Move Your Body Part 2 | Spray Paint and God's Temple with Chris Schlotterbeck

You can have all of me

Every single little piece

You can have it all

Welcome to Hub City Vineyard.

To get connected or to give online,

go to hcv.church or give.htv.church.

If at any point during this message

you feel called to make a change in your life,

text change me to 970-00.

Thank you and enjoy the message.

So listen, it is great to be back.

Like I said, I was a little nervous about a 16 and a half hour flight,

and yes, I'm still nervous, okay.

It was probably one of the hardest things I ever did,

but we made it there and back.

And to kind of sum up our trip,

there's too much that happened in the course of a week

to do it on a Sunday morning.

So what we were planning in a few weeks,

I'm going to schedule a Sunday late afternoon,

probably around four o'clock,

testimony and vision casting for our experiences in Africa.

So just kind of keep your ears open if you want to hear that.

We'll have a ton of pictures.

We'll be sharing what God did in our lives,

and we'll also be sharing the new vision that He put in our hearts,

not just for Jess and I, but for our entire community of faith.

So as all of you know, last week Rudy kicked off our May series,

Move Your Body, Change Your Life.

And for some of you, you were thinking, why a health series?

So I want to just simply remind you that our scripture focus for the year is Luke 2, 52,

and it reads, Jesus grew in wisdom, in stature, in favor with God, and in all the people.

He grew in wisdom, which is mental health.

And last month, you know that we discussed that for our April series.

He grew in stature, physical health.

And that's what we're going to be discussing this morning in my talk, What the Health?

What the Health?

And let me just start by saying physical health is important.

It's very important.

And I just want to start by saying this is a judgment-free Sunday.

My purpose is not to condemn you about your diet or your exercise or where or what you ate last night for dinner

or where you happen to be going when this gathering is over.

Thank goodness Golden Corral is now closed.

My goal is zero condemnation.

So everyone, just take a deep breath and breathe out.

Just relax, okay?

It's not my goal at all to make you feel bad about yourself.

My goal in this talk is to drive home one truth that I believe will inspire you to want to change your outlook on physical health and exercise.

And I believe it's something that God wants for all of us.

So let's open in prayer and allow our minds and our hearts to receive all God has for us.

Holy Spirit come.

God just erase from our minds any attitudes or negativity that we have towards exercise or physical health and open our hearts to receive your truth.

God let our outlook on this life be formed in your truth as we move forward God to continue to impact and change this community and the world.

In Jesus name, Amen.

So our first thought this morning, see, Gnosticism teaches the spirit is important and the body doesn't matter.

So the year is A.D. 90 and John the Apostle is writing a letter.

This letter is now called Third John and he was writing to a Gaius, a leader in the local church, and it opens like this.

Third John 1 verses 1 through 2.

3 John 1:1–2

This letter is from John the Elder.

I am writing to Gaius, my dear friend, whom I love in the truth, dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are healthy in body and you are strong in spirit.

So John writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit was praying that Gaius would be healthy in three areas.

His spirit, which is his connection to God, his soul, which is his mind and his emotions, and that he would be healthy in his physical body.

OK, why was John praying this prayer?

Why would he be praying for Gaius's physical health?

Well, let's continue.

Verse three, some of the traveling teachers recently returned and made me very happy by telling me about your faithfulness and that you are living according to the truth.

I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth.

Now, when you are reading the Bible, OK, and that word truth is repeated several times.

John, again, he says faithful to the truth, living according to the truth, following the truth.

John is trying to express to Gaius and you and I the importance of truth, the importance of truth.

In fact, John says it brought him great joy that they were faithful to the truth, that they were living in the truth, that they were following the truth.

And he makes these statements right after, right, right after that he was praying for their physical health.

So it's the first century A.D.

Jesus was born. He lived out his ministry and his calling.

He died on a cross, was buried in a tomb and was resurrected on the third day.

Right after his death, burial and resurrection, he visited with Peter and the apostles, along with five hundred of the brothers and sisters.

He was taken back to heaven.

Right. The church is then born as it's filled with the spirit.

Peter preaches and the church instantly grows by the thousands and it begins to explode all around the region.

Then enter into the narrative believers who thought they were smarter than the apostles.

So they began to create their own doctrines.

And suddenly we have this cancer that's growing in the church.

Remember that's exploding and the church is exploding.

But there's this cancer growing on the inside where a group of teachers are teaching a doctrine called Gnosticism.

OK. And Gnosticism was one of the most dangerous and heretical doctrines taught during the first three hundred years of the church.

Gnosticism teaches that spirituality is important, but everything that is physical is evil.

It also teaches that Jesus wasn't God and man. He was only a spirit.

So this group is preaching and teaching against the resurrection of the of Jesus.

They're basically saying he was only a spirit. God was not three in one.

And everything that has matter, right, like our physical bodies is evil.

So only your spirit is really important. Your body doesn't matter.

So for three hundred years, this was being taught by false teachers and people within the church began to believe this as truth.

Right. My spirit is important. My body doesn't matter. My spirit is important.

My body is evil. And as people began to buy into this lie, it gave birth to two things.

One, indulgence in the body and two, neglect of the body.

See, when people are only focusing on their spirit, man, and no longer focus on their physical body,

that results in a growing group of Christians, right, who are praying, they're fasting, they're listening to the truth.

Remember, the Bible wasn't written yet, but they're either indulging in or neglecting their bodies.

They're only focused on the spirit. Now, by the third century, this false teaching went away

because the resurrection of Jesus became a core tenant of the Christian faith.

But the practical issues regarding this teaching does not die with the teaching.

And suddenly it gets passed down into the third, the fourth, the fifth, the tenth, the eighteenth, and into the twenty first century.

Now we have this idea of Gnosticism within the church, especially in the United States, where we find people.

You know, they're willing to fast, they're willing to pray, they're willing to preach, they're willing to read the Bible.

They want to go to church. They want to serve. They want a title. They want to see the church grow.

They want the ministry to grow, while at the same time, they're dying of stuff that is treatable in their bodies.

They're dying of stuff that is treatable in their bodies. A church that is mighty in spirit, but the house for my spirit is falling apart.

A hyper focus on the spirit, but no focus on the house that holds the spirit.

And all across America, we have all this preaching. We have all these teachings we can pull up on YouTube anytime we want.

There's conferences to attend. There's books written.

Thousands of people growing in their spiritual formation, while the body that is holding the spirit is disintegrating,

not because of age, but because of neglect. Not because of age, but because of indulgence.

I mean, and this hit home for me while I was away for a week on my trip in Africa, about the fifth or sixth day in,

my watch starts pinging at me. And I was like, wow, I've never heard that before.

And I looked down at my watch and it was literally making this noise, this alert telling me,

Chris, your physical activity is down 200%. What are you doing?

And I looked at my watch and I began to think in my mind, what have I been doing for the last five days?

I get up at seven. I have a quick breakfast. I'm in a van. I'm at a school. I'm at a church service.

I'm at another school. I'm at another church service. And what was I doing? Sitting and watching.

Sitting and being fed. Sitting and sharing a testimony. A lot of sitting.

What is the number one reason people are dying in America?

Now, if you watch the news every day, you're told it's gun violence. It's unrest.

It's China. It's Russia. Danger, danger, danger. And all of it's a lie.

It's simply not true, which leads us to our next thought. Health related issues are killing Americans.

The number one reason people are dying in the United States is not gun violence.

It's heart disease. Heart disease. Number two is cancer.

Number three, chronic respiratory linked to smoking.

Number four, accidents. Number five, stroke. Number six, Alzheimer's.

Number seven, diabetes. Number eight, influenza. Number nine, kidney disease.

And number 10, suicide. Three out of the top five reasons people are dying in the U.S. is linked to physical health.

In fact, it's the top three. We are mighty in spirit, but the house that holds the spirit is falling apart.

Then in the next five, we have diabetes. We have kidney disease along with suicide. What is that?

That's mental health that we addressed last month. So it should come as no surprise that six out of the top 10 reasons

for the cause of death in the United States have been shared or talked about over the last few months at the Hub City Vineyard.

Because we value you. And we desire you not only grow in spirit, but you grow in your mind, your body,

your connection with God, and your connection with others. Friends, indulgence and neglect of the body.

And it's been passed down through the church from the first to the second to the third to the tenth and now the 21st century.

And for those of you who believe this is just a cultural issue, oh, it has nothing to do with the church, Chris.

A pastor that I'm going to leave unnamed wrote these words in a Charisma Magazine article entitled,

Why God Places a Priority on Your Physical Health and You Should Too.

Quote, Although I believed I was healthy and fit by the time I reached my 22nd birthday,

my six foot two frame had skyrocketed to 270 pounds and I was diagnosed with borderline hypoglycemia.

My blood pressure and cholesterol levels were high, my health was rapidly deteriorating.

I was told I might need to be on medication for the rest of my life.

As a result, I was denied life insurance and instructed by my physician to go on a strict diet.

I was shocked. I knew if I didn't change my life, my life would change me.

If I knew I didn't change my life, my life would change me. He continues,

the physical health of your body definitely plays a role in your overall health, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

And when we improve it, our overall quality of life improves significantly as well.

Taking care of the one body that God has given us is wide stewardship. It affects our entire life.

Although spiritual health is first and foremost.

For example, Paul teaches us this in 1 Timothy 4, 8, physical training is good,

but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and the life to come.

The pastor continues, our physical health also plays a vital role in our productivity.

According to many experts, many diseases are preventable through proper nutrition and exercise.

To suggest that health should not be a priority is to suggest that God isn't concerned with this area.

Listen, God created your physical bodies.

God created your body to be the house of his spirit that is living within you.

It is through the physical body that you and I carry out the very purposes of God.

Think about it. We can't make the statement, I am called, I am chosen,

if our spiritual houses are disintegrating around us.

Because we are not going to feel called and we are not going to feel chosen.

If I can't move, if I am not motivated, and if I die prematurely because of sickness, guess what?

My purpose is cut short here on earth.

If I am tired and have no energy, if I am constantly sick because of my own neglect and my own indulgence,

then my purpose for God is cut short.

The church is always talking about purpose. You got to find your purpose.

But fails to address the vehicle, the body, that handles that purpose.

There is a direct link between our physical health and our spiritual health.

And as the followers of Jesus, we have to care about our physical bodies.

Why? Well, it leads us to our next thought.

Because God cares about our physical bodies.

Right? Should we only focus on physical health so we can get buff?

Right? Am I only going to the gym to get big? I want to look like Arnold.

I want to get all swole in front of the mirror and take pictures.

Is that why? No.

Should we focus on our bodies and look good in our bikinis?

Right? Summer is coming, ladies.

Look in the mirror. I got to snap a few pics and get ready for that change to happen. No.

We are not worried about other people looking at us.

See, our culture has a love affair with health and fitness for all the wrong reasons.

Right? Many of the reasons people go to the gym and diet, they are all vanity driven.

But there is a much better reason to care about your physical health.

And Paul writes these words in 1 Corinthians chapter 6.

1 Corinthians 6 · chapter mention

You say, I am allowed to do anything, but not everything is good for you.

And even though I am allowed to do anything, you must not become a slave to anything.

And see, please understand when Paul puts quotations around allowed to do anything, that is not Paul's language.

He is quoting the language from their culture. The culture was telling them this.

They have taken the doctrine of freedom in Christ and they have expanded it to their physical bodies,

believing they can do anything they want with it. I can indulge it as much as I want.

I can neglect it as much as I want because I am free in Jesus. I can do whatever I want with my body.

I can treat it nice. I can treat it mean because I have freedom.

But Paul continues. You say, food was made for the stomach and the stomach for food.

This is true, though someday God will do away with the both of them.

But you can't say that our bodies were made for sexual immorality.

They were made for the Lord and the Lord cares about our bodies.

What is he saying? He is saying that the body is important to God beyond vanity.

It shouldn't be our only focus. Why?

Because God will raise us from the dead by his power just as he raised our Lord from the dead.

Don't you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ?

Should a man take his body, which is a part of Christ, and join it to a prostitute? Never.

Right? Never.

So when you're in a relationship with Jesus, our bodies are a part of Jesus.

Right? God is living in us.

And listen, not everything is beneficial for our physical bodies.

Do we have freedom in Jesus? Yes.

But there's this thing called wisdom, and wisdom needs to dictate how we use our freedom.

Yes, we can do whatever we want, but not everything is good for us.

And we have to use wisdom. We have to read.

We have to understand what is best for our bodies, what is beneficial for our physical bodies.

Why? Because our physical bodies are so valuable that it will be resurrected and recreated.

When we die, our spirit leaves our bodies.

2 Corinthians 5a tells us, we are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

So the minute we die, our spirits leave our bodies and are reconnected with God.

Right? If a person is not in a relationship with Jesus, their spirit experiences the pain and the torment of eternal separation from God.

But our bodies, they remain here on the earth in whatever condition it was left when it dies.

Right? Cremated, buried, burned, cut up, dismembered. It stays in the earth.

The physical matter cannot be destroyed.

Whatever a person chooses to do to their own body after death or happens to them in death, the body cannot be destroyed.

It will remain in or of the ground.

Then we read in 1 Thessalonians 4, 16 through 18, for the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout,

with the voice of the archangel, with the trumpet call of God.

And the Lord will be called to the cross. The believers who have died will rise from their graves.

And please understand, that's not their spirits. That's their bodies.

Whatever state they were left in, it will rise up when Jesus returns.

I mean, you can literally see urns being emptied and dust forming back into the body.

And we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

Then we will bith the Lord forever, so encourage each other with these words.

Paul says it this way in 1 Corinthians 15, 52.

It will happen in a moment, in a blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown,

when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever and we who are living will be transformed.

For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die.

Eternal bodies, mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.

So the Bible teaches us that God is going to recreate the earth.

We are not going to remain in heaven forever.

We have to change the image of these people flying around in clouds playing harps.

Okay, it's not a reality. Heaven is temporary.

We will go there for a season. We don't know how long it will be, but the Bible teaches that God will recreate the earth.

And God's presence will come down from heaven to reside in the new earth.

And those who were in a relationship with him will abide over that new earth for eternity.

Your physical body is so valuable that God's not going to leave it here.

He will resurrect it and he will recreate it into an eternal body.

That is how precious and valuable our bodies are.

I mean, we have to begin to look in the mirror and begin to realize that all of us were fearfully and wonderfully made.

Okay, yes, we have blemishes and warts and dents and receding hairlines and all the things that go along with sin.

But when we're resurrected, those things will be gone and we will be perfect.

Right? We're always quick to find what's wrong with our bodies, but all those things won't be present in eternity.

And for some of you sitting here thinking, Chris, is this true? Is this real? I've never heard this before.

Well, it's because the church never teaches on the physical body.

It's always focused on the spirit, man, and growing the spirit.

But think about it, all right? Let's get practical.

Jesus, he's hanging on a cross, he's dying, and he takes his last breath.

And this is what we read in Luke 23.

Then Jesus shouted, Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands.

And with these words, he breathed his last.

He hangs his head and dies. His spirit, what? Leaves the body.

While the body remains where? On the cross.

Jesus' spirit is gone, but his body remains all beaten and bloodied and destroyed for you and me.

While Jesus is now in the presence of the Father.

Rich men come and take down the body, the shell, and they lay it in a tomb.

Where is his spirit? With God.

Now, some scholars argue not only was Jesus reconnected with the Father,

but he also went to hell to defeat the enemy once and for all.

While other scholars read 1 Timothy chapter 4,

1 Timothy 4 · chapter mention

as Jesus encouraging the spirits of those who had died before his death.

The main point is Jesus' spirit was separated from his body.

It was wrapped in spices. But where is he? He's in heaven.

It was rolled in a cloth. But he's in heaven.

It was placed in a tomb when a large stone was rolled in front of it, but he was where? In heaven.

Right? His body, though, was so valuable that on the morning of the third day,

the Holy Spirit invaded that tomb and we read this.

Then the angel spoke to the women, don't be afraid.

I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He isn't here.

He is risen from the dead, just as he said he would happen.

Come, see where his body was lying and now go quickly to tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead.

And he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.

Right? God resurrected the three-day-old body and Jesus was reunited with his spirit.

Right? Into his body, Jesus stood up again.

The body didn't remain in the earth. It was what? It was returned to its owner.

Jesus came out of the tomb on a Sunday morning and changed the world in his body.

Jesus was resurrected in his body. He ate fish with his disciples on the shore in his body.

He came through a wall in his resurrected body and gave them the final commandment.

Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation, baptizing them in the name of the Father,

the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them everything I have commanded you and I will be with you always.

Then Jesus leaves to go back to the Father in his body.

See friends, when we are in a relationship with Jesus, our physical bodies are connected to God.

Right? In my body, I am joined to Jesus. So whatever I do with my body, I'm affecting Jesus.

Right? And that's why I'm saying use wisdom. Because if this hand is a part of my body,

and all I do is slap my face, who am I slapping? I'm slapping Jesus.

That's not using wisdom. We need to use wisdom when it comes to our bodies,

which leads us to our fourth and final thought. Our bodies are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.

See, Paul continues in 1 Corinthians 6, 19 through 20.

Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who lives in you and was given to you by God.

You do not belong to yourself for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

Right? Let's quickly jump back into the Old Testament. God creates human beings,

but he's living in heaven and has a relationship with his creation when he would come and visit them.

Once humanity sins and turns away from God, that sin caused separation. Right?

And people could no longer connect to their creator. God wants to reconnect with his creation,

so he commands Moses to build a box. It's called the Ark of the Covenant.

Cover it with gold, put cherubim on top, and when you build it, my presence will rest where? In the Ark.

So God's presence comes in the box while they were in the wilderness.

God's presence was in the box as they placed it in a tabernacle in the Promised Land.

Then Solomon builds God, a magnificent temple, and the box is placed where? In the Holy of Holies.

Right? So the presence of God was with the people in the Ark.

When the Ark was stolen, we know that David danced naked before the Ark when it was recovered because he was in God's presence,

and he wanted to be reconnected. Jesus comes and frees the presence of God from the box.

No longer is the presence of God in a box, but God wants to be with and in his people. Right?

God doesn't live in a building. He now finds a new home in Steve. He now is living inside a Roger or Lisa or Rhett.

That's where God resides. He takes up residency in his people, and every time, hear this,

a person declares with their mouth and believes in their heart that Jesus is Lord, God takes a piece of himself and places it in them.

God's presence now resides in us for those that are in a relationship with him.

We are the new Ark. We are the dwelling place of God.

So think about it. Going to work as you're driving, the Spirit of God is in me. Right?

Going to school, sitting through your boring classes, the Spirit of God is in me.

Walking around Walmart or Sam's Club, the Spirit of God is where? In me.

Driving around town, the Spirit of God is in me. At the gym, the Spirit of God is in me.

Washing dishes, the Spirit of God is. Changing diapers, the Spirit of God is.

Are we getting the understanding? All the things that tear us down can actually build us up because the Spirit of God is where?

In me. We aren't dead. We are alive in Jesus and we are stewards of our physical bodies.

Remember, Paul said we were bought with what? A high price.

This body we were given, we were responsible for stewarding these bodies.

For example, right, if I was to tell you this piece of artwork has been passed down through my family for generations,

my great grandfather bought this for my great grandmother on Mother's Day.

And it's been passed down from generation to generation to generation, hanging on our family's walls.

And if suddenly I took this can of spray paint and I opened it up and I went like this.

How would you feel about that? That kind of makes you a little angry, right?

That makes you frustrated. It makes you up to crass. You destroy the artwork.

Or you drive by a building or a train and you see graffiti all over these buildings and these trains.

I cannot believe people are destroying artwork. They're just destroying it.

We vandalize our buildings each and every day.

We vandalize our buildings each and every day by what we eat, by what we watch, and by what we don't do.

We vandalize our bodies each and every day. And we'll get an uproar over vandalism,

but we'll say nothing about destroying the very bodies, the very homes that we have been given.

Which leads us to our action steps.

Honoring God with our bodies. And I knew that was going to be silent today.

Because I tell you, I've been preparing this for two weeks.

And as I was preparing this and praying about it and praying for all of you,

I was just praying that it was well received because I knew it was going to step on American toes.

Okay? I'm a unicorn. At the end of this month, I'm going to go do the Murph.

And many of you are like, I don't know what the Murph is. I don't want to know what the Murph is.

And I'm not even going to try to do the Murph. And that's fine. God bless you. I'm not saying you should.

I'm just one of those people that just go all in. Okay?

So in no way am I trying to condemn you. In no way am I trying to judge you.

I'm trying to share with you truth to motivate you to live your best life. Amen?

And why shouldn't the church be an example of what it means to be physically healthy and caring for the bodies that God has given us?

In fact, that's our responsibility.

We are stewards of all that God has given us. And too long the church has neglected mental health,

has neglected physical health, and the time is now for that to change. Amen?

So how do we honor God with our bodies? Because Paul just told us to honor God with our bodies.

And the first is really three simple things because you can go on Google and you'll find 52. Okay?

I don't care about 52. I believe if you do these three simple things each and every day,

you will begin to honor God with your bodies and by bringing it into a state of health.

And the first is offer God your body. Right?

Offer God your body because it doesn't belong to you. God gave it to us to be stewards.

So we daily offer up our bodies to God. Right? The life that we have, the body that we've been given.

Romans 12, 1 through 2 says, So dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you.

There it is. Offer God your bodies. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice, the kind we find acceptable.

This is truly the way to worship Him. Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world,

but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.

Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

See, when Paul wrote this, he was writing to people that were living or coming out of Judaism

and practice the custom of sacrifice.

And so often when we hear that your body is a living sacrifice, we don't quite understand the context.

Okay, if I was in the first century, if I was living as a first century Jew, I know that every time I sin,

I would have to go in to my herd and grab the firstborn, unblemished animal and drag it to the temple

where a priest would sacrifice it on the altar. Right?

The people that brought their sacrifice would watch it happens as a means of experiencing forgiveness of their sins.

That was their lifestyle. Right? They would drag the animal to the temple to be sacrificed.

Their sacrifices came to the altar alive, but left dead.

They came to the altar alive, but left dead. Our sacrifice comes to the altar dead, but leaves alive.

See, there's a big difference. Their sacrifice came alive and left dead,

but when we're in a relationship with Jesus, when I sin, right?

I come before God dead because of that sin, but we are now a living sacrifice and I leave alive.

Forgiven, renewed, restored, son, daughter of God. Does that make sense?

That's called repentance. That's called turning away. That's going the other way.

Stop living in sin, turn and go the other way. We leave alive. We leave passionate.

Daily, give your body to God. Right? You wake up the first thing, God, this is yours.

This is my mind. It's yours. This is my body. It's yours.

And offer it to God as a living sacrifice, which leads us to our next step. Pray. Shocker. Right?

We all forgot our bodies and we pray. We ask the Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, lead me into healthy habits

that will strengthen my body, that will make it fit to serve your kingdom. Right?

However that looks for your unique person, ask him to show you where you're making health into an idol

or maybe the choices that are destroying your body. God, help you reveal to me how I'm making mistakes.

Make your body a priority. Ask him to lead you to people, to resources, to information that will guide you along the journey.

Right? There's documentaries. There's testimonies. There's stories. There's books about how health is vital to how you live.

Right? Ask him, God, help me to be strong and to desire your goodness. Right?

The answer to does my health matter to God? Yeah, it matters. Just look at the Bible. Right?

My prayer for you is the same as Paul's for the Thessalonian church two millennia ago. First Thessalonians 5.

May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together, spirit, soul, and what else? Body.

And keep you fit for the coming of our master Jesus. The one who called you is completely dependable. If he said it, he'll do it.

Which leads us to our final step. All for God your bodies. Pray. And number three, just move your body.

Church, you've got to start moving your body. I'm going all in and challenging you beyond what Rudy challenged you last week.

I don't want three days a week. I want seven days a week. Because there's no reason we're not moving every single day.

First Timothy 4.8 says physical training is what? What is physical training? What is it? I'm sorry. Let me ask that question again.

Church, physical training is good. It's good. Training in godliness is better, but it doesn't say there just neglect your body.

It says no, physical training is good. Promising benefits in this life because we're living abundantly and in the life to come.

We're challenged. It's good. Caring for our bodies is good. We should not abuse it. But we abuse our bodies with all the processed foods, all the substances that are just not natural.

Toxins that can destroy us. A sedentary lifestyle that does not promote health. You have to start moving.

There is no reason all of us sitting in these chairs are not walking 20 to 30 minutes a day. There's no reason for it.

If you can make up an excuse, fine, that's your excuse, but there's no reason we're not walking 20 to 30 minutes.

And if you're one of those people that say, Chris, I just don't have time. I just don't have time to exercise.

Okay, can I challenge you? When you go to shop or go to a store, park in the furthest parking lot away from that store.

Right? When you go to Walmart, go park beside the campers.

Okay? High five someone sleeping in their camper and then start journeying the Walmart.

And by the time you get to the front door, walk all the way through the store and walk back out.

About how long did that take you? About 20 minutes or half an hour, right? Box checked.

So you say you can't do it. Right? Don't look for front row, Joe. Look for the back row.

I mean, it's biblical. Jesus said the last will be what? There you go. See, I just backed it up.

I just backed it up. Oh, it's not in the Bible.

Right? For those of you that have your devotions in the morning in your chair with your coffee and your quiet time,

take a walk and listen to the Bible. You know why? Because you're going to get much more out of it.

When you're just sitting in your chair snoozing, basically you just hit snooze.

Okay? And you're reading the Bible, dozing off, reading the Bible, dozing off. You're retaining nothing.

Okay? Take a walk and listen to the Bible. Take a walk and listen to your devotions.

I promise if you take a week and do that, you'll grow more spiritually in that week than you did the week before.

I promise. And if you don't, come and tell me. Right? And I'll do 100 push-ups on the stage without stopping.

But I believe that you will change. Right? Physical activity is good for our bodies.

And I get it. There's not much in Scripture. But the last time I checked, talk to a doctor.

Dr. Ciccarelli is in here. Ask her. Okay? Science has proven it. Right?

It helps. Exercise helps with brain health, weight management. It reduces the risk of disease.

It strengthens your bones. It strengthens your muscles. And it improves your ability to live every single day.

Like, why wouldn't we do it? Jesus only rode a donkey once.

And he walked everywhere else. He set the example for us. Right? Walk. Move. Have life in the Spirit.

Okay? That's where it's all at. Jess is launching a new ministry here at HCV. Her and Lisa Reese.

Lisa, wait. Woo! There's Lisa right there. They are now certified Revelation Wellness Trainers.

Certified. And they will be launching classes next month.

And for some of you, some of you are sitting there like, I don't have any motivation. I just can't do it.

I just can't exercise. I need help. We got help for you. Go to the Welcome Hub.

It doesn't matter your conditioning levels. It doesn't matter how far you can run. Walk. Sit. Stand.

It doesn't matter. All are welcome.

Go to the Welcome Hub under the beautiful banners that I hung. And make sure you read each banner on your way out.

Sign up. And I promise you won't regret it.

Okay, we used to have this thing at HCV called Run for God. Right?

Someone in this gathering this morning is called to lead that group.

Someone is called to lead that group in this gathering this morning. See me because I want to relaunch it.

Billie Jean. You have a walking group, right, Billie? Billie Jean has a walking group.

If you need help and you want to just talk about life and Jesus, see Billie Jean. You can walk with her.

Maybe we have ten more walking groups. The point is, do something.

Health is an action. It's not a standard of beauty. It's an action.

God wants your health to be used for His glory. God wants your freedom.

He doesn't want you enslaved to anything. Right? Especially your health.

He doesn't want you enslaved to that. Health was designed as a tool to provide energy to you so you can live in purpose.

That's all. That's what it was. Ephesians 2.10. You are God's masterpiece.

You were created anew in Christ Jesus so you can do the good things He planned for you long ago.

And listen, if you can't move, you can't do. You've got to move, church.

God is our energy. He fills us. He is the transformer of our lives, hearts, and minds.

And He equips us with everything necessary to sharing the good news.

He gives us power in our weakness and help in time of need.

And for those of you who say, Chris, I just can't do it, ask the Holy Spirit to change it.

I've got to get a different spray paint can for second service.

That didn't make a good enough statement. I think I need to get black.

Just destroy it. Black and purple? Okay.

So listen, as we stand, listen, it's real simple this morning.

I'm not going to call you out. I'm not going to ask you to come up front here because I'd just be rude.

But I just want you to be honest with God. Be honest with God.

He sees your heart. He knows your mind. He knows the things you want to do.

He knows the things you want to change. And I believe He can change you.

And I believe that every person gathered here this morning can get a little bit closer to God by just practicing physical health every day.

Taking a walk, enjoying time with your family, making it a priority because I promise you, your life will change. Amen?

So Holy Spirit, come, God. Overwhelm this church with your love, your grace, and your mercy, God.

I just pray you speak to hearts and minds and reveal to us those areas where we're lacking in our physical health.

And motivate us, God, to change because as we change, we become stewards of your goodness.

And we become just a mouthpiece for your good news, God.

Letting people see the change that we're experiencing as we prioritize you.

Overwhelm us, God, with your love.

And allow us to see ourselves as you created us, God, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Now I want to pray a simple prayer because you know I pray that simple prayer every week.

Because when I talk about being absent from the body, right, I want everyone to be connected to God.

I don't want eternal separation. Amen?

So we pray this prayer every week because there could be someone here in the quietest of your heart.

You know you're far from God and He's welcoming you home right now.

So let's pray together. Jesus, I'm broken. I'm full of doubt, shame, regret, sin. Change me.

I believe you're God's son. I believe you died for me.

Make me new. Set me free. Help me, God, to share your good news with others.

In Jesus' name, amen.

So if you prayed that prayer, see me after this service. Hold on, we're not done.

Hold on, there was four words of knowledge this morning focused on health-related issues.

Okay, if you have a collarbone on your left side, could be fractured or you're experiencing severe pain,

we want to pray for you. If you have a dysfunctional thyroid, we believe that God wants to heal you.

Left ankle weakness and kidney issues. If any of those things are you, we want to pray for you.

Come up here, our prayer team would be on my right.

Or if you have any other physical health-related issues or you need motivation, God, I need motivation to exercise.

Come up and get prayer. Our prayer team will be here.

Now listen, the rest of this month, I already have it outlined out.

Okay, so we just did physical health.

Next week I'm doing what we put into our bodies, what we eat.

And then the last week I'm going to look at rest and why rest and Sabbath is important.

Okay, so that's your next three weeks. I'm believing God's going to transform us and supernaturally make us new people.

Amen? Alright, Rudy, are you there? Okay, so I'm going there. No one leave. I want to high five everybody.

I miss everyone. I've been gone for so long. If you're going out that door, come see me so I can high five you.

Love you guys. God bless.

Amen.