind of holy robot. You know? He's not doing that. He wants to use you for every bit.

He's made you for a unique purpose. And instead, he wants to use you for a unique ministry. And he's got brand new in mind. A brand new us. Not tainted by sin and the world, but becoming truly who we are meant to be.

I love how C.S. Lewis says this. The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become. Because he made us.

He invented us. He invented all the different people that you and I are intended to be. It is when I turn to Christ, when I give up myself to his personality, that I begin, first begin to have real, a real personality of my own. Isn't that amazing? And Peter modeled surrender.

He was out on the boat. Jesus told him to cast the fish on the other side. Are you kidding me, Jesus? Makes no sense at all. I've been fishing all day.

I've been fishing for years. I know how to fish. You're telling me to cast a net on the other side? Jesus, what is going on? What are you doing?

But I will surrender. I will do it. And what happened? Great miracle. A great miracle.

You know, God's got a great miracle for your life. But we must surrender. We must surrender. He's got our best in mind. The intimate worship in surrender gives you peace.

You experience freedom. You experience God's power. And you fall in love with God. And that's where we want to go. We want to fall in love with Jesus.

Because when you're in love with Jesus, nothing gets in the way. Everything is about him. We can experience a fullness of life and a joy he has for us. James 4.8 says, come near to God and I will come near to you.

When we draw near to him, he draws near to us. Isn't that awesome? We can just take a step and he comes, he comes back and takes a step towards us. We can take a step to him. He comes, takes a step towards us.

I think about when Max was really young. We used to run around the house and play hide and seek. And we would run after each other. And I'd be chasing him through the house. And he'd be chasing me through the house.

So I would, so he would chase me down the hallway. And I would, I would run into one of the rooms, you know, and kind of hide. And I'd wait around the corner and kind of, kind of waiting for him. And he comes around. And then I would just jump out.

And then he'd start running away from me. And I'd just grab, I'd just go after him. And I'd grab him up. And then he'd go, you know, and he'd be giggling. You start kissing him and holding him and, and doing that.

That's that, I love that picture because that's exactly how God feels about us. And sometimes we're, we're chasing God, right? And we're like, where are you, God? Where are you, God? And here he is over here.

He's just hiding around the corner. He's like, oh, I'm going to love you. I'm going to love you. Come on, come on. And you come around the corner.

He jumps out. He's just grabbing you up. And he's holding you. And he's embracing you. And he's meeting you.

And that's how God is. He, he's kissing you and loving you. And he wants the best for you because you're his child. He is the father. That's why we say our father.

That's why we call him our father, which art in heaven. Because he is a God that loves us and wants the best for us. Secondly, if you're following your notes, am I feeding daily? Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess. Matthew 4, 4 says this, man shall not live by bread alone.

But on every word that comes from the mouth of God, Jesus used this straight from the Old Testament to battle Satan when he was trying to tempt him to eat the bread during his period of prayer and fasting. He says, have some bread you're hungry. Man shall not live by bread alone. Joshua 1, 8 says, do not let the book of the law depart from your mouth. Meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

Then you will be prosperous and successful. Don't you love that last part there? We, we read the first part and we're like, oh man, you know, that sounds like a lot of work. But here's what it really comes down to. God is He's chasing after you so that he can have the best for you.

He wants you to be prosperous and successful in life. And I love Psalm 119, 1 and 5, and you need to hold on to this, for your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. It is a road map for your life. It has a, now when I'm out and I'm in the dark, sometimes I get up in the middle of the night and I'm stumbling around, I don't know where I'm going, I'm falling all over myself because, you know, the older I get, I know I'm not that old, but, you know, I have to go up, get up and go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. I don't know what's going on there, but it's a very confusing time when you first wake up and you can't see around you, you can't, you know, and you feel, whenever you're lost, you feel disconnected, you feel lost, you feel, where do I go from here?

However, it's a very confusing place to be, but the word of God is a lamp and a light and a road map, it's a GPS, so to speak, for our life. And scripture actually says, if you follow this road map, if you follow what he has for you written down, you will be prosperous and successful because it transforms us. Jesus prayed, sanctify them by the truth. It's a process of replacing lies with truth because we have a lot of lies about ourselves that infiltrated our lives and our hearts. And it's been given to us by people that don't really love us and care about us.

It's been, it's been, it's an infiltration by Satan and his demonic forces and this is how they work. They want to whisper things in the ear and make you think you're things that you're not. These lies and what the Bible does, it tells you that you are a unique and special person created by the Godfather of the universe and he has a plan for your life. And the whole Bible is filled with redemption, redemption, redemption. I want to make you brand new.

I want you to experience joy. He's not trying to kill your joy. He's trying to give you great joy. And he has something for you. And he wants to replace lies with truth.

And the Bible's alive. The Bible is alive. When God speaks, things change. When God says it, things change. The universe leapt into existence by God saying the words, let there be.

So we're saying let there be. God's word, I wrote this down here, all these different things. Here's what God's word says. God's word generates life, it creates faith, it produces change, it frightens the devil, it causes miracles, it heals hurts, it builds character, it transforms circumstances, it imparts joy, it overcomes adversity, it defeats temptations, it infuses hope, it releases power, it cleanses minds, it brings things back to being, and it guarantees a future forever. Who doesn't want that?

Amen. Man, the word of God, we must, and here's what we do. We must accept its authority, number one. We must assimilate its truth. We've got to read it, we've got to research it, we've got to memorize it, we've got to reflect on it.

And then lastly, we have to apply its principles. Apply its principles. And this is why we start the year with 21 days of fasting and prayer. Because it gives us an opportunity to go into Scripture, to give God our first fruits during the first three weeks of the year, and apply his word, assimilate it, recognize its authority on our lives, so that God can produce in us. And if you haven't jumped in, jump in with us.

It's not too late. Just finish the last two weeks off. Give it, you know, if you're not, if you're afraid of fasting, that's okay. I'm not asking you to fast. There's all kinds of ways you can fast.

Maybe you can fast a meal and just kind of get into the word and discover what God has for you. There's all kinds of opportunities to do that. We've got everything we can. I mean, we've got Bible apps, we've got devotionals, we've got all this stuff now. We have no excuse not to understand the word of God and what he's saying to us and how to read it.

We have access to everything we need. So, am I feeding? Three. I've got two more points, so I know some of you are hungry. It's a longer message usually than one.

I'm closing here in a minute. Am I serving faithfully? It says, let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. It's, you're going to grow better if you are touching people's lives. Do you know that?

You're going to grow better. You're going to mature more if you're touching people's lives. You're not going to grow just by sitting in a seat and listening to me. I mean, you've already, some of you coming here, I'm not learning anything from this guy. What's he talking about?

Maybe. I don't know. Some of you are probably already there. I don't know. I don't know.

I'm just, I'm just preaching the word of God here. I'm just sharing with you what God's told me. But you're not going to grow just by sitting on church on Sunday. It helps to be here, to gather together. But you're going to do more by touching people's lives.

1 Peter 4.10 says, Each one of you use whatever gift he has received to serve others. Faithfully administering God's grace in various forms. What does that mean? We have all different gifts.

Not all of you are communicators. Some of you are good at sweeping floors. We need floor sweepers. Some of you are leading small groups. We need small group leaders.

Some of you are good at shaking hands. And some of you are good at cleaning toilets. Whatever that is. God has a gift for everybody. And no gift is too little for God's kingdom.

Everyone. Everyone needs to be used effectively in the kingdom of God. Individually, we can do very little. But together, we can do infinitely more. As a team, we do this together.

As a church team, we do this together. Individually, we're prepping you. What the local church is about is prepping you to go out into the world and make a difference. So what we do here, we do it together. We learn about our spiritual gifts.

That's why we have steps in our growth track that you take. So that you can explore and know who you are in Jesus. So that you can go out of this church and do it together. And you can do it together as a team so we can help shape you. We got people who are good at tech.

And they're back there doing the tech of the church. And they love it. And they get thrills out of it. I don't really care much for it. And I'd rather just be up here.

And this is good enough for me right here. Right? Because this is what God has given me. But God's given them something. And God's given them something.

And God's given the worship team something. Everybody has a gift. And when we come together. Together in power, we are unstoppable. We are unstoppable.

So we bring these gifts together in the church, and we do them together. So you have to ask yourself, are you serving faithfully, whether in the local church, or in the community, or together? Because we are better together. And fourth, am I connecting regularly? Am I connecting regularly?

Not giving up meeting together. James 5.16 says, therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. Man, it doesn't say pray to God so that you may be healed. He says confess your sins to one another.

Be with each other. Work out your issues with each other. Go and get in a place with people. Be a part of a church with people who can help shape you and make you more like Jesus Christ, who helped form you. Some of you have real issues.

Some of you have addictions. Some of you have hang-ups. Some of you have all kinds of things going on in your life, and you need freedom from those things. And the only way you're going to get freedom, you're not going to do it on your own. You're going to do it with a group of people that care about you and love you.

And we bring our gifts together to do that together. And bring accountability in place. Accountability with others. Accountability with us. This is why we do small groups.

And we've got small groups starting at the end of the month. And we're going to have a lot of new different types of small groups. And it's going to be fun. It's going to be a great season. That's one way to do it.

You need to get plugged into a small group because we realize that we need to be meeting regularly outside the church. And really enjoying each other and growing together. We need to be doing this together. Amen? We need to be together.

We need to be shaping and forming each other. But I want to challenge some of you at this. You also need to be discipling. Discipleship is so important. What do you mean discipleship?

I want to challenge everybody in this church to pick out two or three people. And say, they're mine. And I'm going to spend time with them. I'm going to pour into them. I'm going to build them up for ministry.

I'm going to build them up. I'm going to help them mature. I'm going to give them opportunities. We're going to go out and we're going to share Jesus with others together. And you're going to begin to create another you.

Because that's what discipleship is all about. We follow Jesus. Jesus pours into us. What do we do? We are transformed from the inside out.

We begin to feed other people. We begin to share with other people. We begin to get together with other people. And we start building them up in ministry. If you're an elder in this church.

And I'm not just talking about physical age. Maybe it's physical age. You're an elder or spiritual age. Whatever that wisdom. Wisdom.

Eldership just means wisdom. Wisdom. When you have wisdom. Are you imparting that wisdom to others? Are you helping them and encouraging them?

Are you spiritually mature? Is there someone who's not quite spiritually mature yet that needs help? Maybe they're milk Christians. You're a meat Christian. And you need to give them some of that meat.

You need to pour into them. Are you meeting with them regularly? Are you spending time with them? See the church. Church.

The church needs to grow. Because healthy churches grow. I'm not just talking about our church. The church in general needs to grow. How do we do that?

Through discipleship. Through small groups. For meeting together. For being together. Praying for each other.

Growing together. Being a part of something together. That's why we do what we do. Because the glory of the kingdom of God was decided to be revealed through the local church. And he's used the local church to do that.

And today he's calling you out perhaps. I need to be intentionally gathering together more with people. Pouring into people. Allowing people to pour into me. It's a beautiful structure that Jesus created.

He did it with just twelve people. Ten hands. But you know what I mean. Twelve people. And changed the world.

And these weren't the greatest people in the world. These were fishermen. Rough people. Tax collectors. All kinds of the lowest of the low.

Who's Jesus hanging out with these people for? Why didn't he go and grab them twelve Pharisees? Because he knew. He knew the heart of God. It wasn't about religion.

It was about a relationship with him. And if you would bow your heads for just a minute. There's one of you here. Maybe two or three here today. That maybe this message is really touched.

Like you've never known or never seen before. You've come in here and you've experienced something. And you know it's time. It's time to give your life to Christ. It's time for me to make a decision for him.

I want to be brand new. I'm tired of just living this life. I want to be brand new. I want to invite God. I'm asking you to invite God.

Again, it's not about religion. It's about a relationship with him. He desires to have a relationship with you. He wants to know you. He wants to pursue after you.

Lean into him as he leans into you. And he's touched your heart today. And you feel that urge. You feel that pull. There's a pull in your heart.

Guess what? That's the Holy Spirit speaking to you. He's asking you to come to me. All who are weary. All who are heavy laden.

And I want to give you rest. You can experience rest today. And if that's you. If you're ready. If you've never gave your heart to Jesus.

Or perhaps maybe you gave it to Jesus a long time ago. But you kind of fell away. And you feel disconnected. And you're ready to recommit your life. If that's you today.

Just gently lift your hand up. I just want to pray for you. I want to pray for you. Amen. I see that hand.

I see that hand. I see that hand. Another one. Is there anyone else? Is there anyone else?

Is there anyone else? Today is today. Amen. I see you. Amen.

Hallelujah. Hallelujah. If you would pray this with me. And there's nothing magical about the prayer. It's just about being.

It's about a sincere heart. Draw near to God. With a sincere heart. And give Him your life today. By saying Lord.

I realize. That I've been far away from you. I realize that I'm a sinner. And I'm lost without you. But I know that you are the Son of God.

That died on the cross for my sin. Today I ask you to come into my heart. To come into my life. And Lord it's not about an outside in. That's a very nice Savior.

God設斌ed to come into my heart. And that just hadn't seen me. Now you are the one who we've seen. I want you to come into my heart. And change me from the surface.

Inside out. Thank You, Lord, for calling me out towards You and changing me. I walk with You from this day forth with vigor and passion for Your name. I surrender. I surrender to You.

In Your name. Amen. Could You give a hand clap to those who made a decision today or rededicated their life? Amen.