The Good Father's Good Gift (James 1:17-18) | Costi Hinn | The Gathering

[Music] i was very beneath my shade [Music] till i met [Music] till i met you [Music] out of the darkness your glorious [Music] [Music] glorious has saved my soul [Music] and now your freedom is [Music] [Applause] jesus [Music] into your glorious day you call [Music] [Applause] [Music] to me gloriously [Music] is [Music] into your glorious [Music] [Applause] [Music] glorious [Music] so are you thirsty are you empty come and drink these [Music] peace [Music] praise the lord [Music] water [Music] is [Music] is anymore [Music] thirsty are you empty [Music] forgiveness and there's a river [Music] praise the lord [Music] amen well psalm 146 tells us this it says praise the lord o my soul i will praise the lord as long as i live i will sing praise to my god while i have my being it says do not put your trust in princes and a son of man in whom there is no salvation when his breath departs and he returns to the earth on that very day his plans perish but blessed blessed is he whose hope and help is in the god of jacob and whose hope is in the lord his god [Music] so [Music] out of the depths i cry [Music] hear my cry for mercy lord [Music] how could i come before your throne if full forgiveness meets my case i stand redeemed by grace i will wait for you surely wait for you till my soul [Music] so put your hope completely and forever [Music] i will wait for you [Music] [Music] now he has come to make a way and god himself has paid the price that all who trust in him today find healing in sacrifice and all who trust in him today find healing in his sacrifice [Music] [Music] i will wait for wait you you through the storms [Music] is [Music] till my soul is satisfied [Music] [Music] oh [Music] satisfied one more time [Music] tell my soul turn in your bibles to james chapter one and if you need one our team did you guys already walk back and forth with bibles and pens and outlines nope well do that all right sorry my fault i never obeyed the service order so they'll walk around with bibles pens outlines uh the outlines have fill in the blanks on them because it just keeps you engaged and helps you follow along it also creates a space for you to jot down notes and anything that really sticks out or is convicting or helpful and so you can use that space for that and they'll go ahead and hand all those out i'm gonna plow and just go and then i don't mind if you guys are getting pens and getting outlines while we jump in i'm going to read the text to you just stay where you are and we'll jump right in we've been in the book of james if you're new here we're going verse by verse through the book of james we went through first john already series called authentic is your faith the real thing basically trying to figure out what the bible has to say about being a real christian because there's a lot of people that say they're christians in the world today and then they sort of live like whatever they want and go yeah god loves me still it's all good and the bible teaches us that if you are saved if you're actually a christian and you wear the label and you say that you are one your lifestyle is going to change you're going to look different and look like a christian not because you work so hard at being so perfect nobody in here is but because god actually changes you from the inside out it is the greatest power outside of ourselves it is the only power outside of ourselves that can change us a lot of people try to change their life and they say well i'm going to do whatever whole30 or keto or i'm not going to drink or i'm not going to smoke or i'm going to do i'm going to lift and i'm going to do this and that and this and that they try to discipline themself to be good or to be perfect or i'm gonna do this or when i was in living in orange county and i was younger i don't even know if they have this anymore but there was this thing called being straight edge is that what do anyone ever remember that okay you had to be in orange county dudes wore white shirts black pants and chucks that was like the outfit and it was the beginning of hipster before hipster was hipster and if you were straight edge you weren't even a christian it wasn't like about religion if you were straight edged you didn't smoke you didn't drink you didn't do anything you were straight edge it was like a culture thing it was cool to do that but it wasn't attached to anything it so it never lasted so guys would be doing something weird at a party and you go hey i thought you were straight-edged yeah whatever not tonight so it never lasts only god's power can change people and it really isn't about being straight edge or not doing this or not doing this it's about god transforming your life and doing things that go far beyond just behavior modifications he transforms the heart well james comes along in the letter that we're studying and he says hey this is what faith looks like if it actually works so you get in the car of faith if you will and you say hey i'm ready to drive i'm a christian and that thing don't go nowhere james says your faith is dead because nothing is under the hood you need god to transform you and then his power is what drives you forward and so we've been studying james to figure out what it looks like to have faith that is in action and so james 1 17 and 18 is where we're going to be for the next little bit and then we will food truck ourselves into a food coma james writes every good thing bestowed it's given and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the father of lights with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow then he says in the exercise of his will he brought us forth by the word of truth so that we might be as it were the first fruits among his creation i'm going to explain what all that means and how it applies and how we would go out and live it let's pray and we'll jump in father in heaven we are helpless even though we claim to be super strong and super smart we can't do anything without you that's clear we think we're going to you know live forever in one sense or we know we're not going to live forever so we live it up we do whatever we want and live how we want and then you come in and you change us and for those of us here that have turned a corner because of your power we now want to know how are we supposed to live give us perspective in the midst of life when life gets hard or when other people have questions or when we just need to know what is next teach us through your word tonight the gifts you give how you are good and what you being good means for us in jesus name amen and amen there was a missionary from the 1800s last name was gardner first named alan and he experienced a lot of physical difficulties in his life a lot of hardships throughout his service to the lord and despite all his troubles here's what he said while god gives me strength failure will not daunt me a guy going through a lot of hard times says while god gives me strength failure will not daunt me well 1851 comes along and dies at the age of 57 years old of disease and starvation while serving on an island in the southern tip of south america when his body was found they found his diary nearby and this is what happened after that they begin reading through it it bears the record of hunger thirst wounds lowliness all of it but here's the remarkable thing even as he was dying there were sort of these scribbles on the page nearby his body the journal was open and it was until his dying breath maybe even his dying moment that he was trying to journal and write about what god was doing in that region this is what that little scribble read on his dying day open journal right near his body i am overwhelmed with a sense of the goodness of god i am overwhelmed with the sense of the goodness of god a dead man starving hungry lonely missionary laying next to his open journal hand withered and at that point fading and decaying and the journal doesn't say god where are you god what are you doing god why did you do this no the journal says i'm overwhelmed with the sense of the goodness of god how in the world can god be good in the middle of that situation how in the world can god be good in the middle of a lot of situations it's a different way of thinking there's another hero of the faith a woman named corey ten boom maybe you've heard of her story well-known woman who hid jews from the nazis during her time period when adolf hitler was trying to rid the world of jewish people corey ten boom decides that her and her family they're gonna hide the jews here's what she said often i have heard people say how good god is we prayed that it would not rain on our church picnic and we would look at the lovely weather yes god is good when he sends good weather but god is also good when he allowed my sister betsy to starve to death before my eyes in a german concentration camp i remember one occasion when i was very discouraged there everything around us was dark and there was darkness in my heart i remember telling betsy that i thought god had forgotten us but betsy said no corey he has not forgotten us remember his word for as the heavens are high above the earth so great is his steadfast love towards those who fear him corey concludes this there is an ocean of god's love available there is plenty for everyone may god grant you never to doubt that victorious love whatever the circumstances incredible people throughout history with incredible perspective on the goodness of god in the most difficult circumstances what did they know what made alan gardner so special dying on the mission field what made corey ten boom so brilliant in the middle of nazi war crimes simple they understood that god's goodness is not defined by their circumstances neither is god's goodness divined by your circumstances see god is good even when things are not god is good when things in your life are going bad because god's nature does not get defined by your circumstances your circumstances are still under his sovereign rule and his nature is defined simply by who he is god is good not because of what he does for you or gives to you or your definition of good god is good because his attribute is goodness he's good no matter what he does because he is always good in a passage that james provides for us tonight that we're going to study he identifies a key truth about god and the kind of gift that a good god gives see in their trials the people that james is writing to might have been wondering god where are you god what are you doing god hey i thought this was going to go a little better this isn't going very well we're dispersed abroad we're hated as usual so many of the new testament letters written to people around that area and you could talk about other letters that are written to christians dispersed throughout asia minor and here we studied already the diaspora and how they're all over the place and you look at these jews that james is writing to and life isn't going well nothing's really changed for christians across the span of millennia and sometimes you may wonder as well god where are you in all of this how can you be good perhaps in their trials they were wavering and the enemy was tempting them into sin like we studied in prior verses and in a doubt and unbelief maybe with some lies look at your hurting look at your brokenness look at your loneliness god doesn't love you why would a loving god let you go through this right now he must not care look at the way you're struggling with that why would a loving god let you struggle with that where is he you know what trade him in be your own god be your own savior believe in your self and guess what nothing's changed today time and time and time again the world the culture tells all of us believe in your self james is very definitive you don't buy the lies you don't give in to temptation and then he helps us see that god is good and he gives good gifts he does not change and you can trust him so if you're taking notes number one in those notes is god only gives good and perfect gifts god does not give evil gifts even when bad things happen even when evil takes place around the world even when things unfold the way you and i might say whoa that is not a good thing god is still good the gifts he gives are good james says there in the beginning every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the father of lights i don't need to translate the whole thing into the greek language to explain it means exactly what it says every good thing is given by god in contrast to evil and sin and temptation and the bad things that happen in this world god gives good and perfect gifts and he does this constantly the way that the original language phrases this the way the grammar is in those words this is constant present active participle he continues to give good and perfect gifts it's not one and done with god he doesn't just give you one good thing once in a while he's over and over and over pouring out good gifts upon his people and why does james calm the father of lights it's important for you to understand that terminology so you can get the fuller picture that he's painting the father of lights was a term that the jews would have understood very well it was one of their ideas or their phrases about who god is the creator of all light in a cosmic sense he's the power behind the sun he's the power behind the stars and the moon he is the driving force behind all of that and what's incredible is that we'll see shortly there's no shifting shadow so the sun eventually will fade the stars eventually will be no more the moon isn't going to be the moon forever there'll be a new heaven a new earth and yet god is the one who never shifts but even more than that even earlier than that you could think of the picture of the sun and of light creating shadows there's never a shadow with god he doesn't change he's not going to give you whiplash he keeps on giving good gifts this is what a genuine believer has to understand that god is always good not because of what he does but because of who he is and then here's another thing every believer needs to understand all the bad things in your life are really because of you all the evil in this world is because of sin real believers have to come to that place of humility where we stop blaming god for the bad things happening in our life we say it this way we've talked about this before maybe in different forums or in discipleship groups or other places when you know some people will say man i'm really going through it well we already know from the original few verses in chapter one two through four that trials are things that befall you right speeding tickets aren't trials you broke the law you end up in prison you're not going through a trial if you did something that put you in prison you're doing time for what you did christians have to understand god gives the good and perfect things in your life sin and giving into the cycle of temptation and lust and all that we talked about last week in that cycle of sin giving into those things taking the bait that's what leads to most often brokenness in your life yes god will allow certain things in your life to train you and grow you and sanctify you but he is not the author of evil on the flip side real believers have to understand that all the good things in your life all your successes all your triumphs are not because you're so awesome and you're so great not because you're so gifted not because you're a superstar you're extra special or extra powerful more than the person next to you know all the good things in your life are from god genuine belief in god is going to be marked that way and maybe you're not there yet or this is new but over time you'll find as you grow in the lord he breathes inside of a true believer a humility and yet a confidence a humility to know i didn't really do any of this this is all from him and then a confidence to know well what in the world else would i do except use what he's given for his glory so let's go and then you walk and step confidently not an arrogance and a boasting in yourself not a cockiness in who you are but a confidence in who god is and who he created you to be and who he's gifted you to be and then you walk in that knowing he's the power source behind it anyway a true believer understands that the good and perfect things have come from him number two god's unchanging ways change our ways god's unchanging ways change our ways what's james getting out here he says that this god who gives good and perfect gifts doesn't have any variation or shifting shadow in who he is this is a key truth already alluded it to it our wedding already alluded it to it already we as human beings will change like the weather will fail to receive wisdom because we don't ask that was in james 1 5. we talked about that we waver verses 6 to 8 we give into sin verses 13 to 15 but there is not even the slightest change in god he doesn't get lured into temptation he doesn't change on you and give you whiplash like some people will in this life when you sin god doesn't change you did when you resist sin god didn't subtly change you did you're growing stronger in him you're leaning on him more dependent you are walking more obediently because of his power in you he didn't change he's the same he's always changing and transforming people you are the one who changes and that's a good thing but even on your bad days he's not the one who changed and that ought to at some point change the way we live because now we have a god who loves us no matter what when we're a believer we have a god who is consistent no matter what we also have a god who we want to obey because his grace drives us towards him you guys think you're going to be more likely to sin when you forget the goodness of god or when you remember the goodness of god the bible says that it's his kindness that leads us to repentance because god is good we can be motivated towards obedience i want to give you some examples of forgetfulness in the bible that have led to sin but also remembrance that lead to obedience god's unchanging ways change our ways david when he commits adultery with bathsheba he has her husband killed uriah to cover up the sin it's like something out of a wild movie the plot thickens david forgot the unchanging goodness of god he forgot the god who kept him alive he forgot the god that was there for him when saul was throwing spears past his head he forgot the god that kept him secure when he was running for his life he forgot the god that helped him slay the giant and now he's king and he's in the palace and he looks down and there's bathsheba in the hot tub or whatever doing her bath and he goes you know i want that and so he has it and then he says uh-oh she's married to one of my main men who's fighting battles to win for my kingdom this whole thing is going to end badly i know what i need to do i need to cover up my sin so i'm going to sin more to cover up sin i got to do more lying to cover up the lying i've been doing so he makes sure that uriah is on the front lines in the battle that comes next and is killed and so the prophet nathan comes to david and tells them a wild story listen to this second samuel 12 1-13 then the lord sent nathan to david and he came to david and said there were two men in a city the one was wealthy the other was poor the wealthy man had a great many flocks and herds but the poor man had nothing at all except one little you lamb which he bought and nurtured so picture a poor man with a little baby lamb and that's all he's got and it grew up together with him and his children and then we eat little scraps from him and it would drink from his cup and lie in his lap it was like a daughter to him that's all he had now a visitor came to the wealthy man and and the wealthy man could not bring himself to take any animal from his own flock or his own herd to prepare for the traveler that was coming because he would of course prepare a beautiful meal for that traveler so he took the poor man's little lamb and he prepared it for the man who had come to him david's anger suddenly burned the bible says and it burned greatly against the man and he said to nathan as the lord lives the man who has done this certainly deserves to die so he must make restitution for the lamb four times over since he did this thing with no compassion to the poor man nathan then said to david you yourself are the man you did this thing this is what the lord god of israel says it is i who anointed you as king over israel i who rescued you from the hand of saul i also gave you your master's house and put your master's wives into your care and i gave you the house of israel and judah and if it had been too little i would have added to you many more things like these why have you despised the word of the lord by doing evil in his sight you have struck and killed uriah the hittite with sword you have taken his wife as your wife you have slaughtered him with the sword of the sons of ammon now then the sword shall never leave your house because you despised me and have taken the wife of uriah to be your wife david in the end says i've sinned against the lord what happened david forgot god's goodness to him god reminds him of his goodness to him in the end it leads david to repent but so often like david in that scenario in our own lives we forget the goodness of god and suddenly we sin against god but when we remember who he is and that he's good and unchanging it changes our ways we make different decisions we repent even when we've sinned and our genuine faith is proven you know david wasn't an unbeliever because he committed adultery and because he had uriah killed you realize that he was still god's anointed still god's chosen and he was still certainly going to end in glory one day and even in the end of such a horrific situation he said i have sinned against the lord. psalm 51 17 records that he had a broken and contrite heart before the lord so it's not that you can't sin or that when you forget god once he's done with you it's that you must remember the goodness of god even in the middle of some of your most horrible sins and situations where you've been forgetting god and come back to the place you once were a place of remembrance of his goodness think of joseph you guys remember joseph and the code of many colors if you're new to church there's this guy and he was his favorite of his fathers and he got a coat of many colors given to him vivid imagery in my house my wife has sewed a coat of many colors for my oldest son who wears it and imitates joseph true story it's all these beautiful colors he put gold around the trim and he walks around and we play joseph because he wants me to throw him in a pit you know and have a lot of fun and wrestle with him and and all that kind of stuff so we got a coat of many colors it's a real fun kind of way to act out a bible story well joseph was a real person and the coat of many colors was real and his dad gave it to him his gorgeous coat because he was the favored son of his father well in the end he ends up in a pit because his jealous brothers are over it and so they get jealous and toss them in the pit and then they go ahead and sell him into slavery while he ends up in the house of a man named potiphar and joseph's such a stud that he serves faithfully and he works so hard bible says he's real handsome as well so eventually he gets taken into this potipher's house the egyptian officer of pharaoh he's the captain of the guard and what he ends up doing there is kind of growing in stature growing in favor god has been good to him he took him out of the pit and his jealous brothers and their mistreatment of him and he made them prosper and the bible says that the lord made all that he did prosper in his hand this is genesis early on in your bible give you the exact chapter in verse 39 verses 1 to 10 but the storyline is going to go all the way to 50. so if you want a good 20 chapter or so storyline you read it later at the end of genesis and joseph's doing well he's left in charge of everything that potiphar owned and with him there he did not concern himself with anything except the food which he ate now joseph was handsome in form and appearance okay that's means what it says he had a good solid frame might have been a little crossfitter like today we got these dudes with all their muscles okay so he was pretty fit he was good looking because he's handsome so he's handsome in form and appearance so we got athletic joseph looking good doing his crossfit at some point but then just serving the lord all other hours of the day he's a good looking guy and it came about that after these events his master's wife had her eyes on joseph hey now so she goes to him and says sleep with me let's let's engage in sexual immorality but he refused and he said to his master's wife look with me here my master doesn't concern himself with anything in the house he has put me in charge of all that he owns you know that means he doesn't concern himself with any that is like someone who says i don't need to check if the inventory is still there i already know joseph is on the job i don't need to look if the lawn's cut i know my man's taking care of business i don't need to worry about who he just hired i trust him every decision he makes is god honoring he could be alone in the house with my own wife and children and i know he will treat them in the most perfect way that's what joseph is saying i have great trust there's no one greater in the house than eyes withheld nothing from me except you because you belong to him you're his wife how then could i do this great evil and sin against god oh joseph remembers the goodness of god god has done all these good things why would i blow it now with you see that's back to what james describes as the way to walk away from the cycle of sin the temptation cycle as satan dangles the lure and it looks good on the outside but the hook is there on the inside the wise and remembering believer says i'm not going to mess around with you god's been good so go your way though she spoke to joseph day after day doesn't that make you hate temptation and sin it just keeps coming day after day after day he did not listen to her did not lie beside her or be with her what's a huge key to testing your genuine faith remembering god what's a huge key to overcoming sin to changing ways remember the unchanging goodness of god number three as verse 18 begins we see god has given the greatest gift of all the exercise of his will james writes he brought us forth by the word of truth in the exercise of his will you want to highlight that or circle it right there in your bible in the exercise of his will or whatever translation you have in whatever form it has been translated for you this basically says wanting us choosing us having an affection for us god and then the sentence continues because god wanted us or you can go even deeper with the original language uninitiated by any outside influence nothing caused god to want you but because he simply did he brought you forth by the word of truth if you're a believer you can rest assured tonight doesn't matter how your day has been or how your week has been doesn't matter how you've sinned certainly it would mean you ought to repent and you ought to be walking with the lord and humility but in the sense that god doesn't want you anymore god doesn't love you anymore no not at all that's not true god has wanted you for known you predestined to you before the foundation of the earth he knew your name he knew you were his he called you to be his he wanted you and wants you doesn't matter what you look like it doesn't matter if your parents are your biological parents or your adopted parents or your adoptive parents god almighty the creator of heaven and earth has wanted you that's the greatest gift of all that in the exercise of his will he would bring you forth it's like god has birthed you spiritually that's why we say in christianity you've been born again if you've been saved you've been born again what does that mean you've been reborn it means you've been sort of redone or renovated or the bible even uses big words like regeneration regenerated you've been made new born again not because you went back in your mom's tummy one guy asked jesus that one time how can i get in there again and be born she says no no i'm talking spiritually god has made you knew it's the greatest gift of all and by the word of truth is the gospel it's why i'm referring to salvation and god making you new very simple by the word of truth through the power of the gospel that is how god has saved people that's good news if you want to look at the gospel all in one passage what does this whole look thing look like the greatest gift of all in one passage ephesians chapter 2 verses 1 to 10. you can turn there if you like i'm going to walk you through it and then we're getting ready to land the plane the gospel the good news the greatest gift in 10 verses sometimes you guys might wonder what the gospel is or you've heard me describe the gospel you go yeah i know what that is but if someone asked you what is the gospel or take me there help me understand the gospel you might go well yeah you know god loves you and jesus and the cross and yeah some stuff there the nails you know easter but can you really articulate the gospel so i'll give you the cheat sheet right now just go to ephesians 2. save yourself a whole lot you don't even need to know all the verses just know if you get to ephesians 2 you're going to be all right get to ephesians 2. and you are dead in your offenses and sins your trespasses your sins you've offended god you're his enemy you're dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to the course of this world that's pretty obvious you were going the world's way according to who the prince of the power of the air of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience if you're having that gospel conversation you need to go what in the world is that it's really simple according to the prince of the power of the air that's the devil of the spirit that's now working in the sons of disobedience okay all the disobedient people in the world who are working out the enemy satan darkness's agenda that's them there's a spirit of deception over them and they are just doing evil that's how you all look previously walked among them we too all previously lived how did we live in the lusts of our flesh you don't need to be a rocket scientist to know what that means just scroll instagram indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind that's easy too have you thought a dirty thought an evil thought a wicked thought in the last five minutes five hours five days indulging the desires of the flesh and of the minds you've been kind of just given into it and you were by nature children of wrath just as the rest so we're all evil we've all sinned romans 3 23 all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of god and then here we go the greatest gift of all verse 4 but god rich in mercy because of his great love there's that initiating love with which he loved us a lot of masculine pronouns he god did it not you even when we were dead in our wrongdoings made us alive together with christ by grace you have been saved and then he raised us up with him and seated us in the heavenly places in christ so that in the ages to come he might show the boundless riches of his grace and kindness towards us in christ jesus for by grace you've been saved through faith not of yourselves it is the gift of god not a result of works so nobody can boast or brag for we are his workmanship created in christ jesus for good works which god has prepared beforehand so we might walk in them god's greatest gift to you is not your great life your iphone your girlfriend your first car your best job any of that your good looks whatever none of that is god's greatest gift to you salvation eternal life you being one of those dead sinful type of people where your life you think is going somewhere really isn't going anywhere and then god is so rich in mercy and he does it all according to his will and goes here's the gift all you can say is wow thank you god what a gift like no child is ever born of their own will nobody saved is ever saved by their own will god gives birth if you will in eternity past to you he already has determined i am going to save them he brought you forth you weren't an accident he chose to send his son he chose to save you you didn't make the decision to be good enough god made you good enough you didn't make the decision to wake up dead men can't raise themselves god raises the dead to life that is the greatest gift of all because we are so helpless we need him so you don't resist temptation you don't count it all joy in various trials you don't glory in your situation you don't watch your mouth when we study the tongue you don't put away jealousy and selfish ambition when we get there no so you can be good enough god's power is at work within you because he was so good to you and his grace pours out on you you don't resist temptation just not to be bad you walk in righteousness and obedience because you want to follow the one who gave you the greatest gift the world could ever know love and grace mercy become your daily motivation your faith is not built on don't do that stop it quit it cut it out it's built on because of what god has done and god has willed because of his great kindness and saving me i want to obey him i want to follow him i want to confess my way is bankrupt his way is a blessing i will follow you that's what a genuine believer looks like and so now you understand when people don't change when they do whatever they want they live like hell but claim they're going to heaven now do you understand why it is loving to say you don't look like what the bible calls a saved person my friend people say oh you can't judge me who are you to judge the judge not lest you be judged for in the same measure that you judge it'll be judged to you and they can quote matthew 7 verses 1 and 2 and you go exactly jesus said in the same measure yes may i be judged as well if i say i follow jesus but i don't look like a follower of jesus yes may you as well come and point that out in my life in the same measure that i weigh your life and i quote judge your fruit may you also do the same to me that's what genuine believers do that's what genuine believers accept understanding finally number four god has given you an eternal purpose on earth he's given the greatest gift of all his unchanging ways change our ways he only gives good and perfect gifts to us and there he says so that we would be a kind of first fruits among his creatures now this line is not really going to make a whole lot of sense until you realize that god is going to make all things new one day a new heavens and a new earth he's going to do away with this old passing world people can try to change it all with their climate change hypothesis and their recycling and believe me you should recycle and you should take care of the planet god has given you but we ain't going to save the planet ain't gonna happen god is going to according to the bible eventually do away with this earth there'll be a new heaven there'll be a new earth the old is passing away and the beauty of the eternal state is going to enter into forever if you will and you'll be in that forever if you're a believer and this is what the scene looks like in revelation 21 verses 1 to 7. i want you to understand this so you can understand the full thrust of what james is saying john writes in this particular vision then i saw a new heaven and a new earth so that's where i'm getting that from for the first heaven and the first earth passed away there's no longer any sea and i saw the holy city new jerusalem so there's going to be a new jerusalem it's going to come down out of heaven literally prepared as a bride adorned for her husband i heard a loud voice from the throne saying behold the tabernacle of god is among the people he will dwell upon them and they shall be his people and god himself will be among them and guess what he's going to do he's going to wipe away every tear the bible says there's not going to be any more death has that happened yet no do people still cry yes but there'll come a day when those things no longer happen there's not gonna be any more mourning no crying and no more pain no more sickness nothing at all that is broken all those things will pass away and he who sits on the throne said behold i am making all things new who do you think that is and he said right for these words are faithful and true then he said to me it's done i'm the alpha and the omega the beginning in the end i will give water to the one who thirsts from the springs of the water of life without cost the one who overcomes will inherit these things i will be his god he will be my son so god is gonna make all things new one day but isn't it pretty neat that he's already in the business of making something new you it's a now but not yet you're the first fruits you're the first thing in all of creation that has been made new in the sense that you're not yet in heaven you're not yet in your glorified body we're not in the eternal state we're not in the new heavens and the new earth and in the new jerusalem but isn't it incredible that god would save you and make you new as a witness an eternal purpose still here on earth to look like what is to come in the sense that he has made you completely new you are if you will a living witness or a living sign a living miracle an acts 1 8 witness to the world that god can make things new anybody ever had one of those conversations with people who see you after your your bc days your before christ days anybody ever look at the disbelief in someone's eyes maybe not all of you were as bad as i was but the people that look and go no i mean you're no real like you're different you're different i was hanging around with a friend not not long ago literally in the last few weeks and he was talking about someone else it was good gossip really good gossip um the good kind and he said yeah you know you know so and so i said oh yeah i know so and so he goes man let me tell you and he didn't tell me any details he didn't gossip about that but he just said i'm telling you it's it's night and day he's different if you knew him before you would understand why my eyes go wide every time i see him at church and i see him walk with the lord only god could do that they're amazed and blown away at the newness of life that is what god is in the business of doing that's the gift of salvation to transform you and make you a witness and give you an eternal purpose this is why i would tell you if you've been saved you are a new creation in christ the oldest gone the new has come like 2 corinthians 5 17 says and then what is your job now get rich get famous i don't care if you got money or you people know you're good for you your job on planet earth is to make who known him the giver of life the maker of new things you have a purpose you've been given a gift from god whatever sphere you're in you could be in business one day you could be in vocational ministry that's what i do i am a pastor by my life or my calling some people want to call it a career you could end up in the banking industry you'd be an accountant you could be in the military you could be a pilot for southwest whatever god allows you to do and you put your hands to the plow and you well maybe you'd be a farmer too but i was just saying the plow and metaphor but overall you do whatever you do you be a landscaper put your hands on the mower you bring him glory you make him known every day when you wake up your life is not purposeless you don't have to rate the grass going i don't even know what i'm doing another day doing the same thing you don't need to be in construction hammering nails or building houses you need to wander aimlessly wondering when is my real life going to begin it already has he gives you the gift of salvation he makes you new and when you die your spirit or your soul is gonna go and live in eternity something doesn't die you can cremate the body you could stick it in a box you could disappear people die and no one ever finds them bottom line is the spirit the soul lives on forever so when god has made you new now and you know that you're saved you're a genuine believer it doesn't matter what you ever go through you have a purpose on earth and you have hope in what's to come so if you ever find yourself looking for eternal purpose bottom line follow after jesus you don't have to go another day wondering what in the world your life is for if you haven't ever followed him i encourage you to receive the gift of salvation tonight believe in jesus confess that you're a sinner that your way doesn't work that his way does that you need him to save you that your life is going nowhere and follow him follow god the creator of heaven and earth it's quite simple even some gospel preachers complicate it well there's you know we want you to have hope trust and hope just have faith faith in what here's the bottom line there's a god atheists say there isn't liars say he's not real there is a god he created the heavens the earth he created all humanity you have a simple choice on an evening like this are you going to believe in the god who you will meet one day or are you not you follow god the creator the ultimate power while the world wonders what this big old ball of dirt is going to end up like or how it all works you can know there is a god who created and a god who loves and a god who saves and a god you can follow that road leads to the joy of eternity that road leads to fulfilling your purpose here on earth that road leads to every good and perfect gift coming down constantly over and over and over again on your life so you can say no matter what you're going through god is good because of who he is [Music] [Music] worship your holy name [Music] it's time to sing your [Music] let me be singing when the evening comes [Music] oh [Music] is singing ten thousand reasons for my heart [Music] [Music] me [Music] has gone still my soul will sing your praise [Music] my soul worship [Music] is [Music] i'll worship lord i worship your hope

Channel: Redeemer Bible Church

Views: 1,007

Rating: 4.9111109 out of 5

Keywords: The Good Father's Good Gift, Jesus, Bible, Redeemer Bible Church, Arizona, Gilbert, Mesa, Bible Church, Truth, Understanding, God, Sound Doctrine, Costi Hinn, Gilbert Arizona, Church, local church, biblical preaching, gospel centered, teh good fatehr's good gift, james 1, james 1:17, james 1:18, good and perfect gift, gilbert arizona, the gathering, thegatheringrbc, greatest gift of all

Id: rqfHceWEZug

Length: 66min 28sec (3988 seconds)

Published: Thu May 27 2021