Survival Essentials [Foundational Truths of Faith]

[Music] hey it's an honor to be with you again we're walking through a season of tremendous turmoil and disruption and every time i want it to be over it seems like it gets extended again well in the midst of all of that i think it's more important than ever to understand the fundamentals of our faith those things that are essential to establish us as children of the kingdom of god if we know those things no matter what turbulence may come to us or swirl around us we have a foundation that will enable us to be steady as we navigate this season it's an exciting time in the earth god is moving as he's never moved before we will see an outpouring a moving of the spirit of god that exceeds anything in our lifetimes don't be discouraged lift up your head god is moving in the earth and he's called our names to be a part of this very unique and important season get your bibles out maybe a notepad most of all open your heart i trust god has something for us today well hello church welcome to saturday night for some of you this is a new experience you didn't know god came to church on saturday but he does i promise the same spirit of god that joins us on sunday joins us on saturday and if we gather on tuesday he'll join us there too amen am i good to know hallelujah what a privilege to be together uh we're inside tonight because we're chicken confession's good for the soul now we have all the sanctuaries open outside and for inside so there's plenty of space for everybody to to spread out appropriately and many of you are joining us online we're glad you're there too but most of all we're grateful we can be together amen i know you know by now in this season we haven't been passing offering plates and but we do take time at every service to for an offertory prayer because we we cannot lose sight of the one who is our provider you know our giving is not a heavenly bribe we don't give trying to buy favor from god or to increase his attention to our prayers the bible is very clear you know large donors don't get pushed to the front of the prayer line in fact jesus said that the woman who gave the least drew the most attention but she gave the greatest majority of her wealth the reality is the more we have the more we tend to hold on to i'm not accusing anybody that's just human nature but you know in this season if you haven't yet been awakened to the biblical principle of giving and tithing is not the topic for today but i would invite you to at least pray about it not because i said it but ask the lord because in giving what we truly are doing is learning to trust god with our futures and generosity is a learned response it's not innate or intuitive by definition i and i suspect you are selfish and it's only cooperating with the spirit of god that lets that change so i don't want to skip that prayer but i want to plant that seed in your heart and your mind if it's new to you just pray about it so the lord makes it real you stay where you are but when the lord makes it real you'll be grateful for the freedom it's really good to know you can trust god with tomorrow if if i thought i was responsible i would be anxious and that's my church word i'd be scared out of my mind why don't you stand with me we're going to pray i want to pray for the children and the schools and the young people tell you they've had so much disruption and this week here and this week there and teachers and the challenges they've faced they need our prayers kids in school is a good thing god being honored on college campuses is a good thing jesus being welcomed into our classrooms is a good thing amen we've been quiet long enough let jesus be welcomed that's our heritage as a people when you say no you're denying our heritage and i won't quietly go into that place father thank you that we can be together i thank you for the freedom to do so and the liberty we have lord we praise you for it we don't take it for granted tonight we pause to acknowledge your provision for our lives lord we have food and clothing and shelter and so many blessings that could only have come from you we thank you for it we pray especially for our children the teachers and the administrators lord those responsible for schools i pray you'll keep them safe and healthy and strong and that that the truth would be presented in a way that it brings courage to people and not fear we praise you for it lord i pray that where there's been disruption you will bring accelerated learning and when there's been fear you'll bring new confidence and courage and boldness we praise you for it and lord we ask you to open doors that the name of jesus might be welcomed back into places where we stood quietly while he was excluded i thank you that we will see it on our college campuses we praise you for it lord the name of jesus being honored and revered by the students by the thousands and the tens of thousands across this nation we praise you for it tonight we cry out to you god for their lives but they have a revelation of jesus a supernatural revelation that changes their future and their eternity in jesus name amen hallelujah you may be seated no outlines just yet i missed that tonight this this talk has a lot of scripture with it it may be helpful later to print it out and to keep the outline it's a it's a topic that i think will be a benefit later if not in the moment the title is survival essentials we don't want to just survive we want to thrive which can't thrive if you don't know how to survive so they kind of go together you know we are living out our faith in the most rapidly changing world that we have ever seen and it requires some new survival skills that's just true you know we can no longer assume that significant changes will require a decade or more to be implemented that notion seems like glacial change based upon where we are today we have to watch listen think and act with a great deal more intentionality than we ever have before situational awareness has become a life skill and it's a discipleship criteria today if you don't practice that if you're not in that habit of staying aware and alert you will lose your balance and lose your direction with your faith we can't afford to be angry or resentful or embittered it's not helpful you see being free of anger or resentment and bitterness doesn't mean you're always treated justly or fairly or what's happening to you around you is right it simply means you will not accept the encumbrance of those negative things you will offload them you will forgive and release and you'll move forward those attitudes will prevent us from accomplishing our assignments for the kingdom and we need to give careful attention to the attitudes of our heart on a daily basis don't fill your mind and your emotions with an endless stream of information that incites fear or anger it isn't helpful on the other hand you can't afford to bury your head in the sand and ignore what's unfolding around us so you'll have to find the routine that allows you the awareness that is necessary without feeding the frustration that isn't there are some targets that i think are going to face unrelenting assault in the season immediately before us i'll take just a moment with one of those the biblical notion of family if you prefer it the nuclear family a marriage between a man and a woman living together with their children this idea is being challenged and not quietly or subtly it's being challenged as outdated maybe even bigoted unhelpful the messaging against this biblical worldview is relentless it comes at us from almost every conceivable angle and platform in our entertainment whether it's television or movies or theater or sports in our schools in our universities in many of our churches in the halls of congress seemingly wherever you look in fact our government is taking an active role in supporting things like gender fluidity transgenderism alternative definitions of marriage and they're imposing rules and practices in contradiction to a biblical worldview all of these point towards the same objective they weaken or diminish the notion of family and and so we're clear because we may not have learned it i don't any longer assume we learned it in school at some point in the past this biblical notion of family has been the foundation of western society and most of global society and just in case you're new to the bible god hasn't changed his mind now here's the challenge before we point a finger at anyone else our sexually promiscuous attitudes and silence have created the opportunity we have ignored god's boundaries and now we seem to have little more moral authority to speak i would submit to you that if we will repent not someone else if we will repent of our own sins and we'll humble ourselves god will move to protect family and most importantly children from what is unfolding around us but you can't afford to ignore it anger isn't the best solution resentment isn't helpful begin with a careful expression of humility regarding your own life in repentance for attitudes you have held and behaviors you have engaged in if the church will humble ourselves god will move i believe it so with that we want to talk about some survival skills and i want to start with the preeminent survival skill and its salvation thank you for that enthusiastic response i'm overwhelmed by the joy i can see you could barely contain yourselves i'm sure online you're typing in your hoorays we love that topic well i want to walk you through a lot of scripture and i'm not going to pause to comment a great deal i hope but the magnitude of what god has done on our behalf i i lack the ability to describe for you and it seems to me that in the church like spoiled children we've gobbled up the great blessings of god and then said what else then we do that to our own misfortune i'll start in hebrews chapter 2 in verse 1. it says we must pay more careful attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away if we don't pay attention if we don't pay attention to our bibles if we don't pay attention to the path we're on if we don't pay attention to the prevailing winds of the season in which we're living we will drift off course if the message spoken by angels was binding and every violation and disobedience received it's just punishment how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation this salvation which was first announced by the lord was confirmed to us by those who heard him god also testified to it by signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the holy spirit distributed according to his will i came to announce in case you don't know salvation is a great thing it's the most that's better with the appropriate prompts y'all catch on quick it's the most remarkable thing that will ever happen to us as a human being this side of eternity it is phenomenal we haven't begun to understand it we haven't exhausted all the details of what it means or explored all that it will bring to our lives or even begun to be appropriately grateful because it doesn't take very long before we begin to imagine well we probably deserved it we weren't as bad as somebody else but the biblical definition or explanation is it's something that is great remarkable amazing we're going to talk about it a little bit more and what that means but i would submit to you we are blessed simply to see god's plans unfold some of us are a bit chagrined anxious maybe even unhappy that we're living in a time when the the bible looks more like the headlines and the headlines dude because the bible's more honest than most of the headlines but you get a sense there's some kind of connection between the two luke chapter 10 and verse 23 jesus turned to his disciples and said privately this wasn't for public discussion blessed are the eyes that see what you see for i tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but didn't see it and to hear what you hear but they didn't hear it i would submit to you that there have been many generations that longed to see unfolding what we are walking through you when we look at the disciples we go well yeah but before they're done with their run they're arrested beaten most of them are going to be martyred they weren't invited to a jesus picnic and a never-ending social there was much trauma and disappointment and and some were things required of them to endure and overcome and if we've been invited to the conclusion of this age god has been good to us there have been godly people longing for this season for as long as we have a record we are blessed look at somebody near you and say you are blessed look the other way i'm not sure about you i want to read a little longer passage than i typically would it's from first peter chapter one who wrote first peter peter it's not a trick question who wrote first timothy that was a trick question yeah i know if you don't know look it up and in my notes i just labeled this lessons from the fisherman you know jesus recruited peter when he was a young man most probably a teenager he had no idea what he was getting into that's that is following the lord folks if you think you understand it before you go to sleep tonight tell the lord you're sorry i don't imagine we we hardly have an inkling of what it means to be children of the king but we have the privilege of following peter through his years with jesus and then into the book of acts as he as he really was an anchor in those early years for the church in jerusalem and i want to take first peter i'm going to read it pretty quickly and i'll offer you a brief comment or two but i want you to hear the tone of what he says the majesty he ascribes to knowing jesus by the time he writes this letter he's an old man his strength is faded he's seen much you know for a young man that probably wouldn't have traveled more than a few miles beyond the northern end of sea of galilee unless he was traveling to jerusalem for a religious festival he's traveled the roman world church tradition says that he was crucified upside down at his own request he said he didn't deserve to die in the same fashion that his lord had listen to what he says to us first peter 1 verse 3 praise be to the god and father of our lord jesus christ in his great mercy he's given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of jesus christ from the dead now for him these aren't theological words he watched jesus die on a cross he watched him place the body in a tomb and he ran and stepped into an empty tomb and said he's not here and then he was in the room that afternoon when jesus stepped in and said check out the hands and the side it's me so when he talks about a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of jesus he's an eyewitness and into an inheritance that can never perish spoil or fade he walked away from a business a livelihood so future resources are a part of his own journey they're not theoretical to him kept in heaven for you who through faith are shielded by god's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time there's a salvation to be revealed in the last time different from any perspective on salvation we've ever seen so again if you think you understand salvation fully do you understand the salvation that will be revealed at the last time peter says we're shielded by faith by faith in god's power you need to know god's power shields you if you think your education or the bill of rights or the declaration of independence or the constitution or the strength of the dollar or the federal reserve or wall street shields you you're deceived i'm grateful for all those things we benefit from those things verse 6 in this you greatly rejoice though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials we may rejoice about the shielding of god's power but then he turns around in the next sentence and says but you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials keep rejoicing he said can you balance being shielded by god's power and facing grief and diversity of trials or have you imagined that to be shielded by god's power means you have no grief and no trials it's an immature understanding we can benefit from the wisdom and the experience and the the the maturity of peter at this point in his life verse 7 these have come these what the these griefs and trials have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold which perishes even though refined by fire may be proved genuine did you know that your faith has to be tested or it's not real if it remains a theory that has no substance to it no grief no trials no reality to the glory and honor when jesus christ is revealed though you have not seen him you love him and even though you don't see him now you believe in him you see for peter he's acknowledging a difference i saw him i know you haven't seen him he said but you still love him and even though still you can't see him you believe in him and you're filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy some of you been coached in the context of your faith no emotion now some of you don't have any emotion anyway well you actually have them you've just placed them elsewhere because god gives them to all of us but peter's giving us permission he says when we think about jesus the the the acceptable response is an inexpressible and glorious joy for your receiving the goal of your faith the salvation of your souls what's the objective of your faith that ultimately you'll be saved from this present evil age so the purpose of trials he gave us too they've come so that your faith can be proved genuine without them your faith is illegitimate and that your faith will result in something in praise and glory and honor when jesus is revealed you see because you endure those trials and you overcome the griefs when you see jesus you'll be a workman approved by the lord verse 10 concerning the salvation that's our topic remember the prophets who spoke of the grace that was to come to you searched intently and with the greatest care you know that the prophets searched did you know they were students of scripture or did you think god just dropped something in them did you know that what they had to say came forth from their understanding of the character of god they learned in scripture we talked about deception some in the previous sessions and i kept bringing you back to the authority of scripture when you hear someone it doesn't matter if they begin or end with us saith the lord if it's contradictory to scripture just smile and walk the other way and if there's nothing impeding you run trying to find out the time and the circumstance to which the spirit of christ in them was printing when he predicted was pointing when he predicted the suffering of christ and the glories that would follow it was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you when they spoke of the things that have now been told to you it was revealed to them that they weren't serving themselves did you know the prophets were serving you we don't even like to read them well do we have to read them couldn't we just keep going back to the new testament we've been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the holy spirit sent from heaven even angels long to look into these things even the angels want to know the fullness of our salvation again our interest in spiritual things our enthusiasm for spiritual things has been we get far more excited about tickets to a game that we want or seats at a shawl we want to see or some opportunity that we've been longing for verse 13 therefore therefore when you find it i was taught as a child and you're when you read your bible when you find it therefore find out what it's there for it's a summary word it means because of what we just said therefore prepare your minds for action now he's going to give us seven things that we're to do because of this amazing salvation that even the angels want to understand more fully he says to prepare our minds for action that's one then he says to be self-controlled then three set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when jesus christ is revealed four as obedient children don't conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance in obedience don't conform to evil desires that we once practiced let's not sit here and pretend we don't know what evil is most of us are just grateful they didn't have social media when we were younger boy you got quiet but just as he who called you is holy so be holy number five be holy in all you do peter said for it's written because i'm holy since you call on the father who judges each man's work impartially peter understands we're all going to be judged by an impartial judge there'll be no privilege there and then he gives us finally he says live as strangers here in reverent fear temporary residents aliens it says don't put your roots too deep don't hold too tightly we get way torqued up about things happening the way we want them to happen through with our journey under the sun while we have our few days here just live your lives as strangers here verse 18 for you know now when the bible says you know what do you know we probably don't know for you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you but with the precious blood of christ a lamb without blemish or defect he was chosen before the creation of the world that was revealed in these last times for your sake through him you believe in god who raised him from the dead and glorified him and so your faith and your hope are in god so what did we know the tremendous cost of our redemption it took the precious blood of jesus you and i were in such bad shape that nothing but the blood of the son of god could get us out of the pit we weren't close to okay we weren't marginal we were without hope lost within no possible way of making our way out of that place and then he says we know that we were chosen before the creation of the world god chose us he knows the worst about us and he still chose us now if that salvation is that remarkable that it completely transformed peter's life and the author of hebrews said it was great i would submit to you it was worthwhile for you and i to think about it a bit more rather than just saying oh check that box yeah yeah yeah check i got that what else you got let me give you a definition and this i i didn't write this for a theological debate but i think it summarizes the essence of the biblical presentation of salvation it's the transformation of a human being from the inside out it begins with a spiritual birth and the arrival of the spirit of god and it will continue in your life through time culminating with a role in eternity time and eternity are two separate realms eternity is not just a long time two totally complete different things culminating with our role in eternity salvation brings everything necessary for life and godliness it is received as an expression of god's grace it cannot be earned or purchased and salvation is available to anyone who will receive wow so that anyone can participate in god's eternal kingdom if we'll cooperate with what god has said to us now i just want to quickly hand you some verses to kind of highlight some components and some aspects of this salvation to begin with it began the the story of salvation and the opportunity of salvation began with the jewish people that's troublesome to many but it's simply a fact of scripture john 4 and verse 22 jesus is speaking if you didn't know he was a jewish man he lived his life as an observant jewish man he kept the law of moses but jesus said in john 4 22 you samaritan's worship what you do not know we worship what we do know for salvation is from the jews that's his plate as it can be there's no salvation for humanity apart from the jewish people now that is just true they have a longer history with god than we do that offends many of us that love the traditions we came from because we think god began as a methodist or a presbyterian or whatever group you belong to as an independent we're all guilty of religious pride in one way or another i am intrigued when i am with my friends in israel that they don't read their bible like it's some sort of antiquated theological text it's like their family album jeremiah is not some prophet from the fuzzy distant past he's like uncle jeremiah they whether they choose to be obedient to the truth is is a different discussion but they don't question its authority or its authenticity there's a second component i would suggest and that that jesus is a unique person in history and i'm going to give you several passages on this because it's under such an assault and the assault tragically often comes from theological perspectives people trying to find ways to be a unifying voice to be advocates for tolerance of different worldviews and i'm not encouraging you to be intolerant but i am encouraging you to follow the truth in acts chapter 4 and verse 12 peter and john are speaking they're before the sanhedrin they said salvation is found and no one else there's no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved now it's clear from that that there aren't many paths all of which are equal the jesus of nazareth is the door into the eternal kingdom of god hebrews 5 and verse 8 although he was a son speaking of jesus he learned obedience for what he suffered and once made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him if he's the source of eternal salvation there aren't other sources or the scripture would have said he was one of the available sources first thessalonians 5 and verse 9 god didn't appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our lord jesus christ again salvation comes to our lives through jesus if you want that wonderful salvation all that is wrapped up in that all it entails it begins with a person and his name is jesus second timothy in verse 2 chapter 2 and verse 10 i endure everything for the sake of the elect that they too may obtain the salvation that is in christ jesus revelation 7 that's getting near the end of the book in fact it's a picture a portrayal of the end of the age they cried in a loud voice it's it's in heaven salvation belonged to our god who sits on the throne and to the lamb salvation comes from our god through the lamb that offered himself for us romans chapter 1 verse 16 i'm not ashamed of the gospel gospel means good news because it's the power of god for the salvation of everyone who believes first for the jew and then for the gentile i'm not ashamed of the gospel church we have been ashamed we've been a reluctant to say that jesus is the way the truth and the life we didn't want to create friction we didn't want to annoy anybody and so we've been bullied oh it's indirect it's not often a full frontal threat or challenge but we've understood that if you were too outspoken too enthusiastic too adamant in your advocacy for jesus that there could be repercussions what you deter what you believe determines your destiny this is important so how do we experience salvation if salvation is so remarkable and so wonderful and if it changes our eternity if it begins with the person of jesus do you just study his life and need to learn to speak hebrew how do we experience it well in john chapter 3 beginning in the first verse the gospel of john it says there was a man of the pharisees excuse me named nicodemus and he was a member of the jewish ruling council so he's a powerful man he came to jesus at night he didn't come at night because he had a busy day he didn't come because the first available appointment on jesus schedule was after sundown he wanted the cover of darkness i have i had a friend who lived in a neighborhood of jerusalem just outside the old city walls and he said some of the most religious of the orthodox jewish community the most careful adherence of their rules the man was no he was jewish but he was known to be a christ follower and he said they would call and make an appointment and say i'll be outside your door at 8 30 be ready to open the door as soon as i get there i want to be led inside it's not simply something from antiquity there are many places in the world where there are consequences for believing in jesus negative consequences we have lived with such freedom that the thought of there being some repercussion for being an advocate for jesus has caused us to flinch lord forgive us nicodemus comes at night and he said rabbi we know you're a teacher who's come from god no one could perform the miraculous signs you're doing if god weren't with him there's something unique about you miracles are happening we know god is with you in reply jesus said i tell you the truth no one can see the kingdom of god unless he's born again well big fellow i was just saying you were doing really good and nicodemus said how can a man be born when he's old he can't enter a second time into his mother's womb and jesus said i tell you the truth now you know you're about to have a mind expanding message i tell you the truth no one can enter the kingdom of god unless he's born of water in the spirit flesh gives birth to flesh but spirit gives birth to spirit you should not be surprised at my saying you must be born again nicodemus you're an expert in the scriptures you've given your life to the studying of scripture jesus goes on to say you're a leader of my people and you don't understand this that no one enters the kingdom of god unless you're born of the spirit and born of water without a new birth you can't keep enough religious rules you can't be born into the right family you can't join the right group it's not about genetics or your style of worship you have to be born again jesus words it's the same today it's not your genetics well you know we just come from good people i know there's bad people but not us we're just good people we've always been good people we talk about one another that way you know the joneses down the street they're just good people well i'm grateful your neighbors are good people do they know jesus do you know there'll be good people in hell i don't say that to be flippant they'll be kind people and generous people there'll be people who helped others because those aren't the criteria it has to do with your relationship with the person and his name is jesus of nazareth if you don't care enough about people to tell them that you're not good people ephesians 2 and verse 8. it's by grace you've been saved through faith and this is not from yourselves it's the gift of god not by works so that no so that no one can boast for we are god's workmanship created in christ jesus to do good works it's by grace that you've been saved we didn't do anything to save ourselves you know what grace is the technical definition the simplest one i know is it's it's just not merit-based if you earned it or you deserved it it's not grace so the salvation that's been made available to you and to me has nothing to do with anything we've done god chose us and then he made provision that we might be a part of his family he did it in spite of us not because of us so there's a point of great humility here people say you know oh yeah you and i no you're right i was all that stuff but jesus is helping me change yeah but i saw you kick the dog across the fence yesterday i'm still in process not an excuse for sloppy living but there's an honesty in that that we are not the church is not a hall of fame of perfect christians it's more like an intensive care unit [Applause] then in romans 10 we're given the response of faith how do we respond to god in faith it says if you confess with your mouth that jesus is lord and believe in your heart that god raised him from the dead you'll be saved for it's with your heart that you believe and are justified and it's with your mouth that you confess and are saved some of you question when i say to you that your words have spiritual authority that what you say is important that you make proclamations of what the scripture says about you that you learn to pray and you use your voice to pray you don't leave prayer at church or for somebody else to do but the bible clearly teaches us that believing it in your heart alone is not sufficient that we have to give expression to it we need both our heart and our mouth to be aligned it's important and then we're told about the value of repentance in second corinthians 7 and verse 10 godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation the signpost on the path that gets us to the outcome of salvation well godly sorrow but it brings repentance if you're sorrowful for who you are and where you've been the next response isn't just a wallow in the sorrow it's to repent repentance carries two meanings a change of thought and a change of direction oh i used to think that way but now i think a new way i used to behave that way but now i'm trying to behave in another way and that brings you to a destination of salvation it leaves no regret but worldly sorrow brings death repentance is the catalyst or if you prefer the accelerator to salvation and not just to the new birth to all the benefits of salvation that's why we want to be such good repenters mark chapter 1 and verse 14 jesus went into galilee proclaiming the good news of god the time has come he said the kingdom of god is near repent and believe the good news what was the what was the the necessary first step before you could believe the good news you had to repent see if you think you already know all the good news you think you've got it figured out the step the catalyst for getting towards salvation is saying god i am sorry in my pride and my arrogance and my efforts and my attempts and my smugness i thought i had it all figured out folks that's not a that's not just a once at the beginning of your spiritual journey as you read your bible and you grow and you begin to believe it in new ways you'll need to say lord i am so sorry i've read that and i dismissed it i gave it no place in my heart or is your attitude's way are awakened to to the role that god would have for you in this world as a husband or a wife or a parent or a child or an employee or an employer whatever it may be god i'm sorry i lived inside i was so oblivious to you repent and believe the good news then fourthly there's a benefit to receiving jesus did you know that people go oh you know i get i didn't there's nothing else i could do what did you want me to do preacher i've tried everything else there's a benefit it's not a limit john chapter 1 and verse 12 to all who received him to those who believed in his name he gave the right to become children of god children not born of natural descent nor of human decision or of a husband's will but born of god you know there's a line that is often repeated and it's false it says we're all god's children no we're not we're all god's creation but when you're born again it changes your status and you become one of god's kids that should bring compassion to you for people if it doesn't bring an urgency to you about your own personal status if you have resolved that issue of being born again it should bring an urgency to you for the people that you interact with so what do we do now most of you know about being born again whether you call it conversion or salvation or the new birth or whatever label you choose for that initiation into the kingdom of god for for most of you in church and watching you're familiar with that language it's often ridiculed if you don't know that you need to know that i have been in classroom settings in seminaries where people would mockingly say saved from what but it's the mocking isn't limited to seminary classrooms any longer it's a part of our daily information cycle the notion that there's a god in heaven that would intervene in time to redeem human beings is not celebrated in every circle have you noticed takes a little more courage to be acknowledged and identified with jesus i hope you have that being a child to god is worth it because his children are at the center of his purposes in the earth there are sometimes i watch things and i think oh you wouldn't do that if you knew the boss you wouldn't behave that way if you knew who our father was but now what okay pastor so i said that prayer i even got dipped in the pool now what we haven't done well at this point folks i don't mean just us but i mean american christian especially you see salvation comes to us as a gift through god's grace we are delivered from the kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of his son through the blood of jesus we are sanctified made holy set apart to god through the blood of jesus not through allen's efforts your bible reading or scripture memorization through the blood of jesus we're justified made righteous just like i'd never sinned our bodies are temples of the holy spirit do you understand what that means god doesn't dwell on the holy of holies any longer where the high priest visits once a year our bodies are temples of the spirit of the living god cleansed and redeemed by the blood of jesus so how do we respond are we finished are we free of temptation are we delivered from difficulty did we get it all the entire enchilada was it the drop the mic moment on your spiritual life when you finished the prayer let me ask you a question do you remember the exodus generation remember them the people that started as slaves in egypt and god delivers them you remember those people they saw the plagues they walked through the red sea they were protected by a pillar of cloud at the daytime because it was hot and the pillar of fire in the evenings because it was cold they ate manna and quail even when costco and sam's was closed they drank water from the rock and filled all their plastic bottles they worshiped in the tabernacle that god showed them how to build they were given the ten commandments and the second sat i'm amazed they got a second set their clothing didn't wear out there was no sickness among them imagine that hundreds of thousands of people and the bible says there was no sickness among them it says even their feet didn't swell i've climbed in the deserts of israel this is not about being old it's about heat and physical exertion and fluid balance folks your feet swell every time i read that i think wow that is a miracle and yet when they got to the border of what the whole thing was about the promise of their inheritance they said no to god they've lived through more miracles than any generation i suspect in human history more change more drama more daily learnings they were stretched to the very edges of their capacity to withstand it i used to make fun of them i have repented of that once they crossed the red sea they never saw the same day again everything was new what they ate how they gathered their food how they worshipped how they celebrated everything about their lives was different they'd never seen a tabernacle before they never followed a pillar of cloud or a pillar of fire so they're they're stretched you feel a little stretched are you tired of change did you just wish you could get to some routine are you tired of all the new so they get to the border of the promised land and they said no to god no we're not going any farther it's too difficult for us yes yes yes it looks like a land that flows with milk and honey and that's what you promised us about but there's also some challenges over there we've had all the challenges we want we're not taking any more challenges we're tired of the journey you know what happened to them they died in the wilderness so if you think when you said the sinner's prayer and you got dipped in the pool that you were through with the battle no more changes no more boundaries being moved no more striving in the context of your faith no more discipline going to be needed you've been deceived let me share a few passages with you second corinthians chapter 2 and verse 14. thanks be to god who always leads us in triumphal procession in christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him a little history will help with that it's blind to us when a roman general conquered a people a nation or some people group sometimes caesar would grant them the the privilege of a triumph through the streets of rome they put the general in a chariot in all of the the plunder of the nation that he's conquered the unique animals the the abundance of their agriculture the wealth of that nation would be displayed through the streets of rome with the general receiving the praise and the the glory of the people it was called the triumph the triumph wasn't the actual winning of the victory it was the celebration of a victory that had already been won so paul says to the corinthians god leads us in a triumphal procession in christ so that everybody who sees you will go wow that general is something he bought us out of slavery and now he leads us into triumphal procession for we are the we are to god the aroma of christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing to one the smell of death to the other the fragrance of life to those who are being saved we think of salvation as something that's punctiliary it happens at one point in time are you saved yep and we close our mouth and our mind got it all no more conversation there it was june the 2nd it was a tuesday 1822. i remember when it happened i got saved first corinthians 1 18 the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it's the power of god the language seemed to suggest that there's something ongoing philippians 2 verses verse 12. therefore my dear friends as you've always obeyed not only in my presence but now much more in my absence continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling for it's god who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose to work out your salvation wait a minute pastor do you mean that when i when i said that sinner's prayer when i made that profession of faith that i wasn't born again i don't mean that at all the bible describes it as a new birth as a kingdom transfer we have interpreted as if there was nothing left we've been told we don't earn salvation that it's a gift of grace that's true you don't earn it but what you do with your life after you receive that gift of grace is your demonstration of the value you attach to the gift well i don't have to do anything i can't earn it anyway i might as well live any way i want to no i wouldn't counsel that we are being saved we're being changed day by day week by week month by month let's go back to peter where he talked about the trials and the grief we go through our salvation is being worked into us we're coming to understand what it means you go to the hospital and you look through the windows at the the bassinets with the new arrivals today you understand it would be a mistake to say boy they have lived great lives no they got all the equipment they need if they get the nourishment they need and the exercise they need and the guidance they'll need then they'll get an opportunity to get into the arena of adulthood or maturity but in the arena how many of you know there could be some grief and just on the outside chance there might be a trial well we have kind of had the attitude that we celebrate the birth and we've ignored the growth and god has awakened us a bit we're beginning to grow up a little bit we'll sit outside or inside hot or cold we'll sit or stand we're socially distance we'll do what we need to do we need to be with god's people we're learning we used to watch and think oh we're safe we live in a place that keeps us safe and now we're realizing if we're not salt and light we won't live in a safe place we're changing we're learning from the grace of god titus 2 verse 11 the grace of god that brings salvation has appeared to all men everybody's been touched by the grace of god nobody has an excuse it teaches us salvation and god's grace teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions if you knew how to do it you wouldn't need to be taught we've been a little bit like the toddlers that you occasionally interact with that know the one line me do it can i help you with that no no no me do it it doesn't matter what it is drive the car do brain surgery run with a pair of scissors whatever they see me do it they feel fully qualified right we've been a little like that but it says god will teach us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions to live self-controlled upright godly lives in this present age we have to learn how to be godly in this present age the same way the hebrews had to learn to be godly when they got out of egypt and it stretched them to the edge of their capacity while we wait for the blessed hope the glorious appearing of our great god and savior jesus christ who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify him for himself a people that are his very own eager to do what is good what's it mean to work out our salvation what's it mean well he just told us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions to live self-controlled upright godly lives now that we've been redeemed from all wickedness you can't dabble in wickedness you can't afford to to purify a people eager to do what is good hebrews 6 it says the land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless as an endanger of being cursed in the end it will be burned even though we speak like this dear friends we are confident of better things in your case things that accompany salvation have you lived with the idea that something should accompany your salvation i'm not suggesting that you work your way to heaven it's impossible i'm suggesting that having received the gift of god's grace through jesus christ that you lead a life worthy of the calling and to ignore that is a dangerous path to walk i'll give you one last verse not because i don't have more i'm just out of time in case you were wondering you know back in the day when we handed out outlines church was a far more stressful place because you'd be sitting there looking at my outline and go dear god he's got 23 scriptures left and god in his mercy has delivered you from that anxiety hebrews chapter 9 and verse 28 says christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people and he will appear a second time not to bear sin you know he's coming back but he's not coming back to be the lamb of god he's coming back to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him for me i find this helpful it says that we have the holy spirit as a deposit a down payment of what is to the glory that is to come i think salvation as we know it as we've imagined it as we have understood it is simply a glimmer of what we will see when our lord returns he is bringing salvation to us the point of the new birth is that we might participate in his eternal kingdom and when we see him in all of his glory we will understand the majesty of the gift we have been given don't apologize for jesus don't be reluctant to be his advocate it's not easy choosing godliness will take all the courage you have saying no to ungodliness is not easy it doesn't matter how long you've been a christian please don't imagine that's about birthdays old people struggle just as desperately with it as the youngest amongst us it's not about professions being a pastor doesn't eliminate you from the arena but there is a benefit to cooperating with jesus i want to close i want to invite you to see you know the prayer i'm going to invite you to stay with me right we're going to make a profession of faith in jesus it's in the notes they'll probably put it on the screens but don't read the one on the screen because i'm going to give you one and i probably can't follow the one i wrote but you need to know i gave it to you in print put it in the front of your bible take a picture of it put it on your phone keep it so that you could help somebody else you see we don't understand the full implications of it when we say yes to the lord anymore that you understand the full implications of parenting when you find out you you're pregnant let me know there's a few surprises on that road yeah can i give them back could they do they come with instructions it's been a while but a couple of years have been too long i met a young man in the lobby before service and i knew they'd had a baby and i said how are you doing and he said not so good he said they should have let us stay at the hospital another day or two we didn't get all the instructions just quite right but know how to help people into the kingdom then invite them into the community of faith come walk with us we're not all perfect we don't all get it right but we'll help one another up when we stumble we'll encourage one another stop patrolling the battlefield looking for wounded people so you can finish them off oh we're good at it you know we do it with sly comments and prayer requests i think we should pray for do you know what i stop encourage one another help one another speak the truth to one another amen stand with me we're going to say a prayer if you've never chosen to give jesus first place in your life this is your opportunity we're not promised another one i don't say that to be morbid but it's god's not obligated to give us a thousand chances and i wouldn't want to to leave you with the impression that it's up to you if the lord has stirred your heart at to any degree to address him more fully i would encourage you to take advantage of this moment i'm just going to lead you in a simple prayer acknowledging jesus as lord and confessing our sins but even if you've said that prayer it's a good time to use it to say god i i haven't truly honored you and this is a new beginning for me he's calling if you weren't in the building to hear the phone there's some benefits that come from being on campus so this is powerheads you can repeat this prayer after me almighty god i'm a sinner and i need a savior i believe jesus is your son that he died on a cross for my sins and that you raised him to life again that i might be justified forgive me of my sins and i forgive everyone who sinned against me jesus be lord of my life all that i am all that i have all that i'll ever be i yield to you to your authority your direction your will and i thank you now that i belong to the family of god the best family in the universe in jesus name amen hallelujah amen and hallelujah god bless you we're going to work push this a little further with the next steps tomorrow [Music] hey this is pastor allen thank you for watching this video if you enjoyed it like it and most importantly share it with your friends if you want to be notified when there's new content when we post new material if you'll just subscribe to my channel and hit the bell you'll get the notification most of all i pray god blesses you as you continue on your spiritual journey and open your heart to the lord god [Music] bless you

Channel: Allen Jackson Ministries

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Keywords: Pastor Allen Jackson, allen jackson ministries, world outreach church, alan jackson, sermons, preachers, how to be saved, Finding Jesus, pastor allen jackson sermons, survival essentials, how to survive this time, what is true in the world, foundational truth for faith, foundational truths of faith, how to know what is true, discernment

Id: Cc3O0D1fvV0

Length: 63min 51sec (3831 seconds)

Published: Mon Feb 15 2021