Sermon

Those Scars Still Speak | Pastor Jesse Jernigan | 4.5.26 (Sermon)

Liberty Culture Church

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  1. What a day. What a day. What a day.

  2. Wow. I'll just be honest with you. It's

  3. the truth. I could just give a altar

  4. call right now

  5. and we could just go into the house

  6. and I promise you that spoke that spoke

  7. to me this morning.

  8. >> I hope it spoke to you, too.

  9. Um, but I do feel like I have a word for

  10. somebody in the house. And I feel like

  11. the Lord is about to speak directly to

  12. somebody's heart in their life. So, I'm

  13. going to ask you to stand to your feet.

  14. Grab your Bibles. I'm going to read one

  15. verse of scripture.

  16. And and then I'm going to preach what I

  17. feel like the Lord has put on my heart.

  18. Um, and if you take your Bibles, go with

  19. me to the book of John, chapter number

  20. 20

  21. and verse number 20. And I'm going to

  22. own it in this service because I realize

  23. it now.

  24. John chapter 20 verse number 20. Before

    John 20 chapter mention

  25. somebody leaves this house, you're going

  26. to have a 2020 vision of who Jesus

  27. really is. Come on. You're going to see

  28. him for who he is. It's going to change

  29. your life.

  30. When you get John 20, say, "I got it."

  31. >> I got it.

  32. >> If you don't have it, we're so kind. We

  33. put it on the screen for you. The Bible

  34. says it like this. He showed them his

  35. hands

  36. and his side.

  37. Then the disciples were glad when they

  38. saw the Lord. That's so nice. I'm going

  39. to read it twice.

  40. He showed them his hands and his side.

  41. Then the disciples were glad when they

  42. saw the Lord. Can you say amen to God's

  43. word today?

  44. >> Amen.

  45. I I want to preach on this simple

  46. thought, the simple phrase

  47. because I believe it's going to be

  48. lifech changing and that's this.

  49. What Jesus was showing here, those scars

  50. still speak today. They still speak. So,

  51. I'm going to ask you to pray with me and

  52. we're going to preach and we're going to

  53. see what God's going to do. Father, I

  54. thank you for your word. Lord, I thank

  55. you for the power of your word. I thank

  56. you for what today represents and means.

  57. I thank you, Lord, that I I we've

  58. already seen your salvation power in

  59. this house this morning. People that

  60. gave their life to you. So, I want to

  61. say thank you for those that have been

  62. born into the kingdom today. Those that

  63. have recommitted their life to you

  64. today. Lord, I am thankful for that. But

  65. Lord, it's a brand new moment, a brand

  66. new time. And Lord, I pray that you

  67. would speak through me with fresh

  68. uncction, fresh anointing in this moment

  69. to speak what only you would have me

  70. speak. God, we thank you. We give you

  71. the praise in Jesus name we pray. And

  72. everybody says amen and amen. If you

  73. would touch about three or four people,

  74. tell them those scars still speak. Those

  75. scars still

  76. those scars

  77. still

  78. speak.

  79. As I begin this, no doubt today

  80. uh in America across the world, people

  81. are celebrating uh this wonderful day

  82. that we call Easter. Um but even in the

  83. celebration of Easter, let me tell you

  84. that we celebrate the resurrection in

  85. this house. Can I get an amen?

  86. >> We celebrate not just a moment, not just

  87. a bunny, not just eggs, all that's fun.

  88. And we have a great time with all of

  89. that. Y'all know us. We going, hey, we

  90. we ain't going to hide any kind of egg.

  91. We're going to hide some anointed eggs.

  92. Amen. That's what we hide around here.

  93. But we celebrate the resurrection. What

  94. is the resurrection? It is literally the

  95. tomb is empty. Can I get an amen? The

  96. tomb is empty. And because the tomb is

  97. empty, victory has come to our life

  98. through the resurrected life of Jesus

  99. Christ. For many that may be under the

  100. sound of my voice or even watching by

  101. live stream now or later on the video, I

  102. want you to understand that the

  103. statements I just made about an empty

  104. tomb and the victory of Jesus Christ,

  105. that brings joy to somebody's life. that

  106. that brings hope to their life. That

  107. brings life to them and letting them

  108. understand that I don't have to live

  109. this life in a defeated manner, but I

  110. can live this life through the victory

  111. that Christ won on the cross and through

  112. the resurrection. But in as much as I

  113. know that it represents all these things

  114. to us that we would call the household

  115. of faith, I also understand on the other

  116. side of that, not everyone walks into a

  117. room like this feeling the same way I

  118. feel. They they may walk in, some will

  119. walk in excited, some will walk in that

  120. way, but there will be some that come in

  121. that they still have questions that

  122. linger in their heart. SOME COME IN THIS

  123. SERVICE this morning on an Easter

  124. Sunday. They are carrying disappointment

  125. from uh disillusionment in relationships

  126. and brokenness. And they may even carry

  127. confusion in their heart to the point

  128. that they EVEN DISTANCE THEMSEL NOT JUST

  129. now but every single day from anything

  130. that feels or resembles a life OF FAITH.

  131. BECAUSE ALL THAT THEY KNOW IN THE FAITH

  132. realm is disappointment and hurt and

  133. pain. But what I want you to understand

  134. is today that I have come to you WITH A

  135. HEART THAT DESIRES TO stay simple and

  136. desires to say uncomplex or complex not

  137. complex in this moment. AND I DON'T WANT

  138. TO COMPLICATE ANYTHING, but I want to

  139. WALK YOU THROUGH THE GREATEST STORY THAT

  140. WAS ever lived. Can you say amen? NOT

  141. JUST PIECES OF IT, NOT HIGHLIGHTS OF IT,

  142. BUT WHAT did Jesus actually do for you

  143. and for me? And it started on a

  144. beautiful day that we recognize as Palm

  145. Sunday where a savior rode into the

  146. beautiful city of Jerusalem on the

  147. cults. He was sitting there not on a

  148. waror to declare war on Rome or declare

  149. war on on any kind of political system,

  150. BUT HE SAT ON A DONKEY AND THAT

  151. REPRESENTED PEACE. He didn't come as a

  152. king that was coming to take OVER A

  153. THRONE, BUT HE came to bring peace to

  154. the hearts and LIVES OF PEOPLE THAT

  155. COULD NOT DO IT THEIREL. He showed up in

  156. that moment not to take on a throne

  157. THROUGH POWER, BUT TO CARRY A CROSS

  158. THROUGH HUMILITY, TO LET THIS WORLD know

  159. that he WAS THE SAVIOR. AND IF ANYBODY

  160. WAS GOING TO REDEEM HUMANITY, IT WAS NOT

  161. GOING TO COME THROUGH THE SACRIFICES OF

  162. OLD ANYMORE, THROUGH SACRIFICING bulls

  163. and lambs and ALL THESE DIFFERENT

  164. REQUIREMENTS. BUT IT WAS GOING TO COME

  165. THROUGH ONE NAME. And it that name is

  166. still the name that's above every name

  167. today. And his name IS JESUS CHRIST. HOW

  168. MANY STILL BELIEVE THAT AT THAT NAME

  169. EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, EVERY TONGUE WILL

  170. CONFESS that he is Lord TO THE GLORY OF

  171. GOD THE FATHER? I want you to understand

  172. he came to humbly carry a cross. And

  173. after THAT MOMENT PROGRESSED OF THAT

  174. GRAND ENTRANCE OF EVERYBODY YELLING

  175. HOSANA, HOSANA IN THE HIGHEST. BLESSED

  176. is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

  177. Can I tell you the next day Jesus showed

  178. up in the temple and began to set things

  179. straight. He turned over tables. Y'all

  180. know the story if you've been around

  181. church long enough. If not, I invite you

  182. to go read the Gospels, Matthew, MARK,

  183. LUKE, AND JOHN, AND CHECK out everything

  184. that THE LORD DID. WE CERTAINLY DON'T

  185. HAVE TIME TO ARTICULATE all of that

  186. today. I would love to, but we don't

  187. have time to go that far. But I'm going

  188. to tell you, he did some incredible

  189. things. He did some powerful things. He

  190. spoke truth straight in the face of

  191. those that were there in the synagogues

  192. and in the places of worship TRYING TO

  193. TARNISH WHAT GOD HAD ESTABLISHED THROUGH

  194. HIS divine will. And can I tell you that

  195. Jesus, I love him so much. He showed up

  196. and he looked at the Pharisees that were

  197. TRYING TO OSTRACIZE PEOPLE BECAUSE OF

  198. their socioeconomic background because

  199. they didn't look like them because they

  200. may not have been in the same

  201. nationality as them. And he looked at

  202. them and Jesus didn't say, "Oh, y'all

  203. are doing a GREAT JOB." NO. WHAT DID

  204. Jesus say? He said, "Woe to you scribes

  205. and Pharisees. You are the reason people

  206. cannot come AND WORSHIP GOD." CAN I TELL

  207. YOU, I LOVE IT WHEN JESUS STARTS TO

  208. UNRAVEL RELIGION RIGHT IN FRONT OF OUR

  209. EYES. AND LET ME GO AHEAD AND TELL YOU,

  210. I'VE COME THIS MORNING TO CUT THE RED

  211. TAPE AND LET YOU KNOW THERE IS A SAVIOR

  212. WHO LOVES YOU AND THERE IS A SAVIOR WHO

  213. DIED FOR YOU. AND TODAY YOU CAN ACCEPT

  214. HIM. YOU DON'T HAVE TO PERFORM FOR HIM.

  215. ALL YOU GOT TO DO IS PRESENT YOURSELF TO

  216. THE SAVIOR. AMEN.

  217. >> There was moments that were filled

  218. through that entire week that were

  219. beautiful and powerful up to the moment

  220. that he gathered with the disciples on a

  221. beautiful uh Thursday evening as we

  222. would uh host it on ours on our

  223. calendar. It would be Thursday after the

  224. grand entrance on Sunday that he sat at

  225. the table with his disciples and they

  226. beautifully broke bread and you saw a

  227. beautiful picture of that through the

  228. drama just a moment ago. the broken

  229. bread, the the wine that was there. And

  230. I want to tell you, it was a beautiful

  231. intimate moment to where he let his

  232. disciples know what his intentions were

  233. without holding anything back, saying,

  234. "I'm going to be crucified, but I'm

  235. going to tell you, I will not stay in

  236. the tomb."

  237. >> And can I tell you that same voice is

  238. echoing today inside of this moment that

  239. they left even from that table and they

  240. went to the garden. And I want you to

  241. understand that this garden when Jesus

  242. showed up, even though he had been there

  243. many times before to pray and seek the

  244. face of God, can I tell you this garden

  245. was not filled with pleasure at that

  246. moment, this garden was filled with

  247. intense pressure on Jesus's life. As we

  248. see, the Bible says and records in the

  249. book of Luke, I think it's chapter 22,

  250. where he talked about how he was

  251. intensely praying and even more

  252. earnestly prayed until the the sweat

  253. that he was sweating off of his body

  254. turned into great drops of blood and

  255. fell to the ground. Can I tell you that

  256. he is still bleeding in that moment and

  257. he did that for you and I so that we

  258. could have life and have it more

  259. abundantly. The pressure was so intense.

  260. But I want you to understand even though

  261. in those moments of beauty that we see

  262. now and going back and reflecting on

  263. that last the passion week and that that

  264. beautiful holy week that we see, WE SEE

  265. ALL THESE GREAT ELEMENTS. But can I tell

  266. you that somewhere along the line,

  267. tragedy struck the ranks of Jesus.

  268. Because in a moment when HE THOUGHT THAT

  269. HE HAD ALL HIS BEST PEOPLE TOGETHER,

  270. there was one that stood up, Judas, and

  271. ended up betraying HIM AND WALKING OUT

  272. OF the room where he was standing, where

  273. he was sitting and began to uh uh to

  274. unravel a plan to foil and to spoil

  275. EVERYTHING THAT GOD HAD started through

  276. the life of Jesus. That was betrayal

  277. from someone close. And I want you to

  278. see this. Even there was a moment where

  279. I feel like it shifted in Judas's life

  280. where Judas was in the same room when

  281. Mary came in the room where Jesus was

  282. sitting and brought the alabaster flask

  283. with her, broke it open, poured it over

  284. the head of Jesus in that moment,

  285. preparing him for the burial that would

  286. take place just a few days after that

  287. fact that took that happened in that

  288. room. Can I tell you that in that room

  289. sat all the disciples including Judas.

  290. So Mary was in the room, Judas was in

  291. the room at the feet of the same Jesus,

  292. listening to the same message from the

  293. same savior, having the same opportunity

  294. to get to his feet. But can I tell you,

  295. they were worlds apart in how they view

  296. Jesus. And that's why I want to tell you

  297. in this house today BEFORE YOU LEAVE

  298. THIS PLACE, I BELIEVE YOU'RE GOING TO

  299. HAVE a 2020 vision of who Jesus really

  300. is and what Jesus REALLY DID FOR YOUR

  301. LIFE AND HOW JESUS REALLY REDEEMED you

  302. and set YOU APART. BUT YOU'VE GOT TO BE

  303. WILLING TO look a little deeper. You

  304. >> got to be willing to look a little

  305. deeper. I want you to see this. This

  306. betrayal

  307. that Judas led led to accusations. It

  308. led to mocking. It led to beating. And I

  309. want you to understand it led to a crown

  310. of thorns that was placed on his head.

  311. Stripes that were layered on his back at

  312. a whipping post. Nails that were driven

  313. into his hands and to his feet. And a

  314. cross that was lifted between heaven and

  315. earth. And I want you to understand THIS

  316. WAS NOT SYMBOLIC. THIS WAS absolutely

  317. real. There were people that will argue

  318. and say, "Well, ALL THIS WAS JUST A

  319. STORY THAT WE READ TO make us feel

  320. better around Resurrection Sunday and

  321. feel like we've got everything

  322. together." But I'm going to tell you,

  323. THERE WERE TOO MANY EYEWITNESSES, TOO

  324. MANY accounts that showed that it was

  325. absolutely true. And I want to echo IN

  326. THIS HOUSE, IT WAS NOT A SYMBOLIC STORY

  327. or a fairy tale, BUT IT WAS absolutely

  328. real. And I'm thankful today that he did

  329. it for me. And if he did it for me, he

  330. did it for you. Come on. Is anybody

  331. thankful he did it for you today?

  332. ANYBODY THANKFUL HE PAID THE ULTIMATE

  333. PRICE SO YOU AND I CAN HAVE LIFE and

  334. have it more abundantly.

  335. >> But the REALITY IS EVEN THROUGH ALL OF

  336. THIS WHEN HE WAS NAILED TO A cross and

  337. stretched out wide between heaven and

  338. earth. Can I tell you the reality is

  339. that he did die.

  340. He died in that moment. He drew his last

  341. breath. Even while he was about to draw

  342. his last breath, he was still thinking

  343. about you and I on the cross to the tomb

  344. that he said, "Father, forgive them for

  345. they don't even know what they're

  346. doing." Until he got to the very last

  347. part of his breath and he said, "It is

  348. finished." For I want you to know that

  349. if the devil had known that in that

  350. moment that he was about to accomplish

  351. what he was accomplishing, THE DEVIL

  352. WOULD NEVER have let him get to that

  353. cross. Go back and read scripture.

  354. That's what he knew. It was not that it

  355. was a sneak attack, BUT THE DEVIL had

  356. his eyes on the physical world, but

  357. Jesus had his eyes on the eternal. Oh,

  358. come on. I'm thankful today that JESUS

  359. SAID, "IT IS FINISHED. IT WAS

  360. ACCOMPLISHED FOR YOU AND I." BUT HERE'S

  361. WHAT I KNOW. THEY BURIED HIM IN A

  362. BORROWED TOMB AFTER TAKING HIM OFF THAT

  363. CROSS. AND IT LOOKED LIKE EVERYTHING

  364. they believed HAD ENDED ABRUPTLY IN THAT

  365. MOMENT. BUT I WANT TO TELL YOU, ON THE

  366. MORNING OF THE THIRD DAY, ON THAT

  367. BEAUTIFUL RESURRECTION DAY, Mary came to

  368. the tomb AND SHE LOOKED INSIDE AND SAID,

  369. "HOLD UP. WAIT A SECOND. SOMETHING AIN'T

  370. RIGHT. JESUS AIN'T IN THE TOMB." AND SHE

  371. HAD TO GO BACK AND DOUBLE CHECK TO FIND

  372. OUT WHAT WAS GOING ON. CUZ I'M GOING TO

  373. TELL YOU, HE DIDN'T JUST DIE ON A CROSS.

  374. HE DIDN'T JUST GO IN THE GRAVE. BUT I'M

  375. GOING TO TELL YOU, HE ROSE FOR YOU AND I

  376. TODAY. AND IT IS THE GREATEST STORY THAT

  377. HAS EVER BEEN TOLD. IT'S THE MOST

  378. POWERFUL STORY THAT'S EVER BEEN TOLD.

  379. AND BECAUSE HE ROSE, YOU AND I CAN RISE

  380. TODAY, TOO.

  381. >> But I want you to understand, in that

  382. moment when the tomb was empty,

  383. >> death lost its thing.

  384. >> The grave lost ITS VICTORY. THE DEVIL,

  385. WATCH THIS, HE LOST THE WAR AND HE LOST

  386. THE KEYS TO HIS HOUSE IN THREE DAYS.

  387. >> WOO! Come on now. It's the truth. I'll

  388. be honest. I ain't going to trust no

  389. loser that ain't got a keys to his

  390. house.

  391. >> Hello. Can I just preach for just a

  392. second? The Bible says that Jesus took

  393. the keys of death, hell, and the grave.

  394. So, let me just go ahead and rect

  395. rectify this right now. When the enemy

  396. comes in, starts to talk TRASH OVER YOUR

  397. LIFE, YOU JUST LOOK AT HIM AND SAY,

  398. "SHUT UP, LOSER. You don't even have the

  399. keys to your own house. I ain't going to

  400. listen to the words YOU GOT TO SAY."

  401. COME ON. YOU SAY, "WE SHOULDN'T SAY SHUT

  402. UP." OH, I'M GOING TO TELL THE DEVIL TO

  403. SHUT UP CUZ HE'S BEEN WHISPERING AND

  404. TRYING TO MESS WITH MY MIND THIS WEEK.

  405. BUT I'M GOING TO TELL YOU, WE GOING TO

  406. SEE VICTORY THROUGH THE POWER OF GOD.

  407. WE'RE GOING TO SEE PEOPLE BORN AGAIN.

  408. WE'RE GOING TO SEE THAT. COME ON. I WISH

  409. I HAD A CHURCH ON A SUNDAY MORNING THAT

  410. WOULD GET EXCITED AND SAY, "I BELIEVE IN

  411. THE RESURRECTION. IT WASN'T JUST A STORY

  412. OR A FAIRY TALE. IT'S FOR ME AND IT'S

  413. FOR YOU." CAN YOU SAY, "AMEN."

  414. The devil lost the war,

  415. >> lost his keys,

  416. >> didn't even know what he was doing. What

  417. looked finished wasn't finished at all

  418. because it was just the beginning of the

  419. story of victory. You say, "Well, that

  420. was the greatest story." Can I tell you

  421. that this story is still speaking today?

  422. That's why I can stand here and say,

  423. "I've got victory over sin. I've got

  424. victory over the enemy. Not because of

  425. my efforts, but because what Jesus did

  426. on the cross, it worked then. AND GUESS

  427. WHAT? It still WORKS IN 2026. YOU DON'T

  428. HAVE TO WALK THROUGH THIS LIFE AND BE

  429. DEFEATED. YOU CAN WALK THROUGH THIS LIFE

  430. AND BE VICTORIOUS THROUGH THE POWER OF

  431. THE SHED BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST.

  432. >> NOW, I want you to understand this. It

  433. was his finished work. And when we hear

  434. that story, no matter when I hear that

  435. story, I get excited because I know

  436. that's for me.

  437. >> But watch this. For those of us who

  438. believe this, the resurrection means

  439. everything to us.

  440. >> Yeah.

  441. >> Because thank God for death. Thank God

  442. for burial. But if there's no

  443. resurrection,

  444. >> hello somebody.

  445. >> We we we we believe in the full gospel.

  446. And let me go ahead and just take it a

  447. step further than that. The death, the

  448. burial, the resurrection of Christ, the

  449. the the Holy Spirit ascending on the

  450. birthday of the church called Pentecost.

  451. Come on. We still believe in the power

  452. of Pentecost in this house. But then I

  453. believe Jesus is coming again. Is

  454. anybody looking for Jesus to come again

  455. on this beautiful Sunday? Oh yeah. He

  456. rose and soon we're going to rise and

  457. we're going to meet him in the air.

  458. >> The resurrection means everything to you

  459. and I. It brings life to us. It brings

  460. power to us to overcome sin. It brings

  461. restoration to our lives. It secures

  462. forgiveness. AND IT GIVES us hope beyond

  463. this life

  464. because the simplicity of it is this.

  465. And the reality is that unfortunately we

  466. may see it that way, but not everybody

  467. does see it that way.

  468. >> This is this is where uh the rubber

  469. really meets the road, so to speak. Not

  470. everybody hears the story of

  471. resurrection and says, "Wow,

  472. woo.

  473. Hey."

  474. Now, everybody gets in the room and

  475. says, "Hey, let's go, preacher."

  476. >> Let's shout because the fact is

  477. your life may be in shambles.

  478. >> The fact is, you may have had it

  479. together at one time, but somebody, not

  480. Jesus, somebody hurt you.

  481. >> And you are broken this morning, looking

  482. for some kind of hope to cling on to.

  483. And the enemy when he knows that he will

  484. dangle everything else in front of you

  485. to get your attention. But this morning

  486. I am hoping that I am speaking straight

  487. to your heart. And I am dangling

  488. something in front of you. That will be

  489. the greatest decision you've ever made

  490. in your life. Not to walk out of here

  491. with blurred vision, but to walk out of

  492. here seeing Jesus for who he really is

  493. and have hope when you walk out that he

  494. is going to take care of your life. COME

  495. ON. HOW MANY BELIEVE IN HOPE this

  496. morning?

  497. I believe in hope through the power of

  498. the cross. For the fact is some people

  499. do not see it this way. We may see it

  500. through faith, but others see the

  501. resurrection with tons of questions.

  502. They see the resurrection in in in in

  503. view of their past experiences, in view

  504. of uncertainty. AND THAT'S WHAT'S

  505. POWERFUL IS THAT THE TENSION that we

  506. feel in this room that some may feel in

  507. this room is anything but new.

  508. The tension THAT WE FEEL BECAUSE WATCH

  509. THIS ON THE VERY FIRST EASTER THE

  510. DISCIPLES WEREN'T CELEBRATING. They were

  511. hiding.

  512. Hello somebody.

  513. >> They were in that room AND JESUS STEPPED

  514. INTO the room BECAUSE THEY WERE HIDING

  515. AWAY BECAUSE THEY were afraid of what

  516. was going on outside.

  517. >> That's right. Yeah.

  518. >> SO ON THE FIRST EASTER, THEY WERE

  519. AFRAID. THEY were unsure. They were

  520. wondering what was next. AND EVEN AFRAID

  521. OF WHAT PEOPLE WOULD SAY TO THEM. AND

  522. MIGHT I ADD IT LIKE THIS, THE FIRST

  523. EASTER DIDN'T START WITH CELEBRATION. It

  524. started with fear.

  525. >> Hello, somebody. Somebody's like, uhoh,

  526. this guy's crazy.

  527. >> No, go back and read that story. John

    John 20 chapter mention

  528. chapter 20. They were hiding. They were

  529. in fear in that moment. They were in

  530. fear because they didn't know what was

  531. going to happen. BUT I WANT YOU TO

  532. UNDERSTAND THAT EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE IN

  533. a spirit of fear at that moment because

  534. they were afraid of the Jews is WHAT THE

  535. BIBLE SAYS. THEY WERE AFRAID IF JESUS

  536. just got crucified, we don't KNOW WHAT'S

  537. HAPPENING. WE HEARD HE WAS RESURRECTED

  538. BUT WE HAVEN'T SEEN HIM. WE'VE GOT NO

  539. PROOF. SO IF WE SHOW OUR FACE, THEY'RE

  540. GOING TO SAY, "HEY, YOU'RE ONE OF THEM

  541. DISCIPLES. YOU'RE up next."

  542. >> Come on. We can look at this and we can

  543. sanitize it and SAY, "OH, NO. THEY WERE

  544. JUST REJOICING IN THE STREETS. MAN, THEY

  545. HAD A THEY had an Easter rally in the

  546. court square. Come on.

  547. >> Oh, they didn't have that. They were in

  548. a room hiding.

  549. >> Even though Jesus HAD ROSE FROM THE

  550. DEAD.

  551. >> Come on.

  552. >> THESE ARE THE GUYS THAT WALK WITH HIM

  553. FOR THREE YEARS.

  554. >> AND THEY'RE HIDING AWAY BECAUSE THERE'S

  555. PART OF OUR LIFE THAT CAN'T BE DOMINATED

  556. BY NATURAL FEAR. IT DOESN'T MEAN WE

  557. DON'T BELIEVE IN JESUS. THERE'S JUST

  558. THINGS THAT COME UP.

  559. YOU KNOW HOW IT IS WHEN YOU'RE SLEEPING

  560. IN YOUR BED AT night and your toes get

  561. outside the covers. You know there's an

  562. alligators about to get your toes.

  563. >> I don't know what that's all about.

  564. People get scared. If I get underneath

  565. the covers, ain't nothing can get me.

  566. Dude, you crazy.

  567. THERE IS A CERTAIN NATURAL FEAR THAT

  568. COMES OVER OUR LIFE FROM TIME TO TIME.

  569. AND THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. BUT

  570. WHEN IT TRANSLATES FROM THAT TO THE

  571. SPIRIT OF FEAR TAKING OVER your life,

  572. >> THEN YOU WILL DO THINGS THAT LATER ON

  573. YOU LOOK BACK AND SAY, "I'M NOT SURE I

  574. should have done that."

  575. >> Right? Fear will the spirit of fear WILL

  576. MAKE YOU DO things that you're ashamed

  577. of at the end OF IT. THESE DISCIPLES,

  578. THEY HAD THE SPIRIT OF FEAR THAT COME

  579. over that moment AND THEY END UP HIDING

  580. AWAY BECAUSE THEY WERE UNSURE. THEY WERE

  581. UNCERTAIN. BUT HERE'S WHAT I WANT YOU TO

  582. UNDERSTAND. IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR FEAR,

  583. Jesus walked in the room.

  584. Oh, come on. I feel like preaching a

  585. little. OH, YES, I DO FEEL LIKE

  586. preaching a little bit right now. Oh my

  587. god, it's going to be good RIGHT NOW. HE

  588. WALKED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM. WATCH

  589. THIS. HE DID NOT ABANDON THEM. He did

  590. not leave them without hope. I'M GLAD

  591. THAT HE SHOWED UP. SO, I DON'T KNOW

  592. ABOUT YOU ON THIS EASTER SUNDAY MORNING,

  593. BUT I AM CERTAINLY GLAD THAT IN THE

  594. MIDST OF MY BROKENNESS, JESUS showed up.

  595. Oh, come on. I wish I had some folk to

  596. help me preach a little bit ON THIS

  597. SUNDAY MORNING. I'M THANKFUL THAT JESUS

  598. DIDN'T LEAVE ME IN MY FEAR. I'M THANKFUL

  599. JESUS DIDN'T LEAVE ME IN MY DESPERATION.

  600. I'M THANKFUL JESUS DIDN'T LEAVE ME IN MY

  601. BROKENNESS. I'M THANKFUL HE DIDN'T LEAVE

  602. ME in my depression, in my anxiety, in

  603. my fear. I'm thankful he didn't leave ME

  604. IN MY SIN. I'm thankful he walked in the

  605. room. HE PULLED ME OUT AND HE SAID, "YOU

  606. DON'T HAVE TO LIVE THIS WAY." IS THERE

  607. ANYBODY THAT WOULD GIVE GOD A LITTLE

  608. PRAISE ON AN EASTER SUNDAY MORNING for

  609. the fact that he walked in the room?

  610. Even when I didn't deserve it, he showed

  611. up in the room for me.

  612. OH, HALLELUJAH. SOMEBODY GIVE GOD ABOUT

  613. 15 SECONDS of crazy praise for the fact

  614. he stepped in the room.

  615. Hallelujah.

  616. Hallelujah. I said he stepped in THE

  617. ROOM WITH ME. AND WHEN HE STEPPED IN THE

  618. ROOM WITH ME, HE BROKE WHAT WAS TRYING

  619. TO BREAK ME. I'M GOING TO DECLARE THIS.

  620. HE DESTROYED WHAT WAS TRYING TO DESTROY

  621. ME. HE SET ME FREE FROM MY BONDAGE. HE

  622. SET ME FREE FROM MY ADDICTION. AND WHEN

  623. JESUS WALKS IN THE ROOM, HE CHANGES

  624. EVERYTHING.

  625. LOOK AT YOUR NEIGHBOR AND SAY, "HE'S

  626. ABOUT TO WALK INTO YOUR ROOM. HE'S COME

  627. ON, TESTIFY TO SAY HE'S ABOUT TO WALK IN

  628. YOUR ROOM." CUZ HERE'S THE DIFFERENCE.

  629. WHENEVER RELIGION WALKS IN THE ROOM,

  630. RELIGION WILL BASH YOU AND SAY, "HOW

  631. DARE YOU?" BUT WHEN JESUS WALKS IN THE

  632. ROOM, HE WILL LOOSE YOU AND LET YOU GO

  633. AND SET YOU FREE BY HIS POWER AND HIS

  634. GRACE. SO IN THIS ROOM, RELIGION'S NOT

  635. WALKING IN, BABY. JESUS IS ABOUT to walk

  636. in the room. Jesus is about to

  637. I feel like SHOUTING A LITTLE BIT ON A

  638. Sunday morning FOR THE FACT THAT HE'S

  639. ABOUT TO SHIFT EVERYTHING in your life.

  640. Hallelujah.

  641. Jesus is in the room.

  642. AND WHEN JESUS IS IN THE ROOM, the devil

  643. don't stand a chance.

  644. Can I just preach FOR JUST A SECOND? I

  645. KNOW I'LL GET BACK TO MY NOTES IN A

  646. MINUTE, BUT I'm going to tell you this.

  647. EVERYTHING THE ENEMY WHISPERED IN YOUR

  648. EAR LAST NIGHT IS A LIE.

  649. >> And the lie THAT HE WHISPERED IN YOUR

  650. EAR LAST NIGHT, I'M ABOUT TO BRING SOME

  651. TRUTH TO IT. HE WHO THE SON SETS FREE IS

  652. FREE INDEED. GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN ME

  653. THAN HE THAT'S IN THE WORLD. I AM THE

  654. HEAD AND NOT THE TAIL. I AM ABOVE AND

  655. NOT BENEATH. COME ON. I AM BLESSED AND

  656. HIGHLY FAVORED BECAUSE I HAVE A SAVIOR

  657. WHO RELEASED ME FROM THE DEBT OF SIN

  658. OVER MY LIFE. NOW 1 2 3 GIVE HIM PRAISE

  659. IN THE HOUSE.

  660. The fact is he set me free.

  661. He set me free.

  662. >> Because when Jesus walked in the room,

  663. he did not correct them. He didn't shame

  664. them. He didn't push them away. Watch

  665. what he did. He stood in front of them.

  666. And he showed them the scars in his

  667. hand.

  668. And he showed them the scar in his side.

  669. >> Without a word from his mouth, he let

  670. the scars speak. And

  671. >> can I tell you in this house this

  672. morning that when he stood in front of

  673. them and he opened his hands and he

  674. lifted up his shirt and he showed them

  675. his side. He did not have to utter one

  676. word in that moment

  677. >> because watch this. The scars told the

  678. disciples everything they needed to

  679. know.

  680. >> IT DID. THESE SCARS TOLD THEM that when

  681. Jesus stretched his hands out, I am who

  682. I said I was. And he said when he

  683. stretched OUT HIS HANDS, WHAT HE WAS

  684. REALLY SAYING WAS, I DID WHAT I said I

  685. would do. AND WHEN HE STRETCHED OUT HIS

  686. HANDS and revealed his side, he wanted

  687. them to know this is not a fairy tale,

  688. baby. I'm not in a room somewhere. I'm

  689. not locked away in a cave or in a tomb.

  690. This is not SOME VISION YOU ARE HAVING

  691. OF ME. BUT I AM REALLY STANDING RIGHT

  692. HERE BEFORE YOU IN THE FLESH AND IT IS

  693. REAL. AND I want you TO SEE THIS. THEY

  694. WERE FEARFUL BEFORE HE WALKED IN THE

  695. ROOM. BUT WHEN HE WALKED IN THE ROOM AND

  696. DIDN'T OPEN HIS MOUTH BUT SHOWED THEM

  697. THE SCARS, CAN I TELL YOU IN THAT MOMENT

  698. THEIR FEAR SHIFTED INTO JOY OVER THEIR

  699. LIFE. AND I WANT TO DECLARE THIS.

  700. SOMEBODY IS ABOUT TO WALK OUT OF THIS

  701. ROOM THIS MORNING WITH JOY IN YOUR HEART

  702. THAT YOU DIDN'T HAVE WHEN YOU WALKED IN

  703. BECAUSE YOU'RE ABOUT TO GET A VISION OF

  704. WHO JESUS IS. CUZ WATCH THIS. THE MOMENT

  705. YOU AND I SEE JESUS CLEARLY, FEAR LOSES

  706. ITS VOICE AND JOY TAKES ITS PLACE. I

  707. WANT TO KNOW, IS THERE ANYBODY IN THE

  708. HOUSE THAT WOULD SAY, "I COULD USE A

  709. LITTLE JOY on resurrection Sunday. I

  710. COULD USE A LITTLE joy to go BACK TO MY

  711. HOUSE. I COULD USE JOY IN MY FAMILY. I

  712. could use joy in every part of my life.

  713. Thank you.

  714. For I say to you that I will give you

  715. joy for every sad moment that you've

  716. ever had. And in an instant, I can take

  717. everything the enemy has messed up in

  718. your life and I can turn it on a dime

  719. because I am God and I am powerful.

  720. Trust in me today. And when you leave

  721. this house, you will KNOW THAT I HAVE

  722. VISITED YOU AND VISITED your home and

  723. visited your family because I am able to

  724. bring strength and joy and power to your

  725. life, says the Lord of hosts.

  726. Can we give God praise in the house? Can

  727. we give God praise in the house?

  728. Hallelujah.

  729. I alluded to it earlier, but I'll go

  730. ahead and identify it again. We are a

  731. Pentecostal house. We believe in the

  732. gifts of the spirit of God. What just

  733. happened in this moment was the

  734. operation of the gifts and tongues and

  735. interpretation so that there's no

  736. confusion in the house. I want you to

  737. understand that when Jesus drove fear

  738. out through the scars that he had and

  739. brought joy to their life, they realized

  740. something significant. The resurrection

  741. wasn't just something they heard about

  742. at that moment any longer. It was

  743. something they could see with their

  744. eyes. It it become more than just

  745. something they heard. It was something

  746. they could see. And that's why this

  747. matters. Some people will walk in

  748. already embracing this moment and this

  749. fact with faith, but others are still

  750. trying to figure it out. What Jesus did

  751. in that room, I want to say this over

  752. this house this morning for the

  753. disciples that were hiding in fear. I

  754. want to say this, he is going to do it

  755. for somebody that's in the room today.

  756. The fear that you walked in with, you're

  757. about to walk out with joy BECAUSE JESUS

  758. DOESN'T PUSH PEOPLE AWAY. HE DOESN'T

  759. ABANDON PEOPLE. HE DOESN'T WALK OUT ON

  760. PEOPLE EVEN WHEN OTHERS HAVE AND EVEN

  761. WHEN LIFE HAS BEEN DIFFICULT AND BEEN

  762. TRAGIC FROM TIME TO TIME AND EVEN WHEN

  763. THINGS WEREN'T EVEN MAKING SENSE AND

  764. HAVEN'T MADE SENSE. PEOPLE MAY HAVE

  765. WALKED AWAY BUT LISTEN TO ME BABY. JESUS

  766. NEVER WALKED AWAY FROM YOU. PEOPLE MAY

  767. HAVE MISUNDERSTOOD YOU BUT JESUS DIDN'T

  768. MISUNDERSTAND YOU. I WANT YOU TO

  769. UNDERSTAND. PEOPLE MAY HAVE FAILED YOU

  770. BUT JESUS HAS NOT FAILED YOU.

  771. Jesus will not fail you. You know why?

  772. Because those scars still speak today.

  773. And those scars, I want you to see this.

  774. They say you're not forgotten.

  775. >> Thank you, Lord.

  776. >> Th those scars that are speaking, they

  777. say you're not abandoned. Those scars,

  778. they will say over your life, you're

  779. still loved in spite of what you did.

  780. Cuz if we're being honest, everybody in

  781. the house is guilty today.

  782. >> Hello. Can we go ahead and put it on a

  783. level playing field? Everybody's guilty.

  784. And I'm thankful that those scars are

  785. telling me in spite of the mistakes I

  786. made, he still loves me. They say that

  787. in spite of what it looks like through

  788. your eyes and through the eyes of

  789. others, there is still hope in your

  790. life. And here's why. Here's what I

  791. begin to think about. Scars don't just

  792. exist in your life. Scars speak in your

  793. life.

  794. >> Scars speak in your life. The truth is,

  795. precious, this morning, I want you to

  796. understand that each one of us, we may

  797. have physical scars on our body, and if

  798. we took time, you could probably show

  799. and there would be a story attached to

  800. that scar. I remember when this

  801. happened. I remember what happened here.

  802. We, Pastor Daddy, you have a pretty good

  803. story about that. You shared with us a

  804. couple weeks ago about you and your boy

  805. practicing some golf and a golf club

  806. winter ray. And he's got a little MMA

  807. scar right there on his face. He's a

  808. he's a fighter now. But he there's a

  809. story attached to that scar. But if

  810. we're being real honest that there's

  811. scars not just on our physical body, but

  812. there's scars emotionally inside of our

  813. heart. And those scars carry deep hurt

  814. from time to time. those scars get

  815. inside of us and they begin to they

  816. begin to speak and they begin to say

  817. things and and if we're real honest, IF

  818. WE ALLOW OUR FLESH TO DOMINATE, then

  819. those scars will speak things that are

  820. contrary to the word of God, inhibiting

  821. us from doing what God has called us to

  822. do. I want you to understand, we all

  823. have scars, different stories, different

  824. moments, DIFFERENT MEMORIES. BUT EVERY

  825. ONE OF US CARRIES SOMETHING THIS

  826. MORNING. AND EVERY SCAR IS SAYING

  827. SOMETHING. THE QUESTION ISN'T WHETHER

  828. YOUR SCARS SPEAK. THE QUESTION IS WHAT

  829. ARE THEY SAYING? What are they saying

  830. OVER YOUR LIFE? AND IF I'M going to have

  831. a scar speak, I WANT MY SCARS TO SPEAK

  832. through the word of God.

  833. >> And here's what the word of God says in

  834. 1 Corinthians 1:31. If anyone boasts,

    1 Corinthians 1:31

  835. let him only boast in all that the Lord

  836. has done. PSALM 44:8, IN GOD WE BOAST

    Psalms 44:8

  837. ALL DAY LONG AND PRAISE your name

  838. forever. CEILI ARE BASICALLY let that

  839. sit for just a moment and THINK ABOUT

  840. IT. IN OTHER WORDS, EVEN OUR STORY, EVEN

  841. OUR SCARS ARE MEANT TO POINT SOMEWHERE.

  842. AND SOMETIMES THERE'S A TEMPTATION TO

  843. TAKE WHAT WE'VE BEEN THROUGH AND LET IT

  844. BECOME ALL ABOUT US TO SHAPE THE STORY

  845. IN A WAY THAT DRAWS ATTENTION TO OUR

  846. SELF. BUT THE GREATEST PURPOSE OF EVERY

  847. SCAR IS NOT TO SAY, "LOOK WHAT I WENT

  848. THROUGH." IT'S TO SAY, "LOOK WHAT THE

  849. LORD HAS DONE IN MY LIFE." CAN ANYBODY

  850. SAY, "I GOT SOME SCARS, BUT I WANT

  851. PEOPLE TO LOOK AT MY SCARS AND SAY, LOOK

  852. WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE." HAS ANYBODY GOT

  853. A TESTIMONY THIS MORNING THAT HE HAS

  854. BEEN GOOD? HE HAS BEEN FAITHFUL. HE HAS

  855. BEEN GOOD IN MY LIFE. AND I WANT PEOPLE

  856. TO BE POINTED back to Jesus

  857. >> because if we're honest, that's exactly

  858. what Jesus did. His scars didn't say,

  859. "Look at my pain."

  860. >> Watch this. When Jesus held his hands

  861. out and let them see the scars in his

  862. hands and his side, he didn't say, "Can

  863. you believe what they did to me?"

  864. >> Hello.

  865. >> We have the temptation of doing that

  866. from time to time. We get it. We know

  867. you're carrying scars. But just because

  868. you're carrying scars, don't let that

  869. point to the bad things. Let that point

  870. to what God brought you through. Come

  871. on, let it point to how great he is in

  872. my life. Yes, I know I've been cut deep,

  873. but you know what? GOD BROUGHT ME

  874. THROUGH IT. AND TODAY, I DON'T GIVE

  875. CREDIT TO the enemy. AND WHAT HE TRIED

  876. TO DO, WHAT I DO IS SAY, "LOOK what the

  877. LORD HAS DONE." HE'S BROUGHT ME A

  878. MIGHTY, MIGHTY LONG WAY. AND BECAUSE HE

  879. BROUGHT ME A MIGHTY, MIGHTY LONG WAY,

  880. I'VE GOT A REASON TO LET MY SCARS SPEAK

  881. TO THE HAND OF GOD.

  882. >> He didn't say, "Look at my pain." He

  883. didn't tell his disciples, "Can you

  884. believe how hurtful they were to me?

  885. Can you believe how they talked about

  886. me? Can you believe they put a crown of

  887. thorns on my head?

  888. Can you believe that I was up ON THE

  889. CROSS DYING and they stuck a spear in my

  890. side?

  891. Add injury to insult.

  892. Can you believe they spit on me and

  893. plucked my beard? Can you believe they

  894. tied me to the whipping post and treated

  895. me like an animal? Can you believe? He

  896. didn't say any of that. He didn't say,

  897. "Look, look at my scars. Look at my

  898. hurt." He opened his hands and I believe

  899. he walked in that room, hush fell over

  900. the room. He put his hands out. He

  901. lifted his garment and he looked to them

  902. through his eyes and through his

  903. presence, he said, "Look how much I love

  904. you.

  905. I'm going to tell you,

  906. >> when the Lord started showing me this

  907. revelation, it put everything in

  908. perspective in my life to let me know it

  909. may be rough sometimes, but I ain't

  910. never had it as bad as Jesus.

  911. >> I ain't never So, you talk to some

  912. people, you think, my God, you were

  913. crucified. Hello. I've been there

  914. before. It's everything. It's all bad.

  915. It's all negative. Sometimes we have to

  916. shift our perspective and say, it's not

  917. what I've been through. Look what the

  918. Lord has brought me through.

  919. >> But Jesus said, "Look how much I love

  920. you." And can I tell you, he's not

  921. standing here today to point you and and

  922. and and negate you. He is looking at you

  923. today to say, "Hey, you know what? I

  924. love you this much.

  925. I love you this much." And today, I want

  926. you to understand something. The

  927. question becomes, what story are your

  928. scars telling? Are they pointing people

  929. to your pain or are they pointing people

  930. to his power?

  931. >> He didn't have to say a word. Those

  932. scars were speaking then and they're

  933. still speaking today. Can you say amen?

  934. >> Well, Michael, I want you to come help

  935. me close out. Get my team up here. So,

  936. today as we come to this moment,

  937. this is for several groups of people

  938. that are in the room. And those one of

  939. those is which uh that has never truly

  940. known Christ as their savior and as

  941. their lord. Maybe you have you have

  942. never had a relationship with the lord

  943. today or maybe you have been bound up in

  944. cultural Christianity where it's

  945. literally just checkmarking a box. You

  946. are it's either Jesus coming or going.

  947. You're either here at Easter or

  948. Christmas. Listen, I want you to

  949. understand that this day is for you to

  950. let you know there is a real savior who

  951. wants a real relationship and doesn't

  952. want you to play church anymore.

  953. >> Amen.

  954. >> There are those in here and another

  955. group that have once walked with God,

  956. but you've drifted, you backslid, and

  957. now you were in a backsliden state. Can

  958. I tell you, I'm coming after you today

  959. >> because I don't want you to be lukewarm

  960. in your faith. And there are those of

  961. you that are in here that you've tried

  962. and you've failed and you've tried and

  963. you've failed and you've tried over and

  964. over again. I want you to hear this,

  965. pastor, clearly. To enter into heaven

  966. requires you and I to be 100%

  967. righteous.

  968. >> You say, "Wow, that sounds

  969. unachievable." I'm glad you said that.

  970. But I want you to understand, no partial

  971. righteousness, not half righteousness,

  972. not mostly good pastor. I'm a good

  973. person. I do good things. That will not

  974. cut it in eternity.

  975. >> Because I want you to understand, a holy

  976. God that gave himself like we just

  977. talked about, cannot and will not

  978. tolerate even one ounce of sin in our

  979. life. Amen.

  980. >> I want you to hear, pastor,

  981. if we're honest and we're open and we're

  982. real in this moment, and I'm going to

  983. be, the truth is not one person in this

  984. room, not one person on this earth can

  985. achieve that.

  986. >> Amen.

  987. >> But it doesn't change the fact it's

  988. still the requirement.

  989. >> Want you to hear me. This is not

  990. legalism. People say, "Oh, that's

  991. legal." No, it's not. It's gospel.

  992. >> It's Bible. because I'm preaching it to

  993. you in love. It requires you to be 100%

  994. righteous to get into heaven. But the

  995. fact is on this side of the equation,

  996. you cannot do it. So something has to

  997. give. Either we have the ability or this

  998. has to change. The standard's not

  999. changing. So the ability, it's got to be

  1000. the only thing that shifts. So what are

  1001. you saying to me, pastor? I want you to

  1002. understand this is the tension. This is

  1003. the truth. I want to do it, but I cannot

  1004. live up to it. But I have to live up to

  1005. it to get to him. I want you to

  1006. UNDERSTAND THIS IS EXACTLY WHY JESUS

  1007. CAME.

  1008. >> THIS IS WHY HE CAME. QUIT TRYING TO DO

  1009. IT ON YOUR OWN. I'LL FIGURE OUT A WAY TO

  1010. HEAVEN. NO, YOU WON'T.

  1011. HEAR MY HEART. YOU HAVE TO BE 100%

  1012. RIGHTEOUS, BUT YOU CAN'T DO IT. SO,

  1013. SOMEBODY'S GOT TO BRIDGE THAT GAP. AND

  1014. JESUS DID IT FOR YOU AND I. HE DID IT

  1015. FOR US.

  1016. THERE'S YOU CAN'T GET OUT OF IT. YOU GOT

  1017. TO ACCEPT HIM TO GET TO CHRIST OR TO GET

  1018. TO GOD.

  1019. >> Hear my heart. He came to be the

  1020. sacrifice. And you can go ahead and

  1021. play, son. He came to be the sacrifice.

  1022. He came, watch this, to satisfy the

  1023. wrath of God, not against us, but

  1024. against the sin that is in our life. He

  1025. came to stand in our place and to plead

  1026. our case before the Lord by saying,

  1027. "Father, I've covered them. I'VE

  1028. PURCHASED THEIR SALVATION. I PURCHASED

  1029. THEIR RIGHTEOUSNESS THROUGH my blood.

  1030. We used to have that old statement when

  1031. we prayed back in old church. We would

  1032. pray, I plead the blood of Jesus.

  1033. >> Can I tell you when you and I stand

  1034. before the throne of God and it is the

  1035. judgment seat of Christ. There is only

  1036. one thing we can plead that can give us

  1037. any cause or any case. We can sit there

  1038. at the feet of the father and say the

  1039. only thing I can do is plead the blood

  1040. of Jesus. I can't present any kind of

  1041. RIGHTEOUSNESS BECAUSE WATCH THIS. My

  1042. works WILL BURN BEFORE THE LORD. THEY

  1043. WILL BE BURNED UP. BUT IF I CAN PRESENT

  1044. TO HIM AND HE LOOKS AT ME AND HE DOES

  1045. NOT EVEN SEE WHO I AM. IF HE SEES ME, I

  1046. CAN'T MAKE IT. BUT IF HE LOOKS AT ME AND

  1047. HE SEES THE BLOOD OF HIS SON COVERING MY

  1048. LIFE, I PLEAD THE BLOOD. HE WILL SAY,

  1049. "COME ON IN. WELL DONE, MY GOOD AND

  1050. FAITHFUL SERVANT. IS ANYBODY IN THE

  1051. HOUSE THANKFUL THAT YOU'RE COVERED BY

  1052. THE BLOOD OF JESUS? A MULTITUDE OF SINS,

  1053. A MULTITUDE OF ACCUSATIONS, A MULTITUDE

  1054. OF shortcomings only by the blood of

  1055. Jesus.

  1056. Only by the blood of Jesus

  1057. because the facts are you and I cannot

  1058. make it on our own. We cannot do it on

  1059. our own.

  1060. Some in the room today, you never had a

  1061. relationship with God. You thought it

  1062. was unachievable. And the fact is, you

  1063. are right. In your own effort, you

  1064. cannot achieve it. But through the

  1065. finished work of Jesus Christ, it is

  1066. completely achievable. My job is to get

  1067. rid of the red tape of religion and the

  1068. dis that that pushes the disenfranchised

  1069. out to say you don't belong. No. Yes,

  1070. you do belong. If you belong, if you

  1071. don't belong, then neither do I.

  1072. >> It's the truth.

  1073. I don't belong because I'm a pastor. I

  1074. belong because I'm covered in the blood.

  1075. >> Come on. I've watched pastors put

  1076. theirel on a pedestal for way too long.

  1077. It is an absolute abomination before the

  1078. Lord.

  1079. >> Quit it.

  1080. We are nothing. We are filthy rags in

  1081. the sight of the Lord.

  1082. That's what he even says. He says, "My

  1083. right, my best effort, even my best

  1084. effort is filthy rags in the face of

  1085. God.

  1086. But I want you to know through the

  1087. finished work of Christ today, you can

  1088. have a relationship with God.

  1089. You can leave this place saying, "I

  1090. didn't know Jesus coming in, but I know

  1091. him going out."

  1092. >> You can come in here today and say,

  1093. "Pastor, I've been that one." I heard

  1094. that in between services. People that

  1095. come Easter and Christmas, they either

  1096. they get Jesus coming or going. Come on,

  1097. somebody. Either get him at Christmas

  1098. coming or get him at Easter going. I you

  1099. whatever. That's just all they want to

  1100. do. But listen to me. You can leave here

  1101. today saying, "I'm not going to be an

  1102. Easter and Christmas only person. I am

  1103. going to give my life to the Lord. I'm

  1104. going to say bye to cultural

  1105. Christianity and just check mark in a

  1106. box and saying, "Well, I look like a

  1107. Christian cuz I got my picture made on

  1108. an Easter Sunday." No, stop that. Jesus

  1109. wants something more than that from you.

  1110. >> He wants a RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU. HE

  1111. DIED TO HAVE it

  1112. >> and he wants it from you.

  1113. Others in this house, you've tried to

  1114. follow him, but somewhere along the way,

  1115. you drifted, you fell, you backslid, you

  1116. gave into temptation. And now there is a

  1117. blockade between you and God. And it's

  1118. called sin. And today, your mo, this is

  1119. your moment to stop trying to defeat sin

  1120. in your own effort. Quit it.

  1121. How do I defeat sin, pastor? You lean

  1122. into the gift of God's grace that was

  1123. given through the sacrifice of Jesus

  1124. Christ.

  1125. lean into what he's already done and say

  1126. yes to what he's already done.

  1127. >> And then there's those in here, you've

  1128. tried, you failed. Then you tried again

  1129. and you failed again. And you tried

  1130. again and you failed again. You tried

  1131. again, you failed again. And now you

  1132. feel ashamed to even approach God one

  1133. more time. That's the enemy putting

  1134. shame on you. But I am here today to say

  1135. not shame on you, but shame off of you

  1136. in Jesus name. Today everything shifts

  1137. in Jesus name.

  1138. Cuz watch this. Your failure does not

  1139. disqualify you

  1140. >> because his sacrifice it was enough for

  1141. you too.

  1142. >> It was enough for you too. Ephesians

    Ephesians 2:8–9

  1143. 2:8-9 says, "For by grace you have been

  1144. saved through faith, that not of

  1145. yourselves. It is the gift of God, not

  1146. of works, lest anyone should boast."

  1147. Here's the good news. The only way that

  1148. you and I that we can be saved is

  1149. through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

  1150. The only way we can be made righteous is

  1151. through the finished work of the cross.

  1152. And pa pastor, what about power to over

  1153. overcome sin? Well, that is found

  1154. through the resurrection of Jesus

  1155. Christ. He gives you the power to

  1156. overcome sin. So watch this. When the

  1157. enemy reminds you of your sin, when

  1158. shame tries to speak, when guilt tries

  1159. to rise, you need to remember this. When

  1160. the wrath of God was ready to be poured

  1161. out on the sin in your life, Jesus

  1162. stepped in the room.

  1163. And I'm going to tell you this, the same

  1164. Jesus with the same scars that walked

  1165. into that room with those disciples,

  1166. watch this, is in this room today. And

  1167. what is he doing?

  1168. He's letting his scars speak.

  1169. >> He's I I didn't come here to preach by

  1170. myself. I came here to let the Holy

  1171. Ghost speak. And he's about to speak

  1172. right now. He's about to testify of who

  1173. Jesus really is. The scars that are on

  1174. his hand, they're speaking right now.

  1175. >> You say, "I'm unworthy.

  1176. I I MADE A MISTAKE, PASTOR. I DON'T KNOW

  1177. WHAT I CAN DO TO GET BACK.

  1178. It's all Jesus is doing. He's not here

  1179. to try to argue with you. YOU SAY,

  1180. "WELL, I MADE A MESS OF MY LIFE AND I

  1181. I'VE MADE A MESS OF EVERYBODY ELSE'S

  1182. LIFE AROUND ME."

  1183. >> Who hasn't?

  1184. >> Who h if WE'RE BEING REAL HONEST,

  1185. EVERYBODY IN HERE, WE'VE DONE THINGS

  1186. WE'RE WE ARE ABSOLUTELY ASHAMED OF. AND

  1187. IF IT HAD NOT BEEN FOR THE SCARS, WE

  1188. WOULD BE LOST. WE WOULD BE UNDONE. WE

  1189. WOULD BE BROKEN. WE WOULD BE OUTCAST.

  1190. BUT BECAUSE OF THE SCARS,

  1191. we can be brought in today

  1192. and we can be made part of the family of

  1193. God.

  1194. And so today, I look directly into your

  1195. heart to let you know that the scars

  1196. that were back then, they weren't just

  1197. for that room. Even though they were for

  1198. that room, the disciples that were in

  1199. fear, they were there. They were tucked

  1200. away. They were hiding and not

  1201. celebrating. The scars were for the

  1202. people in that room. But can I tell you,

  1203. they're for the people in this room

  1204. today.

  1205. They are for you. They are for your

  1206. family. They are for you. And I declare

  1207. to you today that the scars that were in

  1208. his hands, I'm going to tell you right

  1209. now, the enemy will try to negate that

  1210. and tell you, you don't need those. That

  1211. they're not for you. But I've come to

  1212. debunk the enemy and let you know that

  1213. anything the enemy says out of his life

  1214. is a lie. The devil is a liar. Come on,

  1215. somebody. I'm going to declare the devil

  1216. is a liar. And today we believe the

  1217. truth of the word of God. Is there

  1218. anybody in the house that would say,

  1219. "I'm thankful that his scars are still

  1220. speaking today." I I'm going to ask you

  1221. to jump to your feet and give God a

  1222. quick praise in the house. If you really

  1223. are thankful for the fact that his scars

  1224. still speak, come on. I I dare you to

  1225. GIVE GOD A CLAP AND A SHOUT FOR THE FACT

  1226. THAT HIS SCARS still speak today.

  1227. Just remain standing with me. And even

  1228. now those scars still speak.

  1229. >> His nail scarred hands, his pierced

  1230. side, his wounded body. Watch this. They

  1231. are still declaring before the father on

  1232. our behalf. Because y'all know Jesus is

  1233. making intercession for us right now,

  1234. right?

  1235. >> Y'all know that he is looking and

  1236. saying, "Father, don't forget I

  1237. satisfied your wrath against sin.

  1238. I paid the price for sin. Father, don't

  1239. forget WHEN THEY STAND BEFORE YOU, I'VE

  1240. COVERED THEM BY MY BLOOD.

  1241. >> So today, I want to declare to you, if

  1242. you're in any of those categories, and

  1243. today, you need to make a decision. You

  1244. don't stand before God based on your

  1245. performance. Praise God.

  1246. >> You stand before God based on his

  1247. sacrifice.

  1248. I don't know about you, but I would much

  1249. rather take the account of Jesus to the

  1250. throne with me that I would come in my

  1251. own efforts and say, "Look how righteous

  1252. I was." The Lord is going to look at me

  1253. and say, "Depart from me."

  1254. >> But if I can stand in the righteousness

  1255. of his son,

  1256. >> then he will accept me as his child.

  1257. >> So, every head bowed, every eye closed.

  1258. If you are in this place this morning, I

  1259. want you to hear this pastor's heart.

  1260. I'm coming for you.

  1261. Not because I'm angry, but I'm coming

  1262. for you because I love you and I'm mad

  1263. at the devil.

  1264. Cuz for too long, he has kept you bound

  1265. in cultural Christianity. For too long,

  1266. he's kept you convinced you don't need a

  1267. relationship with the Lord. That's for

  1268. everybody else in the room. That's not

  1269. for me. I'm good. I can make it on my

  1270. own. You will not make it in your own

  1271. righteousness. I cannot achieve 100%

  1272. righteousness aside from the blood of

  1273. Jesus. It will take faith and submission

  1274. to his grace.

  1275. And today I open an invitation. If

  1276. you're in here, you never known Christ.

  1277. Today is your day. You can come to know

  1278. him and you can start a relationship

  1279. today. You're in this room, another

  1280. category, and you've been playing games

  1281. with God. You've been a cultural

  1282. Christian and you know it. You show up

  1283. when it's convenient and when it's not

  1284. convenient, you tip out and you say, "I

  1285. can't make it because it's too hard."

  1286. Let me tell you something. God wants a

  1287. deeper relationship with you than than

  1288. that. I want you to tell you this that

  1289. the enemy has caused you to forfeit the

  1290. best relationship you can ever have,

  1291. >> and that is a relationship with Christ.

  1292. You say, "Pastor, I'm here and I have

  1293. backslid. I know I'm not where I need to

  1294. be with the Lord today. I can shift

  1295. right now. You can make it right." And

  1296. then there's some in here that are like

  1297. this. Say, "Pastor, I have tried and I

  1298. failed. I've tried and I failed. I've

  1299. tried and I failed. And now I feel

  1300. guilty even trying one more time." Can I

  1301. tell you, today is the day of salvation.

  1302. Don't you let the enemy talk you out of

  1303. taking one more step.

  1304. Cuz I want you to hear me. We are not

  1305. promised our next breath, but we are

  1306. promised right now.

  1307. And before you leave this house, you can

  1308. know for sure that I'm on my way to

  1309. heaven. And I don't want anybody to

  1310. leave this house without the scars

  1311. speaking straight to your situation.

  1312. Even further than that, I'll say this.

  1313. There are some in here, you have been

  1314. wounded deeply.

  1315. You have been hurt.

  1316. You have been you have been almost

  1317. destroyed by the world. And let me tell

  1318. you something. Today is a day of

  1319. restoration. We serve a God of

  1320. reconciliation. And today, the same

  1321. scars that are speaking salvation are

  1322. the same scars that are about to speak

  1323. healing to your to your whole body. Your

  1324. body, your soul, and your spirit. You

  1325. don't have to leave her the same way in

  1326. Jesus name.