Latest / Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive / December 30, 2018 | God Wants You Before Your Activity - Derek Rowe

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December 30, 2018 | God Wants You Before Your Activity - Derek Rowe · Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Good morning, church.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: I think we're gonna have a little slide come up.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: There we go.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: This is a pre happy new year.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: Pre-happy new year, because technically, I mean we've got a couple of days left.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: So a lot can happen between now and then.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: But pre happy new year.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that you all had a good Christmas.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: And just being being around and listening to people's stories, I know that each Christmas can be different.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: Some people are great.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: They're terrific.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: And it seems like there's no problems.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: There's just everything is smooth sailing.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: The food is really good.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: The people there are great.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: But then we also know that there's challenges that come with the holiday season.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: There's challenges that are different for everybody every year.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it's people who were there last Christmas, but then they're not there now for this Christmas.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: There's interactions between family members.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: There's tensions that can be there at the dinner table while you guys are eating.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: And so for most of us, when we think about this past Christmas, we think about the experience that we had, there's probably times that are really good, that are really exciting, and then there's probably also some times that were a little more challenging, that were a little more difficult.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: And as we think about that for the next year, we think about 2019, we think about what's ahead.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: One of the words that comes to my mind and probably comes to each of your minds is change.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: Change.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: And when we think about change, usually we think about change in a negative light.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: We think about change as bad.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: We think about change as no, we don't want it.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: We want to keep everything the same.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: But we all know that change is a part of every single person's life, whether we ask for it or not.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: And so then the question becomes: how do we handle that change in a positive way going forward?
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: How can we find those gold nuggets?
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: How can we find that positivity in the change that's coming up?
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: I know one of the changes for our household, Gabby, for Gabby and myself, and for Ayla, is the change that today will be our last, my last Sunday being on TBC Church staff.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: And so that's that's a big change.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: That's a change for us.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: And so we're we're praying and wrestling through how do we handle this change well?
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: And I was reminded after first service that it would be it would be helpful to give you guys a little bit of insight into that.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um, because I know some of you, this may be the very first time that you've that you've heard that news.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: And so TBC elders and Jim and Doug, they they didn't ask me to step aside.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: There wasn't any moral failures, there wasn't any embezzling of money, there wasn't, you know, none of that stuff happened.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: It was, as Gabby and I were praying through in our time with the Lord and with each other, felt like this was the direction for our family that we needed to be into at this time.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: And so thank you for all of you who have who have prayed for us, who have helped us, who have allowed us to walk alongside you in your lives, and also who have walked alongside us in ours through the ups and through the downs that all of life brings.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so as we think into 2019, we know that there's change happening.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: As you think into 2019, you know that there's going to be change of some sort that's happening in your life.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: And it's gonna be different, it's gonna be individualized for every single one of us.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: So this morning, I want the focus to be on Jesus.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: I want the focus to be on God's word.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: I want him to get that glory, I want him to be in that spotlight.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: So if you would, go ahead and pray with me this morning.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: God, thank you for your love for us.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for Jesus, for sending him to die on the cross for us, so that we could live forever with you when we when we put our faith in you.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for loving us that much.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_00: Help us as we go into 2019 that we would seek out what you have for us, that we would spend time with you.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: So this morning, the title is What Does God Want From You?
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: What does God want from you?
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: By show of hands, how many people have ever asked this question in their minds?
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_00: Like, God, what is it that you want?
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: As I'm going through my day and my week and my month, what is it that you want?
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: And especially around the New Year's time.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: I know some people are New Year's resolution people, some people are not New Year's resolution people, but either way, we're usually all thinking something like, what do I change for this year?
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: What's in store for this year?
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: What can be different this year than it was last year?
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: And there's lots of things that this could be.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: It could be, maybe you're thinking about getting married.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: You feel like that's what God has in store for you next this year.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's starting counseling because there's maybe stuff from childhood that hasn't been handled yet.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: There's some there's relational difficulty between you and somebody else, and you know that it would be helpful to have a third party, to have a counselor be in that in that situation.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's going to church more.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's making that more of a regular habit.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's it's serving others.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: You feel like that's something that God's putting in your heart, kind of giving you a desire for to change for this year.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's just helping people in a different way.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's helping those who are your coworkers.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's helping those who are in your family, maybe it's helping those who are younger than you in some type of way.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: And so these are all good things.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: And there's hundreds of things that we can think of.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's exercising and eating right, two of the top New Year's resolutions every single year.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe that's what God has in store for you, one of those things this year.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's you want to be able to have better conversations with your teens.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_00: And so you go out to the lobby and you you pick up that book, 52 Conversations.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: Or maybe it's stopping smoking.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe that's a goal that you have, and you know that it would be good for your health if you change that aspect for this year.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's saving money.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's how you're handling your finances.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Because I mean, no, Jesus, I mean, throughout the gospels, Jesus talks a lot about that.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: And so, how do how do you handle those in a positive, God-honoring way?
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: And maybe that's something you want to change.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's getting organized in your house or in your life, or just even in the way that you think.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: Just getting organized with what is coming up for you in life.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_00: And all of these things are good things.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: All of these things are good things to change, and each of them is going to be individual for each of us.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'm gonna do something that I don't normally do it, and most people who are speaking don't normally do.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna give you the main point right up front.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: Right out of the shoot, I'm gonna give you the main point so you don't have to wonder, you don't have to guess, where is this going?
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just gonna I'm just gonna lay it out for you.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: And then we're gonna look at three situations, three instances throughout the book of Luke that involve Jesus, that involve other people, and that involve food.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: Because everyone loves food.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_00: 99% of people love food.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: So here's the main point.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_00: God wants you before your activity.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: God wants you before your activity.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: And this point, I think, is is challenging for each of us.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_00: I know it's challenging for me to think about this idea that God wants me, he wants my heart before he wants all of the things that I can do for him.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_00: And it's in the world that we live in where it's so fast-paced, we want, we want to impress people, we we compare with each other, we want, we all want to live up to the standard.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: We typically emulate those people who are at church 100% of the time.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_00: It's like, man, I wish I could just go as much as they do, or they're making this amount of money, man.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: I wish I could make that amount of money and have the drive that it takes.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: Or maybe it's man, they that person just loves his wife, or that person loves his kids so well, I want to be at that per at that level.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: Or it's it's giving.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, this person gives so much, gives a good percentage of what he or she makes.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to try to be at that level too.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_00: So those things are not bad, and usually we we aspire to be like certain aspects of those people.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: But the point that I don't want us to miss, which I know for me, I've missed it plenty of times in my life, and we probably all have, is that God wants us.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_00: He wants us to spend time with him.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_00: He wants us to be in his word, he wants us to be in prayer with him, where there are no pats on the back where nobody's gonna come and give you a high five and say, Man, it's so great that you spent time in the word today.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: I saw that.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_00: So this is this is a personal thing between us and God and what he wants from us.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_00: So we're going to first look at a topic that I think we all love, especially around this time of year, and that's food.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: But we're gonna look at something that Jesus said.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: So Matthew 4, 4, but he answered, this is Jesus as he's talking back with Satan, as Satan's trying to tempt him.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: He says, It is written, man must not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_00: What he's saying is, look, this life is not just about keeping ourselves alive and being healthy and living a long time, saying that's a good thing, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: So our our our eternal life, our our sustenance, the thing that keeps us going, more than food, more than water, more than those other things, is the word of God and how He, Jesus, Holy Spirit, God, how he contains us.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_00: He holds us, he keeps us, and he keeps us moving forward in our lives.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: So it's 9.40 or so in the morning, almost 10 in the morning.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: Food.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: We love food, we love Thanksgiving, we love Christmas.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: This may have looked like a similar table at some of your houses.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: I know at 8 o'clock service somebody was saying, mmm.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, wow, at 8 o'clock in the morning, you must, that must really be good for you to say, mmm, for that for breakfast.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_00: But here's two of my favorite restaurants.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: Number one, Katz's Deli.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Shane, are you agreeing with that?
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_00: We got one agree.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_00: How many of you guys have been to Katz's Deli?
• 11:20
  unknown: Wow.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, so here's a new place for you to try.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's not in Topeka, it's in New York City, and it's one of, it is one of the best delis you'll ever go to.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: You walk in and there's just like there's hundreds of people, and if you don't get in the right line, people are yelling at you and they're mad.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: But they have the best pastrami, and they have the best corned beef, and they give you samples while you're waiting, and it's just, you I can't even describe it to you.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_00: You just have to go.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: Here's another one of my favorite restaurants: the Blue Nile Cafe.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_00: How many of you guys have been there?
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: Raise your hand if you've been there.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_00: You have?
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yes! Shane's got it today.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: So, Blue Nile Cafe, here's another place for you to try.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: It's because I love food.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: Gabby and I both love food.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: This is in the river market, downtown Kansas City, and it's the best Ethiopian place you will ever eat at.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: The people are from Ethiopia, they make it there from scratch.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's you eat the the food with injury, which is like this spot, and man, uh could go eat there right now.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_00: But we're not.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_00: You're like, why are we talking about food?
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_00: We're talking about food because as we go through the book of Luke, so that's where we're going to be this morning, we're looking gonna look at three instances where Jesus has meals with three different groups of people.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_00: They all involve food.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is a big fan of food.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: People need to eat, and there's great things that can happen around a meal table.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: There's great things that can happen around food.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: And so that's how we are going to frame this morning.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: So here's meal number one.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: So if you have your Bibles, open up to Luke.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna start in chapter five.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna look at one instance where Jesus is going to have a meal with a group of people who I'm going to call unqualified.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: Unqualified.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I'll tell you why after we after we go through the story.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: So Luke 5, 27 to 32.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, Follow me.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to stop there to explain this important point of why this is this is striking.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: It's because Jesus, who is Jewish, and he had lots of people who were starting to follow him, who were starting to follow his ways, but then we've got people called tax collectors.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_00: And tax collectors at this time, they were stereotypically, and for a lot of good reason, typically seen as the people you don't want to associate with, primarily because they would sit at the gates between towns, between offices, and they would charge some exorbitant amount of money above and beyond the tax that the actual person owed.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: So instead of the person paying$10 of tax, they would make the person pay$10 of tax, plus maybe here's another$10 that I just need to put in my pocket because I feel like it.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: So they're essentially, for the most part, ripping people off.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus went to go visit that person.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus went to go have a conversation.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: And not only did he go to have a conversation, he says, follow me.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_00: Not that I just want Levi to walk around and follow me everywhere I go physically, but I want you to emulate my life.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: I want you to do and adopt the things that I'm saying.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_00: I want you to do and adopt the things that I'm doing.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_00: Verse 28, so leaving everything behind, he got up and began to follow him.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: Then Levi hosted a grand banquet, here's the food, for him at his house.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_00: Now there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others who were guests with them.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: So this is this is a full house.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: Then verse 30.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: But the Pharisees and their scribes were complaining to his disciples, why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_00: Essentially, what these guys are saying, these Pharisees, these scribes, they don't go directly to Jesus, but they go to his disciples and they're saying, Why are you eating with these bad people?
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: Why in the world would you share your life?
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: Why would you share a meal with this type of person, with those types of people?
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_00: Why in the world are you doing that?
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: You know that they're not good.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: You know that they rip people off.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: You know that they're not upstanding, they're not righteous.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_00: Why are you guys doing this?
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_00: 31 and 32.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus replied to them, not the response they were probably looking for.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus says, the healthy don't need a doctor, but the sick do.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: I've not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: So while the Pharisees and the scribes, who are kind of on their own high horse, kind of proud, they're saying, Jesus and disciples, why are you eating with these people?
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: Why are you associating with these people?
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: You know these people aren't right.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: These people don't know all the Jewish law.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_00: These people don't know how to honor God.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: They may not even recognize God as God.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus comes down and he says, basically, yeah, I know that.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: And the reason that I'm spending time with them, the reason that I want to come and be with them, is because they're sinners.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_00: Because they've messed up.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: Because they're not doing everything right.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: Because they're not honoring me with every way of their life.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: That's why I want to come and spend time here.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: I want to spend time with them because they are not qualified of themselves to be with me, to be where I'm at.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_00: That's why I came down here.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I I think about my life, and as you think about yours, there's probably many times where we feel unqualified.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_00: I can think of one situation about three years back where I got invited to be in a leadership book group with about four other guys.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_00: And I was by far the youngest person in that group.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_00: And these other guys were a decade or two older than me.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_00: These these guys were heads of different parts of companies, even leading organizations.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I thought, I am not qualified to be in this same space.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not qualified.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, their level is so high above mine.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: Their experience is so much greater than mine.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: Feeling unqualified.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I know for some of us, maybe even as you sit here now, you're thinking, man, I'm even unqualified to be here.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: I feel unqualified.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_00: If everybody else knew what I did this past week, if everybody else knew what happened 10 years ago in my life, there's no way that I should be here.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_00: There's no way that they would accept me.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: There's no way that somebody else would love me and take me in.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because I don't measure up.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: Because I don't have it all together.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus, through through this story and through this meal, says, You're exactly the type of person I want to spend time with.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_00: You're exactly the type of person that I came to save, that I came to rescue.
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_00: You're exactly the type of person that I came to shed my blood and to die for so that you could have eternal life.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: Because when he says this, that he hasn't come to call the righteous, none of us are righteous.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: Not a single person on this earth is righteous in and of themselves.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_00: But all of us are sinners.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_00: So Jesus came, he came for us all.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: And that's a weird thing to think about.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_00: But that's how much that God loves us.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: That's how much Jesus loves us.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_00: And he showed it to us by the cross.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_00: So when we feel unqualified, know that Jesus wants to spend time with us.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_00: He came for us.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: If he wanted to spend time with all the people who were good and didn't have any mistakes and were perfect, he would have stayed in heaven.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_00: He wouldn't have came here because there are none.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_00: There's none of that community here.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_00: There's only people who don't have it all together.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus came for us.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: Meal number two.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_00: This is almost the polar opposite.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: The proud.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: The proud.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: So fast forward in your Bibles, Luke 11, 37 to 42.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna look at Pharisees.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna look at how Jesus, how Jesus treats this group.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_00: So Luke 11, starting in verse 37, as he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_00: There's the meal.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: So he went in and he reclined at the table.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: When the Pharisee saw this, he was amazed that he did not first perform the ritual washing before dinner.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_00: The first thing that the Pharisees are looking at, as Jesus comes through the door, they know that there's a certain custom, they know that there's a certain washing that takes place, and essentially Jesus walks through the door and sits down at the table, and the Pharisees are like, What?
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus, you didn't even wash your hands.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: What are you doing?
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: This is not kosher, this is not good.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_00: And you're supposed to be this leader of Jewish people?
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: How is this going to work?
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: But the Lord said to him, Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and evil.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_00: Inside you are full of greed and evil.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_00: And if you picture picture a dish or a bowl or a cup, essentially what Jesus is saying, he's saying, You you Pharisees, you you've polished up the outside, you you make the artwork really good, you you make it really shiny, but you didn't even touch the inside and all the dirt and the Grime that's there, you haven't paid any attention to that.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what matters.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_00: And how many times is it that we can fall into this boat?
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: We can fall into this mindset of, well, people see that I'm at church all the time.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'm I'm giving, I'm I'm serving in this capacity, maybe I'm serving with kids or serving adults, and I helped people on Thanksgiving, and I gave to this other person who had need, which are all good things.
• 22:31
  SPEAKER_00: But we can get slipped into the mindset that that's all that matters.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: When in reality we haven't tended to our hearts.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_00: When in reality we haven't tended to our relationship, with our time with Jesus.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_00: And so we're doing all of those things out of our own efforts.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_00: And we're putting our activity before our time with God.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_00: Even to the point where we are proud because of it.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_00: Similar to the Pharisees.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_00: They were proud that they knew all the laws of the Jewish text of the Old Testament.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_00: They were proud that they didn't miss synagogue.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_00: They were proud that they could refute anybody who had something against the Torah.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: They were proud because they thought that they were following all of these things of the law.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_00: But in reality, Jesus is saying, look, you haven't tended to your hearts, because your hearts inside, full of greed and evil.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_00: Fools, didn't he who made the outside make the inside too?
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_00: But give from what is within to the poor, and then everything is clean for you.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_00: And then verse 42.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_00: But woe to you, Pharisees, you give a tenth of mint, roux, and every kind of herb, and you bypass justice and love.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: You bypass justice and love for God.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: These things you should have done without neglecting the others.
• 24:08
  unknown: Wow.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_00: That's that's pretty heavy.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's like, wow.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_00: The Pharisees were doing all of these things.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_00: They were, their activity was high.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_00: They were doing everything that they thought that they should be doing.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus comes along and says, I mean, you were giving everything that you were supposed to give physically, but what about the love that you had for the person who was hurt?
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_00: What about being just in the way that you treat every person?
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_00: Not just somebody who's who agrees with the things that you agree with?
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_00: What about the love that you have for your family when somebody's really making you mad?
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_00: How are you treating that person?
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is saying, those things come from the heart.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_00: Those things come from within.
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_00: And we need to make sure that we're tending to those.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_00: And each of us have fallen into this.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_00: Each of us.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember when, and some of you have heard this story before, but when I was a freshman in college, up until that point, pretty much, I'd gone to church every single Sunday.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_00: Trusted Christ when I was in second grade, and then a couple of my friends who were in college said, Hey, you would be a great fit.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: You would be a great guy to go and work at this Christian sports camp down in Missouri called Kids Across America.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_00: You'd be terrific at it.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_00: I think you'd love it.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I said, Yeah, that sounds exciting.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: I'd be really good for that.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's football, there's Christianity, I go to church every week.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_00: That sounds like a perfect opportunity.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember during the interview, I got asked, so how often are you getting into the word?
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_00: How often are you reading what Jesus is saying?
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I had to be honest, and I said, you know, just on Sundays when the pastor's preaching, and the response that I got back was, how are you going to be able to tell other people?
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_00: How are you going to be able to explain the life of Christ and what it means to follow Him if you're not in the Word yourself, if you're not knowing what it is to follow Christ.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_00: That was a pride crusher to me because I walked into that interview on my high horse of, oh, I'm I'm good and I'm athletic and I go to church every week and I trust God and all these things.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_00: Outward things for the most part.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_00: Going to church every week.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_00: An outward thing.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_00: But what I wasn't tending to, what I wasn't doing, I wasn't cultivating what was inside.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_00: I wasn't cultivating my heart and my relationship with God.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_00: I wasn't spending time with him.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_00: I wasn't spending time with him in prayer on a regular basis.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_00: And there's even good news for those of us who fall who find ourselves in this same situation, in this area of pride when it comes to what we do for God.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_00: Is that he came to eat with us too.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_00: He came to have a meal with us.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_00: He came to share his life with us.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: He came so that he could be with us as well.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_00: He knew the Pharisees were like this before he ever accepted their dinner invitation.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: And he said, you know what?
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_00: I know you don't see it yet.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: I know you don't see that you're broken and you're not righteous, but I've still come for you.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I still want to spend time with you.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I still want to save you.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_00: Such a cool thing about Christ.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_00: And then we go to our last meal.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_00: This is the learner.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: The learner.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_00: And we all know people who are who are true learners.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_00: We know people who are maybe not so much learners.
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_00: The learners are typically the people who are asking us questions.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_00: They're trying to go.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_00: They're trying to develop.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: And then there's people who are not so much learners.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_00: People who don't really care to advance in what they know, don't really care to advance in their understanding.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: Don't really care to learn from somebody who's maybe been down that road or who's a little bit wiser.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_00: So as we look at Luke 24, 40 to 49, we're gonna look at a group of learners.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_00: And yes, you guessed it.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is going to have some food there.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_00: Because he believes that food is important.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_00: Luke 24, 40 to 41.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_00: Having said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_00: And so to set this up, the disciples, the people who are following Jesus, they knew that Jesus died.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_00: They knew that Jesus was buried.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_00: And they're thinking, man, Jesus is supposed to be the guy.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_00: He's supposed to be the leader.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_00: He's supposed to be the one who we're following.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_00: He's going to be our forever king.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_00: But he died.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_00: And so how does this work out?
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus shows up and shows them his hands and his feet.
• 28:57
  SPEAKER_00: But while they were still amazed and unbelieving because of their joy, he asked them, Do you have anything here to eat?
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, just think about this moment.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_00: Think if you're a disciple.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus shows up, he got holes in his hands, he's got holes through his feet in his side.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_00: And he shows up in bodily form after you thought that he was for sure a goner.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: And he just shows up into your house and says, Hey, do you have some food?
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's been a long three days.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: I haven't really eaten that much.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_00: I kind of want something there.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_00: He's going to invite himself to this meal.
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_00: So they gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_00: I love that scripture records this stuff for us.
• 29:47
  SPEAKER_00: Verse 44.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_00: Then he told them, These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you.
• 29:53
  SPEAKER_00: That everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_00: Essentially, Jesus is saying, Hey guys, remember that stuff that I was teaching you?
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: Remember that stuff that I was helping you study and that you were learning?
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: Remember those things and all the laws and Deuteronomy?
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: And you remember the Psalms and the songs of David and the things that he had written down about me.
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_00: And you remember those prophets?
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_00: Haggai, and you remember Isaiah and Ezekiel.
• 30:25
  SPEAKER_00: And you remember all them?
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_00: The ones who you were learning about?
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_00: Guess what?
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_00: I've essentially come to fulfill all those prophecies.
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_00: I've come to make sure that you know that those are important, that those are pointing forward to me, and that it must be fulfilled.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_00: Those prophecies weren't just blank statements, they weren't just wishful thinking at the time, but these were things that were coming down from heaven, coming down from God.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_00: So I can show you that I am the way, the truth, and the life.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_00: That I am the one true God.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: Verse 45.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_00: He opened their minds to understand the scriptures.
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_00: And when we think about this, think about you're you're one of these disciples.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_00: You've been learning the Old Testament scriptures, you've been learning about the Torah, you've been learning about the prophets, you've been learning about the Psalms.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're like a modern day Christian, like me and like most of us, there's a lot of things that we look at in scripture and we're just scratching our head like I just don't get it.
• 31:39
  SPEAKER_00: I don't fully understand that.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_00: I don't fully understand maybe the Trinity.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_00: I don't fully understand a lot of these things.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_00: And the disciples were the same way.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_00: They didn't fully get it all.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_00: They were reading it, they were hearing it from Jesus, but they didn't understand it all.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, and Luke says, He opened their minds to understand.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_00: He's able to do that for us.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_00: He's able to help us understand these scriptures.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_00: He's able to help us understand his word.
• 32:15
  SPEAKER_00: To make it something that's palatable, make it something that we can get, that we can grab a hold of.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_00: But he only gets to this point after he has spent time with them.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_00: After they've grown through the three years of their relationship with him, after they're in this moment where they are spending time with the Savior.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_00: He also said to them, This is what is written, the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead the third day.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_00: And repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_00: I think this is such a cool thing.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_00: He's saying, all of that, that prophecy, all of the Psalms, all the Torah, the Old Testament, he's saying all of that has a fulfillment.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_00: All of that funnels down like an hourglass ultimately to this bottleneck point.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_00: And this bottleneck point is me.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_00: This bottleneck point is me.
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_00: It's Jesus.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_00: It's the Messiah.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's the Savior of the world.
• 33:20
  SPEAKER_00: And now that I've died on the cross, this is a sign of showing my love so that everyone in the world who believes would be able to have eternal life with me.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_00: Forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in his name to all the nations.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_00: That's why Jesus came.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_00: Not just for some nations, not just for some people, but Jesus came so that his name, so that God's name would be proclaimed all over, so that people would believe in him.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_00: And we saw that begin in Jerusalem.
• 33:56
  SPEAKER_00: And then 48 and 49, you are witnesses of these things.
• 34:00
  SPEAKER_00: And look, I'm sending you what my Father promised.
• 34:03
  SPEAKER_00: And as we look through other scriptures, we know that what was promised was God's Holy Spirit.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_00: So that he could live with us, so that he could be us, be with us, so that he could guide us and help us throughout our lives.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_00: As for you, stay in the city until you are empowered from on high.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_00: The learner.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: These guys at this point, they were open to learning.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_00: They were open to saying, okay, this is weird.
• 34:32
  SPEAKER_00: You just came back from the dead.
• 34:34
  SPEAKER_00: What more is what can we learn from you?
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_00: How do we take these things?
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_00: How do we take the scriptures and then use them to make your name famous?
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_00: Use them to proclaim Jesus throughout the world.
• 34:46
  SPEAKER_00: And I think of us.
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_00: And there's times when we are learners and there's times when we're not.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_00: There's times when we are open to feedback, when we're open to correction, when we are open to learning more about Christ and His Word.
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_00: And then there's times when we're not.
• 35:04
  SPEAKER_00: And it's interesting.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's fascinating.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so I want to ask a question.
• 35:11
  SPEAKER_00: Which one are you?
• 35:13
  SPEAKER_00: Are you the unqualified?
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_00: Or you just feel like, man, there is no way God wants anything to do with me, no way that He would even want to be in my presence.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, do you know all the stuff that I've done that was bad?
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_00: There's no way a perfect God would want to be with me.
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_00: Or are you the proud?
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_00: Are you the person saying, man, I do all of these great actions for God?
• 35:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'm doing all of these terrific things for God.
• 35:40
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what I'm resting my hope in.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_00: That I am good enough, that I've done enough good things, and that God is super pleased with just all the good things.
• 35:51
  SPEAKER_00: But maybe missing the personal relationship, missing the relational aspect between us and God.
• 35:59
  SPEAKER_00: Or are you the learner?
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_00: Are you the one who's eager to ask questions?
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_00: You're the one who's eager to grow.
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_00: You're the one who wants to know more, and not just to know more for knowing more's sake, but so that you can understand our God better.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_00: So you can understand the world better, so that you can understand other people better.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're anything like me, as I look through this list and I try to pinpoint myself, which one am I?
• 36:31
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a little bit, there's times when I feel unqualified, there's times when I'm proud, and then there's times when I'm a learner.
• 36:40
  SPEAKER_00: And as I think about those things, it's probably the same for each of you.
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_00: Because if each of us, with our complexities, with our backgrounds, with the things that we've experienced, we're probably a mix of all of these things.
• 36:52
  SPEAKER_00: And then there's good news.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_00: Because I kind of painted the first one and the second one to be bad and the last one to be good.
• 37:01
  SPEAKER_00: But there's good news, and the good news is this that Jesus wants time with all of us.
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_00: As we look through those three meals, Jesus spent time with the people who were unqualified, the people who didn't trust in him.
• 37:14
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus spent time with the people who were proud, who thought that they were above Jesus, too good for Jesus, doing all the right things according to the letter of the law.
• 37:23
  SPEAKER_00: And then he also spent time with people who were the learners, literally the disciples, people who wanted to grow, wanted to follow, wanted to experience God more.
• 37:34
  SPEAKER_00: And he came to spend time with each and every type of person.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so if you're asking this question, why would Jesus want time with me?
• 37:45
  SPEAKER_00: Why would he?
• 37:47
  SPEAKER_00: As I look back on my life, there's plenty of stuff that I've done that is not good, and I think, why would God, why would Jesus even want to spend time with me?
• 37:55
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's some people who are way better out there who he can spend his time with.
• 38:00
  SPEAKER_00: Why me?
• 38:01
  SPEAKER_00: So I want to give us at least four reasons.
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_00: There's many more, but here's at least four.
• 38:06
  SPEAKER_00: Number one, it's because he loves you.
• 38:09
  SPEAKER_00: And he proved that by sending Jesus, by sending his son to come and die on the cross for you and for me, so that we could have eternal life when we believe.
• 38:19
  SPEAKER_00: He loves you.
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_00: Number two, he wants to save you.
• 38:25
  SPEAKER_00: He does.
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_00: That's why he sent Jesus in the first place.
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_00: And we can think of saving us in two senses.
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: One is the eternal sense.
• 38:34
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus came so that we could live with him forever, so that we could spend forever with him in his heaven, and he wants to save us.
• 38:42
  SPEAKER_00: And all we need to do is believe in what he's done for us.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_00: Believe in Jesus and the sacrifice that he made for us on the cross.
• 38:50
  SPEAKER_00: And then for those of us who have trusted Christ before, who do believe, God still wants to save us from those things where we aren't quite perfect at every day.
• 39:02
  SPEAKER_00: Because as you know, the the day that you trust Christ as your Savior is not the day that you automatically become a perfect person.
• 39:11
  SPEAKER_00: And we can all attest to that in many different ways.
• 39:15
  SPEAKER_00: But he still wants to grow us, he still wants us to develop in our relationship and develop in our obedience.
• 39:22
  SPEAKER_00: And so by spending time with him, he's helping us to do that, to become more like him.
• 39:28
  SPEAKER_00: Number three, he enjoys time with you.
• 39:34
  SPEAKER_00: Why would Jesus want to spend time with you?
• 39:36
  SPEAKER_00: Because he enjoys it.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_00: We were talking about this in my small group a couple of weeks ago.
• 39:42
  SPEAKER_00: And we all agreed that Jesus loves us.
• 39:45
  SPEAKER_00: We all knew that Jesus loves us, but there's this novel idea that Jesus likes us.
• 39:53
  SPEAKER_00: That's a different way of thinking, isn't it?
• 39:57
  SPEAKER_00: He actually likes you.
• 40:00
  SPEAKER_00: And I think about this for those of you who have children, for those of you who have kids, there's nothing that could take away your love for your child.
• 40:09
  SPEAKER_00: You will always love your child.
• 40:12
  SPEAKER_00: But I would bet and I would reckon that there's some times when you don't like them very much.
• 40:19
  SPEAKER_00: They aren't doing the things that are making you happy.
• 40:22
  SPEAKER_00: They aren't doing the things that are pleasing to you.
• 40:24
  SPEAKER_00: They aren't being obedient.
• 40:26
  SPEAKER_00: So you may not like what they're doing in that moment.
• 40:30
  SPEAKER_00: But you will always love them.
• 40:31
  SPEAKER_00: And so the interesting thing is, God enjoys time with us.
• 40:35
  SPEAKER_00: He likes us.
• 40:36
  SPEAKER_00: If he only wanted to spend time with all the people who are perfect, he would just stay in heaven.
• 40:42
  SPEAKER_00: He could have just been there.
• 40:44
  SPEAKER_00: There's where all the perfect people are.
• 40:46
  SPEAKER_00: But he chose to come down, he chose to send his spirit so that he could spend time with us.
• 40:52
  SPEAKER_00: And then number four, he wants you to love others.
• 40:55
  SPEAKER_00: He wants you to love others.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we all know this.
• 40:58
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think this is new information for us, but I think we need reminders about how it's so important that the only way that we're able to love others is through the love that God has shown us.
• 41:13
  SPEAKER_00: Through God loving us first is the only way that we can extend love to another person.
• 41:20
  SPEAKER_00: Whether that be our spouse, whether that be a child, whether that be a friend, whether that be a coworker.
• 41:29
  SPEAKER_00: The only way that we can love somebody else is through the love that we experience from God.
• 41:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus wants to spend time with you on a regular basis, every day, and he wants to spend time with me on a regular basis, daily.
• 41:44
  SPEAKER_00: Because he knows that when we spend time with him, that we get filled up with his love, and then out of that overflow, we're able to be more kind, we're able to be more loving towards others, we're able to be more patient when we interact with those who are around us.
• 42:01
  SPEAKER_00: God wants us to love others, and that starts with our relationship with him, with our time that we've spent with him.
• 42:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so I told you this story earlier about kids across America, and this is a time that that specific interview was a time that completely changed my life.
• 42:21
  SPEAKER_00: Because before then, I was not, I was, I was a Christian, I believed in Jesus, but I wasn't spending intentional time with him every day.
• 42:29
  SPEAKER_00: Hardly at all, even.
• 42:31
  SPEAKER_00: But then after that point is where my relationship with God and my relationship with others drastically improved, drastically got better.
• 42:42
  SPEAKER_00: Not because I was just all of a sudden this superstar and decided to do better things, but because I started spending time in the Word consistently.
• 42:50
  SPEAKER_00: I started praying consistently.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_00: And through that intentional time with God, through that intentional relationship, then out of that overflow came the kindness and the joy and the peace and talking well with others instead of putting them down, encouraging them instead of saying things that I shouldn't.
• 43:14
  SPEAKER_00: And that's true for all of us.
• 43:16
  SPEAKER_00: When we start spending time with Jesus consistently daily, it doesn't mean that we're magically going to be perfect, but it means that we are going to be better.
• 43:27
  SPEAKER_00: It means that we are going to be more loving.
• 43:29
  SPEAKER_00: We are going to be more caring.
• 43:32
  SPEAKER_00: We are going to be more patient and good towards others.
• 43:39
  SPEAKER_00: So as we get ready to close out, God wants you before your activity.
• 43:58
  SPEAKER_00: Nobody's gonna come and You a high five, nobody's gonna give you a raise because of it.
• 44:05
  SPEAKER_00: But he wants that time where you are in the word and where you're communicating with him, where you are praying, where you're talking with God on a daily basis.
• 44:17
  SPEAKER_00: And then out of that, let our activity flow.
• 44:20
  SPEAKER_00: Out of that time with God, then let us give out of a cheerful heart.
• 44:24
  SPEAKER_00: Out of that time with God, then let's go and worship with others.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_00: Let's encourage others.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_00: Let's be the best that we can possibly be.
• 44:32
  SPEAKER_00: Not because we're we're these terrific, awesome people, but because we've spent time with the one who's perfect.
• 44:39
  SPEAKER_00: We've spent time with the one who's our savior.
• 44:41
  SPEAKER_00: We've spent time with the one who knows everything, who knows our steps, who's able to guide us.
• 44:50
  SPEAKER_00: God wants us.
• 44:52
  SPEAKER_00: He wants you.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_00: He wants me before He wants all the things that I can do, before all of the activity.
• 45:01
  SPEAKER_00: And so I've got a New Year's challenge for you and for myself.
• 45:04
  SPEAKER_00: And it's this to spend time with God.
• 45:07
  SPEAKER_00: To spend time with God on a daily basis.
• 45:10
  SPEAKER_00: Number one, in His Word, in the Bible.
• 45:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I would recommend just starting out, just read a chapter a day.
• 45:17
  SPEAKER_00: You can probably read a chapter somewhere between, you know, three and seven minutes.
• 45:23
  SPEAKER_00: And just spend time soaking up what God has to say to you, thinking about that, reading that.
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_00: And then number two, in prayer.
• 45:33
  SPEAKER_00: And I would recommend just starting out five minutes.
• 45:38
  SPEAKER_00: We all have five minutes, we can make five minutes somewhere, but start out, if you're like, man, I just I don't have anything that's regular, start out with just five minutes a day.
• 45:47
  SPEAKER_00: And maybe you can pray through the acronym ACTS, Axe.
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_00: A is adoration, where we tell God how great he is, that the things, the characteristics that are positive about him, which are all of them.
• 46:03
  SPEAKER_00: We think of the C.
• 46:05
  SPEAKER_00: The C is confess.
• 46:07
  SPEAKER_00: So we tell God, hey, God, here's the things in the places where I've messed up this week or this month.
• 46:15
  SPEAKER_00: And then the T is thanksgiving, where we thank God for the things that He's given us, the people that He's put in our lives.
• 46:22
  SPEAKER_00: And then the S, a big fancy word known as supplication, which basically means that we are asking God for things.
• 46:30
  SPEAKER_00: We're asking God for our needs.
• 46:32
  SPEAKER_00: We're asking God to guide and then provide.
• 46:35
  SPEAKER_00: And if you spend a minute and 15 seconds on each of those categories, you'll end up at five minutes.
• 46:44
  SPEAKER_00: And there's nothing magical or special about a chapter or five minutes a day, but it helps us, and I know it's helped me, get into a routine of spending time with God on a daily basis.
• 46:56
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're thinking, man, I do these things, at least these things, then do it more.
• 47:03
  SPEAKER_00: Or maybe if you don't spend more time on it, maybe you do more processing and understanding and reflecting on what God is teaching you, what God's trying to show you through that particular passage or through your prayer time with Him.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_00: So let's always remember as we go into 2019 that ultimately God wants us first.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_00: There's lots of resolutions, there's lots of goals you can set, which are all good things, but let's make sure that this one's primary.
• 47:31
  SPEAKER_00: Let's make sure it's time with God that we are prioritizing.
• 47:36
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go ahead and go to our Father in prayer.
• 47:38
  SPEAKER_00: God, thank you for this morning.
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for your love.
• 47:41
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for Jesus.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_00: As we go into 2019, there's a lot of change that's happening.
• 47:46
  SPEAKER_00: There's things that are flooding our minds, there's concerns.
• 47:51
  SPEAKER_00: God, help us with each of those things, but help us primarily and first and foremost to spend time with you.
• 47:57
  SPEAKER_00: To spend time in your word, to spend time in prayer.
• 48:00
  SPEAKER_00: And if there's somebody here who hasn't trusted you as their savior before, I pray that you would do that today.
• 48:06
  SPEAKER_00: That you would work in their hearts, that you would work in their minds, and that they would trust you, believe in what you did on the cross for them in order to have eternal life.
• 48:16
  SPEAKER_00: God help us in 2019.
• 48:18
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for loving us.
• 48:19
  SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name, amen.
• 48:21
  SPEAKER_00: You're dismissed.