¿A Dónde más Iríamos? || Victory Church

Buenos dias, Victory. Vamos, ¿están emocionados de estar en la casa? Esta hermosa mañana de julio. Estoy muy emocionado de estar con ustedes. Y voy a ser sincero, se siente bien estar de vuelta en Norcross. Hombre, los últimos tres meses han sido una locura. Ha sido increíble. Mi esposa ha estado de baja por maternidad. Ella acaba de terminar eso. El bebé tiene tres meses. Esos cachetes están fuera de control. Y sí, así que nos hemos tomado un tiempo libre. He tomado un tiempo de paternidad. Mi esposa y yo también hemos estado construyendo algo realmente emocionante. Y he estado moviéndome en mi nuevo rol. He estado en esas calles de Hamilton Mill, amigos. En las calles de Midtown. Les digo, pero no hay fiesta como la fiesta de Norcross. Déjenme decirles. No les digan que yo dije eso, ¿de acuerdo? No les digan que lo dije. Pero, amigos, estoy emocionado de entrar en el mensaje de hoy. Si puedo ser completamente honesto, este es un pasaje denso. Es un contenido bastante pesado. Así que les animo a… Tomen notas si aún no lo hacen. Pero creo que el Señor quiere hablarnos. Ahora, déjenme decir esto. Si eres nuevo en Victory, tal vez sea tu primera vez aquí, debes saberlo. Hemos estado y continuaremos en el libro de Juan durante todo, todo el año.

Y creo que esta serie ha sido increíblemente transformadora para mí y para muchos otros. Así que hoy quiero retomar desde aquí. Voy a entrar de lleno. Un breve resumen. Hemos visto a Jesús hacer cosas realmente increíbles en las últimas semanas. Vemos a Jesús encontrándose con esta mujer samaritana en el pozo y ofreciéndole agua viva. Vimos a Jesús reuniéndose con Nicodemo en medio de la noche. Un líder religioso que tenía preguntas. Pero quería reunirse en privado, lo cual fue una conversación muy, muy interesante. Luego también vimos más recientemente a Jesús sanando a un hombre paralítico que había estado paralizado durante 38 años. Y luego, justo el fin de semana pasado, escuchamos al pastor Denise. Una de mis historias favoritas de la Biblia, incluso desde niño, donde Jesús alimentó no a 5,000, sino a 20,000, si cuentas a las mujeres y los niños. Me encanta eso. Jesús tomó dos peces, cinco panes, los bendijo e hizo el primer papado. Apoyo esto al 100%. Pero quiero que entiendas que todas estas situaciones y momentos que acabo de describir sucedieron uno tras otro. Así que acompáñame allí. En esta temporada, la cantidad de seguidores que tenía Jesús era increíble. Las multitudes están apareciendo. La gente viene en masa para escuchar a este hombre de Nazaret. Están ocurriendo milagros. Los ojos de los ciegos se abren. Personas que no podían caminar ahora están caminando y saltando de alegría. En ese entonces no existía Instagram, pero si lo hubiera, Jesús tendría la marca azul de influencers. Si no sabes qué es eso, pregúntale a algún joven cercano. En otras palabras, Él era totalmente legítimo. Pero luego, unas 12 versículos después, vemos que sucede algo que es muy, muy inesperado. Vemos a todos estos seguidores yéndose, muchos de ellos alejándose, e incluso sus discípulos más cercanos están dudando. Este compromiso que habían hecho con Jesús. Y la pregunta que tengo que hacer es, ¿por qué?

¿Qué dijo Jesús? ¿Qué fue lo que hizo Jesús? ¿Qué llevó a estas personas que el lunes proclamaban con fervor sus alabanzas a alejarse de Él tan solo el jueves? ¿Y puedo decir algo? Todo lo que lleva a cabo Jesús es a propósito y con intención. Y hoy vamos a observar en los próximos minutos que las palabras que Jesús pronunció fueron intencionales. Para trazar una línea en la arena y separar a los que creían de los que realmente estaban listos para ser discípulos. ¿Y cuántos de ustedes saben que hay una diferencia entre un creyente y un discípulo? Así que eso es a lo que vamos a llegar hoy. Vamos a entrar de lleno en el texto. Si están conmigo, vamos a comenzar. Juan capítulo 6, versículo 51. Jesús hace la declaración. Dice que Él es el pan vivo que descendió del cielo. Cualquiera que coma de este pan vivirá para siempre. Este pan que ofrezco para que el mundo viva es mi carne. Bien. Entonces la gente comenzó a discutir entre sí sobre lo que Él quería decir. ¿Cómo puede este hombre darnos a comer su carne? Preguntaron. Versículo 53. Así que Jesús lo repitió. Les digo la verdad, que a menos que coman la carne del Hijo del Hombre y beban su sangre, no pueden tener vida eterna en ustedes. Versículo 54. But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will resurrect him on the final day. Jesús dice que a menos que coman la carne del Hijo del Hombre y beban su sangre, no pueden tener vida eterna en ustedes. Now I want to jump to verse 58. We will return to these hidden scriptures in a moment. Jesus then says again, I am the true bread that descended from heaven, and anyone who eats this bread will not die, as his ancestors did, although they ate the manna, speaking of the experience in the desert, but they will live forever. Jesus said all these words while he was teaching in the synagogue of Capernaum.

Let us pray. Dear Jesus, we ask that you help us to deeply understand what you are talking about at this moment. Amen. Let's talk about this. Because there are people here, under the sound of my voice, in our overflowing spaces, in our family rooms, watching online. Perhaps you have read this passage in the past, but you never took the time to really digest and understand what Jesus was saying. And I think it would be wise of us to take a break and go a little deeper. Because how many of you know that when Jesus speaks in a cryptic way, there is always a underlying message? What he is saying has nothing to do with the Bible. In reality, it has nothing to do with flesh and blood literally. There is a meaning, a purpose, and a message that he is trying to communicate to his people. So let's talk about this for a moment before we get into the points and all that. Let's talk about flesh, about eating flesh. Now, the word flesh, when you see it in its original language, is a word that we present at the beginning of the series. It is sarx. Sarx. Now, allow me to explain what this word means. No, it means flesh as skin and bone. It does not mean flesh, simply as physical, elastic skin and body. Sarx speaks more of the human experience. It is raw. Sarx. There is nothing attractive about this idea of sarx. Because the flesh in which Jesus wrapped himself was the same human experience. Raw, totally uncut. It is weakness. It is hunger. It is exhaustion. It is fatigue. It is what you and I experience day after day. Now, this is the same language that John used in the first chapter, verse 14, where he says that the word became flesh and dwelt among us. So, what John is saying here is this. John is saying that, listen, Jesus not only put on a disguise to come and live with us. Do you realize that there is a world, right? In which Jesus could have presented himself using a human disguise, but totally denying the human experience and being completely deity on earth. But that was not what Jesus did. He got involved in our disorder. He got involved in our pain, in our struggles.

Why? So that he could be a high priest able to identify with the situation of man. He embraced the complete human experience. And why would he do that? Well, look at what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5, verse 21. The scriptures say that God the Father made his son Jesus, who had absolutely no sin, to sin for us, to cover himself in sacks. Why? So that in him we could become the justice of God. So listen to me well, church. Jesus not only put on a human disguise to identify with us. He became flesh to be able to carry that same flesh to a hill called Calvary. And in that hill he would eliminate, destroy and crush the human experience, the sin and the death that have bound us once and for all. Are you with me? So when Jesus says, eat my flesh, he is saying, participate in my suffering. Participate in my sacrifice. Does anyone want to join in? It doesn't sound fun, right? And then he goes on to say, not only eat my flesh, but drink my blood. So it is important to know that according to Jewish law, blood was considered the seat of life. I know that in the Western world we often refer to the heart as the seat of life. We talk a lot about the heart, love and those things. But the Levitical law makes it very, very clear. When we see it, in Leviticus 17 verse 11 it says, Because the life of the flesh is in the blood. So the Jewish culture of that time really believed that that the blood was sacred, it belonged to God.

We don't drink blood, we don't play with blood. It's sacred and it belongs to God. So listen to me, church. What Jesus is saying at this moment is that the same life that has been reserved and set aside for God and only for God, now He is making it available to anyone who says yes to be a true disciple of Jesus. And listen to me. Symbolism is shocking. It's crazy, it's shocking, it's provocative. But if Jesus said it, He said it intentionally. And I think it's because Jesus wanted us to understand it. Listen to me, church. Jesus wanted us to understand that believing in Him is completely free. But if you're really going to be a beloved disciple, that's going to cost you absolutely everything you have. It's going to cost you everything you and I have right now. Why? Because being a disciple is much more than just casual Christianity that we practice in the biblical belt of the United States. Going to church twice a year just because it's what we do. Or going to church and doing it forever because culturally that's what we've always done. No, Jesus has no interest in your intellectual agreement. Jesus is saying right now, if you're going to follow me, you have to consume me completely. Total dependence on me. Which brings me to the first point of this morning. If we're going to go from being simple believers

to being completely devoted disciples, we have to live our lives looking up. We have to look up. What do I mean by that? We have to cultivate an absolute and total dependence on Jesus. Come on, someone say Jesus. Jesus. Jesus and absolutely nothing else. Come on, we don't need to add anything to Jesus. I will never forget that years ago they created Disney. They launched a streaming platform. Does anyone have a Disney platform? Good, eight of you. Wonderful. We loved it. My children loved Marvel. We all loved Marvel movies. We downloaded it and subscribed. We enjoyed it for a few years. And then in 2019 someone at Disney came up with this brilliant idea. Create a Disney Plus account. Now, in case you weren't aware, when they launched Disney Plus, they started to include movies that weren't Disney at all. I mean specifically movies classified R for adults. I mean movies that shouldn't be connected. Can I tell you something? When you have a brand like Disney, which is already good on its own, and you start adding things to it, you start to corrupt the natural intention of the brand.

Holy Spirit, help me preach this. Can I tell you something? Too many Christians are treating Jesus like Disney. They want to have Jesus more than the lust. I want Jesus more than my crystals. I want Jesus more than my own salvia. I want Jesus more than my politics. The Lord is your provider, but that's not enough. We want Jesus more than 401K. Because our security is in that. Not really in Jehovah Jireh, the one who sees and provides for his people. Can I tell you something? You don't need any additional element when it comes to Jesus. We preach the gospel that Paul preached, which is Jesus crucified, buried, resurrected, reigning forever, and will soon return to his church. There is no Jesus. In fact, only in Christ. No need for works. Only in Christ. Now look at this. Jesus continues to say, I live for the living Father who sent me. And in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live for me. Now the reason why Jesus said,

Anyone who feeds on me, if you realize, the verbal time in which he spoke, indicates what he is saying. Walking with Jesus and meeting with Jesus is a usual, continuous, and sustained food. In other words, this path is not something that happens once. Can I say that? Let me tell you something, disciples don't just create a moment, they commit to a lifestyle. This is what it's like to be a disciple. Listen, the attitude of the heart upwards, as a disciple, is much more than just a devotional heat. We don't do this just to appear in the Sunday church, well dressed, with our best clothes, just to take a selfie and post it on Instagram, to show others that today we are better than last month. Just to post a nice sentence, or a scripture from time to time, that's not why Jesus bled and died. No, following Jesus, listen my friend, is a costly, daily, and in the form of a cross of a Savior who gave everything for you and for me. So to know Him fully, we have to go fully with Him, even in His suffering. Paul said this in Romans 8.17. He told us to share His sufferings, so that we can also share His immense glory. But the problem for many of us as Christians is this. We want glory, but we don't want the suffering that unlocks glory. Let me tell you, in the kingdom of God,

you will never know resurrection and new life until we first learn to die for ourselves. We have to die for ourselves and look at life, death, burial, resurrection, and hope that we find in Jesus. Because listen my friend, I'm going to be honest with you, if no one has ever been honest with you about this path, there will be difficulties. There will be... Can I receive an amen from someone who has been walking with the Lord? If you have been walking with the Lord, for any period of time, you know this. This is not always pink. There have been people who have been sold a mold gospel, cotton, sugar. But the reality is that Jesus made it very clear. Don't be surprised when the world turns against you. He said that the rain falls on the righteous and the unrighteous. Therefore, my dear friend, listen to me humbly while I remind you today. Yes, the suffering will come when you follow Jesus. There will always be a time of pain before reaching the promise. There will always be a cross before receiving the crown. But I have come today to remind someone that the good news does not end there. There is good news. Because in terms of our suffering, I can tell you something. Our suffering in the church of the Western world compared to what Christians are enduring in other nations, compared to what the church of the first century faced,

whose bodies were cut in half and submerged in boiling oil boilers. And this is how today we go back to the simple knife of the persecution. No, no, no. The beauty of the gospel is that the punishment we really deserve, the eternal death, the separation from God, Jesus already paid the price for that. So I don't have to make an effort. I don't have to fight. I don't have to settle accounts. I don't have to jump ropes. All I have to do is look up. Look up. All I have to do is look up. Because He represented all my personal experience. He took it to the cross. My shame, your breakdown, your failure. And I don't just talk about the failures before Christ. No, I talk about the failure of what I did last night. He took it all to the cross. And He was nailed to the cross that day. So today, all we have to do is simply look at Jesus. We have to look at His suffering, look at His sacrifice. And every time we start looking up, that is the first step to start our journey as true disciples. Amen? Are you with me? Very well, let's move on. Because this is the reality. The believers recognize Jesus, but the disciples depend on Him. Who are you?

Here it is. We have to look up. And if we are going to go from believers to disciples, secondly, we also have to surrender to the inside. We have to surrender. In other words, there has to be a total surrender of our heart. In verse 16, Jesus says... Or the Bible continues to say this, that many of the disciples said, this is very difficult to understand. How can someone accept it? And Jesus realized that his disciples were murmuring, so he said, does this offend you? A parenthesis. Don't you love it when Jesus asks questions in the Gospels? He's asking a question, and before you have a chance to think of an answer, he already knows what they're going to say. He says, does this offend you? Then he continues saying, because if this offends you, then what are you going to think if you see the Son of Man ascending to heaven? Now, let's take a break here. This is what Jesus is doing here. He's guiding and at the same time repressing his disciples in a subtle way. Basically he's telling them, guys, you've been walking with me for almost two years. You've heard me teach. You've seen the miracles. You've seen the work we're doing. And yet, you still don't understand these spiritual truths. He's telling them, if you can't understand a teaching, what are you going to do when you have to explain to the world

that I literally did what I said I came to do? Right? He's asking and challenging them to consider his spiritual understanding. But I love how Jesus is so kind and patient with us. How many of you know that he corrects you and then, instantly, guides you like a pastor showing you the way? So he makes it clear. He takes the cryptic conversation and clarifies it. Look at this, going back to verse 63. Then he says, only the Spirit gives eternal life. And the human effort achieves nothing. And the same words I've spoken to you are Spirit and life. Again, look at what I'm saying. He says that only the Spirit gives eternal life. And the human effort achieves nothing. Spirit, flesh, supernatural, natural. Why is this important? If you remember, the author, John, we said this from the beginning, that he was a prolific writer. And he intentionally writes his manuscript with certain themes that are constantly repeated. So if you remember, just a few weeks ago, Jesus sat down with Nicodemus and said, To have eternal life, you must be. All of you earn a golden star. Very good job. You read your Bible. That's very good. He said that to be born again, to be saved, you have to be born again. And Nicodemus, this brother, was like, That seems difficult, Jesus. How do you do that?

But Jesus wasn't talking about a physical birth. He was talking about a rebirth, a renewal of the mind and heart through the Word and the teachings of the Gospel. When Jesus met the woman in the well, if you remember, what did the conversation revolve around naturally? Water. She went to the well to get water, not knowing that she was going to meet the living water, the living water in person. And then here, in chapter 6, again, Jesus is speaking using a natural language of eating and drinking. But this has clear spiritual implications. Let me say this with total clarity. Jesus is trying to remind us that there is nothing on this earth, nothing in our human experience, that will ever completely satisfy the deep longing of our souls. Nothing at all. No platform, no ascent, no opportunity, no personal relationship. Nothing will ever be able to fill the void in the form of God that is inside your soul, except God himself. Then Jesus continues saying this, but some of you don't even believe me. Because Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn't believe and knew who was going to betray him. We'll come back to that in a moment. Then he said, That's why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father allows it.

I want to point this out, because at this moment, this is a strong theological statement that Jesus is making, because he mentioned this before in this passage. You can go back and read it later. But Jesus, in the same context, told them that no one can come to the Son, but through the Father who attracts him. I think it's important for us to know today that for you and for me... In our depravation, in our breakdown, in our sinful nature. Do you realize that? The fact that we can't even raise our hand and say, I need a Savior. That in itself is the grace of God on our lives. Do you understand what I'm saying? There is nothing good inside of us. We are broken people, lost, depraved, that we are in enmity with God. So we don't have the privilege of simply waking up one day and deciding, you know what? I think I'm going to choose Jesus today. No, my friend, it's an act of grace, a supernatural grace of the Holy Spirit that awakens our eyes to see our need for a Savior. It's not that one day we simply choose God. We have to understand that He has chosen you and is calling you. And Jesus is saying, He is reminding you. He is reminding you of that in this moment. And then in the next verse He said everything He had to say. The Bible says that in that precise moment

many of His disciples departed and abandoned Him definitively. They left. That simple. On Monday they were praising Him. He teaches a difficult truth. And on Friday they are moving away. By the way, this is not in the notes. I just realized this. It seems very strange to me. If you are here today and you are just thinking about throwing the towel, I don't know if I can do this. I find it curious that the direction of this scripture... So if that's you, brother, rethink your strategy. Take that off the screen, please, in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus. They leave. That simple. He teaches something that defies everything they have always believed to be true. And in that moment they had to make a decision. Am I going to focus and align my thoughts and my understanding with God's will? Well, I move away. And that's exactly what they did. Jesus made several difficult statements one after the other. And with each statement He made, more and more people began to disperse. The Bible says that in verse 41, He calls Himself the bread of heaven. And He says that the crowd murmured. Then, a few verses later, He says that the bread I spoke of is my flesh. And the Bible says in verse 52 that the crowd argues. And then, in verse 60, He adds, They have to eat my flesh and drink my blood.

In that moment, even His disciples look at each other and say, Brother, this is madness. This is a difficult teaching. Who can really understand it? Do you want to know what this tells me? This is what it tells me. It says that it doesn't matter if you have walked with the Lord for three minutes, three years, or three full decades. The gospel of Jesus Christ will offend you. I'm not talking about the gospel of the prosperity that pleases the ears. That of, declare it and claim it. The pure gospel of Jesus Christ, when preached in all its counsel, will challenge and confront everything that you once thought was true, whether you are a skeptic or an erudite. It is for this reason that there are thousands of churches throughout the United States, hundreds in Atlanta, full of thousands of believers, and only a small number of true disciples. Do you want to know why? Because being a believer is easy. It's easy to believe in Jesus. Did you see the BET Awards? Some of you are lying. Pastor, I would never do that. Okay, but you've seen the award shows, right? These artists go up to the podium and grab their trophy. What is the first thing you want to say in that microphone? Yes, I want to give all the praise, glory and honor to Jesus. Do you understand me? These jewels, I just dropped the ring. I'll pick it up in a minute. But, well, back to Jesus and his trophy, I'm just saying.

And I'm thinking, brother, I saw the music video, bro. Jesus doesn't like that stupidity. Nor those clowns. No, friend, it's easy to believe in Jesus. In fact, what does the Bible say? You know what verse I'm going to go to. You already know. Saint James tells us in chapter 2, verse 19, look at this. You say you have faith because you believe there is only one God. Good for you. But even the demons believe this and tremble with a profound terror. Do you realize that there are Christians who are just simple believers and don't even have enough fear of God to tremble before him? Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Having faith is absolutely free. Amen. Amen. The believers go to the meetings for the miracles, but the disciples go for the mission. The believers go for the blessing, but the disciples embrace the proof. Amen. Amen. While the believers celebrate the promotion,

a true disciple feels at peace with the process of the wedding. They are fully willing to introduce themselves and say with sincerity, Lord, if there is something in me that is not like you, I need you to take it away. I need you to give me strength to subdue it. Because I want to see myself exactly smell, walk, speak, breathe, and be able to function like you at all times. It's hard. This gospel is not for cowards. So every time Jesus preaches a message saying things like, to follow me, you have to eat my flesh and drink my blood. When he preaches a difficult message saying that if you want to follow me, you must take your cross and die every day. Understand, church, we should not be surprised when we see people moving away. We should not be surprised when we see even our closest friends questioning their commitment. Why? Because everyone is fine with Jesus, the eternal Savior, but not everyone accepts Jesus as their Lord. We want to share things. Oh Lord, you can touch that, but you can't have this. Do your will here, but ooh.

But let me tell you something important. In your life, Jesus Christ is either the Lord of everything or the Lord of nothing. There is no intermediate point. And our struggle in this sense is never only intellectual. It's always the heart. We have a problem with the heart. We have a problem with the heart. Because look at me, giving in to God is being honest with God. It's showing up in times of worship, showing up in time alone with Him, with the chest open, allowing the Spirit of God to illuminate with His light, His holy and penetrating light. Disciples don't show up just to show up. We show up to open ourselves, to allow the Lord to do in us the work that needs to be done. Amen? How are you out there? As Pastor Denis says, You know, while I was reading and studying this week, there was something that caught my attention. I'm not going to lie to you. I struggled with that for a while because I thought, man, is that just my ADHD? Come on, Holy Spirit, activate.

Or is this okay? And I felt so intrigued, because if you remember, Scripture says that Jesus was completely aware of the thoughts and intentions of each disciple at that moment. And especially, and I quote, that He knew He would betray Him. Speaking of Judas. Now, you don't have to be a Christian to know, or at least know something about the story of Judas. He was one of the twelve disciples who, when things became difficult, betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. There was no regret, and He took His life. A tragic story. But I've always wondered, all these years, as a Christian, growing in my faith, and studying the Word, I always wonder, how did Judas get to that point? Do you understand what I'm saying? Have you ever done that? I mean, how do you walk with Jesus for three and a half years? You see the miracles. You're involved in the miracles. You're doing the ministry. And yet, at that moment, you betray Him. I mean, you have to ask yourself, was Judas conspiring from the beginning? Did he join the group from the beginning, knowing that he was going to steal money and do things wrong? And was his heart ever really in it?

And while I was studying this, this simply came to my mind. It was a question. There's a consideration. And if this was the moment? And if this moment, right here in the synagogue, when the conviction of the words of Jesus collided with the rebellion in his heart, could it have been the moment when Judas decided in his soul, I can't do this anymore? Jesus is saying very crazy things. People are going back to that period of time, what Jesus was saying, those words of Jesus. He was speaking in the cultural context. Could they have stoned Him right there? Could that be the place where Judas decided, I can't do this, I'm leaving. However, I have something good here, so I'm just going to keep doing what I do. My heart is not in this, but I'm going to keep singing the songs. My heart is not really with the man, but man, I'm really intrigued by the movements. I'm going to continue ministering to all the people, without a real and deep connection with the Messiah. Maybe that was the day when Judas decided to move away from the inside. Look at me. If it was like that, it wasn't because the teaching was so difficult. It was because he wasn't willing to completely surrender himself to the Lord Jesus. It came to the point where what Jesus required was too much. And the sad and raw reality for Judas,

for you and for me, is that it is very possible to be in an extremely close proximity to Jesus, and yet have a heart that is very far from Him. And let me tell you, church, that this is a tremendously dangerous spiritual place where one can be. There are many people right now in this room, in the family room, or who are following us online, and you may not have noticed, but you've been stuck in your own spiritual growth. You're trying things, trying things, it doesn't work. Change it. Try it again. It doesn't work. Trying, trying, you bump into a ceiling and you shout, God, open this door. Lord, do you see me? I need you to open a way. I need you to open the sea. And the Lord looks back at you, thinking for himself, why should I trust you with something greater if you haven't even done the first thing I called you to do? I've already manifested it to you before, but your heart is closed. I've expressed it clearly, but you refuse to pay attention. Jesus sits in that synagogue at that moment

and watches everyone leave. They're leaving in masses. And right at that precise moment, not only the people outside are moving away, but the Bible says that even his closest disciples start asking questions. They're doubting the man and the mission to which they gave their lives. And in that moment of so much emotional burden, Jesus makes a statement, makes a crucial question that represents one of the most vulnerable moments in the whole Gospel. I don't know about you, but when I read the Gospels, I have my favorite passages in the Gospels. They're the moments that show the humanity of Jesus. Like that moment when he was hanging on the cross and exhaling his last breaths of life. He looks down and says, Juan, take care of my mother. That provokes something inside me. Because it reminds me that we don't serve a God who is unable to relate to our fragility and our humanity. Are you with me? Well, one of those moments happens right here. Everyone is leaving. His disciples are doubting. And Jesus looks at the twelve and asks them this question. Are you also leaving? Are you leaving?

And at that moment the tension is high. When I read the Bible, I read it in vivid colors. I imagine that there are probably tears accumulating in your eyes. Are you also leaving? And in that deep silence, there was only one disciple. The one with the big mouth. All of you already know who it was. It was the rude guy from the south of Jerusalem. My bread, Pedro. Let's go, someone! I can't wait to meet Pedro. He's cutting ears. Pedro is one of those who don't walk around. And the apostle Pedro answers him with a statement that is equally moving. This is the title of today's message. He says, Jesus, where else are we going to go? Where are we going to go? We've seen too much with our eyes. We've heard too much with our ears. Where else are we going to go? Because you have the words that give eternal life. We believe and we know. Come on, say it with me. We believe and we know. One more time. We believe and we know that you are the Holy One of God. Come on. We believe. I don't care what the world says about you.

They call you a liar. They call you crazy. But I declare that you are, Lord. You are who you say you are. Do you realize? Jesus asked the twelve. They kept silent. And Pedro spoke. And look, I love Pedro. Pedro is a tough guy. Pedro not only said, I believe. What did he say? He said, we believe. Put on a good face, man. Bartolomé. Put on a good face, man. We believe. We know who you are. At that moment, Pedro became the first evangelist in that room. He got up and spoke out loud, with courage. While everyone else was moving away. Which brings me to my last point for today. If we are going to be true disciples. We look up. We surrender to the inside. But we have to reach out. Come on, someone look at me. We have to live in mission. We have to be people who live their lives knowing the mission. Because listen to me.

Every disciple. Understands this one and true principle. That in the Kingdom of God, as the Son of God, there are no free days. There is no free time paid in the Kingdom. We don't make a card on Sunday for the service at 11. And then go home and live as we want the rest of the week. There are no breaks. As a true disciple, you are on a mission. Whether you are in the church, in the office, or in the hallway of a supermarket. In Starbucks, in the school line, in the line to pick up. If you are in the playground. Anywhere we put our feet. We understand that we are on a mission to conquer territory for the Kingdom. There are no free days. Either we are committed or we are not. They can leave if they want. I am committed. I am committed. Disciples are intentional with our community. Recently I met a guy who was telling me everything that was happening. Well brother, tell me about your community. Are you in a small group? No, I only go out with this friend I grew up with. This girl I went to school with. And this other one. And I tell him, well brother. You need a peaceful community. Disciples don't get together with turkeys waiting to fly with eagles. No. Disciples are intentional with our community.

We are intentional with our testimony. We are intentional with our language. We are intentional with our behavior. Look at me. We are intentional with the means we consume. Don't make me start with that. We are intentional. Why? Because we want to have the same conviction that Pedro had. Regardless of the situation. Because, listen to me, the believers come to the church to receive the good news. But the disciples, they leave ready to share it. So, again, who are you? Is there a disciple in this place? Come on, is there a disciple in the family room? Do I have disciples in this messy bedroom? Clean, clean your room. Very good. So we were working on this message this week and something great happened. It was a moment of the Holy Spirit. One of the guys, I think it was Pastor Olin, he is preaching in Midtown. He said, guys, do you realize that the points of this message are perfectly aligned with how we define the disciple in Victory? And I said, tell me more. So I'm going to show this definition because, listen to me, the term disciple is one of those words of the church that most people in the church really can't define. It can mean many things, right? Depending on where you come from. This is how we define the disciple in Victory. We believe that the disciple is a journey of a lifetime guided by the Holy Spirit to fully mature in Christ through your mind, your heart, and your hands. Okay?

Now, I want to show this very quickly. Let's compare this with what we talked about today. The disciple and your mind, that is living upwards. That is our relationship with God. That is taking the time to get into the Word, to be intentional, to spend time with Him. The heart, inward. That is the character and the surrender, allowing the Holy Spirit to heal us inside so that we can move forward. Then, of course, our hands. That is our external expression of what the Lord has done inside of us. And this is the reality. I want everyone to listen to me. Everyone in this room, if you are a follower of Christ, you are somewhere on this list. You are at some stage. There are people who are doing well at the top. They have a lot of knowledge. Don't you love Christians with all that knowledge in their heads? Sarcasm? My mom used to say that there are people so focused on the heavenly that they are useless on earth. My mom never lied. If the knowledge does not go from the head to the heart, many will lose the sky for only 45 centimeters. Those of you who know Him here. We have to close that gap. We have to bring Him inside, right? And this is the reality. Some of you have the knowledge and the understanding,

which is great, and you also have the heart. You let the Lord change you, open to correction. You are open, and that is great. But many of us have never taken the hope received to share it with the world around us. We don't talk about the Lord or our history. We are reserved and we go to what is ours. But what if Jesus had done the same with you? No. So we have to evaluate where we are, and then take the necessary steps to grow in those areas. Are you with me? Now, let me make it very clear. I want to give you practical steps that you can take with you when you leave. So here is the first one. How do you see yourself starting to grow in your life today? We have prayer every Saturday here on this campus at 8am. If you don't come to that, I tell you, you are wasting a powerful time in the Lord. The service does not start on Saturday night. The service starts on Saturday at 8am. Stop playing. You should come. Second, fasting. This is a way we can learn to listen to the voice of God more clearly. The Lord has revealed to me the greatest ways in times of fasting. Now, I'm going to be honest with you. I struggle with fasting. Yes, I'm a pastor, and I tell you, it's a struggle,

because I love to eat. But even so, I choose to leave it aside, because my food comes from the Father. Amen? Now, here's another thing. Commit to the Sabbath. Now, I know it may seem strange to put it here, but it's not. Because every Friday, when my wife, my children, and I leave aside all the noise, it's in that space of silence. Where I can hear God as clearly as the day. I find it curious that the word silent, if you change the letters, also forms the word listen. This could help. Now let's look inside. Here you have a good step for you. Some of them choose forgiveness. Most people who are stuck in life and cannot move forward are largely due to a bitter root of lack of forgiveness. And I promise you, taking that step will open doors for you. New things in your life, or simply examine the health of your soul looking for accountability. And look at this. When you open your chest and the Lord illuminates with his light, you have to submit to the process. We have to submit, right? And then, last but not least, outwards. Missionary trip. If you have never been on a missionary trip, I encourage you to do so.

Almost every weekend, here with our Ministry of Community Transformation, go out to the world that surrounds you. Serve in a ministry team. Join a small group. If you don't want to do all that, my friend, just start by opening your mouth and telling others what Jesus has done in your life. Amen? And I promise you that as you start taking these steps, the Lord will find you on the way. And he will begin to reveal himself to you in a new way that you never imagined. Are you with me on that? So, while I conclude, I know that this was a heavy message today. I told Pastor Johnson, I'm tired of preaching these hard messages, my friend. I want to preach a happy message, but in this house we don't give happy messages. Complete advice. And my prayer for today is this. That the next time the storms of life are rolling in your world, the next time you feel the Holy Spirit convincing you of something in your life. And can I tell you something? No one is above the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I have walked with God for 23 years. And, my friends, he still prays for me every day, every week. There are even areas in my own life where I have to learn to trust God more. And he is doing that work, and I submit to it. I don't always do it well, but I am committed to seeing this until the end. And my prayer is that when the Lord begins to speak to you about your things, about your issues, revealing the things that he is calling you to and wishing for you. My prayer is that for this house, our response is not to move away, but that our response is like that of Peter.

To say, oh Lord, to what other place could I go? Because only you have words of eternal life. All the praise be for the way, the truth, and the life in Jesus. Amen. Amen. And today, I just want to tell you, if you feel like this, if you don't know where you are on this path with the Lord, or maybe you haven't even begun, accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior is the first step. You will never know life in abundance. You will never know the fullness of joy. You will never know eternal life until you first say yes to his Lordship. If it is you, I will count to three. If you are here today and you want to say yes to Jesus, it is not a matter of once, or just raising your hand for being a Christian. You came to the church today. It is not just about raising your hand to make your wife or your parents happy. No, I am talking about you being ready. You realize today that something in your life has to change, my friend. I can't keep doing it this way. Here it is. One, you have tried it your way. It fails every time. The Bible tells us that we deserve the separation of God, the eternal death, but because Jesus paid the price that you and I deserve to pay, we don't have to leave here as enemies of God. We can leave here as sons and daughters. Two, here it is, my friend. Will you say yes to mercy?

Will you say yes to putting your faith and trust in what Jesus did in Calvary? That is you. Here it is. One, two, three, raise your hand where you are, let's pray, raise your hand to see her, I see them in stands, I see those hands, I see a couple here, I see a family here, God bless you, I see you, the Lord sees you, the Lord sees you, my friend, he sees you, and they can lower those hands, and I want to guide you in a prayer If you raised your hand, all this body of believers, let's pray with you, if you are in our family room, if you are seeing us online, let's pray this out loud, say, Jesus, you know who I am, I have made mistakes and I have broken your law, but I believe that my life can change, you are the son of God, I believe that you died for my sin, you rose from the grave, and that one day you will take me home But right now, I need you, come into my heart, forgive my sin, heal my mind, and use me to reflect your divine light in every moment, and I firmly believe according to your holy word, and through faith, that now I am saved, so I give you many thanks for loving me deeply, even when I was not worthy of being loved by you In the mighty name of Jesus, let us pray I have 11 people on my team, but I truly believe that there is a God in the world We just want you to know that we see you, you are important to us and we would love to continue creating things in the future that bless you, so send us a letter and we look forward to seeing you soon