good morning sandals Church man I'm glad you guys are here today I hope you're ready to hear a message from God today we're talking about how does God speak directly to you if I did a survey and I asked how many of you have ever heard directly from God most of you would say I never heard from God and the reason you say no I've never heard from God is because you don't know how God speaks directly to you and so my prayer is that at the end of the service there wouldn't be one person who leaves here who says God has never spoken directly to me that you would hear from him that you would understand how God speaks and why he speaks to you in this way we're in Acts chapter 20 in our study together I want you to open your Bibles to Acts chapter 20 it's an amazing amazing chapter coming on the heels of Acts 19 where things got really really crazy and really really wild and they tried to kill the Christians in the city of Ephesus but God intervenes and does a miracle and spares their lives but in acts 20 we see this relationship developing between the Apostle Paul the preacher in Ephesus and the Church of Ephesus and they have this unique relationship that begins to develop over time and here's my prayer is that over time as you attend sandals and sandals church becomes your home that you and I will develop this kind of relationship and together we will begin to hear from God on a regular basis so let's just go to God in prayer and we bow our heads and close our eyes out of sandals church out of respect and because we have a TD so let's do that together Heavenly Father god we just come before you and we ask that you speak in Jesus name to us God we don't need to hear my words but we need to hear your word so God use my mouth to speak your truth we pray this in Christ's name Amen so let's take a look at acts 20 verse 7 it says on the first day of the week now it's interesting the church begins to transition from meeting on Saturdays with Jews in the synagogue to Sundays with Christians why sunday sunday is the day that the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead and so it becomes called the Lord's Day and so they gathered together on the Lord's Day separating from the Jews who have rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and gathering with Jews on Sundays for those who believe that he was indeed the Messiah so we gathered with local believers to share in the Lord's Supper and this was the process of remembering what Christ had done for them now it says Paul was preaching to them now circle the word preaching now most of us right don't think of the word preaching as a positive thing like if someone's nagging you or someone see I'm talking at you you say don't preach right Madonna has a famous song and says but Papa don't preach I don't give me that and if you don't know that song you're young and if you know what you're old right Madonna whooo 80s okay so but like people say this I don't need a sermon which is kind of hurtful because that's like what I do for a living people like I don't need a sermon and so it's become a very very negative thing in our culture when the reality is God means it to be a very very positive thing in your life so Paul was preaching to them and since he was leaving the next day underlying these words he kept preaching till midnight so don't give me a hard time when I go forty-two minutes okay Paul saw forty-two minutes four hours ago he's still going he's still preaching and today I'm fired up and I got to tell you why they bought me you can't see this but I'm standing on an anti-fatigue mat and so I feel like I could go a couple rounds today so you're gonna be here till Monday so just sit and be ready and prepared for God's sermon so it's awesome it's called an anti-fatigue mat which is perfect because I'm a mat and I want to remain anti-fatigue so it's it's like it's designed specifically for me so I'm pretty excited about this so you got to come and see this later and touch it it's pretty cool little foamy but I like it so Paul was standing on a anti-fatigue mat by the Holy Spirit and he just kept preaching and preaching and preaching now the Bible is written by real people inspired by the Holy Spirit and they just I love Luke's authenticity so Luke is the author of the book of Acts and he's telling us what took place and he's present in this situation and he says the upstairs room where we met was lighted with many flickering lamps what does that mean candle light right so anybody ever had a restaurant and there's like candlelight and my wife thinks candles are romantic I think candles are sleepy that's what I think candles for me it's like oh I'm you know I'm snoring that's what it does for me so Paul's preaching right he's preaching for hours there's candle like what does that mean people are drifting people are getting sleepy look what Luke says verse 9 Paul spoke on and on and on right Luke's like hahaha this is gonna be in the Bible forever so Paul's preaching and preaching and preaching and then there's this poor guy like there's good reasons to be in the Bible and there's not so good reasons to be in the Bible and then there's hilarious reasons to be in the Bible and so when you get to heaven like if you die today tell you to kiss I said hello and teased him because he is in the Bible because he fell asleep during a sermon and died that's why he is in the Bible right that's like not the reason that you want to be in there I don't think there's anybody you know thinking of a name Eutychus that's it right nobody's thinking of that so there's this guy named eutychus he's a young man front ciders you get bored during the sermon so he was in frontside youth group in Ephesus and he fell asleep during the sermon so look what it says frontside errs he was sitting on a windowsill right sometimes when you're young you think well I can do anything and God will save me from my stupidity no if you're sleepy if you're drowsy maybe don't sleep on a Ledge maybe don't do that that's just I guess free information even if you're like an atheist here today write that down that's good information if you're tired don't sleep near a precipice where you can fall to your death but Eutychus is a young guy he's like whatever so he's sleeping on the windowsill he became very drowsy finally he fell asleep like this is a process does anybody ever nodded off like you know you're I always I always do the thing where I can't play it off and I grab the people next to me you ever do that yeah sorry I ain't appropriately grabbed you I was asleep as bizarre okay and I do it on planes when you're stuck next to people and it's just so bizarre yeah so you know Eutychus is doing that right he finally falls asleep on the windowsill look at this underline these words he fell three stories to his death okay so he's not like on the windowsill on the patio he's in a skyscraper in Ephesus and he falls to his death so everybody's freaked out like this is not the way you want to end a sermon like during the last song we don't want people like fall from the ceiling that would be that would be unfortunate to end the sermon that way so he falls to his death Paul went down bent over him took him into his arms he says don't worry he's alive Paul brought him back from the dead it's amazing look at verse 11 everybody's response then they all went back upstairs it's like oh you two kiss is dead whatever its acts this stuff happens so they go back upstairs they shared in the Lord's Supper and the ate together look at what happened Paul continues talking you think anybody's gonna fall asleep now memories like oh yeah oh yeah they're drinking Jolt Cola Starbucks whatever it takes you know we need some more flickering lights whatever it takes I'm not I'm not dying right who knows that Paul is another miracle in them so they're all all paying attention and Paul continued speaking to them until when does anybody see the word dawn Paul preached all night long meanwhile the young man was taken home unhurt and everyone was greatly relieved so why is it that the early church thinks we need sermons why is it that some of you I mean you got dragged here today like Dre at another sermon oh my gosh and when we use sermons in a negative light what is it that Ephesus understood about preaching that you and I have forgotten you know that in some places in the world today like in China most churches that are evangelical like us are called underground churches they're not approved by the state and so they have to hide and move and change the places they meet all the time and so when a guest speaker will come from America to preach many Christians in China will get on a train for 10 to 12 hours to commute so that they can hear a sermon and when the preacher preaches he doesn't preach for an hour he preaches all day long and they say don't stop sermons in China last 10 11 and 12 hours what is it about preaching that you and I are missing here's what we're missing God uses preaching to speak directly to you why is this because we worship a relational God we worship a God who exists eternally in relationship he his father he his son he his holy spirit Christians call this the Trinity the tri-unity God he is 1 and 3 he is a perfect relationship it's why in the Bible God defines himself as love you can't just love yourself love is something that exists in relationship and so God is a relational God he is the God of Abraham he is the god of Isaac he is the God of Jacob why does he define himself he defines himself that way because it's a relational way of defining who he is I am the God who exists in relationship with you so because God is relational how is God going to speak to you he's going to speak to you in the context of relationship and because of that God calls preachers to speak to you number one write this down God calls on preachers to speak his words that's the way God works because he's a relational God because he wants to speak to you in the context of relationship look a burning bush is great but it's a little freaky am i right I mean some of you if you experience a burning bush you were smoking some burning something and that's why that happened and it's a little little odd it's easier for God to speak to us in context of relationship that's why the incarnation of Jesus Christ is so important important when God wanted to speak to us one-on-one what did he do he became a human being he dwelt among us and he spoke to us one of Jesus's names is Emmanuel which means God with us this is the way God's speak so God has always used speakers to speak to us so he can communicate with us so we can understand who he is second Timothy 1:11 God chose me circle those words God chose me to be a preacher you don't decide to be a preacher God decides you're a preacher he calls you he chooses you no little kid ever says I want to be a preacher one day you're like you don't be a fireman you don't be a policeman you want to make lots of money nobody's like I want to be poor for Jesus when you're eight that's not that's not your passion right God speaks to his preachers he calls them okay my whole life I've had a big mouth my mom and I were in the car this week and I was talking about we're talking about you know schooling and I struggled I flunked kindergarten let's just say it so I flunked kindergarten okay and I had to repeat kindergarten and so I went to this special teacher who deals with special kids right and I told her I said I never remember getting in trouble in her classroom my mom's like oh you did you did and my mom remembers an instance where the teacher drew a circle on the chalk and I had to put my nose in it like today that's like that's like what we do to you know terrorists for torture in the 70s that was education that's what they did right it was just a different time so I long as I remember I'm always in trouble and you know why I was in trouble this right here this my mouth always it's always moving it's always moving and all my teachers thought it was a curse but God thought this was a blessing right yeah seeing so when I'm 15 years old I go to summer camp and I hear the voice of God for the first time and God calls me to preach freaked me on who I don't know what I'm supposed to do God said preach to me I don't know what that means I knew what it meant I didn't want to know what it meant so I ignored it for three years then I'm graduating from high school I went to a public high school in California and before you graduate at least when I was in high school they made you take a test to try to help you figure out what you're gonna do for the rest of your life and so my English teacher Miss Brown not my mom she was my English teacher Miss Brown she had us take this test and she helped us understand and interpret the results of the test so I got my test back many of you've heard this story I looked at the word of what I was supposed to be and I didn't know what it meant I got Miss Brown I need help I don't know what this is I don't know what I'm supposed to be so Miss Brown comes up and she looks at my test results and she's laughs huh that can't be true I said what is it she says sweetie you don't know what clergy is I went to a public high school with a test designed not to help people find their calling for God but find their career in life and my public school test God's like watch this one Jesus you know and it says clergy I know what clergy was like I thought if you had clergy you go to the doctor and you take medication you know what happened to Matt he got clergy and he's just as bad as really bad bad case of clergy okay so God calls us God calls us and you say oh well that's special God God loves you so much that he called you no no no listen God didn't call me to preach just because he loves me he called me to preach because he loves you and here's why you're a bunch of knuckleheads and you couldn't listen to anyone else preach and so God looked at you God looked at you and he was like how are we gonna reach that guy I don't know that guy's an idiot what would what would communicate with that idiot and Jesus is like I got I know I know I know matte Brown matte he right he okay I mean you guys some people come to our church like oh my gosh it's like stand-up comedy okay that's because you can't listen to a regular sermon that's why you can't you go you go to normal Church and you're like Jesus Jesus Jesus right and you're lost and so you need like you need a special preacher for you that's what you need right and so God knew yeah okay okay listen write this down God uses sermons God uses sermons to speak to me to you you ever been to church and you felt like it was just for you anybody ever been that way like literally as maybe it's not me but the preachers talking you just shrinking in your seat oh oh was he there did he ah oh my gosh it's you're pokin your husband ever put that on Instagram again sometimes it happens and here's the thing is you're all shocked you're all surprised all that was a good sermon today pastor it actually spoke to me well thanks it's supposed to speak to you okay here's why I mean some of you guys you read the Bible and you're in Leviticus you're like oh oh why is that guy doing that with a goat what ah ah this I never read that again some of you get lost in Scripture and you know why that is because the Bible is not always easy to understand and my job is to make it easy for you to understand that's my job so first Corinthians that's written to the church at Corinth Ephesians that's written to the church at Ephesus Galatians that's written to the church in Galatia you go to sandals here's what a sermon is all week long I prep and I pray and I say God what does sand need to hear from your word from your truth God what if sandals need to hear and so this is why it shouldn't be a shocker that God speaks to you when you come to church because I have prayed and prepped and asks God what you need to hear and that's why the messages feel personal see listen preachers make God's Word personal that's the giftedness that's what Jesus did is what John the Baptist did it's what Paul did it's what James did it's what Charles Spurgeon did it's what Billy Graham did it's what I do it's what preachers do we connect with you listen to this God did not call me to preach only because he loves me but God called me to preach because he loves you and he knew that his words would reach your heart from my mouth isn't that amazing God doesn't just know what you need to hear he knows who you need to hear it from does anybody ever been honest with you and it didn't reach your heart like guys your wife says you have bad breath you always have bad breath it stinks like that's truth you need to hear like you need to know like if you're if your mouth reeks of trash you need to know someone needs to tell you but you need someone to tell you in a gentle way that will reach your heart okay I mean sometimes people tell you truth but it's you know it's offensive like you have a booger in your nose you need to know that you need to know that but it's yet have a delicate approach and so God knows that some of you have boogers in your spiritual life and he wants it out it's bothering him and you need somebody that says hey hey buddy pal I love you here's a Kleenex wipe that thing away we all need that so it's not just what you say it's how you say it and God knows how you need to hear it okay so God uses sermons to speak his words God uses sermons to speak to me that's why the name of our church some of you don't know this Romans 10:13 through 15 that says how can people believe in Jesus unless they hear about them him how can they believe in him unless someone preaches how can someone preach unless they're sent that's why the Bible says how beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news the name of sandals church is about the gospel coming in a way that you can hear it you see you can only become real with God when someone's words help you become real with God we all need to hear God's truth and we've all had incredible moments in sermons where God has spoken powerfully to us right to our situation right to our life right to where we are and we need to hear this and that's why the church in Ephesus gathered around and listened to Paul preached on and on and on because they needed to hear at all they needed to hear it it was life-changing news so what's the purpose of sermons God uses sermons for me write this down first of all to encourage me why why why do you need to be encouraged on a regular basis because life is discouraging hello anybody been out there we all need to be encouraged so what happened in acts 19 acts 19 things got so crazy in Ephesus that literally thousands of Ephesians gathered in the theatres and Ephesus now I've been to that theater it's massive it holds 24,000 people it's still there today it's one of the most untouched Roman ruins of the ancient world it's amazing the town was abandoned and they just left it and it's still there and you can see it it is fantastic looking 24,000 people had held thousands of people running to the theater for one purpose you know what they wanted to do kill the Christians why because Ephesus is dedicated to Diana the goddess Diana was worshiped in Ephesus we don't worship Jesus we worship Diana and these Christians need to be run away they need to be done away with and so they all gathered together and they brought some of the Christian leaders together and they said we got to do something about this remember the Apostle Paul last week they said don't come don't come it's too dangerous don't you dare come so after that you know what everybody's a little shaken up everybody's a little discouraged so look at acts 20 verse 1 this is how the chapter starts when the uproar was over what was the uproar what took place in the theater in Ephesus Paul sent for the believers who's that Christians and what did he do he encouraged them we all need encouragement some of you man your marriages are in the rocks you need to be encouraged you're not the only Christian who's ever struggled in a marriage some of you are going through financial woes you're not the only Christian who has battled financial problems you need to be encouraged some of you are like oh my God my kids are crazy you need to be encouraged somebody like my parents are crazy you need to be encouraged right we all need to be encouraged because we live in a stressful world we're not encouraged when you get on the 91 freeway on Monday morning tomorrow nobody's going to be going yeah you yeah you okay I mean maybe that's what the ninety one needs encouragers you can do it don't kill someone today you can do it right we all need encouragement Paul sent for the believers and he encouraged them then he said goodbye and he left for Macedonia so he went to another region and when he was there what did he do to the believers there he encouraged them then he said goodbye went through all the towns and he encouraged every single Church he passed through but sandals churches and all just fluff right this isn't just a cheerleading section for Jesus sometimes messages are difficult and challenging so sermons encourage you next write this sermons challenge me if you've never been challenged then I'm not doing my job Paul says this to a young pastor named Timothy he says preach the Word of God preach the Word of God be prepared whether the time is favorable or not you know what that means my job is to preach the truth to you whether you want to or not I need to challenge you I need to challenge you I need to tell you the truth here's the number one thing that's wrong with our political system in America is politicians don't tell us what we need to hear they tell us what we want to hear right that's why people vote for people what is this person gonna do for me and that's why we have a 19 trillion dollar debt because politicians don't tell us the truth they tell us what will get them elected my job is not to get elected my job is to get you saved that's my job and so what that means is sometimes I have to say some things that are offensive right that are hurtful this last week we went out to dinner with a couple from our church and the wife just straight-up said she said two weeks ago you preached a sermon and she said afterwards I said I'm never coming back I said well why is that she says usually when you preach he's convicted and I love it she says usually you're just at him at him at him at him and I'm like preacher right she said but two weeks ago you said some things were about halfway through your sermon I was like oh oh oh you know what she told her husband she told her husband each of my friends they're my friends she told her husband I'm never going back I'm never going back why is the first time she felt challenged you know what I told her I said that's my job I said I'm not gonna change so if you're offended in you have to leave there's a lot of great churches I love you but I jobs to preach the truth to you and tell you what you need to hear not what you want to hear right now good news she was here at the previous service and just had her head down but that's okay she came back she came back it's good it's good all right preach the Word of God be prepared whether the time is favorable or not now I'm working on this part patiently correct okay rebuke I did that once it didn't go well and encourage people with what good teaching that's my job is to teach you in a way that helps you understand what God wants you to do that's why we do the debrief on Tuesdays the podcast to help you understand what word is saying I get it it's it's a lot to understand I mean almost every single week I come out CEO this is one of my favorite chapters and you like you always say that well it's good that I like the Bible right like that's a good thing you know can you imagine if I got up today I said acts 20 you would need to pick another Church okay patiently correct rebuke and encourage people with good teaching number three so God uses sermons to remind me to remind me oh yeah oh oh yeah like some of you had a week last week in the 91 freeway you're listening to Amazing Grace you're in traffic and you throw your sandals depot coffee mug out the window at another car sometimes you need to be reminded that's not christ-like that's not cultivating kindness ladies right don't do that don't throw your sandals mug at other people don't do that that's not what Jesus would do you're like well he whipped people okay once once but you're not Jesus you know the primary reason we come to church here's something like well I know it I read the Bible yep me too me too but you know I read the Bible over and over and over again I'm already starting my second time through the Bible this year do you know why I do that because I need to be reminded and if I need to be reminded you need to be reminded did you know why so many times holidays Jewish holidays like Passover you know what that's really about it's about remembering why do Jews celebrate Passover to remember that you were slaves in Egypt and God says I got you out why is it that we need to remember things because we forget we're all what have you done for me lately Christians we all struggle with that myself included listen to what Paul says he says I've been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard what's he saying he's reminding us that we all have to work hard you can't just ask God to bless your life if you're not willing to work in life he says you should remember so these words you should remember the words of the Lord Jesus you should remember what does he say it is more blessed to give than to receive why would he remind the Christians at Ephesus of the words of Jesus probably because they forgot isn't it really easy to get wrapped up in getting well I got to get a new car I got to get a new house I gotta get a new job I gotta gonna get a new vacation I gotta get a trip I got to get this I got to get that and many of you wonder why your lives are a mess and the reason is you think life is about getting God says the blessing is in the giving not the getting the most famous passage of Scripture is this John 3:16 for God so loved the world that He gave he gave and we need to be reminded of this when I was a kid growing up in our small Baptist Church we had a big table at the front of the church it was in front of the pulpit that the preacher preached so the pulpit was like this but way bigger and then in front of that would be a table and on that table were these words in remembrance in remembrance that's what the Lord's Supper is that's why we take of the bread and we drink of the wine to remember what Jesus did because sometimes we judge God's feelings for us based upon the day we're having I mean some of you you've had those days you're like come on God quit zapping me and you feel like God doesn't love you you feel like God has abandoned you you feel like God doesn't care for you and that's why we need to remember the words of the Lord Jesus we need to remember what he did for us because if we don't we're gonna be miserable we're gonna struggle so sermons remind me next sermons comfort me and some of you guys are going through some stuff there isn't a week that goes by where I don't meet somebody out in the lobby whose story breaks my heart they're going through a divorce their child's battling for their life I mean literally I pray with parents in our church we have thousands of people to go to sandals Church with parents whose kids have leukemia and cancer having open-heart surgery all kinds of things it just break tomorrow you know sometimes we just need to be comforted and it's not just you the disciples mainly freaked out John 14 right Jesus says I'm leaving they freaked out you know what Jesus says do not let your hearts be troubled he says you trust in God he says Trust also in me you know what he's saying it's gonna be okay it's gonna be okay man I've had to walk with some of you through the most difficult things I can't imagine having to walk through them I've helped some of you bury your children bury your spouses I've come alongside some of you as a spouse has been unfaithful or a kid has become drug-addicted or a child has committed suicide and sometimes what you need to hear from your preacher are words of comfort that sound like this though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death thou art with me thy rod and thy staff they comfort me and the presence of thine enemies you anoint my head with oil right those are the words of David during the hardest times of his life and sometimes God uses his word through my mouth to comfort your soul and that's what you need you know what so sad some of you guys when you need church the most that's when you go the least that's why you need to come every week I just I I just have this feeling that those Sundays those weekends when you don't have it in you to go to church is when you absolutely need to be in church those moments when everything in the world is saying you're too busy you're too stressed you can't be there those are the moments when you got to force yourself to get there because God's gonna speak a word of comfort to you and sometimes it isn't even my message I've had people I mean this is how God works sometimes you be like oh my gosh pastor you spoke on adultery I like no I didn't like oh you did I'm like no I I I didn't message was on tithing no no you said adultery okay okay and your and God speaks to you and God gives you a word in the midst of my words God speaks directly to you in the sermon time and he tells you something and it's amazing you heard it through my mouth but it didn't come out of my mouth you heard from God God uses sermons to speak sometimes he uses my word sometimes he bypasses my words and he goes straight for you it's amazing it's powerful it's incredible next God uses sermons to direct me this is important now more than ever so many pastors are selling out abandoning the idea that Jesus Christ is the only way by which people can be saved the church is under enormous political and social pressure to cave to the orders of the gospel we are pressed on every side the church is now considered immoral we are immoral because of our stances and our beliefs we are out of touch we are out of date our minds are the minds that need to be changed in the eyes of the world and pastors are changing the message you need to pray that I would never change the message that I would always tell you what God wants me to say and never what the world wants me to say listen to what Paul says as he leaves the church in acts 20 verse 25 he says and now I know that none of you to whom I have preached the kingdom will ever see me again he says I'm gone I'm never coming back he says I declared today that I have been faithful if anyone suffers eternal death it is not my fault you see it is the pastors job to preach the gospel it is your job to answer it to live it to submit to it God will hold me accountable for my sermon and he will hold you accountable for your response pray that we never at Sandals Church abandon that there is one God and there is only one way to be saved to that one God and it is by his son Jesus Christ who died on the cross for you it's the only way we can be saved the pastor's job is to direct you to Jesus - Jesus - Jesus Paul says I didn't shrink from declaring what God wants you to know Circle that word shrink every pastor faces his own issues his own drama his own mess and questions his own calling Paul says I never shrank to my doubts I never shrank to my fears I never shrank to my worries I spoke what you needed to hear regardless of the consequences to myself that's what you need so listen if sermons are this important if sermons are this powerful if sermons are the way that God personally speaks to you write this down God calls us to choose a preacher carefully listen a preachers words can save you or a preachers words can condemn you the Apostle Paul writes to a young pastor named Timothy and he says watch your doctrine and your teaching closely because it will save both you and your listeners be so very careful be careful about the churches that you choose and the pastors that you listen to because a pastor's sermon can bless your life or wreck your life be so very careful I wish all pastors preach the gospel but that is not the case I wish all pastors were faithful but that is not the case listen what Paul says in acts 20 he says guard yourselves guard yourself don't check your brain at the door this is not a cult you are encouraged to think you were encouraged to read the scriptures you were called and mandated to be faithful to the truth of Scripture guard your self be very careful whom you listen to guard yourselves and God's people Paul says feed and Shepherd God's flock circle these words his church sandals Church is not my church it's not your church it's his church why listen to what Paul says it's his church purchased with what his own blood his own blood over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as elders you see I'm appointed I didn't die for the church I was picked for the church appointed you his elders he says I know that what kind of teachers false teachers like vicious wolves will come in among you after I leave not sparing the flock why are there so many denominations why are there so many religions why doesn't everyone have the same opinion because God nominates his preachers and so does the devil God loves the church because the church is the hope of the world and the devil knows it and that's why he comes after the church and the best place to rekt the church is in its leadership not sparing the flock he says even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to what draw a following you see some people are more interested in their own press than they are crisis pressed never be mislead watch those leaders who say follow me follow me follow me listen to leaders who say follow Jesus follow Jesus follow Jesus be very very careful so God calls us to choose a preacher carefully be so very careful ask yourself as God called me to sandals Church because if God has called you to sandals Church then he's called you to listen to me so be careful God calls us to two things when we join a church to the body that is the church as a whole and to its leader that's the way God works you don't believe me Regenesis the people of Korah figured it out when God chooses a leader he expects you to follow him so you got to pray pray pray pray pray pray pray and make sure you're in the right place and if you're in the right place then I want to challenge you to do this God calls us to honor those who preach you know they used to not call us pastor you know we used to be called Reverend do you know what that means means reverence not because of the person persons we are but because of the position we hold right reverence as a culture we've lost reverence we don't Revere anything we've forgotten this and we need to revere those people God has called us to preach we need to honor them how do we honor them two things I want to challenge you to do today some of you didn't know this you know it's pastor Appreciation Month you didn't know that that's fine I never know anything I think hallmark has taken over the world and every day is something so you have grace okay it's always bosses day secretary day assistant day you know you worked once in your life day right it's it's every day's a day but you know what this past year man I have had many of my friends give up and walk away from ministry give up some of them have failed sexually breaks my heart some of them have failed financially some of them have failed morally in other areas and some of them have just gotten so depressed and so discouraged they go I got to do something else in my life I can't do this anymore listen to me Satan knows this that the best way to take out your church is to shoot the leader jesus said this when the shepherd dies what happens the Sheep scatter one of my good friends pastors a church or pastored a church in the northwest one of the most famous churches in America fifteen thousand evangelical Christians in Seattle right I don't know how you get saved in Seattle too much coffee right 15,000 conservative Christian Church 15,000 people gathering together in Seattle that's like a JV version of San Francisco that's what Seattle is okay 15,000 people people went after him he got so frustrated he got so flustered he quit he resigned he walked away from a church of 15,000 people two years later that's today that church runs 300 people do you know what happened to their big worship center like ours a cult in Seattle bought it and you can watch their sermons online and a female pastor will get up encouraging people to worship the goddess of the earth I am not kidding you what happened the devil used Christians to shoot their pastor and the church died listen we are in this together I need you to pray for me and I Got News for you look I don't wear a costume it was a little weird after 8:30 service someone thanked me in the lobby and they said thank you Father and I was just like call me whatever okay you know I'm assuming they're Catholic first time I've ever been called father my kids don't even call me that father right but listen you you want sandals to be destroyed then take me down you want sandals to remain faithful then lift me up pray for me here's the news listen I don't wear a costume some some pastors do whether I'm wearing you know Arouca shirt or I'm dressed like Gandalf okay The Wizard listen to me I'm still a man I have the same issues you do I have the same burdens you do here's the difference I have to carry my own crap and God call it calc calls me to carry yours that's the burden so pray for me Paul says this preacher long sorry miss Barton I am in Chains now still preaching this message as God's ambassador listen he says he says so pray that I will keep on speaking boldly as I what as I should pray for me that I won't get discouraged that I will keep preaching as I should I'm watching too many good guys fall and it breaks my heart it breaks my heart good friends faithful friends walk away giving up and I'm watching their churches implode and it breaks my heart and I love sandals Church it's an honor to be your pastor it's a privilege it's a privilege pray that I would remain faithful next you know you're never gonna hear a pastor tell you this but you're used to that if you come here by now pastors don't ever tell you this because it's awkward and it's weird and they don't know how to tell you this but I'm just gonna tell you you need to pray for your pastors and next you need to write this down you need to pay them well some of you don't know this cuz you don't read your Bibles ok 1 clap thank you thank you let's let's get that person on the board alright okay and let me just say this sandals Church takes care of me very well we have a board that oversees my salary make sure that Tam and I taking care of you guys do an amazing job most pastors are very very poor okay are there some examples of pastors that get super rich and Abby absolutely they're a small small minority most pastors struggle one of my friends just left the ministry because he can't pay for college for his kids and that broke my heart broke my heart and his church will never be the same listen pay them well listen what the Bible says elders who do their work well elders is another word we don't use the word elders right Mormons use it the most which is always weird cuz they're like 19 it's always a little weird to me you know elder Chris you're 17 okay all right sorry it's just weird but I got called father today so things aren't interesting okay elders who do their work well should be respected and what paid well write this in there in the Greek this is what it says double honor double honor should be paid well especially those who work hard at both preaching and what teaching because those who stand and speak for the church are those who lead the church and we need good leaders who speak and lead well not just with words but with their integrity listen I love you guys I love you guys but if you ever sit down for coffee or you're out to dinner with someone and one of your friends starts griping about the car their pastor drives or the money they pay them film this shut up just tell them to say look man you don't know you don't know you don't know if they got a prom with their pastor pick a new one but whoever their pastor is lift them up and honor them and pray for them because you need them you need them all right listen let's close in prayer and I just want to pray for all our pastors today we have amazing pastors and ministers at our church that care for you and love you and bless you let's just lift them up Heavenly Father we bow our heads God and we lift up all our pastors and ministers at Sandals Church we're so grateful and thankful for their sacrifice for their love God they say no every day to themselves so they can say yes to us and we ask that you bless them their families their lives Lord their world we ask that you take care of them lord I pray that all of our ministers would feel appreciated in the name of Jesus at Sandals Church we lift them up to you in Jesus name a man
