back to indexBerean Community Church Sunday Worship 4.11.2021
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It's not that we're loosening up restrictions. 00:10:26.480 |
Starting next week, we're going to have another round 00:10:39.480 |
So we are owners of that building across the way. 00:10:42.480 |
And the membership class, which was previously 00:10:51.480 |
So if you guys want to take a look and see what's there, 00:10:57.480 |
And soon enough, we're going to have the cafe services 00:11:03.480 |
who have the intent of becoming members at Marine Community 00:11:07.480 |
It's 9 to 1020 every Sunday for the course of about eight 00:11:13.480 |
If you are a college student, you guys probably 00:11:15.480 |
already know that there is a seminar coming up 00:11:27.480 |
would encourage you guys to just pray for that time. 00:11:31.480 |
There's a lot of confusion just in our world, 00:11:36.480 |
So that's going to be happening about five Saturdays from now. 00:11:50.480 |
but they're going to be listening to an audio recording 00:11:53.480 |
and just having a good time of discussion and fellowship. 00:11:55.480 |
So if you are a lady and you are interested, please do. 00:12:00.480 |
And if you have any questions, contact Carrie. 00:12:05.480 |
This is a very important announcement for you guys 00:12:09.480 |
On April 25, we are going to have our quarterly members 00:12:15.480 |
But we're not quite ready to meet physically yet. 00:12:20.480 |
So please do your best to prioritize that and to log on. 00:12:32.480 |
but tomorrow is Berean Community Church's 24th anniversary. 00:12:37.480 |
So April 12, 1997 was when the church got launched 00:12:44.480 |
And so just kind of in lieu of the new building that we got 00:12:49.480 |
and also just to kind of reflect on God's faithfulness 00:12:53.480 |
over the last near decade and a half, the leaders yesterday, 00:12:57.480 |
we actually sat around for a couple hours just putting 00:13:01.480 |
together a podcast of the history of the church. 00:13:04.480 |
And most of us have been here almost the whole two decades 00:13:13.480 |
if you're interested in learning more about how this church got 00:13:16.480 |
started, how it kept going despite difficulty 00:13:27.480 |
So if you guys want to log on to that and check it out, 00:13:32.480 |
We're going to have our sister Sydney being baptized today. 00:13:35.480 |
So after our pray is set, she's going to come up 00:13:38.480 |
and share her testimony, and she's going to be baptized. 00:13:41.480 |
And so my encouragement is as you're listening 00:13:43.480 |
to her testimony, the story of how God's been working 00:13:45.480 |
in her life, that you also pray as you listen 00:13:48.480 |
that God really would not just use her testimony to bless us 00:13:52.480 |
today, but her change to life, that her life would 00:13:55.480 |
be useful in just bearing much fruit for the kingdom. 00:13:58.480 |
And so Sydney's going to be sharing her testimony, 00:14:00.480 |
and then we're going to have a time of the word. 00:14:03.480 |
So if you've prepared an offering, if it's physical, 00:14:12.480 |
and then our praise team is going to lead us in praise. 00:14:15.480 |
But let me pray for us, and then we'll continue. 00:14:20.480 |
Father, we confess that everything that we have 00:14:22.480 |
is from you, and you are the Father of lights. 00:14:27.480 |
And every good thing that we've been given, you've provided. 00:14:31.480 |
And so we come this morning wanting to say thank you, 00:14:33.480 |
not just with our words, but just with our gifts 00:14:37.480 |
And we want to ask, Father, for just great joy as we give. 00:14:43.480 |
And I pray that you would use it, whatever is collected, 00:25:33.480 |
I've grown up in a Christian home my entire life. 00:25:37.480 |
so they raised my brother and I up in the church. 00:25:41.480 |
and even though this was a weekly part of my entire life, 00:25:46.480 |
Growing up, I just thought this was something you always do, 00:25:49.480 |
and I honestly was just going through the motions when I went. 00:25:57.480 |
died and was resurrected for the forgiveness of my sins, 00:26:07.480 |
Truthfully, I just didn't want to go to hell when I died. 00:26:10.480 |
As you'd think, no change in my life occurred 00:26:17.480 |
I started going because it seemed like the right thing to do, 00:26:24.480 |
But I kept going, and I actually started to have an interest 00:26:28.480 |
In eighth grade, I went to winter camp for the first time, 00:26:32.480 |
I never really surrendered my life to Christ. 00:26:34.480 |
I continued to get to know him as such a gracious 00:26:37.480 |
and loving father, and I wanted to be his child. 00:26:40.480 |
For a while, I thought that was when I became a Christian 00:26:50.480 |
and life reverted right back to the way it was. 00:26:54.480 |
or living a rebellious life in my worldly eyes, 00:26:59.480 |
After middle school, my family and I started trying out 00:27:02.480 |
The summer right before my sophomore year of high school, 00:27:06.480 |
By the end of summer, I finally started going 00:27:11.480 |
I started going to Bible study with the girls in my class 00:27:20.480 |
and I learned how personal a relationship with God is. 00:27:27.480 |
that I'm a sinner and believe that Jesus died 00:27:32.480 |
I needed to make a 180 degree turn in my life 00:27:35.480 |
and live for Christ and be an image and reflection of him, 00:27:41.480 |
I started going to church not out of obligation, 00:27:45.480 |
so that I could grow deeper in a relationship with him. 00:27:48.480 |
Slowly but surely, when it came to doing my Bible study, 00:27:55.480 |
I desired to show others not just through my words, 00:28:02.480 |
to work through me without working in me first, 00:28:04.480 |
and that I had to die to myself, serving in defiant flesh 00:28:07.480 |
so that I could be born again through the Lord 00:28:09.480 |
and be his obedient servant and vessel for his word. 00:28:12.480 |
I can't really pinpoint an exact time when I was saved, 00:28:15.480 |
but I know that I was saved sometime in high school. 00:28:18.480 |
At the church that I was currently attending, 00:28:20.480 |
they did baptisms in a way that was very showy, 00:28:22.480 |
and it didn't seem right in my heart to do it there, 00:28:26.480 |
as it was much more man-centered rather than God-centered. 00:28:31.480 |
I also just wanted to make sure I did it with pure intentions, 00:28:33.480 |
not just because everyone else had been baptized. 00:28:36.480 |
I've realized what an absolute joy it is to get baptized 00:28:42.480 |
I can see clearly in hindsight how faithful God was 00:28:49.480 |
my walk with Christ has continued to strengthen 00:28:57.480 |
as my faith is challenged more than it ever has been. 00:29:05.480 |
and intentions by hand, every word, action, and thought. 00:29:11.480 |
and how having an eternal perspective on life is imperative. 00:29:17.480 |
wanting to live for myself over all those years, 00:29:19.480 |
he ran after me with a jealousy and compassion 00:29:28.480 |
forgiven of my sins and walking humbly before him. 00:29:31.480 |
I love Romans 5, verses one and two, that say, 00:29:37.480 |
"we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 00:29:40.480 |
"through whom also we have obtained our introduction 00:29:47.480 |
It's so humbling and overwhelmingly comforting 00:29:54.480 |
yet God still chose to give me this gift of eternity 00:29:57.480 |
Though I was dead in my trespasses, he has given me life. 00:31:03.480 |
I'm sure a lot of that resonates with a lot of people 00:31:10.480 |
and every time you hear a testimony of a changed life, 00:31:16.480 |
that really it's not something that we've attained. 00:31:29.480 |
and I'm gonna read just the first four verses 00:31:31.480 |
of 2 Peter, and it'll be projected up overhead. 00:31:44.480 |
"Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, 00:31:54.480 |
"by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 00:32:00.480 |
"in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 00:32:04.480 |
"seeing that his divine power has granted to us 00:32:07.480 |
"everything pertaining to life and godliness. 00:32:12.480 |
"who called us by his own glory and excellence. 00:32:23.480 |
"of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption 00:32:29.480 |
Lord, would you speak and feed your people this morning, 00:32:36.480 |
and that we would become just all the more appreciative 00:32:44.480 |
and Lord, that that appreciation would overflow 00:32:49.480 |
into lives that shine brightly for you and for your kingdom. 00:32:59.480 |
and help us to grow more and more just hungry 00:33:07.480 |
So we thank you for giving us the opportunity 00:33:11.480 |
We pray just for your grace and your blessings 00:33:17.480 |
So well, first off, I just wanna say thank you 00:33:39.480 |
I was diagnosed, for those of you guys who are visiting, 00:33:42.480 |
with stage 3C colorectal cancer back in December 2019, 00:33:52.480 |
the last step of the treatments was a couple weeks ago 00:33:59.480 |
and I took most of March off just to recover and rest, 00:34:08.480 |
Actually, no, I am busy, but I'm trying to look the part. 00:34:11.480 |
God's answered many of your prayers in the affirmative, 00:34:25.480 |
of a minimum of two meals delivered to our home. 00:34:48.480 |
And one of the strangely wonderful things about cancer 00:34:52.480 |
is that you come face-to-face with your mortality. 00:34:58.480 |
because there are aspects of it that are horrible, 00:35:02.480 |
but being reminded that you might possibly die very soon 00:35:15.480 |
But I remember we've had quite a few funerals 00:35:26.480 |
shortly after my diagnosis, just watching the casket, 00:35:34.480 |
and I actually was imagining my body being lowered 00:35:44.480 |
but it was actually rather like a sober reflection 00:36:03.480 |
those first few days, I was bracing for the worst, 00:36:06.480 |
and I had a lot of time, especially those first few days, 00:36:17.480 |
how I would live my life if I had like a year remaining. 00:36:41.480 |
and there were many things that I felt so compelled 00:36:50.480 |
but rather his trial and his looming execution. 00:37:02.480 |
"Knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling 00:37:11.480 |
"and I will also be diligent that at any time 00:37:18.480 |
So Peter's writing as he's nearing the end of his life. 00:37:30.480 |
and he wants to make absolutely crystal clear 00:37:55.480 |
And he tells the churches to be very careful. 00:37:58.480 |
He explicitly points out that the looming dangers, 00:38:13.480 |
It's actually probably one of the most intense 00:38:55.480 |
So I'm going to give you an outline up front. 00:39:09.480 |
And third, "What kind of people we ought to be." 00:39:46.480 |
The ESV actually has translated it correctly, 00:39:54.480 |
a bondservant and an apostle of Jesus Christ. 00:40:48.480 |
generous, protective, and loving slave masters. 00:41:00.480 |
I think there would be many volunteer slaves. 00:41:36.480 |
when he's saying that he's a doulos of Jesus Christ. 00:41:39.480 |
First, he is inalienably possessed by Jesus Christ. 00:42:20.480 |
he's saying he's constantly in the service of Christ. 00:42:23.480 |
So Peter gets no breaks, no holidays, no PTO. 00:42:45.480 |
Peter is a slave and a mouthpiece of his good Lord. 00:42:51.480 |
His sole purpose in this life is to honor Christ. 00:42:58.480 |
But actually, if you read through 1 and 2 Peter, 00:43:13.480 |
Christ has been and will continue to be his Lord 00:43:31.480 |
It reads, "To those who have received a faith 00:44:02.480 |
So the believers in the churches of Asia Minor 00:44:14.480 |
because of the voluntary poverty of Jesus Christ. 00:44:18.480 |
And though they weren't especially called to be apostles, 00:46:45.480 |
So for the who we are part of the sermon outline, 00:47:01.480 |
So I'm going to reread verses 2 to 4 for you. 00:47:08.480 |
in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 00:47:11.480 |
seeing that his divine power has granted to us 00:47:17.480 |
through the true knowledge of him who called us 00:47:29.480 |
of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption 00:47:34.480 |
So in the Greek, there's grammatical awkwardness 00:47:46.480 |
but Peter has let the grammar flow from verse 2. 00:47:49.480 |
And there's also no main verb in these verses. 00:47:53.480 |
And Peter goes back and forth from you to us, 00:47:57.480 |
So if you're doing like an inductive Bible study 00:48:04.480 |
And the English translations have smoothed out 00:48:10.480 |
But if you compare all the English translations, 00:48:16.480 |
So the grammar is a little awkward and complex. 00:48:24.480 |
and they come after the words "has granted to us." 00:48:31.480 |
First, the term "everything" is in the emphatic position. 00:48:38.480 |
God's divine power has granted to all believers 00:48:50.480 |
So you can actually interpret that as a godly life, 00:48:55.480 |
So there are a lot of little couplets in 2 Peter 00:48:58.480 |
where two words are used to kind of describe one idea. 00:49:13.480 |
everything we need for life and for godliness. 00:49:39.480 |
And that's consistent with what we see all over the scriptures, 00:49:44.480 |
So the apostle Paul points to us, to this truth, 00:49:51.480 |
That he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him. 00:50:09.480 |
Okay, so hopefully this isn't new teaching for you. 00:50:13.480 |
Hopefully this has been and is familiar biblical truth for you. 00:50:42.480 |
And hopefully when you sang it, you weren't lying, 00:50:44.480 |
and you weren't just mindlessly and habitually moving your lips, 00:50:48.480 |
especially if you had like your praise face on. 00:50:52.480 |
Hopefully you were really saying that as a confession. 00:50:55.480 |
And this isn't a song that we sing as much now, 00:51:15.480 |
it doesn't like cause you to be like, "That's a lie." 00:51:18.480 |
No, so this is a truth that you guys already know academically, 00:51:27.480 |
2 Peter 2, 1-2, Peter warns that there have always been 00:51:34.480 |
and that there will always be false teachers among the people, 00:51:37.480 |
and that there will be destructive heresies that try and infiltrate the church. 00:51:43.480 |
"But false prophets also arose among the people, 00:51:47.480 |
just as there will also be false teachers among you 00:51:50.480 |
who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, 00:52:02.480 |
and because of them, the way of the truth will be maligned." 00:52:08.480 |
And you know the tricky thing about heresies and lies in general? 00:52:12.480 |
Heresies contain a whole lot of truth with a slight distortion. 00:52:24.480 |
Heresy, a lot of what is contained in there is truth, 00:52:29.480 |
with a perversion and a distortion of an element of it. 00:52:32.480 |
And there have been all kinds of destructive heresies 00:52:34.480 |
that have battered the walls of the churches over the years. 00:52:39.480 |
that I believe that many in our pews today are tempted to believe. 00:53:11.480 |
and expend a lot of energy trying to gain more, 00:53:22.480 |
Why? Because a part of them has bought into the lie 00:53:49.480 |
You have everything you need for life and godliness. 00:54:00.480 |
but you have everything you need for your life of godliness 00:54:07.480 |
And I know many of you love Romans chapter 8, 00:54:10.480 |
verses 31 to 32 are two of my favorite verses in this chapter. 00:54:34.480 |
"Your grace is enough," or "Christ is enough for me," 00:54:52.480 |
So the second thing that has been granted to believers 00:54:58.480 |
So we're not told exactly what the content of the promises is, 00:55:03.480 |
but the focus of these promises is our participation 00:55:06.480 |
in the divine nature and escape from corruption that is in the world. 00:55:14.480 |
We escape this corruption, we escape this destruction, 00:55:20.480 |
And we gain a little bit more insight into this 00:55:22.480 |
at the end of the letter in chapter 3, verse 13, 00:55:28.480 |
"But according to His promise, we are looking for new heavens 00:55:31.480 |
and a new earth in which righteousness dwells." 00:55:35.480 |
So we have been granted everything we need for life and godliness. 00:55:38.480 |
We have received promises of salvation and a great future hope. 00:55:42.480 |
And all of these things, all of our sufficiency, 00:55:45.480 |
all of our blessings come through a true and full knowledge of God. 00:55:49.480 |
So the word "knowledge" will keep coming up again and again 00:55:54.480 |
So I'm going to have a slide up here for you, 00:56:02.480 |
in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge," 00:56:08.480 |
"nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord. 00:56:11.480 |
We may known to you, but know this first of all, 00:56:23.480 |
So the word "knowledge" is very important to the Apostle Peter. 00:56:28.480 |
It's used twice here in just this grammatically challenging section. 00:56:32.480 |
And you'll see it again in verses 5, 6, 8, 16, and 20, just in chapter 1. 00:56:38.480 |
And this whole epistle ends with a last exhortation 00:56:42.480 |
to actively grow in the knowledge until the very end. 00:56:47.480 |
"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 00:56:52.480 |
To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. 00:57:01.480 |
this is not an easy verse to fully understand, 00:57:07.480 |
what you and I have received, is very easy to discern. 00:57:11.480 |
So He has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness. 00:57:16.480 |
He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises. 00:57:29.480 |
And to know God actually is what eternal life is all about. 00:57:34.480 |
John 17, 3, "This is eternal life, that they may know you, 00:57:39.480 |
the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." 00:57:51.480 |
And if you are a child of God, if you put your faith in Christ, 00:57:58.480 |
So here your knowledge of God may be like that of a poor reflection, 00:58:02.480 |
but one day you will know fully and see Him face to face. 00:58:06.480 |
Eternal life does not start the moment you expire your Lord into the casket, 00:58:12.480 |
It starts with your initial knowledge of the living God. 00:58:30.480 |
Our goal in life, our all-encompassing purpose in this life and in the next, 00:58:43.480 |
Does the way you live your life proclaim this? 00:58:50.480 |
who we are is we are slaves of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. 00:58:58.480 |
We have been given everything that we need for life and godliness. 00:59:10.480 |
Verse 4 briefly touches upon the truth that we will be partakers of the divine nature. 00:59:15.480 |
So there's an already but not yet element here 00:59:17.480 |
because these promises, though initiated here, 00:59:21.480 |
won't be fully actualized until His promise of a new heaven and a new earth is fulfilled. 00:59:28.480 |
"We are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells." 00:59:34.480 |
And I mentioned to you that a destructive heresy many today are tricked into believing is, 00:59:49.480 |
And that's another dangerous lie that you and I cannot be tricked into believing. 00:59:55.480 |
"This world is our home" is a very subtle, destructive lie that many are tempted to buy into. 01:00:09.480 |
The Bible says this place is going to crash and burn. 01:00:12.480 |
So I'm going to read together what the Apostle Peter says about what awaits this world. 01:00:20.480 |
"But by His word, the present heavens and the earth are being reserved for fire, 01:00:25.480 |
kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 01:00:30.480 |
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, 01:00:33.480 |
in which the heavens will pass away with a roar, 01:00:36.480 |
and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, 01:00:40.480 |
and the earth and its works will be burned up." 01:00:48.480 |
"This world is our home"--that is another lie. 01:00:54.480 |
You know what sounds nice but is extremely foolish? 01:01:06.480 |
It is great folly and unnecessary distraction if you're thinking of expending a lot of energy 01:01:12.480 |
making this world more comfortable, more habitable, and more peaceful. 01:01:24.480 |
is akin to applying beautiful paint on cabinets in a burning house. 01:01:33.480 |
So I'm not saying that we shouldn't be good stewards 01:01:35.480 |
or that we shouldn't be salt and light in the world while we are in this world. 01:01:40.480 |
What I am saying is that we should put very little hope in this world. 01:01:46.480 |
So I actually wrote a list down of what things I would try to save in the event of a fire. 01:01:55.480 |
If I wake up in the middle of the night, things are burning, 01:02:05.480 |
Nod your head if you guys would do the same, like old photo albums. 01:02:08.480 |
Second, legal documents, social security cards, passports, birth certificates. 01:02:21.480 |
I would go after my laptop because there's important stuff on my laptop. 01:02:25.480 |
Cloud hasn't been updated in about a week and a half, 01:02:28.480 |
and it's a hassle to try to get a new computer, so I would save that. 01:02:32.480 |
I would save my wallet because I need some kind of form of ID. 01:02:35.480 |
I may need my credit cards. I will save that. 01:02:39.480 |
I will save my Bible that I've taken notes on, right, 01:02:41.480 |
because it's hard to replace all of the inspiration that I've gleaned from just my quiet times. 01:02:48.480 |
I would go after Bailey, our dog, because she's family. 01:02:51.480 |
She's been with us since 2012, so she's been with us for a while, so I would save Bailey. 01:02:58.480 |
And I would probably grab our car keys, maybe, if I had some time, 01:03:01.480 |
because you need a temporary shelter and a mode of transportation. 01:03:08.480 |
These are all important and valuable and useful to me. 01:03:17.480 |
And some of these things, though they can be replaced, 01:03:19.480 |
it's a big old hassle to try to get them replaced. 01:03:27.480 |
So none of you guys are probably thinking I'm going to fault that guy for grabbing these kinds of things, right? 01:03:36.480 |
But if this was the entirety of my list, you would fault me, because what's missing? 01:03:50.480 |
So all the other things that I would grab are not unimportant things, 01:03:56.480 |
But in the event I wake up in the middle of the night to a fire, I need to prioritize. 01:04:03.480 |
I need to prioritize my wife and my kids, even if my dog perishes. 01:04:12.480 |
Even if she were to perish, I would have to go after Becky and the kids first. 01:04:19.480 |
And that's not saying that I don't love Bailey, my dog. 01:04:34.480 |
What are their foolishness? What backward priorities? 01:04:38.480 |
The Bible says that this world is going to crash and burn, 01:04:41.480 |
and that truth is all over the pages of Scripture. 01:05:07.480 |
But our priority, with the short time that we have in this life, 01:05:21.480 |
And remember, His divine nature has granted to you everything pertaining to this task. 01:05:31.480 |
"Great numbers of persons in the churches have no concern about eternal things. 01:05:36.480 |
They care more about their cats and their dogs than their souls." 01:05:41.480 |
And perhaps Spurgeon is describing some of us sitting here today. 01:05:49.480 |
First, we are slaves of God and our Savior, Jesus Christ. 01:05:55.480 |
We've been given everything we need pertaining to life and godliness. 01:05:59.480 |
We've been given His precious promises that were a seal. 01:06:05.480 |
We were given these things, and what sort of people in response ought we to be? 01:06:11.480 |
And in 2 Peter, there's a ton of applications that Apostle Peter lays out, 01:06:14.480 |
a ton of exhortations, but I'll just leave you with a couple. 01:06:22.480 |
"Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, 01:06:25.480 |
what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? 01:06:30.480 |
Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, 01:06:33.480 |
be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, 01:06:39.480 |
and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation." 01:06:43.480 |
Keep yourself unstained by the world and get to work rescuing souls. 01:06:49.480 |
And I'll take you also to the verses immediately following the verses 01:06:52.480 |
that I read in the beginning, verses 5 through 7. 01:06:55.480 |
"Now for this reason also, applying all diligence in your faith, 01:07:00.480 |
supply moral excellence in your moral excellence and knowledge, 01:07:05.480 |
and in your knowledge self-control, and in your self-control perseverance, 01:07:11.480 |
and in your perseverance godliness, and in your godliness brotherly kindness, 01:07:21.480 |
It may be a foolish and distracting endeavor to try to make this world a better place, 01:07:31.480 |
But all of that is under the umbrella of knowing God and making Him known 01:07:37.480 |
That has to take central priority in your life. 01:07:42.480 |
You know, as I was meditating upon 2 Peter chapters 1, 1 through 4, 01:07:50.480 |
You guys know that Psalm, like, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." 01:07:57.480 |
And there's a line in there that says, "Be it in a quiet pasture or by a gentle stream, 01:08:10.480 |
Should I face a mighty mountain or a valley dark and deep, 01:08:20.480 |
In life there are seasons where it feels like there are more mighty mountains 01:08:23.480 |
or dark valleys than there are quiet pastures. 01:08:27.480 |
For me, the 14 months fighting cancer felt like a mighty mountain. 01:08:33.480 |
And sometimes life is full of little inconveniences and challenges. 01:08:42.480 |
How do we conduct ourselves in holiness and godly conduct? 01:08:47.480 |
Every trial, every inconvenience, every person even, is in your life on purpose. 01:08:57.480 |
In all things we seek to know him and to make him known. 01:09:04.480 |
He is a good shepherd, and he has other sheep that are not yet of this fold. 01:09:13.480 |
He has other sheep that are not yet of this fold. 01:09:18.480 |
So in your knowing him, in your trusting him, 01:09:22.480 |
our call is to help others to know him and to trust him, 01:09:26.480 |
and you and I have been adequately equipped to do this. 01:09:35.480 |
A lot of things, both big and little, both good and bad, have happened in just the last five weeks. 01:09:42.480 |
So on February 26th, I went in for my final surgery, 01:09:46.480 |
and up until that point I had an ostomy bag on me. 01:09:51.480 |
And February 26th, I was going to get the stoma taken down, 01:09:56.480 |
and I was going to go back to life as normal. 01:09:59.480 |
That was my final step in the cancer journey. 01:10:03.480 |
And the first time I was there, I was there for about four days. 01:10:06.480 |
And so I had taken a lot of work to do, because I was thinking, 01:10:09.480 |
"Hey, this whole cancer treatment's been easy. 01:10:12.480 |
After surgery, I'm just going to do memory verses. 01:10:16.480 |
I'll do Bible study and all of these things." 01:10:18.480 |
And I realized it's kind of hard with all these wires strapped to your fingers and your body 01:10:24.480 |
So I said, "Okay, this time around, I'm just going to kind of relax." 01:10:27.480 |
So I was expecting three or four days where I could just sleep. 01:10:31.480 |
I could actually get to a couple TV shows, and I was ready to relax. 01:10:36.480 |
And I was sitting there, laying there, and then all of a sudden, 01:10:44.480 |
And I was thinking, "Man, I had peace and quiet, but they're wheeling in this other dude." 01:10:47.480 |
This 18-year-old kid who just had his appendix about to burst, 01:10:51.480 |
so they did an emergency surgery, and then he was there. 01:11:01.480 |
And he was talking about--he was calling his friends for three, four hours at a time, 01:11:05.480 |
talking about all kinds of silly things that 18-year-old kids talk about. 01:11:08.480 |
He was watching his TV shows at a very high volume. 01:11:12.480 |
And at first, I was like, "Lord, you know I need to rest. 01:11:18.480 |
But then the thought that came to mind was, "If every person is on purpose, 01:11:23.480 |
every meeting is a divine appointment, and I am called to save souls, 01:11:28.480 |
and he has equipped me for everything pertaining to life and godliness, 01:11:42.480 |
And he just nodded along and then called his girlfriend again. 01:11:55.480 |
"Oh, man, I got to take advantage of my last few days off work 01:11:58.480 |
because once I get back to church, it's going to be busy." 01:12:01.480 |
And the last few times I did jury duty, it ended really quick. 01:12:05.480 |
But this time around, for some reason, I was there all the way till 4 p.m., 01:12:11.480 |
And I was like, "Man, this is so inconvenient." 01:12:14.480 |
And I just started striking up a conversation with a lady named Deb, 01:12:25.480 |
"Man, there is no shortage of opportunities where God wants me to minister." 01:12:32.480 |
I don't know if anything happened after that. 01:12:36.480 |
And just a month ago, on March 11th, I got a phone call 01:12:46.480 |
So she got diagnosed with--she was worried about me, 01:12:49.480 |
and in December, I got a phone call saying that she got diagnosed 01:12:54.480 |
A little bit had gone into her brain, so it was a little bit urgent. 01:13:00.480 |
I got to try to figure out how to get there." 01:13:02.480 |
And I was calling the surgeon, trying to see would I be okay 01:13:11.480 |
and so I wouldn't have been able to go see my mom. 01:13:13.480 |
And then exactly one month ago from today, March 11th, she passed away. 01:13:19.480 |
And the thing that I was thinking was, you know, 01:13:25.480 |
but the truth of my reality is that His divine power 01:13:29.480 |
has given me everything I need for life and godliness. 01:13:33.480 |
The truth of the reality of this life is that it's going to end, 01:13:44.480 |
And my main duty in all of this is just trust and obey, 01:13:52.480 |
to put my hope in Christ, to know Him, and to make Him known. 01:14:01.480 |
His divine power has given me everything I need to respond 01:14:05.480 |
to every hurdle, every high mountain, every low valley, 01:14:17.480 |
In every trial, in every inconvenience, in every joy, success, and victory, 01:14:21.480 |
in every relationship, what is your purpose, oh beloved slave? 01:14:29.480 |
You are to trust Him, to know Him, and make Him known. 01:14:35.480 |
You know what, that hymn, "Trust and Obey, for there's no other way," what? 01:14:43.480 |
So to the shepherd of your soul, give Him full control, 01:14:48.480 |
and wherever He may lead you, follow and follow well. 01:14:52.480 |
Be it in a quiet pasture or by a gentle stream, 01:14:55.480 |
remember that the shepherd of your soul is by your side. 01:15:04.480 |
His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness 01:15:11.480 |
through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His glory and excellence. 01:15:22.480 |
And as our good shepherd leads you through the highs and lows of this life, 01:15:30.480 |
worship, trust, obey, know Him, and make Him known. 01:15:57.480 |
to know how to properly give you the worship that you do 01:16:06.480 |
And we pray that as we walk with you, that you would give us greater wisdom, 01:16:16.480 |
so that as we walk with you, we will grow in excellence in knowing how to trust and obey. 01:16:25.480 |
Lord, we thank you for your kindness in our lives. 01:16:34.480 |
Help us to reflect you in a way that is so pleasing. 01:17:06.480 |
Shepherd of my soul, I give you full control. 01:17:20.480 |
I have made the choice to listen for your voice. 01:17:34.480 |
Shepherd of my soul, I give you full control. 01:17:48.480 |
I have made the choice to listen for your voice. 01:18:01.480 |
Be it in a flying pasture or by a gentle stream, 01:18:15.480 |
Should I face a mighty mountain or a valley dark and deep, 01:18:34.480 |
Shepherd of my soul, I give you full control. 01:18:48.480 |
I have made the choice to listen for your voice. 01:19:02.480 |
Be it in a flying pasture or by a gentle stream, 01:19:16.480 |
Should I face a mighty mountain or a valley dark and deep, 01:19:28.480 |
Be it in a flying pasture or by a gentle stream, 01:19:44.480 |
Should I face a mighty mountain or a valley dark and deep, 01:20:20.480 |
help our passions to daily more and more just align themselves 01:20:25.480 |
with yours, and would you grant us just wisdom and grace 01:20:30.480 |
and insight as we seek to love those around us 01:20:56.480 |
be with each and every one of us now and forevermore. 01:22:18.480 |
And life is worth the living just because he lives. 01:22:34.480 |
do ask that you would, in an orderly fashion, 01:22:38.480 |
And for you guys who are here, go out through the courtyard.