SPEAKER_00: All right, let's pray.
SPEAKER_00: Lord, thank you for today.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you for a chance to be together.
SPEAKER_00: It's a joy to get together with the fellas and spend some time in your word.
SPEAKER_00: So I pray today that you will teach us and guide us in your word today.
SPEAKER_00: As we are praying as a church family, Father, I pray that you're really bringing us together, and I pray that you're impacting these guys' prayer times and our church's prayer times.
SPEAKER_00: And I pray, Father, that you'll really reveal yourself to us during this time.
SPEAKER_00: It's just a great time for us as a church to be praying and seeking your face.
SPEAKER_00: Guide us today.
SPEAKER_00: Thank you for our meal for the great folks that fixed it for us.
SPEAKER_00: We're so appreciative of them.
SPEAKER_00: Ask your blessings on them.
SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name we pray.
SPEAKER_00: And everybody said, Amen.
SPEAKER_00: Well, it was kind of interesting last week.
SPEAKER_00: You know, I did that little experiment I told you about, and then the week kind of came apart with the whole Charlie Kirk thing and all that.
SPEAKER_00: Those were not related, but it was just kind of an interesting time.
SPEAKER_00: And I think it has the other conversation has revealed how important it is that we learn to think about those things properly as a church.
SPEAKER_00: So just a thought in that.
SPEAKER_00: And uh, we had a prayer time at our church on Sunday.
SPEAKER_00: I'm sure many of you did, a lot of pastors do.
SPEAKER_00: It's just a time for us to be praying as God's people in our culture, and we're not going to really talk about that, but we're just it's just important, I think, to acknowledge the time that we're in and for God's people to really see this as a time of prayer and to be praying.
SPEAKER_00: And uh since we're doing that, I thought today I would I would go into our brewing scripture prayer book again this week.
SPEAKER_00: Um this week we are praying for God's um how you pray for God's guidance and um how you pray for his direction in a circumstance.
SPEAKER_00: And I think that's there a lot of ways that's a very significant timing because in a time like this uh it hits people.
SPEAKER_00: They're asking, what does this mean?
SPEAKER_00: And why do we do that?
SPEAKER_00: And and on social media, there's been all kinds of things about uh how people were going, especially young people, going back to church for the first time in a long time because of what's going on in society.
SPEAKER_00: So it's a great time for us to be talking about what our relationship with Jesus looks like and how you pray through that relationship.
SPEAKER_00: Uh people are seeking direction and they're trying to find answers.
SPEAKER_00: And the great thing about uh the promises of prayer in Scripture is that God promises us answers when we ask.
SPEAKER_00: I mean, how many times does Jesus just straight up say, uh, you pray in my name and I'll answer that prayer?
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh multiple times Jesus says that in Scripture.
SPEAKER_00: Uh our staff went to a uh pastor's conference yesterday at Cross Church.
SPEAKER_00: It was a great day, us thinking through pastor things, being challenged, being equipped, being encouraged.
SPEAKER_00: It was good.
SPEAKER_00: And uh and there was a there was a point in there where Nick Floyd was preaching, and the passage was in Mark 9 where the guy brings his son to Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: He you'll know the story if you've been in church.
SPEAKER_00: Guy brings his son to Jesus, he's been demon-possessed most of his life, and he just asked Jesus, is there anything you can do?
SPEAKER_00: I mean, can you help us?
SPEAKER_00: And his disciples had been unable to cast out the demon, and that's where Jesus says, things like this you can only do through prayer and fasting.
SPEAKER_00: That's where that spiritual power comes.
SPEAKER_00: But he also says, the guy says, Can you do something?
SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, Don't you know who you're asking?
SPEAKER_00: With faith, all things are possible.
SPEAKER_00: And Nick said what I think was a great thing.
SPEAKER_00: He said, you know, now that we got all the commentary writers and all that kind of nonsense out of the way, he said, let's just let it say what it says.
SPEAKER_00: Jesus says, with faith, all things are possible.
SPEAKER_00: And that's literally what he said, and that's literally what it means.
SPEAKER_00: And how often do we take that at face value?
SPEAKER_00: With God, all things are possible.
SPEAKER_00: And when Jesus says, whatever you ask in my name will be done for you, he says he answers prayer.
SPEAKER_00: Let's get all the things trying to make it mean something else or water it down, and let's just go with what Jesus said.
SPEAKER_00: Whatever you ask in my name, I'll do it.
SPEAKER_00: And so if He says He will answer prayer, then let's pray like we believe He'll answer prayer.
SPEAKER_00: And so one of those things, one of those areas of prayer is exactly what we're talking about this week, and that is God's direction and guidance.
SPEAKER_00: And so we preached about that some on Sunday, and so what I wanted to do is take today's brew thing and just walk you through that and just follow up on that on that prayer time uh for a few minutes.
SPEAKER_00: Again, if you're not with our church, we use the word, which is great.
SPEAKER_00: We're glad you're here.
SPEAKER_00: We love sort of celebrating everybody.
SPEAKER_00: Um, but this is a book that we're using.
SPEAKER_00: We're using this method of brew.
SPEAKER_00: I've talked about in here before.
SPEAKER_00: You guys are familiar with that if you've been here, and it's just a way to meditate on scripture.
SPEAKER_00: It's just a little methodology that sort of walks us through how to meditate on scripture.
SPEAKER_00: Believe God has something to say to us.
SPEAKER_00: And again, if Jesus said if we ask in his name, he will answer our prayer, then we should believe Jesus has answers for our prayers, right?
SPEAKER_00: So we believe God has something to say to us.
SPEAKER_00: We read and repeat a verse over and over and over again.
SPEAKER_00: It's the first step of meditating.
SPEAKER_00: Then we slow down and we pay attention to each word and what that means, and then that's a way of enhancing our meditation.
SPEAKER_00: And then if we believe God has something to say to us and we spent time in his word, then he's gonna say something to us.
SPEAKER_00: And if the creator God of the universe spoke to us through his word, the least we can do to respect that is to write it down and be able to take it with us, right?
SPEAKER_00: So let's look at what today's scripture was and we'll do that process.
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna give you the verse leading up to it.
SPEAKER_00: These are familiar verses if you've been in church.
SPEAKER_00: But Romans 12:1 says, Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.
SPEAKER_00: This is your spiritual worship.
SPEAKER_00: If you've given your life to Jesus Christ, if you've trusted that Jesus stepped out of heaven, lived a sinless life, died on the cross to pay the price for our sins, rose again conquering death and sin, and you present your life to him and your sin, and you repent of your sin and you give it to him and say, Lord, thank you for dying for my sin.
SPEAKER_00: I know that you took the penalty for my sin.
SPEAKER_00: We trust that he gives us his righteousness in return.
SPEAKER_00: Then the least thing we can do is present our bodies to the one who gave his body for us.
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_00: And so he is saying, Listen, this is your reasonable worship.
SPEAKER_00: You gave your life to Christ, then you constantly on a daily basis give your life to Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: And then the second verse is our brew verse for today.
SPEAKER_00: Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
SPEAKER_00: And so, again, a presumption in that verse is the fact that God has a will for us, and that he is willing to give us that will and share his will with us if we are doing our part and coming to him.
SPEAKER_00: So, again, that same presumptive belief that God has a plan and he wants to share it with us, and if we will seek him, then he will give us that plan.
SPEAKER_00: So you see that in there.
SPEAKER_00: But just a couple of things I want to highlight and break out for you.
SPEAKER_00: If you're doing your brew today, then you saw we highlighted the words so that.
SPEAKER_00: Now, conjunctions are awesome in scripture.
SPEAKER_00: I mean, we love conjunctions.
SPEAKER_00: First of all, because uh I grew up on Saturday mornings listening to those schoolhouse rock songs, and my favorite one is conjunction junction.
SPEAKER_00: Most of you guys remember that.
SPEAKER_00: Some of you guys aren't willing to admit that you remember that.
SPEAKER_00: But those are, and conjunctions are incredible.
SPEAKER_00: They serve a fascinating purpose, and they really help us highlight scripture.
SPEAKER_00: So it's great in moments like this to illustrate conjunctions or those types of phrases because they are a key that unlocks incredible power in Scripture.
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes we're tempted to read through things like do not be conformed and perfect will of God and renewing of your mind, and you can find all kinds of sermons on renewing your mind, and I've taught sermon series on that.
SPEAKER_00: But here's the deal: there are two conjunctions in this verse that are incredible.
SPEAKER_00: The first one is today's, so that.
SPEAKER_00: But we're going to start with this one right here, but.
SPEAKER_00: When you have the word but, it is a conjunction of contrast.
SPEAKER_00: It means you have two opposites that you are comparing to each other and learning from the negative comparison of the things next to each other.
SPEAKER_00: Not this but that.
SPEAKER_00: They are opposites, they are being compared, and there is a lesson in the comparing.
SPEAKER_00: And so what he says here first is do not be conformed to this age, but but the opposite, be transformed, right?
SPEAKER_00: And so not conformed to this world, but transformed.
SPEAKER_00: So if you take those three words and you study each word, not conformed, but transformed, right?
SPEAKER_00: What you get is a clear understanding of a couple of things.
SPEAKER_00: The world presses on us in a way that it conforms us.
SPEAKER_00: The word conformed means you have an object and there is an outside pressure that changes its shape.
SPEAKER_00: I remember one of the millions of times that I've gotten in trouble with my wife is uh she was a Tupperware lady for a long time.
SPEAKER_00: And she still loves Tupperware.
SPEAKER_00: But y'all remember Tupperware, you sold it and you bought all that, and it was great.
SPEAKER_00: And so we she had had she had bought a Tupperware bread basket thing, and it was a little one of the more pricier ones, and we were young married.
SPEAKER_00: Money was really important then, all that kind of stuff.
SPEAKER_00: And somehow, in a trip or something, I had left it in the garage, which in Memphis, Tennessee, gets even hotter than the River Valley, if you can imagine it.
SPEAKER_00: And it was under a box, and so it was conformed, and the heat and the pressure of the box meant it was conformed permanently to a shape that did not match the lid anymore, so it would not seal, so it would not do that burpee thing, which is like the cool thing of Tupperware, right?
SPEAKER_00: It got conformed.
SPEAKER_00: And that's what the world that we're in and the culture is trying to do.
SPEAKER_00: The heat and pressure of the world takes our shape as a Christ follower and it pushes against us and tries to conform us to a different shape than is the Jesus shape that we should be becoming.
SPEAKER_00: And so the opposite of conformed, but a word of contrast, the opposite is being transformed.
SPEAKER_00: Transformed is a different process.
SPEAKER_00: I can conform this box if I just pushed it enough.
SPEAKER_00: I cannot transform this box.
SPEAKER_00: It is made out of plastic and it is a chemical process to change the nature of the sides of this box from the inside.
SPEAKER_00: I cannot transform this box.
SPEAKER_00: That makes sense?
SPEAKER_00: Transformation occurs by something that happens within the nature of the object, not from the outside pressing on the object.
SPEAKER_00: And so that's why he says, by, and he gives us this word that explains how it happens.
SPEAKER_00: And so he says, do not be conformed to this world.
SPEAKER_00: Don't allow the things that are outside to pressure us away from the image of Jesus, but instead we are transformed from within.
SPEAKER_00: Scripture says, greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world, right?
SPEAKER_00: So if we're being transformed on the inside, if we are allowing God to do his work to transform us into the image of Jesus, that transformation process coming from inside going out is greater than the conforming process that happens on the outside trying to pressure us into a shape that's not like Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: So that's a powerful introduction to this verse.
SPEAKER_00: Now you have the second conjunction, so that.
SPEAKER_00: What does that mean?
SPEAKER_00: Well, that is do this, so that, that will happen.
SPEAKER_00: It is a connector that speaks of causation.
SPEAKER_00: This and this will happen.
SPEAKER_00: Do this, this will result.
SPEAKER_00: Do this, this is the consequence of that.
SPEAKER_00: Do this, so that, this will happen.
SPEAKER_00: And so what he says is to know the perfect will of God, we are transformed by the renewing of our mind.
SPEAKER_00: This is the action transformed.
SPEAKER_00: It is the opposite of being pressured by the world, but it is allowing the Holy Spirit to transform us, and it is a causation that results in discerning what the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
SPEAKER_00: There is a causation action between this action and this result.
SPEAKER_00: So that it's an incredibly powerful picture from this word.
SPEAKER_00: So when we want to know what God's will is, there are a couple of actions that result in being able to discern God's will.
SPEAKER_00: And the first is, most importantly, being transformed.
SPEAKER_00: Being transformed.
SPEAKER_00: That is the operative action that causes discerning the perfect will of God.
SPEAKER_00: It is being transformed from inside, which is why we get in this kind of a deal where you're not reading a devotion I wrote, but you're sitting down with Jesus and your scripture, and you're doing this so that he can transform you and renew your mind.
SPEAKER_00: You are spending time in the Word, hearing God teach you from the Word, and you are being transformed inside.
SPEAKER_00: This morning I finished writing next week's book.
SPEAKER_00: And I was sitting down, my cup of coffee, we were at that conference yesterday.
SPEAKER_00: I'm planning the next sermon series, so this book got caught in the middle.
SPEAKER_00: The others I've been a week ahead, but this one I'm not enough ahead.
SPEAKER_00: So this morning I sat down and I had to plow through that book.
SPEAKER_00: And I'll just be honest with you, I started the morning like I'd a whole lot rather sit here and have coffee with Jesus than have to write this book.
SPEAKER_00: And then I thought, well, you know, I'm the pastor.
SPEAKER_00: I can just wait till the end of the week and make them work on the weekend and finish it, because I'm the pastor.
SPEAKER_00: And then the Holy Spirit whacked me upside the head, and like, that's not very servant, Greg.
SPEAKER_00: And you just went to a pastor's conference yesterday where you were taught to be a servant.
SPEAKER_00: I thought, okay, I got it, I got it.
SPEAKER_00: 5:30 in the morning, I already got my first whipping.
SPEAKER_00: So that's how it goes.
SPEAKER_00: So then my next thought was, do we really need this?
SPEAKER_00: I mean, this is the last week, and you know, and then the Holy Spirit's like, no, you committed to do this.
SPEAKER_00: People are picking them up and doing it.
SPEAKER_00: You need to finish this.
SPEAKER_00: So I thought, okay, so I'm approaching this as a work deal.
SPEAKER_00: So I'm thinking, I got to write this thing rather than having some time just hanging out with Jesus in my devotional time.
SPEAKER_00: And so I sat there and started writing the words.
SPEAKER_00: I'd already gotten the verses, so I knew what verses I was going to use.
SPEAKER_00: But I start writing these words, I start typing out the words, and coming into this process with that rotten of an attitude, by the time it was done, I was so excited about Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: I had been challenged, I'd been convicted, I had repented, I'd been encouraged, I'd been praising, and just sitting there, starting, and I'm just being honest with you guys, starting with that kind of a, I just gotta do this.
SPEAKER_00: Just being in God's word, it transforms you at every level.
SPEAKER_00: I mean I was just in awe when I got done.
SPEAKER_00: It was like, this is the best period of time I've had in a while.
SPEAKER_00: And I thought, this is so good.
SPEAKER_00: And then I started praying for y'all, and I started praying for our church, and I'm just saying, Lord, I hope you're meeting with everybody the way you met with me today.
SPEAKER_00: And I hope they're experiencing the transformation that I experienced this morning just by being in your word.
SPEAKER_00: And it's incredible what happens.
SPEAKER_00: And when that happens, and you are listening to the Lord, you are hearing from God's word, you are being transformed, you are automatically prepared to fight back against what pressures come at you in the day.
SPEAKER_00: But even more than that, you are positively prepared.
SPEAKER_00: Now you can hear the voice of God.
SPEAKER_00: And with all those voices that are trying to conform you to this age, you can discern what is the will of God because your mind is being renewed and transformed and lined up with the person of Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: And it's being lined up with the person of Jesus in a way that is stronger than the voices of this age that would try to conform you.
SPEAKER_00: And so you are able to discern the will of God because you are being transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit in your life through his word.
SPEAKER_00: And so when we come to prayer, that's why I think this process is really good for us.
SPEAKER_00: Being confirmed in his word, making scripture a part of that prayer time, because it is the transformation process that equips us, that causes us this, so that this happens.
SPEAKER_00: And we we cannot take that for granted enough.
SPEAKER_00: And I was reminded of that again this morning.
SPEAKER_00: Here's one of one other word I'd share with you.
SPEAKER_00: This word discern.
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
SPEAKER_00: Let's take two words.
SPEAKER_00: May and discern.
SPEAKER_00: May is a fascinating word, right?
SPEAKER_00: May is a word that means it might happen.
SPEAKER_00: It could happen, right?
SPEAKER_00: I was actually a lawyer of record in a published case, which lawyers in the room will understand what that means, published in journals and that kind of stuff.
SPEAKER_00: And the whole lawsuit was a statutory construction of the word may versus the word will.
SPEAKER_00: Will is a different word than may.
SPEAKER_00: Now, this word will is not that type of word.
SPEAKER_00: This word will means the plans and the direction of God.
SPEAKER_00: But may or will are two different words.
SPEAKER_00: When the word will happens, that means it's automatic.
SPEAKER_00: For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whosoever believes in him will never perish, but have everlasting life.
SPEAKER_00: That is an immutable action that must occur.
SPEAKER_00: It is, you cannot stop it from occurring.
SPEAKER_00: Will never perish, but will have everlasting life.
SPEAKER_00: The word may is the possibility exists.
SPEAKER_00: May happen.
SPEAKER_00: And so then what is discern?
SPEAKER_00: What does discern mean?
SPEAKER_00: It means to hear, it means to sort through and evaluate, it means to understand, it means come to a place of recognition where you understand something.
SPEAKER_00: And so what you get when you put these two words together is it is possible, but not automatic, that you can come to the place where you will analyze, listen to, and understand what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
SPEAKER_00: So it's not automatic that we hear and discern what God's will is, and there is a discernment involved in this.
SPEAKER_00: God go, go do this.
SPEAKER_00: Now, sometimes in Scripture he says that.
SPEAKER_00: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
SPEAKER_00: Like you got to do that.
SPEAKER_00: That's clear.
SPEAKER_00: God's will is clear.
SPEAKER_00: But do I take that job?
SPEAKER_00: Do I marry that person?
SPEAKER_00: Do I do this with my kids?
SPEAKER_00: Do I give that direction?
SPEAKER_00: Do I start?
SPEAKER_00: This company, is it time to retire?
SPEAKER_00: What kind of investment do I have?
SPEAKER_00: All this kind of stuff.
SPEAKER_00: That's all God's will.
SPEAKER_00: That's all discerning.
SPEAKER_00: And so what you've got to understand is there's a process for me to discern God's will, and it is not automatic.
SPEAKER_00: I've got to pay attention.
SPEAKER_00: I've got to be able to sort it out.
SPEAKER_00: I've got to be able to understand the voice of God, understand how that's happening.
SPEAKER_00: And so, in order to discern something, I realize that this is not automatic.
SPEAKER_00: I have got to learn and attach myself to the process.
SPEAKER_00: So here's what I'm doing.
SPEAKER_00: I am trying to discern so that I can, it's not automatic, but so that I may discern, I gotta be transformed.
SPEAKER_00: I gotta be transformed.
SPEAKER_00: And then here's the promise in Scripture.
SPEAKER_00: What is the good, what is the pleasing, and what is the perfect will of God?
SPEAKER_00: That perfect will is a bigger word than just perfect.
SPEAKER_00: We think of perfect, we think about, you know, that stake came off the grill perfect.
SPEAKER_00: Or we think so-and-so team has a perfect record.
SPEAKER_00: That means no mistake.
SPEAKER_00: That word is a bigger word.
SPEAKER_00: It means complete, it means full.
SPEAKER_00: It means everything is as it should be.
SPEAKER_00: It's more than just no errors.
SPEAKER_00: It is a complete picture, fullness picture.
SPEAKER_00: And so if you think about these, what is good?
SPEAKER_00: Well, we know what good is.
SPEAKER_00: That means it's excellent, it means it's wonderful, it means it's positive, that means it's to endures to people's benefit.
SPEAKER_00: It's a wonderful thing.
SPEAKER_00: Pleasing, that means, man, this is good.
SPEAKER_00: Like God is pleased with this, we're pleased with this.
SPEAKER_00: There's a meeting of minds on this.
SPEAKER_00: When I find God's will, he is pleased that I'm following him, and I am pleased because I am partaking in this beautiful plan that God has where he makes all things work together for good to those who love God and called according to his purpose.
SPEAKER_00: That's just a couple of pages before this.
SPEAKER_00: And so that pleasing is this beautiful word.
SPEAKER_00: So here's what I'm trying to discern.
SPEAKER_00: This is the picture of God.
SPEAKER_00: His plans are for the best and value and benevolent, and they're wonderful.
SPEAKER_00: And when I've discerned those plans, they are pleasing to him.
SPEAKER_00: And he says, Well done, good and faithful servant.
SPEAKER_00: And I'm experiencing the joy of this, all things work together for good.
SPEAKER_00: And my trust level for God has reached such a different level because I'm pleasing him, and what's happening is not only pleasing to him, but I'm in this place of blessedness because I'm receiving from God and following.
SPEAKER_00: And its will is complete, and it's this beautiful, full picture of what all means.
SPEAKER_00: And so, why am I taking time to transform myself?
SPEAKER_00: Allow myself, I'm surrendering as my spiritual worship, my body to him, my mind to him, my will to him, like it says in verse 1.
SPEAKER_00: Why am I doing all that?
SPEAKER_00: So that, so that, so that it causes in me the ability to be able to discern the value and blessing and benevolent of a plan that is pleasing to God Almighty and is pleasing to me as I'm resting in his will and his plans, and it is complete and it is full in all of life.
SPEAKER_00: It's the greatest thing I can be in.
SPEAKER_00: Amen.
SPEAKER_00: Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_00: You start breaking down each word, man, it comes alive.
SPEAKER_00: It comes alive.
SPEAKER_00: And so when we're praying, scripture is a part of that.
SPEAKER_00: It is how we are transformed.
SPEAKER_00: Our mind is involved because we sit down and we process scripture and we listen to the word speak to us, and we listen to God speak to us of the word so that we can discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
SPEAKER_00: Let me pray for you guys today.
SPEAKER_00: Lord, I thank you for this time we have.
SPEAKER_00: Encourage each other, and more importantly, I thank you for your word.
SPEAKER_00: It is so overwhelming how incredible it is.
SPEAKER_00: Not just the wisdom involved, but the living quality of it that you state it has, that speaks so clearly to our minds and hearts.
SPEAKER_00: It is a pathway to understand who you are and how you love us and what you're trying to do in our lives.
SPEAKER_00: We understand the power of Jesus in our lives and how he transforms us, and we are stronger than the junk that's out there because Jesus is strong and coming out of us rather than the world pushing us into a different shape.
SPEAKER_00: Lord, I pray you'll bless these guys, encourage them as they meet with you, as they spend time with you in their quiet times, in the Word.
SPEAKER_00: I pray, Father, just like you did with me this morning, you will help them to experience discerning the beauty and the value and the completeness of your will and direction for their life.
SPEAKER_00: Speak to them, grow them in those times.
SPEAKER_00: We thank you for salvation in Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: And it means we can experience this.
SPEAKER_00: In His name we pray, and everybody said.