Lightly edited for readability while preserving the speaker’s meaning and substantive statements.
[Music] trust not in this world's vain riches which so rapidly Decay seek to gain a home in it will never fil [Music] away hold to God's unchanging hand hold to God's unchanging [Music] hand build your hopes on things turn on and hold to God's unchanging hand [Music] trust in him who will not leave you whatsoever years may bring If thy Earths forsake you still more closely to [Music] him God of changing hand hold to God's unchanging hand your hes all [Music] things to God changing [Music] trust in him who will not leave [Music] you whatsoever years may bring and if your Earthly friends forsake you still more closely to him clle come [Music] on to God's uning hold to God changing [Music] hand come on sing it to him I can't hear you this morning let me hear [Music] you give him praise come on give him
praise in this place this morning Lord we love you we exalt you and we choose to hold to your hand Lord and follow you wherever you lead us glory to your [Music] name hold to [Music] God God's unchanging hand say it one more time hold to God's un chaining build your h on things turn on and hold God changing build your hes say build your hes on things turn on hold to God change your [Music] hand hold of [Music] his Hallelujah Lord Hallelujah Lord we're going to hold to your unchanging hand Lord Jesus you are the same yesterday today and forever and Lord we're not going to just be Believers but we're going to be followers and Lord we want to follow you wherever you lead us we want to go where you want us to go do what you want us to do because you are the Lord you are the Creator you're the Healer the deliverer you're everything Lord there is none like you there is no comparison you are the only true God the only true Savior and you are the true and one creator and we just worship you today we worship you today we exalt you today and we praise you and it's in Jesus name we pray amen and amen you may be seated this morning go ahead give him praise this morning hallelujah thank you Jesus for all you have done and all you're going to do amen hallelujah I'll tell you this is um this morning the Lord just keeps laying this same theme on my heart and it's really the difference between uh the difference between being a Believer and being a follower somebody say uh-oh got a lot of Believers don't we oh how many Americans say oh yeah I'm a Believer in Jesus Christ that's really not the question anymore question is do you follow him do you know him not do you know about him not do you just believe in a religion or a Creed but do you know him and do you
follow him you know and I I think about this this verse it's a verse in 2 Corinthians 13 where it says examine yourselves to see whether you even be in the faith now think about that Paul wrote that to a Christian church uhoh right examine yourselves to see whether you're even in the faith because there's a lot of people that think they are in the faith but they are not and you know I I've told the story before but y'all remember the story of John Wesley he thought he was a born again believer in Jesus Christ even formed the holy Club at Oxford came to be a missionary before he ever got saved and that's that in itself he did more before he got saved as than most Christians do in their whole lives and I think God honored him and and said you know what boy I'm going to show you the truth because you're willing to do anything back then crossing the ocean to be a missionary in the American colonies was not an easy task riding everywhere on Horseback or walking taking a ship across the the ocean back then was dangerous they didn't have a nice weather forecast they could look ahead and see what was out there we have it so easy today and yet I am afraid that we do little with all that we're blessed with now I'm going to read a few verses here y'all don't mind let's go to John 17 the Gospel of John that is chapter 17 and we're going to start at verse one let y'all get there I this verse is always we'll get down to verse three it's always kind of been burned in my heart and in my mind mine these words spake Jesus and lifted up his eyes to heaven and said father the hour has come glorify thy son that thy son Also may glorify thee as thou has given him power that is the word authority over All Flesh that he should give eternal life to as many as thou Hast given him and then he's going to Define eternal life and this is life eternal that they might Know Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent now you have to know who Jesus is Jesus is the fullness of the godhead B Jesus is the image of the invisible God he's not just the Son of God he's not just a man anointed by God no Jesus Is God Almighty Who Came In the Flesh all right and he is when we see him we are seeing the fullness somebody Say fullness we're seeing the fullness of the godhead
bodily that's what Colossians says and the Bible says this in John if we backed up in the Gospel of John it starts out with in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God right and then he says something about the word in verse 14 says and the word became flesh and dwelt Among Us true Christianity believes solidly believes that Jesus Christ is God Almighty the Creator In the Flesh now you say I I get confused about this Trinity thing and how this all works guess what the church has been debating the Trinity issue since day one okay and you're never going to we're never going to fully grasp how this fully works I know there's people I they think they do okay but I do believe in the Trinity Father Son and Holy Spirit but he's one God very distinct Parts all right and there is the father and there is the Son and there is the holy spirit but they are one and I've explained it like this just for the new people watching the Bible says that God created Man In His Image right genesis 1:26 created God God created man is let us make man in our image and that's why there's plural there let us make man father Son and Holy Spirit then he makes man and he says in first Thessalonians 5:23 and you can put it up if you want to there 1 Thessalonians 5:23 Paul said I pray God that your whole Spirit soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ so a human being has a spirit and a soul and a body these are three different Greek words in the original Greek so you have three different distinct Parts all right but you are not three people okay you are one person and these parts can separate God can take your spirit like he did with Ezekiel ezekiel's in Babylon God can take Ezekiel Spirit out of his body take him to Jerusalem and show him what's going on his soul and body are still in Babylon but his Spirit by the power of God is in Jerusalem seeing everything that the wicked backslidden leaders of Israel are doing in the temple so this is kind of how the Trinity Works they are three very distinct Parts but one God but he can separate out himself each distinct part can separate out and do things now I know there'll be people that want to argue and fight and fuss but this is just what we this is Bible okay this is Bible but one of the things you have to understand every false religion every cult every Christian cult that's in the world Islam you name it they all believe that Jesus is just a man he was just a man like any
other man he just realized his own inner Divinity no that is not the Jesus of the Bible the Jesus of the Bible is the full manifestation of God Almighty In the Flesh he is eternal man he was melchisedec that appeared to Abraham yall remember that story he Hebrews chapter 7 it says talks about melchisedec who was the high priest and what does it say about melchisedec it says he was the king of Peace he was the king of righteousness and he was without father without mother without beginning of days or end of life well who can that be the only Eternal being is God Almighty and Jesus even said I am what the almighty Yahweh said the god of Abraham Isaac and Jacob and Isaiah I am the first and the last and what did Jesus say about himself in Revelation I am the first and the last he that was he that is to come the almighty first what is it uh no Isaiah 96 I love Isaiah 9 put up Isaiah 96 not even Christmas time there's a you know these are the the verse you only see around Christmas time right I love it though for unto us a child is born so this means somebody's taken on flesh then he tells you more he says a son is given so it's going to be a male child that's going to be born of a woman letting you know and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name Shall be Called wonderful counselor the Mighty God somebody say the mighty Gody God not a god y'all see that not a god the somebody say the the the Mighty God the Everlasting father the Prince of Peace who is Jesus is he just another man is he just the son no he's the son who's also and the Mighty God so just know this anybody that tries to diminish who Jesus is that he's not fully God Almighty In the Flesh the creator of Heaven and Earth and it's interesting that the Bible also tells us that out of all the names of God that we have what's the name above every name somebody tell me yes Jesus and guess what folks that works in English I've seen people saved healed delivered in the name of Jesus in English now if you're Spanish you want to say Jesus that's fine with me if you're Hebrew Jewish and you want to say Yeshua fine but in English we say Jesus okay so
I speak English and I say Jesus and it's worked fine for me for over 36 years and it's will work for you now why do I say this because there's a lot of people that say that they believe in Jesus but their Jesus is not the Jesus of the Bible not the Jesus who is God In the Flesh not the Jesus who is the creator not the Jesus who died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead they have a Jesus that they've just created you know he's like they some of them have used visualization and created their own uh Spirit guides and they pick one of them named Jesus they they created a Jesus in their own mind and then guess what he'll visit with them and talk to them too because it's a spirit it's a demon Spirit that's counterfeiting itself as an angel of Light and oh yeah there there are plenty of spirits that pretend to be Jesus but there's one Jesus one Jesus Christ of Nazareth and he is God Almighty In the Flesh he is also the son he is the savior the Redeemer the Holy One the Messiah the promised one the only one of History that's had hundreds and hundreds of prophecies told about him before he would come and then he came and they were all fulfilled and not just prophecies he could control he didn't nail himself to that cross and that was a prophecy in Psalm 22 a thousand years before he was was even born that he would be nailed his hands and feet would be pierced they would cast lots for His Garment could he control that as a man no he couldn't those events were foretold where he would be born Bethlehem was foretold 750 years before he was born guess what nobody foretold the birth of Muhammad nobody foretold the birth of Buddha except if you want to say well Jesus said false prophets will rise and deceive many I guess that would be foretelling them but not by name and not by where they would be born Jesus is the only one you know that right there and I just I'm I'm really just this is just an introduction folks we not even to the meat of it yet but I just it blows my mind that ought to be enough that ought to be enough for the world because we know that the Old Testament was finished at least by 400 BC and then with the subagent version which is they took the Hebrew scriptures and translated them into Greek in 250 to 248 BC so we know all the prophecies were there long before Jesus came into the world when he was born of the Virgin Mary so that we know it it's history it's undeniable and there he will be born in Bethlehem he will spend some time in Egypt as a child and be called back out of Egypt they will try to kill him when he's a
child he will be the only one he will be the only one that's going to you're going to see the crippled walk and the blind sea they said nobody did the Miracles that Jesus did no man had done anything even the prophets had not done any Miracle like Jesus did especially that's why they said have we ever seen anybody has it ever seen anybody talk about the eyes of the blind being opened why do you think God didn't do the miracle of of blind eyes being open in the Old Testament he was saving it because there was a prophecy about the Messiah that he would be the one that would recover the sight to the blind I could blow y'all's mind in a minute but I I'm not going to do it today y'all really want this little nugget it's going to disturb you especially you King James only people now I love the King James Bible because it comes from the textus receptus that is the Greek New Testament the Old Testament though is the mtic text okay I'm going to just go and tell you the Jews doctored it somebody get quiet in here because if you go back and you look at Isaiah 61 where Jesus talked about he would have been anointed to heal the sick cast out demons you know all that stuff says recovering and when Jesus quoted it in Luke 4 he said recovering of sight to the blind well guess what the Jews when they translated the maatic text took the recovering of sight to the blind out because they didn't want Jesus to be identified as the Messiah but the subagent version leaves in the recovering of sight to the Blind and in fact everywhere in the New Testament where the apostles or Jesus are quoting the Old Testament they're quoting the septu version not the mtic text oh that I'm GNA get letters nasty emails it's a fact Truth All right so remember I do believe we have a good translation but again it's still a translation it's why we have to go back to the original Hebrew and Greek and look at it to fully understand things okay I know there's people out there they think that Paul wrote the King James version but he didn't now I say all that to just say they everyone in fact all of the Pharisees and the Sadducees the scribes all of them should have known exactly who he was the moment he started opening the blind eyes they could try to deny the crippled walking or or sick being healed or even the dead being raised because they said you know the prophets did raise some people from the dead but that recovering of sight to the blind never had happened before
especially they said one born blind remember John chapter nine one born blind had never happened before and the Pharisees are losing their mind and remember they they interrogated the guy tell us again what did he do he said his parents even came and said yes this is our son and we know he was born blind see the Pharisees at that point the leaders of Israel had no excuse they had to knowingly reject the Messiah because you know why he was destroying their entire religious system that made them rich and gave them the praise of men but they knew what they were doing that's why when Peter preached on Pentecost he told them you are murderers of the Prince of Life you're the murderers of the Messiah and that's why there was such heavy conviction because they knew it was true and that's why thousands of them said what do we do what do we do now repent he said repent of this sin the sin of murder crying out crucify him repent see there's no excuse for this world out here to not know number one that the Bible is a unique book that it's not just a book written by men it clearly has the stamp of supernal inspiration from God because there's no way it could get hundreds and hundreds of prophecies right written thousands of years before and some hundreds but some thousands of years before so see this is this is why I tell you again the Bible is a unique book in the world and Jesus is a unique individual you hear me and if you don't believe that you are not saved you can call yourself a Christian all you want but if you don't believe in the real Jesus of the Bible and if you don't believe the Bible was inspired by God Almighty and that he moved upon men to write exactly what he wanted written down if you don't believe those two things you are lost you are deceived you are headed for Eternal damnation you cannot in any other way get your sins forgiven or dealt with unless you start from the place of knowing and believing who Jesus is and what he has done and the fact is if he was just a man his death on the cross means nothing another man cannot pay for your sins because he would be a sinner it had to be the sinless Spotless blood of the Lamb of God Jesus Christ it had
to be the blood of God for your sins this is Christianity folks there is no other way there is no other way to have your sin of adultery or fornication or drunkenness or idolatry or violence or murder murder whatever sins that you committed and lived in there's no other way for them to be washed away and for you to be forgiven and be born again and be regenerated and made new the only way is through Jesus Christ that's it I they all these many many ways lead to God no they don't I've said this many times before but if if you're God Almighty who created the heavens and the Earth and Mankind and and and you have have all this power would you give us 15 million different confusing contradictory ways to find you or one clear way but if you have an enemy who wants to deceive people and mislead people what are you going to do you're going to have him come in this enemy and create all kinds of different ideas about who Jesus is and how you know how all religions have truth and oh it's just find your truth no there's one truth Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life and no man comes to the father but through me Jesus is one way in fact it is this truth that pits Christianity against the whole world this is why they want to kill us because we say your way is wrong my way is right because we say Jesus Christ and not just any Jesus but the Jesus of the Bible and what he said about repenting and following him that's the only way to be saved to be right with God and be ready for eternal life otherwise you are damned and the world hates that because they want their own way there is a way that seems right to a man but the end thereof are the ways of death mankind is rebellious by Nature stubborn by Nature Wicked by Nature we want to do things our way we want to follow our heart heart how many songs follow your heart and the Bible says your heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked so God said don't follow your heart follow me follow my word but the world goes no I want to follow my heart your heart will take you where you don't need to go oh but my heart's so pure no it's not no it's not even the born again Christian cannot say my heart is
pure because Paul said what even though I want to do righteousness I want to do the will of God but evil is present with me and as a constant war in me one pulling me toward evil and one pulling me toward righteousness and you have to choose daily and this is where I'm getting to this point and I'm going to have to get somebody to help me illustrate this Patrick patri we'll take the man with nine fingers here we go all right I want to show you something all right let's say this you know I've known Patrick Pat Patrick's I guess you're like one of our are or are you the longest standing member of that's still here fire and Grace Church he was here day one and still here it's you're a miracle you know that right well you folks you're looking at a miracle right here you look at that way all right we couldn't save his finger but he stayed with us all right now let me show you something Patrick and I have met right we know each other man's got a strong hand too strong all right we know each other met now let's just say all right you walk that way and I'm gonna Walk This Way I can't go too far get out of the camera here now here's the deal we may have met and know each other and maybe in the beginning we got to know each other a good bit but if at some point he went his way and I went my way we didn't stay together how much would we really know about each other three years later five years later six years later not very much all right you can go back you see there's a difference between meeting Jesus having an encounter with Jesus you may have all that really happen to you and that's a good start that's how you start but then it says follow Jesus and so what what has to happen is Jesus is going to start walking he's going to say the words to you follow me and then that's when you choose am I going to follow Jesus by his Spirit by the word am I going to do God's will for my life and that is simply following Jesus see what's interesting about this word no let's go back to John 17 real quick John 17:3 when he says this is life eternal that they might Know Thee the only true God in Jesus Christ that whom thou has sent no very important what is no no what is this verb here it means a full knowing but it also means it also means it's a present tense Greek verb which means what continuous ongoing action taking place
in the present so what he's saying is that they might know I could like I said Patrick and I met and got to know each other December 2008 and the reason that I still know Patrick and know what's going on in his life and you know it's because we've stayed he stayed in this church and we fellowship and we see each other frequently and we talk frequently and so what's happened is is that we've maintained a relationship now for almost 15 going on 15 years here pretty soon and I I I guess I struggle many times getting this across to Christians Jesus said that if you don't take up your cross and follow me you have no part with me amen you see you can't know somebody that you don't walk with every day that you don't talk with every day that you don't listen to how can you have a relationship if if if Nancy and I said I do and she said well I'm going to Florida and I said I'm moving to Alabama in a little while what kind of marriage do you think we going to half see but what's beautiful you know my wife when my wife had only ever lived in Georgia over there I don't know why but only in Georgia she didn't know the glories of Alabama yet but my wife had only lived in in Georgia now she traveled in different parts of the world I mean she'd gone all over the United States I mean but I'm saying she's only lived in Georgia so she and I get engaged and moment we get engaged I'm like we're moving to Washington DC because a church in Washington DC that I started in in 2003 wanted me to come back and be the pastor and I said we're moving to Washington DC now let me tell you right now nobody in her family first of all they wanted to do background checks on me and stuff her brothers did they were like who is this guy trying to steal our sister and take her to Washington DC her parents wern't even happy about it at first either right to tell you the truth I wasn't happy about it either but this is one of those things take up your cross and follow me God had told me you go do this and I told her I said you know there's no telling what God's going to do with us I warned her I said you bet if you don't want craziness in your life you best not follow me you better marry me but she knew she knew God's voice and she knew it was God's will for us to get married and you know what she said she said when we get married make that Covenant commitment I go where you go somebody didn't get that I go where you go see it was no more she understood it was no more what I want or what I'm comfortable
with if I marry you commit to be your wife and you're my husband then I go she said I go where you go so we we were we made all preparations even visited Washington DC and really up until November 30th we were moving to Washington D so of course on I come home fly home for Thanksgiving from Washington DC before I can get on my return flight back to Washington DC I get the email we are terminating our contract with you effective November 30th I was like well there it is so I still didn't tell her a few days later though God kept dealing with me he said I already told you what to do I want you to go to opal like Alburn I want you to start a church there and I had the piece of God came over me I like okay and he told me who to call and how to start and everything what to what to do so you can imagine my wife's relief when she found out that she didn't have to go to Washington DC was just going two hours away to Alabama so Alabama became the greatest thing since sliced bread so see how God did that but see what I'm getting at though is she made a covenant for me to be her husband and that means I'm the leader and that I'm going to I'm the one to pray and know where we're supposed to go what we're supposed to do and she's willing to say okay I trust you and I'm going to follow you and when you make a covenant with Jesus when you say Jesus be my Lord and Savior I want you to be my Lord and Savior you are entering into a blood Covenant with with him and he becomes your lord your master your husband and it's no longer I do what I want to do when I want to do it this is the biggest problem within the church world the idea that I can believe in Jesus say a little sinner's prayer and then do what I want or live what I want or or or or do my own plans see a lot of people think well I got saved and and uh I'm not living in adultery anymore or I'm not a drunkard anymore I'm not a fornicator anymore great that's a good place to start you're supposed to repent of sin like that but the next step is when he says follow me then you got the next opportunity to either obey or be in sin because if God tells you hey we're going to Washington DC and you say no sir I'm not what do you think you're doing it's called rebellion and Rebellion is as the sin of witch crap got quiet in here as a Episcopal
Church you get what I'm saying the walk see this is and this is why what that whole once saved always saved this whole is so stupid is because it's your your salvation is not just a one-time event it is a walk with him a relationship that is to continue which is why he said here that eternal life is not just believe and say the sinner's prayer he said to to if if you want eternal life it's to know Jesus Christ right to know him do you hear me now you say well Pastor Dean I just don't I just think you know saying that little sinner prayer and I'm I'm eternally secure forever no matter how I live my life let's go to First John real quick now we got crazies out here now saying first John's not for us today but let's go to First John chapter 2 I want to read a few verses here somebody say Amen or owe me amen it's okay if you say oh me as long as you repent later and do what start doing what you need to do it's okay to say oh me in fact I would love it if folks just said oh me Pastor you talking about me it's okay because you can change you can say Lord forgive me for being disobedient forgive me for not taking up my cross and following you forgive me for not for for having my own my own plans and my own will and my own choosing my own path I surrender to you see that's that beautiful thing when Paul was confronted by Jesus on the road to Damascus and I've said it many times one of my favorite things in the whole world he said Lord what would you have me to do that's when you know he has surrendered to Jesus as his Lord savior master god it was no more of his own plans no more of his own Direction Paul had been building a whole life of being educated and going to be a leader in Israel and he was like all that I count dumb and for those of you who don't understand that it means poop He Saidi count all that all that worldly ambition to try to build a a career in religion or Academia all that he said all of that is gone now all I want to do he said is what press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus not trying to be somebody I I'm just trying to follow him I all Paul was saying I'm not trying to be somebody he said I'm not even the chief Apostle there's folks out here now calling themselves the chief Apostle sorry you're not Lord I'm scared to call myself an
apostle and I've operated in that gift there's people out there calling themselves the chief Apostle it's time for a humbling right there I'm going to tell you right now let's read this first John chapter 2 my little children so who's he talking to Christians my little children these things write I unto you that you sin not and if any man sin we have an advocate with the father Jesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world that destroys Calvinism right there Calvinism says Jesus only died for the sins of the elect the Bible says Jesus died for not only for those who already believe and follow him but for the sins of the whole world but here we go verse three somebody say hereby you know what hereby means right hereby means this is how this works you got that and hereby we do know that we know him say know that we know know that we know y'all wonder where I get these phrases from from here hereby we do know that we know him if Jordan if we keep his Commandments he that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him but who so keepeth his word in him verily is the love of God perfect hereby know we that we are in him he that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked now let's pause that for a second think about this what are jesus' Commandments well first two right he said love the Lord your God with all your heart soul mind and strength love your neighbor as yourself he said but how do we know that we love the children of god let's let's jump over real quick I'm going to show this how do we know we love the children of God go to chapter 5 same book verse two 1 John 52 he says by this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his Commandments for this is the love of God that we keep his Commandments and his Commandments are not Grievious so how do we know we love the children of God when we obey God and now let me say this there are two ways that you have to learn to obey and walk with God or follow Jesus one is the scriptures number one follow what the word of God says it's real simple if you
don't put the word of God first again you're either not saved or you're backsliding you have fall it away if the word of God's Not first in your life if if you want to do something and the word of God says something do something else different complete opposite you better pick the word if you're a Christian right but he says here very clearly first one is we keep his Commandments what is written the word the second way that we obey God is listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit In Our Lives now remember when I say that the holy spirit will never lead you to do something that's contrary to what is written for instance when the Bible says Thou shalt not commit adultery the holy spirit is never going to lead you to commit adultery amen if you don't have biblical grounds for a divorce the holy spirit's never going to tell you go get a divorce you understand but like I said before and I've said this many times there's nowhere in the Bible where it says Dean I want you to go leave Washington DC and go back to Alabama to your hometown and start a church it's not in the Bible so how do I know I was supposed to do that because I I know his voice I know how to discern the voice and the leading of the Holy Spirit o because I've learned that over many years and I wait and pray about it and fast about it until I get confirmation and know for sure I didn't notice when God told me that he told me that in October of 2008 and I put it on I call it putting it on the back burner you know when when you're cooking something you put it on the back burner and put it on I'm just going to let that simmer back there for a while cuz I don't know if that's the Lord or not I'm just to wait and see right and the Lord then the holy spirit will bring confirmation he'll just keep showing you things and then you know what you're supposed to do and so by the end of the you know by the end of December I knew what I was supposed to do for sure like that getting fired on November 30th him telling me that before and then when it happened I go then I then I knew it was the word of the Lord for without a doubt right but we have to be people completely LED first by the scriptures and secondly by the Holy Spirit now there's a lot of people out they'll tell me a the Holy Spirit told me to do this and I'm like I A lot of times I'm like yeah I don't think so right and that's a very dangerous area you you have to really be careful trying to walk out and be led by the Holy Spirit and what you're hearing because Satan's out here too trying to speak can talk to you you and mislead you so you've got to be very very careful and you got to test the spirits and you just got to sometimes you got to wait you got to make sure you're going to have to get confirmation you got to get the witness of the holy spirit in your heart you said what is the witness of the Holy Spirit Well that's when the Holy Spirit hits you with the same peace that he hit you with the day you were
born again see I have sometimes when the Holy Spirit hits me with something tells me something and then his presence hits me with that witness then I know I don't even question at that point now if I don't get hit with the witness immediately I wait because another thing is it's not just enough to know what the word says or to know what the Holy Spirit saying but you also got to know when to do something and sometimes you'll know do it now and sometimes wait it's not time yet and then the Lord when you get to the time he's going to show you okay it's time now do this we're supposed to be in fact the Bible says that what the the Sons and Daughters of God are led by the spirit of God that's normal Christianity if you're not led by the spirit of God I've got a question where are you in your maturity and your growth because I remember when I surrendered to Jesus when I was 19 years old and got filled with the Holy Spirit baptized in the Holy Spirit and I had surrendered I said Lord whatever you want for my life I'm going to do it man let me tell you God began to speak to me and I was reading the word and he was speaking to me through the scriptures and then the Holy Spirit was coming on me and he would tell me like go back to Opelika or go to Texas or go see this person or go do this that's Christianity you hear me I'm going to show you I'm going me show you some scary verses I mean let's go let's I want to read this again first go back to chapter two again verse three hereby hereby oh boy hereby I love that hereby we do know that we know him here's what's interesting that do know somebody say do know that that do know is a present tense Greek verb also and it means ongoing continuous action taking place in the present so he's saying how do you continually know that you know him remember because a relationship has to be what maintained how do you know continually ongoing presently how do you know that you know him that you're really walking in a real relationship with Jesus that leads to eternal life well Pastor Dean I said a prayer at the Baptist Church when I was 11 years old no that's that's a good place to start that's where I started Baptist Church right down the road here 1979 but Lord knows if I just only said if IID have said when I was living in after I got into drugs and alcohol and and sexual immorality and everything else I was living in if I would have said well I prayed that prayer when I was 11 I'm good this is what a lot of people do especially here in the South you're Southern Baptist Bo you good you prayed that prayer you know nine you're good doesn't matter how many frat parties you're getting drunk at and how many sexual encounters you're having or even if you turn homosexual oh no I'm fine no you're not you're a backslider and you have to to come back
from backsliding God said this in Jeremiah 3 he said he said he told Israel he said you're you're just you're full of backsliding you just fall away from me you go into your whoredoms and your adultery and your your idolatry he said only he said only if you would just acknowledge your backslidings and amend your ways repent right but he says this is how we know that we continually know that we know him this is where you have your confidence in your relationship as you can say I know I'm obeying the word of God and I'm obeying the spirit of God what he's told me to do I am following him I am walking with him and if you are following him and walking with him there will be fruit to come from that and if there's no fruit if you're not seeing anybody getting saved through your witness if you're not seeing anybody come back out of being a prodigal being out of their backsliding because you've shared the word to them if you've not seen anybody get healed because you've laid hands on them or you haven't cast out any demons ever it's time to start now I'm not saying these Works save you but I'm saying if you walk with Jesus and you're following Jesus then the anointing and holy spirit is going to be on your life and then there should be some fruit and evidence of that now don't get me wrong we all go through Seasons where God is purging the tree so it'll bear more fruit so there's seasons of purging in your life and then there's seasons of fruitfulness but there should be some fruit Lord help us remember I've talked about you stand before a court is there enough evidence to convict you of being a Christian going to church is not enough you hear me going to church that's a good thing going to prayer meetings going to Services all that stuff's good but how many of people know there people go to church every Sunday but they do not follow Jesus they've never taken up their cross and what is the cross that we take up is God's will for our life and let me go on and tell you right now that there will be times that God will ask you to do things that are very difficult very difficult they will be difficult for you spiritually mentally emotionally physically sometimes s and he's saying I want you to do this and you've got to say doesn't matter how I feel emotionally or what I think about it or how even my body feels I must take up my cross and follow him there's so many times I cannot tell
you that the Lord has told me to do things and I said Lord I don't want to do that because it's going to be extremely difficult or I'm going to catch hell from every side Lord can't I just retire y'all think y'all think for one second let me say it this way if any of you think for one second that I wanted to run for governor of Alabama you have lost your mind and you don't know me at all that's all I needed was you know to add you know three four five six speaking engagements a week travel 70 plus thousand miles across the state spend money I could spent on other things wear out my truck wear myself out why did I do it did I even do it because I thought I would win no I didn't really think I would because the system's corrupt but I knew I knew that I knew that I knew that I knew the Holy Spirit was saying do this and so what I know is when I know it's the Holy Spirit telling me to do something that I don't need to understand all the reasons why I just do it because he has his reasons and here's what's amazing along the path you may find out some of the reasons why and you may find out you may not find out but you can stop back at the end of the day and said I know that I know him because what I am keeping I'm doing I I you know I told the Lord I told the Lord this morning I was praying this morning I said Lord if I went if I went to heaven today and this is what you should be able to say If today was in my last day here I know I've done my best to do your will for my life I have obeyed you the best I have been able to you see when that day comes you there can be no regrets see this is what you don't want remember the the the parable of the talents everybody remembers the parable a bunch of Christians think that that means your ability to play the piano or sing no it has nothing to do with that it's not that kind of talent it's not American Idol it says that it's a parable and the talents were money in the parable but what it was was the Lord was giving to each one what they needed to accomplish his will one got five one got two one got one they were each and it says they were Servants of the Lord in fact go let's put that up let's teach some scary verses scary Parable here uh Matthew
25 yeah yeah go ahead everybody turn to Matthew 25 you need to say I need to see it verse 14 and the Kingdom of Heaven is as a man traveling into a far country and who called his own servants somebody say who who called his own servants now who's the man traveling into the far country in this Parable this would be Jesus who traveled here from Heaven to be born of a virgin to do his ministry to die for our sins to be resurrected and then eventually to ascend back to heaven but he's the man traveling into a far country he he's traveled back but he called his own servants and he delivered unto them his goods and unto one he gave five talents to another two to another one to every man according to his several ability and straightway took his journey then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same and made them other five talents and likewise he that had received the two he also gained other two and he that had received the one went and died in the earth and hid somebody read this last part now he hid his Lord's money he's saying here Jesus is his Lord Oh my he hid his Lord's money verse 19 after a long time say about 2,000 years the Lord of those servants cometh and he reckon with with them this is at the second coming there's going to be the Judgment seat of of Christ and it's a reckoning of all the people who have ever been Christians truly been Christians some are going to say be uh told to enter in and some are going to be told something else let's read it and so he that verse 20 so he that receiv received the five talents came and brought other five talents saying Lord thou deliver unto me five talents behold I have gained beside them five talents his lord said unto him well done thou good and faithful servant thou has been Faithful over a few things I will make thee ruler over much many things enter thou into the joy of thy Lord and He also that received the two talents came and said Lord thou deliver un me two talents behold I have gained other two talents beside them and his Lord his lord said unto him well done good and faithful servant thou has been Faithful over a few things I will make thee ruler over many things enter thou into the joy of thy Lord then he which had received the one Talent came and said Lord I knew thee somebody say I knew thee not I Didn't Know Thee but I knew Thee I knew thee that thou art a hard man see that's the problem with backsliders think everything's hard I knew that thou art a hard man reaping where thou Hast not sown and Gathering where thou Hast not stred or strawed or strewed either one of those work and I was afraid and went and hid thy talent in the earth and lo thou Hast
that is thine now here's the scary verse his Lord answered and said unto him thou Wicked and sloth F lazy servant thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not and gathered where I have not strawed he said thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers and then at my coming I have should have received my own with interest take therefore the talent from him and give it unto him which hath 10 talents for unto everyone that hath shall be given and he shall have abundance but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he has and cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer dark Ness there shall be weeping and nashing of teeth now if these verses if this Parable don't get your attention it should because again it wasn't that we are all required to do the same thing one was given five he was he had more responsibility one was given two he had less responsibility but still responsibility one was given one so again it says he gave to every man according to his ability God doesn't give you what you cannot do accomplish by his grace if you will just choose to obey and his desire for you he gives you what you need the Bible says God deals to every man The Measure of Faith in Romans chapter 12 God's dealt to every man The Measure of Faith so guess what we're to take that faith that God has given us and use it to produce fruit in our lives and that faith is first and foremost just to walk with Jesus to follow him to be led by the Holy Spirit so F the the one that got five talents he took what God gave him and he used it he got out and did something with it he obeyed he followed and he bore fruit and what does the Lord say Well done good and faithful servant so oh Pastor Dean you're preaching Works no no I'm not because I don't know what works you're going to do you might make five talents you might make two you might make one that's not the issue here the works the issue is did you follow it's not even going to be how much fruit you bore did you follow you see for me I'm going to have more I have more responsibility on me than some of you so I'm going to be judged differently than you but we're still both going to be judged of did we follow and you don't want to hear these words when you stand before God on Judgment Day you don't want him saying to you you Wicked lazy servant you ought to have done this meaning you chose to do something else you say why is why is this so serious because what we do or we don't
do with our lives is going to influence people we are going to influence people even the most they've been they've done studies on the power of our our our individual influence and the most shy introverted person in their lifetime is said will will influence strongly influence at least 10,000 people that's a shy person how about some bold loud mouth like some of us are and our lives are going to influence people and we're going to influence them and that's why Jesus said he he said there's people you're either going to be gathering with me or you're going to be scattering meaning that you're the fruit of your life the example of your life is either going to be gathering people to Jesus Christ or you're going to be pushing them away from people you say well Pastor Dean now there's a lot of people that get offended when I preach that's not what talking about we're all going to offend if we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ we preach the word they're going to be people that run away from us that's not the issue he's just talking about there will be fruit of bringing some of them to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ helping them come out of the pig pin and back to the Lord helping get the demons out of them or helping them get free from sickness and disease and torment there's going to be be some evidence that we are helping Gather in the kingdom and not scatter them why why do the Sheep scatter you know one of the things that that Ezekiel says Jeremiah both of them say he says to the you know Jeremiah 23:1 he said woe to the pastors that that destroy that scatter the Sheep of my pastor and he tells Ezekiel he says the the Shepherds the pastors are scattering my people says because he said they didn't visit them they didn't heal them they didn't help them they didn't give them what they needed they didn't feed them I me you think about it if if you got a A if you got a flock of sheep and you provide no grass for them and no hay and no food do you how long are they going to stick around in your fence they will find a way out to get food and then they become in danger from predators cuz that book you know that book we we we require for school that Shepherd a shepherd's uh what is it look Shepherd looks at Psalm 23 but a real Shepherd they wrote about Psalm 23 is powerful his stories but he talked about you know the good Shepherds provided a nice pasture for their sheep and if they have a nice pasture of good good food to eat they're not so much so much uh you're not going to have as much
wandering sheep you're always going to have wandering sheep but you just won't have as much sheep you have to go snatch up and break their legs and make them learn to live with you but this is this is the problem here this is the problem in the church world really I mean this you think about have we ever had a time where there's more running to and fro of church to church I've ever seen in my life here's the thing about it well why there's a lot of running to and fro though and and I understand it it's because the Bible talks about Amos that there's a famine of hearing the words of the Lord there's a famine I I read somebody sent me one of our longtime listeners from like 2015 sent me like a what seven page eight Page Letter handwritten letter that I read yesterday and they were just saying and I hear this all the time they say Pastor Dean you're one of the few left I she he said 'I can't find a pastor in my region that preaches and teaches the word from Genesis he said as you say from Genesis to the maps and I'm like that's that's to me it's terrible he just said you're you're just one of the only ones and he said because of you I came out of Calvinism and sin and lukewarmness and being a prodigal because of what you've been preaching and he said and now I'm preaching it to other people and I'm seeing them come out and he's going to different Bible studies in town and just telling them the truth see he's taking his talent doing something with it right but this is a it's amazing see I and I keep thinking about I know I say it a lot but I say this a lot and it's just a little after 12 so we're good I say this a lot because the deception out there and so many of these churches that are out there that look like they're pastures for sheep when they're really entertainment centers for goats the problem is is not so much at times what they give you because they might give you some scripture it's what they don't give you and that's what's scary because a lot of people don't even know what they don't know they don't know they're missing it's like for a lot of people don't know how many of you know that you know in a prepping situation or S you can't live off of rabbits forever y'all know that right you can die why because there's not enough fat and there's not enough of the nutrients in a rabbit that your body needs but you can still eat a rabbit every day if you want to and think that you're going to be fine you hear
me and there's a lot of these churches ain't serve nothing but rabbit every time there's not enough fat there's not enough vitamins and minerals that you need for your whole body and people don't even know that they're wasting away in these places and that's what's so sad Jesus said about the lukewarm Christian he said you don't know that you're blind and wretched and miserable and poor you don't even know it and this was a church he was talking to the leoan church he was telling them you are lukewarm you are not on fire for me you are not following me you are not doing my will you are not on fire enough to be doing what the Holy Spirit has called you to do but you think you are okay we are rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing you think you're fine you think you're blessed I'm blessed I got a Corvette in the driveway I'm blessed woo no you're blind naked wretched miserable poor if you're lukewarm and what is a lukewarm Christian they got the name of Christianity but they don't have the fruit of Christianity they don't have the power of the Holy Ghost God I don't want to be lukewarm and here's the danger of it any of us if we decide to get a little lazy can slip right into being lukewarm and think we're okay amen you ever lost a job because you were a witness for Jesus how many have lost a job because they are a witness for Jesus I'm saying oh we got some work to do in here you get what I'm saying how how how much have you offended the world with the truth see I'm I'm afraid like Paul said I fear I fear that many in the church world are going to be scared to lose their job or not be able to go to the store and it's going to say go ahead and give me the mark God God understands and and and again that's them not going by the word where he says no if you take the Mark or worship the Beast or the name of the Beast you are going to be tormented with fire and brimstone for all eternity and there will be no rest for you day or night you see let me tell you something because you know that scripture because I know that scripture they ain't no way they're putting anything in me I'm not getting another jibby jiid Jew and I'm not getting another anything else you hear me they ain't putting anything else in my body not the government not any government why cuz I know what it
says you say well Pastor Dean they may cut your bank account off they may uh oh they may fire me if I do this pastor if I say no to the next vaccine or to the next oh I said it or to the next uh implant and now there's people out there still saying that the mark of the beast is not going to be an implant yes it is yes it is in fact it's going to be smaller then oh you know the one they've been advertising for years the the rice siiz One n no no no it's going to be way smaller than that and we know we we have actually we know somebody that's actually seen the new mark of the beast they've seen it it's already been made in the laboratory and everything it's going to be pumped out to you and cuz see the rice siiz one if they put it in your right hand you can actually see it you could actually take a razor blade knife cut it out of yourself no they are not going to have that it's going to be one once they put in there you going you're not going to see it anymore but it's going to have a tiny lithium battery in it tiny the Chip And remember people say oh they say I still got people saying that the the the uh well I might as well say it the latest the you know from the thing the guy in the place you know 2020 thing saying that that's the mark of the beast it's not it was a precursor see who would submit who would willingly say yeah whatever I'll just go along with the government I don't know why y'all want to trust known Liars but that's on you but when we come around to the the mark of the beast is going to control all buying and selling all buying and selling it's got to be more than the thing with the guy in the place I'm just having fun today y'all I don't know about y'all here's another thing when you do God's will I I'll tell you this much when you do God's will even when it's hard it is the funnest place to be amen come on now it is the most I have the most fun when I've done the will and even if it's hard and I go ahead and do it and i' and I accomplish that task that is the place of joy that is the place of peace that is where the Holy Spirit comes well done you did good you know what you're helping me you're helping you're helping bring people to me and you say well I think doesn't God do all that listen folks let me tell you what and I've shared this before when I saw the vision the day after my mother
passed away and I'm in church that Sunday morning and we're doing praise and worship and I'm having a difficult morning and I see the vision of my mom in a white robe the way she looked when she was 30 years old perfectly healthy beautiful she doesn't turn and say anything she's facing Jesus Jesus is standing right there and she's facing him white robe beautiful I mean it's just the glory of God as I see the the light and glory of God there and the Lord Jesus turns to me and he says thank you for helping get one of my children home he thanked me see we think oh yeah well he does it all no that's Calvinism he does a lot but he also has responsibility on us to do things and we choose to do things and and we will call cause people to come to Jesus or we will cause people to fall away and that's why again this is so important I'm going to read these verses and then we'll we'll close out here God is good say amen God is good right follow me I love I love these verses Matthew 4:19 this is after the baptism of John what does he say Jesus saith un un to them talking he to Peter James and John and Andrew follow me and I will make you Fishers of Men Matthew 8:19 and a certain scribe came and said to him master I will follow thee withs soever thou goest and what did Jesus tell him he went on to tell him follow me he told several he said follow me Let the dead bury the dead woohoo and some people saywell I got to do this and I got to do that and I got to do I can't F they give God excuses why they can't follow him I've literally said this at times the Lord will tell me it's time to go do this I'll say well Lord what about this this this and this and this and he he'll tell me Let the dead bury the [Music] dead sometimes you have to move on Matthew 9 99 and Jesus passed from then and saw a man named Matthew sitting at the seat of custom and he saith unto him follow me and he arose and followed him Matthew 16:24 then said Jesus unto his disciples If any man will come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me somebody say Amen what did he say to the young to the Young Rich man Matthew
19:21 Jesus said to him if thou will be perfect go and sell that thou Hast and give to the poor and thou shalt have Tre treasure in heaven and come and follow me how many of you know it wasn't about giving to the poor Jesus was getting at that man's issue that man's issue was money and he says I tell you what go get rid of your money and come and follow me how many people could do that get rid of your money come follow me go give it all away and follow me but see that's what being a disciple is being a disciple is saying whatever you say Lord and the Lord's tested me with this in my own life I remember back when I had I've told y'all the story when I had my car was paid for I had money in my bank account and the Lord said give it all away told me the poor family to give it to and it made me poor immediately I'm like Lord you want me to get to this poor family but just made me poor he's like you trust me to take care of you or not but there's been tests when I told you when I when the Lord told me to go to Washington DC my my two older girls were much younger then they weren't young young but they were younger that's a long way to go from your children and I didn't want to go that far and the Lord said to me your children can't even be an idol to you do you trust me with them or not do what I say I will take care of them this is where a lot of parents a lot of parents are trust in their own abilities and their own ideas obey God and then he will help you see a lot of people don't understand Grace Grace is really the Holy Spirit he's called the spirit of Grace Hebrews 10 Grace if you look up the definition of Grace Caris it means God's influence upon your heart and reflection of his influence and help in your life so Grace is what you need but the Bible says God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble well what is what is a proud versus a humble person a lot of people think it's somebody walking around a humble person is all Meek and mild and quiet and no that's not a humble person Bible definition of a person that's humble is a person who obeys God period the proud disobey God it's simple is it's not even complicated remember it
says about Jesus in Philippians 2 that he humbled himself and became obedient even unto the death of the Cross humility is obeying the Lord you may look like the boldest loudest person in the room but if you're obeying God by doing what you're doing you are humble but if you're disobeying God and sitting there quiet and meek like a little mouse it doesn't matter if you're disobedient you are the proud somebody need needed to hear that cuz some people say oh Pastor Dean is so prideful and arrogant because I'm so loud and bold and strong that has nothing to do with whether you're humble or proud it has to do with whether you're obedient I can tell you this much I know for a fact if I become disobedient God will resist me and my life will go down the tubes but if I obey him he will bless me and he will give me Grace and what is Grace the help the power the strength everything I need to accomplish the task and sometimes that task is just standing when you've done all to stand you stand there for and you don't retreat you don't fall back you don't fall down sometimes you just need Grace to stand and not give up the ground you've already won and that's okay we don't always have to be moving forward as long as we are what standing in obedience and Faith so I'm going to ask the question again are you a Believer are you a follower tell about Pastor Dean I got to work a 40 or 50 hours a week job and then I come home I got all these responsibilities or I got these kids I'm trying to teach and take care of and I have I understand I understand every we all have life you have to make yourself press in you have to make yourself go to the place of prayer you have to make yourself read the word you have to make yourself pray enough long enough to hear the voice of the Lord and make sure you know his will for your life remember Mary and Martha Martha was busy serving but Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus and Martha was all upset about it Lord make her come help me and what did what did Jesus say he said Mary's chosen the good part now say well yeah dishes got to get done and clothes have to get washed and kids have to get baths and getting B yes but you still need to go
pray Susanna Wesley John Wesley's mother had 19 children and she still prayed one hour every day minimum somebody say oh Pastor Dean now you're hurting me hey we can all come up with excuses you know and you can say I'm old and rickety I just can't go go pray I'm just I I hurt too bad I can't get up this morning let me tell you when my alarm went off this get up this morning and pray about this service this morning my body said no please don't leave me here please I would you know I didn't sleep for like almost two days two nights and then so last night I slept likeo I slept so good so when the alarm went off my body was like no no no no you're actually sleeping stay here but we got to get up and do things amen y'all know I've set up sometimes I think I there's there's a times I've been preparing PowerPoints for messages that I have literally stayed up all night until 5 o'clock in the morning then started getting ready for church and come to church why do you think that feels good no it does not but sometimes there's a job that's got to get done and then you know what is also teaching my child it's called work ethic and I think in the kingdom of God we've kind of lost that concept that you know sometimes there's a job that's got to get done and sometimes that means you got to cut your sleep short I mean goodness when I I was in college because I didn't study all week and I had a test I would stay up all night like I have I remember having Algebra test one time in my you know I lived in the fraternity house so it was kind of Rowdy place and I remember literally staying up all night and my class was 8 o'clock in the morning I stayed up all night studying for that test and went and took it at at and came back and passed out right but why it had to get done job had to get done now granted I had been stupid and I put myself in that place but there's times I mean y'all don't know sometimes when I've been working on like Skyfall stuff getting messages or PowerPoints ready for skyfalls and you know my schedule's been busy and I've been crunched and now there's times that I have to sit for hours and hours and hours into the night to finish stuff trying to finish books and stuff I'm just saying that that we have we we've got to have that that understanding that it's not about how I feel it's about getting the job done
doing what God's God said to do no matter how I feel you know Smith Wigglesworth the great Apostle of Faith used to say I my body doesn't tell me how I feel I tell you how it feels gosh how many times that I have come to church when I'd rather still be laying in the bed somewhere I've come to church and did a Deliverance a few weeks ago with my back out oh and came and baptizing folks with my back went out right I mean went out like hours before I was about to do two baptisms you know what I my back was saying stay home don't go to the church but people had traveled here from where were they from all the way from they were out of state to get baptized so you think I these hear these people come all the way from some other state to get baptized I'm g go oh oh my back hurts so I'm not going to come I just said' Lord you got to help me you get what I'm saying you press through endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ do his will amen be a follower and not just a believer because you don't want to get to heaven and say Lord yeah you gave me this yeah I believed in you you gave me my talent here's what you gave me I didn't do anything with it yeah you don't want that to happen see God has a has a will for our like let's do one more I got to do one more verse it's all right because I didn't start see I didn't start at 11 so we we're good I try not to keep you for two hours we'll go over now but this this one go back to First John real quick chapter 2 see this again people out there be like you know why are you preaching this stuff well here it is 1 John 2:15 I'm going to read this I've read it many times I could quote it to you he says here love not the world neither the things that are in the world if any man love the world the love of the father is not in him for all that is in the world is the lust of the Flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life and it is not of the father but is of the world and the world passes away in the lust thereof but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever now I didn't write that that's not first Dean chapter one but he says don't love the things of the world the lust of the world the pride of the World Gay Pride don't love those things he said what the do the will of the father those who do that will abide forever well what is the will of the father apart from what we know is written you have to find out for yourself what do you want me you have to be like Paul and say Lord what is your will for me what specifically am I to
do with my life and if you start doing that then you are a disciple then you are a follower and you graduated you start out as a Believer that's fine you start there but you don't stay there you become a follower amen let's stand I hope y'all learned something today God help our churches out there to make disciples let me let me ask something if you if you read the the New Testament do you see anywhere that they are instructed to make Believers he told them to make disciples disciples are people who follow who imitate who mimic meaning they follow Jesus they try to be like Jesus they try to do what Jesus did they try to do exactly what he wants them to do think about the disciples think about the disciples if Jesus said hey come on y'all follow me and I'll make you Fishers of Men they go no no no we're good we got baptized by John and we believe you're the Messiah but we got to go fish it sorry we can't follow you then what would they be disobedient believers they would be rebellious believers they were Believers but not followers not disciples so this is what God's called us to be disciples and you know so for some people the thief on the cross all he took the only step he could take but what's the next step for you some of you some of you it's going to be putting down the POR graphy oh some of you it's going to be getting out of premarital sex fornication some of you it's going to be getting out of an adulterous Affair some of you it's going to be putting down into the alcohol that you secretly drink some of you it's the marijuana you keep smoking or Gummy Bears or whatever now it's you can get them in you know I guess you can get taco chip uh marijuana th I don't know I mean they've invented a whole lot of stuff since I came out of it you know we didn't have gummy bears that made you high Umar Care Bears um but what I'm saying is is that there's we know there's some things out we know there's some things people struggle with for some people God's dealing with you trying to get you to put down nicotine and some people say well it might not send you to hell but you smell like you've been there right but the Lord's trying to get you
to do some things to to go in his will some of you you know with the cigarettes I G say this with smoking cigarett I don't believe smoking cigarettes going to take anybody to Hell Bible doesn't say that but there's things that you you got to do for Jesus that you can't be smelling like a chimney and it's a bad witness and people look at you and go if they can't stop smoking cigarettes if their Jesus is not powerful to help them stop smoking cigarettes why do I even need to listen to them same goes for that big round you know thing in your pocket guys and I know I smoked I dipped I did all that stuff I'm a southern boy I understand but God wants freedom in your life he don't want anything he don't want anything controlling you and a making you addicted and pornography is the worst y'all it's the worst man I think ladies some of y'all don't even understand how bad it is for a man how addictive a lot of you guys don't even know that when you view it in your brain chemicals are released that literally mix together and they call it an aoxin and that's why you become addicted there's literally becomes a physical addiction and that aado tox actually rots part of your brain so back when our Granny's used to say that'll rot your brain they were right took science a little while to catch up to the truth but let me tell you some of us men that struggled with that in our past or maybe even now some of you are struggling this because it was introduced to us we're little boys and you talking about getting addicted to a not just a something we see but getting addicted Ed because of chemicals released and really as a child there's an age you shouldn't be seeing those things because it actually sets your brain on a certain course it creates synapses going in different directions I mean so sin affects the physical but there's nothing there's no addiction that can't be broken in the name of Jesus Christ you can get free from the demon spirits of pornography lust addiction you can get free from all that you repent of the sin you hate the sin you repent of the sin and then you bind the demons and cast them out that came in through those sins and you can get free through the name of Jesus Amen we got a song we can do this morning pick one make it a good one I know Kelsey picks good songs let's Worship the Lord for one song here and then we'll hug some Nicks and get out of
[Music] here see the Lord and this train fills the [Music] temple I see the Lord he I live de see the Lord and this strange [Music] Temple I see the Lord he is I lift out an angels cry holy holy is the [Music] Lord [Music] Angels holy is the Lord see Lord his eyes are flame like [Music] fire see the Lord and his hair is white as and Angels Cry Angels cry holy holy is the Lord Angels Cry Angels [Music] cry holy holy is [Music] [Music] the the angel came it touched the cold to my lips yes they [Music] did now my guilt is gone and my sin has been
forgiven and I cry and I Cry I cry holy is the Lord come on y'all say i c i c holy holy is the Lord and I cry yes I cry and I I and I is and the temple is still come on and the temple is filed with the glory of God [Music] and the whole earth is and the whole earth is filed with the glory of God come on let's [Music] your [Music] he calls to me Whom Shall I S and I say Lord my house and my land and my cars and my job and my family and my stuff is not more important than [Music] you nothing more important nothing more important than [Music] you come on come on come on say nothing more important nothing more important thank [Music] you come on lift up your voice say nothing more important nothing more important than you come on
y'all nothing more important nothing more you come on let me hear you let me hear you say LIF up your come on more than you we cast down our Idols we tear down our Idols nothing come on nothing more important nothing nothing more important religion you got to die religion you got to die nothing nothing [Music] [Applause] [Music] say my yeah go ahead give him praise Lord we praise you there's nothing more important than you Jesus nothing more important than following you nothing more important than believing and following you Lord we worship you Lord we thank you you are the king of kings and the Lord of lords we give thanks that you have made the way of Salvation through the atoning death on the cross that you suffered Lord and then you rose from the dead the third day you're alive forever more you have the keys of hell and death and you are the way the truth and the life and I pray God that many will come to you and find the Forgiveness the power your resurrection power to have their dead Spirit regenerated born again and that they will not only just be Believers but they'll become followers disciples pray this over everyone that is here today everyone that that was watching and listening those who will watch and listen in the future we pray it in Jesus name amen hallelujah hallelujah somebody say hallelujah for me yeah yeah all right well y'all know the drill around here hug some necks before you leave we are going to eat downstairs so anybody wants to go get something and come back you're welcome to do that um is there any announcements that I need to know of okay well I feel strange I just say bye yall