Loving Lavishly Part 1

Undefeated on His Turf

Loving Lavishly Part 1 Pastor Marvin Barham, D. Min

Open your Bibles to the book of Mark Chapter 4. We are just going to dig into the Word of God together. You know, I have watched my dad do ministry for probably 40 or 50 years. And I have watched people receive prophecy. And I mean, God reveals the most intimate details of their life. I have prophesied to people the same. I remember I was at a Burger King one time when I was a youth pastor. There was a young man that worked at Burger King that needed a ride to youth group. So, I swung by to pick him up. And as I come out, there was this young girl there sitting on the curb. She said, “Hey, Mr. you got a light?” And I said, “Oh yeah! I got a light. I'm lit with the Holy Ghost.” And I said, “Honey, I'm not talking about a light for your smoke. I'm like, I got a light and it's not for your cigarette, it is for your soul.” And I began to speak the word of God into her identity and destiny and God's purpose for her life; God's love, God's mercy, God's goodness, God's grace.

She began to weep, and I began to prophecy to her. And I began to speak to her about how she was molested at four years old and how it went on for years. God spoke of how it just ripped her soul and stole from her identity. Of how she grew with that ripping her heart and mind and in her grew a hardness of her heart towards God. God begin to speak and just prophecy all these things about her, about her parents, divorce, and all kinds of things. The enemy had been just ripping her life apart.

Suddenly, I opened my eyes and there were young people standing all around me. And they were going, “What is going on?” And one of them was her little friend, who said, “What are you doing to her?” I said it is all right, sweetie. God's touching her. That is healing.” She said, “What are you? Some kind of psychic or something?” I said, “No, that is the Holy Ghost. This is Jesus.”

I have watched God do that through the years, through my dad's ministry, through the ministry God has used me in through the church, and 14 years of youth pastoring. Give or take a year. According to my wife. And then this church is 22 years old. So, lots of years in ministry. I have ministered in Brazil and cities all over Brazil. I have cast out demons. Well, I have not y'all, Jesus has used me. The Holy Spirit has cast out demons. I have watched demonic spirit manifest. I have watched paraplegics get healed. I have preached and homosexuals were afraid to come to the altar. I said, “Why won't you come to the altar?” And they said, “We're afraid of the fire.” “What fire?” I asked. They said, “Everywhere you go, there's fire.” I said, “Well, come and get some of this fire. This fire is what you need to burn up that sin in your life.” I have watched so many wept and cried at the altar saying I am yours. God. Oh, God. Thank you for deliverance. Thank you for freeing me. Thank you, God. I was a drug addict. I was an alcoholic. I was this and that. And I watched them commit their life to Christ and through all of that and then I have watched those same people just walk away from God.

I remember when I was in the military and Campus Crusade for Christ's Military Ministry asked Angie and I to be a part of their staff. And so, as part of the on boarding process, they sent someone to interview us in our home. They went through all the doctrinal things and all was good. And then they got to that whole speaking in tongues thing. And they said now. Y'all don't believe in that, surely? And I said, “Well, maybe just a little. Let me tell you a little of what the Holy Spirit has done.” They replied, “Oh, my. Well, you'll have to give that up.” And I am like, “Are you kidding? Give up the Holy Ghost. I've watched the Holy Spirit radically transform lives, prophesied over prostitutes on a street corner and deliver gang bangers at McDonald's. I mean God has changed people's lives totally. And you want me to give that up to be a part of your staff? I don't think so. I don't think there's an even trade.” And it blows my mind how people would just walk away from God. They so easily walk away from this great love. They walk away having tasted the power of God. And I'm not just talking about average everyday Christians. I'm talking about preachers. I'm talking about pastors. I'm talking about apostles who just walk away from God. I’m talking about Christians who have served in their church for years. And they walk away. Why? How? Some of them don't just walk away, they get snatched away and taken captive.

Let’s look at Mark Chapter 4. Again, he began to teach beside the sea and a very large crowd gathered about him so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea. And the whole crowd was beside the sea. On the land. And he was teaching them many things in parables.

The Hebrew word for parable is mashal מָשָׁל. It means an ethical wisdom, an ethical standard. In other words, Jesus is putting before them, not just stories. So often we read that and we say, oh, he's just telling them some cute little stories like Sunday school class. No, no, no. He is presenting to them unshakable, unchangeable expectations of God. God’s ethical standards and in these ethical standards, he is challenging them with a moral response. What will your response be to God's ethical standard? Not once does he propose or imply that God will accept any excuse for your lack of moral response. And how many of you know, no response is a response. A response that's contrary to his standard is still a response. Half obedience is still disobedience.

So, Jesus is putting before them God's ethical standards, and he's demanding a moral response. You see, that brings a more teeth to it than just him telling them cute little stories. Like, well, there was this fox and it had a tail. And he was going through the woods and he got his tail caught in a bear trap. And, you know, before he got his tail caught in this trap, he was prancing around, showing off his pretty tail. Proud because everybody didn't have a tail as pretty as he had. And so, he got his tail caught in this trap. And he couldn't get free and he looked around. Nobody saw him and there was no one to help him, so he chewed his tail off. And he walked around from that day on, like Cindy's dog, Zoe. Cindy's dog, Zoey, is the cutest precious dog. She has got these beautiful blue eyes, but she's got this little nub. I just watch her wag that little nub trying to visualize a tail. But it’s just gone. And I say I'm sorry, Zoey. They stole your glory. Back to the fox with the nub. He went back into the woods. And all the other animals said what happened to your tail? He said, “Don't you know this is the new thing? This is the new fad. I think you all should cut your tails off. Because this is the new normal. You should all do like I'm doing.” Until the wise old owl said, “You lying sucker. I was in the tree and I saw you when you got your tail caught in the trap.” What's the moral of the story? Well, you figure it out. There's an ethical standard. There's something about character. There's something about wisdom. There's something about discernment. There's a nugget of truth in the little parable I just shared with you.

So, Jesus is presenting to them more than cute little stories. He is giving them ethical standards that demand a moral response.

Mark 4: And he was teaching them many things in parables. In his teaching, he said to them, listen, a sword went out to sew. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground.

Hard ground, like a hard heart. Or a hard head. You know, some folks have got a hard heart. Some folks have got a hard heart and a hard head.

Mark 4: Other seed fell on hard ground where it did not have much soil.

Soil! You know that that stuff that enriches and has nutrients in it. That stuff that God created, we call dirt and we take so often for granted? God puts this stuff in it that causes things to grow. I planted some trees. We got we caught three trees on sale. And I wanted to plant them along this creek in the front yard. But when I went to dig, I just kept hitting rock, rock, rock, and more rock. I managed to get those trees planted among the rock. I managed to get a hole, but all around the sides of the hole, there's very little dirt and a whole lot of rock. And you know what? Those trees are still there. But they're not growing. I don't have trees. I have some sticks in rocks. And how many, you know, sticks don't grow. Trees do. It is good soil that enriches and causes growth.

The Scriptures say that they didn't have much soil, and immediately it sprang up. And since it had no depth of soil, it was shallow or none, and when the sun rose it was scorched. You can call yourself a Christian and a follower of Christ. You come here and sing the songs and everything else. When the Son, the true light shines on your life, it will expose all things. It will expose how deep your soil really is. It will expose how deep your roots really are in Christ. And you can give all kinds of excuses but they will not stand. When the sun arose, it was scorched. And since it had no roots, it withered away. Are you hearing me? Oh, it came and it sang the songs and it even threw something in the offering plate. It looked good, or it was at least in the building during worship. You might stand in worship and say, “Man, are they going to keep singing this song? They've sung this song 15 times. I think I'll go get some water.”

In fact, are y'all enjoying the sermon? Then I'm going to the restroom. Now you are all looking at me like I am crazy. But that’s what I see every Sunday. Then I get people come and say, “Pastor, I need some counseling.” I ask, “Why?” And they say, “Because I'm having some rocky times in my life.” And I reply, “Well, did you hear last Sunday’s sermon?” they might say, “Well, parts of it.” And I’m like, “It was what you needed but you walked out five times. I was giving you counseling from the pulpit. The Holy Spirit was addressing everything you need. You don’t need more counseling. Go back and listen to the podcast.”

The seeds scattered on the hard ground and little soil had no roots. Some people won't let the roots of God’s Word grow. They too many excuses, defenses, apathy, inconsistency, and spiritual attention deficit disorder. I don't know what it is, but you won't let roots grow. No consistency, no faithfulness, no diligence, no willingness to dig in to the word and study. Because you have no willingness to be discipled, roots are not growing in your life. And it breaks my heart every time somebody falls away. They withered away.

Then other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it out. I like to watch UFC fights. But I don't like those fights that they just dance in a circle in a standoff. I love what Grandmaster Han says, “Martial art, no dancing. Fighting, no dancing.” When I watch, I want to see a serious fight where somebody has to tap out. So, some seeds fell among the thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it out and yielded no grain. They bore no fruit in their life. Other seeds fell in good soil and produced grain growing up and increasing and yielding thirty-fold and sixty-fold and hundred-fold. He then says, “Let him who has ears to hear, let him hear.” What is the Hebrew word there? It is shama שָׁמַע. And that is a Hebrew idiom right there. Let him who has ears to hear. Let him hear or shama (obey). It means to obey. And the idiom is this. “Let those who seek understanding find it and live it.” And so, when Jesus was alone with the twelve disciples asked him about the parable. Now keep in mind, these are God’s ethical standards. And so, they come to him and they said, “You didn't use any PowerPoint slides. And there were no pictures. Now Jesus, we could understand this parable if you would put it in a TikTok video. Then we might can understand it. Jesus put a rap song to it. Like this, Check it out I got a chill revelation. The Kingdom of God is a hyper celebration. Live a larger and abundant life with the Father; serving Jesus, it ain't no bother. Jesus, pick your poison. If you present it that way. See this culture, this generation is different, Jesus. They needed it with a little hip hop. Then they might get it.”

No, no, no, no, no! Listen to what he says.

He says, “To you it's been given. The secret? Of the Kingdom.” In other words, Jesus was saying. You have to whisper it. Is that right? No, no. What does it mean a secret? We'll turn over to Deuteronomy 29:29. See, Scripture interprets scripture and when there is a P’sat I want to go into the Remez. And when I discover the Remez, I want to go into the D’rash. And once I have discovered and uncovered and removed the veil of the D’rash, I might see what Messiah is and put Him in my life.

Deuteronomy 29:29 the secret things belong to the Lord our God. But the things that are revealed or unveiled. The removing of the veil belonged to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of the Law.

Listen here, Jesus says in response to them, “It has been given…to you has been given the secret of the Kingdom of God.” What is the secret of the Kingdom of God? The secret things belong to the Lord our God. But the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children, to our children. Say it with me, “to our children, and my children's children, the secret to the Kingdom of God.” God has given to me, and I am to pass that key, that secret on to my children and my children's children. What is the secret? Read on. That we may do all the words of the Law of God. Well, that just makes sense, doesn't it? When he said, train up your children.

In the way they should go and from that way they will not depart.

Shema here: Shema Yisriael Adonai Eloheynu Adonai Echad

Hear Oh Israel, the Lord thy God is one and you shall love the Lord thy God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And you shall teach your children. You shall take the law of the Lord and write it upon your foreheads and upon your hearts and upon your hands. Like, bind it upon your hands, and you shall teach it diligently to your children as you come in and you go out. When you rise in the morning, when you lay down at night, as you walk about your day, in every station, in every position in life you shall diligently teach it to your children. The law of the Lord; the way the Lord; the ethical standards of the Lord and the moral response to the Lord. That’s God’s expectation. The word secret in Hebrew is sathar סָתַר. It means fenced in; It means concealed until a day of revealing or removing of the veil. I mean, the veil was torn into and Jesus came and removed the veil. It's not a secret anymore.

So, he says to them in Mark Chapter 4 and verse 10, “To you has been given the secret, the sathar. The secret of the Kingdom of God. But for those outside, everything is in parables.” What's Jesus saying? He's saying I'm giving them ethical standards and moral responses in a way that unless they have a desire to seek understanding they'll hear but not perceive. Look what he says. So that they made indeed see but not perceive. And they made indeed hear but not understand. Well, that's interesting. What does he mean? Well see, we go up here where he says in verse eleven, “to you has been given the secret of the Kingdom”, how did I know that over here in Deuteronomy 29:29, what Jesus is referring to in that verse. Well Pastor, because you went to seminary and you did this because, because, because. I did it because I study; because I dig in here and I find it. But you have to, Pastor. Because you’ve got to preach every Sunday. Oh Lord, I'm going to bathroom. Somebody else finish the sermon? Mr. Michael, you finish, Sir. Oh really? Oh, really? So, you have no responsibility to seek the understanding of the things of God. You have none. Well, here with that mentality, here's where you will be. You will be seed thrown upon stony ground.

You will be seed thrown upon stony ground and in due season the birds will come and devour every seed of the word of God that you ever heard. You gleaned a little bit on a Sunday but the birds are just going to eat it up. The sun will come out when trials and tribulations come upon your life, and you have no deeper than soil than what I expound, the exegesis I give you on Sunday. You've gotten no deeper in the word of God. Your faith, your relationship with Jesus gets scorched. And we don't see you anymore? And I'm calling. I'm asking Mama, where's Aaron? I haven't seen Aaron for four Sundays. He had no depth of relationship. And when we have no depth of relationship, offenses come. Your heart gets hardened because you have a lack of understanding. They may indeed see, but not perceive in other words. The word perceive here. We often just see here's a problem with the English language and not digging a little deeper. I'm going to take you to some D’rash here. The word “perceive,” you know what the Hebrew word there is. It's not just what you see, or your interpretation, or your perception. It is the Hebrew word yada יָדַע. It means to know intimately. It implies to be intimate or have intimate knowledge. So, they see, but they have no intimate understanding. They have no intimate knowledge. There's no depth of relationship with the word of God.

And then Jesus says, and they may indeed hear, but they have no understanding. Do you know what the word understanding there is in Hebrew? They see, but they have no depth of knowledge and understanding, no depth of intimacy with the things of God. They have a surface relationship, a surface understanding, a little dab will do. Just a little dab of Jesus. Not a whole lot. I like to use hair product. I think it was Kirsten that got me using hair product. By the way, if you want to know, I use Johnny Be Good. The blue kind. And a little dab doesn’t do. I thank God for my thick hair. There's no bald spot. I don't have to wear a kippah.

I like to use a lot of it, a bunch of it. Most Christians, they just use a little dab of Jesus. Just a little dab of Jesus will do them. But then watch what Jesus says. They may indeed see, but not perceive may indeed hear, but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven. What do you mean? You mean Jesus is saying he doesn't want them to turn and be forgiven? No, he wants them to turn and be forgiven, but once you've turned and you've been forgiven, you are now accountable and responsible. You can't claim ignorance. In fact, what he's talking about here is once they hear and understand; once the preachers made it very clear to them, not in a parable, but in plain English or plain Hebrew or plain Aramaic or plain Greek or whatever. Once it's been made clear, they have to excuse for not understanding. They have to press in. You know what this is? He's talking about Talmidim תלמידם discipleship. Well, Pastor, would you develop a specialized tailored discipleship program for me around my schedule and my convenience? No, we have discipleship processes that are part of the church. That's why we're here. It's what we do. Jesus will meet you where you are, but you’ve got to show up to the meeting.

And he said to them, do you not understand this ethical standard that I present to you? That's what he's saying, not just a parable. Do you not understand this story? Was this story too complicated for you? No, that's not what he's saying. He's saying, do you not understand this ethical standard? Because if you don't understand this ethical standard, you won't understand any of them. That's what he's saying here. Boy, it changes everything when you start throwing that Hebrew in there doesn't. It's like Jesus was talking like a Jew or something. I mean that changes everything. It’s not him just saying, “Do you not understand this sweet little story I told you? How then when you understand any of the stories, I tell you?” No, no, no. No, no, no, no. Do you not understand the ethical standard of the Kingdom of God that I've just presented to you? Well, what was the punch line again? I guess I kind of missed it. Jesus, I was looking away for a moment. I got distracted.

The ethical standard is the depth of intimate relationship with God. The responsibility to pursue deeper relationship with God, and if you don't get this understanding, you won't get any of them. If you don't understand, if you can't grab hold of this and you can't apply this to your life, you're not going to apply any of the things of God to your life. Like people who say, “Well, Pastor, if I get $1,000,000, I want you pray that I'll get this, you know this money and then I'm going to tithe.” No, you won't you. You haven’t been tithing yet. If you don't get this Kingdom understanding you're not going to get any of it. The Sower sows the Word of God. He's going to break it down for them. He’s going to draw them a word picture? Like the game Pictionary.

This is verbal Pictionary. The Sower sows the word of God. And these are the ones along the path where the word is sown. And when they hear the word, Satan snatches it away. What is Satan? He's that guy with the pointy ears and a pointy tail and a little pitchfork. We'll see him here in a few weeks here in October. Right? He will be everywhere. Him and all his minions? No. Not condoning. But listen and let me just throw this out there. No believer in Christ should be dressing up like a demon or a witch. What are you doing, Christian? You don't have a biblical worldview dressing up like the hordes of hell. But at the same time, how many saw that video of that woman in Home Depot? I saw this video that was going around. Somebody sent it to me and it was this woman at Home Depot. You know this time of year they bring out that big, tall, twelve-foot demon. And it's laughing that evil laugh and his eyes are glowing. And she's standing in Home Depot trying to cast a demon out of that thing. Come on folks. Oh Lord Jesus. Help us, Jesus. I know people like that they are going to cast the demon out the decorations at Home Depot. But they haven’t paid tithes in years. Not once in their church have, they served. They don't go to Bible study, nothing else, but they're spiritual enough to cast a demon out of a giant piece of plastic.

Jesus says, “When they hear the word of God, Satan the adversary, that which is in opposition to the will of God, immediately comes and takes away the word that was sewn in them.” Remember Peter? Jesus said. I'm going to go the cross. I'm going to die. And Peter said no, I won't let them kill you. And Jesus said get thee behind me Satan. What was he saying? Your own fleshly will, your pride, your arrogance, your haughtiness and your selfishness, all that is standing in opposition to the will of God. You better draw it back, son. You better put it down. Satan comes and takes away the word of the Son of Man and these are the ones sewn on the rocky ground. The ones who, when they hear the word of God, immediately receded.

You might be saying, “Wow? Yeah, pastor wow. Amen. Pastor. Man, that was a good word, pastor.” Great, but how many notes did you take? Well. “I didn't take any notes.” So, if I come to you three months from now. And I said, “Do you remember when I preached that prophetic message that was foundational to the Kingdom of God and your growth. Do you remember what I preached?” And you say, “No.” Well, let's pull up your notes and let's talk about it. I'd like to disciple you a little more. “I didn't take any notes, Pastor.” Wasn't important to you, was it? See, it's funny to me when you're in college and you're paying for that class cause you want to graduate and get a degree so that you can get a job and make money, taking notes in that class is important. But when the preacher is preaching. You’re going to retain it all. Yeah, you're that good or you're that spiritual. Either you have such a memory and you grasp all concepts or what I'm putting out isn’t worth retaining.

Either way, you're not going to grow here. And it's not because what I'm putting out. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground, the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy, and they have no root in them. But they endure for a little while. But when the crisis, when the tribulations come or the persecutions arise on account of the word. Notice what's on the path, rocks, thorns, persecution, tribulation, crisis, drama rise again, they immediately fall away. How many of you know this? How many of you believe that Christ was crucified. Are you all familiar with that horrible death he took at the cross? Do you believe that he went and took the keys of sin and death and he conquered hell? Do you believe that he overcame and rose from the grave? Do you believe today he sits victorious with the Father at the throne?

Do you believe that because of his victory you have been saved, delivered from the oppressive captivity of sin? Then how many of you know Jesus is not sitting up there with PTSD? I'm not demeaning anybody who has some trauma, dramatic or traumatic things in your life. I am trying to bring you some victory today. Folks, this is a reality. He is not sitting on the throne having anxiety attacks. Every time he thinks back about the cross, he doesn't look at the father and say, “I need some medication, I need some counseling. Father, I'm going to have to step back from my responsibilities for a while.” I'm just trying to help you out here. I'm not trying to condemn you or demean your situation. I'm telling you, if Jesus is Jesus and the power of Jesus Christ that overcame the cross and death and sin and everything else; If it can overcome that, it can overcome anything that's in your soul. It has to. Otherwise, this, and all the rest of it is a joke. What are we doing? What are you doing it all for? What's the point? No, no. You might say, “But Pastor, Jesus came so that I wouldn't go to hell. But I still have got to live dysfunctional.” No. Who told you this lie? Who told you this lie? Come on! Jesus has no emotional trauma from the cross. “Well, what does that mean, Pastor?” How many of you believe Christ lives in you? You are the hope of God’s glory in the earth now. Many of you know what the Apostle Paul said? He said, “I've become a new creation. And it's no longer I who lives, it's Christ who lives within me. My old man is put down. My old man had all that trauma. My old man had all those issues. My old man had all that dysfunction. But my new man shut up and shut down my condemnation. He's been raised with Christ in victory.”

So then, if that be true. That means his victory is your victory. You have just got to receive His victory today. You can receive his victory. What you did doesn't matter anymore. What happened to you? Oh, I'm not saying it doesn't matter. I'm not demeaning it. I'm not saying it wasn't traumatic. It was horrible and sinful. But it was. Think about the cross. Think about the flesh being ripped off Jesus’ bones. Think about the blood that was poured out. It was so much blood of his being spilled out and the persecution and the nails being driven in his feet and his hands and the trauma he must have been experiencing. And to make it worse, it wasn't just his flesh, the very people he had loved and healed we're cursing him. And the church was mocking him. The Pharisees, the religious people were mocking him and then his disciples left him. They abandon him. Did he experience any trauma you reckon? His victory is your victory. That's why he has made you more than conquerors and more than overcomers. You are victorious because of Christ Jesus. Now you need to receive that victory in your life. Verse 17 states, “They have no root and when tribulations and persecutions arise, they fall away. Their past memories arise and they get taken captive again. Traumas of their life take them captive and they can't let it go.

Then there are those who hear the word, but the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches and desires for other things snatch them away. It's been said that no man ever walked away from God because he didn't love Him but because he found something else, he loved more. The desires for other things. That's why it all begins with desire. You have a depth of relationship with Christ relative to your desire to have it. Because if there's one thing about us, as human beings, we'll do whatever it takes to get what we desire. The desires for other things entering in and. Choke the word out and it proves unfruitful. Well, does that mean it proved unfruitful because Jesus didn't preach the word? Is the problem the word of God? Is the Word of God the reason their life was unfruitful?

But listen to verse 20, “But those that we're so on good soil are the ones who hear the Word and obey.” They grab hold of it and they apply it. They begin to do it in their life. They are those who hear the Word and they accept it, they embrace it they resolve it in their life. It begins to reshape who they are, how they think, how they talk, how they act, and it changes their responses. It changes their attitudes. It changes their perceptions. It changes their values. It changes their belief system. It changes their desires It changes their ambitions. It changes their wants. It changes everything.

They accept the word, they accept the way, they accept the righteousness, they accept the obedience to Christ.

You can't bear fruit of the word of God apart from obedience to Christ. You can't. It says they accept it and they bear the fruit of it thirty, sixty and one hundredfold. What is this thing we call the Bible? What do you do with it? Will you read it? Will you study it. What does that mean? You might say, “I don't know how to study my Bible.” But Pastor, you’re digging it. I don't have to study you do it for me. If you will come and we'll teach you how to do dig deeper in the Word of God. Yes, I dig into it. But more importantly I eat it. “What do you mean you eat it?” I let it get deep down inside of me. Do you hunger for it? Do you want it to grow in you and you in it?

When you do, you want to make sure live it. You will make sure it's right. Don't let anybody try to write this Word on your heart. Make sure it's truth. Because religion will get you nothing. You just as well-being drinking Kool-Aid? Something with a bunch of sugar in it. Religion gets you all hyped up. Truth will make you humble.

That's what you want. You want to grow in this? I've said this before, if you don't have a messed-up Bible, you have probably got a messed-up life. Young ladies, any man that wants to come into your life, ask to see his Bible. Cindy, Amy, Kirsten, if any young man wants to come into your life say, “Can I see your Bible? And if he has to run to Walmart and buy one, he isn’t the one. If he brings you his momma's Bible or grandma's Bible, or you open up his Bible and it doesn't look like he's turned the pages not one time, he isn’t the one. Same thing, young men. You know what I'm saying here? I'm saying they have no depth of relationship with Christ Jesus. And if you have no depth of relationship with Christ Jesus, you have no business building covenant with them.

Me, Pastor Woody and Brian were at Homer's Kitchen the other day. And Pastor Woody had his “I love my wife” shirt on. Cause it's the truth. And I have one, but I needed another one, so I went and bought another one. That's right, I’d like to have four or five. I'm going to get me a hat as well. And get me some boxers that say I love my wife. Y'all have not heard anything until I tell you the story of my reindeer boxers. My children bought me some boxers that had Rudolph the red nosed reindeer on them. When you pushed the nose, it played the tune to Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. I was sitting in an Army staff meeting with the Colonel and a whole table full of captains and all of a sudden, those underwear went off with that song blazing. And my Colonel looked at me and said what the blank is that? I said, “Sir, that's my underwear going off.”

So, Pastor Woody and Brian and I are at the restaurant. There's two waitresses working our table, and one of them tells the other one, “Would you look at his shirt? Look what his shirt says. I love my wife and he's wearing that in public. Where do you find men like that?” And I said, “You want me to tell?” She says, “Oh, I know. You're going to say the church.” I said, “Well, not always, cause there's snakes in the church too. I said, but you will not find him at the bar. And if he doesn't love Jesus, he won't know how to love you. Because his love for, you will only be as deep as his love for Christ.

Church, if you're having problems, deepen your love for Jesus. Are you having some struggles emotionally or mentally? Are your having some trauma that the enemy is trying to bring back up and torment you with? Embrace your victory in Christ Jesus and deepen your love. Strengthen your resolve that you can persevere when Paul tells the church in Philippians 4:13 you can do all things through Christ who is your strength. He is not just talking about brain surgery. He's talking to a church that's facing immense persecution. He's talking to fathers who last night their children were eaten by the lions because the Romans thought it would be entertaining to throw these Christian children in with the lions. And so, he's telling fathers who lost their children last night, because of your faith, you can do all things. You can persevere. You can overcome in the victory of Christ. Jesus is yours. He's yours. Receive it. Embrace it. You might say, “Yeah, but you don't know how this feels inside.” Yes, I do. I know about my Jesus on that cross. And I know how He felt. This stuff about, well, you don't know my pain. Listen, if you had your leg amputated, I don't have to cut mine off so I can feel your pain. I can just look and figure it out enough. Don't give me this foolishness. Well, nobody knows pain like me. What about Jesus?

You are victorious. Start living like it. You are victorious. You're an overcomer in Christ Jesus. He rose. He conquered death. You'll have no greater problem than death. Trust me. It's pretty final. He overcome that. Live like He's victorious.

If you can't live like you're victorious, live like He's victorious in your life. When temptation comes and you struggle with the thought that “I just got to smoke one more doobie.” No. When temptation comes, remember, that you're victorious. He's victorious. He has overcome. He's overcoming all. He's overcoming all. There's nothing that you can face in this life he has not already won victory over. Nothing, he's overcome it all.

Glory, Glory, Glory, glory, glory. I just felt, man, we needed that this morning. Man, some of y'all you just need to be reminded you are victorious. Start living like he is victorious in your life. Quit living defeated. Quit living defeated. Quit accepting those excuses. Quit accepting the reasons. I remember as a commander, soldiers come tell me they failed this or didn't do that. I’d say, “I don't want to hear any excuses. Give me a reason.” And then once they gave me their reason, I was like, now let me tell you why you still could have gotten done what you needed to get done. Come on. Quit accepting the excuses. Quit being content with the reasons. And start living victorious in your life. Come on, let's go to the Lord this morning. Father, right now, in the name above every name. The name that overcame every sin, every conflict, every dysfunction, every issue, everything. God, there's nothing you didn't overcome. You overcame hell. Overcame every power of Satan. In that name, the name of the Lord. Hear the voice of Jesus saying to you. Awaken son, awaken daughter from your slumber. Come out of your oppression. Come out of your depression. Come out of your defeat. For I am on the throne. I am victorious in your life, and though you may face tribulation and persecution, I have overcome them all. I have overcome them and the Saints shall overcome by the word of their testimony. Who is your testimony? It is Jesus!

Come on, tell him this morning. Jesus. I'm victorious because of you and I'm not defeated. I will not be put down. And I will not be held back. I'm victorious. I want my life to be rich soil. I want to go deeper. I don't want to be on stony ground. I don't want to be on hard ground. I don't want to be in shallow ground. I want a deep relationship. I want you to come. I want you to come this morning. Come this morning. Come on. I want a deeper relationship. I don't want a shallow relationship. I don't want to be snatched away. You're here this morning. Lord, I don't want to be snatched away. I don't want to be scorched. I want the word of God to grow in me. I want it to grow in me. I want to make sure that my feet are rooted and grow. I want healthy roots to grow. I want roots to grow. I want roots to grow. I want roots to grow in me. I want to know the victory of Christ in my life, I am tired of living defeated. I'm tired of living defeated. I'm tired of living defeated.