The Pledge of Allegiance - Summer Series pt. 5

There's a there's a tradition that I grew up in. We grew up in the Quaker church as a song.

And it's just it's just it's like we've got to do it. There's a it's called open worship. And basically what that is, is an open worship in this tradition in the Quaker church. There's silence in the room. And it's so that we can center in on who the Holy Spirit is. We can sit in and God, what are you doing right with me right now?

What are you. What are you trying to show me? And even not even asking that just. God, I want to see where we say, Show us your glory. Like, I was always singing these words. I was saying, God, here now, are we are we. Are we saying these words, God, this is holy ground. Are we saying that because it's a song?

Are we singing because that's what we believe, that this is a holy space where we take off our shoes and we go, God, like, show me, show me who you are. Show me how unworthy I am because of how good you are. That's what I that's why I wants to do it right now. That's what I want to do.

We sit in this room for a few moments, and it's in silence. And this can be awkward for those of us who are constantly scrolling. There's constantly music in the background. We don't know what to do with our own thoughts in the silence. It's going to be awkward. It's gonna be hard. But in this moment, in this open worship, what this is, is it's an opportunity for you to just reflect on what God's doing in you, what he's trying to show you, and and then that if there's a testimony that you have to share.

And I want to warn you, like, just because it's silent doesn't mean you got to talk. Some people like to talk. Just because it's silent doesn't mean you have the testimony. Sometimes that testimony is just for you. All right. So dwell in that said, God, what is it that you're trying to teach me? God, There's there Is there a word?

Be careful asking this, but is there a word I'm supposed to share for somebody else? Or is it just my praise of what you've done?

You can sit. You can stand. But let God meet you in this moment right now. Just in just a couple of minutes. And then as we feel that I can disclose now that last bit of the song again, Jesus, God was already here. And I say, God, you know, if I'm supposed to give me an opportunity, if I'm not, stop me.

I value the silence. So I do want to have the silence. But I have to say this You have not because you believe not God. Show us your glory, fear, bow chains fall. The words mean nothing if you don't believe it. God has the power to set us free. The God of Scripture, that Scripture is literal and that He is not different.

He is the same.

Have you told fear about in Jesus's name and then expect him to do it?

Have you told that voice in the back of your mind to shut up in Jesus name? Have you told him to get out and leave because you are bought by the blood of Jesus Christ? He died, descended in the hell, stole back the keys so that he can set the captives free. What are you doing? Why are you living in bondage?

Why are you listening to the lies? Be careful who you allow to speak into your life.

Dig in the word. Learn the words and use them in our spirit, in the tongue as a sword. A two edged sword. Use it in the silence. Please. Seek after God. Ask him to meet you here and expect him to do that.

That's it.

Change for fear. Oh, here. No change. You change everyday lives. You hope for. No, Jesus. Change so soon. So soon. And wandering away for to what struck Gloria? What struck every new girl so, so snuggly. She had a wonder so far down was Gloria was to Gloria that everybody got the Holy Grail in this tradition, sometimes to be 5 minutes depending on the church in the setting, Sometimes it be 20 minutes, sometimes it be the entire service for an hour and a half.

And in that, there's gaps of 20 minutes of silence. You have the church lady who's been in that same spot in the same row for the last 70 years. And she's always got some sort of testimony. Sometimes it's the same one as she shared last week. But it's just so good to hear the testimonies of the people at the end of that of this open worship.

That was a phrase. And it was our our all hearts and minds. Clear. Are all hearts clear. And what it's asking is like, it's kind of like that final charge before we move on to whatever else we've got planned or whatever else we like. Is there something else? Is there somebody else that's supposed to have said something or something?

Are you still in that moment? And so I'm going to ask there are are all hearts clear? If nobody has anything to say, we move on. But it was it was that intentional moment of just, God, I want to have that intimate one on one with you right now. It's not about the music. It's not about the preacher.

It's not about the building. It's not about my allocated, you know, 2 hours or whatever. It's it's just mean. You gotta think of worship team can be seated. So today we're gonna talk about a well my favorite people in history and my favorite I don't like the word character. We talk about the Bible like their actual people, but because it's in a book, sometimes we use the word like characters or stories.

And I know these are history, so I this is my favorite person in history. But when I talk about the person of Peter today and Peter is one of my favorites because he's just this he's this rough person. He is bold, he is rough around the edges, is the person that I mean, he try to cut off somebody his ear, he jumps out of boats without thinking he just drops everything and goes and just even even like some of the stuff that comes out of his mouth is like, oh, okay.

You said that before you thought it. And so it's just that you need a Peter in your life. And so, like for us it would look like somebody walking in still in their, you know, mechanic's outfit with a ball cap on, maybe even with a beer in their hand. Like, let's just be real here. Like, that's the kind of person that Peter was.

He was in that culture, very blue collar, very rough around the edges. It wasn't like somebody of a class wasn't educated. And so, like, I relate to that a little bit and I go to like a fancy school, but just because of my upbringing, like we have all these great things and, you know, our home life was a little messy probably.

And so I can relate to that a little bit. But for some of us and I have grown to be this, I say unfortunately, but like the Peters that we have in our life, kind of bring us out of our shell and say, Hey, maybe you don't need to think so much and just start talking. Or maybe you don't need a thing so much as just start doing.

And so if you don't have a part of your life, I know of a few in this building that we can point you to. All right. If you're kind of all this people like, well, I'm not going to sing too loud or I'm just going to sit here, will calm charge. This must be real calm. And that's not supposed to be fine.

You need a Peter. All right? So find me. Find somebody else. We will find you a Peter to have in your life. So our main scripture is going to be coming out of Luke 15. So if you want to pull that up in your Bible app or in your Bible and we're going to stand to read the Scripture as we saw them, we're talking about holy ground.

This is a holy word, this is God's word. And so we're going to stand in honor of that and in reverence of that Luke 15 versus one through 11 on one occasion, while the crowd was crowd was pressing in on him to hear the Word of God. He was standing by the Lake of Nazareth, and he saw two boats by the lake.

But the fisherman had gone out of them. And we're watching the nets getting into one of the boats, which was Simonds. He asked them to put out a little from the land and his and he sat down and talked people from the boat. And we had finished speaking. He said to Simon, put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.

And Simon answered, Master, we have you all night long. You have taken nothing but at your word. I will let down the nets. And he said no to their partners in the other boats to come and help them. And and they came and filled both boats, so much so that they began to sink. But when Senator Salmon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus's knees saying, Depart from me for I am a sinful man.

Oh Lord, for he and all who are with him were astonished at the catch of the fish they had taken. And also and so also were James and John, Sons of Zebedee, who are partners with Simon. And Jesus said, Examine, do not be afraid. From now on you'll be catching men. And when they had brought their boats to the land, they left everything and followed him.

All right. Now we're going to jump to John, 21 notes about two books later. Martin Lewis, Not necessary, one book later, John, 21 versus 15. I'll be on the screen if you didn't need to. First 15. When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon, Peter Simon, son of John, Do you love me more than these? He said to him, Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.

He said to them, Feed my lambs. He said to him a second time, Simon said, John, do you love me? And he said to him, Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, Tend my sheep. He said to him a third time, Do you love me? And he said to him, Lord, you know everything.

You know that I love you. Jesus said, He'll feed my sheep. Truly, truly. I say to you, you were when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you were, you stretch out your hands and another would dress you and carry you ever. Where do you wear? You do not want to go this, he said, to show about what kind of death he was or if I got him.

And after saying this, he said to him again, Follow me. All right. I'm going to be seated. Jesus, we just thank you so much for your word. We thank you for your your your testimony, the life that you lived. God, I pray that you set aside any nerves that I may have right now because you filled me from the bottom of the top of my head with your presence.

Help me to say the words that I need to say for for your purpose and your glory and keep my mouth shut with things. I don't need to say. God, I pray for ears to be open and eyes to be opened so that people can hear from you in this moment. Let me say no more intimacy, no less.

We ask this in your name and then I say, We're going to do a kind of a brief walkthrough with Peter. And the idea is I'm going to have these these as a snapshot of Peter's life. There's three calls that he has in his life that Jesus lays out in front of him. There is the call to repent, the call to follow, and the call to be sent.

These these three things, the call to repentance, the call to follow and the call to be sent in this, that first one nobody really wants to talk about the call to repent. Repentance is kind of a nasty word. It's kind of a word that loud churches kind of shy away from. Maybe they maybe only touched on Easter or they like kind of say it in secret in small group, but they may not say it here.

And because who likes to be told you're doing wrong? Nobody does. And so, like, there's a lot of churches and I'm not going to go on this soapbox, but there are churches who refuse to talk about sin and repent. They just talk about the grace of God. They just talk about the goodness of God. But how can you talk about the goodness of God?

How can you talk about how grand and great he is without talking about how how unworthy and how sinful and how I mean and how nasty? I mean, if we look at scripture like we're seen as filthy rags, I think about oil rags or rags that are used by the medical field that got blowed on. I'm like, they're nasty, useless rags compared to God's goodness.

How can you say, God, you are good and sing. You are good and not talk about why he is so good. And so we have to talk about the call repentance and we use a lot of scripture today. I hope that's okay with you guys. So you may be going back and forth. You may get a little bored if you're not used to your reading so much, but we look at Romans chapter three.

I can't remember. Do I have that one? Yep. Perfect. All right, so it's Romans chapter three, verses nine. What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? This is I mean, so this is Paul writing his letter to the Roman Church. So these are all believers in this area. They've accepted Christ there. He's trying to like, okay, we've gotten you, you know, to say yes to Jesus.

Now we need to kind of get you a little bit more party like get rid of the sin. And so in this there's this there's this battle of, well, because Jesus died for us, like, why do we have to live a holy life? Like if God sacrifices there, what's the point of stopping sin? If it's already been defeated?

You'll get the question we probably asked that ourselves sometimes was like, well, I'm I'll just keep doing this because Jesus's victims are still there. His grace is still there. That's wrong way of thinking. And here's what Paul has to say about it first. Now, what shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all. If we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles as us, Gentiles, Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin as it is written, there is no one righteous, not even one.

There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks God. All have turned away. They have together become worthless. There is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open, graves. Throats are open graves like the words we speak are deaf. That's basically what it's saying. The words we speak are death. Their tongues practice, deceit.

The poison of vipers are on their lips, Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood, ruin and misery mark their ways and the way of peace. They do not know There is no fear of God before their eyes. Now we know that whatever the law says, lobby in the Old Testament. Now we know whatever the law says, it says to those who are under it that every mouth may be silenced so that the whole world may be accountable to God.

Therefore, no one will be declared righteous in God's sights by the works of law. Rather, through the law, we are conscious of our sin, which up later in the letter to Romans six versus 15, it says, What then? Shall we sin? Because we are not under the law but under grace? Paul says by no means the Old Testament, the law, Jesus life.

We look at it in comparison to who we are and what we've done. It is supposed to be like looking in a mirror and going, Who I am? That's not me. I've messed up. While later in Scripture, what talks about Jesus being the fulfillment of the law that that sacrifice was that fulfillment is because when there was sin, when there was transgression, when there was doing something that God said not to do or not doing something God said to do, there was a sacrifice that was that was supposed to take place, a blood sacrifice of some kind or some sort of covenant.

Jesus was the final sacrifice. Jesus was the final covenant in that through that, those sacrifices were no longer needed because God himself was the sacrifice and said, Enough's enough. They are clearly not going to get this right. And so let me let me send my sons back in to repair this relationship that they broke up, not the relationship that I messed up, the relationship that they broke up by choosing to disobey.

Some of us, when we hear these words, you know, sometimes we don't necessarily realize our own sins, maybe because we haven't been in the word or we haven't been in communion with God long enough. So let me just read a list of here. I got a list of scriptures from Mark seven, Galatians five verse Corinthians. ROMANS I'm just going to read like what?

What the New Testament says is him evil thoughts, theft, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, wickedness, slander, pride, sensual sensuality, sorcery, strife, jealousy, anger, divisions, drunkenness, orgies, homosexuality, adulterous ness, greediness, drunkenness, swindlers, maliciousness, gossip, disobedience to parents faithless the heartless. There's more and more you can write them down. Look at them when you get home. If you look back at anything that I just said.

And one of my my assumption is that one of those hit home for you, like, ooh, that's me. Even if it's just a lie. So repeat after me. I am a sinner. It's true. And if you aren't saying that because you're like, There's no way I'm a sinner. Scripture says by not saying Scripture says that by saying I am not a sinner, you have then sinned because we are sons of Adam.

We are cardinal creatures, right? It's like it's like the old school, the game in a no school, high school where you are, you walk up somebody, I guess. Well, guess what? I just lost the game. Or that maybe was just my school. But the whole idea of the game was to not think about it, because by thinking of the game, you immediately lost it.

And so in the same way here, by saying you don't have sinned, you ever then sinning. And so when we look at this like I'm sure I'm right now, I'm probably making you guys feel great right now. I'm not one of these, like, happy, great, you know, Oh, power to this. We're an army. We're going to defeat these things.

Know that, like, I'm a sinful person. I've done this. God, may I regret doing that? That thing, Guy regret lying to me, to my boss. When I stole that bottle of cologne, I got to regret lying to my parents when I. When my friend threw up in the car and said, No, no, we weren't drinking. No, I didn't spend that $50 in the bank account life.

No, son, there's not a magic human that brings things once a year in the winter, you are picking up the pieces. We are all sinful. There's a call for repentance that we have to have. And the feeling that you have right now is probably only a fraction. A fraction of what Peter felt in the story we just read.

Because go back to it. I'm actually read it from from the book of Matthew. Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the Synoptic Gospels. They portray a lot of the same stuff, but it's just a different perspective. You look at John, he says, okay, they've talked about these things. Let me find out what they didn't talk about. And so we're going to go to I'm sorry, that's a different scripture.

That's Matthew later. Luke five versus six. And when they had done this in the nets over the the boat, when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish and their nets were breaking their signal to the partners in the other boats to come and help. And they came in for both boats, so much so that they've began to sink.

But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at his knees saying, Depart from me for I am a sinful man. Rather than help his buddies get the rest of the fish rather than grab than the net, he hopped out the boat and ran to Jesus and just said, God can. You're not supposed to be here. You have to be God, you have to be.

And the only reason he can say that is because of four things. When Jesus showed up, he did something great to to grab Peter's attention. And when God shows up in scriptures, sometimes it's this amazing thing like this miracles. And sometimes it's just showing up. Sometimes it's just showing up. And you just you just know there is something different in this space.

There's something different in this room. There has to be God. But in this moment, Jesus showed Peter four things. He saw God's knowledge, He saw his authority, his eyes, intimacy, and he saw was goodness. And what we mean by that is like he's Jesus. When I say Jesus, I'm also speaking God because Jesus is the Son of God is Jesus is fully a man, fully God.

And so Jesus showed that he had the knowledge of where to put them. That's where to put the fish. How like how many nets to put in where exactly in the water. He knew all that stuff, even if he didn't know that. He also had the authority to say, Hey, fish, go to this side of the boat. And I don't know how big that that body of water was.

I don't know how big the nets were, but if it was enough to sink the boats, it might be enough to be the entire part of the entire school of fish over there. And so, like, he had the authority to tell the fish, get in this little corner. I hear about the people that tell him that you're about to get caught, but go here.

So they showed that authority or Jesus showed that authority. Then there's the intimacy. Jesus knew that they hadn't got anything that day. Jesus knew they were struggling. And if you're a fisherman and this time that was your livelihood and that may have been been your food, like it wasn't just your income to sell the fish to others. That may have also been your dinner for your family.

And so he knew there were struggling. They were trying. They're not making ends meet. And that would've been enough to be God. But then we see God's goodness and that he provides for that need. We can recognize, Oh, that person. And when we do it, when we drive by that person on the on the highway, oh, they need some food.

That's knowledge, That's intimacy. We see that. But God's goodness says I'm a provide for that. And he did that for Peter. And so by those four things, Peter's able to recognize that this is God. And because of that, he kneels himself down and says, I am unworthy to be in front of you. So I challenge you right now in this moment, if you have not repented of your sins, if you have not looked at God and said, I am unworthy because of this, because I've done this, we just read the list.

If you have not asked for forgiveness in that the next two steps that are about to walk through will mean nothing for you because you can't do it because you've not asked for forgiveness of your sins. There's no magic phrase. There's no like, I mean, we we use the ABCs of salvation or we have this sinner's prayer. It's not really in Scripture.

It's just ways that we that we try to make it easier for people, Doug, to grasp what the what God wants. He wants us to admit that we're sinful. He wants us to meet that Jesus, the Son of God, through his sacrifice, is the only way to restore our relationship with God, to have it not just eternal life, but to have a life of fulfillment and abundance here on Earth until that time.

And we only do that by confessing that Jesus is Lord and that we are sinful sinners. All you have to do and say in this moment, and I must say this too, when we say about your heads, close your eyes. No one in the room is looking. That's B.S. like, Sorry it is, though, because if we're to confess that Jesus is Lord, that is not a private thing.

That is a public thing saying yes, Jesus says Lord, and I am not. And so in that when we say publicly, just like baptism, when we say publicly, that Jesus is Lord, I am a sinner, it means I'm telling somebody out here that I need to be held accountable for the sins that I've done. And if we're going, oh, I'm pastors, not Luke, and maybe I'm a bad my head, my hand, who's gonna hold you accountable?

What confession is that? So if you've not made that confession that Jesus, Lord of your life, not just Savior, because some of us would act like Jesus as a savior, but he's not Lord means we are not following him. We'll get there in a moment. But if he is not savior and he is not Lord in your life, now's your chance right now.

You may have a stroke on your way out the door. You may be in a car accident on the way home. This might be your only chance. We've. We've just said it. We've sung it. This is your opportunity to say, Lord, save me. Help me become who you want me to be. Yeah, Think on that. If you aren't sure yet, we're going to have the deacons and elders and pastoral team up here later to walk through that with you, the pray with you.

But I urge you, please, this might be your last chance to say, Jesus, please, I am a sinner for sinful, sinful person. Help me become who you want me to be. Thank you for your sacrifice. Thank you for still desiring a relationship with me. Sit on that. Well, while we continue, these next two spots will still apply to you.

When you say yes to Jesus, when you repent of your sins and repenting, it's not a one time thing. It's a daily thing. It's a daily thing. But if you've not done it once, today's your day, today's your day. And if you question whether or not Jesus is the way or Jesus is the reason or Jesus is the the ultimate sacrifice, let me just throw some Scripture at you.

The call to repent says in John 336. Whoever believes in the sun has eternal life. Whoever does not obey the sun shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. There's some of the Saving John 14 six Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.

The only way to get to be in the presence of God is through Jesus and His sacrifice and what he said and lived in the first John. 512 Whoever has the son has life, and whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life pretty simple right there, John 318 Whoever believes in him is not condemned.

But whoever does not sorry, whoever believes in him is not condemned. But whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only son. Either way, you have a destination. But it's up to you to make the choice of which one you want to go to. So I urge you today that God sees you not as judge.

He can. He does see you as judge. But that judgment also says, Oh, they're covered by the blood of Christ. That judgment means that they get life and there's mercy and there's grace. God sees you. He wants you to see his authority because he created the world and he knows what's best his intimate knowledge of you and says that you were created as good.

And I hope that his goodness in that is his desire to make a way for you to still have a relationship with him draws you in. It's what drew Peter in. Peter was willing to set aside his dreams and his hurt, his frustrations. He literally left everything in that boat and said, God, yes, you must be an in that he was then be able to told Al-falih that he was then able to be asked follow me or to be told, rather he still had that choice to say, Yes, you are Lord, but I want to follow.

And in that, like most Christianity of most Christians in the Western world, here in America or American Christianity are Bible belt Christianity. Most people you walk to the public and most people, I dare say in this room, yes, Jesus the Savior, but Jesus is not Lord. And what we do in that is, is we take on the benefit of the blood.

We take on the benefit of Jesus, the sacrifice. But we leave out the the the work of heaven. If we don't recognize cross authority, a sacrifice for us, we cannot say, I'll follow you. So we let your conviction bring you to a place of repentance. Conviction should always bring you to a place of repentance. Always. If it stops that conviction, what are you do doing sin which brings on more conviction.

So Sir Peter Humble himself said, You must be Lord so we can move to the next spot, which is the call to follow after he's repented, after he said, You are God, I'm going to do whatever, I'm going to leave everything else. It's a call to follow. And this is Matthew four 1819. This is another account of the same story.

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. And he said to them, Follow me and I will make you fishers of men immediately. They left their nets and follow him. Immediately they followed him and left everything behind.

Peter had this zeal. This is God. He has saved me, He said. I am still good despite what all those other Jews have to say. God says I'm good. And what's interesting is that Jesus has even died on the cross, and yet he still recognizes that goodness of God in that moment, he left everything. And we show you an example.

And because of time, I probably just tell it. But there's another example when somebody else has told to follow follow God, Jesus is encountered by this man. He says, Follow me. And what happens is it's called the story of the rich young ruler. It's in that way you can make a note and read it later. Matthew 19 So in Matthew 19, there it is again.

This is not the gospels. Same story, three different perspectives. And so what happens is this guy comes up to Jesus and his disciple says, M.M., What? What do I do? What must that do to inherit eternal life? It's a question many of us have asked or have been, have, having have heard. And he said, and he goes, I have it.

He's like, I've kept all the commandments. I've done this. I've done this. I haven't done this because I've kept all the commandments. Like like, surely that's enough. Surely that's what it is.

And Jesus says, Go and sell your soul all your possessions and give it to the poor. Then follow me. It's like he almost doesn't even talk about the heaven. Peace. He says, Go. So your possessions give it to the poor and then follow me. Now we don't know what happens. He could be one of the followers that show up later when there's 500 or 1200 or so on.

But in this and this account, we don't know what happens them. We don't know whether or not he actually goes back and sells us stuff. Maybe he sells it for his own gain, maybe he sells it and actually gives it to the poor. We don't know. But the idea here is that when when when Jesus says to do this here, Jesus doesn't care about what he has.

He doesn't care about what he's done. He says, Do you trust me? The call for us to follow is not about what we have, but it's how far are we willing to trust? Do you trust that you can you can step step away from your family. You can step away from your work. You can step away from the years of wealth you've built.

You can step away from all of the the homes you've built, the family that you have. Are you willing to step away from everything now just for the sake of the cost, not just about. Well, I gave up this for you. Jesus. No, it's. Do you trust me to provide those things for you? Do you trust that I'm going to provide that wealth, that I'm going to provide that family?

I'm to provide that job, even if it means changing jobs or moving 12 hours away from your family? What does that mean for you? You had to make that choice. There is a cost in that. Following, Peter said yes, Peter was eager. He left everything. But there's this other young man. For all we know, he says it's not worth it.

I've already done everything I'm supposed to do. Why do more? He recognizes Jesus a savior. He never recognized Jesus as Lord. Too often we simply say yes to Jesus and no to the call. We reap the benefit of the blood, but not the work of heaven. And we have to stop prostitution. Prostitute in God's goodness and is a sacrifice for our own benefit.

Because some of us, when we hear that, that follow me God, or that God saying to us, follow me, we will like if she says, please sell all your fancy china, sell all your computer parts, sell those Beanie Babies that you've collected for 30 years, like whatever that wealth is that you've got, sell it. And we're like, Yes, yes, I'll do it.

God, I would do it. But what if he says, Hey, sacrifice that 20 minutes on Tik-tok of that 20 minutes on Netflix or Fox News, CNN. If we aren't willing to sacrifice those 20 minutes and a day to get into his word, what makes you think he's going to ask us to do anything more than that? And truly, are you are you ready to do that?

Because we got to be careful. We want to be called and sent so badly sometimes we don't even do the little things. I've just been called to follow Jesus. We won't be called to since. But God, I don't know if I can follow you in this piece. Before we get to the next step. He's already repented. There's a call to follow, and if you aren't willing to be obedient in the follow, then how in the world are you going to be able to accept the call to be sent the Bay?

Whether or not she says, I'm going to say it so talking about this, these little things, if you're let's say you're called to be sent today and you've not sacrificed that time to get in God's word, let's say you're you're sent. What are you going to be sent with? Are you going be sent with today's sermon? Are you being sent with the love that you received and walked into the door?

Or are you being sent with a knowledge of who God is because you've spent time with Him? Or you can be sent with the love that you received from God, not necessary from God's people, but from God himself. And if you don't know God's wisdom and who He is, if you don't know God's love, then what are you giving?

What are you being sent to teach and to share? And so in that I have a weekly schedule here, I was just kind of in my rant writing and so getting the word memorize God's word to you and to others. So in Sunday, learn the songs. We sing most Christian songs. Most worship songs have some sort of scriptural background or some scriptural element into it.

They don't maybe question whether or not it's Christian, but here they're But learn the songs that we sing, find them in Scripture, Google the chorus and say, okay, where in scripture is this coming that come in and that on Monday, take the Scriptures that we throw up on the screens, all the ones that we've been shown so far.

Memorize them, open them up in your own Bible. On Monday on Tuesday, act on it, apply it, show it to your coworkers, show it to your classmates, show it to your father. And Wednesday it means don't turn a cold shoulder to the beggar or to the person that just Oh, I hope they're not at church tonight on Thursday.

Praise God more than you pray for things. Don't ask for anything. Just simply praise him Friday. Give up certain habits or communities that are in direct conflict with who God is. Saturday. Use those talents and gifts that you have gotten from God so most somebody else's yard hoes look out for the less fortunate. Invite the widows to your family dinner.

Invite the orphan to help you clean your garage. Like these are all small things in the follow that God says you can do as these are not calls to go preach to a thousand people in India like this. Not start a coffee shop Ministry for college students. These are little tasks that mean big things so that when you are called to go to India or to launch a coffee shop or to do whatever it is God is sending you to do, you are adequately prepared and you are not going to burn more people because you know what that means.

You know what that relationship with God means for you. You're not, you know, pouring into somebody else from an empty cup. So when we obey him, these little things faith, prayer, worship, scripture, reading a reading of ourselves, seeking him in every little thing, we obey him in those things. We are ridding ourselves of everything that's not repent except the call to follow.

And then he says, I'll make you fishers of men. I'll show you a video of you who are quick. His name's Bill Dance, so check it out is on whether changes or one particular make in tone. Your boat. Here is a safety chain tip Man Oh, shoot. Oh, Up. Carry with quality components, guides, real see as well as a handle, a rod that's lightweight.

This extremely sensitive dip gum. It Well, it's sensitive, all right. It's sensitive enough. And I felt that fan dead comic the Colorado Blade puts out more vibration than they, let's say, a willow blade or even the Oklahoma Blade. Now, we come at ya. Thank you. We got our rods, we've got our life preservers, we've got our tackle box, We've got our cooler and we've got our better.

You're not going to be able to jump in. Oh, oh, oh, my arm. Oh, good gosh. I make my living outside and I'm exposed to the harmful UV rays. That's why I use a quality sun cream. Like blue lizard. Blue lizard gives you Mac. What the heck was that? Pink.

Oh, So until next time, catch one for me and enjoy the great fishing America has to offer. We'll see you next time. Oh, one Nellie. I thought I had it reversed so fishing can have its adventures. I did not grow up fishing. So Emily and her sister. I remember when we first was dating. She showed his videos all the time, and so it was just funny.

But how many do I actually fish? Okay, a few of you guys. Not me. I didn't really grow up in it, and I got a buddy who's been helping me kind of learn how to do that, hold the fish and pull it the right way, you know, all those things. But Peter was a fisherman. All right? I make the connection here.

So whether or not Scripture says this and God gods, Jesus said this to Peter because they were fishermen or because of the analogy of actually going out and reaching people, you can take it either orders different debates on that. But the idea is that when Peter is told you're going to be fishers of men, these are professional fishers.

And so they knew where to go, they knew where the rocks, where they knew where their their boat with would hit land, they knew where the fish stayed. They knew how not to be over under a certain embankment. They knew what bait to use, what kind of fish they were going to catch, what kind of net They knew every intimate piece of about fishing, every piece.

And so if we are to be called fishers of men, we have to know people. And so in that just like fishing, there is a level of patience that we have to have when we go and reach people just like in fish. And sometimes you throw that case at one time and you got something and sometimes you're out there for 8 hours and you get nothing.

We have to know where the people are. We have to know our neighbors what their what their dreams are, what their hearts, the people that sit in the row beside you take a look to your left and to your right. If you're to be fishers of men. Do you know that? Do you know if they have recognized Jesus as Lord?

You've sat there for at least one week. We have to know people and there's patience. And we have to. We have to expect God to move in that and expect them to say yes to Jesus, even if it takes a long time. Some people you share that message of hope with them, that God saved you, that God is going to help you get out of this situation.

If you say yes to him and if you're obedient and immediately right there, all in, we've seen those stories. But then there's some people it's like watching that bobber go up and down a little bit, like, Ooh, oh, they almost got it. And then it goes under and you can't get you real with them. And it's it's kelp or seaweed.

I mean, some people they give up and well I'm not going to fish over there again, but you know, that fish is still over there because he's been biting. And so what you do is you cast it back out over there and you wait. Sometimes we fish in areas and ponds where they're just just full of bass and crappie.

Sometimes it's shark week and we hold on to the edge of the boat and we're doing that for some time, but that catch is worth it. Whether it takes 2 seconds or it takes 20 years, that catch is worth it. Part of the cost is are you willing to endure and be patient and continue to do good and continue to obey and continue to follow.

Again, if you've not repented, how can you follow and if you've not followed? Well, how can you be sent? Some of us know that we are called to do something right now. You may be told, Hey, you need to take this person out for lunch. You need to call your coworker, You need to say hey to your dad.

You need to ask for forgiveness in this person. We hit this corner over here. You need to give them ten bucks, whatever it is. Sometimes we get that that small thing of asking of obedience, and then we don't do it. Sometimes we forget. Sometimes like, well, we got a debit card or well, there's they're in their naptime right now, so I'm not going to call them.

We make excuses. And in the moment, once we're especially if we're in church, we've repented, we're on this high, we're on this excitement like, yes, God, I'm going to do anything. I will I will travel across the country. I'll learn a new language for you. But then we get home and they're like, Man, I forgot to call my mom.

I forgot to hand that person ten bucks. I forgot to say hey to that person who sits across the church from me. And we may go, Oh God, if you really want me to do it, you would have reminded me of God already told you to do it. And so, like, there's no sense on bartering and something that he already told you to do.

And so, like in our faith, we have the two seasons where we get excited and we go and do it, but then we forget or like we get home or like, well, if I forgot and God didn't remind me, well, I'm too young anyways, or I'm too old or, you know, God, you really don't want to use me.

Like I've said too many things to her, too many people, or I've done this. We excuse things away, but we got to be like Peter and we and we do not haste. We do not wait. If God's calling you to repent, do not wait. If you saying to follow, do not wait. If you saying the fishermen do not wait.

I'm sorry. This quote from Charles SPURGEON, it says, Remember, it is possible for us to have grace in the heart and yet still be a disobedient. We, the church, have many such mournful specimens, specimens We cannot but hope that they will enter heaven for their washed in the precious blood and clothe in the Savior's righteousness. But they do little, if anything, for Christ because they have tampered with his calls, they have violated convictions and have started back from duty in the exercise of their unbelief.

Instead of pressing forward in the glory and the majesty of simple faith in Christ Jesus. If you feel that you have anything to do, do it directly. If God calls you to preach, do it before you go home. Do it in the street. I pray you. And if there's anything which claims your immediate attention, if there is a poor person, you ought to relieve.

If there's anyone to whom you ought to speak before leaving this place, I beseech you to do not trifle with conviction, but as faithful service of Jesus Christ being saved and professing to Him, I pray you instantly do whatever you feel you have to do for him. Are you going to do it? We are all called to be disciples.

We are all called to share the gospel. We are all called to spread God's message of love and hope it's not just the preacher's job. It's not just so-and-so's job. It's not your Sunday school teacher or your small group leader. We are all called to share the message, make disciples. Now there are people who are called to be pastors and preachers and small good leaders and so on and so on.

But they aren't called to be that until they are called to disciple first, which goes to our next spot and our last point here of the call to be sent when I when when I speak in this in this section here, I'm not talking about the call to be a pastor or to call to be a missionary. This grand grandiose thing I'm talking about the call to make disciples, the call to make Jesus known as you go that call in the Great Commission of Make Disciples of All Nations.

It's an as you go statement. It's not when you go, it's as you go, as you go to work, as you parent your kids, as you join the PTA, as you have dinner with your friends. As you sit here in church, as you go make disciples. Peter wasn't able to be sent until we spent that time following God in obedience.

Because what we look at this other part of Peter's life, I'm going go to Matthew 16, making note of it verses 13 through 18. Peter has watched Jesus over over some time. He's seen what he's done, he's seen what he says, he's seen his character and Peter immediately knew he was a he was God on the boat. But in this moment, we see a different revelation here that Peter gets verse 14 and they said, some say Sorry, 13.

Now, when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea, Philip II, he asked the disciples, How do you say that the son of man is? And I said, Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah. Oh, they say Jeremiah, one of the prophets and Jesus said to them, The disciples, But who do you say that I am? SIMON Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God and Jesus answered him, Blessed are you, Simon For Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you.

But my father, who was in heaven, I tell you, you are Peter. And on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell cannot prevail It. Peter spent time with Jesus. So that's the only way he was able to recognize that he was the Son of God. No person told him that only his obedience to Jesus and his time spent with God.

And in that moment he was then called to be the rock of the church. You have a special calling, a unique calling that only you can do. You have a story and a testimony that only that will allow you to reach people. Only you can reach. Peter If we fast forward in his life, he was the first person to preach the Gospel after the Holy Spirit fell upon them.

He was also the first person to preach to the Gentiles without Peter's obedience and without Peter's ability to jump out the boat or to say, Hey, you are the son of God. Without that, this church would not exist. Your life as a Christian would not exist because of Peter's disobedience. But praise God, he was obedient. And even when he wasn't God still use that.

Peter repented. He was. He followed. And then he was called. Some of us were poured out of dark moments in our lives. So as we pulled out of dark situations, we we have stories of faith because of God's goodness, because of how bad our life was, if you compare it. And when I was life in our and our faith, we talk about the sum of how like my my relationship with God leans more in faith because I had to trust God to provide for things like food, like shelter, a loving family, that somebody is not going to come in and touch me.

Someone is not going to take our food. Someone is not going to spend all the money on a of crack versus some meals for dinner for the family of five. Like there was faith, like our trust in God. My my religion of God is God. You're going to provide you have saved from these horrible situations. Now, on the other side, Emma, she grew up in a Christian household.

She grew up in a family of faith. And so she her relationship with God looks different. Hers is not necessarily a God save me out of this situation. But what she has learned through time is that that God is good, God is consistent, that God is who he says he is. And here God proved himself to me by his supernatural ability to show up.

God prove himself to Emma through being consistent from what she read in here. You need both. You need both. But we both have a testimony. We both have a story to share. We both have people that we only we can reach. There are people that she's going to be able to meet and talk to that I can't share with because I didn't grow up in the faith.

I don't know what it means to have somebody in my household who divorced or beat somebody else in the family while still preaching on a Sunday. I don't know what that might mean. She might not either. But she has that body of knowing what it means to grow up in a Christian home. But she might have a harder time reaching somebody who grew up on drugs because her family was nowhere near that and refused to be around people like that for the safety of their family.

You have that same story, whatever your background is, whatever your story is, and because you've been you've repented, because you followed, you can now be called to be sent to share that testimony and to share God's Word. A couple of weeks ago, some of you guys were up here up front. Ryan had called. You guys said, Hey, if you don't know what your calling is, if you're if you're struggling with what it is that God is asking you to do, if you're like, God, what?

What am I doing? Some of you came up here and you might still be in that boat one on one to plug our app, our one church app. We have a spiritual gifts test on there that you can take a stand up completed. And in that you can see where God's moving in your life and what things he has gifted you with and how you can use those to share his word.

That might be like we talked about earlier, opening up a coffee shop that might be inviting somebody over to dinner because you have a hospitality. It might be hosting a prayer group because you know how to pray. But we have to be we we cannot haste in it. We have to be ready to go. When he says go take that step of faith, God chooses to use sinful, broken people to share the hope of his son and don't deny it.

Don't be like Jonah in the Old Testament. It's only four chapters if you want to read it and don't know the story. But Jonah basically was told, go share the word. And he repeatedly said no. And different things happened to him to make sure that he did it. Despite his willingness, he's kind of forced into it. Don't say no when God tells you to do something, if he's told you to repent, if he's told you to follow, if he's told you to do this, I'm going to close with a video.

What's a female can go and come up with a video. And this is a latter part of Peter's life. Peter has repented. Peter has accepted the call to follow. He has been a fisher of men. But then Peter says no, Peter. Peter says, No, I don't. I don't know. Jesus, No, I'm a I'm a preserve. My safety. So what happens is when Jesus is is is being poured into the place where he's going to be judged and try and he's going to get ready to be thrown up into the cross to die for our sins.

Peter denies Jesus. A crowd comes in and says, Hey, aren't you one of those? You're one of the his disciples. You spend time with him. This is after he recognized one that he was God and that He was the Son of God later, and He's still denied Jesus like you're one of his people. He says, No, I don't know that man.

Hmm. He denied what God had told him to do to make him known. In this specific story, Jesus said, You're going to deny me. We talked about that last time I preached, but that is that he was still obedient. Peter still had the choice to obey despite this, foretelling that, like you still have that choice to actually obey and say, you know, Oh, yeah, I do know him.

Let me go ahead and chain me up to it.

Peter acted like the rational who we all were in that moment and said, This isn't worth it. My life is not worth it. Who? How people think of me isn't worth it. If I say yes to this, my I'm. I leave my wife as a widow. My family's business is going to go down. If I say yes to this, my life is gone.

My life will be gone. Even if that's okay. The people around me, their life is going to be altered forever to He was disobedient because he refused the call to follow in that moment. He refused the call to be sent. But something else happens. I'm going to watch this clip. Grace is God's unmerited favor for us, His crazy love.

And the truth is, many times we struggle, understand it. If you find yourself struggling to understand God's grace, don't beat yourself up. Even the disciples struggle with understanding grace. Jesus said, You, you're alive. I can't believe you're alive. Okay? I was in the boat and I wasn't catching any fish. Okay? But I heard this voice and the voice said, Cast your net to the other side.

And so I'm thinking, I'm a fisherman, I know what I'm doing, but I'm not catching any fish, you know? And so I thought that net over there and then a gaggle of fish pop into the net and I'm going, This is a total miracle. Who could have done that? I need to know who told me to throw the net to the other side and boom, I look up and I mean, there is you you look at me on the seashore, I go on, It is I, the Lord is alive.

I can't believe you're alive. This is awesome. And you get out of the boat. Come on, Peter. Yeah? Do you love me? Yes. I love you. I love you. You're alive. This is so great. Good. Then feed my sheep and you get out of the boat. Come on, man. It's him. Peter. Yeah? Do you love me? I love you.

Yes. And I'm so sorry about that rooster clucking. I had no idea what that meant, but I do not. I'm better for it. All right. Okay, then feed my Andrew. I'm smiling, but I'm serious. Come on, Get out of the boat. It's him, Peter. Yeah? Do you love me? Jesus. Mere words cannot describe the passion that I have for you.

I love you. You know everything. I love you. Good. Good. Then feed my sheep. I didn't even know you had livestock. That is so like you, though. There's something new about you all the time. That's what I love about you, Peter. Yeah? Do you remember the morning the ladies went to the tomb? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. We're on the upper room trying to figure out what to do next, you know, because we thought you were dead.

You know you were dead. You know, we're trying to figure all that out, you know? And Mary comes running up in Mary's, like, saying Beehive, beehive, beehive. And I'm thinking, I'm allergic to bees. I keep them out, you know what I'm saying? But as she kept getting closer, I heard a correctly she was saying, he's alive. He's alive.

He's alive and we're going. Whose life was alive? And she said she was at the tomb and the tomb was empty. And she said that there was an angel there. And the angel said, Go tell the disciples and Peter that everything is okay is risen. And so me and John, we high tell it down there. And if John says he beat me, he's totally lying.

All right, I beat him. FBI. All right. You know, And we get down there and I'm looking. And that to me, is it is empty. There's nothing in there, you know what I'm saying? And I'm like, what does this mean? What does this mean? And John is right there. John is so good at words. He should write a book.

He is so good with words. And John said, Don't you get it, Peter? This is everything Jesus said he was going to do and you did it and it's done. Let's go. This is so great. Wait. The angel said What? I'll go tell the disciples and Peter that. Everything is okay. He is risen. You've risen. Let's go. This.

He said what? Go tell the disciples and Pete. Go to the disciples and know you said my name. Why did you say my name? Peter? That's Grace. No, no, I don't. I don't deserve that. Because that night people kept coming up to me, asking me if I belong to you, if I was with you. And I kept denying you left and right.

All right. No. It'll take me my whole life to make up for what I did. It was unforgivable for what I did. What I did on the cross was meant to take what is unforgivable and make it forgivable. That's my grace. It's not about you. It's always about me. That's Grace, Peter. Grace is available for you. Grace is what allows us to accept that call out of darkness into marvelous light, that call repentance, grace.

This is what allows us to be in the service of by being in his presence, by being faithfully obedient. That's the grace to follow. And grace is to still be of service to God, despite who we are as sinful people, to use us as instruments to share His grace. That's a call to be sent. You have three options today, and everybody, I hope, makes a choice to accept one of these three calls.

Deacons, elders, if I want to come out or a pastoral team, you have the choice to repent and receive Lord Jesus as your Lord and Savior, Lord and Savior.

You have the option to call to to accept the call to follow. You need to deepen your faith. You need to read more. You need to pray more. Maybe it's joining a small group, but whatever it is to get more into God's presence and step away from those things that are not of God, Maybe your follow means to no longer follow your friends.

It might mean changing jobs or the call to be sent as God calling you to to to go to a specific person, to go cross the street and have coffee with your neighbor as he call on you to launch a small group. Is he calling you into your ministry? You or is he simply calling you? Hey, I need you to tell about my grace to my world, to your coworker that you sit every day for the past 13 years.

You have those three options. Because for me, I ran away from my call. At one point I see in this account of Peter, they were back on the boat, they were back fishing. They left what God told them to do and make me fishers of men and actually went back to be fisherman, like just a regular fisherman, because I thought he was dead.

Peter potentially thought that I messed up. So he can't make, he can't use me anymore. So mean just go back to what I was doing when he first found me. I've been called to pretend to be a ministry since I was 16 years old. I've known that when I was 23 I ran from it because I was hurt by so many people in the ministry.

I dealt with a pastor who was had some rights issues. I dealt with a coworker who was my friend, who just did hurtful things and didn't understand where I was sit and that I dealt with depression. And so I was like, God, there's no way, no way you can use me. How can I tell somebody about your love if I still don't understand your love for me?

So I left and I worked for a sound shop doing graphic design, and that's what I'll be doing for the rest of my life because I did enjoy it. I do enjoy it. But what I didn't know was that God's grace was still working in the background because about a year later I met Ryan and Vanessa, who are launching this church.

And in that they're like, Hey, we like to tell us a little bit of your story. We see that you're a designer. We need somebody to help with our stuff. Marketing Are you in selling to God? Have I told you I'm not working for our church again? Like I've worked for a church in a pair Church been burned both times.

Not doing it. But I said yes because I was like, You know what? I'm not doing youth ministry. I'm not doing kids. I'm not like in ministry. I'm just making things look pretty for the church. But two years after I said yes to that, God said, All right, I told you you're going to be a minister. It's time to look.

Get your license. You started this. He quit. He was showing me grace, just like Jesus showed Peter Grace. Whatever reasons you have said no to accepting this call, whatever call it is that you have the God's place in your heart right now. There is still grace in that. God still uses that He can use your stories and maybe in your disobedience there is now a testimony for you to share to reach somebody else.

What's what are you going to accept? Call to repent called follow her. Call to repent or to be sent out up here. Deacons, if you want to pray with them, ask questions, have them pray for you. They're here, available for you, or you just need a space to be. But don't leave here without accepting one of those calls.

Please. I urge you.