When Jesus Is Your Jury

I really am excited to continue a series today that I started last week, and I'm calling the series I Know That Voice. We're talking about how to discern God's voice and then do what it says. Aren't both of those important? You know what I noticed about us sometimes as believers in Jesus? We get so caught up in the parts of what God has spoken that are hard to discern, and we ignore the parts that are hard to do. Some things God has spoken to us about are not hard to discern. He just told us to do that, to forgive, but that's hard to do. Sometimes the Lord will tell you, confess your sins one to another. That's easy to discern. You need to be honest about your sin. It's hard to do, because I don't want you to see me like that, so I want to keep this armor on. We're talking about not only discerning the voice of God but being able to do what he speaks. I want you to be seated today. Normally I share my Scripture while you're standing, but I want you to be seated, because I want to talk you into the Scripture today. So, take your seat wherever you are and turn in your Bible, please, to 1 Corinthians 4, 1-5. Thank you for your word, Lord. Somebody say what Samuel said. Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. We talked about Samuel last week and how he attuned his ear to the voice of God and so that before he spoke for God he had to learn to hear from God. Very important. The apostle Paul was another preacher who had to hear from God before he could speak for God, because there was a time in his life when he persecuted followers of Christ and he thought he was serving God. He had to come to that all-important place that really measures your maturity in the Lord where he said, "'I was wrong.'" Try to say that one time. See how hard it is to say. "'I was wrong.'" He spent the rest of his ministry not trying to make it up to God but trying to spread the message of the God who had saved him by grace. After spending his whole life trying to earn God's favor through keeping the law. In 1 Corinthians, chapter 4, Paul is well into his established ministry, and he's doing something we would never think someone of his caliber would have to do. He's defending himself to the Corinthian church. Not like they really had any right to judge him, because they were wild. They were so wild. I'm talking about sexual immorality in the church. It was different back then. They had stuff going so crazy that believers were suing each other because they couldn't mediate any other way. It was different back then. They were also not only dysfunctional,

but they were divided. You had one group in the church… We like when Paul preaches. Then there was another group that was like, Well, we like when Apollos preaches. Paul speaks into all of that, telling them, You should be eating meat by now, but you still need milk, because you have not yet developed your digestive system to realize that if God's Word is being preached, he can use anything he wants to bring it to you, anyone he wants to bring it to you, anytime he wants to bring it to you. But then it gets personal. I've spent a lot of time debating how to share this message today, because it is personal to me. I have determined that the greatest way for me to make it personal to you is to share how it's personal for me. But first, let's see how it's personal for Paul. 1 Corinthians 4, verse 1. This then is how you ought to regard us, as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. Let's read that again. Entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. There are some mysteries God has not revealed. Paul says, We are not responsible for what God has not revealed. We are entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. There are some things in your life that God has not shown you yet. You are not responsible for what God has not revealed, and you get to trust him with those mysteries. But then Paul says, We have been entrusted with the mystery of the gospel that has been revealed through Jesus Christ. Look at verse 2. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove famous. No, that's what everybody in our day wants to be, is famous. But Paul said, If you've been entrusted with it, you don't have to be famous. You just have to be faithful. You don't even have to be that smart. You just have to be faithful. You don't even have to be perfect. You just have to be faithful. Verse 3 is where I want to pick up our thought for today. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court indeed. Touch your neighbor and say, "'I don't care what you think about me.'" You didn't convince him. Say it again. "'I don't care what you think about me.'" Now ask him, "'Do you like my outfit? Does it look good on me? Does it make me look fat?' I heard a preacher one time… He was preaching. He said, "'I don't preach for the praise of men. Amen, amen.'" See the irony? Anyway, we all need validation.

Last week, I talked about values. You'll know God's voice when you have God's values. To ask God to speak to me about something he hasn't revealed when I'm not doing what he has revealed is kind of missing the point. If I have God's values, I can go to any college and be a Christian. If I have God's values, I can show up on any job and be a witness. If I have God's values, I can take a wrong decision, repent, and God will make it right, because when I have God's values, I hear God's voice. Today I want to switch it a little bit, and I want to talk about not values but verdicts. That's a courtroom term. He said, "'I care very little if I'm judged by you,' so you must care a little bit, but not too much. I kind of care, but not enough to be controlled by it. I'm going to brush my teeth. I don't want to have bad breath. I'm going to try to do my best, but I'm not controlled by it. I care what you think, but I'm not controlled by it. I don't have to prove it to you or any human court.'" Indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that doesn't make me innocent, because my heart is deceptive. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time. Wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time, each will receive their praise from God. Here's the title of my message. I want to talk about when Jesus is your jury. I know you're trying to write it down, but you can multitask. Shout while you write. When Jesus is your jury. I'm telling you, there are internal verdicts that are happening in your mind and your heart every single day about others, about yourself, about your life, and I want to talk about that a little bit. I chose the word jury because that's the job of a jury…to declare a verdict after examining evidence. In your heart, even at this point in my message today, you have already made certain verdicts about the word I'm preaching today. You've already started deciding, Is this for me or is this for someone else? Do I agree with what he's saying or do I disagree with what he's saying? Do I think Pastor Stephen looks good with his shirt tucked in, or does it look weird because he normally doesn't? I can't decide. All of the things you think. You laugh at that, but it is a very peculiar thing to be a public minister. This is where I want to share with you personally. My 18-year-old son Graham is preaching a lot right now. You say, You must be proud of him. I am, but I'm proud of all my kids. They don't have to preach to make me proud. Yet at the same time, it is kind of fun to teach him a little bit about preaching.

He started asking me questions about preaching, like, How do you do an introduction? How do you transition from one point to the other? Here's one thing he said to me. I don't know if this means he's just very self-aware or a little bit arrogant, but he goes, I'm such a funny person. How do I get my humor to come across more when I preach? Because they don't laugh when I talk. You see what he did? It's their fault. They're not laughing. I'm funny. How do I get them to come up to my level? Delusion can be a tool for the preacher. But he is funny, and he is learning. One day, he walked past me where I study in the house. I'm going to share this personally, but it's not autobiographical. It's for your application. So, listen to this. I study in our house at a dining room table with about seven empty chairs. I like studying there, number one, because it's close to the food, and number two, I like it because those empty chairs help me prepare. Here's why. I sit with the Bible. I say, Lord, speak to me. I need you to show me in your Word what it says, not what I think, not what I preached about it last time. Lord, even if I don't completely understand it, I want to share it, because I would rather give the people a word that is fresh and messy than something that is moldy but has no meaning. So, as I'm studying, a lot of times I get a little lost. I love alliteration, so I start making everything start with P, like it's going to do today in this sermon when I give you the outline. But after I've made everything start with the letter P and after I've tried to figure out lines I can say, stories I can share, illustrations I can do, I start talking to the empty chairs. There are people in there helping me prepare to preach. They don't know they're there, but they're there. Eric, you're there. I shouldn't tell you this. You might start wanting to get paid or something like that. Help me with my sermon. But sometimes, when I'm all lost in what does the Greek say, what does the Hebrew say… You know, God, speak to me, speak to me. I look at the empty chair, and I say, If Eric was sitting right there, and I know some of the strain and the stress he's carrying… I've known him since we were little boys. I know he was adopted, and I know that's complicated for him, and I know he constantly deals with the issues from certain things that happened before he even had a conscious memory. What does Eric need to hear from you, Lord, even if it doesn't start with the letter P,

even if it messes up my outline, even if it means I'm not going to get up there to sound so smart? What does Eric need to hear? Sometimes you're there, Matt. Matt's smart. Sometimes I'm like, You know, Matt's really smart, really successful, but success brings pressure. So, what does the person who's successful but under pressure need to hear today? You tend to think the only people who need a touch from the Lord are people who are down low, but there is a pressure that comes with blessings that you have to learn how to manage as well. So, what do I say to the person who is winning and weary? I bring them all around me. I bring Holly around me. I bring Holly to the table, and I realize she needs to hear, honor your husbands, and submit to them. Then I put some kids in the church, because they're not necessarily stressing about the same things a 57-year-old is stressing about. So, Lord, show me what my 15-year-old daughter… So, Abby's there, and Holly's there, and it's just me and a Bible to the naked eye, but I have every chair filled with people who have needs that only God knows and only God can meet. I told Graham one day… He walked by and said, "'Why do you study in this room?' I said, "'Because these chairs are full, because it reminds me that after I hear from God I'm speaking to them, and it helps me to filter. Am I coming up here to be impressive or am I coming up here to be a blessing?' One time, the Holy Spirit spoke to me. He said, "'You can impress them or bless them, but you can't do both at the same time.'" If you're primary… Listen to me. You think I'm talking about preaching. I'm talking about every room you walk into. I'm talking about how you interact with your family. I'm talking about how you show up in social situations. I'm talking about sitting with someone who's going through something. Are you trying to be impressive or a blessing? Paul said one time, "'I forgot everything I knew so I could remember the cross of Christ. I count it all dung for the sake of knowing him. I preach the foolishness of the cross. It's foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those of us who are being saved it's the power of God. So, when I preach, I want to please Jesus, and I want to help Eric. I want to help Matt. I want to help Holly. She needs a lot of help. She's married to me. I want to help Abby. I want to help them so they are there and they are preaching to me.'" I showed Graham that. I said,

"'Before you can hear from God, you need to remember that you're speaking to them, and you're a servant of God's purpose. Before you are a speaker, you are not speaking for status. You are a servant of the living God. You serve the Word of God, the bread of heaven, fresh to the hearts of hurting people, and it's a privilege to do it.'" Then I pulled out my phone, and I showed him a text message. I said, text the other day from John. John has been in our church for almost 20 years. He was recently diagnosed with Parkinson's. He's in the middle of a battle with Parkinson's. While I'm sitting here preparing my sermon, parsing the sentences in the original languages I hardly understand and trying to prepare to get up here and preach to you, I'm remembering John and the fact that he has Parkinson's. He sent me a text that said, Pastor, these last few weeks of preaching have helped me so much. You see, I have pneumonia right now, and on top of the Parkinson's, it's a lot, but with God's help, I will continue to fight and show up every day. So, I'm not preaching to be impressive. I'm preaching to help John. I'm preaching to John today. Do you understand today that John would love to be in this building, but he can't? He would love to be in your seat, and he can't. Some of you are scrolling on Snapchat while I'm preaching, and somebody would give anything to be in your seat, you see, because the Word of God is my weapon to fight through my weakness. I told Graham, Your job is to please Jesus and help John. That's all you have to do when you preach. Please Jesus and help John. So, I'm preaching for two people today, Jesus and John. That's my job. Paul said, I have a job. I love the apostle Paul, because he understood the assignment. He said, I have a job to do. I have to take the gospel to the Gentiles. Touch somebody and say, You have a job to do. Look at them like you expect them to report and log their hours. Say, You have a job to do. I have a job to do. You have a job to do, Mom. You have to raise those kids. No, you don't have to control them, but you have to be there for them. You have to collaborate with God to raise that child. Watch this. You have a job. You have a job. Students, you have a job. It ain't just for you to chat GPT your way to a C and get out of this thing. You have a job. Somebody in your grade might commit suicide if they don't meet Jesus. You have a job to do. You have to show them the one who said you have a reason to live. You have a job. Say it. I have a job. I'm not unemployed in the kingdom of God. I have a job. I have a job to do as a mom. I have a job to do as a student. I have a job to

do as a small business owner. I have to figure this out. I have a job to do as a creative. I have to learn how to do these graphics in a way that inspires people. I have a job to do, not just when I show up to work but as I work on myself. I have a job to do. I have to work on me so I don't pass down to the next generation what I struggled with so I can be a chain breaker in my family. I have a job to do. Then I told Graham, "'You've got to know your job, but you've also got to know your jury.'" Your jury. Let me ask you something. Just me and you. You love it when a preacher says that? Like, there's a bunch of us. Okay. But if it was just me and you and we could talk about it, who's your jury? Paul said to the Corinthian church, "'You're not my jury. The Lord is.'" And he's not saying that so he can get away with sin. You're like, "'Only God can judge me.'" Paul got stoned, but not like that. Not like that. He wasn't saying that as an excuse to just live any way he wanted to. He was saying there's actually a higher standard I'm called to than what you think about me, because when people judge, they do it on the surface, and they do it as a summary. So, they just label you at the level they can see you. I think if Paul had had kids, he would have said, "'I don't care if you think I'm a good dad. You don't see how I parent my kids.'" So, for every mom that has a job, who's your jury? Who gets to render the verdict whether you're doing a good job at it or not? Does that jury exist in real life or only on your screen through cultivated moments that were curated to impress others? So, you are comparing the mom you are to the mom they pretend to be. What's your job? Who's your jury? Whose popularity would you give anything to earn? Who are you doing it for? I want to break this message down into three points that start with the letter P. John likes alliteration. He told me that one time. But I think it'd be simplest if we talk about the verdicts in your heart. You know what I mean when I say verdict? You're no good at this.

You're unworthy. You're the problem. You'll never change. It's too big for you. You don't have the experience. Those verdicts in your heart come from a jury. Who's your jury? We're going to talk about praise. That's the first thing we're going to talk about. And then we're going to talk about patience, and we'll close the message in about three and a half hours. Talking about power. Praise, patience, and power. It's interesting that Paul uses this phrase in verse 5. I'm going to put it on the screen again for you, where he says, each will receive their praise from God. Do you see that right there at the bottom of the screen? I'll give you a second to take it in, because we're used to seeing, give praise to God. But that looks kind of weird to see it on the screen, that you also can receive praise from God. Now, whose praise you crave the most will tell me a lot about what you are chained to. Whose praise you crave the most. When I started explaining to Graham about the jury, I had to tell him a story about another John. There is a part of me that, when I preach, I want to be accurate. I want to be correct. I want to do a good job. There's one memory that stands out in my mind. Several years ago, and this is the only time this has ever happened, I was criticized for my ministry.

I was seeing if you'd believe that or not. Y'all know better than that, because they say it to you too about going to church here. So I get it, right? This is the part that's kind of personal, but I want to give it to you so it can be personal for you. There was a man named John one time who was being interviewed, and he is a great theologian. He's in heaven now, and he is a great theologian. What's his name? John. They were doing a lightning round with him at a theological panel, and they were saying, we're going to say a name of a person or the name of an event or the name of an organization, and we want you to lightning round, just respond, what you think about that person. Now, I was very unsuspecting, because honestly, I really loved this guy's teaching. I studied his books in seminary. I studied his books to the point where I actually had started buying volumes of his different commentaries on the Bible. So it was really weird to me, because I was just watching this thing on YouTube as a spectator, and I was in the other room getting ready to go preach on a Saturday night. They said my name. They go, Stephen Furtick. I'm like, is my mom in here somewhere calling me by my first and last name? Did they say my name? I got back to the screen just in time to see it, and I'll never forget it, because it wasn't just what he said. It was how he sighed before he said it. I was expecting him to say, who? Because I don't think of myself as anybody that this man should know about. I read his books. But he goes, ah. What he said next was one word, but it felt like it had about a million syllables.

He said, unqualified. I said, what did John just call me? The first thing I wanted to do was fight. You thought I was going to say pray. No. I didn't want to pray for him. I wanted to lay hands on him, because that's in the Bible too. It's in the Bible, like something out of the Bible. I can share it with you now, because there's no bitterness in my heart toward this man. I'm sure he's in heaven, and I'm sure we'll eat grits and eggs together one day when I get there, because I'm going to be there too, whether he wants me in there or not. I'm going to knock on his door, and I'm going to say, I read your book. Let's have a book club, John! But you know what's weird? that sometimes when I sit down to study, even though I forgave him, even though I wrote a book called Unqualified and sent him a $120 tie and the book signed in the mail… Yeah, I did that. I didn't even know they made $120 ties until I bought him one. Even though I've gotten over it, there are still some times I sit down to preach to one John and find myself trying to prove to another John, but God said, "'That's the wrong John.'" Because God did not call you to convince the jury. God called you to please him and help John, so clap your hands if you know I've got nothing to prove. Wrong John. Write that down next time you find yourself trying to prove something to somebody who isn't even paying attention, by the way. You know what they're doing? Trying to prove themselves to somebody who isn't paying attention so they can prove themselves to somebody who isn't paying attention because they're proving and what are you proving to and what will it improve you if they do approve of you? You hear what I said? What would it improve you if they did approve of you? So, I'm saying, like Paul said, I care a little bit, but I can't be controlled by a jury when God has given me a job. Even if it's not a person saying it… I bet you've heard it before. Unqualified. Why did I make his voice sound like he was on a respirator or something? Unqualified.

I could hear the jury. We have reached a verdict on Furtick, your honor. We pronounce him unqualified. I'm like, yeah, like Moses. Yeah, like the Virgin Mary. Yeah, like a shepherd boy named David. Yeah, like a cussing fisherman named Peter. Anybody God ever used, he did it through their dysfunctioned soul. All right. We're talking about the praise that comes from God. Say it. The praise that comes from God. I wrote this down. Stop performing for people who don't hold your prize. Say it again, Furtick, for the people in the back of the church who have been trying to impress somebody, but there's nothing at the bottom of the box. Y'all remember cereal? You reach down in it, and there's something at the bottom of the box. Some of you are reaching so far down for the approval of people, but there's nothing in the bottom of the box. It doesn't matter if they like you. It doesn't matter if they don't. You can love them, but do not perform for them. Because how can you commit to the praises of God if you are addicted to the praises of people? Stop performing for people who don't hold your prize. I didn't say stop ministering to people who treat you mean. That's called turn the other cheek. That's in the Bible. You have to do that. God revealed that, but you don't have to perform for them. I don't have to take 1 Corinthians 4, verse 5, and then go to Revelation 20 and think about the great white throne of judgment and the three different types of judgment in the Bible just because John might be watching me from heaven. I'm not preaching to that John. I'm preaching to you. I have a job to do today. You have a job to do. Are you performing for people? He said, "'The Lord has my prize, so the Lord is the one I'm doing it for.'" I thought that was so freeing for me. See, when you are a servant… Okay, I'll go ahead and break down my pride barrier and just do it. I was trying to avoid it, but I can't now. I want to say it right rather than look young up here. When you are a servant of God's purpose, you won't be a slave to people's praise. on, but I want to talk to you about being a slave of people's praise. See, if you are a slave of people's praise, you will be a casualty of their criticism. So, sometimes the danger isn't from the haters. It's from the praise, because if you become too addicted to people's praise, people telling you you do a good job… What about when God calls you to do something nobody is going to compliment? You say, I know that voice. That's not the claps of the crowd. That's the call of God.

Do you know the difference? I have to learn the difference. The Lord will say to you sometimes, I need you to do something that's going to make the crowd think you're crazy, but the crowd is crazy, not you. If your jury of being a parent is other people telling you how much screen time your kids should have, are they paying for the data plan? You have to work that out with God. You might have to parent all of your different kids different ways. The Bible says train up a child in the way they should go, not in the way your neighbor's child should go, not in the way some expert said they should go. Get over it. There are no experts. There are just guides along the way, and there is a God who made you, and the God who made you knows what's in you, and he's the only one who gets to decide if you've been responsible with what he's entrusted to you. That's why it doesn't matter much when people praise you, because people don't know what God gave you. It could be possible that you were given much more than you're working with, and people are impressed, but God is not pleased. Only God knows what he gave you. It could be possible that you are doing much better than people would think, but you were given a very rough start in life, and for you to be where you are right now is the grace of God. Don't let anybody's schedule intimidate you for where your life is supposed to be right now. So, if I'm not a slave to their praise, I can't be a casualty of their criticism. Please, God, help John. That's all I have to do. Please, God, help John and all of the Johns who are in this room. I think you have to focus it down to know… Like Paul knew. He said, I am entrusted with what God has revealed to me. That might be one certain thing for each season that God reveals and says, You are responsible for this. You are not responsible for the outcome. You are only responsible to apologize. You are not responsible for the outcome. You are only responsible to show up. You are not responsible to create something wonderful. You're just responsible to create consistently. When I came off my summer break, I wrote a lot of songs. Somebody said, Did you write us a lot of great songs? I said, A lot of songs. I don't know if they're great yet. I'll let y'all decide that. That's not my job. I'm not the jury. I don't examine myself. I can only show up. That's all I can do. Be what Paul called faithful. This kind of faith requires patience. Verse 5 is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. Yet the Lord showed me something fresh for us today. Can I give it to you?

Can I give it to you like God gave it to me? Somebody say, Patience. Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time. Wait until the Lord comes. What's he talking about? He's talking about the day when we'll stand before God. When I stand before God, no matter who's up there going, Unqualified. Don't let him in. I'm not going to take a test to get in. I'm not going to take a test. I'm just going to do a motion. I'm going to find the man on the middle cross and point and say it like this. I'm with him, and that's how I'm going to get in, because my eternal verdict hinges on my relationship with Jesus. I have accepted him as the Lord and Savior of my life. He died for me, and he covered me, and all of the sin I did was canceled. It's not only canceled, but God has so loved me with his love that he is conforming me to the image of his Son, Jesus. That is settled. That is the eternal verdict. Over my life, but I'd like to say that there are also Internal verdicts that we make in the meantime and that's not always just based on your relationship with Jesus That's based on your relationship with the Holy Spirit So those verdicts that go on inside of you Where you judge stuff you judge stuff about yourself like? Who you think you need to be? To be qualified for a thing or who you think you need to know to get in certain doors all of those judgments How you think your life needs to turn out remember? I said last week that we can't ask God for directions if we don't let him set the destination Like God is not like GPS where you put in the destination And then God will just give you the directions to the destination you chose And so in the process of trusting God in the process of hearing God There are some times where I have to trust his timing even when I don't feel like he's talking and Sometimes he's talking, but I've already made up my mind what I want him to say so I can't hear what he says Because I already have the script written This verse says something about the appointed Time let's read it again therefore judge nothing

Before the appointed time so so Paul is saying don't judge things that happen in your life Don't judge events Don't don't even judge things that you call failure as being fruitless Some of the greatest fruit in your life is born from the greatest failures Shall I say it again Some of the greatest fruit from your life will come out of the greatest failures How many can testify to that just just wave a hand at me? He says judge nothing before the appointed time so right now This verse therefore judge nothing before the appointed time say therefore judge nothing before Okay therefore Judge nothing before in light of the fact that God is the judge in light of the fact that God is the jury in Light of the fact that God knows what he has entrusted to you. He says therefore Judge nothing before the appointed time so what time is it right now somebody check your your watch real quick 42 a.m. Eastern Standard Time is that right 1042? Eastern Standard Time on Sunday, what's today's date? What's wrong Feel like I lost the room Y'all seem distracted Are y'all distracted by something? I'm trying to preach but y'all seem that nobody's looking at me y'all seem distracted by something Y'all are distracted Because you're judging something Something that you didn't expect But something that I planned Because Before I preached the sermon I told David when I say what time is it? I want you to start walking from the back of the church and

Walk on the stage and when you walk act like you're doing it on purpose so the security doesn't snatch you Like you know where you're going so some redneck doesn't jump up and tackle you Somebody be like I'll get him pastor. No no no he's coming up here Cuz I called him Cuz I called him see you thought he was a distraction But really he was a demonstration You didn't know what he was there for But I told him before he started walking up the stairs What I needed him there for because I said at a certain time in my sermon I'm gonna say what time is it at that moment. I don't want you to ask anybody's permission I don't want you to push past anybody I don't want you to second-guess when I say what time is it start walking and just Stand there and the people are gonna think what's he there for but I told you before What you're there for because I want to use you in this sermon illustration There have been some things in my life where God put me in situations And I didn't know what I was there for But before Joseph ever got thrown into the prison God knew what he would be Therefore to feed his entire family y'all don't hear me preaching Paul was in prison in Philippi, and he started praising God at night and suddenly everybody's chains came loose. He didn't start praising after the chains broke. He started praising before, because he knew what he was there for. I'm trying to say that when you know your purpose, that when you know your Father, when you know his voice… Let me put it plain. Stop judging stuff God is not done with yet. That was a pretty good punctuation mark. Yeah, see? Because he's there for a purpose. You judged it before you knew what it was there for. You judged it. You are judging certain things about you, and you are calling them weaknesses, but they're really not weaknesses. They're weapons. They are there for God to use. Paul said one time, "'I had a thorn in my flesh, and I asked God to take it away, but he left it there for a purpose, so that I might know his grace is sufficient.'" Don't judge it before you get to see what it was there for.

God knows what he's doing. Am I preaching better than this Episcopalian church is shouting? I don't need their praise, because the Holy Ghost is telling me this word is working. Go sit back down. Don't run back up here again. If he runs back up here again, he's not authorized for an illustration. I thought it was a distraction, but Pastor was using it for a demonstration. If that's true of me, how much more is God using things? You think it's a distraction. You're judging it. You think it's a disappointment. You're judging it. Don't judge it before God gets to show you what it is. But Paul says something so important that I hope you saved a little room for dessert. If you read this, what Paul is saying… He's like, "'You can't judge me. I'm holy. You can't judge me. I know I'm walking with God.'" In fact, he makes this statement, and I think this is the problem with only using this Scripture, so I want to use one more today for this installment. Are you getting something out of this? Praise the Lord. That Therefore, Before thing really, really got me when I was studying. I realize there's somebody listening to me who doesn't know what it's there for and that what Paul said not all of us can say. You know, when he said, "'I don't judge myself,' verse 4, my conscience is clear." See, we can't all say that. When he said, "'It is the Lord that judges me,' just a few words later… Do you see that in verse 4, part B? "'It is the Lord that judges me.'" We can all say that, because it's ultimately going to be God's job to judge us. Ultimately. That doesn't mean people won't hand out consequences and your life won't have certain verdicts that are just handed to you by life, but it means ultimately God will judge you. But the part we might be tripping over is we can't all say, like Paul, "'My conscience is clear.'" There are a lot of you who are listening to me, and you're hearing this through the filter of guilt. When I read to you about Paul saying, "'You can't judge me,' I know that my conscience is clear.'" You're thinking to yourself, "'People can't judge me because they don't even know how bad I really am.'

And even sometimes…' Listen to me. When someone tries to give you praise or a compliment or lift you up, you won't let it in, because there is something you know about you. Now I want to call on a third person named John. If you go to John, chapter 8, with me briefly, there is a pericope about a woman who was caught in the act of adultery, and she was brought before Jesus to be judged by a jury of religious professionals. For our purposes today, you may not be dragged in front of Jesus to be judged by a group of people. It may be by your own regret, resentment, dark nostalgia, remembrances of things you did, and current struggles with things you still do. The Bible says in John 8, verse 1, that Jesus went to the Mount of Olives, and at dawn he appeared again in the temple courts where all the people gathered around him. He sat down to teach them. So, get the picture. It is as it should be. Jesus, the Savior, is at the center, and everyone is gathered around him, and he taught them. Verse 3. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery. So, while the crowds are being taught, this woman is caught, and she is brought before Jesus, the one who taught the crowds. Now they brought the woman who was caught in adultery, and they do something that religion always does. See, when the passage started, Jesus was at the center, but when they got involved, sin was at the center. So, they say, Look at her sin, Jesus. We caught her. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the law… They're quoting Scripture. This must be God. In the law… They're talking about the Bible. This must be God. In the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now, what do you say? That is a dangerous question to ask Jesus if you don't really want the answer. Don't ask him if you don't want to know, because Jesus might not agree with you. It is a dangerous thing when you have made a Jesus in your mind that only ever agrees with you. Jesus might think differently about it than you. Jesus might see it differently than you. Jesus is my jury. So, they asked the question, Teacher, what do you say about it? Hey there, you're teaching all of these wonderful things, but we're bringing you a woman who was caught. We caught her red-handed. We caught her in the act. We know what the Bible says, and they were using this question as a trap in order to have a basis for accusing him. But it's a bad idea to try to trap the answer with your questions. I said you better not try to trap the answer with your questions. See, I have to come to him and say,

what do you think? I think the most powerful thing in the Bible is what happens right in the middle of the verse. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. Notice he stoops before he speaks. He doesn't have to stoop. He's God. He doesn't have to stoop. He is the highest name, the name above every name, the name at which every knee will bow. He doesn't have to stoop, but instead of clearing his throat to speak, he rolls up his sleeves to get dirty and get to work in the life of a woman who was caught in the act of adultery. Whatever he wrote in verse 7, they were not satisfied with his actions. The Bible said when they kept questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, Let any of you who is without sin be the first one to throw a stone at her. And again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. And at this those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first. I wonder what they did in the 60s, baby. What were they doing at Woodstock? This is really good news. Until only Jesus was left with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, Woman, where is your jury? Has no one condemned you? No one, sir, she said. Then neither do I condemn you, Jesus declared. Go now and leave your life of sin. One Baptist preacher said, It's a good thing they dropped their rock, because Jesus can change water into wine. And if he can change water into wine, if one of those boys would have picked up a rock and thrown it at her… Jesus would have turned it into rubber midair, and that rubber rock would have bounced off of her and bounced back into a rock and bust their brains out. That's what the Baptist preacher said. But just touch your neighbor and simply say, You better drop your rock, because none of us really wants Jesus to start bringing forth all of the evidence of all of the thoughts and all of the things and all of the times and all of the struggles. But what I love about the passage is that they were caught up in what a sinner she was. I don't know if you noticed, but they accused her… See, the Holy Spirit is not an accuser. That's Satan's job. The Holy Spirit is an advocate. When Jesus is your jury, when Jesus, the perfect one, the spotless one, the Lamb of God, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Bride of the Morning Star, the Lily of the Valley, the Rose of Sharon… When that God gets down in the dirt, it doesn't matter what people declare over your life. Even you can't judge you when Jesus is your jury, because the Bible says… Help me preach somebody. The Bible says that as he stooped down and began to write in the dirt,

they said, The law commands us to stone such women. Oh, she's such a sinner. So, remember this. Power to change belongs to God. See, Jesus did not tell her, You have permission to keep sinning. He told her, Now that you've met me, you have power to stop. So, that's why any time the Enemy starts telling you, You're such a sinner. You can't be used by God. You're such a sinner. God can't forgive you for that. You're such a sinner. See, you're missing the whole point. The point isn't that I'm such a sinner or that I'm such a saint. It's that he's such a Savior. Come on. He's such a Savior. Yeah, but you're such a sinner. So, when the Enemy starts beating your brains out with these rubber rocks, when the Enemy starts throwing stuff at you and hurling it, and there are verdicts in your head, you say, Yeah, I'm such a sinner. I'm not here because I'm such a saint. I'm here because he's such a Savior. As a matter of fact, he's such a Savior that in one gospel account, when the woman with the issue of blood snuck up and touched the hem of his garment… Didn't even touch him. Just touched the hem of his garment, the dirty part of his garment, the part that dragged through the streets when she touched the hem of his garments. Normally, if the unclean touches the clean, the clean becomes unclean, but he's such a Savior. He's such a Savior that when you touch this Savior, it doesn't make the clean unclean, it makes the unclean clean. He's such a Savior. He's such a Savior. He is such a Savior. Touch somebody and say, He's such a Savior. He's such a Savior that when he got to the grave and it was four days into Lazarus' death, he had to call Lazarus by name because there was so much power in his word that if he had just said, "'Get up!' every dead body in Jerusalem and Bethany would have got up out of the grave." Because he's such a Savior. There's enough power in one word from God. He is such a Savior that one drop of his blood can make the foulest clean. He's such a Savior that when the thief on the cross turned to the man in the middle and said, "'I know I don't deserve it. I know I've wasted so much time. I know I deserve to be up here, and you don't, but would you remember me? I don't even know who you are yet. I don't even really get it yet, but would you remember me?' He said, "'Today you'll be with me in paradise.'" So, I'm telling you today, the power of my testimony and the power of my confession and the power of my thought and the power of my overcoming and the power of my victory is not that I'm such a saint. It's that he is such a Savior.

The law commands us to stone such a woman. She's such a sinner. Don't you hear that sometimes about yourself? You're such an idiot. Yeah, but Jesus is sucher than you. I think I should preach a message called… You know, we talk about he's a Savior. He's such a Savior, and he's such a than your sin. He's such a Savior. He's such a Savior that they only had the power to catch her in the act of adultery, but he's such a Savior he has the power to catch you when you fall and stand you back up again. So when the verdict goes in my mind, you're unqualified, or you're dirty, or you're unworthy, or you're a piece of trash, and man, I gotta tell you something. In one of those chairs around my table is me. I preach to me, because I hear it all the time. You're such a moron. Come on. How many of you, like me, struggle with self-talk, and you're not going to pay for therapy, so this is all you're going to get today listening to me talk to you? When I went to therapy for about the third or fourth time, I was describing all of these thoughts that go in my head. I was describing my jury. The therapist didn't call it that. That's what I've learned, that it's a jury making a verdict. She interrupted me with a question. She said, "'Hey, I hear you saying some really harsh things about yourself. Whose voice is that?' That's a good question. Sometimes my voice in my head sounds more like the serpent that accuses than the Savior that advocates." So, I shared 1 Corinthians 4, 1-5 to let you know that Jesus is your jury and that you have a job, but I read John 8 to know that your job is not to be Jesus. Your job is to trust him, and he did for you what you couldn't do for you. So, when the suchest start this week… Whose voice is that? It's not the voice of the Savior. It's the voice of shame. And you know what? Shame can't lift you out of your sin, and grace will not leave you in it. Amen.