School House - Week 3

The hearts of your people and your name. We pray, Amen,

you are ready for this. We're going straight through Romans

eight today, straight through Romans eight. We're starting in verse one.

You are ready for this verse one. So now there

is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

We love that. Amen, Praise God. But we have to

look at chapter seven because there's a there for what

is it there for? Chapter seven is a battle. It

is a battle between what we want, God's law our

sin nature. It talks about, Hey, there's things that I

do that I don't want to do. Everyone been there.

I've been there, and there's things I want to do

that I don't do that there's something in me that

is opposed you've called me to do, what you've called

me to be and who you are. It talks about

how the Old Testament was only halfway completed, that it

wasn't yet sufficing, but then came Jesus because of his

work on the Cross, because of his work on this earth,

and because of what he has done. Now there is

no condemnation for those that belong in Christ Jesus. Number two,

and because you belong to him, the power of the

life giving spirit has freed you. The power of sin

leads to death, so God did with the law. The

law of Moses was unable to save us because of

the weakness of our sinful nature. Usually I like to

hear about God, but so God is really cool here,

because so God did what the law could not do.

He sent his own son and the body like the

body we sinners have, and that body declared an end

to sin's control over us by giving us a son,

a sacrifice for our sins. He did that so the

just requirement of the law could be fully satisfied for us.

That's why we no longer follow our sinful nature, but

instead follow the spirit. I love the fact that there

is no condemnation in Jesus Christ, because I'm gonna read this,

I don't want to get this wrong, so I don't

have to live in a place where I'm worried about

my standing with God. Jesus became sin, he became shame,

he became guilt. I'm gonna go further. He became your anxiety.

He became He took on your depression, took on the

wrath of God himself on that cross, so we could

live in the kindness of God through his blood, that

the condemnation was left that day on that cross. My

Jesus covered it. Let's keep reading. It gets better, It

gets so much better. When we were controlled by when

we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were

at work within us, and the law aroused these evil

desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds. Keep that

part resulting in death. But now we've been released from

the law, for we died to do it to it

and are no longer captive to its power. Now we

can serve not in all the old way of obeying

the letter of the law, but in a new way

of living with the spirit. Well, then I am suggesting

that the law of God is sinful, of course not.

In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin.

I would never have known that covening is wrong if

the law had not said you must not covet. But

Sin used the command to arouse all cod is coved

his desires within me. There is no law, no sin.

Sin would not have the power. The law says I'm guilty,

The law says, hey me, telling a white lie is

as bad as the next. New story of tragedy here's

the issue with the law and us. We like to

take the law apply it to our life. In the

quiet time of our life. The most dangerous place to

be for you, for me, for everyone in this room

is a is a mind that has left alone to

reason with yourself. Listen, you cannot be your own judge, jury,

and advocate. It doesn't work that way. If so, it

usually goes really really bad. I cannot be the place

where I evaluate my own holiness. I can I allow

my mind to determine what character and justice looks like.

Because this is what happens. If I do that. I say, Hey,

I'm pretty good. I am better than this. I am

better than that person because I do this and that right,

they do this in this wrong. Hey I'm holier because

I look this way, I dress this way. I don't

struggle with this, but I eat a little bit too much.

And that's what happens when we try to be holy

without an understanding of grace in abiding with Jesus. That's

when self righteousness is produced in our hearts. That the

law was not meant to uphold me. It's meant to

correct me. But because of my nature I was broken.

I can listen to me. Out of self and willpower,

will very rarely learn to say no to you. That's

when of the law was pretty bad, because it was

very hard to say no to me. Because even God

set the law in place for the good of humanity,

not the bad, because he's a good God. I cannot

get in the rat race of words. I cannot get

in the rat race of trying to be good enough

for God. I cannot work hard enough to be righteous,

and you cannot either. Do not fool yourself. Jesus came

and he didn't actively sin, but he became sin. He

took the mantle of sin and placed it on his

life so the mantle of righteousness could be placed on ours.

If he didn't actively sin to get that mantle of

our sin nature, you don't have to actively work to

be good enough to get the mantle of righteousness on

your life. If you live in a place of just

trying to do do do, do do, and just not

B B B with your father, you'll never see the

holiness of Jesus in your life. Because Jesus in the

garden when he's praying, he said, Hey, the love that

you have shown me, Father, I've shown them, and that

love is not just multiplied from time on earth and

his period time, but spending all of eternity with his

Father up until that point of manifestation in skin Jesus.

If you want to look like Jesus, if you want

to be holy. I wasn't gonna say this because I've

said it a lot recently, but I'm gonna say it.

If you want to live a life of holiness, serving

God and having an experience with Him, to not be

on interruption. I don't want God to have to interrupt me.

I know it sounds cute. God interrupted me and told

me to write a song or preach a sermon, or

do this or do that, and that's cool, But I

would rather live a life integrated with them. I tell

our students this as I'm scrolling my phone. I don't

want the Lord to interrupt my scrollink. I'd rather just

invite him into it and teach me what to look at.

I would rather him teach me what to watch, teach

me how to have conversations with people, teach me throughout

my daily life when to stop conversations with people. Because

when he's integrated, I can become like him. I would

rather not be interrupted. I don't have this thing figured

out yet. If you live in a place of doing

and becoming righteous, that's from yourself, you'll never see the

holiness of Jesus in your life. You know what's the

most self righteous being that's ever existed, Devil, because his

worship turned inwardly thought, his works, his talent, his ability

made him not just good enough for God, but better.

And this is something to discuss in your groups and

look through. This is cool. Remember this one. Jesus never

actually called Satan Lucifer in the New Testament. We never

see that because the only one that brings light is

Jesus nine through eleven. And at one time I lived.

At one time, I lived without understanding the law. But

when I learned the command not to come it, for instance,

the power of sin came to life and I died.

So I discovered that the Law's commands, which were supposed

to bring life, brought spiritual death. Sin took advantage of

those commands and deceived me. It used the commands to

kill me. But still the Law itself is holy and

commands holy. His commands are holy and right and good. Listen,

you cannot be led by the spirit and live in unrepentant,

unconfessed sin. It's impossible. Well, then, I am suggesting that

the law of got a sinful, of course, not verse seven.

In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin.

I would never have known and coveted the wrong if

he had not said you must not covet. But Sin

used the command to arouse all kinds of covenance desires

within me. If there were no law, sin would not

have power. And at one time I lived without the

understanding of the law. But when I learned the command

not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came

to life and I died. So I discovered that the

Law's commands, which were sposed to bring life, brought spiritual death,

and instead Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me.

It used the commands to kill me. But still the

law itself is holy, and it commands are wholly right

and good. How can I win this thing? How can

I fight this battle? Therefore Bremen's eight verse twelve, you

have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges

you to do, for if you live by what dictates you,

you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit,

put to death the deeds of your sinful nature. You

will live for all who are led by the Spirit

of God or children of God. You know I love

about being led? Is this very hard to lead to

one by pushing them? Hear me, You cannot be led

by being pushed. The all you can be led is

by a pool. And if I am led by the spirit,

and the power that raised Jesus from the dead lives

in me. I have to understand that my heart. Eventually,

if I spend time with him, becomes his heart, it

becomes his life. I might want start to take into

the effect of what he wants. I don't want my

life to be pushed by his presence. Though I don't

want him have to drag me. The past eight years

of being on this team has not been We're just

chasing after him as he pulls us along the way.

They said, Hey, come with me, Come with me. I

cannot belong to him and not spend time with him.

I don't want my life to be pushed by his presence.

I want to be pulled. I just want to live

in a way where I'm not doing and being drug

throughout my purpose and saying, you know, a man, man,

how do I find my purpose? I don't know my purpose.

I don't know what's going on. Well, let me just

be honest with you. You cannot be You cannot be

led by the Spirit and not be participants with His bride.

I believe in Jesus, Okay, the Holy Spirit lives in you,

and he will pull you into a church community that

there's a longing that takes place for community. There's a

longing that takes place with each other. There's a longing

that says, hey, I gotta get the group this week. Hey, group,

Sunday's coming up. Group Day's coming up. I gotta sign

up for a group. Verse fifteen. Nope, seventeen. And since

we are his children, were, here's go back to verse eleven.

I cannot see verse eleven. I need some of those glasses,

like chief has I think Verse eleven. The spirit of God,

who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. Just

as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead. He'll give

life to your mortal bodies by the same spirit living

within you. Therefore, dear brothers, you have no obligation to

do it. Your sinful nature urges you to do, for

if you live by it, it dictates you you will die.

But through the power of the Spirit, you put to

death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.

For all here, led by the Spirit, are children of God. Pastor.

I don't want to join a group. I don't want

to give. I don't want to sing. I don't want

to participate in worship. I don't want to read my

Bible and pray. Hey want to be vulnerable again. I

don't want to let people close to me. Hey, I

have trust issues. I just don't have time. But you

know what I've learned. And there's this old game, and

we're actually talking about a pre service. There's this old

game starting in the nineties. It blew up my storm

and you'd shoot at each other with these objects of

painting that went like three hundred miles per hour. And

there's a rule in the game that when you get hit, well,

it hurts really bad. But there's a rule that when

you walk back to your base, dead men don't talk.

I'm sorry, you have been crucified with Christ. I have

been crucified with Christ. The things I want, the things

that oppose Jesus, the things that make me comfortable. The

things that make me say I'm good enough. Guess what,

they die. They don't have a say so in your

life no more that you have been crucified with Christ.

You have been marked as a son, you are a

daughter and you what's the really cool thing about that?

There's things that me and my dad we don't see

ey eye on. Yeah. I used to think I'm nothing

like him, just transparency until me and my wife get

into an argument where I get really mad and I

realize not even the terms he would use in certain situations,

but even with the same cadence that he says them

in and you it's even funny. He's not my DNA.

I'm adopted why because of time and love and being

around him. And it goes the same way. There's things

that my dad, my physical dad does that come easy

to me that aren't easy to some some really good things.

It just comes natural to me. I've heard people even

say it to me that they see those things in

my life that as a son and a daughter, there

comes a confidence, there becomes a character of spending time

with God. When the love of God found you and

that man has been put to death, you're a new creation,

the righteousness of Christ Jesus, the reconciliation of Christ Jesus.

Time and time again, people will notice what influences you,

the cry of your heart. I'll have a father, because

when things get pressed, and when you get pushed, and

when you get squeezed, and condemnation comes, and persecution like

the American Church deals with that comes, and things aren't

going my way in life. When I get squeezed and

the enemy sets in, and there's a new season in

my life, like back to school and there's new schedules.

When I get squeezed. What comes out? What's your influence?

What pushes you? Is it the character of God or

the character of yourself. It'll be haphazardly and blamed the

devil for your actions and lack of character, because it

comes from abiding with him. Yet verse eighteen, what we

say for now is nothing compared to the glory that

will He will reveal to us later. For all creation

is waiting eagerly for the future day when God will

reveal who his children really are. Listen to me, there

is people waiting for you to wake up one day

with the confidence that your heavenly Father is placed in you.

And who you are in the workplace. Guess what. People

need to know who your father is in your school.

People need to know who your father is. Hey, in

your own household? Does it honor God? Hey, father's dad's

You're about to get to be Like, what does he know?

I had a teenage kid in my house that wasn't mine.

They need to see the heavenly Father in you. The

earth is groaning. It is longing for the day of

the garden. I want to go back to Adam. They

are longing when we see addictions, guess what. Groaning, when

we see lack of character, groaning, when we see people

put in hope and political ideas instead of the person

that can change it, groaning. The whole earth is waiting

for the day for you to wake up and realize

who you are. For Verse nineteen, for all creation is

waiting eagerly for the day when God will reveal who

his children really are. Against its will, all creation was

subjected to God's curse. But with eager hope, the creation

looks for today when it will join God's children in

glorious freedom. From birth right up to present time. For

we know that all creation has been groaning as in

pains of children's birth right up to present time. And

we all believers also grown, even though we have the

Holy Spirit with us as foretaste of future glory, for

we long for our bodies to be released from sin.

We too wait with eager hope for the day when

God will give us our full rights as his adopted children,

including the new bodies, as He had promised us. The

groaning of a believer is not just for the presence

of the Father, but it's for the day when all

things are made new. That I'm so hungry to see

who Jesus is, that I can't help but long for

the day where I can actually hear his voice completely,

that I can smell him, that I can see my

own eyes and would perfected body touching with my own hands.

That there's a longing inside of those that there's a

longing insides of the sons and the daughters for him,

for a new body, for perfect creation, for not just

the things of heaven, but the person of Heaven, not

just the majesty of heaven, but knowing the King of

Heaven Verse twenty six. And the Holy Spirit helps us

in our weakness. For example, we do not know what

God wants us to pray, and the Father who knows

all hearts, But the verse twenty six, oh my gosh,

what's wrong with me today? And the Holy Spirit helps

us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what

God wants us to pray for. The Holy Spirit prays

for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.

And the Father who knows all hearts, knows what the

Holy Spirit is saying for the spirit. Please, first, believers

in harmony with God's own will, And we know that

God causes everything to work together for the good of

those who love God and are called according to His

purpose for them. Listen to me. We don't have this

thing figured out. I do not have this thing figured out.

I'm gonna be honest with you. I don't even have

me figured out most of the time. I'm willing to

bet that every single person in here, there's places of

yourself that you don't even know yet. But he does.

And as he prays, as he groans inside of you,

he knows you. It gets you. And you may say,

I don't know what this looks like right now. I'm homesick.

I know I'm a son and daughter, I know I'm

filled with a spirit, but I don't know what to

do right now. When is he actually going to complete

the work that he started in me? And the Father

who knows all hearts Verse twenty seven. And the Father

who knows all hearts knows what the spirit is saying.

For the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with

God's own will. And we know that God causes everything

to work together for the good of those who love

God and are called according to his purpose for him.

For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them.

Listen to me, people had to get this thing predestination.

Was I chosen to go to heaven or not? You

were chosen to go to heaven. Go have free will.

Let's not give him too that argument today. Do it

in group. It would be pretty awesome. For God knew

his people in advance, and he chose them to become

like his son so that his son would be the firstborn.

What does that mean. It means that Jesus became the

new role model. He became the new atom he began.

He became what we model our life after you and

what the Holy Spirit models our life into the perfect one.

The Holy One, the powerful One. But I don't feel

christ like right now. I'm struggling right now. It's better.

God knew his people in advance, and he chose them

to become like a son, so that his son would

be the first born amongst many brothers and sisters verse

thirty And have chosen them, he chose you. He called

them to join him, And having called them, he gave

them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing,

he gave them his glory. Listen to me, what does

that mean? He as he destined me. He's going to

finish this thing by glorifying me what he started the

work in me, what he started the work in you.

Despite how that stuff you feel on christ like you

feel sometimes where maybe I don't see the progress I

would like in my life, he is going to finish

it Verse thirty one. If the band wants to get ready,

what shall we say about such wonderful things as these?

If God is for us, who can ever be against us?

What's so incredible? When I know that God is for me,

and I know who my father is, and I know

who I am, I can go to group, I can

go in my workplace, I can be with my friends.

I can be with my family, and I don't have

to be anyone else but who God has chosen to me.

Because I don't live for the expectations and the approval

of people. They can say and do what they want.

My hope, my joy, my purpose doesn't come from them. Hey,

I can be depressed, I can feel sad, but guess what.

My joy doesn't come from my emotions. It comes from him.

Or guess what. I can live in generosity because I

know that my father will supply it to every single need.

But it doesn't belong to him to me. It belongs

to him who dares accuse us No thirty two since

he did not spare even his own son, but he

gave him up for us all this is incredible. Well,

he also give us everything else. This is how much

he loves you. They had sent his own son for you,

and he gave something that good. What else will he give?

That he's a good father. You may not understand that

I have never seen it from your earthly father in

this home, or in this life, or in your home,

and they've had a distant one. But I've seen it

time and time and time and time again. This is

coming from someone that was adopted. And you know, and

I don't know if they still do it now, but

you have to put a call out in the newspaper

before an adoption used to have to take place for

that father to claim. And it always stuck in my

head and my teenage years says, hey, you grab your

actual birth father and never claimed you and I have

the greatest earthly dad in the world. It's a busy man.

And my rebellious heart didn't let a connection form there either.

Still have the mentality of hey, but birth father didn't

choose me. But this is something that I've learned throughout

having you know, my later years of my life when

Jesus found me, is I have a good father. And

if I ask him for bread, he isn't gonna hand

me a stone. And if I ask him for a fishty,

he ain't gonna hand me a snake. That he is good.

He will finish the work that's in you, he will

change you. He will suffice every single need. And when

we wake up to this reality, and this is my

heart for the students of Cornerstone Tabernacle, this is my

heart for your homes, This is my heart for my

screaming baby boy back there is. He wakes up one

day and says, hey, God is really as good as

I never thought he was. That he's really that good,

and he's really that amazing, and he's really that big,

and he's really that is filled with majesty, wonder, truth, grace, power, wisdom.

And when we to that, the world will change around us,

because the world inside of us will change. We got

to finish this. Who dares accuse us from God? Who

dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own

No one for God himself has given us right standing

with himself, Who then will condemn us? No one for Christ.

Jesus died for us and race us to life for us,

and he is still sitting in the place of honor

at the right hand of God pleading for us. Can anythin,

can anything separate us from Christ's love? Doesn't mean he

no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity,

or or persecuted or hungry or destitu or in danger

or threatened with death, as the scripture say, for your

sake killed every day we're slaughtered like sheep. No, that's

about all these things. Overwhelming victory is ours through Christ

who loved us. Can I pray for you today. We'll

just bow your head, close your eyes that you're hearing

you say, Hey, I'm not leading with the spirit at

a moment with the Lord and I left it and

he's been or maybe I'm in this life and I've

just been dragged through my purpose. I'm being pushed. I

feel like I beat up my life. I don't know

what I'm doing to. Hey, I want to come back

to intimacy with God. I want to come back to

knowing him well. I want to go back to sitting

with him just for him. Let me just look at

me right now. I just want to come back to

sitting with him, abiding in it. That doesn't change me.

Be hearing you said, Hey, i don't know Jesus at all.

I've never had a moment with the Lord. I've never

asked him to be the lord of my life. I

would just like you to slip your hand up, pray

with you. Want to pray for you, want to pray

over you? Bad pass you today too. It's pretty convenient.

It's a perfect day. The next few moments we're going

to worship, and if you raise your hand to the

first one. I challenge you worship like you haven't worshiped before.

Step into that next place in this building. Other God,

love you, thank you. I just ask Holy Spirit, that

you touch people, feel your presence from the top of

their head to the tip of their tips, and that

you breathe in this place. That God that our life

from here on, how the inside of us creates a

place that you want to resign in. Love you, and

we thank you your name. We pray Amen. Let's stand

upon our feet and worship this morning, Church,