How Do I Know if I’m Saved? - Mountain to Mountain - Matthew S2E6

♪♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ And I will open up my heart in Your presence, Holy God. ♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ Break the silence in my soul as I wait here for You, Lord. ♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪ Come speak to me. ♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪ I'm listening. ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

Come on, let's get up on our feet and worship the King of Kings. Look at the flowers and all of their beauty. I don't have to wander, you know what you're doing. So why would I worry at all? You're faithful to supply. Everything I need, everything I need. My Father has it, my Father has it. Every single time, the Lord will provide. My Father has it, my Father has it. Oh, my Father has it. Look at the sparrow, he's lacking for nothing. No fear of tomorrow and what it will bring. If I have you, I have enough. Your love will satisfy. Everything I need, everything I need. I know my Father has it, my Father has it. Every single time, the Lord will provide. I know my Father has it, my Father has it. Oh, my Father has it. Seek first the kingdom and its treasures and everything else that will be added. And all that I'm needing, I know the Lord will provide. Come on, we believe it. Let's sing it out. Because I know my God's not empty handed. Yes, he gives us blessings upon blessings. I'm still believing. Yes, I know the Lord will provide. So sing it. Seek first the kingdom and its treasures

and everything else that will be added. Oh, all that I'm needing. Yes, I know the Lord will provide. And I know my God's not empty handed. Yes, he gives us blessings upon blessings. Oh, I'm still believing. Oh, I know the Lord will provide. Everything I need, everything I need. I know my Father has it, my Father has it. Every single time, the Lord will provide. I know my Father has it, my Father has it. Everything I need, everything I need. I know my Father has it, my Father has it. Every single time, the Lord will provide. My Father has it. So seek first the kingdom and its treasures and everything else that will be added. Oh, all that I'm needing. I know the Lord will provide. ♪ Provide, cause I know my God's not empty handed ♪ ♪ Cause He gives us blessings upon blessings ♪ ♪ Oh I'm still believing, yes ♪ ♪ Oh I know the Lord will provide ♪ ♪ Oh I know the Lord will provide ♪ ♪ I know the Lord will provide ♪ ♪ Come Thou fountain, every blessing ♪ ♪ Tune my heart to sing Thy praise ♪ ♪ Streams of mercy never ceasing ♪ ♪ Call for songs of loudest praise ♪ ♪ Teach me some melodious sonnet ♪

♪ Sung by flaming tongues above ♪ ♪ Praise the mountain fixed upon it ♪ ♪ Mountain I redeem it of ♪ ♪ Here I raise my heavenly music ♪ ♪ In it by Thy help I'm come ♪ ♪ In my hope I, I could close it ♪ ♪ Safely to arrive at home ♪ ♪ Jesus sought me when I'm stranded ♪ ♪ Wandering from the fold of God ♪ ♪ He took rescue me from danger ♪ ♪ When it calls me, precious Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, precious Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, to grace how great a debtor ♪ ♪ Daily I'm constrained to be ♪ ♪ Let Thy goodness, like a fetter ♪ ♪ Bind my wandering heart to Thee ♪ ♪ Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it ♪ ♪ Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it ♪ ♪ Prone to leave the God I love ♪ ♪ Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it ♪ ♪ Seal it for Thy courts above ♪ ♪ Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it ♪ ♪ Prone to leave the God I love ♪ ♪ Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it ♪ ♪ Seal it for Thy courts above ♪ ♪ Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it ♪ ♪ Seal it for Thy courts above ♪ Hallelujah, amen, come on, let's pray together, church. Lord, we love you and we're thankful for your continued faithfulness to us,

even though we're prone to wander. God, your grace is sufficient for the greatest of our wanderings, and Lord, I pray that in the midst of our worship today, in the midst of your word being proclaimed in this place, God, as the gospel goes out, Lord, that our hearts would be tethered to the truth of who you are. God, that our affections would be stirred for you, and that our lives would be lived out in obedience, God, to your will. Lord, we love you, we thank you for the grace of Jesus, and for your kindness to us. Lord, may all these things be for your glory, because we know, Lord, that they're for our good. Pray all these. in the mighty name of Jesus. And everybody said, amen. Thank y'all for singing, you too. Amen, and welcome to the Church of 1122, where we are a movement for all people to discover and deepen a relationship with Jesus Christ. It's a joy to get to be here in the house of the Lord with all of you at San Pablo and with all of you joining us online. As a church, we are in the season, the liturgical season, to use a big church word, known as Lent. Lent is not just the stuff in your pockets. It's also the 40 days leading up to Easter

where the church has historically leaned in to prepare our hearts to worship our resurrected King at Easter. We just don't wanna race right in there. We wanna give him the honor and the worship that he's due. And so how do we do that? Here at the Church of 1122, we fast from sunup on Wednesdays to sundown. And then those hours when we would be eating from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. when we would be having breakfast, we're here in this room and we're feasting on the Word of God and leaning into the presence of God in prayer. And then the time that we would be having lunch from noon to one, we're in this room and we're praying. And online, we didn't forget about you. You can join us online from noon to one. And so I just wanna encourage you. You who've been leaning in and fasting and praying, keep going. I pray that the Lord has been meeting with you in that secret place. And for those of you who haven't, this is a great week to jump in. Come join me here for our hour of prayer. Then I wanna make sure that you know all of the things that are happening at Easter because there's a bunch of them. We're gonna kick that Easter week off on Tuesday, March 31st with our Passion Service,

which is a Good Friday service. We're gonna spend that time thinking about the death and burial of Jesus, again, to prepare our hearts, to celebrate the empty tomb by taking time that Tuesday night to focus on the cross. So join me here Tuesday, March 31st at 5.22 or 7.22. And then we have a slew of Easter services that week starting on Thursday, April 2nd, 5.22, 7.22. Then on Saturday, April 4th at 3.22 and 5.22. And then Sunday, April 5th, 7.22, 9.22, 11.22 and 4.22. And here's the thing. If I invited you to come have dinner at my house, it doesn't matter that there's a chair in my house that's my chair. Nobody sits in my chair at my house unless you're my guest. And then my chair becomes your chair. And I wanna encourage you, if you call 11.22 home, we are going to have a lot of guests here, a lot of guests that we're praying that they would understand what the empty tomb means for them, amen? And so I wanna invite you to join me Thursday at 5.22, Saturday at 3.22 or 5.22 or Sunday at 7.22 or 4.22 so that there's always a seat for one more during that weekend. And then at every single one of those services, we're gonna celebrate the resurrection through baptism. And so maybe you know that's your next step to take. I wanna encourage you, as soon as service is over, head to the lobbies and let those men and women

at the Connect Centers get you signed up. Right now, we're gonna celebrate and worship through baptism with Lorelai and Mike. So grab a Bible, grab a pen, and let's listen to Lorelai's testimony. So when I was little, I didn't really go to church, but as I grew up, my mom, she started realizing how she needed the Lord in her life and she wanted the Lord in her kids' lives. So we kind of just started going around churches and then we found 11.22. Going into students, I realized I could put my faith in Jesus knowing He is the King of all kings, the King of heaven and earth, and He created all and loves all. I'm one of those all. I wanna get baptized because it's telling the whole world that you belong to Jesus and knowing that He's always there for you. Church, Lorelai is 13 years old and she told me right before this that she surrendered her life at a student event. She was the first one to stand up in a room full of teenagers to say that she was saying yes to Jesus. And today, she's being bold to do that in front of y'all. So I have a couple questions for you, Lorelai. Do you promise to turn away from the sins of your past, the ways of this world, anything dark and demonic? And do you choose to follow after Christ?

Yes. And who is Jesus Christ to you? My Lord and Savior. Amen. Based on that public proclamation, I baptize you, my Christian sister, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. What my life was like before I met Jesus, my priorities were wrong. I judged myself on what I had. In September of 2024, I had a surgery to remove a tumor, and I woke up from that surgery without being able to move my legs. I spent a month in the hospital working on just standing and walking. Nine months after that surgery, I lost my job, and so I was stripped away from everything my identity was. That was the breaking point.

I needed Jesus. I know that Jesus, He gave His life for us so that He could save us. It's pretty symbolic that I'm learning how to walk after being in a wheelchair for a year, and I'm now learning how to walk in the path of Jesus as well. I'm choosing to be baptized because this is an outwards declaration that I met and accepted Jesus. Amen, church. This is Mike. Mike, this is your faith family, and man, what a miracle that we're here, and you're in the water, and all that God has done, and we know He is going to do in your life. I have a question for you. Do you renounce the sins of your past, the ways of this world, anything dark or demonic you've been connected to and pledged to live your life to Christ and Christ alone? I do. And who is Jesus? My Lord and Savior. Amen. Based on that profession of faith, we baptize in my brother in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So I met my husband when I was in ninth grade, then we got married when I was 20 years old. We decided to go to college in Orlando, and that's when we ended up going to this new church. We go there, and they have these Bible studies that we're supposed to participate in to join the church, but they were so focused on obeying that they had completely lost what grace is and what freedom in Christ is, what God's love is truly. I understood God's wrath, but I did not understand God's grace and God's love. Some of the lies that I feel like were whispered super heavily in my ears, screamed in my ear were, I'm too sinful to make it to heaven. I woke up every day just concerned, like, am I going to make it to heaven? Like, did I do enough to make it to heaven today?

Is God pleased with me today? And it was every single day for years. That church really pushed the faith without deeds is dead. And so I did a lot of deeds. I tried to baptize as many people as I could. I tried to convert as many people as I could. I tried to read the Bible as much as I could. I was trying to earn my salvation. I was going to earn it or at least die trying. And I find out I'm pregnant with twins. My daughter's nine months old. And so I talked to my husband and we were like, because we had no choice, really, we're going to go back home again to Jacksonville. And my mom said, come live with me. I'll help you take care of the babies. My brother, he had found 1122 and he was like, you should go to 1122. So coming here, I remember so many sermons about the grace of God. That's when this concept of grace and freedom in Christ was first introduced to me as an adult. I mean, I've heard the word grace, but I didn't understand that I didn't have to earn it. And I found that there was nothing I could do to be perfect in order to maintain my salvation. That's when I figured out like, hey, God loves me and I can't lose my salvation. Like there's nothing I can do to earn it and there's nothing I can do to lose it. It really took off that pressure to be perfect. God loves me in spite of me. And so how do I know that I'm saved? Jesus died for my sins and I confessed him as Lord and Savior. And that means that whether I fall or whether I soar, I'm good. Like he's covering me. His grace is sufficient for me.

Amen and amen and amen. If you've got your Bibles, and I hope you do, we're going to be in Matthew chapter seven. We are wrapping up this kind of mini series within a series. We're studying the book of Matthew for basically the whole year. For the past six weeks, we have studied what we're calling season two, mountain to mountain. This is called the Sermon on the Mount. And I'm just going to tell you, man, you weren't here Thursday night, but I was. And I'm hoping and praying that the Spirit of God moves like he did on Thursday. And let me tell you where the Spirit of God shows up, where he's wanted. So sit up. If you're saved, tell your face. I know sometimes, I mean, we gave you 22 more minutes, but sometimes nine o'clock's got a little, you know, you gotta stretch out a little bit, get ready. This isn't gonna be fun at all. But I pray that it's meaningful. Here's the question I want to ask and I want you to answer, not out loud right now. The question I wanna ask is, how do you know if you're saved? How do you know if you're going to heaven? How do you know? And then you should ask yourself, again, don't answer out loud. Are you, are you saved? Are you going to go to heaven? It's pretty important, man. Hell is hot, forever's a long time. You wanna nail this one. And here's what I know.

There are, there will be millions of people sitting in churches today that are not on their way to heaven and they don't know it. So how do you know? This is what Jesus is going to deal directly with. As we got to this text, I thought about this event. It was between Christmas and New Year's, that kind of weird time of the year. I got invited to go to the Passion Conference. And my friend, Louis Giglio, runs it. He and his wife, Shelly, started this years ago. It's amazing. It's four college kids. It's like saturated what we're talking about. What we know is saturated. It's this conference been going on for years called the Passion Conference. It's incredible, I love it. It's all about helping people just understand the glory and the renown of the name of Jesus. The church has been impacted by it in an incredible way over the years. It's awesome, okay. And so, Louis asked me if I'd be there. I said, of course, if I can bring my daughter, Reagan. And he said, of course. And so Reagan and I went. It was great. And we're sitting in this thing

and I'm telling you, dude, the worship is just off the chain. I mean, some of the most anointed worship leaders of our time are leading in worship. There's 8,000 college kids at the Texas Rangers Stadium. Just every song, everybody's got their hands up. It's loud, it's awesome. They got the best preachers you've ever heard, man. I mean, the lineup is incredible. I heard some of the best sermon. You'll hear them too, because I'm gonna rip them off and preach them to you over the next few years. I'll try to give credit when I can remember who I heard it from. And then my friend, JP Picluda, gets up. JP is incredible, incredible exposer of the word of God, gospel center dude. He'll be preaching for Saturated this year for us, okay. He's awesome. You're welcome. You don't know it yet, but you're welcome. And JP gets up and he asked this question to 8,000 college kids who have given up a section of their Christmas break to go to this worship thing where you hear about 100 sermons and sing about 1,000 Jesus songs, okay. And he says, on a scale of one to 10, if I were to ask you, if you were to die tonight,

you're standing before God, and he says, how are you getting into heaven? On a scale of one to 10, how sure are you, how confident are you that you're getting in? And then he says, all right, if you're like a one to three, and I don't want you to raise your hand, it'll hurt my feelings as a pastor, so. He says, on a scale of one to three, raise your hand. Bunch of hands go up. And I go, praise God, man, praise God. Here's a bunch of college kids that showed up at this thing and they go, I don't think I'm getting in, but I'm interested and I'm here, and so what do you have to say? And so I kind of got excited about that. That's actually where Jesus starts the Sermon on the Mount. Blessed are you when you are poor in spirit, when you realize, I don't think I have what it takes. So yay for the one to three crowd, quite honestly. And then he was like, what if you're about on a confidence level between one and 10? What if you're like a three to six? And a bunch of hands go up, and I'm like, what does that mean, how are you a six? What does that even mean? And then the one that terrified me was this. And if you think you're like a seven to nine on the confidence scale of going to heaven, raise your hand, and a bunch of hands come up,

and I go, oh no, oh no. These kids don't know the gospel, man. And these aren't your average college kids. These are kids that are at the Passion Conference. They paid money, they got on a bus, they know all the songs, I watched them. They all have their hands up with their eyes closed and they know all the words. And they think they're a nine. Which means they think, I think I've done some stuff. I'm not quite sure if I've done enough, but I've done some stuff. And I think I might be getting in. And then finally he goes, who's a 10? Me and Reagan, we're 10s. I'm a 10. By the end of this sermon, I want you to be a 10. I want you to know that you know that you know confidently that you are gonna spend eternity with Christ not because of anything that you've done. You see, the moment you stand before Christ in heaven and he goes, why should I let you in? You don't answer with personal pronouns. There's no because I. If you start with, well, because I. No, no, it's because of you. Like Alistair Begg said, because the man on the middle cross said I could come. I want you to know, and here's how I know, my confidence is not in me, my confidence is in Christ

and what he has told us in this word. Philippians 1.6 says, I am. When I memorize it in the NIV, ESV says I am sure of it, I like the NIV. I am confident of this, that he who began a good work in me will bring it to completion on the day of Christ Jesus. That's how I know. Or Romans 10.9. Romans 10.9 says, because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will, not might be, not nine out of 10, you will be saved. Romans 10.13 says, for all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. When John is writing one of his epistles, 1 John 5.13, he says, I write these things to you who are in Christ that you may know that you have eternal life. So do you know? I want you to know. Now here's the thing. I don't want you to question your salvation unless you're not saved. The only thing more dangerous than the lack of the assurance of your salvation is a false assurance of your salvation. And this is what Jesus is gonna talk about. There's gonna be a lot of church people, man. There's a lot of church people who have put their faith in something other than the free gift of grace

that Jesus offers. Again, Jesus starts the whole sermon. Here's how you know what a sermon's about. How does it begin, how does it end? In the whole sermon on the mount, it begins with the gospel, it's gonna end with the gospel. It's a big old gospel sandwich, that's what it is. And then everything in the middle is what does it look like if you've actually been run over by the grace train? These are the symptoms of the gospel-infected life. And so he starts his sermon with this, blessed, congratulations, Jesus, it has to be healing, the healing of your mind. And ennobles you mind. But at this point, he stops saying, amen, guys, I've put my faith in him, that Jason, that you and yourself are touched. And he says, this is the only thing that you know about your salvation and about you, you, a screams at it with you. The only thing that screams are you but verse in the whole sermon in the mouth, blessed are the meek, meek doesn't mean weak, meek means, it means, bit, bridle, horse, blessed are you when you turn over the reins of your life to a different master. Let me tell you who this sermon is for. It's for church people, man. That think God owes them heaven. It's hard for church people to get saved, you realize that?

It's real hard for church people to get saved, because they think they have some righteousness. So this is what he's going to talk about. He's going to close the sermon on the mount, he begins it with the gospel, he ends it with the gospel. Now, the majority of the sermon is about how we act when we turn the reins of our life over to him. And so I think part of the reason that he ends with the gospel is because the moment, the human mind is so twisted, that the moment you begin to talk about the activities that believers should be participating in, we get the order mixed up, and we think our activity determines my identity, so if I do good stuff before a good God, then I ought to be good. Good? Not good. And so he says, he talks about all kinds of things, we should be salt and light, we should impact this world. And the way we Christians, followers of Jesus, through anger and lust and marriage and forgiveness and money and prayer, and the way we treat our enemies and judgment and how we sing and pray and give, all of that should be different. And if you read the sermon on the mount, and you come away with it as just a new ethic on how you ought to live in order to be right with God, then you missed the whole point of the sermon on the mount. Point to be, this is not just a new law. It's not like Moses went up on Sinai and received the Ten Commandments,

and Jesus went on the Mount of Beatitudes, and he gave us different commandments. That's not how it works. If you read the Sermon on the Mount rightly, you ought to look at it and go, oh, no. I can't do any of this. I mean, I've never murdered anybody, but I've ever been angry in my heart? Are you serious? Every day of my life, what am I gonna do? Which leads to the question, who is gonna save a wretch like me? And so to make sure that we don't miss it, because Jesus knows, he calls us sheep. Not because we're cute and fluffy, because we're nasty and dumb. That's why he calls us that. So he closes like a freight train, like a grace train. That's how he's gonna close. And so you don't hear the Sermon on the Mount and go, amen, that's not enough, it's not enough to agree. It's not enough to feel a thing, that's not enough. But when you turn over the reins of your life, when you get hit by the grace train, it changes everything about everything about everything. All right, so back to my questions. How do you know if you're saved? And again, if you answer with the I, then you don't understand salvation. Is it church attendance?

Is it more good than bad? Is it trying hard? Do you think there's a sin that has disqualified you? Is it your baptism? Is it believing right doctrine? All right, we're gonna answer that. I'm gonna start in verse 13. I know Pastor Britt, Pastor Britt covered these last week. I love listening to him preach so much. Great job, Pastor Britt. Matthew 7, beginning in 13, because we gotta get a little running start before we get to this part I'm supposed to preach. Matthew 7, 13, Jesus, in this one continuous sermon, says, enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. And so with that in mind, that there's a whole bunch of people that would be the kind of people that would show up to listen to Jesus preach a sermon. There's a whole bunch of people that are on the wrong path. And with that in mind, verse 15, he says this, beware, this is the second time in his sermon that he's given a warning. Watch out, be on guard, be aware.

And there's only two times he gives this warning. The first time he said this, beware of practicing your righteousness in front of other people. This is kind of in the same vein, okay? Because you've got a bunch of Pharisees and Sadducees, religious leaders here, and they think that their activity earns them a right standing with God. And so he says, beware of false prophets. Now, a false prophet is simply somebody that tells you something in God's name that does not line up with God's words. That's what a false prophet is. And the ones that Jesus is primarily talking about here are the people that think external obedience earns a right standing before God. Now, that's not the only type of false prophets. They're all over the place. But any time, any person, I don't care how big their church is, how big their YouTube following is, I don't care what credentials they claim, how many doctorates they have, if somebody tells you something that is not in alignment with the word of God and they're trying to speak on behalf of God, that is a false prophet. They are telling you lies that lead to death, but here's the thing,

they're gonna say it in a really good way. He said, beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. I get invited to all these church things, man. Because of you, you invite all your Wilmore's, they get saved, our church grows, I have nothing to do with it, I get invited to the conference, that's how it works, good job. And I get asked this question, what do you think is the biggest danger that the church is facing? And I always say this, it's the pulpits. The biggest danger of the church is on the inside, not the outside. The church has always handled external persecution really well. You know where the biggest move of the church is right now? You know where the fastest growing, most multiplying churches are right now? You'd never guess this, Iran. Iran. That's a fact. How do you think their YouTube subscribers are doing? It don't go good. You can't do a public prayer meeting, they'll cut your head off. And yet, they get hammered by the enemy and that faith drives deeper and deeper like a nail

into the good news of the gospel. It's not the external that you gotta watch out for, it's that internal wolf dressed in sheep's clothes. Smells like a sheep, looks like a sheep, use church language, but perverts the gospel or perverts God's word. And then he says, you're gonna recognize them by their fruits, plural. So for the gifted class, don't get this confused with the fruit singular of the spirit, no, no, no. He says, you're gonna recognize them by their integrity, by their teaching. And the way that you gotta give fruit a season to grow. He says, you're gonna recognize them by their fruits. Like, do they primarily preach about themselves or about Christ, that's what you gotta pay attention to. Then he asks a couple questions. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes? No, is the answer, in case you're not a horticulturist or you're a Baptist and don't know about grape vines, okay. Do figs come from thistles, no. So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Like, you don't manufacture fruit, it is produced from the inside out. In other words, I wrote a whole book on this. When you get run over by the grace train of the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ,

it changes everything about everything about everything. You don't earn a right to get a ride on the train, you get run over by the train, and then the spirit of God just compels you and drags you along to be a follower of him. That's how it works. Then he says, every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. He's talking about hell. Anybody that's like, man, I don't know about Jesus being my savior, but I love his teachings. You haven't done a good study of his teaching. Because I don't know how you love the message that says, oh, if you just believe in the words that I say, but don't believe in me as Christ, you're going to hell. That's a rough teaching. He's not meek and mild, he's very offensive. Then he says, thus you will recognize him by their fruits. And then he turns the corner a little bit. And he says this, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Does that make you nervous? If it doesn't, you should take this very seriously. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Listen, man, it's easy for the rebel to get saved. Do you realize this? It's easy for the rebel to get saved. And in fact, we love it. I'm telling you, I bet we have baptized

more face tattooed people than any other church in the history of the face tattooed churches. And I love it. We're like, we got a biker gang on the front row right here. I love it. And here's the thing, man. When you have rebelled against the Lord, it's easy for you to find yourself at the pig's thigh, flat on your back, realizing all I got, the only option I have is to look up. You come to your senses and we realize I need a savior. Okay, sweet, let me tell you. It's hard for church people. Because you don't think you need salvation. I mean, you believe in it theologically. We just think, well, I do good things. And Jesus says, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Here's what I need you to pay attention to. He's not talking to atheists because they don't call him Lord. He's not talking to people that follow after a demonic false religion because they don't call him Lord. He's talking to church people. Now, if you pay attention to my sermons, which dozens of you do, and I appreciate that. You're like, wait a minute, pastor. I've heard you say 100 times,

there's a prayer that God always answers for all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. That's Romans 10, 13. But do you see the difference here? The words matter. There's not a wasted word in scripture. Jesus says, not everyone who just says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. And then Paul in Romans 10 says, but all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. So what's the difference? What it means to call on the name of the Lord, it's like praying in Jesus' name. That doesn't mean you just tack his name onto the end of it and ask for whatever you want. That means that you surrender, that you have put yourself under the lordship of Christ and his name would be like his character and integrity. So I'm going to submit and surrender my life in alignment with the character and integrity of who God is. I'm not just calling out your name. That's the difference. Because here's the thing, man, right now in America, dude, Jesus' PR campaign is going good. Have you noticed? It's like kind of cool to be a Christian again for a minute. Have you noticed? Everybody's a Christian now. Politicians, they don't believe anything Jesus taught,

but they claim to be Christians. Podcasters, everybody, I mean, like Bible sales are too. through the roof, church attendance is through the roof. I mean, Joe Rogan's going to church, sweet. I really believe I'm gonna meet that dude one day. I like him, I think he's awesome. So all of a sudden he made it cool to go to church. Here's the problem though, here's what Jesus is saying. Are you a follower of Jesus Christ or are you just a fan? That's not the same thing. Like are you interested in the teachings of Jesus or are you in Christ? These are not the same thing. Are you surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus or is he like an accessory that you've added on to your life because you think it'll make your life better? We're not talking about the same thing here. In Matthew chapter 26, I can't really preach this because I'm going to later on this year and I can't take away my sermon. In Matthew 26, we'll get there whenever we get there. On the night Jesus is betrayed, he's sitting around the table with his disciples, they're all sitting there and he goes, one of you is gonna betray me. And everybody's like, what? And then the Bible says in Matthew 26, they start going around the table one by one and each of the disciples say, is it I, Lord?

Is it I, Lord? 11 times. Then they get to Judas and Judas says, is it I, Rabbi? Judas goes to hell. He was filled with the devil. And he was in close proximity to Jesus, he just never trusted him for his salvation. He was a part of the miracles, he was there. He was a treasurer, he had a job in Jesus Incorporated. And he didn't make it. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Here's who does enter the kingdom of heaven. How do I know if I'm saved? By the one who does the will of my father who is in heaven. You're like, ha, there it is, pastor. So what do I have to do? Well, you have to do the will of the Lord. Well, what's the will of the Lord? Is it just do good? Most people think good people go to heaven. That's a very faulty theology. Even before you get to the scriptures, you gotta ask yourself, if good people go to heaven, how good? Don't you think God would give us a grading scale in the Bible? I mean, is it 51%? If you just have one more good thing, the bad thing,

then maybe you get in? Or does he use like the college grading system? You make a 51 in chemistry, guess what? You failed. So what is it? How good? And not only that, don't you think, if good people go to heaven, God owes you a progress report? Like, where are you on the good or bad scale right now? Because by the looks of it from here, some of you cats ain't got enough time left in the semester to make up for previous work, you know what I'm saying? You remember that? Remember sitting in school trying to do the math going into that final exam you had? Well, there you go. Need a 206 on this one to pull this puppy out. Yeah, man. Good people don't go to heaven. Forgiving people go to heaven. So what does it mean? What is God's will for your life? 2 Peter 3.9. This is what God's will for your life is. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promises. Some count slowness, but is patient towards you, not wishing, not wanting. This is his will, that here's what God wills, that not wanting that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

God's will for your life is that you would repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. You would turn from yourself, from your past, from your sin, from this world, and you would turn to him, that's his will. 1 John 3, verse 23. And this is his commandment. This is what he commands. This is what he wants. This is what he wills. That we believe in the name of his son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as he has commanded us to love. God's will, what it means to do the will of my father is to admit it, I'm a sinner in need of a savior, to put your faith in Christ, that when he died on the cross, somehow that counted for you, and to surrender your life to his lordship. That's what it means to do the will of God. Verse 22. And on that day, this is the day of judgment, and on that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your name? Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. And then there's a group of people, when they hear they're not in, they're like, whoa, whoa, whoa,

what do you mean I'm not in? Did I not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name? Here's the thing, man, think about this. There's some people in line on the judgment day, and they're waiting for their turn, and they're like, dude, I'm totally in. Like, you are? Mm-hmm, I know I'm in. How do you know? I'm on the exorcism team, bro. I've cast out demons. What do you run, parking? Ha, we'll see. Then the guy in front of him, he'd be like, dude, I'm a prophet. I have prophesied. And here's how you know that they don't know him. Because the moment they hear it, not everybody that says to me, Lord, Lord, we're in the kingdom of heaven, be like, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up. Can I speak to your manager? I don't think you have this right. I got receipts. And the receipts that they bring out is their religious activity to prove that God owes me something. That's it, man. I was preaching a version of this years ago

because I really only have one sermon. And this guy in our church, named Jack Johnson, not banana pancakes guy, I don't know if he goes to church, but there's this guy in our church named Jack Johnson. And he sent me this text and he says, the only paperwork that matters on the day of judgment is not your religious resume, but your RSVP to the invitation of Christ. That's it, man. And these guys, they're trying to stand on their good works. That's what they're trying to do. And then Jesus says this, and then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. And by the way, if you remember previously in the sermon, and I know you remember it because I said it and you remember everything I say, that Jesus said, I did not come to do away with the law, I came to fulfill it. So when he says that they're a worker of lawlessness, that's Jesus' way of saying, you have this Christless religion that doesn't have anything to do with me, it just has to do with your good works. I never knew you. And when he says I never knew you, God's not like me and can't remember people. You're like, I'm the worst, I'm the worst.

So listen, when we meet or re-meet or meet for the 10th time, please don't assume I'm smart. Please don't be like, when I say, oh, it's good to meet you tonight, well, we met once before. Oh, okay. God loves you and knows everything about you. I don't, I'm so sorry, I wish I did. This doesn't mean God doesn't know what's going on. In fact, later or earlier in the sermon, he says he knows the very hairs on your head. Now, for some of us, that's an easier count than others, but how about this, ladies? He knows the hairs that are yours and the ones that you're renting right now. Like, he knows. I don't know, it looks great, it looks great, but he knows. But here's what he's saying. When he says I don't know you, what he means is this. There's no relationship here. You know about me, and I know about you, but we are not in a relationship together because you have not believed on my son, Christ, and received the right to be a child of God. And then he's gonna give the final illustration, okay? Now, listen, Jesus is very binary. Trigger warning.

But it's up, down, heaven, hell, life, death. There's two trees, a fruitful and an unfruitful. There's two paths, a narrow and a wide. There's two builders, wise and a foolish. And then here's his final illustration to help us know if we know Jesus. Because that's the question, is do you know him? Do you know him? And oftentimes, when the Bible uses the word know, it can also mean to know. It can also mean to love. So when I say do you know him, I don't mean know about him, I mean do you love him? Like in Genesis, the Bible says, and Adam knew Eve, and Eve bore a son. Like there's knowin' and there's knowin'. You know what I'm sayin'? This is an intimate relationship. Do you know him? Do you love him? This is what keeps me up at night, man. It's do you know him? And I don't know how to make you love what I love, and I love him, and the reason I love him is because he loved me. I can't get over the gospel, because I know me, man. There's no reason he should save me. There's no reason, and yet,

he demonstrated his love for me in this, that while I was still all jacked up before I ever came looking for him, he sent his only begotten son and died a sinner's death on the cross to rescue me and redeem me, and he wants to do that for you, and I want you to know him and love him, not just go to church sometimes, man. Do you know him? And he says, everyone who hears these words of mine and does them, not just checks the boxes on the Sermon on the Mount, because we can't. In fact, right before he got to this section, Jesus says in chapter five, verse 48, he says, you therefore must be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect. So what do you do? You turn the reins of your life over to him. And with him in us, we live the gospel-infected life. This is the point of the Sermon on the Mount. This is not simply about right and wrong, it's about life and death. You can have inspiration, you can have revelation, you can have motivation. And if you don't have application, it don't do any good. Anybody raising a teenager? Raise your hand if you're raising a teenager. Okay.

Let's talk about deodorant. You can believe in deodorant, you can purchase deodorant, you can enjoy a deodorant commercial, you can have sticks and sprays and balms and all the thing, but if you don't apply deodorant, that's all irrelevant. And he says, so everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. So, put it on the bottom of the shelf. The house here is your life. And the wise man builds his life on the rock. What is the rock? Well, all those religious leaders there, they had memorized all of the Bible, including the Psalms. Psalm 18, two says this, the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Later in that same chapter, verse 31, for who is God but the Lord and who is a rock except our God? Verse 46, same chapter, the Lord lives and blessed be my rock and exalted be the God of my salvation. Jesus is saying the wise builder builds their life on the rock who is the Lord God. Later in nine chapters, when Jesus gets to Caesarea Philippi and he asked the disciples,

we'll teach this later this year, and he asked the disciples, who do people say that I am? And they answer like they would answer today, a good moral teacher, some kind of religious leader. And he goes, and then Jesus asked the most important question that you'll ever deal with in your entire life. But who do you say that I am? Your answer to that question determines your eternal destiny. Ball's in your court. And then who's gonna talk first, who's gonna talk most? Peter, he's like ooh, ooh, ooh. You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus is like winner, winner, chicken dinner. It's not exactly what he says. Don't look for those words in the Bible. That's what he means. He said, bro, you nailed it. Way to go. This didn't come from you. I know you, this was revealed to you by my Father in heaven. I'm about to change your name. Your old name was Seafish. Your new name is gonna be Petra, Rocky. And upon this rock, different version of that word, and upon this public declaration that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God,

I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. What he's saying is, for those who build their life on the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. You're a wise builder. Here's why you're wise. Because God builds the house, and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on the house. And you're like, wait, what? But I was hoping, if I built my life on you, then I, because what's that called, Florida? It's called a hurricane. So you mean, Jesus, if I follow you, I still have to face the same storms? Yeah. My friend Eric Dillenbach sent me this quote this morning. He's a deacon here at the church. He says, so many of us want Jesus to be an epidural, but he's really a midwife. I thought I'd get one mama amen right there. Come on, ladies, you miss me. Just leave me hanging up here. Yeah, man, we're not spared pain. We're not spared the valley of the shadow of death. We just get the promise that he will walk with us through it. The rain fell, and floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house, but it did not fall because it had been founded on the rock.

We're gonna get two different houses, same materials, same circumstances, we're gonna get a different outcome. And then, listen, if Jesus ever asked me for some sermon help, and if you're not picking up on the sarcasm there, you're gonna have a tough time here at 1122, okay? See, what you do is you start with the bad, and then you end on the up. You start with the foolish builder, and then you end with the wise builder because everybody feels good at the end when you sing the last song. That's not what he does, man. He's gonna end with tragedy, and then there's no ending. He doesn't close it up, he doesn't. He just stops. Because he wants us to feel the weight of it. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them, does not surrender their life to Christ, but you think, forget you God, I got this. I mean, I might say Lord, Lord, but it's evident by my fruit that I'm the Lord of my life. You'll be like a foolish man. You know what the word in Hebrew, I mean in Greek for foolish man is? Moron. Moron. I had some sweet, sweet person send me an email that I shouldn't use the word moron.

Moron. It's supposed to sting a little bit. Moron means godless, that's what it means. You're gonna be like a moron who built his house on the sand and the rain fell and floods came and the winds blew and beat against the house and it fell and great was the fall of it. Listen, man, I don't want your life to fall apart. I mean, I don't want this life that you're living to fall apart. And I say it all the time, we don't follow after Jesus because he makes our life better. We follow after Jesus because he is better than life. But quite honestly, in and around the South, if you do Jesus stuff, life goes better. Like when you read the directions from the creator of life, if you do life his way, it goes better. Like if you apply the 10 commandments to your life and you don't kill people, life's better. If you only sleep with your wife, better. If you don't lie, cheat, steal, better. If you don't buy things with money you don't have, life is better. But he's talking about your eternal life. So not only do I not want your life to fall apart now, I definitely don't want your eternal life to fall and you fall into the pit of hell because great is the fall of it. So what are you building your life on? Are you building your life on the eternal saving Christ

or the sinking sands of this world? There are only two options. There's no middle way. I hate that language, the middle way. No, no, no. When it comes to Christ, there's no middle way. What are you building your life on? Because here's the thing, man. You could build a beautiful house and you could decorate it with all kind of Jesus trinkets. But if it is not built on the rock of the salvation of Christ through his life, death and resurrection, when judgment comes, your life will fall for eternity and great will be the fall of it. And here's the hard thing, man. From here, everybody's house looks the same. I mean, y'all look great. Everybody looks great. Some a little more than others. But you look great. Might be the best looking church in the history of churches. But so what? So what are you building your life on? We teach this all the time. First John 2.15, do not love the world or the things of this world, for all that this world has to offer is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. And there are so many church folk that say,

Lord, Lord, and you're building your life on the things of this world. Some of you are building your life on the lust of the flesh. You're building it on relationships. That all of your hope is when other people think about you. Or some of you will take a good thing and elevate it to a God thing, and that's a really bad thing. Some of you are building your entire life on your family. And your family is giving to you as a gift to steward, amen, but you begin to worship them when you idolize somebody and you realize they're a human and they let you down. You will demonize them. Some of you build your whole life on feelings, man, good vibes. And you drink stuff and take stuff and smoke stuff and sleep with whoever you want and still say, Lord, Lord. Some of you, this is very dangerous. You are building your whole life on self-determination. Like I go to church, but God, I tell you who I am. You don't get to tell me who I am. And you don't get to tell me who I get to sleep with. And you don't get to tell me how I can spend my money. No, no, I do what I want with who I want, but I'm gonna sing you some songs. And some of you are building your whole life on a hobby. Do you realize how dumb that is? And listen, man, if you're a grown man with kids, you get one hobby, choose wisely.

And wives, your husband needs at least one, he needs one life-giving hobby, all right? But if you spend your whole life on some hobby, what are you gonna have at the end of your life? What, a scorecard? There it is. I shot par. No, you didn't. You don't even play by the rules, let's be honest. You're a liar. You're a liar. Listen, I get it. I play, I'm a Christian, I play by grace. You're not that good. If you were good, you wouldn't be here right now. You'd be at work down the road, let's be honest. Yeah, man, it's a sinking sand. So many of us build our life on the lust of the eyes, we just want some stuff. Oh, man, I'm just telling, man, you ever play Monopoly? I've never finished a game, I don't have that kind of patience or self-control, but what do you do at the end of Monopoly? I don't care how many hotels you got on Boardwalk, what happens at the end of Monopoly? It all goes back in the box. Same thing that's gonna happen in your life. Actually, it's a little bit worse. We're not even gonna put it back in the box. We're gonna take your stuff that you had to have

and we're gonna sell it for $2 at Hope's Closet and we ain't gonna make money off your dead self. That's what we're gonna do, to the glory of God. You see, we're gonna talk about this later this fall. So many of us, our life is built on money and money lies to you. Money is a liar, man. I've told you before, but listen, money, here's what money says to you. Money says, if you love me, I'll love you back, but it says it real sexy. It's like, if you love me, I'll love you back. You're like. Did you hear that? Money really loves me. What will you do for me, money? I'll give you satisfaction and security. You're like, that's what I've been looking for. You just can't. It just can't give you those things. It's a sinking sand. And then a bunch of us build our lives on the pride of life. We build it on self. I'm going to make much of me, seeking approval and status and promotion, self-help, the largest section in every bookstore, self-help. Has anybody realized self is not the savior, self is the problem? Play its way out in business or whatever, or physical fitness, man.

And listen, this is a good example. You should be a good steward of the temple that God has given you, yes and amen. And you should work out and stretch and so that you can do ministry for a long time and play with grandbabies and all that kind of stuff. But the moment that thing begins to turn inward and you begin to worship your body instead of using it as a vessel of God, you're in trouble, I've told you a million times. You've met the person that their ideal body weight, everything looks great. They got abs and all the things. And time and gravity is undefeated. And if you've got a little fold and change, you can put that thing off for a little while and you can tuck it and nip it and plump it and suck it out and add some more to other places and you can do all the things. No problem, man. Eventually you look like Mr. Potato Head, but I ain't got time for that. And I know you're like, you're talking about me? Maybe. But the fact that you gotta go back and back and back and back and back and back, is evidence that the sand is sinking, man. Or maybe the most dangerous one is religion. If you build your life on religion, about your religious activity to try to stand right

before a holy and just God, don't you realize religion is just self-help with a choir robe and a to-do list? And here's the problem, when you think your right activity earns you a right standing before God. I'm telling you, you think you go get to work and you're at the HOA of heaven walking around with your checklist and you look down at your nose and everybody else is like, your shrubs ain't right and your shrubs ain't right and your shrubs ain't right and you didn't fast on Wednesday. And it leads to bitterness or it leads to exhaustion because you try and you try and you try, but your house is not built on the rock of the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ that he did for us what we could not do for ourselves. It's not what we do, it's what he has done for us. Religion leaves you naked and afraid with handmade fig leaves that are inadequate to cover the sin and shame, that's where it leaves. So what are you building your house on? Your life. And then he just ends. No conclusion, he just stops. Doesn't bring out the band. And then there's a little commentary and when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowd was astonished at his teaching

because they were like, I think I'm going to hell. Yeah, you probably are. For he was teaching them as one who had authority and not as their scribe. So how do you know that you're saved? It's not complicated. Jesus starts with blessed are the poor in spirit. This is when you get to the place where you admit it, I'm a sinner in need of a savior. I'm not a bad person that just needs to try harder. I'm a spiritually dead person that needs to be made alive. You got to admit it. If you don't know that you're lost, a map will be useless to you. If you don't know that you're. drowning a raft, a lifesaver, you won't even reach for it. You gotta admit it. And then you believe, trust, pustuo is the Greek word, that when Jesus died on the cross and pushed upon his nail-pierced feet and says, it is finished, somehow that counted for me. Even if you can't explain all the theological terminology, no problem, neither could the thief on the cross. He simply said, the man on the middle cross said, I could come. Because he believed that when Jesus went before his father, he asked him for a favor, would you remember me? And then you confess, Romans 10, 13, you call on the name of the Lord and you will be saved. Here's the hard part, if you're a church person,

how many times have you heard that? In Luke chapter 15, the most famous of all the parables of Jesus. We call it the parable of the prodigal son. It's not a great name. Parable means lavish. The real lavish one is the dad. He's got lavish love for his kids. Younger son comes to him, says, dad, you're dead to me. Give me my inheritance now. The dad gives him his inheritance and he's a rebel. He squanders everything he has on reckless living in a far away land. His world falls out from under him. He falls flat on his back and all he can do is look up and then the Bible says he comes to his senses. He changes his mind, he repents and he comes home. And the dad who represents God through the personal work of Jesus, sees him from a long ways off, runs to him, wraps his arms around him and what it literally says in the Greek is and fills up his face with kisses. I hope you know the kiss of the father. Puts a robe around him, brings him back into the family, not as a slave, but as a son and then throws a party for him. We love that part, we love that part. It's easy for the rebel to come home. Where else are they gonna go? They've already exhausted all of their other options

and realized it doesn't work, it's just sinking sand. But the part that scares me, as the lead pastor of what might be the fastest growing church in the history of the United States of America, think about that for a second, is from here, everybody look save to me, there's an older brother, he represents the religious person. The older brother's ticked because his brother gets a party and he's thinking that's not fair. And then the Bible says, Jesus says that the dad leaves the party. Here's what you gotta understand, man, first century honor culture, the land owner would never leave the party, would never leave the seat of honor. Certainly he wouldn't hike up his robe and run after his son and lay on the ground and hug him and stuff. And now he's gonna humiliate himself another time because he's got another son who's not in the party. This is the church person. This is the person that serves every week and tithes and does all the things and yet that kid is bitter because he thinks he deserves a party. The dad comes out and he's like, son, what are you doing? He's like, dad, he doesn't even call him my brother. He says, this son of yours, it's not fair,

why does he get a party? I've obeyed you every day. Yeah, right. Then the Bible says that the dad entreats the older son. In Greek, the word entreat means to beg, it means to cry. It means to get on your knees and say, son, what are you doing? What are you doing? You're my son. Everything I have has always been yours. And if you think you're gonna earn this, you're gonna miss everything. You can come to the party too. This party is for your brother because he was dead, now he's alive. But this party's for you too, son. Won't you just come into the party? Church people. Did it be check in the boxes or the rebel? You just started coming. The God of the universe, the sovereign king over salvation would humble himself. He would be brutalized and mangled, naked, shamed on a cross to beg you, please won't you come? Please won't you come? Please don't build your life on the sinking sand of this world. It's a trick and it's a trap. And when the trap door springs, it goes to eternal separation from God.

Please build your life on the rock of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Imagine this. I thought about this Thursday. Imagine if you could go back in time and you could go to New York City, September 10th, 2001. The day before the Twin Towers went down, and at least 3,000 people lost their life that day, and you could stand in front of the towers, what would you say to the people walking in? Have a nice day? Oh, no. If you've got the Spirit of God in you, if you care about humanity at all, what would you say? You would entreat them. You'd be like, listen, listen, tomorrow, take tomorrow off. Please, don't come in tomorrow. Whatever you do, don't go, don't come to, tragedy is going to happen if you show up in this place tomorrow. You would share the gospel with these people, and if one person was like, man, you kook, you wouldn't let that one person saying no stop you from every single person. Why? Because you know the future. Jesus Christ, the author and finisher of everything that is, can see the end from the beginning, and right here at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, he's like a man on a sidewalk who people are marching towards their own death, and he is entreating them. Please, please, please don't build your life on the sinking sands of this world. Please put your faith in Jesus Christ, and you, when the wind and the waves come, when judgment day comes, then your life will not fall apart, because you're not holding it up, that you have put your faith in Christ Jesus. So if you have never put your faith in Jesus, on behalf of Christ, I entreat you, do it

today. Admit it. I ain't got this. Believe that when he died on the cross, it counted for you too, and call on the name of the Lord, and you will be saved. Would you bow your heads? Would you close your eyes? And that's you, and today, for the very first time, you are ready to put your faith in Christ, to repent, to turn away from yourself, and this world, and the sins of your past, and you trust, or you believe, that when Jesus died on the cross, somehow it counted for you, and today, for the very first time, you are ready to surrender your life to Christ, to call on the name of the Lord. I would ask you, right where you are, would you raise your hand as high as you can, and you simply say, Lord, save me, and I am, I promise you, from the testimony of the scriptures, from the testimony of the angels in heaven, that in this very moment, every one of you, keep it up, keep it up, every one of you, calling on the name of the Lord in this moment, your sins are being washed away, the righteousness of Christ is being counted to you, you are adopted into the family of God, and one day, you will hear these words, well done, my good and faithful servant. Our good and gracious heavenly Father God, we love you more than anything, because you first loved us, and God, I thank you, that even this day, Jesus, you are worthy of your name, because you came to seek and save that which was lost. Jesus, you came to save sinners like us, and God, we don't deserve it, but God, we just receive it as a free gift that you offer, and Lord, the only thing that we can stand on is not our goodness, but we stand on your righteousness. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. Church, would you please stand to your feet, we're going to close like we always do. I hope you'll stay, this part matters so much, man, we're going to sing true things to God like one big prayer at all of our locations right now, at the same time, singing the same thing.

We're going to sing because he's worthy of our worship, because of who he is. We're going to bring our tithes and our offerings as an act of worship, to say I refuse to be discipled by this world, but I'm going to be discipled by this word, and I bring you my first and best as a response to the reality that you first loved me by giving me your best in Jesus Christ, and we are going to pray for all of the people who are like, God, that blessed or the poor in spirit thing, that's not just a one-time place before your salvation, that's the posture of the believer every single day of their life, God, I can't do this on my own, I need you. So let's sing, let's bring, let's pray, let's respond. My hope is built on thy love. ♪ Nothing less than Jesus' blood in righteousness ♪ ♪ I dare not trust the sweetest fruit ♪ ♪ But holy trust in Jesus' name ♪ Come on, sing that again. ♪ My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood in righteousness ♪ ♪ I dare not trust the sweetest fruit ♪ ♪ But holy trust in Jesus' name ♪ ♪ Oh, Christ our love, our cornerstone ♪ ♪ And we can be strong in the Savior's love ♪ ♪ Through the storm, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ When darkness seems to hide His face ♪ ♪ I rest on His unchanging grace ♪ ♪ Through every high and stormy gale ♪ ♪ My anchor holds within the veil ♪ ♪ My anchor holds within the veil ♪ ♪ Oh, we sing Christ our love, our cornerstone ♪ ♪ And we can be strong in the Savior's love ♪ ♪ Through the storm, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ Oh, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪

♪ Sing Christ our love, our cornerstone ♪ ♪ And we can be strong in the Savior's love ♪ ♪ Through the storm, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ He shall come with trumpet sound ♪ ♪ Oh, may I then in Him be found ♪ ♪ Just in His righteousness alone ♪ ♪ Fully stand before the throne ♪ ♪ Oh, sing Christ our love, our cornerstone ♪ Sing it out. ♪ Oh, we can be strong in the Savior's love ♪ ♪ And through the storm, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ Christ our love, our cornerstone ♪ ♪ And we can be strong in the Savior's love ♪ ♪ And through the storm, He is Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ He's the Lord, He's the Lord of all ♪ ♪ Oh, He's the Lord of all ♪ Hallelujah. Come on, give Him praise. Amen, church. Let's take a moment to celebrate with the 146 men and women at all of our campuses and online. Listen, if that was you, Luke 15. says heaven is throwing a party right now and we want to party with you too so I need you to text the word surrender to 44 11 22 or grab one of those respond cards in the seat back in front of you and fill that out and you can take that and you can walk it to the connect centers and let those men and women get you signed up to get baptized because that's your next step of faith church we love you like crazy we can't wait to do it again next week be free you you