Matthew 23 Pt 2

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Tonight we will continue on with the first 12 verses of Matthew chapter 23…

We’re still on Tuesday of Jesus’ last week on earth….

This is what we call Holy Week…

On Sunday…. just two days before… on Palm Sunday…

Jesus had been escorted into the city by thousands proclaiming Him to be the Messiah... [pause]

On Monday… Jesus went to the Temple… and remember that dramatic event where He threw out all these people who were doing business and taking advantage of others… [pause]

Following these two very dramatic events…

Palm Sunday… [pause] and throwing all the business out of the Temple…

They were both huge deals back then…

Following that… [pause] Jesus had taken upon Himself the right and authority to teach and heal within the Temple…. pause]

With all that as context for Sunday and Monday…

That caused the governing leaders, both religious and civil… to become upset and angery by what was happening….

the leaders felt threatened by Christ… [pause]

they feared the people might rally around Him as the Messiah and rise up against the Romans….

They knew if that happened… Rome would violently crush them…

and Rome would blame the Jewish leadership for not maintaining order…. [pause]

So In the minds of the leaders…

Christ was a threat to their position…

To their power

To their wealth

And to their security [pause]

In their minds… they were forced to discredit Jesus before the people…

[pause] They had to figure out a way to get the crowds to stop seeing Jesus in a positive light…

They needed to put a wedge between Jesus and the crowds… [pause]

So they sent group after group to challenge Christ…

Each challenge was an attempt to trip Him up….

Each time Jesus answered brilliantly… teaching a much needed lesson not only to those standing around… but to men of all generations…. [pause] To us today [pause]

Finally… the leaders were silenced…. [pause]

But Christ did not give up on trying to reach them…. [pause]

He reaches out again… trying to lead them to the truth… [pause]

The end of chapter 22… Jesus is teaching them that the Messiah is not only Man, [pause] He is also Lord, [pause] the Son of God Himself [pause]

Remember Jesus appeals to David and Psalm 110…

Jesus quotes from Psalm 110… David wrote…

Psalm 110:1

            1The Lord says to my Lord:

“Sit at my right hand,

until I make your enemies your footstool.”

The first Lord in the Hebrew is the word “Yah-Weh” [pause]

            The second Lord in the Hebrew is the word “Adonai” [pause]

The first century Jews believed that David was talking about a conversation between God… LORD… Yahweh… [pause] and the Messiah… Lord… Adonai…. [pause]

David called God Yahweh [pause] and he called Messiah Adonai… [pause]

Jesus uses this passage to try to help the Pharisees recognize that the Messiah would also be God… [pause]

? The result? [pause]

? What’s the response of the religious leaders? [pause]

yet again… the leaders refused to open their minds and hearts…

They remained closed to the truth [pause]

They rejected Christ… and They began the final plot… [pause]

not to challenge Christ in arguments…. [pause]

but to kill Him… [pause]

As we jump into our study tonight… it’s helpful to keep in mind the major reason these leaders opposed Jesus so violently…

they feared the loss of all they valued and possessed in this world:

position, power, livelihood, wealth, and security…. [pause]

In their minds… as long as Christ was alive… He was a threat to them and to their nation [pause] [pause]

The real tragedy was that they were supposed to be the Godly teachers and leaders, [pause]

They were supposed to be God’s very own representatives and messengers to the people. [pause]

Yet…

they were so far removed from God that they were unable to recognize God’s very own Son…. [pause]

They were so far removed from God… they didn’t even see their own Messiah standing and teaching right in front of their eyes… [pause]

Jesus answered question after question…

He gave proof after proof about Himself… [pause] [pause]

yet they still refused to believe and follow Him… [pause]

They deliberately chose to be stubborn in their unbelief… and they deliberately chose to follow the way of the world by plotting to kill Him…. [pause]

This background lies the foundation for this chapter 23 [pause]

Matthew 23 is a difficult text… [pause]

It’s not difficult to understand [pause]

Anyone can read it and understand what Jesus is getting at… [pause]

But this chapter is difficult in that it’s message is especially penetrating… and convicting…. [pause]

Jesus exposes the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders.

And if we’re listening rightly… [pause] we can feel our own hearts being operated on in the process…. [pause]

The warnings in Matthew 23 apply not just to scribes and Pharisees… but to anyone who professes Christ…. [pause]

As we go through this study of Matthew 23…

We really need to take time and think about ? does this apply to me?

? do I have a blind spot here? [pause]

? Do we fail to practice what we preach? [pause]

? Are we not content with the approval of God? [pause]

? Does your heart delight in receiving honor over other people? [pause]

? Do you find comfort whenever you realize that you are in a better… or a higher position than someone else? [pause]

The “so what’s”… as we go… are going to be a lot of personal reflection… [pause]

There is a lot to learn in this chapter… [pause]

I don’t know how long we will be here… [pause]

But we do want to make sure we cover this material well… because there is some really good instruction by way of personal reflection… [pause]

And sometimes…

Our best progress is made… when we ask ourselves difficult… but honest questions… [pause]

That said… we are not [pause]

WE ARE NOT going to forget about God’s grace and mercy [pause]

We are not going to forget that He smiles upon us… [pause]

We are not going to forget that our Father in heaven loves us… we are His dear children… [pause]

I pray that I’ll be able to keep that balance as we go through this… [pause]

Because while this is an easy chapter to read and understand the words and the concepts and what is going on…

This is a very difficult…  chapter to teach… [pause]

I say that not because it can be piercing and convicting…

I say that because there is something going on underneath the surface of it all… [pause]

What I mean by that is this… [pause]

While this chapter can be very instructive and corrective…

If we just focus on that correction and conviction and instruction- we could wind up falling into the same mindset that got these Pharisees into this spot

? what do I mean? [pause]

It’s easy to read a chapter like this… see where I fall short…

Then work and work and work at it…

To where we then become focused on the works… [pause]

That’s what got these Pharisees here…

Was they were so focused on works…

That focus on works… resulted in them growing into these men who completely missed it and were completely consumed by how other men looked upon them… [pause]

The great tragedy being if they just came to Christ- they wouldn’t have to do a thing… to receive the smile of God upon them… [pause]

They didn’t need to do anything… but believe in the Lord Jesus… [pause]

So our focus needs to be take correction… and then correct… and work at that… [pause] [pause]

While maintaining the truth that none of our works will do anything… to move the needle in terms of being accepted by God… [pause]

[pause] We are already accepted by God because of Jesus…

It is His righteousness and His work… [pause] and His work alone [pause] that makes us acceptable before God… [pause] [pause] [pause]

If you have a Bible… 23rd chapter of Matthew… beginning in verse 1…

It’s also on the screen…

Matthew 23:1-12

1Then Jesus said to the crowds

and to his disciples, [pause]

2“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, [pause]

3so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do.

For they preach, but do not practice.

4They tie up heavy burdens, [pause] hard to bear, [pause] and lay them on people's shoulders,

but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. [pause]

5They do all their deeds to be seen by others.

For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, [pause]

6and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues 7and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. [pause]

8But you are not to be called rabbi, [pause]

 for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. [pause]

9And call no man your father on earth, [pause]

for you have one Father, who is in heaven. [pause]

10Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. [pause]

11The greatest among you shall be your servant. [pause]

12Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, [pause]

and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. [pause] [pause] [pause]

Now… remember last week we talked about verse 1 and 2…

And in verse 1 we talked about the importance of discipleship… and we also talked about the reason why Jesus addresses the crowds here… [pause]

You guys remember how we talked about Jesus takes this moment to stop and speak directly to the crowds in these first 12 verses… [pause]

And then in verse 13 He will address the Pharisees directly… [pause]

? why did Jesus speak to the crowds? [pause]

Well remember what these first 12 verses are all about… they’re all about warning about false religion…

This warning concerning false religion was directed primarily to the public and the disciples [pause]

? why is that? [pause]

because there is always more hope for them…. [pause]

because it is always more difficult for a leader who teaches error… to repent of their false teaching and to change…. [pause]

Real quick… verse 2 again… 2“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, [pause]

Remember last week we talked about Moses’ seat

We explained how in every Jewish synagogue there was a stone seat… at the front of the synagogue… [pause]

That would be the seat from which the authoritative teacher or leader would sit and teach the word of God [pause] and

because Moses was inspired to write the first five books of the Bible that we call the Pentateuch or the torah [pause]

that seat was referred to… as Moses's seat [pause]

because the one sitting there is teaching the word of God… in particular the law of Moses [pause]

so it's called Moses’ seat [pause] and

so Jesus is saying “these authoritative teachers who sit in Moses’ seat”

That’s who He’s talking about… [pause] [pause] [pause]

Now lets look at verse 3 again as we push forward into new material…

And I’ll read verse 2… because verse 2 leads into verse 3…

We need verse 2 in order to understand verse 3… [pause]

2“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat,

3so do and observe whatever they tell you,

but not the works they do.

For they preach, [pause] but do not practice. [pause]

Jesus says that the scribes and Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat…

What He means is that they have Moses’ authority— [pause]

What that means is… these guys have the authority to teach God’s Word—so people should practice and observe what they say….

But we know that Jesus doesn’t mean that we are supposed to do everything the scribes and Pharisees were teaching…

because He says in verse 15 that their proselytes are children of hell… [pause]

What Jesus means here… is that people should obey these leaders in the things they teach from the Scriptures… [pause]

But their actions… are not to be followed… [pause]

            ? Why are they not to be followed? [pause]

Because for the Pharisee… They ignored the inward condition of the heart.

righteousness meant outward conformity to the Law of God….

Religion consisted in obeying numerous rules that governed every detail of life…

The Pharisees were careful to say the right words and follow the right ceremonies… [pause] but they did not inwardly obey the Law... [pause]

God desired truth in the inward heart… [pause]

Psalm 51:6

            6Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. [pause]

To preach one thing and practice another is hypocrisy…. [pause] [pause] [pause]

Now… let’s zoom out for a second…

Zooming out from the individual heart and mind… and taking this from a bigger scale… [pause]

false religion is a religion of hypocrisy [pause]

That’s always going to be true… [pause]

False religion is always going to be a religion of hypocrisy [pause]

That said…

not all religion is false… [pause]

Even a religion that might be taught by a hypocrite…

Even when it is taught by a false teacher…

That doesn’t necessarily make it false… [pause]

Two modern day examples…

Ravi Zacharius… and Steve Lawson… [pause]

Both of these guys taught accurately from the Word of God…

On our calls… I played both of them at times… before they fell… [pause]

Both of these guys had sexual affairs outside of marriage… so both are disqualified as teachers or elders or even leaders in a church… [pause]

So they were both hyporcrites…

Especially Steve Lawson who would so often speak about the severity of sexual impurity…

He would preach very convictingly about the dangers of pornography and lust and flirting and affairs… [pause] [pause] [pause]

Now… Everything he preached in that regard was true…

And we can follow what he preached… [pause]

But Lawson’s life… at some point… it started to become hypocritical

He wasn’t living what he was preaching… [pause]

That doesn’t make his lessons or his teachings were false… [pause]

As far as he was teaching from the Bible…

That’s all true… [pause]

In this passage… Jesus is saying follow and obey the truth of what they say, in so far… as it is God’s Word

but do not follow after their works.” [pause]

I’m not accusing Zacharius and Lawson of being Pharisees or Pharisical…

But pointing to each of them as the modern day… 2026… examples…

This is what it looks like in 2026… [pause]

You have a man in the pulpit teaching the Word of God accurately…

Bringing people to Christ…

Teaching the Word well… [pause]

Yet… in their personal life they are stumbling and stumbling in severe ways that disqualify them… from teaching or even serving in a church… [pause]

For both these guys…

That doesn’t mean what they taught should just be thrown out as false… [pause]

Now… my personal preference is to not listen anymore, just because when you know someone is living that lifestyle…

Then you have to be super careful and think about every single thing they say…

I’d rather just sit under the teaching of someone who hasn’t fallen in that way… still searching the Scriptures to make sure what they are teaching is true…

But you don’t have the constantly wonder… [pause]

Now…

I’m not saying this on my authority…

I’m not saying that… most of what Lawson and Zacharius preached should be followed on my authority…

I’m saying it on the authority of Jesus… [pause]

In our passage Jesus is condemning false religion and teachers… but not the truth… [pause]

False teachers… and I would put Lawson and Zacharius as fallen teachers and not false teachers…

But even false teachers… [pause]

False teachers can and do teach some truth….[pause]

Whatever truth they teach…. That is to be obeyed [pause]

Truth is to be obeyed no matter who teaches it….

The truth and our duty to obey it are not invalidated… just because a hypocrite teaches it… [pause]

The reason is… what I just explained about authority…

The authority of the teaching you sit under Sunday morning does not come from the Pastor…

The authority comes from the Word of God.. the Bible…

It comes from God… [pause]

So what is from the Bible… we are to obey…

Even if it’s a completely fallen teacher who is up there teaching it… [pause]

In our passage…

Another big point to take away… [pause]

Jesus is saying that teaching the truth does not mean that a person is acceptable to God. [pause]

A man may teach the truth yet be unacceptable to God…. [pause]

He is unacceptable because he is a hypocrite and does not obey the Lord.

He simply does not live the truth. [pause]

A man is not acceptable just because he proclaims and professes the truth—even if he is a teacher…

He is acceptable because he has come to faith in Christ… and he walks in the truth… day by day…. [pause]

Romans 2:21-23

            21you then who teach others,

do you not teach yourself? [pause]

While you preach against stealing, do you steal? [pause]

22You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery?

[pause] You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? [pause]

23You who boast in the law [pause] dishonor God [pause] by breaking the law. [pause]

As the normal day Christians…

The non-church leaders… [pause]

We must separate the office from the officer,  [pause] [pause]

the ministry from the minister, [pause] [pause]

the church from the people, [pause] [pause]

the truth from the teaching, [pause] [pause]

the doctrine from the practice. [pause]

The spirits must be tested… [pause]

1 John 4:1

            1Beloved, [pause]

do not believe every spirit, [pause]

but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, [pause]

for many false prophets have gone out into the world. [pause] [pause]

Jesus is saying that the claims of religion and of men… must not be allowed to lead us…

The doctrine, morality, and discipline of religion and men may be commendable…

But… on the other hand… both religion and men may be false…. [pause]

Titus 1:16

            16They profess to know God,

but they deny him by their works.

They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work. [pause]

Play Francis Chan Read Scripture 0:00-7:54

Poll Results

As we approach verse 4…

It’s important to remember the focus of the Pharisee was himself…

What I mean by that is… the thing that mattered most to them was to make a good impression [pause]

So they added more and more and more to the law… it made them look good…

Like “wow- how can these guys be keeping all these laws perfectly” [pause]

Well we know the answer is they didn’t… [pause] they just gave the impression that they were super religious… or super holy… [pause]

They were all about making sure they kept their respect and position and that people would look up to them and admire them…

All the while… all this extra stuff and extra requirements in their teachings… it created a big problem… a big burden on others… [pause]

But… [pause] They were completely [pause] unconcerned with the problems… [pause]that their teaching… [pause]was creating for ordinary people… [pause] who tried to follow it [pause]

Matthew 23:4

4They tie up heavy burdens,

hard to bear,

and lay them on people's shoulders, [pause]

but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. pause]

I love how the Message paraphrases this verse…

“Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God,

they package it in bundles of rules,

loading you down like pack animals. [pause]

They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, [pause]

and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help. [pause]

“They tie up”…

That’s one word in the Greek…

It’s “Des-May-Oh-Sin” [pause]

That word means to put in chains…

To put in chains… [pause]

That word “heavy” in the Greek…

It’s “Bar-Ey” [pause]

This word carries the concept of violent and oppressive [pause] and grave…

[pause] This is really a heavy thing… [pause]

For those who can see the screen… you see those next two Greek words…

“Dyes-Bas-Tak-Ta” and “Fort-Cha”

Those words mean difficult to carry…

“Fort-Cha” is the freight of a ship… [pause]

Think about how you load a ship… with those huge crains… [pause]

If you’ve been to a dock you’ve seen it…

You’ve seen the incredible freight of ships…

And Jesus here…

He is saying these teachers who are adding all these rules and self-righteousness and requirements…

It’s like their unloading an entire cargo ship [pause] and then telling you… “hey- you need to carry all of that…” [pause] [pause] [pause]

Some of you guys know what that feels like… [pause] [pause] [pause]

Some of you know what it feels like to be told…. [pause] [pause]

What you’re doing is not good enough…

You need to do more… [pause]

Some of you know what it feels like to sense that a “so called” religious person… or a leader in a church… is judging you… [pause] and

it doesn’t feel like a Christ-like judgement… it doesn’t feel corrective… just condemning and as if you’re being looked down upon [pause] [pause] [pause]

It is crushing… [pause] [pause] [pause]

It is like chaining you up… oppressively and gravely… and putting the weight of a ship on your back and telling you to carry it…. [pause] [pause]

There’s the song we played at the beginning right before 730…

And we’re going to play part of it in a little bit… [pause]

The Chorus goes like this… [pause]

Who the Son sets free

Oh is free indeed [pause]

I’m a child of God [pause]

Yes I am [pause]

In my Father’s house [pause]

There’s a place for me [pause]

I’m a child of God [pause]

Yes I am [pause] [pause]

I’m going to show you the Biblical support for the lyrics… I pray it will be encouraging to you…

Especially if you’ve had an experience of having burdens placed on you… [pause]

There’s many ways burdens can be laid upon us…

For those who can see the screen- I have 4 listed… [pause]

            Four ways heavy burdens are laid onto others [pause]

i. God’s Word being imposed upon others [pause] in such a way that mercy is lacking [pause]

ii. adding to God’s Word through rules, [pause]regulations, [pause] rituals, observances, [pause] and traditions

iii. Religion and men can deny and take away from God’s Word, [pause]

leaving men to stumble around… searching for the truth within themselves and others [pause]

iv. Religion and men can over-exercise authority, [pause] intimidating people, [pause] insisting that tradition and ritual and other manmade rules be kept [pause] [pause]

This usually happens in a hypocritical way…

Where many are willing to impose the rules upon others, but not upon themselves… [pause]

 And this can happen in 2 ways…

They are strict in laying the burden upon others… but relaxed in bearing the burden themselves….

They will not be bound by such rules themselves, at least not strictly… but they will preach and teach the rules to others and require them to keep the rules…. [pause]

The shoulders of others are weighed down so heavily, yet they will not lift their own fingers to carry the weight of the rule or restriction…. [pause] [pause]

The second way is they will fail to lift a finger to ease the burden for the weak and heavy laden…. [pause]

Some just will not show mercy…

they will not help those who need help in practicing the burden... [pause]

Some teachers are so strict and assuming… that they know little of the love and mercy of God…. [pause]

A lot of times… pride comes in… when imposing burdens upon others

The right to impose burdens sets a person up as lordover others... [pause]

Now… there is a place for authority… in proclaiming and exercising God’s Word, [pause]

but not for imposing man-made rules [pause]

Man made rules force man to attempt to secure the approval of God… by keeping rules through a person’s own strength…. [pause]

? where is mercy in that?

? where is grace in that? [pause]

We don’t need man-made rules…

God’s Word is all we need to direct and govern our lives…

We do not have to add to… [pause] or take away from God’s Word [pause] [pause] [pause]

            Jesus came to lighten men’s burdens [pause]

            Back to that song…

            I am who You say I am… [pause]

            One of the best lines is “who the Son sets free… is free indeed” [pause]

            We’re not meant to live in any type of bondage…

            Whether that’s bondage from religious rules added on top of the Biblical guidelines… or bondage to addiction or bondage to insecurity or bondage to fear… [pause

            The Lord loves you way too much…

            He does not want us to live in any type of bondage…

            He wants us to be free… [pause]

            And we will never be free-er [pause] than we are in Christ… [pause]

            The closer we draw to Christ… the more freedom we experience… [pause]

            I want to go through the lyrics to make an important point… [pause] [pause] [pause]

            Sometimes people will think an emotional experience is not Biblical…

            Almost like… if you get emotional about it- it’s just your feelings… [pause]

            Now- I don’t agree with that…

            I do think sometimes people can get confused and mixed up… and chalk up an emotional experience as something it’s not… [pause]

            But we should test everything…

            God created us as emotional beings… [pause] our emotions come from Him… [pause]

            He wants us to be knowledgeable and intelligent and wise and discerning…

            But He does not want cold robots… [pause]

            It’s ok to have an overflow of emotions at times… [pause]

            Some of you guys know a bit of my testimony…

            I’ll make a long story short…

            I had lost all my ability to cry and be emotional for several years… [pause]

            I walked into Immanuel Bible Church… about 8 years ago… [pause]

            The first time I had been to church in years…

            I had an overflow of emotions and was just trying everything I could not to just start weeping as I felt the presence of God in a tangible way… [pause]

            That was an emotional experience… [pause]

            Just because it was emotional doesn’t mean it was fake or made up…

            [pause] God restored my emotions… completely…

            I cry now days… I have emotions again… From that day on… [pause]

            And…

            He lit a fire in my soul that day… a fire for Him… [pause]

            And like I said at the end of last week… [pause]

            Time and time again I’ve made a royal mess of things… I’ve fallen over countless times…

            Constantly picking gravel out of my face… [pause]

            But I love the Lord…

            I know He loves me…

            And that’s all I need… [pause]

            This song… and songs like it… [pause]

            Being in person… being in church with all the other believers… [pause]

and not just Christian contemporary music…

            You stand with the congregation and sing a hymn like Amazing Grace… Nothing but the Blood of Jesus… Christ Alone… It is Well with my soul…

            Those old hymns will choke you up from time to time… [pause]

            I want to encourage you not to think of it as something to be embarrassed about… or made up… or fake…

            It’s most likely the Lord drawing you in closer and closer to Himself… [pause]

            Pastor David Wilkerson had said many times the normal experience of being born again comes by tears…

            That for most believers.. when they finally accept Christ…

            The emotions overflow… [pause]

            This song… can get your emotions going… especially singing it alongside your brothers and sisters in Christ… [pause]

            I want to play the last 3 minutes of it… as encouragement for everything we’ve talked about so far… [pause]

            Then I want to close tonight by showing you guys how every lyric here is truth from the Bible… [pause]

take a listen to this again…

            And receive this… [pause]

            Remember we talked about how John said he was the beloved disciple…

            And how the Bible refers to you and me as God’s beloved… [pause]

            And we talked how beloved is a compound word… [pause] be… loved…

            So receive this… and just be loved by the Lord…

            Play I am who You say I am 3:15- 6:05

            John 1:12

12But to all who did receive him,

who believed in his name,

he gave the right to become children of God, [pause] [pause]

remember how that song starts off…

and it’s on the screen for those who can see the screen…

it starts off… [pause]

Who am I that the highest King

Would welcome me [pause]

Psalm 8:4

4what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him? [pause]

I was lost but He brought me in

Oh His love for me

Colossians 1:13-14

13He has delivered us from the domain of darkness

and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

14in whom we have redemption,

the forgiveness of sins. [pause]

The song goes on…

Who the Son sets free

Oh is free indeed

John 8:36

36So if the Son sets you free,

you will be free indeed. [pause]

The song goes on…

I’m a child of God

Yes I am

1 John 3:1-2

1See what kind of love the Father has given to us,

that we should be called children of God;

and so we are.

The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

2Beloved, we are God's children now,

and what we will be has not yet appeared;

but we know that when he appears we shall be like him,

because we shall see him as he is. [pause]

The song goes on…

Free at last

He has ransomed me

1 Peter 1:18-19

18knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers,

not with perishable things such as silver or gold,

19but with the precious blood of Christ,

like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. [pause]

The song goes on…

His grace runs deep

While I was a slave to sin

Jesus died for me

Yes He died for me

Romans 3:23-24

23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

24and are justified by his grace as a gift,

through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, [pause]

John 10:11

11I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. [pause]

The song goes on…

Who the Son sets free

Oh is free indeed

I’m a child of God

Yes I am

In my Father’s house

There’s a place for me

John 14:2-3

2In my Father's house are many rooms.

If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

I’m a child of God

Yes I am [pause]

The song goes on…

I am chosen

Isaiah chapter 43… verse 1…

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by name,

you are mine. [pause]

The song goes on…

Not forsaken

Hebrews 13 verse 5…

he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” [pause]

[pause] [pause]

Matthew’s last words in his gospel are Jesus speaking to us…

And this is what he says

I am with you always, to the end of the age.” [pause]

He is never going to leave you… He is never going to forsake you [pause]

The song goes on…

I am who You say I am

You are for me

Not against me

I am who You say I am [pause] [pause] [pause]

            ? Do you believe it? [pause] [pause] [pause]

            ? Do you really believe these lyrics? [pause] [pause] [pause]

            In 2nd Peter… God says that you are chosen for His own possession…

            He says that you… are chosen…

            ? do you believe that? [pause] [pause] [pause]

I’ve always liked numbers… let me try to prove it with numbers…

            the number 400 trillion [pause]

the chances of you being born in terms of the correct sperm meeting the right egg is one in four hundred trillion [pause]

this figure does not take into account the chances of your mother and father even crossing paths… [pause]let alone even having a conversation…

you have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than being born [pause]

The powerball odds are 1 in 292 million [pause]

You are more than a thousand times more likely to win the powerball… than to be born…

I’ll repeat that… [pause]

You are more than a thousand times [pause]more likely [pause]to win the powerball… [pause]than to be born… [pause]

so don't ever believe the lie that you're not on this earth for a reason

the sheer fact that you are here is because God knew you

God knew you before you were born [pause]

you're not a biological accident or a genetic miscalculation

you are divinely fashioned by a sovereign God who made you just like you are [pause]

            He knows you… down to the details of the exact number of hairs on your head… [pause]

            He knows every character of your DNA strand… He was the One Who created your DNA… [pause]

            He knows everything there is to know about you… [pause]

            He has set you apart for His good purposes… [pause]

            He has set you apart to receive His love..

            To do His work in this world… [pause]

            And to at the end of your life… welcome you [pause]into eternity with Him with the words “Well done… good and faithful servant…” [pause]

            God told Jeremiah that he was known before he was born [pause]

and just like Jeremiah… you were known before you were born

“Before I formed you in the womb… I knew you… and before you were born I consecrated you” Jeremiah 1:5

? What does it mean to be consecrated? [pause]

it is to be set apart-  

you are God’s own design, His special possession… [pause]

He formed you from nonexistence to existence… [pause] you did not exist and then He made you exist… [pause]

and He loves you…. [pause]

not because of anything you have done… not because of any good or bad behavior… [pause]

not because of your looks, talents, or skills, [pause]

            All of that… It’s proven by the fact that God formed you… He made you in your mothers womb… He designed you… He loved you…

            You were loved by God before you came out of the womb… [pause]

            Just accept that… accept His love predates anything you did good or bad… [pause]

1 in 400 trillion… [pause] [pause]

even without the Bible… it’s so obvious God intentionally created you…

[pause] [pause] it is not an accident you are here,

you are made by God, put into time from non-existence to existence… [pause]

            He loves you…

            I pray you truly know in the core of your being…

            That this incredible Being… Holy Holy Holy God… loves you… [pause]

            I pray we each are able to receive that more each day… as we walk with the Lord… [pause]

            Almighty God knows everything about you… good and bad…

            And He loves you apart from the good and bad you have done… [pause]

            If the Pharisees could only have understood this… [pause]

            Some did…

            Joseph of Arimthea and Nicodemus are 2 we know about…

            And Praise God a Pharisee can be saved…

            Praise God a wretch like me can be saved…

            Praise God you can be saved… [pause]

            We’re all sinners…

            Christ came for us…

            Jesus Christ came to seek and save the lost… [pause]

            Praise God…

            Questions, thoughts, comments