Loading summary
Transcript3 lines
- [00:01]
A
Thank you for joining us here at Deeper Fellowship Church for this week's message. Our desire is to cultivate a deeper fellowship with God and one another, and we would love to hear how God is using this ministry in your life. So take a moment and visit us online at deeperfellowshipchurch.org find the share your story button and tell us what God is doing in your life. While you're there. You will also find useful information about our church and other resources that will bring you closer to Christ. Thanks again for joining us and we hope you enjoy today's message.
- [00:41]
B
If you would stand with me, you would stand with me we stand to read the scripture, and the reason we do so is because we are acknowledging that the Word of the Lord, the scripture that we read, is not just another literary piece of work. It is the living Word of God. And so because of that, we want to make sure that we properly honor that. And so I'm going to read two scriptures in our hearing. After that, we could be seated. I'll pray, I'll jump right into good news and then we will pray again. Let's I'm going to look at Matthew, chapter 19, starting with verse 16. It should be on the screen for you. It says this Someone came to Jesus with this question. Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? Why ask me about what is good? Jesus replied, there is only one who is good. But to answer your question, if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments. Which ones? The man asked. And Jesus replied, you must not murder, you must not commit adultery, you must not steal, you must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother, love your neighbor as yourself. I've obeyed all these commandments. The young man replied, what else must I do? Jesus told him, if you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me. But when the young man heard this, he went away, sad, for he had many possessions. Then Jesus said to his disciples, I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. I'll say it again, it is impossible. It is easier, excuse me, for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. The disciples were astounded. Then who in the world can be saved? They asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, humanly speaking, it is impossible, but with God everything is possible. Let me read one more scripture to you. Matthew, chapter 5, verse 3 this is from the Beatitudes given on the Sermon on the Mount. It says this. God blesses those who are poor. New King James and King James let us know that's poor in spirit. New Living translation which I'm reading explains what that is and realize their need for him, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the power of your word. Thank you for your presence which is here. Holy Spirit, reveal Jesus. Reveal Jesus to all of our hearts, especially those hearts that are coming to saving faith. I pray, Father, that you would move in these next few moments in a powerful way as only you can. Lord, I pray as always that the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight. Oh Lord, my strength and my redeemer. You're such a good, faithful, patient, gracious, merciful God. I pray, Lord, that you would extend that same mercy in this room and draw people to you because all of us need you. In Jesus name, Amen. You can be seated. I did something in preparation for this moment. I actually looked up the top 10 things that people are afraid of. And it's a little interesting actually, because some of the things that are on the list might actually surprise you when you think about it. But coming in at number 10 of the top 10 things that people are afraid of is loneliness. People are afraid of loneliness. They have a fear of being alone or abandoned. And we can understand that. Number nine, people are afraid of illness or injury. Number eight, people are afraid of deep water. I think people can identify with that. I thought number seven was interesting. People are afraid of failure. They are afraid or dread not being good enough. So they are afraid of failure. I think there's maybe some people in this room who might be able to identify with number six, and that is enclosed spaces, also known as claustrophobia. I know some people personally that deal with that and it's not fun that they deal with claustrophobia. Number five I also thought was interesting because of the age that we live in, some of the tools that were created were supposed to be able to keep us from being lonely. But what they also did was they created this part and the creation of that part is social rejection. Social rejection is the fifth thing that people are afraid of. Number four is heights. People are afraid of heights. I've been telling this in these past couple of services here and I want to share it again here. Experience that in real time here at this church. Because a few months ago we had a situation where our AC unit wasn't working and so we called the company to come fix it and they sent a guy to come fix it so that we could have service. Actually last week I said it was hot, but actually it was cold that day. So it was the heat we had. Someone was supposed to come fix it and they arrived, but they refused to go up and fix it because they were afraid of heights. So we just all sat in here freezing. Number three. I can identify with number three. It's spiders and insects. Yeah, uh huh. I heard y'. All. Because I've had a few snakes around my property. And whenever we have the snakes around our property, I tend to go out and and kill them unless they're too big. But I go out and I kill them with my shovel because I have a family and I can't sleep at night knowing that there's a snake in our property somewhere. And so I go after it. I know some of y' all are like, leave it alone. It's good for the ecosystem. That's fine, but that's for me in my house. But when it comes to spiders, I've killed the snakes. When it comes to spiders, I usually ask my wife to get it. That's our little silent agreement. I'll kill the snakes, you kill the spiders. That brings us though to our top two human fears, which I actually think are very, very interesting. Top two human fears coming in at number two is death. People are afraid of death. In fact, psychologists believe that it's the existential fear, ultimately the basis of which all other fears are rooted. Because the idea is that the majority of the other fears people have because they're afraid that it'll make them die. So number two is death. And I thought it was really interesting that death is number two and that it's something that people fear because most people are afraid of death. And I could kind of understand that. Perhaps it is the seeming finality of death, or maybe it's the unknown. But I want to suggest to you that it might be something actually deeper than that that causes humankind to be afraid of death. And that is instinct, the instinctual knowledge of what death truly is. You may not be able to articulate it, you may not be a theologian or a philosopher who has thought about the deeper things. But let me help you, because there's an instinct that causes people to fear death. And that is that death, according to scripture, the truth of death is that it is the penalty for sin. The Scripture tells us in Romans chapter 5, verse 12 that when Adam's sin, sin entered the world. Adam's sin brought death. So death spread to everyone, for everyone has sinned. Romans chapter 3, verse 23 tells us, for everyone has sinned, we all, all means everybody, fall short of God's glorious Standard. Romans chapter 6, verse 23 tells us that the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. People are afraid of death because even if they don't know how to articulate it, humans instinctually know that death was never our original intent. Eternal life is our original design. We were designed to live. Death is a consequence of sin. And actually the scripture defines it as an enemy to be conquered. Thankfully, he was conquered by our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. Now, some of y' all are like, okay, I came to this church and you already starting with a morbid message on death. Just stay with me. Stay with me for a moment. Death is number two on the human list of fears. And number one on the things that people fear the most is what I'm doing right now, public speaking. Public speaking is the number one fear that people have. And I find that to be really interesting because you would think, well, why is death death number two and public speaking number one? Perhaps because people think if they have to speak publicly, they'll die. But if we were to dig a little bit deeper, there is a root cause to why public speaking is the number one fear that people have. The root cause that public speaking being the number one fear, is rooted in the fear of being judged. Most people don't want to stand in front of somebody else because they feel like they're being judged when they stand in front of someone else. And so really what it is, it's the fear of judgment. And I found it to be very interesting that the top two fears that humans have is because they instinctually know whether they can articulate it or not. What is the future of all mankind? The fear of death and the fear of being judged. Number two, the fear of death. Number one, the fear of being judged. There is an instinct in the human heart that says, I'm afraid of the thing that I cannot control. Why? Because even if the human doesn't know it with their or in their mind, there's something on the inside of them that knows. There's a particular scripture that you may not be able to quote, but the human soul knows it. And that scripture is in Hebrews chapter nine, which says that each person is destined to die once, and after that comes the judgment. You may not have ever known that scripture, but your fears have revealed the fact that you know, even if you didn't know, that when you die, you have to face the judge. And so people fear it. And throughout the history of the world, mankind has tried to figure out what they can do to live forever, live forever, take this pill, freeze ourselves, do all sorts of stuff to try to live forever. However, I hate to be the breaking news here, but at some point, every single one of us will eventually die. Now you're like, I don't like this message. You look at the person that invited you like, why did you bring me here? Every person will eventually die. And after that comes the judgment. So people are trying to figure out what they can do to avoid it. But there is a reality, friend. If you're in this room, you're watching online, you're in the overflow section. There is a reality. I need you to hear me. No one is can avoid it. But this is an important. But you don't have to fear it. We are made and created for eternal life. I read to you this opening scripture in Matthew chapter 19, because Matthew chapter 19 records a man that was bold enough to come up to Jesus and ask the question, how? How can he have eternal life? That's what everybody wants. So he wanted to know how he could have it. So Matthew 19 records it in verse 16. The scripture said, someone came to Jesus with this question, teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? Now, I've read this passage many times in my life, and I realize that this question represents what all of humanity initially thinks. This is the path to eternal life. What good deed must I do? What good deed must I do? Everyone in humanity thinks that the path to eternal life is based on what you do. What must I do? Because that's what everyone thinks. They tend to think, okay, God will accept you if you just do good deeds or if you just try to be a good person. And so everyone tries to be a good person, at least when people are looking. But the question itself frames the interaction between God and man as solely transactional. Framing the question that way says that the only way to receive something from God is to do something. That's what most people believe. If I'm going to receive something from God, I must do something. And so therefore, we may not define him as God. We might just say, I'm trying to put positive vibes out there to the universe so that the universe will give me back what I put out there. And so we try to go into all sorts of laws and the secret and the sowing and the reaping and everything else. Why? Because in everybody, we've been taught that the way that you interact or receive something good is by what you do. But Jesus answer to this question is what separates Christianity from every other belief system and religion in the world. Because at the core and the root of every belief system is the belief that we receive based on what we do. So Jesus says, why ask me about what is good? There's only one who was good. But to answer your question, since you asked if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments. Which ones? The man asked. And Jesus replied, you must not murder, you must not commit adultery, you must not steal, you must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself. I've obeyed all of these commandments. The young man said, what else must I do? What duty are you requiring of me? What act of righteousness must I complete in order to get what I'm after? Jesus said to him, keep the commandments. Knowing that the man was attempting to essentially complete a transaction with God for eternal life by his works. He was also saying this to the man to prove the futility of trying to gain eternal life by works. Because the fact that the man asked the question revealed that he knew instinctively that this is not all that is required. Don't murder, don't commit adultery. Don't say, still, don't testify falsely. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself. The young man said, I've obeyed all these commandments or said in today's vernacular, I try to be a good person. I don't do this bad stuff. Most of the time I'm a good person instinctively knowing that that can't be it. The young man said, so if I'm trying to be a good person and I do all the stuff you just said, what else must I do? Or translate it another way, what am I lacking? Jesus then moves the conversation from duty to the heart. He wanted to prove that you know you're lacking something. So now let's talk about your heart. I see what you do, but let's talk about your heart. Jesus told him, if you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give your money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me. But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions. It's one of the only times recorded in Scripture where someone came to Jesus one way and left sad. Then Jesus said to his disciples, I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to Enter the kingdom of Heaven. I'll say it again. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. The disciples were astounded. Then who in the world can be saved? They asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God, everything is possible. This answer doesn't have to do with what you have in your possession. It has to do with what has you. Anything that you can't let go of has a hold of you. When the man asks, what do I need to do? Do Let me reinterpret the answer for you. Recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. That's what Jesus was telling him. Recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. This is why his Sermon on the Mount opened with God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. This man was more willing to hold on to earthly identity and earthly possessions, which are temporary, than to lay hold of eternal life. It reminds me of the words of Jesus in Mark, chapter 8, verse 34. Then, calling to the crowd to join his disciples, he said, if any of you wants to be my follower, you must first give up your own way. Take up your cross and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the good News, you will see save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? Apparently to this young man, what he had was. He came to Jesus saying, how can I have eternal life? And Jesus gave him the answer. But if eternal life is really what he wanted, it was in his ability to get it. Doesn't it seem like you would do whatever it took to get it, including letting go of your identity? His identity was, you're a good person. His identity was, you're a rich person. His identity was respect. And he was unwilling to do that. Why? Because the truth is, he wanted to add God to his life. But he did not want to surrender his life to God. He wanted to keep what he had and add God to it. He did not want to let go go of what he had and surrender to God. What he wanted was a transaction. He wanted a duty. Tell me a duty. Because how I get what I want is I trade for it. And when Jesus said, you got to trade your life Your identity, all that you are, and come follow me. He said the cost is too high. So he walked away sad. He wanted a duty, he wanted a transaction. Jesus is not interested in transactional relationship. What Jesus wanted was a relationship with him. Which is why he said, follow me, walk with me, come and learn me, let's do this thing together. But the man walked away sad. And so the disciples witnessing this interaction and hearing Jesus tell them that it's easier for a camel to go to the eye of a needle than for a rich person. By the way, a rich person represents a self reliant person or a person who relies on things other than God. Whether that be your money, your intellect, your connections, your degrees, whatever it may be, that's a rich person, someone who is self reliant. It is easier for the camel to enter it through the eye of a needle than it is for a self reliant person to enter the kingdom. And so they were astounded. And so they said, then who in the world can be saved? Because in their eyes and the guy that was interacting with Jesus was a good person. And that's how most of us are. We're like, well, of course they're good. They're a good person. They try to be good most of the time. And so when they're seeing Jesus give this interaction, they're like, what in the world? Jesus and what he is saying is, listen to me guys, salvation. Man's way is impossible. It's not just difficult, it's impossible. Jesus did not give them a metaphor in which a camel could even attack attempt to go through the eye of a needle. We all know that's impossible. You can't even stick your finger through one. He is not saying that man's way is difficult. He is saying that man's way is impossible. But with God, all things are possible. It's impossible because man has a complete and total inability to save himself. Why? Because man's way is works, it's duty. It's trying to accomplish enough through righteous acts. But God's way is grace, which is favor extended to us that we cannot earn no matter how good you try to be. I want to just maybe burst a couple bubbles in this room. You aren't perfect. I'm not perfect. Nobody's perfect. The scripture defines us all. It says all have sinned. But the way of works is you have to be perfect. Which means that if you've ever messed up, you're disqualified according to man's way. But God's way is grace. The grace of God, which is a favor that we could not earn and that we do not deserve. That was not merited. It wasn't given to us based on how we were living. Because some of us. I need some believers in this room who might say, if God counted the way I live, there is no way I would have ever been saved. So when the man asked, what must I do? Works. That's a works based question. When he asked, what must I do? The answer was, recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. What must I do? Recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. I'm going to say it again. What must I do? Recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. That's Matthew chapter 19 and Acts chapter 2. After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which is promised by Jesus, the Spirit is poured out there in the upper room. And then the Bible records that Peter begins to stand up and preach. And I'm going to give you just an excerpt of what Peter preached that particular day, what we call the Day of Pentecost. This is in Acts chapter 2, starting with verse 22. People of Israel, this is Peter now talking. Listen. God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders and signs through him, as you all well know. But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out. When Jesus was betrayed with the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. Jumping down to verse 32, God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. This is Peter, firsthand witness who is saying, we saw it. Now he is exalted in the place of highest honor in heaven at God's right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us. Just as you see and hear today, verse 36. So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified to be both Lord and and Messiah. Now, when the people heard this, the Scripture records in verse 37 that Peter's words pierced their hearts. And they said to him and the other apostles, brothers, what should we do? Peter replied every each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This Promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away, all who have been called by the Lord our God. What should we do? What should we do in response to what we just heard? The answer is repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized. Repentance, It's a word that we don't like to talk about very often in 2026, even in some churches. But the truth of the matter is you can't come to God without it. I know that we want to make people feel good and make sure that they don't feel like they've done anything wrong and everything is all right and all that kind of stuff. But I need you to know that the standard has not changed. It is not people who get to change God's word. God is holy. And because he is holy, there is a certain standard. Standard holy being completely other, completely perfect. And as a result, all of humanity stands in the same place. All have sinned. And I know that we don't like to talk about it much anymore, but the truth of the matter is society doesn't define what's wrong. God does. And as a result, the charge is this. What must we do? Repent. What does that mean? Change. Go in a completely opposite direction. It is to say that you were headed in the direction of sin. Like everybody else, you were headed in the direction of trusting yourself for salvation, hoping that when you stand before God, you've done enough good works to get in. But now you acknowledge that the way you were going is not the right way. And instead you do a complete 180 and you turn towards the God. Now, I'm going to tell you right now, if you find yourself going in the wrong direction, it takes a whole lot to turn the other direction, because most of the world is going in the wrong direction. But to repent is to say, I'm not going this way anymore. I'm not going to let other people define for me how I should be living when there is a living God who I have to stand before at the end to be judged, who determines where I am and where I stand. I'm not going to trust in myself. So I'm going to turn. I'm not going to run from God. I'm going to run to God. Repent. I have come to know that while salvation is a work of the Spirit, one of the things that keeps people from repentance is pride. You don't want to acknowledge before God or anybody else that your way is wrong. But there is a way that seems right. To men. But in the end, it is death. And so you need to know that God offers the opportunity for life. But it does require that you repent, which is to turn in a different direction and acknowledge that you need God. And then he adds, and be baptized, which represents the death of your old life and being raised to new life in Christ. So in Matthew, chapter 19, the rich young ruler asked, what does he need to do? And the answer is, recognize that you need God more than you need anything else. Acts, chapter 2. When Peter preached about Jesus and the people who heard him ask, what should we do? The answer was, repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized. Now, In Acts chapter 16, it records two people, Paul and Silas, who are preaching, and also while they were preaching, cast a demon out of a girl. And so some of the people who were there were really upset and they formed a mob. And we're going to pick up the narrative right there in Acts, chapter 16, which says this. They, speaking of Paul and Silas, were severely beaten and they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn't escape, so the jailer put them in the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks. Around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. Suddenly there was a massive earthquake and the prison was shaken to its foundation. All the doors immediately flew open and the chains of every prisoner fell off. The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed that the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. But Paul shouted to him, stop. Don't kill yourself. We are all here. The jailer called for the lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and asked, sirs, what must I do to be saved? They replied, believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved along with everyone in your household. And they shared the word of the Lord with him and all who lived in his household. The jailer saw their posture towards God while they were being persecuted, and he saw how God responded to their prayers and praise. God, by the way, did not send the earthquake to free them. He sent the earthquake to let them know he heard them, because if he sent it to free them, they would have left. But they stayed where they were because they had to answer, God is with us. And so the jailer now says, sir, what must I do to be saved? And they responded, believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved along with everyone in your household. And they shared the word of the Lord with them and all who lived in his household. So the answer to that question at that moment was, believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. John, chapter 3, verse 16. For this is how God loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. That so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. Everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. Everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. So in Matthew 19, what do you need to do? Recognize that you need God more than you need anything else in this world. In Acts, chapter two, what do you need to do? Repent of your sins. Sin and turn to God and be baptized. In Acts, chapter 16, what do you need to do? Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Recognize your need that you need God more than anything else. Repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. I'm not just prescribing describing a progression. I'm describing what happens to a heart. No matter where you are, no matter where you are, this is what happens in your heart. What happens in your heart is that you recognize that you need him more than you need anyone else. You recognize I've been going the wrong direction. I need to go in a completely different direction. I need to repent and turn to God. You believe. You're saying I believe in this Jesus because He got me here to this point, and now I know I need Him. This is not just a step, this is a progression of what happens in the heart. And my final point that I'll share is what truly separates Christianity from every other world religion. Because none of the passages that I just read to you in Scripture point out a specific act or duty that we must do or accomplish in order to be accepted by God. In fact, you don't have to do anything. Every other belief system requires its followers to do or accomplish to be accepted by God. But that is not the way of Christianity. For Ephesians, chapter 2, verse 8 and 9 tells us that God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this. It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done. So none of us can boast about it. There is not a person in this room, no matter how dressed up up they are, no matter how nice they sounded during worship. No matter if they look like they got it together. There's not a person in this room that God saved because they were good. There's not a person in this room that God saved because of what they did. God saved them when they believed, not based on what they did. In Christianity, the path is recognizing you need God. Repent of your sins and turn to God. Believe in the Lord Jesus. All of these passages speak to what happens in your heart. Because our salvation is not tied to a deed that we must do. And there is a reason for that. And that reason is because Jesus Christ did what we could not do for ourselves. That's why Paul writes in 2nd Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 21. For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin so that we could be made right with God through Christ Jesus. Jesus did so we don't have to do. I am trying to get you to see something. There is a reason why we don't have to do because of what Jesus did. Let me say it again. There's a reason why we don't have to do because of what Jesus did. This is what separates Christianity from every other world belief. Because every other world belief says this is what you need to do. Christianity says you need to accept what he did. Earlier. I read this verse. I read this verse earlier. Romans, chapter 5, verse 12. It says that when Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam's sin brought death. So death spread to everyone for everyone sinned. Romans chapter 5, verse 15 says this. But there is a great difference between Adam's sin and God's gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam brought death to many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation. But God's free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness. For all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. And that right there is the final thing that must take place in our hearts. We must receive Him. We must receive Him. The interesting thing is this tends to be the most difficult thing for people to accept. It would almost be easier if he just Said, do this. Most of us would do it. But when he says, receive this, most of us are like, wait a minute. That's it. It's like, no, no, no, you can't do it. So the only choice you have is to receive it or reject it. Let me say it again. You can't do it. So the only choice you have is to receive what he's done or reject what he's done. That's why it tends to be the most difficult thing, because it's ingrained in us as we age that we must work hard for everything, that nothing in life is free. But there's truth to that. Because eternal life is not free. It's a gift, but it's not free. Say it again. It's a gift, but it's not free. The cost of our salvation was that our sins were placed on the perfect Son of God, who then took the punishment that we deserve for sin and died to death. That we should have died. But he did what we could not do. He was resurrected and lives forevermore. This is so important because the Scripture is very clear, because the penalty did not change. The way to the sin is death. So if we had to pay for it, we would die, but we couldn't resurrect ourselves. What Jesus did is he took that penalty. So you need to know that the penalty didn't change. The price for sin didn't change. What changed was who paid for it. I know most of you are probably never. If you live a upright life and you have a conscience, you wouldn't go into the most expensive restaurant in the world, order dinner, and walk out. They would expect that you pay for it. But Grace would look like this. You go and you're invited to a dinner in the most expensive restaurant in the world. You sit down and you order all the most expensive things on the menu at the most expensive restaurant, and then sit. Somebody else said, I got the bill. This is exactly what happened to you and I. We entered into a situation that was too expensive for us. Sin is too expensive for you. I know. I know that sometimes it may feel like it's fun, but I need you to know that that fun has an expense that you can't pay. But Jesus said, listen, I see them. I see them in their sin. I see them in their dirt. I see them in their mess. But I came to pay their bill. I came to pay their price. He paid it. He already paid it. But imagine that he already paid it. And you said, no, thank you. The wages of Saint sin is death. Which is why people fear it. Because instinctively they know that even if they can't articulate it. I am entering into headed towards something that is too expensive for me to pay. And I'm trying to figure out how to get out of it. But the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus, our Lord. John, Chapter one. Almost done. For those of you who are getting antsy. He came to his own and his own people didn't receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. The interesting thing is this. Everyone, whether you know you're asking or not, is ultimately asking the question, what must I do? Tell me what to do. Sometimes we go to church trying to figure out what to do. We dress up trying to figure out what to do. We try to stop cussing for a little bit to try to figure out what to do. We rolled down the window and we gave to that person with the the sign and said, I'm homeless. We gave him something and said, I did my righteous act. But you can do all of that and still miss heaven. You can do all of that and still not know God. You can be a good person, and I believe most of you are. By the standard of the world, you're a good person. You don't just do bad stuff. You don't wake up with bad in your mind. And there's some people that influenced by the devil, they might wake up that way. But most people wake up, they want to do good, they want to have a good day. They want people to feel better when they're around. And that's noble, but that's not what makes you right before God. But God does not require that you do something. He knew that we couldn't do it, which is why he sent his Son to do it. He knew we couldn't do it. So then how did he answer the question? How does the scripture answer the question? The scripture answers the question, what must we do to receive eternal life and to be saved? Recognize that you need God. Repent of your sins and turn to God. Believe in the Lord Jesus. Receive him. I started with the fears because humans are instinctively afraid. The top two things, afraid of death and afraid of judgment. But no one gets to avoid death or judgment. But you don't have to be afraid of it because Jesus conquered death and faith in him put you in right standing before God when you have to stand before the throne. I refer to Hebrews, chapter 9, verse 27. I didn't read it because I. I wanted you to hear the second part together. Hebrews chapter 9, verse 27 says, and just as each person is destined to die once, and after that come the judgment, so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sin, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for Him. This is what Jesus came to do. He came to do this for you and I. The choice before us, if no one's ever put it to you, this plainly, is not now or sometime later. That's not the choice. It's not. I'll get myself together first, and then I'll come. I'll clean myself up first, and then I'll come. We don't have that ability. You are. If you're trying to do that, you are the camel trying to go through the eye of the needle. And you will. You and I will never get it. All right, so the choice is this. Receive or reject. That's the choice. Receive it or reject it. To not receive it is to say, I'm rejecting this gift. I don't need this gift. I'll trust myself instead. Would you stand on your feet? Would you grab hands with the person next to you? I told you I won't make you talk to them. I didn't say I won't make you touch them. I want to ask that unless you are a prayer team, that you wouldn't walk at this moment. I'm talking to you in this room. I'm talking to you in the overflow. I'm talking to you online. I, to the best of my ability, with the help of the Holy Spirit, wanted you to see the posture of the heart that is necessary to come to Jesus. It's not what you do. I do actually believe that most of you are good people by the standard of the world. But that's not the standard that we stand before God in. So what he asks of us, recognize that you need Him. Repent of your sins and turn towards God. Believe in Jesus and receive his sacrifice. I want to ask you to close your eyes for a moment because there are people in this room. There are people in the overflow room. There are people watching me online who. The Holy Spirit's been dealing with your heart the whole time. How do you know he's been dealing with your heart? Because sometimes you. You might have heard something you didn't know, but it awakens something in you. You're like, yeah, you know, you need to. You need to respond to that. So he's working in the hearts of people in this room, online, and under the sound of my voice. And while your eyes are closed, I want you to consider two passes of scripture that I want to read in your hearing. I don't need you to look at me. I need you to actually listen. The scripture says we are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. I read this scripture earlier. I want to read it again to you. God saved you by his grace. That's his unmerited favor. Something you did not earn or deserve when you believed. And you can't take credit for this. It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things, things we have done. So none of us can boast about it. If you are under the sound of my voice and you recognize you need God, you are ready to repent of your sins and turn to God. You ready to declare that you believe in the Lord Jesus and you are ready to receive Him. I want to pray for you. And this is how we're going to do so. I want to provide a moment for you. This is the moment that allows you to know that this was the moment I turned to God. This is the moment I came home to Him. That moment will happen in just a moment. When I count three, I'll have you squeeze the hand of the person on the left or right or both. If you're doing that, you're saying, I hear the message and I, I, I know I want to be right with God. I know I want to respond this gift from God. I don't want to leave this room and walk away and not know more about this Jesus. That doesn't mean that you understand everything. Today we are disciples, students. All of us, including me. Who's talking? I'm still a student. I'm still learning. And I'll forever be learning. That doesn't mean that you understand everything. What? It means that you understand at least one thing. I need Him. And if you're willing to acknowledge that you need him in this room, he will meet you right where you are. You can come as you are. You won't stay as you are because he will change you. But you can come as you are. You don't have to try to get yourself together first. Try to make it look like you're safer. Salvation is not an outside in work. You don't act saved and then become saved. It's an inside out work. He changes you and Then people see it. So I don't want you to take on that pressure. That's one other thing I don't want you to do. Many times in public settings like this, people will allow shame or guilt or pride to keep them from responding to the invitation of the Lord. Because they don't want anybody else in this room or anybody watching to know that they need to be right with God or that they want to be. Because perhaps you want to, but the person standing next to you doesn't want to. And. And so therefore you're wondering what they think. Here's what I want to say to you. The person next to you can't save you. The person next to you didn't die for you. They may say, I'll take a bullet for you. But when the bullets start flying, people usually start running. The only one that can save you is here in this room, knocking on the door of your heart, saying, would you let me in? Would you receive me? Don't reject the Lord in this moment. Now, I don't intend to be morbid, but I do want to say this. None of us know the day that we will stand before the Lord. We don't know if this is our last day on earth. We don't know. So many times we think, I'll just do it another time. I'll do it at another church. I'll think about it for a while. I just want to encourage you in this moment. Don't wait for another moment. This is your moment. I know your hands are sweaty. Keep holding them. I have you holding hands for this reason. When we place our faith in Jesus Christ, we're reconciled back to God, who is our Father. But also when we place our faith in Jesus Christ, we reconcile back to our brother and sisters who have also placed their faith in Jesus. So you gain a father and a family. I want you to know that even if you came in this room by yourself, you're not alone. There are brothers and sisters who literally, at our upper room prayer, we've been praying that God would literally begin to move upon the hearts of people in this room. Hearts of people who are watching. Hearts of people in the room next door. So this is your moment. Would you receive him? If you're ready to receive him. You recognize that I need God more than anything else in this world. I want to repent of my sins and turn to God. I believe in him. I'm ready to receive him. I'm going to count to three. And if that's you in this room, I want you to squeeze the hand of the person next to you. You might be doing it for the first time, or you might be doing it. Maybe you did it at some point in your life. You were a child and your mom or your grandma drugged you to church, made you put on nice clothes and made you come into church. And something told you, I need to go to church on Easter and do my good deed. But God didn't want you to just do a good deed. He wanted to invite you into a relationship with him. So maybe you need to come back home to relationship with him. If that's you in this room, either for the first time or coming back home to God, don't let this moment pass you. It's coming now. Jesus loves you so much. God did not come in the world to condemn the world. God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that through him, the world might be saved. Jesus didn't come to condemn you. He came to save you. So this is your moment. One, two, three. Squeeze that hand. Wherever you are, whoever you are, in this room, in the overflow room, squeeze that hand. I want someone to pray with me about Jesus. I want someone to talk to me about Jesus. I already see some responses. If someone squeeze your hand, would you lift it up in this room? If somebody squeezed your hand, lift it up in this room. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Keep it up. Keep it up. Keep it up. Now we have people coming to you, but if somebody squeezed your hand, just come with them and say, let's go to Jesus together. Let's come on. Let's come to Jesus together. Come on. Just come out. We want to pray with you. Pray with you. If you did it in the overflow room, come on over. If you did an overflow room, come on over for those. Come on, clap and give God praise for these. Come on. Don't let anybody convince you to stay where you are. You already made this decision. You squeeze the hand. Just bring them on out. If someone squeeze your hand, just step out into the aisle and come on down. Step out into the aisle and come on down. Come on, let's make more room. Let's make more room. Let's make more room. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you. Come on. Can y' all move this way so we can make some more room? Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Deeper. This is what we've been praying for. You ought to be giving God praise right Here, come on, make more room. Make more room. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. I'm gonna simply ask this question because I know that there are people. At times you're so afraid you don't want to be singled out. But now do you see that you're not by yourself? If you're still sitting out there, we'll clap again and you can just come. Maybe you didn't shake a hand, but you just. Maybe you didn't squeeze a hand. Just come. Just come. Just come. Just come. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Anybody else want to come to Jesus? I just want you to receive the gift. We've been praying for you. I've been asking God every single day. I've even been fasting. I haven't been eating food just to pray and ask God that he would. He would literally witness to your heart. So I'm so grateful. Is there anybody else? Anybody else? I just. I just wanna. I want to keep the door open here. Anybody else? Anybody else? You can just come. If you were on the fence. Just come. Just come. We just want to pray with you. We just want to pray with you. Thank you, Jesus. I see somebody coming. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Lord. This is what we want to do in this moment. We want to pray together. We're going to pray. It's not the words that we pray that save us. It's our faith, our open heart to say, lord, we receive what it is you've done. After we pray, what's going to happen is there are some people who literally want to give you a Bible, give you a gift, celebrate you. And then we actually want to. We put together a series of videos that you can watch in your own time that will begin to help you know, what the next steps are in. In faith. So I think the first thing they're going to send you is this message and a message on baptism. And then after that, they're going to send you some videos so that you know. Because this is what I know, whether or not I see you again at this church, although you're always welcome, whether or not I see you again this church, I know I'll see you on the other side. Yeah, You may see a couple tears come out my eyes because I'm happy for y'. All. All right, so let's pray together. And then after they pray, I'm gonna have you follow some folks that. Nothing. Listen, I tell people this all the time because you're like, you respond in church and then you're like, okay, what's about to happen now? Where am I going? Nothing weird is going to happen. We just want to be able to connect with you, give you a Bible and let you know what to do next. But let's pray together. I want you to pray this sincerely in your heart, all right? Pray this sincerely in your heart. Remember, prayer is communication with God. It's not based on how well we say it. It's based on what we believe when we say it. All right? So we would say this sincerely and honestly. This would be the first step in salvation for you. All right, let's pray together. Say, father, in the name of Jesus, I come to you just as I am, as humbly as I know how. Today I receive the gift of salvation. Today I confess that I need you more than anything else. Today I repent of my sins and I turn to God. Today I confess that I believe in Jesus and I receive you. Come and be the Lord of my life. Lead me and guide me, and with the help of your Holy Spirit, teach me how to live for you every day. Today I give myself to you and I thank you because you gave yourself for me. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. Listen, if you're watching me online, I know that there's people watching online from around the world. This is what we want you to do. Just put in the comment section, hashtag, I met Jesus. Hashtag, I met Jesus. And our moderators will connect with you there so that they can also send you these materials as well. I want to be the first say to you, welcome to the family of God. I want to say to all of you, welcome to the family of God. This is what we are going to do. There's a gentleman right here. It's one of our deacons. The name is Deacon Johnny. Would you raise your hand? Okay, I want you to go with him. Now listen, all of you here, I want you to celebrate these people because they are your brothers and sisters. I'mma pray and dismiss everybody in one second. But let's not prioritize our exit over somebody else's entrance. Let give God praise. Would you follow him here? And if you want to, you can get baptized next week. Yeah. Thank you, Jesus. This is what we came for. This is what we came for to celebrate our resurrected Savior who continues to raise people from death to life. Hallelujah. Can y' all keep clapping for just a moment? Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus.
- [59:57]
A
Thank you for tuning in to this message from Deeper Fellowship Church. If this message blessed you, or if you gave your heart to Jesus Christ today, we would love to hear about it. And you can do that by staying connected with us as our extended family through our website, deeperfellowshipchurch.org on social media via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Or the easiest way by downloading the Deeper App from the App Store of your choice and telling us about your decision. Until next time, God bless you.