Christ-Centered Relationship Pt 3

if you remember three weeks ago we started a series called relationships and my wife and I have been teaching that for the last few weeks in fact someone asked me today your wife's gonna be up there with you right now it's just me and just the look of disappointment you know it just it said it all but if you remember what we three weeks ago we talked about how there's something much bigger than marriage and we talked out of first Corinthians chapter 7 and we explained that remember marriage is not eternal our marriage is going to last a few years and then it's done okay and then then we come into heaven where this eternal relationship with God and how we're all family at that point we also talked about how there's something bigger than marriage and that's our mission here on earth you know our mission is not just to have a nice happy family and create a home on this earth that's not the mission the mission is to reflect Jesus Christ to show Jesus Christ to this world and somehow during our lifetimes to have this purpose of I want to show the world not just talk about how great my God is I want to show it by the way that I love other people I want to put Christ on display and last week if you remember my wife did an outstanding job of putting meat on those bones of fleshing that out and explaining okay how do we as women show Christ or display Christ by the way that we treat our husbands are we painting a correct picture of Jesus Christ by the way we treat our husbands in fact just so there's no questions I am in a hundred percent agreement with everything my wife taught last week I thought she did an amazing job in fact I told her I don't know that I've ever heard someone lay out as well the way that women are - biblically live out that role as wives and to reflect Jesus Christ in that way and she made some comments about how you know wives aren't to just sit there quietly and say nothing I mean the whole point of God creating that helper in that position is as men we need their wisdom and I would agree without a hundred percent were not made to do this by ourselves and need her wisdom as you heard her speak you realize while there's a completeness as she's up here with me I need that weird intuition stuff you guys have it just saw Allah you know it's it's it's just this joint thing where we work together and make it through his life together and it's an amazing amazing thing it can be in it you know we got a lot of great comments back I want one interesting comment a couple of mentioned on this and and I want to touch on it one person said it so well in an email she says when I saw Francis so enamored with his wife up there it was like a dagger to my heart because it's something I've wanted so badly and and we got different comments about pain and relationships and I don't want to I don't want to go on in this series without first acknowledging that there is tremendous tremendous pain involved in relationships and in family in fact you are the weird strange exception in this room if you haven't spent hours grieving over various family relationships and even weeping over different broken relationships and family you guys know I've been traveling most of the summer and there was a conference I did a couple weeks ago where just there everything came to a head and I speaking on trials with these high school students and and there were thousands of these kids and they they would write on cards you know things that they were struggling with or that their friends were struggling with in relationships and then then afterwards one of the counselors came up to me you know after I was speaking a counselor came he goes arm so glad you spoke on trials because I kind of snuck a kid into this conference he's not quite in high school yet but we got him in because of the situation and he's so need to hear this message you see he found his dad after his dad committed suicide he's the one that found the body about a year ago and had a real rough time and then he goes to weeks ago right before this camp he's at a family reunion family get-together and his mom got a knife and it's stabbing his little brothers and they were able to pull her off of the little brothers and save the two brothers lives but then as they separated her she took the knife to her own throat and killed herself and he's he's at Camp this week so I'm so glad you gave that message and I'm so I meanwhile another counselor standing by listening to that and said oh man I've got a girl and she watched her husband or watched her dad kill mom and so then he goes to jail she's dead she's an orphan you know just and I'm sitting there and I'm listening to story after story and reading these cards of these high school students and I'm going I sometimes forget I sometimes just forget what's going on out there and forget what's going on even in this room and I know that even as I speak on this there are there's some of you that are just grieving over relationships some of you have experienced death in the family that's not something you just snap out of or get over and maybe the most painful thing we can experience on this earth as believers is when we have a child or a spouse or a parent who doesn't love God who doesn't love Jesus and you you just think in your mind I would do anything for him I would do anything for her to get him or her to follow Jesus and yet there's only so much you can do there's a helpless feeling of the thought of I can't imagine being separated for eternity and and yet you're helpless because you because because you can't make anyone fall in love with Jesus Christ you can't just get your husband to fall in love with Jesus Christ you can't it all these things were telling you and we're talking about well if you do this if you do this you do this there's still no guarantee it's no guarantee that your your spouse will love Jesus those guarantee that your kids will there's no guarantee that your parents will there's no guarantee as your brother or your sister will and it's the hardest thing about living on this earth it really is it's the one thing that keeps us from really longing for the return of Jesus Christ right because while we selfishly go how come Lord Jesus come Lord Jesus there's other half of us going no not yet not yet not yet and it's absolutely devastating and I don't want to just go hey you know let's talk about husbands wives whatever and not just at least stop and acknowledge and pray because there are some of you in this room this morning that you're just absolutely wiped out you're absolutely torn apart you're losing it you just feel like you're absolutely losing your mind because these people you love so much are not loving God and I I don't know if there's anything more painful on this earth here's what I'd like us to do I'd like us to pray for each other just silently I'd like to pray for you just to pray for the person on your right the person on your left just silently come before God and I'm just gonna give you a minutes of you to make sure you know their names and and not only that but maybe just real quickly just just tell the person next to your name and then maybe just say one relationship that you'd like them to pray for you all guys says my name is Francis my wife and I you know or my brother and I you know that that type of thing and so go ahead and make sure you know everyone's name and just just tell real quickly who you'd like them to pray for father some incredibly sad people in this room there are marriages that are ready to end there are kids there ready to run away parents that are ready to run god it's not a great picture to the world of what you can do and god it breaks our heart it's not your intention for marriage or for family and so god I just pray that you would bring your healing power into this room overwhelm us by the power of your Holy Spirit especially to the men this morning god help us to become the men that you've called us to be an accurate picture of Jesus Christ my people see the way that we treat our wives the way we treat our kids and may they see Jesus in us in our actions I pray for those of our family that we love so much who aren't in love with you we just know how good it is to know you and I just pray for them Lord because we can't make them love you we just ask that you continue to draw them to yourself I don't know how to pray that prayer with enough force behind it because for a lot of us it's we want that more than anything else on this earth speak to each one in this room today the way you always do in your unique way in Jesus name I pray amen well this week I'm addressing the men specifically and we're talking about how men can display Jesus Christ in our marriages by the way that we treat our wives how are we painting this picture of Jesus and and maybe some practical ways to do that but let me just let me start off by saying okay first of all I don't think we're gonna get to the parenting part of because a just there's just too much just in being a husband and maybe we'll hit parents next week but I I struggle with even teaching especially the parenting part I never really wanted to talk on parenting because then once you do that everyone checks out your kids and make sure you know that they're perfect and you screw them up and but but let me just say as far as the husband part even that I struggle with teaching this because again I don't want it to sound like I'm putting myself up as the example of the perfect husband that's not why my wife and I were up here these last couple of weeks in fact it's at times you you feel inadequate to teach certain things and yesterday I was at the funeral for Glen Jackson who was the pastor in town that died last week and amazing amazing family man when you talk about husband and father Glen Jackson you know whose it was older than I but definitely just far more mature in that area his wife got up to share and she makes this statement of her husband of like 30-something years she gets up and says you know in all those years of marriage never once did I hear an unkind word come out of his mouth toward me and my first response was you know like come on you know like honestly you know it end and yet knowing Glenn it's true man I would watch this guy interact with his wife and guys you ever meet one of those guys where you just go man would you just get mad or would you do something would you you know but it just this is it just seemed like it wasn't even in him to say something malicious you know toward his wife or toward his kids and his daughters get up same type of thing of just this dad and and and honestly this is a part of me that's a little envious a part of me like God why didn't you bless me with that type of patience or whatever else because it really was I would watch the way he interacted with his wife and everything else and there really was a picture of why you just go man I can't believe how much he does for her loves her and just the kindness the warm that affection everything okay that's a picture of Jesus Christ that's the way Jesus Christ loves me but for many of us men we look at ourselves and go gosh I'm so far from that because I I look at myself and my one of my struggles is patience when my biggest struggles as patients and getting irritated you know and bugged by people or whatever else and and I've shared this before but I remember years ago my wife just asked me she goes she goes honey what can you just tell me what you love the most about me and I just remember it was like an immediate response I looked at her and I said of every person on this planet you bugged me the least never romantic but she actually took it as this great column because it really was I mean that that's just because no she knows me and knows my frustrations my weaknesses and everything else and I could honestly say and I can still say gosh of everyone on the earth she bugs me the least it's just it's just it's a great romantic relationship Ephesians five verse twenty five so all that to say we're all working together and don't don't look at me as the perfect example and yet at the same time let's not make these excuses of all not wired this way or that way we strive after this and by the power of the Holy Spirit we seek to be Christ in a picture of Christ Ephesians five verse 25 says husbands love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy cleansing her by the washing with water through the word and to present her to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish but holy and blameless in the same way husband's ought to love their wives as their own bodies he who loves his wife loves himself after all no one ever hated his own body but he feeds and cares for it just as Christ does the church for we are members of his body for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and the two will become one flesh this is a profound mystery but I'm talking about Christ in the church however each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself and the wife must respect her husband I've taught this passage many times and I have made a huge error in teaching this passage and the error is that I early on my ministry I would leave out verse 32 where it says this is a profound mystery but I am talking about Christ and the church you see it's easy when you talk about relationships everyone goes to Ephesians 5 during you know wedding ceremonies we'll go to Ephesians 5 well what family conferences Ephesians 5 but what we'll do is we'll we'll read the whole passage husbands love your wives emphasize this emphasizes like how do you understand for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife the two become one flesh this is what profound mystery I'm talking about Christ in the church however each one of you must ought you know and will what kind of breeze through that pardon yet the truth is is if you miss verse 32 you miss the crux of the whole passage you missed the point of this whole passage about this profound mystery but he explains he quotes from Genesis the whole idea of a man leaving his father and mother and cleave to his wife becoming one flesh and then he says that's a profound mystery and we stopped there and go yeah that is a mystery that God sees us you know as two people as one because no that's not the mystery though it's a profound mystery appointments and the church it's this picture because the mystery is is here you have in the Old Testament this idea of a man and a woman coming together and becoming one fletcher's no there's no mystery if that's all it is the mystery is that this coming together of a husband and wife and becoming one flesh was pointing forward to something greater and was a picture of how Christ and us as his church his bride that somehow we become one it was pointing to something greater let me explain this concept to you if you have your Bibles turn to Hebrews chapter 9 hopefully I could give you some some biblical examples to explain this idea of this profound mystery because we've got to get this we got to understand this in Hebrews chapter 9 okay let's back up a little go ahead and turn there but you know how in the Old Testament those of you who have read through the Old Testament you'll get to this one part where they're building the temple and it bores you to death because you read about all these measurements this must be eight cubits high by four cubits wide by set you know on and on and on it's like chapters and chapters she's like come on you know what is this all about this temple and they wanted these perfect specifications and everything else well read in Hebrews chapter 9 versa verse 23 I'll explain something Hebrews 9 verse 23 it's talking about this temple and it says this it was necessary then for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these for Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one he entered heaven itself now to appear for us in God's presence okay he's talking about this temple but he in talking about the temple he explains that it's a copy of something that is in heaven why was God so specific about all these dimensions he says because it's a picture of something far greater this temple that I want you to build on this earth this idea of the Holy of Holies the sanctuary that's here it's all a picture a copy of something much greater in heaven that I want you to have a model of that on the earth you understand that so that whole temple building and everything else it was this copy of something that's in heaven that's greater than what we could see on earth but he wanted this replica to look really good and real precise and so we you know this has to be gold this has to be ivory this Ark has to have these specification all this stuff because it's a picture something greater now you remember remember how they had all those sacrifices in the Old Testament you know how they would they would have all these specifics of okay once you take a bowl I want you to you know to kill them on this day I want the blood to go here then I want to take a ram and I want you to do this with the RAM then I want you to you know on and on on these sacrifices well if you continue reading in Hebrews 10 in Hebrews 10 verse 4 as it's talking about these sacrifices it explains in verse 4 of Hebrews 10 is is because it is impossible it's impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin he explains you know how in the Old Testament I had you bring these bulls and I had to bring these goats and somehow it was this a picture of of someone something paying the penalty for your sin there's his blood sacrifice because of what you did he says those animals did not pay for your sin because in the possible take a bowl and have the bowl pay for your sin but you understand it was a picture it was a picture of something that was to come picture of something greater is this mystery that later on and it was prophesied in the Old Testament too that there was going to come this perfect sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and so the point of those those bulls and the goats and the sacrifices it was all pointing to this future sacrifice the real thing that was actually going to take away their sin that was all a picture of something to come my point is is just like you have this temple that's a little replica the point is it's a copy of something greater that's in heaven you have these sacrifices of all these animals that were all pointing to a picture of something greater which was going to be Christ on the cross he explains that your marriage and this union of a man and a woman coming together and becoming one flesh was just a picture of something far greater of the thought that God and I would become one just like a husband and wife come together and become one flesh that somehow there's a reality that me as this rod little flesh-and-blood human being could become one with my Creator that's an amazing thought that's a profound mystery that Christ and his church would have this marriage and somehow become like one flesh in the same way that a husband and wife does so understand is this not about your marriage this is not about all the greatest thing is to have this mayor no no your marriage is pointing to something greater just like the temple was pointing something great just like the sacrifices were pointing to something greater that's why you know in the Old Testament when the when the priests would bring these crummy sacrifices your number God says no I want I want an unblemished like get the best the very best I don't want any spot I don't want any deformity on this on this male lamb one year you know I want you to bring it to the temple I want I want this thing sacrificed but it's got to be perfect it's got to be beautiful why because this was a picture of Jesus Christ who is going to be the spotless one the perfect one that's going to come and truly take our sin away and so when these priests would bring these three legged diseased sheep on the altar God was disgusted with that because that's painting a very ugly picture of Jesus Christ and in the same way if our marriages are supposed to paint a picture of Christ in the church that's what we can't afford to have crummy marriages as believers because now it's painting a picture a distorted picture of Christ's relationship with the church see that's why this stuff is important it's not this isn't just hey I want you to have a happy family for the sake of having a happy family we're involved in something much bigger here than creating a home here on the earth I am supposed to show the world a picture of Jesus Christ by the way that I love my wife and that's why the Bible says in Ephesians 5:25 husband's love your wives just as an exact same way love your wives in the exact same way as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her people we know how Jesus loved the church right and the way he gave himself up for her and he says okay husbands now you do that with your wives you be Christ to her you know it's funny because whenever I we talk about Bentsen wise we do marriage seminars or whatever else or we the complaints come from the women and here's what they say they go you know what that whole wives be submissive your husbands you know we got the harder role yeah all I have to do is be Jesus that's a no-brainer husband's love your wives just as Christ loved the church it's interesting that after Paul establishes and explains the husbands you're to lead your wives immediately after that he explains that ok but let me explain leadership Jesus modeled it for you did the way Jesus did it Jesus gave gave gave gave look at his life 24/7 give her give her give her servant servant servant son of God who comes down and goes head and come down here to be served I came here to serve and to give my life as a ransom for many Jesus got on his knees and he's washing the feet of those he created and yet while he was serving there was no question of who was in authority and the Bible says husbands that's the way I want you to be that's the picture I want you to show to the church to the world because it's an accurate picture of Christ to the church I want you to serve I want you to love I want you to give yourself to her because that's what I did for the church this whole idea of giving himself up how he gave himself up for us it goes right along the lines of what my wife talked about last week I'm of the phrase she used die to self she goes in marriage you just died to self and it's not just about marriage it's about being a Christian like she said I mean when you became a believer in baptism you're dying to yourself you're gone you know what it's not about me anymore now it's about Jesus in the same way she says when I got married it wasn't about me Lisa Lundgren anymore it's about me dying to myself and now I'm coming under this Authority in the same way Jesus says you know what in me coming down on this earth I didn't just you know make the you know boss the church around I served the church and I gave myself up for the church he died for the church dying to self and the point is why did he give himself up for her says in verse 26 it says to make her holy Jesus died to make us holy he gave himself up to make us holy cleansing her by the washing with water through the word and to present her to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish but holy and blameless Jesus devoted his time on earth to making us pure and that's a picture for us as men is that our task on earth is the purification of our wives and that's why it's so awful for those who are in dating relationships where the man pressures the woman and actually does the exact opposite of purifying her and bringing before God this beautiful pure woman and in fact he does the opposite and defiles her and and we are supposed to be giving our lives to the purity of these women that's the picture of Jesus he gave everything and that that that means if I am to give myself to my wife's holiness that means I encourage her towards the things of God and at times I even confront her toward the things of God because that's my task on earth it's to help purify her to help a leader in the within the ways of God and I know that as I talk about this I hear this every time - some of you will say well in our home it's different in our home you know what works for us is for her to be the leader because she's been a believer longer and she's the better Christian she studies the Bible more and so she's like the spiritual leader and it works for us there's harmony in our family it works that way and and let me just say too that this is not about making things work okay it's not just about making things work it's about painting a picture of Christ to the church see in the Old Testament if you want to just make things work you could have put the ark in a shed and say hey don't go buy that shed you know the Ark's in there that would've been fine right she's an old to and put that in there I mean God can inhabit anything I don't know but they didn't do that they said no no we know we're making a replica of something in heaven so we got it we got to nail this thing down perfectly in the same way we can say well what if our family we can just have her be the leader or just have no leader and it it works right no no no you don't understand we're trying to paint a picture to the world of something far greater the profound mystery the profound mystery is you've got the son of God this amazing creator of the world who comes down and serves his creation he's the leader but nonetheless he's the servant and it's a beautiful beautiful picture it's an amazing picture it's it's it's a stunning picture of how could the Son of God go through that the cross for me and so now he's saying now marriage the point of marriage is to display this to the world so the only way it works is if you know look I am the authority in my home that that I I am the head of my house but you know what as the head of the house I make my decisions for my wife I make my decisions to bring her to purity I make my decision to serve her and to love her why because I want to paint a picture of Christ to the world it's something bigger it's not just about getting along or working together I mean we're talking about our life's purpose we're talking the whole reason why we exist right is to put Jesus Christ on display to the world and we do that husbands by the way we love our wives and hopefully people say gosh he is so enamored with her he is so in love with her and they think to Mai's themselves does God love me like that does God love me the way he loves his wife that's the way people should be talking about us that's the picture we paint and and then we just say this because sometimes we have misconceptions of people and and sometimes when I teach these things people can assume oh that's that's the stuff that comes naturally to him and my wife kind of threw out one of our secrets last week when when she told you I wasn't perfect and but it says that I gotta say this this whole responsibility and challenge of leading her toward holiness and really being Christ and being the one that purifies her and being that example that is something I dislike I I don't like the responsibility and challenge of being the leader at home and that may surprise you I don't like the burden or responsibility of saying I'm supposed to lead her toward holiness and sleeve my kids toward holiness honestly after work or after traveling or whatever and coming home my mind is not naturally gravitate toward oh I get to go home and serve my family you know I mean it's a time where I just think I got expectations I have once I have desires I deserve this I deserve that I'm not thinking oh I can't wait to get home and serve them and love them and lead them and make them holy and blameless by my leadership like everyone else or like most other guys I struggle with the stress thing and the and the weight of other responsibilities and come home and it's sometimes I just don't want to deal with I just want everyone to laugh and you know just have a good time and there's just not fight about anything I don't want to have to discipline anyone I don't want to have to lead anyone I just want to relax when I get back and not only that but then I got this other weird side of me where I have so much baggage and some of you might relate to this just from growing up I grew up in a home where we didn't talk that's just a waste of time you know this conversation you know and it was just you know you just do your thing and whatever else and and we never never had serious conversation in the home and so this is a weird thing but it is very strange for me to have conversations with family I can talk to you you come in my room you know we can talk everything share your life with me I'll share my heart with you but there's this weird bloc with family stuff and I say is because I'm willing to bet there are some others of you in the room they're like this where it comes to family suddenly it's weird to talk about God it's weird for me listen this is so weird to even say it's weird for me to pray with my wife feels completely awkward to me very strange to me it's on my force myself to do because I know it's right but it's just something where I grew up and we don't talk about anything and so I can pray with you you call my offices cry let's pray you know but family it's just like this weird thing and I remember we know when I first married you know God got to know Lisa and I meet her family it's so weird because you know I remember first time I introduced my aunt she my aunt even told her hey you know when you come to my house just know that we don't really talk to each other we just sometimes just look at each other and eat and go home you know and I mean that's just the way our family is so don't feel weird about it and then I go to her family and everyone's like oh I'm like oh you know it was just like this bizarre wow you guys talk you guys hug and then they're offended because I didn't hug someone on the way out like oh man you know I'm going to make sure I hug everyone you know it's just this weird weird relationship thing and so honestly I look at these passages and I go okay I'm responsible I'm the one and so I can't get angry at my wife or disappointing her you know if she's not living a certain way because I'm the one that's supposed to lead her that way I am frustrated with my kid I'm supposed to lead him that way and and that responsibility it's it's not something that I just crave and so grateful for I mean something where I go you know what it's not optional it's something I must do because I so badly want to reflect Jesus Christ so this goes against my nature it's not the norm for me it's not what comes naturally in the flesh and yet by the Spirit of God I look at this and I see the weight of you know what I'm not on this earth - please Francis I die to myself I'm on this earth to reflect Jesus Christ and as I do that as I do these things man it's amazing how the marriage comes together the mazing how the family comes together like my wife was talking about last week how she says UK wives if we really live this way she does he'd be hard-pressed to find a husband who does not appreciate that and does not become more endeared to you if you live out these principles about being this quiet gentle spirit this beautiful person of the heart and and you know come alongside believing supporting and everything else and the same way I would say I have counseled a lot of couples and I have yet to meet a woman who is disappointed in a servant leader I've met many women who are weeping because their husbands are leaders but they're not servants and they don't serve them and I've met many women who were in tears because their husbands were servants but they were in leaders they were weak and they wanted that strength but never have I met a woman who was disappointed well you know what he's such a great leader but he also serves me too much and strike me crazy you know it just it doesn't happen it's this picture of Jesus of servant leadership that again like like my wife said so well it's like this son irenna word she used it's like this benefit it's like this side benefit is like it's fringe benefit of trying to become Christ as naturally your husband will have more of an affection towards you in the same way as we seek to be like Christ you'd be hard-pressed to find a woman who doesn't appreciate and love a leader who is also a servant but here's the part data that I found so fascinating on this passage and again don't miss this in verse 28 he says in this same way husband's ought to love their wives their own bodies he who loves his wife loves himself after all no one ever hated his own body but he feeds and he cares for it just as Christ does the church for we are members of his body okay and I have taught this before I teach us I'll teach it at weddings or whatever but but it is this idea of I am supposed to love my wife the Bible says as my own body like when we become one flesh it's we're one now and so her being hungry the same as me being hungry her being thirsty the same as me she's an extension of me I need to treat her as my own body that part I've always taught that part's fine but here's the amazing thing about what this passage is saying we treat our wives just like we would treat a member of our own bodies and you got to get this and it's almost unbelievable we do that because Christ loves us like he loves his own body you got to catch this this is this is so fascinating the Bible says here that we love our wives you know because they're a part of our bodies be like loving your own hand of course I'm already loving your own stomach you know it's like wow it's hungry I got because we do that because he explains you understand that you he says we are members of Christ's body so so then that means the God of the universe okay and dwell on this get this because I don't know if we really believe this the god of the universe okay picture God on his throne he's looking down right now at me on this earth flesh-and-blood screwed up Francis standing on this stage and he loves me as though I were an extension of his body just like I would care from my own finger my own hand my own liver he looks down and says that's the way I think of Francis Chan the god of the universe sees me as an extension of him that I'm his bride not only his bride but I'm like part of his body he's going to care for me like I own like his own body that is fascinating and I don't know if you I know you believe a lot of you say I know God loves you do you really believe he loves you that much like you're a part of him and he can't help but love you fascinating picture and that's why we love our wives that way he says because you start loving your wives like she's an extension of you and it's no different than you loving yourself now you're painting a correct picture of the way Christ loves his church is that the most beautiful thing most fascinating thing let me just say this now having said all this I know some people might leave a little disappointed and going on you know I thought he's going to focus more on you know do this to the laundry do it you know whatever and and the marriage thing but but here's my concern and the reason why I don't go there because I think this is something so much bigger and I fear that some of you are in this room or even started coming to this church because you wanted a happy family you wanted a happy marriage you wanted happy kids you wanted a good family relationship and you realize you know what I think God could grant me that so let me go to church and ask him for that and and absolutely of course the God of the universe can grant you that but my concern is this if that's your motivation for following God then really God has become a means to an end for you your end is I want this happy healthy secure family you know retirement everything else that's what I want and I think God can give me that well then suddenly God just becomes someone you use and this means to an end rather than believing that God is the end himself and and and if that's really your desire yeah you know it sounds good that wow I really treasure family that much but that's become an idol and you're no different than the person who says well I want to be rich and I heard if I go you know and follow God God will make me rich and I heard that that you know if you follow Jesus you'll never be sick again and so I'm going to I'm going to follow Jesus because I heard this preacher say that I could be rich and I'll never be you know sick again or no one of my family will get sick everything's going you're no different than them in this whole health wealth prosperity you just switched it to family verses you know rather than money and everything else see what God wants of us on this earth is for us not to go okay if I can have God then I'll get rich he wants us to say because I have God I am rich and he wants us to say well maybe if I have God he'll give me a good marriage no he wants you to say Wow because I have God I'm in a good marriage I'm the Bride of Christ he doesn't want you to say okay maybe with God then then he'll give me a good family no he wants you to really really believe no because I have God I am a part of an amazing amazing family I'm a child I'm a son of God I'm an extension of him I'm his bride and for us is gold man what more could I ask for and now may I use my family rather than using God may I use my family to put God on display and we flip this whole thing around that's God's desire guys I hope you feel rich those of you who have an inheritance that won't spoil or fade I hope you feel amazingly loved in an amazing relationship in an incredible marriage with us being the Bride of Christ and I hope you found everything in Christ there's so many hurts in this room and I'm telling you Jesus really is enough and when my parents died and I was in junior high I just God really became my dad I mean really became my dad and how many things he's replaced and I'm not saying I never struggle with loneliness here or there but there's this truth where you can have this amazing relationship with the Creator to have the god of the universe love you as much as he loves himself or his own body that is fascinating and that's what this church is about that's what we want to be about is putting that on display and saying is this amazing God we have that's what baptism is baptism is a is like a marriage ceremony greater than your marriage ceremony because it's a time when you publicly say you know I'm dying to myself and when I rise again I have this union with Jesus Christ and I'm a part of this profound mystery as Paul puts it of Christ and the church and now I want to love my wife or love my husband and put that on display for the rest of the world and if you'd like to enter in that relationship then we invite you to come forward during this worship time

Channel: Chester Yee

Views: 149,864

Keywords: googlevideo

Id: Y3YNawuuizM

Length: 47min 9sec (2829 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 23 2011