WEBVTT 00:00:00.059 --> 00:00:03.447 Good morning, let's pray, father. 00:00:03.447 --> 00:00:05.310 God, we just bless your name this morning. 00:00:05.310 --> 00:00:23.987 We thank you for what you have done for us, for sending your son, and we just we can never say enough, thank you, thank you, thank you, and we just want to exalt your name this morning and make praise that is worthy and a pleasing sound to you. 00:00:23.987 --> 00:00:27.533 Thank you for your Holy Spirit and its work in our lives. 00:00:27.533 --> 00:00:42.362 And, holy Spirit, we just invite you in here this morning to cover us and encourage us, not only in here this morning, but throughout the week, and so that everyone we come into contact with may see your light and it's in your Son's name we pray, amen. 00:00:45.045 --> 00:00:51.154 Arise, shine, for the light is come. 00:00:51.154 --> 00:01:01.932 Arise, shine, for the light is come. 00:01:01.932 --> 00:01:17.688 The light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen. 00:01:17.688 --> 00:01:21.731 The glory of the Lord is come. 00:01:21.731 --> 00:01:24.876 The glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. 00:01:24.876 --> 00:01:36.573 Arise, shine, for thy light is come. 00:01:36.573 --> 00:01:56.451 Arise, shine, for thy light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen. 00:01:56.451 --> 00:02:03.807 The glory of the Lord is come. 00:02:03.807 --> 00:02:11.134 The glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. 00:02:11.134 --> 00:02:37.633 Now, to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. 00:02:37.633 --> 00:02:56.147 Now, to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. 00:02:56.360 --> 00:03:07.669 to Him be glory and the church to Him be glory, and the church to him, dear Gloria. 00:03:07.669 --> 00:03:12.489 The church to him, dear Gloria. 00:03:12.489 --> 00:03:36.102 The church now to him, who is able to do Immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. 00:03:36.122 --> 00:03:54.753 Now to him, who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. 00:03:54.753 --> 00:03:57.966 To Him be glory and the church. 00:03:57.966 --> 00:04:16.209 To Him be glory and the church, the church. 00:04:16.209 --> 00:04:39.505 To Him, who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, there is a Redeemer Jesus. 00:04:39.625 --> 00:04:43.668 God's own Son. 00:04:43.668 --> 00:05:19.298 Precious Lamb of God, messiah, holy One Forgiving us your Son and leaving your Spirit Till the work on earth is done. 00:05:19.298 --> 00:05:31.553 Jesus, my Redeemer name above all names. 00:05:31.553 --> 00:05:44.214 Precious Lamb of God, messiah, hope for sinners slain. 00:05:44.214 --> 00:05:49.833 Hope for sinners slain. 00:05:49.833 --> 00:06:08.396 Thank you, o my Father, for giving us your Son and leaving your Spirit, receiving your spirit, till the work on earth is done. 00:06:08.396 --> 00:06:25.634 When I stand in glory, I will see his face there. 00:06:25.634 --> 00:06:37.175 I'll serve my King forever in that holy place. 00:06:37.175 --> 00:07:04.716 Thank you, o my Father, for giving us your Son and leaving your Spirit till the work on earth is done. 00:07:05.197 --> 00:07:06.677 Amen, Good morning. 00:07:06.677 --> 00:07:13.252 Today's scripture reading comes from 2 Corinthians 13, verse 14. 00:07:13.252 --> 00:07:21.786 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all All right, good morning. 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:24.908 We'll go ahead and get started with the word of prayer. 00:07:24.908 --> 00:07:27.245 God, we thank you for this day. 00:07:27.245 --> 00:07:29.928 God, we thank you for an opportunity to gather together as family. 00:07:29.928 --> 00:07:42.110 God, we're thankful for the conversations in the community that we have here and, god, we're thankful for Jesus and the life that he lived and the example that he set for us of how to be in community and how to serve one another. 00:07:42.110 --> 00:07:53.175 God, we're thankful for your love and, god, we're thankful for your gift of the Holy Spirit, and may you open up our hearts and our ears and our eyes to the things that you want us to know. 00:07:53.175 --> 00:07:53.838 It's in Jesus' name that we pray. 00:07:53.838 --> 00:07:53.939 Amen. 00:07:53.939 --> 00:07:54.901 All right, please stand up. 00:07:57.704 --> 00:08:06.516 Okay, you can have a seat when you find somebody that shares the same favorite color as you. 00:08:06.516 --> 00:08:35.451 So just go across the room and find somebody and say, hey, my favorite color is yellow. 00:08:35.451 --> 00:08:40.735 If anybody needs a partner, we've got to find somebody with a favorite color same as yours. 00:08:40.735 --> 00:09:13.913 Find somebody that likes blue, then you can sit down. 00:09:13.913 --> 00:09:15.037 All right, I still got a couple people. 00:09:15.037 --> 00:09:18.245 I got a couple people that have a very unique color or they just didn't pay attention. 00:09:18.245 --> 00:09:25.604 All right, anybody else's favorite color? 00:09:25.604 --> 00:09:25.904 Yellow? 00:09:25.904 --> 00:09:27.590 Yes, it's okay. 00:09:27.590 --> 00:09:29.965 I got a friend Very good. 00:09:29.965 --> 00:09:30.828 Favorite color is yellow. 00:09:30.828 --> 00:09:32.075 All right, very good, all right. 00:09:32.075 --> 00:09:38.052 So now you know somebody in this room that has the same favorite color as you Go have coffee with them this week. 00:09:38.052 --> 00:09:41.268 Okay, that's your challenge, all right, hopefully found somebody. 00:09:41.268 --> 00:09:44.403 Or go eat cookies or whatever it is, it's your thing, all right. 00:09:44.442 --> 00:09:52.331 We're going to dive back in this morning looking at the idea of a gift, and we started this series last week with just the introduction. 00:09:52.331 --> 00:09:58.673 We talk about the Father, we talk about the Son and oftentimes we kind of go around the Spirit. 00:09:58.673 --> 00:10:04.633 We don't always talk about it, we don't always choose to speak on it, and so we are going to do that. 00:10:04.633 --> 00:10:07.743 We're going to continue that series to talk about this gift we talked about. 00:10:07.743 --> 00:10:08.746 In the book of John. 00:10:08.746 --> 00:10:24.287 Jesus tells us that he is leaving, but in fact it's better for us that he's leaving, because he is leaving us a gift of the Holy Spirit, and it's going to be better for us, and so he leaves us with that statement, and so that's kind of what's gearing this whole conversation of that. 00:10:24.287 --> 00:10:35.381 We have this gift of the Holy Spirit and so let's try to use it, let's open it and discover it, and so it leads us to 2 Corinthians 13 today. 00:10:35.402 --> 00:10:36.644 This is a verse that Steeler read. 00:10:36.644 --> 00:10:47.254 It says May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you. 00:10:47.254 --> 00:10:49.605 Be with you. 00:10:49.605 --> 00:10:52.929 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. 00:10:52.929 --> 00:10:58.147 We can't forget our standing with God is because of the grace of Jesus. 00:10:58.147 --> 00:11:04.125 It's through His life, death, resurrection that we have the ability to even receive the Spirit. 00:11:04.407 --> 00:11:07.105 But we read about the grace of God and the grace of Jesus. 00:11:07.105 --> 00:11:08.287 We understand Jesus. 00:11:08.287 --> 00:11:09.571 We read a lot about Jesus. 00:11:09.571 --> 00:11:18.470 We read about his teachings, we read about his miracles, we read about the way that he interacts, and so it's easy for us to understand the grace of Jesus. 00:11:18.470 --> 00:11:21.320 Hopefully you have an understanding of the grace of Jesus. 00:11:21.320 --> 00:11:24.528 It also tells us that we may know the love of God. 00:11:24.528 --> 00:11:38.567 Hopefully you understand the love of God and the love that he has for you, that he created you, designed you to be the way that you are, that he sees you as valuable, that he sees you as so valuable that he sent His Son to die on the cross for you. 00:11:38.567 --> 00:11:43.802 Hopefully that's something that you know and live by each and every day, having my own kids. 00:11:43.802 --> 00:11:51.926 I can't imagine what that would have been like to give us a child for people, and especially for people that weren't living the right way. 00:11:51.926 --> 00:12:00.708 And that's what God decided to do is he decided to right the wrongs of sin by sending Jesus, and so hopefully you understand that as well. 00:12:00.708 --> 00:12:01.745 But then he leads us. 00:12:01.745 --> 00:12:03.184 This is Paul writing. 00:12:03.184 --> 00:12:17.320 He leads us to this idea that hopefully you all have fellowship with the Holy Spirit, that all of you have that, and so the main thing I take away as we read through this is that we are supposed to be together with the Holy Spirit. 00:12:17.320 --> 00:12:19.804 It's supposed to, it's designed to be that way. 00:12:19.804 --> 00:12:24.014 Now we know a fellowship as there's all your blanks. 00:12:24.014 --> 00:12:27.019 We know the fellowship as sharing together. 00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:31.767 When I say the word fellowship, I think of corn. 00:12:31.767 --> 00:12:36.894 Don't all of you? 00:12:36.894 --> 00:12:39.520 No? 00:12:39.520 --> 00:12:47.130 But honestly, when I think about the word fellowship, I do think about the corn roast, right, I think about the big pool of water with all the corn in it. 00:12:47.130 --> 00:12:51.169 I think about the fire and the guys out there sweating while we're throwing corn hole. 00:12:51.169 --> 00:12:57.243 I think about the kids crying on the bounce house, the kids climbing over the corn hole boards. 00:12:57.243 --> 00:13:02.692 Think about all the flies that are in the youth center that week, right. 00:13:02.692 --> 00:13:11.427 But when you think about the corn roast, yes, the corn is fantastic, the fellowship team is awesome and we at Stop 9 are very good at food. 00:13:11.427 --> 00:13:19.068 We are very good at food, but the idea of the corn roast is not even about the corn. 00:13:19.068 --> 00:13:19.850 It's about what? 00:13:19.850 --> 00:13:21.754 About the fellowship? 00:13:21.754 --> 00:13:23.846 It's about being together. 00:13:23.846 --> 00:13:25.009 That's what it's about. 00:13:25.009 --> 00:13:31.928 We had the Thanksgiving fellowship a couple weeks ago and, yes, the pumpkin pie was great and, yes, deb's cupcakes were fantastic. 00:13:32.904 --> 00:13:36.107 But the idea of that fellowship is for us to be together. 00:13:36.480 --> 00:13:38.480 It's for us to interact with one another. 00:13:38.480 --> 00:13:40.388 It's for us to talk and to share with one another. 00:13:40.388 --> 00:13:46.380 It's for us to stay aware of what's going on in other people's lives one another. 00:13:46.380 --> 00:13:47.864 It's for us to stay aware of what's going on in other people's lives. 00:13:47.864 --> 00:13:48.706 That's why we have greet and welcome. 00:13:48.706 --> 00:13:56.677 It's not just a time slot that we fill to get the kids out of here, but it's a time that, hopefully, you get to connect with somebody during the morning. 00:13:56.677 --> 00:14:04.085 Because, we've talked about it before, church is not set up to be fellowship and that's what it was designed to be, so we try to incorporate that in. 00:14:04.085 --> 00:14:07.254 That's why we do silly things like find somebody with your favorite color. 00:14:07.254 --> 00:14:09.865 Okay, that's just something that you can build on. 00:14:09.865 --> 00:14:14.191 Hopefully you don't end with that, but maybe you find out what their favorite food is and you make it for them. 00:14:14.191 --> 00:14:17.221 Or maybe you find out what their favorite cookie is and you drop it off to them this week. 00:14:17.221 --> 00:14:20.265 Anyway, that happens, okay. 00:14:20.265 --> 00:14:26.573 Anyway, I already got some last week and more last week. 00:14:26.573 --> 00:14:30.808 I got two dozen last week and they were fantastic. 00:14:30.808 --> 00:14:33.283 Anyway, fellowship is sharing together. 00:14:33.283 --> 00:14:39.585 And here's the thing Oftentimes, when you read that statement of having fellowship with the Holy Spirit, some of you are already going. 00:14:39.745 --> 00:14:41.585 You're already thinking I don't know how to do that. 00:14:41.585 --> 00:14:46.086 I'm not sure how that is supposed to take place, because I can't see the Spirit. 00:14:46.086 --> 00:14:52.405 Well, you're in relationships, you're in fellowships with other things that you can't see and that you're not with. 00:14:52.405 --> 00:14:54.671 You have long-distance friendships. 00:14:54.671 --> 00:14:56.923 You have people that you're connected with. 00:14:56.923 --> 00:15:01.063 Even though they're a long distance away or don't feel like they're right next to you, you still connect with them. 00:15:01.063 --> 00:15:02.025 How do you do that? 00:15:02.025 --> 00:15:07.095 You communicate with them, you schedule time to spend time together. 00:15:07.095 --> 00:15:13.884 One of my best friends lives three and a half hours away, but he knows everything that's going on in my life because we talk on the phone. 00:15:13.884 --> 00:15:15.807 We choose to communicate to one another. 00:15:15.807 --> 00:15:20.027 You're in fellowship with things that you can't even they don't even know you're in fellowship with. 00:15:20.027 --> 00:15:21.501 I'm in fellowship with the Ohio State Buckeyes. 00:15:21.501 --> 00:15:21.743 You know. 00:15:21.743 --> 00:15:22.864 I'm in fellowship with the Ohio State Buckeyes. 00:15:22.864 --> 00:15:27.291 You know, because I yell at them every week and I tell them what they're doing wrong. 00:15:27.291 --> 00:15:29.674 Ryan Day and I are in great fellowship. 00:15:29.674 --> 00:15:32.966 He just doesn't know it. 00:15:32.966 --> 00:15:36.741 I communicate with it, I shout things. 00:15:36.741 --> 00:15:38.865 I'm joking, but I'm being serious. 00:15:39.725 --> 00:15:47.774 When we talk about the Holy Spirit, sometimes we step away because we don't know, we feel like we don't experience it right with us Doesn't mean we don't have fellowship with it. 00:15:47.774 --> 00:15:55.572 In fact, hopefully over this week and really hopefully next week, you'll understand that the Holy Spirit's already working in your life. 00:15:55.572 --> 00:15:59.482 Even though it doesn't always make sense, he's already doing a ton of things and I hope that's what you take away as well. 00:15:59.482 --> 00:16:10.600 But this morning we're going to jump into the stories, a lot of stories in the book of Acts and in the New Testament, because it's in the New Testament that you start to see how the Spirit was involved with people. 00:16:11.903 --> 00:16:18.095 In Acts, chapter 20, verse 22, we read and now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. 00:16:18.095 --> 00:16:25.953 I don't know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me that, in city after city, the jail and suffering lie. 00:16:25.953 --> 00:16:28.004 That jail and suffering lie ahead. 00:16:28.004 --> 00:16:39.263 But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for the finishing the work assigned by the Lord Jesus, the work of telling others the good news about the wonderful grace of God. 00:16:39.263 --> 00:16:55.063 That is Paul writing and he's saying the Holy Spirit keeps sending me these cities and when I get to these cities he's already told me that that things aren't going to be good, that there's going to be jail and that there's going to be suffering. 00:16:55.063 --> 00:17:03.562 But as you read through the story of Paul, we find out that even though Paul knows that the things that are coming ahead are not going to be great, he still does them. 00:17:03.562 --> 00:17:13.268 He still goes to those cities and I think it's because of how much communication he has going on with the Spirit that he's able to respond to the challenges of the Spirit. 00:17:13.268 --> 00:17:19.723 He has a trust in him, he has an understanding of the Spirit. 00:17:19.723 --> 00:17:28.071 The Spirit is in fact preparing Paul for what is coming ahead and he can only do that because he's in constant fellowship with him. 00:17:28.071 --> 00:17:34.748 But the thing that furthers the point that they're in a relationship and in a fellowship is that Paul listens to the Spirit. 00:17:34.748 --> 00:17:40.432 If you don't trust somebody oftentimes you won't what Listen to them. 00:17:40.432 --> 00:17:45.195 But you see that Paul is consistently listening to the Spirit. 00:17:46.981 --> 00:17:53.644 And then we go to Acts, chapter 8, where there's a really cool story that takes place, verse 26,. 00:17:53.644 --> 00:18:02.990 It says as for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza. 00:18:02.990 --> 00:18:06.488 The Holy Spirit said to Philip that's verse 29,. 00:18:06.488 --> 00:18:07.510 We jump ahead a little bit. 00:18:07.510 --> 00:18:11.912 The Holy Spirit said to Philip go over and walk along beside the carriage. 00:18:11.912 --> 00:18:22.411 And Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet of Isaiah who tells Philip to go to the desert road. 00:18:22.411 --> 00:18:29.067 Look at the notes up there the angel of the Lord. 00:18:29.067 --> 00:18:36.570 So the angel of the Lord appears to Philip, or speaks to Philip, and says hey, you're going to leave Samaria and you're going down a desert road. 00:18:37.380 --> 00:18:41.612 Now here's what I want you to understand Philip has just finished a really not even finished. 00:18:41.612 --> 00:18:45.790 Philip is in the middle of an amazing ministry that's taking place in Samaria. 00:18:45.790 --> 00:18:59.423 There's a breakthrough, people are discovering Jesus in Samaria and it's this wonderful thing taking place and then now the angel of the Lord says you're in this really great moment, you're in this really great spot, but I want you to leave. 00:18:59.423 --> 00:19:04.549 Now, when something's going really good in your life, do you want to leave it? 00:19:04.549 --> 00:19:07.989 No, if you're in a really great relationship, do you leave it? 00:19:07.989 --> 00:19:09.445 No, you probably don't. 00:19:09.445 --> 00:19:19.579 If you're a fan of a team that's doing really well, is that when you choose to jump ship and go to a different team, no, you stay with it. 00:19:19.579 --> 00:19:27.641 So the human tendency here would be for Philip to want to stay where, in Samaria, where things are going well. 00:19:27.641 --> 00:19:31.606 But the angel of the Lord says hey, philip, I need you to go somewhere else. 00:19:31.606 --> 00:19:34.090 I need you to go on the desert road. 00:19:34.711 --> 00:19:36.714 Philip has an understanding of God's plan. 00:19:36.714 --> 00:19:45.721 We should want to be like Philip, because he understands that God has a plan that's bigger than his plan. 00:19:45.721 --> 00:19:49.991 That, yes, there's success, but there could be even more success if he moves on. 00:19:49.991 --> 00:19:52.220 That, yes, there's success, but there could be even more success if he moves on. 00:19:52.220 --> 00:19:53.443 And Philip trusts that. 00:19:53.443 --> 00:20:13.862 He understands that, and so he starts down the road and on that road he's going to meet an Ethiopian man who is successful, who is pretty rich, who is pretty high in command in his nation, and he's also discovered, at least a little bit, the Word of God. 00:20:13.862 --> 00:20:14.683 We read that that he's reading. 00:20:15.184 --> 00:20:20.615 So now my question is who told Philip to go to the chariot? 00:20:20.615 --> 00:20:24.505 The Holy Spirit, now you're following along. 00:20:24.505 --> 00:20:28.153 You got this, the Holy Spirit, the Ethiopian man. 00:20:28.153 --> 00:20:31.470 Rich, powerful, almost like a celebrity. 00:20:31.470 --> 00:20:40.192 Yet the Holy Spirit knows that that man needs Jesus, and so he sends Philip to start sharing with him about Jesus. 00:20:40.192 --> 00:20:44.210 The Holy Spirit says go up to this random chariot. 00:20:44.210 --> 00:20:52.315 Who's reading the Bible and see what you can do to help. 00:20:52.315 --> 00:20:58.265 Now Philip could have came up with every excuse not to go up to that chariot. 00:20:58.265 --> 00:21:01.066 He could have said is that the right chariot? 00:21:01.066 --> 00:21:04.849 The Holy Spirit says go to the chariot, but is that the right one? 00:21:04.849 --> 00:21:06.586 Did it have black rims or gold rims? 00:21:06.586 --> 00:21:08.605 No, I can't be it. 00:21:08.605 --> 00:21:11.145 He could have looked at him and said, oh, look at all that jewelry. 00:21:11.145 --> 00:21:20.622 That guy's rich and I am just Philip, so I can't do that. 00:21:20.622 --> 00:21:26.008 We as humans, find every excuse to not cooperate with what God wants us to do sometimes. 00:21:26.008 --> 00:21:27.368 Okay, I'll tell you a humbling story. 00:21:27.368 --> 00:21:30.673 This is your now preacher telling you. 00:21:30.712 --> 00:21:46.432 This Thursday morning I woke up and I remembered that Woody's surgery is Friday and so in my head I'm thinking I should really call Woody and pray with Woody this week before his surgery. 00:21:46.432 --> 00:21:48.204 Woody's been the preacher for 37 years. 00:21:48.204 --> 00:21:50.453 How many of us call him and pray for him? 00:21:50.453 --> 00:21:52.019 So I should do that. 00:21:52.019 --> 00:21:54.729 I should call Woody and pray for him and Amy this week. 00:21:54.729 --> 00:21:58.747 So Thursday morning rolls around and I'm like he's probably busy. 00:21:58.747 --> 00:22:02.148 I'm not going to call Amy's at school. 00:22:02.148 --> 00:22:03.435 Why would I want to do it now? 00:22:03.435 --> 00:22:04.299 I'll wait until the afternoon. 00:22:04.681 --> 00:22:05.746 The afternoon came around. 00:22:05.746 --> 00:22:06.387 Guess what I did? 00:22:06.387 --> 00:22:08.888 Came up with more excuses not to. 00:22:08.888 --> 00:22:10.788 They're probably busy. 00:22:10.788 --> 00:22:11.960 They probably have all kinds of things. 00:22:11.960 --> 00:22:12.903 They're probably loading the car. 00:22:12.903 --> 00:22:14.307 They got to go to New Albany. 00:22:14.307 --> 00:22:25.492 I can't call them my mentor, my teacher, the person that has taught me more than most people. 00:22:25.492 --> 00:22:31.388 I'm nervous to call and tell them hey, jesus loves you and I'm praying for you. 00:22:31.388 --> 00:22:32.451 Isn't that nuts? 00:22:32.451 --> 00:22:34.314 Isn't that crazy? 00:22:34.314 --> 00:22:35.586 But that's what we do sometimes. 00:22:35.586 --> 00:22:37.247 We just let ourselves believe these things. 00:22:39.066 --> 00:22:43.566 So I get home and we're going to make dinner and we don't have butter or something. 00:22:43.566 --> 00:22:44.261 So there's a reason. 00:22:44.261 --> 00:22:45.705 I got to go to the mall when Der went. 00:22:45.705 --> 00:22:52.547 So I go to a Dollar General and I pull into the Dollar General. 00:22:52.547 --> 00:22:53.429 And it's just me. 00:22:53.429 --> 00:22:55.807 I don't have the kids, so it's just quiet time with Josh. 00:22:55.920 --> 00:22:57.246 And so guess what I should be doing? 00:22:57.246 --> 00:23:01.928 This is the perfect opportunity to call who Woody. 00:23:01.928 --> 00:23:04.153 Guess what I did? 00:23:04.153 --> 00:23:06.326 I didn't call Woody. 00:23:06.326 --> 00:23:14.347 I went into the dollar store and got way more than I needed, and then I got back into the car and I thought I should really, I should really call. 00:23:14.347 --> 00:23:17.766 I got to call Woody, so I sat there for five minutes in just silence. 00:23:17.766 --> 00:23:18.387 I don't know what to do. 00:23:18.387 --> 00:23:19.351 This is nuts. 00:23:19.351 --> 00:23:24.705 This is the guy that's taught me more about Jesus than anybody and I can't pick up the phone. 00:23:24.705 --> 00:23:28.464 I finally did it and called him, prayed with him, prayed with Amy. 00:23:28.464 --> 00:23:30.087 I finally did it and called him, prayed with him, prayed with Amy. 00:23:30.087 --> 00:23:37.931 He said thank you, and I survived. 00:23:37.931 --> 00:23:41.642 I survived, but isn't it crazy how much we limit? 00:23:41.642 --> 00:23:44.965 I believe, I truly believe, that the Spirit was telling me you need to call Woody. 00:23:44.965 --> 00:23:49.551 I truly believe that I think I was aware to the idea that that was God saying you need to do that. 00:23:49.551 --> 00:23:51.594 Now I pushed it to the side. 00:23:51.594 --> 00:23:53.276 Not everybody does that. 00:23:53.276 --> 00:23:56.663 Some people are really good with that. 00:23:56.683 --> 00:24:01.153 I sat down with a couple college kids a few weeks ago and they said we were studying the Bible together and we got done. 00:24:01.153 --> 00:24:06.920 And I said, hey, you got any prayer requests? 00:24:06.920 --> 00:24:09.144 We go around and at the time I said can we pray for so-and-so? 00:24:09.144 --> 00:24:14.239 And one of them looks at me and says, hey, we've got to pray for Velma. 00:24:14.239 --> 00:24:18.821 Who is Velma? 00:24:18.821 --> 00:24:19.403 Is that grandma? 00:24:19.403 --> 00:24:20.988 They said, no, we've got to pray for Velma. 00:24:20.988 --> 00:24:21.670 Velma needs our prayers. 00:24:21.670 --> 00:24:22.992 Velma's got a back issue going on and she needs our prayers. 00:24:22.992 --> 00:24:24.336 I said, okay, who is Velma? 00:24:24.336 --> 00:24:33.815 Well, we went to Walmart last night and when we pulled into the park we decided before we went into the store that we were going to ask God, we were going to pray for somebody in Walmart. 00:24:33.815 --> 00:24:40.364 So these two 19-year-old kids walk into Walmart and find this old lady named Velma and say what do you need us to pray for you? 00:24:40.364 --> 00:24:41.808 And they prayed with her. 00:24:41.808 --> 00:24:48.012 And they're telling me that at breakfast two weeks ago and I'm going I don't even do that. 00:24:48.012 --> 00:24:48.653 I don't even do that. 00:24:48.653 --> 00:24:52.644 But I do believe that the Spirit's working through those two young men. 00:24:52.644 --> 00:24:59.102 I believe it and I believe that they're aware and they're open to it moving, and sometimes we close it off. 00:24:59.994 --> 00:25:02.704 Philip wasn't afraid to listen to the Spirit. 00:25:02.704 --> 00:25:06.424 He walks up to that chariot that he probably shouldn't have went up to. 00:25:06.424 --> 00:25:08.702 You know, he had every reason not to go up to it. 00:25:08.702 --> 00:25:12.496 But he goes up to that chariot and he says I hear you're reading. 00:25:12.496 --> 00:25:13.117 How can I help? 00:25:13.117 --> 00:25:18.208 He's reading Isaiah, so they talk through Isaiah a little bit and then he starts sharing with them about Jesus. 00:25:18.208 --> 00:25:22.665 And then he obviously shared a little bit about baptism. 00:25:22.665 --> 00:25:23.775 Because guess what the Ethiopian man wants to do? 00:25:23.775 --> 00:25:26.900 He sees water and he says why shouldn't I go right now? 00:25:26.900 --> 00:25:31.519 Then this crazy part happens Philip takes him over to the water, he baptizes him. 00:25:31.519 --> 00:25:33.765 As he baptizes him and he comes up out of the water. 00:25:33.765 --> 00:25:34.826 Guess what happens to Philip? 00:25:34.826 --> 00:25:45.673 He just disappears, just respawns somewhere else. 00:25:45.673 --> 00:25:48.022 The Ethiopian man goes skipping down the road so excited that he's found Jesus. 00:25:48.022 --> 00:25:53.104 He's not concerned that Philip's gone, he's excited that he's got a relationship with Jesus. 00:25:53.104 --> 00:26:03.285 Philip is now in a new city, not pouting because he got taken away from this really successful thing, just like, okay, I'm going to go teach the gospel somewhere else now. 00:26:03.285 --> 00:26:04.730 That's how the Spirit works. 00:26:04.730 --> 00:26:13.666 It was all for God, it was all for Jesus, it was all for that man to discover a relationship with Jesus and that's what Philip led him to. 00:26:13.666 --> 00:26:21.125 God opened the door and the Spirit spoke and Philip said okay, I'll do it. 00:26:26.959 --> 00:26:34.397 I also notice as you read through that that Philip has a relationship with the Spirit to the point that he recognizes His voice At the beginning. 00:26:34.397 --> 00:26:36.223 Who told him to go on the road? 00:26:36.223 --> 00:26:38.599 An angel of the Lord? 00:26:38.599 --> 00:26:43.008 When he tells him to go up to the chariot, who tells him that? 00:26:43.008 --> 00:26:44.434 The Holy Spirit? 00:26:44.434 --> 00:26:46.804 He recognizes the difference in voice. 00:26:46.804 --> 00:26:52.143 That's where the early church was. 00:26:52.835 --> 00:26:56.102 Because of Philip's fellowship with the Spirit, he jumps at the opportunity. 00:26:56.102 --> 00:27:02.381 He jumps at the opportunity to share with someone because the Spirit said so. 00:27:02.381 --> 00:27:13.886 Because of Philip's fellowship with the Spirit, he jumps at the opportunity and the gospel advanced to a nation because of his awareness of the Spirit. 00:27:13.886 --> 00:27:17.282 We keep reading in Acts 16. 00:27:17.282 --> 00:27:18.747 This is Paul, it says. 00:27:18.974 --> 00:27:27.145 Next, paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phygeria and Galatia and because of the Holy Spirit, it prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. 00:27:27.145 --> 00:27:35.906 Then, coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. 00:27:35.906 --> 00:27:44.527 So instead they went through Mysia to the seaport of Troas, the communication in the early church was evident. 00:27:44.527 --> 00:27:51.820 The communication of the Holy Spirit was evident in the New Testament and I don't think it's changed. 00:27:52.095 --> 00:27:52.923 I think the gift is still, in fact, a gift. 00:27:52.923 --> 00:27:53.934 I think the gift is still in fact a gift. 00:27:53.934 --> 00:27:56.760 I think the gift of the Holy Spirit is still a gift for you and I. 00:27:56.760 --> 00:28:02.987 I believe that the Holy Spirit is a partner with us through Jesus. 00:28:02.987 --> 00:28:06.324 There's a close mutual association. 00:28:06.324 --> 00:28:11.605 When I show you that guy, who do you think of the Beatles? 00:28:11.605 --> 00:28:12.227 Who is that? 00:28:12.227 --> 00:28:14.397 Paul McCartney. 00:28:14.397 --> 00:28:22.347 When you think of Paul McCartney, you don't think of him as Paul McCartney, you think of the Beatles, because there's a close mutual association. 00:28:22.347 --> 00:28:25.377 Everything that he did pointed to the Beatles. 00:28:25.377 --> 00:28:29.461 So you understand him because, or you understand because of him. 00:28:32.084 --> 00:28:32.584 Who's that? 00:28:36.867 --> 00:28:37.729 That's Phoebe. 00:28:37.729 --> 00:28:41.811 When you think of Phoebe, who do you think of Friends? 00:28:41.811 --> 00:28:45.068 You think the show Friends, because there's a close mutual association. 00:28:45.068 --> 00:28:48.885 Phoebe relates, from your mind, to Friends. 00:28:48.885 --> 00:28:52.303 I had to put it in there. 00:28:52.303 --> 00:28:54.500 That's Buzz Lightyear. 00:28:54.500 --> 00:28:58.882 When you think of Buzz Lightyear, who do you associate with Toy Story and Woody? 00:28:58.882 --> 00:29:04.623 There's a collective group of people or toys, not people toys because of Buzz Lightyear. 00:29:04.623 --> 00:29:09.204 Your association with Buzz Lightyear makes you think of Toy Story. 00:29:09.204 --> 00:29:11.278 This is for my young generation. 00:29:11.278 --> 00:29:16.861 Yeah, these guys, anybody know what that makes. 00:29:16.881 --> 00:29:19.327 You think of Fortnite. 00:29:19.327 --> 00:29:22.943 Grandparents, your grandkids, have asked for V-Bucks. 00:29:22.943 --> 00:29:24.038 That's what it is. 00:29:24.038 --> 00:29:31.255 Okay, this is a character in a video game that kids spend way too much time on and way too much money. 00:29:31.255 --> 00:29:42.692 But when they see that they think of this video game called Fortnite, okay, their association with that llama makes them think of Fortnite. 00:29:42.692 --> 00:29:44.257 That make sense. 00:29:44.257 --> 00:29:49.436 I know it doesn't make sense to all of you, but that's why I got every age group in this category. 00:29:49.436 --> 00:29:50.338 Okay, because here we go. 00:29:50.338 --> 00:29:53.486 See, listen to the church. 00:29:53.486 --> 00:29:54.587 Woo, betty White. 00:29:57.195 --> 00:30:00.686 When you think of Betty White, you think of the Golden Girls. 00:30:00.686 --> 00:30:05.278 Absolutely, you think of Betty White and you think of the Golden Girls. 00:30:05.278 --> 00:30:08.305 It's who you associate her with. 00:30:08.305 --> 00:30:18.767 You think about episodes of the Golden Girls, you think about things that happened in that show, and so everything that you think of Betty White points to the Golden Girls, and we could go through every example. 00:30:18.767 --> 00:30:24.807 That way, everything you see with them associates with the other, with the group. 00:30:24.807 --> 00:30:28.424 What made them great was the dynamic of them together. 00:30:28.424 --> 00:30:29.288 I got there a minute. 00:30:29.288 --> 00:30:30.835 It took me a minute, but I got there. 00:30:31.096 --> 00:30:31.435 What made? 00:30:31.476 --> 00:30:33.480 them, great was their dynamic of them. 00:30:33.480 --> 00:30:41.555 Together they were dependent on each other, each one of those people. 00:30:41.555 --> 00:30:44.727 And so too often I think we try to draw close to Jesus outside of relationship with the Holy Spirit. 00:30:44.727 --> 00:30:48.861 We just kind of put it at a distance and we try to get close to Jesus but we ignore the Holy Spirit. 00:30:48.861 --> 00:30:56.442 Very similar it happened in the New Testament, in John 8, I didn't put this up on the screen. 00:30:56.535 --> 00:31:08.342 In John 8, jesus is having a conversation with the Pharisees, and the Pharisees are upset because they want a relationship with the Father, they want a relationship with God, they want a relationship with the Father. 00:31:08.342 --> 00:31:10.723 But the issue is remember what their issue was. 00:31:10.723 --> 00:31:13.602 They didn't think that Jesus was the Son of God. 00:31:13.602 --> 00:31:17.885 So they wanted a relationship with the Father, but they refused to be in a relationship with Jesus. 00:31:17.885 --> 00:31:25.586 And Jesus kind of called them out for it and said you can't have a relationship with the Father if you don't have a relationship with the Son, because this is how the whole thing works. 00:31:25.586 --> 00:31:45.321 And so in modern day, I think what we're doing is if Jesus came back, he would look at us and say you're trying to have a relationship with Me and with God, but you're not using the gift that I gave you, and so for you to truly have this relationship and to understand what is the greatest relationship that we can be in with God, which is the Holy Spirit that lives within us. 00:31:45.321 --> 00:31:49.300 He says you've got to tune into that, and that's what Acts shows us. 00:31:49.300 --> 00:31:53.564 Is that those people were tuning into that Spirit, because it's just a big cycle. 00:31:53.564 --> 00:31:58.781 The Spirit, the purpose of the Holy Spirit, is to point to Jesus. 00:31:58.781 --> 00:32:03.878 You understand that the purpose of the Holy Spirit is to point to Jesus. 00:32:03.878 --> 00:32:07.724 Everything that Jesus did pointed to the Father. 00:32:07.724 --> 00:32:11.778 It's a big circle, it's just a continuous thing. 00:32:11.778 --> 00:32:14.906 The Holy Spirit is our helper. 00:32:14.906 --> 00:32:19.503 The Spirit was sent to reveal Jesus, just as the Son was sent to reveal God. 00:32:19.503 --> 00:32:22.261 So how do I be in fellowship with the Holy Spirit? 00:32:22.261 --> 00:32:28.805 You spend time with it and I know that's a complicated answer and that doesn't give you all the answers you want but you spend time with it. 00:32:29.275 --> 00:32:34.086 I've learned that I have three kids. 00:32:34.086 --> 00:32:39.101 I learned that I have three kids. 00:32:39.101 --> 00:32:41.743 I have learned that each one of those kids are different. 00:32:41.743 --> 00:32:45.084 The way that they respond to things is totally different. 00:32:45.084 --> 00:32:50.803 They have different personalities, they have different ways of reaction, they have different ways of handling their emotions. 00:32:50.803 --> 00:32:52.855 And so I'll just give you an example. 00:32:53.035 --> 00:33:03.894 If I had a balloon, if I walked out of the store with a balloon, a baseball balloon, one of those big foil balloons and I walked out of the store and I was with Jameson and I said Jameson, get in the car. 00:33:03.894 --> 00:33:09.223 And I put him in the car and then, as I go, get into the car, I let go of the balloon and it flies away. 00:33:09.223 --> 00:33:12.710 Jameson is going to be furious at daddy. 00:33:12.710 --> 00:33:14.873 He's going to be mad at dad. 00:33:14.873 --> 00:33:16.257 He's going to be angry with dad. 00:33:16.257 --> 00:33:17.884 He's probably going to cry a little bit. 00:33:17.884 --> 00:33:19.613 He may even throw a fist a little bit. 00:33:19.613 --> 00:33:21.880 He's going to be angry that I let go of that balloon. 00:33:21.880 --> 00:33:28.080 And I'm going to apologize and I'm going to say buddy, I'm so sorry that I let go of that balloon, it was an accident, I didn't mean to. 00:33:28.080 --> 00:33:31.144 And he's still going to be mad because that's Jameson. 00:33:31.144 --> 00:33:33.508 He just has to sit in it a little bit. 00:33:33.508 --> 00:33:43.758 I won't tell you who he's like mom or dad, but I am a lot like Kelly Drew, because this is how Kelly Drew would handle this situation. 00:33:43.758 --> 00:33:52.028 Kelly Drew is going to have, I'm going to have the balloon and I'm going to walk out of the store with Kelly Drew and Kelly Drew is going to get into the car and I'm going to accidentally let go of the balloon and that balloon is going to fly away. 00:33:52.028 --> 00:33:54.417 And I'm going to say Drew of the car and I'm going to accidentally let go of the balloon and that balloon's going to fly away. 00:33:54.417 --> 00:33:55.601 And I'm going to say, drew, I just dropped the balloon and it flew away. 00:33:55.601 --> 00:33:58.280 And he's going to say it's okay, daddy, can we get another one some other time? 00:33:58.280 --> 00:34:00.586 Because he's a little more gentle. 00:34:00.586 --> 00:34:01.715 That's the way that he is. 00:34:01.715 --> 00:34:03.317 And he's just going to say it's okay. 00:34:03.317 --> 00:34:04.318 Is he upset? 00:34:04.318 --> 00:34:05.859 Absolutely, he's upset. 00:34:05.859 --> 00:34:07.182 Is he sad that his balloon's gone? 00:34:07.182 --> 00:34:17.311 Absolutely, but his mindset's going to be just like his father Eh, we can get another one some other time. 00:34:17.311 --> 00:34:22.336 Then there's Jordy. 00:34:22.336 --> 00:34:23.000 Jordy's less than two years old. 00:34:23.000 --> 00:34:23.623 She knows a handful of words. 00:34:23.623 --> 00:34:24.306 So I'm going to have that balloon. 00:34:24.306 --> 00:34:26.876 It's not going to be a baseball, it's going to be something girly, it's going to be a Barbie or something. 00:34:26.876 --> 00:34:35.289 And we're going to walk out of the store and that balloon's going to be on the string and I'm going to put Jordy in the car and she's going to ask for her balloon and I'm going to say, just a second, I'm going to let go of that balloon, it's going to fly away. 00:34:35.289 --> 00:34:42.336 Then I'm going to have to get in the car and say, jordy, I had a balloon for you and I dropped it and it flew away. 00:34:42.336 --> 00:34:51.128 You know what she's going to respond with I want a cookie, I want a cookie. 00:34:51.128 --> 00:34:54.010 She ain't going to care about that balloon one bit, she's going to want a cookie. 00:34:54.010 --> 00:34:57.813 And if you've been around her, you know exactly that's the answer that she's going to say I want a cookie. 00:34:58.135 --> 00:34:59.500 Here's my point in a funny way. 00:34:59.500 --> 00:35:02.277 They're all different and I have to. 00:35:02.277 --> 00:35:04.945 As a parent, I have to learn how to communicate with each one of them. 00:35:04.945 --> 00:35:17.490 My wife I was messing with her there just for a minute she has taught me how to interact with my kids because she has a better understanding of who they are, and she has trained me and taught me how to interact with my kids In the same way. 00:35:17.490 --> 00:35:25.666 If we want to have a relationship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, we have to understand, we have to get in a relationship with each one of them, because they are all three different. 00:35:25.666 --> 00:35:26.396