The Paradox of Genuine Discipleship
Notes
Transcript
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
The story is told of a prosperous, young investment banker who was driving a new BMW sedan on a mountain road during a snowstorm.
As he veered around one sharp turn, he lost control and began sliding off the road toward a deep precipice.
At the last moment he unbuckled his seat belt, flung open his door, and leaped from the car, which then tumbled down the ravine and burst into a ball of flames.
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Though he had escaped with his life, the man suffered a ghastly injury.
Somehow his arm had been caught near the hinge of the door as he jumped and had been torn off at the shoulder.
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A trucker saw the accident in his rearview mirror.
He pulled his rig to a halt and ran to see if he could help.
He found the banker standing at the roadside, looking down at the BMW burning in the ravine below.
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“My BMW!
My new BMW!!”
The banker moaned, oblivious to his injury.
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The trucker pointed at the banker’s shoulder and said,
“You’ve got bigger problems than that car.
We’ve got to find your arm.
Maybe the surgeons can sew it back on!”
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The banker looked where his arm had been, paused a moment, and groaned,
“Oh no!
My Rolex!
My new Rolex!!”
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We as followers of Christ are not to worship our material possession...
In fact, our focus...
Our priority in this life...
Needs to be Christ above anything else this world has to offer.
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So, please turn your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke.
We will conduct our study in Chapter 9 and focus on verses 24 through 25.
Our message this morning is titled, “The Paradox of Genuine Discipleship”
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This message today will focus on what is truly means to be an authentic follower of Jesus Christ...
And we will see how surrendering or not surrendering one’s life to Christ has eternal consequences.
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So, this morning we will cover three main points:
1) The One’s Who Lose Their Life
2) The One’s Who Save Their Life
And...
3) The True Eternal Profit
Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
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Heavenly Father...
You are the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob...
You are the one who sovereignly rules over all things.
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Thank You for allowing us to see Your truth found in Your Word...
Thank You for opening our ears to hear Your truth found in Scripture...
Thank You for renewing our minds to understand Your precious Commands.
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Help us to endure the hardships of this world...
Help us to resist the Devil and all his evil schemes...
And help us to rest totally in Your promises.
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We are so blessed by You, Your Son, and the Holy Spirit.
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And it is in Jesus’s name we pray all these things...
Amen.
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Let’s turn to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?
So, let’s look at our first point...
1) The One’s Who Lose Their Life
1) The One’s Who Lose Their Life
Verse 24(a): For whoever would save his life will lose it,
So Beloved, let’s breakdown this statement…
The “whoever” here are those who live a self-centered life and only truly focused on this present world...
Jesus says of this group they are the ones who “would save [their] life” ...
However, by going down this road, that means that those individuals will not find eternal life with God...
Jesus says of this group they “will lose [their life]”).
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In other words, when people seek to avoid the potential hardships associated with following Jesus...
They end up losing his or her life.
To the one whose existence is more important than Jesus...
Both Jesus and his or her eternal life will be lost and instead they will experience eternal Hellfire.
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The New International Commentary on the New Testament on Luke says it like this:
“Everyone who tries selfishly to secure for himself pleasure and happiness in life will in fact doom his life to failure—he will never find real joy or full life.
He commits spiritual suicide.”
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This warning if found all throughout Scripture...
James, the brother of our Lord does not hold back when he boldly testifies in James 3:14–15:
14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.
15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.
Bitter jealousy is earthly...
Bitter jealousy is unspiritual...
And bitter jealousy is demonic!
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Selfish ambition is likewise, earthly...
Selfish ambition is likewise, unspiritual...
And selfish ambition is likewise, demonic!
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As the Word of God says...
This is not wisdom that comes from above!
Self-centeredness leads to eternal damnation!
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A focus on one’s own self...
A focus on one’s worldly accomplishments...
A focus on one’s material empire is just a build up one’s destruction!
As Psalm 52:7 says:
7 “See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and sought refuge in his own destruction!”
To refuse to make God one’s refuge is a failing plan!
Our trust in our own abilities and skills is to trust in sinking sand!
Material possessions and abundance of riches creates a false sense of security and comfort...
But I swear to you, Beloved...
It is temporary and short-lived!
It is momentary and fleeting!
It is passing and brief!
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It’s kinda like sand castles...
I came across this in my study and hope you will appreciate it as much as I did...
Scene One:
A little boy is on the beach.
On his knees he scoops and packs the sand with plastic shovels into a bright red bucket.
Then he upends the bucket on the surface and lifts it.
And, to the delight of the little architect, a castle tower is created.
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All afternoon he will work.
Spooning out the moat.
Packing the walls.
Bottle tops will be sentries.
Popsicle sticks will be bridges.
A sandcastle will be built.
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Scene Two:
A man in his office.
At his desk he shuffles papers into stacks and delegates assignments.
He cradles the phone on his shoulder and punches the keyboard with his fingers.
Numbers are juggled and contracts are signed and much to the delight of the man, a profit is made.
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All his life he will work.
Formulating the plans.
Forecasting the future.
Capital gains will be bridges.
An empire will be built.
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So, we have ourselves Two builders of two castles.
They have much in common.
They shape granules into grandeurs.
They see nothing and make something.
They are diligent and determined.
And for both the tide will rise and the end will come.
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Yet that is where the similarities cease.
For the boy sees the end while the man ignores it.
Watch the boy as the dusk approaches.
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As the waves near, the wise child jumps to his feet and begins to clap.
There is no sorrow.
No fear.
No regret.
He knew this would happen.
He is not surprised.
And when the great breaker crashes into his castle and his masterpiece is sucked into the sea, he smiles.
He smiles, picks up his tools, takes his father's hand, and goes home.
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The grownup, however, is not so wise.
As the wave of years collapses on his castle he is terrified.
He hovers over the sandy monument to protect it.
He blocks the waves from the walls he has made.
Salt-water soaked and shivering he snarls at the incoming tide.
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“It's my castle,” he defies.
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The ocean need not respond...
For both know to whom the sand belongs
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As that illustration is on your mind, I would like to bring to remembrance Romans 8:13 which says:
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Are you living according to the flesh?
Or are you living according to the Spirit?
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For the flesh leads to eternal fire...
While the Spirit leads to eternal life!
So, today you must decide...
Who do you really worship?
Who do you really hold up in high regard?
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Is it Christ?
Or is it yourself?
For to be a follower of the Way...
To be a follower of the truth...
And to be a follower of the life...
One must be willing to, on a moments notice, renounce all that he has...
Or as the Word of God records in Luke 14:33:
33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
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The call to renounce all that one has is no small calling...
However, it is truly worth it!
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And that call is leads to something amazing...
That call leads to something that will truly last forever...
And it is with that that we look to our second point of our message today.
2) The One’s Who Save Their Life
2) The One’s Who Save Their Life
Verse 24(b): But whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
So, lets breakdown this statement...
The “whoever” here are those who give up one’s self-centered life of rebellion against God...
Jesus says of this group they are the ones who “loses [their] life” for the sake of Christ...
And the one’s who do this are the individuals who will find everlasting communion with God...
And Jesus says of this group that in actuality they “will save [their life].”
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In other words, Beloved, those who embrace Jesus’ call to discipleship...
Including the difficulties it brings...
Will be saved!
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Wow!
That is an incredible promise!
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So, to the one for whom the way of Jesus is more important than his own existence, his or her eternal existence will be secured.
Again, the New International Commentary on the New Testament on Luke says it like this:
“He who lays his life upon the altar in the service of Christ, who strives for His honour and for the extension of His kingdom, while keeping self in the background, will spontaneously find true joy and life—here and hereafter.
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This is a major truth found within Scripture...
In fact, regarding the phrase “whoever loses his life for My sake”...
That particular saying is repeated more times in the gospels than any other saying of Christ other than the command “follow Me.”
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Now Beloved, I would like to draw your attention to Jesus saying “for My sake”...
This is key to understanding this passage...
So, Jesus was not saying that those who give their lives for social, political, or even religious causes will benefit spiritually from doing so...
The key is that the self-denial the Lord called for was specifically, He said, for “My sake”...
The self-denial must be for His sake!
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Now, to deny one self for Christ also carries with it the meaning of denying oneself for the Gospel message of Jesus Christ...
We know this to be true when we look at Mark 8:35 which says:
35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.
So, in Mark’s parallel account...
I want you to notice the phrase “and the gospel” is added...
This emphasizes that commitment to Jesus involves a commitment to his teachings as well.
So, being ashamed of Jesus’ teachings is equivalent to being ashamed of Jesus himself!
Consider what it says in the Pillar New Testament Commentary on Luke:
“Discipleship is not a form of spirituality severed from historical knowledge of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.
For believers after the incarnation, Jesus Christ is known through the proclaimed word of the gospel.
When confronted by the call to discipleship, disciples do not have a ‘both … and’ choice—both Christ and their own lives.
They stand before an ‘either … or’ choice.
The claim of Jesus is a total and exclusive claim.
It does not allow a convenient compartmentalization of secular and sacred, of natural life and religious life.
The whole person stands under Christ’s claim.”
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To sacrifice one’s earthy pleasures for the sake of Christ and His Good News is illustrated in Scripture beautifully...
It is illustrated as the requirement of a seed needing to die in order for it to one day grow into a viable plant...
This was a picture of Jesus life...
He had to die so that all His followers would one day live...
And likewise His followers must die to self in order to experience eternal life in the future.
As John 12:24-25 says:
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
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Beloved, that is why Scripture is constantly commanding us to do nothing for selfish ambition...
That is why Scripture is constantly commanding us to do nothing for our selfish gain...
Instead, we are to see others as more significant than ourselves...
Instead, we are to place others above ourselves...
Instead, we are to serve others and not look to be served.
As Philippians 2:3–4 puts it:
3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
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So, if we are truly considering other over ourselves...
Our actions will not be typical of this world...
Our actions will be something totally different...
For example, we will consider if our action...
Innocent in and of itself...
Would be a stumbling block for those who may be spiritually weaker...
Or as 1 Corinthians 8:9 says:
9 But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.
Often times the subject of drinking alcohol is brought up...
Yes, the consumption of alcohol in and of itself is no sin...
The sin is in getting drunk...
However, if my drinking of alcohol would lead others to stumble...
Then what is the loving thing to do?
Yes, it may be a sacrifice but is our right a good reason to harm someone who is struggling with the sin of drunkenness?
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Each individual must ask themselves this question?
Is my action, that is in no way a sin, still harmful to others?
Am I willing to volunteerly sacrifice my right in an act of love for my brother or sister in Christ?
Am I thinking about myself by self and my pleasures or will I put others above me?
Again, look at passages like 1 Corinthians 10:24 which says:
24 Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.
Is that our worldview?
Is that truth resonating in our hearts?
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Are you not aware that those who are spiritually mature have an obligation to bear with those who are spiritually weak?
We can’t ignore the truth found in Romans 15:1 that says:
1 We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
To live for Christ is to die...
To live for Christ is to die to self!
We are called to sacrifice our rights!
We are called to sacrifice our pleasures!
We are called to sacrifice our dreams!
We are called to sacrifice our goals!
We are called to sacrifice our own bodies!
We are called to sacrifice!
As Galatians 5:24 boldly says:
24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Likewise, pastor John MacArthur says:
“The only way for lost sinners to be saved from eternal punishment in hell is to experience the abandonment of everything for Christ.”
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Beloved, we are called to abandon everything for Christ!
For that is true profit...
And that takes us to our third and final point.
3) The True Eternal Profit
3) The True Eternal Profit
Verse 25: For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?
Beloved, I would like to imagine your dream home...
Now, imagine your dream car parked in it...
And imagine driving that dream car to your dream job...
And imagine every other material object you ever wanted in your possession.
Imagine all the power, status, and authority you could dream of...
Imagine nothing being off limits for you in this world.
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Yet, even with all of that...
Even if you gained the whole world...
It is still infinitely less valuable than experiencing eternal life with God!
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Truly, what is the profit of having the riches of all the world if you are going to lose your soul in the process...
For as Mark 8:37 says:
37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?
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I would like you to keep the following parable in mind...
I advise you to meditate on it...
So, look with me at Luke 12:16–21 which says:
16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully,
17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’
18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’
20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’
21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
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Beloved, where are you building your treasures?
Are you building up an empire that is passing?
Or are you building your treasure in a place that is eternal?
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Another way to look at it is to ask...
Where do you fine your friendship?
Are you friends with the world?
Or are friends with God?
And to be clear you can’t have it both ways...
No one is both friends with the world and with God!
As James 4:4 says:
4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
To be friends with the world is to be an enemy of God!
Likewise, to be a friend of God is to be an enemy of this world!
Therefore, it is essential that we die to this world...
Therefore, it is essential that we forfeit the pleasure of this world...
Therefore, it is essential that we count the world as loss and Christ as our gain!
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Let’s look at it from another angle...
What are the things that you love in your heart of hearts...
You know, the things you love deep in your heart...
The things you love that motivate you...
The things you love that give you your drive...
What is that?
What is it that you love?
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As 1 John 2:15 says:
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
If you love the things of this world...
Whether that love be openly or secretly...
If you love the things of the world then the Holy Spirit is not in you...
That would be a big red flag!
That would indicate that you are still blindly walking in darkness...
And it would indicate that what you need to do is beg God to change your heart...
You need to repent of your life of sin...
And you need to surrender and believe in Jesus in a saving and genuine way...
Simply put, you need to be transformed into a new creation!
Or as Romans 12:2 puts it:
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
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Now Church, I would like you to consider how Paul talks about how the world views the Apostles...
Likewise we can apply this to how the word see us as Christians...
So, look with me at what is recorded in 1 Corinthians 4:9–13 which says:
9 For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men.
10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute.
11 To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless,
12 and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure;
13 when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.
This is just as relevant today as it was in the 1st century.
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The world sees us, the followers of Christ, as a spectacle!
The world sees us as fools for Christ!
The world sees us as weak!
The world sees us as dishonorable!
The world sees us as poor and worthless!
The world reviles us!
The world persecutes us!
The world slanders us!
And the world labels us a scum of the world!
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However, in God’s eyes we are His masterpiece!
In God’s eyes we are wise in Christ!
In God’s eyes we are strong!
In God’s eyes we are honorable!
In God’s eyes we are rich and priceless!
God blesses us!
God comforts us!
God advocates for us!
And God calls us His children!
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So, don’t live for the applause for the world!
Don’t look to be honored by murderers and thieves!
Don’t look to be held in high regard by those who are children of the Devil!
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Instead refuse the fleeting pleasures of the world in exchange for being mistreated with the people of God!
As Hebrews 11:24–26 says:
24 By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,
25 choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
26 He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.
I tell you based on the authority of God’s Word...
The reproach you will receive for following Christ is far greater the all the treasures of the world!
So, loo forward to your eternal life with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
So, as this message comes to a close...
I would like to share this that I came across in my study this week:
Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, died a martyr’s death about 155 AD.
A mob demanded his death, but the Roman officials sought to spare him.
Arriving in the arena of execution, the proconsul urged him to revile Christ and save his own life.
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Polycarp replied,
“Eighty and six years have I served Him and He hath done me no wrong.
How then can I speak evil of my King who has saved me?”
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For this Polycarp was put to death.
For his conviction he lost his physical life, but he gained life eternal.
Are you ready?
Are you ready to loss your reputation for Christ’s sake?
Are you ready to loss your career for Christ’s sake?
Are you ready to loss a friend for Christ’s sake?
Are you ready to loss a family for Christ’s sake?
Are you even ready to loss your life for Christ’s sake?
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Beloved, do not entangle yourself with the world and its affairs...
Aim to please the only one who can save you...
Or as 2 Timothy 2:4 puts it:
4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
So, what army are you enlisted in?
Who are you aiming to please?
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The answer to that question reveals what team you are fighting on...
And it reveals where you are heading for eternity...
So, choose wisely.
Closing Prayer
Closing Prayer
Let’s pray...
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Heavenly Father...
If anyone hearing this message right now does not know You in a saving way...
Reveal to them right now why the promises of this world will never last...
Show them who You are...
And show them why is is so much more worth it to follow Your ways and trust in your eternal promises.
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I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
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For those hearing this message who already know You...
Remind us of why following you is worth every hardship this world throws at us...
Strengthen your elect to boldly stand strong in the face of persecution...
And help us to look forward to your great and wonderful eternal promises.
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Again, I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
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And it is in Jesus’s name we pray all these things...
Amen.
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To God be all the glory.
Amen.
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Please join us for one more song from the Praise Band.