Latest / Calvary Church with Ed Taylor Podcast / #24446 - God Uses Ordinary People - 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

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#24446 - God Uses Ordinary People - 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 · Calvary Church with Ed Taylor Podcast

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Welcome to the study of God's word with pastor and author.
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Ed, Taylor recorded live at Calvary Church in Aurora,
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Colorado to learn more about the many resources available,
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through abounding Grace Media or to tune into our live stream
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Services. Visit us online at Calvary, Co
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dot church or download our free Calvary Church app.
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Now, here's Pastor Ed to take us into our study.
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Amen. Amen.
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Take your Bibles open them to two places with you.
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Mark chapter 10, that's where we're going to start.
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And First Corinthians chapter 1, Mark chapter 10, and then we'll
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go to First Corinthians chapter 1 after that.
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And I've entitled our Bible study, this is the servants
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class. Number one, God uses Ordinary
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People and that's good news. God uses regular ordinary.
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People, so let me ask you a question.
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Do you want to be someone that God can use?
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You can answer that out loud. Even if you're watching on
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video, do you want to be someone that God can use?
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And the answer is yes. Are you looking for help in
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becoming that man? And that woman that God uses to
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make a difference in this world. And of course, yes, that's why
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we're here. We want to grow in the grace and
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the knowledge of Jesus so we can be more usable, not less and I
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know that's part. Art, I was talking to someone
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recently. We were just you now the the
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word to describe that making an impact on your culture is
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Legacy. I mean what is going to be your
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legacy? What will you be remembered for?
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What will people that have been in your life?
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What kind of impact will you make?
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And it comes by your abiding relationship with Jesus and your
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choice to obey him and to serve him and our next few weeks we're
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going to learn a little of what The Bible teaches about
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servanthood and it is my prayer and has been my prayer that it's
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one of the best times of your spiritual life and that it
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impacts you. Your heart and your life and
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that you step in to serve and that you serve well.
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Now, I know the question will come up in a Bible study like
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this. Okay.
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Pass are you teaching this class just for the purpose of getting
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more people to serve in the church and that would be a great
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question to ask. Is it just for More servants in
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the church. Well, I'd answer it this way.
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Yes, but it's not just for more servants, but you are right on.
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If you are not currently serving in the context of this church, I
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want you to serve, I want you to use your gifts and talents.
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I want you to step up and answer the call that the holy spirit is
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put on your life and I want you to serve.
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If you've been serving long ago and you haven't served in years,
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I want you to serve again. The goal of serving in this
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church is 100% participation. None but not just merely serving
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in this church serving in this church is like a gift.
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God gives us to practice on other people that are born again
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to teach how to deal with issues.
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Teach us how to deal with issues.
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Teach us how to work through things, teach us how to
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apologize, how to repent, how to how to serve him.
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Well, you could say that the church becomes an incubator of
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growing you and me into greater servants, so that when we leave
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it carries on outside, Of this building and it carries outside
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the it's not just for the church but you can rest assured the
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purpose and motive of teaching these studies as so that you can
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become a greater servant of Jesus.
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The thought of serving him. Should Captivate, it's such a
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privilege to serve our Lord, he gave his life for us and we owe
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him everything. And here's the truth.
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The truth is that God wants to use.
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Use you, he wants to use you. Now, there might even be times
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in your life where God wants to use you more than you even want
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to be used, whether you even want to step in at all.
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And that's why we're calling it a servant's class.
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So you can learn these things to be equipped and to grow in
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understanding how to present yourself to God and what will
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make you more effective, now? Jesus, when he was addressing
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his disciples, or you're already in, Arctan.
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Go back to Mark chapter 9 and notice in verse 33.
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Jesus, when he was addressing his disciples, he says here in
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verse 33, they came to the city of Capernaum and when he was in
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the house he asked them and he's talking to his disciples here.
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What was it that you disputed among yourselves on the road?
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But they kept silent for on the road.
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They had disputed among themselves who would be the
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greatest? And he sat down and he called
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the twelve and he said to them, if anyone desires to be first
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Shall be last of all, and servant of all this is a very
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important principle of the kingdom of God.
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It's in stark contrast to the world in which we live and how
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this world and culture operates. Those of us with that desire to
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want to serve, and those of us with that desire to be faithful,
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that want to be great in God's kingdom.
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Jesus says, the way to be great in God's Kingdom.
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Adam is to be the servant of all you could say it this way.
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The way up in God's kingdom is actually down and is very
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different from how the world has taught us, how we've grown up in
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the world, how things work in the business world.
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It's very, very different notice with me.
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Now, in Mark chapter 10, Jesus elaborates on this distinction,
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and I want you to see it. It's foundational and
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fundamental for you to understand this Mark, chapter 10
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pick. Ben verse 42, but Jesus called
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them to himself and said to them, you know, that those who
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are considered rulers over the Gentiles, Lord it over them and
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their great ones exercise authority over them.
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He's giving them an illustration with knowledge.
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They already have and he's basically saying this, you know,
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how they do things in this world.
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They lured over, they take control and they Hurt their
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Authority. It was happening then and listen
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friend, it happens. Now they will even teach you.
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And though, you pick it up along the way, whether anyone ever sat
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you down, but they'll talk about climbing, the corporate say,
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hello. What are you?
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Climb the ladder and it's true in any business, really.
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But you're going to climb the ladder.
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Why so that you can be at top, that's the whole goal, get to
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the top and hey, you know what, there's a lot of stories
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surrounding that ladder. Because there's a lot of people
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walking around with shoe prints on their face from people that
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kick them down off the ladder and took advantage of them and
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exerted authority over them and Lord it over them to get to the
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top. I mean, I think of it, there's
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another way of thinking of this another language that we use in
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the business world. We talked a lot about seniority,
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seniority. And so the more seniority you
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have basically. The way it works is, the more
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seniority you have the less work you have to do, and the more If
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it's that you get and seniority has a way of developing in the
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world this sense of entitlement. Hey man, I've been around long
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enough. Hey man, I paid my dues, that's
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another principle in the world. Now, let me just say for a
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moment, having come from the corporate world myself.
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I understand. Seniority is, is important and
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can be a part of your benefit package.
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I'm not speaking about that, but how people take advantage of it
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to use others? That's how the world operates,
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and Jesus is saying in their day, he, you know, how it is
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with those that are You know, how the Gentiles, you know, how
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the world does things. And then, notice what he says,
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he says in verse 40 43, that's not going to be the way among
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you yet. It shall not be so among you,
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but whoever desires to become great, among you shall be your
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servant circle the word servant there.
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Remember the New Testament originally was written in the
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Greek language and this word for servant in the Greek language,
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we Already learned in Acts chapter 6 it's the Greek word
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diakonos where we get our English word Deacon.
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It's exactly exactly what was being looked for in those men
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that God was raising up in the early church to handle the
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difficulty with the Widow's. He says if you want to be great,
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anybody that wants to be great. You got to go.
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You got to take the place of a servant, take the place, the
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word literally means to wait on and the best picture.
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I can think of that would relate to us today.
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Is like a good waitress or waiter, someone who Waits on
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your table and you know the good waiters and waitresses from the
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not-so-good waiters and waitresses.
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And the the good ones, they just never let your cup get empty and
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they're always cleaning the table and rearranging things.
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And they seem to always show up right at the right time.
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Do you need anything else and they're very attentive, why?
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Because they're watching you and don't be weirded out by that.
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It's their profession there. They're looking and watching to
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make sure that You're well taken care of.
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They're anticipating for you and they're not intrusive, but
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they're also there to serve you with whatever you need.
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And when you ask them to do something, what do they do?
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They do it. And that's the word.
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Hear the word means to wait on. It also has a definition of in
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the dust laboring, so just getting your hands dirty and
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doing what needs to be done. That's what this you want to be
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great then, get your hands dirty and do what needs to be done.
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Serve God, not like the world. Don't worry about climbing a
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ladder, don't worry about prominence.
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Don't worry about notoriety. Don't worry about getting any of
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the credit that's not going to have g c.
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You're going to follow me, that's not going to happen and
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verse 44, whoever of you desires, To be first shall be
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the slave of all circle the word slave right next to it
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bondservant, because that's how it's most often translated in
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the New Testament. Paul would use this word to
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describe himself many, many times.
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It's the Greek word. It's a different Greek word.
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Now, he's adding a different Greek word.
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This is the Greek word, doulos dou Allah is, and this word
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speaks of a bondservant or person who was sold out
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completely. Lately.
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These are two important words. Completely and voluntarily.
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Nobody is making, you serve, nobody's making me serve, I do
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so with a complete commitment to Jesus and I do so voluntarily of
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all that God has done for me. I want to step in and serve him
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all the days of my life. That's what you desire.
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I guess if we had to summarize this as you get ready to serve
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in this church this, how we'd summarize it?
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Leadership servanthood in the church is not like the world.
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The church does not operate. Like the world are no ladders to
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climb. There is no seniority to earn.
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We are all equal servants. Give me an Amen.
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On that please. We are all equal.
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We all are servants before God. Every single one of us, the role
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that I have here and the role that you have doesn't make me
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any better than you and it doesn't make you enter any
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better than me across the board. The Summary of Our Lives is, we
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are just Servants of the king. That's our responsibility.
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Go. Wait a minute, Ed.
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Wait a minute. There is some kind of difference
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with you. I mean you're the pastor, you're
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the teacher. Well let me describe that
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distinction for you. What makes you and me?
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Different is not that we're both servants.
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Here's what makes you and me different today.
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I've been given more responsibility.
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That's what makes us. You have responsibilities.
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I have responsibilities, but within the context of this
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church, I have more responsibilities than You do and
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learning from the Bobby. You know what that means to whom
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much is? Given much is required.
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So much more is required of me than it is of you.
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Even though we're only supposed to both of us are supposed to
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just be faithful. That's it, just be faithful to
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God. But a, I have more
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responsibilities. I'm going to answer to God for
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the responsibilities given to me, but it doesn't make me any
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better than you. It doesn't mean that now I can
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serve less know. The more responsibility is
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someone's given the The more you serve.
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That's how Jesus described it. He said, listen, if you're
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faithful with the little things, what you'll be given more,
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that's the reward of faithfulness you're going to be
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given more. And if you're Unfaithful with
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what you have, you know, what happens, even what you have will
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be taken from you and guess who it's given to the faithful one.
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And so, God is looking for faithfulness across the board.
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We're all servants, but some have more responsibilities than
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others and to whom much is, given much is required.
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There's a lot more words used in the New Testament to describe
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servanthood, some of them, surround described being an
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attendant and attending two things.
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Some describing a household servant, taking care of the
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home, others describe this under rower, which gives us the
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picture of the ancient ships. They They were propelled by men
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rowing and those that were in the lowest of the lowest decks,
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they would be their rowing, you wouldn't see them, you wouldn't
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know. But you would know, you would
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know they're being faithful. You would know that their rowing
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by the progress of the ship and you like, oh I am, I don't know
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who they are. I've never met them, but we're
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making progress, we're moving forward.
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So, the under rowers must be doing what they've been asked to
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do and it's true in the church, you know, there are faithful,
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you know, the capacity of the faith.
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For men and women in your church by the progress of the church,
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you may never meet them. I mean there's so much going on
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behind the scenes so much that happens that we don't know
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about. But we know it's happening
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because the church is progressing and it's important
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that you grasp this fundamental truth, that the Way Up Is Down,
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being a faithful servant. The great evangelist deal.
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Moody once said this, the measure of a man is not by how
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many The servants you have but how many men you serve?
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It's not by what you have but how God uses you.
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And now with those definitions, we understand that any believer
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Any believer, living anywhere in the world, in any level of
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society is a servant of the Lord.
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And that's good news. The good news is that God uses
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plain Ordinary People for the work of the ministry.
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It doesn't have super Saints in different categories of people.
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He uses regular flawed human beings, he uses flawed human
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beings to reach flawed human beings.
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So as a believer in Jesus, whether you're one day old,
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Following him just one day, one week, one month or your 70 80,
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90 years, following him. It doesn't make a difference.
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You can serve Jesus, one day, 90 years start serving him, why?
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Because God uses Ordinary People and to me, that's good news,
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that's good news for all of you, that didn't score very high, on
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your SATs, and some of you on what's an SAT.
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Well, it's good for you that don't know what sats are.
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It's good for those that didn't graduate from high school or
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barely I made it through it's good for you that you might look
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at yourself and you go, you know, I'm not the smartest or
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I'm not good at this or whatever you, however, you examine
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yourself. It's good news for you because
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God is ready to use you, as you are.
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He will gift you and equipped you.
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He will use you because there's hope for us.
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There's hope that God will use Ordinary People to do
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extraordinary things. And that's where we come to
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First Corinthians Chapter 1, what a tremendous, passage of
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the Bible. That if you haven't seen it yet,
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I thought it would be good to memorize it or at least Market
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in your Bible. So you realize that God uses
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regular people just like you and me.
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He uses us who we are and then begins to work on us from the
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inside out. Notice in verse 26.
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This is a letter that was written.
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To a church in the city of Corinth a very, very sinfield
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City, very much like ours or wherever you're watching or
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listening to this and notice what he says, pick up in verse
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26, for you see your calling Brethren.
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How that not many wise, according to the flesh, not many
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mighty, not many noble are called, but God has chosen the
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foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise and God
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has chosen the weak. Weak things of the world to put
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to shame the things that are Mighty and the base things of
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the world and the things which are despised, God has chosen and
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the things which are not to bring to nothing the things that
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are. And here's the key verse 29 so
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that no flesh. No human being will be able to
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glory in his presence. God has made his choice and we
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have the responsibility of responding to it.
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He's made his choice. It says here that not many and
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notice not many wise, not many strong, you know, and of great
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place of position of strength. Not many noble, maybe not many
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that came from a intact strong family.
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I know many of you have been touched by divorce and
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difficulties and hardships. It's not many, not many wise,
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not many that have this place, you know, when it says Mighty
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here, speaking of a place of strength in society, he says,
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not many, but he doesn't say, I want, Notice not any.
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He doesn't say not any just says not many.
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So among us today are some very, very smart people and God wants
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to use you. And among us today.
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There are those that have great positions of authority in this
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world and God wants to use you. And some of you have a noble
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upbringing, an upbringing, where, you know, you were raised
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in the Lord in everything worked out the way you want it to work
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out. There are some that have that
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testimony, but not many. Most of us are not the smartest
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ones. Most of us are not the strongest
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ones. Most of us are not the noble
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ones, we're just ones that God chose and to me that's good news
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I find there really is. No no other passage in the Bible
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that best describes why I'm in the Pulpit today than verse 27,
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that God has chosen the foolish things of the world.
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And the week and that base, and the despised.
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I remember how I walked into a church.
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I remember I I'm here today. I didn't attend Seminary, I
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barely made it through Bible College.
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After pastoring this church for like 17 years.
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I finally finished Bible College yippee-ki-yay, but I was
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pastoring long before that, like I don't I didn't get to go to
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college because of the The lifestyle, I lived when I was in
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high school and that wasn't an option for me, because now, I'm
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a teenage parent and I need to raise my son and deal with all
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the difficulty there. Like this is it I mean if you
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ever encounter someone and they hear my story go, you know I
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don't know why you go without. I don't know why you even go to
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that church. Your pastor didn't go to
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Seminary, didn't go to Bible College.
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Yeah. Why would you even go to that
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church? Let me give you the answer.
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You ready? You open up your Bible.
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You open up the First Corinthians chapter 1 verse 27.
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You just read it to him. God has chosen a fool to be in
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that pulpit. That's it, he's a fool, he's
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taking a fool and he is filled him with wisdom and give him the
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gift of Pastor teacher. And that's why I'm there because
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that's what God does. So that me being in the pulp and
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it's funny because over the years, you know, I've talked to
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different people over the years and they just kind of think that
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pastors are born wearing glasses coming out of the womb with a
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Bible in their hand and that's just not how I came believe me.
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I wish I would have avoided all this sinful pain.
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I cause for myself and my family and my girlfriend and my son, I
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wish I mean, isn't it? The proverbial, you know, as
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we're serving because we're serving a lot of broken people
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aren't we? And it's like, you know, if we
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knew then what we know now, we probably make different
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decisions, but you know that hypothetical is not possible.
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We can't go back and change anything.
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You can't change anything about your past as much as you can
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unscramble an egg. But I'll tell you what, you
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can't change your future. You can change today with
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generational change in your life by choosing to repent of your
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sins and follow Jesus with your life.
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And if you're saved, then you're safe to serve.
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You're not saved today because of all the good works, you'll do
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you're not saved today because of the morality you're adopting
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you're not saved by Good Works. It's important for you to
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remember that because some churches will lay that heavy
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trip on you and that's not it. You're not saved by all your
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good works. But you have to understand you
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are saved for good works. That that is the purpose of your
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life. And if you're willing to admit
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it in your own life, you can see that.
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Maybe you're the category of the foolish.
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Maybe you're the category of the week.
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Maybe you're the category of the base or the insignificant or
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your the category of what the world despises and God has
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chosen you. And called you so that you might
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serve him. The whole Bible is a panoramic
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picture and true story of God, doing this over and over and
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over and over again. And I can say this definitively.
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God does not use Perfect People. God doesn't, you want to know
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why? Because there's no such thing.
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There isn't A perfect person Among Us.
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The Bible is very clear, but we don't need a Bible to tell us
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this, but we agree with it. We have all sinned and fallen
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short of the glory of God. There's nobody perfect among us,
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but it's not. That truth is not designed to
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create an excuse where you beat yourself up the rest of your
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life and you never really engage with your Creator and say, okay,
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here I am, it's time for change and I'm ready to serve you God,
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I give you my life, I hold nothing back and you know, the
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good Is, is that along the way? God will help you because we all
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have a lot to learn. That's something we all share,
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in common. We're all Servants of God, and
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we still have a lot to learn, and we're going to learn it
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together by failure. We're going to learn it together
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by discipleship. We're going to learn it together
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as we get up. The Bible says, do a man falls
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seven times. He will rise again.
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But you don't learn anything. If you just sitting on your
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hands with some religious experience, just so you can say
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you went to church or you like that's going to get you nowhere.
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It's actually going to regress you and you're going to go
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backwards stepping into serving God, even telling somebody about
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God, even sharing your story. There's so many ways that you
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can be used of God. And in this, in this church,
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there are many many opportunities.
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Someone once said that God is Not Looking for Ability, as much
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as he's looking for availability, just be available
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to make yourself available. God is looking for a willing and
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ready, heart, and God just, he looks at the heart and that's
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where he starts to develop you on the inside.
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And if you're willing today, God will use you.
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He will shape you heal, mold you, he will train you, but if
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you're not willing, then you won't serve him.
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Depends upon you. But knowing that God will use
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Ordinary. People opens a huge door for us
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is so encouraging for someone like me that can step in and
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say, okay God, I just want to serve you.
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I'll do, I'll do whatever you want.
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I'll go wherever you want. I'm ready.
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And someone else wants said, God always doesn't.
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All God doesn't always call the qualified into his service but
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God always qualifies Those whom he calls.
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I think that was a Chuck Smith quote.
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God doesn't always call the qualified into service but God
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always qualifies. Don't Those whom?
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He calls, God is ready to help you and train you in Ephesians
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chapter 2 and verse 10. It says we are his workmanship
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created in Christ Jesus. For good works which he prepared
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beforehand that we should walk in them.
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So biblical and spiritual servanthood is ordained by God.
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And God is actively looking for men and women to serve him.
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I want you to think of it this way, God is always the
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initiator, he's always the initiator.
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We are the responders and so you don't just have to find
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something to do and jump into something to do in your prayer.
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Life through your daily Bible reading and the Christian
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friends, you surround yourself and bible studies, you listen to
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Christian radio. Well you're going to be given
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Direction on where to serve and how to serve.
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I mean I want you to know this. Maybe you didn't know this but
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God sends you an email. Email every Friday.
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Inviting you to surf. And one of the ways you can
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service, just pray over it. Every Friday, you get one and a
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notification on your phone. If you have the up every Friday,
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God send you a notification. I mean, if you think about this,
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it made me think I didn't start last night, but I remembered it
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today. I'm in Ministry today because
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they handed out paper bulletins at the church.
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I was at and then they had a guy up there, reading it.
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And there was an announcement there of a little class to take
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us where I'm at the missionary. Take this little clasp on learn
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more about the Bible. I'm like okay I want to learn
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more about the Bible. I went to that class and that
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class set the direction of the rest of my life.
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If you would have told me taking this class will put you in the
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pulpit and Colorado, I would have laughed at you.
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But I wasn't thinking that all I want to do is what before me I
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want to learn the Bible. They said they're going to teach
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you to me. So I'll take this time.
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And so look there are opportunities abound.
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God is always initiating, always inviting.
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He wants you to cooperate with him.
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Listen to this in second Chronicles chapter 16 in verse 9
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it says for the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the
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whole earth to show himself strong on behalf of those whose
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heart is loyal to him. God is looking for loyalty and
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Fidelity to him. And when he finds it, he starts
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to work on the inside of your loyal to God.
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He will hone in on that loyalty. It's not knowledge.
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It's not why I just need to know more know what God is looking
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for his loyalty and fidelity. It's your vertical relationship
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with God. That's where it starts.
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So, as you're going through the servants, cause I don't want you
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to think, I just need to go do something.
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Know what you need to do is pray, get the ministry
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application go online and start praying about how God wants to
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use you. But it starts with him, I would
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say, even this Bible study, as you preparing to serve, this
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Bible study is God's way of initiating and getting it on the
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table for you, so you can really step into serving.
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Look even if you haven't sir for a long.
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It's time for you to come back. Your gifts need to be used for
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the kingdom. Not just for the church though,
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but so that as light Salt and Light In a Dark World, you've
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been practicing serving, you've gotten over some of your
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awkwardness or fear or any of the things you know talking to
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someone's kind of awkward for you but you learned at church
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hey you were invited somebody out to coffee, you can do that
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at work to you prayed with somebody in a service.
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You can do that outside of the church to, there's so much to
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learn and God is looking for That Fidelity in your heart.
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Let me give another scripture, Ezekiel chapter 22 and verse 30.
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These hidden gems are so good. Ezekiel chapter 22 and verse 30
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says. So I sought for a man among them
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who would make a wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf
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of the land that I wouldn't destroy it but I found no one.
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And you know we don't want that to happen among us as God's eyes
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are going through this room. Let his I stop here and find
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many loyal men and women that will serve him.
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God can do anything and wants to do something on.
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Earth today and you are his chosen vessel.
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I mean, to me, it just blows me away to think that God would
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choose me, that he would allow me and that he would enlist me.
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It's such a high and holy privilege to serve God in these
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last days in judgment to Saul after Saul's Disobedience King
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Saul again. Another scripture first Samuel
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chapter 13, Listen to What God Says to to Saul here.
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He says your kingdom is not going to continue.
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You the Lord has sought for himself a man after his own
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heart and the Lord has commanded him to be the commander over his
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people because you have not kept what the Lord commanded.
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You think about that? God has sought for himself, a
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man. And again by application that
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would be men and women today. In this particular case, he was
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looking for a king, he saw for himself, a man that was after
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his own heart. Did he find that man Church?
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What was his name? David was David a perfect, man,
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know, and God you Has him greatly.
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We read a Psalm today that was written by David.
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God will use what you give them. Again, Pastor Chuck Smith taught
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us. You do your best, he commits,
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the rest come to him as you are, and learn how to serve him.
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David wasn't looking for a position.
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He wasn't looking for a title when he was found, he was just
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tending. His father's sheep, just taking
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care of what was in front of him.
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Let me give you another scripture.
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Proverbs Chapter 5 and verse 21. The ways of a man are always
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before the eyes of the Lord and He Ponders all his paths.
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Let me give you another one. Proverbs 15 verse 3.
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The eyes of the Lord are in every place.
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Keeping watch on the evil. Oil and the good God is always
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the initiator waiting for our response searching inside of us
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looking for loyalty looking for Fidelity looking for that sense
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of commitment and voluntary sacrifice on his behalf.
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That's what builds a legacy. It's a day that leads to a week
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that leads to a month that leads to a year that leads to a
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lifetime and that life If time leaves a legacy.
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All it requires is that first step.
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And you took the greatest step you could ever take by repenting
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of your sentence that that there's no greater step than
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admitting before. God, that you need his
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forgiveness. These other steps God's going to
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meet you every single one. Every single one, every single
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and will will things be hard. Yeah.
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Will it be painful? Yes.
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Will it be very hard? Yes.
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Will it be very very, very, very hard.
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Yes. Will you walk around with wounds
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and limb? Shall I go on?
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It's not going to be easy. But nothing that's worth.
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It is going to be easy. And this is worth it to yield
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the rest of your life to serving.
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God, something that's been resonating me for many years,
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but just recently in these last couple years, resonating me.
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I've shared this phrase before, but it might be new for you.
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As I look at my own age, I look moving forward.
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I've come to the conclusion and I believe it's inaccurate
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conclusion that in serving God with my life.
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I have more years behind me than I have in front of me.
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I have more years if I live the to, the typical age.
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Even if I live to a typical age, I have more years behind me than
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I have in front of me and I want to finish, well, I don't want to
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go into a coasting and neutral, but I want to press into what
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God has for me. And I want to be used in even
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greater capacity because I don't have that many years ahead of me
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to serve the Lord before his coming and, and it's a very
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strong. It's not a fatalistic view for
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me. Just reality.
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The reality is, I got a few more years left and even in those lot
33:58
of yours, my body might not be able to keep up who knows what
34:00
happened, what could happen. But I want to use the latter
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years of my life, to go out stronger than when I began and
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especially stronger than the years that I lived.
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Apart from Christ. Now, you younger people.
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You're kind of doing the math. We'll wait a minute, you know,
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at posture, I think I have more years ahead of me.
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Then I have behind me, so I'll worry about that later.
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Listen, listen, carefully. Nobody Knows the day of their
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death. Nobody.
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You can't Bank on this thought that will always have tomorrow.
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I always have next week. I always have next year.
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Because even a very young, man. Can die a sudden death.
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A young woman. So you can see the importance of
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learning how to serve it is not and let me clarify.
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It is not just to get things done around here at the church.
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Because I'll tell you the truth as if I would never not tell you
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the truth, but I'm going to try to emphasize.
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So you understand something God doesn't need you.
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We don't need you to serve here. God will get things done without
35:18
you. He doesn't need us.
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I mean, imagine that he doesn't need us.
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Now, you guys are a little bit nicer.
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You're not booing or yelling at me like first service.
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This is so what do you mean he doesn't need me?
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He doesn't need you. God doesn't need us.
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But he's chosen us. Think about that.
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Like, I can accomplish his will perfectly without us.
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We all mess things up, he could do it without us messing things
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up, he doesn't need you. But he wants you.
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I mean, that's just unbelievable.
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He wants to use you. He invites you to use.
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He wants you to step in but things will get done without us.
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I mean again you looking at the life of this church, God will
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use whoever's here. Whoever steps to the plate.
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And obviously God has ordained this time for you to really
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consider where you are in the life of your church.
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And also in this world because he wants to use you and we want
36:17
to serve alongside of you, we want you to enjoy the spiritual
36:22
growth that comes almost, you know, so quickly when you start
36:25
serving, please start serving you grow up very, very fast, you
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know, when a large growing Church like this, as we continue
36:31
to grow, one of the things that we hear often and it's really
36:34
attack of the enemy is, you know, it's just so hard to
36:37
connect is so hard to connect. It's so hard to connect the
36:39
church is so big. I mean if your heart, it's hard
36:42
to connect here, let me suggest something to you.
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Let me suggest something to you. Choose to serve others.
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Ask to pray for someone, you're going to learn a name every
36:54
week, ask somebody out for coffee, you can you're going to
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learn something, it. Get involved in a Ministry and
37:00
start learning the Bible together.
37:01
Get in a in one of the home groups that we have the life
37:04
groups get involved, start sharing your life.
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If you start to serve people, you will have an endless supply
37:11
of people to connect with endless.
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If you start looking at what you can do, as you step into
37:18
someone's life, you will never have that thought ever.
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Then because you will be connecting with so many people.
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You're started saying I am so tired of connecting with people.
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And then you have a different dilemma.
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God wants you to connect. He wants to use you.
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So step in and be used of the Lord.
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Amen. Alright, father.
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We thank you for today. We are so excited about what the
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future holds and and what you want to accomplish, whatever
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you're doing in Aurora and Denver and Colorado, the u.s.
37:49
around the world. Whatever you're doing, we want
37:51
to be a part of it. We want to be a part of it in
37:54
every area of Why we exist? And we know that, as a church,
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we can't do everything and we won't do everything.
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But we will be faithful. And we will walk forward and we
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will be you. And we will rely upon you.
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And so bless this precious church God raised up men and
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women. To learn in these last days, not
38:21
with their own, agendas or anything.
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Even as will look at later studies, but just an agenda to
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serve you, we don't need seniority.
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We don't need this attitude of climbing, the corporate ladder
38:32
or comparing ourselves, or any of that stuff that's been in us.
38:36
But we just want to serve, we're at the end of the day, we'll
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hear these words. Well done, good.
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And faithful servant enter into the joy of your lord.
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So we pray that in Jesus name, amen.
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We pray that you've been encouraged by this Bible.
38:52
Study delivered live from the sanctuary of Calvary Church for
38:55
prayer, call us at 877, 30 Grace.
39:00
That's eight 77304, 2:53 to listen to this message in its
39:06
entirety or to join us for our live stream Services.
39:10
Visit us online at Calvary. Co dot church or download our
39:14
free Calvary Church app be blessed as you worship Jesus
39:18
this week.