Look at Jesus

All right, well, good morning, church.

How many of y'all were here last Sunday

and heard my friend Ed Upton speak?

Did y'all enjoy Ed?

I thought he did an outstanding job,

and I appreciated him being willing to come and do that.

Thank you for allowing me and my family a Sunday off.

We were out in California and then Arizona with family

and had a wonderful vacation time there.

But it's great to be back.

We're looking forward to getting back.

Number one, you spent a little bit of time in California,

and you remember how wonderful the weather is.

And how crazy everything else is.

No, it's just, it's hard to take a Texan out of Texas

and have him be happy for too long.

Anyway, let's get into it today.

We've been in a series on new life,

a fresh beginning with Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5.17 has been our series text.

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.

The old has passed away, and see, the new has come.

We've been seeing a lot of new in our church.

We've got a new sign out there.

We've had God working new life in our church,

evidenced by the baptisms we've been seeing.

We've seen new faces attending.

There's a lot of new happening in our church,

and we thank God for that,

because God is the God of new.

Old things are passed away,

and God is doing something new in our church.

Much of the study and content comes from

Pastor Craig Groeschel of Life Church in Oklahoma City.

And I want to remind us, in our very first sermon,

we learned that God is doing a new thing.

Do you not see it?

We do see it.

And then secondly, we learned we need to stop trying

and start what?

Training.

That's right.

We've got that part down, don't we?

Stop trying, start training.

Oftentimes, we encounter difficulties in our life,

and we try to defeat them, try to defeat them,

and we fail and fail.

But then God wants us to kind of reverse our mindset on that

and say, you stop trying and allow me to train you

to be who I say you are and who I want you to be.

So then we got into you do what you do

because of what you think of you.

We do what we do because of what we think of ourselves.

Our identity determines our behavior.

And again, if we have a mind shift

to see ourselves as God sees us,

then we behave according to who God says we are,

not who we have always thought we are.

So there's a shift there.

And then this is the third Sunday

in this little sub-series.

We've kind of shoehorned into this.

And the first Sunday was lay aside.

Lay aside every week, every wait.

Do you remember what happened on the Sunday

when we talked about laying aside the wait?

Anybody want to remind me what happened?

Thank you for that.

He said, you got smoked.

Yes, I did.

I had a foot race with one of our teenagers

who I think is in here somewhere.

Anyway, yeah, he's back there.

And I lined up on that aisle

and he lined up on that aisle

and we just had a foot race down to the front

and he blew me out of the water.

Wasn't even close.

Then I burdened him down with a weight vest

and kettlebells and a big medicine ball

and we ran again and I barely beat him.

It was very revealing.

Anyway, weights do slow us down.

There's no way that kid could lose to me in a foot race

unless I added a whole bunch of weight to him

and obstacles that he had to run with.

So lay aside every weight.

Two questions there.

What are you holding on to?

And then what is holding on to you?

We find that one in those two verses,

Hebrews 12 and Philippians 3.

And these are kind of the texts for this series

that we're in right now.

So what are you holding on to?

What is a sin problem?

A self-destructive habit

that you might still be holding on to?

And then secondly,

what is something from your life

that might be holding on to you?

Philippians 3 reminds us to forget what lies behind.

And then number two, two weeks ago,

let us run.

Let us run.

That was graduation Sunday, senior Sunday.

We talked about how it's important

to have a goal that we're moving toward.

Start moving.

Reaching forward to what lies ahead.

And then keep going.

Run with endurance.

Again, drawing from Hebrews 12 and Philippians 3.

So that should catch you up.

If you forgot or maybe you missed one of those weeks,

then you should be kind of caught up on where we are.

And today, we're wrapping up this mini-series here

from Hebrews 12 and Philippians 3.

Look at Jesus.

So first week was lay aside the weight.

And then let us run the race that God has set before us.

And now we are reminded to look at Jesus.

So let's look at the Word of God.

Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 2.

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 2.

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

If you'll turn in your Bibles over there,

we'll read from it together.

Hebrews 12 and verse 2.

Therefore, I'm going to begin in verse 1

and we'll catch you up here.

Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses

surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance

and the sin that so easily ensnares us.

Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us.

And here we are keeping our eyes on Jesus,

the source and perfecter of our faith.

For the joy that lay before him,

he endured the cross, despising the shame,

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Now would you turn over with me to Philippians chapter 3.

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

Philippians chapter 3.

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

We're going to read in verse 13.

One thing I do, about halfway down verse 13 of Philippians chapter 3.

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

One thing I do, forgetting what is behind

and reaching forward to what is ahead,

I pursue as my goal the prize promised

by God's heavenly call in Christ Jesus.

Would you pray with me?

God, I thank you so much for your word that is alive.

It addresses every problem in our life.

It gives us grace for every day.

I pray that your word would speak to us today.

Adapt every word that comes from the reading of your word

and the preaching of it.

Adapt it to our personal lives and situations.

Personalize it for us, Lord.

And if there's anybody here who doesn't know you as their Savior,

let them not leave here today

without establishing that relationship the first time.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

All right, so look at Jesus.

That is kind of the conclusion of our series here

from Hebrews 12 and Philippians 3.

I want to share a quote with you from a woman

who was Dutch and allowed many Jews to hide in her and her family's house

many years ago in the days leading up to the Nazi concentration camps,

the Holocaust back in World War II.

So she says, as someone who sacrificed much for God's people to be saved from their oppressors,

and then eventually she herself was taken prisoner

and sent to a Nazi concentration camp where she suffered unimaginable things.

And she said later in her life, if you look at the world, you'll be distressed.

Well, that's probably true, especially considering the things that she endured.

If you look at the world around you, you will be distressed.

I wouldn't have to probably convince too much of you to agree with that.

I think we all pretty much agree the world around us is full of problems.

It's full of stress.

It's full of distress.

If you look within, you'll be depressed, which is often the case, isn't it?

We probably have let ourselves down more than we've let anybody else down,

and we've let other people down, haven't we?

We probably know the truth about ourselves, and that often depresses us

maybe more than it energizes us.

Because we know our innermost thoughts.

We know our weaknesses.

So if we look outside, we're distressed.

If we look within, we're depressed.

But if we look at God, we will be at rest.

Our eyes must be fixed on Jesus.

If our eyes get fixed on anyone or anything else,

we will be distressed or we will be depressed.

Ultimately, our eyes must remain on Christ to find rest for this journey.

So number one, eyes up.

Eyes up.

Hebrews 12 says,

keeping your eyes on Jesus,

looking unto Jesus.

That is the key to the Christian life.

Eyes up.

Hebrews 12,

looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith,

who for the joy that was set before him,

endured the cross, despising the shame,

and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Why are we looking at Jesus?

Because he walked this path before we did.

And he did it perfectly.

Why are we keeping our eyes fixed on Christ?

Because he is our example.

He is our role model.

He is our goal.

He is our prize.

We keep our eyes on the what?

Yes.

Keep our eyes on the prize.

I was seeing if y'all could get there with me.

We keep our eyes on the prize,

and the prize is Jesus Christ.

He is the one we are striving to please.

He is the one who has rescued us.

He is the one whose grace sustains us,

whose blood has washed us from our sins.

He is the one who has given everything for us,

and he is our goal.

He is the light at the end of the tunnel.

So we look to him.

Eyes up.

Now, Isaiah 45, 22 shows us it has always been this way.

From the very beginning,

the goal is to get our eyes back on our creator,

on God.

Isaiah 45, 22,

turn to me and be saved,

for I am God and there is no other.

Have you ever heard in the world today

that you just believe what's best for you

and let me believe what's best for me

and don't tell me that you're right and I'm wrong?

You ever heard that kind of thing?

It's especially popular in our culture and society today.

The Bible tells us the exact opposite of that.

God is very inclusive in that he wants all men and women to come to him,

but he's very exclusive when he says,

I'm the only one that can save you.

I'm the only one.

If you go to another church that says any other way to be saved

other than placing your faith in Jesus alone,

that is not correct.

The only way to be forgiven

and to have a relationship with God

is through Jesus Christ.

That's it.

There is no other way.

I hear all the time,

well, all us churches should just get along

because we're all preaching the same thing.

Well, we're not all preaching the same thing.

Thank God many are.

Thank God many of our churches here in town

are pointing people to Jesus,

but I dare say there's probably some who aren't.

All across this world,

there are people who gather in churches

and they add to the scriptures,

they add to the gospel message,

or they take away from it.

It's either, oh, God doesn't think your sin is that bad,

or it's you have to jump through all these hoops

that we have created to get to God.

But the reality is,

you just have to turn to Jesus.

You turn to Jesus and say,

I know I'm a sinner.

I know Jesus died for my sin,

and I place all of my faith

in the risen Savior, Jesus Christ.

He will forgive me.

He loves me.

He will make me his child.

That is the way of salvation,

and there is no other.

And that's according to God himself.

He says, I am God.

Buddha's not God.

Mohammed's not God.

Throw in whatever,

anybody else who's ever tried to

represent themselves as a deity on this earth,

they are not God.

Fortunately, you are not God of your life.

I am not God of my life.

There is one God.

His name is Jesus.

Let's turn to Matthew, would you with me?

Matthew chapter 14.

Matthew 14 · chapter mention

Now, I think I'm preaching to the choir

mostly in this room.

I think most of you would agree

with what we just talked about.

There is one God.

His name is Jesus.

He's the only way to salvation.

But what does that have to do with us now?

Once you have placed your faith in Jesus,

say, yeah, I know that.

I believe.

I put my faith in Jesus.

I've been baptized like Heather was this morning.

What does that mean for me now?

Matthew chapter 14, verse 22.

Matthew 14:22

This is right after the feeding of the 5,000.

Jesus and his disciples,

they're probably on a high

after this amazing miracle.

With Jesus multiplied

this small amount of food

and fed so many people.

Now, they're leaving.

Verse 22.

Immediately, Jesus made the disciples

get into a boat

and go ahead of him to the other side,

the Sea of Galilee,

while he dismissed the crowd.

After dismissing the crowd,

he went up onto the mountain by himself

to pray.

Jesus would often do this.

By the way, it's a good idea

after a big win

or a big loss

to go off by yourself

and pray.

Recenter yourself on God.

Give him the glory

for what just happened

or take to him

the sorrow and care

that you're experiencing.

Whatever those times are,

it's a good idea

to copy what Jesus did

and go get away

and pray.

Well into the night,

Jesus was there alone.

Verse 24.

Meanwhile,

the boat,

with the disciples in it,

was already some distance

from the land,

battered by the waves

because the wind

was against them.

You know, folks,

sometimes in life,

the wind is going to be

against you,

so to speak.

Seems like the whole world

is stacked against you.

You know why?

Because it is.

As a child of God,

this world is stacked

against you.

But be not afraid

because Jesus

has overcome the world.

There is no power greater.

There will be all sorts

of power and obstacles

rise up against you

as a child of God.

But your power,

the one that is walking

with you,

the one who is talking

with you,

the one who is leading you

and never abandons you,

he is greater.

He is more powerful.

So as the winds

rise up against

this boat

with the disciples in it,

what happened?

Jesus came toward them.

Walking on the sea.

I love how it just

throws that in there

like it's an everyday occurrence.

Oh yeah,

Jesus was taking a walk

on the sea early

in the morning.

I like to take a walk

early in the morning

when I wake up

early enough to do that.

But I don't normally,

you know,

go out to the city pool

and take a stroll.

I don't go down

to Lake Arrowhead

and take a nice little walk.

Jesus,

though,

was doing that.

Verse 25,

Jesus came toward them

walking on the sea

very early in the morning.

And when the disciples

saw him

walking on the sea,

they were terrified.

It's a ghost!

They said.

And they cried out

in fear.

Now y'all,

these guys had been

walking with Jesus.

It wasn't like

they didn't know

who he was.

They believed

that he was the Messiah.

They believed

that he was from God.

So should it have been

a huge leap

for them to see Jesus

walking on the water

and realize,

oh yeah,

that's Jesus.

He's different

than we are,

isn't he?

He can do that.

But that wasn't

their first conclusion.

Even the ones

who literally

walked in the physical,

human presence

of Jesus

on this earth

still didn't have

enough faith

to realize

that's the Son of God.

He loves us.

He's our friend.

He's coming to save us.

No,

their immediate thought was

it's a ghost.

We've never been

like that,

have we?

Of course not.

We've never had

some opposition

come up against us.

We've never had

some change

happen in our life.

Maybe some evidence

of God

actually working,

but it wasn't

what we thought.

It wasn't

what we planned.

All they wanted

was for the storm

to die down,

right?

Just take the storm

away

and we can get

to the other side

here in peace.

It never entered

into their mind

that God would come

walking across the water

to save them.

So,

when they saw

what God chose

to do,

freaked them out.

We've never been

in those shoes,

have we?

When we saw

something that God

chose to do

and it wasn't

what we had planned,

it wasn't even

what we had asked

for or hoped for,

and it kind of

spooks us a little bit.

So,

what happened?

They cried out

in fear

and immediately,

verse 27,

Jesus spoke to them.

Have courage,

it is I.

Don't be afraid.

So,

who speaks up first?

Well,

if you know

the disciples at all,

your first guess

would be Peter

and you'd be right.

Lord,

if it's you,

Peter answered him,

command me to come

to you on the water.

And I love this,

verse 29,

he said,

come.

I just,

that baffles me

for some reason.

Maybe because I'm

raising two little boys,

they're not so little

anymore.

They're getting bigger

and they're sitting

right up here,

Austin's bouncing

in his seat.

At least he's staying

awake,

that's a good thing.

When I'm trying

to get my kids

to do something

that they're

uncomfortable with,

do something

that might make them

a little nervous

or a little scared,

I usually don't

just say,

come.

Usually,

I gotta talk them

through it,

you know?

Okay, son,

now here's what

you gotta do.

You gotta get

one foot out

of the boat,

okay?

Just get one foot

in the water.

We'll work on the

next one in a minute,

okay?

How does that feel?

Does that feel alright?

Feel like you can

put the other one in now?

Alright,

now come on out.

I got my hand out here.

Come on,

walk to me.

Walk to me.

You got this.

That's what I would

have done.

But Jesus

just says,

come.

Why do you

think that is?

I think it's

because Peter

had an opportunity

here

to exercise

the faith

that Jesus

knew he had.

Jesus knew

he had enough

faith

to walk to him.

So I think

Jesus wasn't

gonna coax him

through it.

It was just,

I'm gonna issue

you a command.

Your job

is to step

out by faith

and follow me.

I'm not gonna

explain all

the reasons

of why this

is gonna work.

Just gonna

help you

see

that you

have to

simply obey.

So,

Jesus says,

come.

And climbing

out of the boat,

Peter started

walking on the

water

and came

toward Jesus.

but when he

saw

the strength

of the wind,

he was

afraid.

And beginning

to sink,

he cried out,

Lord,

save me!

So he knew

that Jesus

could save

him.

So who did

he doubt

in that moment?

What was it?

Himself.

Right?

Have you ever

been there?

It's like,

God,

I know

that you're

real.

I know

that you

are great,

you are

powerful,

you love

me,

you wanna

help me,

but I

don't feel

the same

way about

myself.

God,

I know

you wanna

do great

things in

my life,

but I'm

not sure

I'm your

guy.

I'm not

sure I'm

your girl.

I'm not

sure I'm

the one

that can

handle

what you're

trying to

get me

to do.

I've been

there time

and time

and time

again in

my life.

God,

I know

you're

strong

enough

to beat

this habit

that I

have,

but I'm

telling you

I'm not.

I can't

do it.

I can't

handle it.

My faith

just isn't

strong enough.

And Jesus

says,

listen,

all you gotta

do

is come.

You just

have to get

out of the

boat,

you just

have to

keep

putting

one foot

in front

of the

other.

Peter

didn't have

to have

some massive

amount of

faith.

He just

had to

walk.

Just

literally

walk.

And then

Jesus would

take care of

the rest.

But Peter

couldn't do

it.

He was

too scared.

The winds

and the waves

around him

scared him

too much.

What if

got in

the way?

What if

came

burrowing

its way

into his

mind

saying,

what if

my faith

isn't strong

enough?

What if

I start

to sink?

What if

I don't

make it

to him?

He can

do that,

but I

can't.

This is

crazy.

What am

I doing?

And the

moment he

lost his

faith,

he began

to sink.

But he

had enough

faith to

cry out,

God,

save me.

Anybody

ever done

that by

testimony of

uplifted

hand?

Anybody

ever cried

out to

Jesus,

Lord,

help me,

Lord,

save me

from this

situation,

maybe save

me from

myself?

Yeah,

I've been

there.

So Jesus

says,

you of

little faith,

why did

you doubt?

He reached

out his

hand and

caught him

and said,

son,

why did

you doubt

me?

This wasn't

about you,

this was about

me.

Of course

you can't

walk on

water,

but I

can.

Of course

you can't

save your

marriage,

but he

can.

Of course

you can't

help your

kids,

but he

can.

Of course

you can't

fix your

finances,

but he

can.

Of course

you can't

beat that

habit that

you haven't

beaten your

whole life,

but he

can.

He was

training

Peter.

He didn't

need Peter

to try to

walk on

water,

water.

He just

needed him

to understand

that Jesus

was in

control of

that situation,

put one

foot in

front of

the other.

When Peter

took his

eyes off

Jesus,

he sank.

When you

and I

take our

eyes off

Jesus,

we crash,

we sink,

it doesn't

end well,

we get

scared.

Jeremiah

33.3

says,

call to

me and

I will

answer you

and I

will show

you great

and mighty

things which

you don't

know.

Listen,

folks,

at least

Peter called

out to

Jesus,

right?

Even when

he was

thinking,

at least

he said,

Jesus,

save me.

At least

he had

the sense

to do

that.

And

sometimes

that's

what we've

got to

do.

To say,

God,

I know

I messed

up.

I know

you were

going to

do

something

great.

I know

I got

in the

way

and

messed

it

up.

God,

help.

What

does

Jesus

do?

Well,

you

should

have

listened

to

me.

Shaking

his finger

at us.

What were

you thinking?

No,

he doesn't.

He reaches

down and

picks us

up and

says,

next time,

trust me.

Come on.

I'm the

one who's

got this.

And as

long as

I've got

you,

you've

got this

too.

Eyes

up.

Number

two,

press

toward the

prize.

Number

two,

press

toward the

prize.

Philippians

three,

and we'll

be done

in just

a moment.

Philippians

three.

This is

going to

be fun.

All

right,

y'all

ready for

this?

Philippians

three.

Number

one was

eyes up,

look at

Jesus.

Number

two,

press

toward

the

prize.

Verse

14,

I pursue

as my

goal the

prize promised

by God's

heavenly call

in Christ

Jesus.

Eyes

up,

looking at

Jesus,

because he

is our

prize.

Jesus

gave us

our

calling,

he drew

us to

himself,

he forgave

us of

our sins,

so we

keep our

eyes

on the

prize.

There

will be

all kinds

of other

things

tried to

distract

you.

Peter

got

distracted

by the

waves

around

him.

All

kinds

of

people

or

places

or

things

or goals

or careers

or desires

or sin

problems

will try

to worm

their way

in and

pull your

focus

away.

And that's

why Paul

reminds us

to press,

press,

pursue

the prize

that God

has before

us.

How many

of y'all

have ever

seen the

show that

came,

I don't

know if

it's still

airing or

not,

they may

be just

delaying

before another

season happens,

but it's

this little

mini golf

show called

Holy Moly.

Came on

ABC,

I think.

Within the

last five

years or so,

they came out

with a couple

seasons of it.

There you go,

we got one,

I know my

kids down

here watch

it.

Yeah,

alright,

well Holy

Moly

action,

it's great

man,

it's extreme

mini golf

and it's

amazing.

I have a

little clip

from it

here,

ready?

Bears,

bears,

bears.

Alright,

here we go,

let's try it,

we'll start

it over.

Here we go.

Here comes

the distraction.

Bears,

bears,

bears,

bears.

Okay,

let me set

this up for

you.

This hole,

they all

play these

different holes

with different

challenges on

each mini golf

hole.

This one is

called the

distractor.

So,

the two

golfers line

up,

they're ready

to putt a

simple,

I don't know,

18 foot putt

or something.

In this level

of mini golf,

it's not that

bad.

Just a straight

putt.

Then this wall

turns and behind

the wall is some

crazy,

crazy thing that

is going to

distract them

while they putt.

One time it

was a marching

band.

One time it

was a drill

sergeant like

screaming at

them in their

ear as they

try to make

this putt.

This one was

amazing.

Here comes

the distraction.

Bears,

bears,

bears,

bears,

bears,

bears.

Oh my

goodness,

it's Pat!

It's Pat!

Oh my

goodness,

it's Pat!

It is

paparazzi.

Oh,

soulless.

The flashbulbs

and the red

carpet.

Oh,

that was a good

jump.

Pat,

do the jump

again.

I recognize

some of these

folks from my

trees,

Joe.

Pat,

you look

amazing!

And now

our competitors

are going to

have to putt

down the red

carpet.

Pat,

who does

your beard?

Pat,

who did

your hair

tonight?

Tell me

about your

shoes,

Pat.

Have you ever

had much

experience

with a paparazzi,

Joe?

I really

don't swim

in those

circles there,

Rob.

Well,

I have,

and it's

just like

this.

Pat,

come on,

give me

the shot.

Right down

the barrel,

right down

the barrel.

Can he

overcome

the paparazzi

and sink

this 15-foot

putt?

Oh,

you gotta

see this one,

Pat,

you gotta

see this.

Oh my God,

oh my God,

oh my God!

And Pat

misses.

These photos

are gonna

be all over

TMZ tomorrow.

Guy didn't

stand a chance,

did he?

I mean,

he's a great

mini-golfer.

They have

some of the

best mini-golfers

in the world.

I don't know

where you find

those people

exactly,

but they

found them

somehow.

This guy

is amazing!

You watched

the rest

of his rounds

there on that

episode.

He was

incredible.

He should

have easily

made that

putt,

but he

didn't stand

a chance

against what

was happening

around him.

He got

distracted,

right?

Now,

that's an

extreme example,

but you

and I

get distracted

pretty easily.

that's

that's

why

Paul

reminds us,

I press

on toward

the goal

for the

prize of

the upward

call of

God in

Christ Jesus.

There is

a goal.

His goal

was to simply

put the little

ball in the

hole.

He couldn't

do it.

He should

have been

able to.

He was

equipped.

He was

good enough.

He could

easily handle

that putt,

but he

couldn't do it

on that

hole because

he got

distracted

by everything

else happening

around him.

Now,

usually,

that's what

happens to

you and

me,

especially if

you've been

in church

for a while.

You know

the Bible.

You've been

taught.

Maybe you

grew up

going to

Sunday

school,

going to

church.

You've

heard the

Word of

God

preached.

You've

read it

for yourself.

You know

what you're

supposed to

do,

when you're

supposed to

do it,

how to

do it,

but you

get distracted

by your

spouse.

You get

distracted

by your

work.

You get

distracted

by disappointment.

You get

distracted

by expectations.

You get

distracted

by hurt.

You get

distracted

by your

own flesh.

You get

distracted

by people

around you.

You get

distracted

by the

cares of

this life.

And Paul

wants to

remind us

there's an

upward

call.

what does

it mean

when he's

talking about

this upward

call of

God in

Christ Jesus?

Have you

ever tried

going upward?

Is it

easy or

difficult?

That's not a

trick question,

y'all.

Is it hard

or easy to

go uphill?

It's hard,

right?

But that is

the call of

God in

Christ Jesus.

He's calling

us upward.

As we

walk upward,

it's going

to be

difficult.

But when

we reach

the top,

the view

is amazing.

When we

reach the

peak or

the pinnacle

of our

climb,

Jesus has

formed us

into who

he wants

us to

be.

And then

we get

to enjoy

a beautiful

forever

eternity

in heaven

with him.

It's the

upward

call of

God in

Christ Jesus.

He's leading

you upward.

There's

going to

be beautiful

things along

the way.

There's

going to

be moments

where we

can stop

and rest.

There's

going to

be great

times and

not so

great times

on this

upward

journey.

But he's

drawing you

upward because

the opposite,

we don't want

to go there.

That's drawing

you away from

God.

That's drawing

you down,

further and

further down.

Jesus is

calling you

upward.

I've been

reminding us of

this verse since

late last year.

Romans 12

2,

don't copy

the behavior

and customs

of this world

but let God

transform you

into a new

person by

changing the

way you

think.

Then you

will learn

to know

God's will

for you

which is

good and

pleasing and

perfect.

This is the

upward call of

God in

Christ Jesus.

This is the

upward call.

This is

pressing on

toward the

prize of

Jesus.

So let

God change

your thinking.

Go back to

Matthew,

would you?

Matthew 6

and verse

25.

Matthew 6

and verse

25.

For sake of

time, I'll

go ahead and

read.

Therefore I

tell you,

don't worry

about your

life.

What you

will eat

or what you

will drink

or about

your body,

what you

will wear,

isn't life

more than

food?

And the

body is

more than

clothing?

Consider the

birds of

the sky.

They don't

sow, they

don't reap

or gather

into barns,

yet your

heavenly Father

feeds them.

Aren't you

worth more

than they

are?

Can any

of you

add one

moment to

your lifespan

by worrying?

No.

Why do you

worry about

clothes?

Observe how

the wildflowers

of the field

grow.

They don't

labor or

spin thread,

yet I tell

you, not

even Solomon

in all his

splendor was

adorned like

one of these

flowers.

Verse 30,

if that's how

God clothes the

grass of the

field, which

is here today

and thrown

into the

furnace tomorrow,

won't he do

so much more

for you,

you of little

faith?

So don't

worry saying,

what will we

eat or what

will we drink

or what will

we wear?

Or what

will happen

in my family?

What will

happen in my

job?

What will

happen in my

retirement?

What will

happen in our

church?

We're having

new people come

in, we're having

new people get

baptized, we've

got a new

pastor, what's

he going to

do?

Don't worry

about tomorrow.

The Gentiles

eagerly seek all

the same things

that we get

so worried

about.

Your heavenly

father knows

that you need

them.

Verse 33,

but seek first

the kingdom of

God and his

righteousness.

Follow the

upward call of

God and Christ

Jesus and all

of these things

will be provided

for you.

All these things

will be provided

for you.

Therefore, don't

worry about tomorrow

because tomorrow

will worry about

itself.

Each day has

enough trouble

of its own.

Jesus is calling

you out.

Jesus is calling

us out.

He's calling me

out, he's calling

you out, and he's

calling us out

now.

He's saying, I'm

calling you upward.

Maybe you've been

walking on level

ground.

Maybe you've been

walking a little bit

downward.

Maybe you've been

walking off to the

side.

God is calling you

ever upward.

And if you

haven't been

journeying with

Jesus, then you're

probably heading a

different direction.

But Jesus wants to

call you upward

toward himself.

So get your eyes

up and press

toward the prize.

He's calling you

out.

He's calling you

now.

Here's our takeaway

for today.

God, change my

thinking to focus

on following you

and then lead me

where I cannot

go on my own.

Let's read it

again.

God, change my

thinking to focus

on following you

and then lead me

where I can't go

on my own.

Would you bow

your heads with

me?

God, that's our

prayer right now

today.

That you would

change our thinking

to focus on you.

You are our

prize.

It's easy to get

distracted by so

many other things.

individually, even

in the life of our

church, God, it's

easy to make other

things, God, instead

of you.

We get used to

doing things a

certain way.

We get used to

things looking or

feeling a certain

way and that

starts to become

God more than

you are.

I pray that we

would follow you

into the great

unknown knowing

that you already

know everything

that's coming.

I pray that

whatever that

looks like for

each family,

each man,

each woman,

each teenager,

each child, I

pray that you

would show,

personalize it for

them.

Whatever you would

call us to do,

God, give us the

courage, the

boldness to keep

our eyes on you

and press toward

the prize of the

upward call of God

in Jesus.

We can't get there

on our own, God.

We need your help.

church right now

with our heads

bowed and our

eyes closed, would

you take a moment

of reflection?

Would you take a

moment of private

quiet prayer?

I would ask you

if at all possible

to keep your seat,

let the stillness

allow the Holy

Spirit to work in

this moment, in

your heart, in

your mind.

In just a moment

we'll pray and be

dismissed.

But before then

while Brother

Greg sings a song

over us, can we

just keep this

silence, this

stillness, and ask

God to show us

exactly what it is,

what steps we need

to take to get

back to following

Him, pursuing Him,

to get our eyes

back on Jesus.