WEBVTT 00:00:01.399 --> 00:00:03.466 Good morning, Valley View. 00:00:03.466 --> 00:00:05.833 Happy Father's Day to you. 00:00:05.833 --> 00:00:13.400 It's good to gather, and I think a great way to start today is a little history lesson on Father's Day. 00:00:13.400 --> 00:00:16.399 Fathers love a good history book. 00:00:16.399 --> 00:00:18.966 Love war history especially. 00:00:18.966 --> 00:00:23.233 This isn't war history, but we have a fondness for history as dads. 00:00:23.233 --> 00:00:29.233 And since we have the kids in the room with us this Sunday, I'm going to ask the kids to tell me if you can just shout it out. 00:00:29.233 --> 00:00:31.166 Just the kids, okay? 00:00:31.166 --> 00:00:35.966 I know you think if you already know it, you want to shout it out dads, but let's let the kids try. 00:00:35.966 --> 00:00:38.966 First, who was the president in 1981? 00:00:41.000 --> 00:00:45.399 Come on, Ronald Reagan. 00:00:45.399 --> 00:00:47.332 Not even a hesitation. 00:00:47.332 --> 00:00:48.533 Love it. 00:00:48.533 --> 00:00:49.732 Ronald Reagan right. 00:00:49.732 --> 00:00:51.899 So March of 1981. 00:00:51.899 --> 00:00:54.365 And this is all going to lead us somewhere. Don't worry. 00:00:54.365 --> 00:00:58.633 By the way, we're talking about the seven churches of Revelation. 00:00:58.633 --> 00:01:01.533 Revelation chapter two and three, we’re walking through those. 00:01:01.533 --> 00:01:06.832 And the church today relates to something that happened to Ronald Reagan in March of 1981. 00:01:06.832 --> 00:01:12.766 John Hinckley shot at him and the Secret Service that was with him. 00:01:12.766 --> 00:01:21.332 They were able to push him into the car and what they thought was to keep him safe from being shot, to keep him from assassination. 00:01:21.332 --> 00:01:25.365 But they fell so hard on top of him, he thought, man, I have broken a rib or something. 00:01:25.365 --> 00:01:26.400 I can't even breathe. 00:01:26.400 --> 00:01:29.200 And so they're checking his body to see were you shot? 00:01:29.200 --> 00:01:31.632 Can we see a visible broken rib or not? 00:01:31.632 --> 00:01:39.566 They're rushing him to the hospital along the way, and they get there and they've looked him over and they see it doesn't appear you're hurt, but let's go in. 00:01:39.566 --> 00:01:42.033 And he said, and I'm going to walk in. 00:01:42.033 --> 00:01:46.766 I want any American who's here, whether it's the press or just people in general. 00:01:46.766 --> 00:01:51.000 I want them to see me going in in strength, not in weakness. 00:01:51.266 --> 00:01:58.865 So he steps out of the car, buttons his coat, walks in, and as soon as he gets through the doors, he collapses. 00:01:59.965 --> 00:02:02.165 Everything appeared okay, but it wasn't. 00:02:02.165 --> 00:02:04.433 And so they're immediately searching over his body. 00:02:04.433 --> 00:02:12.765 And finally they find that a bullet had hit the door and flattened like a penny and had just gone in right under his armpit. 00:02:12.765 --> 00:02:15.432 They couldn't even see the incision until much later. 00:02:15.432 --> 00:02:17.032 So they got to have emergency surgery. 00:02:17.032 --> 00:02:30.133 It had lodged near his heart, and as they're going into surgery, he looks up at all the doctors and surgeons and nurses and he said, please tell me that you are all Republicans, right? 00:02:31.233 --> 00:02:35.733 And even though they all weren't, they were like, yes, let's go. 00:02:35.765 --> 00:02:39.000 Here's the point of that story that relates to the church we're going to look at today. 00:02:39.000 --> 00:02:45.199 On the outside, the appearance was that everything was fine, that Ronald Reagan was healthy, that everything was great. 00:02:45.199 --> 00:02:48.199 But on the inside he was almost dead. 00:02:48.665 --> 00:02:52.165 And there's a lot of times things can appear great. 00:02:52.165 --> 00:02:55.733 You can appear to have it all together and be dying inside. 00:02:55.733 --> 00:02:58.966 And that's what the church was facing that we're going to look at today. 00:02:58.966 --> 00:03:02.133 It's the church in Sardis, and we're going to be in the book of Revelation. 00:03:02.133 --> 00:03:06.800 So if you have a Bible, turn to Revelation, it's at the end of the Bible. 00:03:06.800 --> 00:03:10.765 If you don't have a Bible, we've got copies out in the lobby that you can have. 00:03:10.765 --> 00:03:11.633 Those are for you. 00:03:11.633 --> 00:03:16.032 You can keep and the screen numbers, the page numbers on screen will match that Bible. 00:03:16.032 --> 00:03:19.966 We're going to be on page 966 and I'm going to turn there. 00:03:19.966 --> 00:03:29.000 And if you would stand as I read that section, just as a sign of respect and reverence for God's Word, as I read through verses one through six in Revelation chapter three. 00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:32.932 Revelation three one through six. 00:03:32.932 --> 00:03:42.165 And to the angel of the church in Sardis write the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. 00:03:42.165 --> 00:03:43.800 I know your works. 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:50.466 You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 00:03:50.466 --> 00:03:59.133 Wake up and strengthen what remains and is about to die for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. 00:03:59.133 --> 00:04:02.633 Remember then what you received and heard. 00:04:02.633 --> 00:04:05.633 Keep it and repent. 00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:15.932 If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. 00:04:15.932 --> 00:04:24.132 Yet you still have a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. 00:04:25.165 --> 00:04:29.565 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments. 00:04:29.565 --> 00:04:33.000 And I will never blot his name out of the book of life. 00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:37.766 I will confess his name before my father and before his angels. 00:04:38.533 --> 00:04:43.132 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 00:04:43.132 --> 00:04:46.132 You can be seated. 00:04:46.932 --> 00:05:00.733 So last week we looked at Thyatira and we looked at the challenges that church was facing, the internal challenges, the church before that Pergamum was the challenges from without. 00:05:00.733 --> 00:05:05.132 Thyatira was the Thyatira was the enemy within. 00:05:05.365 --> 00:05:14.833 And last week I said that one of the things that we saw in that passage was Jesus had difficult things to address in that church, but he started with a positive. 00:05:14.833 --> 00:05:19.432 And so when you can start with a positive, you've got something hard to face. 00:05:19.432 --> 00:05:30.432 If you've got some correction to do with a child or a spouse, or with an employee or a coworker or a student, start with a positive. 00:05:30.432 --> 00:05:31.966 Here's things I see that are going great. 00:05:31.966 --> 00:05:37.233 Let me address this and you should try to do that when you can. 00:05:37.233 --> 00:05:40.233 But that isn't always a possibility. 00:05:41.033 --> 00:05:48.199 I mean, if your kid is running towards the street, you don't say, hey little Timmy, you know, love that form. 00:05:48.333 --> 00:05:51.199 You clearly have the form of a runner. 00:05:51.199 --> 00:05:53.632 And by the way, the enthusiasm. 00:05:53.632 --> 00:05:54.833 I love it. 00:05:54.833 --> 00:05:57.365 However, can I just make a suggestion? 00:05:57.365 --> 00:06:00.033 No, no, you don't worry about all that. 00:06:00.033 --> 00:06:01.565 You yell as the out as you can. 00:06:01.565 --> 00:06:04.565 Stop because you're running towards danger. 00:06:04.565 --> 00:06:08.800 We don't have time for all the niceties we got to address, and sometimes that's where you face yourselves. 00:06:08.800 --> 00:06:15.165 And right here in Sardis, Jesus cuts through all the niceties right off the bat, and he goes right to the heart of the issue. 00:06:15.165 --> 00:06:19.199 And for whatever reason, this was an urgent matter for the church. 00:06:19.233 --> 00:06:25.466 And he said halfway through verse one, I know your works. 00:06:25.466 --> 00:06:28.432 You have the reputation of being alive. 00:06:28.432 --> 00:06:30.065 You have the appearance of being alive. 00:06:30.065 --> 00:06:36.000 You have the the word there is actually the same word translated later as the name, the name of being alive. 00:06:37.800 --> 00:06:40.800 But you are dead. 00:06:41.865 --> 00:06:43.333 For whatever reason. 00:06:43.333 --> 00:06:47.132 We have as a culture a fascination with appearances. 00:06:47.132 --> 00:06:58.533 Appearances matter so much more in our culture than than character, than kindness, appearances, reputation, charm. 00:06:58.533 --> 00:07:01.000 You know, Proverbs speaks to this charm as deceitful. 00:07:01.000 --> 00:07:15.833 Beauty is vain, but yet we're so easily enamored with just appearances, a reputation or name or money, someone with a lot of money we automatically respect, or an actor. 00:07:15.833 --> 00:07:17.432 They must be important. 00:07:17.432 --> 00:07:28.533 We automatically respect and give them more weight, or more credence or more value as a culture, which is interesting because that's actually the opposite of what the Bible does. 00:07:28.533 --> 00:07:37.233 You know, the Bible in Scripture, apparently appearances have almost no weight. 00:07:37.466 --> 00:07:40.865 I mean, they really mean almost nothing. 00:07:41.966 --> 00:07:43.533 They mean so little. 00:07:43.533 --> 00:07:47.365 And I could walk through example after example of this. 00:07:47.365 --> 00:07:49.399 We could just look, I've listed some in your notes. 00:07:49.399 --> 00:07:56.533 John the Baptist, he was smelly and homeless and he ate bugs for fun. 00:07:56.533 --> 00:08:02.565 You know, we either put those people on reality shows or we ignore them. 00:08:02.565 --> 00:08:04.833 And Jesus said of him. 00:08:04.833 --> 00:08:09.266 Among those born of women, which, by the way, is everyone. 00:08:09.266 --> 00:08:18.000 There is no one greater, though the appearances where this is the guy we need to put in the margins, there's no one greater according to Jesus. 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:20.932 Or we could look at the widow's offering, the widow's mite. 00:08:20.932 --> 00:08:26.233 She puts in two pennies in the offering, and the Pharisees and the Sadducees, who are all about appearances. 00:08:26.233 --> 00:08:27.665 Watch how much I'm dropping in. 00:08:27.665 --> 00:08:31.565 Make sure everybody sees, hears, knows how important I am. 00:08:31.565 --> 00:08:33.932 Both by the way I dress, by the way I act. 00:08:33.932 --> 00:08:35.466 And Jesus says, no, no, no. 00:08:35.466 --> 00:08:41.232 She is the one most valuable, the one that everybody else is ignoring that when everybody else thinks is meaningless. 00:08:41.232 --> 00:08:57.399 She is the one that is great in the kingdom of heaven. Or probably the verse most specific to this idea is when David is being compared to his brothers, but ultimately to Saul who went before him. 00:08:57.399 --> 00:09:02.000 Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart. 00:09:02.000 --> 00:09:03.033 He didn't. 00:09:03.033 --> 00:09:05.932 It is almost irrelevant. 00:09:05.932 --> 00:09:12.865 The appearances, the reputation in Scripture. 00:09:12.865 --> 00:09:21.633 How do we make sure that as a church, that as an individual, we're not enamored with reputation and appearances? 00:09:21.633 --> 00:09:24.799 How do we make sure we don't end up like those in Second Timothy three five? 00:09:24.799 --> 00:09:27.000 I've listed that verse in your notes. 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:30.466 They had a a form of godliness. 00:09:30.466 --> 00:09:35.265 They had the appearance of godliness, but they denied its power. 00:09:36.265 --> 00:09:38.166 We want the opposite of that. 00:09:38.166 --> 00:09:41.133 Who cares about the form and the appearance? We want the power. 00:09:42.332 --> 00:09:49.232 How do we make sure we're not so easily enamored by appearances, by reputation, by name only? 00:09:50.399 --> 00:09:53.232 Well, we're going to look at five ways in this passage. 00:09:53.232 --> 00:10:00.732 I think that we can make sure that a mostly dead church is resurrected. 00:10:01.033 --> 00:10:01.932 All right. Let's look at these. 00:10:01.932 --> 00:10:03.799 Let's first one here is in verse two. 00:10:03.799 --> 00:10:05.066 So he says, I know your works. 00:10:05.066 --> 00:10:09.265 You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 00:10:09.265 --> 00:10:11.066 What should we do? 00:10:11.066 --> 00:10:14.232 By the way, this is going to be very action heavy. 00:10:14.232 --> 00:10:15.399 Verse two. 00:10:15.399 --> 00:10:18.033 Wake up. 00:10:18.033 --> 00:10:19.600 This is the first thing he says to them. 00:10:19.600 --> 00:10:21.133 Wake up. 00:10:21.133 --> 00:10:29.566 If you have been lulled to sleep, there comes a moment where you need to wake up and take stock of where you are. 00:10:29.566 --> 00:10:37.466 If a church has been enamored with appearances with outward reputation, we need to wake up to that reality. 00:10:37.466 --> 00:10:44.033 If we put more stock on appearances and reputation than on the power of God, that's a that's a problem. 00:10:44.033 --> 00:10:46.633 There's got to be a moment where we wake up to that reality. 00:10:46.633 --> 00:11:00.533 Jon Holland, one of our elders, shared with us recently that he had shared a study or had read a study on how most people don't really make big life changes unless there's some big crisis in their life. 00:11:00.533 --> 00:11:04.533 I mean, you tend to kind of get into the routine of how you approach life with everything you do. 00:11:04.533 --> 00:11:09.865 And unless something big happens to shake that up because change is hard. 00:11:09.865 --> 00:11:15.732 It takes a lot of extra energy, and every passing year it gets harder to find that extra energy. 00:11:15.732 --> 00:11:20.000 And it's a lot easier to just keep kind of letting everything stay the way it is. 00:11:22.466 --> 00:11:27.399 But something happens sometimes and wakes us up to the reality that things are not right. 00:11:27.399 --> 00:11:30.666 I'm trying to convince myself they're okay and they're not. 00:11:30.666 --> 00:11:37.799 I heard two examples of this recently, both in the same situation of people seeing themselves anew in a wedding photo. 00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:40.666 My neighbor shared this with me. 00:11:40.666 --> 00:11:49.133 He had been in a wedding, one of his children were married, and he got the pictures back and he saw himself and he said, okay, I can't deny it any longer. 00:11:49.133 --> 00:11:53.265 I am 100 pounds overweight and for whatever reason. 00:11:53.265 --> 00:11:55.533 I mean, he looked in the mirror every day for whatever reason. 00:11:55.533 --> 00:12:01.265 That photo said wake up! That was his wake up moment, and a year later he had. 00:12:01.265 --> 00:12:04.232 That was his sole focus for that year. 00:12:04.232 --> 00:12:07.133 And a year later, he had gotten rid of that weight. 00:12:07.133 --> 00:12:09.666 The wake up moment, I thought everything was fine. 00:12:09.666 --> 00:12:11.732 I tried to pretend that everything was okay. 00:12:11.732 --> 00:12:14.000 And even though appearances weren't even right. 00:12:15.566 --> 00:12:21.365 Something has to happen to wake us up, to wake up the church. 00:12:21.633 --> 00:12:23.066 And this would have been. 00:12:23.066 --> 00:12:29.966 I've talked about how each of these letters have something specific to the city that they're being written to. 00:12:30.232 --> 00:12:30.732 Sardis. 00:12:30.732 --> 00:12:36.799 This would have been especially meaningful to them because Sardis was known as a church. 00:12:36.799 --> 00:12:42.232 That was in fact the word I've put in your notes, or you can write in your notes as impenetrable, right. 00:12:42.232 --> 00:12:52.832 They were built kind of on a mountaintop, and all around the edge of the city were mountains, and they had their own fortress, and they were known throughout all the ancient world. 00:12:52.832 --> 00:12:54.799 It's that's a place you can't break into. 00:12:54.799 --> 00:13:02.966 In fact, you could even just say if you wanted to say something was impossible, you would say, that's like trying to break into Sardis. 00:13:02.966 --> 00:13:03.832 We would say the same. 00:13:03.832 --> 00:13:06.000 That's like trying to break into Fort Knox, right? 00:13:06.000 --> 00:13:07.566 You're like, there's no way that could happen. 00:13:07.566 --> 00:13:10.265 It's unfathomable. It could never happen. 00:13:11.732 --> 00:13:15.033 Well, sometimes pride goes before the fall. 00:13:15.033 --> 00:13:18.232 And this city, in fact, one king, they were in battle. 00:13:18.232 --> 00:13:19.265 I mean, he went out from the city. 00:13:19.265 --> 00:13:21.332 They went out into the plains to fight the battle. 00:13:21.332 --> 00:13:23.265 And in the midst of the battle, they realized we're losing. 00:13:23.265 --> 00:13:25.732 Let's retreat to the city because we'll be safe there. 00:13:25.732 --> 00:13:26.865 They retreat to the city. 00:13:26.865 --> 00:13:28.566 He even sends home extra troops. 00:13:28.566 --> 00:13:30.000 Y'all go home. We don't need you here. 00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:30.666 We're good. 00:13:30.666 --> 00:13:32.265 Nobody is breaking into here. 00:13:32.265 --> 00:13:34.633 We have the reputation of being impenetrable. 00:13:34.633 --> 00:13:35.799 Nobody can get in here. 00:13:35.799 --> 00:13:38.799 It's impossible. 00:13:38.832 --> 00:13:44.633 And of course, all the armies are arrayed outside their walls, watching, looking. How can we get in? 00:13:44.633 --> 00:13:47.600 There's got to be a way into this city. 00:13:47.600 --> 00:13:49.033 And one of the guards. 00:13:49.033 --> 00:13:50.633 And they had very few, but they had a few. 00:13:50.633 --> 00:13:55.932 One of the guards let down their guard, kind of lulling asleep on top of the wall. 00:13:55.932 --> 00:14:00.166 Helmet falls off down to the bottom of the wall. 00:14:00.166 --> 00:14:02.265 And they're just observing this. 00:14:03.365 --> 00:14:07.466 And one guy notices all of a sudden there's a guy down there picking up his helmet out of nowhere. 00:14:07.466 --> 00:14:08.533 Where did he come from? 00:14:08.533 --> 00:14:10.365 And that was the clue they needed. 00:14:10.365 --> 00:14:11.832 There is some way in and out of here. 00:14:11.832 --> 00:14:13.533 There's a secret passage somewhere. 00:14:13.533 --> 00:14:17.100 We can find it, and they find it. 00:14:17.133 --> 00:14:29.832 They come in, they destroy the city, they rout it, and their reputation becomes from impenetrable to pride goes before the fall. 00:14:29.832 --> 00:14:32.932 You thought no one could conquer you. 00:14:32.932 --> 00:14:35.600 And you let down your guard. 00:14:35.600 --> 00:14:42.033 In fact, it became a warning to all of ancient Greece if Sardis could fall. 00:14:42.033 --> 00:14:43.832 What about us? 00:14:43.832 --> 00:14:47.466 I mean, we better watch out, too. 00:14:47.799 --> 00:14:56.000 You might remember if you were alive during 911 having that feeling, man, if we can be attacked in this way, what does that mean? 00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:00.066 It really set so many people off balance. 00:15:01.066 --> 00:15:03.600 Sardis, we have a reputation. 00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:05.166 We have a name. 00:15:05.166 --> 00:15:07.765 No one can attack us. 00:15:07.765 --> 00:15:14.399 Watch out, watch out! Don't just assume everything is as it has always been. 00:15:14.399 --> 00:15:17.033 Watch out. 00:15:17.033 --> 00:15:27.466 And I think this is wise for us as a church, because I think Valley View has a rich history, reputation, name. 00:15:28.399 --> 00:15:40.232 But that doesn't mean anything really, if we are not every day walking in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaning on Christ and trusting him for what he's going to do today. 00:15:40.232 --> 00:15:44.500 Not what he did back in 1981, 85, 75, whatever. 00:15:44.533 --> 00:15:46.332 That's great, by the way, I love that. 00:15:46.332 --> 00:15:47.832 I love reading our church history. 00:15:47.832 --> 00:15:51.533 We we took a whole week to celebrate our 85th anniversary. 00:15:51.533 --> 00:15:54.832 We've got a whole thing of our history up on the website, I love that. 00:15:57.232 --> 00:16:00.232 Watch out. 00:16:00.332 --> 00:16:04.765 A second way that we can be sure not to just lean on reputation. 00:16:04.765 --> 00:16:08.566 How do we breathe life into a somewhat mostly dead church? 00:16:08.566 --> 00:16:11.566 Look at the second way here. 00:16:13.166 --> 00:16:13.865 Look at verse two. 00:16:13.865 --> 00:16:25.600 He says, wake up and strengthen what remains and is about to die for I have not found your works complete yet in the sight of my God. 00:16:25.600 --> 00:16:33.399 And here's the phrase I want to use with us this morning urgently fan the ember that is there. 00:16:34.533 --> 00:16:38.432 You know when you have a fire that has died out, maybe you had a campfire the night before. 00:16:38.432 --> 00:16:45.066 You can come out, you can spread out, find a hot coal and you can fan that coal into flame. 00:16:45.566 --> 00:16:47.633 You can breathe life into it. 00:16:47.633 --> 00:16:49.399 I keep using that phrase mostly dead. 00:16:49.399 --> 00:16:54.966 And if you've said seen Princess Bride, you're probably chuckling a little bit to yourself because he calls Wesley. 00:16:54.966 --> 00:16:56.166 You know, he's mostly dead in there. 00:16:56.166 --> 00:16:56.932 Like, what does that mean? 00:16:56.932 --> 00:16:57.765 That's a problem, right? 00:16:57.765 --> 00:17:01.633 He's like, well, yeah, but he's only mostly dead, which means he's partly alive. 00:17:01.633 --> 00:17:05.865 And we want to fan that flame, that ember into flame. 00:17:05.865 --> 00:17:08.200 We want to breathe life into it. 00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:13.266 And when I came to Valley View, it'll be in November. 00:17:13.266 --> 00:17:15.432 It'll be five years ago now. 00:17:15.432 --> 00:17:22.032 Already, it's hard to believe the first quarter of my 20 year plan is already almost behind us. 00:17:22.032 --> 00:17:23.465 It's come so quick. 00:17:23.465 --> 00:17:25.965 When I came, I knew Valley View had faced some challenges. 00:17:25.965 --> 00:17:35.833 I knew that some recent, some not as recent, but I also knew, I mean, I grew up here, I knew many of the people I knew. 00:17:35.833 --> 00:17:43.732 There is a faithful ember that was longing to be blown into a flame. 00:17:44.365 --> 00:17:50.133 In fact, this week I was meeting with some of the pastoral staff, and we were talking about the church and setting plans for the coming year. 00:17:50.133 --> 00:17:52.432 And and I was talking about my burden for prayer. 00:17:52.432 --> 00:17:55.532 And how do we fan the flame into prayer in our church. 00:17:55.532 --> 00:18:10.599 And one of them said, you know, John, you'd want to know when I've seen our church most committed to prayer, it was for you when we were praying for a pastor every Sunday, people were coming down front and just begging, God, would you move? 00:18:10.599 --> 00:18:11.833 Would you come? 00:18:11.833 --> 00:18:14.333 Would you show up? 00:18:14.333 --> 00:18:17.665 Would you breathe life into our church? 00:18:18.000 --> 00:18:19.400 You know, Bob Russell when he's here? 00:18:19.400 --> 00:18:20.032 He said that. 00:18:20.032 --> 00:18:23.633 He said, John, I'm seeing in your church life I'm seeing God at work. 00:18:23.633 --> 00:18:25.833 I'm seeing excitement. I'm seeing joy. 00:18:25.833 --> 00:18:31.465 I mean, that breathed life into me and fanned the flame. 00:18:32.165 --> 00:18:33.799 How do we do that? 00:18:33.799 --> 00:18:35.465 I think the next, [verse] three, shows us. 00:18:35.465 --> 00:18:41.333 How do you go about fanning the flame, breathing life into the church? 00:18:43.000 --> 00:18:44.599 Look back at verse three again. 00:18:44.599 --> 00:18:50.032 Wake up, strengthen what remains, and is verse two and about to die. 00:18:50.032 --> 00:18:55.865 For I have not found your work complete in the sight of my God. First make note of this. 00:18:55.865 --> 00:19:01.232 He says to them, and I think the message is to us, I'm not done with you yet. 00:19:01.232 --> 00:19:02.400 I said, you're dead. 00:19:02.400 --> 00:19:05.932 I met almost dead, and I'm not done with you yet. 00:19:05.932 --> 00:19:07.932 There is hope. 00:19:07.932 --> 00:19:12.232 If I'm going to breathe life into the church, there will be a reaction. 00:19:12.232 --> 00:19:15.165 We can trust that he's going to stir. 00:19:15.165 --> 00:19:16.665 But then look at verse three. 00:19:16.665 --> 00:19:18.000 Here's how we do that. 00:19:18.000 --> 00:19:22.133 Remember then, what you received and heard. 00:19:22.133 --> 00:19:25.133 Keep it and repent. 00:19:26.532 --> 00:19:31.200 And so here's the phrase we're going to use today to summarize some of that up. 00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:34.200 Hold fast to God's Word. 00:19:35.432 --> 00:19:37.566 How do you fan the flame in the church? 00:19:37.566 --> 00:19:39.865 How do you fan the ember? 00:19:39.865 --> 00:19:44.833 Breathe life into the ember so that it grows as a church? 00:19:45.732 --> 00:19:48.165 Hold fast to God's Word. 00:19:49.365 --> 00:19:54.133 God's word is where you're going to find that life if the church is dying and dead. 00:19:54.133 --> 00:19:56.665 And by the way, there's plenty around us. 00:19:56.665 --> 00:19:58.633 I mean, I pass a church every day that was sold. 00:19:58.633 --> 00:20:01.200 Someone owns it as a home now. 00:20:01.200 --> 00:20:03.365 And there's others that are on the edge of dying. 00:20:03.365 --> 00:20:07.365 And some of you who have come here from other churches that had to fold and close their doors. 00:20:07.365 --> 00:20:09.833 And of course, the church building isn't the church, the people are the church. 00:20:09.833 --> 00:20:12.833 But where did the people go? 00:20:16.165 --> 00:20:19.000 Here's how churches die, by the way. 00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:31.365 It's not usually like just some tragic moment that does happen, but usually it just starts with a drift, with some kind of small compromise around God's Word. 00:20:31.365 --> 00:20:37.766 I know God's Word says this, but really, really, we this this would be better. 00:20:37.766 --> 00:20:39.932 Yeah, it's pretty clear. 00:20:39.932 --> 00:20:42.932 But this would be better. 00:20:43.432 --> 00:20:45.766 That's always where it starts. 00:20:45.766 --> 00:20:50.133 And as we looked at the quote from Francis Schaeffer last week, maybe everything is fine for a while. 00:20:50.133 --> 00:20:52.400 Maybe everything is fine in this generation, by the way. 00:20:52.400 --> 00:20:56.766 Maybe all of us have enough of warm feelings about Jesus that we can keep coming. 00:20:56.766 --> 00:21:01.232 But what are you going to hand on to the next generation? 00:21:03.665 --> 00:21:05.665 God's word is our foundation. 00:21:05.665 --> 00:21:08.532 You've got to be in God's Word. 00:21:08.532 --> 00:21:09.965 I love this David Jeremiah quote. 00:21:09.965 --> 00:21:10.532 It's in your notes. 00:21:10.532 --> 00:21:11.799 We'll put it on the screen as well. 00:21:11.799 --> 00:21:22.400 It says this when the church abandons the Bible, it removes the Holy Spirit's chief means of transforming believers into the image of Christ. 00:21:24.165 --> 00:21:25.766 We've got to be rooted in God's Word. 00:21:25.766 --> 00:21:28.665 That's why you've got to be rooted in God's Word every day. 00:21:28.665 --> 00:21:31.000 I love that you come here to hear the Bible taught. 00:21:31.000 --> 00:21:31.932 We read it out. 00:21:31.932 --> 00:21:33.799 I try to read directly from the Bible. 00:21:33.799 --> 00:21:36.400 I try to get you reading from a copy of the Bible. 00:21:36.400 --> 00:21:39.865 I try to get you to take that home and follow our church Bible reading plan. 00:21:39.865 --> 00:21:45.232 Back in March, I asked everyone to commit every day in March to be in God's Word, and we can't. 00:21:45.232 --> 00:21:48.400 That's probably the thing we emphasize more than anything else. 00:21:48.400 --> 00:21:52.633 There should never be a day where you're not in God's Word, I'll tell you. 00:21:52.633 --> 00:21:56.432 Here's the day that you can skip reading God's Word as often as you skip eating. 00:21:56.432 --> 00:21:58.566 Go ahead and skip reading God's Word. 00:22:01.365 --> 00:22:03.932 We make eating a priority, don't we? 00:22:03.932 --> 00:22:04.932 Hey, and I love eating. 00:22:04.932 --> 00:22:06.032 We have great potlucks. 00:22:06.032 --> 00:22:07.633 I love our potlucks. 00:22:07.633 --> 00:22:10.532 But some of us at breakfast, we're already praying out lunch and dinner. 00:22:10.532 --> 00:22:12.365 Combine both and dessert with that. 00:22:12.365 --> 00:22:13.266 I'm thinking ahead. 00:22:13.266 --> 00:22:16.066 I'm making sure I am not going to miss a meal. 00:22:16.066 --> 00:22:20.066 How can we not have that same kind of priority around God's Word? 00:22:20.066 --> 00:22:24.200 What if you have that same sense of urgency every day? 00:22:24.365 --> 00:22:26.833 I'd rather miss a meal than miss God's Word. 00:22:26.833 --> 00:22:29.200 And it's not a legalistic thing, I get it. 00:22:29.200 --> 00:22:35.032 Okay, look, no one's going to be perfect, but you can see the flip that should happen in our minds and our hearts. 00:22:35.032 --> 00:22:40.599 If we want to fight for faithfulness in our church, it's got to be rooted in God's Word. 00:22:40.599 --> 00:22:45.766 There can be no greater priority to fan the flame, to fan the ember into a flame. 00:22:47.766 --> 00:22:51.333 Remember, he says, remember and then keep it. 00:22:51.333 --> 00:22:52.566 Hold on to it. 00:22:52.566 --> 00:22:56.032 Grasp on to it like your life depends on it. 00:22:56.032 --> 00:22:57.633 Now look at what else he says. 00:22:57.633 --> 00:23:01.766 Remember what you received, what you heard. 00:23:01.766 --> 00:23:03.900 Keep it. 00:23:03.900 --> 00:23:08.932 Then he says this repent. 00:23:08.932 --> 00:23:11.365 Keep it. 00:23:11.365 --> 00:23:12.633 Pursue God's word. 00:23:12.633 --> 00:23:13.566 Hang on to it. 00:23:13.566 --> 00:23:15.665 But also in your tool belt. 00:23:15.665 --> 00:23:17.333 Have repentance at hand. 00:23:17.333 --> 00:23:21.665 In fact, the phrase spark change through the power of repentance. 00:23:21.665 --> 00:23:24.965 Have repentance at the forefront of how you live as a Christian. 00:23:24.965 --> 00:23:26.365 Long quote from Tim Keller. 00:23:26.365 --> 00:23:29.133 But I read this in his book on prayer. 00:23:29.133 --> 00:23:31.000 It's in your notes or it's on the screen. 00:23:31.000 --> 00:23:36.432 Repentance is the way we make progress in the Christian life. 00:23:37.232 --> 00:23:44.333 It's the key to growing deeply and steadily into the character of Jesus, repenting of our sins. 00:23:44.333 --> 00:23:49.333 Changing the word repent just means turn around, turn away from sin. Turn towards Christ. 00:23:49.333 --> 00:23:53.932 Just as real repentance begins, only where blame shifting ends. 00:23:53.932 --> 00:23:55.965 And by the way, you know what I'm talking about. 00:23:55.965 --> 00:23:58.932 Well, John, let me tell you why I didn't get to read my Bible. 00:23:58.932 --> 00:24:01.799 Well, let me tell you why this sin keeps coming up over and over again. 00:24:01.799 --> 00:24:05.133 And let me tell you, it's it's because of all these other pressures around me. 00:24:05.133 --> 00:24:07.133 It's because these other people keep pushing it on me. 00:24:07.133 --> 00:24:08.532 That's blame shifting. 00:24:09.833 --> 00:24:13.365 All the other reasons out there, all the other problems out there. 00:24:13.365 --> 00:24:14.266 That's blame shifting. 00:24:14.266 --> 00:24:17.266 We all do it, I do it, do. 00:24:19.232 --> 00:24:21.400 It happens. 00:24:21.400 --> 00:24:24.833 Repentance begins when blame shifting ends. 00:24:24.833 --> 00:24:32.566 It also begins when self-pity ends and we start to turn from our sin. 00:24:33.465 --> 00:24:34.865 And here's why. 00:24:34.865 --> 00:24:37.965 This isn't about I'm just going to be better and stronger myself. 00:24:37.965 --> 00:24:42.799 I'm going to turn from my sin out of a love for God rather than just self-interest. 00:24:42.799 --> 00:24:44.432 You see the power of that quote. 00:24:44.432 --> 00:24:51.165 You see the power of repentance in change and blowing life into the ember. 00:24:52.266 --> 00:24:54.732 Repentance is a powerful step towards that end. 00:24:54.732 --> 00:25:01.266 I love how many of our men have said, I want to change, and I know I can't do it alone. 00:25:01.266 --> 00:25:07.532 We've got a group of men, and how fitting is the the term when we're talking about blowing a flame into an ember. 00:25:07.532 --> 00:25:12.799 They're called fire teams, and they meet once a week and they get together. 00:25:12.799 --> 00:25:16.133 But here's what I love that they do every day. 00:25:16.266 --> 00:25:23.566 Whenever one of the men in their small group, 6 or 8 guys, whenever they get in the word, they just text to each other. 00:25:23.566 --> 00:25:25.833 I'm in. 00:25:25.833 --> 00:25:32.066 I mean, imagine getting that 6 or 8 times and you haven't gotten around to reading the Bible yet. I'm in. 00:25:32.066 --> 00:25:33.633 Before long, you're going to silence your phone. 00:25:33.633 --> 00:25:38.432 Leave me alone or you're going to get in the word. 00:25:38.766 --> 00:25:42.732 I'm in, I'm in, I'm in. 00:25:42.732 --> 00:25:45.165 Get in the word. 00:25:45.165 --> 00:25:49.566 The power of repentance says, yes, I messed up. 00:25:49.566 --> 00:25:52.566 I'm in. 00:25:54.066 --> 00:26:03.566 Now there is a warning here attached with this. Notice he says, if you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. 00:26:03.566 --> 00:26:09.965 This also would have been very meaningful to Sardis because Sardis, impenetrable, destroyed. 00:26:10.066 --> 00:26:13.000 In fact, they were destroyed again. 00:26:13.000 --> 00:26:18.432 And Sardis, by the way, was a city that was known not only for their power but also for their wealth. 00:26:18.432 --> 00:26:25.232 This would have been maybe, like modern day Switzerland, hard to penetrate, hard to conquer, very wealthy. 00:26:25.232 --> 00:26:28.266 The legend goes that King Midas, you remember the Midas touch. 00:26:28.266 --> 00:26:29.566 Have you heard of that? 00:26:29.566 --> 00:26:32.566 That whole myth, Greek myth of Midas. 00:26:32.566 --> 00:26:32.965 He. 00:26:32.965 --> 00:26:37.599 He asked for the gods to give him the power to turn anything to gold by touching it. 00:26:38.732 --> 00:26:46.266 But then once he touched the daughter whom he loved so much and she turned to gold, he no longer wanted that gift. 00:26:46.266 --> 00:26:48.200 He realized that gift had become a curse. 00:26:48.200 --> 00:26:52.232 And they said, go and wash in this river, and it'll take that away. 00:26:52.232 --> 00:27:00.965 And so the legend of the city of Sardis was that he washed in the river that flowed down to their city, and of course, that river was full of gold dust. 00:27:00.965 --> 00:27:05.465 They became one of the first cities to mint gold coins in ancient history. 00:27:05.865 --> 00:27:10.732 Very wealthy city, a city of wealth, prominence, strength. 00:27:10.732 --> 00:27:11.965 But they were destroyed. 00:27:11.965 --> 00:27:13.532 Then they encountered an earthquake. 00:27:13.532 --> 00:27:25.799 Most of the city slid off the hillside in the midst of this devastating earthquake, and they also didn't learn their lesson not to stand on reputation. 00:27:25.799 --> 00:27:26.365 They rebuilt. 00:27:26.365 --> 00:27:29.333 It wasn't as strong as before, but they started to get powerful again. 00:27:29.333 --> 00:27:31.200 They started to think, we're pretty good. 00:27:31.200 --> 00:27:32.665 We've had a great name in the past. 00:27:32.665 --> 00:27:34.266 We had a great reputation. 00:27:34.266 --> 00:27:41.432 And 300 years later in comes in another army and conquers them again because they let down their guard. 00:27:42.400 --> 00:27:44.965 The appearance of strength. 00:27:44.965 --> 00:27:48.732 And Jesus says to them, and it's the same thing we hear in a number of his parables. 00:27:48.732 --> 00:27:51.566 By the way, he said it in the parable of the Ten Virgins. 00:27:51.566 --> 00:27:59.432 Five had enough oil, five didn't, and they weren't ready when the groom came. 00:27:59.432 --> 00:28:04.032 And it said in that passage the same phrase, you do not know the hour I will come. 00:28:04.032 --> 00:28:08.465 Be ready, be watchful, be alert, be on guard, be looking. 00:28:11.732 --> 00:28:13.766 Lastly, look here at number five. 00:28:13.766 --> 00:28:20.333 How do we make sure that we keep fanning the flame, breathing life into a mostly dead, somewhat dead church? 00:28:20.333 --> 00:28:21.232 How do we do it? 00:28:21.232 --> 00:28:24.633 Number five find your reputation. 00:28:26.066 --> 00:28:28.932 Not in your name. 00:28:28.932 --> 00:28:31.932 In his name. 00:28:31.965 --> 00:28:35.200 Find your reputation in his name. 00:28:35.232 --> 00:28:41.665 Look back at verse four and five and again, remember the word name is the same word as reputation. 00:28:41.665 --> 00:28:47.833 In here it's translated as reputation in verse one, but it's the same word as the word name that we're going to see here in verse four. 00:28:47.833 --> 00:28:52.333 Yet you still have a few names in Sardis, you still have a few people. 00:28:52.333 --> 00:28:55.165 There are still people who have not soiled their garments. 00:28:55.165 --> 00:29:00.633 They will walk with me in white or in purity, for they are worthy. 00:29:01.865 --> 00:29:06.000 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments. 00:29:06.766 --> 00:29:11.165 And I will never blot out his name of the book of life. 00:29:11.165 --> 00:29:14.133 I will confess his name before my father and before his angels. 00:29:14.133 --> 00:29:16.133 What this is speaking to here. 00:29:16.133 --> 00:29:21.232 You may have heard us speak the phrase or talk about the concept of eternal security. 00:29:21.633 --> 00:29:25.799 If you are his, you can't not be his. 00:29:25.799 --> 00:29:28.066 You are his forever. 00:29:28.066 --> 00:29:31.066 You will walk with him. 00:29:31.732 --> 00:29:34.732 You will be clothed in him. 00:29:36.000 --> 00:29:41.400 How many here have in high school gone through ROTC? 00:29:41.400 --> 00:29:43.766 Anybody done that? 00:29:43.766 --> 00:29:49.599 I see not many hands, not many other brave hands. 00:29:50.266 --> 00:29:58.665 I did that my freshman year at Male, and I was going through ROTC, mainly to get out of the geography class. 00:29:58.665 --> 00:30:03.232 That was my main motivation, but it was really interesting. 00:30:03.232 --> 00:30:09.066 Our commanding officer was a retired colonel, very interesting guy. 00:30:09.066 --> 00:30:16.932 He would smoke his no filter Camels right there in class, you know, different age, different day a few years ago. 00:30:17.400 --> 00:30:22.799 And I think I really do think he liked me a lot because of how much attention he paid me. 00:30:22.799 --> 00:30:24.732 Mainly in the form of push ups, though. 00:30:24.732 --> 00:30:25.932 Was weird. 00:30:25.932 --> 00:30:29.266 I don't know, maybe he wanted to see me get in shape. 00:30:29.266 --> 00:30:30.432 He had this thing called the rock. 00:30:30.432 --> 00:30:32.266 You're supposed to put your feet up on it and do push ups. 00:30:32.266 --> 00:30:32.865 I got to do. 00:30:32.865 --> 00:30:41.932 I spent a lot of time around the rock, but I'll tell you what was interesting about him was I really did kind of like the military ethos. 00:30:41.932 --> 00:30:45.965 Before ROTC, my dad had been National Guard. 00:30:45.965 --> 00:30:47.400 He retired Major Majors. 00:30:47.400 --> 00:30:57.599 In fact, I often would come to church, church to school wearing the field coat, his old field coat. And I loved it. 00:30:57.599 --> 00:31:02.200 I loved the look of it, the feel of it, and I love that it had his name on it. 00:31:02.200 --> 00:31:02.932 Majors. 00:31:02.932 --> 00:31:06.165 And then it had his rank on the soldier on the shoulders. 00:31:06.165 --> 00:31:08.465 Major Majors, last name is Majors. 00:31:08.465 --> 00:31:10.066 He retired Major. 00:31:10.066 --> 00:31:10.665 I'm serious. 00:31:10.665 --> 00:31:11.532 That really did happen. 00:31:11.532 --> 00:31:13.066 Major Majors. And I loved that. 00:31:13.066 --> 00:31:14.633 I loved wearing that coat. 00:31:14.633 --> 00:31:17.833 I loved what it represented about his accomplishment and who he was. 00:31:18.799 --> 00:31:25.599 And so I'm wearing this to ROTC, and one day the colonel notices and he says, what are you wearing? 00:31:26.432 --> 00:31:28.432 Because obviously you can get rank. 00:31:28.432 --> 00:31:31.333 And I was not a major. 00:31:31.333 --> 00:31:33.365 I was a lowly private. 00:31:33.365 --> 00:31:35.232 What are you wearing? 00:31:35.232 --> 00:31:38.232 And I said, it's a field coat. 00:31:38.232 --> 00:31:42.032 He said, you do not wear that in here again with that rank on there. 00:31:42.032 --> 00:31:44.165 You take that off. 00:31:44.165 --> 00:31:48.200 And I thought, no way, I'm not changing this coat. 00:31:48.200 --> 00:31:49.599 And so I left. 00:31:49.599 --> 00:31:51.365 I thought, I'll ignore that guy came back again. 00:31:51.365 --> 00:31:57.833 He said, if I see you wear that again here with that rank on it, I'll rip it off myself. 00:31:58.000 --> 00:32:01.365 And I said to him, listen, let me tell you why I'm wearing this. 00:32:01.365 --> 00:32:03.066 I don't think I have that rank. 00:32:03.066 --> 00:32:04.766 I'm not wearing it because of me. 00:32:04.766 --> 00:32:07.365 I'm wearing it because it's my father's coat. 00:32:08.333 --> 00:32:11.232 I'm wearing it because I know that's his rank, not mine. 00:32:11.232 --> 00:32:13.766 And I love the name that he's passed on to me. 00:32:13.766 --> 00:32:14.532 Don't you see? 00:32:14.532 --> 00:32:17.032 I'm cloaking myself in who he is. 00:32:17.032 --> 00:32:20.833 Not so that I can try to pretend to be someone I'm not. 00:32:20.833 --> 00:32:25.865 But because of how deeply I appreciate his name that he gave to me. 00:32:26.932 --> 00:32:31.000 And the reputation that we want is not our name. 00:32:31.000 --> 00:32:33.766 We want the cloak around us. 00:32:33.766 --> 00:32:36.266 The white cloak. It's his cloak. 00:32:36.266 --> 00:32:39.266 He's wrapping us in his name. 00:32:39.766 --> 00:32:45.000 In fact, what that white garment refers to is the victory march. 00:32:45.266 --> 00:32:52.000 In ancient times, when the Romans would come in conquering a city, the leaders would come in in their white togas. 00:32:52.000 --> 00:32:57.165 Victory march! We're coming in the name of Jesus. 00:32:57.165 --> 00:33:00.965 Find your reputation in him, not in yourself. 00:33:00.965 --> 00:33:05.665 Wrap yourself in his name and watch him work. 00:33:05.665 --> 00:33:07.200 And here's what I want to do today. 00:33:07.200 --> 00:33:11.165 Because, as I shared earlier, I have such a deep burden for us around prayer. 00:33:13.532 --> 00:33:19.633 I think that's going to be the key to seeing the ember fanned into flame at our church. 00:33:19.633 --> 00:33:24.865 And so I’ve asked Isaac and the band to come up, and they're going to lead us in a song. 00:33:25.465 --> 00:33:32.066 And if you are in a place where you feel like, man, that ember, it is barely there. 00:33:32.066 --> 00:33:35.432 It is just a spark and maybe it's not you. Okay. 00:33:35.432 --> 00:33:39.066 Maybe it's someone in your family, maybe it's a loved one that you care for deeply. 00:33:39.066 --> 00:33:42.633 And you've seen that they've known Christ and they seem to be sliding away. 00:33:42.633 --> 00:33:45.232 There seems to be a darkening, a distancing. 00:33:45.232 --> 00:33:47.465 Or maybe it's just the church in general. 00:33:47.465 --> 00:33:54.532 Maybe you want to see God breathe life in a fresh way, Isaac’s going to lead us through this song. 00:33:54.532 --> 00:33:56.865 And all throughout this song, I just want you to pray. 00:33:56.865 --> 00:33:59.865 And if you feel led, come down front and pray. 00:33:59.865 --> 00:34:03.365 Be down here just praying over your issue, praying for the church. 00:34:03.365 --> 00:34:05.932 Drag someone else to pray up with you. 00:34:05.932 --> 00:34:10.065 But pray that we would see life in this church like never before. 00:34:10.065 --> 00:34:13.532 Life in yourself a hunger for God's Word like never before. 00:34:13.532 --> 00:34:15.833 Let's all stand and Isaac, would you lead us? 00:34:44.065 --> 00:34:49.800 And I'll make room for you. 00:34:51.266 --> 00:34:58.666 To do whatever you want to; do whatever you want to. 00:34:59.632 --> 00:35:06.599 And I will make room for you; Do. 00:35:06.599 --> 00:35:09.599 Do whatever you want to. 00:35:10.800 --> 00:35:13.800 Do everything you want to. 00:35:14.865 --> 00:35:20.599 And I will make room for you. 00:35:22.166 --> 00:35:29.333 Do whatever you want to, whatever you want to. 00:35:30.666 --> 00:35:36.233 I will make room for you. 00:35:38.000 --> 00:35:44.833 Do whatever you want to, do whatever you want to. 00:35:45.032 --> 00:36:02.333 Oh shake up the ground, shake up the ground of all my traditions; and all my religion, your way is better; your way is better. 00:36:02.666 --> 00:36:11.733 And shake up the ground of all my traditions Break down the walls of all my religion. 00:36:11.733 --> 00:36:17.800 Your way is better; Your way is better. 00:36:17.800 --> 00:36:21.065 Shake up the ground. 00:36:21.065 --> 00:36:33.965 Shake up the ground of all my traditions, break down the walls of all my religion, Your way is better; Your way is better. 00:36:36.032 --> 00:36:44.965 Shake up the ground of all my traditions; break up the walls of all my religion. 00:36:45.065 --> 00:36:48.065 Your way is better. 00:36:48.432 --> 00:36:51.632 Your way is better. 00:36:57.932 --> 00:37:00.932 All my religion. 00:37:04.000 --> 00:37:09.932 I will make room I will make room for you. 00:37:13.666 --> 00:37:20.833 To do whatever you want to; do whatever you want to. 00:37:22.333 --> 00:37:28.099 I will make room for you. 00:37:29.833 --> 00:37:36.532 Do whatever you want to; to do whatever you want to. 00:37:39.065 --> 00:37:45.233 All to Jesus I surrender. 00:37:48.565 --> 00:37:53.199 All to Him I freely give. 00:37:54.032 --> 00:38:08.532 I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence freely live. 00:38:11.099 --> 00:38:16.199 I surrender all. 00:38:19.032 --> 00:38:23.733 I surrender all. 00:38:24.800 --> 00:38:39.333 (All to thee) All to thee my blessed savior, I surrender all. 00:38:40.465 --> 00:38:49.932 (All to Jesus) All to Jesus I surrender. 00:38:52.266 --> 00:39:13.099 Make me, Savior, wholly Thine; Let Thy Holy Spirit fill me, Till I know that thou art mine. 00:39:14.432 --> 00:39:17.833 I surrender all. 00:39:32.199 --> 00:39:35.599 I surrender all. 00:39:36.565 --> 00:39:43.032 All to thee my blessed savior I surrender all. 00:39:47.733 --> 00:39:49.965 You're down front praying you can just continue to pray. 00:39:49.965 --> 00:39:52.065 I'm going to pray over our church. 00:39:54.632 --> 00:39:59.233 God help us to be the people who surrender all. 00:40:01.932 --> 00:40:06.233 May we walk in a state of dependence on you, of surrender. 00:40:07.400 --> 00:40:12.065 I think there's so much in this world that is calling us to worry about appearances. 00:40:12.065 --> 00:40:17.099 Make sure we appear to have it all together, even if we don't. 00:40:18.065 --> 00:40:35.000 God help us to wake up to who you are in all things every day, to submit our lives to you, to lean on one another, to walk in repentance, to find great joy in following your plan, not our own. 00:40:35.000 --> 00:40:39.333 Give us the courage to follow your word. 00:40:40.733 --> 00:40:45.432 I thank you for so many here who have walked faithfully with you. 00:40:45.432 --> 00:40:48.365 Just as in the church in Sardis, there are many among you. 00:40:48.365 --> 00:40:50.365 There are many names among you. 00:40:52.632 --> 00:40:53.166 I thank you. 00:40:53.166 --> 00:40:56.233 Even last week where we saw the Peercy 70 years married. 00:40:56.233 --> 00:40:59.233 Come down front. 00:41:00.333 --> 00:41:02.666 Thank you for the faithfulness of so many. 00:41:02.666 --> 00:41:04.766 Help us to continue to fight for faithfulness. 00:41:04.766 --> 00:41:07.266 Jesus, we love you. 00:41:07.266 --> 00:41:07.900 Amen.