September 6 | Nehemiah Chapter 5

- Good morning, 121 Community Church. How y'all feeling this morning? (audience applauding) All right, well we are the Men in the Amaya and we are so excited to be here with you this morning. Men, can we make some noise this morning for this church? (audience cheering) So if this is your first time seeing us, we are a faith-based rehabilitation ministry located in South Dallas and for the past 16 years, God has used our organization to restore the lives of men who are battling with substance abuse. And so what you're seeing up here behind me are men who are in the fight and they're trusting and believing that God has another plan for their lives. And so everywhere we go, we share our message of hope which is found in Christ Jesus. So my name is Rand Carlson and I am the Biblical Director here at the Men in the Amaya but first and foremost, I am a graduate and God used this ministry to completely transform my life. Before I came to this program, I had just gotten out of prison. I was addicted to heroin, I was addicted to meth, I was homeless and I lost all hope in life. But by the grace of God, he led me to this ministry where I came to know Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. (audience applauding) And so this morning, we came to praise with you, not for you. And so we're gonna invite you guys to worship with us. That's how we share our message of hope

is through praise, worship and we're gonna hear from some of our guys and they're gonna talk about what God is doing in their life. So let me pray and then we'll get started. Father, we know that you are good. We've tasted and seen your goodness. And we're just so grateful that we can gather together in this space and worship you. We invite your spirit into this time. It's in Jesus' name I pray, amen. Amen. Amen, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. (upbeat music) (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) (guitar music) ♪ Father, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) (guitar music)

(guitar music) (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever, ever ♪ (guitar music) ♪ Forever, ever ♪ (guitar music) (guitar music) (guitar music) (guitar music) ♪ In glory ♪ ♪ In honor ♪ ♪ In honor ♪ ♪ In honor ♪ (guitar music) ♪ In honor ♪ ♪ In glory ♪ (guitar music) ♪ In glory ♪ (guitar music) ♪ In honor ♪ (guitar music) (guitar music) (guitar music) (guitar music) (guitar music)

♪ In glory ♪ (guitar music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) I just want to start off by praying real quick to make sure I'm being led by the Spirit and I'm not acting on my own accord. Heavenly Father, I come before you right now, Father God. I thank you so much for this opportunity to allow others to see how great you are that you're still in the business of working miracles, Father God. Use me as your vessel, speak through me, Father God, and touch who needs to be touched and hear my testimony. You might name my prayer, amen. Amen.

So my name is George, I'm 45 years old, I'm from North Dallas, born and raised. Coming up, I was raised in the house with a single mother, raised by my grandparents as well. My father was not around, he was in and out of prison, he was a cracker. Experienced a lot of physical and verbal abuse growing up in which I carried with me as I got older. The age of 13, I got involved with gangs and drugs. I did pretty much every drug you could think of trying to fill that void, you know. I had become a person that was hiding behind a mask, really just trying to fit in doing things that I knew weren't me, but I did them because I want to fit in, I want to be accepted by my peers, by others, you know. And I carried that on as I got older. At the age of 17, I was introduced to heroin. At the age of 22, I was introduced to a needle, and that's when my life began to change. And 22, I went to prison for the first time, got involved with gangs in prison, and just became this person that I hated, a very violent person, full of anger, full of rage, full of hate. And that was just my life, my life was just full of destruction, pain and misery, never in the cycle. From the age of 22 to 44, I've been in and out of prison. When I wasn't in prison, my addiction led me to being homeless in the streets, living under a bridge, or living in a tent. There's times where I didn't know where my next meal was going to come from, eating out of trash cans out of downstairs. I was very lost, I was in a dark, dark place. I was in a very suicidal state. I used to pray to God all the time that my last fix would be my last to just take me away and take me home 'cause I didn't want to live through all that pain and misery anymore. I got out of prison last year for the last time and the cycle began again. It wasn't too long before I found myself in my addiction. I went to rehab. Two weeks after getting out of rehab, I found myself with a needle in my arm and overdose for I've lost count on how many times I overdose.

I went back to rehab but I really didn't take it seriously. I ended up relapsing while I was in rehab and left because I got caught getting high in rehab. The third time I went back and I got it something when I got through detox, something snapped in my head, I believe it was God. And telling me that, you know, something has to change. And I was in such a broken and desperate place that I was willing to try anything. And so that's where amenity of mine came into play. My counselor at Homer Bound, he had told me, "George, we need long-term recovery "because you can't be trusted on your own. "Every time you buy yourself, you end up getting high. "You're your own worst enemy." And it was true, I couldn't be trusted by myself. So upon getting out of Homer Bound, I had a week before I was able to go to amenity of mine. And my brother told me something when I got out of rehab that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. See, my little brother, he has been with me through the very beginning of my addiction. So he's seen me progress into the monster I have become. And when he picked me up, he just gave me a speech and he was like, "Look, I know how you think "because I've been with you from the very beginning." So if you think that you're gonna go and get high one last time, right, before you go to Nehemiah to this program, I'm just letting you know what something happens to you

and you die, we don't have money to bury you and we don't have money to cremate you. I don't know what we're gonna do with your body. Only thing I can do for you is go and identify your body. That's it, whatever they do with it, that's what they do. And that's where my life had become. It was life or death. My family, I put them through so much that they were already embracing themselves from my death. So upon getting into Nehemiah, I was very lost, I was very broken. I didn't know how to love myself, I had lost hope. And since being in Nehemiah, I have grown a relationship with God that words cannot describe. I had this inner peace to me now that only comes from God. He turned my heart of stone and anger and hate to a heart of love. I finally loved myself again. Not only that, I'm learning how to love others, not just my brothers and sisters, 'cause sometimes it's very easy to love y'all, but to love the world the way Jesus loved the world. I'm learning how to deal with my sexual brokenness. I'm going through a season where I'm healing with that and God is guiding me every step of the way. And I'm learning how to turn my pain into my purpose. I heard our first sergeant at Nehemiah say one morning, it was a saying about a man had asked God, why did you allow me to stay in the darkness for so long? Why didn't you come get me?

And God replied to him, so when I send you back, you know your way out. For so long, for so long, I cried out to God, asking him why did he continue to allow me to live in that darkness, in that pain, in that prison. I've done time in the penitentiary, but I also done time in my own personal prison out there in the world. Prison that I had made for myself with self-inflicted pain and misery, and I just got why did you allow me to go through that for so long? And that's the reason. So when he sends me back into the darkness to witness to those who are still in that pit of despair, who are still lost, who are still broken, who think that they don't have a life, I can find a way out. Thank you. (audience applauding) - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, good stuff. (upbeat music) (audience applauding) (audience applauding) ♪ Oh, my words are so old ♪ ♪ I've had the blue ♪ ♪ I could I express ♪ ♪ All my prayers ♪ ♪ And I could sing your song ♪ ♪ As I am with you ♪

♪ So I know of my hands ♪ ♪ When I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ So I know of my hands ♪ ♪ When I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ So I know of my hands ♪ ♪ When I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ So I live, so I live ♪ ♪ And I know it's not much ♪ ♪ I'm lucky as people think ♪ ♪ Except for all I see ♪ ♪ I live, oh, yeah ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, yeah ♪ ♪ I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ I'm not just you ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ I live, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ So I know of my hands ♪ ♪ When I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ Oh, then I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ Oh, I live, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ And I know it's not much ♪ ♪ I'm happy, so I live ♪ ♪ Except for all I see ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ I live, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, love all my soul ♪ ♪ Oh, don't you get a side of me ♪ ♪ And love all my soul ♪ ♪ 'Cause you've got a high, high, low ♪ ♪ You've been brave, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, don't you get a side of me ♪ ♪ And love all my soul ♪ ♪ You've got a high, high, high, low ♪ ♪ You've been brave, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ It's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪

♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ (audience applauding)

♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ ♪ In my heart, it's too far ♪ Lord I love you Lord, I love you Lord, I love you Lord, I love you Lord, I love you Lord, I love you

Lord, I love you Lord (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (audience applauding) - Good morning, everyone. Good morning, everyone. Sorry. I'm unexpected. My name is Quinn. I'm a country boy from Kansas. And so God blessed me with an amazing family. I was raised in church. But that didn't stop saying from slipping into my life and stop me from falling victim to addiction. And so for the past 10 years, there hasn't been many days where I've been sober. That emptiness that God leaves inside us, I filled that with alcohol abuse, abusing marijuana, abusing prescription pills. And throughout my addiction, you know, I was really stripped of my purpose, my identity, and my mission. And, you know, one of my biggest regrets in my life is misusing the time and talents God has given me. And, you know, the talents and gifts He has given me, I should have been helping others and impacting other people's lives.

But all I've been doing this, using it for my selfish desires. And by God's grace, you know, He called me here to men of Nehemiah. And for the first time in my life, I feel like I belong somewhere. And I'm on the right path. And, you know, speaking for all my brothers, you know, you all feel like we've been called here spiritually. And by God's grace, I'm not who I once was. Me and God have this funny game, you know, we'll play cat and mouse. I'll do some really stupid things and end up in the hospital, end up without a car. And, you know, I'll wake up the next morning and have no idea how I got there. And, you know, for most people, when things like that happen in their lives, they're like, you know what, maybe it's, maybe now it's a good time to lock it up, get sober and change my life. But that never has been the case with me. You know, two weeks later, I'll be back drinking. And, you know, the last three weeks before I got called to hear the men of Nehemiah, I didn't sleep for three weeks. I was doing my same routine I've done for like the past year, which is, you know, drink a bottle of alcohol every night. And usually that was my solution for my problems

and my emptiness. But for the last three weeks, I didn't sleep one bit and I was seeing the evil spirits in my room everywhere. I was sitting in the grocery store. I was sitting around people I love. And towards the end, I thought, I kind of accepted like this is my fate, like this is going to be me for the rest of my life. And then I got a phone call from one of my mentors who is a mentor here at Nehemiah. And he told me, [BLANK_AUDIO] And I already made up my mind. I knew like it was life or death. It was either I'd take the leap of faith and come down here to Dallas or I die. And for the first time in my life I took that leap of faith and it's completely changed my life. And God has used many of my many of my as its greatest tool to get to people like us and then change our lives. And I'm so thankful for all of you guys, all the supporters of many of my staff and even though I was born and raised Christian, I never really understood what it meant to be a Christian. And now I really understand that having a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, thank you. (Applause) (Music) I love you Lord, for your birth could fail to be on my days. I've been held in your hands, for the moment that I wake up until I lay my head. I will sing of the goodness of God. All my life you have been faithful. All my life you have been so, so good. With every breath that I am made, I will sing of the goodness of God. I love your hope, you have made me through the fire, you know it's not, you are close like no other. I know you as a part of you, I know you as a friend, I have been given to me so now. All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. With every breath that I am made, I will sing of the goodness of God.

All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. All my life you have been so, so good. ♪ All I say is now is to make the world out ♪ ♪ I'll kiss you every day ♪ ♪ Your goodness is running out ♪ ♪ And it's running out of me ♪ ♪ All my life you have been faced ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ Every breath that I have made ♪ ♪ I will say, I will say, I will say ♪ ♪ I will say, I will say, I will say ♪ ♪ I will say, I will say ♪ ♪ I will say, I will say, I will say ♪ ♪ I will see all the good days of my life ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ I will say, I will say, I will say ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ (audience cheering) (upbeat music)

♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ All my life you have been so, so good, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪

♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪

♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ All my life you have been so, so good ♪ ♪ I did you say ♪ ♪ One day ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ ♪ But I don't know ♪ ♪ Talkin' 'bout my glory ♪ ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪ ♪ I don't know ♪ ♪ Talkin' 'bout my glory ♪ ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪ ♪ But I don't know ♪ ♪ Talkin' 'bout my glory ♪

♪ Jesus ♪ ♪ But I don't know ♪ ♪ Talkin' 'bout my glory ♪ ♪ Jesus ♪ ♪ Yeah, yeah, yeah ♪ (audience applauding) ♪ Yeah, yeah, yeah ♪ ♪ Oh, yeah, yeah ♪ (audience applauding) (upbeat music) (audience applauding) (upbeat music) (audience applauding) ♪ Oh, yeah, yeah ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ ♪ One day ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ ♪ I don't know ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ I don't know ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ We made you say ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ (audience applauding) ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ (audience applauding) ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ (audience applauding) - Last five years, one of the focuses for our church has been to reach the community on Mustang Drive. So we've got Johnny, Jose, and Maximo that we met through different outreach opportunities on Mustang Drive and in those schools. Could y'all give me a little bit of before you knew Jesus now that you know Jesus? What was that transition like for you guys? - I'm still trying to develop some good habits, and I'm trying to get rid of some bad habits. Jesus has helped me so many ways, and I wouldn't be where I am right now without him. - What about you, Jose? - Before, I used to do a lot of bad things, and I just didn't really know what to do, and I was lost, and now that I've been to Colorado Camp that changed my life, I mean, going and praying and worshiping and doing all these good things for my mental health

and my mentality myself, just helped me a lot, and just feeling that Jesus in those moments was the best thing in my life, and yeah. - The way that I was before I met Jesus, I started, like, I was a bad kid, and I didn't really want to listen to other people. I would, like, curse a lot and do a lot of bad habits, and then ever since I led Jesus into my life, that's when all of those times were, like, unnecessary. And I felt like the Holy Spirit just, like, coming into my life. So, what are the different ways you all have watched God redeem those aspects of your lives? - I mean, I don't look at things the same way I used to. Cursing is a big part, but now, every time I curse, I feel guilty because I know it's wrong. - About you, Jose. - The way that Jesus has redeemed himself to me was about my sport, wrestling. I used to think more about how people think about me instead of, like, wrestling for the people, instead of wrestling for him, and just thinking about that I'm wrestling for him and that he died on the cross for us, and I could do that for him. - One way that Jesus redeemed himself to me

was allowing me to work for the church, letting me serve him. Even in Rusty, we're a big part of it, too. I've gotten to walk the last five years with you, boys, and watch you grow and watch you change. And so understanding that Jesus died on the cross for those mistakes is important for you all. is whatever we've done is in the past, and he died for that, so that from that day forward, we have a freedom from our sins that he purchased through his sacrifice on the cross. (audience applauds) - I know it's hard to tell from that video, but I do love those boys. (audience laughs) And I would have claimed them as my own. It looks like I'm conducting a police interview on them or something. (audience laughs) It's gonna be hard to watch the rest of the day. Well, good morning. I'd love for us to pray before we step into God's word. I've been convicted recently and I've learned, when I grew up and someone said they were gonna pray, I tended to just listen to their prayer quietly, but I wouldn't pray with them. So today I just ask you, as we pray, if you could join me in prayer, I'll pray over us and over what we'll be doing, but I think there's a power in our voices and prayer, and each of us go on before the Lord,

however he leads you in those spaces. If you pray with me, Father God, we're grateful for who you are today. Grateful that you're a mighty, all powerful sovereign King who loves us. He's such a powerful redeemer. She's so patient and faithful, even when we're not. Lord, as we open up your word today, I pray that it sharpens us, that it molds us to look more like you. I ask to remove anything in us that isn't of you, that it convicts us, Lord, and then that there's a boldness to follow and be obedient to whatever it is that you're calling us. I also pray for healing in the spaces where that is what we need. Lord, that your word is, it's just a renewing of our spirit and of our souls today. Lord, thank you that we can trust you with our lives. Thank you for the freedom and the privilege that it is to worship you. Thank you for my brothers from the men of Nehemiah, or in the transformation. Just a vivid reminder of the mighty power of your cross today, Lord. We love you deeply. We trust you. We ask all these things in Jesus precious name. Amen. (congregation laughing)

So we're gonna be in Nehemiah five. That's why I'm wearing the shirt and also, 'cause our brothers are here. And as we talk about it, the conversation today and the message is gonna be speaking it up and leading by example for those who are suffering in justices. And I know that word in justice and even the word justice can be a trigger word. And so as we navigate this today together, I just ask that you go before the Lord of any emotion that you might be feeling and just seek the truth of his word and seek whatever it is that he's wanting to teach you and he's wanting to do in your life. Chapter five, verse one says, now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish brothers. We see great outcry throughout scripture. See where in Exodus, we'll actually circle back to this. But we can see the beginning of an injustice. There's an outcry because something's not right. As we continue, verse two says, for there were those who said, with our sons and our daughters, we are many. So let us get grain that we may eat and keep alive. There are also those who said, we are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our houses to get grain because of the famine. And there were those who said we have borrowed money

for the king's tax on our fields and on our vineyards. Now our flesh is like the flesh of our brothers and our children are, as are their children, we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves. And some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it for other men have our fields and our vineyards. As we read those verses, we see three different situations happening three different circumstances. But in verse six, we'll see Nehemiah's response is the same. It is a righteous anger to the circumstances of the people of Israel. In verse two, we see that they say they are many and you could argue that they did that one to themselves. They have many children, they're a big family. Verse three, we see that there's a famine. No one has control over a famine when it happens or why it happens. And then verse four, we see that there's people who are suffering because of the king's tax. And that would be something someone else is imposing on them. As we think through those three things, and it might be a combination of all three of them, some of these families, we see that Nehemiah's response is the same. It is a righteous anger to their circumstances. it doesn't matter if they had no control. And it doesn't matter if somebody else has brought them on them. There is an injustice, and there's a righteous anger.

So my first question for us today as we think through this is how do you respond when you see injustice? Do you try to reason it? Do you blame someone for their own mistakes that gets them into tough situations? What is it in our hearts that stirs when we see that others are suffering and injustice? And how is it possible for us to have a righteous anger the way that Nehemiah has that leads to transformation and change and action for those who are suffering injustices? In order to talk about injustice, so I understand we probably need to define justice first so that we're all on the same page. I googled the definition of justice, and the definition I found was a moral and legal principle of treating people fairly and partially and with equality. I thought that definition was interesting that the secular definition of justice, but it talks about morality in there, a moral and legal principle. How is it possible that there is a moral concept to this kind of justice of morality culturally subjective? And could that be the reason why cultural justice just never satiates our hunger for true justice? Because depending on the courthouse, depending on the views of whoever is judging, depending on the nation candidly, justice is going to be defined very differently. But the justice we're talking about here is a completely objective justice. It's God's justice, and it's always right. It doesn't shift with the winds or the times, it doesn't bend, it just is what it is. The second part is we talk about justice culturally, sometimes it's being blind and potentially that's why it gets it wrong so many times. But God's justice is not blind, God sees all, and he knows all. So any time God pours out his justice, any time he judges, it's not a blind judgment. It's a fair and just judgment. Justice makes two very bold claims. The first one is that it is for certain things.

Justice is for something. And then the less popular I would say is that it is also against things. God is for things, but he is also against things. Justice is for things, but it is also against things. If you follow me to Psalm 97, we'll see God's justice is also not by itself. Psalm 97 verse 1 says, "The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice, let the many coastlands be glad, clouds and thick darkness are all around him, righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne." God's justice and his righteousness are the very foundation of his throne. I think sometimes maybe the justice that we experience here on earth feels wrong because it's missing that righteousness. It can bend to emotion, it can bend to feeling, it can bend to different things. But God's justice and his righteousness are the very foundation of his throne. They are a part of who he is, they can't be removed from him. Everything that he does is rightfully just. As believers, we can find great comfort in that because our father is a righteous, just father. And in the same breath, we need to understand that if he is righteous and if he is just and he has to demand a payment for sin, he can't just ignore it, he can't just sweep it under the rug. If he is righteous and if he is just, he demands a payment for transgressions. If we go to Matthew 9 verse 35, it says, "And Jesus went through all the cities and the villages teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction." When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them because they were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the harvest." Jesus would have been perfectly righteous and just but he had compassion when he saw people being harassed and helpless.

And I think it's important for us to understand Scripture does not say he felt compassion. to die for your sins and for mine. It's not just a feeling that we're talking about here. So God is perfectly righteous, He's perfectly just, but He has compassion on those who are harassed. And as I read this passage, I wondered, what is it that Jesus saw? I'm looking at people today and I couldn't tell you who's harassed and helpless just by gazing at you. But Jesus could, as He saw a crowd, He had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless. And I think it's important for us to understand this isn't just talking about a physical harassment or helplessness, it's talking about a spiritual harassment and helplessness. We can end up in a place with our choices that we cannot get free from. What we're Satan is taking control of our lives, of our marriages, of our decisions, of our children, and we are being harassed and helpless. It's not just a physical thing and we need somebody to free us from that. Scripture compares this to snares and I've hunted before. And if you know what a snare is, you realize an animal falls into a snare and it gets trapped in it, but the reality of a snare is the more that an animal struggles inside of a snare, the tighter the snare gets. It requires a third party to show up and loosen this snare for an animal to get free.

Our addictions, our vices, our decisions are like that. Sometimes we can fight 'em off for a week or a month, but we always come back unless somebody helps us get free of them. There's a boldness today as I've heard the testimonies of some of the men that are joining us. But the reality is we can testify to the redeeming, freeing power of Jesus Christ and his work on the cross because of what he has rescued us from. That is how we testify to the power that he has. And what would have been shame in the hands of our powerful redeemer turns into a story of redemption, turns into an anchor point for people who are suffering similar things to have a confidence in who Jesus is and to find the light that we have found. (coughs) If we continue to Revelation 6, we get a glimpse of what is to come in Revelation 6, verse nine. It says, when he opened the fifth seal I saw under the altar, the souls of those who had been slain. For the word of God and for the witness he had born. He cried out with a loud voice, "O sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth." Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete

who were to be killed as they had been killed. See in heaven, there's not a cry to God for when is he gonna pour out more compassion? There's not a cry for those who are waiting in heaven for God to rule. When is the world gonna get more grace? There's a cry for justice. And we need to understand ultimately when Jesus returns, he's not coming to extend more grace. He's coming to judge and to start a war and ultimately to rule like the conquering king that he is. And so for us as believers, justice should not be a word that stirs fear in us. It should be comfort. It should be something we are yearning for. We are waiting for the return of our king. He is the one who will make things right. Even today as we walk and we receive his grace, we can easily see that this world is not how it's supposed to be. We're in an already not yet state where we are still waiting for the redemption, the full redemption upon Christ's return. So we go back to Nehemiah. We see now that we understand a little more of the justice we're talking about here. We see in verse six, he says, I was very angry when I heard their outcry in these words. And I took counsel with myself

and brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, your exacting interest, each from his brother, and I held a great assembly against them. There's a righteous anger that should happen for us when we see injustice. When we see another person suffering, there should be a righteous anger that we have. And he is seeking to destroy us, he's seeking to steal our joy, he is seeking to destroy marriages and children and households. There should be a righteous anger for us when we have thoughts like that. I was convicted personally a couple months ago sitting in my living room enjoying my wife and my baby girl that I'd never knocked on my neighbor's door and what if Satan is having a field day with his marriage and with his house and with his children. And I've never taken the time to walk 40 yards and knock on a door and introduce myself. The kind of compassion Jesus had led him to the cross but if we have a similar compassion we can at least reach out to our neighbors. We can at least seek the lust and the vulnerable and those who are being harassed and helpless. As we continue here in verse 8 we see and I said to them we as far as we are able to have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations but you even sell your brothers that didn't be sold to us. They were silent and could not find a word to say. So I said the thing that you're doing is not good. You not walk in the fear of God to prevent the taunts of the nations or enemies. This is not a deep theological thing that you need to uncover. It is not good. Nehemiah makes it so clear you don't need to go to the Hebrew. You don't need to do it. It is not good. And I wish sometimes it was that simple for us to tell each other when we're not behaving the right way. Hey you know what, that is not good. And the response of it you see is there's a fear of the Lord. There's a reverence to who God is and we're misrepresenting him by the way we're behaving. Our testimonies say a lot about what we believe. More so than our words do. The way that we walk is a more powerful testimony than anything I can speak. And what this is saying is as we think through this the nations are watching Israelites who are supposed to be loving each other who's not supposed to be imposing taxes on each other the way that they're doing and they're made a mockery of the faith. Why would someone follow that?

If as believers we're supposed to be loving to each other we're supposed to be compassionate and seeking the lost and we never do that. Why would someone jump in on our faith? Fear of the Lord is an interesting thing. I think the word fear today makes me think of the boogeyman. But this kind of fear of the Lord is understanding who he is in light of who you are having a respect a love and a reverence for who he is. Do we have that for him? Do we constantly meditate on who he is? Does that drive our actions? Does it drive the way we love people? Are we reminded consistently of his work on the cross and the magnitude of what that is for us? Does that motivate your actions? Does it motivate your speech? And as we continue in verse 10, moreover I and my brothers and my servants are lending the money and grain. Let us abandon the exacting of interest, return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, their houses and their percentage of money, grain wine and oil that you have been exacting from them. We see a really cool pattern here on a way to behave when we see injustice. There's initially a righteous anger that he has but it's followed by action. He acts. He says as long as we are able he does what he can to fix the injustice that he's seeing. Now we see there's a call out, it's not good and then there's a demand to do the right thing. And the prayer is when we do these things the response is what it is in verse 12. Then they said we will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as he say and I called the priest and made them swear to do as they had promised. I also shook out the folds of my garment and said so may God shake out every man from his house, from his labor who does not keep his promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied and all the the assembly said amen and praise the Lord. It's a beautiful picture of repentance and then it leads to worship. When we are convicted of doing something we're not supposed to, it should lead us to eventually worship the Lord. That is what repentance should lead us to. So as we think about this, maybe you've suffered a great injustice. Or maybe you're the one causing an injustice.

And as you think through these passages, what is God asking you to do? What is he demanding of you? It's important for us as we think through these passages to realize that God is a just God. And so we should be just people. We should seek justice. We should seek those who are suffering injustice. And that can look very different in different circumstances. And I think the beauty of it is we can go for the Holy Spirit and ask Him to prompt where He wants us, who He wants us to help, how He wants us to help. But we do that in many different ways here at 121. One of the most vivid ones is happening currently today is that we're being led in worship and into spiritual battle by the men of Nehemiah that we partner with. That is what it looks like to seek to do God's justice. I'm going to summarize verse 14 through 16. At the time Nehemiah is now the new governor. And the governor was allowed to take a tax over the area that he was governing. Nehemiah and his servants don't take that tax. They refuse it. It was in their right to do so. But for the good of the people, they choose not to take what was actually okay for them to take. And in verse 17, we have this beautiful picture. It says, "Moreover, there are at my table 150 men,

"Jews and officials, besides those who came to us "from the nations that were around us." Nehemiah is not only not taking what he's allowed to take, but he's giving the best that he's got. And he's not giving the best that he's got, only to Jews, but he's giving it to anyone who's willing to come sit down at his table. 150 men from the surrounding nations. We have the men of Nehemiah here today. And I'm encouraged every time I hear their testimonies. I'm encouraged every time I've gotten to visit. There is just no doubt that God is with them and that God is for them. In the passages that I summarized, there's one particular area that caught my attention. And Nehemiah says that he kept work on the wall. He not only built it up once for the 12 years that he was a governor, he consistently kept work on that wall. I know some of my brothers are here today who speak Spanish and that might be your native language, so I'm gonna take a moment to speak to them. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language)

(speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) For those of you who didn't understand that, it was really beautiful. (audience laughing) These passages can be heavy 'cause the topic of justice can be heavy. But for us, a God who's righteous and just who loves us the way that he loves us, that's a comfort, that's something to look forward to. He is for you. He's not against you. His justice has already been satiated on the cross by Jesus' sacrifice. That's the way that he extends his grace to you. [BLANK_AUDIO] for it. There's a freedom for us in that. I said we'd return to verse 1 towards the end. Verse 1 says, "Now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish brothers." My role here at 121 is a neighborhood minister, which means I spend most of my time outside of this building in the surrounding neighborhoods. And it's actually a really beautiful story of how we ended up here. God led us to this exact location to partner with the city and to partner with the lost and to seek the lost around here, to be a light in a place where there wasn't one. And so now I'm going to read something a little bit heavy. It's a list of the injustices that happen around here. It's the reality that we live. And most of these things have happened less than 300 yards away from our church building. And it's a reminder of why we're here. It's a reminder

that there's work to be done. And it's a reminder that there's an ask upon our lives when we enter this family. And it's at the gift that we've been given. It doesn't just stay with us. Someone said recently, "The spirit got to you on its way to somebody else." But who is that next person who you're supposed to reach? It's not supposed to end with you. In the surrounding area, we have prostitution. We have parents leaving their homes. One in four children are fatherless. 71% of high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. There's a weight to a father's function in a household. There's alcohol and drug abuse. 78.5 million Americans, ages 12 and older battle substance abuse this past year. A lot of the kids that I work with fall under this category. 12 year olds. 70% of users who try illegal drugs for the age of 13 developing addiction within the next seven years. There's different kinds of violence. There's stuff. There's gambling. There's witchcraft. There's heavy poverty. There's human trafficking. It's an appropriate physical behavior with minors. We actually have a picture of a tunnel. The other one, please. When I started here, I learned of the horrific things that happened in that tunnel. You can actually see the kids up there playing. But early, heavy, evil things happen in this tunnel. A couple of years ago, that's us painting over whatever the heck was out there, honestly. But that tunnel has haunted me for years and just realizing the echoes of the cries of victims that have been in there. It's been heavy on my heart recently. We had a neighborhood worship night, if you could show the other picture. For the first time ever, the echoes in that tunnel were praises and worshiped to the Lord. But that's what God does. That's what He's doing with these men. There's a darkness, and He's not afraid to enter it. And once that light enters that darkness, the darkness can't do anything except back up. If Jesus declares a war, He will win that war. And so now, I don't think about the evil things that happen. I think about the potential of a new spot for there to be worship. For God's name to be glorified for lives to be transformed. God is against all those injustices, but He's also for the center of repenting and coming home. And that's really what all of this is about today. So if you're in this room and you know Jesus is your Lord and Savior, then there's a comfort for you. There's a joy and a peace that you have. But if you're in this room and you don't know Him as your personal Lord and Savior, He's calling you and he wants you, but the next move is on you.

He won't force himself on you. Part of the relationship that we get to have with Jesus is that he chooses us and we choose him. And if you're in this room and you've suffered a great injustice and you're wondering, is it possible that I can trust the God who allows those things, how is it possible that I could ever come to terms with what's been done or what I've seen? Or maybe you've been the one who's done the great injustices. There's nothing too great that the cross can't handle. Jesus' sacrifice on that cross is finished. There is nothing to add to it, and if you profess faith in him, if you receive him as your Lord and Savior, he is paid for everything. Everything you've done, everything you're doing, whatever you did last night, and whatever you'll do in the future, that's the magnitude of the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ for us today. So, I'll ask one more time, what are we doing when we see injustice? What is God asking you to do? We're in a neighborhood series and a local series, and the overall series is to be sent. We're all sent somewhere. We all have been placed by God somewhere in different neighborhoods and different jobs and different gems. Whatever it is that you do, there is an opportunity to minister to those who need Jesus. What are we doing with that? Do we leave on Sunday, and it's just another Sunday? And then we're not Christian again until the next Sunday, or is there an urgency to seek out the loss the way that Jesus does it, to transform lives, to be used by the one who transformed us? I know some of this stuff is really heavy, and so we'll have a team up here that's ready to pray for you and pray with you, and then our renew class has also started recently there on Tuesday nights, so if you're struggling with addiction or harmful patterns, that could be a spot for you to get help.

And then also Tuesday nights from six to seven, the men and me and I have service in Dallas, and I know that they would love for y'all to join. I've been there, you could just tangibly feel the spirit there with them. So those are just some options. We'll be out in the lobby, find someone, if you feel God is calling you, use today as a moment that you give your life over to him. Be bold in your obedience, find somebody, talk to them. We're here for you, and we love you deeply. If you could join me in prayer, Father God, thank you for the way that you comfort us. Lord, thank you for your truth. Thank you for your justice, Lord. I pray today that as we yearn for a day where there are no tears, there's no pain where you make everything right, that we also yearn for the lost to find you. There was hearts of compassion and boldness to seek out. Those who are harassed in the helpless, Lord, because they don't know you. I pray today that wherever you've placed this body in each individual and each household represented here, that there's an undeniable light that they spread as they walk in their daily lives, Lord. I pray today over the men that have shared their testimonies and I pray against any attack of the enemy because of their obedience to you, Lord. Thank you for the vivid reminders that you are a mighty savior, Lord, that you have never failed and you will never fail. We love you, we trust you, and we ask all these things in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen. Love you all and have a good Sunday. [Applause] [Music]