Clean Hands and a Pure Heart - Jeremy Riddle

hey still me still me up here I my name is Jeremy my wife and I Katie right here my family we moved down here well at little over a year and a half something like that back down to Southern California this journey we joined out in Katherine Scott out in Katherine they're not here this morning they're still in a purgatory they're in uh they're in Hawaii I know so so top we were actually just there with them earlier this week we uh we did a leaders retreat with just us and the lows and I know some of you guys were concerned for for our our welfare and our well-being I just want to let you know I wanted to comfort your hearts and just all the challenges it was a little humid and that was that was something we had to overcome and there was a few bugs we had to swat while we sat on the beach and that was also really really hard but we're here we have pressed in we have fixed our eyes on the the joy set before us and hit yeah I know your yeah be proud so out of Katherine they're still there and they're doing a conference there which is amazing and but it was such a good it was actually I know none of us is none of you guys are feeling compassion for us but it was actually such such an important time for us is the leadership community I don't know how many guys know but we started this journey as strangers in so many ways like people who knew each other from afar but weren't deeply connected and we kind of it's kind of like I can almost compare it to like a shotgun wedding where you know you see the promise of it you know but you might have to walk through a few things and you know in the process but it has been such a joy to get to know Alan and Katherine you can see the integrity you can see the character but learning how to walk with them learning how they're moving and this journey I feel like you you may be wondering you know what it feels like to be on the other side of it but it almost feels like it's happening to us at the same time as it's happening to you you know which has been amazing but we've been doing a series on repentance which is not your normal series you know definitely not it's um but it's been a holy moment I'm so curious I haven't had much of a chance to dialogue with you guys about how that's felt and what you felt as far as um Alan just going after repentance it's it's I found myself on the floor in one of these times where it was just it was particulars on a Sunday night and it was such a holy moment I don't even think it was Alan was intentionally even steering in a certain direction but what we just began to respond to the Lord and people began to come up front and prostrate themselves and lay themselves before the Lord and just confess start confessing stuff and and and it was like yeah it was like the spirit of repentance came in such a heavy way and I think what I found odd it almost surreal is that in my head I'm going this is all over the Bible this is all over it talks about times repentance it talks about our returning to the Lord it talks about all this stuff but I don't think I have ever been a part of a community that's done this in a focused way and there's something really really holy about it I feel like we're in a season guys a preparation of consecration unto the Lord and I just want to say this if you're joining us for the first time we're not into repentance because we're like masochistic or anything like that we're not gluttons for punishment we don't want to just repent for repentance sake although actually we do when we repent for repentance sake but I want to say we also wouldn't do it for the joy set before us because we're hungry for what the Lord actually has in store for us and we want our house and we want our lives to be in order on the day of his visitation we want to be a people who are postured and prepared for an outpouring of a spirit so that we can be stewards and not squander erzebeth and we're not here to play Church I've done a lot of church have played a lot of church we're here to go after God we're here to go after the in breaking of his kingdom here in this region with everything that we have because the time is short and the need is great and we don't want to miss our moment and the second reason I think we want to go after repent this is just consecration another way of talking about repentance is just about consecration being consecrated afresh to the Lord and if you know anything about the process of consecration it's a tedious one and in the middle of it honestly it's like you don't have a lot to show for it you just feel like things are being stripped away how many guys have ever been in a season of pruning and you know the Lord is doing a significant work and you can get all the people to tell you the how significant of a work the Lord is doing but in the meantime in the middle of it you're just like yeah but I'm like four branches less than what I was before it does not feel super fulfilling it's a tedious process it's a pruning process but what is it unto more fruit more fruit and it's why it's so important in this process of consecration where we as a community we're setting ourselves apart for the Lord that we remember that the goal is habitation the goal is the in filling of the glory of the Lord his coming close I don't guess I've ever read or been caught up in the book of Exodus anyone been caught up in the book of Exodus so many amen so many raised hands hi I am overwhelmed the book of Exodus is actually not the most boring book in the in the in the Pentateuch in the first five books the Bible but there is this Leviticus is much harder to wade through if y'all just challenge you there the book have actually just though the thing that was so intriguing to me I remember reading it and it just hit me like a ton of bricks you have it's all about the creation and the building of the tabernacle the tent of meeting and there's just so many tedious details you got all this instructions so much acacia wood you got the table for the bread you got the golden lampstand you got the curtains and they're all shapes and sizes a number you have these clasps they I mean the Bible goes into intense detail is so funny the things that the Bible goes into detail on of the things the Bible does not go into detail on it's like and God said let there be light and there was light and then God said let there be trees and birds and all that kind of thing you want the you know him to expand a little bit more on that but here when it talks about the tabernacle it's like every little detail it's like an they overlaid this with bronze and it's just I mean right at the point that you're about to out in the book of Exodus there's this amazing verse that has rocked my world and hit me like a ton of bricks it says this it says then the cloud covered the tents of meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle and Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle and here's this something I just want to encourage consecration always precedes glory if you're hungry for the more of God if you're hungry for more of him in your life there's there's this process that prepares us to be full of the glory of God and that's this process of consecration so I just want to say take heart if you're in the middle of this if you're in the in this process take heart don't give up let's keep setting ourselves apart to the Lord Paul in his letter to Timothy second letter in chapter 2 verse 21 states this he says therefore if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable he will be a vessel for honorable use set apart as Holy and useful to the master of the house ready for every good work he will be a vessel for honorable use set apart as wholly useful to the master of the house how if he cleanses himself from what is dishonorable and that's just our goal isn't it to be useful to the master of the house that's what we're aiming for so I want to press into this issue of purity I have a huge burn for purity I don't pretend to be an expert on all things purity but Alan asked me to press into this this this topic of clean hands and a pure heart and I struck obviously I think when we think about purity we think about probably sinlessness or something shimmering white or undiluted or that kind of a thing but I want to look at a slightly different piece an aspect of purity that I think is so important for us in this walk because if we don't understand this part of purity we'll never get to the actual the sinlessness the holiness the the walking in close connection to the Lord if we don't understand this aspect of purity I'm gonna read Psalm 24 verse three three three four it says who shall ascend and I'm so sorry normally I'd be throwing you know stuff up on there I'm not preacher yet I I am one of these days when I have a propresenter you'll know that the glory is just about to hit it's about to descend but today is not that day it says who shall ascend the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in his holy place he who has clean hands and a pure heart and it kind of begs the question what is clean hands what is the difference between clean hands and a pure heart and the best of my understanding guys want to look at the Bible when the Bible talks about clean hands it's talking about hands represent deeds the represent clean hands represents right living the things that you do clean hands are hands that work righteousness hands that do good things not evil things hands that abstain from sin meaning a life it's your physical thing it's it's not talking about your inner world when the Bible talks about pure hearts the distinction is it represents your inner world it's talking about your thoughts your intentions your emotions your desires pure hearts refers to the purity of your inner being and I think it's a little easiest for easier for us to understand purity and are in our when it comes to hands when it comes to not doing bad things and I think we get that we're like yeah yeah that's that's what most of us think of purity we think of that's if we don't screw up that we're doing good we're headed towards purity but not a whole lot of us understand what it looks like to be truly pure and hard and I want to press into this because I found personally just for me guys and communally that when a people press into having a pure heart this is out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks which means out of the overflow of your heart your body falls in line you're living falls in line with what's going on in your heart all right amen amen Jeff so good strong points oftentimes oh here's the main thing that I want to propose to you guys I want to propose that purity of heart is singleness of heart just as much as his sinlessness of our purity flows from singleness jesus said blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God how many know that in the kingdom guy seeing has just as much to do with focus as it does with a functional pair of eyeballs in effect you see what you look for how many guys have ever had that experience where you bought a new car that you think is completely unique you can't even remember seeing that car on the road and then you buy that new car and all of a sudden because it is the singular focus what what happens you begin to see that car everywhere I remember I went to a deal and I bought a Honda Odyssey and this guy he was a great salesman he's like this is like he's like this is the smoke taupe gray something I don't know what he said about it but he's like not many of this is out there not many colors he's like this one is unique it stands out you know and I'm just I'm like I haven't seen too many of these kinds of things and then the second you drive it off the lot all you see it's like every mom and dad how there has a smoke gray Odyssey and is that because it didn't exist before no it's because you just had eyes to see it there was a focus how many guys I've ever had the Lord deal with a sin in your heart and a sin in your life and all of a sudden the second he deals with it it's like the scales fall for your eyes and you recognize that Heather every other human being in the church has that exact same cynosure you guys ever had that experience you're like huh you had it and you have it same could be said when you focus on the activity of God you begin to see the activity of God everywhere so curious I remember reading the verse verse says Jesus says I only do what I see my father doing and I'm like how did he how did he see that well I know that in part it's because of this it was just one assignment it was just one focus in life he didn't have any other mission in life it was just to do what I see my father doing and how I know if that's your one goal if your one thing your whole eyes everything about your life be has a singular focus that all of a sudden you can see focus and seeing go hand in hand focus enables your eyes to see if you have a Bible once you turn were through the Matthew chapter 6 we're gonna look at verses 19 through 24 I miss the days where Bibles rustled and pages rustle there's just such a comforting sound and now there's this nothing there's nothing there except phones who likes just to having a physical Bible like hold out there with me let's go physical but yeah that's raised them yes praise the Lord that's right Matthew chapter 6 verses 19 through 24 these are three separate teachings and all these are addressing in my estimation and addressing singleness in the area of focus in the area of devotion in the area of attention the focus of our wealth the focus of our eyes the focus of our service so I'm gonna read it certainly verse 19 it says do not lay up for yourselves treasure on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal for where your treasure is there your heart will be awesome 20 - the eye is the lamp of the body so if your eye is healthy that's what my ESV translation says other translations like the King James says if your eye is single your whole body will be full of light but if your eye is bad blurry clouded out of focus your whole body will be full of darkness if then the light in you is darkness how great is that darkness moving on to verse 24 no one can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or he will be devoted to one and despise the other you cannot serve both God and money so what does Jesus dealing with here in these three passages well share my thoughts inside of the microphone in my estimation Jesus is dealing with the area of dualism and I'll just say this guys one of the most crippling things for anyone seeking to live a kingdom life is dual duality of heart is the ultimate stunter of growth and maturity in the Christian life it is the thing that keeps us unfocused in our sing and therefore rarely able to see and I watched so many Christian guys get caught in this trap of trying to serve two masters because we really we we really want to love God we really do our hearts are like the intention is good we have good intentions when it comes to love of God but we really want to love other things as well we really want to serve the Lord with all of our hearts but we actually want to serve a bunch of other things as well we really want God's will to be done except that we kind of want our will to be done - we really want to follow Jesus with everything in us but we kind of want to lead our lives as well we want our cake and we want to eat it - you guys know that that thing has never made any sense to me until I finally googled it and explained it to me it's like oh we want our cake but then we want to eat it but then we want to still have it except that after you eat it you don't have it anymore I'm like that's profound I've never ever seen that I don't know why but that's so true we want our cake and we want to eat it too but then we want it to still exist and it's it's gone and this is kind of like this game that we begin to play and oftentimes we do this guys because we've been fed the lie that it's possible for one all we've allowed popular Christian culture or just Christian culture whatever it is to become our guide instead of Jesus is worse but let me just tell you dualism may be where a lot of us live but Jesus is making it clear that dualism doesn't work and he's kind of stating the obvious here he's like you can't focus all your wealth on amassing earthly treasure but then be like but my heart lives in heaven that actually doesn't work how you steward your money while either creates singularity in your life or will create duality you can't expect your eyes to see clearly when they're trying to focus on two things at once how many guys have that gift where you can make your eyeballs go in different directions at the same time some of the creepiest things in the world but we want crazy eyes we want eyes that are able to be like divided but we want to see clearly and the thing is that we just need to know that that's not going to happen you can't actually have eyes going in two different directions and have a focused life it's impossible you can't serve two masters at some point you either got a loved one or you gotta hate the other that's just how it it's gonna go but we're trying to constantly keep two masters simultaneously and throned on our hearts we're like you can share there's the Thrones right there you can just cuddle up get cuddly and it's there for you but that that just doesn't work it's no more than when you try and give it toddler one toy and say share this with another toddler dualism doesn't work but we keep trying and oftentimes pretending that it is working david says this he says lord give me an undivided heart that i might feel your name which means that the more our hearts are divided in their attention the more that our hearts are divided in their focus the more their hearts are divided in our desires the less of the fear of the Lord is in our hearts and there's anything were pressing into in this season is that we have more of the fear of the Lord in our hearts but the way that you get to the fear of the Lord is you deal with the division inside your heart søren kierkegaard so this purity of heart is to will one thing James the brother of Jesus in his book to the church also hammers this duality and James hammers so beautifully and strongly you know you know this books in the Bible where you don't like sign up to read them on purpose you know James I know my life needs needs a good chiropractic adjustment those are the books I sign up for that in Hebrews like I just go in I'm like okay Lord deal with me have your way but he says a salt water and fresh water cannot flow from the same source blessing and cursing he's like they can't should not ever from the same mouth except they do dualism friendship by the way you can't be friends with the world and friends with God just doesn't work he says this later Isis cleanse your hands your life your deeds cleanse your hands you sinners and purify your hearts you double-minded division in your pursuits and your thinking the way guys that we purify our hearts and become a people of pure hearts is by putting to death or dualism such an encouraging word I'm just here I'm here for you all to encourage your hearts you have to put it to death how do we do that how do we put our dualism to death it just takes fresh surrender it's not a complicated thing honestly just takes fresh surrender um I just here's the deal guys here's why I'm pushing into this most you guys don't know my testimony you don't know my story you don't know my journey but I was a professional duelist okay okay I have lived this life I understand the tension I understand how the brain can work I understand all the things we can rationalize when the Lord is dealing with our dualism for a five-year period I had this crazy I just realized I'm at the church where this story happened so I have to be careful with these details I'll just do it I'll do it okay so I was I was in high school here and I am I was infatuated with this girl here and and and but I was a home schooler so I never talked to her so that's just how we roll and but at the same time I'm kind of like planning and plotting our lives and all that kind of a thing and and then just as if that's going to happen and right out of high school she starts well her and my youth pastor at the time started going out yeah let's let's just have a moment let's just pause and no it's good they're actually amazing they're a beautiful couple and and it's actually incredible how that God has used them and used their life but for me as an 18 year old coming out of high school I did not see competition coming from in that area and I was utterly crushed and devastated so I I went on this journey with the Lord and I turned to music for the first time but let's just say this I wasn't writing worship songs I was not writing beautiful love songs to Jesus I was writing songs of heartbreak songs of pain songs of anguish I was writing songs that not you would not sing these songs in church and this thing that that started there became this dream of making it a rock and roll and I turned all of my drive for significance my need to do something that mattered because for me marriage and a minivan and a nine-to-five was like that's personal death for me I have to go after a life that matters I need to do something of significance to this dream began to be born in my heart a stream of making it an in rock-and-roll and and I went after it guys for five years I I went after this thing and here is the weirdest thing about this whole five year period where I'm in headlong pursuit of rock-and-roll is is that I was battling dualism the whole entire time I knew that the Lord had a call on my life but I didn't fully want to surrender and find that out you know it's like in the back of my head I'm like I know that if I surrender I'm gonna be on the next plane to Africa I've just I know these stories like this is how this is gonna go down and and I don't want to go to Africa I want to be bono I wanna fill stadiums i Coldplay wasn't out yet so I couldn't even it was like I this is what I wanted to do you know with my life and I couldn't even bring myself to the point of surrender but it was so ironic is in my heart I wanted to serve the Lord I did I had a genuine desire to serve the Lord but I had these big dreams and passions and I wanted them both to be the Lord of my life I just wanted them to get along I wanted them to be comrades I didn't want it to have to be one or the other and so your brain works overtime when you when you're when you're trying to rationalize this and I wanted the Lord to understand that this could be a win-win for both of us it's just a strong way to win and I tried the whole thing of a bartering with the Lord o my lord if you make me famous I'll make you famous you know ever had those kind of conversations with Jesus and I tried everything in anything to rationalize and and reason with the Lord but I could not bring myself to surrender because the truth was I did not want to die I didn't want to lay down my life I didn't want to deny myself I didn't want to take up my cross and follow him and it took me a guy's a good solid five years to finally go okay I give up I surrender to the Lord and then here's a scary truth God can see right through all our smoke screens he can see right to the heart straight to the heart of our dualism where it exists even when we have blinders up the Lord sees straight to it it's a scary question to ask God and like Lord where are the areas of my dualism where where am I trying to serve you but actually I'm really trying to do this just as much but the Lord is able to speak right to there's a story in the Bible says about the rich young ruler and he had this genuine heart for the Lord he says what must I do to inherit eternal life and Jesus says will you obey all these Commandments and he lists them on and the rich young ruler says well I have half since I was born I've done all these things and it says the Lord looked at I'm in the Lord loved him but he said this one things lacking do you know that's possible to live an incredibly good Christian life guys and be dualistic at your core divided in your affections divided in your attention towards the lord jesus answered one thing is lacking sell all your possessions yeah it's not like it's a common thing for Jesus to tell people to do he didn't tell every person that came to him this wasn't about possessions you guys understand that this was about the point of dualism in his heart this is about what was also on the throne of his heart and Jesus was speaking right to that issue and saying hey this is a lady no this is what's lacking so all your riches and give to the poor if I were to paraphrase he's basically saying this here's what you need to do you need to do throne riches and possessions from the ruling and leading seat on your heart of your heart and you need to enthrone me there instead we love to sing you have no rival and it's true Jesus has no rifle except here except here in our hearts that's where he has got a lot of rivals dualism doesn't work it will stunt your growth it will keep you from the fear of the Lord it will keep you in perpetual compromise it will keep your life fruitless and barren and the thing I just want to encourage you today is to surrender again I'm gonna make a space for just fresh surrender and honestly guys can I just encourage you and this it may feel like it's impossible you know it's so funny that everyone after Jesus told that to the rich young ruler everyone in the room was like holy smokes who can be saved and Jesus said this he says he said with man it's impossible but with God it's possible and there is a grace guys that gets released for those of you who are just you don't even know how to get there maybe but there's going to be a grace that gets released in your life when you choose to surrender it's not gonna be by your power it's gonna be by his power and that enables you to live this life surrender gets singular and your focus and and I hope you guys hear me that I'm talking about an inward work I don't actually know what Jesus is gonna speak to you I don't know what's on the throne of your heart that's competing for his rule and reign in your life I don't know those things so I'm not gonna pretend to speak those things but most you guys it doesn't mean that you're gonna quit your job or stop paying your bills or stop raising your family of course not it's none of those kinds of thing this is about an inward posture where we purify our hearts by getting singular and what we're alive for I'm gonna get just a little bit more specific I got it just a just a teensy teensy bit more time you guys are very familiar with a parable the store right yeah talks about the four different soil conditions the first one the seed doesn't have a chance it gets sown but the enemy it says it snatches it up right away the second soil condition is is one where the the the soil is shallow and it says that the sea gets sown and it springs up immediately and and so joyfully but because it is not able to take root when any kind of persecution or hardship or trials come that the seed it actually dies but there's this third condition but I find so many of us live in this third place and it's this this is I'm gonna read it's just mark chapter four verses 18 through 19 and again I'm so sorry for that it's not up there for you but it says and others are the ones sown others meaning seed are the ones sown among thorns they are those who hear the word but the cares of the world that a seat fulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word and it proves unfruitful and Jesus is bringing up three choking strongholds that I see have been very powerful choking strongholds in my life the cares of this world which is just anxiety worry what are we what are we gonna eat what are we gonna drink what are we gonna wear Jesus there's this whole beautiful thing about Solomon and the lilies of the field and how they clod they don't call themselves but the Lord clothes and he's like so stop worrying about all of this other's stuff instead it says what seek first the kingdom of God seek first singular seek first this and all these other things will be added to you the cares of this world they are major choking strong whole deceitfulness of riches here I'll just say this for anyone who has riches and is feeling incredibly guilty for having riches the point is this isn't this is riches are not inherently deceitful it doesn't say that money is the root of all evil it says what the love of money is the root of all evil but we have to watch that sucker this Paul says this for the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil it is through this craving this craving that many have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs desires this is the thing that I'm gonna really hammer it the desire is this is the other there's third struggle the desires for other things enter sin this is dualism at it's fine it says the desires for other things enter in and choke the word leaving it unfruitful and for some of you guys the Word of God is not bearing fruit in your life simply because it has way too much competition I am again I want to speak so much grace to this journey it's a journey we take baby steps baby steps sometimes we despair on our journey with the Lord because because we're trying to just run marathons when we haven't even learned how to walk and so one of the things that I just want straight you know stress is I feel like in my life let me just say this how many are so glad that God does not deal with all your issues at once I praise the Lord praise him for his mercy and his kindness he does not deal with all your issues at once he deals with them one layer at a time one layer at a time if I were to look at my life where I am now I couldn't have fathomed of being there at like 22 just couldn't have even imagined it because there's been one step one series of consecration after another series of consecrations that has led me to the place and let me just tell you this if I could have just tasted the life on the other side of surrender if I someone had just given me a drop of a taste of the joy and the Freedom and the life on the other side of the laying down all the other stuff I have done it you know in a heartbeat but we're crippled because we're actually drawing life from the other stuff and we're afraid that if we let go of that life then we won't have any life at all but the truth is is that the second you let go of that life you will encounter his life and there's no life like his life no life like his life um we're at a season where my wife and I'll just share just closing here where we're actually living incredibly focused lives but but I can't be ignorant of the fact that that is in part because of the journey of letting all the other things go like we had a beautiful life and reading we were seven years on this property we built the dream home on this property I was expecting to be in a rocking chair in my 90s you looking at that view we we had land that we invested into I had gotten a boat Oh lifelong dream I don't have that boat anymore that's why I'm Lance why I'm I'm languishing in my heart but I had a tractor guys and not just any kind of like piddly like small tractor this was like the dream tractor okay it was uh we had a whole life quads all the toys you name it and we sold it all because we heard the Lord speak and here's the thing like we didn't have to we didn't have to give that up we didn't have to give that up and yeah it might have stung just a little bit but holy smokes the more I think about the more I just feel lighter and happier than I've ever felt in my life and honestly this put station or life we came down here we bought another house and we bought all the things and now I'm like hey how can we slim our lives down even more because because maybe because I just got like a ten thousand dollar bill to trim my eucalyptus trees and I'm like who needs this homeownership stuff like it's it's I'm looking at dry patches in my law and I'm like my attention I just feel it being pulled in all these ways we started looking at apartments I don't know if whatever actually downsized to an apartment or not but the whole point is once you go on this journey you begin to ask this question of like how can we wrap as much of our lives as possible around the kingdom of God like how can we focus our lives how can we purify the the devotion of our hearts that it's so singular and so fiery and so focused that it leaves such a mark on the earth because who cares about a home that's gonna be eaten by termites in ten years anyway you know I'm sad down here in Southern California is just a warfare and so it's like when you can leave a mark a mark that lasts all eternity that marks eternity just by letting go of all these other trappings and things that can so clutter our lives by dealing with the dualism of your own pursuits Jeremiah as this break up your fallow ground and so not among thorns and that's the season that we're in is this season to break up the fallow ground that's that that's a field that's laid fallow it hasn't it hasn't been used for anything so a bunch of weeds have grown in it and no farmer in the right mind will just go to that field and just sow seed it wouldn't go anywhere would get choked out so it's so the command is break up your fallow ground we're in a season guys as a church it's a season of preparation it's preparation for this see that is going to be sown in our hearts that it would bear much fruit not be fruitless and barren how many has are tired of being fruitless and barren I want to be a son who bears much fruit it's time to prep the soil to remove the competition why don't we stand [Applause] let me just say this if repentance is not changing your habitual daily life your decisions your purchases your thinking your giving etc um your heart might be postured in the right place but it won't bear any lasting fruit repentance is so much deeper than Lord I'm sorry so much deeper than a one time confession as anyone who's married knows that does not get you very far in your marriage or in any relationship when you're just sorry but you keep doing the same thing it doesn't go very far repentance has to begin to change how we live has to begin to change the core of how we think and go after things in life um you know Lambert Street Lambert gets picked on a lot by Allen here but the thing is like the scariest thing about Lambert Lambert and Lynn's life because this is just as much her life as it is his it's not that they're actually super super duper radical is that their life is so very attainable and sometimes the trickiest part about weeding our hearts God guys which is the application it's it's it's what that text is is is screaming that the process of repentance is the process of weeding out the things that are choking fruitfulness that that's what we're here but I think for some of us we need to understand that that's not just sin Hebrews says this it says lay aside he says let us run the race with perseverance let us lay aside every weight and sin sometimes I think we have a hard time discerning we know what sin is hopefully most of us we know what sin is but a lot of us have a hard time discerning what our weights are because weights are not necessarily bad things they can be good things that can be hobbies video games I don't mean to pick on that one except I mean to pick on that one no I we all need relaxation we all need all these things these rhythms in our life but but what is adding to your fire what's what's helping you run the race that you were called to run what things are actually just they may be brilliant they be amazing there may be friendships then maybe a packed calendar but what they're actually doing is they're weighing you down from running your race all right so I'm gonna pray and then I'm just gonna make space up here for people who who want to deal with God and again this isn't not these are these are not the kind of ministry time is that wearing out of a bunch of people praying this is really something that's between you and the Lord and I just want to say this is like these are pearl of great price moments moments where we can choose a lot of different things just lots of choices lots of options but we have we have we have the invitation to recognize the kingdom of God in our mats to recognize that as the pearl of great price to set it how as I'd like to literally lay aside all the other things that would compete to sell everything and be like we're going to get this we want this we don't want all the other things we just want this we know that if we get this we'll have everything that we've ever wanted and dreamed of and more we want this we're gonna prioritize this and I just I'm just practically speaking if you know you're dealing with dualism in your heart if you know that there are areas that you have not yet surrendered I want to make a space appear at the front for you to surrender if you know that the Word of God is being choked out because you're just obsessed with all the details and the cares and anxieties and worries of this life I want to make a space appear for you to deal with that if you know that you're running after money after stuff after all this thing if you know that that's just what you're chasing and you're living this dualistic life for the Lord I'm gonna give you an opportunity to repent if you know that that that desire for other things could be great things but it's competing in your heart if you know there are weights and things in your life that you need to lay down that I'm gonna make a space up here so if you know that's you why don't you just come now Jesus first inform us I pray that you would just show us again how worthy you are how worthy or how worried you are show us again how zealous you are for our lives show us again how zealous you are for our hearts show us again your burn this zealous burn of love for our hearts and though we pray because we know that you have no rifle you all authority in heaven and earth has been given to you you have no physical rival Lord but may that be true in our hearts oh and I pray that would be true in our hearts that you would have no rival there would be no competition in our hearts we want you we want you we want your kingdom we want to seek first your kingdom we want to give you what you deserve covenantal devotion wholehearted singular devotion nothing less than that nothing last Lord don't allow us to get away with anything less than the whole of our hearts you have given the whole of yourself you have not held one single thing back from us therefore god we will not hold one single thing back from you not one single thing you can have it all and we mean what we say Lord every area where there is dualism in our heart every area where there's a competing desire we say Lord calm you can have it all we enthrone you we dethrone every lesser thing every lesser thing always say come take the highest place come take the ruling and leading seat on our hearts we will have no other gods before you we will have no other pursuits before you we will have nothing before you and now lord I just released the grace every is a grace unto you to walk this out just a grace right now wherever that was like I don't know if I can let this go I don't know if I can give this up I don't know I just release the grace to you in the name of Jesus that you'd be able to do it with a smile on your face that there would be freedom right now in Jesus name freedom from the bondage the possessing tie the chain that's linking you to something lesser than what you were made for and I released a grace right now to break all of those chains and all of those ties and to step into the all-consuming nature of who he is to give yourself fully to him let there be a grace now in Jesus name Lord you're the one we love we are so hungry for your kingdom to come and your will to be done we're just saying right here start with us start right here we love this region we want to see you break out on this whole entire region we know that you will do that below we just say start here with us what's the point if it happens out there if it doesn't actually happen in here let's start here with us we say yes here we are Lord here we are start here with us cleanse us purify us refine us make us a people ready for all that you want to pour out break up we break up our fallow ground we break up the soil of our hearts Lord that may be infested with weeds or whatever it might be Lord we just we break it up when we say come so your seed on our field Lord sow your seed in us Lord the kind of seed that has no competition it has no rival that's destined for fruit geez I just thank you I thank you for this morning I thank you for your word all of it that once it Pierce's us the ones that lifts us up all of it God the whole package because we know that all of your word is leading us into life and AB life abundantly and we want life and we want life abundantly therefore we will be a people who are responsive to your word a responsive to your voice responsive to your holy spirit if you say go we go like if you say wait we wait we will be that people who step out on the water if you bit us come we will step out on the water there won't be any hindrance there won't be any looking back when we put our hands to the plow we'll be a people who run with you who rise up and do the impossible and run with the horses we will be a people who run with you and all God's people said amen say it one more time

Channel: Jeremy Riddle

Views: 20,710

Rating: 4.9689522 out of 5

Keywords: Bethel Church, Bethel Music, Christian Music, Elevation Worship, Hillsong, Jeremy Riddle, Kanye Sunday Service, Maverick City Music, Vineyard Church, Worship, Worship Matters, Worship School, Worship Teaching, WorshipU, jeremy riddle, W2O2R2S2H2I2P

Id: oBnlsypfiYQ

Length: 48min 15sec (2895 seconds)

Published: Sat Nov 23 2019