Worship Service

We appreciate all his friends and family and their support and we love Nick to so we're excited about that. That's why I want to shape my words this morning in the scriptures. We look at in that context of being called to Ministry and accepting that call to Ministry which in many ways can be very unique for vocational call to Ministry. But it's also the case that all of us are called to serve and so I hope a lot of what I say will apply across the board. I will get a little more optimistic. So don't worry too much about how I start I want to look at a passage in John chapter 21 at five words of Jesus to Peter and look at each of those five different phrases and unpack them a little bit. And I know this is an exciting day with energy and friends in celebration. It's much like a wedding day in some ways, but those who have been married for some years will understand a little bit of how I want to open. Even though a wedding begins with all this joy and optimism and there's blue birds on your shoulder and you just think we're going to wake up every day with perfect breath and full of nothing but love for one. Another sometimes a Ministry beginning can feel that way. You're excited. You're you're you're getting your degree or learning all kinds of awesome things and you just think this is awesome. Every moment is just going to be pure Bliss in serving the lord, but the reality is some days. You're going to think like Peter did when he said to the others after Jesus had or a resurrected mind you. I'm going fishing.

He was leaving the ministry. After Walking With Jesus personally following him in the flash seeing him perform miracles. Walking on water all of these amazing experience called to follow Jesus being the one of whom on Jesus said, I will build my church upon you Upon This Rock upon your confession. He's the one that said. Hey, everyone else can deny you but I want I'll even lay down my life for you and then just mere hours later. He's weeping bitterly and even after the resurrection when Jesus appears and says, I'm alive. I'm alive and shows himself to them. Peter gets up and John chapter 21. He says to the rest.

I'll go fishing.

I think it's resolved himself just a past the days. He is leaving the ministry. There will be days in which you get off and you think can I make a living selling insurance?

Maybe I could teach.

How can I support my family? What would it mean to step out of the ministry what it mean to leave the miniature there's days in which you will get up. If you ever wake up in marriage and look over the person next to you and think.

Where's the mint this isn't just glorious wonderfulness every second of every day. There are times that are hard and difficult and over Wyoming and I think the beauty of this passage is that it begins right at that moment. We're Peter has said I'm just going to go fishing and they're in the boat and they look and I see somebody on the shore and then theaters whole life and whole heart changes because he says it's Jesus boat half disrobe swims to the shore. So excited to see Jesus and Jesus has come over here and fixes them breakfast. In that just a great tangible down-to-earth encounter. He doesn't slow down from heaven glowing everyone bow and worship. They just look over and suddenly they're fixing them breakfast frying up some fish. And so Peter comes over and talks to him. And here's the passage in John when they had finished breakfast. Jesus said to Simon Peter Simon, son of Jonah John. Do you love me more than these? He said to him? Yes, Lord, you know that. I love you. Jesus said to him feed my Lambs a second time. He said to him Simon son of John. Do you love me? He said him? Yes, Lord, you know that. I love you. Jesus said to him tend my sheep. He said to him the third time Simon son of John. Do you love me Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time. Do you love me? And he said to him Lord, you know everything you know that I love you and Jesus said to him feed my sheep very truly. I tell you when you were younger. You used to fasten your own belt and go wherever you wish but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go. He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he Peter would glorify God after this. He said to him follow me Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. That's John. He was the one who had recline next to Jesus at the supper. And it said Lord, who is it that is going to betray you when Peter saw him. He said to Jesus Lord. What about him? Jesus said to him if it is my will that he remain until I come what is that to you? Follow me.

Do you love me? Jesus asked Peter that question 3 times so graciously restoring Peter from the three times. He denied even knowing Christ during the trial and the threats against Christ that anyone who even knew him until three times Peter denied him and then went out and wept bitterly until three times. Jesus gives him a chance to say I love you. I love you. I love you. He's restoring that relationship, which is an act of Grace if we're not careful. The challenge is before I show you a couple of quotes and I just going to I'm preaching to you Nick more than anybody and I'm just going to be honest and I'll just pretend nobody else is here any of this, okay? It is very easy. for Ministry itself to become the essence of your relationship with God. And you spend your time in the word preparing sermons and you spend your time with Jesus serving others and before you know, it that becomes the measure of your relationship with God. And so if you succeed in Ministry, you feel like you're succeeding in your walk with God or if you fail in Ministry, you feel like you're failing God and suddenly everything can be tied up into that. We're use the first priority in your life is Ministry itself and not your actual walk with God. Sometimes that can happen in the church to write where your relate your property becomes your relationship with the church. Hey, I teach Sunday school. I work on the worship team. I help with the children and that can become the essence of your interaction with God activity. An actions and obedience can become first over relationship and that is a dangerous thing to slip into now if we're going to be here all day. I could really preacher a little bit. It's a disease in the culture of North America that's infested the church that were all about activity and production and getting results and getting things done. I have never In all my years of ministry been held accountable for my prayer life or my personal Walk With Jesus Christ by a single church that I serve.

never once I am accountable for Ministry results. Are you visiting people? There's some people that say you aren't visiting your sermon wasn't that awesome last week. We noticed that meeting hasn't happened that needs to happen in order to get these things done and I dare say that and I don't not picking on Hillandale. We have wonderful leaders. But I dare say that 99% of clergy could say what I just said. We are not held accountable for that. We won't be held accountable for that. We will be held accountable for Ministry and it is so easy to exchange our relationship with God for a relationship with the church. And this is exactly what Jesus is burdened about with Peter when he says do you love me? You noticed his first words of restoration weren't feed my sheep. Alright Peter you feel bad about things. All right, get busy get at it. There's work to be done. Let's see. Let's see some results baby. Let's see something is first words to him or do you love me see our culture in the past 50 to 75 years has produced this religion has accepted the Monstrous heresy that noise size activity and Bluster make a man's dear to God because it's the American way baby bigger and better and more. And no matter what else you might be doing your life if you can produce bigger and better and more people will not hold you accountable. I've only seen that in the me-too movement.

The second the world has led the way on accountability in the church is following behind. Discovering that clergy have not been held accountable for their personal Walk With Jesus, especially if they're building mega churches and so we slip into this sort of danger here. It is on a personal level, Manning said, how is it then that we've come to imagine that Christianity consists primarily in what we do for God. How has this come to be the good news of Jesus? That almost sounds like a quote that makes you say wait a minute. Is that true? Is that right? Because we're so inundated with a culture that says women of course Christianity is about what we do for God. We need to go to church and take him in and say our prayers and read her Bible. But if you pause and reflect on what if your mom wants your like wait a minute Jesus in that analogy in that quote is not the center of Christianity human activity is the center of Christianity before we know it we can slip into that sort of danger until we're called to look at Jesus words when he says do you love me he sang these words again really in many ways Paul says it's in glaciers. Three. Are you so foolish you began with the Holy Spirit. Are you now trying to complete God's work in you by your own strength? So often we accept that were saved by grace, but then after that we push up her own sleeves and try to do it in our own strength and our own wisdom in our own manner. Jesus said this in John 15. I am the vine you are the branches those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit because apart from me you can do nothing. The only way Ministry happens in our life is the fruit of a relationship of Jesus Christ, and if we buy past that and we try to treat the by product without giving attention to the product then we will burn out and we will not last in Ministry and one day we'll wake up and say I think I'm just going to go fishing. That's about all I have. The energy to do is find something pleasant to pass the hours and the challenge for all of us in Ministry is to make our relationship with Christ the first priority and let it bear the fruit fruitful Ministry in our lives and dare. I say

Say to churches who hire you down the road. You must you guys shut up. I don't use that don't listen to this. Okay? Your most powerful moment in an interview process when you're interviewing at other church at down the road is when they've spent months looking at you and they decide they want you. Okay, that's when you can negotiate and that's when you should say something like how will you hold me accountable for my personal relationship with Jesus Christ? I'm not going to say yes, unless you require me to go on a personal Retreat once a year not related to Ministry skills or productivity or growing the church or the youth or anything like that or that into your next contract down the road to you guys didn't hear that kind of shop talk that happens in the context of ministry. And you got your pulled me aside and say Robbie hold us accountable for our walk with God more than what we get done around the church and activity. It works both ways. So put my feet to the fire too because the only way we can have a Ministry around us that resembles the ministry of Christ as if we cultivate inside of us the character in Intimacy in relationship with Christ. That is the first calling for all of us and that happens through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ his grace upon his were saved by the spirit saved by grace and we walk that way. The greatest competitor of Devotion to Jesus is service for him that Oswald Chambers. It is the biggest danger in case your timing number one of five. This one gets the most time the rest are a little shorter but this is the foundation for everything else that Jesus says to Peter and I think Oswald Chambers got it, right when he said there's this great danger again. It's not just those called to vocational ministry as anyone known anybody who was always active and busy in the life of the church, but the relationship of God did not thrive.

Maybe they had someone in their life that they could not forgive and have never forgiven. Oh, well, am I sweet and she teaches Sunday school and she's been in that church for 30 years, but she doesn't speak to her sister. So don't bring that up at the family reunions. Could it be that many of us can slip into serving God as a replacement for knowing him and allowing him to know us for allowing him as David says in Psalm 130 139 search my heart. Oh God and find if there be any iniquity in me. It's always a challenge to all of us but especially in Ministry it is so easy. To make the heart of your activity your job. As opposed to relating to Christ and I say that as someone who speaks both out of success and failure in that area. And so I say it with a bleeding and a warning.

Jesus said this but whenever you pray go into your room and shut the door and pray to your father who is in secret and your father who is in seasoned secret will reward you calling us to this very personal in many ways. Very private and Minnie relationship with God and not one of show and not one of this play it again. It's easier for a minister than anybody to get away with never being held accountable for that private relationship cuz you got so much on public display. And so he those words and your favorite verse to heed them. The time is coming in John 4:23 when the true worshippers will worship the father in spirit and in truth and that time is here already. You see the father to is actively seeking such people to worship him that's his call. And so the foundation for everything else you will do is the answer to Jesus question. Do you love me? And if you love me you'll spend time with me and it will be more important than anything else and it's a challenge. It's a challenge. It is hard to say to somebody. Hey, can I meet with you Thursday while I've got to spend time with God? I need to meet with you Thursday. And so before you know, what you can just kind of feel your days and that can become the backburner. Here's another secret and if you guys quote me on this.

I will lie and feel completely Justified before God.

Often times I make commitments in my calendar that I know where important like time alone with God or important time with family during certain seasons. And I know those are commitments and I feel completely comfortable when someone says, can you do this for me on Tuesday afternoon? I say, I'm sorry. I have a commitment Tuesday afternoon. Can we do it a different day but me 20 or 30 years to work at the backbone to do that simple little thing, but it's important and I beg you. To begin that from the start to say to me. I have a commitment I can't do that. Don't let the fact that I'm your boss. That doesn't really mean anything. I'm not your boss. Jesus is your first accountability person and so be willing to hold those standards. Feed my sheep. He says feed my sheep. He says boy. We want that to be first. If I if I would have said that's something we slip into and the reality is we will get more done if we start with our relationship with Jesus and let the fruit be the byproduct of that. So even if you secretly there's nothing more than anything done. Okay still make Jesus the most important thing ahead of that and more will be done in your life and in your ministry and so out of that relationship with Christ, we feed the sheep if we made it a priority over our relationship with Christ than the feeding of the sheet becomes an exchange and not Ministry the church becomes an institution and not a living body of Christ and when it becomes an institution and our ministry becomes an exchange, then it's all about whether this person is a member or not a member, but they give a lot of don't give a lot where their personalities such as they can exert force in such a way that they get. What they want or are they a Wallflower that won't insist on what they want before? You know it all that you're what you're trying to do is to make sure the people are pleased or you're not in trouble if people are happy and you become a servant not of God. but of human will So it's vital that even are feeding of the sheep even are serving of the church comes from our relationship with Christ is interesting in the Greek. There's two things that are communicating we talked about the Sheep. They're both the nourishment and governing interesting. If I told some of you that my role is to govern you will see about that will have a special meeting. I tried that before I was fired.

my very first Ministry over a two-year. It became clear that the chairman of the elders was having. multiple affairs and I went to the biblical process of holding him accountable privately and then expanding the the group and then inviting our elders to be part of it. And he been there forever and I was young and he convinced everybody. He doesn't know what he's talking about and he's misunderstood and before you know it there was a special meeting and they said pack your stuff clean out your office. Don't even come back for evening Services. We're not even paying you this week. You're gone. Welcome to the ministry.

A year later, he was released from his 34-year employment at a prestigious role in the city for multiple affairs. When I closed the door on the church by bringing that up, he took it to his workplace and thank God the veterans administration had the character to deal with it. So they'll be times when the church breaks your heart and they'll be times when your job is not just to nourish but to look somebody in the eye and say what you're doing is wrong. Hey, man, you got to repent is so funny. He stacked a list board the last board meeting. He was a little country church. We normally have like 12 people total in the board meeting. The last board man went to is like 35 people in the room all of his relatives who had never been to church in the two years that I've been the pastor there were there in case there was a boat and they were already that I knew all this and I prepared letters with documentation other people they can you call this was an absolutely iron Clyde Ironclad objective reality and I said to the elders there I have to hand this to you guys because he's made it such a personal thing that people aren't saying the truth of so here's the reality of it and I told him I look at it a lot of things wrong. I'm just telling you what I did ride. There's plenty of things I did wrong. So don't miss hear this edited story, but I told him let's say his name is John. I said John I said, here's the irony. I'm the only one in this room who loves you And you got to stack with friends and family because I'm the only one room willing to look in the eye and say you have a problem and you need help. We tried to approach it with Grace early on we said this can be private will get counseling and your family will pay for counseling we tried every way we could but do not forget that caring for the Sheep means nourishing. Yes, but it does mean governing it does mean the how long can we stay is it? All right for here for a few hours? One of my favorite stories in Ministry. I'll try to make this short a friend of mine. He's my hero cuz I'm a minister without a whole lot of back pain and he's a minister of a lot of backbone and he was sitting behind the door of a nursery at the church one that he was on staff and somebody Push the door open. I didn't know he was behind it and they blathered some gossip about somebody else from the church to everyone in there and then left while he went and confirm that his understanding of everything was correct. That was gossip, but it wasn't true that they should have said that they didn't have permission. He confirmed all that then he went to that person's house that afternoon and rang the doorbell and they came to the door and I said, hey, what are you doing here? And he said I was behind the door when you said this in this in this about these poor people and I'm going to come in and sit down and you're going to call everyone that you gossip to today and confess and repent and make things right? Wow, imagine that you get off my step. He went in and sat down and waited. Unless you want to go before the elders unless you want to go before the congregation. I am be that guy so much.

Nourishment yes nourishment. Yes. But there will be times in which you're called to draw Brothers and Sisters in Christ alongside you I did what I did in the context of gathering other Elders in the church and Leadership. It wasn't a Lone Ranger thing, but you gather others alongside and sometimes you have to do difficult things that speak challenging truth to those who will not hear from the Lord directly. It requires Hesed, which is my favorite word in scripture as you may know by now. It's the Old Testament word used most often to describe the character of God and what it speaks to his Gods commitment to the best interest of the other and it does just what I'm talkin about that Hesed mean at times. He will just scoop us up and sing over us as Zephaniah says in chapter 3 verse 19 Grace and love as lamentation says his mercies are new every morning. Sometimes that's what's best for us. Just to flatter us up with Grace Ephesians talks about that that God just showers us with his grace but it also includes comes in which God looks Us in the eye and says, hey You need to turn away from that. It is dangerous and self-destructive and wrong and he challenges us to repent and it's that character price as false as a 2nd Corinthians 3:18 as we spend time with Christ. Do you love me? He says to Peter this is the foundation for all Ministry. Do you love me as we spend time with price 2nd Corinthians? 3:18 says as we're in God's glorious present were transformed into his likeness and that likeness include showering people with Amazing Grace and love and forgiveness. And it also includes accountability for a brother and sister in Christ include that nourishment and that governing you will go or you do not wish to go. He says next to Peter. It's interesting land. I used to stop our vehicle whenever we are traveling out of California students back East to visit family. There was a desert town. That was just such an armpit right on the border of Arizona and I apologize to be by here is from a desert, They love desert towns. I'm sorry. I'm just confessional. I came for the mountains of East Tennessee and I love the green and the mountain and we drive through this tiny little town and I remember we would just almost stop and say Lord. Just please never call us hear you can you can call us anywhere but I just couldn't imagine how the life would go out of me. If I was in a little town that had one gas station, you know, and not a single tree inside. It was just now other people again love the desert and I don't want to offend anybody but God will call you sometimes when you say all are you got to be kidding me, you know is this It it it means both a physical calling. He's referring to Peter's death, but it's really the umbrella of the cross that every disciple is asked to carry and in Ministry no more. So you will be asked to carry across and sometimes that will be physically being called to Liberia, right Johnny Wellspring happy so hard being a children's Minister here in Lexington 54 year old woman happy here in Civilization. So to speak the way we be tempted to phrase it and God says go to Liberia what? She said for three years. She said I can't be here in that right there. There's no way you said for me to go to Liberia. And finally she heard it was such Clarity that she went and now she lives in Liberia and the spearheading amazing Ministry in the name of the Lord and a country that has an 84% unemployment rate. Because of Civil War a country that's lost its infrastructure has for paved roads. I'm one level should be tempted to say I don't want to go there but she be the first one that would say I wouldn't trade it for anything. And so he says to Peter look this is this is your future but you need to understand that reality and cautious 323 were told whatever your work is put your heart into it as done for the Lord and not for human beings and that applies to minister your serving the lord and you may be serving him like Moses did we're all he gets to do is deal with grumpy disobedient people for 40 years. And then as soon as the promised lands on the site of the new building and success, it's all here tap tap your out the next guys in Your ministry, maybe just preparing for what comes after you and it may never shine with a success that you wanted to shine. It made it have never never have the numbers that America Whispers.

But you have to say you know what I'm serving the lord and I trust him and I'm doing what he would have made do and really is the fruit of ministry and John 12:24. Jesus is what I'm about to tell you is true unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies. It remains only one seeds. But if it dies, it produces many seeds it is in our human nature to fight self death to fight with everything that's in us but isn't it ironic that what we end up fighting when we fight self-denial and our own death. We fight the fruit that we long for in our own life. God says look, just trust me. I'm telling you to find your life you give but it's so hard to let go of the American dream or think. I want to live in the same neighborhood all my life for 35 years in a beautiful home or retire here or have all my kids just be healthy and beautiful all live right across the street with their grandbabies. If you give it all to the Lord, your kids may be missionaries. You may be a missionary. I know a family that he's at least five years older than me maybe more and they felt a call to Ministry sold everything. They owned got it all down into four boxes and move to Africa. And they've got all these kids and grandkids here in the states. And the rest of us to be like, wait a minute. That's not the American dream. You're supposed to grow old and have your Don't let 55 or 60 move to Africa and start helping orphans and less. Jesus says hey when you guys moved African start helping orphans and they be the first one to say our lives are richer and Fuller than we could ever constructed on our own. And so when we let go of God directing us wherever we want, he wants us to go even it's where we don't want to go. He can bear more fruit and our life and do we love him that much to let go What is that to you? He says the Jesus and that's the response to Jesus says to Peter that's in response to Peter saying hey.

What about him? Maybe a little comforting if you told me he was going to die and even more horrible death. I might be like all good was not just me.

And Jesus says what's that to you now? I think that's speaking to the challenge of comparison and envy that just is full in our culture. We talked about that before the Facebook culture. Everything is just put what was already in the human heart. Envy is just giving us steroids for that Tennessee we have because we can constantly look at 6 with their family pictures are white shirts and blue jeans go to the beach and be barefoot and get you know, Sorry, if you got that photo on your Facebook page. It is so easy.

And Ministries no different you you might be in the church like Moses where you're just dealing with who you know things were just wondering we just feel lost we know God is going to do something but evidently isn't on my watch. Nothing and all your friends are getting promoted or they're going to do this or going to that is so easy. And when we slip into that sort of Envy in comparison than people no longer are co-laborers but their competitors and then before we know it we're tempted to say and I'm again I'm preaching this from a mixture of success and failure. So I'm not pretending I know this, you know, I know this cuz it's in my heart. Because it's easy to say well, yeah, I suppose they're doing well, but I heard that the shots at others and other people help us. They send me stuff all the time on Facebook. Look at what church is doing Robbie hint hint. You don't why don't we have those kinds of numbers and the intentions are good, but we live in a culture that wants us to constantly compare and so we have to have our guard up to say it's good to look and learn and discern and get good lessons and encouragement from others who are doing good thing, but we don't want to slip into that sort of Covenant mess in our heart and that sort of envy that causes us to say, well, I'm no good evidently because I'm not doing what this person is doing as if my self-worth is based on what I accomplished as opposed to the work of Christ on the cross with a right now folks. If we make our self-worth about what we accomplished, we are of all people to be pitied to paraphrase Paul. Because even the most successful of us will not be creating Eternal results in our bank accounts or vacations are Facebook photos or Career Success.

The way we can do the most is to allow our very selves to be the least to become smaller. So that Jews becomes more to give our lives over to him and let him work in and through our lives. So that's the invitation to stop comparing two to not slip into the disease proverb says a heart at peace gives life to the body. But Envy rots the bones. Can I get an amen? That was good. And you know why because we all know. We all know we've all been V. I wish I was you know, hair like that person or I was thin like that person. I drove a car like that person are headed agree like that person or I had that beautiful family like that person or have you know, this that are obedient dog anyting a better lawn we can do it can't we Am I ever going to be somebody else's lawn? My dog just leave spots everywhere in my lawn stinks and my neighbor.

It's a perfect lawn. I'm serious. Come to my house. Look at my house. Look to your left and go home. That's what a long should look like. And here is Robbie's it's amazing how Envy you can get in our heart and it slips right in with Ministry just as easily as it does anything else Under the Sun but we have to remember is our self-image is not about being better than somebody else or comparing numbers are self-esteem. Our self-worth R value is based on the work of Christ 1st. John says what marvelous love the father has extended to us just look at it or called children of God and we're not just called that right he continues that's who we really are. But that's also why the world doesn't recognize us or take us seriously because it has no idea who he is or what he's up to. How can you be happy doing this sort of stuff? I had people telling me this and did you maybe you could do so much more when I told my dad I was going in the ministry. He was so disappointed. He wasn't a Christian and he said Son. Why would you do that? Imagine having your dad. Why would you why would you throw away your life? Why don't you borrow money for an education? That's never going to pay you the money to pay back that loan that you box. Why would you why would you do that? And there will be people who will seriously set you down and said you were capable of so much more and you just need to remember they don't understand God or what he's up to or what he's doing and I'm a child of God. And what I'm doing is eternal it's not always visible for visible from the outside but it is what God has called me to do. My dad came to know the Lord a few years later and was thrilled that I was a Ministry of that which through my heart to to complete that story. John says this too but whoever did not who did want him who believes he was who he claimed and would do what he said he made to be their true selves their child of God say here's a whole other Starman. I have to be careful and not preach a whole another sermon, but our true selves who God calls us to be and wear challenge to love him and be intimate him in such a way that that's our identity and we don't base our identity on either our skillset or strength for our failures our sins because before you know, it will base it on what we can succeed. We think I'm doing pretty good. But when we fail we think I'm doing no good and if we fail too long, then we'll say I'm no good on my identity in Jesus comes and says, here's your identity. If you accept me and what I've done on the cross, you are a child of God, that's our identity and that's Boulder and better than anything. We could Craft on Iran and can carry us through many of one of those some days and which is not all blue birds and butterflies. Then the father said to him son is in the prodigal son. You are always with me and all that is mine is yours. It's so easy to be the older brother and I used to never see myself as the older brother cuz I like I do I think have a heart for the lost a passion for them and want to see them converted and I was like, yeah.

We are I don't know if you're at I find maybe you guys do if you think about it. I find it's very easy to be the older brother. And decide there's not enough to go around and that guy got my parking space and how come they're in my seat and we can't let every Tom Dick and Harry use the building and I've got too much else to do before. I know what I'm protecting what I think I earn earn that respect and how come that new guy gets to give the prayer at the city-wide Easter breakfast when he's 26 and I'm 51. And then in that meeting them it's just so easy to be the older brother. It's so easy to slip in to that sort of thinking but the father comes to us and says Robbie, You've been with me forever now. All that I have is yours all that I have is yours. Remember that truth and not slip into what about him. What about the particles of what about the younger brother? and instead You're the lord lord lord. Where do I say the ends of their thesis follow me? Follow me.

One thing I think there was only one lesson. I was able to give you or anyone thinking about Ministry or serving the lord for more than 10 minutes. It might be this one. You have to preach the good news to yourself regularly because I find it easy to call other people to correct understand. I don't know God forgives that that's okay. You're going in the right direction and around of my own self talk is I can't believe you did that again. I can't believe you said that way. I can't believe you feel that way.

It's so easy to preach the gospel to other sometimes but not preach it to myself and I have to be reminded like Peter is In this passage that the gospel is always it is always the good news is always and so despite Peters failure denying Jesus publicly multiple times turning his back on the resurrected prices again, I'm just going to go fishing. It's all that's left for me in life is a little bit of fishing. He's done those things and then Jesus comes to him in the invitation. Do you love me is not just a challenge. It is an invitation to be restored and at any moment in our life despite our own failures and her struggles Jesus weights and is willing to say to us again for the 1 trillionth time. Robbie. Do you love me? Even though I may have failed I may have lost my enthusiasm. I may have lost my vision. I may have drifted I may have said I just want to go fishing. I have the energy for And yet Jesus is ever-present ever present and willing to offer us the gospel the good news over and over again. And again, he's willing to say every morning his mercies are new he's willing to say do you love me? Do you love me? And we get a chance to answer that question every day and his grace extends to us. If it is interesting.

And will close at this and the worship team can come forward.

There's two words in the Greek for four Live In this passage agape and phileo that Jesus uses and the first two times he asked Peter. Do you love me? He uses the word Agape. Do you love me which is a self-sacrificial the highest level of love and both times that Peter responds. He uses the word pelayo, which is a brotherly love. And so Jesus says do you love me and I mean the baby sacrifice. I'm the most important thing in your life. And Peter says, you know that we're Buddies.

Computer says Do You Love Me Do You agape love me. I mean ultimate love me. And Peter says, I love you like a brother.

That's what Jesus does the third time. He changes his word. It comes down to exactly where Peter is and the third time he says, okay Peter. I understand. This is where you are. Do you feel Leo me do you love me like a brother? And Peter says, you know everything Lord, you know my heart and the answer is yes. I love you to me. That's a beautiful picture of how God meets us exactly where we are. That the gospel is always always he doesn't say to me Robbie. You been following me for years and serving in the church for years. I have had to lower the amount of Grace I have for you. Okay, you have used up. A lot of it is only this much lap. So you've got to meet me this far. The gospel is always always present always knew always full in our life. And so even all the Peter could muster was I love you like a brother. Jesus said, it's okay. I'll take that will start right where you are. I think of the pathogen the gospel were the gentleman says to Jesus. I believe help my unbelief. I love that passage to the honesty of it. I believe also got a little unbelief mixed in here the same time. So if you could help me with that don't believe So Peter says I love you like a brother and Jesus says, okay.

No matter where we are whether it's day one when we're like I Love You Lord Agape. I am all in or today, you know, 38,000 you wake up and you think I just want to go fishing. I know if I want to be around people alone church people. I'm going to be around for a while. I mean, sometimes you have those mornings and you're like, I love you. They said okay to be blue bird shining and butterflies. He accepts. It's right where we are. The gospel is always and it's for everyone including clergy who served him. for a few years or four decades is for those here this morning who may have heard it for the first time. I hope and what I've shared and it's for those who've been following Christ for decades teaching Sunday school doing great things for the kingdom of God. Please be reminded this morning. The gospel is always Always present always available at any moment. Jesus is asking do you love me? He'll accept that answer if yeah, I do help my unloved. I believe help my unbelief. I want to love you more. Will You Help Me Love You More Jesus says, yes. His grace is always present always extended to us. The gospel is always the way we know God. It's always the bases of a relationship that never changes. So if you're here this morning and you've never made that decision, I can guide you during this song to make that decision worst thing a beautiful him. If you have a decision on your heart, I'll be here at the front this morning will be folks also in the back for prayer or decision to invite you if you're looking to say Lord, I want to follow you help me. Love you more. I believe help my unbelief. We invite you to come make that decision or if you just want to come pray with me or one of our prayer warriors or just have questions. You can pull me aside after the service. If you don't want to be up front here. We just want to invite you to know Christ the way we do and that's imperfectly at times in our life. But it's also with this ongoing discovery of his goodness and his grace and his worthiness again and again in our lives and so we commend him to you because of the grace we find in him in the goodness. We find it. Please stand as we sing.

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