From Common to Clean

Thank you for listening to the Riverbend Church Podcast.

Riverbend Church exists to lead all people to know, love, and

live new life in Jesus Christ. We hope that you enjoy this

message. Amen.

Amen. Amen.

Welcome to church, everybody. We're doing OK today.

Man, I mean, I heard. I heard nothing.

Not a peep. I I could have heard.

This is inappropriate, Scott. I could have heard a mouse pee

on a cotton ball. Right.

Then in that moment. Welcome to Church Oakwood.

We're grateful that you're here with us, Kathy Head.

We're grateful you're here with us too, my friend.

Coming in here. You are such a rock and such a

pillar. We're grateful for all you do

for this body. Can we give it up for Kathy

Head? I know she hates this.

We stand on your shoulders, my friend.

Thank you for being here, Scott. You're great, too, but, you

know, you're you were less important in that moment.

Right there for me. Oh, good.

Did I say hello? Did I say that we're grateful

that you're here with us, too? I can't wait to see you real

soon. Not going to give away the date,

but I'm coming. We're going to give Gainesville

a taste of what it's like to to see the preacher on the screen.

And so, and I'll be there soon soon enough.

Soon as coach Chris Guthrie lets me do it.

OK. All right.

It's going to be a great day. We're excited.

Back to school, right? Are we back to school?

Anybody back to school? Raise your hand.

Couple of us parents. Parents are the most excited.

No teachers. I know.

We have so many educators. We have administrators.

We got superintendents of school boards in this body.

It's pretty amazing the influence that's in this room.

I was thinking about that this week as I was preparing this

message and thinking about the influence that's going to be

propelled. Out of this room, into what I

think is one of the most amazing mission fields in the world,

right under our feet. The school systems, the

opportunity that's before you. Students, teachers, faculty,

coaches. I know for some teachers and

coaches it's a little more challenging and there's

limitations. And I just want to speak to you

for a moment. Whoever you are in the room, I

want to remind you of the opportunity that you have.

I could name, I could list so many names of teachers and

coaches that impacted my life because of the way that they

loved Jesus right in front of me.

You have an opportunity every day to walk in those doors into

a place where most of us can't go and be the light, be the hope

that these students need students.

You have an opportunity to rub shoulders with other students

that come from all kinds of different backgrounds that most

likely. Have a different, some of them

have a different faith than you parents.

You're not off the hook either, because we've got events coming

and sporting events and all kinds of gatherings that come

with school and parents that are going to be there that you can

have relationships with. Think about the opportunities

that are in front of us to live out what we profess, what we

say. We believe it's exciting later.

At the end of our time, we're going to have some time to pray

over our teachers and it's gonna be, it's gonna be a powerful

time. I hope you don't run out and

have to use the bathroom and miss that.

You know, it really depends on if I can keep it to my clock,

you know what I'm saying? So I'll do my very best with

that in mind and the influence that we have and the opportunity

that we have in front of us. I want us to turn to Acts

Acts 10 · chapter mention

Chapter 10, where we're going to find and we're going to look at

2 obstacles that we face. When sharing our faith, I think

it's a timely message for what we're headed into in this new

school year. We're going to look at two men

in this story. We're going to find a Roman

soldier named Cornelius, and we're going to find the Apostle

Peter, who you know very well, Simon Peter.

And I want to kind of set the stage and unpack who who these

men were before we get into the text together.

Cornelius was an officer, as I mentioned, in the Roman army,

and he was a part of the Italian cohorts that were known as the

most loyal to the Romans. This is important because of a

patriotic Jew, an Orthodox Jew. Someone like Peter would

naturally look at someone like Cornelius and dislike them or

even hate them. So God is about to bring these

two men together that at best don't like each other and don't

associate with one another. They don't know each other yet,

but they know that they don't like the other's kind,

especially when it comes to the Jews looking at the Gentiles.

And Cornelius was certainly one of these.

He hadn't heard the good news yet about Jesus.

He the Bible says he was a God fearing man, that he prayed and

and did alms and he did a lot of good things, but he wasn't yet a

Christian. And then we pick it up in Acts

Acts 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10 verse three. It says this about the 9th hour

of the day. Cornelius saw clearly in a

vision, an Angel of God come to him and say Cornelius, he he

spoke to him by name, and if I had more time I would talk about

how Cornelius wasn't a Christian yet, but God sent a messenger

and the first word out of the messenger's mouth from God was

Cornelius's name because he always leads with a personal

touch of love. It's beautiful.

Verse four. Cornelius stared at him in

terror and said. What is it, Lord?

And he said to him, your prayers and your alms have ascended as a

memorial before God. And now?

Send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter.

He is lodging with one Simon, a Tanner, whose house is but the

sea I love. These are the moments where I'm

like, God, could you not have put Simon Peter in a different

guy's house that wasn't named Simon?

Or are you just really trying to make sure that they get it

exactly right and don't miss? But anyway, me imagine if he

would have brought the other Simon with him and just

accidentally messed up there. No, OK verse.

We're going to go to verse 9 the next day.

As they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter

went up the to the housetop about the 6th hour to pray.

OK Cornelius is at his house. He's visited by an Angel.

God sends a messenger to him and says I need you to send people

to go get Peter and bring Peter back to you so that you could

talk to Peter. That's odd enough.

Now we Fast forward to Peter on the rooftop praying.

And while he was praying, he became hungry and he wanted

something to eat. But while they were preparing

it, he fell into a trance, and he saw the heavens open, and

something like a great sheet descended, being let down by its

four corners upon the earth. And in it were all kinds of

animals, reptiles, birds. And there came a voice to Peter.

Rise, Peter, kill and eat and watch Peter's response.

By no means, Lord. So here we have Peter.

The upon this rock I will build my church.

Peter, the guy that Jesus said was going to be the rock in his

first words when he gets this vision out of his mouth and he

knows it's the Lord because he calls him Lord and he says by

number means Lord. This is fascinating to me that

there could ever be a sentence that was or that was

orchestrated. No.

And Lord in the same sentence. Like, I'm recognizing your

authority, your sovereignty, and my submission to that because

I'm calling you Lord. However, no.

By no means Lord. So we have Peter over here

telling God no, which is kind of a habit for him, but that's

another story. And then we have Cornelius over

here. What is it, Lord?

Speak to me, Lord. Fascinating, when you look at

the different responses. Let's keep going, he said.

By no means, Lord, for I've never eaten anything that is

common or unclean. In other words, I've never eaten

certain animals that, according to the Levitical law, are

unclean. And if I were to eat them, I

would be made unclean according to the Levitical law that I've

been living by my whole life, Which, by the way you wrote God

if you don't. Remember.

So by no means will I do that, because I see in this vision

that there are animals that I'm not supposed to eat, that we

call common or unclean. And look at what God said.

The voice came to him again a second time.

What God has made clean, do not call common.

What God has made clean, do not call impure.

What God has made clean Do not call unacceptable.

What God has made clean, we're going to come back to that and

spend a lot of time there. This happened three times for

emphasis, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

Now, while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision

that he had seen might mean, behold the men who were sent by

Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the

gate. He He's on the roof.

And he's getting this vision. And the men that God sent are

just right down there at the gate, ready to talk to him.

And they called out, and they asked whether Simon, who was

called Peter, was lodging there. And while Peter was pondering

the vision, the Spirit said to him, Behold those three men.

They're looking for you. So rise and go down and

accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent

them. I find it fascinating here that

he gave no detail of who these men were.

He gave him no explanation of why rise, go down, accompany

them without hesitation. Why?

Because I have sent them. When Cornelius's men got there,

Peter was no doubt shocked, because he knew that they

weren't Jews when they opened the door.

Of course he could tell who they were and and where they were

from and. He would have immediately

wondered why this Why is God sending them here?

What? What is this about?

The the idea that God could even send Gentiles, could even speak

to Gentiles would have blown his mind.

Surely these aren't the people that you were talking about,

God, They can't hear you. They're not your people.

They're common. They're unclean.

We don't associate with them. God was expanding Peter's mind

and his heart because what God has made clean don't call

common. Peter in this moment was

beginning to realize that this vision was about more than food.

So he invited them in, and the Bible says that he lodged them

with him. He lodged them.

He treated them as guests, which is unbelievable.

Normally a Jew would have at best opened the door, talked to

the Gentiles and then sent them on their way.

And even if the Gentiles would have said I need somewhere to

stay tonight, the Jews would have said, well, it's too bad

you can't stay here. Nice to meet you.

Stay out on the St. Peter doesn't do that.

He invites them in. No Orthodox Jew would have

invited a gentile into his house.

No chance. No chance of even having

fellowship with them inside. No chance, certainly no chance

of sitting down at a table together and eating It was

forbidden according to their tradition.

But God is expanding Peter's mind and heart.

He's opening up his heart. Don't call calm and what I have

made clean. So here we have Cornelius and

Peter, two men very different from very different backgrounds.

Not associated. 30 miles apart geographically. 1,000,000 miles

apart relationally. OK, we got the picture.

And then Peter, the next day gets up and goes with the men to

see Cornelius. This was a major step of

obedience to walk 30 miles. And I know some of us drove 30

miles today and still made it in time for worship.

So that's not a thing. For some of us, it's like 30

miles is no big deal. But if you're walking and you're

walking in sandals, you know, not a lot of support.

They aren't on clouds. All right, OK, 30 miles.

He's walking to go see a guy who he would have never associated

with. Before and then when he got

there, scripture says in verse 25 of chapter 10 that he entered

in that he went in the house. And these are the kind of verses

that we read and say yes, So what?

But in reality, that never would have happened.

No Orthodox Jew would have entered into a Gentile home.

This was another level from him. And it's one thing to invite the

Gentile into your home. It's a whole another thing to go

into his home, to be seen. Even walking through that door

proved Peter's heart was beginning to change.

Their customs and their traditions strictly prohibited

him from doing it, and he did it anyway.

You see, the subject of this chapter is not so much the

conversion of Cornelius, which we're going to see next week.

The subject of this chapter is more the transformation in the

heart of Peter because the Spirit had spoken and he said

what God has made clean do not call.

Common In the Old Testament, there was holy and there was

common and the holy. The the things that were holy

and clean were made common when they came in contact with

something else that was common. The only way it could be made

holy again is if it went through a ritual cleansing process, and

we don't have time to go through all of that.

But it's important for us to know.

That this, this, it was this way for a very long time and and the

Holy Spirit of God is asking Peter to do something that went

against everything that he knew. When something was made holy it

was called consecration, and when something was made common

it was called desecration. And Peter knew this very well,

and he knew that going to associate and eat with another

gentile. Who was called common would have

been a desecration for him. But God had spoken what God has

made clean Do not call common just so we're on the same page

and have a proper perspective. Unless you are from Jewish

descent, most of us in this room are probably Our ancestry is

traced to Gentile descent, so we.

Quite literally would not be able to be here as a redeemed

people if it weren't for chapters like this in the Bible

where God turned his people around to go and minister and

share the good news of his son Jesus with those of our

ancestry. We're going to look at 2

obstacles today, like I mentioned before, that we find

here in this narrative we find these two obstacles, and I

believe we're still dealing with them today.

When it comes to sharing the Good News about Jesus, obstacle

#1, disqualifying others from hearing the good news based on

who they are or based on what they've done, we.

Limit who we're willing to share Jesus with.

We limit who we're willing to share our lives with.

We limit who we're willing to associate with because we've

disqualified them, much like Peter and the Jews were

disqualifying Gentiles. If it weren't for this vision,

Peter would have never stepped foot in that home.

You have to, you have to understand the ethnic division,

the racial tension was so significant, it never would have

happened. The tradition would not allow

it. It was prohibited.

And we certainly deal with these similar divisions and tensions

and today. And I believe it's still an

obstacle where we're disqualifying others from

hearing the good news because we're not willing to associate

with them. Look at Romans one.

This is from Paul's heart about the same subject.

Romans 114 says I'm obligated both to Greeks and non Greeks

both to wise and the foolish. That that is why I am so eager

to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.

This is huge. That that God has called him to

go into the people that nobody else is going to, to share about

Jesus, He says in verse 16, which we know very well.

I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it's the power of God that

brings salvation to who everyone who believes.

Everyone who, not just the Jews, not just the people of God.

Because we know that God designed it and he orchestrated

it this way for his people to be the Jews, for for his people to

to begin this movement. But now, because of Jesus, his

people aren't just of. Bloodline that there's a new

bloodline that's been established by the blood of our

Savior, and he has fulfilled the law.

He has abolished the walls of hostility that keep us away from

associating with one another so that his good news could be

spread to the ends of the earth. And Paul says, I'm not ashamed

of this gospel. It's the power of God that

brings salvation to all who believe first to the Jew.

Yep. Then to the Gentile, now is the

day. Now is the time to spread this

good news. No one is disqualified from

hearing the good news. What God has made clean.

Don't call common. Peter's beginning to realize

this is about more much more than food.

It's ultimately about people, souls.

As we sink deeply into this, I just want to remind us all like,

the gospel is good news. That's literally what it means.

And we throw these words around a lot.

And I already have, and I maybe you're like, well, I need you to

explain what it is. Let me give it to you just

really quickly here. The good news about Jesus is

that we were deserving of wrath because of our sin, but Jesus

came and died and took on that wrath in our place so that all

who trust in his name will be forgiven of sins and and that he

would absorb the wrath that we deserved.

That's what it means, that everyone who believes will will

be saved will be saved from this wrath that was due.

Because the wages of sin was death.

But the free gift of God is eternal life.

But can I tell you this is only good news for the needy.

This is only good news for the Sinner and the Sinner that

understands their need. When the Pharisees asked Jesus

why he was eating with tax collectors and sinners that that

those that were hated, those that were, that we would not

associate with the Pharisees. And why are you doing that?

Why are you in there with them? This is against tradition.

Jesus said it's not the healthy. You need a doctor, but the sick.

Jesus says, not the healthy that need the doctor.

It's the sick. I've not come to call the

righteous, but sinners to repentance.

So the gospel is good news for the needy, for the Sinner that

understands his need or her need of a savior.

Jesus came to save sinners, and that's good news for the needy.

Think about it this way. It's good news got The gospel is

good news for the thief. The gospel is good news for the

Buddhist, for the Muslim. The gospel is good news for the

compulsive liar that you can't stand at work in the cubicle

next to you. The gospel is good news for that

gang member at your school. The gospel is good news for the

adulterer. The gospel is good news for the

addict. The gospel is good news even for

the man that's on death row that's marching his way to the

end. Should I remind you of the man

that was hanging next to Jesus on the cross?

And in the final moments, Jesus forgave him and gave him access

into heaven? It was good news for him there.

The fate that he placed in Jesus is what saved him.

But I wonder if we limit when and where and with whom we share

the good news. I wonder if we disqualify

people. I wonder if we live as though we

believe that everyone who believes truly can be saved.

If God called you today to go share with someone, maybe

someone that personally you despise, what would you do?

What would you do? What boundaries have we put up

and that are keeping us from certain types of people?

Who are you unwilling to share the good news with?

In 1998, there was a 15 year old in Chicago that got shot on a

basketball court, an outdoor park.

He was playing with his friends, and a disagreement happened,

shot twice in the abdomen. One of the bullets perforated

his aorta and his two friends were with him and they picked

him up and they're trying to take him to the hospital, which

gratefully was nearby. And they're trying to get him

there and they're struggling and they they finally get him right

up to the door and and one of the friends says hey run in

there and tell him that we've that we're here and he needs

help. And so the the the friend goes

inside and he's in the ER and he said I need some help out here.

I need some help out here and nobody's helping him.

And he goes to the desk and says I need somebody to come help.

My, my friend has been shot and the hospital staff told him it's

against our policy to go outside and help anyone.

He has to be brought in for us to treat him.

So he runs outside and when he gets outside there's a policeman

right there with with him and sorry, the policeman's trying to

help him. Policeman runs back inside and

says we need somebody to come out here and get the get the

boy. We need somebody, somebody.

He's dying. We need somebody to come.

And the hospital staff again says we cannot help him out

there. Policeman says, what, do you

have a Gurney? Do you have a stretcher?

Do you have anything that I can use?

They said, no Sir, they're all gone.

I don't have anything. And so the policeman's looking

all over the place and he finally finds a wheelchair, gets

the wheelchair, takes it out, puts him in the wheelchair and

brings him in. And the the the boy is almost to

the end and they finally get him up on the table and they're

treating him and they're they're trying to help him.

They're trying to save his life. But about an hour later, he he

dies. They interviewed the police

officer that was trying to help. Later, the Chicago Tribune

quoted this police officer as saying.

They just ignored me, he said. In my 34 years as a police

officer, I've never seen anything like this, and then the

director of the Illinois Department of Public Health at

the time was quoted as saying it's important for people in

healthcare to be first and foremost caregivers and not

lawyers, he said. I know there's no legal

obligation for them to provide care outside of their doors, but

morally we would expect them to do the right thing.

And it boils in us, right? When I read that story, it's

boiling. Like, how can anyone who has

what it takes to save a person disqualify them from getting the

very thing that they need that could save their life?

How can that? How can you?

How could you even imagine? We're outraged at the thaw, and

yet we do the very same thing because we have what it takes.

We have what they need. We have the truth of the gospel.

We have the good news that they need to hear.

And so often we say, well, you got to come in here to hear it.

We'd love for you to come. We'd love for you to come.

But if it's out there, if I have to do it, there was a man that

was on death row in England in the 1800s.

His name was Charles Peace and just before he was executed an

Anglican minister came to him and and he read what's called

the consolation of religion to him.

And this is something that they do it on.

Back in those days when there was someone on death row, they

they gave him one final chance here.

And and he was reading this and and he was reading it half

heartedly. And he said these words.

Those who die without Christ experience hell.

But it was kind of more like this.

Those who die without Christ experience hell.

Hell is the pain of forever dying without the release which

death itself can bring. That's what he said flatlined

and Charles Peace the one on death row he he stopped the

minister as he said that. And he said, Sir, if I believed

what you say about this, hell if I believe what you're saying and

what the Church of God has been saying to me.

If I if I believed that that even if England were covered

with broken glass from coast to coast, I would walk over it, and

if need be, I would get down on my hands and my knees.

Even if it were just to save one soul from an eternal hell like

that. But I listen to you, Minister.

Sounds to me like you're just checking off a box.

You're just reading what they told you to read.

I'm not even sure that I believe you.

Because if I believed that this ripped me up this week, this

challenged me deeply. What are we doing with this

opportunity? There's people outside dying

apart from Jesus. Peter's obedience declared that,

you know, my tradition says no, but God says yes, and I've been

given this call. We have disqualified those

Gentiles from this inheritance, but Christ has died for them

too. God was softening his heart, and

he and he softens our hearts even in the deepest prejudices,

even in the strongest segregation.

He softens the Christian's heart to break down those barriers and

go to those who need to hear about him.

Don't disqualify anyone from the opportunity of hearing the good

news. I think that's obstacle #1,

obstacle #2. Many of us accept the lie that

we are disqualified to share the good news.

I'm afraid that many of us, especially in the American

church, we've accepted the lie from the enemy or from someone

else or from ourselves that says that we're not qualified, that

we've disqualified ourselves from even getting in the game.

And when we see these words from God, from the Holy Spirit that

said what God has made clean, do not call calm.

And I want you to hear me today that that goes for you too.

What God has made clean, don't call common.

Don't let yourself fall into this trance and these lies.

That you're not qualified. That you're not clean.

That you're not capable because you're not pure.

Some of you in this room need to hear that over your life today.

Maybe you feel common this morning.

Maybe you feel unclean and pure, unworthy, unqualified.

Don't call calm. And what God has made clean.

Has he made you clean? Has he declared you righteous?

I'm going to keep reminding you of scriptures like first John

19. If we confess our sins, he is

faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us

from all unrighteousness. Nothing is stopping us from

walking in repentance, and we so often allow the lies of

disqualification, shame and guilt to hold us back from

repenting, turning back to God for this cleansing.

Because if he's declared you righteous, I love this quote

from Charles Spurgeon, he said. The gospel principle is this.

Whom once he loves, he never leaves but loves them to the

end. Whom once he loves, he never

leaves and he loves them to the end.

But, Jared, you don't know where I've been.

You don't know what I've done. You don't know you.

It's easy for you to talk about. You don't know.

Listen to these words of Paul in First Corinthian 6, starting in

verse 9. Or do you not know that the

unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God?

You may be saying, Yeah, I know full well, that's my problem

right now. Do you not know that the

unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God?

Here's where it gets scary. Do not be deceived.

Neither the sexually immoral nor the idolaters, nor the

adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor

the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers nor swindlers will

inherit Kingdom of God. Our best hope when we read a

list like that is, well, I don't know, three or four of those

words, so maybe they don't apply to me.

You know, like that's our best hope.

That was supposed to be like, a little funny.

I don't. I know this is the heavy part,

but I just look what you said and such were praise God for the

past tense right here. Such were some of you, but you

were washed. You were sanctified.

You were justified, but such were some of you.

You walked in this way. This is good news for the needy.

This is good news for the Sinner, even the Sinner that

practices some of the worst kinds of sin.

Because they can be washed, they can be clean, they can be

sanctified, they can be justified.

If you've been justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ by

the Spirit of our God, if you've repented of your sins and placed

your faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of those sins, then

you've been declared righteous. And those whom he loves, he

never leaves. He loves them to the end,

declared righteous, made clean, and qualified to go and talk

about it. But we treat God so often as if

he wanted us to be good enough in the 1st place before he would

lavish his grace upon us. That's not how he works, is he

loves us first with an everlasting love.

Doesn't withhold his love from us until we're good enough.

Christ didn't die for Saints. He died for sinners.

He was the only one who was worthy.

He was the only true servant. Jesus was the only one who

didn't sin. He died for sinners.

He didn't come into the world because of any righteousness in

us. He came to die for our sins.

He came to become our righteousness.

The work of God is not for those who deserve salvation, but those

who are all together undeserving of it.

Do you understand that this is good news?

But if we're not careful, we begin to believe the lie that we

for some reason deserve it more than others that are not in

here. We believe this lie from the

enemy, that we are of a different standing than those

who aren't a part of this fellowship, and then we don't go

and do what we're called to do. But in reality, God's mercy is

like a great flood that rises and rises and rises so high that

it covers all the guilt and shame of sin, covers all of the

sin to never be seen again. And here we are trying to lift

up that guilt and lift up that shame, to bring it up from the

water so that we can see it and we can think about it and we can

believe the lie, that we're unqualified to step forward and

speak on God's behalf. He set up, though your sins are

like scarlet out. I'll make you wider than snow,

but maybe you feel unqualified today.

I certainly understand that. I want to share with you a story

about a soul winner who had every reason, every excuse in

the book to be on to not be able, not be capable, not be

qualified to share her faith. You know, French is spoken in

many African countries. Over 20 African countries speak

French because of the colonization that happened.

And there's a missionary that tells a story of an African

elderly lady who came to know the Lord because he shared the

gospel with her. And this elderly lady, she was

blind and she couldn't read or write, blind and illiterate.

And after she heard the gospel and professed fate in Jesus, the

first thing that she said was how, how can I go to how can I

go share this with somebody else?

Who who's where can I go to share this with somebody else.

And the missionary begin to think, wow, this is going to be

kind of challenging for her. I need to think about this.

We need to be creative about how she can learn the Bible because

she can't read it, she can't see it, how she's going to go and

interact with people in this Third World environment.

And that the elderly lady came back the next day and and she

said, can you give me a Bible that's in French?

The missionary gave her the Bible and she said, can you

underline John 316, that verse that you were telling me about,

can you underline it in red? And can you mark that page so

that I can feel it and I can know where it is?

And the missionary did what she said.

And the missionary was thinking, I don't what's going to happen.

I don't know what she's going to do.

So he wanted to follow her and he followed her to the

schoolhouse of the boys school. She went to the front.

She waited for the school to be let out.

And when the school was let out she listened for people to come

and and she would say, excuse me, excuse me, do you know how

to read French? And some people would pass her

by but sometimes a boy would stop and say Oh yes, I I can

help you. She I'm blind and I can't read.

Do you know how to read French? Can you read this verse that's

underlined in red and when the boys would read the verse about

Jonathan? For God so loved the world that

he gave his only son, that whosoever would believe in him

would not perish but have everlasting life, she would say.

Do you know what this means? Boom, open door.

Share the gospel with them. First week, the first week on

the job, straight to the mission field.

She couldn't see, she couldn't read, didn't matter.

Something different was burning inside of her.

And the Missionary tells the story that 20 four of those boys

that she led to the Lord became pastors and preached before

multiple crowds where multitudes eventually came to know Jesus

because of this elderly, blind and illiterate servants

faithfulness. Last story for today, DL Moody,

an amazing evangelist who some say led over 1,000,000 people to

the Lord through his evangelism efforts.

Before he became a Christian, he was in and out of Sunday School

class, living in Boston. There was a teacher that he

didn't really know very well, but he knew who he was.

DL Moody was working in a shop behind the counter and he said

this. One day that teacher came behind

the counter while I was at work and he put his hand upon my

shoulder and he talked to me about Christ and my soul.

And I had not felt that I even had a soul until then.

And this is what he said, he said.

This is a very strange DL, Moody said to himself.

This is a very strange thing. Here's a man who's never seen me

till lately, and he's weeping over my sins.

Here's a man who doesn't even know me, but he's caring enough

to look me in the eyes and say that I matter to God.

And this is what this is what he said that struck me, that shook

me to the core, DL Moody said. I don't remember what my teacher

said, but I can still feel the power of that man's hand on my

shoulder. Later that night, he went to

church. He heard the gospel, responded

in faith to believe it. That teachers encounter, that

teachers love, that teachers care, that, that teachers

opening up the door for just a conversation is what led him to,

later that night receive the message of the gospel teacher,

coach, administrator. This is our opportunity.

This is what can be done. This is what we're called to and

for all of us. Are we allowing the enemy or

anyone else to convince us that our that we're common and not

able to carry the gospel to others.

Maybe you're in this room. Maybe you're in the room in

Oakwood. Maybe you're online.

And as we're talking about this good news, we're talking about

sin and our need for a Savior. Maybe you're sitting here

thinking, I I know I I do need a Savior.

I know I am a Sinner. I know I am unclean.

And today, maybe today is the day where you want to be made

clean. Wherever you are, whatever

you've done, no matter where you're coming from today maybe

today's the day God's pulling on your heart, drawing you to

himself to be made clean. Can I invite you in just a

moment in Oakwood, here in Gainesville, to come have a

conversation? I'll be down here.

Others are here. If God's drawing you don't leave

this room without coming to ask me or someone else what it takes

to be saved, I'll show you from Scripture.

Because all have fallen short of the glory of God, and the wages

of sin is death, But the free gift of God is eternal life

through Jesus Christ. If you confess with your mouth

that He's Lord, if you believe in your heart that God raised

him from the dead, you will be saved.

Would invite us here in Gainesville to stand as we

prepare to sing one more song of worship.

Oakwood, we love you so much. We hope you have a great day.

Pastor Greg. You can take it from here.

As we stand and we sing one more song, we consider what it means

to follow Jesus. Want to pray for us.

And I want to invite you to move and respond.

If God is leading you, Father God in heaven, I pray that you

soften hearts right now. You speak clearly that you move

in power, that you don't allow us to be apathetic.

In these moments, she helped us to surrender and submit to Your

Lordship and your authority, that you helped us to fall into

Your loving embrace. We love you and we praise You in

Jesus name. Amen.

Thank you for listening to the Riverbend Church Podcast.

Learn more about who we are as a church and how to connect.

You can head over to our website Riverbendchurchlife.