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Pastor Rick Warren shares the hope and encouragement you need to hear everyday. Listen in as he shares biblical truths to help you live the purpose driven life
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0:00 Hi, this is Rick Warren. Did you know that the best gift you can give anybody is to bring them into a relationship with Jesus Christ? And did you know that the best time to do that is at Christmas? Here's what I want to0:11 challenge you to do. I want you to make a Christmas list of people. Think of all the people who you know who don't know Jesus, or who might know Jesus but don't go to church anywhere, and I want you to start praying for0:22 them. And then I want you to invite those people you've prayed for to come to a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day service at your church.0:33 Hello, and welcome to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. This is the Bible teaching ministry of Rick Warren. Hey, we're so glad you've joined us. Today, we're continuing a powerful series called0:45 Radicalis, Developing Spiritual Roots. And in this series, Rick will show you how to grow deep in your faith, stay grounded in God's word, and become everything he created you to0:56 be. Now, here's part 1 of a message called radical freedom.1:02 Now, if I were to ask you, what is America's first freedom? It's commonly referred to as the first freedom. And yet many people couldn't name the first freedom of1:14 America. It is in the first amendment and it is the first mention in the first amendment. The first freedom of America is freedom to worship. Freedom1:26 to worship. All the others come second, third, fourth and fifth. It's number 1 in the constitution. In fact, in the bill of rights, the first amendment says this here on the screen.1:38 Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise1:49 thereof. Now notice, the first phrase of the first amendment has 2 things about worship. First it says, government cannot tell us how to worship. Government cannot2:01 establish a a religion and say everybody you all have to worship that way. It prevents the government from telling us how we're to worship. They may not establish an official2:12 religion and force us all to worship that way. Second it says, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. Government cannot tell us when, where, or2:24 how we are to worship. Now after that it says, yeah you can clap for that. That's a good thing. And2:35 that's what makes America unique. Now after that it gives 4 others. These are called the 5 great freedoms of America. First is freedom of worship. Then it says, or of the press or the rights of2:47 the people to peaceably assembly and to petition the government for redress of grievances. Freedom, abridging the freedom of speech or the press or these other things. In other words, there are 5 great freedoms in2:59 America. The first freedom is the freedom to worship. Any way we want to. To honor God when, how, where we wanna worship. And then come freedom of speech,3:11 freedom of the press, freedom to assemble, and freedom to petition the government if we think they're doing something wrong. Now why is the freedom of worship the first freedom of America?3:23 Because America's first immigrants came here for that reason. The pilgrims who came in 16 20, our founding fathers came in 16 20,3:35 were evangelicals. They're they're what you and I believe about Jesus and about the Bible. They were evangelical pilgrims. And they left England because of religious persecution, Because England had an3:47 official religion, a state church. It had a church of England. And they said we want to have the right to worship any way we want to worship. And so the first people who immigrated to America came here not for political3:58 freedom, Not for any other. They came here for 1 and 1 purpose only. Freedom to worship God. And so our founding fathers came here to set that up4:10 and as a result, when the constitution was written, the very first freedom guaranteed is the freedom to worship. Now, this weekend, I wanna look at something far far4:21 deeper than political freedom or even the freedom to worship. I want us to look at what it means to be spiritually free. Because most people aren't spiritually free.4:33 They're all bound up inside. They've got stress, they've got worry, they've got fatigue, boredom, bitterness, guilt, resentment, regrets, fears,4:46 anxieties, all these kind of things that bind us up. They're not living lives of freedom. They're in a free country, but they're not personally free. So I want us to look at spiritual4:58 freedom this weekend. Jesus said it like this in John chapter 8. He said, if the son sets you free, you will be free5:10 indeed. That's what Jesus said. If the son who's the son? Jesus Christ. He's talking about himself. He says, if I set you free, you're gonna be free indeed. What does free indeed5:21 mean? It means really, really, really, really, really free. And yet most people I know, even Christian believers who follow Christ, aren't really free. So what I5:33 want us to do this weekend is 2 things. What does it mean to be set free by Jesus? What is radical freedom? Where you live a free open life. Jesus Christ5:45 did not come to make you religious. He came to make you free. What does that mean? And then we're gonna look at how do I get it? Now,5:57 what is radical freedom? If you'll take out your message notes, Jesus said in John 8, if the son sets you free, you will be free indeed. You're gonna be really, really free.6:09 Today, I don't wanna talk about the 5 freedoms of the first amendment. I wanna talk about the 5 freedoms that Jesus gives you because he is your savior. What really happens to you when you come to6:21 know him and what is available to you because many of you, you've put your faith in Christ but you don't realize what he's given you and you haven't claimed that free gift. What is radical freedom? 56:33 things. Number 1, it is a clear conscience. That's the first freedom of the Christian life. A clear conscience. It means all my guilt is wiped out. All my sins6:44 are forgiven. All the things I've ever done wrong are not only forgiven, they are forgotten. The bible says God puts them in the deepest part of the sea and then puts up a no fishing sign. They're not just out of sight,6:56 they're out of mind. God wipes the slate clean. It's like an etch a sketch. You mess it all up and you shake it upside down and you can't see anything anymore. God takes a giant eraser and wipes out everything you've7:07 ever done wrong or ever will do wrong. Now that's good news. Why is that freedom? Because doctors tell us that guilt and resentment. In other words, guilt because of the7:19 things I've done to you and resentment over the things you've done to me are the 2 most destructive emotions in your life and they burden you down. You cannot be guilty and happy at the same7:31 time. It is impossible. Friends, even if there were no such thing as heaven, and of course there is, but even if there weren't, it would be a good thing to give your7:43 life to Christ and trust him for forgiveness just to get a clear conscience. To be able to wake up and go, man I don't have to worry about that anymore. It's all over. It's done. It's paid for. It doesn't mean I'm7:55 perfect. You're not and I'm not. It means I'm forgiven and I have a clear conscience. I saw a sign on a on a gas station 1 time and it said a clean engine gives more power.8:06 That's true with a conscience too. The reason so many people are tired and fatigued all the time is because they're carrying a garbage bag of guilt over their shoulder through life. And God said a8:18 long time ago, let it go. This is the first freedom. The bible says in Colossians 1 14, God has purchased our freedom8:30 with his blood and has forgiven most of our sins. It doesn't say that does it? It says all. Circle all. He's8:42 forgiven all our sins. Now I looked up this word in the Greek lexicon and the Greek word for all means all. What is not8:53 included in that? Nothing. It's all included. Everything you've ever done wrong or ever will do wrong is forgiven. That's freedom. That's9:05 radical freedom. Radical freedom means a clear conscience. Now it says God has purchased our freedom. You know, we know this, but so often we don't act like it. We take it for granted.9:17 How did Jesus purchase our freedom? Well, he paid for it with our with his life. Let me show you some verses. Look up here on the screen. The bible says in Ephesians 1, by the death of9:29 Christ we are set free. There's that phrase again. Jesus came not to make you religious but to set you free. We are set free that is, in other words, our sins are9:40 forgiven. Jesus paid for all your sins so you don't have to pay for them. He was hung up for your hang ups. Look at this verse. The bible says in Psalm 34, the Lord redeems his servants,9:53 no 1 will be condemned who takes refuge in him. It says, the Lord redeems. You know what the word redeem means? It means to pay for10:05 somebody's freedom. And that's what Jesus Christ did for you. He paid for your freedom from guilt. He paid for your freedom from regret. He paid for your freedom from shame so you10:17 can stop beating yourself up again over and over. Let me show you another verse. The bible says in first Corinthians 1 8, God will keep you free, there's that word, keep you free, not just10:29 make you free, but keep you free from all blame on that great day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. Now let me tell you something. A lot of you have a10:40 picture in your mind and it's an erroneous picture that when you get to heaven, there's gonna be this IMAX theater that shows your life to everybody and is gonna10:52 reveal every secret evil, wicked mean, bad, nasty thing you've ever done. The stuff we don't know about yet. And you're gonna be incredibly embarrassed And you're gonna be see all feel all the blame11:04 for all the things you've done wrong, thought wrong, said wrong. But the bible says there, he will keep you from that blame. That ain't gonna happen if you put your trust in Christ. He11:16 will keep you from all blame on that day. It's a what sin? It's it was wiped out a long time ago. Jesus Christ paid for it on the cross. Now here's the question. Why do you11:28 keep blaming yourself for stuff God's already forgiven? Tell me the logic of that 1. Why do you keep beating yourself up over and over for11:40 stuff that God has already forgiven? Do you realize what that is? When you hold on to your guilt, that is an insult to Jesus Christ. You are insulting Jesus. You're saying Jesus, what you did on11:52 the cross, and we looked at that for 7 weeks last spring. When you died on the cross for my sins, it wasn't enough. I need to punish myself too. You were12:04 insulting Jesus by holding on to guilt. Should a believer in Christ ever feel guilty? Yeah, for about a nanosecond. In other words, I say something evil or12:16 wrong to Kay and the moment God's spirit says that was dumb, I need to confess it. And then not feel guilty about it. God is will for your life is not that you12:28 carry a load of guilt, he wants you to be free. Radical freedom is a clear conscience. Is that good news? Yes. Oh yeah, that's good news. Doesn't mean you're perfect, It12:40 does mean you're forgiven. Number 2, radical freedom means personal access to God. Now this is a big 1. Personal access to God.12:52 It's the second of the 5 great freedoms God gives us when Jesus says, I'll set you free if you'll trust me. I get personal access to God. You know,13:04 some of you know that sometimes it's kinda hard to get to me because a lot of people wanna meet with me or call me. But my secretary knows that if my kids call, they have13:16 direct access. My kids don't have to call up, or grandkids for that matter, don't have to call up and say, I'd like an appointment with pastor Rick. I'd like to have a13:28 phone appointment with with my dad. They don't have to do that. They know that anytime, any place, I'm happy to see them. They can walk into any meeting because they are my kids13:40 and I love them. And so they have direct access. That's the kind of access you get when you get into the family of God. A few times in life I've had the fun13:51 experience of going to like a major rock concert and they'll give me a badge that says all access. Those things are worth a lot of money.14:04 I could sell an all access badge to a rock concert for thousands of dollars. When you get an all access badge to a concert or something like that, it means you can walk around anywhere, nobody's gonna stop you.14:16 You can hobnob with the hoi hoi polloi and you know, and and you you know, just hang out wherever you wanna do it. When you become a believer, you put your faith in Jesus Christ,14:28 God gives you an all access pass to him. You don't have to get an invitation. You don't have to get an introduction. You don't have to14:40 have a big idea on your mind. You've got all access to God 24 hours a day anytime you got an all access badge because now you're a child of God. Now, let's say you had14:52 access to the President of the United States or the Pope or some famous person and you knew that at any time of the day, you could walk into the15:03 Oval Office and talk to the President or you could talk to somebody about whatever's on your mind, that'd be a big deal. But this is an even bigger deal. When you15:15 accept Christ into your life, God gives you all access to heaven. You get direct personal access to the creator of the universe.15:26 Nothing's bigger than that. And as I said, you don't need an introduction. You don't have to pray through Mary. You don't have to pray through saints. You don't need a priest or15:38 pastor to kinda give you an introduction. Sometimes people will say, Rick pray for me like my prayers are better than yours. They're not. They're not. You have the same direct15:50 access that I do because you're a child of God. You don't need an introduction. You don't need an invitation. You can talk to him anytime, and you can talk to him for any reason.16:03 Look at these verses. The bible says, in Christ and through faith in him, we may approach God with freedom, there's the second freedom,16:14 with freedom and confidence. Now circle through faith in him. Because what I'm telling you right now is this. All access to God, God just doesn't give that to anybody.16:27 The whole world doesn't have direct access to God. That's a myth. They don't. God gives direct access, personal access to himself through his son, Jesus Christ. Only16:39 those who put their faith in his son, who've trusted in him have that direct access. God just doesn't give out all direct access passes to everybody. Now the bible says this, look here on the screen,16:51 Hebrews 4 16. Let us then feel free. That's the second freedom. Let us feel free to come before God's throne. And how do you do that? How do you come17:02 before God's throne? You pray. You don't have to say any these and thous. You don't have to have any fancy words. You don't have to have any certain ritual. You just come to God as as a father. Our father17:14 who art in heaven. Daddy, Abba. You just come as a child. Our father. Let us feel free to come before God's throne. Here there is grace and we can receive17:26 mercy and grace to help us when we need it. Is that good news? Oh yeah, that's good news. So why am I17:38 free? Because first everything I've done wrong in the past is forgiven and forgotten. And second, no matter what I face today, I can talk to God about it instantly. Lord, I'm going into Costco right now and17:49 I need some help. I'm tempted to buy everything. You know, you can talk to God anytime, anywhere. You can talk to him at a stoplight. You don't have18:01 to close your eyes. You have personal access to God. Now here's my question about this 1. Why don't you take advantage of this more often?18:13 If you could talk to anybody in the world any time of the day. Let's say, you know, you needed help on something. And God says, I'm here anytime. Why don't you take advantage of that more often? Why don't18:25 you talk to him more often? Jesus said you have not because you ask not. Every prayer doesn't have to end in Jesus name. Amen. You can keep a running prayer going18:37 throughout the day. You just keep keep talking to God all the time. And you know, you know sometimes you're talking with a friend and then you you don't see him for a day. And when you pick up the conversation, just pick18:47 up where you left off. You can do that with God all the time. Clear conscience, personal access to God. Number 3, radical freedom. What Jesus18:58 wants you to be free from is the power to do what's right. Radical freedom is the power to do what's right. Now I19:10 need to explain this because most people have a limited, actually a quite immature view or definition of freedom. Most people think freedom means no rules.19:22 That's freedom. You know? It it it's I I've always laughed at kids who who said, you know, I can't wait till I graduate because then I'm gonna be free from my parents and all19:34 their authority. And well, that's just fantastic. Okay. Now, what are you gonna do after you graduate? Oh, I'm joining the army.19:46 Hello? Little hammer, big hammer. Okay. Okay. You will always have authority over you in your life. Get used to it.19:58 It may be a boss, it may be the government, it may be some, but you're gonna have to serve somebody. At some point you nobody has unlimited life. There are limitations20:10 in every area of life. But a lot of people think freedom means no borders, no boundaries, no rules, no regulations, no restrictions, no limits. Now let me explain20:22 this to you very clearly. Freedom is not the absence of limits. Freedom is the power God graciously gives you to say20:34 yes and no. To say yes to the right things and to say no to the things that mess up your life. Freedom is more than the restriction limitations taken off. Freedom is the20:45 power to do the right thing. The power to do what's good. The power to stop doing self destructive things that you'd like to stop but you can't.20:57 See, freedom is far more positive and far more powerful than simply no limits, no rules, no regulations. I want you to write this down in your outline. Freedom is the power to21:09 say both yes and no.21:18 Wow. Thank you, Rick, for that amazing message. And you know, people are being transformed by these messages every day, but that's only because of your partnership with us. In fact, here's Rick to21:30 share some important news with you.21:32 Let's be honest about this time of year. At the end of every year, there are so many ministries that ask for you to support them in the end of year giving. And you know what? We believe in every21:44 ministry that proclaims the name of Jesus and we thank God for them. And I know it can be difficult to decide who to give to. So let me just give you some biblical foundations for21:56 giving, some simple guidelines for end of year giving. You might think of these 3 or 4 things. Number 1, give to the ministry that God tells you to support. Go to God, pray to22:07 him, ask him, say, God, who do you want me to support? And you know what? I support you giving to whoever God tells you to give to. And if it's not daily hope, I still support you to give to who God tells you to give22:19 to. So pray and ask God. Second, never give when you feel pressured. The Bible says in Corinthians that we are to never give under pressure or compulsion or under guilt. So if22:31 you ever feel guilty about giving, don't give because God tells you in the word not to give at that time. Give because you want to give, not out of guilt or pressure. Number 3, give to where22:43 you support and believe in the goals of that particular ministry. Now every ministry has different goals, but if you believe in and have a heart for going to the22:55 last, the least, and the lost, this would be a ministry you should consider supporting. And then finally, give where your gift will be multiplied. For instance, the end of every23:07 year, there is a donor to Daily Hope who offers to give a matching grant to apply to any donation that we receive before the end of the year. Now what this means is that for every dollar you're able to23:19 give this month to Daily Hope, it's gonna be doubled. That donor will match it. That multiplies your gift. Like the little boy who brought his loaves and fishes to Jesus and Jesus fed the 5000,23:31 if you give 25 dollars to Daily Hope this month, the matching grant will match it at 25 dollars If you're able to give 100 dollars the matching grant will add another 100 dollars23:43 That multiplies your gift. I would consider that as a factor in where to give during this month. Now let me just say this, if you can't help us23:54 financially, that's okay, I understand, but I would ask that you pray for us. I'm so grateful for those of you who are a financial supporter of this ministry, that monthly giving month after month, it24:06 means so much to me. It means much to God, but it means so much for eternity to those who are hearing the good news for the very first time. And so you and I are partners24:17 together in reaching people for Christ all around the world. In closing, let me just ask you to continue to pray. Pray for me as I pray for you. And pray that God's word24:29 will be taught clearly with compassion, with clarity, with simplicity in this new year. And that it will not only help you as you listen to these broadcasts, but it will help us reach people for24:41 Christ and disciple believers and build churches all around the world, especially in the tribes that have never heard the name of Christ. Thanks for your generosity. Thanks for your prayers, and God bless you.24:53 All this month, every dollar you give to help Daily Hope share the transforming love of Jesus with people around the world will be matched up to 100000 dollars You can25:05 give right now by going to PastorRick dot com or you can just text the word hope to 70309. Again, that's PastorRick dot com or just text the word25:17 hope to 70309. And thank you so much for your support. Be sure to join us next time as we look into God's word for our daily hope. This program is25:28 sponsored by Pastor Rick's Daily Hope and your generous financial support.
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