Embracing Personal Responsibility in Our Spiritual Journey

"Why doesn't God reveal himself to you to know his will he cannot it is not that he will not but he cannot because you are in the way as long as you won't abandon yourself to him in total surrender Oswalt Chambers from his devotional my My Utmost For His Highest little things make a big deal little things make a huge deal." [00:04:44]

"Grace it's never about Grace it's never about Grace and actually it's it's a lot about Grace we love Grace but the problem is like any Doctrine if you take it too far to the extreme it becomes warped because if it's too far how far over can I go right if it's all about Grace we forget about obedience come on now so obedience is over saying hello come come back find the middle ground here if it's all about Grace have you heard heard the phrase uh cheap Grace sloppy agapy what they mean is leave me alone and let me sin as much as I want I'm under God's grace that's an abuse of Grace." [00:05:38]

"Paul said put to death fornication if you're living together sex any sex outside of marriage hello lgbtq plus1 18472 9 movement anything anything outside that's not funny because they have to keep adding numbers because there's no truth it's a lie and you have to keep accommodating for everything fornication put it to death don't play with it before you say Amen Jesus said if you even look to a woman to l for her you have committed adultery in your heart the plague of pornography you have to deal with." [00:07:23]

"Uncleanness which is corrupt morals put it to death what about putting to death your passions wait I thought passions are good right these are what the Bible says unbridled lusts unbridled less did you know that even a good thing can become a bad thing hello yes all of you are going to experience or most of you after Thanksgiving dinner you'll see ah you I remember that sermon you I try I'm just telling you I try it and it never works just one plate just basic good that's it that's all I'm having that's it and when you know it King's stomach begins to call my name." [00:08:16]

"Covetousness what is that having something I want something that someone else has and it'll eat you up will it not covetousness wanting wanting what others have and God said because of these things the wrath of God is upon the sons of Disobedience once it's what it's who you used to be but you're not that anymore so stop in other words this is I love to just talk to Paul he's B he's basically saying put to death all these things that you're supposed to you you you've been crucified with Christ you you've left these things you've repented of these things and you found newness in Christ and wholeness and why are you going back to the same things that brought you down put them to death." [00:09:48]

"The Bible is clear on this you've got to kill sin you don't play with it you don't coddle it I think it was John Owen the famous Puritan who said be killing sin or sin be killing you that that is profound be killing sin or sin be killing you did you know that sin doesn't stay static or doesn't stay neutral think about it it's either growing in your life or it's withering and dying because you're taking away its fuel source wo be to the man who thinks he can just walk down the middle and keep it restrained." [00:10:37]

"Why would you willingly walk back into the enemy camp and that's why in Ephesians he said I beseech you walk worthy of the calling which you were called new that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk and that is that always the The Plea like Christian why do you you you look no different than the world many Christians don't correct there's no how do you even know how do you even know I love this story and I don't care if I've told it a few times you you'll you need to hear it again maybe but I was in construction I came back to L's 2000 or so I was working actually at quill water district believe it or not I was their heavy equipment operator and I'm talking to this one guy I'm working with with you know I even say their names never you w but but I'm talking with this guy about yeah you know's he's acting like he's a Christian we're talking for months couple months I'm working together with him and and trying to get him to church and you know it's just we're not going to talk about other stuff to God and and working hard and things and then this other guy we'll call Gary okay so I'm talking with him for months couple months same thing like because I go to different jobs as a heavy equipment operator I've got to go here on a water leak and here on a main leak and here you know and one day one day this is just blows my mind we're all working together the same same place and I I start the conversation right and about Billy Graham Crusade or something coming up if it was back I don't know if it was the last one in LA and and they turn to each other and they go Gary I didn't know you're a Christian these guys been working together for months they didn't know the other one was a Christian eight hours a day or we were doing 41 and I just stood back and I'm like I know because I'm talking to let's say his name's Heath right okay I'm talking to Heath I know we're we're engaged you know he talks a good talk and I'm talking to Gary on months months months and he's but then I get them together and they're like surp I didn't even know you're a Christian man oh me neither you too well let let it sink in how do you work together for a couple months oh there's porn in the truck there's dirty jokes there's alcohol after work there's no difference and that needs to wake people up now it doesn't mean you don't struggle but there's a difference you know he who has the love of the world or the father does not have the does not love the things of the world he who loves the world does not have the love of the father in him and that he's saying there do not keep walking like the Gentiles there's no difference There's no distinction we don't want people to know we're Christians at work we don't want people because we're the bottom line is many people are embarrassed now I know you have to be careful right you don't want to go get fired on purpose but there there there there there's something about you that resembles Christ Paul's saying why do you walk like the Gen why do you look like the Gentiles there's no and and and he's writing to colassi he's writing to Ephesian the church in Ephesus he's WR wrote the same things to the church in in Corinth so it is a struggle for Christians so I'm not I'm not beating you up I'm trying to convict you big difference beating up is to condemn condemn you convicting you is to get you up out of your chair have you leave here go I don't like what he had to say but you know what I need to make those changes and then you make the changes then you make the changes and you repent and the fire of God comes upon your life and then next time you come to church you're hugging me and crying because now the joy that's been Elusive and the peace that has never been found has come into your heart I've seen it time and time again they open the the floodgates I'll be talking about that tonight more on that topic and then he goes on to say Do not grieve the spirit again I wish I had time to go into all this do not give the devil a foothold do not give place to the devil which literally means do not invite the devil in and it's funny how he Ties That with anger be careful deal with anger deal with it because it will it will it's destructive it's destructive and he closes verse 32 sorry Sarah I'm driving you crazy I'm sure all over the place with these slides the problem is I only have a skeleton and God puts the clothes on on the sermon I I it's very hard for me to stick at one thing when I feel prompted to to to Really minister in other areas they call it the rabbit trails and we hear feedback mainly on the rabbit Trails so because this is what I want to talk about God says now this is what I want you to talk about amen Jason you told me that as well too this week and be kind to one another tenderhearted forgiving one another I want to make a bold statement I didn't say this at the first service didn't even think of it but it's it's I think I I think this is important maybe for someone here a couple people here unforgiveness is going to prevent the mighty moving of God's spirit in your heart it could be it could be the blockage that is stopping that but Shane you don't know what they did no I don't know what they did and it doesn't mean that they are right forgiveness is a decision trust is a process forgiveness just means they're wrong but I'm releasing I'm giving it to God because I can't hold this toxic emotion in My Heart Lord you died for me you forgave me you command me to forgive I can't if it's hard it's hurtful but I do not want this disconnect between me and your spirit anymore I'm letting this go I'm releasing it to you God would you help me it's even hard right now I don't I don't I I'm trying Lord I I I want to I feel I know I need to but Lord would you help me and he will he will don't allow that to don't allow that to prevent you from the fullness of the spirit what I mean by that is as a Believer you can have you you have the Holy Spirit at conversion you have all of the Holy Spirit at conversion my personal belief but does he have all of you that's why when people talk about the baptism of the Holy Spirit brother you need the baptism of the Holy Spirit brother you need the anointing of the Holy Spirit brother you need Fresh Fire what they're talking about is something is clogged up in your system and you need to repent and fully surrender so the fullness of the spirit can be poured upon your life that's why I don't have problems with those ter terms I would tell yeah you need the you need baptism anointing unction fullness whatever you abandoned life whatever you call it you need it I like what ra Tori said I'd rather miss the theological term just right and receive the power of the spirit then get the term just right and miss the power and that's why so many people Oswalt Chambers who I just quoted did you know he lived in misery as a professor and a Christian Misery the Bible was the most boring doll book he's ever read in his life you can read in his biography his exact words how does he go from that to writing my utmost for as highest the greatest devotional of all time in America how does he go from that how does John Wesley go from going back to Europe defeated discouraged didn't win anyone to the Lord was going to quit the ministry to on fire for God the founder of the Methodist movement how does John bunan go from seemingly dead to the things of God had religion to now writing the Pilgrim's Progress and doing 12 years in prison I can I I've got all day as a matter of fact we have to be back me and John his wife in four hours so I'll just camp in for a while if you want I can give you what made the difference what made the difference what made the difference of an uneducated country boy from Courts Hill California drunk all the time talk about God now it's a little embarrassing it's for women worship is for women give me some George straight and a 12pack and I'll be good from that to this as a Christian as a Christian I was convicted I knew I shouldn't be living this way going to Vegas for two nights with on on speed at 17 years old how do you go from that to this the baptism the fire the anointing the unction of the spirit that's that's it you go from almost nothing of the spirit quenching and grieving the spirit of God that's why you're miserable that's why you do nothing for God that's why church is boring that's why you don't want to come most of the time that's why you don't want to put on worship you got to put your secular music on that's why you and you want it I feel your pain you want it but you're bound you're locked into this demonic bondage and God says repent of all that repent of it give me everything fully surrender everything I need it all in order to fill you all the way he needs it all partial surrender partial partial filling now I don't want to leave people leave confused there's no such thing as perfect surrender on this side of the Cross have I surrender perfectly no hello hello I still got things the Lord's tugging on me about come on Shane come on get remember I to I did a podcast recently and God's been convicting me about coffee but no I like my Christian crack you know it's it's but it makes me irritable it makes me anxious it makes me and that's not good for a pastor you know I'm just saying so there's all these things that God is convicting us on right anybody get convicted about more family devotionals I couldn't do that if you paid me $100 I've got a four-year-old running around a 10year old bored to death this guy thinks he knows it all this it's like forget it the IDL mens are a work in progress and that's I think that's what my gravestone is going to say work in progress so it's not about perfection it's about Direction the direction of your heart." [00:11:30]