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True Discipleship Makers - The Blueprint Series
46 Plays19 days ago
In this sermon, Pastor Ridley Barron preached about the importance of true discipleship and the power of the Holy Spirit. He cautioned against deifying Christian leaders and emphasized that only God has the power to transform lives. Highlighting the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in believers, Barron encouraged the use of spiritual gifts for God's kingdom and urged regular Bible engagement for spiritual growth. He discussed the significance of accountability within the church community, blending righteous anger with compassion when addressing societal issues. Using examples from the lives of Apostle Paul and Apollos, Barron called for boldness in faith, the importance of biblical discipleship, and the continuous journey of learning and growth in Christ.
Timestamps:
00:00 Support missions; giving impacts global spiritual efforts.
04:39 Pray for heart's perspective, gratitude, and understanding.
07:53 Pray for genuine relationships and transformation in Christ.
10:24 Righteous anger: balancing compassion, truth, and justice.
13:27 Empower church to engage in politics, unapologetically.
19:00 Accountability with others is essential for growth.
21:15 Encouraging growth in personal faith and understanding.
24:59 Jesus's sinlessness crucial for meaningful baptism.
30:14 Use unique gifts to grow the church.
33:40 Know Jesus for salvation; resolve conflicts lovingly.
35:09 Address conflicts directly, responsibly, and promptly.
37:42 Listen actively to God's subtle guidance.
43:20 Join church mentorship for guidance and discipleship.
44:25 Thankful for God's teachings; seek deeper faith.
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Transcript
00:00:00
Speaker
Good morning, Grove Hill. Man, it has been quite a morning already. I'm so thankful for your presence here. I want to kind of add something to what John was talking about with the Mandawaka people. um They are what we call in church circles unreached, unengaged. And what that means is that small group of people from Brazil and and Venezuela um Less than 4,600 of them um the on the planet, as far as we know, have not been touched at all with the gospel. There's nobody there sharing Bibles. There's nobody there teaching lessons to kids. Nobody doing vacation Bible schools. None of that stuff. So they have not even really heard the name of Jesus. And as I was thinking about that during the first service, it reminded me, somebody would be old enough to remember this. There used to be a guy by the name of Ray Bolts who used to sing a song, Thank You For Giving To The Lord.
00:00:55
Speaker
remember that song and the song wasn't talking about necessarily just giving money which is important it was about giving of your time giving of your talents giving of your services so that people may have the opportunity to hear the Lord that someday when you get into heaven there will be people who come up to you and look at you and say thank you for doing what you did because if you hadn't I would have never heard the name of Jesus and so I want you to think about that as a reality as you pray about how to give because Your giving of money goes to support missions literally around the world, and hopefully sometime soon it will be this group of people, the Mandawaka people. But it may be that you're going, yeah, I don't i don't feel a calling to go to the Mandawaka people. What do I do? Well, teaching a Sunday school class with a kid may open the door to their heart so that they are the missionary who goes to the Mandawaka people.
00:01:41
Speaker
or this morning as you give towards our one word hope One World One Hope mission offering, you are partnering with the Pregnancy Resource Center and maybe a child lives that was supposed to be aborted, and that child eventually goes to the Mandawaka people. You see there's this connection that goes on as you're doing your part in the kingdom, there are others doing their part in the kingdom, and we are working side by side as believers for the glory of God, not for ourselves, okay? So think about that as you pray about your opportunities. I wanna share something with you.
00:02:10
Speaker
Read it this morning actually as part of going over my sermon. um Listen to this. Only 48% of people in a recent study agree that the Bible is completely accurate and that it teaches truth. The report found that only 50% of Americans read their Bible at least three times a year.
00:02:36
Speaker
50% three times a year. ah Only 4% of American adults hold a biblical worldview, which is a decline from 6% in the last report. And many of them by their own admission are not sure that the statement, God is unchangeable, is a true statement. Now the reason I share all that with you is because we're fixing to participate in an act of communion together, the Lord's Supper.
00:03:03
Speaker
And a lot of times we get caught up in ritual and we perform these things and we do these things, and it just really doesn't cross our mind. Why did God give us the Lord's Supper? And many of you, if you've been here for a while, know this, you're gonna hear it again, you hear it all the time, but new people, there's a word we use around here, it's a Hebrew word, zakar. Zakar, the word literally means remember. The reason the Lord gave us this act, this ordinance of the Lord's Supper is to remind us, because we are very forgetful people.
00:03:31
Speaker
And you're going, why? I've never forgotten Jesus. No, but what you may have forgotten is how desperately you really needed Jesus in the first place. When you understand how desperate you were for Jesus Christ and what he did on the cross, then and only then can you appropriately worship him the way that he deserves. You see, when you understand your positioning before a holy God, then you understand how that position changes because of what Christ did on the cross.
00:04:01
Speaker
No Jesus, no opportunity for salvation. No Jesus, no reason to worship. No Jesus, no eternity in heaven. And while you and I sit here today remembering, we also need to remember, there are eight billion people on this planet, and as we sit here today, people are dying without a knowledge of what he has done for them.
00:04:23
Speaker
So as our guys are coming to deliver the elements this morning for the Lord Sover, I want you to do a couple things. Number one, obviously a prayer of repentance is always important. We don't want you to take this act without seriously considering your current situation in your heart. But the second thing, and this may be as important a prayer as any other, that you just pray, God, would you help me see my heart the way you see my heart?
00:04:49
Speaker
Help me to understand how desperate I really needed a savior. And because of that, that I would have greater gratitude for what you did on the cross.
00:05:00
Speaker
as you are receiving the elements as they come around. If you're a guest with us today, a reminder, we practice what is called open communion here, which means that any true follower of Jesus Christ, if you know you have a relationship with Jesus, you're invited to participate in this. If you are not a believer, if you do not have a relationship with Jesus, or if you're not sure, I encourage you not to do this because the Bible tells us that if you do this,
00:05:25
Speaker
out of a disrespect or without a relationship that you actually bring a kind of condemnation down on yourself. So the way we'd like for you to participate is just to sit and watch and reflect and see what the body of Christ does when it's together as believers. Take a second to yourself just to pray and then we'll come back together when the elements are delivered.
00:06:53
Speaker
Father, how thankful we are that our standing before you has been divinely changed. By the power of your son's death, by the power of his blood, by the power of your spirit, we've been invited into a relationship with you that is different. Before we were dead in our trespasses and sin, but the Bible says now that we have become alive in Christ, thanks to his sacrificial gift,
00:07:21
Speaker
So today we gather as a church not just to worship, but to remember what he has already done.
00:07:30
Speaker
What you accomplished on the cross for us was enough. It is the completed work of salvation. But strangely enough, it's not anything we can earn, Father, by our good behavior. It's only received by acknowledging that we are not worthy and that we need you.
00:07:50
Speaker
and then receiving that gift. If there's anyone here today who does not have a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ, if they've never entered into that, I pray that that's changed before the end of the day. That their eyes and their hearts will be open to you and your goodness and your kindness and your compassion. But for those of us who call ourselves followers of Jesus, I pray that we stand before you in a new light.
00:08:19
Speaker
day by day that our hearts are rearranged and changed to be more like the image of Christ, in his name we pray, amen. So on the night that Jesus was betrayed, he took his apostles aside and he sat down with them and he said, you're remembering an act that happened thousands of years ago, the Passover. It was a moment where God himself delivered his children out of Egypt That last plague that ultimately set them free was the Passover of the Angel of Death. And the only thing that prevented the firstborn of every household from being eliminated by the Angel of Death was the blood of a lamb that had been sacrificed and smeared across the doorpost. That was a temporary act. Jesus says in that moment, that night, what I'm about to use is for do is for you now is forever.
00:09:15
Speaker
What I'm about to do for you now changes everything if you'll just receive it. So he took the bread of that Passover feast, he broke it, he separated it out and shared it with his apostles and he said to them, as you take and as you eat from now to eternity, remember that this is my body broken for you.
00:09:41
Speaker
And then he took the wine from that same feast and he held it up and he blessed it. And he said to his disciples that night, he said, guys, this is the new covenant. The one that's not based on the sacrifice of lambs and sheeps and bulls, but one that is based on my sacrifice, the giving of my own life. This is my blood that is shed for you and as long as you drink it, remember it for me.
00:10:10
Speaker
Thank you, church.
00:10:14
Speaker
um So a little bit of a warning, um I am preaching this sermon by self-acknowledgement from a position of righteous anger this morning. I remind you that righteous anger is a mixture of true anger with deep compassion for the thing that you're angry about.
00:10:33
Speaker
um Earlier this week I had a friend, an old friend of mine who reached out to me by a private message and asked this question. he said
00:10:44
Speaker
Are you a little concerned that your political posts on social media might offend someone and keep them from wanting to hear the gospel? And I responded, I said, yes, of course, I'm always ah mindful of that, that I'm worried that sometimes it might offend people. But I am more concerned that I will have to stand before Jesus and answer for the fact that I was silent when I saw injustice.
00:11:07
Speaker
I wanna talk to you today about discipling, okay? When we were challenged by Jesus with the last words to his disciples, his command was not go into all the world and make converts or go in the world and evangelize. His command was go into all the world and make disciples. And you might go, well, what's the difference? Well, it's a good question. Evangelization is good, it's important, but evangelism is the start. Discipleship is the journey.
00:11:38
Speaker
Evangelism is the start, discipleship is the journey. What do I mean by that? Well, it doesn't do me much good to just get somebody started if I leave them at the starting line. You've got to disciple people. Why? Because 48% of the people who say they are Christians don't even believe the Bible is accurate. This week, CBS on one of their morning shows had a transgender Lutheran pastor on.
00:12:03
Speaker
Transgender Lutheran pastor. This person was asked the question, don't you think that many Christians might challenge you by saying that the Bible says there are only two sexes? Now, number one, I'm alarmed by the nature of the question. Don't you think that many Christians might be offended? how How about every Christian should be offended by the fact that you're trying to rewrite the Bible?
00:12:31
Speaker
But even more sad to me was the the response of this Lutheran pastor who said, the Bible tells us that God created male and female and all of the other people too.
00:12:45
Speaker
And went on to say, besides the Bible wasn't written for the year 2024. It was a good book for its time. Now this is a church that professes to follow after the living Lord Jesus Christ.
00:13:01
Speaker
And as alarmed as we need to be about that, we do. What we need to understand that what's happening in our culture, what's happening in our churches, is we have allowed the culture to impose its views on us, and we have been silent for far too long. I am ready for Christians to quit apologizing for speaking the name of Jesus.
00:13:22
Speaker
I am ready for Christians to quit apologizing for being bold about their faith. And one of the things we're working here to do as a church is to disciple you in your faith, your knowledge of what you believe, so that you no longer have the fear, the fear of speaking up when the opportunity comes. Because if we don't speak about politics, the next generation will pay the price.
00:13:47
Speaker
You and I are paying the price because the generations before backed out of the public square and quit talking about politics. In fact, we have bought a lie in the church that the culture has imposed on us that the Christians should stay out of politics. We don't have a right to speak about our values. If that is true, if that is true, then most of the Old Testament prophets should have to apologize for the way they spoke.
00:14:12
Speaker
because the reason they were sent was to challenge the leaders of their day and age and say, where are your values? Where is your faith in the living God? Why are you being disobedient to His commands? And if they had not spoken up, Israel would not have listened. And sadly, they didn't anyway.
00:14:32
Speaker
But prophets will be able to stand before God and say, we did what we were supposed to do. We did what we were commissioned and challenged to do. We spoke the name of Jesus. We spoke the name of God. And if this generation doesn't do it, then we have no one to blame but ourselves for what happens next.
00:14:49
Speaker
We've got to be willing to do that. Now that starts with teaching people what they really believe, what they really know, that Jesus was sinless, that God is unchangeable, that God is all-powerful, that the church is his instrument here now to spread the love of Jesus Christ around the world so that others may have the opportunity to know and to do it without apology. Without apology.
00:15:15
Speaker
So, Acts chapter 18, we're gonna dig into this a little bit this morning. You'll see where I'm going, I hope, with all of this and it'll make sense. um We'll speak a little bit along the way and then I think I'll have time to share some things with you. It says, verse 23, after spending some time there, he set out traveling through one place after another in the region of Galatia and Phrygia. What do those next four words say?
00:15:37
Speaker
strengthening all the disciples. You see, Paul understood the importance of this. He knew he didn't have the opportunity just to go in and convert people and introduce them to Jesus Christ. He also didn't have the responsibility just to go in and start churches. He had the responsibility to come back around and make sure these churches were grounded in this new faith that they called Christianity. They had to be discipled.
00:16:01
Speaker
It says, now a Jew named Apollos, a native Alexandrian, an eloquent man who was competent in the use of the scriptures, arrived in Ephesus. Now, let me tell you a little bit about Apollos' background. Apollos is a native of Alexandria. Some of you may not be familiar with that name, but some of you might remember the seven wonders of the ancient world One of them was the Library at Alexandria. This was the center of wisdom and knowledge in that day and age. ah You might have heard of something called the Septuagint. The Septuagint is the Hebrew Old Testament
00:16:36
Speaker
done in the Greek. That was done in Alexandria. This is where the birthplace of a lot of very smart, very intelligent people like Philo and Clement and Athanasius and Origen, some of those names don't mean a thing to y'all, but those are important thinkers in the early church. They came out of this school of of thinking in Alexandria. So Apollos is a guy who comes from a pretty smart pretty smart place. He's been trained very well, okay? You'll see this in the next part. He says, he had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he was speech speaking and teaching accurately about Jesus, although he knew only John's baptism. So he was speaking accurately, he was just speaking in completely.
00:17:23
Speaker
He had what he had down and he knew it well and it was right information. He wasn't doing anything wrong. He just didn't have all the info and somebody had to come along and walk with him and disciple him and give him all of the truth so that he could be teaching all of the truth.
00:17:39
Speaker
says he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. After Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained the way of God to him more accurately. So they filled in the missing pieces. Now, two things I want to say very quickly here before we move on. If you want to hold somebody accountable, this is the way to do it.
00:17:57
Speaker
Notice that they stepped him they took him and stepped aside with him. They didn't embarrass him in public. They didn't try to single him out. They didn't write a public letter and stick it on a door somewhere and say shame on Apollo's. They simply pulled him aside and said, hey, guy, we think you're missing some real key ingredients that you need to take care of. Now, I want to take a second and say this to you. In the church, this is what we're supposed to do for each other.
00:18:22
Speaker
Okay? I tell you all the time, I am accountable to you. I want you coming and speaking to me. I want you to challenge me and say, hey, there's some things that that we really need to talk about because I feel like you said that the wrong way. You might've said this leaving some things out. Maybe you needed to explain this more because somebody didn't understand who was sitting next to me. I actually had a guy come up to me at the end of last service who said, hey, you said something and I understood what you were saying, but you probably needed to say it a different way. Cause if I'm out there thinking like this, then I would've been, I was like, Absolutely, you're right, I received that, okay? I need that, but so do you. You need it. I don't care what your position is, deacon, elder, teacher, whatever. You need the accountability of other Christians in your life, which is why you cannot accurately say, I can do Christianity at home as well as I can at the church.
00:19:11
Speaker
You've got to have other believers and sisters in your life who have permission to speak to you. But if you're going to speak to people, do it out of love, out of tenderness, and out of a desire to sincerely see them grow in their faith. You never do it out of animosity. Now the second thing that's important, in and we're fixing to read this, but Apollos grows from this accountability and goes on to be an even better teacher. So Apollos demonstrates the other part of what I want to say to you. If someone holds you accountable, be open to it.
00:19:40
Speaker
Listen to it. Take it to heart and hear what they have to say. Now, on both ends, there's two things that are critical. Number one, the best way to hold somebody accountable is with an open heart and an open Bible. You don't have permission to offer your opinion to someone. What you have is the permission to offer truth to people.
00:20:01
Speaker
If you can point at the Bible and say, this is what the Lord says here, then you have absolutely the job, the assignment of holding somebody accountable. But if it's just your opinion on something, probably wise to keep it to yourself because opinions are like noses. We all have them, right? I know where y'all were going with that. The other side of it, the flip side of it is you should be humble enough to receive it and understand that we all have room to grow.
00:20:31
Speaker
I am 57 years old, been in church 57 years, literally, every single Sunday, just about. I have been taught by the best vacation Bible school teachers, Sunday school teachers, youth workers, deacons, elders, other pastors. I have been to Bible college for four years, seminary for three years. I've been doing ministry now for, I forgot, 30 something years, okay? I think it's 39 now, okay? And I still need to learn.
00:20:58
Speaker
I still need to learn. Now here's another word of caution. Over here on Wednesday night, I've been doing this leadership academy with these guys. It's the second round that I have done this. There was a group that came through one time and then another group. The consistent thing I keep hearing from guys is, I didn't speak up Wednesday night because I don't think I know as much as everybody else. And usually my response is, praise God, that's why we have the class. What point would there be if you came and you knew everything already?
00:21:23
Speaker
Right? I want you in there because I want you to grow in your own personal faith. I want you to become wiser and more knowledgeable because one voice in the wilderness speaking the truth is okay. A thousand voices speaking truth makes a difference. Now, I want to go back to the statement about politics for just a second because I want you to understand something. I think some of you have been misper...
00:21:46
Speaker
You misunderstood what I was trying to say, okay? ah I have not endorsed Donald Trump as president. Somebody asked me, are you endorsing Trump? I'm not telling you who I'm voting for. That's my personal decision, okay? I'm just telling you that Kamala Harris is an idiot and she doesn't need to be president.
00:22:05
Speaker
But I'm going to tell you that Donald Trump isn't any better. He's not. So here's what you need to hear. This election is not about finding somebody you love. It's about finding somebody who has the values who puts us closer back to being on the right track with Jesus. You're not voting for the person who has the better color of skin.
00:22:24
Speaker
You're not voting for the person who has the better laugh. You're not voting for the person who has more or less money or grew up in a middle income family. That's not what you're voting for. You are voting for the issues that will make our country back on the right track to where it needs to go. If you want to know who I'm voting for, so sorry for you. That's not my job. You're voting your conscience, not mine. And I'm not here to impose my values on you.
00:22:53
Speaker
but I will impose the values of the Bible on you. And I will not apologize for that. And so when I put something on social media, it's because I believe that God is pointing out something that is an injustice to me. All right, we cool about that? So sad if you're not. All right, let's keep reading.
00:23:15
Speaker
Verse 27, it says, when he wanted to cross over to Achaia, the brothers and sisters wrote to the disciples to welcome him. After he arrived, he was a great help to those by grace who by grace had believed. The reason they would write letters in that day and age is because you couldn't look at somebody's resume or their job history on the internet. So churches would literally write letters to other churches and say, hey, here's this guy, Apollos, he is very sound in his doctrine and we recommend him to you. So this is how much Apollos' life has changed.
00:23:42
Speaker
He vigorously refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating through the Scriptures. He didn't come up more for his public opinion. He used the Scriptures and proved that Jesus was the Messiah. So let's just stop there for a second. Two things we know about Apollos to make it clear. He was a Christian.
00:24:01
Speaker
And he was accurately teaching the ways of the Lord. He just didn't have all of the information. We're going to see here in just a second. It says that Apollos was teaching John's baptism. John's baptism, not Jesus's. So let's be clear, what's the difference? Well, john the baptist um'm excuse me john yeah John the Baptist was teaching his baptism, which was a baptism of repentance.
00:24:24
Speaker
And so what that meant was he was saying, you guys are not obeying God. You need to turn your heart around. You need to get right back on the right track. That's what his baptism represented. This past week in staff meetings, somebody said, okay, well, if he knew that, if he knew his was incomplete and that his was just for the person who was gonna follow, why didn't he go ahead and baptize in the name of Jesus?
00:24:44
Speaker
when he was there? Good question, right? I love these kind of questions. Here's the answer, because Jesus had not committed the act of sanctification and salvation yet. He had not died on the cross yet. So his baptism at that point was not any good. it It wouldn't have accomplished anything. You see, it wasn't until Jesus paid the price that we were set free from our sin. So when the time came to and baptized, John had nothing but the baptism of repentance that others were printing or sharing and that kind of stuff. Never fix to get into that a little bit more, but I want you to understand the difference. Why is that important? Because if Jesus didn't die for us, then his baptism is no better than dumping somebody in the water just for the fun of it.
00:25:27
Speaker
If Jesus didn't live a perfect life, if Jesus wasn't sinless, which by the way, 46% of people, not sure that Jesus was sinless, if we don't believe that Jesus is sinless, without a sinless Jesus, his death is worthless. He hasn't accomplished anything. He's no different than you and I. But the fact that Jesus lived a perfect sinless life is what opens the door for you and I to have the salvation that we read about in the scriptures. All right, so let me keep going. um
00:25:59
Speaker
One of the important things here, 1 Corinthians chapter three, we see this this acknowledgement from Paul that there are others who are doing the good work of teaching the gospel. And in 1 Corinthians chapter three, verse six, he he we read these words from Paul. He says, actually I'm gonna start in verse four, so I'll back up just a little bit. It says, for whenever someone says I belong to Paul and another I belong to Apollos, are you not acting like mere humans?
00:26:26
Speaker
What then is Apollos? What is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything but only God who gives the growth. You see, Paul was very quick to acknowledge we're doing the work, but we're doing the work of the one who has the power.
00:26:51
Speaker
He's the one that changes the lives of people, not us. And this is a word of caution because we live in a day and age, because especially because of the internet and all the multimedia things we have, we live in a day and age where we deify people who speak in the name of Jesus. but That's a fancy way of saying, we make them role models that they shouldn't be. We elevate them to places they should not be in. Let me tell you why it's a warning.
00:27:16
Speaker
I grew up, young pastor, had people that I looked up to, people that I loved to read, people that I really respected. ah One of them was a guy by the name of Andy Stanley. Many of you have heard of Andy Stanley, Atlanta, Georgia. Andy has now denied that the Old Testament has any meaning for the New Testament, that we should be disconnected from it. He also has accepted homosexuality into his church.
00:27:36
Speaker
Another guy that I loved a lot, ra Ravi Zacharias, amazing apologist. doesn't I'm not denying that what he wrote was really good and really true, but immediately after his death, it came to light that he had multiple illicit problems with women. um He was exposed. You know what? We shouldn't be surprised by that. They are men. They are men. They are frail, faulty, sinful men.
00:28:03
Speaker
So be very careful when you elevate Jen Wilkin or Beth Moore or Matt Chandler or Ridley Barron. Don't go out of here and tell everybody, hey, my pastor's perfect. You tell him he's cool.
00:28:18
Speaker
But don't tell him he's perfect because I'm not. I am not above any of you. I am just as nasty and dirty and filthy as any other person who needed Jesus Christ. And thank God by his power today, I have been set free from the sin that's in my life. But I still battle the same old flesh that Paul talked about in 1 Corinthians and in Romans. So do not deify people, do not elevate them to places they do not belong, be very cautious.
00:28:52
Speaker
about that. um
00:28:58
Speaker
Sorry, I'm trying to whittle down a sermon that was way longer this morning and I'm trying to get it to the essentials so one I want to share with you. um Romans shares something very important with us. um One of the things that that kind of ah confuses people in scripture are or in doctrine today and thinking out the doctrine is, who is this Holy Spirit? What does the Holy Spirit do? Okay? I want you to say something with me. If I am a believer, I have the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is in me. The Holy Spirit can't be taken from me. screen And if I deny that,
00:29:37
Speaker
I make my pastor out to be a liar.
00:29:41
Speaker
And I would not lie to you about this. The day that you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, the Holy Spirit comes to indwell in you. Everybody cool with that statement? Because the next one you may not like. Everybody's cool with that one. All right, so if you have the Holy Spirit in you, then the minute you have the Holy Spirit, you have gifts that are given to you for the service of the kingdom of God.
00:30:04
Speaker
You have no no standing on which to look at your pastor and go, I can't do anything. Because more importantly, you don't make your pastor a liar at that point, you make the Bible a liar at that point. You see, the Holy Spirit comes into you so that you can use the gifts that God has given you and you can take those gifts and you can do the work to grow the church and equip the church for the kingdom's work, okay?
00:30:28
Speaker
You may not be a pastor, not what I'm saying. You may not be a worship leader. Gosh, some of you don't need to be near worship leading. There's all kinds of things that you cannot do or can do, but we all have something we should do. And when you don't do that, you are disobedient to the Spirit of God as He works in your life. Now,
00:30:49
Speaker
Some of you are sitting there going, well, how do I know if the Holy Spirit's talking to me? As a new believer, learning to listen to the Holy Spirit is something you grow in, okay? It's like a baby who first learns to listen to the voice of their mom or dad. With time, you begin to recognize it just like that. Early on, that's not the case. But if you've been a believer, if you think you've been a follower of Jesus for a year, two years, three years, and you're going, I don't know that I've ever heard from the Holy Spirit, then you need to question whether or not you have a relationship with Jesus Christ.
00:31:20
Speaker
um I'm not here to scare you, I'm here to warn you because this is the word, Romans chapter eight, verse nine. Where did I put it?
00:31:33
Speaker
Is it on there, Tristan? There you go, thank you. You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if indeed the spirit of God lives you. If anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, what? He does not belong to him.
00:31:50
Speaker
So if you don't know how to hear the Holy Spirit, you haven't heard from the Holy Spirit, I encourage you today, sit down and have a conversation with somebody who is a mentor to you, whether it's the staff person or one of our elders, and let us talk with you about that. Because it might be that you've just grown a little cold to his voice, but it might be you're walking around with the ill-conceived idea that you are a follower of Jesus when you're not. Because the Bible's very clear that the Spirit comes to indwell every believer when you enter into a relationship with him.
00:32:20
Speaker
okay Alright, now let me skip down to the some important stuff here. um Just gonna have to to get some stuff. The book of 1 John gives us some tests, if you will. Some ways to know whether or not we really have a relationship with Jesus Christ, okay?
00:32:38
Speaker
These are statements that John the Apostle who followed Jesus, who described himself as the the disciple that Jesus loved, who also wrote the gospel of John, these are the words of encouragement he has for every single one of us to apply to our heart as tests as to whether or not we have a real relationship with him. All right, so listen what they are. Number one, doctrinally you will believe in the real Jesus and what he did.
00:33:02
Speaker
You will believe in the real Jesus and what he did. You won't believe that Jesus was a myth. You won't deny what Jesus said. You won't question whether or not what he said was true. And you won't confuse it with other stuff. The only way to know what truth is, is to read this Bible over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and get this thing in your heart. The only way to know what Jesus said is to be right here in this book, okay? That's why next year we are challenging you to join us in this chronological read through the Bible.
00:33:31
Speaker
Next year, you're gonna be reading every day the same thing I'm reading and we're gonna get together and we're gonna talk about those things and we're gonna pull them apart and we're gonna dig deeper into those things so you can know who Jesus was. Because if you don't know Jesus, you don't have salvation. Okay, the second thing that's important here, it says, ethically, they will walk in light and in love. Jesus, when he was on the earth, walking the earth, said, they will know you are my disciples by the way you love one another. You hear that?
00:34:01
Speaker
So what that means is if you're sitting here today and you have any problem against your brother or sister, the only right next move is to confess your feelings and go to them and make it right.
00:34:15
Speaker
to confess your feelings and go to them and make it right. If you have a problem with one of the deacons in our church, go sit down with them and have ah have a conversation with them. If you have a problem with some teacher that's teaching your kids something and you you don't like the way they handled it, you cannot go home and be all mad and pout and do all kinds of stuff. You have a responsibility to, as quickly as possible, settle that issue with your brother and sister to love them. You don't have to agree on everything. Roll tide, right?
00:34:45
Speaker
See what comes back to bite you, you all were on my case last week. Listen, you don't have to agree on everything except for this, that there's love between us. Now I'm fixing to say something, I'm just gonna say something. You have a huge responsibility to love and respect your pastor, your staff, and your elders, okay? And the reason I say that is because that's what the Bible says.
00:35:14
Speaker
you are almost doubly responsible in the way you respond to our leadership, I am doubly responsible for the way I lead you, okay? So if you have a problem with me or Kyle or John, take us to a steakhouse and sit down and say,
00:35:34
Speaker
I didn't say you had to buy it, just take it, it's all right. But have that conversation that says, man, something's just not right between us, and it would be wrong of me to let one more hour pass without settling this issue. I had somebody last night text me after a certain circumstance, she texted me, and she said, I just need to apologize. I was like, you know what, that means the world to me. You didn't even offend me, but I'm so thankful that you made sure that everything was right. All right, third thing,
00:36:01
Speaker
Experientially, they will know the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. That's what we're talking about. I've got passage of scripture there, I think I'm the listening God for you. You'll have to take the time to read those later yourself, because I want to get to the last part of this. But you will know the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. You're going to feel those little nudges, okay? don't Don't get all misled by certain things. There's some Christian songs today that just really bother me. They're good and they're catchy, but they sing the things like, there was a flash of light in the middle of the night, and I'm like, how many Christians actually experienced that?
00:36:30
Speaker
And so people get confused, I've never had that happen in my life. I am 57 years old, there's never been a flash in my bedroom. Okay, not from Jesus anyway, there's been a lot, you know. 50, 50.
00:36:50
Speaker
50, okay. How do you recover from that?
00:37:00
Speaker
so Is the live stream still running?
00:37:10
Speaker
What was I talking about? Song of Solomon, there we go.
00:37:22
Speaker
All right, but seriously, like voice I heard a voice out of the heaven speak to me. Okay, very few people, even in scripture, had those kinds of moments. All right, when we're talking about a move of the spirit, we're feeling that nudge. Like when you say something you know you shouldn't say, and in that next minute you feel that tension in your heart, that's the Holy Spirit.
00:37:40
Speaker
That is the the conscience, the Holy Spirit working on you. That moment when you're riding down the road and you see somebody and something says to you, hey, pull over and help that guy out. That's the Holy Spirit speaking to you. Or that day when you get up and you get into your schedule and about halfway into your day you go, ooh, I didn't read the Bible this morning. That's God speaking to you saying, hey, don't do that again. You need this, okay? So don't downplay when the Holy Spirit speaks to you, but don't sit around waiting for some booming voice out of heaven to come speak to you because you're gonna be sitting for a long, long time.
00:38:09
Speaker
All right? Okay, let's get to the last stuff very quickly. um In this passage, there's an illustration of four different types of people who are in this room. Four different types of people who are in the church. Okay, I gotta to do this quickly. Number one, some know Christ and they just simply need encouragement and reinforcement. Okay? Some of you, many of you in here do have a real legitimate relationship. I would say the vast majority of you have a real relationship with Jesus Christ. And what you just need is something to come along and say to you, hey, keep at it, you're doing good.
00:38:38
Speaker
Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Hey, I know you messed up last week. Guess what? It happens. Confess it to God and move on. He has promised he would forgive it. He has promised he would forgive it. Keep moving. Don't stop. Indoor. Keep on. Be patient. Those kinds of things, alright? We all need that? You know the best place to get that? Who said that? Who said community group?
00:39:02
Speaker
Way to go, bonus points for today. Get in a life group with people who will speak truth to you, who will love you, who will hold your arms up when you're tired, and who will encourage you when you need somebody to do that for you, okay? Number two, some may be genuine christian Christians, but they lack doctrinal clarity.
00:39:19
Speaker
They just need somebody to clear up some things for them, okay? Does the Bible say that God is unchangeable? Well, let's sit down and unpack that. Does the Bible say that Jesus was without sin? Let's sit down and and underscore what that means for us, okay? What does the Bible say about God the Son, God the Father, God the Holy Spirit and their relationship with one another? Many of you don't really know that answer, and that's okay. There's no shame in asking questions about your faith. The shame is being quiet when you have questions.
00:39:48
Speaker
Because see here's what the enemy does. The enemy, let's be clear, the enemy hates your guts. He wants you dead. Not just physically dead, spiritually dead. Not just dead in this moment, but dead for all of eternity. He despises you. If he whispers in your ear, do not listen. And one of the things he's gonna tell you is, man, you are stupid about your faith. You are so dumb. I can't believe you call yourself a Christian.
00:40:20
Speaker
And in that moment, you just need to look at him and go, I may be dumb, but you're dead for eternity. Your your ending has already been written, as has mine. You lose, I win. Because I am one with Christ Jesus. All right, thirdly, man, I wish, I could preach a sermon about everyone. he um Some are religious, but they have no understanding of the gospel.
00:40:44
Speaker
Some are religious, but they don't have understanding the gospel. Some of you here today are here because you're a very religious person, okay? Religion kills people because religion is about check marks. Did this, did this, gave to that, served at this, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You don't do anything to earn your salvation. Your salvation changes your heart and you act out of that, okay? If you're here today based on religion, you're still dead in your sins.
00:41:12
Speaker
you need a relationship with Jesus who died for you, okay? And if you want a deeper conversation, that man, this is what what Kyle and John and Lori and I, we live for this. jaden would Jaden could sit down and have a conversation with you. This is why we do what we do. We want people to move closer to the image of Christ. Number four, some have heard the gospel but refuse to believe in Christ.
00:41:33
Speaker
So you need to understand as you're having gospel conversations, as you're going out talking about your faith with people and you're trying to introduce them to Jesus, not everybody will receive it. Not everybody will receive it. Some people are just gonna reject it. Some people are gonna look truth in the eye and deny it. Some people just, that they they are not they're not go and not gonna open their heart to this, okay?
00:41:59
Speaker
And before you get all hurt and offended and bothered and go, man, I tried my very best. Jesus was the absolute best teacher in the history of the world and Judas walked away from him. It's not got anything to do with your skill or your willingness. It has everything to do with the heart of a man who refuses to receive him, okay? So, don't be bothered if when you share Jesus, people don't take it right away. A lot of stuff I threw at you, man. Sorry if I was too fast, too quick.
00:42:29
Speaker
Too embarrassing. um
00:42:34
Speaker
Just proves I'm a normal human being like you are. My wife always gets scared on Sundays like this because she says you're so excited you're not thinking about what you say. So um go home and read Song of Solomon today. um I want you to hear this. There is no greater victory for this church than for people to get their relationship with Jesus right.
00:42:56
Speaker
If you're sitting there today and you're going, you know what, pastor, you described me, I don't have Jesus. I just need that relationship with him. we We would be honored for you just to step out from where you are, come up here and let's just pray a prayer with you, maybe answer some questions for you. We want you to get this right, matters. It's not just some question, it's the most important question you'll answer, what will you do with Jesus?
00:43:23
Speaker
For others of you, maybe you know what, Pastor, what you just described as me. I know for a fact I entered into a relationship with Jesus a month ago, a year ago, 10 years ago, but I've never had anybody really walk alongside of me and disciple me.
00:43:36
Speaker
We have a mentor program here at our church. Most of you don't even know about it, but we have a mentor program here at to our church. You call and let John know. John has men and women who are happy to walk along with you and help answer questions for you and to teach you. Get into a life group. Get into a Wednesday night Bible study. Get into a discipleship group with other people. if anything else If you don't do anything else, just get into the word and then be okay with answering or asking questions for us to answer so you can continue to grow, all right?
00:44:02
Speaker
As Jaden's coming to lead us in this last song, if you've got questions, if you've got things you want to say, you want to talk to somebody, our staff's going to be down front. Just make your way out. Nobody's going to be bothered by you pushing by them or whatever. Come down here. Let's talk about where you are, what you need to see, what you need to hear, questions you need answered. This is the most important decision you'll ever make in your life. Let me pray for you.
00:44:25
Speaker
Father God, I thank you for the morning and I thank you for what you've already taught us just by your word and even by the images we have seen with the Lord's Supper and the baptism today, Father. Would you help us to receive what is being offered by your son in this gospel message that we teach and preach and celebrate? We've worshiped you this morning, we have celebrated you this morning, but none of that matters if we don't get this question right.
00:44:55
Speaker
For others of us, we just need to recommit ourselves to growing in our faith. we We get saved some of us and we just stop right there at the starting line. We don't go any further, we never go any deeper. And your command for us is keep on growing.
00:45:13
Speaker
Keep on engaging with my word, keep on engaging with my Holy Spirit so that you can become more and more and more like me. And Paul describes it in Romans chapter 12, he says, don't be conformed to the ways of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Renew your mind, renew your mind, renew your mind over and over again. So help us this morning to be obedient in all those things. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.