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Is God Allowed to Break His Own Commandments? A Video of That's a Good Question Video Blog Jon Delger Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Church Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 2 Creating Meaningful Traditions Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Bible Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 1 Jon Delger Withstand: How The Culture War Is A Spiritual Battle Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Q & A Kelly Needham | Women's Christmas Party People Pleasing Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation?

Christianity and Politics: Should Christians Have Anything to do with Politics? Session 1 Video Teaching Jon Delger Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Church Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 2 Creating Meaningful Traditions Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Bible Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 1 Jon Delger Withstand: How The Culture War Is A Spiritual Battle Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Q & A Kelly Needham | Women's Christmas Party People Pleasing Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation?

Sermon Discussion Questions 1 Title Sunday, March 17, 2024 Withstand Ephesians 6:17B-20 Missional Decline v.s. The Word of God 2 Overview Main Idea: Your effectiveness in spiritual warfare is connected to your depth of spiritual intimacy Sermon Outline: 1. Effectiveness in Spiritual Warfare 2. Deepening your Spiritual Intimacy 3 Pre-Questions 1. The passage mentions the "sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." How can we more effectively wield this "sword" in our daily lives and in spiritual warfare? Share a time when the Word of God was particularly powerful in your life. 2. Read Corinthians 10:3-5. How does this passage help us understand spiritual warfare better? 4 Questions 1. The main idea of the message today was, "Your effectiveness in spiritual warfare is connected to your depth of spiritual intimacy." Do you feel like that is true? How do you see that play out in your life? 2. The passage emphasizes the importance of "praying at all times in the Spirit." Discuss how prayer strengthens our spiritual intimacy and equips us for spiritual warfare. How can we cultivate a consistent prayer life? 3. Paul asks for prayers that he may "declare [the gospel] boldly, as I ought to speak." How can we overcome fear or hesitation to boldly proclaim the gospel in our own lives? Discuss ways we can support and encourage each other in this mission. 4. Psalm 1 says that believers ought to delight in the law [scripture] daily. When Jesus was in any crisis he went back to scripture (Matthew 4:4, Matthew 21:13, Matthew 27:46, Luke 4:18-19). What does this show us about how Jesus delighted in scripture? What does that show us about our relationship with scripture should be? PDF Download

Unboxing Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:1-9 Encouragement During Hard Ministry Unboxing Scripture Mitchell Leach Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Church Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 2 Creating Meaningful Traditions Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Bible Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 1 Jon Delger Withstand: How The Culture War Is A Spiritual Battle Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Q & A Kelly Needham | Women's Christmas Party People Pleasing Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation?

Kelly Needham | Women's Christmas Party Keynote Session Video Teaching Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Church Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 2 Creating Meaningful Traditions Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger I Didn't Know I Needed the Bible Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Session 1 Jon Delger Withstand: How The Culture War Is A Spiritual Battle Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Coming Out of Catholicism | Q & A Kelly Needham | Women's Christmas Party People Pleasing Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation?

Sermon Discussion Questions 1 Title Sunday, November 10, 2024 Obadiah Obadiah 1:10-18 The Warning of Justice 2 Overview Main Idea: God's justice is found in His judgement. Sermon Outline: 1. God judges sin of omission (vv10-11) 2. God judges sin of commission (vv12-14) 3. God judges sin to bring justice (vv15-16) 4. God judges sin to bring restoration (vv17-18) 3 Pre-Questions When you think about the concept of justice, what comes to mind? How does our culture’s view of justice compare with what you understand about God’s justice? Have you ever witnessed a situation where someone stood by and did nothing in the face of wrongdoing? How did that make you feel, and what do you think was lost by their inaction? 4 Questions In verses 10-11, Edom is condemned for standing by and doing nothing while Jerusalem was attacked. How does this concept of “sin by omission” challenge our understanding of responsibility toward others? Reflect on James 4:17, which states, “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” How can this verse encourage us to be more proactive in our relationships and communities? In verses 12-14, Edom actively participated in Israel’s suffering. How does this show the destructive impact of actions taken against others, even if indirectly? Consider Proverbs 24:17-18, which warns against rejoicing in someone else’s downfall. How can we guard our hearts against this attitude, especially in a culture that sometimes celebrates others’ misfortune? Verses 17-18 describe a future where Israel is restored. How does this promise of restoration after judgment reflect God’s ultimate purpose for redemption? Read 1 Peter 5:10, which says that after we have suffered, God will “restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish” us. How does God’s promise of restoration encourage you in your faith journey, especially during times of hardship? PDF Download

Sermon Discussion Questions 1 Title Sunday, May 19, 2024 The Church Never Preaches On... Mark 13:32-37 An Overview of the End Times 2 Overview Main Idea: Christ has announced He will return, so we need to be prepared. Sermon Outline: 1. We don't know when it will happen, so we must stand guard. (vv32-33) 2. We don't know when the King will return, so we must stay awake. (vv34-37) 3 Pre-Questions 1. Before we start, take a moment to humble yourself when we start talking about end times. This topic can be divisive. Our goal in this discussion isn't to leave with a perfectly mapped-out picture of the way end times will be played out. Love your fellow community group members and seek to worship together in unity. 4 Questions 1. When the bible talks about end times, what kind of literature is that? (Hint: it has to do with the word apocalypse) What kind of language is used in apocalyptic literature (literal or metaphorical)? 2. Read Isaiah 11:6–9. How does this help us understand this topic? How is this a reversal of the fall? 3. Read Revelation 11:15–19. How does this help us find comfort and encouragement? PDF Download

Take Courage Sermon Series: Take Courage Ryan DB Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Main Passage: 2 Chronicles 15:1-7 Transcript Today is the day that the Lord has made. So let us rejoice and be glad in it. And everyone said, Amen. Church, I fully believe that God is doing something amazing in this world right now. I know that when we look at the headlines, it's easy to get discouraged or maybe even a little distracted. Listen, I'm not saying to ignore the headlines. We need to know what's going on in this world. But I need you to know that that's just that's one part of what God is doing in this world. He is doing so much more than what the news will report to you. Amen? So here's how to say to you, if the King and the Creator of the entire universe is doing a good work and his good plan is unfolding before us right now and he invites you into it, why wouldn't you step into that? Today marks our halfway point in our two-year Proclaim campaign journey. We're going to reflect on the last year because what God has already done has been amazing. As we look to year two, we anticipate God to do even more amazing things. So if you're not part of Proclaim, or maybe you've started coming to peace since we started this journey. Here's what I'm going to say to you. This sermon series and this spiritual journey that we're starting today is your on-ramp. So jump on board. For the next couple of weeks, I'm calling upon the whole entire church to walk through this devotional together. I pray that you do. Everyone has a copy. Not only are there devotionals in there, daily devotionals, but you'll also see that there's the sermon outlines for the next three sermons so you can take notes and follow along. We want you to pray. We want you to seek the Lord. We want you to spend time with Him each day so that together as a church we can look to October 27, the day this all concludes, where we will all be given a chance to either commit for the first time or recommit to what God is doing through proclaim. If you've been around Peace Church, you know he's doing an awesome work. We're going to recount some of that here today and in the coming weeks. But what I want us all to do is before we think about any sort of financial gift in a couple of weeks, right now I want us just to stop and press into God. Can we do that? Let's do that together. So you have your devotional, I know you do. It was on your seat. Turn to page one. Now what we're going to be doing is we're going to be walking through a passage in the Bible together for the next three weeks. It's a little known passage that people don't get to a whole lot. Comes from the book of 2 Chronicles. It's 2 Chronicles chapter 15. This is the story of King Asa. I'm excited to get into it. We're going to look at King Asa and his response to a prophetic word that he gets from a prophet named Azariah. Now if you want to use the Bibles we provided, that is on page 467. You can turn there now. But as you see on your devotional, if you want to follow along, you don't have to do what you want. But your first feeling would be this, and it's the title of today's message. And it's take courage, take courage. As we look at second Chronicles, chapter 15, verses one to seven is what we're gonna be looking at today. As with all things at Peace Church, we're going to use Scripture as our inspiration and our foundation for our path forward. But this is a passage that I know you probably don't get to 2 Chronicles a whole lot, let alone chapter 15. And so coming to this, you may be a little lost as to what's going on. So I just want to take a moment, set the context so that you understand what's happening in this passage. Some of you love the history, some of you not so much but we're gonna talk about the history what's going on here because it's important to lay the context for what's happening so at this point we're clearly we're in the Old Testament at this point in biblical history God's people the Israelites are split into two different kingdoms the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom the northern kingdom was just called Israel of the original twelve tribes of Israel it had 10 of the tribes then we had the southern kingdom The southern kingdom was named Judah. It's where Jerusalem was that and it only had two of the kingdoms now The northern kingdom had nothing but bad Kings nothing, but apostate heretical Kings who Were against the God of the Bible they brought people away from God and his heart. The southern kingdom had a mix of good and bad kings. Now the northern kingdom, because they only had bad kings, they were wiped off the face of the planet fairly quickly. But the southern kingdom endures for a while. Now the passage that we're going to get at happened around 900 BC. King Asa has assumed the throne of the southern kingdom. King Asa great-great grandson of King David You guys know King David Turn to your neighbor and tell him what King David did a Lot is the answer He did a lot killed the Goliath wrote half the Psalms awesome guy Now this is King David's great-great grandson. His name is Asa King Asa comes to power But we need to know is that King Asa is a good king and he's known as a good king. He has kind of a rough ending, but he's known as a good king. But he assumes power, he assumes the throne after back-to-back wicked kings who did not follow Yahweh, who did not follow the God of the Bible. In fact, they set up temples and they set up places of worship to foreign and false demonic gods. But Asa comes in, and he's not having any of it. Asa comes in and he brings it, we call them reforms, but really what he does is he cleans house. He cleans house to bring people's heart back to God. And we find ourselves in chapter 15, but we're introduced to Asa in chapter 14. And one of the things that you see from Asa is right off the bat, he does what we all should do. He seeks the Lord. He does what we just sang about, you know, we sang we surrender all. I'm not sure how many of us actually surrender it all, but this is what Asa does, and this is why we still talk about him nearly 3,000 years later. So Asa begins to rid the land of foreign idols. He's a great leader. He brings social stability to the kingdom. He builds up the infrastructure. He strengthens the army. He seeks the Lord. He calls people to seek after the Lord and God blesses the kingdom with ten years, a decade of stability and peace. But then a foreign army attacks and this army is twice the size of Asa's kingdom. And so Asa has a choice. And what does he do? He seeks the Lord. It's a decisive moment for Asa. He seeks the Lord. He places it all before God and he cries out to God. And so, when this foreign army attacks, that's nearly twice the size, they're outnumbered roughly two to one, God brings victory to Asa and his kingdom. A massive upset, a massive victory. It's amazing. Everyone thought they're going to die, but they didn't. God brought this incredible military victory. And so Asa and his army, they're returning to Jerusalem. They're returning as victors. They're returning still with the blood and sweat of battle upon them. And as they're getting towards the city, the city's there welcoming back their heroes and this triumphant procession because everything's been so much better than what they anticipated. So they're getting to the city and that's where we're gonna pick up. That's where we're gonna pick up in our Bibles. So would you hear the word of the Lord? Second Chronicles chapter 15, we'll look at verses one to seven today. Would you hear God's word? 2 Chronicles 15:1-7 The Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded, 2 and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. 3 For a long time Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest and without law, 4 but when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. 5 In those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands. 6 They were broken in pieces. Nation was crushed by nation and city by city, for God troubled them with every sort of distress. 7 But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.” This is God's word. Let's pray and we'll continue. Let's pray. Father God, we are thankful for the work that you are doing in our midst. Thank you for the front row seat that we get to see. Give us the eyes to see all the more of what you are doing. Yes, Lord, we thank you for the Proclaim campaign. We do place it before you. We rely on you. The glory is yours and we stand humbled and grateful to be part of what you are doing in this world and in this church. Father, as we begin this spiritual journey, and as we look to your word today, Holy Spirit, would you please illuminate in our hearts your truth here today and for this spiritual journey so that we may be united with what you're calling us to do. And we do pray these things in the name of the risen Savior. In the name of King Jesus, we pray. And everyone said, Amen. All right, church, there's so much that we can draw just from these first seven verses, but we're gonna focus on just one main idea here today, and it is, I'll fill in if you wanna use that in your packets, it's here it is. Here's our main idea for today. In a world turning from Him, God calls us to take courage in Him. In a world turning from Him, God calls us to take courage in him. So, as we learn about what God did in and through Asa and the kingdom, let's talk about how we are to call to take courage today. We're going to look at how courage is about taking a stand. We're first going to see how we are to stand in the spirit, and then we're going to talk about how we are to stand in the contrast. So, first, let's talk about the courage to take a stand, to stand in the Spirit. Prayerfully, you have your Bibles open. Go back to verse one. It says this, "'The Spirit of God came upon Azariah, the son of Oded.'" So here we are introduced to this prophet named Azariah. He has some important things to say, but let me just say this real quickly. This is the only time we hear from this prophet. You may see the name Azariah elsewhere in the Old Testament. Those are different Azariahs. This is the only time we see this guy here I'm just a this is a side note is a total side note please hear me this this side no is definitely for everybody but I have a special burden on my heart to speak to the men for some reason right now is for everyone but my heart was speak to the guys right now this what this this little this little snippet of Scripture reminds me of is that your entire life, the entirety of your life, could be boiled down and remembered for only one thing you said and did. Ezariah lived a whole entire life. He had an incredible ministry, but we only get one thing. He has just a short little reference in the scriptures, but it's so powerful. Man, you're gonna live a long life prayerfully, but here's what I'm gonna say to you. Your life may be boiled down to just one thing you say and do. So mind carefully what you say and do, because you don't know what people will say. So say good things. Say courageous things. Say powerful things. Say good things. Say things that build up other people. Say things that call people's heart back to God. Keep Ezariah in mind. His entire life was summarized in one thing he said, and yours may be as well. So remember that whenever you come back to this passage. So Ezariah, the Spirit of God came upon him, verse 2, and Ezariah went out to meet Asa and he said to him, hear me Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. So while the southern kingdom is given the blanket name of Judah, Judah was one of the two tribes of the southern kingdom. It was Judah and Benjamin. So when Ezariah says, listen up Judah and Benjamin, he's basically saying, I want everyone's attention. This goes not just for the king, not just for the army, this goes for the entire kingdom. And then he gives them a word from God. And Ezariah starts a prophetic speech with a theological truth about God. Here's what he says, continue in verse two. Says, the Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you. But if you forsake him, he will forsake you. So Ezariah is telling them to do exactly what he is actually doing in this very moment, standing in the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God came upon Azariah the prophet and he brings out a bold truth. But I know, and you probably do too, some cynical people are going to be critical of what is said here, but let me just try to understand what's being said here theologically. He says, The Lord is with you why you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you. But if you forsake him, he will forsake you. So here's how to understand this theological truth that we're looking at. If you want to leave God, in a sense, he'll let you. But if you stay with him, he'll never leave you. And that's not contingent upon your strength. Your strength will wax and wane. But if your heart is for God, He will never leave you." So church, don't just stand in God's love, although you should and we do. Stand in His spirits, the Holy Spirit, the living and breathing Spirit of God. And the Bible tells us that for those of us in the New Covenant, the Spirit dwells within us because Christians, the time of the Old Testament and the time of the Old Covenant is over and now through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, we live in the new covenant and everyone said amen, amen, amen. And where the spirit no longer resides in the building, but the Holy Spirit resides in a people, the church of God, Christians. If you've called on the name of Jesus truly, then you have the Holy Spirit within you. And so it's time for you to take your stand before the kingdom of man and before God. Courage is about taking a stand, to stand in the Spirit, but let's also talk about standing in the contrast. Go to verses 3 and 7. Now let me ask you something. I want to know what you think. Would you say that people on a whole are forgetful people? I think so. I think on a whole we are forgetful people. Except, except for when someone hurts us. Then we never forget that. God being great and merciful to us when we don't deserve it, we'll forget that by the end of the day. But someone hurts us, we'll hold on to that for the rest of our life. We are interesting people, aren't we? God gives us so much goodness that we don't deserve on a daily basis, and yet we forget it before our eyes even fall asleep. But we hold on to hurt. What's with us that we'd want to hold on to hurt and just forget about goodness? And so what Azariah is doing here is he's trying to help them remember something. Because Azariah knows something about the human condition that you all just confessed, we're forgetful people. We forget so quickly. So Ezariah starts out with this theological truth and then he's going to turn their minds to help them remember something. And that's what verses 3-6 are. Verses 3-6 are a quick history lesson. These verses are speaking about a time known as the time of the judges. There's an entire book of the Bible dedicated to this time. It's called Judges. It's a 400 year span in Israel's history when God's people did not have a king. Now, if you've read the book of Judges, you'll know that really the book of Judges is just nothing but this retelling of this constant cycle that happens over and over and over for 400 years. The same lesson is being taught, but the people aren't getting it. See here's what happens in the time of the judges The people they don't have a king. They don't have a leader who's gonna call their hearts to God so it's kind of left to them as a people but these people have times of peace and prosperity and their hearts just kind of drift away from God and They forget God and they forget his love and they forget who he is and they kind of just say to God, I don't need you anymore. We got it. Things are good. And God is like, okay, if you don't want my goodness and I'll take it from you. And then what happens if you know the story, a foreign army comes in and attacks the people. And so what do the people do? They cry out to dad. They cry out to God and God in his goodness. He raises up a judge, a temporary leader who's going to come in and bring about some military stability and some victory and bring people's heart back to God. And there's peace for a time. And then that judge dies. And then what happens? The same thing over and over and over for 400 years. The same cycle. Why? Because we hold on to hurt and we let go of goodness. And we don't remember what God has done. And it doesn't take very long for people to forget God's promises towards us. And so as Uriah, he's reminding them of this history because he's trying to draw a contrast. He's saying our people went for so long through so much times of strife and brokenness, so many times of turning to God and he saves us, he saved them, and then later they reject God. And what he's saying is we are at this moment right now. Because don't forget the context. They're coming back from a military victory. And Ezraiah's like, hold the fanfare, hold the celebration, stop for a second, guys. This is where it all falls apart. If you know your history, this is where it all falls apart. God just brought us a massive victory, so we need to stay with him at all times. Don't get comfortable. Yes, God's going to bring us a time of peace and prosperity, but we need to press into God every single day. Don't forget the history. It's so easy to forget God when things are going good. That's what Ezra is doing. He's drawing a contrast between what was and what is. He wants to make sure that they don't repeat the past, so he gives them a quick history lesson so that he can remind them, we're not that people anymore. Things are different now. The history's changed. We are a new people, so don't fall back into the old ways. He's saying those were terrible times. Don't repeat the past. He's drawn a contrast between the people then and the people now and he does it with these two very powerful words. If you underline in your Bible, I'd encourage you to underline these, the first two words of verse seven. I love this, but you, as arise making a distinction. He's drawing a contrast between what was and what is, between who they were and who they are now. Some of us need to make that distinction in our lives. Some of us need to keep that contrast between who you were outside of faith in Jesus and who you are now that you are in Christ. But you, but what does he say? Look at your passage. But you take courage. Do not let your hands be weak for your work shall be rewarded. As Uriah is saying, yes, those terrible times are over, but they can come back in an instant. So stay the course. Be courageous. Don't grow faint. Keep the faith. Men, be courageous. Teenagers, be courageous. Young adults, do the right thing. Keep the faith. God says your work will be rewarded. What that just means is that you be faithful to God, he's going to respond favorably to you. I'm not saying it's all going to go well, but God will do something good. Remember the context. The people and the king, they're returning from a massive victory. The prophet says, you've had a massive victory, but make sure you give all the glory to God because you would not have had that victory without Him. It is His victory. He gets the glory. Don't celebrate yourselves, celebrate Him. Same warning goes for us, Peace Church. We've had an incredible year of year one of this campaign. It'd be very easy to pat ourselves on the back. And I do say a massive thank you to this church for stepping out in such sacrificial faith. But this is God's glory. This is God's work. This is God's story that's unfolding. And thanks be to God that we get to be a part of it. Amen? Church, do you know a key way to know if you are keeping the faith? Do you want to know a key way to know if you are keeping the faith? You have contrast to your life. Contrast between who you were before Jesus and now that you are in Christ and contrast between who you are in Christ and the rest of the world. I'm not saying that makes you a better person, but I'm saying that there's contrast. That's how you know if you're keeping the faith. You want to know how you're not keeping the faith? You blend in. You blend in to how the world operates and how the world thinks. But we are to have contrast in our lives. So is there contrast in your life? Because contrast takes courage. I fully believe that God is pouring out His blessings on this campaign, but far from making us lazy or apathetic, this should make us humble. This should make us prayerful. This should keep us on our knees ever knowing, ever knowing that this is God's work as we rely on Him. And I'm telling you now, as a church, not just individually, as a church, this takes Holy Spirit level empowerment and encouragement. Because we don't have prophets speaking a new word from God. We have the Holy Spirit reminding us of the Holy Word of God. I'm gonna say something, I'm gonna say it once, even though I wanna say it a lot, I'm gonna say it once, so listen up. You don't need a word from God, you need to read the Bible. Lord, I wanna say it again, but I won't. There's lots of word from God in there. And with it, the truth and the encouragement to be courageous in this world. So saturate yourself in the word of God and I guarantee the spirit of God will meet you there. Next week, we're going to look at some of the bolder ways and the bold ways that King Asa and the people respond to this exhortation from Ezariah. But right now, let's just stop for a second and let's consider a challenge. See, Ezariah was called, Ezariah called Asa to respond with courage. So let's talk about how we're going to respond in courage right now. So here's my question for you. Is your courage proclaimed? Is your courage proclaimed? As King Asa lived out his courage, let's consider two ways in this moment we are in, how we might proclaim, that is to make known or put on display the courage we now have in Christ. So here's the first thing I want you to consider. Is your courage proclaimed in your spirit-filled obedience? Now I know that if you're American in the house, we are freedom-loving Americans. We do not like the word obey or obedience. So let's consider it another way. What governs your life? Because the truth is, you obey something. For too many of us, we obey our sinful nature. But we obey something, whether it's a moral code or an elected governor. But only one form of obedience actually brings the freedom our hearts long for, and that's when we obey God. Jesus Christ said some amazing things. He said some hard things. But he said that if we follow Him, then we'll know the truth, and the truth will set us free. Following Christ leads to freedom, freedom from sin, freedom from having to live up to cultural standards, freedom from societal pressures. Church, what God is doing in our midst is unbelievable. Last year, we announced that our little church here in Middleville, Michigan, we were ranked in the top 100 fastest growing churches in the United States. And there's like over 350,000 churches in the United States. And last year we were in the top 100 fastest growing churches. That was amazing. We celebrated that. We were thankful for that. But we kind of looked at our square footage and we're like, okay, this is coming to an end because we just simply don't have the space right now, which is why we're doubling the size of our worship center, but we said, hey, we don't wanna see people stop coming to faith in Jesus, so let's plant a church in Wayland. So we've planted a church in Wayland, God's exploding that in incredible ways. And then, and then two weeks ago, I got news that for a second year in a row, we made the top 100 fastest growing churches in the United States, that somehow God made a way when space felt so limited. I'm not saying this to brag whatsoever. I'm saying this so that we can all understand the gravity of the weight of decisions that we need to make. And one of the things that we've said at Peace Church is that we don't want to just get big and bloated. We want to stay big and effective and connected. We want this big church to feel like a big family where everyone has a place and feels connected. And so we have a massive push for community groups. That's our small group ministry. You know that where we want people to get together in smaller groups to stay connected. And so we need people stepping up to be community group leaders. Now about a week and a half ago, I was talking to this couple about hosting a community group. I said, hey, would you please consider hosting a community group? And they said something, said some things that kind of broke my heart. They said, we don't want to host a community group because we're scared that people will judge our house. You open up your house to a community group and someone comes in and judges your house, you tell your lead pastor. Now invite them to a couple other churches in the neighborhood. And then they said this, my heart broke for that, and then they said, and we don't want to clean our baseboards every single week. Listen, church, we know that following Christ in this broken world is hard. In fact, it's so hard that Jesus recognizes it. And he even said to us, it's a good thing that he goes back to heaven, because when he gets there, he's going to send the Holy Spirit to fill us and to guide us. And so here's what I'm saying to you. I don't think to say, I don't want to host the community group because I have to clean my baseboards every week. That doesn't sound like a Holy So my question for you is, are you also giving answers that are not Holy Spirit led? When you give an answer to something that is a call from God or a call from your church, does your answer smell like the Holy Spirit? Or does it smell like selfishness or pride or something like that. Here's the question for us. If God has sent us the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us, and we're meant to stay in step with him, then our answers to his call will be informed and fueled by him. And there will be an alignment with him. So the question I have before you is, are you responding in ways that feel like it's the Holy Spirit leading you or comfortability. Christians, does your life courageously proclaim that you walk in step with the Holy Spirit? Because that's what it means to walk in step with the Spirit. That's what it means to have a Holy Spirit filled obedience is that your responses feel like a Holy Spirit level response. Verse one, the Spirit of God came upon Azariah, the son of Odad, and he went out. I love the simple things. I'm a simple man. I love the simple things we see in scripture. Verse two, those first four words, and he went out. That's just responding. Some of us just need to respond to what the Spirit's calling us to do. And he went out. The Holy Spirit came upon him and he obeyed. Christian, let the same be said of you as we look to a Holy Spirit-led courageous obedience in this world. And so, that's very generic. Let's get actually uncomfortably specific here for a moment. Can we do that? Is your courage proclaimed in your contrast-showing finances? Now, I don't mean proclaimed as in you go out and brag about how much you make or how much you give, even. But in our world, here's what I'd say to you. When we have a faith-based approach to our finances and when God's mission comes first in our lives, that's going to be clear whether we tried to hide it or not. Unfortunately, we live in a society like many others where we venerate those who have a lot of money, but I'll tell you right now, I'm more impressed by those who balance generosity and stewardship. Oh, oh, you paid cash for your truck, did you? Well, that's commendable, but did you rob God to do it? Or did you pay cash for your truck after you gave your first fruits to God and His work in this world? The challenge is very, very simple, my friends. Does God come first in your finances? Meaning, do you give to God before you do anything else with your money? If he's not first in your finances, then he's not first in your life. And this will be hard for some of you to hear, but if God is not first in your finances, then you are not in step with the Holy Spirit or God's will for your life. My prayer is that if when you look around at what God is doing here at Peace Church, you don't first immediately think of sticks and bricks, although we are so excited about what's happening. But this is about building a place where God's kingdom can go forth, and why would you not want to be a part of it? So depending on where you are in your faith journey, let me just give you some specific challenges as we close up. First one is this. Maybe for some of us, it's time just to look at your finances and simply start setting aside God's portion first. Before Uncle Sam gets his, before you think about your bills, before you think about anything else, it's time to sit down and just make a commitment that, God, you come first in my finances. And I'll just tell you, I'm not preaching at you. I want to set the example for this as well. My wife and I, I'll be transparent with you. My wife and I, when we get my paycheck, my wife doesn't have a paying job, but I do, when we get paid, when I get paid, the very first 10%, before Uncle Sam gets his cut, the very first 10% goes back to God's work through the local church without strings attached. We're not going to funnel our tithe to our favorite little accounts. It's a sacrificial gift to God, laying at the altar for Him to do with what He, for Him to do with it what He wants. But it doesn't stop there because we're excited about what God is doing elsewhere in this world. So we give on top of that to other causes that are near and dear to our hearts. I'll share more about that if you want. One of the things that we have a close heart for is the pro-life cause. So we give to pro-life causes. And then on top of that, we also give to Peace Church in other ways. If there's other needs that the church has, not to mention specifically thinking of the proclaim campaign. I am not telling you this to flex or to brag. I'm saying this as your leader to say, I will set the example first. I would never call you to do something that I myself am not also doing, but for some of us, we just tie. Maybe it's time just to sit down and say, all right, Lord, you're going to come first. Now, what does that mean? And then you seek the Lord. Second, maybe it's time to prayerfully commit to giving to the Proclaim campaign for the first time. Maybe you need to go to the Lord and seek the Lord for an amount that he's calling you to give and ask God, Lord, don't give me a comfortable amount. Give me a faith-filled, sacrificial amount to your work through the Proclaim campaign. Thirdly, maybe it's time to renew your commitment so that we can end strong, or maybe for some of you, because you've been blessed or because you look at the blessings that God's been giving to this church, and it's time to not just recommit to your amount, but maybe it's time to consider what it means to increase your amount in your pledge to what God is doing here. But here's what I'm gonna tell you. This is how beautifully personal our God is. He's gonna give a different answer to every single person. The way that God calling you to respond may not be the way he's calling to the person next to you, or the person in front or behind you. What I'm calling you to do, what I'm asking you to do is you, through this spiritual journey, seek the Lord and say, Lord, what do you want me to do? What do you want me to give? How do you want me to contribute to this? And then allow God through prayer and through seeking his word to give you that answer. For wherever you are at, here's one thing I'm gonna tell you, I want this spiritual journey to be a primary way how you discern what God's calling you to do. So engage the spiritual journey. Seek the Lord through scripture. Seek the Lord through prayer. But let me just take one step back real quick. I know some of you are in a financial pinch and you can't even cover your bills, let alone thinking about being generous. Here's what I wanna say to you. We wanna help you get to the point where you've got margin in your life to be generous in the ways that your heart longs for. We wanna help you with that. So please reach out to us. If you are in a financial state of unhealth, we want to get you to a faithfully, financially healthy place. If you are unsure about the Proclaim campaign, again, Pastor John will be in the family room, right behind the Worship Center, after each service in this sermon series, to give a short presentation on Proclaim and to answer any questions that you may have about it. We want you to be informed as you make this decision and you discern what God is calling you to do. But church, we are at a moment where we get to respond to God doing something extremely unique and wonderful. How and why would we not want to respond to that? And before you respond to God's work through a campaign that a church is doing, no matter how wonderful it is, the very first thing you should respond to is the fact that Jesus Christ gave up his life for you. So that you could have life and life to the full, so that you could be welcomed back into the presence of God, so that your eternity could be made secure, so that you could experience the love of God, because you can only experience the true love of God through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Amen? So let's stand now and stand in that love as we sing of it. Church, let me remind you, in a world turning from Him, God calls us to take courage Church, let me remind you, in a world turning from Him, God calls us to take courage in Him. So take courage now as you respond in faith through worship.

Sermon Discussion Questions 1 Title Sunday, September 22, 2024 Calling Out Cultural Lies 1 JOHN 4:7-12 The Lie of Love is Love 2 Overview Main Idea: God is love - and we know this because of Jesus Christ. Sermon Outline: 1. Known in our spirit (vv 7-8) 2. Shown in our Savior (vv 9-10) 3. Completed in our connections (vv 11-12) 3 Pre-Questions How does the statement “Love is love” reflect contemporary culture’s view of love? What are the potential dangers of reducing love to a mere emotion or preference, as the phrase might suggest? 4 Questions How does the biblical definition of love differ from this cultural perspective? Refer to passages like 1 Corinthians 13 and John 15:13. How do love and truth coexist in the Bible? Why is it essential that they are not separated? How does the Bible call us to love others in a way that includes accountability and correction (see passages like Matthew 18:15-17)? Why might some people view accountability as unloving, and how can we gently correct this misconception within our communities? How can we lovingly engage with those who hold to the “love is love” ideology while staying faithful to biblical truth? How can the church and its members model a love rooted in truth and accountability rather than mere affirmation? PDF Download

A Faith That Trusts In God's Character Sermon Series: A Faith that Endures Ryan DB Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Main Passage: 1 Kings 18:17-40 Transcript Today is the day that the Lord has made. So let us rejoice and be glad in it. And everyone everywhere said, Amen. Amen. So I don't know who here has ever had or maybe has the privilege of raising teenagers. Now, you know what I'm talking about, don't you? I have a teenager in the house. I spent the golden years of my 20s and my 30s ministering to teenagers as a youth pastor. I love teenagers. I love the way that God has wired them. I get to preach at youth group or teach at youth group tonight for our high schoolers. I love, love teenagers. And have you ever run across a teenager, parents, who think that they can parent better than you can? Oh, you know, teenagers, they know everything. Why don't we just let them be in charge? I mean, why aren't more books being written by teenagers for all the infinite wisdom that they have in their life? I don't know if you've ever said this, have you ever said this to a teenager? Let me be the parent. You know, I think that that is a picture of how people judge God. When things don't go the ways that we like or we understand, we judge God. We say, that's not the way that I would have done it. We kind of treat God like a teenager who thinks they know everything. And the hard thing about people in faith is that we want a God that we can wrap our minds around. We want a God whose actions we can always agree with. A God whose actions and teachings never challenge us. A God whose standards we also share. In short, we want a God made in our image who submits to us. Who only does that which we agree with. But the God that there is, the God of the Bible, and the story we're going to read about today, is challenging. It's a very challenging scripture. It's a very powerful story, but a very challenging. But here's what many of us are going to do with a story like the one we're going to look at today. We're going to play that teenager who thinks they know how to be better parents. We're going to be followers of God who think that we know how to be God better than God does. In this series that we're in, we're talking about a faith, a faith that endures. Last week we began to talk about this, how we can have a faith that endures through the hardships of life, through the changing culture. But today we're gonna talk about having a faith that endures, not because we fully understand the actions of God, but because we fully trust his character. Not just what he's done, but who he is. And the prophet Elijah has been our guide through this series and we've been following him through this through these passages And today we're gonna look at one of the most famous passages one of the most famous showdowns one of the most famous call-outs Probably of all time Definitely within Scripture the story that we're looking at today and tell me if you've ever read the story the story of the prophet Elijah versus the prophets of Baal. Powerful and challenging passage. Would you please turn in your Bibles to 1 Kings chapter 18. Now we're going to read verses 17 to 40 together today. This is a longer than normal passage. This is a longer normal passage than what I typically read, but I think it's important to hear this whole story. And I don't know about you, but I think we all need a little bit more Bible in our life. So I'm going to take time to read this entire passage, but as you're turning there, let me just set some context for you. So what we have here is Elijah has been in a God-imposed exile because Elijah brought a prophetic curse against King Ahab. Now, the wicked King Ahab and his wicked wife Jezebel, together, they have led the people astray. They've led the people away from the worship of the true God to worship a foreign and false God, Baal. And because Ahab has done this, God's going to bring a curse upon him and the land. And so God sends Elijah to Ahab and says there's going to be no rain. And that produced a severe famine. And so God sends Elijah back to have his confrontation with King Ahab, and that's where we're going to pick up in our passage. So would you hear the word of the Lord, 1 Kings chapter 18, starting at verse 17. 17 When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” 18 And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father’s house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the LORD and followed the Baals. 19 Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.” The Prophets of Baal Defeated 20 So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. 21 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. 22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the LORD, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. 23 Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it. 24 And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.” Okay. Just stop for a second right there. So, of all the English translations of scripture, I like the ESV the best, that's what we use as a church, but sometimes it does feel a little like clunky and stoic. In that setting, when they gathered all the people and they're gonna have this massive showdown, it says here, and all the people answered, it is well spoken. Okay, that's not exactly what they said. They probably were more like, alright, this sounds good. Let's do this. This sounds like the right thing to do. Let's figure it out. And all the people said, it is well spoken. 25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” 26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made. 27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” 28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention. 30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been thrown down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, “Israel shall be your name,” 32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” 34 And he said, “Do it a second time.” And they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it a third time. 35 And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water. Just stop right there, meaning this thing was completely drenched. 36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. 37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” 38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God.” 40 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there. This is God's word, let's pray, and we'll continue, let's pray. Father, our prayer is simple here this morning, that by the power and presence of your Holy Spirit, would you help us to know your will for us through this passage, that we might know you more fully as you grow us into a faith that endures. And we pray these things in the precious name of Jesus. And everyone said, amen and amen. Okay, church. So going off our theme about having a faith that endures, here's the thing I'd submit to you this morning. Here's our main point. A faith that endures trusts in God's character. What was it about Elijah's faith that allows him to do such radical things? To believe such big things about God? It's because, yes, Elijah knew what God had done, but it was also because he knew God. He knew God and he trusted in God and he trusted in God's character. Elijah was faithful to God. And here's what I think Elijah would tell us here today that we see throughout the pages of Scripture. When we place our faith in God and the more that we grow in faith towards God, the more we come to see how much stronger God's faith is towards us. The more we place our faith and our trust in God, the more we see how much more faithful he is to us. A faith that endures trusts in God's character, knowing God's actions, and knowing that the actions that he takes, even when we don't understand them, we know that it is good because he is good. And what God does stems from his character, which is holy and righteous and good and loving. So a couple things from our passage. We're just gonna look at two big things here this morning. It's a powerful passage. I pray that I get the chance to preach on this again before my time is up, but here's where we're going for this morning. Elijah trusts in God's commandments to his people Elijah trusts in God's commandments to his people. This shows us God's holiness. The second thing we're going to see is that Elijah trusts in God's commitment to his people. And this shows us God's love. So first thing, Elijah trusts in God's commandments to his people. This, of course, is talking about God's holiness. So back to our story. Elijah comes and he meets with Ahab. And the king is like, you, you have caused so many problems. And Elijah snaps right back, it's not me, it's you. You're the one that's caused the problems. Elijah says that you have forgotten the commandments of God. Boom, right there, bullseye. Elijah places his finger exactly on the problem that Ahab has forgotten the commandments of God. And that's led to all the problems that he is facing, his kingdom's facing, I'm gonna tell you right now, it's the same problems that our world today is facing. We don't want to follow the commandments of God. We don't wanna live according to the commandments of God. We want to live our own way. You know, our culture here in America, we love to say that we are progressing, but here's what I'd say to you, to where? Progressing to what? What society are we progressing towards? What does it look like when we get there? We like to talk about the fact that we're progressing, okay, but to what? Give me a picture of where we're supposed to be heading towards. The world can't do that. All the world knows that we're progressing and that means things are either cheap or popular versus the image that God gives us that we are meant to work towards, which is the kingdom of God. We can actually paint the picture of the future that God would have for us. And it partly is by following the commands of God. Elijah says, I have not troubled Israel, but you have, you and your father's house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the Lord and followed the Baals. Real quickly, now the Baal was a foreign god and different cultures around the land would would worship Baal in slightly different ways. That's why Elijah uses the plural here for Bales, but either way it was a foreign and false God. Here's the lesson. When people forget the commandments of God, this is not just a shift in religious ideology. To abandon the commandments of God is to usher in a new set of values, a new set of norms, a new set of what is acceptable and appropriate. But the commandments of God, people hear me on this, especially if you're struggling with the Christian faith. The commandments of God are not just about rules and piety. It's about morality. It's about goodness. It's about holiness. It's about human flourishing. It's about a relationship with God. God's commandments show us something about who He is. God's commandments show people about how we are to live in this world, that we might flourish as a people, that we might have better relationships with one another. God's commandments are good for us because they stem from his character, which is good. Yes, God is loving. Yes, God is patient, but he's also holy, and he's righteous, and he's jealous for his people. And Elijah says to everyone, he says, this falling away from God, this worship of foreign gods, it ends now. And Elijah calls the prophets of this foreign God, hundreds of them, to Mount Carmel. And by the way, Mount Carmel was a key place of Baal worship. And there they are to make a sacrifice offering. This is the whole showdown. They're going to make a sacrifice offering, one to Baal, one to Yahweh, which is the God of the Bible. And whichever God consumes the offering with fire, Elijah says that God is God, and that's who you're gonna follow. And listen to how Elijah calls out not just the prophets, but the people. Verse 21 Verse 21, Elijah came near to all the people and said, how long will you go on limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him, but if Baal, then follow him. And it says the people did not answer him a word. Before we go on, I wonder, I wonder how many people who can hear my voice right now need that exact same call out. How many people who can hear my voice right now kind of follow God and kind of follow the ways of the world. We're not fully committed to either one. How many people are limping between the ways of the world or their selfless ambitions and actually full on following God? How many people are limping between two different opinions? So here's what I'm gonna say to all of us here, do not put yourself in the place of Elijah. We are to put ourselves in the place of the people sitting at the foot of Mount Carmel, listening to the talking to that we all deserve, being challenged by that. And then we observe to see what God has done Elijah saying if Yahweh the God of the Bible shows up then follow him which by the way means to follow his commandments and then I love this part about this story I love this part don't miss this to ensure that Elijah can't be accused of rigging the whole operation he gives the prophets of Baal every single advantage hundreds of prophets to one he goes to Mount Carmel, which was Baal's turf. Of the bulls that are to be sacrificed, he lets them have first choice. And then he sits there and gives them hours upon hours to perform their ceremony and their sacrifice. And the prophets get to work. And they call upon the name of Baal, and nothing happens. This goes on for so long that Elijah, because he's a redneck from the sticks, he starts mocking them. He goes all Babylon Bee on them. He's sitting there watching this apparition and he starts yelling, hey guys, hey prophets, where's your boy at? Where's he at? Is he on vacation? Is he going to the bathroom? Maybe he's taking a nap, he needs to wake up. And then what happens is unnerving and it's utterly demonic. They start going into a frenzy and they start cutting themselves. This is how obsessed they are. Rather than stopping what they're doing and seeing what Elijah has to offer, they are obsessed and they start cutting themselves. Verse 28 Look at verse 28 says, for me, this is one of the most haunting passages, scary verses in the Bible. And it says, they cried aloud. I wonder what that sounded like. And they cried aloud and they cut themselves as was their custom, meaning they were sacrificing themselves. And isn't that what's happening in our world today? People would rather cut and sacrifice themselves than follow the true God. That is a picture of what's happening in our world today. They cut themselves and blood gushed out everywhere. And then Elijah, when he's had enough of this, he takes his turn. And I love what Scripture says. Man, patiently read the Bible. He took time to rebuild the altar to God that had been torn down. They all sat there and watched as he by himself rebuilt the altar. And then he drenched it, doused it in water. And then he begins his ceremony, and this is so profoundly moving. The contrast here is profound. The prophets of Baal are showing us such a demonic scene, but what we see here is Elijah call out to God's devotion to his people. Verse 36 Go to verse 36. Elijah, the prophet came near and said, Oh Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, Oh Lord, answer me that this people may know that you, oh Lord, are God and that you have turned their hearts back. Did you catch that? Why is Elijah asking God to do this? Show everyone that you're more powerful than Baal? No, God show the people how much you love them. God show the people that you want their hearts back. He's not saying demonstrate your power to show that you are the God of the universe. Show them that you are the personal God who is calling their hearts back to you. This is profoundly and simply beautiful because what we see here is that Elijah trusts in God's commitment to his people. This is about God's love. Verse 37 In verse 37, Elijah says, answer me, O Lord, answer me, that these people may know, O Lord, that You are God, and that You have turned their hearts back.' Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench." God is committed to His people. And listen here, He shows up and He completes the sacrifice. God shows up and he completes the sacrifice, showing the people his devotion, his commitment, his love for them. He's showing them something about his character, about who he is, that he is good and that he is loving. Verse 39 Verse 39, and when the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, the Lord, he is God, the Lord, Elijah believes that God will show up, and He does. And the people confess that the Lord, meaning Yahweh, the God of the Bible, He is God. Well, end of story, happily ever after, right? No. Elijah, he does what he can to try to end the worship of Baal once and for all. And what he does next, yes, is shocking to our modern ears. So let's talk about this for a moment. Verse 40 Verse 40, And Elijah said to them, Seize the prophets of Baal, let not one of them escape. And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and slaughtered them there. Yeah, this is, I know this is shocking to our modern ears, but let's talk about this for a second. If we think that this punishment is too severe, then we seriously underestimate how evil it is in God's eyes to lead His people away from Him. True, a careful reader of the passage here will see that God doesn't actually instruct Elijah to do this, but I'm not trying to get God off the hook here. Elijah is following the law of God. He's following Deuteronomy 13:5, which says, but that prophet or that dreamer, speaking of people who lead God's people away from true worship, but that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death because he has taught rebellion against the Lord your God, to make you leave the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk, so you shall purge evil from your midst." Again, Elijah trusts in God's commitment to his people, his love for his people. And when someone leads God's people away from him, that is serious business. That is dead serious business. And I know some of you may be like, well, that's just the Old Testament God. Yeah, you know what? Jesus picks up the exact same theme. Matthew 18, Jesus says, whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Jesus is the same God as what we see in the Old Testament. Yes, the New Testament gives us a fuller picture of redemptive history and the beautiful picture of the cross and a more fuller knowledge of grace, but the Old Testament and the New Testament, it's the same God. Jesus is the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament. So why such a serious punishment? Well, here's what I'm going to tell you. It's because sin is death. And those people who lead God's people into sin, they are committing a capital crime in God's eyes. I want you to imagine a father. A father comes home. And as he's walking up to his house, he sees inside his house that there are a bunch of armed men in his house holding his family captive. And these armed men are having his family do all sorts of horrendous things. They're having his wife do all sorts of horrendous things. What is that man to do? I'll tell you what, so this man walks up the door and he says, let my family go. Get out of here and let my family go." And these armed men yell back, you get out of here. This is our house now. We know how to be a better father than you do. So what does that father do? He kicks open the door and kills those men. And I don't know about you, but that man's a hero. Who of us are going to say, oh, those poor armed men, that was too severe what happened to them. I'm telling you, that is not a perfect analogy. That is a picture of what's happening here. God sees his people held captive, being forced and being led to do all sorts of horrendous things. God is a good father, and a good father will protect his family at all costs. He is a good, good father. Remember what we're saying when we sing this. If you're thinking, I can't believe in a God who would call Elijah to do this, then I just want to point out what you are saying then. I'm saying this in like a respectful way, but what you're saying then is that you're pointing out that your system of justice views sin as a less grievous act than what God does. And that kind of sounds like that teenager who thinks they know how to parent better than their parents. What happens here, what happens with a passage like this is that people underestimate how evil and grievous sin is in God's eyes. It's not a laughing matter. It's not something to joke about. It is dead serious business. But here's what we do in our day and age. We play with sin like it's a video game. We enjoy it all day long and we think as long as we put it away for bedtime, then mom and dad won't get mad at us. Sin is serious business. It is the killer of people. It is what turns people away from God. God does not laugh at sin because sin kills his own people. And God will have none of it. God will deal with it because he loves his people. I heard Keanu Reeves, Keanu Reeves of all people, say something that I just loved. He said this in an interview. He said, if you're a lover, you have to be a fighter. Because if you don't fight for your love, what kind of love do you have? God's love goes all the way. God's love goes all the way. He doesn't just fight, he ends it. He kills what gets between him and his people because God so loves his people that he will literally remove at all costs, even if it means killing it, that what separates him and his people. That's how committed he is to us. He will go at all lengths to bring your hearts back to him. So back to Mount Carmel, back to the scene, because God is so committed to his people, he shows up and he completes the sacrifice. He is showing his utter devotion, his commitment, his love for his people. He's showing them something about his character, that he is holy, righteous, good, and loving. This is the God that we are to place our faith and our trust in. God shows up and completes the sacrifice, because that's what God does, that's who he is. And the sin that gets in our lives, the sin that leads us away from God, the sin that breaks our relationship with him, God will kill it so that we can have an open road back to Him. And what is shadowed in the Old Testament is brought to full light in the New Testament. This entire scene points to the cross. See the sin that gets between us and God, the sin that leads us away, God took that sin, placed it on the shoulders of His own Son, and then nailed His Son to the cross and watched him die. And when Christ died, so did our sin. I think a lot of us wanna mourn for those prophets that were slaughtered. We're so shocked by that. We should be infinitely more shocked of what happened to Christ. Perfectly righteous, died in our place, taking our sin. On Mount Carmel, it says that the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the offering. It wasn't fire that fell on the cross, it was the wrath of God that fell and utterly consumed Christ. It was the wrath of God being poured out upon Jesus, that wrath that should have been poured out on us for our sin. God completely poured out His wrath on that thing that separates us from Him so that we could have a way back to him. Christ took our place bearing our sin and in this we see, this is the cross, we see the full declaration of God's goodness, God's love for us. And yes, we live in a broken world and that means bloodshed at this point, but this is part of the way that God is making all things new, pointing to the time where we will be fully and forever united to him. The cross is the full love of God on display for us. It is God pulling the hearts of his people back to us, back to him, at all costs. Elijah shows us that when we place our faith in God and we grow in faith in God, we begin to see how much more faithful God is to us. He will hold us fast. He will not let us go. When we place our faith in Him and we place ourselves in His loving arms, He will pull us in and never let us go. So have a faith that endures because you trust in the living God. See, when Christ died, so did our sin, but when Christ was raised again, so did our promise and our hope for eternal life. This is the God who we place our trust in. This is the God who we follow. This is the God who we say we're no longer going limping between two different opinions. We're casting off the ways of the world and we're following the ways of God because that's what's best for us and because that's who He is. And so church, as we stand and sing in a moment, my prayer is that the Spirit of God doesn't just fill this place I want Him to, but He fills your heart. That you would sing to a God who is committed to you, who calls you. And a prayer is that will develop in you a faith that endures no matter what life throws at you Amen, would you please stand? Would you bow your heads and let's pray? Father we come before you Father with a gritty and bloody passage father. I pray in all ways that this would point us to the cross at the lengths that you go to win us back That our Savior would give himself up on the cross. Out of love for you, God, and love for us, obedience to you, God. Father, we are so thankful that Jesus took our place. Father, I pray, Lord, that as a declaration of the commitment you give to us, that you will go at all lengths to pull us back to yourself. So, Father, I pray that we'd be a people who sing because we trust you and trust who you are, knowing that at all times you will hold us fast. Father, I pray that I know there's people in here, Father, who's, they feel like their faith is weak or that their faith ebbs and flows. But Father, I pray to God that through this passage they will see that yours does not. That yours holds us fast. And so, Father, I pray, God, that we sing not because we have strong faith, but because you have faith towards us. So, Father, I pray you lift up the voice of your church now to sing praises to you. We pray these things in Jesus' precious name. We pray these things in Jesus' precious name. And everyone said, Amen.

Sacrificial Husbands Sermon Series: No Longer Two Ryan DB Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Main Passage: Ephesians 5:25-33 Transcript Today is the day that the Lord has made. So let us rejoice and be glad in it. And everyone said, Amen. Amen. So just to clarify real quick, this was originally going to be a three-part series as we looked at wives, husbands, and kids. We're going to look at children today and the gift that children are as we looked at Sanctity of Life Sunday. Church got canceled last week because of the weather. That changed a bunch of things. So we had to figure out what we're going to do, the message on children or the message on husbands. And I just want you to know I made the call. I felt like it was important for us as a church in our time here and now, knowing our unique struggles, that it was important for us to come full circle on the marriage piece. So we looked at wives two weeks ago, we're looking at husbands today, and that's not because we don't care about the cause of life. If you know anything about Peace Church, it's a near and dear cause for us. We're not afraid to talk on it. And so I also want to say, if you haven't checked out Alpha Women's Center, make sure you do. But today I want to come full circle on the marriage aspect of what we started a few weeks ago as we look at the call on husbands today. If you are new to Peace Church, I'll just tell you now, you have to go back and listen to the sermon on wives so you get the balance of what we're talking about here. But as we look at the call on husbands today, I just want to let you know something very clear here. I myself am a husband, by no means a perfect husband. So I want you to know that I have a hand, a mirror up here, because hear me on this. I am preaching for the glory of God, but I'm preaching at one man today, and it's the guy that I'm looking at right now. And my prayer is that for the other husbands in the room that you hear of something of value and encouragement and challenge, something you can take home as well. But I want you to know this sermon is at the man in the mirror, but for the glory of God. So let me start with this question. What makes a good husband? What's your standard? Or maybe I can ask you this, who's your example of a good husband? So here's what I wanna do. I wanna look at some famous TV husbands over the last few decades, and we can help each other figure out who is the better of these husbands. Let's go back and look at one husband per decade starting from the 90s. So going back to the 90s, let's look at a TV husband. We can figure out how good of a husband. Now I will say a lot of these guys will be known as their role as a father, but let's think about them as a husband. So going back to my time, the 90s, the first guy I want to look at, see if you know him, Uncle Phil. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, who knows who this person is? Okay, here we go. All right, so that's in the 90s. So let's go to the 2000s. Think about Uncle Phil, but now let's go to the 2000s. Another famous TV husband from that time, who remembers Red from that 70s show? Okay, now we're getting a little bit closer in this next one to our time, to the 2010s, 2010s. I'll be honest, I never watched this show, but I heard a lot about it. Whoever watched, This Is Us. Heard a lot of interesting things about that, that man's portrayal as a husband. Now, as I just kind of alluded to this, the closer we get to our time, the more I feel out of it. So this next TV dad, I'll be honest, I've never seen an episode, but I hear a lot right now about this TV dad, very popular right now. I wonder if you know who Bandit is from Bluey. I heard he's good, I don't know. So think about these guys, think about their role as a husband. And let's go ahead and take a vote for a second here. Who thinks that, what you see on the screen, who's the best example of a husband? Who thinks like What? Okay, okay. Red from that 70's show, anyone? Couple? Mustache guy from This Is Us, I don't know his name. Okay. I feel like this is gonna be overwhelming for Bandit from Bluey. Who thinks Bluey, Bandit from Bluey is the best husband? Okay, interesting. I would love to sit and discuss the qualities of what makes each one of these guys a good or a bad husband in your mind, but here's the here's the base question for you. Are they really good husbands? Are they really good examples? Or here's another way to put it, is there a better example? Is there a better standard than what we just see on TV and in culture? I'm going to submit to you today, not only do we have the best example, but we have the ultimate standard of what a husband should be from a man who himself was actually never married in the way that we discuss it. And his name was Jesus Christ. And so know what I'm talking about. We're gonna have to turn in our Bibles. And so again, a couple weeks ago, we looked at the call for wives to be selfless. And today we're gonna look at the call for husbands to be sacrificial. Would you please turn in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 5, we're going to look at verses 25-33. Now if you are just joining us, let me just clarify a couple things, kind of set the stage here. We call this book Ephesians in the Bible. It's not really a book, it was actually a letter. It's a letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to this church in a city called Ephesus and the people there were called the Ephesians. So Paul writes to the Ephesians in Ephesus. And in this letter, he's telling them how to, he's clarifying some doctrines of the Christian faith, clarifying some of those things. He's talking about what it means to be a Christian. And he gets to this point in chapter five, where he talks about how do you have a godly home? What does it mean to have a Christian home? And so he talks to wives in the first part. And in the second part, he talks to husbands. And that's where we will pick up. And so would you hear God's word Ephesians chapter 5 verses 25 to 33 here's God's word. Ephesians 5:25-33 25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. This is God's word. Let's pray, and we'll continue. Let's pray. Father, heaven and above, Father in heaven above, Lord, we need you. We so desperately need you. This church needs you. I need you. The marriages of this church family need you. And so we pray this morning by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit and by the truth of your word that we would see rightly the calling that you have for each of us, but particularly this morning, Father, we pray for the husbands and for the future husbands of this church family. And we pray these things in Jesus' powerful name. It's in His name we pray. And everyone said, Amen. Amen. So, the lesson here today, the main point, if I give you one thing, I'll be completely honest with you here. The main point for today is embarrassingly simple. The main point for today is so simple that I would have gotten marked down in my preaching class and seminary for this. But I think it's not just simple, but I think it's incredibly challenging. If there's one thing that I want you to remember, not just for today, but all the days of your life, it would be this. Husbands, Jesus is your example. Husbands, Jesus is your example. You may scoff at the simplicity of this, but I'm telling you, men in the house, husbands, if you live into this, if you go through your life and through your marriages, Jesus as your example, it will be hard, but I'm telling you, when you pass from this world to the next and you are walking through those pearly gates, you will hear the Father of all creation say to you, well done, simply be like Jesus. Okay, go ahead, go home, go home, have brunch now. We're all good. That's all we need to know. As we look at this passage, we're going to pull out some things of how we can be like Christ. And so, three things from this very rich passage. Husbands, with Jesus as your example, be men of God's word, be men of Christ's love, and be men of sacrificial leadership. Husbands, Jesus is your example, so be… 1. Men of God’s Word (Ephesians 5:25-27) 2. Men of Christ’s love (Ephesians 5:28-30) 3. Men of sacrificial leadership (Ephesians 5:31-33) 1. Husbands, Jesus is your example, be men of God’s Word. So let's go back and let's start first one. Husbands, with Jesus as your example, be men of God's Word. Let's just walk through our passes together. If you notice, if you're reading along with me, you'll notice that the first three verses are actually one big sentence. So let's walk through it together, starting in verse 25. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her that he might sanctify her. He sanctified means to be made holy. It means to be made complete. Jesus died for the church so that we could be made holy. We are the church. The church is the bride of Christ. That's what sanctified means that we may remain whole or made holy were made complete. This is what Jesus does for his church. Verse 26 that he might sanctify her having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, meaning God's word, God's eternal truth, the scriptures, the Bible, God's word is how Jesus uses, is what Jesus uses to sanctify, to wash, to build up, to make us whole. Verse 27, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor. Do you hear the tender lovingness? Jesus Christ loves his bride, the church, us. He loves his bride and he wants his bride to be with him. He wants to be with her. This is the type of love that poets wish they could write about. That he might present the church to himself with splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, so that she might be holy and without blemish. Jesus loves the church and picks us up and dusts us off and cleans us and makes us whole and brings us into his presence. One of the primary highlights of this passage is that Jesus Christ died for the church to make her holy. That's, again, that's us. He died to take away our sins so that we could live without guilt or shame before God. But not only this, I want to go back and look at this verse 26 real quick here. Go back to verse 26. It says this, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word. So, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God incarnate, God the Son, when we look at his life, one thing that we see throughout the Gospels is that Jesus was immersed in the word of God. Jesus read from, studied, memorized God's word on his earthly life. Jesus spent time saturated in the scriptures. And by the power of the Holy Spirit and through his sacrifice Jesus builds up his church or as Paul puts it here he cleanses her by the washing of water the notion here is that Jesus Christ cares for his church by the truth by the Word of God Jesus Christ cares for his church by the word of God. And so men, listen to me, you can't lead a godly home if it's not founded upon and guided by God's work. And guess what? That's your job to do, just like Jesus does for the church. So to have a home guided by God's word and for men to be saturated in God's word, what does that actually look like? Well, I'll tell you what it looks like. It looks like a man listening to the Bible on audio on his way to work. It looks like children seeing their dad read the Bible for a few minutes before he goes to bed. It looks like a church parking lot on a cold Saturday morning at 7 a.m. full of trucks because men are gathering to read the Bible and pray together. It looks like a church full of men bringing their families so that they could sit under the preaching of God's word and they could worship Jesus together. It looks like a dinner table with the father at the head opening the Bible and reading a psalm before dinner starts. It looks like your adult children sitting next to you while you are on your deathbed passing from this life to the next and they're reading from your own Bible. And then when you pass, they take that Bible and they give it to your grandkids and they say, your granddad read from this every day. It looks like a conversation between a husband and a wife, where the husband starts the sentence by saying, hey babe, I was reading the Bible and I want to share with you what I wrote. That's what it looks like. Wives, if your husband started a sentence like that, would that be a blessing to you? Speak up women, I can't hear you. Would that be a blessing to you? This is what we want. I guarantee it's what we want. It should be seen as more manly to crack open your Bible than it is to crack open a beer. If that was a better notion in our society, I guarantee things would be so much better. Our homes, our families, men, our wives, and our lives are built up when we know the Lord, when we know His Word, and when we walk in His ways. And if you're here at church, guess what? God's already got you started. If you're here right now, I don't care what the week was like that you came from, God put you on a path that starts right now. Or maybe it's continuing. But if you're here right now, then God has already set you on your path. So grab a Bible. I'll give you one if you don't have it. Grab your Bible, bring it home and commit to it. Jesus cares for his church by the word. Men, we need to care for our wives the same way, by the word. We need to be men of God's word. 2. Husbands, Jesus is your example, be men of Christ’s love. Secondly, we need to be men of Christ's love. Let's go to verses 28, 29, and 30. It says this, In the same way, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. So what we see here is this passage continues the parallel of Jesus and the church with husbands and wives. But look at these descriptors. Look at these qualifiers here. Husbands are to nourish and cherish their wives like Jesus does for the church. So the word nourish here, in the original language that this was written in, the word there is ectrepho, which is the intensified version of trepho, which means to feed. Meaning we are to supply our wives with what they need so that they may grow and flourish, that we nourish them, not just physically, but spiritually. And cherish. We're to cherish our wives. Now, before we talk about this word, let me just ask the husbands a question here real quick. How many of you husbands have a wife who says that she's always cold, always complaining that she's cold? Anybody? Some of you are Raise your hands. Okay. Okay. So this word kind of helps us out here. The word here for cherish is the word thalpo. Now thalpo means literally to warm up, but the Greeks use this word as an idiom, just like we do as well. We talk about how something would warm our hearts. They use the word warm in the same way. That to cherish is to warm our wives hearts. Now whether she's too hot or too cold, the notion here is that we cherish her, that we make her comfortable, that we care for her tenderly. Now the other day I was listening to a podcast and I was listening to this guy and he was talking about his marriage and he was talking about how he himself was challenged to get to know his wife better. And so he was challenged to ask his wife this question, when did I turn you on the most? Now, let me just say real quick, we will keep today's message PG rated. So you're gonna have to pick up when I'm laying down, okay? So when did I turn you on the most? So we asked her this and she said, I was the most turned on by you on this day that I had a really really bad day and you knew I had a bad day and so you vacuumed for me without me asking and he said oh I remember that day and I remember how it turned out wink wink and then he said this and he's like so I'm thinking to myself I've just unlocked the secret so I went and vacuumed the next day and nothing happened! And it's like, yeah! Because caring for our wives cannot be a means to the end, to end the day in the bedroom. It's a means for us to be Christ-like as we are called. But while we're on the topic, let's take a moment and let's talk about being intimate. Again, I will keep this PG rated, so you're going to have to pick up when I'm laying down. But here's what I've come to find out through my time in ministry and talking with many couples over the years. Most couples will get romantically physical, but few couples know how to be truly intimate. They may have sex, but they don't have true intimacy. And here's why. Men are willing to be romantically physical with their wives because they get to exert a level of dominance. That's a drive in every man. So they will be romantically physical with their wives, but not intimate, because to truly be intimate is spiritual and it takes vulnerability. A man's heart is to dominate. Men are comfortable with dominance. We're not comfortable with vulnerability. Why? Because it feels like weakness to men. This is why men are more than willing to have sex with their wives, but it's nearly impossible to get them to pray with their wives. Because prayer is intimate and it takes vulnerability. And so men, you have to understand that you can't have the satisfaction of dominance if you're not willing to have the responsibility of dominion. Now let me explain. See husbands can attain dominance, men can attain dominance through strength and through fear. But that's a toxic environment and no one likes to be around someone like that. And if you're married to someone like that, then men, if you're like that, then you have a wife who probably either resents you or hates you. But the good man will have a godly dominion over his home. Dominion meaning he presides over his family with truth and love just like Jesus does for the church. A godly dominion results not in a restrictive environment but in an environment where a wife and a children will flourish under his sacrificial leadership rather than live in fear under his selfish dominance and probably narcissism. But here's where I found out further compounds the problem. Okay, here's what further adds to the issue here. Again, I say this after speaking with hundreds, if not thousands of men in my years in ministry. Too often, women are spiritually stronger than their husbands, which puts the husbands in the weaker position which men typically don't like to be. And it's all the more reason that they don't pray with their wives or lead them spiritually. And so here's the result. Couples will be romantically physical but there's no true intimacy because intimacy is brought through the spiritual elements. We are, yes, we are physical beings but we're also spiritual beings. If we don't engage the spiritual side of who we are, we're never going to unlock the true depths of our marriage and the intimacy that we can have in it. I remember I did premarital counseling for this young couple a couple years ago. Now we don't marry a Christian to a non-Christian and so they filled out some paperwork and they said that they both were Christians and so they they came into my office I did premarital counseling with them I I didn't really know them and I was getting to know them through our first session we had a great first session together doing premarital counseling and it came to the end of our session and I said to them I said okay hey guys great great first session why don't we close in prayer why don't you guys pray for us and they looked up at me like I just threatened to kill them. And I realized in that moment, you two have never prayed together, have you? And they said, no, we haven't. I said, well, guess what, guys? That both ends and starts right now. And listen, I get it. Praying in the presence of a pastor is a weird thing. I wish it wasn't, but I understand that it is, especially for the first time. So I said, here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to leave the room and you two are going to pray together for the first time. Otherwise, we're not going to have a session too. And so I walked out and I saw them turn and face each other and they grabbed hands and they bowed, bowed their heads and they started to pray. And I stood outside and I waited a minute. And when they lifted their heads and the prayer was done, I walked back into my office and I looked at this young girl and her face was absolutely drenched in her own tears. And I'm telling you what I saw in that moment, what I saw was the fact that this young girl had felt like she was walking through a desert for their entire relationship and she finally got a glass of water. Men, if you don't pray with your wives, you're starving them. They are parched. It is what we are called to do. It is what we're meant to do. What I saw in that moment broke my heart. Wives, I know you're desperate for your husbands to pray with you and to pray over you. So here's what I'll say to you. Wives, listen to me. If your husband won't do it, then as his helpmate that God brought to him, you are the helpmate that God brought to him. If he won't do it, then here's what I want you to do. I want you to grab his hand and kindly and humbly, not in a condescending way, grab his hand and humbly ask, will you pray over me? And then men, what just happened was that the woman that God brought to you, your helpmate, she opened a door for you. So strap on your boots and walk through the door. And if you do and when you do, not only will you show her how much you love her in this, but your intimacy will deepen, your relationship will strengthen. Listen to me, I know it's vulnerable, but listen to me, the person who wants to be dominant but doesn't want to lead is the type of person no one wants around. This goes for the business world, this goes for church world, this goes for marriages. The person who wants to be dominant but doesn't want to lead, nobody wants that person around. Yes, it's vulnerable, but I'm here to tell you God has called you not to dominance but to have a godly dominion over your life and your home and you are to lead in the sacrificial way like Jesus does. And I guarantee you when we submit and follow to Jesus leading in our lives, do you know what it leads to? Joy and flourishing. Jesus Christ was the greatest leader of all time and his life was marked by gentleness and humility as well as strength, as well as standing up and facing the crowd and speaking a truth. But he's also gentle and humble and he nourished and cherishes his bride, which is the church, and that's what we are to do. Guys, hear me on this. Weakness is not being vulnerable when you pray with your wife. It's weakness not to. Weakness is not being vulnerable when you pray with your wife. It's weakness not to. It is a false image of manhood that you're always tough all the time. That's not manhood. Manhood is embodied by Jesus who was vulnerable, opened himself up, gave his life, yes, stood for truth when it was unpopular. But men, I'll say it again for a third time, it's not weakness to be vulnerable and pray with your wife. It's weakness not to. The true man is the one who's willing to open himself up. So, husbands, this is the level of leadership that God is calling us to. And don't forget, I'm looking at a mirror right now. And this leads us to number three. 3. Husbands, Jesus is your example, be men of sacrificial leadership. Be men of sacrificial leadership. Let's go to verse 31. It says this, it says, Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. Now, we looked at this verse last week if you were here you remember this is the first statement on marriage in the Bible comes from Genesis but doesn't stay in Genesis. Jesus Christ himself quotes this verse and we also see it quoted here from the Apostle Paul and this is what Paul says about it. He calls it a mystery. Verse 32, the mystery is profound and I'm saying that it refers to Christ in the church. Well, it's right here. A man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife and the two shall become one. That's the gospel. Jesus left his father in heaven. He left his heavenly home to hold fast to his wife, the church, and they became one. This is why, yes, we talk about the church as the bride of Christ, but we also talk about the church as the body of Christ with Jesus as the head, because we are connected to him. We are one. And in marriage, the same thing happens. Spiritually, we are united in Christ. And when a marriage happens, another spiritual thing happens as a husband and wife become one. Yes, it's a mystery, but it's also the gospel. This is why Paul says in verse 33, let each of you love his wife as himself. Why? Because you are one. You are one. And with this last verse from this section, we see the last call out of husbands and wives. And it says this, let each of you love his wife as himself and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Now this is the great cycle of love and respect that we know so well. Men, love your wives. Wives, respect your husbands. Now, what I want to share with you, I will tell you, I'm sharing this from personal experience. I can't point to a journal of psychology to back this up. I'm just telling you, over my time of working with men throughout the years, I found this to be true. I can determine the amount of happiness and satisfaction a man has in his marriage with one question. And it's not how much time do you spend in the bedroom. It's this. It's when a man and myself are alone in my office as brothers and I ask him this question. Do you feel like your wife respects you? Before he even says a word, just the change of his posture tells me everything I need to know. Does your wife not just love you, but does she let you lead? Does she empower you to lead? Do you feel that your wife respects you? I can tell by the look on his face if he is happy in his marriage or not. The man that has to constantly fight for leadership with his wife is a tired and a worn out man, whether or not he shows it on his face. Ladies, ladies, please hear me on this. It will be very hard for you to have the husband that you want to have. It'll be very hard for your husband to grow into the godly man that you want him to be if you are constantly fighting for control. Listen to me, as a man, I can tell you, your husband has battles, battles that he fights from the moment he wakes up to the moment he goes to sleep. Your man fights battles, and you should not be one of them. On the flip, you should be the place where He goes to as a reprieve from His battles. You should be the place that He goes to and He can drop it all at the doorstep. You should be the place for Him that He can let go of everything that was and embrace just you. But when He fights battles all day long and comes home and has to fight another battle with you, I guarantee He is drying out as a person. And He will never truly become the man that he is called to be. Why? Because you are his helpmate. You are put in his life to help him be what he is called to be. Just like he is for you. I t goes both ways. The Bible is telling us that men are to love their wives and women are to respect their husbands. Yes, yes, and yes. 100% this goes both ways. Love and respect needs to be shown on both sides. What we're talking about here is the great emphasis of the relationship. Yes, men, love and respect your wives. Yes, wives, love and respect your husbands. The great emphasis should be here on men loving their wives like Jesus loved the church. And wives respecting their husbands at the church is meant to respect Jesus. Marriage takes two, but men, I'm here to tell you, it starts with you. The Bible has been telling us this for 2,000 years. 2,000 years ago, God revealed how a marriage should work. Need I remind you that this is told to us before America was a country, before English was a language, before the great enlightenment, we were told how a marriage was meant to work. And I guarantee even if I say these things, even if part of you that's culturally conditioned wants to push back against it, I guarantee because you're a human, there's parts of you that resonates with what's being said here. If we let go of what the world says and embrace what God says, He is more glorified and everything will be right. But men, it starts with you. It starts with us, guys. Welcome to the burden and calling of being a man. But here's what I'm going to tell you, guys. This is in your blood. You were built for this. You were made for this. You are equipped and called to this. And where you are lacking in knowledge, the Bible provides the answer. Where you are lacking in strength, the Holy Spirit will step in. God has given you, in yourself and through his goodness everything you need to be what he is calling you to be and what your wife needs you to be. But I'm telling you right now, it takes with sacrificing your pride every single day. When you get up and get out of bed, pride stays behind. It comes with sacrificing our pride every single day. But man, I'm telling you, this is what you get to do. You are called for this. You are called to this. You are built for this. You're not some TV husband. You are a man of God with Jesus Christ as your example. So set yourself aside, set your sin aside. Let Jesus takes care of that and follow him as your example. Let the Holy Spirit be your strength and your guide who works within you. And let God lead you into a Christ-like leadership. You need to understand that Jesus Christ, His life, was marked by His sacrifice. This is why most of us have a cross on the cover of our Bibles. The great symbol of the Christian faith is the cross, the symbol and sacrifice of Jesus. He died upon the cross and so men, guess what? But that should also be one of the markers of your role as a husband. Sacrifice. That you give up your life for your wife. But listen to me. The cross of Jesus Christ was not a defeat, it was a victory. When we do this, it's not a defeat. This is the essence of victory. The cross of Jesus Christ was the greatest victory there ever was. For by it, He triumphed over Satan, sin, and death, and rose again into resurrection. And with that, He brought salvation and reconciliation for all who would believe. Men, when you lay yourself aside like Jesus did, that's not weakness. That's not defeat. That's winning. That's winning for your home. That's winning for your wife. That's winning for your family And when you lead your home in marriage in a sacrificial way where you give up your own preferences. Even if your wife tells you to turn off the football game at 315 today. Wives please don't do that. But the level of sacrifice that you are called to make is exactly what Jesus did. So our preferences shouldn't be that big of a deal. And I'm telling you, wouldn't you rather have a happy home than a bunch of toys? We put our family's needs and wants above our own. That's not weakness, that's not shame. That's sacrificial leadership and with it comes a victory, a victory that brings life to you, to your home, and to your children, and to your wife. Jesus Christ gave up his life for the church, and so men, this is what we get to do for our homes. And by it, we embody the gospel for our families, for our community, and for our world. Why? Because Jesus is our example. So be men of God's word, be men of Christ's love, and be men of sacrificial leadership. And so, church, young and old, ladies and gentlemen, wives and husbands, look upon Jesus as your Savior, look upon Him as your example. Amen. Would you please stand? Let's prepare our hearts to worship. Father, we come before you. Father, with a great call on our lives, but Father, we are thankful that this call comes because Jesus has died for us. Jesus has taken our sin away. Jesus has triumphed over the grave so that we can have life, life in the fullest, eternal life which starts now. And so, Father, I pray in response to this great call, in response to what Jesus has already done for us, Father, I pray by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, would you fill this place with the knowledge of the gospel, with the presence of the Spirit, that we may respond in worship to you, our great God, and to our King Jesus. Spirit, that we may respond in worship to you, our great God, and to our King Jesus. It's in his name we pray. Amen.

Spiritual Doubt vs. Faith and Salvation Sermon Series: Withstand Ryan DB Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Main Passage: Ephesians 6:16-17a Transcript Today is the day that the Lord has made. So let us rejoice and be glad in it. And everyone said, wherever you are, whether you're in here, worship center, chapel, venue, online, everyone said Amen, Amen, and Amen. So my wife and I built our house about eight years ago and not long after we moved in, we decided to buy a generator. Now, we live in West Michigan and whether it's a thunderstorm or snowstorm, the power goes out every now and again. And so we thought, hey, we got a new house, let's just make sure we always get to enjoy it. So we bought a generator and I put it in the garage. And there it sat. And about a year later, we had a, we had a pretty bad storm and the power And my wife looks at me and she said, hey, at least we got a generator now. And I said, yeah, about that. I never actually wired up the house for a generator. And she's like, well, what do we have it for? And I was like, don't worry, babe. The power never goes out for more than a couple hours around here. It's gonna be fine. And no sooner did I say that, did the power come back on? Thank you, Lord. And my wife looks at me and she's like, well, there was God's warning for you. Now you can get the house wired up. And I said, right you are, my helpmate. I will get right on that. Well, about a year A very beautiful, but beautifully powerful, spring thunderstorm hit. And I knew this was a bad one. And the power goes out. And my wife says, Hey, at least we have a generator that we can use now, right? You know, I never, a year goes so fast, honey. Like this one really, no, it's not ready to go. And she gave me that look, like, we'll make it work, right? Like make it work. So I called my brother-in-law, Matt, who's an electrician. And I was like, Hey man, do you mind coming after work and help me get this thing wired up? And he's like, sure. Yeah, just, you know, go to Menards and make sure you have this, that, and the other thing. So I did. And he comes over and we hook it up and we walk inside and the lights are on and my family's like, yay! All the kids are very excited because the power's back on now. And I'm sitting there in this moment and I'm like thinking to myself, there's, Lord, there's got to be a lesson in this for me somewhere. And here it is. Here's the lesson. When it comes to faith, it's amazing what God has given us, what's at our disposal, the power God has given us, what's available to us that we never use. That we know he's given it to us, but it sits in our spiritual garage, and we never use it until something bad happens, and then we don't know how to use it. And yes, there are many things I'm talking about here. I could be talking about the truth of God's word, what God has revealed in scripture. Far too many Christians spend far too not enough time in the Bible. And so we're not equipped with the knowledge of God's Word to face the day. I could say just simple, simply the gospel. God's given us the gospel, the power of the gospel, the good news that Jesus Christ died on the cross in our place for our sins so that our sins could be wiped clean. And then on the third day, he rose again from the dead, thus securing our eternal salvation. If that wasn't enough, God has also given us the Holy Spirit, the third member of the Trinity to come and fill and fuel us as Christians and as the church. Jesus said he came to be our comforter, that he was going to clothe us in power. As if that wasn't enough, you know what God has also given us? Exactly what we are looking at in this sermon series, spiritual armor. Because God reminds us that our battle is spiritual and he's given us all this power and in addition to that He's given us an armor to fight the battles with And yet far too many of us we keep it in our spiritual garage Not clothed not ready for the battle and God reminds us that there is always a battle raging No, not a battle with our neighbor. No, not a battle with our fellow man. It's worse than that. It's with the spiritual forces of evil and the heavenly realms that are constantly attacking us. But we don't fight alone. God is with us and not only are we without weapons, God most certainly has weaponized us with the spiritual armor of God. This is all detailed in Ephesians chapter six. So go ahead and start turning there now. If you are just joining us, we are in a sermon series called withstand as we are called to stand in the midst of such evil days that are about us and God has given us exactly what we are to stand with the armor of God. See in this letter the apostle Paul writes to this church in Ephesus and for a big part of the letter he's just talking about Christian doctrine. What are Christians supposed to believe and then he talks about the Christian ethic how Christians are supposed to live. And so he's talking about this Christian life that we are supposed to live out, and then he ends this awesome letter by reminding us of the spiritual battle that is raging all around us. And not just that, but how we are equipped with armor to fight these battles. Now, this spiritual armor is composed of essential aspects of our faith, and that's what we'll be looking at in this sermon series. And today, we'll be looking at the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. So we're going to be looking at Ephesians chapter 6, we'll look at verse 16 and just the first part of 17. And so with that, would you hear God's word? God's word says this Ephesians 6:16-17a 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, This is God's Word. Let's pray, and we'll continue. Let's pray. Father, through the gospel of your Son, we have salvation in Jesus' name. Would you help us to know this at all times, ever be reminded of this, that this gospel truth will be our shield, that the salvation we have would be our helmet as we are defended from the ways the enemy wants to instill doubt and discouragement in our lives and in our hearts. Lord, would you help us by filling us with your presence and your knowledge. And Holy Spirit, we ask that you would continue to lead and guide us during this time. We pray these things in the name of our Lord and Savior, in the name of Jesus Christ. And everyone said, Amen and Amen. And there's so many things we could say about this passage. So many sermons have been preached and until Jesus returns, so many sermons will be preached. But as we look at this today, here's what I'd have you take away. Here's your takeaway for today. Don't wait for the devil to attack to get dressed in God's armor. Don't wait for a storm to get your generator ready and don't wait for the devil to attack to get dressed in the armor of God. And as we look at this section, just two points here today. I didn't have a lot of time to prepare. So you only get two points here today. Two points as we look at this section. Number one, be dressed in God's armor because, number one, faith isn't for passivity, passivity is for activity. And secondly, be dressed in God's armor because salvation isn't for insurance, it's for assurance. Be dressed in God's armor because, faith isn't for passivity, it's for activity. Be dressed in God's armor because salvation isn't for insurance, it's for assurance. 1. Be dressed in God's armor because, faith isn't for passivity, it's for activity. So let's jump right in. Faith isn't for passivity, it's for activity. So if your Bible's open, go back to verse 16, simply starts out by saying this, in all circumstances, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one. Okay, the observation here is actually quite obvious. Paul starts with this phrase, in all circumstances, but I'm going to let you in on something. I'm going to let you in on a little translation secret here. I'm going to let you see behind the curtain here for a second. In this phrase here, the word circumstances, it's actually not in the original text. It's not in what Paul originally wrote. So what did Paul originally write? Well, he simply says in Greek, en pasen. En, which basically is a preposition that means in, on, or among. And pasen comes from the root word pas, which means, it's a very common word, means all or every so and pass in very simply says in all now we need to supply a word in English here to make the intended meaning clear that was clear in the original language you make it as clear in English and so what you'll find is different translations of the Bible will translate that phrase differently we use the ESV here the English Standard Version which simply says in all circumstances. The old King James says above all. The NIV says in addition to all this. A more recent translation called the CSB trustworthy, that's for the Christian standard Bible, that says in every situation. But with en passin, again in all, I know that you get what Paul means here. He's basically saying all the time, in everything, in all things, Paul is saying always wear the armor, always remember you're in a battle, never drop your guard, the spiritual never sleeps and so we need to be guarded all the time. The devil will not stop, he doesn't sleep, he will always be attacking you and therefore in all circumstances take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one so spiritually speaking what are these spiritual darts or these fiery arrows well there are many things but they could be things like discouragement discouraging you making you doubt big one spiritual doubt that God is good or that he's got a good plan for you or maybe something like this a constant reminding you of old sins that God has already forgiven and which God has already forgotten the devil is constantly putting those old sins in front of your face or maybe the devil's age-old tactic of symptom simply making you question God's Word making you question if God's Word is good or sufficient. Maybe it's heavy, heavy things like demonic oppression. Whatever these fiery darts are for you, what I can tell you is that He will not stop, which is why we need to at all times, in all circumstances, take up the shield of faith and fight. Why? Because faith is not a passive thing, it's an active thing. We are called to fight. In our next life we get to rest, but here and now we stand and fight as we withstand the evil day. One of the things I love to do, especially when I'm starting to get to know someone, is I love to ask them what their favorite Bible verse is. Now if you've ever gotten a note from me, you'll probably see that I sign most of my cards with Philippians 3.14, which says this, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. I love that phrase, I press on. I know I'm a pastor, but faith's not like a natural, easy thing for me. I struggle through it. I need to press on. I press through when things are hard. I love this call just to press on. That verse has always spoken to me. It's my favorite verse. My second favorite verse, probably my second favorite verse is 1 Timothy chapter 6, verse 12. See, in that letter, the apostle Paul wrote that letter to a man named Timothy, a younger pastor that he was mentoring and coaching in life and ministry. And he says something to Timothy that I just love. And I'm willing to bet if you've been around church long enough, you've heard this, you've heard this verse. It comes from first Timothy chapter six, verse 12. Paul writes this and he says, fight the good fight of the faith and take hold of the eternal life to which you were called. I read that again. Think about the passage that we're looking at today and then think about what Paul says here. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called to what when you read your Bible is have your eyes open. Keep your eyes open when you read the Bible. Do you notice how Paul here ties together faith in our salvation? He calls it eternal life here, but it's the same thing, just like he does in the past is that we're looking at the shield of faith in the helmet of salvation. Paul ties these together when he says, fight the good fight of the faith. Faith is how we fight in this world. And it's a good fight. Take hold of the eternal life. Take hold of your salvation to which you were called. Whether writing to Timothy or to a church, Paul's reminding Christians that faith... Turn around, there's more than a few people in here who only need to hear this very next statement. Faith is not to be a secondary thing in our hearts. Faith is not some minor aspect of our lives. It's not some dull, forgotten part of our existence. Faith is to be the driving force in our life. And Paul knew this, and he knew faith was a struggle. He knew the Christian life was hard, which is why he says, fight the good fight of the faith. Which is why in our passage, he's talking about our faith in the context of battle, that we are to wear armor. The devil is always trying to get at us and tempt us. Faith isn't easy, but it's amazing. But there's another reason I love this verse. He says, fight the good fight of faith, which I'm sure you've heard, comes from Paul's first letter to Timothy. But the last letter that we have from Paul, the very last written word that we have from Paul before Paul was executed, was actually his second letter to Timothy. And what's sobering about this letter is that he wrote it right before his impending execution. He knew he was about to be killed and martyred for his faith. Paul knew his death was coming, and he's sort of signing off with this letter that he writes to his young protege. And he says this in 2nd Timothy chapter 4 verse 7. He says this, mind you this is a man who knows he's about to die, says 2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. He knew that faith is how we fight, and faith is a good fight. But far too many Christians are missing out. They're not engaged because faith is a passive thing in their life, not an active thing. It's like that song, Need a Favor, by Jelly Roll. I only talk to God when I need a favor, and I only pray when I ain't got a prayer. We think faith is only a thing we need when we need something, when things get hard. But church, Paul put that notion to rest 2,000 years ago. At all times, in all things, take up the shield of faith. Why? Because the devil does not stop. Faith is that thing that we hold out in front. It's that thing that covers the rest of the armor. It's that thing that is held out front. When the enemy advances, the first thing they see is that shield. And you best believe there's a bloodstained cross on the front of that shield as you advance against the forces of evil and as they seek to attack you. When the world looks at you, what do they see? They should see a soldier for God holding the shield of faith because faith is what covers us all. Too many Christians are missing out, not engaged because faith's a passive thing for them. Oh sure, it may be noted on our social media profile, but it's nowhere to be found actually in our social media. Too many Christians have a faith that's a backseat part of their lives. And you know what's going to happen? These Christians will get to the end of their days and they will look back with remorse and regret because they realize they did not put first things first. because faith wasn't out front and faith wasn't a driving force. It reminds me of when I was a youth pastor. I was a youth pastor for 10 years. I gave a decade of my life to the throws into the trenches of youth ministry. And there's something that we did that I did as a youth pastor that I heard time and time and time again. See what I did every single year is at the end of the school year we would have the high school seniors get up in front, sit on stools in front of the rest of the youth group, in front of their underclassmen. And we would have them share their parting words of wisdom as they process the last four years. Now listen, this was always, I always felt like this was a really powerful time. Because what you have is you have a group of teenagers in a real sense of sobriety because they were looking at the real closure of an important time of their life and the start of a new season of their life. You better believe they were really looking at what that meant to them spiritually, what that meant to them as people, what they meant as far as like them following God and where he was going to take them. And so he'd have these seniors get up in front, they'd sit on stools, they'd pass the mic back and forth, and they would share their words of wisdom with the underclassmen. And I'll tell you this, for 10 years I heard the same thing over and over and over. For 10 years, they essentially said this. I heard this every single time. They would say something like this. They would say, don't make our mistake. Don't let faith take a back seat because of everything else high school has to offer. They would say things like, don't miss out on youth group, go on all the trips, go on all the retreats. This is your chance to do these things and you'll never have this chance again. This moment of your life is a small window and it's closing, so soak it all up. Go to every single youth group, even when you don't feel like it. Don't let a boyfriend distract you. Go! Pursue God. They would say this with emotion and tears in their eyes, because they knew the season of life was about to end and they'll never get it back. And they stand up here on stools pouring out their heart with immense remorse and regret, begging, pleading these underclassmen not to make their same mistake for 10 years. The same message. Because these underclassmen never listened. And so what happens? Their senior year, they get up, they sit on the stools, and they say the exact same thing. And I'll be honest with you, like I love youth group. I love teenagers and love ministering to them, but every single year I hear that, I'll be honest with you, had a little judgment in my heart because I got sick of hearing it. And then it was my very last year of leading youth group, I knew it was my last year, and that very last senior class that I got to minister to, they got up and they said the same thing that I had heard for the last 10 years. But I was dealing with a level of sobriety now because my life was about to make a transition. And so I heard with renewed ears and I'm not saying God spoke audibly to me, but there was a message that I think God brought to me from him that was loud and clear. And it was like, basically the message was this. You've heard this message over and over. Have you been listening? Because see, that little high school time is a microcosm of your entire life. Like when you get to the end of your time and you're sharing your parting words of wisdom with the next generation or your family or your grandkids, or if you're lucky, your great-grandkids. Will you share a message filled with regret and remorse of all the things that you wish you would have done? Will you stand there with sadness because faith wasn't the driving force of your life and you realize you didn't put first things first? Or will you change something? And will you stand and say, I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now you do the same. Because that's essentially what you're going to say to the next generation. You'll either say, follow my example or learn from my mistakes. Which message do you want to share? I think what the high schoolers gave us every single year, gave me, was a glimpse at the end of our life. Don't get to the end of your life and look back and see that faith took a back seat because you followed the flimsy ways of the world when life could have been so much fuller if faith was at the forefront. Don't get to the end of your life and look back and realize that the enemy had just encompassed your life with fiery darts when he gave you a shield to defend yourself. Because listen to me, an enemy only stops attacking once they've won. So if you're not being attacked, it's because you've already lost. But if you feel attacked, it's because you're still in the fight. So stand and fight. Take up the shield of faith. Hold it out in front, because that is how you extinguish the darts of the enemy. The thing about a shield is it's the thing that protects all the rest of the armor. This is why faith is that thing that's out in front. My friends, faith is not a passive thing. It is to be an active thing in our life, the most active thing. So be dressed with the shield of faith. 2. Be dressed in God's armor because salvation isn't for insurance, it's for assurance And secondly, be dressed in God's armor because salvation isn't for insurance. It's for assurance. Go to verse 17. It says this and take the helmet of salvation. Now, I have no way to quantify this, but in my gut, I can just tell you the number one question as a pastor that I've gotten from Christians over my time, do you know what it is? I wonder if you could guess it. It's this. Here's the number one question I think I've gotten over my time. How do I know that I'm saved? I've gotten that question more times than I could possibly count, and I've tried to answer that over my time and over my time and I think now that I had a few miles on me I've come to realize something about that question. That's not a theological question because a theological answer rarely satisfies the person who's asking. I've come to realize that's actually a practical question because I've come to realize what people are actually asking is they want to know if they are living the right way in order to receive heaven. Because here's the reality, in even the most ardent Christians, legalism still looms in our hearts. Legalism, in case you didn't know, legalism is thinking that you can earn your way into heaven by obeying God's law. Legal, legalism. So often the question of how do I know I am saved is really a question of am I living good enough to get into heaven? Am I doing the right thing? Now that's a question of insurance. People are really asking, like, I want to make sure that I am insured with the best policy, so what do I need to do or how much do I need to pay in order to ensure that I get to heaven when I die? But salvation is not about insurance. Salvation is about assurance. My friends, Jesus Christ did not die on a cross in your place for your sins and rise again on the third day for you to sit and wonder if you're going to heaven or not. If your entry into heaven, I'll just say it like this, if your entry into heaven is based on your good life, pack your bags for hell. If you think you can earn your way into heaven by how good of a life you live, I hope you like a warm climate. Your good works will never, could never, will never earn you a seat in heaven. There is no way your good works will ever outweigh the sin that's in your hearts. We are saved simply and only by the grace of God through faith in what Jesus has done for us on our behalf. That is how we get into heaven. If your entry into heaven is based on your good life, plan on hell. But if your entry into heaven is based on Jesus' good life, then there is no greater guarantee in all of history. we sing the song, not just assurance, but blessed assurance. The Christian faith is the only religion to make this promise, that your salvation is not based on your good works, but on the good works of God. How do you know you are saved? Because you recognize that you're not saved by anything other than the gospel, the goodness that Jesus died in your place, taking your sins to wash you clean. And thereby, we have salvation through grace. That's why we call it grace. It's something we do not deserve and this is attained through faith when we place our faith in Jesus. So don't let the devil make you question what God has made secure. And I love how Paul ties this piece of our faith to this piece of armor, salvation and the helmet. It's like he's saying, get it in your heads, people. Jesus saves us, we don't save ourselves. In fact, we don't even add to it. Listen, that's like what a helmet does. You don't really work with a helmet, per se. You just kind of put it on, close your eyes, and let it do its job. That's how a helmet works. I love the fact that, I don't know if you know this, but Paul ties salvation and a helmet together in another passage of Scripture. But this time, he adds a little nuance to it. In 1 Thessalonians 5, 8, Paul says this, he says, And for a helmet, the hope of salvation. Now, unfortunately here, we have a little translation language barrier that we've got to address. In English, the word hope comes with a level of uncertainty. To say that I hope something will happen, in English, that means we are unsure if this will happen, but we desire it to be so. That's not how the ancients used the word hope. That's not certainly how Paul uses it here. For Paul's original audience, hope was not something they were unsure of. Hope was something they were certain of, something that just had yet to happen. And so the helmet, as the hope of our salvation, was to say, salvation is that thing that we can be sure of that hasn't come to its fulfillment yet. And I will tell you, of all the pieces of armor that you wear, you can't forget it when you're wearing a helmet. It's always on. You're always conscious of it. And so when the devil tries to slap you upside the head, make sure you are wearing the helmet of salvation. That reminds you of who you are in Christ and where you're going when you die. You think the devil can do anything about that? See, this is what the devil does. He tries to sneak in with spiritual doubt. Too many Christians doubt throughout their entire life, whether they are good enough, whether God loves them enough, whether what's gonna happen when they die. This is not what the Christian faith is all about. The Christian life is not about insurance, it's about assurance. The devil whispers into our ear, making us doubt our salvation, making you doubt God's goodness, the trustworthiness of the Bible. This is why salvation is a helmet that we wear, it's secure. Don't make the mistake of thinking the devil only attacks your heart. You better believe he goes after your mind as well. My friends, it breaks my heart when Christians ask me, how do I know I'm saved? Because here's the reality. If you've rejected, that means repented of your sins, and you've placed your faith in Jesus, guess what? You are saved. And now, and now, if you've truly done that, then now our lives are lived in obedience to what God has done, not because we're trying to earn our salvation, but because we love God and we are thankful for what he's done for us. How do you know if you are saved? Because you've taken your life and your salvation out of your hands and you've placed it into the hands of God. And now they're His. Your life is His and your salvation is His. And do you think anything in all of creation and all the universe could ever take anything out of God's hands? It's not about living a life good enough to get into heaven. It's about living in a way that recognizes you are already going there, as you seek to live a life that pleases God, rather than to seek to live a life that is trying to earn salvation. So my friends, don't wait for the devil to attack to get dressed in the armor of God. Hold out the shield of faith and put on the helmet of salvation. So when the devil tries to get inside your heart, you're holding out the shield of faith, which defends our heart. And when the devil tries to get inside your head, put on the helmet of salvation which protects our mind. Because remember, as we said in week one, this is not the armor from God, this is the armor of God. That means it's infused with His power. And as we wear that on our exterior and we have the Holy Spirit inside of us, you're ready to face the day. You're ready to face the battles. Because the ultimate power is found in God. And because of this, we can have assurance. If the armor of God relied on our power, we're in trouble. But this is the power of the Almighty. It's found in the Holy Spirit, who fills and fuels and guides our lives, who Jesus said would clothe us in power if we would just let Him. And one of the ways that we are reminded of this assurance, one of the ways that we are reminded of the Gospel is by celebrating communion together, which is what we're going to do right now as we are dressed in God's armor which is what we're going to do right now as we are dressed in God's armor. Amen.