Not Prepared

Discover why “not prepared” doesn’t mean “not willing” in this powerful sermon on John 3:1‑21. Pastor Russ shows how even knowledgeable people like Nicodemus can be caught off‑guard by Jesus’ truth, yet receive good news that transforms lives. He challenges believers to see the “nots” around them—those unprepared, confused, or lost—and respond with grace, sharing the gospel rather than offering advice. The message inspires the church to become aware, compassionate, and proactive in inviting others to experience Jesus’ love and salvation.

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All right. Well, it is great. I hate to bring up break up all the conversations, but maybe y'all could get together and go to lunch and uh continue on. We're going to dive in scripture right now. And uh so I've already had a chance to introduce myself. Um Russ is one of the pastors here. So uh we're gonna be in in John chapter three. The gospel of John chapter three is where we're gonna be today. And um I was trying to think about how to how to introduce what we're talking about. In small group, uh when we do community groups, uh my wife and I often, if you're especially if you're starting something new, you you you can start off with what is called a crowd breaker or a little game or some type of mixer. And one of them is is um is is that we've used in the past is where every person goes around the room and they've got to make three statements about themselves. Two, what one of the statements is is actually true, and the other two are made up. And so you have to determine which one is true and which true which which two are made up. So can we can we would y'all join would y'all just if you don't think this is fun, just just pretend. Um, right, so three three statements about myself. So I was on the campus of the University of Georgia on Friday, and I had been, uh I had received a special invitation from Kirby Smart to come and just observe a portion of practice for the University of Georgia football team. So that's statement number one. Statement number two is for one of my recent anniversary trips, I took my wife to Sonia, Georgia, and I actually paid money to go on a Walking Dead tour. And if you don't know what the Walking Dead is, you don't need to worry about it. Statement number is while I was on the campus Friday at the University of Georgia, I ran into a man by the name of Billy Payne. And some of you might know who Billy Payne is. If you don't know who Billy Payne is, I'm gonna tell you who Billy Payne is. Billy Payne was the man pretty much single-handedly responsible for bringing the Olympics to Atlanta in 1996. Prior to that, he he is known for being a great football player at the University of Georgia. And he's an older, older, older fellow now. Um and but he also ended up being the chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, which is where the Masters, they they host the Masters Golf Tournament. And if you don't know what the Masters is, um you certainly are not from Georgia. And so got to run into him, and and I I was asking, I was looking to find something, and I mean we had a great conversation, and uh, and and and I was able to move on, but it was just cool to be able to talk with him. So that's that's statement number three. Now, how many, I'm just we're do a vote, you know, show of hands. How many of you believe that the first statement was true? That I was invited to to attend practice as a special guest by Kirby Smart. If you look, don't, don't go, don't do none of this little halfway. I think, all right, all right, do you how many of you think that's true? All right, y'all, see, y'all are y'all, this is fun because y'all can't make up your mind. You don't know. All right, hands down. All right, I took my wife to Sonia for an anniversary trip, and I paid to go on a tour for the walking dead. Alright, this isn't going like I thought it would go. Um now, how many of you believe that I that I ran into a guy named Billy Payne? And and we had had a conversation and got caught up and all right, well, all right, the second one is actually true. Um I I did I did cross paths with Billy Payne on Friday, and I said, hey, aren't you Billy Payne? And that was it. Um so uh yeah, and and listen, before you judge me about the walking dead, let me clarify. My wife and I spent our wedding night at a place, this beautiful inn called Sonia, in 1995, when that little town was nothing. And so over the years we've gone back, and it and it just happened to be the place where they would would film uh the movie The Walking Dead in the area, and so and the town of Sonia became what's the name of the town in Walking Dead? Woodbury. Isn't it Woodbury? I think I feel so stupid now, uh which is uh that's probably understandable. Um but I I I I I did my wife, I didn't take my wife on the tour. She does not care about zombies. Um and I don't care that much about zombies, but I'm like, here, I'm here, I'm here, I might as well, you know, experience the whole thing. And I had um, I'm one of those people that laugh and scoffs at the at apocalypse type movies, and and and but I but I ended up watching one or two episodes, and I'm gonna be honest with you, I got sucked in. My son was uh one of my sons was old enough and we could watch it together. Not recommending it um at all, especially as a pastor. Um but it it's kind of kind of interesting. Um part of it that's interesting is is um is the whole idea of this apocalyptic mindset and and and what we would call prepping. Y'all know what prepping is? Are there any preppers in the room? Any preppers? If you raise your hand, you're you're probably not a prepper because preppers don't want other people to know that they're preppers. I mean, I might be a prepper. I mean, my basement might be full of canned food and guns. And and and some of that might be true, uh uh, but I I don't consider myself a prepper, and if I was a prepper, I wouldn't tell you I was a prepper because when things fall apart, I don't want you at my house. No, you're you're you're all you're all welcome. Um uh so so the whole the whole prepping thing is is is kind of is kind of interesting. Um uh but but uh preparation is a good thing. Wouldn't it be great to always be prepared for almost everything that we go through in life? But the reality is that is not the case. I think everyone comes, everyone goes through, everyone encounters circumstances that they are not prepared for. And over the last couple of weeks, we we've been teaching this series called the empty chair, with this focus on the fact that there are people that are yet to be here that God wants to bring here so they can respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so this room is, I would say it's fairly full this morning. It's fairly full room, but I'm telling you, there's still, there's a whole row right down here on the front. It means we've got some Baptists sitting in the back. But there's chairs that are empty here, and those chairs are for somebody. We built a new building, not just to be able to show off a new building. We built a new building so we could see more people reached with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so we didn't have as many empty chairs over there. So while we're doing three services on a Sunday, five for Easter, and and I and I wouldn't have probably preached this series while we were in the other building because we didn't have any place to put people. But but people need Christ. As a matter of fact, if if if revival broke out in our community right now, we would probably not be prepared to handle the outpouring of people. And I do think he's moving in revival. I think he's working, and and he's working in such a way to bring people. And so the idea is that we want to see these empty chairs filled. There's people yet to be reached, there's people that need the gospel, and and we have to we have to stay focused on that reality as we go about our business, as we go to school, as we go to work, and as we uh go out and take part in recreation activities, play pickleball or go fishing or whatever it is. We're gonna cross paths with people. We're gonna lock eyes with people who are desperately in need of Jesus Christ. And there's there's three statements that we want you to make a habit of listening for that really open the door for you to offer an invitation to church or to share your story or to share the gospel in some way. And it's we call them the not statements, NOT not statements. Week one, we we we looked at the story of uh of Zacchaeus, and and and Zacchaeus was not in church. And so that's the first statement that you listed for. If somebody says they're not in church, they're not going to church, they're they're currently not involved. That it that ought to send you a habitual signal, it ought to trigger you. This idea of keystone habits came from a guy named Charles Dubig. And it's the idea that when you hear one of these statements as you're out at work, the ball field, wherever you are, the gym or at school, the grocery store, it automatically should trigger a response to you to be sensitive to the opportunity to either share your story, invite them to church, or to just talk about Jesus. And so the first week was was uh not in church. If you hear that statement, if you hear that not, there's no better time than invite somebody to join you to be a part of what God's doing here at Church at the Grove. The second knot is not doing well. And we looked at Mark 2, uh, where the where the man is on the mat. There's a paralyzed man on a mat, and and and we could say, honestly, he was not doing well. Things are not going well in life. We all probably can identify with that. We all know people who probably are going through times in their lives that where things are just not going well. And when people bring up the fact that things are not going well, it is an opportunity to speak into that situation, to offer some kindness, to maybe serve them in a way that Jesus would serve them and hopefully eventually be able to either share your story, invite him to church, or share the gospel of Jesus. And we talked about the man on the map. Hey, when you don't have, feel like you have enough faith, you borrow somebody else's. And he had four friends that did what they had to do to get him to Jesus. Things were not going well with him, but they got him to Jesus. And the most important thing about the story is not the fact that he took up his mat and he walked out of there. Because I said this last week. Hey, he could have gotten healed and walked out of that house and walked straight into hell into eternity. No, the biggest part of that story is Jesus said, Your sins are forgiven. It says he saw their faith, their faith. He sees our faith. When we reach out and invest, it says when he saw their faith, the friends who brought him, not his faith, their faith. And then he tells them, your sins are forgiven. Take up your mat and walk. And so it leads us to today, where we talk about the final not. And it's the idea that we are all going to have circumstances we go through where we feel like we are not prepared. Not prepared. So the good news is there is a baby, new baby in the in the Church of the Grove family, Jonah and Reese. Yeah, let's get let's praise God. Jonah Reese. So I I really was on the campus of UGA on Friday. Um I I stopped by the bookstore. I did cross paths with Billy Payne. Um he didn't seem too interested in talking to me. But um uh Kirby Smart would would probably not let Jesus come to one of the practices at UGA, so that y'all knew that. Uh a couple of you bought into it. But I was on the campus because I I mean I didn't I didn't want to go see um little his name is Peter, that's his real name. We're gonna call him Rocket. Um that's that's gonna be his nickname. It really is Rocket uh Faulkner. And so I couldn't go empty-handed to visit Rocket. Um I I he needed his first UGA uniform, right? I've got to raise him up. I mean, I mean, Jesus first, Jesus first, but the big G, red little onesie, big G, it can stand for God too. I mean, right? So um that's a stretch. That may be heresy. Um I might I might be in trouble. But but so they I walk in and they they um Jonah and Reed, he is perfect. I mean, Peter, I'm I'm gonna call him Rocket, I'm sorry. He was just he's just perfect in every way, he's so cute, and and and Reese looked so refreshed. Jonah, you know, Jonah had not done anything anyway, but he looked great. And and so they they had they you know, if you have a baby, you can send the baby to the nursery, and and so people are giving them some advice. Hey, let them take the baby to the nursery and you get a great night of sleep. And so they were, man, they were all perky. And as they were bragging about how much sleep they got, I just started giggling. Because I'm like, man, I hope you enjoyed that. But you may not be prepared for what you're about to encounter because you will leave this hospital and there will be a nursery, but you will be in charge. And so um, and so I I heard that the the first night at home wasn't quite as good as the and peaceful, but but you know, that's that's normal. It's not as it's normal. There's things we all go through in life that we're not prepared for. But here's what I want you to hear. Not prepared doesn't mean not willing. Not prepared from a spiritual standpoint. What we're talking about today in a story where Jesus has an encounter with a man named Nicodemus in John chapter 3. And what if you they're a note taker, this big idea is not prepared doesn't mean not willing. And what I mean by it, just because people find themselves in unexpected circumstances doesn't mean that they're not sensitive to spiritual things. It doesn't mean that they're not interested in learning about who Jesus is. As a matter of fact, I believe that I believe that uh in research proves me right that people are more interested in spiritual things and they're more open to Jesus. Very often they're skeptical more about the church. Which is why it's so important that we as a church are unified, that we love one another well, and that we are warm and hospitable to people that come and visit and worship with us. And so, listen, we're all gonna encounter things. We're all gonna be throwing a curveball in life. Maybe it's the death of someone that's close to us, maybe it's a health diagnosis, completely unexpected. Maybe it's something that we see, you saw, you've seen coming, but but now it has arrived, and it's and it's just something that is so overwhelming. It might be an unplanned pregnancy, it might be, it could be all types of things. Things that we're just not prepared for. And as we look at this story, um, it might be, you know, I want you to kind of understand what I mean by not prepared because Nicodemus is a man that should have been prepared religiously because he was a religious expert of the day. I mean, he was. He was part of the religious elite. He was part of the people that was standing on the edge of the crowd to listen to Jesus teach, not because they were really truly interested, they wanted to catch him in some type of heresy so they could so they could lead to what what ends up happening is he's arrested and beaten and he's crucified. And they didn't even know that they were playing right into the hand of the perfect will of God. And so Nicodemus, though, Nicodemus is willing. He is hungry, he is interested in what Jesus is teaching. And I hope you are too. That's my prayer, that you may be here and you may be a believer, or you may be kind of right on the line where you think you're a believer and you're but you're still not really sure about being a believer. You might be a believer and you aren't in church or haven't been in church. Um you might be a believer and you you still be in the middle of some circumstances, but if you aren't, you're probably gonna go through some tough things. And listen, life throws us difficult things. But let's just let's read the text here. Let's dive in and actually read the text. John 3, starting with verse 1. It says, now there was a man from the Pharisees, and that's one of the religious groups of experts, religious experts in the scriptures and the law. So a man from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to him at night and said, Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform these signs that you do unless God were with him. Jesus replied, Truly I tell you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. How can anyone be born when he is old? Nicodemus asked him. Can he enter into his mother's womb a second time and be born? Jesus answered, Truly I tell you, unless someone is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh. So whatever is born of the spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. The wind blows where it passes, and you hear its sound, but you don't know where it comes from or where it's going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. Now there's so many, there's so much to unpack in this passage. We can't in any way cover all the theological implications and perspectives. We could scratch the service and we can talk about how Nicodemus came to hear Jesus teach, thinking, I've got it together. I've got it figured out. I am not just a religious leader, I am an expert in the law. Certainly, if anybody was prepared for what was to come spiritually in eternity, it would have been Nicodemus. But as he's listened to Jesus teach, he's realized I may not be as prepared as I think. And then he sneaks, he sneaks in at night. Probably because he doesn't want anybody else to know. Back in um, I don't know, probably 1997, uh, somewhere around there, my my brother and I, my older brother, um uh pastored Summit Babbit Planted, and Pastor Summit Baptist Church, which is one of our founding churches that helped us plant. Butch and I went to a West African country called Molly. He went on several trips. I went on this trip with him and we went out into the bush. I mean, we slept in a mosquito tent. I mean, the whole thing. And we went to this there was a missionary there that was taking us around and taking care of us and taking us and making sure we had interpreters and that. And so we we kind of had a home base in this large village. But we're sleeping outside and I mean looking at the stars and and you know getting up in the middle of the night with a flashlight, going to the bathroom hoping I don't run into some type of animal from Africa. And thank goodness we didn't encounter anything that you know that was a major deal except maybe a couple of donkeys and and cows. And we we didn't see anything exotic. But but here let me tell you what we what we were doing is each day we would go visit different villages. And at that time, Mali was considered a majority Muslim country, probably 97-98% Muslim. In reality, much lower percentage, because many of the people there they would call themselves Muslims, but they they they they it was syncretism. They would practice a little bit of Islam with a little bit of African folk religion. And so really they weren't necessarily all that spiritual. But we'd go into these villages and we would ask permission from the chief of the village if we could simply share our stories. And most often we were sit we were received with great hospitality. There's a few times that I can tell you that I have that I that I've I've been in the midst of a dark, and when I say dark, I'm talking about evil place. And I experienced that a few times on the trip. And so each day we would come back to our home base and we'd sit around a fire, and we had some host in that village that would feed us. And this was probably about midnight between 12 and 1 in the morning. We're still up. We've had a long day, but we're up talking and sharing. The fire is still going. And we can see way off in the distance. Now, this is so dark. There's no no electricity where we are. We could see in the distance a small light, wondering what it was because it was coming closer and closer and closer. And so what it was who it was is it was a young man by the name of Musa who had been in one of the villages standing on the edge of the crowd, listening to us share our testimonies, and to share the gospel. And there was a hunger and a thirst, I think, in his heart, where he would he would sneak out of his village, get on his bicycle that had a headlight, and ride all the way back from his village at midnight to show up and to tell us through the interpreter, I want to hear more about this Jesus. I mean, it it I mean it it I mean I when I I get chills now thinking about how Musa was Nicodemus. Realizing his whole life that that he was a good Muslim, thinking he's a good Muslim. I've I've practiced my my religious activities and and it's a mixture of things, but but but realizing I may not be as prepared as I thought I was. And he wanted to ask questions. Now, can I tell you before we before we left that village that Musa bowed his heart and put his faith in Jesus Christ. He turned away, knowing, knowing, we've talked about it with him. So, Musa, your your friends, your family, you're gonna take a risk. They're gonna turn away from you, they're gonna reject you. And he said, I want Jesus. I'm willing to, I'm willing to pay the price, I'm willing to deal with the consequences. And he put his faith in Jesus. And so, so this is this is this is a a little, that was a picture of the story of uh of Nicodemus in a practical way in our life. See, religious leaders who think they know everything may come to a place in their life where they realize they're not as prepared as they thought they were. Now, there's people that we come in contact with every day that live in the Bible belt, and somewhere in their life, they may have gone to a VBS or gone to some type of revival. Some of you might fit in this category. You walked an aisle, you repeated a prayer, but but you turned and walked away and never really allowed God to develop you and to grow you into a disciple of Jesus. And sometimes I would question whether or not that decision, when you repeated that prayer, I would doubt the reality of that really being a salvation decision. And so even those of us who have grown up in church and around religious activity, especially in the Bible belt, we we sometimes have a false sense of security. And my prayer is that God would awaken you, awaken us to the reality of our need and our desperate, desperate need for Jesus to come and change our life. So basically, Nicodemus is a religious scholar who should have known for sure exactly what it's teaching, but in reality, God teaches him through the teachings of Jesus that there's more to being, more to following God than just being born into a Jewish faith. It's way more. It's got to be personal. It's got to be personal. And it's got to be tough. It's got to be tough for some of us who have gone through the motions. It's gotta be tough when the Holy Spirit awakens you to the reality that you really aren't as secure as you thought you were. And that's my prayer, that God will awaken you to the reality that you're not so prepared. And if you need Jesus, that today would be the day that you put your faith, you go all in and putting your faith in Jesus. And so we see some of this happening here. Nicodemus, the the the more most important aspect of what he believes about salvation is absolutely wrong. He realizes I am not prepared for eternity. I am not prepared for what God has for me, for the shalom and the peace and the hope and the life that I can have. And so that's why he sneaks off in the middle of the night to have a meeting with Jesus. And so, not prepared does not mean unwilling. So, so Zacchaeus finds himself not prepared, but he is willing to seek, he's willing to search, he's willing to go find the truth. And when he comes to Jesus, here's a key thing: Jesus doesn't dismiss Nicodemus because of his limited understanding. He never, he doesn't dismiss us. When we think that, when we want to come up with excuses of why we don't want to go to church or why we don't want to put our faith in Jesus, I don't know enough, or I don't know enough about the Bible, or I'm my I've got some lifestyle issues, I've got some uh behavior issues, or certain ways that I live, things that I'm doing. I I, you know, this is Jesus doesn't dismiss Nicodemus because of his limited understanding. Jesus welcomes every person. He welcomes the person who thinks they know it all, and he welcomes the person who thinks that they are not even worthy to step in to a worship service. See, all the religious leaders, their big idea of their faith was they are waiting for a Messiah, not to give his life and die on a cross, but a Messiah who would sit on a throne like King David. And he would put an army together, and he would gain their independence by leading the nation in the battle against the Roman Empire and defeating them through a supernatural act of God. That's kind of what Nicodemus's theology is built around, and he realizes I am unprepared. And I love, I love how Jesus responds. He doesn't fuss at him. Listen, these Pharisees end up becoming part of the group that lead Jesus to the cross to crucify him. So even though there's this angst, there's this there's this contentious spirit, he is so loving and welcoming to Nicodemus. And you know what he's doing doing? He is he is he is offering his grace. While Nicodemus is feeling confused, maybe feeling like an outsider, he he's a bit overwhelmed. Jesus shows grace. Sometimes we tend to dismiss those who don't have the right answers. We dismiss those that maybe don't have the theology that we have. We're easily dismissive, but Jesus does not dismiss people that lack understanding. He's loving. What I've seen in scripture is what Jesus, you know who did Jesus hang out with? He hung out with the people that were the least like him. And they loved him. And they loved him because they knew that he loved them. And so if you're, you know, if you feel, listen, the worst thing I want you to feel is condemnation. I do pray that you're convicted by the Holy Spirit where that conviction is needed. But Romans 8.1 says, if anyone is in Christ, it said there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. And so so we kind of expect, we expect maybe this hesitant response with Jesus, but no, Jesus shows grace. Jesus welcomes him in. Jesus wants him to understand. Look at verses 9. He says, How can these things be? asked Nicodemus. Are you a teacher of Israel and don't know these things? Jesus replied. Truly I tell you, we speak what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you do not accept our testimony. If I had told you about earthly things and you don't believe, how would you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. Now, Nicodemus is listening. I don't know if he's getting it yet. But here's what Jesus does. When he runs into people that are not prepared, when he runs into people who are outside the faith, when he crosses path with people who are unbelieving, Jesus doesn't withhold the truth. Jesus doesn't withhold the truth. Those of us that struggle with sharing our faith, sometimes I want to just ask, do we love people or not? Because if we love them, we won't withhold the truth. Jesus is willing to cross the line with this religious scholar who's supposed to be an expert and he's unprepared. But Jesus loves him with grace, but he doesn't withhold the truth. He tells him the truth. Are you gonna just let your child go? No, you're gonna, you're gonna, you're gonna do whatever, you're gonna get to them, right? Because you love them. You're gonna, you're, you're, you're, you're not worried about uh having a soft voice, you know, and no, you know, listen, you you're gonna you're gonna dive, go get them, holler, scream, yell, do whatever it takes because you love them. You do not withhold the truth. Or dismiss the reality. And so Jesus testifies, he bears witness to his father, and he gives Nicodemus the truth. The truth. He said, What you've invested in is not the truth. I am here to bring you to the truth. In John chapter 1, it says in verse 14 that the word became flesh and dwelt among us. Talking about Jesus. We observed his glory. The glory is the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. Verses 16 and 17. Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness, for the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth come through Jesus Christ. And so listen, grace and truth, uh they're not at odds. Jesus was full of grace and full of truth. And so in that moment where there might be some confusion, Jesus offers grace, but he doesn't hold back the truth. And he testifies. Jesus testifies, he gives testimony, he bears witness to who he is. And so when we talk about witnessing, that that word witnesses is where we get the word martyr, is somebody who's willing to step out because of their faith. The Greek word is very similar to the English word martyr that we use, someone who testifies or gives evidence. And listen, you don't have to have a seminary degree to tell the truth of God's love. You don't have to be an expert. You don't have to memorize a presentation. You know what you all you listen, you fall in love with Jesus and then you just you just talk about what you love. That's really what it's about. I've got a 2007 Toyota Tundra pickup. And and I listen, I I could probably tell you that that there's all types of manufacturers of vehicles, but I will probably never buy anything else but a Toyota. Because I've driven two Toyota Tundra pickups. And I hope this 2007 Toyota Tundra pickup that I have right now, I hope it's the last car. It's probably the last car that I'll ever buy. I hope. But but because I know it's gonna, it's gonna run forever. So I don't, I don't, I don't know the the CEO of Toyota. I I've never read my owner's manual. Which that shouldn't surprise you. I I don't have a listen, I don't have, it's not real fancy, it's not real new. You know, Russ Greer is preaching down in social circle today, but Russ, Russ has this, uh he has this uh CIA big old Tahoe or Chevrolet something. All I know is he could stand in social circle and his car be parked here in Walnut Grove and he could start it from there. And I'm joking, but I mean he could start his we go, we'll go out to lunch, man, and we'll we got I'm like, he's not even in the truck and it's running. And I'm like, oh, oh, this is how it is when people have money. I mean, listen, uh Russ, he listen, he told me what he was gonna say about me while he was down there, so I I told him I've got a few things to say about him while I'm here this morning. I mean, he he you know, he thinks he's perfect. He can sing, he can preach, and he's got a good sense of humor. That's not fair. And he's got a he's got this nice fancy FBI vehicle that he can, you know, start, you know, from anywhere. Well, that's nothing. I'm driving Toyota. 2007. And I yeah, you know what's the best thing about that 2007? It's paid for. And I'm I'm joking about this. You don't have to fly to Plano, Texas, to the North American headquarters for Toyota to be able to brag about uh a good vehicle that you've had that they've made. I mean, you don't you don't have to know anybody high up. You know, it's so easy to talk about something that you appreciate and talk about something you love, and man, if I love Jesus, how can it not come up in conversation? What if it's that easy to tell someone about Jesus? And you think, well, Russ, I just don't, you know, I don't know. Let me let me tell you, you know you know, you know what you need to know to tell somebody about Jesus? You need to know this much theology. Jesus loves me. This I know. For, say it with me. The Bible tells me so. And he has loved me and changed my life. And he goes on in verse 14. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, and he's referring to that Jesus would be lifted up on the cross so that everyone who believes him may have eternal life. For God loved the world in this way that he gave his one and only son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Now, I don't consider myself a hellfire and brimstone preacher, but I'm gonna just tell you the truth. Without Jesus, you will live eternally, separated from God. Place called hell. Jesus talked about it a lot. But he didn't come to condemn you, he came to invite you in. He came, he came knowing that that we're all we're all at a place where we're not prepared at some point in our life. And if it's not for somebody, if it's not for somebody, I wouldn't have been sitting in a chair. In 1983, when I gave my heart and life to Jesus, two people in my life, my two older brothers and my grandmother, had influence in my life, stayed on me, stayed on me, was with me. They didn't condemn me. Now they they they would throw me across the room and they would abuse me in certain ways. But from a spiritual standpoint, they were not condemning, they were loving. And so, you know what Zacchaeus was not prepared for? The gospel, the simplicity of the gospel. Jesus loves me. This I know. For the Bible tells me so. And the final thing, if you're a note taker, is this is that Jesus doesn't give Nicodemus good advice. He gives him good news. He gives him good news. What's the good news? The good news is that God has a plan. And even though we have, even though we have tried our best to mess up that plan, even though we have all given into sin, as Paul says, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. He says, the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And so God, God, God. God sees our sin. He sees how we messed up. But he doesn't send us to a therapist. He doesn't bring us to advice. And therapists and counselors are needed. They're absolutely needed. But he gives them the good news. And the good news is that your God has provided a way for you to be saved. He's given his life for us. He's hung on a cross. And listen, it doesn't matter how you feel about yourself. I wake up some days where I just don't feel that saved. There's times my wife looks at me and she says, You're not acting like you're saved today. I know. And some of you that know her, you understand that. I mean, but the reality is, he is the one who saved me. He is the one who holds my salvation in his hand. He is the one that is secure that I can be hold hold, I can have faith that he will hold me and protect my salvation. He seals me with the Holy Spirit. And even though I might struggle, even though I go through valleys, even though I might stumble, I still have a flesh and I can give in to a temptation. He still loves me and he is good news. And so this morning, as we come to the end here, I want to just invite you. There's some of you here this morning that have never put your faith in Jesus Christ. I mean, if I asked you honestly, are you confident? Are you confident that you are in Christ? And if there's any hesitation, there's any hesitation, I want to encourage you to respond and to have the security that you know that you have put your faith in Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ alone. Not in a religion, not in a denomination, not in your faith, your family upbringing, or the fact that your daddy was a preacher and your granddaddy was a deacon and your grandpa wrote a theology book or something. I mean, no. You you personally will stand before God by yourself and have to give an account. And I want to encourage you to say yes to Jesus. Just want to ask you, just bow your heads. Bow your heads. If you've never put your faith in Christ, I want to just right now. There's not a prayer to repeat. There is a heart-filled response to say, yes, yes, I believe and I receive the good news. And I put my trust in a God that sent his son, Jesus, to die for me. And to prove that he had power over sin and death in the grave, God raised him from the dead. And he walked out of that tomb to prove that he can provide salvation for us. And if that's you this morning, I want to I want to just ask you right now, if that's you and you want to put your faith in Jesus for the first time, I just want to ask you to slip your hand up while your heads are bowed and eyes are closed. If that's you and you say this this morning, I'm giving my heart to Jesus. I'm saying yes to Jesus. I see in the back back here. Um raise your hand and hold it up for a second. Anybody else? Hold it up. Now while your heads are bowed, eyes are closed, here's the challenge for us of us who are the believers is pay attention this week to who you come in contact with. Next week is the end of this series. The title of next week's sermon is Come and See. Come and see. Come and see. And we're gonna look at a different story in the Gospels. And we're gonna talk about the chain reactions when one person is willing to step out in obedience, how it can affect literally generations of people all over the world. You never know, never know who you're gonna share Christ with. Father, thank you for your grace and your love for us. Thank you for being real and providing for our salvation. God, would you help us be sensitive to listen? When people say they're not in church, when people say things are not going well, and certainly when people are not prepared, that we're willing to step in, represent Christ, speak up, offer an invitation, share our story, invite them to church. Father, would you work this morning? If you want prayer, I invite you to come to the altar. There's some people that would be glad to pray with you. If you pray to put your faith in Christ, do not leave this building without telling one of us. Tell somebody, tell somebody in your family, tell one of our staff members or pastors. We'd love to encourage you and help you take next steps. It's in Jesus' name we pray. And everybody said together. Amen. Amen. Would y'all stand together as we've sing?