Am I Known? | Jerry Harris

Hello Crossing Church. How are you doing today?

You do not ride. Aha, I don't know how you can't

be. That was 30, baptisms.

You know, we just watched 30 baptisms.

Just, I guess it's amazing. You know what?

We call that at the Crossing, we call that last week, you know,

and there's so many things that are going on in this world that

can be. So discouraging depressing can

create disillusionment, it's good to know that God never

stops working. That he's working in the hearts

and the Lives of people and that visits a visual reminder of

that. That's not just an individual.

That's being changed. That's a family that's

generation after generation. I mean, there's incredible

things that God is doing. We sing that song, even if I

don't see it, you're working. If I don't feel it, your work,

you never stopped working and he never does stop working.

I'm so thankful that we have that opportunity to reflect on

that truth. I want to welcome all of the

campuses that are joining With us today from all over this

region if your Insider online. So thankful for each and every

one of you as well. We're in this series, called

weeds in my garden, talking about this issue of mental

health, that we're all dealing with and how that relates to

God's word, what God has to say about it and how we walk that

out. Spiritually, would you agree

with me? That it seems like every

generation has a rougher time than the Duration proceeding it.

It just seems like the problems they get just more pronounced,

they get more Vivid strong and harder to to manage.

And as a church, we really want to help you.

We want to, you know, we see that and and we want to be able

to reach out to that. I noticed that at camp, this,

this last year. I mean, we had an incredible

Camp, largest amount of students that we've ever had.

We were full With our camp for virtually every week and all the

rest of the camp weeks were taken up by other churches using

our camp. So lots of business done for the

Lord, all this summer, but there was a statistic that came out of

that camp that really kind of alarm me.

One of our camps is called fuse camp and that's Middle School.

Junior high. And you would imagine that with

all these kids that we have coming to all of our locations

and having a full Camp. The the kids that would come to

Camp would probably the most connected, the most plugged in,

right? Half 50% of the kids that went

to fuse Camp. Attend church less than six

times in a year. Half.

Which means their parents probably aren't attending

either, and I'll tell you why. That's a big deal to me.

It's a big deal because if that's where they're getting

their spiritual nourishment, if that's where they're learning

about who they are in Christ and and how they can develop

spiritually, and they're getting that little of a, a taste of

that. How are they going to manage in

this world that just keeps spiraling culturally?

How are they going to have the tools?

That they need and of course, I'm looking at that going how as

a church. Are we able to substantially

help them in that process especially if we have so little

exposure to them? Early this year, Allison.

I had the opportunity to go visit some friends.

He's a pastor of a church in Post Falls Idaho, right across

the border from Spokane. Washington, his name's Jim

Putman, his wife's Lori Putman and we were doing some

Consulting for them. Like secret shoppers was

actually a lot of fun going to their different locations and

then talking about all the things that we saw whether they

were good or bad and to try to help them out.

It was great to connect with them and when we're in the car

together, you know, you're going to be talking about things that

pertain to Ministry, one of my questions to him was like, what

it was, one of the best sermon series that you've done in the

recent past that you feel like really just got a lot of

traction. And he told me about a series

that they were doing, they had done called Irreplaceable.

And it was a it had it had to do with suicide and I'm thinking.

Wow that's like preaching on that.

He said well in our community one of the key administrators

School of Public School administrators committed

suicide, not too long ago. And then right after that, the

captain of the football team, the varsity football team did.

And it just it just rocked the community and the fact was that

there was an epidemic they were realizing it's just epidemic of

people. That are doing this, they're

committed. They're contemplating it or

they're doing it. And he started kind of going off

on these statistics where they would, they actually went into

the schools to do counseling. And through that process, they

did some research and this research just really showed a

lot of things. There were 400 kids in that

public school. That first one that they went

to, and they thought that there might be a few kids, who would

go We get permission to tell their stories. 200 of them did.

Half of the student population. And, you know, I was thinking

we're planning a mental health Series in the summer.

Anyway, I really felt like this would really dovetail into that

because, you know, that's not something that's just happening

in northern Idaho. That's happening all over the

country, we're all experiencing that.

And it may, you may have experienced that with people

that, you know, that you love that, you care for and it spins

you out, like, what in the world is going on.

His teaching focused on three lies that Satan surrounds us

with it, encourages us to believe about ourselves and how

and irreplaceable. That series was about

dispelling, those lies and where he got.

Those was from people that he talked to, and that his staff

had talked to that had contemplated or attempted

suicide and then others, who actually Had accomplished it and

what they left in their suicide notes.

So this week, I'm going to talk about the first of three lies,

the next three weeks. We're going to talk about these

three lives and we're going to dispel this, because because

it's amazing how much we might believe these lies first one.

The first why we tend to believe is that?

My life is meaningless. It doesn't really matter.

It's worthless. I really won't be missed.

So what's the point? Many of you have had that

thought in your head. Some of you actually have that

thought in her head right now, So the question is, where does

that lie come from? I'm going to show that.

It's a lie, where does it come from?

What's contributing to it? And how can we move against it?

In the late 1990s as a result of this amount of school shootings.

I mean we all kind of remember Columbine and and then it start.

I mean, it's becoming more and more of a thing.

You're hearing Dartmouth medical school and you will Dartmouth

the prestigious college did a landmark study, and it was

called hard-wired to connect. It came out in 2003, and it was

done by Children's doctors by research scientists mental

health professionals and youth service professionals.

And this was the opening statement of that study.

What is the crisis? The crisis comes in two parts.

The first part is the deteriorating behavioral and

mental, health of us children. We are witnessing high and

Rising rates of depression anxiety, attention deficit

conduct disorders. Thoughts of suicide and other

serious, mental, emotional and behavioral problems Among Us

Children and adolescents Listen to how the report concludes

because you won't believe it. The report concludes that the

main cause of the crisis in American Childhood and

Adolescence is a lack of connectedness.

IE close connections to other people and connections.

This is the part that blows me away, connections to moral and

spiritual meaning. This was Dartmouth.

It's not a Christian School, you know?

It wasn't written by Christians was a secular study, but they

realized that moral and and spiritual underpinnings are

critical. To your emotional well-being.

Underneath this fact is that there are destroyers of those

critical Connections in our culture today, right?

Things that just wipe us out like divorce, like the busyness

of our schedules, like, the shallowness of relationships,

like people having a lack of honesty, in their relationships,

like, people moving because they want to get a better job and

they're disconnecting from their family, their extended family,

they're close friends, Is and so you can't really have those

lifelong connections that are so meaningful.

Listen you and I We were wired for deep connection.

God made us that way. We're wired for Intimate

Relationships, but because many of them are not deep or they're

not intimate anymore. It is producing a lot of anxiety

and depression, between 2007, and 2017 that 10-year period.

The number of those suffering with anxiety, and depression,

tripled, and teens, The Journal of the American Medical

Association stated this. And this is a quote people.

In each generation of the 20th century were three times more

likely to experience depression than the people of the preceding

generation. Their actual studies that show

that depression can be passed on genetically, which also

contributes to these increasing levels and our behaviors can

contribute to this. And one of the reasons is we

can't shut our brains off. You get in a room with seven

people just sitting down with seven people, right?

A tan, your net airport, and you're waiting for you, name it

any? What do you see?

Everybody's on their phone. Everybody is on their phone, and

you know what's happening? They cannot disconnect, can't do

it. You can't shut your brain off,

whether its media, whether it's social media, whether it's

gaming, whatever it is, and they contribute to something that

West Beavis is going to be talking about in a few weeks.

Psychiatrists psychologists going to be here to the

overworked of the stimulation of those areas of our body.

Those hormonal areas that provide Is serotonin and

dopamine, and they overworked Us in those areas until they burn

out their ability to produce it. And you need those chemicals.

God created you to produce those chemicals hormone Ali because

they contribute to feelings of peace and joy which you all need

and I need Now you already know that I'm standing up here and

I'm not going to be focusing on all that stuff.

I'm going to be focusing on a spiritual problem.

But I want to be really clear about this before.

I do that, anxiety, depression and different forms of mental

illnesses are real. They are real and we have to get

over the stigma. That hey, just suck it up

buttercup. We got to get over the stigma

of, you know, that's not really like you should just be able to

manage that. Look, if you came to me and I,

you know, and while we're talking you had a little, you

know, a little beeper, go off and I'm watching you inject

yourself with some insulin because you're diabetic, would

you think I would say hey you don't need to do that.

Just pray about it. You just need to pray about it.

And this is just as real as that.

And I want to say one other thing.

God uses doctors. He uses doctors.

He's the one who's empowered, doctors to know, what they need

to know to prescribe what they need to prescribe to help you.

So you need to embrace that. That's a gift of God and we need

to get over this stigma, okay? Use the tools that are that are

available for you, but there is a big piece being left out and

we have to consider it even focus on it.

And that's what I want to do today.

And I'm Begin with the Apostle, Paul's words in Ephesians

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6, starting in verse 10. He said this finally be strong

in the Lord and in his mighty power, put on the full armor of

God, so that you can take your stand against say this with me

the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against

flesh and blood. This is not a human battle, but

against rulers against the authorities, against the powers

of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in

the Heavenly or spiritual Realms that's scary.

I mean, is he just trying to scare us?

Is he trying to tell us some kind of a like a horror story or

something? No, Satan is real.

The Bible is very clear, Satan is real and the battle is real

and whether or not you want to admit it, you're in it, you're

in that battle. Let me tell you something about

it. You're fighting against an

enemy. You can't see.

And he is a lot stronger than you, and he is a lot smarter

than you. Jesus spoke about it.

Do you believe him? Do you trust?

Jesus. John 8:44.

John 8:44

He says this, you belong to your father, the devil and you want

to carry out your father's desires.

He's speaking to those people that were coming against him.

He was a murderer from the beginning.

Not holding to the truth for. There's no truth in him.

When he lies, he speaks his native language for, he is a

liar and the father of Lies. What does Jesus teach us?

The devil is a liar, and he's a killer and he will try to take

your life. He'll try to take it all at once

or he'll try to take it a piece at a time.

How does he do it? You know, how he does it?

I don't need to preach this to you already know Satan creates a

culture, he creates a culture of darkness and he creates a

culture of death, and he doesn't with lies a culture of darkness

and death with lies, he partners with our culture.

I mean, we live in this culture, right?

He partners with our culture and that's where this lie comes

from. And it comes from all different

angles and I don't have time to talk about all the angles, but

I'll hit a few of them. Okay, here's one.

Education. Academics science.

At least certain kinds of science.

Every one of you, all of you at my location.

If you went to public school, you were taught that you are the

product of evolution, right? Right?

You have been taught that the world is so many billions of

years old. You're taught about natural

selection, survival of the fittest.

Darwinism. You're taught about all this,

right? Ultimately, if you want to boil

all that down and see what's at the bottom of the pot, when

you're done, boiling it. All out, it's this, the LIE is

you are a product of randomness. You're a coincidence.

The reason that you exist is that just certain things came

together over a long period of time, right?

Basically, you're an accident. You're not special, you're not

important. And when you think about the

vastness of the universe, you're actually very small and very

insignificant. Because there's no such thing in

that world, that academic world, or that Science World about a

spiritual realm. Then, it's just silly to think

that there's actually an enemy after us, Satan loves that.

Can you think of a better way to Ambush us then for a whole bunch

of people to believe that he doesn't even exist?

Just think about what he's able to get away with.

So, when you're dealing with this spiritual realm, this is

what you hear. I know what you hear.

I hear it too. That's just your own voice in

your head. Listen, there's nothing after

you die. You just die.

Listen, you're in pain so just end your pain.

It won't matter because you don't matter.

He lies to us. Those are the lies we're

hearing. I mean, how can we do that?

If we're not hearing that, and if we don't have something

that's going on in our lives reinforcing that he lies to us

about who we are. He lies about the consequences

of our Behavior. He says.

There are no such, there's no such thing as moral absolutes.

You know what? Laws of morality is it's just

what everybody gets together and decides whatever they say is,

right and wrong. There's no absolute right and

wrong. If you want to be happy, you do

you If you want happiness in your life, make that happiness

yourself, do whatever you need to do, to get that happiness

yourself, right? It's okay.

It's okay to step on others because there really isn't any

right and wrong. It's all about making you feel

better. If you want to be a bully, go

ahead and be a bully. Go ahead, write that post, get

your likes. If I want to have sex with

somebody else, if that makes me feel good, go ahead and do it.

If I get pregnant or cause a pregnancy, we can just abort it.

That little babies in the way of my happiness.

My future and my happiness is more important.

Look just don't call it a baby. Call it a fetus, it's easier.

He lies about the nature of Who We Are.

People are just animals. We're just animals.

We're part of the whole Animal World.

We're a little smarter than they are, you know, we've evolved a

little bit more, but we're just animals, dude, we kill animals.

Anybody been to of McDonald's lately?

You're eating an animal. You ever go to Arby's?

They got the meats where you think they got the meats.

What's the difference? Satan says. that person's skin

color means, he's inferior to you, lie, that person at the

borders, wrecking, our economy, Me happiness, those older people

are destroying so security. Why don't we have euthanasia?

And on, and on, and on it goes, listen to me, we live in a

culture of darkness and death. Filled with lies.

Now, right now, I'd like to have like a bottle of mouthwash and

like the like little and true because that's all that is.

That is not you. That is not who you are, but we

believe these lies. And the mist of all of that.

Now, I'm glad you stayed with me.

In the midst of all that God, creates a culture of light and

life and Truth. Would you just for a moment?

Let God tell you the true nature of who you are.

Would you do that? You know, how far you have to go

in the Bible to find this out first page?

You can find it out in the very first page.

Genesis chapter 1 verses 26 and 27.

Genesis 1:26

This is who you are. then God said, Let us make mankind say

this with me in our image. Basically that's saying let us

make mankind like us. Like us.

In our likeness. We what does that mean?

Means we look like him. Set right, my right.

Not wrong. So that they may see this word.

Do you know that only God Sovereign God has an

indisputable right to rule? Only God, has the right to rule

and he rules over the whole universe, right?

And you know how he made us, he made us to do this because we

are Made In His Image. In in his likeness we reflect

him. Wow, let them rule over the fish

of the sea, the birds of the sky, over the livestock, the

wild animals, over all the creatures, that move along the

ground, so God created Mankind in his own image in the image of

God. He created the me says a three

times. He wants you to know that.

I mean is it once enough? No, I'm going to say three times

in two verses. Male and female.

He created them. This world is not an accident.

It was designed intelligently by someone, you can't.

And I can't fathom can't even begin to understand.

You are not an accident. This world is not an accident,

you're not an accident. As a matter of fact, you're

special Very, very special. You have a quality in you

because you were made in the image of God that will Outlast.

This world, there is an eternal quality to you because you were

made to be like him. Now, these three words, I just

hope that they resonate with you today.

And it's this, you are known. He knows you.

Go. God knows everything.

Okay, believe in a God, God knows everything.

God knows me. Oh no!

Your you don't get you don't get that word.

You don't get that word known. Let David the king explain it to

you. In Psalm 139 You have searched

me. Lord and, you know, me. you

know, when I sit and when I Rise, he knows when you get a

snack when you're watching TV, He knows you perceive my

thoughts from afar. He knows what you're thinking

right now. Keeps track of what you're

thinking. You discern my going out and my

lying down for those of us that are older.

Yes is keep up with us it night right?

We're gettin up and never mind anyway.

You're familiar with all my ways.

He knows all your ways. before a word is on my tongue, you Lord

know it completely Does this sound like a distant?

God does this sound like a god who's really not that

interested? You hit me in behind and before

you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful

for me to lofty. For me to attain God made you

and he made you uniquely, there's no one like you, there's

no one even remotely. Like you, you are a masterpiece

of God, he signs his work. And if you don't believe me,

look at the verses 13 to 16 in that same chapter.

Or it says for you created my inmost being you knit me

together in my mother's womb, I praise you because I'm fearfully

and wonderfully, made your works, are wonderful.

I know that full well my frame was not hidden from you when I

was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the

depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me were written in your book before

one of them came. Aim to be.

Wow. Some of you got Mom issues and

dad issues and you know what your biological mother and

father participated in your birth, but it was God who

created you. It was God, who created you?

And you need to understand that, because no matter what anyone

else says about you, you are valuable to him.

And his opinion is the opinion that matters most.

He made you beautiful and he made you precious and if you

doubt that for a minute answer me this why would he give up his

only son to die for you if he didn't consider you precious and

when they nailed Jesus to that cross as those Nails pierced his

flesh and held him to that would he was saying hey I love you

like this much. That is how valuable you are to

him. You're known.

God tells you the true reality of your behavior because we all

have Behavior, right? And let me just tell you this

sin is real and you've done a lot of it.

And so have I, we're all Sinners.

It's in. You don't give me any excuses.

You can blame God if you want, but you and I were the product

of our sinful Nature's and the product of all the sinful

Nature's of all the choices of all the people around us in our

Culture that they made for us, these choices they made for us,

right? Because this is a sinful Dark

World filled with lies. From the Devil Himself.

And if you wonder you know well if I made in the image of God,

why do I find it so easy to run into darkness?

Well, that's why. It's because of that nature

inside of us. And the people around us.

But beneath all that you're more, you're so much more and

God God beneath all that. When he sent Jesus, to come here

to this earth and died on the cross and shed his blood to

cleanse, you from your sin to rise from the dead to prove that

he has the ability to raise you from the dead.

Before Jesus was born 700 years. Before Jesus was born, Isaiah

wrote this in the Old Testament. He said the people walking in

darkness have seen a great light.

And those living in the land of deep Darkness, a light has

dawned, John recorded it in John 15.

And 112. He said this the light shines in

the darkness and the Darkness has not overcome it.

He says in 12 yet, all who did receive him, because Jesus is

that light to those who believed in his name, he gave the right

to be called the children of God.

Remember God wasn't creating when he made you, he was

procreating. Because You're Made In His

Image. Jesus died for you.

He died for you because he loves you.

It's as simple as that. It's not rocket science.

And even though we're Sinners, Jesus can make us clean and new.

Now, some of you are going, well, you have kind of the

world, you have G, don't know what I've done, didn't we just

take care of that heat up. He doesn't only know what you've

done. He knows what you thought.

He knows the words that are going to come out of your mouth

before they come out of your mouth and he still loves you.

Not just everybody but you individually.

He loves you. You are known.

You are not a Accident you were not an insignificant Speck, that

no one will miss. You have position you have

purpose. God has a plan for your life to

live out here. On this Earth.

There is a spiritual realm. There is an enemy who is trying

to kill you. He lies to you.

He surrounds you with lies. The devil is a liar.

But if we do a John says listen to what John says.

In first John chapter 1, this is the message we have heard from

1 John 1 · chapter mention

him and declare to you, that God is light.

And in him, there is no Darkness at all.

And if we claim to have fellowship with him, and yet,

walk in the darkness, we lie. And we do not live out the

truth. That's what it would be with the

devil, right? But if we walk in the light, as

he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and

him. And the blood of Jesus, his son

purifies us from all sin. You see what's there for us, in

the midst of a culture where there isn't connectedness like

there needs to be where people are.

So disconnected. We can have that connectedness

to our father. And in community of Fellowship

like this church we can have connectedness to one another and

we can drive down deep into that connectedness and it'll make a

difference. And in the process of all of

that, those lies are going to be exposed to the light because

Satan hates the light. and even though he's way stronger and

smarter than you, he's nothing compared to Jesus.

And if Jesus is in you, you win, You will always win.

We can have a greater fellowship, and listen, you can

go all the way back to the Old Testament, to Moses.

His last sermon before he goes up on Mount, Nebo and

Deuteronomy 30. Look what he says to you and me

today. He says this day, I call the

heavens and the Earth as Witnesses against you that I

have set before you life and death blessings and curses Now,

choose life. So that you and your children

may live and that you may love the Lord, your God and listen to

his voice and hold fast to him for the Lord, is your life.

And he will give you many years in the land.

He swore to give your father's Abraham.

Isaac, and Jacob. Listen, you are known And he

wants you to choose life. Choose life.

You know what? There's some that are here today

that are fighting this battle right now and I want you to know

that as a church. We want to fight alongside of

you. We want to surround you.

We want to lock arms facing outward.

We don't want the enemy to get to you and we want you to do the

same for us because we are all in the same battle.

We all have the same problems just because some people may

look better. They may polish it up better.

They're Just as big a mess As You Are.

I'm the proof of that. We want you to have deep and

meaningful and transparent relationships that will help you

along the way. We need that and we need those

relationships grounded in our mutual faith in Jesus, but most

of all, I want you to have an intimate personal relationship

with Jesus Christ, because he's the only way to life.

He said it himself in John 14:6, the day before he died for our

John 14:6

sins. He said, I am the way, the truth

and the life and no one comes to the father, except through me,

Jesus is life, he is Your life. Choose life.

Choose Jesus, we're moving to a time of decision.

So, you know, that what I'm saying is true that there's this

epidemic. And it's all because of this

devaluation of life. And it's surrounded us write

this whole devaluation of life is surrounded us.

And we hear these lies, we believe these lies and we don't

have the structures in our life to change that to counteract

that to hear those things. I was really contemplating that

this week. I'm preparing for this message

this week and last week, it There's a word that hit me

pretty hard this week. And it's a word that's in First

Corinthians 13. That's the chapter that you

heard read all those times you went to weddings if I speak in

the tongues of men and angels and have not lie know that Love

is patient. Love is kind, doesn't boast, not

proud, right? All that and then you get to the

bottom of it, like toward the end of the chapter and it says,

and these three remain Faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love.

I want to talk about the middle one because we don't talk about

it a lot. And that's hope. you know, I

think that people that are struggling when we talk about an

issue like suicide, that's where right where it is.

Hope they don't have it. What is it Anyway?

What is hope, hope is like maybe you see yourself in a place

you'd rather not be but you can see out in front of you enough

to believe that there's something good coming, like

there's something good on the way and so hope is what's out in

front of you. It's like, yeah, I can believe

that and I have to believe that a person Who contemplates?

This is a person that can't see that.

So, I want to ask you a hard question, each one of you

individually this question? Where do you get it?

Where do you find it? Where do you find it today?

Where do you find Hope? In the relationship, you have.

In the next thing, you buy next accomplishment that you cross

off or check mark. Where do you find Hope?

And where do you find hope that lasts?

We've, we sing a song at the Crossing and in the chorus.

It says hope has a name And his name is.

You see I don't I don't think a lot of us really have a grasp of

that. We don't have a hold of

something called hope and I want you to have hope today.

If you don't have an intimate personal relationship with Jesus

Christ. Right now, I want you to know,

That there's going to be someone over there by that baptistery in

just a moment. And they will, they will be

happy to pray with you or share with you anything about what it

means to have an intimate personal relationship with Jesus

Christ. And I guarantee you you walk out

of here with hope. Many of you are here today and

you're dealing with issues in your life circumstances

challenges, right? And it's getting you down and

you're getting kind of caught up in the lower story and I'm going

to invite you to come up here and get down on your knees.

because I guarantee you, If you're struggling with hope and

just because you're a Christian, doesn't mean you don't struggle

with it. I guarantee you get down on your

knees up here and you spend a little time with the Lord

talking to him. You're going to get back up on

your feet and you're going to be more hopeful when you get up and

win. You got down on your knees.

Did you see anybody in that baptism video that got out of

that water and looked frustrated.

Did you see anybody that came that their face broke through

the water and they were like, that was a dumbest thing I ever

did. Do you know what I saw?

Hope it's what I saw. Maybe it isn't you maybe today.

You're doing. Okay, you're a solid 7.5, you

know, maybe you're carrying a burden for somebody else.

A lot of you. A lot of you are carrying a

burden for someone else. I want you to consider coming up

here with their burden, Plead their case before almighty God,

you don't think he hears that prayer.

He knew it, before you put it in your mouth, he knew it.

When you were thinking the thought of right, Huh.

Some of you're going to see this.

This whole front is going to fill with people and you're

going to go, it's full We made lots of space here.

You don't have to actually touch the steps.

Just come up, put some action to your desire to your faith.

Would you think that? Would you consider that right

now? Let's stand heavenly, father,

I'm praying. I pray in Jesus name that will

just get out of our own way and let you have your way and you

would just speak to us right now and that we would move because

we know that you're there and that you care and that were

known Pour your spirit out. Here.

With your family. I pray in Jesus name, amen.