BFF Sunday | Pastor Jesse Jernigan | 2.22.26 (Sermon)

Yes.

>> And so today, um, we're we're going to

we're going to honor God in what he

desires to do in this moment, um,

because it's very important to us.

>> Amen.

>> Uh, these this is the year of sacred

thresholds. Um, and these are both

precious thresholds that we're going to

step over um, as families and as a

church family today in dedicating

children back to the Lord, but also

welcoming new members into the house of

God. Um, it's absolutely incredible. So,

these are going to be sacred moments.

Look at your neighbor. say sacred

moments.

>> And if you're waiting for me to preach,

me and my lady, we about to tag team

this thing together.

>> So, this is this is going to be the

message today. Okay? But I know God's

going to speak to your heart

>> because you're going to see his heart in

everything that's done today.

>> Thank you, Jesus.

>> If it's important to God, it better be

important to us.

>> And I can tell you everything from this

point on, everything in beginning was

important, too. But what we're about to

do, God is about to unlock some things.

Yeah.

>> Over some families today.

>> And so I want to pray over this moment,

this time of dedication of children and

ask for God's blessings over it. Father,

let your peace, let your grace, let your

anointing rest on this moment, God, this

sovereign sacred moment. And Lord, I

just pray that you would give us peace,

give grace. Let Christ be lifted high in

this moment. Let Jesus be praised for

everything that's about to take place.

And we ask it all in Jesus name we pray.

And everybody says, "Amen."

>> Amen.

>> Church family, today we stand at a

sacred threshold on this precious

Sunday, BFF Sunday. It's not just a

ceremony, but what we're about to enter

into is a covenant. Somebody say

covenant.

This covenant is weaved between and in

and out with gratitude, but it also

represents legacy, not for just now, but

for the future. We're going to live it

so we can leave it.

>> And we're going to set the example

today. And today we follow the pattern

that began not just a day but it began a

long time before us babe didn't

>> in in 1 Samuel 1 and it's 8 through28 we

read in the word about a woman named

Hannah she carried deep anguish because

she wanted a child and I know there's

several people in here who can feel that

anguish. She went to the tabernacle and

poured out her heart before the Lord.

She prayed with such intensity and such

fervor that Eli the priest misunderstood

what she was doing. He thought she was

drunk.

>> Mhm.

>> But she wasn't drunk. She was desperate.

>> Oh my God.

>> In her desperation, she made a promise,

a vow. She said, "Lord, if you give me a

son, I will give him back to you all the

days of his life." And God remembered

her and he gave her Samuel.

>> Oh man. Out of her desperation came

something beautiful.

>> Yes.

>> And what moves me every time is that

Hannah, she didn't cling to her

blessing. Watch this though. She

consecrated her blessing.

>> Wow.

>> I want that to sink in. When God gives

you a blessing, it's not for you to

hoard and be a hoarder and say, "Let's

just, hey, let's wait for the

apocalypse." No, the devil is a liar.

When God gives it to you, he wants you

to consecrate it for his glory and his

honor.

>> Wow.

>> And that's what Hannah did in this

moment. And I want you to see this.

After Samuel was weaned, the Bible says

that she brought him back to the house

of the Lord and said, "For this child, I

prayed. Therefore,

>> therefore,

>> I lent him

>> to the Lord."

>> All of these things before, they were

there for this moment.

>> The answer prayer was there for this

moment. Here's the principle inside of

this moment. A child is a gift from God

and can be intentionally given back to

the Lord for his purposes. And watch

this. When we give him back, when we

give those children back to the Lord, it

is highlighting a heart of gratitude.

>> Wow.

>> Because dedication doesn't begin with

possession. It begins with a heart of

gratitude.

>> Amen.

>> And so today, for all of our families

that are here that we're going to get to

them in just a moment, but anybody, if

you have something you need to dedicate

to the Lord today, begin with gratitude.

It's a covenant pattern. This wasn't

just a random act of emotion that that

she went through. This was a covenant

obedience found in Exodus 13 and verse

number 12. She was obeying the word of

the Lord that said that you shall set

apart to the Lord all that open the

womb.

>> Wow.

>> When it has been given to you through

the womb, you set it apart to the Lord.

Setting apart the children to the Lord

begins in covenant identity. This is a

sacred movement that has transcended

time

>> from Exodus. The law was given by Moses

through the mouth of Moses from God to

Samuel and watch this even to Jesus

>> and now to this very moment right now.

>> Wow.

>> I want you to see this. Go ahead.

>> The word reminds us in Psalm 127:3,

Psalms 127:3

"Behold, children are a heritage from

the Lord."

>> Yes. The fruit of the womb is a reward.

>> Reward.

>> Let me just tell you right now. The

world does not believe this right here.

>> Come on.

>> The world would tell you that children

are accidents.

>> Come on, baby.

>> The world would tell you that children

are a hindrance.

>> Come on, baby.

>> That they are um keeping you from

something. But that is not what this

word says right here.

>> Come on.

>> Children are a heritage from the Lord.

The fruit of the womb is a reward.

Children are not accidents.

>> They are entrusted treasures.

>> And today, these families are saying,

"Lord, this treasure belongs to you."

>> And I if I have to fix this, I'll fix

it. We've got some people that are

saying, "Pastor, you talking out of the

Old Testament." Well, good. I'm going to

bring some New Testament to light today.

And that's what Jesus did. Even the son

of God followed the pattern of covenant

blessing.

In Luke 2 22-23, it describes Mary and

Joseph, the earthly mother and father of

Jesus, brought him to the temple to

present him to the Lord in obedience to

the law of Moses. They even offered the

prescribed sacrifices and they followed

God's pattern to a te.

>> And while they were there, a righteous

and devout man named Simeon,

>> who was led by the Holy Spirit, Yes.

>> took baby Jesus in his arms. He blessed

God and declared, "My eyes have seen

your salvation."

>> Yes. My my my.

>> Anybody thankful for the salvation

that's in Christ? Come on. I can Can we

just take a moment RIGHT THERE AND GIVE

GOD PRAISE THAT SIMEON IDENTIFIED it

before it's even said? And we GET TO

REAP THE BENEFIT OF THAT today through

the power and grace of life.

church. Church, this isn't just about

Jesus's parents. It was the church, a

man led by the Holy Spirit who spoke

life into Jesus. This is the church.

This is what the church is meant to do,

right?

>> My God,

>> thank you, Jesus. He prophesied over

that child. Mary and Joseph stood a

astonished but heaven affirmed what the

earth presented.

>> Do it in this place, Jesus.

>> Yes.

>> Let heaven affirm

>> what we are presenting to you right now.

>> Yes.

>> Even the son of God was dedicated.

>> Thank you.

>> He was brought. Even the son of God was

spoken over.

>> Yes.

>> By Simeon. And even the son of God

followed the covenant pattern that was

established in the word of God by his

father

>> so that we would have the example to

follow. And people could just point out

and say, "Well, that's just Old

Testament, pastor. Jesus did it in the

New Testament, too."

>> And so today, we embrace that covenant

blessing over our heart and over our

life. So today, what we're going to do

is we're going to invite some families

to join us. And here's how we're going

to do it. Um, I'm going to have these

families gather right here in front

because I want to speak directly to them

because here's the pattern we're going

to follow. We're going to follow the

pattern that that Hannah

>> Yes.

>> set forth. She brought her baby Samuel

and presented him to the Lord herself.

>> Oh, this is powerful.

>> Nobody else dedicated that baby. She

said, "God gave me this promise. Now,

I'm going to take the extra step of

faith and obey what he said. I will

present my baby to the Lord. And that's

what I'm gonna ask these families to do

today.

>> Praise you, Jesus.

>> So, we're gonna do that. And it's going

to be at the altar

>> because this is the most sacred place we

have in this house.

>> Yes.

>> Right here in this altar. So, we're

going to invite some families and we're

going to ask these precious babies to

bring their families with them. Even

though they can't walk, it's all right.

They're going to bring them anyways.

It'll be beautiful. But I'm going to ask

for the family and hopefully everybody

has made it today. If they haven't,

we'll we'll pick this back up. But Bella

and Finley Armstrong, if you would

please make your way this way, babies,

if I don't know if we're there here

today or not. Um, okay. Maybe not. Or

maybe they're just gathering everybody

up. The next family, if we would bring

up Nathan and William Omar Omar, are

they in the house today? Anybody? Are

they in the house? Okay, maybe not. Hey,

y'all know what? Hey, when babies are

involved, it's unpredictable. Can I get

a amen?

>> Praise God. Praise God. I I saw this one

today. If we can have the family of

Bethany Rodriguez to come to the front.

Come on. I see them back there. I see

them with my eyes. I see them. Praise

God.

Amen. So thankful for the blessings of

God over this precious family. And then

I'm going to ask you to help me welcome.

This is Cameron Waters and their family.

Can we come this way? Where we at? I

know. I saw There they are. I know. We

we met with them and and anybody that is

with you that came for this part, I'm

going to ask them to join you during

this time as well. And so, Amen. If you

guys would come right there and we'll

have this other family come right here.

Precious family. Amen. God is so

incredibly good in this moment.

>> I love some babies.

>> I know. Golly, want to snuggle them.

>> Love me some babies.

>> Snuggle them. Snuggle them.

>> Thank you, Jesus.

>> Amen. Amen. Praise God. This moment

right here, it is a sacred threshold.

>> Yes.

>> But sacred moments carry sacred

responsibility.

>> Come on, Mom. Come on. There you go.

They carry sacred responsibility. And

watch this everybody listen. Every

parent, every family member, and now I'm

looking at you, our spiritual house, we

all carry responsibility in this moment.

Amen.

>> Amen.

and to our parents in Deuteronomy 6 6-9

scripture says you shall teach them

diligently to your children.

>> Yes.

>> When you sit in your house, when you

walk along the road, when you lie down,

when you rise up, this is everyday

disciplehip.

This is lifestyle faith. That's what we

are wanting. This is what what your

responsibility is to live it and to

speak it to them. Everything you do,

when you get up, when you get down, when

they go to bed at night, when they're

eating a meal, when you're playing,

speak the scriptures. Teach your babies.

>> Amen. Amen. And I'm thankful when God

gives us a clear direction in that

moment, a responsibility, that

responsibility is tagged with a blessing

on the other side of it. Amen. So, let's

look what scripture says. Proverbs 22:6,

Proverbs 22:6

train up a child in the way they should

go. Watch this. And when he is old, he

will not depart from it.

>> Amen.

That's the promise that's attached to

the responsibility. When you when you

follow God's pattern, he's going to

bless that.

>> He's going to lay his hand on it. He's

going to show this is responsibility

with a promise.

>> That's right.

>> Now,

>> we speak that over you. But now, let's

flip the script and take the pressure

off of our families here. I'm going to

put the pressure on you.

>> Spiritual family has responsibility,

too.

>> Wow.

>> Luke 2 36-38. We see a precious lady

named Anna. Somebody say Anna.

>> We had two Anna's this morning that got

baptized. Did you?

>> Was that really? No.

>> Well, Liliana and a

>> and Juliana.

>> And a Juliana. And I thought, "Wow,

Lord, we got two."

>> Ariana.

>> Ariana. That's right.

>> We had two honest.

>> Man, what what a beautiful moment. Cuz

watch this. This precious lady, she was

an elder, but she was in the temple. She

served God with fasting. She served God

praying. And watch this. She spoke

redemption over the baby Jesus.

>> Wow.

>> She spoke over the baby Jesus. The faith

community affirmed and blessed the

calling of the son of God.

>> Wow.

>> How crazy is that,

>> church? That's who we are. That's who

we're supposed to be.

>> Amen.

>> We are the spiritual family to these

babies.

>> Yeah.

>> Okay. We pray for them.

>> Yes.

>> We affirm them. We speak life over them.

And in doing those things

>> Yes. Come on.

>> We guard their destiny.

>> Yes.

>> Woo. I feel that in the house today.

>> You as this spiritual family that is

covering the these families, we have a

responsibility. We're looking back to

Anna to see what is our responsibility.

We pray, we affirm, we speak life.

>> Yes.

>> And doing those things, we guard because

Jesus even followed the example of her

later on his life. Watch this. In Mark

Mark 10:13–16

10:13-16,

scripture says they brought the children

to him to Christ. He did not reject him.

What did he do? The Bible says he

received them.

>> He took them in his arms. He blessed

them by laying hands on them and praying

for them. And he blessed their life and

blessed their family. And I'll be

honest, if if if Jesus led by example,

then you and I have that same

responsibility today. Not just here, but

out here in this crowd. Look at your

neighbor. say, "We have some

responsibility."

>> We have some responsibility.

My my

>> He didn't push them aside.

>> Yeah.

>> That's what the world does. And y'all

know this is close to my heart. But the

world wants us to push them aside. Wants

us to treat babies as interruptions.

>> But he treated them as a priority. And

that's what we're going to do in this

house. Mhm.

>> We are treating our babies as a

priority. We are following after the

love of Jesus. Thank you.

>> And so when we make up our mind to do

that, church, let me show you what what

is so beautiful is that even we make a

commitment like that as a spiritual

family. Yes.

>> There is a benefit and there is a

blessing on the other side that what's

the results after Mary and Joseph

followed God's pattern? Here's what

happened. The child, the Bible says in

Luke 2:39-4, the child was growing and

becoming strong, filled with wisdom, and

the favor of God was upon him because

they followed the pattern. When parents

follow the pattern that God has set for

them, that's you. And when the church

follows the pattern God has set for

them, watch this, growth happens, okay?

Strength develops, wisdom increases, and

favor rests upon the child. And that is

what we speak over these precious babies

this morning in the name of Jesus.

Anybody agree with that? Anybody ready?

Come on. God's doing it.

>> It's amazing. Absolutely amazing.

>> I I want to say something. This world,

it's it's growing darker and darker. And

I know any parents with little ones, we

worry sometimes. Like, man, this this

world is so dark. But I tell you what,

the Lord has positioned this church

>> Yes.

>> to to provide a covering

>> over our babies.

>> Yes. And I don't take that

responsibility lightly. I know that they

are going out into a world, but the Lord

put them here. And he has a plan and a

purpose for them. And we are going to

guard that destiny.

>> As a spiritual family, we are going to

guard that destiny so they can be

equipped to do the things and to meet

the needs and to and to be protected

from the darkness of this world. I feel

that.

>> Amen.

>> Strongly in this house today.

>> Somebody's got to stand up and do it.

>> And we feel mandate from the Lord to do

that. So today, we receive these

children. Yes.

>> In just a moment, we're going to lay

hands on them. And we're going to bless

them together.

>> Bless them.

>> Just as Hannah did, just as Moses

commanded, just as Mary and Joseph

obeyed, just as Simeon and Anna

prophesied, just as Jesus himself

modeled. This is a sacred threshold. And

watch this. Together, families, we're

going to step across this thing

together. Amen.

>> So, I'm one, if you haven't known me and

haven't been around me long enough, um

you're about to be introduced to the

real Pastor Jesse. I don't let you do

things like this that are important to

the Lord without bringing some

responsibility to your life

>> to make a vow and make a confession to

the Lord.

>> Amen.

>> Because here's the thing. I don't want

to go through the motions and just say,

"Hey, we're going to just, hey, praise

God for these babies. Move around and

leave." No, we're going to say, "Hey,

God, we're making a commitment today."

>> Amen.

>> Making a commitment as a family.

>> Yes.

>> A as support system, whatever that looks

like. As a mom and dad, man, I'm not

going to leave this baby. I'm going to

give this baby everything I've got. And

today we're going to vow with everything

we have. And not only are you going to

guys confess some things, but then

church I'm going to turn around make you

confess some things today too.

>> So you are not without responsibility.

>> Buckle those seat belts.

>> Think I'm joking. Here we go.

>> So parents, today here's what we're

going to do. I'm gonna start with y'all

if that's okay.

>> Today we're crossing sacred threshold.

You're not giving your child away. And

I'll go and say this. the the story of

of Hannah and Samuel. She actually gave

the baby to the priest. Listen, keep

your baby.

>> We got enough to keep up with.

>> I got I got 47 kids in the house, baby.

I don't need I'm kidding.

Oh, but that story reflected her

literally giving that baby away. But

today, we take that moment and we add

symbolism to it that we are giving back

to the Lord. We are lending back the

Lord this precious gift that he has

given us and we're going to give it back

to him. This is a covenant moment that

we're stepping into. And I want to ask

you this. If you are ready, parents,

look at pastor. If you're ready to

dedicate your child to the Lord, I want

you to say this. I want you to respond

with, "We're ready. Are you ready?" Say,

"We're ready." There you go. Okay. All

right. There you go. We're ready. Okay.

All right. So now I'm going to read a

statement to you and then as affirmation

I'm going to ask you to respond with we

do and then we'll shift it to we will in

just a minute. Are you ready? Hey

precious, how you doing? She's so

precious. All right, you ready? Here we

go. Parents, do you acknowledge that

your child is a gift from the Lord and

belongs to him first? And you say we do.

Do you commit to love, nurture, and lead

this child in a home where Christ is

honored and his word is taught?

We do.

>> Now, we're going to shift it to the

response. We will. Are you ready? Will

you model a life of prayer, worship, and

obedience so your child sees faith lived

>> before it is ever preached to them?

Will you teach them diligently when you

sit in your house, when you walk along

the road, when you lie down, and when

you rise up?

>> We will.

>> One more. We will. We'll shift to we do.

Why? This is tough. When challenges

come,

>> and they will.

>> When challenges come, will you seek the

Lord first and trust him with your

child's destiny?

Because I'm going to say this.

challenges are going to show up.

>> Yeah,

>> many people got it twisted. If something

goes wrong or I make a mistake, I'm

supposed to run away from God. The devil

is a liar.

>> The devil is a liar. Go ahead and just

exit that from your mind. He is my safe

haven.

>> When life hits me like a ton of bricks,

even if it's my fault,

>> That's right.

>> I'm running to my father. I'm not

running away from my father.

>> I'm going to run to him. And this last

one, our response will be we do because

this is the act of dedication. So I want

you to snuggle up close to your to your

partner there. Snuggle up real close.

There you go. Move in there, big dog.

There you go. Sweet.

>> Here's what we're going to do. The

question is, do you now dedicate this

child to the Lord, committing to raise

them in the nurture and admonition of

the Lord, trusting God's promises and

his faithfulness? Do you decide to do

that today?

>> Very good.

>> Amen. Amen. Come on. Can we give God

praise?

Amen.

>> This is this is a big deal. This is not

something light. We take it with the

heaviness and the responsibility that

is. But now we're going to turn that and

we're going to speak to you as the

spiritual family of these babies. And

these

>> We're going to make them stand up. These

babies had to stand up. Church, stand

up. Come on.

>> Come on.

Wow.

>> Lead us in there, baby.

>> Church family, dedication is not meant

to be a private moment. It is community

covenant. In Luke 2:36 through38, Anna,

Luke 2:36–38

who we were talking about, she stood in

the temple in public and affirmed the

destiny of Jesus. So today, we are

standing in the spirit of Anna.

>> Yes, we are. If you're willing to commit

as a spiritual family to pray for these

children, encourage these parents, and

help create a Christ centered

environment for them to grow. I'm going

to ask you, will you please respond? We

will.

>> We will.

>> That's good.

>> Will you guard the atmosphere of this

house so that faith can flourish in the

next generation?

>> We will.

>> Will you speak life, not limitation?

Will you speak destiny and not doubt?

>> Oh Jesus,

>> will you speak blessing and not fear

over these children?

>> Do that last.

>> And the temptation will be the enemy

will want you to speak the opposite,

right? Doubt. He'll want you to speak

fear.

But when that comes, family, I need you

to capture those thoughts, remove them,

and go back to this word and remember

this moment right now that you are

speaking blessing and destiny and

purpose and faith over these babies.

Will you commit to being a church that

receives children, prays for them, and

blesses them just as Jesus did?

>> Will you?

>> Come on. I dare you to give God praise.

So,

>> here's how we're going to do this. Did

you guys as parents, did you hear what

they said? They said, "We will."

>> They said, "We're committing as a church

to make sure Oh, you're good. to make

sure that your babies have a safe place

to come and receive the blessing of the

Lord." Now, something significant that

happened at the end of the story of

Hannah when she dedicated Samuel, the

Bible says after she had done what she

was called to do, she brought him to the

Lord. They worship God together.

>> And so today, I'm gonna ask you to be a

bunch of Annas in the house and we're

gonna bless them. So I'm ask my praise

team to come and prepare theirel. I've

asked them to help us sing the blessing

over them today.

>> And here's what I'm going to ask you to

do. I'm going to ask you say, "Well,

pastor, I can't I can't carry a tune in

a bucket." That's all right. I'm going

to ask you to sing a blessing over these

precious babies and their families.

Because me and my lady, while they're

singing that, we're going to slip down

here. We're going to anoint you. We're

going to anoint your babies. We're going

to dedicate them back to the Lord right

there in that moment. But I'm going to

ask the church to stretch your hand

toward them as they sing. And I'm going

to ask you to declare this blessing over

them with the family as they declare

that together. Can we do that as a

church today? I believe that God's hand

and his power and his grace is over our

life. Come on family, if you don't mind,

sing that with me today.

Lord bless you

and keep you.

Make his face shine.

Be gracious to him. Lord, turn his

face toward you

and give me peace.

The Lord bless you

and keep you.

Make his face shine upon you. Be

gracious to you. Lord, turn his

face toward you

and give you peace. Peace.

Amen.

Lord,

the Lord bless you

and keep you.

Make his face shine upon

be gracious to you. Heat. Heat. Heat.

Heat.

Amen.

Amen. Amen.

Amen.

May

be upon you

and your family, your children, their

children, their children. His faith be

upon you and the thous generations.

Your family, your children, your

children and their children. May his

favor be upon you. the vast generations.

Your family, your children, the

children, the children

upon

a thousand generations,

your family, your children, the

children, the children. May his favor be

upon you and a thousand generations.

Your family, your children, their

children, the children

go before you, behind you, beside you,

around you, within you.

In the heat you come and you're going

for you. For you

for you.

Heat.

Heat. Heat.

You believe that all over the house? Can

we put our hands together and give God

praise? Come on, somebody. Can we give

God a shout?

>> Praise you, Jesus.

>> Man, God is incredibly good and so

incredibly awesome. Hey, listen. We're

not done yet. We're not done yet. But

I'm going to ask you to do this. Stretch

your hand toward them. And I'm going to

ask you to speak this over their life.

Say, "We bless you."

>> We bless you

>> and your babies.

>> And your babies

>> in Jesus name.

>> In Jesus name.

>> Amen. Amen. Come on, give God praise.

>> Hallelujah.

>> Thank you, church. Thank you, church.

>> Praise God. Thank you, family. Sister

Sheila, if you've got their uh you way

to go. Way to go, mama. We love you.

>> We love you guys so much. If you guys

want to make your way back to your

seats, we're going to step into a new

another sacred threshold today.

>> Church, did you feel that?

>> I did.

>> Did you feel that in your spirit?

>> The Lord is moving and doing something,

isn't he?

>> Hang with me. Don't go too far. I want

y'all to

>> We're not done. We got more. Y'all get

ready.

>> Yes, we do.

>> Thank you, Jesus.

>> We're going to do some dedicating. We're

going to be doing some welcoming.

But today, we're excited to welcome some

new members in the house. If you're

excited to welcome some new members,

come on. Can we give God praise?

What an honor. What an honor to do this.

And here's what's so beautiful about it

is I believe the body of Christ, and

we've said this many times, even

throughout everything that um we have

done, these precious folks that we're

about to introduce to you, they went

through a three-week course called

Growth Track. Somebody shout Growth

Track.

>> Growth Track. So, if you're thinking

about becoming a member, you're going to

get an inside look into some of the

things that we talked about that we went

over, um, some of the commitments we

made. Um, but then after that growth,

the third week of that growth track, we

met on a Tuesday night out in the family

life center and we had dinner together.

We broke bread together and we heard

testimonies.

And can I tell you

I if you if you have lost your fervor

for this house by any chance and if you

have started to get in a rut and a

routine, can I tell you the people that

have uh come through this growth track

and we're about to present to you in

just a moment. Uh can I tell you that

they felt the love of God

>> and they felt the power of God. So if

there's anything that has been dormant

inside of you as a church, let that come

alive to the fact that people are being

touched and changed by the power and

presence of God. Amen. It's beautiful

and it's powerful. And we'll talk more

about that in just a moment. But we want

to cross this sacred threshold together.

And man, I just love I love seeing all

these there's babies everywhere.

>> I love babies all over the house. My

god, I love this is beautiful. But today

we want to talk about the completed

body. So, I'm going to ask my lady to

read uh 1 Corinthians chapter 12. Uh

1 Corinthians 12 · chapter mention

it's going to be a little bit of

reading, but we're going to say some

things. Um and then we're going to bring

our members up and we're going to

welcome them into the fellowship today.

If you don't mind, read that first part

there,

>> baby.

>> For as the body is one and has many

members, but all the members of that one

body, being many are one body, so also

is Christ. For by one spirit we were all

baptized into one body, whether Jews or

Greeks, whether slaves or free, and have

all been made to drink into one spirit.

For in fact, the body is not one member,

but many. If the foot should say,

"Because I'm not a hand, I'm not of the

body." Is it therefore not of the body?

And if the ear should say, "Because I'm

not an eye, I'm not of the body." Is it

therefore not of the body? If the whole

body were an eye, where would be the

hearing? If the whole were hearing,

where would be the smelling? But now God

has set the members, each one of them in

the body, just as he pleased. And if

they were all one member, where would

the body be? But now indeed there are

many members, yet one body. And the eye

cannot say to the hand, I have no need

of you, nor again the head to the feet,

I have no need of you. No, much rather

those members of the body which seem to

be weaker are necessary. And those

members of the body which we think to be

less honorable, on these we bestow

greater honor, and our unpresentable

parts have greater modesty. But our

presentable parts have no need. But God

composed the body, having given greater

honor to that part which lacks it, that

there should be no schism in the body,

but that the members should have the

same care one for another. Let me just

And if one member suffers, all the

members suffer with it. Or if one member

is honored, all the members rejoice with

it. So now 1 Corinthians 12:27

1 Corinthians 12:27–31

through31. Now you are the body of

Christ and members individually. And God

has appointed these in the church. First

apostles, second prophets, third

teachers, and after that miracles and

gifts of healings and helps,

administrations, variety of tongues. Are

all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all

teachers? Are all workers of miracles?

Do all have gifts of healing? Do all

speak with tongues? Do all interpret?

But earnestly desire the best gifts and

yet I show you a more excellent way.

>> Yes. So Paul Paul reminds the church at

Corenth that no one is accidental in the

kingdom of God.

>> And if I Yeah. Amen. Amen.

Many people think, well, I just I just

stumbled in.

>> I I fell into this thing. No. God God is

too intentional

when you look you can look at creation

and know that God God was very specific

on how he did things in the order that

he established things like he called it

in order and and God is too much in the

details for us to say you're an accident

you are not an accident every believer

is placed every member matters and every

gift is necessary through the power and

grace of God

>> let me go and say this you are not

joining an organization today.

>> You're not doing this to get voting

rights. You're not doing this to say,

"Well, I want to shift direction and

vision. I You're not going to I I love

you. I I love you very much, but God's

God's going to speak to me and my lady

about the vision of this house, and

we're going to carry it out. That's just

where it's at." Um, you know, so that's

not the intention of this. But what you

are doing is you're becoming an active

member of a living body called the body

of Christ. Amen. So, let's talk about

the body growing.

>> Yeah. So in Ephesians 4:14-16,

Ephesians 4:14–16

the word says that we should no longer

be children, tossed to and fro, and

carried about with every wind of

doctrine by the trickery of men, in the

cunning, craftiness, and deceitful

plotting, but speaking the truth in

love, may grow up in all things into him

who is the head, Christ, from whom the

whole body, joined and knit together by

what every joint supplies, according to

the effective working by which every

part does its share, causes growth. grow

of the body. Why? For the edifying of

itself in love.

Which brings us to what we know our

mission is here as pastors. Love like

Jesus.

>> Amen.

>> Love has and will continue to make the

difference. I'll tell you in our dinner

there wasn't a dry eye but near about

every member that spoke all our new

members that spoke about what drew them

here and what they felt when they came

here it was love.

>> Yes. Yeah.

>> It was love. And not a love that the

world can supply. Not a love that man

can make up. I can love you in and of

myself and it won't transform your

heart. That's right. But when I'm

connected to Jesus, when we're knit

together as a body of Christ and the

love of Jesus flows out of us, out of

our mouth and out of our hands, that is

the love that transforms people. And

that is the love that can take people

that feel dead inside and rejuvenate

them back to life. And church, that is

what's happening in this place.

>> Yes.

>> Good.

>> The church grows when every joint

supplies. The body matures when every

member participates. The kingdom

advances when every believer says yes.

>> God's plan A for reaching the world is

his church. Amen. Is the local church.

And today those that are becoming

members, they are stepping across a

sacred threshold into that divine

design.

>> Yes. Hebrews 10 says like this. And let

us consider one another in order to stir

up love and good works.

>> Look at your neighbor say, "I'm about to

stir up some love." Come on.

>> Not not some not some fleeting uh

ridiculous love, but a love that

transcends all brokenness and humanity

that brings transformation to people's

lives.

>> Yes.

>> He said, "Not forsaking the assembling

of yourselves together." He said, "As

the manner of some is, but exhorting one

another, and so much the more as you see

the day approaching,

>> we stir up love. We stir up good works

so that we don't abandon this thing."

And it listen, it's not really plan A,

plan B, and plan C. The church is the

plan.

>> We are the plan.

>> Amen. There there's no other way around

that that the church is the plan. So

today, we're stepping into a sacred

threshold moment and not simply joining

a church. You are crossing a sacred

threshold and stepping into covenant

connection. Somebody say covenant

connection.

>> You're aligning with heaven's mission.

You're joining a vision, a vision team

entrusted with the heart, heaven- sent

heavenmandated mission. And that is

simply this. Over this house, we're

going to love like Jesus. We're going to

link to the Holy Spirit. We're going to

launch into God-given purpose. And we're

going to live a legacy. Amen. That's

what God has called us to. Amen. Amen.

Come on, somebody clap it. Let's go

ahead and clap for that. Beautiful. The

mission that God has. And today, these

precious people are saying yes to

fulfilling and carrying that mission.

So, I want to take a moment. I'm going

to ask for my executive board members to

come and join me on the platform this

morning. Uh if you don't mind, that

would be beautiful as we step into this

beautiful moment of uh of membership. Um

and again, some people say, "Well, we're

just going to just bring them up here

and clap for them." Oh, no. They're

about to say some things and you're

about to say some things, too. We're

going to This is This is an interactive

service.

>> Yes, we are learning. We are learning.

You know, you know, when I preach, I get

everybody to clap and say, "Amen." And

look at your look at seven neighbors

around you and tell them this and we got

the organ going, all that stuff. I have

to do this in dedications, too, in

membership because I just I like

interaction. It's really fun. So,

>> well, hey, what's up, fellas?

>> Hey, it's it helps us it helps us to

know that we are active participants in

what's going on here. This isn't just,

hey, thank you for welcoming church. I'm

going to give you a card. You know, we

are committing as a church to be the

body of Christ. Amen. And so, it puts

the responsibility back on us, which I

love. So, we do want to call up our new

members. We are so excited.

>> When she calls your name, if you don't

mind, you come up here onto the platform

with us and we'll stand. We'll make a

line right in front of these wonderful

gentlemen right here behind us.

>> All right. So, first we have Miss

Matteline Bagette. Come on up.

>> Miss Maline.

>> Oh, we love her. We love her so much.

We love her so much. And then we have um

brother and sister Phil and Judy

Blandon.

>> Come on. The Blandon family.

>> There they are.

Sister Jessica Boseman.

>> Where you at? Where she at? There she

Oh, she going to bring her baby. I would

do it, too.

>> Let's go.

>> All right. And we got brother and sister

Takia and Brianna Davis.

>> Let's go team.

>> Come on.

And then we have brother and sister

Jonathan and Belinda Weber.

>> We already saw them over there.

>> Come on up.

>> God is good.

>> And then we've got uh brother and sister

Jacob and Mary Weekly.

>> Weekly. Come on up.

>> Oh. Oh.

And then last but definitely not least,

brother and sister Alan and Diane

Williams.

>> Yeah. Come on, y'all.

>> Praise God. Praise God, y'all. I'm just

telling you.

>> I Yeah, just make stretch all the way

across. Come on. All the way across

here. Come on. Right over here.

>> What a good looking group.

>> We'll let you let them be right there.

That's beautiful. We got room over

there. Okay. Wonderful man, y'all. Isn't

God good? Come on. Can we give God

praise?

>> Oh, Jesus.

>> Wow. Come on.

>> Thank you, Lord.

>> Yeah. Yeah. Now,

>> we're going to flip the script.

>> Yeah. We're going to talk to them first.

>> Um and Oh, come back over.

>> Well, I just didn't want to be right in

front of people couldn't see them.

>> We're gonna be right in front of them.

>> Okay.

>> Look him right eye.

>> All right.

>> Make Jacob say something. I'm kidding. I

ain't gonna do that.

So as members of this house, you are not

embracing not only the blessing of

belonging, but also the responsibility

of this covenant, right? This covenant

together. And

>> these are things that we've already gone

over in growth track. So these this is

not new to them, but

>> we want you to know and we want to

remind you.

>> So I will protect the unity of my church

by acting in love towards others,

refusing to gossip, following spiritual

leadership. I will share the

responsibility of my church by praying

for its growth and health, inviting the

unchurched to attend, warmly welcoming

those who visit. Praise the Lord. I will

serve the ministry of my church by

discovering my gifts and talents, using

my God-given gifts to make a difference,

and developing a servant's heart. And

lastly, I will support the testimony of

my church by attending and serving

faithfully, living a godly life, and

giving regularly.

>> Amen. Amen. Those are things that we've

already went over in our growth track,

but we want them to be reminders to you,

but also reminders to our members that

are already here that hey, the mission

has not been it ain't left the building.

Can I get an amen?

>> We we want to we want you to know that

we membership is one thing, but we take

this as a covenant relationship that

God's given us something special to

carry. And when you jump in, it makes it

easier to carry it and we can expedite

the vision. Amen. And so, I see grace. I

see talent on this platform. I see what

God is going to do and it's fixing to be

the most amazing journey that we've ever

walked in our life. But we also had

something that we talk about. It's the

very last thing we do in membership. We

get to be part of this. And and let me

go ahead and say this real quick. I want

to honor Pastor Robbie and Sister

Jolene. Come on. Can we give them a

praise? God's so good for them. Uh they

they lead our second week of growth

track and they make sure it's organized.

Um, and then brother Randy right here is

one of our executive board members. And

Pastor Amber, can we give them a a hand

clap of appreciation? They lead our

first week. Um, and then our teams, our

growth track host teams. Y'all just

stand up real quick right here. Come on.

I know y'all right there. Where's uh

Marcus and Jackie? I don't know where

they're at. Mark's up here. There's

Marcus right back there. So thankful.

John, Jill, Bryant, Hope, Marcus,

Jackie. They are great host teams. They

they make sure we have we have food on

Sunday afternoons. Can I get a witness?

Come on. That's great. It's It's

wonderful. And they make sure it's all

ready to go. But as part of our growth

track, we have a vision team honor code.

When someone steps into ministry, right?

This is an essential part of our team.

And you accept the call to be a mature

Christian in your conduct and your

servant leadership.

>> These are things that we commit to. If

you don't know, we commit to presenting

a Christthonoring appearance and

conduct. We present to maintaining

disciplined habits of Bible reading,

prayer, and fasting. We commit to living

with moral integrity everywhere we go.

>> They agree to refrain from profanity.

Come on, somebody.

>> It's sad, but you got to say these kind

of things. We're going to go there.

Profanity. They agree to refrain from

tobacco use, from gambling, from

alcoholic indulgence, from dishonest

gain, elicit drugs, pornography, sexual

immorality, and the one that canvases

all the other things that could be

there, any behavior that would cause

Christ to grieve and others to stumble.

>> Amen.

>> And some people, I can already feel it

from behind me. I feel the religion. My

God, they're going to make Look at them.

>> All these rules,

>> they're in a cult.

Let me fix it. You ready? This these

things that we just went through, this

is not restriction. This is devotion to

our king.

>> Amen.

>> And that's why we make it a covenant

because we come together and we have the

same devotion,

>> right,

>> to our king.

>> That says, I'm not going to be this way

and that way and over here and over

here. No, we're going to come together.

I always go by I'm a I'm a I'm a kid at

heart and I watch Finding Nemo. Many of

you have. You just don't want to admit

it. Whenever they all get in the net,

they're trying to break it. What do they

say? Everybody swim the same direction.

Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming.

Just That's what I see every time we

make the covenant and commitment. We're

swimming in the same direction. And

there's nothing the enemy can do to hold

us back.

>> Nothing.

>> And and I'll say what I love and

whenever we talk about the things in

God's word that he is asking us to with

withhold from. Yes. It's not a

legalistic you can't it's not rules but

it is protection. Amen. We are setting

up protection over their lives because

the Lord knows that going down these

roads do not lead to heaven.

>> Yeah.

>> Right. So we are setting up protection.

The Lord is protecting us, not keeping

us away from things.

>> Yes. So it's not legalism, it's love.

It's not control. It's consecration. So

here's what we're going to do. We've got

some commitments for you guys to say

back to us. All right. The first one's

going to be I do and the rest of them

will be I will.

>> Okay.

>> Okay. So, babe, if you want to lead us

in these confessions.

>> First off, do you confess Jesus Christ

as your Lord and Savior?

>> Praise God. Do you commit to love like

Jesus in this house and in this

community?

>> Okay.

>> Will you link to the Holy Spirit,

pursuing his presence above preference

and platform?

I do. I will. Either way, you can go. I

will. I will may fit a little better.

>> Will you launch into your God-given

purpose and serve faithfully?

>> Will you leave a live a legacy that

honors Christ and strengthens his

church?

>> And the last one, will you protect

unity, serve with humility, give

faithfully, and walk in holiness?

>> Amen.

>> Amen. Praise God. Isn't that beautiful?

Come on, somebody.

Thank you, Lord.

>> Now, I'm gonna put the pressure on them.

Y'all ready? Here we go.

Hello, everybody.

>> I like this full pit. I can swing it

back and forth. It's fun. So, I'm gonna

ask you to stand to your feet, church,

because we're fixing to pray. And

listen, hey, we done made lunch for you.

You ain't ain't got to worry about going

nowhere. It's beautiful.

>> But now we have a church family covenant

response,

>> a call to action for you. And together,

we're going to say these things. And

here's the thing, church family. These

behind us are not spectators. They are

brothers and sisters in Christ.

>> They're not guests anymore. They are

grafted in to the church. Can I get an

amen?

>> And so my question is, will you receive

them in the name of Jesus? Anybody

receive them in the name of Jesus?

>> Oh, yeah. Now,

your response is going to be, we will.

So, somebody shout, we will.

>> We will.

>> All right, babe. Lead them in these

confessions.

>> And I really want you to take these to

heart. I really want you to have these

in your spirit. Okay. So, will you love

them as Christ has loved you?

>> Will you pray for them and walk beside

them through all the storms of life?

>> We will.

>> Will you create space for their gifts to

flourish?

>> We will.

>> Will you protect unity and build

together in love? Amen.

>> So today we've got some declarations

that we want to say over them as we're

about to join together. Thank you,

church.

>> Yes. And so today we're going to declare

these over you and then we're going to

pray over each one of you and then we're

going to we're going to shout our way

out of here right to the dinner table.

It's going to be beautiful. But I want

to tell you this in this mo moments like

this. I look at the responsibility side

of this. Not just from the church, not

just from you, but from us as your

shepherds and our spiritual leadership.

We do not count this as a light moment.

We know that the responsibility gets

heavier and heavier and heavier every

single time somebody says yes to joining

our house and joining the spiritual

house. And today, we count it as an

honor.

We truly are honored. And I'll be

honest, if we knew, if you were able to

hear every story, you would be blown

away that some are not just standing on

the stage, but some actually showed up

to the house of God.

>> So for the restoration power of God to

bring them to that point, not only to be

here, but to be here,

it's incredible. It's incredible. And so

today, I will make this commitment. My

lady always gets really nervous when I

do this part, but I'm gonna say it

anyways. I promise as your spiritual

shepherd, as a shepherd of this house,

not to lead you where you want to go,

but where God wants you to go.

>> I make a commitment not to preach to you

what you want to hear,

but to preach to you what God says to

preach.

Even though sometimes it may, hey, it

might rub a little bit. Y'all listen.

Y'all get it once. I get it like all

week long before I even get here. Like

the Lord done I don't have no I may have

some rough edges but boy I'm sore before

I get up here and preach because God's

done messing me up. But here's what I

want to tell you. I make that commitment

to lead you where God says lead you and

love you like God says love you. Amen.

>> And so today I want to speak this over

your lives. You are planted by the

rivers of living water. You are joined

and knit together by divine design, not

by accident. And you are not accidental

in this house. You are appointed by God.

Speak that over babe.

>> Let every dormant gift awaken.

>> Yes.

>> In your life. Let every calling

accelerate.

Let every wound be healed in the name of

Jesus.

and let every fear that would hinder you

fall away

>> in the name of Jesus.

>> So we speak alignment over your lives.

We speak divine placement

>> yes

>> over your lives. We speak fruitfulness

over your families and over your lives.

>> May you love like Jesus.

May you link deeply with the Holy

Spirit.

May you launch boldly into the purpose

that he has created you for.

>> Yes. Yes.

>> And may you live a legacy that echoes in

eternity.

>> Hallelujah. I'll say this. This house is

stronger because you are here.

>> It is. Come on, somebody.

And I declare this the kingdom of God.

It will advance because you said yes.

>> It will advance because you said yes. So

church, I'm going to ask you to stretch

your hand toward them.

>> Hallelujah.

>> And we're going to anoint them and we're

going to bless them and welcome them in

as new members over this house. And so

if you would stretch your hand toward

them and family, if y'all would if you

would raise your hands together, we're

going to come by and we're going to

anoint you and place you as members in

this house today. We'll start down

there, babe. Hallelujah. Come on,

church. Pray with us all over this

house. Thank you, Jesus, for your

goodness. Thank you for your mercy.

Thank you for the promises of your word

that are yes and amen. God, we are so

thankful. We're so Hey, buddy. We're so

thankful for you, Lord. So thankful,

God, for everything you have done, God.

What you have begun, we give you praise

for it. What you've started, we give you

honor for it. And God, today Lord, this

responsibility you've given us, God, we

ask that you would give us the grace to

lead. Ask us, Lord, we ask that you

would give us the the anointing, God, to

step where you say step, the the power

to stay and to do what you've called us

to do, Lord, to preach your word in

truth and power. and God to equip them,

God, to do what you've called them to

do, to recognize gifts and to pull that

out of them, the grace that you've

rested on their life. God, we thank you.

And today, Lord, there is absolutely

nothing too hard for you. That your

grace would be sufficient. That your

power would be sufficient in the name of

Jesus. Lord, that you would bless them

indeed. Lord, that you would set their

steps, God, as an ordering from heaven,

God. that you would just guide them and

direct them into all truth and all

righteousness and all grace. God, we

thank you for the testimonies that we've

heard, for the rebuilding, the

reconstruction that you've done in their

life. God, use them in a mighty way in

this house. God, you make us more

complete, God, as they have chose to

join theirel. And God, I believe, Lord,

that what you have begun in them, Lord,

it will not fail, but Lord, it will be

accomplished by your power. It will be

accomplished by your anointing. Come on,

church. I believe that if we'll

intercede right now, God's about to do

some great things. I'm going to ask my

executive team, if you want to lay hands

on them as well, right there behind us,

follow us, and we'll just declare over

them at the grace and the power of God.

Lord, we establish that what you have

begun, you will complete it. We

establish that the enemy is a liar.

Satan is defeated. And God, what you

have joined together, no man can put us

under. God, we speak it by faith and by

power and by the word of prophecy today.

We speak the name of Jesus over them. We

speak your blessing and your power and

your strength, God. How you have

restored, God, you're no respector of

persons. And God, what you've done for

one, you will do for another. And we

come into agreement, God, today that

what you've started, you'll complete.

How you have led so far, God, it's going

to be a beautiful thing. And Lord, we

speak blessing over their families. We

speak blessing over their hearts and

over their lives. There is nothing too

hard for you, God. what you've

established, what you brought back to

life, God, you're going to use it, God,

as we present this to you today, God, as

we present this moment to you, Lord,

that there is absolutely nothing too

hard for you.

Oh God, we speak strength and power and

grace by your anointing. There is

nothing too hard for you, God. God,

we're grateful for what you've done.

We're grateful for where you brought us

from. We're grateful for what you have

ahead of us, God. And we speak blessing

and power and strength and anointing,

God. This is the day that you have made,

God. And we rejoice over the founders of

the world. You have brought this moment

to pass, God. What you have done, Lord,

we thank you for it, Lord, for what

you're about to do through them. God, we

give you wisdom and praise for it. Lord,

it's not your hand. The devil has been

defeated

of your goodness.

If you believe the enemy has been

defeated

of the test of Christ,

somebody give God a little praise in

your house for his goodness. Hallelujah.

Hallelujah.

Now, can we raise those hands to heaven?

Tell him, "I'm grateful for you, God.

I'm just grateful for you

that you keep me on your God. I'm just

faithful for you. Oh God, I'm just

faithful for you.

You right here by my side.

Thankful for you.

I'm grateful for you.

You me.

I'm just grateful for you. Heat. Heat.

Heat. Heat. Heat.

Am I

meful

for you? God is faithful for you.

You be right here by my side. God, I'm

just grateful for you. God is grateful

for you. Now, if you're thankful and you

welcome them in as new members of the

house, can we give God a praise in the

house? Amen.

Man, I love every one of y'all.

So thankful for you. I truly I wish we

could record all those testimonies and

maybe the Lord will give us grace and we

can do that. We can go back one by one

and get this recorded because it's just

incredible what God is doing.

>> Wow. Praise you, Jesus. I I pray church

that today

>> as as this has gone on that not only

have you given them a blessing but that

you felt stirred to be act an active

member of this body. I know it stirred

me.

>> Yeah.

>> This is a family. This is a body. God

has a mission for us to accomplish and

we can't just sit by anymore. We can't

just sit by.

>> You're making a difference. You're

making a difference. what you've done

and the love of Jesus that has flowed

through you has brought these members to

our body, has made us more whole. Thank

you, church.

>> Amen.

>> Thank you.

>> Wow.

>> Wow. God is good. God is good.