Beyond the Mask: Why Cleaning the Outside Isn’t Enough

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:04] Good morning, Pursuit Church family. We are so glad you are joining us for this new year.
[00:07:09] Let's go.
[00:07:10] We're so excited for it. 2026. Can't believe it.

[00:07:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:12] I know.

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:13] Another one in the books.

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:13] We can't believe it so much. What date did you put on the notes this morning?
[00:07:17] 2025.
[00:07:17] 2020. We're just starting the year over again.

[00:07:19] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:19] But I'm not going to be the only one to do that. Everyone will probably do that for the next two or three weeks, so I don't feel super bad about it.
[00:07:27] It's 2026.
[00:07:28] I know, and Christmas is gone.

[00:07:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:30] Post-Christmas depression, PCD.

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:32] Yep, and everyone's probably in their, like, New Year's resolutions.
[00:07:36] Oh, yeah.

[00:07:37] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:37] Hopefully you haven't failed yet.
[00:07:38] We're four days in.

[00:07:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:39] I don't even.
[00:07:39] At least you're starting tomorrow.

[00:07:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:41] Like, some people may start on a Monday.
[00:07:42] On Monday, yes.
[00:07:43] Yeah, like, we'll start, you know, because New Year's is on Thursday.

[00:07:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:45] Yeah.
[00:07:46] Yeah, it's kind of.

[00:07:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:47] You don't start on Thursday.

[00:07:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:47] Maybe I should figure mine out before tomorrow.

[00:07:49] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:07:49] Yeah, you got to get through the weekend first.

[00:07:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:07:51] I'm like, I feel like with all the sickness and the holidays that's been going on, I'm just trying to, like, keep my head above water, you know?
[00:07:57] Yeah.
[00:07:58] But we're so glad that you're here, that you're starting out your year with us.

[00:08:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:08:02] about to worship with us. My name's Emily. Yeah, my name's Scott, and I want you to share church with somebody this year, all right? That's a great resolution if you don't have any, is to start
[00:08:11] sharing church. Try to say that three times fast, you know what I mean? I won't, but. You can tag somebody in the comments. You can share on Facebook and just blast it to everybody, or you can copy
[00:08:24] the link on YouTube. You can text it to somebody. Maybe you're like, somebody's not on social media because they're one of the like, I don't know how many percentage of people who aren't. You can copy
[00:08:32] the link on YouTube, you can text to them, but invite friends, family, a coworker, maybe somebody that God's really been laying on your heart recently, just to join you for church today.
[00:08:40] Even if you're not in the same area, you can watch, you can text, you can talk about the message later. So I would invite you, share church with somebody. Yes. And while you're sharing church,

[00:08:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:08:50] you can also get connected with us through our social media. So if you're not following us on social media, I would encourage you to. We post content throughout the week, just to add value to your life to help you grow in your relationship with Jesus Christ, to help you know what's going

[00:09:03] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:09:03] on here at the church. Like every Mondays we put stories out that says, here's what's happening

[00:09:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:09:06] this week. Yes. And so if you don't know, or you're like, what's going on? I feel out of the loop. Either check out our stories on Mondays or another super easy thing. You can check out
[00:09:17] what's happening at Pursuit. It's on the app and it's on the website. And it basically tells you everything that's coming up. So all the groups that are going on right now, all the things that
[00:09:25] are about to come, like midweek, starting back on January 14th.

[00:09:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:09:29] Let's go.

[00:09:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:09:30] So that's men's, women's, preteens, students, and our new third and fourth grade ministry.
[00:09:35] So we got something for almost everybody.
[00:09:37] Literally almost everybody.
[00:09:38] So we would love for you to join us for that.
[00:09:40] That'll be starting back, our moms group starting back on January 15th.
[00:09:44] That's a Thursday morning.
[00:09:45] Child care is provided.
[00:09:47] So all you moms with little ones, if you need just a day to get out of the house.

[00:09:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:09:51] You need a couple hours just to your adults.

[00:09:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:09:55] Yes, adult.
[00:09:56] You get to go hang out with other moms, and your kids get to go play and have fun while you get to talk to people that are your age.

[00:10:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:10:04] And you can be like, I'm loving life, or my kids are on my last nerve, and I need help.
[00:10:09] You know what I mean?
[00:10:10] It's a safe space for either one.

[00:10:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:10:11] It is, it is.
[00:10:12] And there's usually food.
[00:10:13] Terry does the teaching, or we watch a video, whatever, and it's a great way just to get connected.
[00:10:18] And I would encourage you, with the new year, don't do life alone.
[00:10:23] We're not meant to.
[00:10:23] And I would encourage you to get plugged in, get connected somehow, whether it be a small group, midweek, mom's group, there's other groups that go on throughout the week.
[00:10:32] So definitely check it out.
[00:10:34] We have something, like I said, for pretty much everybody.

[00:10:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:10:36] Yeah, that's exactly right.
[00:10:37] And I want to say to anybody out there, it's your first time joining us, maybe just for the new year, or you've been joining us for a while and we just, we don't know.
[00:10:44] You've been sneaking in the shadows.
[00:10:46] You can click the link.
[00:10:47] It's pinned in the comments on Facebook and YouTube.
[00:10:49] It's just a little first time guest form.
[00:10:51] We don't spam you or harass you or anything.
[00:10:53] I don't think so, you know?

[00:10:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:10:55] No.

[00:10:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:10:55] But what we want to do is just be able to reach out to you, hear your story, hear about what God's doing in your life.
[00:10:59] And if there's any way we can come alongside of you, if you need prayer for something or you need guidance or you got questions about the faith or you need a Bible, whatever it may be,
[00:11:07] we just want to get to know you.
[00:11:08] We want to hear your story, hear what God's doing and put a name to a face, you know?
[00:11:12] So click the link in the comments, fill it out.

[00:11:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:11:15] Yeah, and it's so cool.
[00:11:16] I don't know, you weren't here this past Monday, but Taylor was talking about how he actually met one of our online viewers.
[00:11:22] viewers. I think he was at the Dollar Tree. I could be mistaken. It was somewhere, but it was just so cool to hear because we don't know who's on the other side of this camera, who we're talking
[00:11:33] to this morning. But we want to. But we want to. And it's so cool to actually be able to meet you guys. If you ever come here in person, we would love to just get to know you. And so we're just
[00:11:43] thankful for all of our first time guests, all of our second time guests and all of our church family who hangs out with us every week. We're thankful for you guys. And if you would like to
[00:11:51] worship through giving, there's a couple ways you can do that. You can visit our website, pursuitchurch.org forward slash giving, or you can visit our app, super easy, Pursuit Church.
[00:12:00] It's available on all platforms. You can download the app. You can set up recurring giving. You can watch the latest sermons. Like I said earlier, you can check out what's happening at Pursuit.
[00:12:08] Everything is available there. So it makes it super easy. And we just want to say thank you guys for your continued generosity and just partnering with what God's doing here at Pursuit

[00:12:16] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:12:16] Church. Absolutely. Before we dive into worship, guys, I just want to share something that I think sometimes we get either one end of the spectrum or not, where I think the correct way is probably
[00:12:25] in the middle. And what I mean is like, we have the ability to personally know the God of the universe. And I feel like if you're in a situation, maybe like mine, where you grew up in the South,
[00:12:37] you grew up going to church, you've been in Sunday school since before you can remember and everything else, Sunday, Wednesday, and whatever else, then like the reality that we have scripture, that we have the word of God that was written over thousands of years, that we have the ability
[00:12:51] to know the God of the universe, that we have the Holy Spirit inside of us to lead us, guide us, direct us, convict us, seal us, like the gloriousness of that reality. I know for me,
[00:13:02] growing up, I felt like it was lost on me because I'd heard it so much. And so I think there's one way that it can mess us up is hearing it all the time, but not understanding the deep truth of that
[00:13:11] reality and really living in it. And then the other side is maybe you're at home today and you feel like you're too dirty or you're too broken and God doesn't want you to know him or that he's
[00:13:20] far off or that he's stiff arming you. And that's not true either. Like the God of the universe crushed his son, Jesus, so that you could know him. That's what John 17, three says that eternal
[00:13:30] life is to know God, the father and his son, Jesus Christ. And so I would encourage you if you're numb to that reality, ask God to awaken your soul to the gloriousness that we get to know
[00:13:39] him. And if you feel like you're too dirty and you need to clean yourself up, that's not true either. You can't clean yourself up, but God invites you to be his son or his daughter. And
[00:13:47] in that, he makes you a new creation. He cleans you up. So regardless of where you find yourself today, I want to remind you that you have the ability to know the God of all of heaven and
[00:13:57] that he's inviting you in to know you because he wants you to know him. And so think about that, meditate on that and pray, prepare your hearts and minds because worship begins here in just a

[00:14:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:14:06] minute. Good morning. We can stand for worship today. Are we ready to worship the King together?
[00:15:08] Let's worship

[00:15:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]
[00:15:10] Anybody grateful to the Lord

[00:23:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:23:46] I wasn't even going to say this It's just I haven't been able to get it off my mind That when John is taken into heaven Jesus takes him into heaven and showing him all these things about the end time
[00:24:06] and the throne room of God and all of these things.
[00:24:09] And you just see John is in the majesty of Jesus, resurrected Jesus, the King of kings, the Lord of lords.
[00:24:18] And John falls on his face as if dead.
[00:24:22] He's terrified.
[00:24:24] And Jesus resurrected in total glory, Lord of everything, lowers himself down to touch John and say, do not be afraid.
[00:24:32] It is I, I was dead, now I'm alive.
[00:24:34] I am forever. I hold the keys of death and hell. That's the Jesus we get to serve this morning.
[00:24:40] And he's so great. He's Lord over everything. And he lowers himself down again to touch John and comfort him and say, do not be afraid. And that's the Jesus that we're going to celebrate this morning. We have two people getting baptized, Carl and Kennedy, and they've been touched by that
[00:25:01] same Jesus this morning. They've given their life to him because he is worthy of it today.
[00:25:06] and we're gonna celebrate with them.
[00:25:08] And we're gonna sing.
[00:25:09] We're gonna take the band away for a minute and we're just gonna do it the old-fashioned way.
[00:25:13] We're just gonna sing and worship that he is worthy of it all.
[00:25:16] And you see again in Revelation, you see the throne room of God.
[00:25:19] There's thunder and lightning coming off the throne.
[00:25:21] You see the glory and the radiance of God.
[00:25:24] This appearance was like a rainbow, just light.
[00:25:27] And there's a sea of glass before the throne.
[00:25:29] All this grand, just how grand it is.
[00:25:33] And then you see the angels around the Lord and they're constantly worshiping him.
[00:25:37] And then you see the elders around the Lord.
[00:25:39] And when the angels worship, the elders respond and they fall on their face and they throw their crowns before the Lord.
[00:25:44] And they just sing that he is worthy, worthy because he created us.
[00:25:49] And his will is what sustains us, not just through this life, but his will is the only reason that we are alive this morning.
[00:25:55] They're just worshiping him.
[00:25:57] And then a few verses down, you see a bowl of incense rising up and it says it's the prayer of the saints.
[00:26:02] And Jesus walks into the throne room and all of heaven begins to worship the lamb who is worthy and that's what we're going to sing this morning that he is just worthy he is worthy of our praise he's worthy of our worship he's worthy of
[00:26:15] our life everything that we have and will have and could have he is worthy of it and we're just going to worship him together as a church this morning amen we're going to pray for carl and
[00:26:25] kennedy when they're getting baptized and then we're going to continue worship together let's pray. Lord, I just thank you. I thank you for your goodness, God. I thank you for your mercy, Lord, that you are so high. You are the King of Kings, God. You are the Lord of Lords. You reign in
[00:26:43] majesty, Lord, and you choose to meet with us, Lord. I just thank you for it. I pray that we would never take it for granted, God, that it wouldn't just be a Sunday thing. We come in here,
[00:26:53] expect to experience something, and then leave, God. But it would be a daily understanding that the Lord wants to meet with us and be with us at all times. Lord, I pray for Carl and Kennedy, God,
[00:27:06] Lord, that today would mark their walk with you, Lord Jesus, that when the walk gets hard or it feels long, God, that they would look back on the day of their salvation and be restored to the joy
[00:27:18] of their salvation, God, and they would look on this day when they're lowered in the waters and raised up, God, and they would see it as a testimony of their new life in you, Lord, and it would just
[00:27:27] get them along the path god i thank you for their life god i thank you for their soul lord and i just pray that they will bear fruit lord god for your kingdom the only kingdom that matters lord
[00:27:37] we love you we honor you we worship you jesus in your name amen

[00:28:22] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]
[00:28:22] their crowns before the lord and sing as we come before you lord we do praise you today

[00:36:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:36:41] Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come.
[00:36:48] We praise you.
[00:36:49] I pray we see you high and lifted up this morning.
[00:36:52] We see you for who you are, that you are truly worthy of it all, God, our very lives.
[00:36:58] God, everything we could bring you, you are worthy of it all.
[00:37:03] We praise you this morning, God.
[00:37:04] And I pray, Lord, as we get into your word today, Lord God, I just pray, God, that we we see you for who you are, God, the way you taught, the way Jesus loved, Lord, grace and
[00:37:17] truth today. I pray, God, for power and authority that can only come from you. And again, I pray we see your grace, your love, your mercy, your kindness as we get into your word today, God.
[00:37:28] We love you. We praise you. I praise you for the way you continue to work and move, God. I praise you, God, for these baptisms this morning, God. I just pray, God, today we give you glory, honor,
[00:37:38] and praise, Lord, in your name. Amen. Well, good morning. Happy new year. As we go into the new year, you know, there's always so many, I guess, questions and things that we have on our hearts
[00:37:56] and minds and that we think about as we leave last year. You may have things that you want to leave in last year, you forget, and you have expectation for this year. And there's so many
[00:38:07] things that we could talk about this morning, but I want to start with a question today.
[00:38:10] somebody I quote very often is Charles Spurgeon. And he says, as we're speaking about the new year, am I in all respects more like my master Jesus today than I was a year ago? And that's what we
[00:38:25] want to ask the question. I believe there's no greater question we could ask as we go into a new year than, are we more like Jesus today than we were this time last year? As followers,
[00:38:34] disciples learners of Jesus we should be in fact more like Jesus today than we were last year if we are true disciples of Jesus and as we go into this today this is are we truly more like Jesus not have we learned the lingo and the things
[00:38:51] to say and is it all external right I think that's an important distinction to make because in our culture the world we live in oftentimes in the church it so easily becomes all about the external. It becomes all about what we can present to the world. You
[00:39:07] look at social media, I believe is the prime example of that. It's not really, is my marriage thriving and healthy? It's just the people think that it is, right? Do I portray that it's happy?
[00:39:18] It's not, am I really raising godly, healthy, well-behaved kids? It's like, man, I just hope they look like it, right? I just hope in the restaurant, they're not too crazy. And we're gonna get the best family photo and Photoshop the crap out of it to make it
[00:39:31] look like everybody's happy right when everybody was in tears cuz I've been there every year we go through it I'm like what's the point of this AI can do this for us right we don't have to go through this pain but so often like
[00:39:44] that's it it's not often for many people it's not I really want to be physically healthy it's just can I look physically healthy right amen that's a lot of us going to the new year it's like I just look like I'm healthy whatever that
[00:39:55] takes but that's the world we live in and so often i know for me especially now i don't know on social media on the internet what's real and what's not right it's so hard to tell
[00:40:05] with ai and all these things but it's all about what we present to the world and how often do we see this even in the church it is it's not it's not am i becoming more like jesus so often it's
[00:40:17] i know the lingo i know how to speak and and i i act like i have joy and i you see me in the a four-year how you doing I'm blessed brother I know how to say that I know the songs and I come
[00:40:28] to church and I serve and I do all the things but so often we can do that and then be no more like Jesus than we were 365 days ago right and that's dangerous and we can we can have no more love
[00:40:43] for Jesus or others I believe one of the greatest measures of spiritual maturity if not the greatest measure is our love are we growing in love for jesus and for other people and so often the answer
[00:40:56] is no and i said this last year last week excuse me it was last year i guess huh there you go look at that so often though with our lives somebody got that a little late there's a lag here between
[00:41:11] the front and the back but so often we we imitate this is hard truth but so often we imitate and look more like in scripture the pharisees and the religious leaders and the scribes the people
[00:41:25] who had jesus ultimately crucified we look and imitate them more than we do to jesus so often instead of looking like disciples and learners and apprentices of jesus so often we look like disciples of the pharisees and that's tough this morning that's that's that's hard to
[00:41:43] hear often but this year have you become more like jesus or have you become more like a pharisee we may be imitating the very people who put jesus on the cross happy new year you're like i knew i
[00:41:57] shouldn't have come to this church this morning should have went somewhere else new year knew me i thought i was going to church and here we are being told we're pharisees but this is hard
[00:42:06] truth today but it's real and it matters but again it becomes all about the external all about what happens on the outside and what i can present to the world and ultimately what this boils down to
[00:42:17] and jesus talks about this over and over and over is hypocrisy we become oftentimes without even realizing it we'll talk about that we become hypocrites and we'll look at this word we're going to be in matthew 23 today primarily and we see in matthew 23 where jesus explicitly six times
[00:42:37] calls the Pharisees and the scribes hypocrites, right?
[00:42:41] He had no problem saying that, calling them out on that.
[00:42:44] He calls them hypocrites.
[00:42:45] And I'll look while you're going there, the word hypocrite, if you look at this in the Greek, I'll read a couple of definitions, but it names the interior duplicity that often, that pretends to be something it is not.
[00:42:57] In scripture, it denotes a conscious, willful contrast between outward appearance and inward reality, especially in religious matters.
[00:43:07] Outward appearance, there's a contrast between that and what has actually happened on the inside.
[00:43:12] Another way to sum this up is acting, right?
[00:43:15] Like it's someone wearing a mask, a paid actor.
[00:43:17] You're just playing a part.
[00:43:19] We're just acting.
[00:43:21] And I wonder how many of us here today, that's us.
[00:43:24] We're wearing a mask, we're playing a part.
[00:43:25] We know what to say and how to act, but what's happening on the outside does not match.
[00:43:30] There's a contrast between that and what's going on on the inside.
[00:43:33] and I'll read specifically in Matthew 23 25 it says woe to you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites exclamation point for you clean the outside of the cup and the plate but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence you'll start to realize well I got the mug up here this morning
[00:43:53] but if you look at this word greed this just desire for more self-indulgence speaks of the failure to restrain one's appetites in thought, word, or deed. It stands opposite to true spirit given virtue of self-control and therefore exposes a heart vulnerable to temptation and hypocrisy.
[00:44:13] So what he's talking about here, there are people again here today, this is our life.
[00:44:19] Unfortunately, this is your life. You spend your effort and your energy cleaning the outside, making the outside look good what you present to the world you you polish that up and the inside there's no real change and it stays exactly the same and in my life the good news for you today
[00:44:38] is I can relate because I've been here and one example I thought about this week came to me pretty quick and this is embarrassing but I'll share it with you anyway just a few friends here
[00:44:48] this morning just between us but um you know I was I've been in ministry for a long time since I I was about 21, 22 years old, you know, just kind of volunteering and serving
[00:44:59] what I would call ministry.
[00:45:00] And again, we're all called to ministry, but you know what I'm saying.
[00:45:02] And as I had a young family, I felt like I was here.
[00:45:07] And one of the ways, the first time I really realized and it hit me like, this is me, like I'm playing a part.
[00:45:12] I knew what to say.
[00:45:13] I knew how to get on the stage and lead the church in worship.
[00:45:16] I knew all the songs.
[00:45:18] I knew the lingo.
[00:45:19] I came to church.
[00:45:20] I served at every chance.
[00:45:22] And one time, me and Kathy were coming home from the beach, Myrtle Beach, greatest place on the planet, if you ask me, right? I always get to laugh. I don't know why, but I love that place.
[00:45:32] Anyway, we're on the way home, and this is a classic Myrtle Beach story. We got two kids in the car coming back from the beach, two very young kids. Somebody cuts me off coming up the
[00:45:41] interstate. I lose it. My family in the car, lose it. Me and this guy, we're exchanging some hand gestures. Hey, how you doing? Kind of stuff. All right. Now he's got a good hundred pounds on me.
[00:45:56] No question about it. I can tell that just by his upper body. I can see through the window.
[00:46:00] I didn't care. This is serious. Kathy can tell you, I'm telling the guy to pull over. I'm like, we'll settle this right now. I will pull over and get my butt kicked right here on the side of this
[00:46:07] highway. But I mean, in all seriousness, I lose it. I'm screaming at this guy. We're yelling. I just get cut off in traffic. Not in a hurry. No reason to care. Just coming back from the beach.
[00:46:20] had a great trip with my family. Lose it, right? He finally goes off the exit. I look over at Kathy and she's like, I look back at my kids and I'm like, something's wrong. Something's wrong.
[00:46:37] Like what in the world am I doing? Like I work at a church at this point. Where did that come from?
[00:46:48] What happened?
[00:46:49] What is going on inside of me?
[00:46:53] What is it?
[00:46:55] And so many examples of that.
[00:46:58] I had got caught up in playing the game, playing the part, being an actor, whenever that was on the inside.
[00:47:06] And there was sin that I haven't confessed at that point.
[00:47:09] There was things in my life that I hadn't addressed.
[00:47:12] There were so many times I would defy my conscience, so many times that I would feel a certain way on the inside.
[00:47:18] and somebody would say something and it would just bubble up on the inside.
[00:47:22] Now, I'd smile and I'd say the right things, but on the inside, it didn't match what was happening on the outside.
[00:47:28] You with me?
[00:47:29] That's the Pharisees, right?
[00:47:31] Even with Jesus, you see them do this.
[00:47:34] They wanna put Jesus, they wanna arrest him.
[00:47:37] Scripture says they wanna arrest Jesus.
[00:47:40] But because of fear of the crowds, they smile, they grin and bear it and they let him keep teaching for a while.
[00:47:46] But on the inside, they hate him.
[00:47:48] On the inside, they can't stand him.
[00:47:50] On the inside, there's this bitterness and this rage, but they even tell him what they think he wants to hear.
[00:47:57] They flatter Jesus and they're trying to say, oh, we know you do this and that, but it doesn't match what's going on on the inside.
[00:48:03] And again, I've been there putting on the mask and this is so many people's lives.
[00:48:10] And the sad part about it, the really hard part about this is you may have been this way for 50 years.
[00:48:16] You may have been this way for however long, you've been in church since you've grown up this may be here this is why it's so hard this is why it's so deadly and dangerous but there's no real heart change you look good on the outside everything
[00:48:34] feels right you know what to say and what to do and you serve but there's no real heart change that's where this cup comes in now this cup on the outside i'll show you it says matcha dad we love
[00:48:44] you if you don't know what matcha is it's tea i drink a matcha latte every morning that's embarrassing to even admit. We were at the beach and my family, my dad, he'd wake up in the morning
[00:48:54] sitting at the kitchen table drinking a black coffee. I'd be making a matcha latte and I could just see it in his eyes. Where did I go wrong? You know, he never said it, but he's just like,
[00:49:04] Lord, where did I screw this thing up? But every day I drink one every morning. And oftentimes on Sunday, what I'll do is I'll have, I'll have two because I want to have some energy and I'll have
[00:49:16] it over here with me to kind of soothe the throat before I get up to speak. But what I'll do is I'll usually drink about half of it and I'll leave it sitting over there. Now, during the week, whenever
[00:49:26] I forget it and leave it here, I come back on Thursday to get it. What's it look like on the inside? It's got milk and stuff in it. Nasty. It's disgusting. And then Haley will help me out. She'll
[00:49:36] put it. She said, hey, I put your mug up there where you could grab it. I'll say, oh, thank you.
[00:49:40] I'll grab it at the end of the day. But I don't tell her what I really mean is the end of the day next week, like next Thursday, right? So it sits here and it gets nasty. Now, how dumb would it be
[00:49:49] for me to go home? It's got mold growing inside of it. Just disgusting, right? They get nasty after only a few days. How dumb of it would for me to go home and clean the dust off the outside of
[00:50:02] it and polish it up and have it looking good and get it all ready? Because what's happening is actually on the inside it's getting worse it's growing and it's starting to bubble up to the top this is so many of us like not concerned about what's
[00:50:19] happening on the inside not concerned about what really matters we're just like hey if I can just keep the outside clean keep the dust off of it make sure it looks good you can't tell what's on the inside necessarily unless it bubbles
[00:50:32] up a little bit to the top like me going to the beach and we just worry about this while it's disgusting and nasty on the inside and so often just like this what we become is mold managers we we when it bubbles up a little on the
[00:50:49] outside we just clean it off we go apologize hey I'm sorry I'll never do that again right how often have I told Kathy that I'll never do that sorry I lost my temper until the next time and we just manage those behaviors and we
[00:51:02] just try to keep it at bay we try to clean up the edges and just make sure sure that doesn't spill over. Make sure nobody sees that part. And so many of us have been there
[00:51:12] and we see in scriptures as Jesus goes on, he talks about the Pharisees. He says, you're whitewashed tombs, right? You look good on the outside, but on the inside is full of dead men's bones and all
[00:51:22] sort of horrible things. That's harsh words, but that's what he says. This is why, just like for me coming back from the beach, things happen in our lives and we see this in the lives of others.
[00:51:35] it's like man that just came out of nowhere it didn't come out of nowhere it's in there it just bubbled over to the top it just got out and you saw it right other people saw it people
[00:51:46] go off the rails ruin their lives that's been in there they just been addressing the outside and again the pharisees you see this in them they wanted to to arrest jesus but they said the right things they smiled they went on but eventually they couldn't hold it in anymore
[00:52:04] Eventually, it came to the top, and that always happens with us too.
[00:52:09] It always, at some point, it's gonna bubble over.
[00:52:12] At some point, it's gonna come to the top.
[00:52:15] You'll find yourself always coming back to clean up messes, always cleaning her in when it comes up to the top, always trying to keep it contained.
[00:52:26] You'll always find yourself, because I've been here, you'll have conflict in your life that you always have to manage, deal with, and apologize for.
[00:52:34] You have to often cut people off and get rid of people because they've seen that inside.
[00:52:40] You'll have oftentimes a past and a wake of destruction behind you.
[00:52:45] You'll try to manage that anger, but at some point, again, it bubbles over.
[00:52:49] You try to manage that lust, but at some point, you just can't manage it anymore and things start to happen.
[00:52:55] At some point, it comes to the top.
[00:52:57] That bitterness, that rage, that insecurity that's in there, you try your best to manage it, at some point, it comes to the top. At some point, it's seen. And it doesn't matter where you put
[00:53:10] this mug. If it's got mold on the inside, it's going to have mold on the inside. So often we think, oh, I just need new friends. I just need to change environments. I just need a new church.
[00:53:19] I just need a new job. And that may be true at some point. But most of the time, what we're trying to do is put this in a new environment, but it's the same old mug. It's got the same mold on
[00:53:29] the inside. And oftentimes what we're doing is we're just taking that with us and contaminating other people. That's what oftentimes happen. But for us, it's not what's going in the mug, because you put more milk in there, it's going to mold too. It's not what's going on around the mug,
[00:53:44] it's what's going on inside. It's on the inside. And this is hard for us to hear oftentimes, but just like the Pharisees, we often think, and if we're not careful, we'll fall into this trap.
[00:53:55] again i know it i can speak to it because i've been here it's everybody else is always the problem in our life it's always somebody else right it's always her it's always him it's always
[00:54:07] them always somebody else is a problem and we see this with the pharisees we see two things i'll point out we because you'll see this in your life this victim mentality what was me everybody just
[00:54:20] got it out for me you know i do everything right and i just always get trampled on and there's every relationship that's been been broken is always you know they do this and they do that
[00:54:29] and so again sometimes that's true but oftentimes it's just a victim mentality we see i'll read quickly in john 11 47-48 then the chief priests and pharisees convened the sanhedrin and said what are we to do they're talking about jesus this man is performing many signs if we let him go on
[00:54:47] like this everyone will believe him and then the romans will come and take away both our place and our nation. Jesus is the bad guy here. We're just the victims, right? We're just, you know,
[00:54:58] he's, we got to take care of this because, because he's coming after us and this is what's going to happen. And woe is me. We see another thing that happens with the Pharisees. Superiority, Mark 7,
[00:55:09] one through five. I'll just read verse one. Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands? Always looking down at others. Look how clean my glass is, why are they doing this thing, right? It's always, point being, just even those
[00:55:26] two things, somebody else is always the problem. It's always somebody else. And a hard question today is, do we ever think, maybe it's me, right? Maybe it's not the environment. Maybe it's not everybody else. Maybe it's not my circumstances or everything that's going on around me. Maybe
[00:55:47] it's what's on the inside. Maybe that's it. I think about the woman at the well. I think it's important to point out here, as Jesus meets with this woman, even the fact that he's sitting there
[00:55:59] talking to her shows how much he loves her and how much he cares. The love of Jesus. He so loved this woman. We have to get that. He so loves you this morning. I don't want to paint a picture
[00:56:10] that Jesus is not gracious and kind and merciful and loving. He so loves you. But when he sits in front of this woman, he loves her enough to tell her the truth. He doesn't say, well, honey, you
[00:56:22] just ain't found the right man yet. Right? Sometimes I think that's what we expect him to say.
[00:56:28] Right? You've had six men in your life and you just hadn't found the right guy. He's like, nah, you need me. It's on the inside. You need living water. You're searching for something that you're
[00:56:39] not going to find outside of me. He's like, it's you. It's the heart. He speaks to the heart of the issue. He doesn't say it's somebody else. He says, there's something in you that needs to
[00:56:48] change. It's you. So again, if you have this trail of destruction and broken relationships and cutting people off, if you've got constant tension and issues on the inside that are never resolved, you feel like, I just can't really, because the Pharisees, they really didn't ever
[00:57:06] get close to anyone. They stayed disconnected. If you feel that way, feel cynical and bitter. You feel like you always, like I said, with the superiority, you always know what's best for everybody else. Again, not becoming more like Christ and growing in love. Maybe, just maybe,
[00:57:28] it's not our circumstances or our environment. Maybe it's on the inside. Maybe this needs to be taken care of. And then Jesus says, the outside will be taken care of. And we need to make sure we
[00:57:42] understand that there's hope today, but maybe it's you, maybe it's me. And real quick, if we hear, if we're thinking about other people, right, because we so often do this, we're like, well, I wish Bill at my old church could hear this message. That's another sign that you're probably
[00:57:59] this person, right? Let's just call it what it is. I just want to make sure we point that out, make that distinction this morning. That's a real good sign, seriously, that you may have this heart
[00:58:10] and this mindset that the inside needs to change. And this is a horrible and miserable place to live. I think we all get where I'm going. This is a terrible place to live. And this is dangerous
[00:58:22] and deadly for you and for our church, for the church. It is deadly. It's like a pervasive weed.
[00:58:30] I heard that quote this week. I can't remember who said it, but it's like a pervasive weed that comes into the church. I got a garden at home that looks terrible. It's full of weeds. And
[00:58:38] the first year, I had a couple ragweeds. I didn't do anything with them. Now what do I have? A whole farm full of ragweeds. If you like ragweeds, I got you. Because I let a couple of those weeds grow up
[00:58:49] and what happens? They spread seeds and they begin to grow. And it's like a pervasive weed, this stuff is. And it comes in. And Jesus says, we got to watch out, to be careful, to take heed
[00:59:01] that we don't fall into this and that we're not influenced by people who live this way.
[00:59:07] Luke 12, one, in the meantime, when so many thousands of people had gathered together, think about that.
[00:59:14] Thousands of people have gathered together.
[00:59:16] What's Jesus gonna say?
[00:59:18] So many that they were trampling one another.
[00:59:21] He began to say to his disciples first, this was this important to Jesus.
[00:59:25] Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
[00:59:29] You look at Matthew 16, six, you see the same situation happen where it's documented.
[00:59:34] and it's funny the disciples they start talking about actual bread he's talking about the leaven the pharisees they're like who forgot the bread right oh my gosh we messed up we don't have any bread i'll tell you a funny joke kind of light the mood a little bit this morning this is a cheesy
[00:59:47] pastor joke you're probably not gonna laugh but that's never deterred me before from telling you jokes so when this happens peter he goes to thomas and he says thomas i'm about to go into town
[00:59:58] do you think we need to get any bread thomas says i doubt it huh all right moving along well look at this language here the leaven of the pharisees it just says just talking about
[01:00:12] this leaven of the pharisees in the first century kitchen leaven was a piece of fermented dough kept from a previous bacon baking and kneaded into a fresh bath so that the entire lump would rise because the agent spreads quietly but pervasively scripture uses leaven to
[01:00:29] illustrate the way an influence good or bad works to a community community or an individual it's pervasive it's quiet it works slowly you might not even notice that it's happening it comes in but he says it'll ruin the whole batch he says
[01:00:46] watch out to this this piece of dough it looks so similar to the other dough it looks the same almost, but when it's put in, it says it affects. In Galatians, he said it affects
[01:00:57] and leavens the whole loaf. It's that dangerous. Jesus says, watch out, be cautious, be on guard for it. Church, we have to get this. This has been so on my heart this week. We have to think about
[01:01:12] these things. We have to watch out and be on guard because most of us, if we're honest, we're not.
[01:01:17] We will give an ear to anybody.
[01:01:20] We'll watch anybody online.
[01:01:22] We'll listen to anyone.
[01:01:24] We just don't care.
[01:01:25] We value so often charisma over character.
[01:01:30] If somebody's got a little bit of charisma and can speak, we're like, yes, I'm listening to them.
[01:01:34] We don't give a crap about their character.
[01:01:36] So often.
[01:01:37] We value followers.
[01:01:38] He said, look at their fruit.
[01:01:39] We so often value a following over fruit.
[01:01:42] If they got a big following, it must be right and good.
[01:01:46] So often we fall into this influence over integrity.
[01:01:50] We look at these things and we just give an ear to anyone.
[01:01:54] He says, watch out, be careful, be cautious.
[01:01:58] Look at their fruit.
[01:02:00] Jesus uses the same words here in Matthew 7, 15.
[01:02:05] Beware of false prophets.
[01:02:07] They're fake, they're pretending, they're acting.
[01:02:09] Who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
[01:02:15] They're acting.
[01:02:16] They're a wolf acting like a sheep.
[01:02:18] You will recognize them by their fruits or grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles.
[01:02:26] Here's the thing.
[01:02:28] And first thing I wanna say is the people that Jesus is telling us to, he's telling us to the disciples, they're the ones who were just arguing about who forgot the bread.
[01:02:36] They completely missed it.
[01:02:38] That should give us hope today.
[01:02:39] He said to them, you can recognize them by their fruit.
[01:02:42] What does that mean for us?
[01:02:43] That means we can also recognize people by their fruit.
[01:02:46] That if we are looking, we can recognize this.
[01:02:49] We can see this.
[01:02:50] When somebody is wearing a mask, you're gonna start to notice.
[01:02:53] When there's a wolf dressed like a sheep, there's gonna be signs, right?
[01:02:58] There are gonna be signs of it.
[01:03:00] You may not get it immediately, but if you're cautious, he says, be aware, you'll notice, you'll see it.
[01:03:07] You will see the fruit.
[01:03:09] He says, just look at the fruit, right?
[01:03:11] In their life.
[01:03:14] And for me, there have been multiple people in my life like this that have influenced me.
[01:03:18] It wasn't that I didn't see it, I chose not to see it.
[01:03:22] I chose to turn a blind eye and ignore it.
[01:03:25] You think about how people talk about themselves and others, that's fruit.
[01:03:30] Do they talk about themselves all the time and others?
[01:03:32] That's pretty good fruit, a pretty good indicator.
[01:03:34] It's not good fruit, but it's an indicator.
[01:03:37] What is their family like?
[01:03:38] Do they have a wake of ruined relationships behind them?
[01:03:41] Are they always the victim, like we talked about earlier?
[01:03:44] Is there ever true repentance and change?
[01:03:46] Do they ever say that they're wrong?
[01:03:47] Like we can see people's fruit in their lives.
[01:03:50] Look at their fruit.
[01:03:51] He says, watch out because it's like leaven.
[01:03:55] And in Galatians 5, again, he says, a little leaven works through the whole batch of dough.
[01:03:59] This is dangerous.
[01:04:00] It's far more dangerous than we realize because it can work through the whole batch.
[01:04:05] Another scripture in Romans 16.
[01:04:07] Now I urge you brothers to watch out for those who create divisions and obstacles that are contrary to the teaching you have learned.
[01:04:13] turn away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites.
[01:04:18] It's what's on the inside. By smooth talk and flattery, they deceive the hearts of the naive.
[01:04:23] Looks good on the outside. Smooth like butter. We all like butter. That's what it's like. On the outside, it's good, but it's not what's on the inside. He says, do not be naive. This is not
[01:04:34] being, we're cynical and hateful toward people. He says, just be aware. Don't be influenced like this. Do not be naive. And again, as I said earlier, this will come to the top. We will see
[01:04:46] it, right? In our lives and the lives of others when we see this. And the last thing I'll say about this, the influence is you see that mold and yeast, we were using these two different
[01:04:58] analogies. They're very similar. They're both a fungi. They're both, they both operate very in a similar way. Just like one spore of mold can come into this glass. If it's got pure milk or whatever in it and ruin the whole glass, it says that one little bit of leaven can come in and
[01:05:15] make the whole batch of dough rise, right? It's so similar. And if we had another mug up here and you put it next to this one and it's got something pure in it, and one spore goes over
[01:05:27] to that one, you're getting it in there. It's like a disease. And that's what he's saying. Be careful turn away watch out be on your guard so often we're so just go with the flow everything's all good he says watch out be cautious this is dangerous you've
[01:05:45] got to be careful here but this morning and the band can go ahead and join me maybe this has already happened right this is where I really want to get to maybe this is you today as we talk about you know wearing a mask and the outside
[01:06:02] not matching the inside cleaning the outside of the glass but there's bitterness and there's anger and there's rage and there's there's these things you feel like you almost can't control what you're trying on the inside maybe
[01:06:14] that's you today what do you do because this is a pretty bleak picture here it says once that gets in once the mold spore takes over once the the yeast gets sin, it says it ruins the whole batch. You can't get it out. That feels pretty hopeless, right?
[01:06:34] But we got to remember, there's always hope in Jesus, but this is a pretty bleak picture. What do you do? It feels impossible. I'll read you a scripture. I'll just tell you the story. It won't
[01:06:43] be on the screen. It's a pretty good bit of scripture, about 10 verses, about the rich young ruler in scripture. Then a certain ruler asked him, good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life. Why do you call me good? Jesus replied. No one is good except God alone. You
[01:07:00] know the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother. All these, he says, I have kept since my youth. On hearing this, Jesus told him, you still lack one thing. Sell everything you own and give to the poor and
[01:07:16] you will have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me. When the ruler heard this, he became very sad because he was extremely wealthy.
[01:07:23] This man, he's cleaned on the outside, right?
[01:07:27] He's done everything right.
[01:07:29] He's got, it says he's kept the commandments.
[01:07:31] He's lived a great life as far as what you look at, the way he's perceived.
[01:07:37] But seeing the man's sadness, Jesus said, how hard is it for the rich to enter the kingdom of God?
[01:07:42] Indeed, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
[01:07:49] But those who heard this asked, and who can be saved?
[01:07:51] This is where I want to go. But Jesus said, what is impossible with man is possible with our God.
[01:07:58] Amen. Nothing is impossible with God. Scripture says that. Jesus speaks here to the heart.
[01:08:10] He speaks to the heart of this man. This man would have to give up everything he worked for, everything he built, all he knew to step into the unknown, to follow Jesus. But he would have
[01:08:22] been following and walking with and intimate and close to Jesus, right? He would have to give up this whole life that he had built, but it would have been so much better because he'd have been
[01:08:35] walking with Jesus. He would have been walking with the Messiah, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He would have been walking with Jesus. And some of us in this room hear me this morning,
[01:08:46] church. I've had such a burden for this this week. You've worked your whole life to build up an image You've worked your whole life to look good and shiny like this mug on the outside,
[01:08:57] to know everything to say, to go to church and to serve and to do all the right things.
[01:09:04] And you've missed it because there's something wrong on the inside.
[01:09:08] And you've allowed this mold to come in.
[01:09:10] You've allowed this yeast to come in.
[01:09:12] And we've cleaned the outside like the Pharisees, but the inside, it's not right.
[01:09:20] And you've worked so hard to build that up.
[01:09:22] and it's so hard to walk away from it's so hard to drop your pride and humble yourself under the mighty hand of God it's hard it's all you've known for 30 years I've cleaned this up I got
[01:09:39] this image what will people say what will people think what's this gonna look like I want to tell you this morning it's worth it this is a miserable way to live our life cleaning the outside keeping
[01:09:53] up an image. It sucks. Sorry for the language, but it does because I've been there. He says, clean the inside. We have to humble ourselves. Surrender to Jesus. Anything is possible, Jesus said. As I think about that, I think about that rich young ruler. He said, no,
[01:10:14] he couldn't do it. Then I think about Paul. And the thing I love about this, if it's possible for Paul, it's possible for you. I look at his life. He's going to kill Christians when Jesus comes to
[01:10:28] him. He was either walking or riding a horse. We're not sure. I always like to think he's on a horse because God knocked him off his high horse is the way I like to look at it. We don't know
[01:10:36] that, but a man of his status, probably riding a horse. God knocks him to the ground, humbles him, strikes him with blindness, speaks to him. Then he goes into town and he's, it says that he,
[01:10:51] once he comes and his vision is restored, he spends time with the Christians. He gets baptized.
[01:10:58] He begins to preach God's word, to preach the gospel. He begins to speak out and say basically, hey, I was wrong. I missed it. He humbled himself. He did what that rich young ruler would not do.
[01:11:11] And he humbled himself and he left his old life behind. He counted the cost and said, Jesus is worth it. And Jesus was worth it. Clearly we see that. So this morning we talk about this,
[01:11:24] this heart of a Pharisee. Will you be obedient? Will you humble yourself under the mighty hand of God? The inside of the cup has got to be cleaned. Will you submit to the Lord today,
[01:11:36] his spirit, his leading? The same people, the people we talked about last week, he said they're stiff necked. They resist the spirit. You may feel the spirit of God in your life this morning.
[01:11:46] this is me I've been sucked into this that that leaven has started to work in my heart you can surrender to Jesus submit to the spirit today and let him do what only he can do
[01:11:59] and I'll close and I'll summarize with this a great example of this is in Galatians 2 11 through 14 but when Cephas this is Peter came to Antioch I which is Paul we're talking about
[01:12:11] here Paul's the one writing this opposed him to his face because he stood condemned for he regularly ate with the Gentiles before certain men came from James. However, when they came, he withdrew and separated himself because he feared those from the circumcision party.
[01:12:26] When the rest of the Jews joined, here's the word here, his hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. Same two words there. But when I saw that they were deviating from the truth of the gospel, I told Peter in front of everyone, if you who are like a Jew live
[01:12:42] like a Gentile, not like a Jew. How can you compel Gentiles to live like Jews? First thing, if Peter and Barnabas got sucked into this, do we not think we can't? Scripture says in 1 Corinthians,
[01:12:55] therefore let anyone who thinks that he stand take heed and lest he fall. We can get sucked into this too. But after this, at the end of Peter's writings in 2 Peter 3, he says,
[01:13:08] This is Peter.
[01:13:09] Paul's called him out on this.
[01:13:11] He's got sucked into it.
[01:13:13] Peter says, consider also that our Lord's patience brings salvation.
[01:13:17] Just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him.
[01:13:21] Think about that.
[01:13:22] After Paul corrects him, that's how he writes about Paul because correction will show you your heart always.
[01:13:30] If somebody corrects you and you fight back like the Pharisees and you had that heart, that is a red flag that reveals what's on the inside.
[01:13:37] That reveals what's on the inside of the cup, no matter what you try to present on the outside.
[01:13:41] But Peter, he humbles himself.
[01:13:44] He writes in this way, he goes on to say, in all his letters, speaking in them about such matters.
[01:13:49] Some parts of his letters are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort as they do the rest of the scriptures to their own destruction.
[01:13:57] He's like, ask me how I know.
[01:13:59] Therefore, beloved, since you already know these things, be on your guard, same language, be on your guard so that you will not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall away from your secure standing.
[01:14:11] If anyone knows this, it's him because it happened to him.
[01:14:14] Verse 18, but grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
[01:14:19] To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.
[01:14:23] We continue to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God.
[01:14:27] He says, grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
[01:14:32] Not focused on cleaning up the outside, not focused on making everything look good, but growing in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, continual filling of the Holy Spirit.
[01:14:46] That's what Peter writes at the end of his life.
[01:14:48] So today, will you humble yourself if this is you?
[01:14:52] If this leaven has started to work just like the mold in the glass, will you humble yourself today?
[01:14:58] Will you submit to the Spirit?
[01:15:01] And I'll use the last example I'll give you.
[01:15:04] I'll use my dad as an example.
[01:15:05] I didn't tell him I was gonna do this this morning, but you know I've said it many times and I believe it I'm not just saying it because he's in the room my dad's the greatest man I know I'll stand by that I'll argue till the day I die that fact he's
[01:15:17] the greatest man I know you know why I got to hear him this week share the gospel with with the people at his work and it was just so powerful and he shared his testimony I believe it was 38 years
[01:15:30] old is that right 38 years old he was in church he served he said this week he had more titles in the library. I thought that was pretty funny. But he had all the titles and all the things. And
[01:15:42] I think, I'm not putting words in your mouth, but I think he would say he probably fit in this Pharisee camp. It was all about works. It was all about cleaning the outside. It was all about what
[01:15:52] I present to the world. But at 38, that man humbled himself. He realized something's not right.
[01:16:02] I'm just cleaning the outside, but something's not right on the inside. And he humbled himself under the mighty hand of God.
[01:16:10] He began to wake up early in the mornings and spend time with God, seeking his face, praying.
[01:16:15] He humbled himself to the people around him.
[01:16:18] And God began to change the inside and therefore the outside began to change.
[01:16:24] And that is true for your life.
[01:16:25] Jesus says that.
[01:16:26] You worry about the inside, the outside will take care of itself.
[01:16:30] It'll just naturally happen.
[01:16:32] And I got to see that in my dad's life.
[01:16:35] And the thing I got to hear him declare this week is it's worth it.
[01:16:38] It's worth it.
[01:16:39] It was worth it for him, his eternity, his life.
[01:16:43] It was worth it for his family that he had a young family at home.
[01:16:48] It was worth it.
[01:16:49] I don't know that I'd be standing on this stage today if it wasn't for that decision to humble himself under the mighty hand of God, submit and surrender to the working of the Holy Spirit
[01:16:58] and not just keep playing the part.
[01:17:01] And that's what I wanna tell you today.
[01:17:03] Quit playing the part.
[01:17:05] Quit acting.
[01:17:06] It's miserable.
[01:17:08] Submit, surrender to Jesus today and every day.
[01:17:12] Jesus is worth it.
[01:17:15] He's worth it.
[01:17:17] True surrender, true submission to him, giving your everything to him, saying, I'm gonna repent of where I've been.
[01:17:25] I have been cleaning the outside of the glass.
[01:17:29] That's been my focus, but not anymore.
[01:17:32] As we go into 2026, we're changing it.
[01:17:35] I'm begging you this morning, don't be like that rich young ruler.
[01:17:39] So many go that direction because it costs something.
[01:17:44] You can have true inward change today.
[01:17:48] Don't be stiff-necked and resist the working of the Holy Spirit.
[01:17:53] Surrender, submit to Him.
[01:17:55] This morning, quit just cleaning the outside.
[01:17:58] Like Jesus says, focus on the inside.
[01:18:01] Be like Paul.
[01:18:03] I surrender to you.
[01:18:04] I give you everything.
[01:18:06] I submit to the working of the Holy Spirit.
[01:18:08] Let's pray together this morning.
[01:18:11] God, we love you.
[01:18:12] We praise you.
[01:18:13] We worship you today, God.
[01:18:16] I pray, God, today that we take this seriously, Lord, that we look to you, that we humble ourselves today under your mighty hand.
[01:18:25] God, I pray, Lord, you bring conviction today where there needs to be conviction, God.
[01:18:28] I pray clarity where there needs to be clarity, Lord.
[01:18:33] And I pray, God, we humble ourselves, God.
[01:18:34] We submit to you, God.
[01:18:37] You are worthy of our lives, God.
[01:18:39] As we're about to sing, you are worthy of it all.
[01:18:42] You're worthy of everything.
[01:18:43] I pray we worship you in this moment, God.
[01:18:46] Do what only you can do.
[01:18:47] There is nothing impossible with you, Lord.
[01:18:49] We believe that this morning.
[01:18:50] Do what only you can do in this place, Lord, in your name.
[01:18:53] Amen.

[01:18:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]
[01:18:54] It is great to be with you in this new year.

[01:22:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[01:22:48] We are excited.
[01:22:49] What better way to kick off the new year than with Baptism's New Life in Christ, a challenging message.
[01:23:00] And God is good.
[01:23:02] Listen, we want to give you two announcements today.
[01:23:04] Number one, this week, our student ministry, so 7th through 12th grade, we start back midweek.
[01:23:12] Now, everybody else starts back next week, the 14th.
[01:23:17] Men's and women's and our 3rd and 4th grade and all the other ministries start back next week.
[01:23:23] But this week, student ministry starts back.
[01:23:26] and we start the year every year by inviting parents of 7th through 12th graders to come with their with their student to come with their child maybe you grew up and you had a youth group or
[01:23:42] maybe you grew up and you didn't have a youth group I didn't I didn't go to youth so we have service like we would any other time we worship there's a message last year I can tell you this
[01:23:55] we had a parent give their life to Jesus on that night last year so maybe you're here today maybe you're a student and you've been wanting to come to student ministry but you never tried it
[01:24:13] out come this week bring mom and dad or bring just dad or bring just mom now we wish we could accommodate the whole family we can't we don't have enough seats but as as parents we want you
[01:24:24] to be there. So we want to encourage you to come be a part of that this week. Um, we're excited to get started in this new semester. We believe that God's going to do a mighty work for students.
[01:24:36] And then the last thing I want to let you know about a very special, uh, grief share that we have planned. So Ms. Linda McNally leads our grief share ministry and she does a phenomenal job.
[01:24:48] and on January the 18th from 3 to 5 p.m we are going to host a special session of grief share for anyone who has lost a spouse so if you've lost a spouse be sure to connect with Linda today
[01:25:05] out at our connect desk just outside in the foyer to get more information about that special grief year. I promise you, God is using that ministry in incredible ways, not only to help people through the gospel, but to connect his people so that we have one another to lean on. So I'm
[01:25:25] going to pray this morning and then we'll be dismissed. Father, we thank you for your words this morning. And we thank you, Lord, for your encouragement that Lord, that we have the opportunity to look on the inside and that we can come to you in humble obedience and we can
[01:25:41] humble ourselves in repentance before the mighty hand of God. And in your mercy that you reach down and you tell us that we do not have to be afraid that you will restore us, that you will wash us
[01:25:56] white as snow. So father, I pray today that for anybody in this room who needs to make that decision, that they would come forward for prayer, Lord, that they would come forward and meet with
[01:26:09] our elders or meet with our prayer team this morning, Lord, and that they would, Lord, just wash the inside and forget about all outward appearances. Lord, we thank you for this and we praise you in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.