The Power of El Gabor: Relying on Divine Strength

• El Gabor (Mighty God) [00:44:59 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor introduces the name 'El Gabor' from Isaiah 9:6, defining it as 'Mighty God' and identifying Jesus as the champion who bears the government on his shoulders.
• Divine Strength vs. Human Self-Reliance [00:46:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the cultural tendency to rely on self or view Jesus merely as a role model with the theological truth that believers must rely on God's strength, citing athletes who attribute their power to Jesus.
• Public Confession of Faith [00:47:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor challenges the congregation to be unashamed of Jesus in public spheres, noting that seeing athletes declare Jesus as their strength should motivate the church to do the same.
• The Identity of God (El Gabor) [00:48:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor defines God as 'El Gabor' (Champion/Hero) and 'Elohim' (Creator/Sustainer), contrasting Him with distant mythological figures or mere role models.
• The Nature of Divine Power [00:55:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor distinguishes between 'El Shaddai' (All-Powerful) and 'El Gabor' (Champion), arguing that God's power is demonstrated by its use for others rather than self-aggrandizement.
• Divine Protection and Security [00:58:50 ▶️ 📄]
  > Using the analogy of a 'trapper keeper,' the pastor explains that God seals and protects believers from the enemy, who lacks the power to overcome God's strength.
• God's Power vs. Human Effort [00:59:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the finite nature of human strength (referencing gaming consoles and 'hustle culture') with God's infinite power as El Shaddai, arguing that Christianity is impossible without God's strength.
• The Role of the Holy Spirit [01:08:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor identifies the Holy Spirit as the 'cord' or connection that allows believers to access God's power, distinguishing this biblical reality from New Age or spiritualism concepts.
• Biblical Illustration of David and Goliath [01:10:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor reinterprets the David and Goliath story, emphasizing that David did not rely on his own strength but tapped into 'El Gabor' (God the Warrior) to defeat the giant.
• Communion Guidelines [01:13:03 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor outlines the church's specific rule for communion, stating that membership is not required, but rather a genuine follower of Jesus with a pure heart.
• Communion Eligibility and Grace [01:13:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor clarifies that the rule for communion is being a follower of Jesus, not church membership, and addresses misconceptions about divorce or past mistakes disqualifying someone.
• Inclusivity for the Incarcerated [01:16:30 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor specifically addresses incarcerated viewers, encouraging them to participate symbolically in spirit and heart even without physical elements.
• Celebratory Remembrance [01:17:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor reframes the act of drinking the cup as a toast to Jesus, celebrating family belonging and forgiveness rather than drinking in shame or guilt.

• Sermon Illustration [00:46:48 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor references the recent World Cup and the US Men's National Team, noting that athletes are publicly declaring Jesus as their source of strength, which serves as a contemporary example of faith in action.
• Sermon Illustration [00:48:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses a rhetorical contrast to debunk the idea that Christianity is for the weak, describing it as a 'crutch' in the eyes of critics, while asserting that true Christianity is about relying on God's power rather than self-absorbed arrogance.
• Sermon Illustration [00:56:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about his full name (Ronald Edward Newton Jr.) and how he prefers the nickname 'Lalo' (used by a Mexican restaurant in San Antonio) because it signifies intimacy and being known, contrasting it with the formal 'El Gabor' to show God's relational power.
• Sermon Illustration [00:58:19 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the nostalgic analogy of a 'trapper keeper' notebook from the 80s and 90s to illustrate how God seals and protects believers, keeping them safe from the enemy just as the binder kept school supplies secure.
• Sermon Illustration [00:59:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor references comic book heroes (DC/Marvel) and video game leveling (Xbox/PlayStation) to contrast human power-ups with God's infinite, non-depleting power.
• Sermon Illustration [01:06:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about his old Beats by Dre headphones dying. He describes the frustration of having power in the wall but no cord to connect it to the headphones. He calls his son, Lawson (who uses older iPhone technology), to find the specific cord. He uses this as an analogy for how God uses specific means (the Holy Spirit) to connect believers to divine power.
• Sermon Illustration [01:10:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor humorously references 'Little Caesars' pizza delivery, joking that David was delivering cheese (hot and ready) before encountering Goliath, to illustrate David's youth and ordinary role before stepping into a spiritual battle.
• Sermon Illustration [01:11:55 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the biblical story of David and Goliath as an analogy for spiritual power, stating that even with limited resources ('five stones and a slingshot'), being tapped into God ('El Gabor') causes giants to fall.
• Sermon Illustration [01:14:38 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the metaphor of a dinner table to explain communion, stating that Jesus does not shrink the table but expands it to include all who have received His grace and forgiveness.

• Pastoral Charge [00:56:00 ▶️ 📄]
  > Invitation for individuals to come forward or seek assistance from the pastor.
• Pastoral Charge [01:11:55 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is instructed to bow their heads and close their eyes, presumably for prayer or communion preparation.
• Pastoral Charge [01:13:03 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is commanded to physically take the communion packet and remove the top layer to access the bread.
• Pastoral Charge [01:13:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor sets a condition for participation: the congregation must ensure they are followers of Jesus who have given their lives to Him before partaking.
• Pastoral Charge [01:15:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is instructed to engage in private self-examination and verbal confession of sin before partaking in communion.
• Pastoral Charge [01:17:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is asked to physically raise their cups/glasses in a gesture of solidarity and toast to Jesus, specifically acknowledging incarcerated believers.

[00:10:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:10:59] Hey, CBC, so good to see you online, all those that are joining us. Man, it's incredible.
[00:11:05] I am with the one, the only, the legend, probably the strongest worship leader in the most...
[00:11:13] In this three square feet.
[00:11:15] No, that's so good.
[00:11:19] This is Pastor Phil Vega. Man, how are you doing, bud?

[00:11:22] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:11:22] I'm doing really, really good. What's funny is literally seconds before this moment, I'm walking down the hallway, and you're like, where's Kirsten, who's supposed to be sitting right here?
[00:11:31] And then instead, we're like, dude, just grab the mic and listen.

[00:11:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:11:34] So I'm having a blast, Hutch, because this is, listen, spontaneity at its finest right now.
[00:11:38] No, that's right, man.
[00:11:39] Well, hey, we want to welcome all those that are joining us.
[00:11:41] Happy 4th of July weekend.
[00:11:44] Obviously, that was yesterday.
[00:11:45] Yes.
[00:11:46] Man, incredible.
[00:11:47] Did you blow anything up?

[00:11:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:11:48] You know, this, like, what a bad American.

[00:11:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:11:50] It was like 250th birthday.

[00:11:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:11:51] It was like the one time we kind of really didn't do much.
[00:11:54] Hey, it's okay.

[00:11:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:11:55] You know?
[00:11:56] Phil, it's completely okay.
[00:11:58] You know, a lot of things last night.
[00:12:00] Right.
[00:12:00] If you had animals around this place, I mean, it was a whole show.

[00:12:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:12:04] A little Benadryl.

[00:12:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:12:05] That's the trick.
[00:12:06] That's so good.
[00:12:08] Well, it was, man, it was an incredible, incredible weekend.
[00:12:11] And we've already had an incredible service yesterday.
[00:12:14] Your team, Pastor Phil, your team is amazing.
[00:12:17] Oh, come on.
[00:12:17] So when you think about, you guys, when you think about the team that he oversees and leads and the worship that comes out of this house, man, this guy, unbelievable.
[00:12:25] Unbelievable.
[00:12:26] Unbelievable. All right. So Pastor Phil, we got a few things going on. You have the app, don't you? Of course I have the app. Okay. And what is so awesome about the app? Okay. So I love

[00:12:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:12:36] that all of the sermon notes are there for me to follow along in the sermon. You don't have to like try to remember a piece of paper or anything. I can take notes there. And then of course,
[00:12:46] obviously I work here, so I know when all the events and stuff are happening, but it's really cool to be able to like, when somebody goes, Hey, when is that thing to just shoot them? Like,
[00:12:53] Like, hey, man, just check out the app.

[00:12:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:12:54] It's super easy.
[00:12:55] No, it's good.
[00:12:56] So if you haven't downloaded it, I'd love for you to download it.
[00:12:58] Like Pastor Phil said, you can follow along with everything.
[00:13:01] And then one thing that's going on, those of you that are in the area, and I know so many of you watch from all over, once a year we have this thing called Love Essay.
[00:13:09] And what we do is we literally deploy thousands and thousands of CBCers across our community, serving our community.
[00:13:18] Where could they find out information about that?

[00:13:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:13:20] So on our website, communitybible.com slash lovesa, you'll find all the information about the many projects that you can be a part of in Lovin' on Our City.

[00:13:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:13:30] Love it.
[00:13:30] So that's happening.
[00:13:32] And, man, this series, we're in the middle of this series called Hallowed Be Thy Name.
[00:13:35] I had the opportunity to preach last weekend.

[00:13:37] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:13:37] Which you did so great.
[00:13:39] Oh, thank you.
[00:13:39] Come on, it was so good.

[00:13:40] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:13:40] It was so much fun.
[00:13:41] And so we're going into another name, all right, Hallowed Be Thy Name.
[00:13:45] Title of this one is El Gabor, meaning Mighty God.
[00:13:49] It's going to be awesome.
[00:13:49] So get your Bibles, if you're sitting down, all right, chat with us.
[00:13:53] Let's get ready to worship, and I'll see you on the backside with our pastor.

[00:13:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:13:57] ...feet together today.
[00:15:04] We're going to celebrate the freedom that we have in Jesus today.
[00:15:08] Let's put our hands together just like this.
[00:15:10] Let's lift our voices with all that we've got.
[00:15:13] He's worthy of our praise.
[00:15:15] Come on, sing this together.

[00:15:16] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:15:16] I can testify that what we just sang is true.

[00:20:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:20:18] I couldn't do it for myself, but he stepped in and did it for me.
[00:20:22] I don't know if that's your story but it's my story today he's a God who makes a way where there is no way and so today there's perhaps some circumstances that you're up against that you
[00:20:32] would go hey I can't I can't do this on my own and God I need your help in these days to walk through maybe some difficult circumstances if that's you today you're walking through something
[00:20:41] difficult you want some prayer we'd love to meet you here at the front of the room put a hand on your shoulder and just let you know we're believing with you that God's gonna bring breakthrough in
[00:20:49] your situation and then on either side of the room where you see the words hope and healing we'd love to meet you there if you want prayer for physical healing we'll anoint you with oil just trust and
[00:20:57] believe that God can touch and heal your body but as you come even now we just want to simply say God you're so faithful we're thankful that you're the same yesterday today and forever we reminded
[00:21:09] today that we pray to the God who gives sight to the blind the same God that we read about in scripture today so we lift your name for who you are come on let's sing this together

[00:21:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[00:21:18] we declare our need together today lift your voice

[00:22:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:22:04] clear this thing it's what we're symbolically saying is god we need you

[00:31:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:31:59] what we're symbolically saying is i'm praying for the person in front of me it's a shield and a covering for those of you at the top row or maybe sitting in overflow and you're like who's praying for me people in the parking lot come on somebody in the lobby
[00:32:17] we're just believing in faith the cup the covering of this house is in prayer so father god we pray as people with our arms extended lord we just we ask that every need every burden every blessing
[00:32:31] lands at the feet of jesus who is able capable strong mighty to do the supernatural so god we ask that god you would receive our worship our prayers god thank you that you're working for
[00:32:42] our greater good. Thank you that you tell us to cast our cares on you because you care for us.
[00:32:47] God, you got us. Help us to feel that, hear that, receive that, stand on that, believe that in Jesus name. And all God's people said, amen. Amen. Come on, let's clap together. Grab a seat if you can.
[00:33:00] We're so honored that you're here today. Thank you for being in the house of God.
[00:33:04] Happy July 4th weekend. Come on. We 250 years old as a nation. I want to say thank you to all our armed forces, all our first responders, all retired active military, all you people that
[00:33:22] wear the shield. Thank you so much for what you do for our country. Thank you for making this place an amazing, amazing reality of how fortunate and blessed we are to live in this country.
[00:33:34] And also, I just want to pray for our government. I want to pray for our local leaders. I want to pray for all those that serve in the civic office with the reality of them needing wisdom and
[00:33:45] guidance and direction in leading our nation. And so we just speak blessing over them as well.
[00:33:50] And all the way to the white house, all the way to the mayor, to the governor, just local leadership. And just so thankful for our freedom, our democracy, especially our religious liberty.
[00:34:02] Never take that for granted. Ladies and gentlemen, there are places in the world that you could live and not be able to worship Jesus publicly like this. And for that, we should never take this for granted because this is a gift of God. We want to take an opportunity for those of
[00:34:21] you that are new to CBC, you could already feel the atmosphere. You already know that there's a spirit of electricity in the room because we believe that this is not religion. This is not a moment where we check a box. We are meeting with a living God. And we want to say thank you
[00:34:33] for coming today. Let this thunderous applause be a statement of our gratitude. Thanks for coming to church. All of you that are here for the first time means the world probably should introduce myself my name is ed i'm the pastor of the church and uh man it's an honor to have you here and if
[00:34:47] you did not get a free gift and we have a free gift for you all of you that are here for the first time stop by one of our welcome desk kiosks or our first time visitor tent we have a yellow
[00:34:58] bag that's got a goodie on the inside of that and this is a statement to all of cbc anytime you see somebody carrying a yellow bag that is your invitation to demonstrate cbc hospitality and
[00:35:08] and tell them thank you.
[00:35:10] Here's the reason why this makes a difference.
[00:35:12] People are willing to come to a church for a first time, but we want people to come back a second time, third time, fourth time, to be a part of a church family.
[00:35:19] And one of the ways that people judge our church is not just the preaching, by the way, though that's a heavy weight sometimes to carry.
[00:35:29] It's how friendly the people were.
[00:35:30] And what I love about our church is that there's a lot of friendly people here at CBC.
[00:35:35] I wanna say thank you, all right?
[00:35:36] One more time for all of you that are here for the first time.
[00:35:38] Thank you for coming. Thank you for being here. Also, if you go, Pastor Ed, how do I get involved here? Because I want to be a part of what God's doing here. We call it equip. Equip is this next
[00:35:50] step process for you. So if you stay ready, you ain't got to get ready, which means there's so many opportunities for you to be a part of the work of the ministry here. In order for you to
[00:35:59] come through equip, that means you get trained, you get specifically onto a team. It's also the place that you could find a community group and do life with people. We don't grow a church in
[00:36:08] rows. We grow a church in circles. It's important that people know each other, know each other's names and meet those needs in Jesus' name. And equip is that process. At the end of the service
[00:36:17] today, you'll have an opportunity to get to equip. You'll see the signs, follow the signs, we'll get you to the right place. But here's one of the things I pray for you. I need you to know
[00:36:25] I pray for you often. I pray that the people of God here at CBC will be a bright shining light that will continue to make the world a better place. That when you show up at work and you
[00:36:33] show up in your families, that you're giving the very best of yourself to a God who's given his very best to you. But I've also prayed this for you, that you will hear the voice of God. I believe
[00:36:43] the most important thing that could ever happen in your life is that you hear the voice of God.
[00:36:47] You're like, Ed, does God speak? Yeah, man, he speaks. He speaks in creative ways. He speaks through his word, his spirit, creation of the people. My prayer is that you would know the voice of God. And then the second reality is this, is that you would do what God tells you to do.
[00:37:02] You trust him. Don't lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him and he'll make your path straight.
[00:37:09] And so my prayer for you is to hear the voice of God and do what he tells you to do.
[00:37:11] And right now, I wanna ask Pastor Phil to come and just share specifically what God's placed on his heart.
[00:37:16] Would you help me welcome Pastor Phil to the stage to share, would it be all right?

[00:37:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:37:20] Well, it was 18 years ago to the day, 4th of July weekend, 2008, that I, way back as a 23-year-old with two little tiny babies, was dragged by my beautiful wife to a mega church that I did not want to go to.
[00:37:40] and I, I told her something along the lines of, I will go one time, I will hate it and we will never go back. And she said, okay. Uh, she always, uh, knows more than I know going into anything.
[00:37:55] So I should have just listened to her, you know, but now, now 18 years later with, uh, man, those two kids, my oldest is now 21. There's now five total kids. Uh, yeah, we, yes, yes, we do have
[00:38:09] cable television. Thank you. Uh, but now 18 years later, I stand in front of you to let you know that God has is calling me and my family into the next season. And my role here will end on August
[00:38:27] 9th, uh, will be my last Sunday leading in this particular capacity. But I would love to share with you just a couple of things. One, um, for the last 15 of those 18 years, I've gotten to be a
[00:38:38] part of full-time staff here in the last 10 of those 15 years, I've gotten to serve alongside this man right here, who's not just a boss or a pastor, but who is a brother to me who has loved
[00:38:49] my family well through ups and downs through the years. And, uh, couldn't be more grateful that God has allowed me to be, who would have known that, like, you know, you could play four chords on the
[00:38:58] guitar and like, you know, have a whole 15 year career out of it. I don't know. Um, but, but listen, uh, really what my wife and I are feeling just a call toward right now is I got six years
[00:39:08] left with kids in the house. Uh, my youngest is now 12. Um, and, and all of a sudden that is just feels like sand, like slipping through our hands. And I go, man, I want to spend the next six years
[00:39:19] trying to make some core memories with these kids, trying to like, let's put some camping tricks on the weekend and let's go have a blast together. And so just for the next six years, we want to really invest heavily there. And then also, uh, for those of you who know my wife,
[00:39:31] she's like incredible she's this amazing kind of entrepreneur spirit like pioneer she's the real mvp of our house and for the last 18 years she has without complaint just gracious with a smile on her face just been like i'll hold it down here because i want you to go live your dream job and
[00:39:48] i've gotten to do that for the last 15 years but i think it's it's time for her to dream again a little bit as well and so we'll be stepping into that next season uh here coming up in august but
[00:39:57] i want you guys to know that i love you you're not going to get rid of me that easy you're still going to see my face around here, but I love you guys. I'm super grateful. Thank you. Yeah.

[00:40:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:40:04] Come on. As we pray for Pastor Phil, one of the things that is so important that you hear is that the men and women that serve in the ministry here at CBC, it's difficult. Weekends
[00:40:21] are work days for us and it's hard, really hard, especially when you're raising kids.
[00:40:28] and we're a church that has a Saturday and a Sunday service. And man, this is what God calls us to. And, but there's nothing more important on this earth than being a good husband and being a
[00:40:45] good dad. And that's what you're hearing today. Nothing more important. Could you stretch out your hands in the direction of Pastor Phil? I thank you for this man. God, I thank you that for 10 years, Lord, to stand on this stage and Lord, to shoulder to shoulder steward
[00:41:03] a gift that you've given us in a leader like Pastor Phil. God, thank you for his faithfulness.
[00:41:11] Thank you for his character. Thank you for his integrity. Thank you that he is more than four chords and a guitar. He is way more than that. He has inspired men to sing to Jesus where typically
[00:41:25] men don't sing at church, but men here sing because they got a leader on this stage that invites them to sing. And God, we just pray blessing on he and Jen and their five precious,
[00:41:37] precious children in this new season, this new chapter in Jesus name. And all God's people said, amen. Amen. Can we show some love to pastor Phil one more time? Amen. Love you, pastor Phil.

[00:41:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:41:51] I think you're getting a standing ovation right now. Amen. It'd be great if the camera could get on Pastor Phil? Can we get the camera on Pastor Phil? That would be super amazing. Yep, that'd be

[00:42:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:42:06] great. Amen. Love you, buddy. Grateful we got several more weeks together. Several more weeks together. Turn your eyes to the screen. Check out this announcement about Love San Antonio.

[00:42:25] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:42:25] Hey, CBC family. This coming week is Love SA. That means we have over 150 serve opportunities across our city. So grab your friends, grab your family, grab your community group.
[00:42:37] Head over to communitybible.com forward slash love SA and find the perfect opportunity to serve today.
[00:42:43] We'll see you out there.

[00:42:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:42:44] Come on church.
[00:43:00] We're going to welcome all of our campuses, north side, south side, east side, west side, and over 4,000 incarceration facilities all across the United States.
[00:43:11] And we want to take an opportunity just to extend an invitation for us to be a part of what we call Love San Antonio.
[00:43:17] I'm grateful to be a part of a church that serves the city each and every month. Come on, can we clap to that? Would that be all right? Each and every month. But one of the things that
[00:43:28] you need to know is that typically what this is called is a megachurch, just so you know that megachurches are 2,000 people or more. Over 20,000 people come here on the weekends, each in every location combined together. But what would it look like for a church in one block of
[00:43:46] time to cannonball into the deep water of grace and mercy, splash a city with love and to serve it in Jesus name. We have over 300 opportunities. All you got to do is sign up. And our goal,
[00:44:00] when you saw this in that particular promo video was over 8,000 people. I believe we can get 10,000 people. I believe 50% of our church could we serve together this city that I believe is the greatest
[00:44:12] city in the entire world. It's not a church that just goes, Hey, y'all come to us. We're a church that's going to go to them and love on our city. Make sure you sign up for this. We're in a sermon
[00:44:23] series called hallowed be your name. We're going to be here for a couple more weeks talking about the names of God. Can we honor pastor Hutch Cuffall that did an incredible job preaching the word of God last weekend. So thankful for that message. And today we're going to look at
[00:44:38] message today that's under the sermon title called god strong god strong if you have a bible go ahead and meet with me in isaiah chapter 40. we're eventually going to get there so hang with me
[00:44:48] isaiah chapter 40 we're going to look at verses 28 29 30 and following but i want to just give you a sermon based upon a lot of different scripture that helps us know the next name of god
[00:44:59] simply entitled el gabor el gabor on the count of three can we just say that out loud together El Gabor, one, two, three, El Gabor. El Gabor, as we look to this, one of the most primary
[00:45:12] foundational verses that support El Gabor is Isaiah chapter nine, verse six, unto us a child is born. You're like pastor at Christmas verse. Nope. It applies at all times. Unto us a child is born and watch this. The government shall rest upon his shoulders. Yes. And amen. Cause Jesus is
[00:45:29] king and there shall be no end to his reign, but watch what the scripture says. He is wonderful counselor. Anybody know the next phrase? Mighty God, which is El Gabor. And I love the next
[00:45:41] few characteristics that he is everlasting father, prince of peace. As we talk about God being a God who's known as El Gabor, let me give the target statement. Target statement is so foundational. Every time I give you a target statement, y'all listen to me. This is what
[00:45:59] we're pursuing in this sermon. This is the crux and the fulcrum of the actual target of what we're hoping to accomplish in this sermon. You're like, Pastor Ed, thank you for the goal. What's the
[00:46:10] goal? The goal is simply this statement. Here's the target statement. You were never intended to live the Christian life on your own. Let me say it again. You were never intended to live the Christian life on your own, in your own strength. Here's why that's important. There was a little
[00:46:31] bit of commentary I was hearing just recently looking at the internet. How many of you know the internet could be a great place, but it also could be a very dark place. And sometimes you can
[00:46:38] hear some very negative comments towards Christianity. I believe it's amazing to me as we're watching a nation celebrate 250 years, a lot of people being unashamed about Jesus.
[00:46:48] the world cup is taking place right now viva mexico all right so tonight tomorrow's the united states can they do it yes i believe they can in the midst of all of this you're watching athletes
[00:47:01] step forward and go okay what's the strength you do what you do and they're like in the name of jesus and we're seeing so many people on the world stage say the name of jesus as their source of
[00:47:13] strength one of the things that we have to recognize is when we look at these men and women that are standing up for the glory of Jesus, it should stiffen the spine of CBC that
[00:47:22] we would not be ashamed of Jesus Christ. You all got a platform. And when the world asks you a question, who's your strength, you need to say in the name of Jesus. But when you and I use the name
[00:47:33] of Jesus, I think people find themselves inoculated to the name of Jesus because they think he's just some historical figure out of the page pages of scripture or some, some reality of an encyclopedia a reality, or maybe he's just chat GPT of like, okay, what's your source of inspiration? Like
[00:47:51] he's some role model. No, listen to me. He is God in the flesh. And I don't just have an idea that I hold of Jesus. I've dedicated my life to follow Jesus. The ways of Jesus should be my ways and the
[00:48:04] ways of Jesus should be your ways. But who is this God? And one of the ways that we get to know God for who he is. He's El Gabor, that he is Elohim. Elohim. Gabor is the word. He is our champion.
[00:48:21] And when we understand the significance of scripture, Christianity, as many people will commentate, is for the weak. Have you ever heard somebody say this? Christianity is like a crutch for the weak. It's typically very self-absorbed, arrogant people who think that they can live their
[00:48:37] life in their own power. And I want to say this out loud is in and of ourselves, we still need to take naps on Sunday. We still need meals throughout the day. And can I say this to you?
[00:48:47] You might have to peptide up, get some vitamins. You got to make sure your protein content's at a certain level. And here's what we recognize is that we are every day, slowly dying every day,
[00:48:59] but there's a God that's not withering in strength. There's a God who rules and reigns in power and many of you were raised up in church and you learned a little kid's song my god is so
[00:49:11] big so strong and so mighty there's nothing my god cannot do come on y'all with me today my god i mean don't make me do these hand motions my god is so big so strong and so mighty there's
[00:49:30] nothing my god cannot do come on i just got awkward i just got real awkward right there Yeah, I flexed on you.
[00:49:44] But what does God do with this power?
[00:49:47] It's important we want to write this down.
[00:49:48] When we recognize the meaning of El Gabor, who is this God?
[00:49:54] Well, first and foremost, the word El is a shortened form of Elohim.
[00:50:00] Elohim is where we get in Genesis chapter 1, verse 1, in the beginning, Elohim.
[00:50:06] That means that God is the source of creation.
[00:50:08] He is the sustainer of creation, and he is sovereign over creation.
[00:50:12] don't get it twisted. He's not a part of creation. He rules above creation. I need you to understand something. He is not energized, empowered up by creation. I need you to know he sustains creation.
[00:50:23] It holds together by his spoken word. He is sovereign over creation. Nothing catches God off guard. He rules and reigns above the earth, and the universe is his, and the stars he knows by name. He is the source of all things and he holds it together. This is who Elohim is. And by
[00:50:45] the way, can I say this to you? He speaks the universe into existence and he scoops up dirt and he makes man. If God could speak the universe into existence, don't you, don't you think he
[00:50:55] could have said, Adam come into existence, Eve come into existence, but no, he actually scoops up man, makes man from dirt and then from a rib creates Eve, which by the way, ladies, that's why
[00:51:08] you have a whole lot more value in my humble opinion. You were made for man and we as men were made from dirt. The word for man was formed. The word for woman was fashioned. Come on. It's
[00:51:27] beautiful. But why am I telling you this? Because this is the first time God touched something.
[00:51:34] He gives value to humanity. He's Elohim. But God goes, I don't want to just be some far distant power. As we read about in Greek mythology, we see Zeus and Hercules and all these amazing
[00:51:48] characters that are fictitious, by the way, not real gods, as to say that they are far and distant and removed. And there's a God for everything. But can I tell you, there's one God and don't,
[00:52:00] and don't get this mixed up. Our God is not the same of other religious gods. Our God is Elohim.
[00:52:08] and then we see Jesus who is the word in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God so God the father Jesus the son and the power of the Holy Spirit the three
[00:52:19] in one and we recognize God doesn't have multiple personalities but he reveals himself in different ways so we can know his name know his name and the word Gabor means champion actually means champion in the original language it means hero it means the one who goes on behalf of a people's very
[00:52:43] objective or purpose someone who stands in the gap unrivaled no contenders so when someone would use in the Hebrew language that you are Gabor they would say you are the champion but when God uses a hybrid word watch this he's El Gabor as to say you may have your champion but the champion
[00:53:03] and of all champions is our God. That's who he is. He's El Gabor. Come on, can we clap to that?
[00:53:08] He's El Gabor. That's the meaning. El Gabor, which means what does he do with this power?
[00:53:16] Psalm 24, verse eight, who is this king of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Number two, write this down. Not only do we see the meaning of El Gabor, but number two,
[00:53:28] we see the ministry of El Gabor. See what God does. See what God does. Now check this out.
[00:53:35] If you really want to know the value and the worth of someone, like the true test of their character, a couple of things will reveal who they really are. How do they respond to criticism? How does
[00:53:46] somebody respond to praise? But the true litmus test of someone's heart is what did they do? Come on, listen to me. What did they do with power? What did they do with power? Did they make it
[00:53:58] about themselves. It's about their privilege, what they get to do, nobody else gets to do, or is in that power that comes with influence, what comes with privilege, which comes with prestige. Is it not about, I take this power and I make it all about me because we've watched a lot
[00:54:16] of Kings in their power, expand empires. We've watched a lot of politicians with power, expand their influence. We've watched a lot of CEOs in power make it all about a profit. What do people do with power? Can I say this to you? When you and I look at the true litmus test of what power
[00:54:37] does to people, can you understand power has a tendency to corrupt people? But what does it look like for people with power, given the opportunity, yes, to be over something, to be at the top of a
[00:54:51] pyramid, but instead not make it about themselves and not sit at a table all by themselves, but invite a lot of seats at the table. So everybody gets to eat. The reason why I'm saying this to
[00:55:03] you is what does God do with his power? Does he sit in heaven going, tell me how great is my power.
[00:55:12] I believe there's a moment where we actually in praise go, God, you are all powerful. The word for all powerful is the word El Shaddai. How many of you have heard that phrase El Shaddai?
[00:55:22] that he is all powerful. But the phrase El Shaddai means he has all power, but check this out. But what does God do with this power? Yes, he wants to receive praise. God, you are El Shaddai. But when
[00:55:36] we say that he is El Gabor, El Shaddai and El Gabor are two different characteristics. Why does this matter? God wants you to know he's El Shaddai. He's got all power, but this power, he does not
[00:55:47] just simply flex from heaven and just go, tell me how big my muscles are. Instead he goes, let me use my power for you. Let me use my power to deliver you, defend you, and destroy the enemy
[00:56:00] for you. Somebody ought to get with me today. Come on, somebody help me. I got a God. You got a God that doesn't just go, tell me how powerful I am. Instead, he goes, let me show you how powerful I
[00:56:13] am in your situation. Let me show you how powerful I am in what you're facing. Let me reveal to you how powerful i am and when he goes when you see this power call me el gabor for example my full
[00:56:28] name and i always get embarrassed when i say this out loud is ronald edward newton jr that's my that's my full name you imagine being in kindergarten first day of school like i'm six years old i was held back so it's probably like nine all right so first day of kindergarten and
[00:56:42] they're like it's ronald newton here i'm like can you call me ed you imagine six years old and somebody going, call me Ed. But listen to me, a lot of nicknames along the way. My favorite
[00:57:00] nickname that I've gotten in San Antonio, my favorite restaurant, they go, Lalo, so good to see you. Now, for some of you that are not fluent Spanish speakers like me, I'm just joking. I'm learning. I'm learning y'all. And my favorite Mexican restaurant here in town, they go,
[00:57:20] Pastor Lalo, so good to see you. Eduardo is formal, but Lalo is, we know you, my brother.
[00:57:28] I want you to listen to me. We know God. It feels formal. El Gabor, I know you, God, because you have been so good to me to use your power, not unto yourself, so that everybody goes,
[00:57:43] you're so powerful. God goes, I'm so powerful. Watch me work in your situation. Let me do something for you. And this is why we take moments to read scripture. Let the ministry of God El
[00:57:57] Gabor in your life reminds you of a few things. The Lord, your God is in your midst and he is mighty to save. Zephaniah 3, 17, the Lord, this is Psalm 121 verses seven and eight. The Lord will
[00:58:07] keep you from all evil. The Lord will keep your days. He will keep you in your going out and you're coming in. I just want to give a shout out to the product of the eighties and the nineties.
[00:58:19] Anybody remember going to school and man, you didn't just get any notebook for school. You got a trapper keeper. The younger generation knows not what I speak of. We had one notebook. That was the notebook of all notebooks. And man, when it got in a trapper keeper, the keeper kept it
[00:58:40] safe. Man, it was Velcro on Velcro. I mean, you could have 17 subjects all in one trapper keeper.
[00:58:50] It looked like you were holding a file cabinet coming to school. True story. But can I say this to you? If God is El Gabor, he doesn't just deliver you. He defends you, shields you, protects you
[00:59:04] by his power, puts you in the ultimate trapper keeper, seals you by the Holy Spirit, which means that the enemy has no authority over your life and cannot take you out of the hands of an eternal
[00:59:16] grip of El Gabor. Listen to me. If he's El Gabor, then the enemy can't take you from his hand.
[00:59:23] Why? Because the enemy ain't powerful enough. I need you. Listen to me. Because we all love some comic book stuff, some hero stuff, some DC, some Marvel, wherever you fall in on this whole storyline. But listen to me. There's always this moment where we have to think, okay,
[00:59:39] so as God is El Gabor, is the enemy getting stronger? Listen to me. The enemy could train every day of its life and never match up to the power of God. I need you to know that our God is
[00:59:51] not threatened by contenders and rivals. Here's the reason why, because God's power never runs dry. He is El Shaddai. He is the source of all power. He doesn't need something to power him up.
[01:00:04] Come on, all you Xbox people out there, all you PS2, PS3, PS4, whatever you got going on, listen to me. As you level up, power up, God doesn't have to power up. He's power, but he doesn't use his power for himself. He uses his power for you to defend you, protect you.
[01:00:25] That's why Jeremiah 32 verse 17 says, nothing is too hard for my God because he is strong and mighty. Point number three, write this down. Not only do we see, number one, the meaning of
[01:00:38] El Gabor. Number two, the ministry of El Gabor. So he defends, he delivers, he defeats. But number three, we see the means of El Gabor. Oh God, if you could get this today, that God in his power,
[01:00:52] in his strength, yes, defends, delivers, and defeats the enemy for you, that you can walk in victory. But check this out. But he doesn't just use his power to defend you, deliver you, and defeat the enemy for you. Oh God, if you can get this, he gives you his power. I got three
[01:01:11] people on the central campus fired up about that. Come on north side. Come on south side. Come on east side, west side. Listen to me. Why does that matter? It's 2 Corinthians chapter 12. Paul's
[01:01:21] like, God, can you take away this affliction in my life? God's like, no. In your weakness, I'll be made strong. And then Paul said this. So I will boast not in my strength. I will boast in
[01:01:33] my weakness because in my weakness, your strength upholds me. And I want to say this to you. This world will try to motivate you. Hustle is muscle. Dig deep. You be the dude, you be the woman,
[01:01:47] whatever it may be in your own strength, but listen to me, it could be exhausting.
[01:01:52] And when we talk about Christianity and somebody all of a sudden begins to kind of just spew some haterade. Can I just say, I don't know where that came from. I'm sorry. That just popped up
[01:02:00] in my spirit. Doesn't make it to the next service. Right? So, but here's what I'm saying to you.
[01:02:12] When somebody goes, Hey man, Christianity crutch for the week. Oh, okay. Forgive your enemy.
[01:02:21] The world says, forget your enemy. God goes, forgive your enemy. The world says, make a name for yourself. The scripture says, no, no, it's not about you making a name for yourself. It's about reflecting God. Can I say that? I don't give you the leftovers of my life. I give you the best of
[01:02:37] my life. I'm called to serve you, bless you. Even when you don't choose to bless me, listen to me, Christianity ain't for the weak, but listen to me. Christianity is not just try harder, do better. Christianity is impossible without God's strength because it goes against the grain
[01:02:56] of society and culture. We're living a different way. And sometimes we could try to do this on our own because we come to services much like this and we get like a positive uplifting message.
[01:03:07] Listen to me. We can't do the Jesus thing on our own, but he gives us his spirit. And I got to read this to you. And I told you at the very beginning, Isaiah chapter 40, man, this is a word for
[01:03:18] somebody. Verse 28, have you not known CBC? Have you not heard north side, south side, east side, west side, and anybody watching online right now? The Lord is the everlasting God. He is El Olam.
[01:03:34] He is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary.
[01:03:40] His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint and to him who has no might.
[01:03:48] he increases strength and then verse 30 even youth shall faint and be weary and young men shall fall exhausted why does it say that because if we're not careful you're like hey pastor ed i understand what you're talking about you're talking about you need strength that's just for
[01:04:04] the old people us young people we got strength the word of god goes no no even young people grow tired this this ain't about you like being 18 and be like man i could go for days man
[01:04:16] I got Red Bull energy with no Red Bull.
[01:04:20] Well, first and foremost, can I say this?
[01:04:22] I'm a little jealous of the energy you got going on right now.
[01:04:24] But all I wanna tell you is in love is 50's coming, bro.
[01:04:29] 50's coming.
[01:04:33] And stuff ain't gonna work like it used to work.
[01:04:36] And you're gonna look in the mirror and go, how did I get four chins?
[01:04:40] I used to have one, now I got four.
[01:04:43] And you're constantly working on your posture.
[01:04:45] And you're like, man, I woke up this morning and I got injured somehow sleeping.
[01:04:49] I don't even know what happened.
[01:04:50] My ribs are hurting.
[01:04:51] my shoulders hurting dear God my feet hurt not even I haven't walked in eight hours let me get back to the scripture but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength they should mount up with wings like eagles they shall run and not be weary and they shall walk
[01:05:17] and not be faint while I'm still here Isaiah 41 verse 10 fear not I am with you be not dismayed I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right
[01:05:33] hand. We got a God that doesn't go, just tell me how strong I am. We got a God. Oh, somebody get with me. We got a God that goes, let me show you how strong I am. But the problem y'all is that we
[01:05:48] keep trying to do this in our own strength. You keep trying to be that wife or try to be that husband or be that mom or be that dad or be that worker, that student, whatever your story is,
[01:05:59] you're trying to do this in your own strength. Come on. I'm preaching to myself today, man. I can preach this to you and forget this on Monday. When all of a sudden I'm like, God,
[01:06:08] I'm so overwhelmed. He's like cool sermon yesterday. Can you listen to it one more time?
[01:06:14] El Gabor, his source does not run dry, but mine does. Let me take a commercial break for just a like, man, I'm fired up. I'm so fired up. I was, um, I had a situation yesterday and I don't want
[01:06:28] you to think I'm weird, but there's moments I'll talk out loud to myself. Anybody else? I have moments. Thank you. Um, I got, I got my headphones and I got this old, like an old set of like beats
[01:06:39] by Dre, like the sport headphones that wrap around your ear, like original, like first generation.
[01:06:44] So the power cord is a little different than my iPhone power cord. Can I get a witness from the frustration. Anybody else? You're like, I felt like I'm walking Best Buy with all these cords
[01:06:54] I got in my backpack. And so I'm looking at my beats that have died and I'm looking at a plug in a wall. Y'all, I just started talking to myself. I was like, everything I need is inside
[01:07:07] that wall right there, but I ain't got no cord. I'm looking at dead headphones, power in that wall, dead headphones. How do I get that power here? So I was like, my son's name's Lawson. I was like,
[01:07:27] Lawdog. Cause my son, he gets all the hand-me-downs from sisters. So he's like on, he's like iPhone nine. You know what I'm saying? Like he's, he's in the single digits on iPhones, which means he's
[01:07:40] got that old power cord that goes to the Beats by Dre first generation. I was like, Lawdog, you got that cord he's like dad I got you and watch this in the spirit of God when I got the
[01:07:53] right cord from the wall to my headphones the spirit of God went how many people lived their whole life with no power looking at God as the power source and go God how do I how do I get
[01:08:07] your power and God uses a moment like this to go you got power through who I am living inside of you through the power of the Holy Spirit, the power of the Holy Spirit. And if you're not familiar
[01:08:21] with what I'm talking about, come on, y'all. The Holy Spirit ain't no Star Wars. This ain't no karma. This ain't no spiritism. This ain't no crystals, no new age, no tarot card stuff.
[01:08:34] This is the power of the Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, living inside of you.
[01:08:42] so watch this El Gabor fights your battles but El Gabor goes but I don't want you to live in weakness so I give you my power so how do I get that power what's the cord that connects me and
[01:08:55] he goes let me tell you what the cord is the cord ain't a cord the cord is a person and his name is the Holy Spirit that's why Zechariah chapter 4 verse 6 is not by your might not by your power
[01:09:05] but by his spirit says the Lord of hosts the God of angel armies is on your side and he put his Holy Spirit inside of you. That's why Ephesians 3.20 says, now to him who is able to do exceedingly
[01:09:20] and abundantly more than you could ever ask or think according, because we typically stop right there, according to the power that's at work within you. What's the power at work within me?
[01:09:34] the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit power. But yet many of us, we run it on low, redlining. We're like, God, I need your strength. And God's like, listen to me. You don't have to ask for something
[01:09:50] you already have. So how do you get this power? Less of me, more of you. I abide in you. That's why Philippians 4.13 says, I could do all things through Christ who, what? Strengthens me. And I
[01:10:04] don't have time to give you the whole rundown on the story of David and Goliath, but the word Goliath, check this out once more is Gabor. It's Gabor. Their champion was to fight the champion
[01:10:17] of Israel. David, who's probably an eighth grader, ninth grader, according to our timeframe, he's 13, 14, 15 years old. He goes out to the battlefield. He's delivering some little Caesars hot and ready.
[01:10:28] True story. He's not the pizzas, but he's delivering cheese. All right. Some of you are like little Caesar's been around since the Bible time. No, no, no. It's, it's man. I love y'all.
[01:10:37] All right. He's delivering cheese and he's like delivering cheese. And all of a sudden he hears the, here's the Gabor shouting, blaspheming in the name of God. And I'll just summarize this.
[01:10:49] He eventually steps forward to fight the giant, but do you know what he prays? He doesn't pray.
[01:10:55] God give me more strength than Goliath he says this to Goliath he goes I'm about to chop off your head this is not the kids version by the way he goes I'm about to chop off your head and the
[01:11:08] birds are going to eat your body right here on the ground he goes you are going to come against me he goes I don't come in my name I come in the name of God who will give me your head right now
[01:11:24] this wasn't David going I got more strength oh no he goes I'm gonna tap into El Gabor and my five little stones and my slingshot from Toys R Us is about to do work on your face and I'm gonna take the sword that you were gonna use to
[01:11:43] kill me and I'm gonna use your sword and cut off your head as to say the weapon you were gonna use against me I will use against you in the power of my God can I
[01:11:55] say this to you, you may just have five stones and a slingshot, but if you're tapped into El Gabor, giants fall in the name of Jesus. Come on, can we clap together? Heads bowed, eyes closed. Man,
[01:12:07] y'all are awesome. Heads bowed, eyes closed, all of our campuses. Man, thank you for listening.
[01:12:12] If you have not put your faith and trust in Jesus, today is the day of salvation. Jesus came to take away your sin and he is mighty to save. And if you want to put your faith and trust in Jesus,
[01:12:24] Say this to Jesus. Can we say this out loud with passion for somebody else to pray this for the first time? Let's say this together. Lord Jesus, I'm not perfect for I've sinned, but save me, change me, forgive me. I give you my life. If you prayed that prayer in faith all
[01:12:43] across our campuses, if you're watching online, text in the number on the screen. If you're an inmate, write me that letter. We'll write your name on the wall. I promise you. But if you gave
[01:12:51] your night life to Jesus. Would you raise your hand all across our campuses, north, south, east, west, central campus. If your hand is raised, we're clapping. Welcome to the family of God.
[01:13:03] Right now, I want to ask that each and every one of you would take your communion packet.
[01:13:09] I'm going to ask that you would take the top layer off and get to the bread. But before we begin, and this is what we do, we stay seated for the bread and then we'll stand for the cup.
[01:13:19] Our campuses will facilitate the actual taking of the elements. I will facilitate that for you at this campus, but we always want to make sure everybody's on the same page because I want you to listen to me. Every church, and you may not know this because some of you are new to church,
[01:13:33] every church has a rule on communion. And one of those rules are you have to be a member of the church to take communion. Not saying that's a bad rule. We just don't have that rule at CBC.
[01:13:44] Our rule is, according to scripture, is that for those who take communion, you just have to be a follower of Jesus. That there's got to be a moment that you give your life to Jesus.
[01:13:56] You go, Ed, is that a big deal? The Bible says if somebody takes communion and is not a follower of Jesus or does it with an impure heart, it brings judgment on the church. I'm going to be real with
[01:14:05] you. I don't want judgment on nobody. I got more respect for somebody that goes, I'm not a follower of Jesus. I'm not taking communion. I go, man, thank you so much. Thank you for the respect that
[01:14:15] you give this moment. The second requirement is that every person who has given their life to Jesus would pause and ask God to forgive them. I know I'm talking to people because I've talked to many of you. You're like, Pastor Ed, I've been divorced. I've not been allowed to take communion.
[01:14:30] That's not the rule of this house. The rule of this house is, are you a son and daughter of the living God? You're like, man, I've made some mistakes. Welcome to the family. We've all made
[01:14:38] mistakes. But the table that we speak of, Jesus doesn't shrink the table. He expands the table and goes, all who've received my grace, my forgiveness, you come and you eat and you do this in remembrance of me.
[01:14:51] So here's what we wanna do all across our campuses.
[01:14:54] Let's bow our heads, have a moment of prayer.
[01:14:56] As soon as I say amen, I'm gonna dismiss our campuses that will facilitate the elements and we'll do this here.
[01:15:02] So heads bowed, eyes closed.
[01:15:04] Ask God to search your heart.
[01:15:06] See if there's anything in our lives that need to be confessed and say this to the Lord in your own heart.
[01:15:13] God, forgive me, forgive me.
[01:15:16] if you confess your sin he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness that's who he is claim the forgiveness so father god as we prepare to
[01:15:30] take the elements today forgive us of our sin god but we do this in remembrance of you thank you for the cross thank you for your blood thank you for what you did for us on the hill of calvary and
[01:15:42] thank you that that's not where the story ended that three days later you walked out the grave El Gabor, the champion of the world. In Jesus' name and all God's people said, amen. Amen.
[01:15:54] I'm going to dismiss our campuses at this moment to participate in communion. And now I'm going to ask the central campus, would you take the bread and what we do as Jesus said, may we eat in
[01:16:06] remembrance of him. Eat my brothers and sisters. I'm going to ask that we'd stand and remove the second layer and get to the cup. To our incarcerated brothers and sisters that are watching right now,
[01:16:30] you're like pastor adam and myself i got no bread i got no cup i want you i want you to think about this because i don't want to leave you out you may not have a bread a piece of bread and a cup
[01:16:43] but you could still participate in a very because it's symbolic with with nothing you can still thank jesus for his body and with nothing you can still thank jesus for his blood and symbolically you're remembering him in this moment with us even though you have nothing in your hand
[01:17:04] I don't want you to know that Jesus meets with you in that space, but I want us to raise our glasses into our incarcerated brothers and sisters.
[01:17:12] You can have nothing in your hand and still raise your hand.
[01:17:14] I want to say this out loud.
[01:17:17] We are toasting to Jesus.
[01:17:18] You're like, ah, it's a little weird, a little weird.
[01:17:21] I don't know.
[01:17:22] It's not weird.
[01:17:23] We toast to a lot of people.
[01:17:25] We toast to a lot of people, but no one more worthy of toasting to and saying, Jesus, thank you that I'm your son.
[01:17:31] I'm your daughter.
[01:17:32] Thank you for your forgiveness.
[01:17:33] I don't drink in shame.
[01:17:35] I don't drink in guilt.
[01:17:36] My past doesn't define you.
[01:17:37] And I'm not just toasting to you.
[01:17:39] I'm celebrating the fact that I am a part of your family and I can't be a part of it if it wasn't for you.
[01:17:46] And so may we drink in remembrance of Jesus, brothers and sisters.
[01:17:53] Amen and amen.
[01:17:57] Father God, we thank you for today.
[01:17:59] We speak blessing over your people.
[01:18:02] God, thank you for the promise of who you are, that you are El Gabor.
[01:18:08] and God, when we feel like we got no strength, thank you that we have a God who gives us his strength and through your strength, we can do all things.
[01:18:19] Help us to live as overcomers, world changers, more than conquerors in Jesus' name.
[01:18:25] And all God's people said, amen.
[01:18:27] Amen, we love you, church.
[01:18:28] Hope you have a great day.
[01:18:29] See you next weekend.

[01:18:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:18:30] All right, all right, amen.
[01:18:37] The enemy can't break you because God is in you.
[01:18:40] Thank you so much for everyone that joined in and is watching online with us.
[01:18:44] What an incredible message as we continue our series.
[01:18:48] And thank you for all of those who participated with us in communion right there.

[01:18:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[01:18:51] Man, that was incredible.
[01:18:52] Thank you.
[01:18:52] And matter of fact, if you would send us pictures, I just jumped in, I'm so sorry.
[01:18:56] No, I love it.

[01:18:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:18:57] And just so you know, every time I tell people that on the backside, you're gonna be here.
[01:19:02] So they're expecting this.
[01:19:03] Okay, okay, awesome, man.

[01:19:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[01:19:04] Well, I think one of the things that we would love if you're watching online and you took communion, would you send us a picture?
[01:19:10] Tag us on our CBC social.
[01:19:12] So literally, that is our handle at CBC Social because I think it would be really helpful for our church family to see people taking communion in their homes.

[01:19:19] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:19:19] It's so many times you run into people, you know, out in San Antonio or even other places.
[01:19:25] I know you travel and you run into people who are like, hey, I watch CBC.
[01:19:28] I watch CBC.
[01:19:30] And so many people, man, they're, for whatever reason, they're unable to get to a house of worship.
[01:19:37] And that's okay.
[01:19:38] Thank God for technology and things that we have.
[01:19:40] So, like, we're not just saying this.
[01:19:42] we mean it. We'd love to see it. And here's what will end up happening. We will share it on our social because we know so many thousands, Pastor, thousands watch online. And so if that's
[01:19:53] you, really, man, let us know. And you might not have grape juice, you know, but it might be milk and a cracker, you know, or whatever. And it's totally fine. It's the symbol.

[01:20:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[01:20:04] It's the symbol and it's the sentiment. That's right. Absolutely. And so we just want to say Thanks for watching.
[01:20:09] It means the world that you would participate with us today.
[01:20:12] And if you're in the area, man, get to one of our campuses.
[01:20:15] Feel what God is doing here and meet some new friends along the way.
[01:20:18] But if you're outside the city, let us know.
[01:20:20] Man, you're coming.
[01:20:21] We actually have on our website, plan a visit.
[01:20:24] Plan a visit.
[01:20:25] Let us know.
[01:20:26] And then we will actually roll out the red carpet for you.
[01:20:28] Make sure you got a seat.
[01:20:29] Make sure you have a great experience.
[01:20:31] Thanks again for watching.
[01:20:32] Pastor, I'll just take it away.
[01:20:33] But love y'all.

[01:20:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:20:33] Speaking of what he just said, I think it's a great point.
[01:20:35] But if you go online, communitybible.com, if you're in the area, you want to plan a visit to CBC, you can literally just fill that out and it'll alert our people.
[01:20:46] We'd love nothing more than to show you everything there is to know about CBC.
[01:20:50] But again, thanks for watching.
[01:20:51] If you accepted Jesus, we'd love to know about it, all right?
[01:20:54] We'll even put something on the screen right now, QR code.
[01:20:56] Let us know.
[01:20:57] We'd love to reach out and, man, just celebrate with you.
[01:21:00] You need prayer?
[01:21:02] We got a prayer team.
[01:21:03] They're incredible.
[01:21:04] They're going to pray for you.
[01:21:05] Let us know in the chat bar.
[01:21:06] You can use that QR code as well.
[01:21:08] And then as we always say, thank you so much to all of those who partner with us through your giving.
[01:21:15] It means the world to us.
[01:21:16] We can't do what we do without the people of God giving to the house of God, so to speak.
[01:21:21] And thanks for trusting us.
[01:21:23] Again, we'll continue our series next week.
[01:21:25] Thanks for watching and we'll see you next time.