Awakening to Repentance: A Call for Renewal

We know this church because for some of us have lived long enough to remember that there was a time not too long ago that regardless of the evils of this world, regardless of the racism, regardless of the classism, regardless of the sexism, regardless of segregation or the Jim Crow laws of the South, many people within our culture still believe in the Bible -based teachings that provided the values of human dignity, God -fearing marriages, education, missions, humanitarianism, inclusion, equity, fear of God and respect for human life. [00:38:25]

Church, we need a spiritual awakening. But this will only happen within our country because it first happens to the church. Did you hear what I said? You and I must have our own spiritual and personal spiritual awakening. We need a spiritual revival that starts with us and then moves out into the culture. [00:41:02]

The universal church. I'm talking about blood bought born again believers. The problem is with the light of the church. We have not. And we are not reflecting the greater light being the lesser light that should pattern ourselves after our savior, Jesus Christ. Church. Our life have become dim. It's dim. Because of the fact of our. Selfishness. [00:42:25]

God expects his children to walk in obedience to maintain and share the standards of his word. So that we can walk and live in a manner that will be worthy unto God. That will bring God glory and we cannot change God's standards to fit us. [00:44:56]

And so what we have to do we have to not allow this culture to inundate us that we don't recognize that we need our own spiritual awakening because if the truth is told we have capitulated to the culture and we are in showmanship as a church a body of believers instead of representing what God wants us to represent on this side of glory. [00:47:33]

But now their face is all frowned up trying to figure out how you got delivered, trying to figure out how you got blessed, trying to figure out how you got healed, trying to figure out how you in your right mind with all the hell that you've been catching, trying to figure out how was a brother hooked up, trying to figure out how was a sister hooked up. That's your testimony. [00:52:49]

We need to tell the truth. We need to tell. The truth. As far as I can remember, my mother, my father both said to my grandmothers and grandfathers both said to my aunts and uncles, my cousins, my head start teacher. [00:55:06]

And so we got to tell the truth that deliverance, whether it's spiritual or physical, does not happen under our own power. But there's something else. We got to tell that deliverance does happen in the divine power of Jesus. Verse 13 through 15. Watch what Peter does in his sermon. He redirects the crowd's gaze to the powerful person. [01:01:40]

And so it gives them that just like your forefathers was guilty, y 'all are guilty right now as well. And so what he does. And then. And then in the last one, he said that you kill the prince of life. Church, let's let's not be hard on them. [01:04:53]

And that's why we got to keep telling the story of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, because church, it is the process for you and I to come into a presence with God. It is the process that you and I need to come out of darkness into his marvelous light. It is the process that we can have a right relationship with God. [01:06:18]

We need to repent, return, and refresh. We need to repent, return, and refresh. What Peter does, he acknowledged to his fellow Jews. Man, listen. I know y 'all did this in. Ignorance. Not that you didn't have the intellectual capabilities, but you just did not know. But not knowing does not excuse you from your sins. [01:08:14]

Here's the application for us. Church. Our greatest need right now is to be spiritually awakened. This is what God wants for us. Personally, this is what God wants for our country. This is what God wants for our culture, but it starts with us. What we need to do is to repent of our sins. [01:10:40]