Living for God’s Glory: Finding Freedom Beyond Self

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:00:00] All right, let's take a moment and welcome all of our guests who are here physically and our guests who are tuning in from Fort Mill to Brazil and all around the world so let's give it up for our first-time guests. Thank you so much for being here. Let's give it up to the over now 1,400 Correctional Facility Partnerships! Jesus had some words to say about the poor and he had some words to say about those who are in prison and I'm so grateful to be a part of a church that takes that seriously and so thank you so much and to the mighty men and incredible women of all of our Correctional Facility Partnerships we believe that God is gonna restore what the enemy has taken we believe that God is gonna reconcile families and we're just so excited for you let's also take a moment to say what's up to the TC family good to see everybody you look beautiful now before we dive into the sermon how many of you have ever been to Jamaica raise up raise up your hands I'm sure a lot of us have been to that incredible country and as you know there was a category 5 hurricane and so we are a church that roll up our sleeves to do something to make an impact but in order for that to happen it requires all of us and so I want to take a moment to announce that we are partnering I don't even know what devastation would even look like like like this but because of your financial generosity we have hurricane Melissa disaster relief we're partnering with convoy hope and water mission we're sending $30,000 to be involved and for any of you who have the gifts to fix stuff and clean stuff up and you want to go there physically connect with Winnie herb and she can help you to be able to do that but I want to pause here at this moment because I think this is really really important oftentimes in the church what we do is we you know I'll even do it I'll celebrate people on the parking team and I'll celebrate the great production team and people in TC kids what I want to do now is I want to celebrate the 52% of those of us at Transformation Church who give generously to the mission and vision of Transformation Church I'm that is a big deal that is a really really big deal and I shared this with with you guys way back in August that financially economically things were going to get hard I don't know if you remember that this is not the time to be stingy this is the time that we actually trust God more to meet people's needs and one of the greatest joys my wife and I have is given generously and I get it y'all I got I got a chapter in here in the to be stingy this is a time that we actually trust God more to meet people's needs and one of the greatest joys my wife and I have is given generously and I get it y'all I got I got a child well she 29 I mean she's studying in Korea I got a son in law school and I'm just like you but it's amazing that when you trust a God of generosity how he blesses you in ways that you can't even imagine so listen God doesn't want something from you he wants something for you the only thing he wants to take from you is anxiety about money fear about money greed about money he wants to take things away from you that are gonna deform you and give you things that transform you which is his grace and they're gonna be people in Jamaica whose lives are eternally changed as a result of our collective giving and praying so let's pray father we lift up the great people of Jamaica we left up this beautiful island and we pray that the resources we send along with the other resources that are sent that incredible beautiful things for the gospel would take place we pray this in Jesus name and God's people said amen all right family so we've been going through a series called the five solas and as you can see I am wearing this shirt the five solas what it of five solas. Why is that important? Because several hundred years ago, there was what's called the Protestant Reformation, the protest, that there were a group of followers of Jesus who were protesting things in the majority culture, Roman Catholic Church, saying, hey, here's some things that don't align with the Bible. And so it was a return to historic biblical Christianity. And so the five solas were this. We looked in week one, Sola Scriptura, that we are a people who believe that the Bible alone points to the salvation of Jesus alone. I am assuming that you are reading your Bible every day. I am assuming you're reading the Bible every day the same way you eat food every day. I'm assuming that you're more passionate to wake up to read your Bible than to scroll and get propaganda on Instagram from political influences who are paid by political parties.
[00:05:07] For those of you who have ears, let them hear. Propaganda has never been easier. All you've got to do is grab your phone.
[00:05:15] If somebody's getting paid by a political party to give you information, it's going to be partisan. Let me help you.
[00:05:21] Okay, let's continue. Sola Christus, Christ alone is salvation. Sola Gratia, grace alone. Sola fete, by faith alone.
[00:05:31] And today, sola de gloria, to the glory of God alone.
[00:05:36] Sola Gratia, grace alone. Sola fete, by faith alone. And today, sola de gloria, to the glory of God alone.
[00:05:37] Sola Gratia, grace alone. Sola fete, by faith alone. And today, sola de gloria, to the glory of God alone.
[00:05:37] So watch this. The five solas remind us that salvation is a symphony of grace.
[00:05:44] It's played by Christ, heard through the Word of God, the Bible, received by faith alone, and all of it resounding for the glory of God alone.
[00:05:55] Why is that important? If you're new here at Transformation Church, we don't preach a populist pragmatic message.
[00:06:01] You're like, what does that mean, Pastor? It means this. Populism means, hey, you know what?
[00:06:05] The world is against you.
[00:06:07] The devil's always after you.
[00:06:08] Things are bad for you.
[00:06:09] You've been a victim.
[00:06:10] Let me tell you how Jesus can fix your little old life.
[00:06:12] Pragmatism is, Jesus, what do I need today because I got issues?
[00:06:17] Guys, that is the furthest thing from the gospel there is.
[00:06:21] The good news of the gospel is this, that there is a God who created you for himself.
[00:06:28] There is a God who says, not only did I create you for myself, but I want to put myself in you because I want to bring heaven to earth.
[00:06:36] And so now you take my commands.
[00:06:40] Now you follow my initiatives.
[00:06:42] Now you rely on me.
[00:06:45] And what you'll discover is the little old bitty life you wanted to have doesn't compare to what God wants to do in your life.
[00:06:51] Now we as Americans in first world people always think that means bigger and more and better.
[00:06:57] You know what it may mean?
[00:06:58] That you're just a great husband.
[00:07:00] You know what it may mean?
[00:07:02] That you're an incredible teacher in fifth grade and no one ever knows your name.
[00:07:05] But those kids you love, you love to teach.
[00:07:06] love on, remember your name because they make an impact. You know what it means? That you do ordinary things in a beautiful and profound way. You know what it means? That no one may know your name, but God knows your name. And when God knows your name, it's enough.
[00:07:24] The five solas. So here's a question. Here it is, here it is. What is your purpose?
[00:07:32] This is for all of us. What is our purpose? And you can see here it says, we were created for God's glory. But let me let this sit here for a moment. Let's marinate in this.
[00:07:45] Here comes a German word. I'm going to explain it. Zeitgeist. It means the spirit of the age.
[00:07:50] So as people in America, in our context, purpose means what is the job I'm going to have? What are the great things I'm going to do? Here's a question. You ready? You can do incredible things by the world's standard and still lose your soul.
[00:08:10] Y'all, how in the world do we have starving people in a country with this many billionaires?
[00:08:20] Now, for some of y'all saying amen, if you ain't giving generously to the local church, just specifically, zippity, zip, zip. It's like, you know, them billionaires and you ain't giving nothing. Like, well, if I'm not giving, I'm not giving. I'm not giving. I'm not giving. I'm not had more no you're doing exactly what you're doing if you had more so so we gotta redefine what success is now I'm a high achiever I love achieving but I've achieved and it's been empty the question is are we living in God's glory we we just sang some incredible worship songs about God's glory what is God's glory well first of all let's look at some definitions and the Hebrew the word is kabod and it means the heaviness of God's manifest presence so for example Moses for those of you don't know Moses the burning bush God appeared to him Yahweh appeared him in a burning bush that take off your shoes this is holy ground one time God Moses said God show me your glory and in a Derwin Gray Hebrew translation God says you can't handle it homie I'm just gonna show you my after arts and meaning that he's so spectacular weight of his presence and in the New Testament the word is don't say and it means his brilliance so so God's glory is God's presence bearing weight on us displaying his glory through us and to make this really clear God's glory looks like Jesus in his humanity God's glory his desire his highest desire is not to get you a job you his highest desire is not to get you a spouse his highest desire is for us to receive his glory and to manifest his power and his presence that when I say manifest I don't mean that weird new weight stuff that if I just say this so many times something no no no no that's demonic that's witchcraft manifest I'm talking about God himself living in us and through us so watch this teenagers and young adults glory is what happens when God's grace invades a person's life and that person begins to reflect Jesus.
[00:10:40] Okay, here's something that's really weird.
[00:10:42] The older I get, the more I appreciate.
[00:10:44] I was talking with a gentleman a couple days ago and we were talking about certain things and success in life and he's a very high achiever and he could not get how I was happier when I left the NFL.
[00:10:57] He just could not, he goes, wait a minute, you worked your whole life for that, yep.
[00:11:03] You played in the NFL and you were happier when you left the NFL.
[00:11:07] Yeah, he goes, how is that possible?
[00:11:09] I said, because in the NFL I was playing for my glory.
[00:11:12] Now I understand I live in God's glory.
[00:11:13] And he was like, I was like, you know, there's some things you have to experience.
[00:11:20] Some things you gotta experience.
[00:11:22] When my wife and I would go to the Caribbean in the NFL, they would have these free cruises.
[00:11:27] And all you had to do was sign autographs.
[00:11:29] I'm like, heck yeah, we go.
[00:11:32] She would snorkel in the water because she's a Caucasian.
[00:11:38] My Caucasian brothers and sisters love to get out in the ocean where there are sharks.
[00:11:46] They like dark meat, a little bit more flavorful and juicy.
[00:11:51] And so she would get out there.
[00:11:52] I'm like, baby, I love you.
[00:11:53] But you know, I'd be like, help.
[00:11:57] And she would tell me how incredible snorkeling was.
[00:12:00] And eventually I'm like, okay, I'll do it.
[00:12:03] So I got it.
[00:12:05] I didn't go too far though.
[00:12:06] I got out there and I was looking and I came out and I said, you were right.
[00:12:12] I seen a whole world that I didn't even know exists because I had to get off the beach, jump in the water to see it.
[00:12:21] Well, you gotta get off the beach and jump into God's glory to actually see it for it to make, sense God's glory is when Jesus begins to impact us.
[00:12:35] As a matter of fact, let me give you another working definition.
[00:12:38] And I ripped this off from our early church father.
[00:12:41] Now, when I say early church father, I don't mean Billy Graham.
[00:12:45] I mean like the second century, Northern Africa.
[00:12:50] God is God glorified is humanity alive and humanity alive.
[00:12:57] God is God glorified.
[00:12:59] So what am I saying here?
[00:13:01] Is that when you and I come to the realization that we were created by God for God to express God, created by love for love through love by the gospel of God's grace, we become alive with the very presence and the very power of God.
[00:13:19] For some of us, you got the career, you got this, you got that, and you're still devoid because you are devoid of the manifest presence of God, the glory of God, which only comes through the son of God, applied by the spirit of God.
[00:13:35] God is calling you not to use him, but to embrace him.
[00:13:42] You ever been around somebody that only wants to use you?
[00:13:47] They don't add nothing to you.
[00:13:49] They just want to drain and drain.
[00:13:51] That's not a relationship.
[00:13:52] That's a parasite.
[00:13:54] Well, God is a parasite.
[00:13:55] He's a parasite.
[00:13:56] He's a parasite. He's a parasite. He's a parasite. He's a parasite.
[00:13:56] Well, God doesn't want a parasitic relationship with us.
[00:14:01] God is saying, I want you to enjoy the muchness of my presence because that's when you're really going to be alive.
[00:14:09] In the Greek New Testament, there's only two words for life, bios, where we get the word biology, and the word zoe, which means God's kind of life.
[00:14:16] When you are reborn again in God's power, we get zoe, God's kind of life in us that God begins to transform us.
[00:14:26] And this next verse I'm going to show you will set you free.
[00:14:30] Watch this.
[00:14:32] 1 Corinthians 10, verse 31.
[00:14:35] The apostle Paul is working with this incredibly multi-ethnic church of Jews and Gentiles, people from different political parties, wealth, all types of things, and they're arguing about should Gentiles eat food that Jews use the sacrifice to...I mean, it's just all types of just stuff.
[00:14:53] And Paul's like, listen.
[00:14:56] So, whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.
[00:15:03] Now, we as Americans go, okay, what does that mean?
[00:15:07] Give me the five steps.
[00:15:09] Here it is.
[00:15:10] Whatever you eat, whatever you drink, whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.
[00:15:17] St. Augustine, a northern African preacher, one of the great church fathers said this.
[00:15:22] He said, do whatever you want.
[00:15:24] Do whatever you want.
[00:15:25] Do whatever you want.
[00:15:25] Do whatever you want.
[00:15:26] And love God.
[00:15:28] So, you see what happens?
[00:15:29] You won't sin.
[00:15:31] Do whatever you want, but love God.
[00:15:33] That's basically love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength.
[00:15:36] If we start there, we don't have to worry about anything else.
[00:15:40] Sin is simply saying, God, there's someone or something that is greater than you that will love me more, that will satisfy me more, and anytime and every time, it is always alive.
[00:15:51] So, whatever you do, do for the glory of God.
[00:15:55] I don't see this as much.
[00:15:55] I don't see this as much anymore, but people used to think, well, I've got to be in full-time ministry to do something for the glory of God.
[00:16:02] You are in full-time ministry.
[00:16:04] It's called being a VP at Bank of America.
[00:16:07] You are in full-time ministry.
[00:16:09] It's called being a middle school principal at Indyland.
[00:16:12] You are in full-time ministry.
[00:16:14] It's called taking care of your brand new baby.
[00:16:16] You are in full-time ministry.
[00:16:18] Everything we do is full-time ministry.
[00:16:21] You are a minister created for the glory of God.
[00:16:25] Now, you don't have this much anymore, but when I was coming up in seminary, one of the big things was called the secular-sacred divide, that sacred was what happens on Sunday.
[00:16:35] Secular is what happens throughout the week, and so people would go praise God on Sunday, and then Monday through Saturday, they're committing corporate fraud, which, by the way, $526 billion because of white-collar crime.
[00:16:53] Amen.
[00:16:54] Amen.
[00:16:55] That's another kind of crime, by far.
[00:16:56] But I don't ever hear anybody going, you know, those people in corporate just don't have dads at home.
[00:17:03] That's their problem.
[00:17:04] I wonder if they learned it from their dads at home.
[00:17:10] Why don't we say nothing about that, evangelicals?
[00:17:12] I mean, greed is still in the Bible, isn't it?
[00:17:15] I mean, we're very selective on our sins.
[00:17:18] Do you know how much, you know what $526 billion could do?
[00:17:24] Probably feed people.
[00:17:25] That's what I'd like to do for $526 billion.
[00:17:29] All right.
[00:17:30] That's more than enough.
[00:17:31] My friend, I'm with you.
[00:17:32] I could do it for $10 million.
[00:17:33] I think we're at $50 million.
[00:17:34] I mean, the price of one meal is nothing compared to a $560 million man who's been to a grocery store, or a grocery store, like running around, eating, walking, just little things.
[00:17:37] You know how much it costs?
[00:17:38] Can we afford to consume this, maybe, through this go-to-go foi国?
[00:17:39] I mean, we're about to get $15 billion.
[00:17:40] Now, before you say people are lazy who are on Snap, did you know you could work at Walmart and certain jobs 40 hours a week and still just be above poverty?
[00:17:42] If I could talk to the Walmart people, I would just lovingly say four of y'all are the ten richest people in America, and people who work for you full-time are barely above welfare?
[00:17:50] I mean, how much more do we need? What's the purpose of having it all?
[00:17:56] I don't know about you, but I think Jesus might say something about that. I do.
[00:18:03] Oh, yeah. Do you guys remember? Do you guys remember when Jesus was like, y'all hungry, 5,000 men, 10,000 women? Man, y'all better get a job and go get something to eat.
[00:18:16] Little boy, take your fish and keep it for yourself.
[00:18:26] Strange times, my friends. Don't be strange.
[00:18:32] Sin is glory diminished.
[00:18:36] Sin is glory diminished.
[00:18:37] Sin is glory diminished.
[00:18:37] Sin is glory diminished.
[00:18:39] Watch this.
[00:18:42] Sin isn't just breaking the Ten Commandments.
[00:18:46] Sin is misdirected glory.
[00:18:50] For example, before you come to Jesus, the Bible describes you and I as sinners.
[00:18:58] By our birth and nature, we're devoid and separated from God.
[00:19:03] Even the good things we do are tainted with our own glory.
[00:19:05] When you come to Jesus, you are a child of God who sins and who's in the process of being transformed.
[00:19:16] I can pretty much guarantee that no one is going to be sinless after they say yes to Jesus.
[00:19:21] But if we obey him, we will sin less as we receive more of his glory through obeying him because his grace is so beautiful.
[00:19:33] But it's not just, oh, I did a boo-boo.
[00:19:35] It's this.
[00:19:36] Hey, God.
[00:19:37] I know you told me to forgive my wife, but you know what?
[00:19:41] I want revenge, and that's what I'm going to do.
[00:19:43] And the Holy Spirit's like, it don't have to be that way.
[00:19:46] No, no, no.
[00:19:46] I got this, Holy Spirit.
[00:19:49] When you're a believer, God the Holy Spirit is constantly saying, no, it's not worth it.
[00:19:54] No, no.
[00:19:54] Trust me.
[00:19:55] Trust me.
[00:19:56] Don't get even.
[00:19:56] Give grace.
[00:19:57] Don't get even.
[00:19:58] Give mercy.
[00:19:59] Tell the truth.
[00:20:00] Don't lie.
[00:20:00] By the way, a half-truth is a full lie.
[00:20:03] Respectfully, some of y'all are masters at half-truths.
[00:20:05] Would you stop lying?
[00:20:07] You know what John 8, 44 says?
[00:20:10] That the father of lies is the devil.
[00:20:13] And if you follow Christ, that ain't your daddy.
[00:20:17] Sin is taking what belongs to God and giving it to a lesser demonic thing.
[00:20:25] Even for believers.
[00:20:27] And what happens is the more we do sin, which is simply saying, God, my way at this time, it's like getting a callus.
[00:20:34] So I lift weights, and so I'll have calluses here.
[00:20:37] And I could get a needle.
[00:20:39] Well, back in, not as much anymore, because I don't lift that much no more.
[00:20:41] But back in the day, I could get a needle and stick it into a callus, and I wouldn't feel anything because it bubbled up because of the scar tissue.
[00:20:50] Well, when you and I continue to sin without repenting, scar tissue builds up.
[00:20:55] And so that's why you can see somebody and go, I remember you were so faithful to your wife.
[00:21:00] You were so faithful to, like, I remember, like, and it's like, what happened?
[00:21:05] It's a little drift.
[00:21:06] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:07] A little drift.
[00:21:08] Listen, sin will take you further than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you have, and will affect the other people around you.
[00:21:19] Now, you ready for this?
[00:21:22] You know how we don't sin?
[00:21:24] It's not by saying, I'm not going to sin.
[00:21:28] The way we don't sin is we remember the glory and the goodness of God.
[00:21:33] We remember sola scriptura.
[00:21:34] Lord, this is your word that points to Jesus.
[00:21:37] We remember solius Christus, that Christ came for me.
[00:21:44] Christ came for you.
[00:21:47] Didn't have to.
[00:21:49] Your mama and your daddy had to love you.
[00:21:51] They brought you into the world.
[00:21:52] Maybe they didn't do a good job, but God can do a great job.
[00:21:56] And it's by grace alone.
[00:21:58] It's unearned.
[00:21:59] It's unachieved.
[00:22:00] God doesn't have a ladder you climb up.
[00:22:02] He climbed down to pull us up.
[00:22:06] And it's by faith.
[00:22:07] God, I trust you.
[00:22:08] Why?
[00:22:09] Because I've created you for my glory.
[00:22:10] How good is God that he gives us everything we need for this adventure, and he doesn't ask you to put on a backpack and climb a hill.
[00:22:21] He puts you on his back and climbs the hill.
[00:22:27] Romans, chapter one.
[00:22:32] This is one of the most haunting passages.
[00:22:35] Verse 1.
[00:22:36] For they knew God.
[00:22:38] They did not glorify him as God or show gratitude.
[00:22:41] When's the last time you and I said, God, thank you for the oxygen we breathe?
[00:22:45] Man, you complain and we get free oxygen.
[00:22:48] Instead, watch this now.
[00:22:51] Senior, the crime is your?
[00:22:53] Crime.
[00:22:54] Instead, their thinking became worthless.
[00:22:57] It always starts here.
[00:23:01] And their senseless hearts were darkened.
[00:23:05] They realized that God would not forgive them, he would not forgive them.
[00:23:10] And God showed them the way, he showed them the way of the grate.
[00:23:14] They realized that God would forgive them.
[00:23:16] So they did not want to be like God, but they did not want to be like God.
[00:23:21] That's why I'm here.
[00:23:22] Why did God make us a miracle?
[00:23:23] Why did we become like God?
[00:23:24] Because God has prudent and kind.
[00:23:25] God is prudent.
[00:23:26] And when God has prudent, God's prudent.
[00:23:28] God is prudent.
[00:23:29] And the reason I keep saying that, God is prudent is because God is perfect.
[00:23:31] He has the best of gifts.
[00:23:32] God is perfect.
[00:23:33] God is prudent.
[00:23:35] and I mean, Harvard-trained lawyer, I'm like, he can't save y'all. And then President Trump, he can't save you either. Nero can't save you. The Ottoman Empire can't save you. The British Empire can't save you. All of those empires will go away. You do know America's not in the book of Revelation, right? But the church is, right? So, where do you think your focus and your heart has to be located? Politicians change the way socks and underwear are changed. But God is immutable, unshakable, unrelenting in his pursuit to redeem the world.
[00:24:18] Birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles. I got some problems with this one, though.
[00:24:26] I admit. Because Mr. Boots, my cat, has four feet. And he is glorious.
[00:24:32] I'm not going to lie.
[00:24:34] It's God, Vicky, Jeremiah, Presley, Jeremiah, and our third child, Mr. Boots.
[00:24:46] Everybody needs Mr. Boots. Now, we may not worship reptiles and stuff, but it could be cars, it could be money, it could be influence. It also can be, you ready, our woundedness.
[00:24:59] Well, you know, I've been hurt. I was reminded of a conversation I had years ago, and I was sharing about, you know, daddy wounds, but how God has healed me. And I remember a guy was at church, and he met me at a gas station, and he goes, you know, your dad may not have been around, but my dad was around, and he just, he beat the hell out of me. And there was no healing there. There was, I'm still angry, I'm still mad. Listen, the person you're angry at, the person you're mad at, you're actually going to become like them. He ended up leaving his wife and his family.
[00:25:33] If you don't let God deal with… If you let your wounds be your identity, they will continue to hurt you and hurt other people.
[00:25:40] Give it to Jesus. He is the wounded healer. You're like, pastor, I'm trying. Keep on trying. Keep giving it to him every single day. Here are the psychological impacts of living for your own glory. Chronic insecurity. Who am I if I fail? Who am I if I fail? Who am I if I fail?
[00:26:04] And by the way, you take it out on the people who are closest to you. Some of you men get in your 50s and you start blaming your wife because you feel like you didn't have the career you were supposed to have. You start blaming everybody else except for looking in the mirror. But then the saddest part, you may have exactly what you prayed for, but you can't appreciate it because you're not living for God's glory. Wow. A fragile sense of… A fragile sense of self built on performance or perception. You know, it's like, you know, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I'm going to go to church, I can't do that.
[00:26:35] I will run my own path and I will follow the increase of God's Lots and just finished praying that.
[00:27:03] Amen.
[00:27:05] Emotional emptiness masked by busyness or achievement.
[00:27:10] When you live for your glory, you gotta achieve and you're busy, you're busy, you're busy, you're busy.
[00:27:14] Let me talk to the millennials.
[00:27:16] Gen Z, I think, figured this out.
[00:27:19] But for millennials, I get it, man.
[00:27:22] You watched your parents lose everything in the subprime lending fiasco of 2008, 2009.
[00:27:28] Banks got bailed out with our own money, then loaned us our own money back.
[00:27:33] That is amazing, with interest.
[00:27:35] Woo, that's mafia, never mind.
[00:27:37] By the way, is that socialism?
[00:27:40] Oh, I'm sorry, I'm meddling now.
[00:27:45] I get it.
[00:27:46] And you're frantic and you're busy and you gotta do something, you gotta make something.
[00:27:49] And you do, you do, you do.
[00:27:50] And then you're gonna wake up 55 years old and just be a shell of a human being because you were trying to do something you were never created to do, which is glorify yourself.
[00:28:01] And we applaud you for that.
[00:28:03] Oh, you work so hard, just busy, just busy, just busy.
[00:28:06] Don't sleep, health is bad, but hey, look at all that I've done.
[00:28:10] Well, guess what?
[00:28:11] When you die, your people are gonna fight over it.
[00:28:16] You never see a U-Haul behind a hearse.
[00:28:23] Man, I believe in accomplishing things, but things for God's glory.
[00:28:29] All right, look what God's remedy is.
[00:28:32] He says, don't you know?
[00:28:32] He says, don't you know that your body's a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God?
[00:28:37] Isn't it great?
[00:28:38] God gives us the Spirit.
[00:28:40] You are not your own.
[00:28:41] Hello.
[00:28:43] For you were bought at a price.
[00:28:46] That right there, if we understood that, that is the one of the one doctrines that has changed my perception of myself.
[00:28:53] That if God bought me, it's greater than anything that I've ever done, and it's greater than anything that's ever been done to me.
[00:29:00] If God bought me, it's greater than anything that I've ever done, and greater than any harm that's befallen me.
[00:29:05] If God bought me, there is nothing positive or negative that can eclipse God saying, Derwin, you are mine.
[00:29:12] So the bigger we think God is, the greater we'll understand that he bought us.
[00:29:16] Can I say this lovingly?
[00:29:18] Some of us are way too impressed with ourselves and not impressed enough with the greatness and the glory of God who purchased you.
[00:29:25] That will save you about 100 grand in therapy fees.
[00:29:28] Go to therapy, that's cool.
[00:29:30] I'm down with that, but you got it right here.
[00:29:32] So when you go home, listen to this all week.
[00:29:36] Like binge on it, let that truth get into you.
[00:29:40] So glorify God with your body.
[00:29:45] Notice the logic of it, notice the logic.
[00:29:48] Paul doesn't say anything about don't sin, stop sinning, do this, do that.
[00:29:52] He goes, this is what God has done.
[00:29:55] Believe it and receive it.
[00:29:58] Grace restores God's glory to its proper use.
[00:30:02] place grace restores God's glory to its proper place here's what Jesus does for us if you're not yet a follower of Christ Jesus the eternal Son of God reorders our hearts so that we live from glory not for it can I give you just like a simple illustration like like a real-time illustration so NFL football players think they're good golfers and 99% of us cheat all the time it was like you play an NFL you got to go golf so I got pretty decent at it I could shoot like 85 to 90 I got really good and so when we got to Carolina the weather was always good and Presley and Presley was small at the time and Jeremiah wasn't even born yet and I'm like I'm going golfing with the guys I'd get up at 6 in the morning and go out there and golf and then I come back home and I would take a nap and so one day Vicki was like what I mean you think I'm just supposed to be the parent I mean she said it very respectfully but she called me on the carpet and and and and I had to backtrack but as I'm backtracking the Holy Spirit says hey you want to really get good at something how about get good at loving your wife how about get good at changing diapers how about get good at knowing the emotional needs of your wife like like why you out there with them slimy dudes you didn't say for richer for poor with them dudes now on occasion it's cool on occasion it's cool but I was called to be a husband and that's not something you just learn one day you have to give your heart over to say God reorder my heart give me an idea of something and I just got the idea of maybe I could say my name here I mean what do you say to people who say the word I meanです heh and that's how I became the relations and relationship channel so now all these years later she can't get rid of me people like and if I'm down at one time it's just like a山 in the mountains But you know what?
[00:32:33] We are together.
[00:32:36] Starting out, it was like, hey, you know, okay, yeah, you take care of the kids, and I'm going to go work a golf game.
[00:32:41] Who cares about my score when it was a zero at home?
[00:32:47] He reorders our hearts, but we got to give in to it.
[00:32:52] Watch what he does.
[00:32:54] Now the Lord is the Spirit, so the third person of the Trinity is God, along with the Father and the Son.
[00:33:02] And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
[00:33:07] You know what you're free from?
[00:33:09] You ready?
[00:33:10] From not sinning, not doing what you want to do.
[00:33:15] That's not freedom.
[00:33:17] Freedom is allowing God to shape us and to mold us.
[00:33:22] He's freeing us from the things that are destructive.
[00:33:26] That's what freedom is.
[00:33:27] Sometimes when I hear that, that song sang and people are like, where the Spirit of the Lord is, there's freedom.
[00:33:33] I'm like, we're free to go have sex now, girlfriend.
[00:33:35] No, you're free to be holy.
[00:33:38] You're free to be generous.
[00:33:39] You're free to be kind.
[00:33:40] You're free to be forgiving.
[00:33:41] You're free to glorify God.
[00:33:43] God has set you free.
[00:33:45] He has broken the chains.
[00:33:46] He's a chain breaker walking through freedom.
[00:33:53] We all with unveiled faces are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord.
[00:33:58] This is speaking.
[00:33:59] We're talking about Moses and are being transformed.
[00:34:02] That would be a great name for a church and are being transformed.
[00:34:05] You ready?
[00:34:06] Into the same image from glory to glory.
[00:34:09] So this is growth.
[00:34:11] This is from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
[00:34:14] It's all of God's grace.
[00:34:19] Family, let's not let this series be a five week thing.
[00:34:25] If you notice about the rhythm of how I teach last time at this year, guess what I taught?
[00:34:31] The Apostles Creed.
[00:34:32] I took you back.
[00:34:34] We have an ancient faith, took you back.
[00:34:37] We're not a populist, pragmatic church.
[00:34:40] We're a church that's rooted in the ancient gospel of Jesus because he wants to make us modern people reflect the eternal King of God.
[00:34:48] Let's pray.
[00:34:50] Father, I thank you for your word.
[00:34:54] Thank you for Jesus.
[00:34:56] I thank you for faith and grace.
[00:34:58] And I thank you that you invited us for your glory.
[00:35:01] Lord, would we be a people that live in your glory?
[00:35:07] Right now, in this moment, if you said, hey, Pastor Derwin, I've been living for my glory, but I want to live for the glory of Jesus.
[00:35:16] I want to receive his forgiveness, his mercy.
[00:35:20] Hey, if that's you right now in the silence of your heart, would you come to him?
[00:35:25] His nail pierced hands are extending, beckoning you to come to him.
[00:35:29] Come as you are.
[00:35:30] He will wash you clean.
[00:35:32] If that's you in the silence of your heart, say today, Lord Jesus, I come to you by faith through grace, believing that you died for me on a cross and that you rose again, you purchased me to set me free for all time and eternity to live in me.
[00:35:47] By faith, I receive this gift.
[00:35:52] I believe in Jesus name.
[00:35:54] Amen. Amen.
[00:35:56] And to the man, let's give God a round of applause.
[00:35:59] Okay.
[00:36:03] Hey, if you prayed with me, there's a connection card in the seat in front of you.
[00:36:07] I want you to grab that connection card.
[00:36:09] Take a moment. Fill that connection card out.
[00:36:11] Let us know you prayed to receive Jesus.
[00:36:13] It matters deeply.
[00:36:15] Our team is going to get connected with you.
[00:36:17] We want to connect with you.
[00:36:18] We want to walk with you.
[00:36:19] Okay, so here's our soul tattoo, something that we can think about throughout the entire week.
[00:36:26] Here it is.
[00:36:29] From God's glory.
[00:36:32] You were purchased.
[00:36:34] Holy Spirit lives in you.
[00:36:36] Pray this prayer all throughout the week.
[00:36:39] Lord, glorify yourself in me and watch what happens.
[00:36:44] Action step.
[00:36:46] Want you to invite someone to our Jesus is better sermon series starting November 9th.
[00:36:53] Now, y'all, I'm trying to hold my excitement in.
[00:36:58] This may be the series that I have wanted to preach for 15 years.
[00:37:03] But now I feel like I've got the content and the knowledge and wisdom to be able to do it.
[00:37:09] We're going to look at how all of the Bible is really a story about Jesus.
[00:37:14] That Jesus is better than Adam.
[00:37:17] I'm going to stop. I'm going to stop.
[00:37:18] I'm going to start preaching.
[00:37:19] Anyway, anyway, it would be a great opportunity to invite your family and friends that don't know Christ.
[00:37:25] It'll be a great opportunity to invite people who have questions about the Bible.
[00:37:31] This series is going to help us understand the Bible like never before.
[00:37:35] It's not just going to be fragmented stories.
[00:37:37] It's going to be you ready for this?
[00:37:39] A crimson cord from Genesis all the way to Revelation.
[00:37:44] In a case, if you don't know, the crimson is the blood.
[00:37:49] Love you guys. I'll see y'all.