Live Confidently

Introduction

We often fear what we do not know.

We will avoid doing things because they are not what we are comfortable with.

For many this is being in church. They will come and sit a day or two a week for an hour on those days.

They have been playing church for so long that they think that is what they are supposed to do.

Then something arises and they are shook to the core.

They get hit and man everything is upside down and they do not know where to look because they have not bee connected to the savior as they should.

Too many treat church like the Daisy sour cream commercial that says a dollop will do you. Simply a small amount.

They feel this not only about Church but about the Lord too. He is only there for something they need. He is their genie and not their savior and Lord.

They go to church for just their little sprinkle of Jesus.

I don’t know about you but I need to be immersed in Jesus to make it through this harsh world full of evil bitter hateful people.

A sprinkle does about as much good as a mist of water on a 110 degree day. It is gone before it does any work.

No, we need more than a sprinkle or dollop because we are in a place that pours out all its hate and evil on us every chance it gets.

This section of Scripture we will look at tells us that we have all of Jesus and all of God because of Jesus .

We need to access all of that to live a confident life.

The original audience was weakening like many today are and going back to false teachings or the ways of the world.

We see this today with all those who say well I know the Bible calls it a sin but I love that person so I will get mad at the man behind the pulpit for preaching against that sin rather than being mad at the sin.

I will embrace the sinner and the sin because that is love and right. God is love by the way so those people are not in the wrong but loved by God.

No, that is not correct.

Yes, God has a love for them or Christ would not have came to earth and died.

But they are to be washed and purified not live in that sin.

Christ died for that sin and they need to leave it behind and seek Him.

Seek to be in His presence.

Confidently go before Him and give all that to Him to work it out of you, not keep doing it because that is what you want to do because you go get a little sprinkle of Jesus here and there and feel like you are good.

The church is puny and anemic because too many people have redefined what Scripture clearly says is wrong and said it is fine.

Man, people need to look at what Christ did for them and what He continues to do for them.

He did not die and open the way to God the Father for you to only take a dab, dollop, or Sprinkle here and there just to live in your sins still.

No, you have access to the glorious God and Father because Jesus gave it all for you and wants all of you before Him always.

Man, to get this and know this is to have confidence and comfort and peace in all things.

Look at what is written in Heb. 10:19-25

Hebrews 10:19–25 ESV

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

The first thing we see about how we can live confidently is that we have...

Confidence through Connection

One thing that is absolutely certain about this section of Scripture is that we have access into the very presence of God through the death of Christ.

Christ made the way to God open to all who have believed and received His cleansing.

Man, this is critical to our walks to understand the importance of this access.

In the OT the priests and especially the High Priest were the only men who had access to the Lord.

They had to have special cleansings and washings and sacrifices like crazy to enter before Him.

We have direct access through the blood of Christ. Jesus gives you access to God now.

This is more than just a little sprinkle. Or a here and there acknowledging Him.

He gives you direct access to the all-powerful creator God who made heaven and earth.

Do you understand the astounding nature of this access?

Why would we not want to be in His presence and have that connection?

Why would we forsake being together and encouraging one another with this wisdom?

Why do we desire to walk around in ways that betray our connection to Him?

We have the biggest VIP pass that the world could ever imagine and we set it aside for worldly VIP passes and material joys.

We can enter the Holy places with unlimited access and be in the presence of God. We are His and we can be there and enjoy Him and have that because Jesus gave Himself for us.

He broke the barrier to God for us and now we are His if we have believed in Christ for the salvation He offers.

Nothing else in this world will fulfill you or bring you the comfort and joy that being in the presence of God will.

But we not only have this amazing access but we have a great high priest interceding for us.

Jesus is there beside the Father standing up for us when we falter.

We will falter and sin.

We will fall.

We will stumble.

We will have hard times and wonder.

But Jesus is there and interceding for us and He is over us guiding us.

We are the house of God. Look at Heb. 3:6

Hebrews 3:6 ESV

6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.

We are His house and He is over us.

He is our head as we see in Eph. 5:23 “For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.”

What this means is that He guides us and leads us.

When we follow Him we will always be in the presence of God because Christ always points to the Father.

He only did the will of the Father while on earth.

He still does the will of the Father and when we follow our head and great priest we will do the will of the Father.

But this takes having more than just a sprinkle of Jesus or a dab or a dollop.

We need the whole sugar bag poured over us.

We need the whole jar or container poured over us.

We need it all and when take it all, which is offered, we will be committed and live in the presence of the Father in a manner that will draw others in.

We will shine forth Christ and live life in the place we belong.

We belong to Him and by that we belong with Him.

We have confidence to be before Him because of Christ.

But we can do three things to strengthen our walk and help us stay focused on Him and live in His presence more.

Life of Worship

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance.

That is worship.

That is what we do when we know the amazing work Jesus did for us.

We come to Him.

We come close to Him because we love Him and know He is faithful and He has cleansed us.

When we worship Him we will not look at what the world throws at us.

We will look to Him and give it to Him when Satan and his minions attack.

We lift up our praise only to Him in all things.

When we feel the world is falling down around us we look to Him .

We give Him all glory and praise always.

We have the right to enter in before Him because He has given us this right.

He made the way possible and we need to take full advantage of that right.

We need to be like the drunk at the open bar.

He will go to that bar over and over and take and take until he can’t take anymore.

We have the right to come into the presence of Jesus and worship Him and give every care and burden to Him anytime we want and need to.

We have a burden bearer that will carry it all if you come to Him.

We have that access and unlike the drunk, our access is never cut off. The open bar will close and the drunk will have to leave.

Jesus never closes and we never have to leave Him.

Worship Him and give it all to Him in all things.

Part of this is by living the...

Life of Truth

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering He is faithful.

We have a way to stand and be firm and faithful because Jesus is the one who has promised us and gives us confidence.

Hold firm that confession.

We can hold firm the confession when we are authentic and living it to the full.

If we waver and slip around and act like we are not His, we will not worship authentically and we will not be boldly living truth.

When we hold fast our confession we will be mocked and ridiculed.

We will be called foul names.

We will receive abuse and scorn.

But Jesus is faithful to hold and keep us.

He has done all that is necessary and He is interceding for us by the Father.

He has not only made the path to worship and the Father open and always available for us, but He is there working still for us.

He is holding us and keeping us in all things.

Why would we waver and walk away from that and not boldly truthfully live a life of worship to Him?

He is for you and He has you and He will never leave you.

Those that mock you or those who are still living in the sinful fallen ways of the world will leave you and forsake you.

Jesus never will. He is with you and will keep you regardless what this world and the lost people in it do.

He is our constant and the one who will always be there.

He is our lighthouse on the stormy seas of life.

Stop looking around and back at all the things around you and fix your eyes on the light that will lead you to safety through the storm.

We are in storms and we need to fixate our gaze on the Lord Jesus who is our savior and the one who will hold us.

But to do this in a way that will help us we need to do

Life Together

Let us consider how to stir one another up to good works and love, not neglecting to meet together as many have made a habit of doing.

If we are to hold fast our confident connection, live a life of worship, truth, we need to have life together.

We need each other to encourage each other.

We need to stop playing church and coming for the box checking and start being together and standing together.

We do not need to let little earthly issues stop us from being together and encouraging one another.

We need one another before we fall back into the wicked and sinful ways we once were a part of.

When we do not meet together we allow the enemy to creep in and make us against other believers.

We will begin to get discouraged and then we will leave the church.

Maybe we go to another church and seek to find what we think we want that the enemy has told us there.

We discover it is not there either because they are people and they make mistakes too.

Then we stop going altogether and live a life in all out sin.

We leave the place that gives us encouragement and help.

We must stop this and begin to live life together so we can remain strong in the faith and live a life that glorifies God.

This week I was at youth camp and nine kinds of hell was unleashed on my family and friends.

I have a relative who has been battling cancer who is younger than me by a few years have a stroke and was unable to receive the stroke meds because of his cancer.

Then my best friend of 26 plus years dad’s funeral was Thursday and I could not attend.

Then that evening this same friend was in a horrific car wreck and is still in the hospital as of this sermon.

Man I was struggling and the enemy was beginning to creep in and make me get bitter and want to withdraw.

But I was at camp kids were depending on me and the Spirit was moving and I knew He was my only hope to make it through.

I poured my heart into prayer and activities with the kids.

I worshipped with my all and spilled my pains and misery to others who prayed for me and my friends and family.

I was strengthened to continue and to continue with joy because I did not forsake assembling together with others.

I was able to worship and man does it feel good to know that the enemy was trying to take me down but God won out because of faithful people around me.

Keep going and worshipping with others.

Meet with them and talk and pray together.

Study Scripture together.

Encourage one another because the day is coming when Jesus will return and many will not want to be out of step with Christ when He comes.

Stay focused on Him our light house through the storms and know He is the way and the one who made the way, and follow Him faithfully and see what happens.

I can guarantee you will see God show up and show out in your life when you just live a life of worship, truth, and being together with other faithful followers.

Just try it and see what happens.

Because if you don’t you will be like the man who bought a house but let the original owner retain ownership of one nail above the door.

The original owner wanted the house back but the new owner would not sell.

So the original owner went and got a dead rotting carcass of a dog and hung it on the nail.

The house got unlivable so the new owner sold it to the original owner.

Basically if we allow the enemy to retain one small part in us he will hang his rotting garbage on it making it unfit for living.

When we shift our focus we allow the enemy to have that small part and our life sinks and stumbles.

So today focus on the way maker who is also your chain breaker and know He has other washed in the blood believers around you who will help encourage you but you must continue to gather together and help one another.

That is how we live confidently.