You're There for a Reason

of the place. And so here was the beach at the resort that we went to. And you can see just like the clear water and you got the beach and mountains, right? So you got the mountains there in the back and if you see that boat, we actually went out on a boat just like that and went snorkeling in this bay. And it's just like you're in an underwater aquarium, just beautiful, breathtaking place as I was walking down the beach, I was confronted with this guy who wanted to sell me this crab that he had evidently just caught and said that he would even cook it up and prepare it. And I was like, it's wonderful as that sounds. I'm going to pass today, I've just eaten. And here's the pool at the resort, it's just like a quaint little place, beautiful, like if you don't want the salt water, like you can sit there at the pool in between the ocean and the mountains. And then we went up into the mountains right there and there we found this, it was a waterfall. And so that's your boy just giving God the praise and glory because of his creation. It was a pretty gnarly waterfall and it went down and kind of ran over the rocks, you could kind of climb on the rocks there. So I just want to ask does anybody want to go there, would anybody like to go there, would we take you, anyone know where that is? Anybody know where it is, you've got some guesses, I think I heard Costa Rica, what did you say? Haiti, it is indeed Haiti. Anybody vacation to Haiti lately? Recently, like past year, you want to go? In the first six months of this year, over 3,000 people were murdered, that's that we've tracked, thousands more violently injured, over 275 kidnappings for ransom in the first six months of 2026, again, that we know of the UN would say the number is much higher than that, there's just no one there keeping track. 70% of the capitals ran by gangs now and in fact if you want to go to Haiti, you're going

to have a really difficult time getting there because all of the commercial flights have been banned. So very difficult to go to Haiti, which is why, because it's incredibly cost effective, you saw that it's beautiful, why not go there? Now here's the deal, think about it like this, what if I chose one of you right now? We pulled one of you here today, pulled you up on stage, prayed over you, and said we're sending you there, we've got a plane or right waiting for you here at McGregor, private flight, sending you to Haiti, you're going to fly into Port-au-Prince, the capital there, and you're going to change that island, okay? Here's what we're going to have you do, you ready? We've got the playbook, we've got the playbook on how to change an island right here in the Book of Titus, you're going to get there, you're going to find the Christians, there are Christians there, you're going to find them, you're going to find the elders, and you're going to strengthen the elders of the churches, and then you're going to call out the false teaching because there is false teaching there, the voodoo has crept into Christianity, so you're going to call out the false teaching, you're going to remind them what is true, and then what all needs you to do is call them to discipleship. So find the older men, tell the older men to pour into the younger men, find the older women, the women of faith there, tell them to pour into the younger women, and then call them all to be an example, and then, right, okay, last week, then what I want you to do is remind them of the power of grace, not just that it saves you, but it also changes you and sanctifies you and is continue to make you something altogether different. This is this book, it's called in a pastoral epistle. Titus is in the Bible so that you today would know how to do church. First Timothy, second Timothy, Titus, pastoral epistles that the Holy Spirit preserved. So you're going to measure your church experience so often of what you know, what you've done, where you've been. But the Scripture says that we're to dive into the Scripture to know how we are to do church, and so the Holy Spirit through His servant Paul gave us this book we now affectionately called Titus, which was once a letter to Titus telling him how to change an island, right?

And so he sends Titus into this island that is much like Haiti today. This is what Paul said about it, quoting their own. He said, "Cretans are liars, evil brutes, and lazy gluttons." The Roman historian Apian wrote how Crete had a long history of violence and Creteans often assisted pirates. The Greek historian Polybius wrote how credence would acquire wealth by any means that they can't be trusted, and the churches there are filled with false teaching. So the Holy Spirit's plan to preserve the church on the island of Crete, about 160 mile island, is to send Titus. Hey, you're going to go there, and here's the step-by-step of what you're going to do. So we're wrapping up this book, we're in chapter three, we're going to cover all of chapter three today. I'm going to fly, and we're wrapping up this playbook that Paul wrote, the handbook, on how to do church, and I just want to ask you, where is your Crete, okay? That area and people has God, the Creator of the heavens of the earth, entrusted to you to be the change there that you want to see. Because today he's going to give us the playbook, and you can compare your strategy with what the strategy that God gave you, like he says, "This is how you do it. Don't do it your way. Do it his way. Here's his way. He's going to roll it out." He says, "This is how you change a place. This is how you change a conference room, a carpool line, a community, your poker group." Your home, maybe it's your home, maybe it's your Thanksgiving table. What is the area, the place, and the people that God has entrusted to you? And when I say you, you've got to hear you. Maybe it's a team, maybe it's a classroom, it's you, but God has you there to bring about the change that He wants through you. How are you doing?

How are you doing? That's what we have to reflect on over the few minutes that we have together. I think too many Christians have begun treating the world like an enemy to defeat, rather than a people Jesus came to say, "We're quick to criticize, argue, and condemn, but slow to show kindness, extend mercy, and meet the needs." The world is not our enemy, it's our mission field. That's why God has us here to do work through us. And so you have an area of focus. How are you doing? That's the question you're confronted with right now. How are you doing? Where is your creed and how to change it? That's the message today. How to change it for the glory of God. How to bring about change will be in Titus chapter 3. I'll start in verse 1, let's go. Remind the people, Paul writes to Titus, remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate and always be gentle toward everyone. He starts out with these seven instructions, be subject, obey, ready to do good, slander, no one, be a person, a peace, be considerate. Be gentle. What's he doing? He's describing an example of a follower of Jesus. He's saying Titus, first and foremost, as you land on that island, you have to be the example. You've got to be the change that you want to see in others, right? You are the example of a follower of Christ. You may be the only Bible they ever read. You may be the only Jesus they ever see.

So number one, live by example. Step by step. Step one, live by example. If we want to see Jesus and we want people to see Jesus, then we have to show them what Jesus looks like. And so as he goes down these seven lists, I'm going to group them up into groups of three. The first one would be respect authority. What it says in the scripture, be subject to rulers and authorities. Be obedient. Here's what we think in Texas. You know, here's how we're like, this is how you're like, hey, you know what? I hope the government asked me to do something that contradicts God's word. I'm going to show them. Stand up to my civil disobedience time lineup. Let's go. We're going to, because we're going to do what God's word says. Not what somebody, you know, some government said, we're going to do what God's word says. That's how we are. That's where it says. Well, what does God's word says? Oh, let's look. What does it say? Word of God, the Bible, remind the people to be subject to rulers and authority. Ah, that's Titus though, anywhere else from him, it's 13. Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except which God has. consequently, whoever, listen to this part, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted. And those who do so will bring judgment on themselves, they said. In the Bible, it says that, and you're like, yeah, but they don't, you know, they don't, it's different now because they, who, who was, who, okay, treat is under Roman

government. The emperor at the time is a person named Nero. Nero killed his wife and married an eight-year-old boy and dressed him up like his former dead wife, you know, like that. Okay, that's what he, he, he lit Rome on fire and blamed the Christians so that the people would excuse him for lighting their family members on fire to give light to his gardens. That's who's in charge. Can we all just agree that that's different? And so what does, how does God say to handle that respect? Honor, obedience, and if you don't, judgment. So some of us need to repent. I'm just saying, yeah, I haven't, I haven't done that. I haven't been the example this scripture calls me to be. I, I kind of thought there was an exception there. Do you believe the Bible is trustworthy? Do you obey it? Here's what I want to say guys. This, this is what is on my heart. This one, it's all true, man. That's all true. It's all true. Jesus came, he died, he showed back up. He's coming back. You're in this momentary middle ground. You're going to die. You're going to face judgment. There's a place called hell. There's a place called heaven. If you've been covered by the blood of Jesus, you're going to heaven. If you've been covered by the blood of Jesus, you live like it. You know, it's not, you just not, you go to church in the morning, you know, on Sundays, that's not it. You live like it. You're marked by it. You're marked by doing as much as you know of what the word says. So we come here together Sunday morning, you got dressed, you marked it out on your, your calendar. You plan to be here. You jump through the hoops to get here so that we could all come in this room and just be reminded, it's all true. We're going to die soon or he's going to come back. It's all true. So what do we do? We do good. That's what he says right here. So do be ready to do good. Be ready to do good in the Greek. It's a toy moss. It's, I say that because it's, well, I'm not trying to, oh, Greek, you know, this is, I want to sound smart. Where it's relevant, I want you to know this is not just do good. It's you're always ready. You always have what you need. You have the supplies. You're ready to do good. You're prepared to do it. You're looking for the good that you need to do and you do it. You're Batman. You know, there's a reason that our hearts resonate with DC and Marvel and these stories told over and over and over because you're a vigilante operating within the laws of the land, of course. But you see something that needs to be good. Somebody is $1,100 short on rent and you have $1,100. You're prepared to leave that in their mailbox and not tell anybody. It's just what we do. It's just what we do. It's the best life to use the preparations that you have to seek and find

the needs around you and just meet them. You're Batman. You're just doing it. Just getting after it. It's amazing. Treat everyone with gentleness. He says slander no one. Be peaceable and consider it and always be gentle toward everyone. So what I'm going to do is I'll read the text. I'll give you the point, but then I'm going to kind of stay in the text underneath here as you see that I'm doing where to treat everyone with gentleness. He says, it's interesting. So he says, there's something you do to no one, you slander no one, and then there's something you do to everyone. You are considerate and gentle toward everyone and you slander no one. You can disagree with someone without dishonoring. are messy. So get really, really good at disagreeing with someone and still having your heart filled with love toward them and not in any way dishonoring them. It's a skill. And if you have the Holy Spirit, you want to make sure you learn that skill. And so we don't slander anyone. And I'll go one step further, according to the Scriptures, we don't gossip about anyone. Here's what that means. This is very simple, Harris Creek. You don't talk about anybody who's not present. You talk to people. You don't talk about people. Always. You talk to them. You know? Like, I get so many Friday Q&A's are like, how do I tell so-and-so, you know, fill in the blank? And I just cut whatever they fill in the blank, and I just paste it. And I'm like, that's how you tell them, just like that. And they say, well, how do you tell them with kindness? Oh, you just do it in a kind way. But you say that. This is what you say. This is how you tell them. You know, we don't talk about people. Here we have a 24-hour principle. If you're new here, here's what that means. It means that if you talk to me about somebody who's not present, you have 24 hours to talk to them. If you talk to anybody in our body about somebody who's not present, you have 24 hours to, they're going to tell you that. They're going to say, hey, you have 24 hours now to talk to them since you talk to me about them. Because as safe as this place is, we can handle anything and everything that you're going through. This is a safe place. It is unsafe for gossip. It is unsafe for gossip. And so if you gossip, you're going to be exposed here. And you think, man, that's heavy handed. No, no, it's shepherding according to what the Scripture says. Because it's harmful for you to do that. It costs you something when you gossip. It's harmful to your heart and to your life and to your well-being. So don't do it. Ever. Any time. That's different. In our Baptist world, southern world, where we take gossip and we turn it into prayer requests, we dress it up, would you pray for so-and-so? No, we don't do that.

Just this week, somebody came and said, they were like, oh, they were a part of this life group. And they got sideways. And he just doesn't understand why this other person doesn't like him. You know, what do you think he should do? I go, oh, he should ask him why he doesn't like him. And so he should take him to coffee, say, hey, can we go to coffee? And they sit across the table and say, hey, help me understand what it is about me that you don't like. And the person they go, yeah, I guess he could do that. But what about you? What do you think? Why do you think he doesn't like him? I go, oh, I don't have to think. The good news here is I don't have to spend any brain power trying to figure out the mystery that is there. We can just ask him. Like, we just go to them and just ask the question and say, hey, what's really going on here? Christianity gives us that permission to do that. You don't ever have to wonder. With a sense of urgency, you can just go to the person and you can just frame the question like it lives in your mind and you can say, hey, what's going on? For the rest of your life, it's free. I interviewed John Mark Comer this week and he said that when he's a pastor, if you're not aware, and he said that when his wife got pregnant, he was filled with anxiety because he had always heard like preachers kids, pastor kids, you know, they don't turn out well. And he's just like, man, how do I make sure that this child that I'm now responsible for turns out well, and he just had a lot of anxiety. So what he did is he grabbed like some of the best pastors he knew and got like 10 of them and he interviewed them all individually and just said, what can I do so that it's not a typical PK story? And he said the same word showed up in every single meeting. He goes, why is it? Like, why did PKs turn out like this sometimes? And he goes, that's easy. The same word showed up hypocrisy and said when they're hearing something on the stage and then they see something different at the table, that gap creates rebellion. And it's not just PKs, it's CKs, Christians kids. When they, when you come into a room like this and you're like, let's pretend like we're the perfect family, like we have it all together and not let anybody in on our junk and then you leave and you let your hair down and say, this is really how we're going to live. They are so out on that. That's why you saw this mass exodus of the greatest fastest growing religion, the nuns, is because they saw a gap and like, oh, we're supposed to be peaceful and kind and gentle according to the Bible. But we're not going to be. If they see you, worked up, given to anger. They're like, I don't know if you actually know the God that you're singing to.

And they're out on that. I just wanna say right here, guys. It is an absolute miserable evangelism strategy to despise those you hope to convert. Okay? It's an unbelievable, awful evangelism strategy to have your heart filled with hatred to the people that you hope the Holy Spirit would indwell. Hatred for anyone has never converted anyone in the history of the world. No one has ever been hated into the faith. Ever. So you gotta try something different. I'd offer love. And here's how, why you should love them, verse three. At one time, you were foolish. This is gonna be hard for some of us to believe. At one time, you were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared to kindness and love of God. He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, not because of what we can do, but because of who he is, because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. Palin Genesia is the word in the Greek. Palin Genesia, Palin Genesus, again, the beginning

to begin again. Here's what he's saying. He gave you a second chance. God, the creator of the heavens there, gave you a second chance. Why? 'Cause you're good? 'Cause you were smart, 'cause you run fast, 'cause you're beautiful, 'cause you're wealthy. No, because he's merciful. Because he's merciful. He gave you a second chance. Whom he poured out on generously through Jesus Christ, our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs, having the hope of eternal life. What's he saying? He's saying, hey, you can't look down on people when you remember that's how God found you. All right, and so you have to think, do you look down on people and think you're better than them, or are you compassionate toward them? I remember when I went into ministry, I had nothing to offer the church. I mean, I didn't know the Bible, I couldn't preach. I had nothing, I mean, they shouldn't have hired me. Listen, they were irresponsible to hire me. That's a true story. All I was bringing to the table was, hey, I know those people you're trying to reach, 'cause I was them 18 months ago. The people you're trying to reach,

I know what they're struggling with, I know how they're thinking, I know what they're showing up on Sunday morning with, and that's all I was bringing to the table. And it's just like, this is all I have to offer you guys is I could be a research consultant, 'cause I know who you're trying to reach. I want you to remember you were saved, number two. Remember you were saved, which is to say you needed saving. Remember you needed saving. And we'll walk through it. He says, remember my first kind of sub point would be remember who you were. He says verse three, foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. And so when you see someone living in sin, do you feel superior to them, or do you feel compassionate toward them, looking at them saying, hey, I remember when? I think there's people here that are, why are we always talking about sin? Because so many hundreds of you this morning are stuck in it. And if you are here, and listen, listen, if you are here and you are the, why do we talk so much about sin person? You have become the Pharisee, hard-hearted. You've grown into the older brother, and you must repent. Let the Lord soften your heart.

Grow a deep love for sinners like people who found you and sin and loved you. And say, God, would you do that to me and through me? Thank you for the way you did it to me. Now, would you do it through me? 'Cause you can just swap one sin for another. You can swap adultery for self-righteousness. Satan is totally fine, would you just swap that out? Remember who rescued you? Verse 4, "When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us." Philanthropia, philanthropia, that's where we get the word philanthropy. God is generous to us through an abundance of mercy that He has. He never runs out of mercy, love and grace. He can give to you and it costs Him nothing. Like He can give it all to you and He can give it all to them and He still has all of it to give. He has an abundance of mercy. He has an abundance of love. He's rich in it. Look at verse 3, juxtapose these. We hated each other and then verse 4, "But God showed His love toward humanity." That's love toward humanity is that word philanthropia. Love toward humanity is how you would define it. And so He shows His love toward humanity while we hate each other. It sounds like while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. You weren't saved because you were good, beautiful, fast, rich, smart, well-connected, well-resourced, you were saved because God is good. You weren't saved because you were good, you were saved because God is good. That's it. That's the only reason.

Remember He made you new 5 through 7. Remember He made you new. The washing of rebirth, the renewal of the Holy Spirit, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs. We have it in here, so it's rebirth, renewal, justified, inheritance. And look what's happening there because it's a beautiful Trinitarian verse. God the Father with God the Son in partnership by the power of the Holy Spirit is they're working together to make you something altogether new. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit working together to bring about such a change in your life that people don't just say, "He's different, she's different." They're like, "They're just new." They're like a whole different person. They're that different. Like, you were that different. I remember the first Sunday I ever taught. And so I had taught young adults, but I had never taught them a Sunday morning, the first Sunday I'd ever taught at another church. And I'm there and excited and how all the feels and have this sermon, I worked so hard on it. And I get up there and I preach my guts out, and there was a dad. There was a father that was there that day and he brought his son. He had been trying to get his son to church for months and maybe even over a year. And his son finally came with him and he got there and he sat down and he was there for worship. And then I take the stage and the son is like, "Are you kidding me? That's your pastor?" Because I've seen that guy wasted in lower greenville, on lower greenville. Like I've seen him at the bars in the clubs like that joker, that's the pastor here, and he gets up and he leaves. And then the dad writes the elders, a scathing email, just like, "Hey man, I finally got

my son to church." And then this happens and like, "Who do you guys put up there?" And like, "What are you?" And they let me respond and I just got to say, "Hey, he's right. He has. I was that man. I am no longer that man." Like God changed me. The person that your son saw. We have the same first and last name, but I am not the same person. I was. And I asked the Lord in that moment, I just said, "God, would you take that with the enemies meant for evil and would you use it for good? Would you help me leverage those things to set people free so that I could find the person who is where I was and that you would bring them out of that my repeat? Or would you use me in that way?" And that's the thing is like you. We all have different struggles and your struggle may be control. It may be like religiosity, it may be self-righteousness, fair seical ways. If that's your struggle, like the Lord can heal you so that you can say, "Go to the self-righteous person," and say, "Man, I struggled like you did." Right? I was right there with you. I looked down on people who had the real bad sins. Like I couldn't see my sin because I thought it wasn't as bad as their sin. And if you're hearing it, it was adultery or pornography or addiction or drug use or alcoholism, then God brought you out of that so that you can help bring them through it, that He would take your mess and make it your message, but you've got to understand your ministry. He has you where he has you. for good, not just kick up your feet and waste your life on the world because it's all true.

It's all true. Revelation 12 says, "We defeat Satan by the blood of the Lamb in the Word of our testimony, by the blood of the Lamb, and you sharing your story. Maybe it's something that happened to you, and people are going to come up and say this terrible thing happened to me. I can't even talk about it because nobody's going to understand. And if you just add some courage, you could say, "I understand." The same thing happened to me, and I'm ready to watch God use this terrible, tragic, awful satanic thing that happened to me for good to see somebody healed and set free through it. This is a trustworthy saying, verse 8. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone, but avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law because they're, okay, so he says something is profitable. It's profitable for everyone to do what is good. That's profitable. You should be devoted to it. That's profitable. But then he says, "There's foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law because they are unprofitable and useless," he says. Then he says this, "Worn a divisive person wants." And lean in. Worn a divisive person wants and then warn them a second time after that have nothing to do with them. So we apply that scripture today. Of course, of course it's there. It's there for a reason.

He preserved it. He kept it. You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful. They are self-condemned and then wrapping up, he says, "As soon as I send them Artemis and Tichikis or Tichikis to you, as soon as I send Artemis or Tichikis to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis because I have decided to winter there. Do everything you can to help Zenis and the lawyer and Apollo's on their way and see that they have everything they need." And then he says this. Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good in order to provide for urgent needs and not live on productive lives. If we're going to change this island, Titus, you've got to find the people and they must be devoted, is the word again, to doing what is good and be able to provide for urgent needs so that they don't waste their lives. Because if they don't waste their lives, everyone with me sends you greetings, greet those who love us in the faith, grace be with you all. He says there's things that are happening in the church. They're just distractions, you know? They're just distractions like the arguments, foolish quarrels, don't get pulled off sides on that and you focus on the mission of doing what is good in the name of Jesus Christ. So his grace may abound and the church may be strengthened and God wins on that island, Titus. You focus on the mission, number three, stay focused on the mission. Don't get distracted, but you devote yourself to doing good verse 8. Those who've trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These are excellent and profitable for everyone. Be Batman. To devote, it's not occasional, active kindness, not random acts of kindness. You wake up, ready, prepared, you've got the amazing bat tools, like you've got what you need to do what is good, the good there is to do around you.

Good works are not how you are saved, but they are the thing that pore forth from your salvation. You are not saved by the good works you do, but because you are saved, your life is marked by an abundance of radical, nearly irresponsible generosity, benevolence, philanthropy. I was at Midway's homecoming last week and shoes are kind of my thing. And I was going to escort my daughter on the field, and so I was like, "What shoes?" You know, when we go mid-way, blue and red, and she's like, "No, where's something that matches my dress?" And I'm like, "Oh, okay." What are we working with? What are we working with? Okay, so I've got a pair of shoes I never wear. They were a gift, of course, always a gift. Like somebody gave them to me. And I know if you're in that world, and so they're the off-white Jordan Fours, if you know, you know, and so I put those on. I'm pretty obnoxious, you know, and so I'm there in my suit and tie with my Jordan Fours on. And I'm walking to the concession stand and these five high school kids, I think it was like, the Lord has let me heal from some trauma, high school trauma, but these five high school kids run and like one of them just falls to my feet, hands and knees. And he's like, "Oh, you know, where'd you get these? You know, can I have them?" And I go, "Well, you're not a size 14." He goes, "But he is." He points to his older brother.

And I was like, "You're 14?" He goes, "Yeah, can I have them, you know?" And they're just, you know, I'm like, "Hey, man, thanks for the appreciation. The moment passes and he haunted me." I was like, "Why didn't I give him my shoes?" Like I should have just taken him off and said, "Here, of course you can have them. Of course." Like, "What else in the name of Jesus be blessed by them? You got a faith? Man, absolutely, I'm going to give you these shoes because I received a gift from God. Can't tell you about it. You leverage what you have." I was like, "I totally miss. I totally whiffed." All right? But this is like, when he says whoever does not lose his life or my sake will not find it, you know? Like somewhere, the mission, we've got mission drive. We lost somebody's like, "Hey, nice watch here, chill watch." Chill watch, man. All this stuff I have, these trinkets and treasures, I just have so that you would come to know, "God, you just hold your life somewhere. Can I just tell you something?" That is a fast track to a greater joy you've never known. I've sat with billionaires. The word I use starts with the be billionaires.

And I measure these words carefully. I'm not shooting from the hip right now. Billionaires, specific ones come to mind right now. Been across the table. I'm talking depressed, anti-depressants, kids out of rehab, third marriage, miserable. But, man, but billionaires, but miserable. And then I've sat with single moms, check to check, that are like, "Hey, what do y'all need?" I want to help someone this Thanksgiving. I want to help someone this Christmas with just overflowing joy and peace. And it's like, "What's the difference?" One just sees their life as a conduit, not a container. Like, live the Christian life, hold it loosely, and have a stinking blast being Batman. Don't get distracted by foolish arguments. Nine and ten avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law because these are unprofitable and useless. Good works, verse eight, profitable for everyone. Foolish arguments, verse nine, unprofitable and useless. Don't entertain division, Calvinism or many. And eschatology, thousand years, where is it? Is it here? Is it there? Is it, I don't know. Are these unimportant? No, they're important. Are they of most importance?

Nah, Jesus came, he died, he showed back up. He's coming back. Okay, like, I'm going to bet the farm on that. I'm going all in on that. Some of this other stuff, oh yeah, man, I don't know. Not, you know? I've got a thought, I've got a conviction. Happy to share with you what I believe, but I don't want to argue with you, man. I'm so glad you read that book. That sounds interesting and amazing. I'm glad it was inspiring for you. Let's go back to the gospel. Let's go back, I don't want to entertain your argument. You know, whatever it is that has you tripped up, you can win an argument and lose your witness. I mean, there are people who are really good at arguing, they'll win, and lose their witness. Meet real needs, verse 13 and 14. Are people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good in order to provide for urgent needs and not live on productive lives? Don't just be known for your beliefs. Be known for what good is poured out of your beliefs. Don't just be known by everybody, but oh, that's the, you know, that's the former Pentecostal, that's the speaking and, oh, that's that guy. No, be known for the good that flows out of your beliefs. Okay, let everyone be known by the good

that they're eager to do in summary. Be the example. Stay focused on mission. Stay focused on mission. Titus did his thing, y'all. Wrapping up, and Titus did his thing. They have excavated 18 church buildings now from just after he was there. One of those church buildings, over 37,000 square feet. We think big churches is a new thing. No, over 37,000 square feet. One of the church buildings on Crete that they found. They're known, Polybius wrote about how Titus was the leader of this Christian movement on this island and the island became known. After being known for violence and thievery and lies, it became known for Christianity. Another Roman historian wrote something similar, whose name I can't remember right now. Like today, Crete, 80 to 90% Christian. To put that in perspective, America, 62% Christian. Crete, 80 to 90%, Titus did his thing, you know? Let me just wrap up with a really practical picture of what this looks like, okay? When I was in ministry, I worked with this guy, social media guy, artist, he's the artsy type. You know the guy. Producer, always thinking through how to make something more beautiful.

And I got here and there was a real need for that role. And so I reached out to him, I was like, hey, can you come here to help me in this mission? And he said, man, I would love to. I actually just took a job with this hunting clothing company. Now you talking about out of character. Like my boy, he's never fired a gun. He's never shot an animal. I'm like, you're going to work for a hunting clothing company? He goes, yeah, I prayed about it. And I just sensed the Lord calling me there. It was this company if you've heard of them. And so he goes to work there. And it's interesting what happened. He started praying before the meetings. And they saw him praying before the meetings. Then the Lord was blessing some of the work that he was doing there as kind of the art creative guy. And they said, hey, would you start praying before our meetings? So he started praying before the meetings, like with them. And then they said, hey, so you're big on the Bible. Look, would you teach it to us? So he starts teaching the Bible. And then he takes the executives to lunch. And he asked them two questions between one and 10, to end being certain, one being not so sure. If you died today, how certain are you? You would go to heaven. And then he got to share the gospel with kind of the people who are over the company.

And then he comes back around and says, hey, listen. What if we put out a devotional? And he's like, what? As a hunting apparel company, he's like, yeah, you write a devotional for the company. Who knows what's going to happen? But I'd love to see what you come up with. So he writes a devotional for them. And then I start seeing their clothing change. And so I got this shirt. And I was like, wow, the heavens declare God's glory. Psalm 19 one, iron sharpens iron. So one man's sharp. I'm like the whole clothing company shifting on one person, faithfulness, to go there, to see something happen. Listen, listen, as you applaud for him, where is your creed? And what does God want to do through you there? Let me pray. Father, we love you. We thank you that your word does not return void. Right now. Right now. Fair circle, heart be softened. Say, God, show me the error of my ways. Let me see my sin, show it to me, God. Be merciful and show it to me. Ask him. Say, God, be merciful and show me my sin.

Ask him. If you're not talking to him, why not? You know him? If not, ask him, say, God, help me know you. Rebirth, renewal, justified inheritance. Take a minute and repent. Tell him where you missed it. Say, God, here's where I've missed it. I know, I sensed it might have been wrong. You know, I just got worked up, wrapped up. I missed it here. Talk to him. So, God, change my heart. I need a new heart. I need a new heart. He's merciful, his love and kindness. Enders You're so kind to us, God. You're so kind to us. Thank you for your kindness to us. Thank you that you found a wretch like us and you made us new. Thank you for the work that you do in our hearts and in our lives and what you multiply to hear, God. We don't need to be weak. We don't need to be passive. We can be courageous, but let all things be done and love. Let all the things God help us, let all the things that we do be done and love.

Help us to hold your word, God, in high regard you gave it to us. It's become so divisive lately. Quorals and arguments, controversies. Bring unity before us, Lord. We love you and worship you now in Jesus' name. [MUSIC PLAYING]