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Romans 12. And um I told you last week if you were here that we were starting part 20 of this of this series that started at the beginning of the year regarding transformation. And uh I told you that it's kind of part one of part twenty, and then now we're gonna be on like part two of part twenty. Uh and I'll be honest, I don't know if I'm gonna get through it today. So we might be at part two today and part three when I get back in a few weeks, but um we're gonna get continue on uh here with this part twenty of this discussion. But Romans 12.2 has kind of been our main context for this part that we've been talking about for all year. Romans 12.2 has been our focus, and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so that you can prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. That's the only version I got for you today. Usually I have three or four in this main text, but I'm only gonna I'm only gonna give you the one. And um last week we dove into Romans 7. If you weren't here, our verse was Romans 7, and that was Romans 7, 14 through 25. And we kind of just went through Romans 7, 14 through 25, and uh there was a few things in Romans 7 that I wanted to point out to you, and I'll recap that here a little bit in a second, as far as just uh just a quick little recap because it does flow into today. So put it on the board. We're still in part 20. Uh, I'd call it part 20b or part 20.2 or part 20 and a half, I don't know, whatever you want. Uh but part 20 is where we're still at on this. It's week 21, part 20, but that's where we're at. Okay? Uh and before we move further, let's pray. Father, thank you for your word. Corona X 242, your word is received gladly. Coronacts 19.20, your word will prevail. I pray now, Father, you father, use these words of uh lips of clay to speak your word without error and with excellence, according to your desire. For we gather to hear the truth of your word and not the opinion of man. And on this wonderful Father's Day, Lord, I thank you, Father, that every mind is attentive, every heart is ready to receive, Lord, and Lord, we will receive from you all that we need to know. In Jesus' name we pray. And everyone says, All right. Let's go to Romans 8. So we ended Romans 7 last week. Verse 25 was our last verse. I'm gonna just keep rolling to Romans 8. If you don't know, the Bible is divided up into chapters and verses, and that is really kind of a publishing idea. What I mean by that is the original manuscripts, the original texts didn't have chapters and verses. They were just long letters that Paul wrote. Imagine you writing a letter, and that's it. It was a letter. His original letter wasn't broken down into a chapter and verse, this. No, but we do that to help us with our study. It's just something we put within the scripture that is able to guide people to know where to go when they're looking for a specific verse. So when we go into Romans 8, it's not necessarily uh separate from Romans 7, it's a continuation of Romans 7, really. It's a continuation of the whole letter. So we're gonna start in Romans 8 as we kind of continue on from Romans 7 from last week. And Romans 8, verse 1, so now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness in our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own son in a body, like the bodies we sinners have, and in that body, God declared an end to sin's control over us by giving his son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature, but instead follow the spirit. Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So, letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death, but letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. Say amen to that. Now, I didn't want to go back to Romans 7 for sake of time, but there were two things I told you about last week that I want to remind you about. One, one of the reasons we desire a renewed mind, that is one of the desired one of the reasons we desire to change the way we think, a renewed mind, change our thoughts, change the way we think, change our thinking process, even changing our beliefs, changing our principles that we live by. The reason why we want to see renewal in that, a change in that, when we get saved, it's time now to renew the mind. Remember, your sins were washed away, your mind was not washed away. Now we got to focus on uh the challenge of renewing this mind through the word, through through seeking God, through coming to church, through through uh holy living, through godly conversation, just all these processes. One of the reasons we desire a renewed mind is so that we can win our battle with sin. And I told you last week and we took a poll. I hope we all want to win our battle with sin. If you want to win that battle, raise your hand. And if you didn't raise your hand again this week, we'll pray for you after service. Because we should all want to win that battle. We want to win that battle with sin. And by the way, a side note, we don't win it for our honor and glory, we win it for the Lord's honor and glory. We win it, we win that battle to uplift his name, not our own. So that's one thing that I want you to kind of understand because last week we did talk in Romans about sin. We addressed sin. We talked about sin, how we all sin and fall short of the glory of God. How Paul has this battle that he admitted in Romans 7, again, 14 through 25. He had this battle, the struggle with his sinful nature. The what I want to do, I don't do. What I don't want to do, that's what I do. Like, oh, oh, wretched man that I am. I have the desire, the willingness to do the right thing, and then I find myself doing the wrong thing. He speaks of it and he writes to us about this challenge that he's in. And I tell you today that we're in that same challenge as well. Nobody's perfect. Say amen to that. And I told you three things that we need to be uh alert or aware of sin, I should say. Sin still exists. You got saved, but you still commit sin, we still fall short. You need to be aware of that. That just because you got saved, that doesn't mean sin disappeared. No, sin's still present, it still happens. I told you that you need to be aware of it, but then you also need to admit it. And for some of us, that's the challenge sometimes. Admitting it. I was wrong. Say those three words with me. Say, I was wrong. Some of you were like, uh, nah. Not that hard to say. One more time and count of three. One, two, three. I was wrong. Some of y'all ain't even opening your mouth on that last word, but that's fine. I was wrong. I'm sorry. My fault. My bad. My mistake. We need to be able to admit our sin. We need to. Get rid of the pride. Say amen to that. So we have to have an awareness and admit it, but we also need to address it. It's one thing to admit it, it's another thing to address it, right? Like do something about it. What are we doing about it? Especially habitual sin. The parts of our lives that continue to falter in the same area. What are we doing about it? That's what Paul was kind of doing. Paul was saying, this is what's going on. I admit it. And I'm trying to address it. I'm addressing it. But we all know last week and where we ended that the only way we can address it first is through Jesus Christ. The one who forgives our sins. Our Redeemer, the one who saved us, who died on the cross for us. The only reason we're even able to address sin is because Jesus addressed it first on the cross of Calvary. He addressed it first. Forgiveness comes through him. Forgiveness of sin can be done because of him. Church, if Jesus didn't die on the cross, repentance is pointless. Confession is pointless. The only reason we can be saved, redeemed, forgiven on our way to heaven is because of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Can we give Jesus a hand clap this morning and thank him? But that led us to the conclusion, and I told you this. Put it on the board. But Jesus did not move us past warfare. Jesus made warfare possible. And what I mean by that is this that even after we're saved, the war with sin continues. Even after we give our life to Jesus, the war with sin still lives on. And you and I are in that war. We're in that battle. And that's kind of where Paul continues to write. He says, Thank God that the answer, oh wretched man that I am, who can save me? The answer is in Jesus Christ. But immediately in the next verse, he kind of sits on that answer for a moment. In verse 1, let's put it on the board. In verse 1, so now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Jesus Christ. That's a beautiful thing. Let me show you verse 25, the verse before that. He gave us the answer. Thank God. The answer, the answer to this battle, the answer to this warfare. It's Jesus Christ. That's where the answer is. That's where it begins. And in verse 1, I submit to you, it's like he celebrates that answer. Go back. It's like he says that's a beautiful thing to know that there's no condemnation because Jesus Christ paid the price for sin. Church, do you know what condemnation means? Put it on the board. Simple thought. It's judgment coming down on someone. Judgment coming down on someone. And Paul is saying there's no judgment coming down on the one who God has forgiven. And by the way, that judgment, you don't want it. That's a bad judgment, an ugly judgment. In fact, it's an eternal judgment, it's the damnation to hell for all of eternity. And that church is one thing that none of us want to endure, and I pray you don't want anyone else to endure it either. That judgment that Paul is speaking of here, he's saying there's no condemnation. You've been saved, you've been forgiven. I say it like this: there's no punishment that must be enforced. You are not awaiting sentencing for your wrongdoing. Don't raise your hand, but has anyone ever like committed a crime and they let you out on bail? Don't raise your hand, it's fine. Somebody, hey, brother, God bless you for your honesty. We love you, man. What happens? That charge is like hanging over your head. They let me out, but I still gotta go report to a judge here soon. I'm here walking free right now, but I still gotta go and address or figure out what's gonna happen here. And that lingers over you. And here's Paul saying, Guess what? No sin is linging over you. You don't have to look up and say, God, that thing I did 10 years ago, God, you're gonna punish me for it. I still gotta, I still gotta uh uh be inflicted a punishment. I still I I was still gonna have to endure something because of it. No, you have been forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ. Your sins are washed away, son. Your sins are washed away, daughter. I have forgiven you. That's a beautiful thing. There's no condemnation. I'm not waiting for this punishment to come down on me. When Jesus said you're forgiven, your sins are washed away. They will no longer as far away as the east is from the west. The east never meets the west, the east and west never touch. Church, your sins are forgiven. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Thank you, Lord. There is no condemnation. Thank you, my brother. There's no condemnation. And I think about that, and I'm so grateful to know that. And and we're blessed to know that. But I do want to quickly, just for a minute here. I want to give a warning to the one who is not saved, to the one where you haven't given your life to Jesus. Hear me. To the one where you're even maybe unsure. It's Jesus, my Lord and Savior. I say in love to you, my brother, my sister, today. Unfortunately, there is a condemnation over your head today. There is a judgment awaiting you right now. But we don't say that in hatred towards you or anger towards you. We say that in love towards you. To let you know that the same Jesus who forgave us is the same Jesus who's ready to forgive you. The same Jesus who died for us is the same Jesus who died for you. We can go to heaven together. You don't have to wait for tomorrow to be saved. Today's the day of salvation. Don't let condemnation linger over your head anymore, son. Don't let condemnation hang over your head anymore, daughter. If you're worried about a judge, be worried about the judge of all mankind. Be worried about the one who can punish you for eternity. But he's not even mad at you this morning. He's not hateful towards you today. He has grace and mercy and compassion and love for you today. So to the one who's unsure, to the one who's never given their life to Jesus, today's your day. Don't wait for tomorrow. And this loving God, who is ready to give you all of Himself, is saying, Come to my throne, come to me, and I will wash your sins away. I will forgive you. I will receive you into my kingdom. So even to the one today who's unsure and lost, and you feel that condemnation hanging over you today, even as I speak, words are piercing your heart, and you're thinking to yourself, I don't want to be in hell, I don't want to go to hell, I don't want to be without God anymore here on earth. Good news, the Lord is ready to save you today. He's ready to save you today. Give them a hand clap and encourage them today and let them know. Now when this service is over, you'll have that opportunity. Don't leave today unsure. I'm gonna let you sit there and even think about it for a little while if you have to. But don't leave today. Not positive, not certain. Because we want you to celebrate with us that there is no more condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus. So you see, I kind of Paul sits there for a moment. It's weird because Paul went from this whole like beating himself up part to this, I'll call it self-centered mindset for a moment. Wretched man that I am. I can't do what's right. I keep doing what's wrong. I have this battle with sin. It's the sinful nature in me that keeps committing these, that keeps faltering. He has this battle, but then finally at the end of chapter 7, he realizes or he makes it known to us the answer is in Jesus Christ. And here in verse 1, it's like he gets he changes from self-centered to Christ-centered. He realizes you know what? The answer is in Jesus Christ. And thanks be to God Almighty that because of that answer, there's no condemnation. He's like, let's plant myself there for a moment. After beating myself up, let me rest in that thought for a second. After being so hard on myself and looking too much on myself, let me take hope in that answer here for a second. Side note to those of you that feel guilty a lot of times and sometimes beat yourself up. Is anybody here their own worst critic? Raise your hand if you're your own worst critic. And I'll be honest with you, as I get older, I'm harder on myself for some reason. Like I forget something, I'm like, oh, you know, like my wife don't have to yell at me. I yell at myself, you know what I mean? And and I'm just like, I get frustrated, I get I get hard, like literally just beat myself up. And I tell you today, be careful. Don't let the guilt of the past weigh on you. Don't be fearful anymore. And the reason I bring that up, and again, this is a side note. The reason I bring that up is because of this. Because sometimes people feel I can't do because of what I did. I'm not able to do because of what was done. Church, it's under the blood. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. It's forgiven. Thank you, Lord. Church, you are saved, you're redeemed, you've been called by God. Do not allow what was to keep you from what God has for you today. So to every person here, let's just have some fun. Just go like this for a second. Just go like this. Go like this. Shake it off, man. Just shake, and I'm talking about Taylor Swift's song. Just get that out of here. Just shake it off, man. And say thank you, Jesus. Church, you have a great future ahead of you, and it's all because of the Lord God Almighty. Thank you, Lord. So there's no condemnation. Put it on the board. It's there. There's no condemnation. Thank you, Lord. Sit on that answer. Thank you. Take hope in that answer. Be at peace in that answer. Thank you, Lord. However, Paul wants to make something known. And before we make it known in verse 2, I'll throw it to you first. Put it on the board. There's no condemnation. However, our war with sin is not over. It's not, we're not past it. Remember, Jesus made warfare possible. He made it possible. We were once getting beat up by sin, but he says, you don't have to be beat up by it anymore. You're in a fight now, you're in a battle now. This this war, you're in it now. He did, he made it possible. He didn't take us out of the war, he made it possible. So I remind you again, one last time, or maybe a couple times through this sermon, Jesus did not move us past warfare. He made warfare possible. Because Paul, after declaring, there's no condemnation, there's no judgment hanging over me, there's no punishment waiting to be inflicted on me. He gets to verse 2 now. And in verse 2, he says, And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. He's not shy about it. He says, Yes, you're free, and this is what you are free from. You're free from the power of sin that leads to death. And there's a blessing in this text, and there's also a warning in this text as well. There's a blessing in verse 2, but there's also an awareness he wants everyone to have in verse 2 as well. And first thing I'll tell you is this thanks be to God, put it on the board. We do not just get pardon from sin, but we receive power over sin. And I think that's so incredible, right? That he's just not saying it's pardon, you're forgiven. No, no. Now he's saying, hey, you you you can win this thing. You have power over this thing. You don't put it this way the door to that prison is open. You came out, you don't have to go back in. You don't have to be captive again. We don't have to sit in that cell anymore. And and and this is in verse 2. I don't want to say it's my favorite part of chapter 8, but it's it's up there. Because in verse 2, right here, and because you belong to him, hear me, the power of the life-giving spirits has freed you. Can I introduce you to the Holy Spirit this morning? He's saying, Isn't this a beautiful buildup? He beats himself up in chapter 7. Wretched man that I am, having a hard time, living the righteous, holy life God wants me to live. I think we can all relate. Say amen to that. There's a challenge at times, a battle at times. Thank you, Lord. The answer is in Jesus Christ. The answer to it is in Jesus Christ. So there is no condemnation. Receive him, take him as your Lord and Savior. You don't have to have judgment hanging over you. That's verse one. But then in verse two, and by the way, not only is Jesus the answer, here's the gift, the Holy Spirit, as well. Here's this life-giving spirit who is here now to what? To free you from the power of sin that leads to death. Church, there's a power that comes from the Holy Spirit, and it indwells in every believer. It's in you today. Say, it's in me today. It's in you, it's in me. Acts 1, 8, and you shall receive power. And a lot of times I've learned that people see that word power and they think to themselves, and it's great, I have nothing against it. I'm about to go kick some devils in the face. I'm about to go help some captives be set free. I'm about to go, I'm gonna go preach the best sermon I've ever preached in my life because the power of the Holy Spirit is upon me. Yes, you have power. Go be witnesses. But you know what I've learned in my life? That the power of the Holy Spirit is there present, yes, so that you can do many things. But I submit to you that the power of the Holy Spirit is also present in your life so that you can do one very, very important thing, and that is win the battle with sin. Because I remind you today, you can't do that on your own. You can't win that battle by yourself. And I remind you today, thank you, Lord, for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has never sinned, He's never done a wrong deed, word, nothing. He is undefeated when it comes to sin. And that Holy Spirit lives in you. Say amen to that. What? An unfaltered, perfect, sinless Holy Spirit dwells within me? Yes. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. He is in you, He is in me, and that power is in us. And that power, when Jesus comes into your life, that power says, tell you the first isn't it amazing? The first thing we're gonna do is not try to go win a hundred souls, we'll get there. It's not even try to go build a church, we'll get there. The first thing we're gonna do with this power is set you free from the Power of sin. What? And I got another one against it. Let's go win souls. Let's go build churches. Let's go testify and evangelize. But the Holy Spirit's like, however, also, but you don't have to live the life you've lived anymore. You're free. You're freed. You're free. Alcoholic, you're free. Philanderer, you're free. Adulterer, you're free. The critical one that you just you hate everyone. You're free in the name of Jesus. To the one who feels bound to the path, you're free in the name of Jesus. When Jesus forgave you, the Holy Spirit said, let's cut the chains, let's open the prison door, let's knock down these walls. Church, you're free in the name of Jesus Christ. You're free. You're free. How? Why? Put on the board. I'll tell you why. Because the power of the Holy Spirit will always be greater than the power of sin. Always. Say always. Tell your neighbor the one you don't like. Always. Always. Quick side note. I hear some of your hearts today, manual. I'm going through a lot right now at home and there's a lot going on. I'm not overlooking you. I'm not patronizing you. I'm not trying to say we don't care. We care. But the biggest thing I care about in your life, though, is that you know that the Lord God has called you to live a life of repentance. And I've learned this in life. If you honor the Lord, He has a great way of working things out in your life. Somebody told me one time, or somebody asked me one time, and thank you, Holy Spirit, for the answer. Somebody, at least it was the answer I gave him in that moment. He said, Manuel, what's the best way? What's the best way to handle the marriage that's failing in my life right now? I told him, get your life in order and follow the Lord God with all your heart, soul, mind, and spirit. Love him, follow him, obey him. What about my wife? Hey, tonto, you're not getting it. Draw closer to the Lord and see what the Lord can do in your life. And I tell you in love today, I absolutely care about the financial burden you have. I absolutely care about the depth, the hard doctor's report you were given. And we're gonna pray about all those things. But I want you to remember this the most important thing is the condition of your heart. And I don't mean physically, I mean spiritually today. And I've learned you get this right, and somehow all this has a way of working out. Who can testify to that today? The power of the Holy Spirit will always be greater than the power of sin. And listen, listen, and we'll get rewrap this up. I'm not gonna make it through. I'll see you in a couple weeks. David's gonna bring a great word next week. Pastor David will bring a great word next week. Listen. The power of the Holy Spirit will always be greater than the power of sin. Why is this power so necessary? It's very necessary. And why? Why? Because it's found there in verse 2. Put verse 2 up again. Because the power of sin is still present. Sin still has a power. It does. But I got saved. I know. But sin still has power. We're saved. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. But but but it Paul never said that sin has no power. He never said that the power of sin is eliminated. Thank God that power doesn't reign and rule over us, but there's still a power present. And do you think that power is going to stop trying to overtake your life? Do you think that power is just going to give up and trying to destroy you? That power is real. To the unbeliever, it's real. To the believer, it's real. In fact, it should be more real to the believer. We should recognize that sin has a power that leads to death. Break this down and we'll wrap this up. Did you notice here in verse 2 at the end of verse 2? Sin is not described as an action. It's like sin takes on the personification. See it with me. He says, it's like a person, like an influence, authority. He says it's the power of sin that leads to death. It's the power of sin. The power of sin. Say that word on count of three. One, two, three. Of sin. One, two, three. Of sin. The power of sin. It's like saying the power of Manual. Power of David. The power of Jesse. It's like saying the power of Clint. The power of a person. It's the power of sin that leads to death. In fact, I'll say it like this. Paul is saying sin has power, like saying Manuel has power, David has power, the power of Manuel, Manuel's power, David's power, Jesse's power. Let's do it like this, just for teaching's sake. It's like you could say Mr. Sin has power. The power of Mr. Sin. Go ahead and personify him. Put a face on him in your mind right now if you want to, and don't put your neighbor's face, please. Or your husband's face. But Mr. Sin has power. He does. The power of Mr. Sin. And what does this power do according to Paul in Romans 8.2? It leads to what? Death. That's the power. It leads to death. Well, what is Mr. Sin's power? Well, Mr. Sin's power is very influential. Go ahead. No big deal. It's fine. Nobody's watching. Mr. Sin's power is very tempting. He tempts you. Look at that. Watch that. Keep staring at that. Doesn't that look good? Mr. Sin's power has this thing where it is persuasive. It's been a while. It's alright. You won't hurt yourself. Persuading you to go against the word of God. Mr. Sin has a power that presents opportunities at times. Have you ever seen? Has an opportunity ever been presented to you, and you know off the bat that's the devil? That's just the devil. That's him. That's Mr. Sin. The power of Mr. Sin. Hey, check this out. Not a bad opportunity. No one's around. No one's watching. Mr. Sin justifies compromise and wrongdoing. No big deal. Don't worry about it. Oh, here's my favorite. Everyone's doing it. Mr. Sin, compromising. Saying it's okay when we know it's not. The simplest one, encouraging disobedience. God said, no big deal, don't worry about it. But God said, nah, you don't have to worry about that commandment. And I think we've all been confronted by Mr. Sin once or twice in our life if we're being honest. Some of you this morning, some of you when you got up in the morning, some of you on your way to church. We've all been confronted by Mr. Sin and his power. And church, I will be the first to testify, unfortunately, Mr. Sin has gotten the best of me once or twice in my life, and more than that. And please don't look at me like I'm the only one. Please say amen to that. He gets it. He gets you. He gets me. He understands sometimes what we like, what it is that we're lured in by. And in the end, put on the board, eventually, Mr. Sin's power can cause a person to act out, and those acts lead to death. And by the way, Paul's not talking about a physical death, he's talking about an eternal death. The goal of Mr. Sin and his power is to make sure you end up in hell for all of eternity. That power, church, unfortunately, is present today. And don't get it twisted. It's not just present in the world, it can be present in our very own homes at times. It can be present in our lives at times. It can be operating in our minds and our hearts. And we have to recognize it. We have to address it. And you and I today need to understand, put it on the board, that even though Mr. Sin has power our own, on our own, we do not possess the power to defeat him. On our own, we do not possess the power to defeat Mr. Sin. And I think that's why Paul was so adamant. So right away in verse 2, after after beating himself up, after realizing the answers in Christ Jesus, after celebrating that there's no judgment, Paul has this beautiful, beautiful, beautiful text, this beautiful verse that makes it known. But by the way, even though there's no condemnation, even though you have the answer in Christ Jesus, by the way, you have the life-giving spirit inside of you as well. And church, you and I need the Holy Spirit. Say amen to that. I said, We need the Holy Spirit. Say amen to that. Like I can't do life without him. I need the Holy Spirit. I need him. You're in a church today that believes in the power of the Holy Spirit. You believe you're in a church today that can testify of the power of the Holy Spirit. I have to have him. This power is absolutely necessary. Why? Because Mr. Sin is not gonna give up. The power of sin is not gonna quit. But good news, neither does the Holy Spirit. He doesn't quit. He doesn't give up. He's still looking out for us. He's still trying to help us. He's still trying to show us and teach us. And church, I tell you today that the power of the Holy Spirit that is absolutely necessary in our life. It will influence you towards life. It will influence you towards the right things. It'll persuade you towards the right things. The Holy Spirit has power as well. Say power this morning. He has power as well. May I remind you the Holy Spirit can encourage you throughout your day? That when you feel like giving up, something tells you you gotta keep on going. It's gonna be okay. The Lord is with you. That's the Holy Spirit. Thank you, Lord, for the Holy Spirit. That when you don't know what to do, when you're searching for answers, the Holy Spirit reminds you of truth. He reminds you of what God has said. He reminds you of that verse that you learned when you were 10 years old, that verse that you learned last week, that verse that that crazy passage of yours mentioned that service last Sunday. He reminds you of that verse and you take refuge in that verse. You take hope in that verse. And because of one verse, you're able to keep moving forward throughout the day when you feel like giving up. May I remind you that the power of the Holy Spirit teaches you and helps instruct you and helps you learn things that you couldn't get before. You're smarter today, not because of how good you are. You're smarter today because of how good the Holy Spirit is and how powerful He is. Listen to me. You're a wiser Christian today, not because of your own power, but because of his power. Say amen to that. That's the power of the Holy Spirit. That power strengthens you. It gives you a super who can testify that sometimes you just get through the day and you look back and you're like, How did I make it through this crazy day where I had three breakdowns, yelled at two people and didn't want to see my dog at the end of it? Like, how did I get through this weird, horrible day? You got through it because the Holy Spirit strengthened you that day and he gave you an energy that you didn't ask for, but he knew you needed it. So maybe you got home and when you laid down, you didn't realize how tired you were. Why? Because the Holy Spirit was carrying you through the day and helping you get through that day and look at keeping your peace that day, keeping your joy that day, keeping your self-control that day, keeping your faithfulness that day. You think that was you who got through the horrible day? You better shake your head and say, I know it's not me. It's all the Holy Spirit working in me and the power that He has. He convicts us that time. Say amen to that. And that's a good thing. We need conviction. That's the power of the Holy Spirit. He convicts us and he tells us, hey, are you sure about that? Hey, are you sure about saying that? Hey, are you sure that you did that and it was right? It wasn't. I need to convict you and tell you you need to ask for uh forgiveness, apologize. He persuades us to obedience. He tells us, let's do what God wants us to do. Let's answer the call today. Let's love on somebody that's hard to love. Let's forgive somebody that doesn't deserve it. Let's reach out to the person who's the last person you want to reach out to. Don't hate them, love them. Don't talk bad about them, uplift them. Don't turn your back on them, give them a hug. He pushes us to follow the commandments of God. And I tell you today, church, that I'm so blessed, and I hope you're blessed too. To know that the entire power, the entirety of his power, that is the Holy Spirit, it is in our lives. It's in you, it's in me. But don't forget the purpose of that power. It's so that you and I can continue to walk in freedom. So that you and I will remember we're no longer bowed to sin. Mr. Sin is no longer our master. We have a new master. It is the Lord God Almighty. He is the one I live for, the one I serve, the one I follow. Church, your chains of sin are broken. The burden of sin has been lifted. The weight of your wrongdoing is gone. You are free. Live as the free people of God. That is not doing what you want. Live as the free people of God, doing what he wants us to do. And it may be challenging, it may be tough. Say amen to that. It can be difficult at times. It can be challenging. It can be burdened. Like we feel the weight of it at times. Like, Lord, Lord, I'm having a hard time not lashing out. I'm having a hard time not going against you. Tap into the power of the Holy Spirit that's inside of you. Talk to him. Speak to him. Pray to him. And admit it. I can't do this on my own right now. But I thank you, Lord, that the power of the Holy Spirit is in me. I no longer have to be a slave to sin. I am now a child of God. Set free, ready to live for the honor and glory of the Lord God Almighty. But thanks be to God, I'm not going to do it on my own. I'm going to do it with the power of the Holy Spirit inside of me. Can we give the Lord a hand clap in thank him today? Worship team, come up. I'm going to wrap it up. We still got to get to verse 3, 4, and 5, and we will. But hear me today. I remember two different stories, real quick. True story. Unfortunate, but true. There was this gentleman that was driving in one of the back roads in the Wilson County area. And this is way maybe like 30 years ago. Driving in the back roads, where there's only two lanes, one going each way. And there was a car in front of this guy. And the car was going real slow. And he kept honking his horn. The guy driving behind this car going slow kept honking his horn. And like stuck his hand out the window and was like waving at him to move over, get off the road. And the guy in front of him was like, Where am I supposed to go? There's literally just two roads. It's a back road. One road going one way, one road, I'm not gonna pull over on the grass. This guy had kids in his car and you know, a baby and everything. He said, and he was like, Go around me, man. Like he was waving out, go around him, and the guy behind him kept honking his horn and honking his horn and honking his horn. It's just like happened for like a good 10 minutes till finally there was a road to turn off. So the guy turned off the road, and as that guy drove by, he honked his horn again a few times, like in anger and out of just being frustrated. And the guy just shook his head and said, Man, that guy's crazy. What's he doing? So he got back on the road, they went home that night, and they had where they were new to the town, and um, you know, they were kind of getting settled into their new home still and stuff, and they hadn't been to church in a while and they wanted to go to church. So he told his wife, you know, we're gonna go to church tomorrow. And my a family member of his had told him about a church in the area. So they went to the church in the morning, and when they pulled up at the church, the husband pulls in, and as he's looking in a small church in this parking lot, he looks at this truck and he says, I think that was the truck behind me last night. And he told his wife, I think that's the truck that was honking at us and like being rude and ugly and waving at us. And his wife goes, Please don't start nothing. Just let it go. And I know, but I think that's the truck. Like I'm positive that's the truck. And he's like, I got a glimpse of the guy that was driving, like a small glimpse, and I'm pretty sure that was the truck, though. So, anyways, they go inside through the whole service. It's just kind of bothering him. That was the truck. I know it was. Service is over. They get to the parking lot, and he gets in his car, and he's just parked there with the car on. And his wife says, Why aren't we leaving? Because I want to see who gets in the truck. Finally, a gentleman walks out of the church and he locks, he just locks in on his face. He goes, That's him. And he said, If he goes to that truck, I know that's him. Well, sure enough, the man walks straight to that truck and he says, That was Sam. Oh, that's Hammer, that's the truck. And the wife says, Oh my god, that's the pastor of the church. It wasn't me, by the way. I was driving one day. I'm like, toot my horn now, watch. I was driving one day. I was going down Flotas on the south side, and I was headed to the post office, and I was driving, and this guy just turned right in front of me, like cut me off to pull out into Flotas. And like I had to slam my brakes and I honk my horn. And there's different styles of honking your horn if you don't know. There's like the like like the beep beep, you know, like, oh hey, watch out, beep, beep. And then there's the you know the other one. You know. Well, in this moment, I got a little scared. He put out in front of me, I had to slam my brakes. So I was like, anyways, he keeps driving in front of me, I'm behind him, and I had to go to the post office. He's in front of me the whole time. Well, he turns into the post office, and I was like, hmm. I turned into the post office. I was not fought, I was going to the post office.

unknown 42:12

You were in the south side.

SPEAKER_00 42:13

I wasn't this outside, you better believe it. So I get off the car and he gets off his car, and he's just staring at me. And I just like walk with my head down, looking down, because I'm like, I don't know what you're mad about, man. Like, he's just staring at me and staring at me as we're walking. It's like a good 50-foot walk to the front door. He goes, What's your problem? He was like twice my age. And I was like, sir, I feel like you put out in front of me. I got a little scared. And I said, I apologize if I offended you. And he just shook his head and kept walking to the door. And I thought to myself, like this pastor who honks his horn and is yelling at somebody out of his window. And me over here, right there, confrontation is ready to hit itself. What I'm trying to tell you is this what I've learned through life is that any moment, that power of sin is ready to take over your life. It is. At any moment. Here, look at me. That power of sin. Listen, Mr. Sin's power, that power of sin, hear me, look, hates that you've been set free. He hates it. The devil sees you. He hates it that you've been set free. And at any moment, he wants to take you bound again. Wants to see you fail, falter over and over. Wants to see you live a life with no conviction, no hunger for God. But that's why I tell you today, church, that the power of the Holy Spirit is so necessary. Not just for today, for every day in our lives. Because we don't know small moments where the power of sin, Mr. Sin will present himself. But we do know this. The Holy Spirit is ready for him. And that Holy Spirit is in us. So you're ready for him as well. You do not have to be defeated anymore. Transformation is possible because of the power of the Holy Spirit. You be ready for it. And it happens in small ways, doesn't it? Somebody cusses you out one day, and you know the old you was like, well, let me tell you. You have what I call shake your neck syndrome. But all of a sudden you say, eh, whatever. That's not you. That's the power of the Holy Spirit working inside of you. When somebody cuts you off on the road, doesn't seem to care, and you want to follow them, yell at them, honk your horn, shoot them some signs with your hand. God help us. But you instead look at me. Instead, Lord bless them. Watch over them. Keep them safe because they don't know how to drive. That's not you. That's the power of the Holy Spirit working in your life. Because we're still in this war. But thanks be to God. With transformation, we're going to win this war and give all the honor to the Lord God Almighty. Give the Lord a hand clap. I am done.