The Way of Wisdom - Follow the Lord | Week 3

We delve into the timeless wisdom found in the story of Solomon. Solomon's life serves as a testament to the transformative power of seeking divine wisdom. As we reflect on his journey, we are reminded that wisdom is not merely an accumulation of human experiences or inherited knowledge but, rather, a profound impartation from God. The scriptural foundation in Proverbs 1:7 reinforces the idea that true knowledge begins with a heart that reveres the Lord, acknowledging His holiness.

Transitioning into Proverbs 4, we hear Solomon's counsel to his son, emphasizing the significance of heeding divine instruction and steering clear of the treacherous path of the wicked. Trust in the Lord becomes a recurring theme, echoing the wisdom found in Proverbs 3:5-6. This section of the service prompts us to introspect and recognize the need to entrust every facet of our lives to God, resisting the temptation to rely solely on our understanding. The teaching encourages us to continuously seek God's guidance, fostering intentional alignment with His plan to navigate life's complexities.

As we approach the conclusion of our time together, the service resonates with a heartfelt call to follow the Lord. The challenges of surrendering control are acknowledged, yet the promise of walking the narrow way that leads to life is highlighted. Drawing inspiration from the analogy of a compass or map, we are reminded to align ourselves with God's Word, serving as our spiritual guide and steering us away from alluring but destructive worldly paths. In this worship service, we embrace the transformative power of divine wisdom, trusting that by following the Lord, we embark on a journey filled with purpose, guidance, and eternal significance.

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Transcript

Pastor Jason Brown: 0:00

Who are you following? You know I was thinking about one of my favorite places on earth is Morocco, and it's a pretty amazing place If we were to travel from us to them today and to get to be transported there. We get to have that mixture of the Middle East warmth and food and some of that and a touch of Europe and kind of a mixture of those two things and it's a pretty amazing place, especially if you're to go to a place like Marrakesh, which is this market you see here, and almost any time of day this place is bustling, something's going on, and this is just the opening to a pretty meandering old town, medina. That's there in the city. And as we were in missions, we had got asked when we were living in Cairo to consider going and pastoring international churches here in Morocco, one of those places being Marrakesh, and so we had ministry in Casablanca, at the church there, and then drove up into the mountains to Marrakesh and had ministry there, a sweet time with brothers and sisters and at a time of prayer and worship together, encouragement with the word, and it was a powerful thing. And my friend Chris, who's pastoring the network of churches there in Morocco, he said, all right, man, I'm gonna take off, because it was my plan to stay the night and then to walk the city in the morning and to pray and to ask the Lord to give us wisdom whether or not we should say yes to this invitation. And so we did just that. He took off and went back with the team and I stayed overnight and so I woke up early in the morning and it just started to have my time with the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 1:24

And then I set out into the old town, into the square, and so, seeing that you start to walk through the things and it's bustling, there's people everywhere. It's the place that you see with like the snake, the guys have the snakes and they have all that kind of stuff. It's a place that you might get rolled up into a carpet and put in a truck. You know what I'm talking about. It's an Indiana Jones kind of place and, in a good place, a very cool place. But I just start praying and kind of walking and I'm you know I don't have a great ambition to go anywhere specifically, but I'm just kind of walking through and it's tall walls, you can't exactly see where you're going, and so you're kind of walking through and, you know, I duck into a store and maybe it would be the fine leather crafts they have there they're kind of known for that in that part of the world and every color and all sorts of style and really amazing. And so you spend some time in there and chatting with the store owner and my terrible French and terrible Arabic and trying to make my way through it. And then maybe I duck out of there and I'd head into like a some place I would sell like nuts and fruit and spice and all those kind of things and have that interaction with them and buy something there and then maybe duck into a place where they're selling lamps and lights and other stuff and have those moments, each one of those kind of being like its own adventure.

Pastor Jason Brown: 2:35

And after a while I was walking around and I realized I don't know where I am. And you know, as somebody who traveled the world pretty extensively, you know most of the time I knew where I was at and I was truly lost in the middle of this place. And so I start to be like, oh you know, I think I know where I'm going. So I start to kind of go and go and then I turn the corner. I'm like this guy looks familiar and this store I'm pretty sure I walked past this store. And so what do you do when you're lost? You go faster. And so I went faster down the corridors and turn left, turn right and all the different places and I turned back and I'm still lost, you know, and I wonder how often that we do the exact same thing in our lives, where we start meandering this way and that and we get caught up in one thing or another and before we know it we're lost.

Pastor Jason Brown: 3:34

And so, you know, I had a friend who told me a bit of advice and they said hey, if you get lost there in Marrakesh, what you need to do is you need to find this cafe, because it has an upstairs terrace where you can go and you can see where you are, so you know how to get back. So in my wanderings and my weavings all through the city, every which way I came across the sign for the cafe and I was like, ah, you know because at the time that's not how I handled my friend that gave me the wisdom right what I was like. I mean, like I'm gonna need the cafe really, all the cafe really. But I was so thankful that I found the cafe, and so I went upstairs and at the top of the stairs they had this amazing vista that you can see very clearly, the marker to the front of the market, which was a far off place. What was amazing about that is that then I knew how to get where I was going.

Pastor Jason Brown: 4:34

It was all about knowing which direction to go and how I could align myself with how to get there, and so I enjoyed an amazing Moroccan green tea and if you haven't had one of those, you definitely should, especially if you're done fasting and you have sugar now, because it's mostly sugar, but it's all the way amazing and they make it and it's so amazing and warm and just have a tea. And then I came down, and because I knew where I was going, it didn't matter if it went left or right, if it weaved this way or that way, because I knew where I was going now and I made my way out of the Medina, no problem. And so it brings us that question again about this idea of who are you following, because if you are just following your own paths, you'll go in circles and you won't go anywhere. That has an eternal value. But if you are following the way of wisdom, the way of the Lord, then you will find yourself with the things that you've been looking for. So my challenge to us today is to follow the Lord. Say it with me, follow the Lord. Today we're looking, as this series is the way of wisdom. It's an encouraging one because it's talking about the wisdom that comes from God. We're so glad that you're with us here at Cornerstone.

Pastor Jason Brown: 5:46

If we haven't met, my name is Jay Celeste and I get a chance to lead an amazing team here, and we're so blessed to be a part of what God is doing. I'm excited because it's one of those seasons for us where we get to expand beyond our weekend gatherings. We get to meet throughout the week, throughout the city and our life groups, and I encourage you that you would be a part of it. It's how we connect, grow and serve together. So get a chance to be a part of those life groups. Let it be a blessing to your life. Each one of us realizes that we are not perfect. We're far from it. We're broken people in need of a Savior. We are people that are following Jesus where he's leading us to go, and so we walk with him.

Pastor Jason Brown: 6:24

We use this imagery of walking with Jesus and the disciples walking together, the disciples following him, because that's who we are today, as we're following after Jesus. We want to be more like Jesus. Be more like Jesus, and that's our vision of who we're called to be. No matter where you are If it's in your workplace be more like Jesus at whatever your work is, or in your school, or in your family, or in your community. To be more like Jesus. That's why we do this together. We love God. We make disciples of each other, reach the world. It's our ambition to do these things collectively for the glory of God.

Pastor Jason Brown: 7:03

Now we've been talking about this way of wisdom and talking about how it comes to us and, as we look to the scripture, it's an impartation of wisdom from him. And that's been an amazing thing, because all this time we've been focused on prayer and fasting. How many people got to be a part of the prayer and fasting been doing for 21 days? Praise God? That's a lot of people. That's awesome. You know it's if you. If it was for you, how was it for you? Did you have some breakthrough where you were at Praise God? How many people was a fight? How many people was really easy. Don't raise your hand. We don't like you. No, we forgive you. No.

Pastor Jason Brown: 7:38

The idea is that 21 days of fasting is not twisting the arm of God to get what we want. Instead, it's quieting our hearts and seeking after more time with God, drawing close to him. Many times he'll challenge us on things, won't he? If we listen to him and that's what's been profound for me during this time is those times of prayer, that drawing close to him, that quiet time together. And because we're focused on prayer, because we're focused on who he is, he will make himself known to us. We've seen, and it's been a challenge for us, knowing that this year, that the battle is the Lord's. It's a word for us because we know, whenever we're taking on difficult things, that there's going to be a fight. It's not going to come easy, but if it's true and we align ourselves with God, we already know we're victorious, because the battle is the Lord's.

Pastor Jason Brown: 8:32

Now we've been looking to Solomon as an example of wisdom, solomon himself. He took over the reins from his father, david, and he became the king over Israel and Judah and, as a result, he was someone who the Lord was anointing him and as because he had a heart after God and because he worshiped the Lord with all that he did, the Lord came to him and asked him what he wanted. Now, that's a pretty amazing thing, because the Lord drew near to him and he said Lord, I have a great, I have this great people that you've called me to govern. I need your wisdom. And so God gives him an impartation of wisdom that is not from his experience, not from David's wisdom poured into him, all those things being true, but compounded on that is the wisdom that comes from the divine, the wisdom that comes from God. And, as a result, that's where we see and pick up.

Pastor Jason Brown: 9:22

In Proverbs one, verse seven, it says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. For us, we understand that wisdom comes from the fear of the Lord, and it's not in a way like oh, I'm afraid that that God is going to smite me or destroy me, but instead a reverence, for he is a holy God, our creator, god, the God who sits outside of time and space and knows all the days of our life, and because of it we have a reverence for him and we put him in the correct place. We continue. Last week, and we talked about the trust in the Lord, we said trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths. We were called to be those that trust in the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 10:15

Today, we look again to scripture. I'm going to ask you to turn in your Bible, your tablet, your phone, to Proverbs four, as we continue with the way of wisdom, thinking of verse 10,. It says hear my son and accept my words that the years of your life may be many. I have taught you the way of wisdom. I have led you in the paths of uprightness. When you walk, your step will not be hampered and if you run, you will not stumble. Keep hold of instruction. Do not let go. Guard her, for she is your life. Do not enter the path of the wicked and do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not go on it. Turn away from it and pass on. We are called to follow the Lord. Say it with me follow the Lord. Lord, we just pray over your word. Today. We ask, holy Spirit, that you would spark it alive in our hearts and breathe upon it, make it transformative, that we would apply it and be made more into your image. We pray this in the powerful name of Jesus Christ. Amen. The way of wisdom.

Pastor Jason Brown: 11:29

We pick up here with Proverbs four, in that first piece of 10 through 11. And it's someone who is, solomon, talking here and imparting in the same way wisdom for those who would govern after him, his son. And so he's saying in the same way listen to what I have to say for you, that you would have a long life, in the same way that I'm experiencing the same, because of the blessing of God, I've taught you the way of wisdom, I've led you in the paths of uprightness. Now, that's what we want for all of our kids, for all of our grandkids, for everyone that we have influence over, that they would have that kind of life. We want them to be blessed, we want them to be guided, we want them to follow the way of wisdom and not destruction. Now, that's what we want.

Pastor Jason Brown: 12:10

We want this path that's spelled out in front of us, because man following a path that's already laid out in front of us is amazing. Isn't that true? Aren't you thankful for that? We see this like this idea of a meandering path that goes up a Mount Hill. And hey, man, that's the kind of same thing that we want, is like that kind of way you ever tried to make your own way in the wilderness?

Pastor Jason Brown: 12:27

I mean, it's a fun adventure for a little bit, right, you're like oh man, I'm out here, I'm making my way through it, I'm trailblazing, right, what's the problem with that? You suddenly got a stick in your back and in your leg and in the other places. You don't want to have a stick. And you got spikes and you got bugs and you got all sorts of things going on. And you're like I didn't want this kind of adventure.

Pastor Jason Brown: 12:48

And he's like, really, because you were making your own path a minute ago and see, that's the same kind of thing is that we want? Not that we don't want the hardship and difficulty and things like that for our kids, we don't want that for ourselves. And what we want is we want the nice garden path. Right, we want the ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Right, like we walk through, it's all nice, we can stop and smell the roses. Ah, it's so nice. Do we get that very often? No, it's not like this at all. You know, it's not laid out in front of you this way.

Pastor Jason Brown: 13:21

In fact, there are many obstacles along the way, along the path, and so that's why he's talking about is it's more than just that the path will be unencumbered by problems, but instead, if you align with the principle that is there, then you will see that these things will make a way through even the difficult times. And so that's what we start to look at. Is we start to understand that if we do these things and align ourselves with him, then we'll understand that we will have the kind of results that we're looking for, because we need to follow the Lord. Say it with me Follow the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 13:55

You know, as we're looking and thinking about that, we start to look at maps, and when we start to look at maps, we understand that it's hard to navigate when you're looking at a map, if you don't know which way is the correct way up, which way is pointing north, which way is pointing east, which way is pointing west, how do you get there? And so, for some of us, the thing that we really need most is a compass that gives us the right bearing of how things are. It tells us which way is north. It tells us how to align on the map and how to follow it going forward. It's that compass that gives us the wisdom of which direction is which. Now, nowadays, you have that same thing on an app in your phone, in your pocket, and you can actually turn on your compass and see it go, because most of them have a magnetism, something there. And so, as you have that compass piece, you start to see where it looks back and forth and it shows you this way or that. And it's so pivotal because most of us nowadays we don't even have to think about north, south, east and west, whereas back in the day, before we had electronics in our pocket, you had to know how to read a map. You had to know which way was north, which way was east.

Pastor Jason Brown: 15:09

How many people like you try to give that direction? It's not shame on the younger generation. They just don't have this. You try to give them direction. It's on the east side of the building. They're like which side is it? Is that the left side? Like friend, you will go left forever in a circle. No, it's not on the left, it's on the east side. None of you guys? Ok, great, I mean, it's one of these things where it's like man. If you understand this, then it will help you align yourself with the instructions that you're getting. You have the right set north. So if in our lives, we're aligning ourselves with the word of God as our north, as our focus, then all the other things we navigate, we know how to get there and it'll keep us on course, won't it? No, I don't know how many times you think about that, but it's like man. If you don't do that, if you don't understand what those things are, then we get out of sync, we get out of whack and we can't follow the way he's called us to walk.

Pastor Jason Brown: 16:12

It picks up here and it says in verse 14, do not enter the path of the wicked. Do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not go on it, turn away from it and pass on. Now this sounds easy, but so often the way of the wicked is wide, it is glitzy, it is glamory, it has all sorts of lights saying come over here, this is super fun. And in small legalese print, it's also the way of destruction. But we don't see that because we're like, yeah, this is great, we're running over towards the destruction because it looks shiny and new and like a good time and it might be for a little bit, and then there's destruction because it's not the way of God and it is hollowness and it doesn't go to anywhere eternal and we get caught up in somewhere that is not God. We get caught up in something that's temporal and it's might be a cool experience, but it's so empty. Does that make sense? It says, if you're wandering around in a Medina and get caught up in this store forever, or in this store forever, and it becomes a problem because you never get to your destination, which is living a life after God, heaven forbid you have to go around the Medina or around the market one more time. What if it's a mountain? You're going around one more time.

Pastor Jason Brown: 17:33

We think about this and how we need to align our lives with God, because we need to be those that see Him as the focus, the way of wisdom from Him, as the way that shows us the right direction to go, and so often, just like this map that we see behind me, we just put in the directions and the computer tells us where to go we stop knowing how to read a map for ourselves and, honestly, that's one of the things I just put in the directions and it just told me to go there. You ever put in the directions and it took you the wrong place. And you're like, why didn't I check it? I don't know, why didn't you? And our culture will actually try to drift you away to other places and not take you to your destination. It'll take you some other place that it wants you to go.

Pastor Jason Brown: 18:18

And how many times are you start arguing with the very thing that you told you to give directions to? What stupid thing? Why did it put me in traffic? I don't know. Why did you tell it? To tell you just to go there? And we think about that so often because it's not the way of God. We're just trying to tell it to go wherever and we start following it blindly, without paying attention to where we're going.

Pastor Jason Brown: 18:43

How many times have you heard about people driving into a lake or driving into a building because they were following their GPS? It's all turned left into destruction. You're like I'm turning left, here we go, and they just go right into it. And you're like, were you not paying attention? No, they weren't. They were on autopilot.

Pastor Jason Brown: 19:03

And see, friends, that's what I'm talking about is that we need to be those that are following the Lord. We can't be on autopilot in this culture that wants to bring us to destruction. We have to be intentional in where we're going and whenever we set that destination and pay attention to how we're doing it. Then we will stay on the path that God has for us. We'll stay the way of wisdom. We'll follow the Lord. Say it with me Follow the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 19:31

We pick up here and it goes back to last week, talking about problems 3, 5, and 6, one of my favorite pieces of scripture Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. And all your ways acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths. We'll slow it down a little bit. It's trust in the Lord. How much of your heart, all of your heart. And how much of your ways, all of your ways.

Pastor Jason Brown: 19:57

And see, this is the thing that we get out of sorts is that we think that if we do some of our heart in some of our ways, that we'll get the kind of blessings or the direction that we're looking for, and that's not how it works. That's as if you're trying to fight him for the controls on your life the whole time and not expecting turbulence. Now, if you walked into a cockpit and tried to fight the pilot for the controls on something, one, you get kicked out, thankfully. And two, if you were already on your journey, then you wouldn't land where you were supposed to land because you're fighting for the control. And then we wonder how we end up in destruction or how we end up in problems or we end up over here. It's because we were fighting him for control the whole time. And see, we understand this. It's people, it's the way of human nature. Is that we want what we want? That's it. But that way is the way of destruction. That we would align ourselves with the truth. That is God, the way of Him. It says in Proverbs 421, for a man's ways are before the eyes of the Lord, and he ponders all his paths.

Pastor Jason Brown: 21:16

Whenever we're starting to think about how to make a decision, you start to try to weigh all these things that would have an impact, and so we start to really mull over. You know, what should I do here, what should I do there? Some of us might do a SWAT analysis of what's our strengths, our weaknesses, our opportunities, our threats, and how should I do this and that and the other thing? And I do that, we do that, but at the same time, one of the things that we've learned to do is to, before we, before we make the big decision, is to fast and pray and ask God for His insight Before the decision, before the decision. I'm gonna say it again, so maybe you get it this time Before the big decision. The reason is because that way I don't have to come after it and go be like but God, will you please bless the decision I made without asking you, god, will you help me out of the results that I'm now blaming on you, even though you told me not to do this?

Pastor Jason Brown: 22:20

Nobody likes this part of the sermon, even me, because it's real, because we don't want to ask for His decision, because he might tell us no, or he might tell us something that makes us uncomfortable, or he might tell us something that would make us sacrifice or stretch, even though it's the thing you rather have for you. It's the blessing he wants for you, it's the end he has for you. We don't sometimes want to give over control, but if we align with all our heart, with all we have, he will guide us. He will make straight our paths. Follow the Lord, say it with me, follow the Lord. We look here again to scripture and we start to talk about how it looks. Here. The psalm says in Psalm 25, make me to know your ways, o Lord. Teach me your paths, lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation, for I will wait all the day long. What they're looking for is instruction.

Pastor Jason Brown: 23:29

If we were to go on a journey and plan out this big journey across the map, then we would want to have some understanding of how we're going to get there, and maybe some insight from someone that's been there before, or some kind of knowledge of how we get around. That's the thing we want. It's like an ancient map making, where someone would start and they would be all about the details so they get it correctly. So when they pass on the information, it's correct. That's the same thing that we want from the Lord. That's why we align ourselves with the Word of God, the plan that he has for us, the map that he has for us. He gives us wisdom in the form of His word and he says hey, align yourself with this. This is the way to go. Now, here's the problem.

Pastor Jason Brown: 24:12

We also have our version of what we want to do, and it's nice and I made it and it's color coordinated according to what I want to do. Anybody or maybe that's not your style, it's just shoved together as a big pile of papers in a ball. Does that communicate to some of you better? But nonetheless, that's the one we want to follow after. We don't want to do this other one. We want to do our version. And he's saying listen, the way of wisdom. I already have a map for you laid out. This is what I've already given for you to do.

Pastor Jason Brown: 24:46

If you're willing to let go of this thing that doesn't really exist, cause it's not really eternal, if you let go of it, you will find yourself aligned with me and the things I have for you. It's so much bigger in the direction that you have for your own life. See, that's what we want. We want direction that comes from wisdom. We want direction that comes from God. We want Him to say Lord, I want to hear from you when should I go? How should I do this? He will let you know if you ask Him. It says those who lack wisdom, let them ask from the Lord. He will give you direction, he will give you wisdom. Follow the Lord, say it with me, follow the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 25:36

In Psalm 119, 105, it's one of the most famous pieces of scripture. It's here it says your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. And I love this piece of scripture. It resonates with me that the word of God is. It illuminates my heart and life and if I follow it, it will guide me and give me insight and clarity in front of me. We've talked about how the word and the power and the presence of God, it's a light in front of us. And so many times if we're not living with that light, then that's why we walk in darkness, that's why we fall down, that's why we get misled different places. But if we walk with the light of God, then he's guiding us where to go.

Pastor Jason Brown: 26:15

Now I'm someone that sometimes I actually want to sprint in the direction that God is leading me in, sometimes right past the light, where he's showing me where to go. You ever done that. You ever got ahead of where God wants to go and see, he's like at a certain pace, he's like I'm over here, I'm guiding you. I'm like God, but I wanna just go. Can you give me a halogen light where I can just see like a long way in front, where I don't have to rely on you and I can just go do it myself? He's like that's not how it works. I'm walking with you in this process. Maybe I need to guide you over here. I'm running straight. He's like there's a cliff here. We're gonna take a right. Let's come over here.

Pastor Jason Brown: 26:56

And if I'm not listening to him, if I'm not seeking his guidance, then I'm not seeking the wisdom of the Lord. Then I wonder why I've fallen to darkness or I've fallen to destruction because I need to be actively seeking him. Does that make sense? Whenever we understand this, we start to apply it. We have to stay applying it. It's not like we can apply it once and think it works. We have to be following him, asking for guidance. We need to follow the Lord. Say it with me follow the Lord. I love this.

Pastor Jason Brown: 27:29

The psalm that says in Psalm 139, I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works. My soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance in your book. In your book were written every one of them, the days that were formed for me. As yet, there were none of them.

Pastor Jason Brown: 27:56

See, here's what God knows about you. He knows you before you took your first breath, before you were formed together. He knows you and he values you. Maybe you have someone say over your life how you are not worth anything, or that you're a mistake, or that you're broken or you'll never amount to anything. That is not how God sees you. God sees you with value. He sees you with purpose and a plan for your life, a guidance in front of you. That's how he views you. He does not view you the way that mankind would try to view you. He says that you are valuable and he loves you very, very much.

Pastor Jason Brown: 28:31

We think about all these decisions and all the intricacies of that. We think about the way we think and how we make those decisions. All the intricacies are just the synapses of how we decide. And it's amazing because we have this God who loves us and he has a plan and a purpose for us before we were born, but he still gives us decisions. It's this tension that we live in. See, he can make us just do what he says to do, but there's no decision in that. And so he gives us decisions, and so often, if we're not aligned with him or we're not walking with him in guidance, then we get off track.

Pastor Jason Brown: 29:07

Man, one of my deep thinkers her name is Shiloh she comes to me right before she's supposed to go to bed and she has deep questions, and I love this. So she'll be like um and I'm like here comes a good question, I'll put my phone down. And a good question we were talking about this last week was about this very thing, about destiny for people. Do you think there's an absolute destiny for someone? And I said, babe, it says in scripture.

Pastor Jason Brown: 29:29

It talks about how God has plans and purposes for us. He does have an ultimate plan that he wants you to fulfill. That's exactly what he has for you. However, he also gives us choice, and along that way, we can choose to align ourselves or not, align ourselves with that plan for that destiny, and so he has to, by his spirit, correct us and bring us back to the path, and as we're guided by him, the closer to the path we stay and the ultimate goal becomes into shape because we're going the way he's asked us to go. But whenever we do our own plan, then we're essentially telling God that your plan's not good enough. I'm gonna do my own thing and we end up in our own results. And so that's the tension by where we live this faith in this life.

Pastor Jason Brown: 30:13

And so he does have a plan and a purpose for you. He does want good things for you better than the plans you have for you. He won't forsake you. He'll be with you. It doesn't mean it's gonna be all easy, there's gonna be difficult places, but it says that he will stick by you. He's a good shepherd, he looks out for us, he's with us in the valley of the shadow of death. He's with us, he guides us, he protects us and he brings us out to good pastures where we find rest. See, friends, it's an adventure, this land, this walk with Christ, trusting him and guiding with him. It means we have to abandon our ambition and our plans and hand them over to him and trust him. And when we align ourselves with him, we will find that we align ourselves with the destiny that he has for us, one better than one he has for ourselves.

Pastor Jason Brown: 31:07

We need to be those that seek impartation from God. It's not about just Lord. I need some information. No, I need your spirit to guide me. I need to know your heart. Speak to me, give me your wisdom, give me your guidance, give me your direction, help me with my decision making. I want to know you more and as I press into him, as I follow the Lord, see what happens in my life. Follow the Lord, say it with me, follow the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 31:42

We go here to the last bit of scripture Proverbs 16, 17,. 18 says the highway of the upright turns aside from evil. Whoever guards his way preserves his life. Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall. See how these things are tied together. Talking about how the way of destruction is tied to pride, because I know better than God and we see how those things are tied together where destruction is, when I think I can do better than him, than destruction comes. It continues in verse 25. It says there's a way that seems right to a man but in its end is the way to death.

Pastor Jason Brown: 32:24

Friends, we're called to be those that live after wisdom, divine wisdom that comes from God. Jesus says it like this in Matthew 7, enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy. That leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many, for the gate is narrow in, the way is hard. That leads to life and those who find it are few. The reason it's difficult, the reason it's hard, the reason that Jesus shares it with us like this, is because he knows it means it's a struggle between letting go of the controls and giving it over to God. And that's the hardest fight Because if we can do that, then the way, the narrow way, is the way of God. It's an easier way for us, but it's that first fight. It's that everyday fight of letting him have control of our life, of trusting the Lord, asking for guidance, giving direction from God, not from ourselves. When we do these things, we will find the way of wisdom because we're following the Lord. Follow the Lord. Say it with me Follow the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 33:33

Today we come to this altar and we ask this question where your wisdom comes from? Who are you following? And that's our challenge to follow the Lord, To not seek our own wisdom on something, but to seek his wisdom. That's the opportunity we have to respond today is that we come and we just make a place with God, asking for his wisdom, asking for his impartation from more of his spirits, so we can live this way successfully. Maybe you're here and you've never had a relationship with God. This is the very first thing that I have an opportunity to respond. Today is your opportunity to respond to that question.

Pastor Jason Brown: 34:09

Have you embraced Jesus, see? Each one of us has to make a decision that can't be anyone else for you Can't be a parent or a sibling, or a neighbor or a friend. It's a question that you have to wrestle with, that you have to answer. Have you embraced Jesus? See, for us, ones that have already made the decision, we made that decision and we say that we believe Jesus is who he says he is. We believe that he came, that he's the Son of God and he came and emptied himself of all glory to take on the sin of the world.

Pastor Jason Brown: 34:43

When he did that, he became the sacrifice for all people, for all time. He took on my mistakes, my sin. He took that on himself. He took on yours. He paid for it once and for all with his life upon the cross, and when he did that, he made a way for us to be reconnected back to God, back to the Father of the relationship. He bridged the gap. We can't earn our way into the presence of a holy God. That's what the fear of God is about. It's understanding that I can never earn my way in. It's only by accepting what Christ did for me, the grace of God that he did for us. It's the only way that I can be back in that relationship.

Pastor Jason Brown: 35:30

And so those of us who have made that decision to follow Jesus. That's what it means to be a Christ follower that we accept it. When he's done on our behalf, the apostle Paul, he writes to the church in Rome and he says it like this Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, he will be saved. For what the heart one believes and is justified with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Friends, today is your day to make a decision to follow Jesus. Today is the day to make a decision to follow. I'm going to ask you here in the room if you just stand, just bow your head right where you are at. If you're on line, just prepare your heart for what God wants you to do. If you're here, you're ready to make a decision to follow Jesus to a vitamin, to your heart and life, Maybe for the very first time. Maybe you've made that decision before in the past, but you haven't been living for him. You need to re-come in your life, back to that. But that's you.

Pastor Jason Brown: 36:48

These heads are bowed here in the room. If you just raise your hand right where you are, say pastor, you should include me in that prayer today, I just want to raise my hand by Christ into my heart and life. Thank you, Lord, Thank you. These people are making a decision today. They're taking it. Friends, it's such a powerful decision to follow Jesus, to abide him into your heart and life. I'm going to invite you, if you would, if everyone would understand my voice and we could just pray this prayer together. It's inviting Christ into a relationship and into our heart and life. If you follow after me, it says Lord, thank you for loving me and thank you for sending Jesus. I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins.

Pastor Jason Brown: 37:40

I believe he rose again, forgive me of my sins. I surrender my life to you In Christ's name. I pray Amen. Friends, we rejoice to you making a decision to follow Jesus today. What a powerful thing.

Pastor Jason Brown: 38:02

We're going to come to this altar. I'm going to ask if that was you and you made a decision to follow Christ today. If you just come right down here and meet with me, I want to connect with you. If you're online, if you just message us, we want to connect with you. We'll be able to follow up with you and make a decision to follow Jesus. We're going to open up this altar to all of us today.

Pastor Jason Brown: 38:17

And if you're someone who needs wisdom, you need insight, you need guidance from the Lord.

Pastor Jason Brown: 38:21

Maybe it's for the season, maybe it's for the thing that you're in the middle of, or maybe for something coming up, a big decision ahead, but we would come and seek more of God, seek impartation from Him.

Pastor Jason Brown: 38:31

Or maybe you just have to end of this fast and you just want more of the spirit of God that you had stepped forward and let's just make an altar with God here today, to draw close to Him and experience His blessing.

Pastor Jason Brown: 38:42

Lord, we thank you so much for your word today we thank you, lord, for the word of wisdom, lord, in the way of wisdom, of living after you. Lord, we thank you for your impartation, lord, for how you bless us by your spirit, lord, to live the way. That is according to you, lord, that we align our lives. With you, lord, we seek you first with everything and because of it, lord, all these things come into alignment. Lord, we ask for your wisdom today, your guidance today, lord, your insight today, lord, that you would give us illumination on the things that we're supposed to do and the paths we're supposed to take, the decisions we're supposed to make, god, that you would come down and that we would experience your presence, we would experience a touch from you, lord, that, in any way that someone needs a touch from God, that they would experience more of the living God. Today, lord, in all these ways, we follow the Lord. We pray this in the powerful name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Pastor Celeste Brown: 39:35

We are so excited that you came and we are just looking forward to what God is going to do now that we have completed our corporate fast this year in 2024. Today, as you exit the building, you are going to see some tables set up out in the terrace area. We have life groups signups today and there's something for you. There's more than one thing for you, I'm sure, but I would love for you to go out there, just connect to those that are leading those groups, ask questions, see what's available for this season of life groups. We're also offering a grief group and it's going to be amazing and you may have questions. You may kind of want to understand what it is about.

Pastor Celeste Brown: 40:10

They're going to have a very quick meeting. That's going to be to the east side of the building, along this hallway. There's a conference room. Just head in there. They're going to meet real quickly and there's going to be some information on that group. But we're excited, we're praying that you just join a group and just begin to get fed and just begin to grow with other believers. Amen.

Pastor Jason Brown: 40:32

Before we go. I pray this blessing with us today. Lord, bless you and keep you. Lord, make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. Lord, lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Lord, I pray a blessing upon your true and true people. God, you would empower us by your spirit to live your love unto those around us. I pray all this in the powerful name that is Jesus Christ. Amen, amen. Know this we love you very much here at Cornerstone. God bless you and have a great week.