What the Bible Says About Church

Oh, come on, everybody, welcome to church today. Oh, we're so thrilled, so thrilled you're here for the party on every campus in Yorktown and in Newport News, of course, Virginia Beach and online. We welcome the men at Indian Creek and I just want to give a special shout out today to the men and women who serve our country. Come on, can you give it up for those military families? We're thinking about you and you're on our hearts and our minds and in our prayers every single day. Let me just say happy 23rd birthday. You look good. Yeah. For 23. Yeah, they do. Yes, they do. And Tab, I wanted you to get me through this part. I know. I know. They did me wrong with that video. Whoo. Golly. I'm such a baby when it comes to thinking about all that God has done. And so I knew I'd need a moment. So I said, babe, you got to be strong. Oh, man. It's a lot of pressure. I really want you to share because it is, um, yeah. It really, really is the honor. Yeah. The honor of our lives, our family's life to, um, to be called your pastors. Yeah, it really is.

And I'm going to cry now so I can yell at you in a minute. All right. But I'm gonna get it out of my, out of my system, but we love you and we're grateful for you. And I want you guys to, to share this special moment, 23 years. I didn't know if I'd make it for 23 and, uh, here we are together today. Tell them, tell them what it means to us, babe. And then, yeah, I mean, 23 years ago, we were so young. I had, I had a, like a three month old baby on the first Sunday. I mean, it's just crazy to think about and we didn't know a lot of things 23 years ago. But we knew one thing that we wanted to change the way people think about church so that ultimately they could begin a relationship with him and that we've known that from day one. But one of the things that we didn't know was what it would be like to be in a family like this and what it would be like to lead a family like this. And it's been the privilege of our lives to get to stand next to you in some of your most amazing moments in your life, like wedding days and grand babies and babies and job promotions and all the good things. But it's also just been the privilege of our life to get to stand next to you and alongside of you in some of your hardest days and days of grief and hard times. Maybe when you've lost someone or lost a job or a friend's moved away. It's been the greatest privilege of our life. It's been a privilege to see people overcome addictions and see marriages healed. It's been a privilege to see your kids grow up to know, love and serve Jesus. It has been the privilege of our lives to see that. And we're just grateful for it. I think the song said it perfectly. We are just so grateful for it. And so I want us to pray, take a minute to pray so that we can tell God just how grateful we are for not only the mission, but the opportunity to get to do this together.

So would you pray with me? God, we just thank you so much. We're grateful for it. We're grateful for the last 23 years, what you've done in and through the lives of the people in this church. And God, we just ask that we would just keep on going. Help us to keep going with the mission that you've given us to change the way people think about church so that we can introduce them to a relationship with you. And God, we just ask that you would just allow us to be a small part of what you're doing. We love you and we thank you. you and today we're grateful for it. Jesus name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Come on, can you help me honor Tabitha? And can one more time, can you celebrate 23 years everybody? Amazing. Amazing. Amen. Amen. We love you. Thank you. Thank you. Please, please be seated cause I got to get to the yelling part. All right, everybody. We have a tradition in the Hodges house

and it happens every birthday for all of our kids. We still do it to this day. They're all big and grown, you know, but our tradition is we always on your birthday tell you your birth story. We tell you not the gross parts. Don't worry, we leave that part out, but we tell you all about the day you were born. We tell you, you know, what was happening that day and about the rush to get to the hospital. You know, we tell you about all the friends who, family who came to support us and we tell you who the doctor was and you know, all the events of the day. We rehearse your birth story because I think it's actually really important to know where you've come from. I think it's important to remember where you've been. I think knowing where you've been helps you understand where you're going. And so because it is our 23rd birthday as a church, I thought I might just tell you our birth story. I thought I would just bring you up to speed on how all of this started and how we ended up here together as a church family. And the story actually starts way before 23 years ago. It actually started in 1997. And in 1997, Tabitha and I had just gotten married. We moved away from this area to go to seminary.

And we were sitting in one of our very first ever seminary chapel services. And the preacher that day preached about the need to start new churches, more churches, different churches. And that was new news to us. We didn't even know that was possible. That wasn't even on the radar for us. Think about this, 30 years ago, starting a church, that was a very rare thing. And even if it wasn't a rare thing, we didn't know about it because our world was really small 30 years ago. Come on, dial up internet, all right, everybody? Like 30 years ago, like there was no social media. 30 years ago, if you had the privilege of having an email address, it ended with AOL.com, all right? That's how it was 30 years ago. By the way, some of y'all still got AOL.com. I don't understand that, that's a problem, but. And we heard that sermon and we walked home to our little 500 square foot duplex on campus. And we looked at each other and I mean, I remember it as clear today as when it happened. We both looked at each other and said, was God speaking to you? Because I think he was speaking to me. And that was the day. That was the day that the dream of this was planted in our hearts.

And it took us about five or six years to figure it all out and to really understand it. But now we know, we know that was a dream for you. I think that's why I get emotional when I look at you. Because I know it was a dream for you. And in 2002, we went to our pastor and we shared that dream with him. And he said, we see that in your lives and we wanna be a part of sending you to plant a new kind of church. We wanna bless you and send you. And so we started to build a team and we got about 50 people who came alongside of us and said, count us in. They said, we'll join you. And with them, we built the team. And then on March 16th, we're celebrating a little early this year, March 16th, 2003, in the gymnasium of the brand new at the time, Victory Family YMCA in York County. It had the worst acoustics you could imagine. We were sitting in these little blue flimsy folding chairs. The smell of chlorine from the swimming pool at the Y just was overtaking every sense you ever had. But we were amazed. when 316 people showed up to launch Water's Edge Church. And the rest is history, y'all. And here we are, 23 years later. And I just wanna say only God, only God could do this.

Only God. And there are some of you who were actually with us 23 years ago. You were there on the first Sunday. And I honor you today. Phil and Bethany Poteet, and Stephen Faith Roberts, and Guy and Claire Manicone, and Dean Spires, Mark Hornsby, and Karen Dominice, and the list just goes on. I can name so many who were with us on that first day. But then there are others of you who, maybe today's your first day. The amazing thing is, and the thing I love so much about the church is that whether you've been here for a long time or a short time, whether you came on March 16th, 2003, or you came a few weeks ago, we're all a part of this now. That's what I love. We're all invited in now. I'll say it to you like this. We're all part of the plan now. And I think that's why I love this series title so much. The series is called We Are Weck. Let's change the world. We're weck, let's change the world. And that's God's plan. In fact, I'm gonna tell you something today about the church that maybe nobody's ever told you, maybe you've never even thought about before,

but I need you to know today that God's plan all along, all along has been that he would use the church to change your life and change the world. Now, I realize that for some of you, that seems a little different than what you think about when you think about the church. In fact, in consumer cultural Christianity, the church has kind of become optional. It's become a convenience for us. And because there's a church, at least where we live, basically on every corner, the church has become quite common, very, very common. Most people look at the church as, well, I could take it or leave it. Most Christians would say, well, yeah, the church is something that's optional in my life. The church doesn't get a whole lot of prioritization. In fact, for most Christians, they're more likely to prioritize their five-year-old's t-ball team over the church. Think about that. Think about that. And this is not like I'm trying to make you feel guilty if that's the way you feel about the church or if that's how you view the church or if that's how you've treated the church. I'm just stating to you reality. And you know this, you don't need me to tell you. You know it already that the church to most people

is common and it might be common to you, but you need to know that was never God's plan. God's plan all along has been to use the church to change your life and to change the world. And I wanna teach you that today on our 23rd birthday. I wanna teach you about God's plan for his church and for this church. And to do that, I wanna take you to a passage of scripture that maybe you've heard before. It happens when Jesus kind of puts his disciples to the test. Jesus one day asks his closest followers, his disciples, he says, hey, what are people saying about me? Like, what's the word on the street about me? Spill the tea guys. Tell me, what's the rumors being spread about me? Jesus says, what are people saying about me? And then Jesus does what he often does. That was just kind of a setup question. Jesus gets personal. How many of you know Jesus can get real personal real fast? Jesus is not content to just watch from a distance. Jesus loves to get up in your business. Can I say it like that? And Jesus quickly takes that question. What do people say that I am? Or who do people say that I am? And he turns it and he asked this question, but what about you? But what about you?

Jesus says, look at it. But what about you? Who do you say that I am? It's personal now. So it doesn't really matter what your friends say about Jesus. And it doesn't really matter what your mama says about Jesus or your granny says about Jesus or even the preacher says about Jesus. Who do you say that I am? And Peter, one of Jesus's followers, the outspoken rambunctious kind of hothead of the group. Peter responds, and this is what Peter says, you are the Messiah, the son of the living God. To which if there had been like bells and whistles and horns and sirens, they would have all gone off right at that moment because he got it right. Can I just tell you, that's the right answer. In case you're wondering who is Jesus, he's the Christ, he's the Messiah, he's the son of the living God, that's who he is. Peter got it right, but what Jesus says next is really the point of today's message because what Jesus declares next is something that nobody that day could have ever understood. What he says next, that day nobody could have imagined, nobody could picture in their mind's eye what Jesus was about to describe

because Jesus is about to declare the start of the church and that day nobody, nobody had the slightest idea what that possibly could mean. No one could fathom what Jesus was talking about when he said the church is gonna start, that he was actually describing something that would literally change the world. They couldn't understand that he was actually talking about something that would revolutionize nations and cultures and people groups, something that would transcend geography and languages and customs, something that would start and never end. They couldn't understand it. They had no idea, no idea in the moment what Jesus was talking about, but this is what he said. And I tell you that you're Peter and on this rock, meaning on this statement, on this declaration, on this foundational bedrock fact that I am the Christ, the Messiah, the son of the living God, Jesus said, I will build my church and the gates of Hades or hell will not overcome it. In other words, I'm gonna build my church and it cannot be stopped. That's what Jesus said. Now, if that leaves you wondering some questions about your response, let me just say it like this. Anything that Jesus is building

and anything that Jesus says cannot be stopped, I'm in on that. I want in on that. I wanna be a part of that. And what Jesus was talking about was the church. It's the church. The church is not a hobby. The church is the hope of the world. The church is not a place, it's a people. The church is not here today, gone tomorrow. The church is here and will stand for all eternity. The church is not a country club for saints. The church is a hospital for sinners. The church is not a cruise ship. The church is a battleship. The church is not a seminary classroom. The church is an emergency room. It's not exclusive, it's inclusive, it's not convenient. No, it's commanded. The church is not some good idea. The church is God's idea and the church is not perfect, but it is God's plan. And Jesus said, I'm gonna build it on this foundational fact that I'm the Christ, I'm the son of the living God, and the church will stand for all eternity to echo that fact throughout the ages. And here we are over 2000 years ago, gathered as the church. I guess he knew what he was talking about

because he has built his church and we cannot be stopped. I wanna teach you today a two-part message, just two parts today in this message. Don't get too excited. It doesn't mean they're gonna be short parts. All right, everybody, but two parts to today's message. Here's the first part. I want you to understand that Jesus is building his church. That's the first part. What's Jesus up to? He's building his church. Hey, what's Jesus doing right now? He's building his church. What's Jesus thinking about? He's building his church. What's Jesus working on right now? He's building his church. That's what Jesus is doing. That's what he said. I'm gonna build my church. Stu Hodges is not building his church. Jesus is building his. This is why this is so amazing to me. This is why like right now I can be in the room with you or I can be on a video screen with you. And it doesn't really matter where I am. It just matters where Jesus is. You get that? And that's why right now, and this has happened in some occasions,

the video could stop working. And it has at times. And as long as Jesus doesn't stop working, we're good to go. Everybody understand? Because Jesus is building his church. I love that. I love that because it takes the pressure off all of us. Like we can look around and say, hey, this is the thing that Jesus is building. And by the way, if you're here today and you're not quite in on Jesus, you're not sure about Jesus, let me just say, that's okay. We're honored you're here. We welcome you. We want you here. You belong here. But I wanna make sure you know what makes this place so special. I wanna make sure you know what evokes such emotion from me as we celebrate 23 years. Because it's not the preaching or the music or the nice people you're sitting around today. Although I think the preaching's okay and the music's amazing and the people you're sitting around are incredibly nice. But what makes this place so special, so unique, so amazing, is one name that is higher than any other name.

One name that is worthy of all our praise and one name that is the greatest name of all, the name of Jesus. That's what makes this place so great, is Jesus is here. He's building his church. He's building his church. And I gotta tell you, he's been building this church for 23 years and he's just getting started. He's just getting warmed up. Jesus always saves his best for last. Really. Really, I have this little saying. I love to say it. I think you saw it in one of the pictures earlier. The best is still to come. The best is still to come. It's actually printed on the wall backstage in the green room. I look at it every Sunday before I walk out to preach to you. The best is still to come. And I believe that. I believe that, that the best is still to come. I believe that for your life. If you're in your 20s, that's awesome. 20s are amazing. Wait till you get to 30s.

The best is still to come. If you're in your 40s, good job. But I just turned 50. The best is still to come. I'm kind of looking forward to 60. Come on, somebody. The best is still to come. If you're newly married, newlywed is awesome. Awesome. Awesome. But the best is still to come. Listen, the longer you go following Jesus, the more Jesus wants to do in your life. A lot of people look at their life and they're like, well, the best days are behind me. No, no, no. Do you think Jesus did his best work in the past just to frustrate you with his work in the future? Sometimes we talk about some of these crazy wild things that have happened in the past of our church. Like you saw that one where we dropped 10,000 Easter eggs from a helicopter one time. You saw that in the picture. That was amazing. It was incredible. It was scary.

The insurance company would not let us do that now. Risk management now. Come on, somebody. But we look back at these things and we're like, oh yeah, those days. Those are the good old days. The good old days. The glory days. No, God doesn't do something in the past to frustrate your future. God does something in the past to give you confidence for your future. His best is still to come. I'll prove it to you. In John chapter two, Jesus does his very first public miracle that's recorded for us. You remember what it is? He turns water into wine. I thought somebody would get fired up about that. But. The 11 o'clock service would be fired up about that. The context is Jesus goes to a wedding and apparently this wedding was a parte. I mean, it was a throw down wedding. And at some point in the wedding, the guests drank all the wine. They run out of wine. The box runs empty. So Mary, Jesus' mother, gets involved

because she knows that if they run out of wine at the wedding, it's gonna be very embarrassing for the bride and the groom. I can relate to that. My daughter, Emma and Zach got married last summer on July 11th. It was 7-11. 7-11 day. And. we didn't have wine at the wedding, we had something better. We had blue raspberry slushies and we served them in 7-Eleven cups. And it was like the hottest day of the summer. And so I said to the bartender as everything was getting set up, I said, listen, here's one priority. You gotta make sure we don't run out of blue raspberry slush. You can't do that. That'd be so embarrassing. So embarrassing. So I can kind of relate. Jesus' mom was like, this is so embarrassing. There is no wine left. And so she calls Jesus over. She says, boy, you gotta make some wine. His first miracle, y'all. Jesus is gonna turn water into wine.

And he does. And the head waiter doesn't know all this is happening behind the scenes. The head waiter just recognizes that now we have wine again to serve. And so he tastes the wine and he doesn't know that it's the result of a miracle, but he pulls the groom aside. And I want you to see. I want you to see what he says to the groom. He says, everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink. Everybody knows that's what happens. Stop, y'all. Y'all know that's what happens. He says, but not you. The head waiter looks at the groom and he's like, you've done something amazing. You have saved the best till now. You've saved the best till now. And in 23 years, when we celebrate year 46, we're gonna look around and we're gonna think to each other, man, 23, we thought 23 was awesome. 46, whoo, he saved his best till now. Because just when you think you've seen Jesus do his best, he does even more. Just when you think Jesus has already worked, he's still working. And just when you think, oh, he really moved.

Oh, he's not done moving. He saves the best for last. He's just getting started. And I just can't help but imagine what's God gonna do next? Who's Jesus gonna save next? Whose marriage is gonna be restored next? Whose wayward child is gonna come home next? Whose life's gonna be changed next? What ministry will he start next? What city will he lead us to to open a new campus next? What's he gonna do next in our church? Because the best is still to come. 23 years ago, we would have never imagined this. What's he gonna do in the next 23? Jesus is building his church. He's building his church. Let me give you part two. Part one is Jesus is building his church. Here's part two. Jesus is building his church with you, with you. Think about that. The one thing Jesus said, I'm gonna build, the one thing Jesus said, I'm gonna build, and it cannot be stopped. That one thing he has entrusted to you. That's risky. The church. I'm gonna ask you a question and let me prepare you. This is not a question that's meant to be answered and this is not a question that's meant

to make you feel guilty, but it is a question that is really meant to make you stop and think for a moment. And I really, I want you honestly to wrestle with this question. In fact, if we had the time after I asked the question, I'd take like a five-minute intermission just to let you wrestle with the question because I think it is so, I think it's such an important question for our lives today. And let me set it up like this. Let me set up the question just to make sure we all understand the flow of things because Jesus is buried and then he rises again and he hangs around here on earth and makes visitations with people for a little bit of time and then he ascends back into heaven and when he goes back to heaven, he promises the gift of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit comes. And when the Holy Spirit comes, that's really the beginning of this movement that Jesus said he's gonna start. Building and we'll never end and that's the church And so Jesus is gone when the church actually really starts, right? He's back in heaven and he entrusted to some early followers and then and then along come guys like Paul and Silas and and Barnabas and and they carry the mission of the church to new places and to new regions and and And everywhere they go they start churches and then those churches grow and flourish

And those churches start churches which grow and flourish and then from generation to generation to generation to generation The church has been entrusted into the hands of people just like you and me Throughout the generations and they've and they've stewarded it and they've cared for it and they've and they've held true to its mission And they've held the scriptures Tightly in their hands and they've and they've and they've shared the mission with others and the church has grown and flourished and been passed down for generation to generation to generation until today and here we are Today with the church that Jesus is building with us And the question I really want to ask you today that I need you to answer is this If people in the past Treated the church Like I treat the church today Would it have stopped If they treated it like you treat it think think about it if the if the first century christians Had the same attitude about the church that you have Would it would the church ever have made it out of the first century or or would it have just stopped Would it ever have made it out of the roman empire or would it have just stopped That seems like a long ways away, I know so so let's let's get a little closer if your grandparents generation Had treated the church like our generation today treats it Would it have stopped Would the church have lasted would it have made it to our generation If the 50 people 23 years ago who started water's edge church Had treated the church 23 years ago like you treat it today You treat it today Would we even have water's edge church Would it even exist Would it even exist

Would it even exist Like I don't seriously that is a really really strong question if the people in the past treated the church Like I treat the church today. Would it have stopped? Now I believe I believe the answer is no it would not have stopped. I don't think it would have stopped because jesus says it cannot be stopped But I wonder if jesus would have had to found a plan b I wonder if jesus would have had to found a plan b Because plan a has always been you and me us Plan a has always been i'm going to build my church and i'm going to build it with you See I I don't just think about the moment we're in today I think about the next moment and I think about the next generation And the generation after that And I want my grandchildren And my great grandchildren to be handed the healthiest version of the bride of christ The most unified body of christ that there possibly can be I want them to know the church is the plan We're plan a And there is there is no Plan b jesus is building his church And he's building it to change the world and to change your life and he's building it with us And there are four ways. I believe he's doing it and that's what I want to end with today This is the application of this little two-part message. The church is being built by jesus. He's building it with us He's doing it with through four ways And if you want to be a part of what jesus is building Then then you got to jump in on these four ways And because it's our 23rd Birthday, I just got to say, uh, this isn't like i'm going to choose one of the four, okay I preach sermons like that sometimes and I you know I kind of go a little soft give you a little excuse or an out and i'm like I just choose one of the four

No, it's our 23rd birthday. I'm gonna be a little bolder today a little more in your face today And i'm just gonna call you out This is a get off the sidelines and into the game step off of the bleachers and onto the field kind of message today. It's time for all of us to take seriously the thing Jesus has called us to be about. And it is about building his church. Do you realize our world is not promised another day? And when the world around us is shaking, they need to look at a steady church so on mission that we cannot be stopped. And there are four ways Jesus wants to invite you into building his church. You get no outs on this one, everybody. You're gonna do all four of them if you wanna be in on what Jesus is building. Number one, number one is you can pray for your church. Jesus builds his church with us when we pray for our church. And I wonder if I were to look at your prayer list over the last week, if I were to listen to a recording of all your prayers, how many times, how many times did you lift up your church? How many times did you pray for your campus pastor? How many times did you pray for Sunday services? How many times did you pray for the mission of our church to advance? How many times did you pray for greater opportunity? How many times did you pray for wisdom for your lead pastor and his family? How many times did you pray for signs,

healings, and wonders to come forth from this house? How many times in the last week did you pray for your church? Because I think it's the most important thing that you can pray for in this season. Jesus is building his church and he's building it with us. And one of the ways he does that is when we just pray, we pray, we pray for God's movement, for God's direction, for God's divine protection. We pray for favor, pray for favor for our church, that God would open doors that no man could open, that he would open them on our behalf, that God would grant us his favor. By the way, we have a prayer and worship weekend coming up at the end of August. And I'm telling you about it at the end of August so that you can put it on your calendar today. You're like, oh, well, that seems like you really want me to prioritize it. I do, because I want all of us, I want all of us to be praying for our church. And by the way, by the way, I'm gonna let you in a little secret, okay? In our family, when we plan out our calendar, do you know what we plan around? The church, the church's calendar. That's why I'm giving you August 28th through the 30th right now. Because when your kid's travel ball team says, hey, there's a tournament this weekend,

you can say, oh, no, no, we're already booked on that weekend. We're going to church to pray. And we'll pray for you, by the way. We'll even pray the team will win without us. I think one of the most important ways Jesus builds his church with us is when we pray. Here's the second one. Jesus builds his church with us when we invite, when we invite. The church was never meant to be kept to yourself. There's somebody in your life right now, somebody whose life can be changed by a simple invite from you. So you can join Jesus's mission when you invite. It's how Jesus builds his church. By the way, a couple of weeks from now, it's your number one invite opportunity of the whole year. Easter, you know that, right? Easter is your number one invite opportunity. Even people who have no interest in Jesus, will still say yes to an Easter invite. It's just the way it is culturally. People come to church on Easter. It's your number one invite opportunity. Your other invite opportunity that's coming up real soon, I'm just going to tell you so you know, is our At the Movies series. It happens all throughout the month of July, and it's where we take movies,

we use them as modern day parables and stories, and we tell people about Jesus using that movie. And so you can invite people already, right now. Start thinking about who it is that you can invite to Easter or At the Movies. By the way, I don't think it's that hard. I mean, why wouldn't somebody want to say yes to an invitation to this? I would. You can pray. You can invite. Number three, Jesus builds his church when you give. And you're never more, never more a part of the mission than when you give, when you take some of what God has entrusted into your hands and you use it to build the very thing Jesus is building. And we are an incredibly generous church. I'm going to tell you, you are so generous. But there are still some people who take. all of what God's given them, and they keep it to try to build their thing. And I just want to say you're missing out because there's no greater joy that comes than taking some of what God's given you to build his thing. And he invites us to be a part of building his church with him. You can do it when you give, you can pray, you can invite, you can give. Number four, he builds his church with you when you volunteer.

When you use your spiritual gifts, when you function as the part of the body he created you to be, and you plug in and you serve others and you volunteer. And I know you're thinking, oh, golly, here he goes again. He's gonna ask us to volunteer. Those three-year-olds must really need some help down there. They do. And I'll tell you, I didn't check on them this morning, but I'm pretty sure that the three-year-olds are just fine. I mean, they're probably bad, but they're just fine. And the bad part ain't on us, just so you know. We have the most amazing, incredible, phenomenal volunteer teams who serve our church so faithfully. I can't wait to celebrate with them tonight at WEC Conference. If you're a volunteer or you wanna be one, come on out tonight, volunteers. We're gonna celebrate at WEC Conference. But this isn't about the three-year-olds needing some help. This is about you. This is about you being a part of what Jesus is building and he's building his church. And there's nothing in the world like it. There's nothing like it on the planet. There's nothing more beautiful, nothing more spectacular, nothing more inspiring, nothing more audacious, nothing more tenacious,

nothing more authentic, focused, or driven. There's nothing more sincere, meaningful, life-changing, and more like Jesus than the body of Christ, the church. And I just wanna invite you to be a part of what Jesus is building. You're like, how do I do that? Here's what you do. You come to GrowthTrack on Sunday, March 29th. It's happening on your campus. If you're online, we'll put a link in the chat for you to know how you can be a part of GrowthTrack. You just come to GrowthTrack and we'll help you know how to plug in and be a volunteer in our church. If you're like, oh, pastor, I cannot wait. I cannot wait to get in on what Jesus is building. March 29th is too far away. Okay, then get out your phone and tap that sticker. We tell you this all the time. If you tap that sticker on the seat back in front of you, or you follow the link online, it'll actually lead you to an opportunity where you can fill out a form and say, I wanna start volunteering. And somebody on our team will call you this week and we'll get you connected to a volunteer team right away because we don't want you to miss out on what God wants to do in and through your life. Today, unapologetically, on our 23rd birthday, I'm asking you to recommit, or for some of you to commit for the first time.

I'm asking you to get in on what Jesus is building. And now watch what happens when you do. When you commit to pray, and when you commit to invite, and when you commit to give, and when you commit to volunteer, watch what happens. Jesus gets involved because He's building this thing and Jesus builds His church with us. That's how it works, everybody. It's so simple. And that's been God's plan all along, all along. And I'm not naive. I know there are hundreds of things that you could pour your life into building, and some of those are great. You could build a great family. You could build a great career. You could build a great business. You could build great friendships. You could build a great community. You could build great teams, and great athletes, and great ministries, and all of that's all good and fine, and I hope you're doing all of that. But Jesus isn't building any of those things. Jesus is only building one thing, that He said He's building His church, which tells me that the thing Jesus is building is greater than all the other things that we can invest our lives in building. So why wouldn't we join Him? Join Him in what He's building.

And that's what 50 of us realized 23 years ago, sitting in a room, looking at each other. Some were old, some were young, some were still in high school, some had kids who were in school, some had kids who had graduated from school. Some were rich, some were poor, some had been. and following Jesus for a very, very long time. And some had just started following him. But 50 of us decided, let's give our lives to being used by God in the thing that Jesus is building. And 23 years later, this is what Jesus has built with us so far. Thank you. But I want you to imagine if you would pray and invite and give and volunteer and you were to join us, imagine what he might do with us next. We are WECC. Let's change the world. Thank you. Would you bow your heads? Would you close your eyes? The greatest invitation I could make today would be for you to say yes to a relationship with Jesus. For 23 years in services just like this, people just like you have done that and their lives have been radically changed. So if you've never given your heart and life to him,

this is your moment, this is your time right now. You can just pray this prayer right from your heart and really mean it and say, Jesus, I wanna know you. All my sin forgiven by you. I wanna live my life for you. Come into my life and be my Lord and my savior. And Father today, we thank you for every person praying that prayer and we thank you for our church today. And we are inspired, not just to cheer, we're inspired to act. And we wanna join in on the mission and be a part of what you're building, Jesus. So we say yes to you, a new and a fresh today. Use us to keep building your church. Use us to change the world. Use us to bring you honor and glory in all things. It's in Jesus' name we pray, amen. Amen, I love you church. Come on, let's thank God for all he's done today. ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪