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The Rhythm of Yes and No 0:02 Hey everybody. Welcome to the men's global live stream. I'm Dusty Davis, and I'm so excited to invite you into week 4 of our series Push and Pull, where we've been looking at and unpacking0:14 the tensions that we experience in our Christian faith. When we find 2 callings, in scripture, 2 desires in our heart that seem to be at odds with 1 another. Now not necessarily between0:25 right and wrong, but that push and that pull. Week 1, we talked about being and doing. How God's man is not just called to a life of being and intake and0:37 putting good things in. He's expected to move out. He's expected to express those things that God's done in his life. And so we live in that tension of being and doing. In week 2, we looked at the0:49 rhythms of following and leading. Of being men who are humble enough to be led by Jesus and by the mentors that God's placed in our life. And then men that are courageous1:01 enough to step up and lead those behind us. Knowing that 1 of our greatest jobs is equipping the next generation with godly leaders. Last week, in session 3, we talked about the rhythm of1:13 staying and going. When is God's man called to stay in obedience, and when is he staying in fear and apathy? When is God's man called to go out in faith, and when is he1:24 running out ahead of God's plan rashly? We kinda talked about wrestling in that. When are we called to stay, and when are we kinda called to go? But today, we're going to look at a very all encompassing rhythm, that1:36 works itself out in some specific ways. But we're going to look about when does God's man say yes, and when does God's man say no. The rhythm of yes and no. Now, this dynamic exists1:48 in all of our lives, and you've probably heard some version of the reality that every yes is actually also a no. Because to say yes to something, I have to say no2:00 to other things in the most basic when I'm talking about, resources that diminish my time. Saying yes to this means I can't physically say yes to this thing. So our yeses2:12 are actually noes. And I think sometimes a little bit too often in our faith, we focus only on the simple versions of this rhythm. Right? God's man says yes to godly things, and2:24 no to sinful things. That is true. But there are deeper things. There are deeper things that you and I are called to that aren't as clear. And God's man needs to know when to say yes. To know the things he says yes to,2:35 and to know what things he has to say no to, in order to say yes. When you and I are looking at 2 things that could potentially be God honoring, when does God's man say2:47 yes? And when does God's man say no? As you and I seek to follow after Jesus, we need to know specifically what he's calling us into. And right as we jump2:59 into this topic, right, we're going to jump into the scripture and we're going to see 1 of the most all encompassing and most challenging things that God's man is called to say yes and no to. This is something that3:11 Jesus spoke about often, and modeled all the time. But it's still something that we wrestle with, it's something that's almost absent as we look out into culture today.3:23 This truth guys, God's man is called to say no to self, in order to say yes to serve. God's man says no to himself that he might say yes3:35 to serving. Matthew chapter 20 verse 28. Just as the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give3:47 his life as a ransom for many. God's man does not seek to be served like his king. He seeks to serve. Because that's the heart of our father in heaven.3:59 And just like I love to see the things that I care about modeled in my children, our heavenly father looks down with such pleasure when he sees his heart replicated in his men.4:12 Guys, he delights to see us transforming into the likeness of his son, Jesus. Jesus revealed that serving others was the very purpose for which he was here. Now how4:24 counter cultural is that? He existed to serve. Now that's upside down kingdom thinking, and we're going to talk a lot about that in this session. But how rare and beautiful is that?4:36 Because our world seeks the exact opposite, doesn't it? We seek to be served as often as possible. Heck, in our culture today, you4:47 can value, you can measure your value rather, by how much other people do for you. Right? We look at your job. How important are you? How many people report5:00 to you? What do all of those people do for you? We measure success wrongly by what it is that we receive from the hands of others.5:12 Yet our God, in his infinite wisdom, is showing us the upside down kingdom that he came to build. Guys, and so often the truths that we5:23 read in scripture are challenging because they run counter to our flesh. Because most often what the heart naturally desires is not the things of God, but as the man of God we live according to his5:35 spirit. The wisdom of heaven is beyond us. We submit to it, and this is 1 of those places that we exist to serve other people. Guys, we see the5:47 almighty God of the universe saying that the son of man, Jesus Christ, had 1 purpose. That he came to serve others. To give himself away that others would benefit. Guys,5:59 that's the true nature of serving. We lose, that another might win. Jesus Christ descended so that you and I would be lifted up.6:11 Jesus Christ became sin so that you and I could be freed and washed of it. Jesus gave himself away so that we could receive eternal life, reconciliation,6:24 restoration. Jesus lost that we might win. And in doing so, he showed us something miraculous. In losing, he, he won.6:37 The upside down kingdom is beautiful. He literally died in order to bring life. The resurrection itself is such a perfect picture for what we're talking about this morning.6:50 But Jesus modeled this way before he chose the cross. Many many times, we're gonna look at a few of those today, but the first we're gonna look at is, in John, chapter 13. Grab7:02 a bible, head over to John, chapter 13. Now, we see Jesus, nearing the end of his life here. When, while you're turning there, I'll set the stage. So he and his boys have just celebrated the Passover,7:14 and Jesus knew that the hour of his death was, was approaching. And so as the disciples sat down to share a meal together, Jesus arises, but for a very different purpose than the disciples7:26 might have expected. We're gonna pick it up in John chapter 13 and verse 4. So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and7:38 poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that he had around him. All of the disciples are sitting around a a7:50 table, relaxing, enjoying each other's company and some good food. And in the middle of this, Jesus stands up, and then he gets low. The creator God8:02 in human flesh on bended knee, washing feet. Guys, can you just imagine what was going on in this room? The hands that literally hung the stars in place,8:13 the mind that contained all wisdom, all knowledge, all truth, the breath that literally had spoken life into existence. All of those things were now bent on 18:25 thing. Washing filth from the feet of the disciples. And to get the context guys is so important because this job wasn't just gross, it was8:37 shameful. Nowadays, we don't wash each other's feet. Heck, nowadays, we don't even shake each other's hand. We do the awkward fist bump, or the super awkward elbow bump, just to convey8:49 just how dirty I think you are. But this job, at this time, washing feet, it wasn't just undesirable, it was something you saved for the lowest servant. The9:00 lowest of the low was given the foot washing jump. And yet, this is the type of work that Jesus willingly entered into. Why would he do this? Wasn't he afraid that this9:12 was gonna somehow lower himself in the disciples' view, that they wouldn't take him seriously as leader and master if he chose this this lowly thing? Wouldn't this erode credibility?9:24 Wasn't he afraid of of what they would think? But guys, we see the motivation for our king in the beginning of this passage. Now we picked it up in verse 4, but9:36 let's rewind to verse 3. Why did Jesus do this? Why was he able to? Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything. That he had9:48 come from God, and that he was going back to God. So, he got up from the table, took off his robe, etcetera,10:00 etcetera. Because Jesus knew who he was, he was free to serve. Identity drives action. Period.10:13 Because he was secure in the authority and the power that had been given to him, he was able to care for others without fear for establishing a presence of power. Because he had10:25 the proper perspective, An eternal perspective, knowing that he came from God the Father. He's going back to him someday. He was able to organize his life and his efforts properly, eternally,10:38 into pouring into the lives of others. Guys, only in this mindset can you and I move out and serve in the same way. Only then will we desire the the greatest things that this10:50 life has to offer against our flesh, against our culture, getting low, and serving others, giving ourselves away for another. Guys, just like we saw in the passage, we read earlier from11:02 Matthew, the son of man didn't come to be served, but to serve. And God's man will desire those things as he follows after Jesus. It's11:13 going to be the natural response of our heart. That God's man will say no to himself. So that he can say yes to serve. But guys, only when you and I have11:25 the same thinking that we see from Jesus in this passage in verse 3, only when we know that we are God's children, and that 1 day we're going back to be with him, Will we rightly11:37 prioritize our lives? Only when we've answered the the power and authority problem that every man faces, submitting to God's ultimate power and authority, knowing that11:49 in humility we find true power. In the restraint in the 1 who doesn't seek to inflict his will, that just shows that we understand where true power12:01 comes from. And then God can unleash that power and do dangerous and good things through us. Only when we know guys that we're going back to God, that this camping trip life will be over soon,12:13 will we place our efforts for that interaction. When we stand before the father face to face. Because only then will we seek to live for heavenly12:25 treasure. Right? When we have that mindset, the kind that's found in serving other people. Guys, we've read this next scripture a million times, no doubt. But it begs repeating. Matthew chapter 6, verse 1912:36 through 21. Don't store up for yourself treasures here on earth. Don't see power and authority here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures12:48 in heaven. Where moths and rust can't destroy. Thieves don't break in and steal. Because wherever your treasure is, mindset, they're the desires of your heart will13:00 be also. Attitudes and actions. See, not only has God's man decided, that only eternal rewards matter, God's man has decided that13:12 only God's opinion matters. That the only true joy in this life is found in serving the king. And oftentimes, our greatest opportunity to serve13:24 God is to serve others. Right? Jesus laid this out for us. What am I looking for you from you guys? Love God. Love others. And often we find that I love13:35 others by loving God. I serve God by serving others. Look at verse 21, guys, we just read. It says, where our treasure is, there our hearts will be also.13:49 Brothers, when we start to pour ourselves out in service, right, when we start to place the treasure of our time and efforts into another, something happens to our heart.14:01 Our heart starts to move out in new ways. That as we serve people, as we lead with the action of serving, our heart comes along afterwards and we start to value so much more the people that we're14:13 serving. Now oftentimes, our love moves us to action. But sometimes guys, it's obedience that moves us to action, and then the heart comes after. The act of serving14:26 gives us a servant's heart. So the encouragement there guys is, don't always wait for the feeling. Act your way into it in obedience to our great14:37 king. Actions leading to desires. Again, upside down kingdom, boys. This is the God that we serve. So God's man will seek to serve others by saying no to himself. But remember,14:49 your flesh and my flesh will always try to be served. It will always try to assert its authority. It does not want to serve. It wants to be served. It wants power, prestige,15:02 position. That's that's the carnal man inside each of us. It was this way for Jesus' closest followers. Turn with me to Matthew chapter 20.15:14 So, in this passage, James and John's mom comes up to Jesus to make a request on behalf of her grown boys. Now guys, this is already embarrassing.15:26 Okay. 2 grown men, but mommy rolls up to Jesus and says, can you please save a spot for my boys in heaven? And can you seat them in places of honor right15:38 next to yourself, Jesus? Now, if you've ever thought you had an embarrassing moment with your mom, this probably puts it to shame. But15:50 Jesus responds, as he always does, lovingly telling her, You don't really know what you're asking me for. And it starts a good conversation. Well actually,16:01 the disciples get kind of pissed, right? They start bickering amongst each other. But then this good conversation comes out because Jesus steps in. And inserts in Matthew chapter 20, verses 25.16:15 You know that the rulers of this world lord it over their people. And officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you, it will be different. Whoever wants16:26 to be a leader amongst you must be your servant. Whoever wants to be great, must become your slave. For even the son of man came not to be16:38 served, full circle back to where we started, but to serve, and give his life as a ransom for many. Jesus starts off by talking about what his boys can expect to see out there in the world, and what they can16:50 expect to see if they look honestly into their own hearts. Because he's just had this request from those on the inner circle. He's saying that you're going to naturally want to elevate yourself.17:02 That the rulers in this world, when you look outside, what you can expect is that they're lording their power. It even says flaunting their authority over those underneath them. That they're gonna seek power. They're17:14 gonna seek position. They're gonna want to be served. And then he says something so incredibly powerful. Guys, I can just picture Jesus lovingly pulling the boys in when he says his part and saying, but among17:26 you, it will be different. Some translations say, but not so among you. He doesn't say it should be. It's my hope. I'd really like17:38 it if he makes a statement of fact, amongst my men, life and leadership look different. They just look different. Guys, the Christian faith has had people scratching17:49 their heads since the very beginning. Because to our human flesh and our human wisdom, it just doesn't make sense. But like we said, we live according to the spirit, and not the18:01 flesh. And I think this passage opens up a conversation around an area that's commonly misunderstood by those outside the faith, and even those inside the faith.18:13 It's it's the statement that Jesus makes about greatness. Just like Jesus's mercy is is often misinterpreted as weakness, we often18:25 misunderstand the pursuit of of Jesus, the pursuit, of of humility, of meekness, to be that that somehow this faith is against greatness.18:36 That to be a Christian is is to accept a losing position and just try to blend in and make waves. You might have seen this or you might have experienced this in your life. That God's18:48 man is really just called to try to blend, blend in, not disrupt anything, to settle for a quiet, life of mediocrity. That that's, that that's following Jesus, because greatness is obviously a19:00 sinful desire of our flesh. Don't make waves, because greatness is always ego driven. Not true. Not true according to King Jesus.19:12 Jesus speaks specifically to his boys in this passage about desiring greatness. Now does that surprise you? Because he starts off in verse 25 by saying that the rulers in this19:24 world are gonna do it 1 way, you guys are gonna do it a different way, but look at verse 26. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you. He does not19:35 say don't try to be great. Jesus doesn't deny greatness. He redefines it. He doesn't deny it, he redefines it. He doesn't deny or shame the19:47 desire for greatness, he just redefines what the term greatness means and how we're supposed to achieve it. He gives his boys a new target and says,19:59 greatness looks like service. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant. God's man says no to himself20:11 in order to say yes to serving other people. God's man puts aside trying to get his own needs met, and seeks intentionally to meet the needs of others. Guys,20:22 even though we know, that there is great joy in serving, right? We've experienced that. We've felt God's pleasure. We've felt that greater to give than to receive.20:34 We've experienced that. But God's man has to realize that it might not always feel like that. And serving will always have a cost associated with it. There are things that we're gonna have to forego. Like we20:46 said, every yes is also a no. Serving others means that we're gonna have to lay things aside. Things to say yes to and things to say no to.20:59 God's man says no to his own pride and position in order to say yes to God's plans and people. No to my pride,21:11 no to the positions that I'm seeking, so that I may be able to say yes to the plans that God has, and to the people that God wants me to reach. God man turns down positions of power and prestige.21:24 Well, according to how this world views power and prestige. He says no to his own pride, so that he can step towards God's purposes and God's people. And guys, Jesus21:35 again, was the perfect model for us. Jesus sat in the position of ultimate authority. Ultimate authority. He sat in the very presence of God21:47 Almighty. He was there from the beginning. He is 1 with God. Right? This is Jesus, the victorious 1. Yet in Philippians chapter 2,21:59 reading in verse 5, I'm told that I must, you must have the same attitude that Christ had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with22:11 God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges, and he took the humble position of a slave. You must have the same attitude that22:23 Jesus Christ had. This was not open to negotiation. When it comes to our attitudes, it has to reflect the attitude of our leader. The heart of the22:34 follower always reflects the heart of the leader. Jesus was humble. Jesus chose humility. Now our flesh wants nothing to22:46 do with humility, and so the descent into service is always working against our natural flesh. But guys, this is what the world needs right now, more than ever.22:59 This world needs We don't need more people willing to step up into positions of influence. We need people willing to step down into service.23:11 We don't need more social media influencers. We need people who want to be servants. Less selfies. More service. We don't need someone else to be seeking fame23:23 and fortune on YouTube. We need people who are willing to get low, to be invisible, and lift other people up. We need to start a full on race to the bottom, Where God's men are23:35 finding ways to get low, to get underneath. I can only lift someone up as I get beneath them. We must have the same attitude, it says, as Jesus Christ. Look at23:47 the rest of the passage. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up. Gave up voluntarily his divine23:59 privileges and then he took up the humble position of a slave. All of this was done voluntarily. Just as no 1 took Jesus's life, the scripture24:11 said, he laid it down willingly. Jesus was not relegated to service, or sent there because he couldn't handle leadership. He chose to24:23 become a slave. In the Christian life, the way up is always down. But guys, pride lurks at the door of our heart and is24:35 trying to bust its way in. It wants to take over. I can't tell you how sad it is for me when I see the countless posts, the the egregious24:46 lengths that our culture is going to right now, not only to to justify, but to try to celebrate our own pride. The social media posts, the rants, the24:58 rays, where men are referring to the kingdoms that they're creating, the futures that they're manifesting, the best versions of themselves that they're becoming, and celebrating their own accomplishments. All of the25:09 things that they're going to do or currently are doing. The human heart wants to puff itself up in pride. We long to worship ourselves and so we head to the altar of pride to25:21 offer sacrifices of praise to ourselves and our own accomplishments, and we don't even realize who we sound like. We sound exactly like our enemy. Guys, in25:33 Isaiah chapter 14, we read about the fall of Satan. And just listen to how frighteningly familiar this sounds when you turn on your television or scroll through your social media feed.25:45 I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God's stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. That should creep you out. This is our enemy and25:57 all he says is, I will, I will, I will, me, my. I'm going to make it happen. Stand back world. I'm coming. God's man must strap up26:09 daily and fight the internal battle against pride. Every day, recognize, because culture is not going to help. Culture is actually gonna stand back and dump gasoline on the fire26:21 of your pride. Try to fan it into flames and then cheer you on to destruction. It's important for us to remember as God's men, in order to say no to pride, I have to say yes26:33 to humility. God's men has to choose humility. This is an active and ongoing decision because this is a common misconception. Humility is not the absence26:45 of pride. It's the presence, the intentional presence of a heart attitude that rightly recognizes who God Almighty is, and who we are. Humility is26:57 not just the yin yang to pride. Humility is a completely different decision altogether, and it's a decision. A willful, conscious, constant decision to choose,27:09 not to think less of ourselves, just to think about ourselves less often. It's not about, thinking that we are not worthy. God's word says contrary, thanks to you and I, as God's son, fully27:21 loved. Right? It's not about, thinking negatively about ourselves. It's about choosing to order our lives properly. And as God's men, you have 2 choices.27:33 You can be humble or humbled. But the reality is coming. We have to choose it. We have to choose humility. Look at first Peter 5 6, so humble yourselves27:45 under the mighty power of God, and at the right time, he will lift you up in honor. Look at the activity in this verse. Who does the humbling? Humble yourselves. Choose humility.27:58 God's man chooses to get low in humility and then experiences the promise of that verse. He will lift you up. We trust the timing and the manner in which God wants to lift us up in his timing. Because guys, when28:10 we seek to elevate ourselves, we gain nothing. The man who chooses the humble position will be lifted up because God is for the humble. Scripture says it all over the place. Look at28:22 James 4 6, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Now, I don't know about you. I do not wanna be opposed by the almighty28:33 creator, God. I wanna be on his side every single time. So I choose humility. But another important and somewhat misunderstood rhythm in28:45 this yes and no dance is this. God's man says no to culture so he can say yes to Christ. Now, I wanna pause here because something is happening in28:57 our Christian culture, that we cannot tolerate as God's men. God's man loves people. Reflecting the father's29:09 heart because for God so loved the world. Right? It was out of love for his children that God offered himself as a sacrifice. But God's man loves people29:21 and recognizes that his battle is with Satan alone. We battle against evil, not against people. Actually, we move out into culture29:34 in order to see this society redeemed, in order to win the people. We don't sit back on the sidelines and choose to watch the world burn. Guys, I've heard too many Christians lately casually making comments29:46 about the descent of our society, almost as if the world is getting what it deserves and as if the Christian guy giving me this narrative is happy to see that it's happening. Guys saying no to culture29:59 comes out of a deep desire to see every heart restored to Jesus Christ. This has always been the desire of Jesus' followers. This is why they went out, as we talked about last week. This is why they30:11 took the gospel around the planet, so that everyone might know, that everyone might repent and return to their father in heaven. Guys, it's because we love and value people that30:23 we reject the culture's values. We're not rejecting the people. We're moving out in love towards the people. Guys, since the very beginning,30:35 the followers of Jesus have said no to culture in some pretty radical ways. In ancient Roman culture, it was a common practice to abandon unwanted children and just leave30:47 them in a forest and leave them to the elements. Killing children was even legal. Sound familiar? Children were left to die of exposure.30:59 Because it was believed that the parents weren't killing them, they were leaving the child to the fates. And so the fates could decide, but the Christians said no to the culture, and yes to Jesus. Not31:11 by picketing, not by demonizing those who left their children, or ranting and raving on social media. They said no to the culture by going out into the forest. By bringing these children into31:23 their own homes, and raising them as their own children. That's no to culture, and yes to Jesus. During the time that Jesus walked the31:35 Earth, children were thought of as possessions, as a nuisance. Women were seen as second class citizens. Their their their testimony didn't even hold up in court. Slaves had no31:46 rights. Yet under the radical and counter cultural teaching of Jesus Christ, the Christians moved out towards children and spoke of their value. Matthew31:58 chapter 19 verse 14, Jesus rebukes Peter for trying to keep kids from him. He says, let the children come to me. No to this culture. Yes to Jesus and32:10 the people he loves. Don't hinder them. The kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. Jesus valued women so highly that he took heat for it. Yes to32:22 Jesus, no to culture. Jesus made women the heroes of the stories and parables that he taught. He engaged with them in public so often it made others critical of Jesus. He moved towards32:33 them to display his love. He included them in in in his group of people that were moving and changing the world. He entrusted them with incredible kingdom work in the face of a society that did32:45 not value them. That's yes to Jesus and no to culture. Jesus spoke often about caring for the poor, caring for the marginalized, seeing those32:57 that society over steps. And his message was incredibly misunderstood and even offensive because poverty was seen as a punishment.33:10 Jesus said no to the culture he was in. But guys, the lesson remains for you and I. Jesus and his followers said no to the culture and then moved out towards the people caught up in the33:21 lies of that culture. And too often a day, God's men are hunkered down in spiritual bomb shelters, wrongly believing that saying no to culture means avoiding anything and33:33 everyone who doesn't think like us, moving to some remote location to homeschool our children and build walls around ourselves. I don't think that's what Jesus was calling us to when he said that we were to be in the33:45 world but not of it. Saying no to culture always means saying yes to people. And saying no to culture always has a cost33:57 associated with it. Jesus modeled that for us so beautifully. What did saying no to himself, to the established order, what did it cost Jesus?34:09 Everything. And as Jesus was accepting and submitting to the Father's will, we see another great truth for us as God's men, as we seek to live this out, as we seek to discern34:21 the rhythms of yes and no. God's man, like Jesus, says no to his own plan in order to submit to Christ. We see Jesus agonizing in the garden.34:34 Honestly pouring his heart out to the father, laying out his plan, right? If there's another way, yet not my will. Your will be done. And following that example, God's man34:45 lays down his plans, his desires, his hopes for the future that he might pick up God's plans. I love this verse. Psalm 37 4 says, Delight yourself in the Lord, and34:57 he'll give you the desires of your heart. I think sometimes we can wrongly read and interpret this and think that, hey, so as long as I enjoy Jesus and spend some time hanging out with him, he's gonna give me everything35:08 I want. Right? Delighting in him, he gives me the desires of my heart. Maybe he'll cosign from my plans in the future, but that's not true. What this verse is saying is that to delight35:20 in the Lord, to spend time with him, to prioritize him, to seek his face, to elevate him in your heart and in your life, to submit to his will, something will start happening inside of you and me.35:32 Our desires are gonna start to change. As we delight ourself in God's word and in his truth, my desires will start to look like his desires. And Jesus doesn't give me35:44 what I want, he starts to make it so that I want what he wants. He changes me from the inside out. Our hearts start to change with us and then we submit to God's plans. But there's35:56 a lot that we have to lay down guys when it comes to plans and desires and hopes. Because our plans and our desires always seem really good to us. Here's the problem. You and I are36:07 physical beings, and a lot of what we want are the things that we can see and feel and experience, even when it comes to pursuing God. Pursuing the experience and the emotion. But the problem36:19 is, if all of my desires are of this flesh, I'm going to seek a fleshly path to satisfy them. Look at this loving correction in John, from John rather, in first John, chapter 2.36:32 Do not love this world or anything in this world. Don't desire these things that you can see alone. Don't seek after it. Don't order your life so that36:44 you can acquire experiences or things. Don't don't choose your own plans in order to satisfy those desires. Live according to the spirit. This isn't a decision that36:55 you and I make once and for all. This is a daily ongoing rhythm of submission. We see Paul talking about this struggle in Romans chapter 7, where he says, I don't even understand myself.37:08 I wanna do what's right, and I don't do it. Can anybody relate? I mean, my gosh, can can To have a desire to please God, but then37:20 realize that at our core, we just want what we want. That the enemy lies within us. Let's keep reading. I know it's right, but I don't do37:32 it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know what I'm doing is wrong, this at least shows that I agree that the law is good. So I'm not the 1 doing wrong. It's the sin37:44 living in me that does it. Guys, Paul cracks the code right there for us. We cannot be37:56 trusted. It's like watching the spy movie and you're watching them talk to the person that you know is a traitor, and everything in you is screaming at the screen saying, don't tell him your plans. That's the38:07 enemy. Paul connects a hard truth right here for God's man. We cannot trust our instincts. We cannot seek to bring about our own plans to fulfill our own38:19 desires. Those things will always lead us away from God and harm people in the process. Paul does offer the hope that, hey, at least I know what I'm doing is wrong. It shows that the the the love of38:31 the law lives in me, but he says point blank, sin lives in me. And the same is true for us. God has washed us from it, and he has set us free not to walk in sin,38:43 but to walk according to the spirit. But here's the thing, we have to abide in him, choosing him daily. That we might walk in victory over the sin that exists inside of us. It sounds yucky38:55 to say that sin lives in us, but it's just true brothers. We have to live with the reality that the traitor is within us. This thing called the flesh wants to keep39:06 pushing for my will, for my plans. And it does not want to serve, it wants to be served. And it wants to see its plans realized, it wants to39:18 exalt itself, like we saw from our enemy. But God's man says no to these things and yes to Jesus. God's man says yes to the truth of39:30 God's word and not the lies that the culture just happens to be peddling that week. He says no to himself, that he might say yes to a life of service, following his king down, even to39:42 washing the feet of those that God's put in his life. Laying aside pride to pick up humility. Laying aside our own plans to pick up a plans that will create for us an eternalShow more In this video 0:00 The Rhythm of Yes and No
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