Skip to content How to Live With Eternity in Mind - Where Is Your Faith, Part 5 Sep 20 · 51 min ...more
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0:00 You're listening to Waters Church podcast, where faith meets real life. Where 1 church, many locations, and 1 mission, to see lives changed by Jesus. No matter where you're listening from, you0:12 are a part of Waters Church family. Now, let's dive into today's message from our pastor.0:20 Where is your faith? Part 5, dying in faith, Hebrews 11. And we read from 13 to 22, and and and I think that the Lord wants to say something particular0:32 today that's very important because there's a statement here in this text from which I get the title, these all died in faith. These all0:44 died in... What what all? What's it talking about? I think it's talking about the promised family, the the the chosen family. It's talking about Abraham's family.0:56 Abraham, Sarah, his child Isaac, the child of promise. Then, Isaac has 2 sons, Jacob and Esau. But the people that God spoke to originally to start this movement that we1:08 are now a part of, you gotta remember something. They died. And it says they died not receiving the things from... You see that? They died not, somebody1:20 say not. Not. Having received the things from. So much of modern Christianity is rooted in the getting1:31 things now mindset. And I really think that this is a privilege only afforded to safe,1:44 modern, Christian churches in America. You know, we are a real outlier when it comes to historic Christianity. We really1:55 are. And I don't think it can be stated enough. I'm thankful that I'm in America. I'm thankful for our freedoms. I'm blown away by the fact that our government,2:08 has not stifled or stopped the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. There's no law on the books against it. We just proved that last night. We went out into the public spaces, preached the gospel.2:20 Arrested us. No pro... No laws were broke. Isn't that unbelievable? You know why it's unbelievable? Because most of the world historically has not had that privilege.2:33 The book of Acts opens up with this fact that the the gospel starts to get preached and the apostles get arrested. They got arrested. They didn't they didn't hurt anybody. They didn't physically harm anybody.2:45 They didn't assault anybody. They didn't steal it. All they did was say, hey, this Jesus that you crucified, God raised from the dead. That's all they said.2:57 And they were arrested, And they were beheaded. The the 1st apostle beheaded James of the inner of the inner sanctum disciples. Peter, James, and who? John.3:09 Peter, James, John. The 3 inner circle. Acts chapter 12, Herod arrests him and has his head cut off. Hey. Before him, there's a guy named John the Baptist, and he just preached a3:21 message of repentance. Repent for the kingdom of God is drawing near. And then he talked that there's coming a widowing, of threshing floor of God's winnowing. He's gonna separate the wheat from the3:33 chaff. The fire of judgment's coming. Repent. Come back to God. That's all he preached. And he was... His head was cut off. His head was cut off by the governmental authorities. Hey. Down through3:44 the annals of history, beginning in Jerusalem, look at the apostle Paul traveling around the Roman Empire bringing the gospel. He was stoned. He was whipped. He was3:56 beaten. He was he was, excommunicated. He was shamed in the streets. He was attacked. Riotous mobs tried to seize him and threw him in jail.4:08 He had to be, let down out of a building 1 time and in a little basket to escape capture. Why? Because he preached the gospel of Jesus4:20 Christ. And through the annals of history, from that time to our time, Even today, if you go to China, preaching the gospel4:31 openly is not allowed. A fit... There's an official state church in China. They've gotta put pictures of chairman Mao on the wall and not crosses. There's an4:43 underground church in China that refuses to obey the laws of the land because they conflict with the laws of God. And all they wanna do is preach this gospel of Jesus4:54 Christ, and they don't... They aren't allowed. They're imprisoned. They're tortured in Pakistan. Right now in Nigeria. Right right now in Nigeria, everybody's worried about what Israel's doing. I... I'm... It's kind of5:06 funny to see none none of the none of the super sanctimonious Yale and Princeton students give a rip about what's happening in Nigeria right now. All they can think about is Israel. Israel. How5:18 about Nigeria killing Christians, burning their churches, destroying their homes because they're Christians? That's the history of the church. The history of the church5:30 has not been what we experience. American Christians, we've got it so good. So much freedom. You came freely into this building. You're gonna leave freely today5:42 at all of our locations. Nobody's gonna arrest you. Nobody's gonna lock you up. What's the worst that could happen? Maybe your boss gets wind that you don't approve of certain lifestyles, and he fires5:53 you, or she demeans you. May may may... Maybe, you lose family. You lose connection. Maybe with a child, maybe with a parent, maybe with a sister, brother, or cousin, or6:05 niece, or nephew. And they don't wanna have anything to do. But that's really... If we think about it, that's the worst that can happen to us in America. For annals of Christian history, people have been flogged, stoned,6:17 burned at the stake, fed to lions, tortured, torn apart, pulled apart by this... By by by wild horses, and they have suffered willingly and gladly for the cause6:29 of Jesus Christ because they heard their savior say, when they persecute you, rejoice and be glad for great is your reward in heaven. And6:44 I'm telling you, this is this is this is what we have to get a hold of when it comes to our faith. I think it I think it can help us as American Christians. I think it can help us even in our safety, comfortable confines6:55 of this culture, is that we've gotta realize that ultimately, the goal of our faith is not to live the good life of an American Christian.7:07 The goal is to die in faith. So so so all through Hebrews chapter 11. Right? By faith,7:18 Abel. By faith, Enoch. By faith, Noah. By faith, Abraham. By faith, Sarah. By faith. All this by faith. But7:30 now, these all died what? The word literally could mean in accordance. In accord... There we go. In accordance. This is this is...7:41 Tonight, I wanna talk to you about faith in accord with death. Think about that phrase, in accord. In accord means that you've come together and you've agreed about7:53 things. Can I ask you? Do you have an agreement with death? And the agreement is, I'm8:05 gonna meet you believing in Jesus. Hey. Do it now. Do it now before the time comes, for no8:17 man knows his hour. No man knows his 2nd. And so today could help somebody. Because today might be the last day you8:29 get a chance to make sure you're ready for the final moment of your life. Life is a terminal disease, friend.8:41 We don't get out of this life alive. We all boarded the Titanic the moment we were born. Actually, some people survived the Titanic. That's a bad illustration.8:54 If you'll forgive me, we we all boarded the space shuttle Challenger. I know. A little bit too early. Yeah? But it's true. No 1 gets out of this9:06 life alive. Can I can I tell you, this is the day? If you've come to our church today, maybe you came because you went to the thing last night at Roger Williams. I don't believe for 1 2nd that you're here by accident.9:18 I believe God wants to talk to you right now. And as much as God's faith can produce wonderful blessings in our life, there is far9:30 more blessings beyond it. So part 3, recap. We talked about this. Write it down. Faith obeys God when you don't know the outcome. That was a picture of9:42 Abraham's faith, that God called him to go to a country that he did not know where he was going. And and and and really, the the thrust of that message was you've gotta9:53 learn to do what God says without condition. So I will obey God not because I want certain things to happen in my life, but I will obey10:05 God because he's God. He created me, he formed me, and he knows what's best for me. Part 4, we said faith obeys God when you don't understand the process. So as much as there's an10:17 outcome, to get to the outcome, there's a process. There's the how, and there's the when. Somebody say how. How. Somebody say when. When. Here's what faith does. I have no idea10:28 how, and I have no idea when, but I'm gonna obey God. That's what Sarah had to handle. Given birth at 90 years old, only God can make10:40 life come from dead things. Her womb was dead. Abram... Abraham's loins were dead. And it's a picture of the gospel. God takes dead things and makes them10:52 living things. Amen? Today, the... This is our this is our theme. Faith obeys God when the outcome is out of this world. So so what... So11:04 so can I ask you a question, American Christians only? What if God never gives you that blessing that you're hoping for here?11:17 What what what if you never receive the things that you're believing for here? What what if you have to die with that longing for whatever earthly11:28 blessing that you deeply desire? And and and so much of modern churches today have abandoned this teaching, and I think it's because we... We've gotten so11:40 comfortable. We've gotten so happy with the blessings of the Lord here and now. We want a happy marriage now. We want obedient children now. Good11:52 luck. We we we want college education now. We want debt free lives now. We we want, you know, victorious living now.12:04 Okay. I'm all for all that. I pray God blesses your socks off. But what if you don't get it? These all12:16 died. They all, what? And and underline this next line in your notes. Not having received the things12:27 promised. I wanna talk to you about dying in faith. 3 points, and then we're done. Number 1, dying in faith rejoices without receiving. Dying in faith12:39 rejoices without receiving. Is anybody like me? I'm I'm weird in many respects. And that's okay. I think we're all weird in different areas,12:51 and that's what makes human beings so complicated. But I get it. I order a lot of stuff from Amazon. How many yourself some stuff from Amazon? You know what I'm talking about? It's13:03 just, I could go to CVS and buy it, but I think I'd rather order it on Amazon. And, I get a little bit more of a thrill going on13:15 the Amazon tracking website to see my package coming. Anybody know what I'm talking about? They've got this technology now. I mean, it's incredible. You13:27 know, you can see the little Amazon truck, you know, just bouncing along the map. And then it says, 5 stops away, and I get all giddy. I'm like, whoo. Here13:38 it comes. 4 stops away. Whoo. 3 stops away. And, you know, honestly, gotta be I gotta tell you, sometimes when I finally get the package, I'm like, it13:50 was more exciting anticipating. This is true. We're sick people. I'm telling you. There there is a part of our our lives, our psyche, our makeup14:02 that that is more thrilled about the prospect of what's coming than when it actually gets there. I'll give you another illustration. Some of you, this is near and dear to your heart right14:14 now. How many of you... Don't raise your hand, but how many of you at all the locations, young married couples, married couples, have a framed picture of an ultrasound somewhere in your house?14:27 And the moment you got home from the doctor, the ultrasound, you still got the jelly on your belly. And you take that picture and you got a frame, and you put it up on the mantle, and you think there it is.14:39 There he or she is. She... Oh, they are coming. And you're so excited. And some of you do the modern thing, the gender reveal is such a weird thing to do. I didn't understand that. But14:51 but, you know, just the excitement, the anticipation. Oh, but then you have the baby. It's another story, isn't it? The15:02 anticipation was almost more fun. Right? Not not not to say that it's not fun to have children, but it's a lot of work. It's a lot of frustration. We are made to15:14 live with anticipation. Think about it, Christians. We're made for this. Because as good as life can be with the Lord, and it's good. It's15:26 good. Can somebody at all locations tell me, it's good. It's good. Yeah. Yeah. When this life is over, it's better. Amen. Whoo.15:38 Amen. That... That's why it says that they didn't receive, but but turn, they15:50 saw them, and they greeted them. This word greeting, in Greek. It means to welcome. It means to16:02 salute. It means to, I I read this definition. It means to embrace as a close friend. And and and he's talking about the promises16:13 that that Abraham walked the land of Israel, and he was a foreigner in it. He didn't didn't own a plot of land. I told you a couple of weeks ago, the only plot of land that Abraham16:25 owned at the time of his death was a burial plot for his wife. That's all he owned. Out of that entire landscape, God said, I'm giving this to you and your descendants16:37 after you. You're gonna have it. And by the way, they're there right now. His descendants are still in that land because God is faithful to his promises. But Abraham never saw that in his life. He he never16:48 saw that he had a deed, a title deed. He he couldn't have imagined what would become of the nation of the monarchy under David and and under Solomon where it says that Solomon made17:00 Israel so prosperous that they considered silver of little worth. The silver plummeted in value because it was... They were so rich. They had gold coming out of their ears, and and Abraham didn't see a lick17:12 of that. But what did he do? He saw it from afar. He greeted it. He learned a principle that you've gotta learn as you walk through17:24 the foreign land in which you are right now. Some of you know it. You're you're in... You're strangers on this earth. Amen? Amen. Okay. You've gotta learn to17:35 rejoice without receiving. The fact that we're going there should shape here. Amen? Let me show you what17:47 Paul the apostle said because I love what he says in Philippians chapter 1 verse 21, a very famous line. He says, for to me to live is Christ,18:00 and to die is gain. I don't lose when I die. I gain. I'm getting a better life. I'm I'm getting Christ in18:11 reality and not just in my, you know, thoughts. And then he goes on, and he tells the Philippian church. And he's writing from prison, by the way. He's writing from prison. And he says, listen.18:23 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which shall I choose? I cannot... He's wrestling. He says, I'm hard pressed between the 2. What to? The 2 options. To stay and18:35 serve Christ or to die and to meet him. And he goes, I'm I'm hard pressed. I wanna I wanna go. But but but he says, my desire is to be with Christ. And that's far what?18:46 Better. Better. Back to Hebrews chapter 11. Look at verse 16. Look at verse 16. Here's what it says in verse 16. They were seeking a better country. Same thought.18:58 So he goes, it's better. It's better to go to be with Christ, but to remain in the flesh is much more necessary on your account. And there's always gonna be this this struggle, this this19:10 wrestling in our heart with we are here, but we're not where we belong. And and that's good. The Amazon truck is coming, ladies and19:22 gentlemen. Jesus is on the way. The the scripture says when you see these things happening... What things? The turmoil in the world, the trouble in the world, the hardships, the trouble that we are experiencing every19:33 single day. Jesus says when you see these things happening, lift up your eyes for your redemption draws nigh. Jesus is on the way. I'm excited about it. You you gotta live19:45 with this mindset, or or or this life will kill you. This life will depress you. Write this down in your notes. Faith doesn't need to possess the promise to rejoice19:57 in the present. Christians have their present shaped by the promise even if they don't see the promise yet.20:09 That's what I'm talking about today. There there... There's an ultrasound picture that's been stamped in your heart. There's a there's a package20:21 delivery coming to you. Now the bad news is to get those things, you gotta die. But the good news is, it's yours in Christ Jesus. And and and I want you to live with an20:33 expectation, eager expectation. Greet them. What does he say? He says, they saw them and they greeted them from afar. Okay. Number 2, dying in faith speaks20:45 of another home. Dying in faith speaks of another home. I'm not home yet.20:57 Say that with me. 1, 2, 3. I'm not home yet. Now whether you're a believer or not a believer, that statement is true.21:10 If you're a believer, your home is in heaven. But I would not be doing my job faithfully if I didn't tell you. If you're not a believer, your home is in hell, in21:21 eternal darkness, separated from God and everybody. People like to say, I'm going to hell. All my friends are there. They might be, but you won't see them. Scripture is very clear about... You know21:33 that Jesus talked about hell more than he talked about heaven. As if to warn people again and again and again. You don't wanna go to weeping and gnashing of teeth, utter darkness, the fire that dies not, the worm that21:43 dies not. There was a valley in the Kidron... It was called the, Kidron Valley. It's a little river that flows around the south... Southern slopes of Jerusalem. Actually, flows between the Mount of Olives21:55 and the Mount of the temple, and it goes around to the western side of the city. And on the western side of the city, there's a little dump. They would throw trash in that, valley, and then they would burn it, and the22:05 burn... And the fire never died because everybody had new trash to throw in every single day. They would actually even take human remains of the poor. They would throw them in there. And and Jesus used... And they would22:14 call that place Gehenna. Gehenna. And and that's the word that Jesus uses to describe hell. He says, that's what it's gonna be like. I'm going to the cross so that you don't have to22:26 go there. That's the gospel message. I'm going to the cross so that you don't have to go to hell. You can go to heaven. Not on your works either. Not because you're a good person. Not because you smile and you're22:38 nice to people. No. No. No. No. Deep down, you know you're not a nice person. Deep down, you know you wanna strangle some people. Deep down, you know that you wanna... You know, you... You're like that just swearing22:46 everybody that's cutting you off in traffic every day. And deep down inside, you know that you lie, you steal, you covet, you do all the things that you shouldn't do. And you know deep down, if you're honest with22:54 yourself, you know deep down you're not where you should be. But Jesus Christ loves you anyway. Amen. Died for you anyway. Rose again for you. He bore your punishment for your sins on the23:06 cross so that you could be free and clear of your sins. But you gotta receive it. You gotta say yes. And then God changes your eternal address from hell to heaven.23:19 And Jesus says, I go to prepare a place for you in John 14. I go to prepare a place for you. In my father's house are many rooms, and 1 of them has your name on it. And so23:30 here's what the book of Hebrews says. Look at how it talks about the patriarchs. They greeted these things, and they saw them from afar, and they acknowledged... This mean... This this word acknowledges, homo legomion,23:42 meaning homo, same, lego, se, meaning they all said the same thing. They all said the same thing. What did they say? That they were23:54 strangers and what? Exiles. Where? On the earth. And then he says in verse 14, for people who speak thus make it clear that they are24:06 seeking a homeland. So a lot of language here on speaking. And what did they say? I don't belong here. I don't belong here. Jesus said in John24:17 15 19, he said, if you were of this world, this world would love you as its own. But as it is, you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world. Therefore, the24:29 world hates you. There's a strangeness for the Christian to this planet. There's a strangeness for the Christian to your family if they're unbelieving. There's24:41 a strangeness for the Christian to that work environment that you go into every single week. There's a strength. Why? Because it's really not where you belong. And this is why Hebrews24:53 chapter 11 is written, because that's exactly how Abraham thought. Now think about it. The book of Hebrews is written to who? Anybody remember from part 1? The book of25:05 Hebrews is written to It's not hard. The the book of Philippians is written to the Philippians. The25:17 book of the Galatians is written to the Galatians. The book of Mark is written to, that's a trick question. Okay. Hebrews were Jews that were Christians,25:29 and they were being tempted to go back to Judaism because in Judaism, they had family. In Judaism, they had special legal protections from the Roman authorities. And in Judaism, they weren't outcast from their25:40 synagogues. You know, if you became a Christian, you were kicked out many times from your synagogue. Your family disowned you and shunned you. And then on top of that, the Romans were coming for you because Christianity25:51 was illegal. Judaism had special protection. So they were tempted. They were tempted to I want to go back. After all, the Jewish people are God's chosen people. And so the argument... Listen26:03 to the argument that the writer of Hebrews is making. He's saying this. Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. Think back to Abraham from whom we all come. Abraham was a stranger26:15 in the land. In what land? The land that would become Israel. Are you following this? I hope you're following this because he's saying he's saying, listen. If you're gonna be26:27 a true Jew, if you're gonna be a true child of Abraham, you, like Abraham, will be in this land and still feel strange to it.26:38 That's what he's saying. You can't you can't belong to this world. This is why the book of Romans chapter 12 verse 2 says, do not be conformed26:50 to this world. Don't let this world... I love The Message translation. Says, don't let this world shape you into its mold because you don't belong here. A a27:02 Christian that that tries to act like the world is a clown. What is a clown? You ever see somebody put clown makeup27:14 on? They don't look anything like themselves. They just look foolish. That's what a Christian who tries to act like the world looks like. You got the big27:26 red nose and the big floppy feet and the striped rainbow pants and and and the big bushy red or purple or whatever hair.27:37 That's a Christian trying to be like the world. You've got makeup on. That's not who you are. You're not a clown. You're crowned.27:50 You're not a clown for the world. You're crowned from heaven. Crowned with glory and honor from Jesus. Hey. Have some dignity about this. You're a stranger to this world, but you belong to28:02 a better country. I'm a citizen of heaven. There's nothing to be ashamed about with that. The world wants to shame us. We don't need to we don't need to feel ashamed. Only if we accept it will we feel ashamed. I have28:14 no shame about being a Christian. I'm proud to be a Christian. I'm proud to be a son of the most high God. You should be too. If you don't feel proud, you'll be shaped by the world.28:27 If you don't feel proud to be a Christian, you'll be cowed by the world. I don't want that for you. And scripture says, don't be conformed. 1st John chapter 2 tells us, do not love the world.28:39 The world is not your home. What did he say in verse 17? Because the world is passing away along with its what? Desires. The world is always shifting its28:50 desires, by the way. Everything that was cool is now old and faded and stupid. And now everything that we think is cool right now, just give it about 10 years, and we'll all think that was so stupid. That's29:02 the world. The world just shifts and ebbs and flows, and the person who marries, the age will be divorced in the next. And scripture says in29:14 1st Peter, the same language. He... They they they consider themselves strangers and exiles. Let me show you what Peter says. 1st Peter chapter 2. Now we love verse 9. You are a chosen29:26 race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession. That's who we are. Once you were not a people, now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy, now you have received mercy. And then he29:37 says, beloved, I urge you as so I urge you as so journers and what? Okay. Back to Hebrews. They saw themselves as strangers and exiles. Guess what? That's what you are. You are a29:49 sojourner. You're passing through this life, and you're in exile. What is an exile? An exile is somebody that has been forced out of their homeland. Hey, this is what the Christian faith means for you.30:01 When you become a Christian, you will feel forced out of where you came from. Forced out maybe from family, friends, whatever. And then he says this, now because you don't belong here, abstain from30:13 the passions of the flesh because they are waging a war against your soul. There's a spiritual battle going on, and you gotta learn. What does it say? They spoke. They talked.30:25 They spoke. They talked. They spoke. They talked. Christians, we've got a language, a language of heaven that when we lose on this30:37 earth, we don't fly off the handle. We don't fall into despair. We we we tell our different things. Amen? We tell30:48 ourselves, God must not want that in my life anymore. When when we... When problems meet us, we speak of hope. Our language is31:00 different. We have a different attitude against trials and troubles because we know that there's nothing in our life that God has not assigned, that there's good coming31:11 from it because my Bible tells me that God is working in all things for the good of those who are called according to his purpose. That's my promise. That's your promise31:23 in Christ Jesus. How how are your words? Are you talking about heaven? Are you talking about the fact that you don't belong here? When you go to work and they don't31:35 like your Jesus and they think you're a crazy person, Do you drive home saying, thank you, Lord? That's a good sign. That's a good, I don't belong here.31:47 Amen? Speak thus. That's what he said. They speak thus. Alright. Number 3, dying in faith. Thinks about the future, not the past.32:00 So they speak a certain way, and then they think a different way. Here's what it says in verse 15. If32:12 they had been, circle this word, thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had what? Opportunity to return. Oh, I was just32:24 marinating on this all week. Their thoughts would have led to an opportunity. How many of us need to hold on to this today?32:37 How your thinking is opening doors for your life. And some of you really need to take captive your thoughts because it's32:49 opening doors you don't wanna walk through. This this is why Jesus said, don't even look lustfully at a woman because the33:00 thinking will lead to the acting. And and and the devil loves to broadcast adultery. Oh, watch the television shows today. Everybody's sleeping with33:12 everybody. They're actors. It's a script. Life doesn't actually work out that way. That'll jack your life up. That'll ruin the33:23 good things God wants to do. It's it's a fool's errand. That's why Jesus said don't even don't even get angry with your brother. Anger leads to murder. What what are you thinking33:35 about? And we talk about in the church, and we should, avoiding the wrong thinking. But I wanna give you something different. How about this? Embrace the right thinking.33:48 Think about the things that matter. What matters? What what matters more than anything? I'm gonna tell you what matters more than anything. It's found in Colossians chapter 3. And it says this in verse 1. If you have34:00 been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on the things of this34:11 earth. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. In other words, get your focus not on this life. Get your34:23 focus on the life that is to come. Yeah. Amen. Come on in. Heaven is my home. I don't need my life to work out picture perfect in this generation. I don't need my life to34:35 be just so because I know I have to leave it all behind. It's not where I belong. In Genesis chapter 24, Abraham has to find a wife34:47 for Isaac, and he calls his servant... Let me go there real quick. He calls his servant, Genesis chapter 24. It's the longest chapter, by the way, in the book of Genesis. But he calls his servant over, and he says, go to34:58 my country, verse 4. Go to my country, my kindred, and take a wife for my son. Go get... Go back to my homeland and take a wife there for my son Isaac so that he can marry someone that I can trust. And the servant said35:10 to him, well, perhaps I go, and the woman would not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you have come? In other words, it's really important that Isaac finds a35:21 wife. And, if I go there and she doesn't wanna come here, maybe I should bring Isaac there. And listen to Abram. He says, see to it. This is here. See to it that you do35:33 not take my son back there. The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from my land and my kindred, who spoke to me and swore to me, to your offspring, I will give this land, and he will send his35:43 angel, and you shall take away from my son. But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you shall be free from this. In other words, it's better that he doesn't marry her than he goes back to live where she35:54 lives. What a lesson for young single people today. It's better to not marry than to marry an unbeliever. It's better to not marry. What? Pastor, I want children. You don't want36:06 mixed faith children. Let me tell you that. You don't want mixed faith children. That... You wanna talk about a nightmare. That's a nightmare. Here's what he's saying. Stop thinking about going36:18 back. So stop thinking. See, this is what happens with a lot of Christians. They get a little bit into the they get a little bit into the faith, and then things don't quite work out the way that they expected.36:27 Expectations are not met. God seems to have been silent for some time. Where's the feelings that I had at the 1st? I don't understand. Now I'm kind of wandering through the wilderness. Where is God? Hey. God has36:36 wilderness reason... Seasons for his people. That's just a fact. In fact, every great man or woman of God that he used mightily, he sent into the wilderness for a while. Some of us are scared to death of the wilderness.36:47 I'm alone. I don't know where I'm going. I'm wandering. I have no... It seems like God has left me. No. What God is doing is testing. Here's what his test is. Here's the wilderness test. Ready? Can you serve36:59 me without the goodies? Can you serve me without the prop... Without the promises being fulfilled? Can you serve37:10 me without the dreams coming true? Because ultimately ultimately, the best37:21 part about heaven... Are you ready for this? The best part about heaven is Christ is37:33 there. That's the best part. If you wanna go to heaven for any other reason, don't go. I'm just37:45 telling you. This is the heart. Now now we're gonna really separate the men from the boys. Oh, yeah. I don't know if I could go to heaven if my grandfather wasn't there. Then37:57 don't go. Because he... If he's not there and Christ is, I'm gonna tell you something. I'm still thrilled to go to38:08 heaven. Because my faith is not rooted in the things that God can give me. My faith is rooted in the God he's given me. He's give... What38:20 did what did Paul say in Colossians 3? Look what he says. What is it? Where where is it? Colossians 3, set your mind on things above where Christ Is. Is. That's the38:32 best part about heaven. Christ is there. Amen. Yes. And and and this is why you become a Christian because it's Christ. For to me to live is Christ. He is38:44 all that you need. He is everything you could want. He is the thing that you are... You was... He's the 1 you've been made to know and to grow into. He is all your soul's desire will ever38:56 be, and he can fill you and satisfy you for he fills all things in all ways, my Bible tells me. Nothing better than Christ. Okay. I gotta move on. It says this.Show more
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Empowering multimedia ministry for bold Christian living: Weekend Messages, Deep End Podcast, Deep Dive Bible Study. Tim Hatch, Lead Pastor, Waters Church, 26 years of pastoral ministry, book author.
156K followers
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