Philippians 1:18-30

I want to start off the sermon this morning with a theological question, you know may not sound completely like a theological question. It is nonetheless of theological question Bill hybels the pastor in Chicago who's a good guy and a good author presented this question one time. He said have you ever wondered why when you turn your life over to God you don't just get Express traded right to Heaven if he saved us redeemed us. He loves us our destiny is to be with him. Why didn't that happen if you are so heaven-bound he says, why are you still sucking air down here now? He's a poet with his words quite quite the Wordsmith. But really that's a theological question and I want us to come back to that question at the end of our sermon and answer it. Theologically. We're in a sermon series on Philippians. I'm working 10 Ewing and chapter 1 beginning and verse 18 going through the end of that chapter. Paul has just finished. If you were here last week discussing the fact that he's in prison. And even though you would think that that would limit the gospel being spread. It's actually made the gospel spread more through the guards and two others in the city of Philippi feeling encouraged by Paul's bold as to preach even while in prison. So Paul says, I know you heard I'm in prison and you expect to hear that the gospels being hindered it's actually expanding more and it any kind of sense of them don't you know, I've said you already in verse 6, he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it that we don't have to be overwhelmed by the circumstances even by prison even buy obstacles. God is always at work. And so Paul looks back at that big picture and says got even is using my imprisonment when I when you would think it would hinder the gospel instead is expanded the gospel to places in Roman leadership into the guards in the military. That would never Reed's were not for me being chained here in prison. So he says so I Rejoice the gospel being preached. Even some people with bad motives. He says None the last guess what God's goal is being accomplished. The gospel being preached is being preached even know the address to put me in prison the gospel being preached, even though there are folks here preaching the gospel with Imperial motives. Guess what none the less the gospel is being preached. So he says beginning and verse 18 says but what does this matter talking about those with MP remotest? The important thing is that in every way whether from false motives or true Christ is preached and because of this I Rejoice yes, and I will continue to rejoice and then he continues he says for I know that through your prayers and God's provision of the spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my Deliverance. So he's continuing to discuss what it means that he's in prison. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by date for meat for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain if I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me yet. What shall I choose? I do not know I'm torn between the two I desire to depart and be with Christ which is better by far but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this I know that I will remain and will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith so that through my being with you again, you're boasting in Christ will abound on account of me. Whatever happens conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence. I will know that you stand firm in one Spirit striving together as one for the faith of the Gospel without being frightened in any way by those who opposed you this is a sign to them that they will be destroyed but to you, but that you will be saved and that by God for his been granted you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggles, you saw I had and now here that I still have Nepal starts out in this passage by saying I Rejoice because in the big picture even though I'm in prison and even though I'm suffering Christ is being preached. And so I still take joy in that God's work is advancing the way it should advance and he says the truth is I'm in Inola lose proposition here. I will not be put to shame because even in my death or in my life Christ will be exalted in an amazing how Paul backs up and look at that big picture and analyzes everything that's going on in his life. And he says, you know what it is. Okay, because ultimately even if they kill me I'm convinced that that I will still continue to be a witness for Christ even until my death maybe even the more powerful witness in my death the others in the city will be encouraged or if I live then it just means more opportunity for work to work for Christ. So no matter what Christ is going to be exhausted, but then he's honest and kind of confessional but but I wrestle with which of the 22 desire more he says look I could go on living and that means that's good, but I can also die and that's that's a game and so he's really wrestling with that decision which way will the scales tip when he thinks about those two choices it look if if I if I die, I'm departing this life. I'm I'm departing this prison. I'm departing this suffering and so early on in those verses it kind of sounds like he's saying and he does say it's better if I simply die because I will be United with Christ and in the original language. He's really struggling with this if it's not just a poetic section he is saying, you know, 4 years in prison all the beatings. I've received all the years on the road preaching for Christ and now being chained 24/7. There's a part of me that could just say Maranatha come Lord Jesus come and take me now. I'm ready to go ever get so tired that sometimes you just think you know, I could that's not a suicidal thought. It's not a negative thought he really is convinced that if I die, I'm going to be United with Christ. I'm going to know him in a fuller way that I ever have is what I long for my heart and so really that's that's good. I almost I almost could choose to die because I'll be with Christ and I'll no longer be in prison and limited but then he talked about what living would mean and he talks about that dying with price means being with Christ, but living means fruitful labor. And even always talking about being with Christ kind of tips those scales in the direction of I think I could just go ahead and depart and be with Christ because that Fellowship that intimacy of knowing him more fully but at the same time I can bear more fruit we continue to wrestle to this passage and all the money. He says you don't want tips the scales because I can serve you more Fully Alive because I can help you to continue to know Christ and preach Christ and be a witness cuz I can continue to do what God has called me to do to advance the gospel ultimately helping you tips the scales and I long to remain and I believe I will remain so that I can come to you and even if I don't he says live a certain way regardless of what happened so that no matter what God's will or agenda is extended forward. He says to them no matter what even if I don't get to come to you and if I pass away is what he's implying in that passage. I want you to contend for the faith. I want you to strive for it. I want you to not be intimidated. I want you to stand firm. I want you to live a life worthy of the Gospel itself in the original Greek it it's one of those trick phrases because it sounds unconditional no matter what I want to stay and serve you but it really it is kind of condition on one authorized read instead of this way. He said when I was a kid, my mother would sometimes say to me all you can do anything you want this afternoon only make sure your room is clean. About he realized after she left that well, that doesn't mean I can do anything. I want this afternoon because I need to clean my room before I do anything else and pause using that same sort of phrase in the Greek language. Are you saying look I know what I know what I've decided. I've decided it's best for me to stay here in the flesh so that I can continue to serve you and help you grow in Christ to help you have confidence in Christ to help you be a witness in the city of Phillipi, but then you basically saying look, but if I'm going to stay here Then then you need to live a life worthy of the Gospel. You need to contend for the faith. I'm going to stay here on this condition that we're still Partners in advancing the gospel. And so he challenges them in that same sentence. You got to have both these things going on. You got to strive for the faith, but you've also not got to not be intimidated by those around you so that you can stand firm is a sports analogy challenging them to stand firm in the faith and two things not only to stand for him but to not be intimidated by the culture around them because the truth is what Paul is suffering under the hands of Rome is likely already present or coming quickly for the Christians in the city of Philippi because it's a Roman Colony. So the quickness for the Roman leaders in other cities to Grandpa and say quit preaching this you're going to prison because you're disrupting our way of life that's going to be very present for those in Philippine. They're going to suffer for standing firm and preaching the gospel. And Paul is saying look I'm willing to stick with it even in prison and not let go Embrace death. So that I can help build you up and I need you to be a partner in that process. I need you to stand firm. I need you to be unified as a body to eat to not be intimidated by the culture around you and to extend the gospel. See Paul is continuing to think in terms of the big picture and he's teaching the Philippians to see their own lives in the context of the work of God in and threw them the way he sees his own life even his suffering and death you see how Paul is started this letter saying, it's Paul your friend and I pray for you. You're on my heart and I want you to know that above everything else. I know that he who began a good work in you on that very first day at 16th the birth of the church in Philippines. I'm convinced that he's going to continue that work until the day Christ returns n n e prays for them that they'll have inside to live in such a way that their witness that brings glory to God and then he says now let's get into the content of my letter case. You're worried about me. It's true. I am in prison to guess what? It in the big picture of things in God's sovereignty. This prison has not hampered the gospel. It's actually expanded it. I'm preaching it to the guards that are changed to me so that even those in the military household and wrong are here in the gospel and those in the city around me are being encouraged because of my boldness to preach the gospel. And even though as you've heard, it's true summer preaching the gospel with in pure motives just to cause me trouble. I don't care doesn't matter. What matters is that Christ is being preached and so I rejoice and now he's easing into saying to them the way I'm looking at my life and my suffering is a lesson is a model for you because suffering is going to come your way. So even when I think about death I wrestle with it I wrestle with death because I could embrace it and embrace Christ and be done with all this suffering But ultimately because of my love for you. I got my desire to see you grow in Christ to advance the gospel into your own life and advancing into the city for those who are lost because of that. I choose life. I choose to stay in this body. And I need you when I choose not to continue to be partners in the gospels to continue to stand firm not be intimidated by the culture around you but the stand firm in the faith. You see how he's he's out of his own situation to show them that it's a model for how they live in the midst of the challenge that they're in their Unity is not based on opposition, but on humble commonality of the work of God through Jesus in their lives there salvation their christlikeness and their call to be a witness. I was tempted because my instinct made me think well, that's how you unite someone with a common enemy. And that's the unity. He's inviting them to in challenging them to is you need to be unified because wrong is going to stand against you but in the original Greek, he goes out of his way to make it clear. Look your Unity is not based on opposition. Your unit is based on your common relationship of Christ. You have all been saved by grace and reconciled by the work of Christ and because of that you have that in common and firm as those who have heard the good news as those who have received the grace of God in your life stand together to sports analogy Stand Together stand close tight at Via team advancing that good news to this lost world around us. That's the challenge to see our lives the way Paul saw his life the advance of the Gospel. What's interesting in the original Greek. He's talking about both in word and deed but also he's talking about

But that's the purpose of the church the advancing the gospel and he makes it clear that is both advancing the gospel and Tums in terms of the number of people who hear the gospel, but it's also in the original language is the number of people who preach the gospel in the interesting. I hadn't really noticed that in the past Sao Paulo saying this is how the gospel is Advanced among you one in the way. We initially think of more people are hearing the gospel and possibly being converted and saved but he's also saying it's Advanced among you when more of you share the gospel. Does the opposite of what we normally think of of one person being empowered by a group to share the gospel? He's saying it's good when more people are hearing the gospel, but part of the Gospel growing and advancing in your community and among you is not simply more people hearing it. But more people among you more of the Christians in your assembly sharing the gospel to both those things are the growth and that's the purpose that were call to. Living a worthy life is interesting is not about spotless character like an adjective in this sentence would make us think but it's about living a life and a manner that advances the gospel because in the original language is an adverb in the sentence, so he's not he's not saying they like my instinct was to think I get it. You got to keep your nose clean and it's all about character in that sort of stuff and you're just kind of stationary. I'm trying to behave and be good not getting any kind of trouble. It's actually an adverb and he sang Live Your Life in such a way that you're advancing the gospel Echoes what he said in the prayer a couple of weeks ago a priest about that prayer. We said, I want you to overflow more and more in love and an insight and the inside is so that you'll know how to live in this Lost World in such a way that you can give them a look at the Light of Christ. So it's the wise and Discerning living so the worthiness he's talking about is this skill? This finesse this wisdom and how you live so that you are a witness. Your life is advancing the gospel through the decisions. You're making it's not a life. That's 100% error-free And you see the importance of that distinction because sometimes we can slip down the path of thinking will here's what it means to be a Christian. I need just to to get myself in order and when and I'll I'll get around to witnessing later. I've got to make sure my character is spotless. And so sometimes we can slip into you know Ready Set Ready Set Ready Set ready set and never get to the Go part because we're convinced that we have to get ready set with perfection. And what we don't sometimes realize is the goal is part of the way God continues to get us Ready Set. It's not a chronological process when God works in our life. He doesn't say it's all about character get everything ready after about 30 years of the monk Robbie then maybe I'll let you speak on my behalf. He grabs us wet behind the ears and says part of getting ready to be my Witnesses being thrown right in to being my witness and Paula saying the same thing here that it's it's this is the worthy life is one that is walking in the direction of being a witness for Christ, even if at times that than in perfect witness and handled correctly, even our imperfections can be a witness for Christ if you know what I mean. If we share with someone, yeah, I do sometimes get that wrong and and I pray to God for forgiveness and they're thinking so you don't have to be completely set before you can go to God you can go to God just as you are and he will start working with you and it's this process of being worked with and being a witness both at the same time.

The analogy is used in verse 25 about the gospel progressing both in his life. And in the life of those in Philip Philip, I when he says look I'll stay so that I can keep helping things progressed among you is the image of metal being pounded and pounded impounded until it's lengthened for its intended purpose. It's all in the preparation to be used by God includes not easy peasy bluebirds on our shoulders every day. Sometimes it includes like Paul is trying to say I'm in prison. And this is part of the Gospel working itself out in my life. God called me here to be a witness even in prison even in the midst of the suffering he still working just because things didn't work out just the way you thought they should work out. It doesn't mean God's not working or the gospels not being Advanced always back up and look at that big picture. He sang God is always working in our life. So he says them here's your to-do list. Look, I'm going to remain in the flesh for your progress for that hammering out of the Gospel in your life. I didn't mind and in the city of Phillipi so live in a manner worthy of the Gospel. That's what he saying In this passage and then he adds one more kind of significant point. Living life Worthy is not about spotless characters. I said, what about living in a manner that advances the gospel. The goal is so important that even suffering for its advancement is considered a privilege. Do you see how Paul says in the big picture of things? Being used by God to be ambassadors to say to others God is reconciling the world to himself through Christ not counting their sins against them. And God is using us as ambassadors is Paul writing Corinthians 5. Thang be reconciled to God the goal of being used toward reconciling others others to God is so important that suffering is not simply to be tolerated or accepted Paul says it's a privilege and there's no getting around his language in the original language. It's the word that use for Grace or the gifts that God gives us it is a gift to suffer for the sake of the Gospel. That's how important that's how the priority is of advancing the gospel to Paul. So he says at the end he says it has been graciously granted to you on Christ. We have not only to believe but to also suffer the language is kind of invitation and you should be honored you should be honored the way I'm honored that if my desk in advance the gospel then so be it and if continuing In the Flesh to help you and your progress in advance the gospel then so be it and he says guess what you're in the same boat you're in the same shoes. I am in there's going to be a challenge. There's going to be suffering there's any persecution, but you need to be United as a team. Not you're not around the opposition's but you're not around the gospel and its extreme value so that you would Advance Christ not only in your own heart and lives and in one another's heart in life Susan courage Mets, but in the city in which you live so that those who are lost can be saved. At the heart of what he saying In this passage and and challenging us. So we're back to our our question again. If you ever wondered why when you turn your life over to God, you don't just get Express freighted right to Heaven if your Soul Heaven bound, why are you still sucking are here? Are they answer that question is found in another passage in the New Testament? Did Paul write and erase these words in Ephesians?

He says God has made us what we are in Christ Jesus. God made us to do good works, which God has planned in advance for us to live our lives doing and the context of that passage is about why would God pour out so much grace on humanity and Paul says he does it so that his goodness will be revealed to this world. And then he says the verse were most familiar with eight and nine before this verse where he says, so you need to realize you weren't saved by any effort of your own you were saved by grace. It's a gift. And then he has this verse says God has poured out his grace upon us and he saved us by Grace not do any effort or work of our own then why has he saved us? Why didn't you just send us to have an instantly as soon as we got saved by his grace? You know that Robbie. I've saved him he's going to go straight out and play in the mud again, and it's going to be this constant never ending. Would you put that down? Would you look over here? When you give me your attention? We pay attention when you do this with this over and over raising him up as a babe in Christ for decades. It's going to be that why didn't he just say, you know what you're saying? I'm just going to put you in the house. The mansion that I built for you and that's the end of it Paul reveals it here because it's God's plan for his grace and love poured out upon us to be a witness to the world around us. See God could do it by himself, but he's intentionally planned not to do it by himself. He's planned on using you and I to save the world.

He wants us to be his Witnesses go into all the world and be my Witnesses. He's planned in advance good works for us to live our lives. Doing these good works to be a witness to him when Paul says in Philippians, he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it. He's talking about two things the faithfulness of God that should show up our confidence that God is going to complete this work, but what's the other element in that formula? It's God and it's me. There's God has to be faithful to complete his work his work what his work in me the work he's doing anything since the very beginning when I converted and said, I believe the gospel. I give my life to Christ until that last day when Christ returns God is going to be faithful to continue to work in my life and what he's working in. My life is these good works that I would do that are a witness to him. He's design for the beginning to turn us into little Christ. What's the language in act when it talks about the description of the early church and of those who follow Jesus the word Christian, it means little Christ his design for the beginning was to reconcile us and save us to have the price for our sins paid through Christ on the cross so that our relationship is secure. It's solid Romans 8:1 there for those who are in Christ Jesus. There is no condemnation. We are his while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. That's a done deal a complete package, but that's not all of it. He redeemed us and saved us and has forgiven us and cleanse us so that he can work in our hearts in life to make us more and more like Christ Jesus so that like Christ Jesus we would be a life in this world will be a witness in this world a man. He says they were called to be salt and he says what happens if the salt loses its saltiness what happens if we just like we just gather and wait for Jesus to return what happens if we lose it. What if we would have we lose our light? That's the essence of what we're called to be and it's not ready set Ready Set Ready Set Ready Set meal for decades. It is ready set go. That's the purpose. Those who are safe to allow God to shape you into the image of his son. So that like his son. We would say not my will father, but yours be done. So that we would say like Paul even if it's prison, even if it's suffering. That I could be used by you to advance your goodness to this world get that I could show those who are lost in the darkness that there is light that there is love that there is forgiveness that I could be used by you in that manner. That's our purpose. Our purpose is not just to try to keep our self saved. Okay. Let me tell you something if you've trusted in Christ Jesus your saved.

And no amount of going to church is going to add to that. No amount of volunteering to teach Junior High, although that is a special blessing waiting for you in heaven. Is going to add to or take away from your salvation and no amount of sin. Is going to take you away from Christ. Because even as those who have already converted who know his grace when we send we're told him scripture we come to him. We confess our sins and he is just and faithful to forgive us for John 1:9 if we confess our sins he is just and faithful to forgive us in that original language that just refers to the fact that it is required that he forgive us because the price has already been paid for send Jesus Paid the price for a says Denis Disney isn't what we celebrate every week was communion that Jesus Paid the price for our sins. So our sins are paid for we cannot add to that payment. And we cannot take away from it. What scripture says when we confess our sins he is just it's the way it works. The price has already been paid crisis already paid that then so when we confess our sins he forgives us. Star salvation is secure. The past that we're about now. is to be Servants of God to advance his cause to share the good news that God takes even sinners like you and I and forgives us. And invites us to serve in his kingdom.

So here's your homework this week. Okay, if we summarized at all and Broad terms, we can say help others follow Jesus, there's discipleship and evangelism and your own Walk With God all rolled into one simple sentence. That's your agenda that your goal to help others. Follow Jesus that other might be somebody who doesn't know at all and your interaction with that person might be just to give them an experience of a Christian that makes them site while I thought Christians were really not nice people and that person was really nice and said they were Christian. So maybe you're the first seed in their life that God Waters and plants through others. Continually that eventually leads them to know the trueness of his goodness and his character. So helping others follow Jesus can be evangelism but can also be a brother and sister in Christ who struggling who's having a hard time or hard week and you just say hey, can I pray for you? Or hey, I'm going to email you a verse later that that I've got a home on my computer and I think it really will be encouraging after what you shared with me. There's a dozen ways we can simply help others follow Jesus someone to make it a little more practical terms of homework and give you a slightly more specific Direction look around for someone to serve this week. Look around for an opportunity to serve this week because that's the dominant way that Jesus modeled for us is starving in a world that says the way you do it is you get power or size or structure and then you get about it. You're ready set Ready Set Ready Set. Never go. Jesus said no know if I search you if I've washed your feet. And when you think that that power means Authority in and you'll think it over willing it over somebody no, no, no not so with you the great among you will be servants. Even the son of man came not to be served but to give his life as a ransom and to serve others and so look around for someone to serve this week. It might be someone in your family. Maybe here we go. Maybe this is a little radical here. Maybe do a chore in your house. That is not your chore.

I know a lot of us have them all divided and hey you do that because I do this and that's the way the system works. But what up in the Name of Christ in the name of being a servant? You just did something. I think I told you guys a store before but I still remember it and it touched my heart somehow. I negotiated some sort of deal with my wife where I was legitimately responsible to clean the house and it was legit. I was obligated. It was a negative thing. I owed her and I said I will do that and the whole week slip by and run it until Sunday or Sunday and I'm not Sunday. Get done preaching. I'm going to go home and clean the house and I just I dreaded that and that Sunday morning had been an awful Sunday morning as a pastor because we had a person on our staff who insisted on publicly resigning that morning and just giving me and the leadership a big headache. And so the whole day was just pure stress and I drove home at the end of that Sunday heading home like at 6 tonight after a long day of special meetings. You might know what special meetings are. If your leadership is part of that suffering that process sometimes you Embrace for the gospel and sometimes it's the preachers fault. I told you one time I was preaching and I took my pants off in the pulpit.

I took off my dress pants and had blue jeans on and it was part of an illustration in that sermon, but one of my dick is after church. He said you were standing right behind the pulpit and I can't see anything, but you drop your pants, and he said I thought we're going to have a special meeting. My whole afternoon is gone because he did something stupid fortunately. It worked out the illustration worked and no one was bothered. But I was driving home after a long day of those special meetings and I was exhausted and I knew that I needed to suck it up and come up with the energy to clean the house. And when I got home the whole house was clean and laying the kids if we cleaned it for you, but cleaned it for you just as an act of love. There was no I mean I still am touched to this day with that memory. Look around this week for someone to serve I said it might be right here on home. It may just be just embracing Choi. That's not yours and don't say that wasn't mine. But I did it anyway. That's what I would do. I would definitely want the credit for it. Just do it. As an act of serving Jesus. Because who knows the adversary made you may decide I'm going to do that this week and the adversary may get in between you and a member of your family this week and cause some sort of conflict so that you think there's no way I'm doing that chore for that jerk after what he said, you know on Sunday afternoon. He can do that chore for the rest of his life as far as I'm concerned you might get in there and well guess what? You're not doing it for them. Are you? You're doing it for Jesus. You're doing it because he modeled servanthood for us and asked us to serve others and did you know they might be somebody you might see somebody out in the communities trying to load their groceries or or other walk her up or something. Stop your car go out of your way and serve somebody. And do it for Jesus. Did you know that that's not only part of your walk with Christ this week? It can be part of worshipping Christ this week. Romans 12 1 and 2 says to have a mindset not like this world not conform to the thinking of this world but one transformed by the renewing of our mind which Paul's just spent all the first 11 chapters of Romans talking about the mercy and grace of God. So having our minds transform that this is your acceptable act of worship so that I don't say hey, I just paid a lot of money for this meal and I'm not passing island table. Why would I bust my own table? I tip generously. I'm paying to come here and sit down and be served. Should Christians be so different the people say that's the weirdest thing, you know that guy on table 12. I mean he cleaned his own table up and still Tiffany generously told me to have a great day wrote great job on ticket. Because that's who Christ calls us to be that's part of our worship Hebrews 13 15 and 16 talks about it's at the end of the whole book of Hebrews were the author has said, we're not going to the old Covenant. We're not we're not Israel. We're a new people falling on under a New Covenant and so he spends all this energy sang preet. Jesus is our high priest play System. We don't make sacrifices anymore. Jesus has made the sacrifice once and for all and even says we don't go to Temple on a regular basis as if I got to run and make sure I'm scoring some points with God and these do versus he says here's what if you are if you have to have something to do for God to sacrifice to feel like I have been raising the Jewish, you know, you got to go to church on sale that kind of stuff if you've got to have something that is your offering or your sacrifice to God. He says here's what it is. It is leading people to follow Christ. It's leading someone else to confess him with their lips. That is a sacrifice. Gods that he loves and honors and it's doing good among your city among your community among all those around you in the Name of Christ. So this week? Part of your walk with Christ part of serving Christ and honoring him and thanking him for his servanthood in graciousness and forgiveness. Trust. He says I said what just to look around for someone to serve and do it in my name. Do it in my name and in my spirit. So that your homework this week? Just look for a Divine appointment. Turn opportunity to let both your prayers and the spirits work in your life and life of others converging such a way that somebody walk away and say I don't know how they knew that. I was exhausted, but somebody came over and help me load everything I put in my car. Is that'll do that the holy spirit will do that what it will do things that we're not capable of El lider. I sell open heart and open her eyes to moments that we have. No clue knowing that that person is walking to their car thinking. I'm not sure that I can even drive home. Because of the horrible news I got yesterday because of my broken relationship or whatever it is. That is suck the life out of them. Nobody notices me. Nobody cares about me, nothing and the Holy Spirit can use us when we're letting the spirit work in our life. To look around for those opportunities and with joy because of who Christ has been to us. Rejoice and worship Jesus little bit this week. I doing chores in my house. That aren't mine. I'll look around for other people to serve I'm going to do it so that I'm revealing the goodness of God to others little bit that person may get in their car and start crying. They may said you know what? I don't know how that person knew. Somehow that might be one seat of many that God uses to lead them to know price. I can be small things. That maybe one last thought I'm about to worship team to come forward. It may be that you're called to let somebody serve you this week. You may be that person that's exhausted. You may be that person that is unwilling to ask for help. Even though scripture says to confess our sins to one another to depend on one another to to lean on one another you may be the person that God is wanting to help and so the challenge for you this week, maybe to let somebody serve you.

To keep your eyes open for somebody sometimes we don't even know it right, you know the old joke about the guy that prayed for the rescue from the flood. Why is that on the roof and three helicopters came into boats? And he said no God is going to save me and he drowned when they haven't got said he's a God. Why didn't you save me and God said, I don't know what you're talking about. I sent three helicopters into boats, and you turned every one of them now. But God, maybe maybe working your life. So your your job this week might be to have your eyes open and your ears open in such a way that you realize when somebody says to you. Can I help you do that? What are can I do this for you that it's God himself. It's your prayers and his Spirit moving that person seeking to serve you. Answer your job. This week may not be to serve it may be to let yourself be served because God is seeking to show you his love that way.

If you've never made a decision to follow Christ during the song we invite you to do that. The amazing thing about Christianity, is that its leader? Took the form of a servant and gave his life for us. And so when when we invite people to follow Christ, it's not hey come grovel before this great Almighty a source of power that you need to be scared of. It's come Marvel at the Savior who gave his life for you who loves you and sacrificed himself for you. And become his follower his servant. So if you've never made that decision, we invite you during this song to do that or if you have a prayer concern or need on your mind or heart. I'll be in the back to come talk to me about anything that's on your mind or pray with me and they'll be folks in the front and the back for prayer for for anybody who has prayer this morning, please stand as we sing.