I would like to personally thank Coach Peebles and Pinecrest Baptist Church for allowing me the privilege and the honor of preaching this morning.

How many Cougars do we have in the house this morning?

Where are my Wildcats at?

LOCKED IN!

It was a cool Thursday night on Oct. 30th, 1997. Crisp Academy was 9 and 0. We were heading into the region championship against Fullington Academy. Crisp was ranked 4th in the state and Fullington was ranked 3rd in the state. The bleachers were packed and there were people surrounding the entire field. This was the most people we had ever seen at Bobby Davis Stadium. And if didn’t place the stakes high enough, we had never had any luck beating Fullington. Matter fact, they had a habit of blowing us out. But this year was going to be different. We could feel it in our bones. We were LOCKED IN.

What is LOCKED IN?

I’m glad you asked!

My son Malcolm Lawerence.

LOCKED IN means to exhibit total concentration on the task at hand or being fully attuned to or in sync with the game or other activity that one is engaged in.

To be LOCKED IN is to be all-in or sold-out.

If ever there was a man that was completely LOCKED IN, it was Paul.

Paul was LOCKED IN to his calling.

Before Paul met Jesus he was going around arresting anyone and everyone who claimed to be a Christian.

You might say that Paul was LOCKED IN to the world.

Let me just add, that we all, if we’re not careful, can be LOCKED IN to the wrong things.

The things that have no eternal value.

Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus and Jesus radically saved and transformed Paul.

Paul went on to be the greatest follower of Christ that the world has ever seen.

This morning as we look at what it means to be LOCKED IN, the text we will be reading is out of a letter Paul wrote the the Philippians.

If you have your Bibles, would you please turn to the letter to the Philippians.

It’s right after Ephesians and if you get to Colossians, you’ve gone to far.

We are going to be in chapter 3, starting with verse 12 and reading through verse 14.

If you are willing and able, would you please stand for the reading of God’s Holy Word.

Philippians 3:12–14 NKJV

12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Father. In the Name of Jesus. Speak Lord, speak. For Christ’s sake. Amen.

Paul tells us that he not achieved perfection, but good night he is chasing after it.

The term “press on” in the Greek can mean to pursue or to run after.

Friends what is it in life that you are running after? What is it that you are completely LOCKED IN on in life?

As we headed into the 4th quarter the score was tied 0 to 0. Neither team would budge. We had the ball inside Fullington’s 5 yard line. Coach Barnes called a trap. Everything depended on the execution of this play. It was now or never. Sam had to pull and make a key block in order for me to have a clear path into the end zone.

DOWN.

SET.

HUT.

I fake left.

Sam pulls right.

I cut back to the right.

Sam makes the block.

Touchdown.

Touchdown.

Crisp Academy scores.

We went on to win the region championship that night as we beat Fullington 15-0.

And just like that, we had accomplished everything that we had ever dreamed of.

We had finished the drill.

Now what?

Before Paul met Jesus, he couldn’t seem to see past his nose.

Arresting Christians was all there was to life.

Paul isn’t the only one with a past.

LOCKED IN to the world!

For Paul dream breakers was not running after Jesus Christ, it was persecuting His people.

Rhetorical question

How many of you can say, “When I grow up I want to go to prison?”

Neither did I!

Looking back, there some horrible things that happened to me as a little kid that impacted me in a very negative way. Things that no kid should have happen to them.

Nevertheless my I am responsible for my decisions. The blame is mine alone.

After football and basketball season was over my senior year, I focused all my attention on girls, partying, and getting high.

Boys bathroom

What started off as fun, only lasted for a little while.

Shortly after high school, I started selling drugs and partying even harder.

Fast forward a decade and I caught my first felony for sale of oxycotton.

And in the blink of an eye, I went from being the superstar football and basketball player who had life handed to him on a silver platter, to a homeless drug addict that only had a roof over my head when I was locked up .

I eventually caught 3 more felonies and was sentenced to prison for 3 years.

Family if we are only focused on or LOCKED IN to the things of this world, we will never reach our full potential.

Worldly things have zero eternal value.

Drugs, alcohol, bullying, suicide, gangs, vaping are all distractions that hinder us from running after Jesus.

We must, like Paul, forget these things which are behind us and reach forward for the things that are ahead.

We must be LOCKED IN to something.

HIS NAME IS JESUS!

LOCKED IN to Jesus!

After Jesus radically saved and transformed Paul, he became so LOCKED IN on running after the prize.

Hey, let’s talk for a minute. The prize isn’t getting a scholarship to your favorite school. It’s not getting your dream job. And it’s most definitely not money, cars, and clothes.

The only prize worth running after is Jesus.

Paul knew this.

That is why he said, “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul was chasing after Jesus. He was LOCKED IN on the only thing that truly matters.

July 13th, 2018, I was was released from prison 18 months early. I spent the next year doing all the same things that placed me in prison to begin with.

On July 21st, 2019, like Paul, Jesus radically changed my life forever.

I’ll never forget. That morning I went to church at Ebenezer Baptist.

Brother Fred Jones preached a message in which I have no clue as to what it was.

What I do remember is that at the end of the message, an invitation was given.

Keep in mind that every Sunday when he gave an invitation, I always felt as if something were pushing me to go forward.

I would always plant my feet.

But on this glorious morning I went forward and surrendered my life to Jesus.

You see in truth, Jesus was drawing me to Himself.

All I had to do was take that step.

If Jesus calls you this morning, will you answer the call or plant your feet.

What I can tell you for sure is that JESUS radically saved me and He wants to do the same for you this morning.

Are you ready to LOCK IN to Jesus or be locked up in the world?

Be an original, not a carbon copy.

No one has the same fingerprint as you do.

I challenge you to stop following those around you.

There is no eternal glory in following anyone except Jesus.

WHAT’S IT GOING TO BE?

It’s the championship game. You need 6 points to win. There is 3 seconds left on the clock. It’s 4th and goal on the 9 yard line. What’s it gonna be?

Today I challenge each of you to make a decision.

Present the Gospel!

From where I’m standing there are 3 types of people here today.

commited/saved/sanctified

compromise/prodigal/wilderness wanderer

conflict/lost/in need of a Savior

we all come to a fork in the road where a decision has to be made

There are two paths

heaven

hell

What’s it gonna be?

Would you please bow your heads?

invitation