What's Really Important - Pt. 5 // Judah Smith

every time we get together I get the privilege of telling the story of Jesus and you're gonna find out real quick I'm a Jesus guy I believe Jesus is God I believe he became sin he knew no sin or he had any sin but became sin so that I could become right with God I believe there's a holy perfect Creator who designed us for one primary reason that has a relationship with him but because of our air are wrong in our sin because we're not Pinocchio's God doesn't pull our strings he gave us a free will because of our exercising of that free will to do things that are contrary to his character there was a divide there was a gap there was a separation between the created and the creator and God put on skin and bone in the form of Jesus the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form and he bridged that gap once and for all took all the punishment and judgment and pain upon his body so that by simply believing in his free gift you can have a relationship with God forever and ever without end that's what I believe I'm passionate about that you're gonna hear that in my message that does not mean that's what you have to believe to belong here be welcomed here celebrated here loved here and seen here can I get an amen and but that is that's kind of where we're going we're doing a collection of sermons entitled what's really important what's really important and here's the premise I'm gonna be working from the band will join us in a few minutes when I'm done talking and we'll sing some songs that we know to be true about Jesus thanks again for your patience with the metal detectors which is ensuring your further safety a big thanks to the Saban theatre for always working with us and helping us one more applause for the Saban theatre staff and everybody love you guys what's really important the premise I'll be working from is everything can't be important contrary to Super Bowl commercials and all the marketing that we are inundated with everything can't be important if absolutely everything is important nothing is important we become confused creatures the fact is there are some things we need to let go some things we need to just kind of water off a duck's back it's not a big deal it's not my life it's not my wife mottos that we can use to help us let go of things that are not truly important is what happens in this thing called the human experience as often times we miss prioritize what actually is valuable what actually is is eternal and by doing so we dequeue manizer our selves we short-circuit the full human expression and experience and we don't get to be truly fully alive and so tonight's message is about you experiencing the full human experience truly being alive and being able to give your emotion your energy your time all of which is incredibly limited here on earth to what actually matters can you in in a moment use your imagination to try to imagine how many people came into this building all right what do people watching on the app tuned in and from the day that has been you are carrying with you consternation hopefully about constipation but consternation that's sourced over celery juice magic by the way but anyways consternation over something that actually doesn't matter maybe it's been days I'll take it a step further maybe it's been weeks of you all worked up about something that in the grand scheme of things doesn't really matter tell you what you run into somebody who's got their priorities right you run into somebody who knows how to give their energy to what really matters and let go things that don't matter that is the kind of person you want to be around so tonight's message in a roundabout way is also gonna help you become incredibly more attractive see how I did that this is how you try to tie in the congregation um this this sermon is dedicated to you being sexier IQ there that's not really true okay whoa there's an honest person all right so go with me we are gonna go to Matthew now we're gonna go to Luke Luke 17 then we'll go to Matthew 18 Luke 17 and starting with verse 11 we're to look at a story by looking at the story the centerpiece of the story of course is Jesus we're going to try to discern to decipher together what's really important it says on the way to Jerusalem Jesus was passing along between Samaria and Galilee between Samaria and Galilee as he entered a village an unnamed village he was met by ten lepers these are ten individuals we don't know if they're male or female ten individuals who have leprosy now leprosy in antiquity was actually a number of different skin diseases it wasn't just one but all of them are suffering from a skin eating disease their leprosy is apparent to all and according to the Torah the first five books of the Bible the Jewish law they are not allowed to be around people without leprosy the closest they can get to a non leprous person is literally an elbow to fingertip with okay or or length so if they literally have a law that tells them exactly the distance they have to stay away sufficient to say these ten lepers are lonely these ten lepers don't have much of a life these ten lepers are probably struggling with all kinds of emotions they approach Jesus yet at a distance and this is what they asked Jesus probably because they've heard the news that he actually heals people like them they said Jesus master have mercy on us take pity on us and Jesus says this which is a very unusual situation instance often times Jesus will heal people with a word Oh heal people instantly but he says this go now show yourselves to the priests and as they went they were cleansed so that is a loaded verse chapter 17 verse 14 because the reason it's loaded isn't because it speaks to the Torah the first five books of the Bible and the law the Jewish people upheld and that is this if there happened to be miraculously supernaturally a someone who had a skin eating disease that no longer had the skin eating disease by miracle or by way of medicine or for whatever reason once they felt they were cleared from the skin eating disease they were according to Jewish law to go and present themselves to their local priest that local priest would literally this is where pastoring would not have been my thing that local pastor or priest was to invest Gate their body to ensure that the open sores were closed and their skin eating disease was a past thing and they were healed and they could reengage in the village city or town where they lived is a very dramatic thing Jesus says to the ten lepers who are not yet healed he says go show yourself to the priests so it says as they went they were cleansed and then something happens verse 15 then one of them one of them when he saw that he was healed turned back praising God with a loud voice so this has you ever had seen somebody ugly cry okay this is ugly happy okay this is a sophisticated it's not well put together this guy is pumped he's praising God and Luke wants us to know for some specific reason dr. Luke who's inspired by God to write this particular letter he says this guy was getting loud he was getting loud I think you would too and it says he fell on his face so it's demonstrative its physical it's volume it's loud he fell on his face giving thanks to him however whatever that win it was probably something like Jesus thank you oh yeah you know he's like he's being super loud and it says dr. Luke says he was a Samaritan he's not Jewish he's a Samaritan Jesus again told the ten lepers to observe the Jewish law to go and find a Jewish priest to fulfill the Jewish requirements and yet come to find out one of the lepers isn't Jewish doesn't follow the teachings of the Torah he's a Samaritan he came back to thank Jesus verse 17 then jesus answered and said listen up Jesus we're not ten cleansed where are the nine where are the nine if you want another title to my sermon tonight it would be where are the nine where are the nine and I'm an endeavor to tell you where I think the nine are where are the nine Jesus says was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner and he says this he said to him rise go your way your faith has made you well now that word has nothing to do with his skin eating disease it has everything to do with his soul Jesus is now telling the one samaritan the foreigner he says I don't know where the nine are it'd be nice for them to also come back and express some gratitude but I tell you that not only is your skin healed but your soul is healed in case you were wondering whether or not Jesus was God or not he never claimed to be a good teacher he never claimed to do nice things and good things with other upstanding citizens he claimed to be above and beyond them all he claimed to be God it is here he told this man everything you've ever done wrong is absolved and your soul is well those are the words of a man who believes himself to be God again I'm talking about what's really important another title of the sermon could be where's the nine where's the nihilists praise Jesus thank you for the moments that we share we ask that you'd help us to be efficient and effective with the moments that we do have I help us to get warm it seems really cold in this room and I'm cold to my fingertips so help us to warm up thank you for your grace and your love for each and every one of us God thank you for the privilege and an opportunity we have to be together in Jesus name and everyone said what's the earliest memory you have of this cognizant thought am I wrong or more specifically am I on the wrong team am I on the wrong side am I on the winning side and that's might be an odd question we'll open and select me just share story the earliest memory I have as a young man of wondering whether or not I was on the right team happened in Little League me and my best friend Jackie Loman we lived four houses from each other in Portland Oregon shout-out to the Blazers Portland Oregon and Jackie Loman was the great baseball player I was just an overall great athlete and so we tried out for Little League and I was really excited his dad to play college baseball he was excited by baseball so we tried out for the mana Villa Little League baseball program and we were determined to be on the same team we were determined to be on the same team but as it were because we were both so elite in our abilities they put us on two different teams he was on old country kitchen and I was on Elmer's now some you don't know about this little league I grew up a little league where we didn't have any money unless local restaurants sponsored the team and paid for the uniforms this is before parents paid for all your uniforms we had this thing called sponsorships in my neighborhood but anyways so we were sponsored by Elmer's cafe and my buddy's team was sponsored by old country kitchen steakhouse so they were OKC we were Elmer's we had an e we were blue and they were a maroon now I never forget the first game I finally played I was playing I was playing first base in the first string pitcher huh and like why do I use sermons to try to prove to you that I'm athletic I don't know but I'll never forget old country kitchen Jackie Loehmann's team whose dad was the head coach they scored their first run and I'll never forget the first time I'm 11 years old and I heared this statement for the very first time of my whole life I never heard this before and someone yells out one of the assistant coaches he said good guys one bad guys zero now you think that's funny but eleven years old I was like we're not the bad guys we're Elmer's yeah I remember yeah just sounds so silly but I actually went in in in preparation for this sermon I tried to go back to my emotions but I remember going home after that game and we lost and I wonder if we lost because we were the bad guys an old country kitchen was the good guys and I remember laying in my bed at 11 years old and for the very first time my brain was trying to process the potential that I could be a bad guy what if I was a bad guy now if you're like me every movie I go to there's always seems to be a good guy and a bad guy ok that's how this town works we make movies where good guys and bad guys and we like good guys and bad guys you know why because we were late with the good guys ok research shows that people who relate with the bad guys you know that's that's that's not normal what's normal research tells us ok so we're like no I love the bad guys okay so but almost all of us research tells us relate almost instantly with the good guys we're the good guys right and to this day I'll be playing basketball okay I don't play basketball to this day but when I used to play basketball one of my favorite statements to say when my team scored was good guys to bad guys zero right because I remember at 11 years old feeling like what if I'm a bad guy now as I grew up my dad convinced me I'm not a bad guy I'm one of the good guys my dad was a pastor his dad was a pastor his dad was a pastor his dad was a pastor his dad was a pastor his dad was a pastor and his aunt was a pastor in New Mexico riding a horse carrying a gun in a Bible telling people about Jesus she was very persuasive so as far back as I can go my dad taught me that we were the good guys we were the good guys and so every superhero movie I go to I'm always a part of the good always a part of a good team I'm the the the good guys we're not part of the bad guys so I wants to do something tonight that I think should be interesting I want us to look at this story very honestly and objectively and I want to say this that a willingness to be wrong I know we don't like terms like bad guys and good guys so I'll soften the blow a little bit and I'll say a willingness to be wrong is still one of the most admirable qualities in the human experience a willingness to be wrong we're talking about what's really important a willingness to be wrong so I just want to throw that on the table and give all of us a license to to to to lean into being wrong what if I don't want to say what if you're one of the bad guys because you'll get offended what if you're wrong what if you're sitting here right now and you're wrong what if the fact that you attend church misleads you to think that you're right just because you're here when in fact you're wrong we're celebrating this month Black History Month which is an interesting and very important celebration but of course it speaks volumes to where we are as a country you need to understand a lot of people gathered in settings like this and when it came to equality and justice and hatred and racism they couldn't have been more wrong so let's at least put it on the table that wrong could apply to you and to me we are celebrating a a month February where a people group if you look at the history men my shade men my color stood in platforms just like these and proliferated hate and racism and murder and injustice and they did it in the name of the Jesus we celebrate tonight so Black History Month if nothing else tells us we can be really wrong Church so I know you don't want to be a part of Elmer's you want to be an old country kitchen but we might be wrong and I'm just saying it's gonna be important for us in the next 40 minutes together that we at least put that on the table that not only could you and I be wrong we could be really wrong we could be really wrong now I'm gonna be honest with you it's not entirely the way I was raised wasn't raised to constantly think I could be really wrong as some of you the election season is upon us and some of you have been raised to think red and some of you've been raised to think blue so I'm you've been raised to think this party or that party or maybe maybe Green Party or different part and you've been raised to anybody politically ever grown up and thought to yourself I might be on the wrong side of this one I might actually be on the wrong side I just want to say thank you for at least having the consideration to whether or not you were wrong now before I really really offend too many people I'm gonna come right to the edge and I'm gonna sit in my chair which is a non-threatening posture yeah I am no historian let me just be really really really clear okay I can't remember who won the Super Bowl two years ago so I am NOT a historian okay but I know enough to know about church history church history that people who are convinced they know the one true God and though that may be true the elements and the Constitution that make up his character we can miss appropriate to misunderstand but it is I hope it's not lost on us in this room that those who claim to know the one true God oftentimes can be the hardest to convince yeah but some of what you believe might still be wrong you might you might have got God right but you might not have got some of hit the elements of his character right so you could be right big picture but also really wrong in some areas right and so historically this is typically a room where we're all celebrating how right we are isn't it right and and then some of us came tonight and you coming is already telling your brain I feel right I feel right just by being here because this is a noble place this is a moral place this is a good place this is a positive place nobody walked in here and by all the accouterments you probably didn't immediately just go I'm wrong this is wrong now a few people did and I don't blame you for that you're like church is bad this is wrong this is weird I don't like this has anyone looked at their history of this country and Church in the poor oh let's play okay thank you for bearing with us and staying put okay but it's often times when it comes to environments like this we last thing we want to do is think about the way we were wrong we're like preacher just tell me how I'm right and how I can be more right right but tonight me included I want us just to throw out there we could be wrong we could be wrong you know you can be right and still be wrong okay so here's the question I want to ask and now I'll take a more aggressive posture here's the question I want to ask when I read the story maybe you weren't listening so let me just tell it to you again 10 guys and gals who have skin disease they see Jesus we don't know how they know who Jesus is or what they've heard about Jesus but evidently they know enough about Jesus know Jesus can do miracles so they keep their distance according to the law and they say collectively and together Jesus now they use the word master which is interesting you can say master it's not totally believed they say master King Lord ruler have mercy look at us have mercy on us he says alright go find a priest show the priest your body now again this is all mixed up this said this isn't exactly how the law works not because Jesus is the fulfillment of law this is this is really really not perfect here Jesus is like go now before you're even he'll go now just start going and so as they're on their way again some of the T's aren't crossing the eyes aren't daughter here we don't have all of the details all the minutiae we know that eventually they are yet to a not to a priest but they're healed and one of the ten goes back and sees Jesus as the source of his healing he's like man thank you oh my word thing it's more than that it's like the best right like it's it's passionate now in the story who do you relate with do you relate with the nine probably not or do you relate with the one who came back to Jesus that's me I'm in church that's me that was close it's me right this is classic preacher reads a story and there were three wicked rulers and one righteous one and your brain goes I'm with the one that's me that's me I'm so happy to be in the 1-percent I'm the 10% that's me not the 90% I'm the 10% right that's right so it's the preacher my job is to be like see Christians you're the 10% and we all go yes we soar right at the end a preacher like me has everyone stand and let's pray for the rest of the world so they can see Jesus like us and like come on stand up let's link arms for the world them and they you know the bad guys Albert's world country kitchen right we're know we're the good guys it doesn't even cross our mind that were part of the nine yeah right like I don't know who Jesus is he's the guy with the really nice eyes and the beard the blue sash she always has a blue sash with a white robe blond hair blue eyes I know Jesus when I see him you sure do so did your Sunday school teacher and so I just I just want us to ask the question who do we relate with more the nine or the one I'm not trying to be negative and I'm not trying to like prove to you that you're the bad guy maybe a little but um so let's just dig in for a second and maybe maybe if we're really honest we can see that we're more part of the 90% sometimes then the 10% like here's what's funny let's do some math isn't it funny how a hundred percent of Christians see themselves as a part of the ten percent that's kind of funny isn't it I mean mathematically I'm not a genius but that's kind of ironic right that there's 10% that come back 90% that don't but every Christian you ask I'm a part of the 10% well statistically that just can't be true right it just can't be true there's a lot of us that fit in the majority and the majority relates to God in a very logical way let me introduce you to the nine we don't know much about the nine we only really get the Samaritan view but let me tell you about the nine undoubtedly within the nine is mostly Jewish people with deteriorating skin diseases we know this because Jesus is between we also know there's Samaritan but he is between Galilee and Samaria and so Samaritans are the mixed breed which they were called I'm not calling them that's what they were called in antiquity they were half Jew they were not full Jew they were rejected and so we know that within the ten Jesus must have been able to identify that there are Jews in that setting for he speaks to the group as if they all acknowledge and follow the Torah so referencing the Torah he says according to the law go show yourself to your local priest get a investigation of your body and you'll be healed and you ibly pronounce and so they all kind of like wow maybe the Samaritans like wait what are we doing they're like listen it's a part of the teaching and so they go on their way safe to say that these nine if for nothing else are to be seen as nine Jewish people takes one foreigner now Jesus said go and show yourself to the priest can we cut the nine a little slack here in this story Jesus said go show yourself to the priest Jesus said what the Torah says therefore they're going to follow through with what Jesus says okay I don't know how a whip let's just have some fun the foreigner the guy who doesn't know the Torah the first five books of the Bible he goes hey guys we're good like right the law says we need to go find a local pastor and make sure he pronounces that we're clean but we're clean right you obviously don't know the law you're Gentile you're Samaritan this is how the law works I'm good I got what I want I say we go back and thank that guy Jesus no Jesus said we need to find a priest and nine really well-meaning people are trying to be faithful to what the Torah teaches and Jesus said one foreigner who they I'm sure saw as dumb was like that is a matey sense we're good I looked let's go back and thank the guy who did it and like it doesn't work like that that's not what the law says and it's not what he said and he's like I don't care and they're like foreigner Samaritan right and he's like peace not gonna do what Jesus said not gonna do what the Torah says I'm gonna do what my gut says and my gut says this is about Jesus so he comes back and he's like you are crazy hold up right knee like Jesus all right man he's like no serious I love you you guys know this guy he's like a dad to me you know like it's like it's really weird you know and what you expect Jesus to say according to the Church of the Living God you expect Jesus to go young man yeah did you do what I say mostly did you find a priest nah cuz I look down and I was already cleaned so I was like what's the use right I just wanted to thank you cuz I think didn't you do this and what you'd expect Jesus to say is I need you to follow through get up join your little crew and follow through how confusing this is Jesus goes where's the other 9 where do you mean where's the other 9 they're doing what you told him to do how's this for a turn of events where's the 9 oh I don't know Jesus doing exactly what you said right I mean why are we doing Jesus you're the most confusing Messiah where's the 9 did only one comeback watch what he says to worship God he claims to be God just begin further clarification for those who see Jesus and like every other good person who's ever lived he never claimed to be a good person he claimed to be God he's like no one else came to thank God and I think the foreigner was why we're like nah they were really set on that Torah thing you referenced I just felt like it'd be better to come back and see you and he's like good you're forgiven you're saved and he's like I don't even think he knows what that means he's like amazing thank you haha see you around and the scene closes I love stories like this because in churches you know that we've all grown up and it's like isn't that beautiful and the whole church is like amen that is so wonderful no it's not it's frustrating and if we're really honest who do we lay with more in this story I relate with the nine people who are doing what Jesus said to do wait wait one he broke the rules yeah I wanted him to why don't you say that well you know right like but again we look at these passages and we're like come on let's be the one who goes back to Jesus and we're like yes that's hard that's hard you got to unlearn some stuff you got a who do you relate with more I know who I relate with more just to be redundant Zhaan I'm right I mean I I don't know I don't know like everything about church but I know like you do what God says you know that's like that's like entry-level like what did God say and the Christians ever like he told me to move to Montana move brother okay okay okay right like you do what he says so you're in a tree for for the next 20 years you know like like I'm throwing that out there but the guy that gets commended is the guy that doesn't do what Jesus said what notice what Jesus says only the guy who's not Jewish comes back only the guy doesn't know the Torah comes back no as if to say Jesus who's Jewish by the way my own people don't see me for who I am takes a foreigner so so let's let's talk about this a little bit why why do the nine not come back dr. Luke wants us to draw some conclusions here that I think are gonna be really important first of all you need to understand dr. Luke's audience is primarily and almost exclusively Jewish which is to say he wrote this book for Jewish minds he wrote this book for Jewish mind so understand its intended audience that's gonna help you no doubt Luke is talking to the nine through this story he is saying to the Jewish people it's as if you can't see the forest for the trees you have missed the arrival of your Messiah God is not mad he is more heartbroken that his own people cannot see him why and I'd like to make from this ancient story anchored in Judaism I'd like to make some application to contemporary modern Christians today particularly in the Western world and that is I think the nine relate to us very much and here's why I think much of our relationship with God is oriented like this I am going to do good I'm going to be good I'm going to be faithful I'm gonna follow through and things with God and I are gonna be good so we conclude that in our relationship with God what is important to God is doing everything the right away and I should add well done that is important to God that is important to God in fact it's so important to God it's become an overwhelming emphasis of preachers like me we stand in stages like this and we tell people listen you need to be faithful you need to be faithful we share some of the morals depicted and walked out and lived by Jesus we talk about the constitution of homes and families and love and we talk about these things in all of which are very important but this story is going to uncover for us something that's frankly uncomfortable and that is impaired with me now don't don't don't get too upset gratefulness might be as important as faithfulness but we don't want to hear that I would like to propose to you that gratefulness is as important to God as faithfulness now why is that man could not be fully faithful man was faithless and man was broken hence the promised Messiah for thousands of years he would do for mankind what our faithlessness could not our err are wrong in our sin and he would be the fully faithful one he'd be the truly true one whatever he said he would do he always acted in consistency with the content of his character he was by definition the true one the faithful one the only one with out err wrong and sin now while we're looking at this Luke chapter is it Luke 18 that we're in or Luke 17 17 you get it Luke 17 thanks for paying attention the introduction of the faithful one is happening to the planet he will be the faithful our faithfulness will not save us our faithfulness will not save us our faithfulness will not save us our adherence to the rules will not save us he will save us so Jesus says do the law fulfill the law it takes a non Torah taught foreigner to go all right what they say what's that mean okay yeah I'm with you guys let's go let's go guys stop we're good let's go thank him and they're like no he's like what world are you guys from when somebody does something good for you thank him no no that's not the law we must go find a priest and he's like that guys seems like a pretty good priest too little did they know when Jesus said go look for a priest he was the ultimate priest don't want the reason we don't need priests anymore to go on our behalf is because Jesus went on our behalf once and for all for everyone so actually in the story the little catch the little underbelly that no one knows is when Jesus says go find high priests or priests what he was saying is I'm right here saying to his own people the Jewish people I'm right here I'm the ultimate priest I will do for you what you cannot do for yourself I will be the once and for all sacrifice for all your air you're wrong your faithlessness and it takes it takes a non Torah taught foreigner to go I I'm just gonna go back and thank him I'm gonna thank you I'm gonna break custom I'm gonna break tradition I'm gonna break the rules because I am so grateful man I'm reading this the other day and I thought to myself I focused so much of my life on being faithful as if my faithfulness will save me and it will not do you know the focus of my relationship with God should not be my faithfulness it should be his faithfulness and from focusing on his faithfulness what should begin to bubble up in the deepest core my soul is wow thank you right and this no customs no traditions no law this foreigner hasn't been taught he doesn't know all the bells and whistles he doesn't know Church he doesn't know how it works he just knows he was blind he was deteriorating he was sick he had leprosy this guy said go find somebody he didn't find anybody but he got healed so he himself I gotta go back and thank this guy and when he gets back to Jesus he is categorically pumped he's a guy you're amazing man what was your name again Jesus you are the kindness Jewish person I've ever met in my whole life because at that point Jews didn't even speak to Samaritans he's like you did this for me I don't mean to weird you out but I'm gonna get on my hands and feet here and I'm gonna kiss your shoes meanwhile 9 rule-followers all right your turn see if the priests I'm so are you good okay congratulations missin the Jesus the fulfillment of all of this he's the point of it all I just like I can't be the preacher who says being grateful is more important than being faithful so I'm just gonna I won't say that I'm just gonna say I wonder if they're of equal value cuz they're not in places of worship like this or told you be faithful you'd be faithful NT Wright says this ungratefulness is like the portal by which all dehumanizing habits develop we just so here we live like the nine and here's what the nine live like have mercy go do this this this this this and you'll be healed thank you so we were expecting and the one crazy grateful person who doesn't know how all this works goes guys let's go thank that guy no it's not how it works we must do everything we are told and he's like you guys are weird I'm gonna and then he gets back and Jesus is like is anybody else coming and the guy's like definitely not clearly the nine have a mentality that tells on this instead of recipients and benefactors of this gracious generous creator who gave us oxygen to breathe through our nostrils the nine seemed to have an overwhelming sediment that because they do so good and so well they get results and by the way the nine believe they're in it they're of it they're about it and the results prove it and I'm gonna tell you something right now results are not what you think they are I'm telling you people like Judah you're a good speaker in case you have not read lately God speaks through animals sometimes so lest I think somehow is this the results not amazing you're like he can do with a lot of different things he can speak for himself he can use donkeys like results are not what you but we keep telling her I must be right because look at the results they don't say everything and I'll say everything they don't say everything something like I'm just saying be careful because what man esteems and applauds this side of eternity is profoundly different from what God applauds [Music] [Applause] it took and this is why in I'm done I promise I'm gonna give you a practical takeaway because my wife Chelsea says I'm not practical enough I'm too ethereal than my other preaching friends are like Judah you never apply the sermon and I'm like leave me alone I preach to my friend Riesling he's like dude can you like my whole message was beholding the face of Jesus and he's like and how do you do that I'm like you just do it bro cuz you were made to do it okay I'm not the greatest applier okay but check out this Matthew 18 Matthew 18 listen to this the time disciples came to ask Jesus who is considered to be the greatest in heavens kingdoms realm and Jesus says this use' called little one to his side and said to them listen listen now listen listen listen here's what's important to God here's what's important to God learn this well learn this well unless you Dramat I didn't say if Jesus did prepare yourself unless you dramatically change your way of thinking and become teachable and learn about heavens Kingdom round with the wide-eyed wonder of a child you'll never get it you'll never get it you'll never get it unless you dramatically allow the story of Jesus see out of the 10 there was one childlike person he was ia I don't know about all the rules and stuff clearly I'm from a different space but what do you say we thank the guy who did this they're like no wouldn't do that he's like but that's normal I guess what kids do when Santa gives them a present they thank the big jolly man like we we need to thank childlike childlike here's what's important to God child like Wonder and gratitude I'm telling you there are people in here you are under extreme consternation in stress and anxiety and worry and fear and so much of it is anchored and rooted deep within this sensation that you know about life you know about the things you should do you're doing the right things and you should get the results and you are earned you have earned it you deserve it and you are owed it and what we have failed to realize is we need at least one outsider one foreigner to remind us that all of this is sheer gift though thing your lips hips and fingertips the Stars the Sun rises sunset the whole thing is gift generosity and that was the arrival of Jesus the arrival of Jesus I stood in a new world a new world order a new priority a new emphasis on what's important and what became important is not keeping all the rules was relationship it was this childlike wonder that was like haha guys I'm healed they're like I know we must fulfill the law he's like I don't know that I gotta go hey what's your name bro I'm Jesus I love you I'm gonna kiss your feet off and and I'm not promoting ignorance but I am promoting childlike wonder I am promoting and the Bible references this I promise I'm done them I'm done it references that when somebody meets Jesus for the first time it can provoke people who've known Jesus for a long time because you you see that person anyway well you came skipping up to our Park today all happy and clappy well you got oatmeal can your latte what's the deal man forget it and you're like we know forgiveness is like entry-level stuff bro oh it is yeah sit down we're gonna have a small group we're gonna talk about the book of Revelation the seven-headed beast why would we talk about the seven-headed beast because it's important are you sure yes okay seven heads represent the seven deadly sins now write them down you're like before you know it you take that wild and crazy 10% and you go no no no no you need to you need to be you know and I personally I need to see myself in that nine because I know some of the consternation emotionally I've had and feelings that I've had and whether it's uh Kobe's passing or any other horrific event or whether it's where things are at in our country and and how a lack of equality and justice and things that in in in and you can kind of just be like come on God come on when are you come on we're down here trying and before you know it like we're doing everything you said well are you gods like I'm in the sunrise I'm in the oxygen you forgot you were breathing I'm in the gravity I mean that sunset you just enjoyed like I'm doing a lot of things good son yes sir and all of a sudden here it comes here it comes here it comes one of the most powerful things you can say in the human experience thank you just wanna say thank you and that's what changed my life in that plane I'm a way to say goodbye to my dad in Vegas years ago by the time I landed in Vegas after I let God know that he shouldn't take one up here it is one of the good guys by the time I got to Vegas and I landed I said goodbye to my dad before they took him off the support system I had finally gotten to a place only by the grace of God where I was like at least I had a dad Wow how about that when did we get so grown up and sophisticated when did we join the 90 percent talk about what we deserve here's someone here's some of the hallmarks of the 90 percent they compare they complain and they're constantly crave stuff their whole life I don't know why I don't have that well I wish you would and you can't even thank God for the oxygen in your body he gives you to complain with and I end with this you know how you know you're a part of the nine if you only relate to the one because only relating to the one is exactly how the nine got to be who they are because you think you're elite part of ten percent oh yeah yeah Jesus follower and so I'm reading this and I'm like I'm definitely like the guy who comes back I'm an outsider I'm an outlier Jesus that's who I am and he's like assuming you're part of the 10% is exactly how you become a part of the 90% I get it I got it I'm in it I'm doing it I deserve it I've earned it I live right I get right it's the way it is and you want to become a part of what we're doing you're welcome to do so but it ain't for the weak and the selfish it's for the and this is what we end up Amen even sermons Hey yeah well be different Robbie we're not like everybody else now when we leave this of let's remember them out there let's be the difference you forgot you a weak and broken and lost and I just want to recover what's important what's important this whole this whole story is about what matters to God Jesus commended the dude who broke the Torah just to say thanks I love you there's an antidote that you can practice every day it's an antidote for anxiety and fear and worry and self-centeredness hopelessness lostness just a general carelessness of life and it's called gratefulness right now said this before I promise the band's coming out the brands coming out the bands coming out I've done I told you I was going short tonight I just want to say thank you more I want to say things like man we're so blessed we don't deserve any of this when there aren't any of this God is so good life is gift God generosity favor unearned unmerited God just keeps pouring it out what a privilege and one and on now all of the sudden if you see it right that attitude of gratefulness that attitude of thank you do you know what it leads to it leads to this faithful life people from the outside are gonna watch you and they're gonna say well you talk right and you walk right and you live right and you give right and you do right and you're gonna say what no no no no no that's not it that's not it I don't even focus on that what I focus on is every single day is the day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it whoa go play with the infant man you seen these little dudes gals that it's like you smiled at me like I don't know man sophisticated and entitled I'm over it I'd rather be dumb and happy I would thank you Jesus thank you Jesus you don't have to go to seminary to learn this church thank you God thank you for life thank you for another day thank you for the family we got left on this planet thank you for eternity we're gonna see we're gonna see our friends and loved ones soon but in the meantime God thank you for another day thank you for tonight thank you that it's 9:18 p.m. on the west coast United States of America thank you for Los Angeles thank you that we live in a city where so many people want to be traffic is so very bad god thank you the traffic gives us time to listen to podcasts I mean you can start taking God for everything that's what's important to God you know this whole sermon was about worship you know whole thing I could have started the whole sermon be like you want to be a worshiper here's how to be a worshiper and not one time did I mention music just learning to be grateful you can find something to say thank you about in the midst of your worst days I miss your worst days God thank you for who you are how we love you so much we didn't do this we didn't deserve this we didn't earn this we responded to your miraculous involvement in our life thank you God thank you God thank you God thank you God I just um I came tonight just with everybody's eyes closed and the band's gonna sing here in a minute but I just came tonight with a and I don't know who it was for but a real sense of heaviness now know who it is I'm talking to you but you came into this auditorium or you turned on this program on your app right now and it just is just overwhelmed man just overwhelmed with stuff and things and I just want you to know that God loves you so much some of what you stressed out about is you think you're just not good enough and you hadn't followed through and you haven't done everything you should do listen to me God knows that God knows and he loves you unconditionally and so he's so proud of you he's so proud of you just for a moment let everything that has overwhelmed you fade into the background and allow your self to be grateful in there's so much to be grateful for what a good god what a good god what a good God what a good God thank you Jesus if you're here tonight and you say tutor I'd like to become a follower of Jesus it comes by way of gift it's completely and totally free if you would like to become a worshipper of Jesus and a follower of Jesus and a believer of Jesus you don't have to earn it deserve it you just accept it or see it it's called faith if you'd like to receive the free gift of forgiveness that only Jesus offers and begin a relationship with him that will be Hall marked by great gratitude and thankfulness on the count of three the every head bowed and every eye closed in the con 3 I'm gonna ask you lift up your hand put it right back down you know who you are you know who you are I ask you to respond on the outside to what's happening on the inside cuz it just makes it more real to you you know who you are 1 2 3 that you shoot your hand up although beyond a tourim thank you so many hands that's amazing that's amazing the balcony just shoot your hand oh thank you for these hands lord thank you for these lives thank you that forgiveness is free we receive it right here right now because of what you have done for us we thank you for that in Jesus name in Jesus name in Jesus name just with your eyes open and I promise I'm gonna get out of the way here I need you to tell somebody this I don't know who you are you have been beating yourself up and it's as if by beating yourself up you thought that was the right thing to do and you felt like by beating yourself up you were somehow getting yourself closer to God but I want to remind you that Jesus allowed himself to be beat up for you he became your pain so that you could let it go that that thing that's been telling you it's good for you to beat yourself up and tell you how bad you're doing I'm here to tell you that I don't subscribe to that you are the object of his obsession you are the apple of his eye you are in the center of his heart and his emotions and he is so proud of you and he loves you so much and he is like a good father all he does is have good plans not to harm you or do you evil but to give you a future and a hope you let go of that beating yourself up kind of thinking it doesn't come from God God chooses you he loves you and you belong with him you belong with him

Channel: Churchome

Views: 15,255

Rating: 4.9075909 out of 5

Keywords: Churchome, Judah, Judah smith, church, message, anxiety, depression, how to, elevation, Steven, Hillsong, oceans, sermon, the city church, church home, Chelsea smith, bobby Houston, td jakes, pastor, pastor preaching, carl lentz, Jesus, conference, guest speaker, sermon jam, worship, Justin Bieber, la Hillsong, Selena, preaching, Judah message, performance

Id: 29Ln4MpXR-A

Length: 61min 59sec (3719 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 13 2020