WEBVTT 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:05.599 Our current series called Pastor's Choice. 00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:07.919 And uh, you know, I'm reminded of something. 00:00:08.080 --> 00:00:10.400 And I don't know, did you get the bobbleheads? 00:00:10.480 --> 00:00:12.240 Could you tell which bobblehead was my? 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:21.039 I'm reminded of something uh the apostle Paul told the Ephesian elders when he uh left left to go on to Rome. 00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:27.359 And uh he said, I have not hesitated to proclaim anything to you that would be helpful. 00:00:27.600 --> 00:00:29.920 And uh that's really the spirit of these messages. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:39.439 You know, whether it's something that we've that comes from our personal life and experience, or maybe something we found and looked at in scriptures, and it's really just resonated with us. 00:00:39.520 --> 00:00:42.479 Uh, this is kind of what we're doing these messages for. 00:00:42.560 --> 00:00:45.280 And we hope all this is helpful for you as well. 00:00:45.520 --> 00:00:49.439 So let's turn to um God's word this morning. 00:00:49.600 --> 00:00:50.880 I'll give our full attention to it. 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:52.960 And I'm gonna, I'm sorry, I know you were standing. 00:00:53.039 --> 00:00:57.439 I'm gonna ask you to stand back up and let's read uh the scripture this morning. 00:00:57.520 --> 00:01:00.719 It's John chapter 2, verses 1 through 12. 00:01:00.880 --> 00:01:02.960 John 2, 1 through 12. 00:01:03.119 --> 00:01:09.680 And it says there, on the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:13.760 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 00:01:13.920 --> 00:01:19.120 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, They have no wine. 00:01:19.519 --> 00:01:23.599 And Jesus said to her, Woman, What does this have to do with me? 00:01:23.920 --> 00:01:25.840 My hour has not yet come. 00:01:26.480 --> 00:01:29.760 His mother said to the servants, Do whatever he tells you. 00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:37.519 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:40.879 Jesus said to the servants, Fill the jars with water. 00:01:41.040 --> 00:01:43.280 And they filled them up to the brim. 00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:48.159 And he said to them, Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast. 00:01:48.400 --> 00:01:49.519 So they took it. 00:01:49.760 --> 00:01:58.159 When the master of the feast tasted the water, now become wine, and did not know where it came from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. 00:01:58.400 --> 00:02:07.599 The master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:11.039 But you have kept the good wine until now. 00:02:11.680 --> 00:02:21.680 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory, and his disciples believed in him. 00:02:22.080 --> 00:02:24.560 Father, we give you praise and glory today. 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:30.159 We ask you, Holy Spirit, to guide us into these things, these truths that are found in your word. 00:02:30.560 --> 00:02:33.919 Lord, transform us and make us more like you. 00:02:34.319 --> 00:02:36.080 We pray and plea today. 00:02:36.319 --> 00:02:38.080 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:02:38.240 --> 00:02:39.520 You can be seated. 00:02:40.479 --> 00:02:45.680 So we see here Jesus and his disciples, along with his mother, are invited to a wedding. 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:49.599 And, you know, weddings in that day were different than our day. 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:57.199 They were multi-day events, and they would have had plenty of food, drink, and lots of joy and laughter and celebration. 00:02:57.360 --> 00:03:00.639 And so we see this is uh something very special. 00:03:00.879 --> 00:03:04.240 And uh Jesus is invited to this situation. 00:03:04.400 --> 00:03:12.639 Let me just say what is uh really wise if you were thinking of getting married, invite Jesus to your wedding. 00:03:13.039 --> 00:03:14.080 That's so important. 00:03:14.319 --> 00:03:16.319 Jesus changes everything. 00:03:16.560 --> 00:03:20.240 And here we see Jesus coming to this wedding, but there was a major problem that occurred. 00:03:20.400 --> 00:03:21.360 We see it here. 00:03:21.520 --> 00:03:23.120 They had run out of wine. 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:24.879 They had run out of wine. 00:03:25.120 --> 00:03:42.080 And uh this was uh this would have been uh considered a real crisis at this wedding because it was not only a social mistake they hadn't planned for the people and they ran out of the celebration uh food and the drink, but it would have been a personal embarrassment to this young couple. 00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:44.319 And I think Jesus took note of that. 00:03:44.479 --> 00:03:50.800 So Mary, when the wine runs out, Mary approaches Jesus and uh, of course she tells him the problem. 00:03:50.960 --> 00:03:51.759 It's pretty short. 00:03:51.840 --> 00:03:54.080 She says, They have no one, no wine. 00:03:54.319 --> 00:03:55.759 And I don't know how she said that. 00:03:55.840 --> 00:03:58.960 Maybe she said it in kind of whispering, they have no wine. 00:03:59.439 --> 00:04:03.039 But she's obviously expecting Jesus to do something. 00:04:03.199 --> 00:04:04.400 Now you have to think about this. 00:04:04.560 --> 00:04:06.960 Jesus up to this point had done no miracle. 00:04:07.199 --> 00:04:07.759 None. 00:04:08.000 --> 00:04:17.839 Now we have stories of uh the uh apocryphal stories of the gospel that are not true gospel that tell of Jesus doing miracles as a little boy. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:24.000 Well, that's that can't be true because verse 11 here tells us that this was Jesus' very first miracle. 00:04:24.160 --> 00:04:31.120 And so this is something that she wants Jesus to do, but I'm not sure if she really expected a miracle or what. 00:04:31.360 --> 00:04:33.759 Uh but remember, uh, this is so important. 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:37.519 He doesn't agree, though, to fix the problem in the moment. 00:04:38.079 --> 00:04:42.079 And um Mary, I think, just knew that Jesus would do the right thing. 00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:44.800 She'd she he had been in her home all our life. 00:04:45.040 --> 00:04:57.600 Joseph apparently is not in the picture, and so Jesus probably was being the oldest, was probably taking care of lots of problems in the home, and she knew that everything he did, he always did well and always could be trusted. 00:04:57.839 --> 00:05:10.079 And so uh she tells him and she goes to this uh group of people who are called the servants, and he she tells them, Whatever he tells you to do, do it. 00:05:10.399 --> 00:05:12.560 Whatever he tells you to do, do it. 00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:17.439 And I think she just knew that whatever they did, whatever Jesus did, it would be the right thing. 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:19.360 It would be the right thing to do. 00:05:19.600 --> 00:05:20.879 And uh we see the problem. 00:05:21.040 --> 00:05:22.240 It's solved by what? 00:05:22.399 --> 00:05:25.360 Jesus turned water into wine. 00:05:25.680 --> 00:05:30.639 And there's more to that story that I than I can actually take time to tell you. 00:05:30.800 --> 00:05:32.560 Chapter two is just full of great truths. 00:05:32.639 --> 00:05:38.959 And what John does typically in this gospel is give you the historical narrative that we read here. 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:44.240 But below the surface, there's always deeper truths that he's trying to hit around at. 00:05:44.319 --> 00:05:49.920 And I wish I could spend more time, but I do want to focus on this uh the words in verse five. 00:05:50.079 --> 00:05:50.959 Listen to them again. 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:55.759 He says, Whatever he says to you, do it. 00:05:55.920 --> 00:05:57.199 That's our word for today. 00:05:57.279 --> 00:06:02.399 And I think we've kind of heard some things from the people this morning that might hit around at that. 00:06:02.560 --> 00:06:07.199 But this simple principle of obedience is so important for us as believers. 00:06:07.279 --> 00:06:13.600 It's the essential difference between uh what we would say as ordinary and extraordinary. 00:06:13.759 --> 00:06:24.480 It's the difference between a normal Christian life, which is full of all the things that Jesus wants to do, and a nominal Christian life, which has none of the of the glory that we're wanting to see as Christians. 00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:32.160 And here's the real bottom line of the simple principle that comes out of this in such a practical lesson, I think important for all of us. 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:37.680 When we say yes to Jesus, we open the door to spiritual transformation. 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:43.360 When we say yes to Jesus, we open the door to spiritual transformation. 00:06:43.600 --> 00:06:59.120 And see, here's the thing: we can so easily miss the supernatural work of the Spirit because what he desires to do is great things, but we can miss it because we simply fail to follow through on what he's told us. 00:06:59.360 --> 00:07:01.279 And so it sort of goes over our head. 00:07:01.439 --> 00:07:04.720 We often settle for water instead of wine. 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:14.160 And God wants to do something extraordinary in our life, and very often, for whatever reason, we miss what he wants to do, the supernatural thing. 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:16.720 You see, yes changes everything. 00:07:16.879 --> 00:07:18.879 And that's the title of the message this morning. 00:07:19.040 --> 00:07:20.879 Yes changes everything. 00:07:21.759 --> 00:07:24.000 As believers, how does that happen? 00:07:24.160 --> 00:07:38.160 We're called to live by the Spirit, and the Spirit brings us and draws us into the things of Christ, and he wants to uh get us to follow God's commands, to lead us into the truth and follow through with what Jesus has asked us to do. 00:07:38.319 --> 00:07:46.000 And so the Holy Spirit will lead us, if we'll let him, into uh really wonderful things, uh a life of great adventure. 00:07:46.480 --> 00:07:48.959 If we'll just let him, if we'll just say yes. 00:07:49.120 --> 00:07:51.680 So let's dive into this and reflect on these words. 00:07:51.920 --> 00:07:54.800 Whatever he says to you, do it. 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:57.040 Whatever he says to you, do it. 00:07:57.120 --> 00:07:59.360 And the first thing concerns our attitude. 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:02.399 Our attitude is our willness to say yes. 00:08:02.560 --> 00:08:03.920 It's to it's whatever. 00:08:04.000 --> 00:08:06.800 And you can say whatever in two different ways, can't you? 00:08:06.879 --> 00:08:09.439 It's like you hear somebody say, ah, whatever. 00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:12.319 Do you think they really mean whatever? 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:17.680 Or you can say it in a way that's positive and it's like, Lord, I'll do whatever you tell me to do. 00:08:17.839 --> 00:08:19.439 There's two different perspectives there. 00:08:19.519 --> 00:08:21.600 That's a positive way and the negative way. 00:08:21.839 --> 00:08:24.000 And uh I just thought about this. 00:08:24.160 --> 00:08:26.480 What are some of the reasons we say no to God? 00:08:27.759 --> 00:08:29.920 When God speaks to us, what are some of the reasons? 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:31.839 Let me just kind of give you a few of these. 00:08:32.000 --> 00:08:43.360 Uh one of those is fear, fear of failure or rejection, where we think uh we're told maybe to use our gifts, and we sit and we we we just sit down and don't do it, don't use our gifts. 00:08:43.440 --> 00:08:49.919 You know, they say uh 80% of the work is done by 20% of the church. 00:08:50.240 --> 00:08:53.679 So a lot of times we we have people who are just not using the gifts. 00:08:53.840 --> 00:09:00.000 God has you has gifted us to be able to do great things that help build up the body of Christ. 00:09:00.159 --> 00:09:03.519 Here's another one selfishness and pride. 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:11.039 God tells us, for example, to maybe forgive someone that we're holding a grudge against. 00:09:11.279 --> 00:09:21.679 And instead of forgiving them and responding to what Christ is telling us to do, we hold on to that grudge and that bitterness and our relationships sour and it affects everybody around us. 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:23.360 Selfishness. 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:29.600 Sometimes we avoid inconvenience, or maybe because it's just too much work. 00:09:29.759 --> 00:09:31.360 Do you remember what it said in the story? 00:09:31.519 --> 00:09:37.200 It said the the servants were told to fill the jars or the pots with water. 00:09:37.360 --> 00:09:44.159 And uh some people have estimated that's got to be between 110 and 100 and and 200 something gallons. 00:09:44.240 --> 00:09:47.919 That would have taken a lot of work to get done, a lot of time. 00:09:48.080 --> 00:09:49.279 But yet they did it. 00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:54.960 And uh, but sometimes God asks us to do things, and we're just like, mmm, that's too hard. 00:09:55.200 --> 00:09:56.720 That's just too much work. 00:09:56.879 --> 00:09:59.679 And so that can be a reason we say no to God. 00:09:59.919 --> 00:10:08.559 Um, sometimes we can we can also reject divine instruction or would uh a reason being that we we just don't understand God's will. 00:10:08.639 --> 00:10:13.360 And so we think, well, this is what God wants, and we're gonna do it irregardless of what God says. 00:10:13.600 --> 00:10:15.279 We need to find out in the scripture. 00:10:15.440 --> 00:10:16.639 This is the will of the Lord. 00:10:16.799 --> 00:10:22.559 Sometimes that is true, especially in the area of just being morally pure. 00:10:22.799 --> 00:10:39.039 And we we we just reject outright what God's word says in Scripture, and we refuse to maybe get get out of a relationship that we need to be in, or to change our value system to be to live it out like Christ uh talks about in Scripture. 00:10:39.279 --> 00:10:41.759 And so we can ignore the the Holy Spirit. 00:10:41.840 --> 00:10:47.120 He can tug on our heart and he does that, or we can run responsible from responsibility. 00:10:47.360 --> 00:10:55.519 You think even the even the people who are the most godly, someone said this morning, kind of the most godly people uh can run from God and say no. 00:10:55.679 --> 00:10:57.360 We think about Jonah, right? 00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:01.919 He was called by God to do something, and yet he ran away from God, or Jeremiah. 00:11:02.399 --> 00:11:08.240 Both of those prophets didn't want to do and fulfill the prophetic calls. 00:11:09.279 --> 00:11:18.720 So you see, the problem with no is uh it keeps us from experiencing the best things God has to offer. 00:11:20.480 --> 00:11:22.960 Things that God wants to do in our life. 00:11:23.279 --> 00:11:26.320 And we might not ever know it until we say yes. 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:30.159 We may well miss God's very best. 00:11:30.799 --> 00:11:40.399 You know, a few years ago, I heard a story about a South African evangelist, and uh he was well known all over the world. 00:11:40.639 --> 00:11:50.240 And uh at that time he was asked, he felt like God was asking him to send out a little pamphlet with the gospel contained in it. 00:11:50.480 --> 00:11:56.240 And he felt like God wanted him to send it to America, to every single household. 00:11:57.039 --> 00:12:01.759 And uh he was so busy, he's he kind of had a conversation arguing with the Lord back and forth. 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:04.000 He's saying, Lord, I don't have time, I'm busy. 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:06.639 Can't you just ask someone else to do this? 00:12:07.600 --> 00:12:09.120 Just ask somebody else. 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:12.720 And he felt like the Lord said, You're not the first person I ask. 00:12:15.360 --> 00:12:23.519 We actually got one of those pamphlets that he said that he he sent out, and uh he actually did fulfill what God had asked him to do. 00:12:23.759 --> 00:12:28.720 And uh so this is so important to uh to move into the things of this Holy Spirit. 00:12:28.879 --> 00:12:34.720 We have to say yes to Jesus in every little thing, not just the big things. 00:12:35.039 --> 00:12:36.480 See, here's the truth. 00:12:36.639 --> 00:12:41.919 Extraordinary opportunities come as a result from just simple obedience. 00:12:42.240 --> 00:12:43.919 Simple obedience. 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:48.639 Um we see an example of that in the New Testament in Acts chapter 8. 00:12:48.879 --> 00:12:50.399 We may have heard the name Philip. 00:12:50.559 --> 00:12:53.759 Philip was an evangelist and he was in the early church. 00:12:54.000 --> 00:13:04.639 And uh Philip was called by God and asked by an angel to go down into the desert and to uh the direct the angel directed him to go from where he was in Jerusalem to Gaza. 00:13:04.799 --> 00:13:06.240 Everybody's heard of Gaza. 00:13:06.399 --> 00:13:15.600 Yeah, so he encounters this Ethiopian eunuch down there, and uh he was an official under Queen Candace of the Ethiopians. 00:13:15.840 --> 00:13:21.120 And the scripture, when you read it, here's what it says about Philip's decision to say yes. 00:13:21.279 --> 00:13:25.840 It says, Then the Spirit said to Philip, Go over and join this chariot. 00:13:26.320 --> 00:13:31.039 So Philip ran up to it and heard the man reading the prophet Isaiah. 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:34.159 He asked him, Do you understand what you're reading? 00:13:34.399 --> 00:13:38.720 The man replied, How in the world can I unless someone guides me? 00:13:39.039 --> 00:13:47.360 So Philip started speaking and began with the scripture, verse 35, says he proclaimed the good news about Jesus to him. 00:13:47.759 --> 00:13:54.240 So that would never have happened unless Philip was paying attention to what the Spirit was saying to him, and he said, Yes. 00:13:54.480 --> 00:13:55.679 He said, Yes. 00:13:56.320 --> 00:13:58.960 And I've had that happen in my own life. 00:13:59.200 --> 00:14:05.919 Uh I probably told the story before, but I remember one year, a few years ago, we were on a trip. 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:13.759 And one of the things I prayed to God before I left was, God, would you allow me to share my faith with someone on this trip? 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:19.919 And I kept praying and praying and praying the whole way, all the way through our time on this trip. 00:14:20.000 --> 00:14:22.960 It was like a week or two weeks, and there was nothing. 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:25.360 And I'm thinking, what's wrong? 00:14:25.679 --> 00:14:32.159 Till the very last day, we came into this little shop right before we were, had a little bit of time before we left. 00:14:32.240 --> 00:14:35.519 We came into this shop just to kind of mill around and look at things. 00:14:35.759 --> 00:14:42.879 And uh, as I was over on one of the side aisles, I saw I heard two men just chat, chatting it up over in this aisle on the side. 00:14:43.120 --> 00:14:47.919 And uh they were talking about uh religion and how you know there were so many religions. 00:14:48.000 --> 00:14:49.200 How do you pick the right one? 00:14:49.360 --> 00:14:55.759 And they have studied some of these, and then one of the guys says, I wish someone would tell me how to find God. 00:14:58.399 --> 00:15:01.600 I thought, okay, I got it. 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:04.639 So I went over and actually shared my faith this to me. 00:15:04.720 --> 00:15:08.960 I don't know whatever happened, but this is how God wants to work. 00:15:09.279 --> 00:15:14.720 If we just make ourselves available, make ourselves say yes when we sometimes don't feel like it. 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:19.360 So these things can still happen if we're obedient. 00:15:20.080 --> 00:15:26.320 Um let me just talk a minute about how we think of obedience. 00:15:26.639 --> 00:15:29.039 And there's two or three things here I want us to say. 00:15:29.200 --> 00:15:34.879 Thinking about our obedience to Christ, there should be an urgency to it. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:47.120 Whether it's a divine command, maybe it's uh it's a word about you need to repent over the sin that you're involved in or you're still, you know, living in, or maybe it's a warning that you that you've been given. 00:15:47.279 --> 00:15:55.279 It's like, how many of us maybe have just kind of had a sense sometimes that we shouldn't be somewhere that we were in, that there was some danger in it? 00:15:55.519 --> 00:15:58.879 The Holy Spirit will give you those kinds of things if you're listening. 00:15:59.120 --> 00:16:02.240 So here's the thing delayed obedience is disobedience. 00:16:03.840 --> 00:16:05.919 So it should be an urgency about it. 00:16:06.080 --> 00:16:13.759 The second thing is that our obedience to Christ should have nothing left unfinished, should be complete. 00:16:13.919 --> 00:16:19.840 Everything that God requires, that he desires to do in us, guess what he does that for? 00:16:19.919 --> 00:16:23.440 He wants to trust us so he can use us in greater ways. 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:30.080 So we need to be faithful to all that he's asked of us, to complete it to the full and not leave anything undone. 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:35.120 And sometimes we just kind of get it in our minds, it's like, well, that little thing doesn't matter. 00:16:35.440 --> 00:16:43.840 Tyler, you talked about a message last week, I think it was about uh Saul, who had left some things undone. 00:16:44.000 --> 00:16:48.399 And so God does care about the things we think don't matter because he sees it all. 00:16:48.720 --> 00:16:52.000 So here we even see it in this in this uh story. 00:16:52.159 --> 00:17:02.960 You did you notice what it said when he said fill the the jars, he said, fill the jars, and it said they filled them up to the brim, to the very top. 00:17:03.279 --> 00:17:06.640 It's a word about complete obedience. 00:17:07.039 --> 00:17:09.119 So complete, urgent. 00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:13.920 And then the third thing is we should live a lifestyle of continual obedience. 00:17:14.319 --> 00:17:19.200 Times when we get tired of doing what God says and we just kind of lay down and get lazy. 00:17:19.680 --> 00:17:22.240 And but we're not to let things go, folks. 00:17:22.319 --> 00:17:27.599 We're not to to quit because we just don't want to do something anymore that God asks us to do. 00:17:27.759 --> 00:17:29.680 We we think God is ignoring it. 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:31.119 It's not He's not. 00:17:32.160 --> 00:17:33.200 He doesn't. 00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:41.039 The Bible says, so whatever or whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. 00:17:42.319 --> 00:17:43.119 Think about that. 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:47.359 So here, our attitude, I just think of it like this. 00:17:47.599 --> 00:17:51.119 You want to soar with God, our attitude determines our altitude. 00:17:52.160 --> 00:18:01.119 If we desire to operate in the things of the Spirit, we must obey quickly, we must obey completely, and we must obey continually. 00:18:01.440 --> 00:18:03.359 Do you think of obedience like that? 00:18:03.599 --> 00:18:05.039 It's all encompassing. 00:18:05.119 --> 00:18:16.160 But then when we do, God takes notice, I think, more than any other time because he knows that we're willing to do what he's asked, and he's gonna bring us into some wonderful things if we'll let him. 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:26.000 Some of you may be thinking, maybe by right now, that sounds uh this sounds a little legalistic, or maybe, maybe it lacks some grace. 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:31.200 But uh, let me tell you, our yes to God is not born out of duty, folks. 00:18:31.279 --> 00:18:32.720 It's born out of love. 00:18:32.960 --> 00:18:37.599 And we're that kind of leads us into the next thought, the the love language of heaven. 00:18:37.920 --> 00:18:44.400 Because he goes on from saying, whatever he says to do, do it, to whatever he says. 00:18:45.119 --> 00:18:49.039 Whatever he says, and it focuses on the why. 00:18:49.279 --> 00:18:50.640 What's the motivation here? 00:18:50.799 --> 00:18:55.759 I think there's a couple of things that we need to think about in terms of why do we obey Christ. 00:18:55.920 --> 00:19:08.319 Number one is that because he's Lord, just simply because he's God, it matters to know that we know who it is that's speaking to us. 00:19:08.559 --> 00:19:12.319 And there's all kinds of voices, like Derek said, distractions today. 00:19:12.480 --> 00:19:19.440 All kinds of voices speaking to us, but there's only one voice that matters, and it's the Lord of glory. 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:24.240 And so we think about this, there are then different levels of authority, right? 00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:31.200 Some levels of authority are down here, some are way up here, and then there's God who's way, way up here. 00:19:31.359 --> 00:19:37.440 You know, telling my granddaughter no is a whole lot different than telling the God of the universe no, right? 00:19:37.920 --> 00:19:43.279 I don't actually tell my, I let my wife tell my granddaughter no, but that's beside the point. 00:19:44.720 --> 00:19:52.000 Here's what Jesus said Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say? 00:19:53.440 --> 00:19:53.839 Whoa. 00:19:55.359 --> 00:19:59.200 Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say? 00:19:59.920 --> 00:20:12.079 That idea, that term Lord, is a term that signifies authority and a sort of reverential fear, a good kind of fear of the God who's in control. 00:20:12.559 --> 00:20:14.079 A reverential fear of God. 00:20:14.160 --> 00:20:24.000 And so there's this critical connection that we have to make between our profession of faith, boy, I love you, Lord, and our walk. 00:20:24.240 --> 00:20:32.160 If we don't have a clear idea, you see, on who the Lord of our life is, we're gonna be miserable as Christians. 00:20:33.599 --> 00:20:35.119 We'll struggle. 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:38.720 And so we have to make sure we understand why do we obey? 00:20:38.880 --> 00:20:39.759 Because he's Lord. 00:20:39.920 --> 00:20:50.799 Hebrews 7 and 8, uh 7-8 says, as the Holy Spirit says, today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion on the day of testing in the wilderness. 00:20:50.960 --> 00:20:53.119 Don't have a hard heart toward God. 00:20:54.319 --> 00:21:08.640 Hebrews 12, 25 says, See that you do not refuse him who is speaking, for if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will be we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 00:21:08.799 --> 00:21:15.039 He's talking about the Old Testament folks who just didn't listen to God and lived in unbelief. 00:21:15.200 --> 00:21:19.039 And he's talking about us, the people who are his church. 00:21:19.359 --> 00:21:22.319 He says, pay attention to their example. 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:25.039 He said, if you hear his voice, don't ignore it. 00:21:25.359 --> 00:21:30.880 See, when the word of God comes to us, we sometimes ignore it, we refuse it. 00:21:31.119 --> 00:21:34.000 Maybe we uh sometimes even rebel against it. 00:21:34.160 --> 00:21:35.359 I don't like that. 00:21:36.160 --> 00:21:40.000 You ever had a time when you when you've read a scripture and you go, boy, I don't like that. 00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:43.039 I wish that wasn't in the Bible. 00:21:43.359 --> 00:21:46.880 But what what happens when when we s we say no to God? 00:21:47.119 --> 00:21:49.279 We grieve and quench the Spirit of God. 00:21:52.400 --> 00:21:59.839 And the Holy Spirit really just shuts down because and and waiting, I believe, until we say yes. 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:15.839 And so here's one of the things that I do is I regularly ask myself, is there anything in my life that I that I'm aware of that Jesus or has the Holy Spirit has has asked me to do that I'm not doing? 00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:18.720 And usually I find more than one thing. 00:22:18.960 --> 00:22:22.720 And this we need to do regularly because God's always speaking. 00:22:23.039 --> 00:22:24.480 Are we listening? 00:22:24.880 --> 00:22:34.240 So another more reason that I think is another reason it's it's important that we say yes to God, the why is simply this is for the love of God. 00:22:34.799 --> 00:22:35.680 For the love of God. 00:22:35.839 --> 00:22:39.759 This is about our fellowship, it's about our intimacy with the Lord. 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:48.640 And he actually, Jesus gives us something that's that's really this motivating factor is why do you do what you do when you when I tell you to do something? 00:22:49.279 --> 00:22:51.039 It's not out of duty. 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:52.559 That's drudgery. 00:22:52.799 --> 00:22:57.200 And if that's the way you live in the Christian life, boy, what a miserable Christian life that is. 00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:59.680 We do it for love, for love. 00:23:00.079 --> 00:23:08.720 And uh so Jesus says this in John 14, he says, Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me. 00:23:08.880 --> 00:23:15.519 And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him. 00:23:16.079 --> 00:23:23.680 Judas, not Isariot, said to him, Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world? 00:23:23.920 --> 00:23:26.319 And Jesus answered him, Listen to this. 00:23:26.480 --> 00:23:30.319 If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. 00:23:30.960 --> 00:23:36.559 And my father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:46.160 Whoever does not love me does not keep my word, words, and the word that you hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me. 00:23:46.400 --> 00:23:51.279 See, the proof of our love for Jesus is that we just simply obey him. 00:23:51.519 --> 00:23:53.039 That's what Jesus just said. 00:23:53.119 --> 00:23:55.119 So we need to pay attention to that. 00:23:55.359 --> 00:24:01.759 When we say, uh, yeah, I believe Jesus, what he said, the best response is yes, Lord. 00:24:02.160 --> 00:24:03.440 Yes, Lord. 00:24:04.240 --> 00:24:06.720 Water then turns to wine for us. 00:24:07.200 --> 00:24:08.799 Jesus Himself promised it. 00:24:08.880 --> 00:24:10.480 Look at this verse again. 00:24:12.480 --> 00:24:13.519 What does he promise? 00:24:13.680 --> 00:24:16.960 He says, We will be loved by God, God the Godhead. 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:19.440 And I think this is in the most practical ways. 00:24:19.599 --> 00:24:21.119 You say, Well, I know God loves me. 00:24:21.279 --> 00:24:22.880 No, I'm talking about something different. 00:24:23.039 --> 00:24:32.240 I'm talking about God doing something in your everyday experience that go, you kind of go, Wow, that was wow. 00:24:32.720 --> 00:24:36.799 God just did something for me, and it was like that helped me so much. 00:24:36.880 --> 00:24:41.119 And it communicated love to me, and you know it's something God did. 00:24:41.839 --> 00:24:47.759 He wants to do that for us because he does love us, but we have to give him room to do it, right? 00:24:48.000 --> 00:24:57.920 So we'll be loved by God, and Jesus said also God will manifest, or it just means reveal or show himself to you. 00:24:58.799 --> 00:25:05.599 Doesn't mean visibly, but in some form or fashion, Jesus is going to let you know he is there. 00:25:07.599 --> 00:25:08.640 Do we want that? 00:25:08.880 --> 00:25:10.000 I think we do. 00:25:11.200 --> 00:25:13.839 Do you want to see Jesus like you've never seen him before? 00:25:14.000 --> 00:25:17.759 This is the root of the path to it, saying yes to everything. 00:25:18.000 --> 00:25:24.240 Then the third thing in that promise is he says, God will be so comfortable with us that he'll do what? 00:25:24.400 --> 00:25:26.880 He'll settle down and make his home with us. 00:25:27.279 --> 00:25:30.720 You say, well, I already had that happen when I became a Christian. 00:25:30.880 --> 00:25:32.240 Well, that happened when you were a Christian. 00:25:32.319 --> 00:25:38.319 He, the Holy Spirit came to live inside of you, but I believe this is more, this is different. 00:25:38.480 --> 00:25:47.839 It I believe moves us beyond just that nominal Christian life to an extraordinary Christian life. 00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:56.319 Because what happens is it includes a deep, abiding, loving, joyous fellowship that we cannot know in any other way. 00:25:58.160 --> 00:26:00.480 And it comes by true obedience. 00:26:01.359 --> 00:26:07.359 Here's the thing, you see, the presence of the Holy Spirit is directly tied to our yes. 00:26:10.319 --> 00:26:14.880 The presence of the Spirit is directly tied to your yes. 00:26:16.559 --> 00:26:17.599 Jesus said this. 00:26:17.759 --> 00:26:25.039 He said in Matthew 22, you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. 00:26:26.000 --> 00:26:28.720 This is the first and greatest commandment. 00:26:29.279 --> 00:26:32.640 A second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself. 00:26:33.839 --> 00:26:40.960 And then he says, the entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments. 00:26:41.119 --> 00:26:43.759 In other words, all the law hangs on these two things. 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:44.799 What two things? 00:26:44.960 --> 00:26:45.680 The priorities. 00:26:45.839 --> 00:26:47.920 Love God, love people. 00:26:48.400 --> 00:26:50.480 Love God, love people. 00:26:50.640 --> 00:26:52.640 And here's the way we kind of live this out. 00:26:52.720 --> 00:26:59.519 If we're thinking, always thinking about what in this in terms of our obedience is about what God is against. 00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:03.839 Boy, that's that's not the right way to think. 00:27:04.000 --> 00:27:19.359 We can we can be so overwhelmed and discouraged, and we may even think, well, you know, we may come up with some legalistic way to make sure that we don't break the rules that we have in our mind and our heart, maybe that we've been bound up with. 00:27:19.519 --> 00:27:24.240 It's kind of like the old saying, we don't dance, we don't chew, and we don't go with them that do. 00:27:24.559 --> 00:27:25.200 Right? 00:27:26.160 --> 00:27:30.319 Um, you're gonna be miserable. 00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:35.440 Jesus gives us a new way by the Spirit. 00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:44.960 You know, I once uh I once pastored a church, um, very first Sunday, I came in, and right there in the front as you walked in was a plaque. 00:27:46.160 --> 00:27:50.720 And it was a list of the the five things that we don't do. 00:27:52.079 --> 00:27:54.319 The plaque didn't stay around there very long. 00:27:54.400 --> 00:27:56.160 I won't tell you who removed it. 00:27:56.880 --> 00:28:03.759 But uh listen, if you're God didn't create us to live against, he created us to live for. 00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:08.880 And this is where he wants us to get to. 00:28:09.839 --> 00:28:18.400 And what Jesus does here by this verse in Matthew 22 is that he wants us to get us to focus on these two priorities: love God, love people. 00:28:18.960 --> 00:28:20.480 So there is a different way. 00:28:20.720 --> 00:28:22.720 And you're not miserable by it. 00:28:23.839 --> 00:28:27.440 When you live by the Spirit, the Spirit, with the Spirit of the Lord, is what? 00:28:27.599 --> 00:28:28.640 There's freedom. 00:28:28.880 --> 00:28:29.599 Freedom. 00:28:29.759 --> 00:28:33.599 And we can live in absolute freedom when we live this way. 00:28:34.079 --> 00:28:35.039 Here's what Paul says. 00:28:35.279 --> 00:28:36.720 He says I like this, and it's clear. 00:28:36.880 --> 00:28:50.240 Matthew, I mean, Romans 7, it says in verse 6, as Paul tells us here in Romans, we, but now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. 00:28:51.039 --> 00:28:57.759 Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit. 00:28:58.240 --> 00:29:01.920 And so when you live that way, it's simple. 00:29:02.160 --> 00:29:07.200 Love God and love people and all these other things that you don't are not supposed to do. 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:11.359 They'll take care of themselves, but then there'll be freedom for you. 00:29:11.519 --> 00:29:13.599 And this is how God wants us to live. 00:29:13.759 --> 00:29:18.720 So, well, let's look at a third thought here from verse 5, and that's sort of the how. 00:29:19.200 --> 00:29:21.279 The what, the why, the how. 00:29:21.440 --> 00:29:23.359 So, how do you hear the voice of God? 00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:27.519 We're talking about, you know, you can't say yes if you don't hear anyone, right? 00:29:27.680 --> 00:29:30.799 If you don't hear a voice, the voice, hearing his voice. 00:29:31.039 --> 00:29:35.119 And he says, whatever he says to you, do you hear? 00:29:35.359 --> 00:29:37.279 Do you hear the voice of God? 00:29:38.160 --> 00:29:42.720 Jesus said, My sheep hear my voice. 00:29:43.440 --> 00:29:44.960 So there's a few things here. 00:29:45.119 --> 00:29:47.599 You say, Well, I don't hear. 00:29:47.839 --> 00:29:50.799 Well, the first thing is that you have to be a sheep. 00:29:51.279 --> 00:29:53.279 You have to be born again. 00:29:53.599 --> 00:29:57.599 And when you're born again, Jesus said you'll hear his voice. 00:29:57.759 --> 00:30:00.640 So there may be some here today that just you don't hear God. 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:02.720 Well, trust Christ. 00:30:03.519 --> 00:30:09.759 You'll receive the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit will begin at work in you to begin to let you hear the voice of God. 00:30:10.319 --> 00:30:24.079 Another thing along the lines of what we've been talking about here is to consider whether you're really willing, are you really willing to say yes to the thing that you're holding on to that you've been saying no to. 00:30:24.960 --> 00:30:28.799 That will hinder you from hearing the voice of God. 00:30:30.960 --> 00:30:35.359 Then beyond that, we have to, I think, just cultivate this as believers. 00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:36.799 We have to cultivate it. 00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:41.440 We have to develop our spiritual ears to hear what the Spirit is saying. 00:30:41.599 --> 00:30:44.720 You hear the scripture through through the New Testament. 00:30:45.119 --> 00:30:49.119 What the Spirit says to the churches, for example, let them hear. 00:30:49.920 --> 00:30:56.319 The Spirit is speaking, and he's hoping our ears are open, I believe. 00:30:56.480 --> 00:31:00.880 So let me give you three basic principles then uh in learning to hear God's voice. 00:31:00.960 --> 00:31:08.319 And these are just these are just personal things that I felt like I had learned over the years that have meant a lot to me that have helped me. 00:31:08.480 --> 00:31:13.119 Uh, the first one is what I call the immersion principle, the immersion principle. 00:31:13.279 --> 00:31:15.920 So immerse yourself in the scriptures. 00:31:16.559 --> 00:31:24.000 The Holy Spirit will consistently and preferably use the word of God that we have hidden in his heart. 00:31:24.240 --> 00:31:31.920 So the more that you're in the scriptures, this is the choice method, I believe, that the Holy Spirit wants to use. 00:31:32.079 --> 00:31:37.359 It doesn't mean he can't say something to you in another way, but it never will be outside of the scriptures. 00:31:37.599 --> 00:31:40.240 Jesus, when he was tempted in the wilderness, guess what? 00:31:40.400 --> 00:31:42.400 What did he say to come back to the enemy? 00:31:42.640 --> 00:31:43.359 It is written. 00:31:43.519 --> 00:31:44.079 It is written. 00:31:44.240 --> 00:31:45.759 Who is bringing these things to mind? 00:31:45.839 --> 00:31:52.400 I believe it's the Spirit of God, bringing back to memory, as he will with us, his word. 00:31:53.119 --> 00:31:55.200 And you will be surprised. 00:31:57.039 --> 00:32:06.640 If you have immersed yourself in the scriptures, you've studied it, you've memorized it, you've meditated on it, you've maybe even taught it to someone else. 00:32:06.960 --> 00:32:10.319 The Holy Spirit will bring that back to your remembrance. 00:32:10.480 --> 00:32:12.319