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Philippians 1:27-30 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

0:00
So, I'm really privileged and honored to be here tonight and speak to y'all just for a little bit.
0:05
So, just kind of going back to what Alex is saying and what Nathan was saying, it's like, man, it's not about any of us up here.
0:11
Like, I'm just glad that we get to really hear the word tonight, and I'm honored to study it.
0:19
So, the cool thing about tonight is we're going through Philippians, and I believe that, like, man, as we're all in here,
0:24
like, I know that we're all, like, some of y'all are from Truett, and some of us are from North Georgia,
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and we've all got, like, different walks of life.
0:31
And the cool thing is, is that, like, tonight the word is relevant to every stage that we're in.
0:37
It's like, so I believe, like, man, the word has something to say to us.
0:39
It has something to say to me.
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It's been speaking to me all week.
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So, it's cool.
0:44
And so, I think we're going to be kind of talking to two different groups of people tonight,
0:47
and I think it's going to be, I think everyone's going to be able to take something away from tonight.
0:51
And so, kind of the way that I'm following up Clay is we're doing Philippians.
0:55
So, we've been doing one, and we've been going through the text.
0:57
And the way that we do it is we do expositionally, where we just go verse by verse.
1:01
And that's good, because it leaves less room for me just to throw in my own opinions.
1:05
The other side of that is, like, topically.
1:07
So, you have, like, topical preaching where we'll talk on, like, a certain topic, and that's good.
1:11
And I love that.
1:12
I have no problem with it.
1:13
But I'm just not that creative.
1:14
So, I just get to go.
1:16
Y'all are stuck with no creativeness from me, and we just get to go straight into the text.
1:20
But I think it's cool, because it leaves, it doesn't allow us to kind of insert our own opinions there.
1:28
I think it's so important that, like, Nathan's been talking about this a lot, is, you know, as we're in college,
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like, we're being told so many different things right now, and it's hard to decipher.
1:35
Okay, so what's true?
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Like, there might be a little bit of truth in it, and I can add my own story to it, but it might not be completely true.
1:42
And so, as we're at college, as we're hearing so many different things to us, like, man, what the world is telling us that it's okay to live by.
1:52
Man, we get to look at God's Word and be like, okay, so what does it say?
1:54
So, as we go through tonight, we're just going to go in verse by verse by verse, which is cool.
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I'm really excited about it.
2:00
So, we're in Philippians 1, 27 through 30.
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And so, I'm just going to do a quick little recap of last week.
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So, last week, Clay was speaking.
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Clay's not here, so he's in Hiawassee.
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So, I was the last resort.
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Y'all are stuck with me tonight.
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And so, Clay, last week, so we're just going to pick up kind of where he left off.
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So, he said in verse 19 through 26, he's talking about this huge section.
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Like, if we get to really read the Word, and we really, like, understand what's going on,
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there's this huge claim that's made.
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So, if we just, like, sometimes I think, like, you've been stuck in church long enough
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to where you, like, we'll read certain texts.
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And, uh...
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I'm kind of nervous over there.
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Sorry.
2:49
So, we'll read certain kind of texts.
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And we're in this, like, Christian mode of, like, okay, like, I know how to read verses.
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Like, I've been reading the Bible for a while.
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And so, we kind of read over text, and we're like, okay, yeah, to live is Christ, you know,
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or to die is Christ, and to live is...
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or to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
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So, we read over those verses, and we're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's cool.
3:07
But, man, am I the only one here who has, like, a really hard time saying, like, amen to that?
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Like, yes.
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So, if we're translating that, Paul is literally saying,
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it would actually be better for me to die because I get to go be with Christ.
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But it's also okay for me to live because I get to keep sharing the gospel.
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And so, that's a tough text to say amen to.
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Like, I mean, you know, if we just think about what are all the things that, like, I really look forward to.
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And I think, you know, a lot of us are in the same boat.
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Man, I can tell you the things that I'm really excited about.
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I'm really excited about getting married one day and, you know, having a family and doing life.
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I'm really excited about those things.
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And so, what happens a lot of times is we look forward to those things so much
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that we, you know, start to value those things, like, above Christ.
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And so, you know, like, am I, I guess the question that I have to ask myself
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and that we all have to ask ourselves tonight is it's like, okay, would I rather,
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like, on the day of your wedding, like, you're ready to get married,
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you've been going through all the planning of everything, and you're psyched.
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And that's, I'm just using this as an example.
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But, and then if you have this opportunity, like, okay, Christ can come back right now.
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Would you take it?
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And if we're just like, it's hard to be like, yes, I'm so stoked about that.
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Christ, come back right now.
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Like, I'm okay.
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This marriage is cool.
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I'm looking forward to it.
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But, and I think if we're honest, that is a hard thing to say amen to.
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Like, that's really hard.
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And so, it's a really good litmus test of, like, how important Christ is to us.
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Like, how badly do we want Jesus to come back right now?
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And I think there's so many things that we're looking forward to
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that we sometimes put those on this pedestal above Christ.
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So, that was last week.
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Really heavy.
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Really heavy.
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And then we're going into this week, which, I don't know, it doesn't get much better.
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It's, I mean, as far as how tough it is to say.
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So, I'm going to read through the text.
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I'll do a quick little intro, and then we'll pray.
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Okay.
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So, he says in verse 27, he says,
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This is a clear sign to them of their destruction.
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I think I'll just go ahead and pray right there.
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I think that's a good point before I really start blabbering on.
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Father, thank you so much for tonight.
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Thank you for just the opportunity to be here.
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Thank you for every single person that is in this room.
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Lord, I know you drew them here for a reason.
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Not because I had anything good to say, but because we get to really come to you
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and just understand and hear from your word tonight.
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So, Father, I just pray that you would take away all my own opinions and my own thoughts
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and that we would really kind of understand what you're saying in this verse to us
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and we would allow it to change our lives.
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Father, I pray that you would humble us tonight to see how glorious your gospel is
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and how much we need you, Father.
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We praise you.
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Just give us clarity.
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Give us attention tonight.
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We praise you in Christ's name.
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Amen.
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Okay.
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So, the main thing I'm going for tonight, like the main question we're talking about,
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is he says in this first verse, he says,
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Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.
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So, if we stop right there, that's this huge statement.
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That's a huge question.
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Like, okay, only let your manner of life be in a way that's worthy of the gospel.
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So, right there, that is a huge, that's a huge thing to say.
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And so, I think a lot of times we can kind of miss, we can not understand exactly what this verse is saying.
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So, what do we mean by that?
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Like, what do I mean when I say, when Paul says,
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Let your life be in a manner that's worthy of the gospel.
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So, let's define that a little bit better so we understand what we're talking about tonight.
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So, I want to talk about, like, okay, what are we not saying?
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Because, I want to, like, let's get that clear, okay?
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When Paul says, Only live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel.
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Paul is not saying, Be a good person, do good things, recycle, and don't watch R.A. movies.
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But, a lot of the times, like, man, that is, I mean, let's take out, let's take out, like, a few of those hokey things.
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But, it's like, man, honestly, that's what really, like, if we're to think of, like, the American Christian life,
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that's what it can really kind of boil down to.
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It's like, okay, I'm not doing these things, and I'm being good, and I'm not watching these R.A. movies
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unless they're violent and they're war-themed.
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And so, it really depends on, like, how, and so, if it's not saying that,
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if Paul's not just saying, Be a good person, then what is he saying?
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And so, it depends on how we define, like, who Jesus was.
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So, let's reread that verse, but let's substitute the word gospel.
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So, if you've grown up in church, you know that gospel means good news.
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So, only let your manner of life be worthy of the good news of Christ.
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And so, what's the good news?
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Man, before, I'm not just going to spend 20 minutes talking about what the good news of Christ is.
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We're going to go over it, like, just for a second.
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But, if y'all could turn to Romans 3.
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I don't think y'all will be flipping many places tonight.
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So, we're going to start in 21 and go through 26.
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Just so that we can kind of understand a little bit more clearly, like, what is Paul talking about when he says the good news?
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So that we're all on the same page here.
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Okay, so the good news.
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Man, this is awesome.
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Verse 21.
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But now the righteousness of God, so meaning, talking about Christ, has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it.
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The righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, for all who believe.
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For there is no distinction.
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For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
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This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine foreparents, he had passed over former sins.
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It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just, and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
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So, in a nutshell, that's exactly what we're talking about.
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That's the good news of Christ, is that everyone has sinned.
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Like, there's not a single person, Mother Teresa, is in the same boat as us.
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Gandhi's in the same boat.
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Martin Luther King, Jr.
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We're all in the same boat.
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Adolf Hitler has put, like, everyone in there.
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And the good news is that, so we've all fallen short, but it's not just that we're left to our own devices.
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It's that, man, God made its way through Christ.
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And so, he provided an opportunity for us to be justified.
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So, that's through Jesus.
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So, that is the good news.
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That's what we're talking about.
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That's what we're defining it as.
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So, it's really important, and it's almost like, man, it has to be, like, really put in our heads, like, over and over again,
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that the gospel is not just about abstaining from certain things.
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Saying, like, no, I'm not going to party that way.
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I'm not going to watch that movie.
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And I'm not going to listen to that music.
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And I'm not going to, you know, list it off.
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Like, but a lot of times, that's kind of what the Christian life boils down to.
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Like, we see that with people.
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It's like, well, they're just not doing certain things.
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Like, okay, is that what it's all about?
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Because if that's what it's all about, if it's just about abstaining from things,
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then, like, man, I think a lot of us here don't want a part of that.
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That's not enough.
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That's not enough to save us.
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That's not enough to motivate us.
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And so, if we did that, we would miss out on the whole point of the gospel completely.
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If we just stopped there and said, let's do these good things,
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and let's stop doing these bad things, then we'd miss out completely.
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So, this question that I'm asking, I'm like, man, so, let your manner of life,
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like, live it in a way that's worthy of the gospel.
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Why does it matter to you right here?
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Like, okay, we're all in this room.
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Like, why does it matter to us as college students?
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Most of us, like, most of us here are college students.
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So, the reason why it matters to us is if you think about the way you've lived your life,
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is that our ethics are constantly changing.
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Okay, so, you're in middle school, and you, like, there's certain ways that you said,
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like, okay, when I'm in high school, I won't do this.
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Or maybe in high school, you looked at people, and you saw people, like, partying,
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or drinking, or sleeping around, or something, and you're like, oh, I promise, like,
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I'm never going to be that way.
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And so, we set this, like, standard, and so, then we get to high school, and we're like,
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oh, well, that's actually all right.
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Like, I don't, like, that music, it's okay.
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Like, that's not so bad.
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I'm okay listening to that music.
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And then we get to college, and we're like, ah, that person's doing it.
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And so, I'm okay with that.
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So, our ethics, we're constantly changing.
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So, even when you get married, your standards of, like, what's right and wrong,
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it's going to change again.
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And it's kind of like this cycle.
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And so, that's changing.
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And so, kind of what happens is we've made this change from, like, our ethics,
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where we thought this was wrong at one point, and now we're kind of in college,
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and there's this whole mesh of different cultures and different beliefs,
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and we're making compromises.
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Because Paul is saying, let your life be lived in a way that's worthy of the gospel.
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But the thing is that we're making compromises that we never said we would.
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So, we're no longer living our lives in a manner worthy of the gospel.
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But the thing is that, like, as Christians, if you're in this room right now,
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and you're calling yourself a Christian, we're called not to be conformed by the ways of this world,
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but be transformed by the renewing of our mind.
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So, like, how do we do that?
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How do we do that?
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Like, how do we live our lives in a manner worthy of the gospel?
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That is such a huge claim.
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That's a huge thing to ask of us, especially as college students,
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since everything around us is being, we're being told different things.
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So, man, verse 27, back to Philippians.
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So, he says, you know, only let your manner be worthy of the gospel of Christ.
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And so, this word manner can also translate to conduct.
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So, the Greek word for that is,
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Paul's actually kind of talking about something a little bit deeper than just your conduct.
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So, background on Philippians is that this is the book of Philippians,
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and sometimes we don't understand exactly what that means.
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Because what's going on is that Paul is, like we said at the very beginning of Philippians' study,
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is that, like, Paul is under house arrest,
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and so he's writing this letter to the Philippian church.
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And so, what would happen a lot of times is, like, you'd have these people in this room,
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you'd have, like, the whole Philippian church.
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And so, Paul would write this letter,
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and so there's a guy, literally, like, what we're reading right now,
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there's a guy standing up there, and he's like, okay,
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so the elders are reading it out to the church.
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So, they're reading this to the church in Philippi.
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And so, Philippi, like Paul, like Clay has talked about,
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is actually under Roman rule.
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So, they're considering themselves Roman citizens.
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And for them, that's a good thing.
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They're like, okay, I'm a Roman citizen,
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I can have claim to this, and to this, and this.
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Like, Rome took really good care of their cities.
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And so, a lot of these people, like, they pride themselves on,
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oh, I'm a Roman citizen.
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Like, here, maybe not as much, but we're like, I'm an American.
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Unless you're saying that in a sarcastic way.
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You know.
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So, they're really proud of their Roman citizenship.
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It's like, okay, they consider themselves as a Roman.
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And so, Paul is saying, let your manner be worthy of the gospel of Christ.
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So, he's actually calling them to something even greater than that.
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We can kind of know that for certain by going to, like,
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just flipping over a page and going to Philippians 3.20.
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So, he says, in Philippians 3.20, he says,
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But our citizenship is in heaven.
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And from it, we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
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So, Paul is actually saying, you're not, yeah, you're a Roman citizen, you're here.
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But you're really a citizen of the kingdom.
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And so, Paul is kind of, like, asking them, like,
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just kind of forget about your Roman citizenship just for a second.
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And remember that you're called to an even greater citizenship, which is in heaven.
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And so, as we kind of go on with this, like, I'm just kind of reiterating that Paul is calling them away from that
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and to this heavenly citizenship.
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And so, I'm just kind of reiterating, like, and this is, there's just, like,
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we're not called in the gospel just to abstain from certain things.
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It is not a life of just not doing certain things.
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It's so much more than that.
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And so, I'm just coming back to that main question of,
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are you tonight living your life in a manner that's worthy of the gospel?
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Like, so, as an individual, are you, am I living my life in a manner that's worthy of the gospel?
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So, there are two categories.
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So, you're in one category and you're in the other tonight.
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So, I think there's, the first category is people who,
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okay, yeah, you once did live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel.
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Okay, you, like, maybe in high school, we were, like, you know,
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if, as anyone grew up in the Bible Belt, you were in church, you were involved,
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you were a part of your church body,
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and then something happened to where we came to college
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and we made one compromise after another,
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and then we're no longer, we can no longer, like, put ourselves in this boat of,
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well, yeah, I'm living my life in a manner worthy of the gospel.
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We're actually far from it, and we've actually run from that,
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and we're making so many more compromises than we ever thought we would.
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And then, or, you're kind of in this other boat where Paul's in,
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and he says in 3.12, he says in this next chapter, he says,
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not that I've already obtained this,
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so all these things that we're talking about, he says,
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not that I've already obtained this, or am already perfect,
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but I press on to make it my own,
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because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
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And so, you're either in this boat of,
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okay, well, I've left the time that I was walking,
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like, in a manner worthy of the gospel,
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and now I don't even know where I am anymore.
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Or, you're kind of with Paul, where you're like,
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man, I'm not perfect, and, I mean, yes, I can say,
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like, yes, I'm living my life in a manner worthy of the gospel,
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but I kind of, I think the things that we're going to go through tonight are,
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okay, well, do you have the right motivation?
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What is, like, motivating you to live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel?
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Are you in the right motivation, or are you burnt out?
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Like, have we been doing this, and we're not actually doing it
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for the right motivation anymore?
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We kind of need to have, like, a heart check of,
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well, why am I actually doing the things that I'm doing?
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Are we doing it because that's the right thing to do,
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and we know that it's going to make our parents happy,
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and it's going to keep us safe,
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and it's just the thing that we've been doing
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since we've been in middle school,
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and we never really asked why.
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So, that's kind of the direction that we're going for tonight.
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And so, I'm just going to go back,
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and so we're going to start,
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and we're just going to kind of go down.
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I promise I won't take that long.
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Okay, so, I kind of want to go deeper into this point of,
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like, okay, so why is this question of
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living your life in a manner worthy of the gospel,
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why is that, like, so hard to live?
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Like, I say that it's hard to live out,
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like, yeah, it's hard to say, you know,
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to live is Christ and to die is gain.
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Like, that's a hard thing to say,
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but why am I saying that to live your life
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in a manner worthy of the gospel,
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that's a hard thing?
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Well, I think the reason why that is,
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because unless you live in a commune,
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somewhere that I don't know about,
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and you're in your holy huddle,
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and we're just hanging out with Christians all day,
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and we're not really listening to the world,
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we're not paying attention to the world,
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then, unless you're there,
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well, we can talk afterwards, maybe,
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but, like, unless you're in a commune,
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then you are in this college environment,
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or you're just in the world,
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like, as soon as we get out of college,
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we're going to still kind of be
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under this extraordinary pressure
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to make compromises.
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And we need to realize, like,
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we are under this extreme amount of pressure
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to not live your life
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in a manner worthy of the gospel.
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Actually, we're called to live our lives
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in a manner that's worthy of culture.
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And so if we don't believe that,
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first of all, we need to wake up to that,
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and, like, I pray, like,
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let's wake up to the fact that culture is saying,
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live your life in a manner
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that's worthy of what we're saying.
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And so the things that we're going to find,
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what the world tells us to live our life
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in a manner of, it would be
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how much money you make.
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So when you get out and you get a job,
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how much money are you making?
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What about the car that you drive?
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The person that you're married to?
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The family that you raise?
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These are kind of long-term, like, down the road,
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because we're not really there yet.
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But it's like, man,
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or even just right now in college,
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like, okay,
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what fraternity are you a part of?
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Like, what sorority are you a part of?
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Like, how involved are you in campus?
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How much money are you making right now?
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Like, man, culture is bombarding us
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with, like, just different ideas of,
19:16
okay, this is how you live your life
19:17
in a manner that's worthy of us.
19:20
So, I kind of think that what happens
19:24
to a lot of us is we say,
19:26
well, okay, maybe I'm not living my life, like,
19:29
in a manner worthy of the gospel
19:30
the way that Swanson's defining it.
19:32
But, I mean, yeah, okay,
19:33
I'm not, like, reading my Bible daily,
19:35
I'm not, like, involved in the church,
19:37
and I'm not, like, disciplining myself
19:40
in, like, godliness or whatever,
19:41
like, they'll say.
19:42
So, maybe I'm not, like,
19:44
going ham on the gospel right now,
19:46
but, man, I'm not, like,
19:49
sleeping around, like,
19:50
as much as that person,
19:50
or, like, I'm not drinking as,
19:52
like, that guy really drinks a lot.
19:53
Like, man, and we hear it all the time.
19:55
Like, you hear people
19:56
constantly comparing themselves,
19:57
like, well, I'm not as bad as that person.
20:01
And so, kind of what happens is
20:02
we believe that we're in this place
20:04
of neutral ground.
20:05
Like, I talk, I think it's the most,
20:08
it's the scariest thing,
20:08
because, like, I talk to a lot of my friends,
20:11
and they're in the same boat of, like,
20:12
well, they believe that they're
20:14
in this neutral territory.
20:15
Okay, I'm not doing this.
20:16
I'm not going and sharing the gospel
20:18
all the time.
20:18
I'm not reading my Bible.
20:19
I'm not, I'm not going crazy
20:21
with the gospel.
20:21
But I'm not, like, straight up, like,
20:23
you know, doing drugs
20:24
and snorting cocaine
20:25
or something like that.
20:26
So, they just kind of, like,
20:27
believe, like, well, I'm neutral.
20:28
Like, I can stay in this neutral
20:29
area of the territory
20:30
where I'm not really, like,
20:30
going forward,
20:31
but I'm not really, like,
20:32
taking steps back.
20:33
And so, what happens is
20:34
we believe this mindset,
20:36
and then three years later,
20:38
like, where we thought
20:39
we would never be,
20:40
we wake up, and we're like,
20:41
how did we even get here?
20:42
Like, we have this, like,
20:44
aha moment.
20:44
We're like,
20:45
I don't even know
20:45
what I'm doing anymore.
20:47
Like, how did I get
20:48
from such a place
20:49
where I thought
20:50
that I wasn't ever going to be,
20:52
and now I'm here?
20:53
And so, I don't think it's,
20:54
I don't think anyone here
20:55
would be like,
20:56
okay, yeah,
20:56
I just woke up one night,
20:58
and I just decided,
20:59
I woke up one morning
20:59
and just decided,
21:01
I'm done with this gospel thing.
21:03
Like, I'm done with church.
21:04
Like, I'm walking away from it.
21:05
Like, this isn't,
21:06
this isn't meaningful.
21:06
Like, I really,
21:08
sometimes,
21:08
but for the most part,
21:09
I believe that no one's going to,
21:11
like, really make that much
21:12
of a conscious decision
21:13
to be like,
21:14
what you got, world?
21:15
Let's do this.
21:16
Like, I just don't think
21:17
that's going to happen.
21:18
And so, what happens, though,
21:19
what I believe,
21:20
is that we have this neutral territory
21:21
where we're like,
21:22
yeah, I'm not really doing
21:23
these things.
21:24
And so, we just start taking
21:25
really slow, subtle,
21:27
like, inch by inch steps back.
21:31
And we wake up,
21:32
and we just realize,
21:33
like, man,
21:33
what has happened?
21:34
I wanted to give a shout-out
21:36
to Clay,
21:37
because he let me,
21:38
he, he, well,
21:40
he ran out of options,
21:41
and so he had to let me speak.
21:43
But, so Clay's like
21:44
a huge history buff,
21:46
so I have to give him
21:47
a history shout-out.
21:48
So, generals believe that
21:50
if their soldiers were not
21:52
advancing towards enemy lines,
21:53
like, if they weren't
21:54
taking ground,
21:56
that they were actually
21:56
losing it.
21:58
So, so generals were
21:59
constantly advancing
22:00
their armies,
22:00
like, saying, okay,
22:01
keep going.
22:02
It's not, like,
22:03
they, they rarely had them
22:04
just, like, camp out
22:05
and just, like,
22:05
stay a certain place.
22:06
It was kind of, like,
22:06
always, like,
22:07
trying to figure out,
22:08
okay, well,
22:08
let's wait for these
22:09
reinforcements to come
22:10
so we can finally take this.
22:11
It was kind of,
22:12
it wasn't,
22:12
it was never this,
22:13
all right, well,
22:14
we got that hill.
22:14
Like, man,
22:15
we stormed Normandy.
22:16
Let's, Normandy,
22:17
let's just, like,
22:18
chill here for a while.
22:18
This beach is great.
22:19
Like, that's not,
22:21
like, man,
22:21
we just kept advancing.
22:23
That was for you, Clay.
22:26
So, so you're in that boat.
22:29
There's one group of us
22:29
that's in that boat
22:30
of, like, okay,
22:31
the compromises
22:32
and slowly,
22:34
we're not taking ground.
22:35
We're actually,
22:37
like, I mean,
22:38
even, I'm really kind of
22:39
more of a real world
22:40
example of, like,
22:41
divorce.
22:42
I don't,
22:43
I rarely think that anyone,
22:44
like, you know,
22:44
gets involved in a marriage
22:45
and they're, like,
22:46
this thing's gonna be great.
22:47
I'll probably give it
22:48
three years of my best shot
22:49
and then we'll call it quits
22:50
in about five
22:50
after we have kids.
22:52
Like, no one,
22:53
no one's gonna marry
22:54
that person anyways.
22:56
It's kind of this, like,
22:57
and so, I mean,
22:58
it's like, how do we,
22:59
so the question is,
23:00
like, how do we,
23:01
how, how,
23:01
if we're all susceptible
23:02
to it,
23:03
if we're all sinful
23:04
and we're all fully capable
23:05
of the same thing,
23:07
like, I'm so capable
23:08
of divorce
23:08
just as much
23:09
as the next guy is.
23:11
And so,
23:11
I think what happens
23:12
is that we believe
23:13
that we're not.
23:14
We believe that,
23:14
well, I'm not going
23:15
to ever get a divorce.
23:17
I've seen the way
23:18
it's wrecked.
23:18
Like, my life
23:19
or my friend's life.
23:22
And so then we get
23:22
in this marriage
23:23
and we're not really
23:23
advancing the marriage either.
23:25
We're just kind of like,
23:25
you know, like,
23:26
I mean, I'm married now
23:27
and, you know,
23:28
she's cool,
23:29
like, we'll talk.
23:30
And then there's things
23:30
kind of, you get distance
23:31
and it's just like,
23:32
day by day
23:33
and you just don't even
23:33
really know where
23:34
you are anymore.
23:34
So I think that kind of
23:35
happens, like,
23:36
spiritually and then also,
23:37
like, man,
23:38
in our marriages.
23:40
So that's kind of
23:40
like an example
23:41
if y'all can,
23:41
if that makes sense
23:43
to y'all as far as
23:43
what I'm talking about.
23:45
Or, and so I'm kind of
23:47
going a little bit more
23:47
to, like, man,
23:48
how do we get burnt out
23:49
or low on fuel?
23:50
So we agree with Paul
23:51
where he says,
23:52
you know,
23:52
not that I'm perfect
23:53
or that I've already
23:54
obtained these things,
23:54
but I'm making
23:55
strives towards it.
23:58
But then at the same time,
23:59
like, man,
23:59
we have this huge view
24:01
of Paul.
24:02
But, man,
24:03
Paul struggled with sin
24:04
just as much
24:05
as the next guy did.
24:06
If we're going to look
24:07
at Romans 7,
24:09
15 through 25.
24:27
Okay.
24:28
So I'll pick up
24:29
in verse 15.
24:31
So Paul's, like,
24:31
talking to the Romans,
24:32
kind of the same thing
24:33
with, like,
24:34
the Philippian church
24:35
of, like,
24:35
reading the letters
24:36
so the Romans
24:36
are reading this letter
24:37
and Paul says to them,
24:39
for I do not understand
24:40
my own actions.
24:42
For I do not do
24:44
what I want,
24:45
but I do the very thing
24:46
I hate.
24:47
Now if I do
24:48
what I do not want,
24:49
I agree with the law
24:49
that it is good.
24:51
So now it is no longer
24:52
that I who do it,
24:53
but sin that dwells
24:54
within me.
24:57
For I know that
24:57
nothing good dwells
24:58
in me,
24:59
that is,
24:59
in my flesh.
25:00
For I have the desire
25:01
to do what is right,
25:03
but not the ability
25:04
to carry it out.
25:04
For I do not do
25:06
the good I want,
25:07
but the evil
25:07
I do not want
25:08
is what I keep
25:09
on doing.
25:10
Now if I do
25:11
what I do not want,
25:12
it is no longer
25:13
I who do it,
25:14
but sin that dwells
25:16
within me.
25:19
And he says,
25:20
so I find it to be
25:21
a law that when
25:23
I want to do right,
25:24
evil lies close
25:25
at hand.
25:27
For I delight
25:28
in the law of God
25:29
in my inner being,
25:30
but I see in my
25:31
members another law
25:32
waging war against
25:33
the law of my mind
25:34
and making me captive
25:35
to the law of sin
25:36
that dwells in my
25:37
members.
25:37
Wretched man that I am,
25:38
who will deliver me
25:39
from this body of death?
25:41
Thanks be to God
25:41
through Jesus Christ
25:42
our Lord.
25:43
So then,
25:44
I myself serve
25:45
the law of God
25:46
with my mind,
25:47
but with my flesh
25:47
I serve the law
25:48
of sin.
25:49
Okay,
25:50
so Paul says this
25:52
and we're kind of
25:53
in the same boat.
25:53
If you're not in
25:54
this other boat
25:55
that we just kind of
25:55
talked about,
25:56
you're in this boat
25:56
where we have
25:57
this internal struggle
25:58
and we're just like,
25:59
man, what am I
25:59
even doing here?
26:00
Like, I want to
26:01
live out the gospel
26:02
in a manner that's
26:03
worthy.
26:03
I want to live my
26:04
life in a manner
26:05
that's worthy gospel,
26:05
but I have such a
26:06
hard time doing it
26:07
because I still see
26:09
sin creeping close
26:10
at hand.
26:15
Okay, so we come
26:16
back again to the
26:17
main question.
26:17
We're about to,
26:18
but I'm not going
26:19
to be one of the
26:19
four flights
26:19
and then we'll
26:20
actually be done.
26:22
So I'm glad.
26:23
So the question is,
26:24
how does a college
26:24
student in the
26:26
United States of
26:26
America live this
26:27
out?
26:28
I will not be
26:29
answering this.
26:29
I think Paul will
26:30
be able to do a
26:31
good enough job to
26:32
where I won't
26:32
actually have to
26:33
say much.
26:34
Okay, so let's
26:35
pick it up in
26:36
27.
26:38
He says,
26:38
Only let your
26:38
manner of life be
26:39
worthy of the
26:40
gospel of Christ,
26:41
so that whether I
26:41
come and see you
26:42
or absent, I may
26:43
hear of you that
26:44
you are standing
26:45
firm.
26:45
So, okay, so the
26:46
first reason, if you're
26:47
taking notes tonight,
26:48
the first reason that
26:49
we're not living out
26:50
our lives in a manner
26:51
worthy of the gospel is
26:52
we have the wrong
26:52
motivation.
26:54
So let's pay attention
26:55
to that verse.
26:56
He says,
26:57
So whether I come and
26:58
see you or I'm absent,
27:00
I may hear that you're
27:00
standing firm in the
27:01
gospel.
27:02
And so I think a lot of
27:03
the times what a lot of
27:05
us have allowed to happen
27:06
in our lives is that,
27:07
well, I mean, Paul is
27:08
first of all saying,
27:08
okay, if I'm there,
27:10
please, like, like,
27:11
stand firm in the
27:12
gospel.
27:13
But if I'm not, also
27:14
stand firm in the
27:14
gospel.
27:15
Because Paul does not
27:16
want their motivation
27:17
to be the fact that
27:18
he's there.
27:19
And so, man, either us
27:20
or, like, a friend that
27:21
we know or somewhere
27:22
along the line, like,
27:23
some of us, like, we
27:25
let our motivation for
27:26
living our lives in a
27:27
manner worthy of the
27:28
gospel be because our
27:29
pastor, our youth
27:30
pastor was, like,
27:31
super, like, he had a
27:32
lot of charisma.
27:34
Or he was, like, man,
27:35
he was a great guy.
27:36
Like, he always made me
27:38
laugh.
27:38
He was really cool.
27:39
Or, like, man, it
27:40
pleased our parents or our
27:42
friends.
27:42
And, like, okay, so we'll
27:43
go on mission trips.
27:44
And we know that it's
27:45
really, really good.
27:46
And so we have this
27:47
motivation of, I'm going
27:48
to live the gospel because
27:49
my friends are doing it.
27:50
My pastor loves me.
27:51
My parents are proud of
27:52
me.
27:53
And we have this wrong
27:54
motivation the whole time.
27:55
And Paul's saying, like,
27:56
no, no, no.
27:56
Like, that cannot be the
27:57
reason why you're living
27:58
your life.
27:59
Like, that cannot be it.
28:00
It's not enough.
28:01
So we mistake this
28:02
manner of life.
28:03
We mistake this manner
28:06
of life that's motivated
28:07
by people seeing us.
28:10
And we mistake that for
28:11
actual salvation.
28:12
We're like, okay, people
28:12
are seeing us.
28:13
I'm a good person.
28:14
I've got my Jesus swag
28:15
going.
28:16
I've got it all, man.
28:18
And we're so proud of
28:19
ourselves.
28:20
But we don't know that,
28:21
man, we're actually really,
28:22
really hollow.
28:23
Like, on the inside, we're
28:24
so hollow because this
28:25
relationship with Christ
28:26
has not been based off of
28:27
him at all.
28:28
And so the thing is that
28:30
we have to be motivated
28:33
by grace.
28:35
Like, I don't know what
28:36
else is going to motivate
28:37
us.
28:38
Guilt can motivate you for
28:39
a little while.
28:40
Like, I can get up here
28:41
and say, like, man, we
28:43
need to live our lives in
28:44
a manner worthy of the
28:44
gospel because of this
28:46
reason and this reason
28:47
and this reason.
28:48
And I can guilt trip every
28:49
single person of y'all
28:49
into it.
28:50
Y'all have been there
28:51
where it's like, okay,
28:51
even with just, like,
28:53
giving to, like, you
28:54
know, poverty or
28:55
something like that.
28:56
Like, that's a huge
28:57
motivator.
28:57
And so what happens is
28:58
it gets money out of our
28:59
wallets because we see
29:01
that Tamrat in Ethiopia
29:03
doesn't have, like, food
29:06
to eat.
29:06
And so we're like, oh, I
29:07
feel terrible, so I'll
29:08
throw him some money.
29:09
And so, but that's, but
29:10
then we just lose
29:11
motivation, like, a week
29:11
or two later.
29:12
And so we have to be
29:14
motivated by grace.
29:14
Like, we have to, and
29:15
Paul wants that too.
29:16
Like, yeah, he wants
29:17
them, he wants to see
29:19
them, he wants to see
29:19
this happen, but he can't,
29:21
he doesn't want that to
29:22
be the motivator.
29:23
So we have to let that
29:24
be the motivator instead
29:25
of us being in high
29:27
school and singing
29:28
songs and going on
29:29
youth group mission
29:31
trips and missing the
29:33
gospel completely.
29:34
I think that'd be the
29:34
scariest thing in my
29:35
life is to think that I
29:36
could get to Christ and
29:38
he could look at me and
29:40
just be like, Daniel, you
29:41
missed it completely.
29:43
You were doing all these
29:44
things, you were singing
29:45
these songs and you were
29:46
raising your hands, but you
29:48
missed me completely.
29:50
I think that's honestly one
29:50
of the things that I'm
29:51
terrified of the most is
29:52
running this race and God
29:53
not being right there
29:54
with me.
29:57
So I'm going to ask a
29:59
question with each point
30:00
kind of something like
30:01
for y'all and for me.
30:03
What motivated you in the
30:05
past to follow Christ that
30:07
you aren't following him
30:08
anymore?
30:09
Was it the fact to please
30:11
your parents or your
30:12
pastor or so on?
30:14
What motivates you now if
30:16
you are standing firm in
30:17
the gospel?
30:17
Is it the gospel?
30:19
Is Christ motivating you?
30:20
Are you still, like, do you
30:21
still wake up and when you
30:22
think about sharing the
30:23
gospel with someone or
30:25
living your life in a
30:26
manner worthy?
30:26
Is it because you're like,
30:27
Christ, you are so good and
30:29
I cannot believe that, like,
30:31
after all the crap that
30:32
I've done, you would still
30:34
let me breathe?
30:36
Like, that hat, like, is
30:37
that the motivator?
30:39
What is it?
30:40
Okay, second point.
30:42
Verse 27, the second part
30:44
of it, he says, so that
30:46
whether I come and see you
30:47
where I'm absent, I may hear
30:48
that you are standing firm in
30:49
one spirit with one mind
30:50
striving side by side for the
30:51
faith of the gospel.
30:53
Second reason, we're not in
30:54
church anymore with community.
30:57
Not that we're going to
30:58
church, but we're not in
30:58
community anymore.
30:59
There's a difference between
31:00
going to church and being in
31:02
community.
31:05
So, this is huge, especially
31:08
for college students, where
31:09
there's a million different
31:10
things, like, saying, okay,
31:11
come to this youth ministry,
31:12
or come to this ministry
31:13
that's going on in college,
31:14
like, come to this.
31:15
Like, everything is trying to
31:16
grab our attention right now.
31:17
And so, the idea of being a
31:21
covenant member of a church,
31:23
and being a part of a church,
31:24
and laboring with a church,
31:25
and serving a church, is not
31:26
on the top list of things for
31:28
us to do.
31:29
You know?
31:30
I mean, honestly, there's a
31:31
million other things that are
31:32
grabbing our attention.
31:35
And so, he says in this verse,
31:37
he says, one mind and one
31:39
spirit.
31:40
So, what Paul's saying is not
31:42
that we're going to agree on
31:43
everything, but that we'll be
31:45
harmonious.
31:47
He says, strive together,
31:49
which is a really cool verse,
31:50
because in Greek, that actually
31:51
means wrestle.
31:52
So, it doesn't mean just, like,
31:53
oh, come on, you got it.
31:54
It means, like, wrestle.
31:57
And so, I think he says that
31:59
because, like, I think the
32:00
reason why he says wrestle
32:01
together is because the gospel
32:02
is something really hard to
32:04
obtain.
32:04
Man, it's the treasure in the
32:05
field that we have to sell
32:07
everything for.
32:09
And it is the narrow road that
32:10
is hard to find.
32:13
Few find it, but it leads to
32:14
life.
32:15
Like, the gospel is something
32:16
that we have to work for.
32:18
Not work for as in to earn,
32:20
but, I mean, it is difficult
32:22
to obtain because the world is
32:23
throwing us so many different
32:24
things.
32:27
The other cool thing is that,
32:28
I mean, we're supposed to
32:29
strive together, so wrestle
32:30
together.
32:31
And I think a lot of us find
32:33
ourselves in this boat where
32:33
we're like, okay, well, I like
32:35
this about the church.
32:36
Like, their music's good, and
32:37
their teaching is good, but I
32:39
really don't like the
32:40
leadership, or there's not
32:41
really, like, a good ministry
32:43
for me to put myself in.
32:45
So, I'm really just going to,
32:46
I'll go there occasionally.
32:48
I'll go to that church.
32:49
And so we kind of start this
32:50
idea of, like, we start
32:50
dating the church, and we're
32:52
not actually planting
32:53
ourselves in a church.
32:54
And so, what Paul's saying
32:55
is, like, okay, you can have
32:57
those objections.
32:57
Like, we have this list of
32:59
critiques of, like, this is
33:00
wrong, this is wrong, and this
33:01
is wrong.
33:02
But he's saying, wrestle with
33:03
that church.
33:04
He's saying, like, man, like,
33:05
we're going to have to wrestle
33:06
with each other.
33:07
Like, okay, I don't agree with
33:08
the way you're doing this.
33:09
Um, and it's like, okay, well,
33:11
you know, a good church that
33:12
loves Christ is going to say,
33:13
I completely agree, man.
33:15
I see it differently, but let's
33:16
work this out.
33:16
Let's pray through it together.
33:18
Let's work through this.
33:19
Um, we're also called to
33:22
wrestle alongside one another.
33:23
We need one another so badly.
33:25
Because I am such an imperfect
33:26
person, and I need someone
33:28
like Alex, uh, to wrestle with
33:31
me and catch me when I'm not
33:33
living my life in a manner
33:34
worthy of the gospel.
33:35
Like, we need one another.
33:37
Um, so, uh, the cool thing is
33:41
that he says, side by side
33:43
for the faith of the gospel.
33:44
So, if we read that again, um,
33:46
in one spirit, with one mind,
33:48
striving by yourself for the
33:50
faith of the gospel.
33:51
That's not what it says.
33:52
It doesn't say, by yourself.
33:54
It says, side by side.
33:56
Um, and that's a difficult
33:57
mindset for us to understand,
33:59
I think, because if you live
34:00
in the U.S., like, the way
34:02
the U.S. is built is on
34:03
rugged individualism.
34:05
Um, you know, we came here,
34:07
we started things, and we got
34:10
our independence and our
34:11
freedom.
34:11
Think about the pioneers
34:12
going out west.
34:14
Um, think about everything
34:15
going on right now.
34:16
Like, just, even just
34:17
capitalism and the way that
34:18
this economy is set up.
34:19
It is for you as the
34:21
individual.
34:22
You can do it, make the
34:23
best of your life.
34:24
And, and, and so it's,
34:26
it's understandable that we
34:27
have a hard time understanding
34:29
that we need to come side by
34:30
side with one another.
34:31
But, God's kingdom does not
34:34
work in the same way that a
34:36
lot of our U.S.
34:36
mindsets are.
34:37
God's kingdom is based off
34:39
his church.
34:39
He's not, he's not doing work
34:41
just through individuals.
34:43
Um, even parachurches, like
34:45
churches, like, like, you
34:46
just youth ministries.
34:47
Like, churches that are not
34:49
multi-generational.
34:50
Like, man, that can't be a
34:52
church, and it's hard to
34:53
strive side by side with a
34:54
group that isn't committed to
34:56
each other.
34:56
Um, so he's kind of calling us
34:58
to something more than that.
34:59
And, and that's not even
35:00
really a plug for Christ's
35:02
family.
35:02
I love this church, but I
35:03
think there's also really
35:04
great churches in the area.
35:05
I think Creekstone's an
35:06
awesome church.
35:06
I think Christ's church is a
35:07
cool church.
35:08
And, like, I, I, I'm really
35:10
encouraged by the stuff that's
35:11
going on.
35:11
And so, um, but I think Paul
35:13
is just saying be invested
35:14
with other people.
35:15
Um, so my question on that
35:17
before I move to my next
35:17
point is, okay, so that's an
35:20
awesome point, but are you as
35:22
an individual, am I as an
35:23
individual, are we invested in
35:24
the local church?
35:25
Are we looking and seeking
35:26
out, okay, how can I be a
35:27
member of, of, of such and
35:29
such church?
35:29
How can I run together with
35:31
them in a wolf pack and not
35:33
just as a lone wolf?
35:35
Um, so are you running with
35:36
the wolf pack or are you
35:37
running as a lone wolf?
35:40
Um, okay, third point.
35:43
Uh, verse 28.
35:45
He says, and not frightened in
35:47
anything by your opponents.
35:49
This is a clear sign to them
35:50
of their destruction, but of
35:52
your salvation and that from
35:54
God.
35:54
Um, okay, so this is one of the
35:56
tougher points of the night.
35:56
Um, I think the third reason
35:58
why we don't live our lives in a
36:00
manner worthy of the gospel,
36:01
that Paul is urging us to, is
36:02
we don't want to suffer.
36:06
Um, and your first thought is,
36:09
uh, duh, Swanson.
36:11
Like, uh, and, and so, uh, I'm
36:14
just gonna read Acts 42 to y'all.
36:15
You don't have to, 14, 22.
36:17
You don't have to turn there.
36:19
Um, but I'll take forever to
36:21
get there.
36:22
Um, okay, so 14, 22.
36:27
Um, this, man, this strength,
36:29
this challenges me in so much.
36:32
So, um, in 21 he says, but when
36:33
they preached the gospel to that
36:34
city and had made many disciples,
36:36
they returned to Lystra and to
36:38
Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening
36:40
the souls of the disciples,
36:41
encouraging them to continue in
36:43
the faith and saying that through
36:44
many tribulations, we must enter
36:46
the kingdom of God.
36:48
Um, okay, so if we're gonna
36:50
define suffering really quickly,
36:52
um, there's a difference between
36:53
American suffering and closed
36:54
country suffering, suffering.
36:56
Kind of like, um, uh, with the
37:00
guy that Clay's having speak this
37:01
weekend in Hiawasi.
37:03
Um, he's from, uh, Kazakhstan,
37:05
I believe, and it's a completely
37:06
different world of suffering over
37:07
there.
37:08
So we've got our American
37:09
suffering where none of y'all are
37:10
going to be thrown into prison or
37:13
beaten or anything like that.
37:15
Like, it's a completely different
37:16
world of suffering from, from
37:17
anywhere else.
37:18
Um, and so what do I mean by
37:20
that?
37:20
I don't, I'm not gonna say a
37:23
million different specific
37:23
things for us as, as Christians,
37:25
but I will say this.
37:27
Specifically what this looks like
37:28
is that when we read the word,
37:30
like, when we read this book and
37:31
we take off, like, the church
37:33
lenses that we have, and we're
37:34
like, that's a sweet verse.
37:35
That's really encouraging,
37:36
brother.
37:37
Like, when we really read the
37:38
Bible, like, just that verse that
37:39
we just read of, through much
37:40
tribulation we must enter the
37:42
kingdom of God.
37:43
That is so hard.
37:46
Like, I, I know I'm not the only
37:47
one who believes that.
37:48
It's hard.
37:48
Like, I don't say amen to that.
37:50
Um, but the second that we start
37:52
reading the Bible and start
37:54
applying what it actually says
37:56
to say about what we spend our
37:58
money on, how do you, what, like,
38:00
let's look at your bank account.
38:01
How do you spend your money?
38:03
What about the person that you're
38:04
dating, um, or you, you marry one
38:07
day?
38:07
The things we stand for and the
38:10
things that we stand against.
38:12
When we start applying the Bible
38:13
to those things, we will not be
38:15
popular.
38:18
And so we don't have to, I don't
38:19
have to go into specifics for
38:20
every single person tonight, but
38:22
when we start following this, man,
38:24
like, we're not going to be
38:24
popular.
38:25
Um, so the question is, why
38:27
should we have opponents?
38:29
Why, why would we even have
38:30
opponents?
38:31
Um, the apostle Paul, like, he has
38:33
opponents that he speaks about in
38:34
his letters and in Acts.
38:36
Um, why?
38:37
Why does Paul have opponents?
38:39
That's, that doesn't sound like a
38:40
very loving thing to say, that,
38:42
like, Paul would have opponents.
38:43
I would say Paul's probably doing
38:44
something wrong if he has
38:45
opponents.
38:46
But, if we look all throughout Acts
38:48
and we trace everything throughout
38:49
the New Testament, we see that
38:50
every major character in the New
38:51
Testament did not have a pretty
38:53
ending.
38:54
You could be like, oh, well, John
38:55
actually had a pretty good ending.
38:56
He was just exiled on an island of
38:58
Patmos.
38:58
That was actually after they tried
39:00
to boil him alive and couldn't do
39:02
it.
39:02
And he kept preaching the gospel.
39:04
It's like they decided the only way
39:05
to actually get rid of him was to
39:06
exile.
39:07
So, it's hard to find someone and
39:10
you're like, and you read it, and
39:12
Timothy died at a ripe old age on a
39:14
good 401k retirement.
39:17
Like, we don't find that in the New
39:19
Testament.
39:20
So, but why?
39:22
Why is this if the gospel is good
39:24
news?
39:25
It's good news for our souls if we
39:27
desire to walk in a manner worthy of
39:28
the gospel.
39:28
But, if you're trying to walk in a
39:30
manner worthy of culture, that is bad
39:32
news for them because the gospel is
39:34
counter-cultural.
39:35
It says to lose your life so that you
39:37
can find it.
39:40
Man, that naturally is going, like the
39:43
gospel is saying that we, that you,
39:45
this is the message of the gospel is
39:46
saying that you are broken and you're a
39:48
sinner and you need Christ because
39:50
Christ is the only thing that can give
39:51
us salvation and real joy.
39:53
But, that's not a very popular message
39:56
if you want to follow your own ways.
39:58
And so, I wanted to differentiate between
40:00
rejecting the message of Christ versus
40:03
the messenger.
40:04
There is a huge difference.
40:05
This, like, what I don't want us to
40:07
take out of this is that, okay, well, I
40:08
need to go get opponents.
40:10
I need to go get opponents for the
40:12
gospel.
40:12
And so, if y'all know anything about,
40:14
like, some of the churches, like, like,
40:16
I'm not going to say specific names, but,
40:18
like, some of the churches that, like,
40:19
boycott, like, funerals and, like, picket,
40:22
like, like, like, anti-gay protesting,
40:24
like, that's, like, yeah, they're getting
40:26
opponents, trust me.
40:28
But, trust me, those guys are, are hating
40:30
them and not the message of Christ
40:31
because it's not being shared.
40:34
So, it's really important that, yeah,
40:36
like, we do everything we can to love
40:39
this person who does not have the
40:41
gospel.
40:41
Like, man, we pray for them.
40:43
We share the gospel with them.
40:44
We tell them, brother, I love you.
40:45
Man, I love you so much.
40:46
Like, I want to invest my time, my money
40:48
into you, but you need the gospel.
40:50
Um, and if they reject, if they reject
40:52
the gospel, like, yeah, they're going
40:53
to eventually reject you, too, because
40:55
you care about them.
40:57
But, we cannot allow this message to
41:00
affect us and say, I'm going to go out
41:02
and acquire opponents by sharing a
41:04
very unloving and hate-filled gospel.
41:07
Um, so, um, the cool thing is that,
41:12
man, the second part of the verse, he
41:13
says, he says, uh, this is a clear sign
41:17
to them of their destruction, but of
41:19
your salvation, and that from God.
41:21
So, my question is, if suffering is a
41:24
clear sign of our salvation, what is it
41:27
a clear sign of if we aren't suffering?
41:31
Um, are you sharing the gospel?
41:36
Um, I think, I think that is going to
41:39
do it enough.
41:39
Um, I think even if we look at Luke 6,
41:42
22, he says, woe to you when all men
41:44
speak well of you, for that is how their
41:47
fathers treated the false prophets.
41:51
Uh, I don't even know what to do with
41:52
that verse.
41:53
Um, so, I guess the question is here, is,
41:57
are you suffering for the gospel by being
42:00
true to what it says to you about how
42:02
you spend your money, the people you date,
42:05
and how you live your life?
42:06
Or do you look, like, just like everybody
42:09
else?
42:10
Like, there's literally no distinguish
42:11
between you and everyone else.
42:12
Um, I can give a huge testament of this
42:15
as, like, Greek life.
42:16
Um, and I'm involved in Greek life, and I
42:18
think a lot of people go into Greek life
42:20
with, like, these really good intentions
42:21
of, like, well, I'm going to meet people,
42:24
I'm going to, like, have good friends,
42:26
I want to be a good influence on people,
42:28
like, I want to grow as an individual.
42:29
And even if it's, like, some of those
42:31
people will, like, say, you know, I want
42:32
to meet people, but I also want to share
42:33
the gospel with people.
42:34
Like, so how true are we still to that
42:36
original plan?
42:37
Um, are we still doing that?
42:40
Or have we been influenced by,
42:42
not just Greek life, but, I mean,
42:44
just in general, like, have we made
42:45
compromises?
42:46
Um, are we just hanging out with people
42:49
and putting it under the banner of
42:52
sharing the gospel?
42:52
We're not actually doing anything.
42:54
Um, and so that's my challenge to us
42:59
in that section is, you know,
43:02
are we sharing the gospel, or are we
43:03
going to uncomfortable places?
43:04
Sometimes, like, even for me, like,
43:06
I can give a testimony to it of, like,
43:07
man, I will, I love Sigma Nu.
43:10
Like, I love the guys in Sigma Nu.
43:11
Um, and, man, my intention was to get
43:14
out of my own Christian bubble and, man,
43:17
share the gospel with people, too.
43:18
Um, and I think, I think what happens
43:21
is we go from this area of, like, okay,
43:23
I'm really, really lukewarm, and then
43:25
I get in this really, really hot water,
43:26
and you're like, oh, this is really,
43:27
really uncomfortable, and then that
43:28
becomes lukewarm, and you're like,
43:29
yeah, I can really get used to this.
43:31
And then God's, like, saying, like,
43:32
no, I want to take you further into a
43:33
place of even hotter water.
43:35
Um, because we're constantly battling
43:39
against our flesh, and my flesh says,
43:40
be quiet, shut up, don't talk about
43:42
Jesus.
43:43
Um, okay, so fourth point, um, is in
43:46
verse 29.
43:48
It says, for it has been granted to you
43:50
that for the sake of Christ, you should
43:52
not only believe in him, but also
43:53
suffer for his sake, engaged in the
43:55
same conflict that you saw I had, and
43:58
now hear that I have.
43:59
Um, so the fourth point is, we don't
44:02
want to be actively engaged in the
44:04
gospel.
44:05
Um, we don't want to actively engage
44:07
it.
44:08
So, I want to take this second and
44:09
make fun of Christian marketing
44:11
culture.
44:12
Um, and so y'all know, if you've been
44:14
in, around Christians at all, you see
44:17
that we like to have these really,
44:18
really comfortable, warm verses on
44:20
coffee mugs and blankets, and if you
44:22
listen to 91.5 or 104.7, you hear,
44:26
like, these really sweet verses, like,
44:28
love is patient, love is kind, and
44:30
those are true, those are great, but
44:31
we will never find this verse on a
44:34
coffee mug.
44:36
You won't find it.
44:38
Um, no one is going to sit down and
44:41
just like, man, I'm really discouraged,
44:43
and then someone just walks up to them
44:44
and says, or someone's like listening to
44:46
them pour out their heart and like,
44:48
brother, I just want to, I just want to
44:49
encourage you with this verse.
44:50
It has been granted to you that for
44:52
the sake of Christ, you should not only
44:53
believe in him, but also suffer for his
44:57
sake.
44:59
And they're just like, I'm so encouraged
45:01
right now.
45:01
That is exactly what I needed.
45:04
Like, that, we're not going to find that,
45:06
and whoever does, that business is going
45:08
to burn, and like, it's going to crash
45:10
and burn.
45:10
No one's going to buy those coffee mugs.
45:12
Um, but we're really biased with our
45:14
scripture.
45:14
Um, so, that is a tough word, granted to
45:20
you.
45:22
Like, what?
45:24
It's been granted to you that, like, like,
45:28
and so the Greek is saying that you've
45:29
actually been done a favor, um, that
45:31
you've been gratuitously in kindness, been
45:34
given the opportunity to believe in Jesus,
45:37
but also suffer for his sake.
45:40
Um, Matthew 5, 12 says, rejoice and be
45:44
glad, for your reward is great in heaven.
45:46
For so they persecuted the prophets who
45:48
were before you.
45:50
So we read that verse a second ago, saying,
45:52
woe to you who they speak well of.
45:54
Like, man, like, be, be on, he's basically
45:57
saying, like, be on guard when people are
45:59
just speaking really, really good things
46:00
about you, because they did the exact same
46:02
thing about the false prophets.
46:05
And then he's saying, man, um, rejoice,
46:08
because if they're persecuting you, they
46:09
persecuted Isaiah, and they persecuted
46:12
Jeremiah.
46:13
And they persecuted all these prophets, so
46:15
it's a huge, it's supposed to be this
46:16
huge encouragement.
46:17
So if we disagree, we need to look again
46:19
at the outcome, again, of every major
46:21
character in the New Testament.
46:23
If we say, like, well, Swanson, I'm
46:25
following you, I'm with you, but right up
46:27
until now, I'm actually not anymore.
46:30
Like, I, I, I really don't agree, like,
46:33
I don't agree that we're supposed to
46:34
call, that we're called to suffer.
46:35
I was like, man, please, I would encourage
46:36
you, read the New Testament again through
46:38
the lenses of, man, Christ is actually
46:40
calling, everyone, like, calling us to
46:42
suffer for his sake.
46:44
And so, the cool thing is that Paul does
46:47
not divorce belief and obedience ever
46:51
in his letters.
46:52
He usually will say something like, man,
46:53
thank you for, like, I, like, I'm so glad
46:54
that you believe in the gospel and that
46:56
you obey it.
46:57
And so a lot of times our tendency is to
46:58
want to say, well, I believe in the
47:00
gospel, like, I believe in Jesus, and he's
47:03
my savior, and I'll follow him to the ends
47:04
of the world.
47:05
And then our obedience is so opposite of
47:07
that.
47:08
Like, our lives are so different from
47:09
it.
47:10
And because it's really easy just to lay
47:13
claim to that and be like, man, I believe
47:14
in Jesus, but it's so much harder to be
47:16
obedient to him, especially if that entails
47:18
suffering.
47:22
So, Paul is engaging in conflict, and as a
47:25
result of that, he's suffering.
47:28
He's engaging the gospel.
47:29
He's sharing the gospel all the time.
47:32
And as a result, this guy is not rolling up
47:36
in a Mercedes Benz or a Rolls Royce, and he's
47:40
actually in prison, and all of his friends are
47:42
starting to desert him, like people who he
47:44
stood by, and he's sharing the gospel with
47:48
those people actually end up deserting him.
47:50
And so Paul is suffering, and he's saying, don't
47:53
run from that.
47:54
That's a good thing.
47:55
That is a good indicator that you're saved.
47:58
So, my question with this is, are you engaged
48:02
in the gospel, or do you still believe that you
48:05
can live in neutral territory?
48:07
That we can live in this comfortable bubble of
48:10
not engaging, but not really falling back.
48:14
So, I'm wrapping it all up right here.
48:18
How do all these things relate?
48:21
If we're going back to that question of, are you
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living your life in a manner worthy of the
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gospel, or have you drifted far off?
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Or, man, are we not even in it for the right
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reason anymore?
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And we're not actually a part of all those
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things.
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We don't have the right motivation.
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We're not in a church community.
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We're not suffering for the gospel, and we're not
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actively engaging the gospel.
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So, how can we do this practically?
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What do you do with this?
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The thing that I don't want is for us to say,
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okay, man, I will start being involved in the
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church.
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Yeah, I'll start suffering for the gospel, and
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I'll start engaging and sharing my faith.
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So, we set this huge to-do list, this huge to-do
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list of things to do, of like, as long as I do
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those things, man, I will, like, I'm good, and I can
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get back on track.
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Like, if we do that, we're missing it completely.
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We're missing the point of the gospel.
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And so, I just beg you, that's not what I'm trying
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to say tonight.
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I'm not saying that at all.
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I think where we start is humility.
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I think we say, you know, God, I've fallen short of
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this so much.
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Like, I've fallen short completely.
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Or, God, I don't even know what my motivation is
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anymore.
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Or, like, tomorrow, I'm just doing things for the
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sake of doing them.
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And I'm not motivated by your grace.
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And I'm not involved in the church body.
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I'm not sharing the gospel.
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I have a terrible motivation for why I'm doing this.
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And I'm not suffering at all.
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But, um, so I think this starts with your own heart.
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Um, of, and that's what's, what's tough for the
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church because it's like, I want to, you want to see
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results, you know?
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You want to see people change.
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But that starts with your own heart.
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And that does not start tomorrow morning.
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It's not, like, an instant, like, I'm just going to
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change my actions.
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It's this thing with, like, man, Christ has to really
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transform your heart.
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And so, what I would beg you all to do is, tonight,
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like, yeah, like, we're going to leave here.
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We're going to keep talking.
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We're going to, like, we're going to get on with the
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night.
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We're going to, we have homework to do.
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We have the world to get back to at college.
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But I just ask us to take a moment and really examine
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our own hearts and say, like, man, Christ, why do you
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have me doing the things that I'm doing?
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Um, am I doing with this right motivation?
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We need to start praying to God and say, God, I fall so
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short of this.
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Like, I fall so short of this.
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Like, even today, I cannot handle ultimate frisbee, I
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realized.
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I get way too competitive.
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And I am not a non-confrontational person.
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So, I just, and it's like, I realized just even in that,
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how sinful I am today.
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It's like God was knocking me down on the notch.
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He was like, man, you think you're all that.
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And I just realized, I'm so sinful.
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I care about a stupid game of frisbee more than this guy here.
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Um, so, again, I'm just saying, wrestle with this truth.
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And then finally, like, man, like, if God is doing something in
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your heart, man, and you don't know where to go with this.
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Like, I think Nathan and Chris in the back, and even, you
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know, if you won't, if those guys are busy, I'm a last resort.
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Come talk to me.
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Um, that kind of seems to be the pattern of tonight.
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Um, or the guy you read with, or the girl that you read with.
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Like, like, I just pray that, like, this really would just affect
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just, just our conversations on the way back.
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So, in the car tonight, maybe just take a second and just be like,
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you know, what did that mean to you tonight?
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Let's, let's really kind of go deep.
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Let's not just change actions.
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Let's have our hearts changed.
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Um, I'm going to pray us out, and then Alex is going to come up.