The Gospel Transforms
Series: NO OTHER GOSPEL
Speaker: Sam Low
Date: 20th August 2017
Passage: Galatians 1:8-24
00:00:00 --> 00:00:07 church for longer. And at that particular point in my life, I wasn't as humble and godly as I have
00:00:07 --> 00:00:14 become and becoming. And so, you know, I quickly rebuked him and corrected him and explained that
00:00:14 --> 00:00:18 I was at the front, basically, and I had the Bible and, you know, so he needed to listen to me. But
00:00:18 --> 00:00:23 as I've grown and gotten a little bit wiser and a little bit more self-aware,
00:00:23 --> 00:00:28 I recognised that actually it's a really valid question. Why should he listen to me?
00:00:29 --> 00:00:34 What basis was there that the things I was saying was something that he should actually
00:00:34 --> 00:00:40 submit his life to and take as, you know, stuff that's going to shape who he is and how he lives?
00:00:41 --> 00:00:46 You actually need to work out on what basis are you going to listen, not just to me, but to anyone
00:00:46 --> 00:00:53 who's going to speak into you. And that's the situation for Paul with his church in churches
00:00:53 --> 00:00:59 in Galatia. He is the one who planted them. He's the one who spoke the gospel to them. He's the one
00:00:59 --> 00:01:05 who introduced them to Jesus. But what's happened is there's a group of people that have turned up at
00:01:05 --> 00:01:11 these churches in Paul's absence and have basically started questioning his authority,
00:01:11 --> 00:01:17 questioning why the Galatian churches would listen to him and his message. And, you know,
00:01:17 --> 00:01:22 obviously on the side, they had their own message that they wanted to replace it with. But the rhetoric
00:01:22 --> 00:01:28 went something like, why believe Paul? He's not even from Jerusalem, which is where, you know,
00:01:28 --> 00:01:36 the church started. And plus, his gospel sounds too good to be true. He's not even a good Jew anymore.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:43 He's not making you do Jewish things. So you can't trust him. And I guess the question that
00:01:43 --> 00:01:49 we rightfully ask is, how do we know that Paul's gospel is the one true gospel?
00:01:50 --> 00:01:55 I mean, why should the Galatians, as they hear these competing messages, decide to listen to Paul?
00:01:55 --> 00:02:01 Why should we, opening the Bible thousands of years later, with lots of other voices speaking to us,
00:02:01 --> 00:02:05 telling us that this is what your life is about, this is what you should do, why should we listen to
00:02:05 --> 00:02:11 this message from Paul in the Bible and say, this is the one that I'm going to trust? This is the one
00:02:11 --> 00:02:15 I'm going to submit to. I mean, Paul covered pretty clearly last week, if you missed it, there is only
00:02:15 --> 00:02:23 going to be one gospel. There's not multiple ones. So how do we know that this one is the one?
00:02:25 --> 00:02:35 Well, Paul wants to give us two reasons. First one, his gospel is not his. His gospel is
00:02:35 --> 00:02:38 not his. Have a look at verse 11 from what Deborah did out in Galatians 1.
00:02:40 --> 00:02:45 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:51 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it. Rather, I received it by revelation
00:02:51 --> 00:02:57 from Jesus Christ. Now, this matters. This is what this section is really driving at. Paul wants
00:02:57 --> 00:03:03 the Galatians to know that this message that he's bringing, this message of grace and peace through
00:03:03 --> 00:03:09 Jesus is not something that he just made up. In fact, he wants to go a step further and say,
00:03:10 --> 00:03:15 it's not something that any human made up. Paul didn't receive it from some people who taught it
00:03:15 --> 00:03:21 to him and he's passing it on. He didn't hear it from a preacher. It was actually revealed to him.
00:03:23 --> 00:03:29 He got direct revelation from the risen Jesus Christ. You can read about it. If you're in a community
00:03:29 --> 00:03:35 group this week, spend some time in Acts chapter 9 and Paul is travelling along the road to Damascus
00:03:35 --> 00:03:42 and all of a sudden he is physically confronted by the risen Jesus. This is after the crucifixion.
00:03:42 --> 00:03:49 Risen Jesus presents himself physically, challenges Paul about what he's been doing and literally turns
00:03:49 --> 00:03:56 Paul's whole life around. It's a dramatic episode. And so these people who have turned up and are trying
00:03:56 --> 00:04:03 to undermine Paul's gospel, trying to undermine the trust in Paul, they thought it would serve
00:04:03 --> 00:04:08 their purpose to point out that Paul doesn't come with the authority of the other apostles.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:14 He didn't come from Jerusalem. He's not from Peter and James and John, you know, the disciples that
00:04:14 --> 00:04:19 hung out with Jesus. He's not from there. And so you shouldn't listen to him. That was their logic.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:28 But Paul flips it. He's like, you're right. I don't come from them. But it's because my gospel isn't from
00:04:28 --> 00:04:34 human sources. I received it directly from Jesus, the one who the gospel is about.
00:04:36 --> 00:04:42 In fact, Paul's going to go on and go out of his way to give us random details about what he did and
00:04:42 --> 00:04:48 didn't do around the time he became a Christian, just to make it really clear that his gospel,
00:04:49 --> 00:04:53 which actually lines up with the one that Peter, James and John are preaching in Jerusalem,
00:04:54 --> 00:05:00 he's going to make it clear that his gospel did not and could not have been taught to him by some
00:05:00 --> 00:05:07 human teacher. It's a divine thing that was revealed to him. Have a look at verse 16.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:12 So this is when he's been called by, he's telling his story, he's been called by grace,
00:05:12 --> 00:05:16 God's revealed the son in him. And verse 16,
00:05:16 --> 00:05:22 my immediate response was not to consult any human being. I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those
00:05:22 --> 00:05:29 who were apostles before I was, but I went to Arabia. Later, I returned to Damascus. Then after
00:05:29 --> 00:05:35 three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him 15 days. Cephas is
00:05:35 --> 00:05:40 Peter, if you're not sure. I saw none of the other apostles, only James, the Lord's brother.
00:05:40 --> 00:05:48 I assure you before God, what I'm writing you is no lie. Then I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was
00:05:48 --> 00:05:54 personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report. The man who
00:05:54 --> 00:06:02 formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy. It was three years after he
00:06:02 --> 00:06:08 received the gospel, three years after he met Jesus, that Paul first made the trip up to meet
00:06:08 --> 00:06:14 some of the apostles. And when he got there, he only met two of them. And he was only with them for
00:06:14 --> 00:06:19 about two weeks. And we know that while he was there, because it says it in Acts, that he spent most of
00:06:19 --> 00:06:25 the time preaching. So he didn't actually go there for gospel classes. He didn't go there to, you know,
00:06:25 --> 00:06:32 learn some stuff and be clear on what the gospel actually was. He already had received that. That's
00:06:32 --> 00:06:38 what he got when he met Jesus on that road on the way to Damascus. Now, it's worth us just slowing down
00:06:38 --> 00:06:46 for a second here and flagging that what happened for Paul is unique. It's a unique experience for Paul
00:06:46 --> 00:06:54 because Paul was a chosen apostle. Apostle just means sent one. And so when we talk about the
00:06:54 --> 00:07:03 apostles in the Bible, we talk about the men that God chose, that God sent as direct eyewitnesses of the
00:07:03 --> 00:07:11 physically resurrected Jesus. So every one of them got to encounter Jesus physically alive after his
00:07:11 --> 00:07:18 death and resurrection. They were chosen so that they would be the baseline by which we measure the
00:07:18 --> 00:07:24 gospel. So they got to meet him in person. They got to encounter him and they delivered a message
00:07:24 --> 00:07:29 that was authoritative, that we don't get to argue with because they have that special position. Now,
00:07:29 --> 00:07:36 for us today, we encounter that message in the Bible. That's why when we read the scripture,
00:07:36 --> 00:07:41 when we come to church, when we do it in our community groups, we approach this as more than
00:07:41 --> 00:07:48 just human words and human stories. This is God speaking to us through those humans because it is
00:07:48 --> 00:07:57 that divine truth that he revealed to them. And so what Paul is doing here is he's not defending
00:07:57 --> 00:08:04 himself. He's saying that this battle is not between the credibility of these new people and me.
00:08:05 --> 00:08:10 This battle is between the credibility of these new people and the God who gave me this message that
00:08:10 --> 00:08:15 I'm giving to you. That's who you've got to decide who you're going to trust. These people have turned up
00:08:15 --> 00:08:20 and saying, look how impressive we are. We're from Jerusalem and the God who's delivering the good
00:08:20 --> 00:08:28 news about how people like us can be forgiven and adopted into his family. The reason you can trust
00:08:28 --> 00:08:34 this gospel, the reason you can know this gospel from Paul is the genuine article is because it comes
00:08:34 --> 00:08:44 from God himself. And the proof of that, the reason you can believe what is a pretty massive claim
00:08:44 --> 00:08:52 is because of the power of this gospel. See, what Paul's doing in this little chunk of Galatians
00:08:52 --> 00:08:57 is essentially giving a mini testimony. And I'm pretty sure I've talked with you guys before about
00:08:57 --> 00:09:02 the testimony insecurity that I have. You know, when Christians talk about testimonies, they're
00:09:02 --> 00:09:08 essentially talking about their story of how they met Jesus, how their life was before and then how
00:09:08 --> 00:09:13 they became a Christian and what changed. And a lot of the famous stories or testimonies involve
00:09:13 --> 00:09:19 dramatic things like drug addictions or prison time or those sorts of things. And they are amazing
00:09:19 --> 00:09:27 stories of God's power to transform the obviously bad people into obviously apparently better people.
00:09:28 --> 00:09:35 And that is amazing. But when I hear those stories, I can't help but feel like I need to spend some
00:09:35 --> 00:09:40 time working on my before I met Jesus story so that my testimony will be more exciting. Go on like,
00:09:40 --> 00:09:46 you know, a year bender as a Christian just to build up some, you know, some serious sin in the
00:09:46 --> 00:09:50 background. Now, you know, I've got serious sin. But you know, like the dramatic ones that you can
00:09:50 --> 00:09:55 include in a story and sound exciting. Anyway, that's a bit of a sidetrack. But you know, when you hear
00:09:55 --> 00:10:00 testimonies, that's sometimes the place we go. We compare their story to our story. But I love this
00:10:00 --> 00:10:07 story that Paul gives because this is a story that everyone can connect with. Like literally,
00:10:07 --> 00:10:13 whether or not you're the recovering drug addict or, you know, this is your first day release from
00:10:13 --> 00:10:20 prison, in this story, you can see that the gospel has power for even you. Or if you're at the other
00:10:20 --> 00:10:25 end of the spectrum and you are nice, you're even-tempered, you're middle class, you're Sunday
00:10:25 --> 00:10:32 school educated, even there you will see in this story that you need the gospel just as much. And not
00:10:32 --> 00:10:37 just that you need it, but the gospel has power to do something with your life here. This is a story
00:10:37 --> 00:10:48 about the gospel power to reach and transform anyone. Paul gives us two halves to his life before he met
00:10:48 --> 00:10:53 Jesus. And they couldn't be more different. Have a look at the first half, the serious bad side from
00:10:53 --> 00:11:11 verse 13. Now, I'm going to read that verse again in just a second. We sometimes go into autopilot when
00:11:11 --> 00:11:15 we read the Bible and we just skip through, we've read that verse, what's the next verse? And we miss
00:11:15 --> 00:11:23 the gravity and the weight of what just got described. So listen carefully and try and visualize
00:11:23 --> 00:11:35 what Paul is saying he did here. You have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely
00:11:35 --> 00:11:45 I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. Those are blood-stained words.
00:11:45 --> 00:11:51 words. Paul's not being dramatic here saying, you know what, I really didn't like church and I've
00:11:51 --> 00:11:58 been just ragging on church on Facebook statuses for the whole time I've been on Facebook. He means
00:11:58 --> 00:12:07 persecute when he says it. He was pouring his life out to destroy the church of God through whatever
00:12:07 --> 00:12:13 means possible. He was literally traveling from town to town to try and find secret churches and get
00:12:13 --> 00:12:21 Christians arrested and even killed. He was the kind of person who would have delighted in the suffering
00:12:21 --> 00:12:28 happening to Christians around the world that we see today. In fact, in Acts chapter 8, which is just
00:12:28 --> 00:12:35 before we see him meet Jesus, there's this episode where we see Paul standing, looking on approvingly
00:12:35 --> 00:12:47 as Stephen is stoned to death for following Jesus. This is a guy who had a deep hatred for God, a deep
00:12:47 --> 00:12:56 hatred for Jesus especially and followers of Jesus and yet the gospel of grace somehow grabbed hold of him.
00:12:56 --> 00:13:10 I can understand why some people sometimes feel unworthy of Jesus. I can understand why, you know, people use
00:13:10 --> 00:13:15 words like God couldn't love me. You don't know what I've done. I get the sentiment. It makes sense and on
00:13:15 --> 00:13:22 one level it's correct. You don't deserve to have God love you. But that's the power of the gospel.
00:13:24 --> 00:13:31 That's the power of God's grace that even those who seem the most unlikely, who seem impossible,
00:13:31 --> 00:13:34 who you would think they could never follow Jesus,
00:13:38 --> 00:13:40 even they can be reached by grace.
00:13:40 --> 00:13:45 Paul wasn't looking for Jesus when he became a Christian.
00:13:47 --> 00:13:52 He was literally traveling to a new town so that he could arrest and kill more Christians.
00:13:52 --> 00:13:57 That was his agenda for that week. He was actively trying to destroy the church and that's not an
00:13:57 --> 00:14:02 exaggeration. He wanted the church done and finished and removed from existence so that he could be part
00:14:02 --> 00:14:09 of the Jewish synagogue system, so that he could have more power there. He had nothing but hatred for
00:14:09 --> 00:14:18 Jesus and anyone who followed him and yet the gospel grabbed him. The message of Jesus still managed
00:14:18 --> 00:14:25 to grab him while he was running in the opposite direction. Jesus grabbed him and completely transformed
00:14:25 --> 00:14:33 him. If you're somebody who feels beyond God's love, if there are things in your life that you think
00:14:33 --> 00:14:39 there's no way God could love that about me and no one else knows it, you need to listen to this.
00:14:40 --> 00:14:48 The gospel, God's grace is powerful enough for you and for anything that you've done.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:54 But the crazy thing is that's not even Paul's whole story. That's one half of his before life.
00:14:54 --> 00:14:58 Let's look at the other half. He was also one of those really religious people who didn't think
00:14:58 --> 00:15:07 they needed a gospel. Have a look at verse 14. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age
00:15:07 --> 00:15:13 among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. See, Paul was an
00:15:13 --> 00:15:19 impressive Jew. He was in the Jewish synagogue. He was getting promotions. He was been giving
00:15:19 --> 00:15:26 opportunities to lead and to teach. He had Bible knowledge. He would have memorized huge chunks of the
00:15:26 --> 00:15:32 Old Testament and not just the catchy bits that fit well to a rap. Like he spent time memorizing,
00:15:32 --> 00:15:36 you know, the books that you skip over in your quiet time, you know, you get to Numbers and
00:15:36 --> 00:15:41 Leviticus and Deuteronomy and it's just like law after law and you, you know, survive chapter one,
00:15:41 --> 00:15:46 chapter two, and then you go back to like Matthew or, you know, one Thessalonians somewhere, you know,
00:15:46 --> 00:15:52 it's a little bit easier, easier going. He's memorized these whole books. He's invested time. I mean,
00:15:52 --> 00:16:00 he is seriously zealous about being a Jew. He's putting hard work in and even his life, he's trying
00:16:00 --> 00:16:05 hard to obey the laws of the synagogue. Now, obviously, something's got twisted in there because he was
00:16:05 --> 00:16:12 killing Christians, but he's trying very hard and to the point where he's excelling above the people
00:16:12 --> 00:16:18 around him. And so when Paul looks at himself and even when the people around him look at him,
00:16:18 --> 00:16:26 they don't think he needs a gospel. He's going, I'm good. I'm better than most people. I'm putting
00:16:26 --> 00:16:33 effort in and gospels, good news is for people who need help, people who need rescuing. And according
00:16:33 --> 00:16:43 to Paul, that's not him. See, simultaneously, Paul was too bad and thought he was too good.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:51 He's put up a double wall against the gospel. And yet when he finally encounters Jesus, the gospel
00:16:51 --> 00:16:57 is powerful enough to show him the depth of his sin and his need for Jesus and to show him the
00:16:57 --> 00:17:06 sufficiency of God's grace to love even somebody as evil as him. The gospel is powerful.
00:17:06 --> 00:17:13 I mean, ironically, this second bit of being really zealous for religion, trying really hard to be
00:17:13 --> 00:17:19 holy, is what these new people who turned up in front of the Galatians were saying they should be
00:17:19 --> 00:17:25 doing. They're going, Jesus is great, but put effort in. And Paul's like, I've done it. It doesn't work.
00:17:26 --> 00:17:30 What you need, the only thing that can make a difference is the only true gospel. And that is
00:17:30 --> 00:17:40 the fact that Jesus has died for you and is risen. The power of the gospel means no one is beyond grace.
00:17:41 --> 00:17:46 No one is too far gone, too bad that they can't be reached and loved and forgiven. And the power of
00:17:46 --> 00:17:52 the gospel means that no one is above grace. Whether people know they need Jesus or not, whether they're
00:17:52 --> 00:17:57 looking for him or not, the gospel is powerful enough to reach them, to confront them, to get their
00:17:57 --> 00:18:03 attention. And here's why it's powerful. Because when it grabs them wherever they are, it shows them
00:18:03 --> 00:18:06 Jesus. Have a look at verse 15.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:16 When God, who set me apart from my mother's womb and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal
00:18:16 --> 00:18:25 his son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles. But when? This is the God intervention
00:18:25 --> 00:18:30 moment in Paul's life. He wasn't just sitting around waiting, looking for something to do. God
00:18:30 --> 00:18:36 intervened dramatically for him. And look at the power of God's grace at work in his life as he
00:18:36 --> 00:18:43 kind of stepped through these couple of things. First thing, he set me apart from my mother's womb.
00:18:45 --> 00:18:53 God chose Paul before he was born. Before he'd even had a breath, God had already decided Paul would
00:18:53 --> 00:18:59 belong to him. Paul would be used to take the gospel out to the Gentiles. In spite of everything
00:18:59 --> 00:19:06 that Paul was going to do and be in his life, God had already decided, I'm going to use him.
00:19:06 --> 00:19:14 God had already chosen him. God even uses the fierceness and the evil that is there in his life
00:19:14 --> 00:19:20 before to become the backdrop so that we can see how dramatically powerful the gospel is to change
00:19:20 --> 00:19:28 somebody. It doesn't make it less evil, but God is powerful enough. His grace is powerful enough to
00:19:28 --> 00:19:37 take that evil and turn it and use it for good. What that means for you and me is that the stuff in
00:19:37 --> 00:19:41 your life right now that might make you question whether or not the gospel offer of forgiveness is
00:19:41 --> 00:19:50 an offer for you is actually the kind of stuff that God loves to take and use. So it shows just how
00:19:50 --> 00:20:00 powerful he is, just how gracious he can be. It could be something that causes you shame, something you
00:20:00 --> 00:20:08 try and hide, something you try and pretend never happened. That stuff can be used by God to display
00:20:08 --> 00:20:16 Jesus. That's what he did for Paul. Having set Paul apart and having patiently waited as Paul spent his
00:20:16 --> 00:20:24 life and his days trying to destroy the church, then God called him, called him by grace.
00:20:25 --> 00:20:30 Now just sit in that for a second. Again, this is one of those moments where we can go into autopilot
00:20:30 --> 00:20:34 when we're reading the Bible and not understand how drastic this is. Remember who we're talking about.
00:20:34 --> 00:20:43 Remember who this is that God just called by grace. Remember his former way of life, bent on destroying
00:20:43 --> 00:20:56 God's church, overflowing with hatred towards God, killing God's people. And yet God calls him by grace
00:20:56 --> 00:21:07 to be forgiven, to be loved, to be brought into the family, to become a messenger of that same hope that
00:21:07 --> 00:21:13 he's just discovered. The gospel is powerful enough to dramatically punch through that wall of hatred that
00:21:13 --> 00:21:24 Paul is putting up. He's not looking for Jesus at this point. Paul's not a seeker. He's not visiting
00:21:24 --> 00:21:36 church because he's not in church because he's not in church because his wife or his girlfriend or his
00:21:36 --> 00:21:45 housemate or his parents dragged him along. If Paul's in church, he's there looking for people to kill,
00:21:45 --> 00:21:52 people to arrest. And yet God calls him.
00:21:55 --> 00:22:04 So powerfully that all of that hatred and anger and rejection of God subsides and is overwhelmed in an instant.
00:22:05 --> 00:22:08 But there's not even a progressive journey that's talked about here.
00:22:08 --> 00:22:14 See, there is no human argument that is that powerful.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:23 There is no story that a human could make up, no human gospel powerful enough to change someone like that.
00:22:24 --> 00:22:28 There wasn't even time for Paul to take little progressive steps, you know, to go from,
00:22:29 --> 00:22:34 I hate God to maybe he's okay. I guess I could check stuff out.
00:22:34 --> 00:22:38 I'll just dip my toe in and try and trust him a little bit. And you know what? He's really good.
00:22:38 --> 00:22:42 I'm going to follow him. And in fact, I'm going to be a missionary and I'm going to tell other people about him.
00:22:42 --> 00:22:50 There's no timeline like that. He is traveling to kill Christians and he meets Jesus and it all changes in an instant.
00:22:51 --> 00:22:53 That is the power of the gospel.
00:22:54 --> 00:22:59 That is the power of encountering Jesus as a risen Savior.
00:22:59 --> 00:23:04 If you're in this room right now and you're here under coercion,
00:23:04 --> 00:23:10 you've been dragged along by that special someone in your life or mom or dad or brother or sister or whoever it is,
00:23:11 --> 00:23:14 I want to say that's okay. I get it. I've been there.
00:23:17 --> 00:23:21 But what you need to understand is that if God has chosen you,
00:23:22 --> 00:23:24 and he does that before you're born,
00:23:24 --> 00:23:28 if God has chosen you, there's no point running.
00:23:29 --> 00:23:37 His grace and his gospel is so powerful that when he calls, you're going to answer.
00:23:38 --> 00:23:41 You might not even know that he's getting ready to call you,
00:23:41 --> 00:23:45 but when he does, when he shows you just how good he is,
00:23:45 --> 00:23:49 when he gives you a chance to see how incredible he is,
00:23:50 --> 00:23:50 you're in.
00:23:51 --> 00:23:53 Paul wasn't looking for Jesus,
00:23:53 --> 00:23:58 but the gospel call was irresistible.
00:24:00 --> 00:24:02 You might be thinking, well, maybe he didn't choose me,
00:24:03 --> 00:24:06 and so maybe I can just mind my own business and keep doing my own thing,
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 and look, you could be right.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:18 But you're here today on a day when we're preaching the gospel.
00:24:20 --> 00:24:24 So maybe today is your day.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:29 Maybe today is the moment when God is getting ready to call you,
00:24:29 --> 00:24:32 getting ready to invite you in to be part of his family.
00:24:32 --> 00:24:36 Finally, the gospel call is irresistible.
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 It was irresistible for Paul.
00:24:40 --> 00:24:46 And the reason it's irresistible is because what the gospel does is show you Jesus.
00:24:47 --> 00:24:49 What it does is just like it did for Paul,
00:24:49 --> 00:24:52 where he was confronted physically with Jesus,
00:24:52 --> 00:24:54 when we look at the gospel message,
00:24:54 --> 00:24:57 when we look at what God has done in Jesus,
00:24:57 --> 00:25:04 we are confronted with a God who is loving and gracious and forgiving and patient and holy and just
00:25:04 --> 00:25:09 and majestic and yet chooses to invite people like us into his family.
00:25:12 --> 00:25:15 So having set Paul apart in his mother's womb,
00:25:16 --> 00:25:18 having called him by grace,
00:25:18 --> 00:25:20 he reveals his son in him.
00:25:22 --> 00:25:24 Paul meets Jesus on the road.
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 Paul knows about Jesus.
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 He's heard the stories.
00:25:28 --> 00:25:31 I mean, he's traveling around killing the people who follow Jesus.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 He knows for a fact that Jesus was crucified.
00:25:36 --> 00:25:38 I mean, you know, that was common knowledge at this point.
00:25:39 --> 00:25:43 And then when he sees him alive on the road in front of him,
00:25:43 --> 00:25:46 suddenly all these things that he's heard,
00:25:46 --> 00:25:48 all these bits and pieces fall into place.
00:25:49 --> 00:25:54 I mean, if Jesus is alive and he was killed,
00:25:54 --> 00:25:58 then his claim to be the Son of God is genuine.
00:25:59 --> 00:26:02 If Jesus is alive and he's still here,
00:26:02 --> 00:26:05 then him saying that he was going to die for sins
00:26:05 --> 00:26:08 and his offer of forgiveness is genuine.
00:26:08 --> 00:26:12 Because Jesus is alive,
00:26:12 --> 00:26:15 his claim to be the rightful king over all creation
00:26:15 --> 00:26:18 and over every human life is legitimate.
00:26:18 --> 00:26:23 Paul's life is redefined at this moment.
00:26:24 --> 00:26:27 He becomes a completely different person
00:26:27 --> 00:26:29 because he is transformed by the truth
00:26:29 --> 00:26:31 that he can no longer unsee.
00:26:32 --> 00:26:34 Jesus is alive.
00:26:35 --> 00:26:37 That is the gospel message.
00:26:37 --> 00:26:39 The one who died to offer us forgiveness
00:26:39 --> 00:26:42 is now alive and sits on the throne.
00:26:42 --> 00:26:46 The truth of the gospel transformed Paul.
00:26:48 --> 00:26:51 The truth that by grace,
00:26:51 --> 00:26:53 God sent his son to die
00:26:53 --> 00:26:57 so that sinful people could be rescued.
00:26:59 --> 00:27:03 The truth that Jesus offers hope beyond death
00:27:03 --> 00:27:06 transformed Paul
00:27:06 --> 00:27:09 from being one of the church's fiercest opponents
00:27:09 --> 00:27:12 to one of the greatest evangelists
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 that the world has ever seen.
00:27:16 --> 00:27:18 He went from being a persecutor
00:27:18 --> 00:27:21 to the one being persecuted
00:27:21 --> 00:27:24 all because he met Jesus.
00:27:26 --> 00:27:29 The gospel is powerful enough
00:27:29 --> 00:27:31 to reach and transform anyone.
00:27:34 --> 00:27:37 The measure of the genuine gospel
00:27:37 --> 00:27:39 is its power to transform.
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 And so you've got to ask the question,
00:27:42 --> 00:27:44 what is it that's being transformed here?
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 Because there's a risk for us
00:27:46 --> 00:27:48 when we hear a dramatic story
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 like we did for Paul
00:27:49 --> 00:27:51 that we focus on the details.
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 So what's changed is
00:27:52 --> 00:27:55 before he was doing persecuting people
00:27:55 --> 00:27:58 and afterwards he's doing preaching.
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 And that's real.
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 That's a genuine shift.
00:28:01 --> 00:28:03 But we've got to look deeper than that.
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 We've got to ask the question,
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 what shifted to make him
00:28:05 --> 00:28:07 want to stop this
00:28:07 --> 00:28:09 and start this?
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 What made him willing to go
00:28:11 --> 00:28:14 from somebody who's exerting force on people
00:28:14 --> 00:28:16 to somebody who would choose to suffer?
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 It's not just a,
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 I'm going to do something else.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:23 Something deeper has changed for him.
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 And the clue
00:28:24 --> 00:28:26 is there for us in the passage.
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 It's at the beginning and the end.
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 Have a look at verse 10.
00:28:29 --> 00:28:37 Am I now trying to win the approval
00:28:37 --> 00:28:40 of human beings or of God?
00:28:41 --> 00:28:43 Or am I trying to please people?
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 If I was still trying to please people,
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 I would not be a servant of Christ.
00:28:48 --> 00:28:50 See, before Paul met Jesus,
00:28:51 --> 00:28:53 his life was driven by a desire
00:28:53 --> 00:28:55 to please people.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 I mean, he says it explicitly just there.
00:28:57 --> 00:29:00 He says if he was still trying to please people,
00:29:00 --> 00:29:02 meaning that's what he was doing before.
00:29:03 --> 00:29:05 So his religious zeal,
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 his effort to be a great Jew,
00:29:07 --> 00:29:09 even his persecution of the church
00:29:09 --> 00:29:11 was driven by a self-serving desire
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 to please people.
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 He wanted to please people
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 not because, you know,
00:29:16 --> 00:29:18 he loved them and he wanted to serve them.
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 He wanted to please them
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 so that in pleasing them,
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 he would get back
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 the significance that he craved.
00:29:23 --> 00:29:26 Because the reality is,
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 without Jesus,
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 who makes it possible for us
00:29:28 --> 00:29:30 to bring praise to God
00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 and find the significance
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 of being in his family,
00:29:33 --> 00:29:35 the only option we have
00:29:35 --> 00:29:37 when searching for significance
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 and identity
00:29:38 --> 00:29:40 is the accolade that we can get
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 from the people around us,
00:29:41 --> 00:29:43 from the achievements that we do,
00:29:43 --> 00:29:46 from the presence that we are in their life,
00:29:46 --> 00:29:48 from the way people talk about us
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 and need us.
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 That's where we will go searching
00:29:50 --> 00:29:53 for our significance in life.
00:29:56 --> 00:29:58 But Paul's heart shifts from that place.
00:29:59 --> 00:30:01 It shifts in response
00:30:01 --> 00:30:03 to being loved by grace,
00:30:03 --> 00:30:05 to the grace that God shows him in Jesus.
00:30:05 --> 00:30:07 And it shifts so far
00:30:07 --> 00:30:10 that his deepest desire is now
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 there in verse 24.
00:30:13 --> 00:30:15 The end of his big story
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 about his transformation
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 is,
00:30:17 --> 00:30:19 and they praised God because of me.
00:30:20 --> 00:30:24 It's all about God now.
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 Paul will now be somebody
00:30:27 --> 00:30:29 who will choose to bear
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 a huge cost to himself
00:30:30 --> 00:30:34 and he'll do it
00:30:34 --> 00:30:36 because his heart's deepest desire
00:30:36 --> 00:30:38 is now that God be pleased with him,
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 that God get praise.
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 Instead of being someone
00:30:42 --> 00:30:44 who is seeking his own identity,
00:30:45 --> 00:30:47 looking after number one,
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 he'll be somebody who denies himself.
00:30:48 --> 00:30:50 He'll end up in prison.
00:30:50 --> 00:30:52 There's this whole catalogue of stuff
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 that Paul ends up going through
00:30:53 --> 00:30:55 as a follower of Jesus.
00:30:55 --> 00:30:57 And the only reason he can do that
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 is because his heart is motivated
00:30:59 --> 00:31:02 by a desire for God to get credit,
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 not him.
00:31:04 --> 00:31:06 His life agenda has shifted.
00:31:07 --> 00:31:09 His first question now
00:31:09 --> 00:31:12 as he negotiates life
00:31:12 --> 00:31:12 is,
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 how do I please God
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 with this decision?
00:31:14 --> 00:31:17 How do I put God first?
00:31:20 --> 00:31:22 He finally recognises
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 where he fits
00:31:23 --> 00:31:26 that his God-given
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 created purpose
00:31:27 --> 00:31:29 was to point
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 to the one
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 who called him
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 to live in grace,
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 was to point
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 to the one
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 who forgave him,
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 to point to the one
00:31:37 --> 00:31:38 who satisfies him
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 more than all the other things
00:31:39 --> 00:31:41 that he had in his life before,
00:31:41 --> 00:31:43 to point to the one
00:31:43 --> 00:31:43 who loves him
00:31:43 --> 00:31:45 in spite of all that he is
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 and all that he's done.
00:31:48 --> 00:31:50 And so the last question
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 we've got to ask is,
00:31:52 --> 00:31:54 if you're following Jesus
00:31:54 --> 00:31:56 or if you're trying to decide
00:31:56 --> 00:31:56 whether or not you want
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 to follow Jesus,
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 the question is,
00:31:58 --> 00:32:00 how can you be sure
00:32:00 --> 00:32:02 or how can I be sure
00:32:02 --> 00:32:04 that we are trusting
00:32:04 --> 00:32:07 the only actual gospel,
00:32:07 --> 00:32:10 the one that comes
00:32:10 --> 00:32:10 from God,
00:32:10 --> 00:32:12 the one that has power,
00:32:14 --> 00:32:16 the way you'll know
00:32:16 --> 00:32:18 is to ask yourself
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 the question,
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 is my heart
00:32:20 --> 00:32:22 being transformed by it?
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 Is my heart
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 shifting from being
00:32:29 --> 00:32:31 that people-pleasing,
00:32:31 --> 00:32:34 self-serving person
00:32:34 --> 00:32:37 to being the self-denying,
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 God-pleasing person?
00:32:43 --> 00:32:45 If the answer is no,
00:32:46 --> 00:32:49 it's possible
00:32:49 --> 00:32:49 that you've fallen
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 for a perversion
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 of the gospel.
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 It's possible
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 that whatever it is
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 that you're trusting
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 or following
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 is enough to make you
00:32:58 --> 00:32:59 do religious things.
00:33:00 --> 00:33:00 I mean,
00:33:00 --> 00:33:00 you're in the room,
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 you're at church,
00:33:02 --> 00:33:03 you may be even serving
00:33:03 --> 00:33:04 and doing other things,
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 but maybe it's not
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 powerful enough
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 to actually change
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 your heart.
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 And if that's the case,
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 you need to hear
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 the gospel tonight.
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 You need to hear
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 the message
00:33:16 --> 00:33:18 that God invites you
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 to receive grace
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 from Him,
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 to be loved
00:33:22 --> 00:33:22 even though you
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 don't deserve it,
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 even though your
00:33:24 --> 00:33:24 heart's inclination
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 is to love yourself
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 first.
00:33:27 --> 00:33:27 You need to hear
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 the invitation
00:33:28 --> 00:33:29 that because Jesus
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 died and rose again,
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 God offers to love
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 you anyway
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 and to begin
00:33:33 --> 00:33:33 the work
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 of transforming
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 you to be
00:33:35 --> 00:33:35 who you were
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 made to be.
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 As I was writing
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 this message,
00:33:44 --> 00:33:44 I was chatting
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 with Sal about it
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 last night
00:33:46 --> 00:33:46 and saying
00:33:46 --> 00:33:48 that feels like
00:33:48 --> 00:33:48 a really sharp
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 place to stop.
00:33:51 --> 00:33:51 It feels almost
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 a little bit offensive.
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 And so I was trying
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 to think of a second
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 option.
00:33:56 --> 00:33:56 You know,
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 if you're not being
00:33:57 --> 00:33:57 transformed to say
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 maybe you don't
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 have the gospel,
00:33:59 --> 00:33:59 maybe there's
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 another softer version.
00:34:00 --> 00:34:03 And as I was
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 thinking that
00:34:04 --> 00:34:05 through and
00:34:05 --> 00:34:05 processing that,
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 I realised two
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 things.
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 The first thing
00:34:10 --> 00:34:12 was that there
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 is no other
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 option.
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 The gospel
00:34:18 --> 00:34:19 transforms hearts.
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 It's what it
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 does.
00:34:22 --> 00:34:22 And so if our
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 hearts are not
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 being transformed
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 so that we care
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 more about
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 pleasing God
00:34:27 --> 00:34:27 than we do
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 about pleasing
00:34:28 --> 00:34:28 people,
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 we have to
00:34:29 --> 00:34:29 seriously ask
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 the question,
00:34:30 --> 00:34:31 do we know
00:34:31 --> 00:34:31 Jesus?
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 Have we met
00:34:33 --> 00:34:33 him?
00:34:35 --> 00:34:35 Do we know
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 his majesty
00:34:36 --> 00:34:38 and his love
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 and his
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 worthiness?
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 But the
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 second thing
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 I realised
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 was that
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 my desire
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 to soften
00:34:49 --> 00:34:49 this point
00:34:49 --> 00:34:51 was ultimately
00:34:51 --> 00:34:51 a people
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 pleasing desire.
00:34:55 --> 00:34:55 I want to
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 be,
00:34:56 --> 00:34:56 you know,
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 I want you
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 to come and
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 let me know
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 afterwards how
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 encouraging the
00:34:59 --> 00:34:59 sermon was.
00:35:01 --> 00:35:01 I want to
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 be known
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 as the
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 good
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 preacher.
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 But that
00:35:08 --> 00:35:08 doesn't change
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 anything about
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 that first
00:35:10 --> 00:35:10 reflection.
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 It doesn't
00:35:12 --> 00:35:12 change the
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 fact that the
00:35:13 --> 00:35:13 gospel changes
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 hearts.
00:35:16 --> 00:35:17 But what it
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 did do is
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 remind me
00:35:18 --> 00:35:21 that maybe I
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 need to keep
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 hearing the
00:35:22 --> 00:35:22 gospel.
00:35:25 --> 00:35:25 Reminded me
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 that maybe I'm
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 not a finished
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 product yet
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 in that
00:35:29 --> 00:35:30 journey from
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 people pleasing
00:35:31 --> 00:35:31 to God
00:35:31 --> 00:35:31 pleasing.
00:35:34 --> 00:35:35 I'm sure
00:35:35 --> 00:35:35 that many of
00:35:35 --> 00:35:36 you guys are
00:35:36 --> 00:35:36 aware that I'm
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 in the process
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 of training for
00:35:38 --> 00:35:38 a half marathon.
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 You're probably
00:35:40 --> 00:35:40 aware because I'm
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 always telling you
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 how fast or
00:35:42 --> 00:35:42 slow I'm running
00:35:42 --> 00:35:43 or I'm limping
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 as I try and get
00:35:44 --> 00:35:44 up on the
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 platform on a
00:35:45 --> 00:35:45 Sunday.
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 It was a whim,
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 it was a silly
00:35:48 --> 00:35:48 decision.
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 I was on
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 holidays a little
00:35:50 --> 00:35:50 over ten weeks
00:35:50 --> 00:35:52 ago and my
00:35:52 --> 00:35:52 brother-in-law,
00:35:53 --> 00:35:53 he's an
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 indigenous marathon
00:35:54 --> 00:35:54 runner.
00:35:54 --> 00:35:56 He has a
00:35:56 --> 00:35:56 slightly different
00:35:56 --> 00:35:57 body type to
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 me and he's
00:35:58 --> 00:35:58 been doing
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 marathon running
00:35:59 --> 00:36:01 for a while and
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 he managed to
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 talk me into
00:36:02 --> 00:36:02 why don't you
00:36:02 --> 00:36:03 just have a go,
00:36:03 --> 00:36:03 just run a
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 half marathon.
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 Why don't I?
00:36:05 --> 00:36:06 Because I'm
00:36:06 --> 00:36:06 nearly 35 and
00:36:06 --> 00:36:07 I've never done
00:36:07 --> 00:36:07 it before is why.
00:36:08 --> 00:36:09 But I wasn't
00:36:09 --> 00:36:10 thinking logically
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 on holidays so I
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 committed and
00:36:12 --> 00:36:12 said yep let's
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 do it, have a go.
00:36:13 --> 00:36:14 I signed up, I
00:36:14 --> 00:36:15 registered for the
00:36:15 --> 00:36:16 half marathon and
00:36:16 --> 00:36:17 I started training
00:36:17 --> 00:36:19 and it was fun for
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 about a week and
00:36:20 --> 00:36:21 then now I'm about
00:36:21 --> 00:36:22 ten weeks in.
00:36:23 --> 00:36:24 And it's
00:36:24 --> 00:36:24 interesting to
00:36:24 --> 00:36:25 watch how it
00:36:25 --> 00:36:25 goes.
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 I have, I'm
00:36:26 --> 00:36:27 trying to think
00:36:27 --> 00:36:27 how you're
00:36:27 --> 00:36:27 reading left to
00:36:27 --> 00:36:28 right, yeah.
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 So if this is my
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 journey of training,
00:36:30 --> 00:36:31 I have some weeks
00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 where I'm running
00:36:32 --> 00:36:33 really fast and
00:36:33 --> 00:36:33 stuff's good and
00:36:33 --> 00:36:34 other weeks where
00:36:34 --> 00:36:34 it's slow.
00:36:35 --> 00:36:36 But my slow
00:36:36 --> 00:36:37 weeks ten weeks
00:36:37 --> 00:36:38 into the journey
00:36:38 --> 00:36:39 are much quicker
00:36:39 --> 00:36:40 than my slow
00:36:40 --> 00:36:41 weeks week one.
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 The level of pain
00:36:43 --> 00:36:44 I'm experiencing
00:36:44 --> 00:36:45 in week ten,
00:36:45 --> 00:36:46 even on the
00:36:46 --> 00:36:47 painful days,
00:36:47 --> 00:36:47 is much lower
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 than the pain I
00:36:48 --> 00:36:49 was experiencing
00:36:49 --> 00:36:50 in week one.
00:36:50 --> 00:36:53 I'm moving
00:36:53 --> 00:36:53 in a direction.
00:36:54 --> 00:36:54 It's not a clean
00:36:54 --> 00:36:55 line of progress
00:36:55 --> 00:36:56 when it comes to
00:36:56 --> 00:36:57 my fitness and
00:36:57 --> 00:36:58 my strength and
00:36:58 --> 00:36:59 how fast I am.
00:36:59 --> 00:37:00 It's like this,
00:37:00 --> 00:37:01 but it's all
00:37:01 --> 00:37:02 moving up in the
00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 right direction.
00:37:03 --> 00:37:04 It's the same
00:37:04 --> 00:37:05 when it comes to
00:37:05 --> 00:37:06 the transformation
00:37:06 --> 00:37:06 that God is
00:37:06 --> 00:37:07 working in us.
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 There are weeks
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 where we will be
00:37:10 --> 00:37:11 way more selfish
00:37:11 --> 00:37:12 than we wish we
00:37:12 --> 00:37:12 were.
00:37:13 --> 00:37:14 There will be weeks
00:37:14 --> 00:37:14 where God in His
00:37:14 --> 00:37:16 grace empowers us
00:37:16 --> 00:37:16 to lovingly put
00:37:16 --> 00:37:17 Him first and
00:37:17 --> 00:37:18 serve people and
00:37:18 --> 00:37:19 seek His glory
00:37:19 --> 00:37:20 way more than
00:37:20 --> 00:37:20 we do at other
00:37:20 --> 00:37:21 times.
00:37:21 --> 00:37:22 The issue is not
00:37:22 --> 00:37:23 are you seeking
00:37:23 --> 00:37:24 to please God
00:37:24 --> 00:37:25 more today than
00:37:25 --> 00:37:26 you did yesterday?
00:37:27 --> 00:37:27 Because we do
00:37:27 --> 00:37:28 this.
00:37:29 --> 00:37:29 We've got to
00:37:29 --> 00:37:30 step back and
00:37:30 --> 00:37:31 have a bigger
00:37:31 --> 00:37:31 look.
00:37:33 --> 00:37:33 We've got to
00:37:33 --> 00:37:34 ask ourselves
00:37:34 --> 00:37:34 the question,
00:37:35 --> 00:37:35 am I seeking
00:37:35 --> 00:37:36 to please God
00:37:36 --> 00:37:38 more now than
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 I was a year
00:37:38 --> 00:37:39 ago?
00:37:41 --> 00:37:42 Am I thinking
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 of God first
00:37:43 --> 00:37:45 in my big life
00:37:45 --> 00:37:45 decisions more
00:37:45 --> 00:37:46 now than I
00:37:46 --> 00:37:47 would have when
00:37:47 --> 00:37:47 I started
00:37:47 --> 00:37:48 following Him?
00:37:49 --> 00:37:50 As I think
00:37:50 --> 00:37:51 about what
00:37:51 --> 00:37:52 job I might
00:37:52 --> 00:37:52 take or
00:37:52 --> 00:37:53 offers that
00:37:53 --> 00:37:53 are on the
00:37:53 --> 00:37:54 table,
00:37:54 --> 00:37:54 decisions I've
00:37:54 --> 00:37:55 got to make,
00:37:55 --> 00:37:56 is my first
00:37:56 --> 00:37:57 inclination,
00:37:57 --> 00:37:58 what does God
00:37:58 --> 00:37:59 want me to do
00:37:59 --> 00:37:59 here?
00:38:00 --> 00:38:01 More so than
00:38:01 --> 00:38:01 it would have
00:38:01 --> 00:38:02 been before.
00:38:03 --> 00:38:04 As I think
00:38:04 --> 00:38:04 about being
00:38:04 --> 00:38:05 generous,
00:38:05 --> 00:38:06 is my first
00:38:06 --> 00:38:07 inclination,
00:38:07 --> 00:38:08 what does God
00:38:08 --> 00:38:08 want from me
00:38:08 --> 00:38:09 here?
00:38:10 --> 00:38:12 A year or
00:38:12 --> 00:38:13 four years ago
00:38:13 --> 00:38:14 it might have
00:38:14 --> 00:38:15 been, does God
00:38:15 --> 00:38:15 want me to be
00:38:15 --> 00:38:15 generous?
00:38:16 --> 00:38:17 The answer is
00:38:17 --> 00:38:17 yes, just to
00:38:17 --> 00:38:18 clarify.
00:38:18 --> 00:38:18 But as
00:38:18 --> 00:38:19 you've grown
00:38:19 --> 00:38:20 slowly, as
00:38:20 --> 00:38:20 God's done
00:38:20 --> 00:38:21 work in you,
00:38:21 --> 00:38:22 now it might
00:38:22 --> 00:38:23 be, how
00:38:23 --> 00:38:23 much more
00:38:23 --> 00:38:24 does God
00:38:24 --> 00:38:24 want me to
00:38:24 --> 00:38:25 push in my
00:38:25 --> 00:38:25 generosity?
00:38:26 --> 00:38:27 See, it's a
00:38:27 --> 00:38:28 progressive thing,
00:38:28 --> 00:38:28 but we've got to
00:38:28 --> 00:38:29 be willing to
00:38:29 --> 00:38:30 still ask the
00:38:30 --> 00:38:30 question.
00:38:31 --> 00:38:32 We can't just
00:38:32 --> 00:38:33 hide from the
00:38:33 --> 00:38:34 reality because
00:38:34 --> 00:38:35 our lives
00:38:35 --> 00:38:35 sometimes do
00:38:35 --> 00:38:36 this, because
00:38:36 --> 00:38:37 the message
00:38:37 --> 00:38:37 here is that
00:38:37 --> 00:38:38 the gospel
00:38:38 --> 00:38:39 transforms us.
00:38:41 --> 00:38:41 And so if
00:38:41 --> 00:38:42 there's no
00:38:42 --> 00:38:43 transformation, and
00:38:43 --> 00:38:43 Deb was sharing
00:38:43 --> 00:38:44 this morning, and
00:38:44 --> 00:38:45 I was outside
00:38:45 --> 00:38:45 putting Huddy in,
00:38:45 --> 00:38:46 I don't know if
00:38:46 --> 00:38:46 you shared it
00:38:46 --> 00:38:47 tonight, but
00:38:47 --> 00:38:47 Deb met
00:38:47 --> 00:38:48 Jesus after
00:38:48 --> 00:38:50 serving on a
00:38:50 --> 00:38:50 Sunday school
00:38:50 --> 00:38:51 team for
00:38:51 --> 00:38:51 years.
00:38:52 --> 00:38:53 And so it
00:38:53 --> 00:38:53 could be that
00:38:53 --> 00:38:54 you've been
00:38:54 --> 00:38:55 sitting in
00:38:55 --> 00:38:56 church, maybe
00:38:56 --> 00:38:56 even your
00:38:56 --> 00:38:59 whole life, but
00:38:59 --> 00:39:00 you've never
00:39:00 --> 00:39:01 met Jesus.
00:39:02 --> 00:39:03 And maybe
00:39:03 --> 00:39:04 tonight God
00:39:04 --> 00:39:04 is holding up
00:39:04 --> 00:39:05 this mirror to
00:39:05 --> 00:39:06 say, here's
00:39:06 --> 00:39:06 how you'll
00:39:06 --> 00:39:06 know.
00:39:07 --> 00:39:08 If there's
00:39:08 --> 00:39:09 been no shift
00:39:09 --> 00:39:10 in your heart
00:39:10 --> 00:39:11 in that journey,
00:39:11 --> 00:39:12 then you need
00:39:12 --> 00:39:12 to meet him.
00:39:12 --> 00:39:14 But the
00:39:14 --> 00:39:15 good news
00:39:15 --> 00:39:16 is that the
00:39:16 --> 00:39:17 gospel invitation
00:39:17 --> 00:39:17 is still open
00:39:17 --> 00:39:18 to you.
00:39:19 --> 00:39:20 That if you're
00:39:20 --> 00:39:20 sitting here
00:39:20 --> 00:39:21 feeling uncomfortable,
00:39:22 --> 00:39:23 feeling convicted
00:39:23 --> 00:39:24 that there isn't
00:39:24 --> 00:39:25 any shift in
00:39:25 --> 00:39:25 your life,
00:39:26 --> 00:39:28 that God is
00:39:28 --> 00:39:30 inviting you to
00:39:30 --> 00:39:30 meet Jesus
00:39:30 --> 00:39:31 right now.
00:39:32 --> 00:39:33 That the
00:39:33 --> 00:39:34 gospel is
00:39:34 --> 00:39:34 powerful enough
00:39:34 --> 00:39:35 to grab you,
00:39:35 --> 00:39:35 even if you
00:39:35 --> 00:39:36 came here to
00:39:36 --> 00:39:37 make someone
00:39:37 --> 00:39:38 else happy.
00:39:38 --> 00:39:39 The gospel is
00:39:39 --> 00:39:40 powerful enough
00:39:40 --> 00:39:40 to right now,
00:39:40 --> 00:39:41 in this moment,
00:39:41 --> 00:39:42 introduce you
00:39:42 --> 00:39:43 to Jesus and
00:39:43 --> 00:39:44 start you on
00:39:44 --> 00:39:45 the journey of
00:39:45 --> 00:39:45 getting to
00:39:45 --> 00:39:46 know the
00:39:46 --> 00:39:47 greatest love
00:39:47 --> 00:39:48 that has ever
00:39:48 --> 00:39:49 been expressed.
00:39:50 --> 00:39:51 Getting to
00:39:51 --> 00:39:51 know the God
00:39:51 --> 00:39:52 who made you.
00:39:55 --> 00:39:56 It's an open
00:39:56 --> 00:39:57 invitation.
00:40:00 --> 00:40:01 Tonight could
00:40:01 --> 00:40:01 be the night
00:40:01 --> 00:40:02 that God wants
00:40:02 --> 00:40:03 to show you
00:40:03 --> 00:40:07 Jesus and
00:40:07 --> 00:40:08 begin the work
00:40:08 --> 00:40:08 of transforming
00:40:08 --> 00:40:09 you for his
00:40:09 --> 00:40:10 glory.
00:40:11 --> 00:40:12 God, if
00:40:12 --> 00:40:12 you've never
00:40:12 --> 00:40:13 done that
00:40:13 --> 00:40:15 before, if
00:40:15 --> 00:40:15 you're sitting
00:40:15 --> 00:40:16 there going,
00:40:17 --> 00:40:18 I need to
00:40:18 --> 00:40:19 do that, I
00:40:19 --> 00:40:19 need to take
00:40:19 --> 00:40:21 the step, then
00:40:21 --> 00:40:21 just now I'm
00:40:21 --> 00:40:22 going to pray.
00:40:26 --> 00:40:26 And if you
00:40:26 --> 00:40:27 need to, I
00:40:27 --> 00:40:27 want you to
00:40:27 --> 00:40:28 make this
00:40:28 --> 00:40:28 prayer your
00:40:28 --> 00:40:29 prayer.
00:40:29 --> 00:40:30 Just in your
00:40:30 --> 00:40:31 own head, just
00:40:31 --> 00:40:31 you can repeat
00:40:31 --> 00:40:32 the words as I
00:40:32 --> 00:40:32 go.
00:40:34 --> 00:40:34 Say amen in
00:40:34 --> 00:40:35 your head at
00:40:35 --> 00:40:35 the end, whatever
00:40:35 --> 00:40:36 you need to do
00:40:36 --> 00:40:36 to say, God,
00:40:37 --> 00:40:37 this is my
00:40:37 --> 00:40:37 prayer.
00:40:37 --> 00:40:40 And in
00:40:40 --> 00:40:40 the Bible, God
00:40:40 --> 00:40:41 makes it clear.
00:40:42 --> 00:40:42 When we come
00:40:42 --> 00:40:43 to him and we
00:40:43 --> 00:40:43 ask for forgiveness,
00:40:44 --> 00:40:46 when we come
00:40:46 --> 00:40:47 to him and ask
00:40:47 --> 00:40:48 him to help us
00:40:48 --> 00:40:49 make Jesus the
00:40:49 --> 00:40:50 king that he's
00:40:50 --> 00:40:51 supposed to be,
00:40:51 --> 00:40:52 the answer will
00:40:52 --> 00:40:53 be yes.
00:40:55 --> 00:40:56 So let's pray
00:40:56 --> 00:40:58 right now and
00:40:58 --> 00:40:58 maybe tonight is
00:40:58 --> 00:40:59 your night to
00:40:59 --> 00:40:59 begin this
00:40:59 --> 00:41:00 journey.
00:41:02 --> 00:41:02 Father God,
00:41:02 --> 00:41:06 we're sorry
00:41:06 --> 00:41:07 for caring more
00:41:07 --> 00:41:08 about ourselves
00:41:08 --> 00:41:08 and for seeking
00:41:08 --> 00:41:10 to please people
00:41:10 --> 00:41:11 rather than
00:41:11 --> 00:41:11 living for you.
00:41:15 --> 00:41:16 We're sorry
00:41:16 --> 00:41:16 for going
00:41:16 --> 00:41:17 through the
00:41:17 --> 00:41:18 motions sometimes
00:41:18 --> 00:41:19 of church and
00:41:19 --> 00:41:20 religion without
00:41:20 --> 00:41:21 having hearts
00:41:21 --> 00:41:22 that love you.
00:41:26 --> 00:41:27 We're sorry
00:41:27 --> 00:41:28 for replacing
00:41:28 --> 00:41:29 your gospel
00:41:29 --> 00:41:30 of free grace
00:41:30 --> 00:41:32 with effort
00:41:32 --> 00:41:34 that can
00:41:34 --> 00:41:34 never do
00:41:34 --> 00:41:34 the job.
00:41:37 --> 00:41:38 Please
00:41:38 --> 00:41:39 forgive us
00:41:39 --> 00:41:41 and by your
00:41:41 --> 00:41:41 grace,
00:41:41 --> 00:41:42 transform us
00:41:42 --> 00:41:43 to be the
00:41:43 --> 00:41:43 kind of people
00:41:43 --> 00:41:44 who live every
00:41:44 --> 00:41:45 minute of every
00:41:45 --> 00:41:46 day for you.
00:41:49 --> 00:41:50 Thank you
00:41:50 --> 00:41:50 for sending
00:41:50 --> 00:41:51 Jesus to die
00:41:51 --> 00:41:52 in our place.
00:41:54 --> 00:41:55 Thank you
00:41:55 --> 00:41:55 for being
00:41:55 --> 00:41:56 patient with
00:41:56 --> 00:41:57 us as we
00:41:57 --> 00:41:57 fail and we
00:41:57 --> 00:41:58 struggle on
00:41:58 --> 00:41:59 this journey.
00:41:59 --> 00:42:02 please reveal
00:42:02 --> 00:42:03 your son
00:42:03 --> 00:42:04 in us
00:42:04 --> 00:42:05 so that
00:42:05 --> 00:42:05 others might
00:42:05 --> 00:42:06 come to
00:42:06 --> 00:42:06 know this
00:42:06 --> 00:42:07 powerful,
00:42:08 --> 00:42:09 grace-filled
00:42:09 --> 00:42:09 gospel.
00:42:10 --> 00:42:11 For your
00:42:11 --> 00:42:11 sake.
00:42:11 --> 00:42:12 Amen.