Be The One: Share Christ in All of Life (John 13:1-17)

And so give you plenty of time.

And as we like to say at the beginning of every year, that if you do not have a Bible journal, today's your day.

We still got plenty of those out there.

One of my favorite things that happens to us at RLC is not always necessarily the notes that I give you, but the things that God speaks to you as we have our time together.

And you know how it is, man.

If you decide you're going to write that note down on your phone, 20 minutes later, you're going to remember that we were in church because you got to check TikTok while you're on there, right?

So instead, we want to write them down here so we have them.

And also, if it's your first time joining us, we want to give you an opportunity to fill out your connect card and you can drop that off at the Welcome Center because we have a free gift for you today.

So as we also jump in, I want to tell you about one other thing.

It's something we get really excited about here at RLC, and that is that today is our life group preview day.

We put our hands together and celebrate that.

We absolutely love the opportunity to do life together in groups, and we we love that chance to do that.

And I will tell you that there are people all around today that are wearing life group shirts.

Make sure you find one of them because if you have any questions, they may or may not have the answers, but they can find somebody who does, okay?

And so we want to make sure that we give you plenty of time.

They're going to be on the different boards and different things.

And life groups are going to start two weeks from now.

So make sure you got time.

But here's the thing we always have groups that have to close because there's a cap on a lot of these.

And every semester we have folks who would like to be in a group, but we've had to close it.

So make sure that if you see a group today and you're interested in joining, you scan the QR code and you sign up because we would hate for someone to want to be part of the group and not be able to, okay?

All right.

If you've been with us over the past few weeks as we are getting ready to jump into God's word together, we've been talking about how at the beginning of every year we focus our time on just reminding ourselves why we're here.

And that is that the mission of real life church is to make disciples.

Look at somebody and say, I know that's right.

Our mission, we're gonna do a whole lot of things, but it's all gonna be surrounded with the fact that we make disciples.

And we do that by knowing God, growing in freedom, and then sharing Christ with everyone.

And it's always important that we take the first couple of weeks at the beginning of the year because, you know, it's just like anything else.

If we're not careful, you know, as we end up the year before, it gets kind of like busy.

And if we're not careful, our vision can get kind of blurry with all these different things.

And so we need time to kind of just freshen up the vision.

And maybe that's not you.

Maybe throughout the whole holiday season, you are good to go.

But there's something about a pumpkin spice latte that just ruins my vision if I'm not careful.

And so, and especially like my Christmas list and all that kind of stuff.

And so it's a wonderful opportunity just to remember why we do what we do.

And I've also been telling you over the past couple of weeks that one of my honors as pastor is I have an opportunity as we get toward the end of the year, that I really take some time and just say, God, what is it that you're speaking to us to do in this coming year?

Like we're always going to make disciples, but if we were to clear up the vision, what direction are we gonna take with that this year?

And I've been telling you, I've been so excited to share this with you ever since October because what I really felt like that God had put on my heart that I want for it to be the kind of the thing for all of us this year, kind of our rally cry, is that this year we will say to God, we will be the one.

That this year we are gonna be the ones that instead of reacting to life, we're gonna respond.

We're gonna get off the sideline and into the game.

We're gonna be the ones that's gonna have an encounter with God, and that encounter with God is going to just compel us to say, as the great philosopher Katniss Everdeen, I will volunteer as tribute.

It's gonna be one of those kind of days.

You might as well lighten up.

I know it's cold outside, but it's not cold in here, and there's plenty of hot coffee, okay?

And all this comes from kind of our theme verse for the year, and it comes out of Isaiah that said, It was in the year that King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord.

He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the temple.

Attending him were mighty seraphim, those are angels, and they were calling out to each other, saying, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of heaven's armies, and the whole earth is filled with his glory.

Their voices shook the temple to its foundation, and the entire building was filled with smoke.

And then I said, It's all over.

I am doomed, for I am a sinful man.

I have filthy lips, and I live among people that are worse than I am.

That's the the Brandon Unauthorized version.

Yet I have seen the king, the Lord of heaven's armies.

And then one of the angels flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of hot tongs, and he touched my lips with it and said, See, this coal has touched your lips.

Now your guilt is removed and your sins are forgiven.

Then I heard the Lord asking, Whom should I send as a messenger to this people?

Who will go for us?

And I said, Here I am, I will go.

I'll be the one.

Send me.

And then God said, Yes, go.

And that's my hope for all of us this year.

My hope for us is that we will have such an encounter with God and that we will take such steps in freedom that when God says, Who wants to tell the world what I'm doing and that I'm still on the throne?

We will be the ones to say, I'll be the one.

And we've talked about in in week one of our series how we're gonna do that by knowing God more.

Week two, we talked about it about how we're gonna grow in freedom and get in life groups together and be the one.

And today we're gonna talk about how this year we will be the one to share Christ in all of life.

That we, and if you're taking analog notes, make sure you circle the word we, that we will be the one to share Christ in all of life.

And as we've been talking about that idea of be the one, that it was not in a time of excitement.

It wasn't in a time where everything was going great, but the Bible actually said during a time of great transition, that this one king had died, this other king was ascending to the throne, and nobody knew, you know, how is this king gonna be good?

Is it how's this gonna go?

That it was in the middle of all of that that Isaiah saw that the true king never left his throne, that he was still in control, and that because of that, he said that I saw the Lord.

And when I saw him, that encounter with God changed me forever.

And then the only response to whom should I send as a messenger to the people was, I'll be the one.

I will go.

And you imagine how hard that could have been because he was there in the presence of God.

He was there in the moment where God was, and he was able to just kind of get away from all of it and enjoy God's presence.

But can I tell you, my hope for you and my hope for me this year is that we will have such an encounter with God that we will want to be in God's presence, but then we'll want to share that with somebody else.

Because there is a level that we can get to when we have such an encounter with God and we experience such freedom in God that we can't keep it to ourselves.

That we've got to share with somebody else what God is doing in all of us.

And so I know for a fact this statement, and that is that this will be your best year ever, if it's your best year spiritually.

I've seen it happen so many times that if we will decide that we will kind of, if I can put it this way, run the play this year, if we together will be the one to make disciples, and we will decide we're gonna know God, we're going to grow in freedom, we're going to share Christ.

I've seen it happen so many times that somebody has 99 problems, but Jesus ain't one of them.

And as they start to have their best year ever, it's only because it was their best year spiritually.

We've been talking about what that looks like to know God, what it looks like to grow in freedom, kind of what's that rally cry.

Last week we talked about how we're gonna be part of our own rescue when it comes to growing in freedom.

And today we're gonna talk about this idea because there's so many ways to share Christ.

Like there, there's so many.

We can share Christ by telling our story.

There we can share Christ in so many different ways.

But the way I kind of want us to rally around this idea this year is that we're gonna be more like Jesus every day.

We're gonna be more like Jesus every day.

Try that on.

Look at somebody and say, be more like Jesus.

Be more like Jesus.

Let me let me tell you kind of what I have in my head with this, and that is that when my girls were little, I don't know if you guys did this, when my girls were little, we found this like used little Barbie motorized car that was like really small, but so were they, and so they could fit right in it.

And and I'm not gonna tell on them, you can ask them after church if you can find one of them and tell them.

But immediately I could tell who was gonna be the good driver, who was gonna be the bad driver.

And it has not changed, okay?

One of the drivers, as soon as she got behind the wheel, she was a natural.

She immediately would just zip around and it was it was fine.

The next one, the other one got in the got in the car and immediately ran straight into a wall.

And I would I would say, get back over here.

And she would run into the next wall.

We found all the walls because she'd hit them.

And then her other, her, her sister would be like, What is wrong with you?

And she was just like, I'm having fun.

Like, and I know they're they're three and five, but let's learn proper, let's learn how to drive, you know.

And and one day we were doing this and they were both driving, and and one of the girls was in there and her sister was here.

And of course, that is always a train wreck, you know, when they're both in there at the same time.

And they're driving, and she's driving like this, which made dad so proud, you know, because immediately they're like three, and I'm teaching them driver's ed, you know, and they're they're three.

And then out of nowhere, one of the the one that was driving, she just kind of relaxed, put her hand right here, leaned back, and just started doing this number right here.

Well, as the the dad, I'm like, what is wrong with her?

That's not proper etiquette, that's not how you should drive.

Come on, 10 and 2 or something, figure it out.

And and autumn, she can't even stand.

She's laughing so hard.

I was like, what is wrong with our child?

And she's like, that's exactly what you look like.

I was like, that's not true, you know.

And immediately I had to go run an errand, and as soon as I got in the car, it was like that.

I was like, ah, that's me.

And I didn't realize that even at like five years old, three and five years old, my girls were watching me.

They were watching me to the point that when they had an opportunity, they wanted to look just like dad.

And so I had to be more careful, and I had to make sure to show them.

I was like, look, girls, 10 and 2, this is how we drive, you know, and all of that.

And it was amazing how they wanted to be just like their dad, and so they would emulate their dad in any way they could.

Can I tell you, may we never grow out of that childlike wonder with our Heavenly Father?

May we never outgrow the desire to be just like him.

May we never outgrow the desire to act like Christ in every area of our life.

And that's the mental picture I have this year is that this year I want to be more like Jesus every day.

I want to see what my king does, and I want to do the same.

That's one of the ways that we share Christ.

As a matter of fact, Jesus said himself, he called himself the light of the world, and then he said, You are the light of the world.

In other words, you reflect me.

Like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.

In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.

So, in other words, he said, You want to show people me?

You want to share me?

Show them.

Show them what I look like by the way that you live.

And there's so many different ways that we can share Christ as a community of faith.

But one of the ways I want us to share Christ this year is I want to share him by showing others what the love of Christ looks like.

And so I was looking through God's word and said, is there is there a place in the scripture where Jesus shows us what his love looks like?

And of course, it was everywhere, especially in four books Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

It was all over the place, right?

Where Jesus showed his love.

But there was this one story that just grabbed me and was like, that's what it looks like to share the love of God by showing his character.

And it's one where the king himself shows us what love truly is.

And it's on the night that Jesus was arrested.

The Bible says this, that it was the time for supper, the Passover, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, the jerk, to betray Jesus.

Listen, he's not my favorite person, okay?

Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything, and that he had come from God and he would return to God.

So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin.

Then he began to wash the disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that he had around him.

And when Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, Lord, are you gonna wash my feet?

And then Jesus replied, You don't understand now what I am doing, but someday you will.

And after washing their feet, he put his robe on and sat down and asked, Do you understand what I was doing?

You call me teacher and Lord, and you are right, because that is what I am.

And since I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet.

I have given you an example to follow.

Do as I have done to you.

I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master, nor is a messenger greater or more important than the one who sends the message.

Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.

Wow.

The king himself served somebody else.

And this year, I don't know about you, but I want to share Christ by being more like Jesus every day.

And so that leads to the question that if Jesus showed us what love truly looks like, this year, how can we be the one to share Christ by showing the love of Christ with others?

There's so many ways to share Christ, but I want to challenge us this year to share Christ by showing the love of Christ for one another.

And we can only do that by being more like Jesus.

So look at somebody and say, more like Jesus.

Look at somebody else and say, You better be more like Jesus.

Because you ain't doing it right now.

Don't tell them that.

Don't tell them that.

Let the Holy Spirit convict him on that one, all right?

So there's three things that he does here.

There's so many, but I want to say three ways that we can be more like Jesus by showing the love of Jesus.

Here's the first one, and that is we will share the love of Christ in all of life by how we see serving as confident humility.

Somebody say amen.

And we see serving one another as an amazing thing of confident humility, more like Jesus, more like Jesus, and be confident enough to be humble.

Look what the Bible says.

It says it was time for the supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.

In other words, it was hectic.

Okay, so this was the Passover.

It was the largest, the biggest feast day of the year.

So many people would flood into Jerusalem, and so they would have been heading to this banquet hall, and folks would be everywhere bumping into each other.

They got on what we used to call their Sunday best because this was a big deal for them to do this.

They're getting in there.

Jesus is there.

He sees all the hustle and everything that's going on, and then he knows that Judas is over in the corner whispering.

He he's already done what he's doing, and now they're all here.

You got servants, you know, just kind of waiting the table.

You got the other people.

Judas is being weird, and then Simon has probably hurt somebody's feelings, and so he's dealing with that over there.

And then you got these other guys, like, we don't even know your name, buddy.

Come on over here and sit down.

Like, all of this is going on, it's just chaos is happening.

But right in the middle of all this chaos, the word of God reminds us Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything, and that he had come from God and that he had would return to God.

In other words, right in the middle of all of that chaos, Jesus knew exactly who he was.

That the chaos around him didn't breach the peace on the inside of him.

And because he knew what he, who he was, he was able to look at the situation very differently.

And one of the ways that we're able to see the world, the way Jesus sees the world, is that we can be so confident in who we are in Christ that we can have an humble attitude when it comes to serving.

And don't forget that humility is not thinking less of ourselves, but thinking of ourselves less often.

It's when I know who I am in Christ, I don't have to prove it to you.

I don't have to push my way through life.

I don't have to try to be something I'm not, I don't have to convince you of anything.

I know that Jesus says I am his child, that he died and rose again from my sins, and it doesn't make me better than you.

It makes me better than I would be without Jesus.

Therefore, I can step into this environment, not looking for someone to love me, because I'm already so very loved.

Therefore, I can be confident about looking for somebody else to minister to.

And you can only do that, you can only serve others if you know who you are in Christ.

You can only be humble if you're confident.

Because if you're confident in who you are in Christ, then you don't have to look at everybody else.

Instead, you can look to serve everybody, and that's what serving is.

It reminds me of John the Baptist, having the confidence to follow.

I don't know if you know John the Baptist.

He is one of my favorite people in the whole Bible because Joker's half crazy.

Okay.

He's amazing.

That Johnny B would go outside the town and yell back to the town, you're a bunch of sinners.

You're a brood of vipers.

Can we bring that back?

I mean, come on.

Brood of vipers, you need salvation.

And people would go, Yeah, yeah, I do.

I mean, I'm gonna come over there.

And then he would baptize them in water, and then the Pharisees would come and he would just go, ugh.

Brood of vipers, he called them whitewashed tombs, looking good on the inside, full of dead men bones on the inside.

Can I put that down as my next disc for somebody?

You know, it's amazing.

Jesus himself said, No other prophet was greater than Johnny B.

And you know what was amazing is that when the Pharisees came to him and said, Are you the Messiah?

He didn't have to wonder.

Immediately he said, Absolutely not, but I do know who I am.

I'm the voice of one crying out in the wilderness.

Make way the path of the Lord.

He knew exactly who he was.

Therefore, when he saw Jesus, he said, Behold the Lamb of God.

Only someone who knows who they are in Christ can say something like that.

And then when Jesus' ministry began to grow, you would think someone with that kind of strong personality would be like, Well, I better grow too.

But instead, when his disciples came to him and said, The one that you said was the Lamb of God, his ministry is now bigger than yours, this was his response.

He said, No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven.

You yourselves know how plainly I told you I am not the Messiah.

I am only here to prepare the way for him.

It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom's friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows.

Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success.

He must become greater and greater, and I I must become less and less.

You know what serving is for us?

Is it's putting attention on Jesus.

And when we see glory go to the Lord, and our showing love helps us to share who Christ actually is.

It is the honor of our life because I know who I am in Christ.

Therefore, I have nothing to prove and nobody to impress.

I'm not serving you so you'll think I'm a great Christian.

I'm serving you because I've got a big idea for you.

And that is, I want God to get bigger in your life the way He has in my life.

And the more attention that gets on Jesus, the better I like it.

May He get the spotlight and may He be the one that is glorified.

And so here's my question for you.

This year, is there anything standing in your way from confidently serving others?

This year, is there anything that is standing in your way from confidently serving others?

And if you don't know, that's one of the great things about our 21 days of prayer is that you can take time and go, God, is there anything that would stop me from sharing you with others by serving others, by showing your love and letting that be how I share?

Because for some of us, that that takes a moment to go, why, why would I not?

And maybe there's something there that God wants to bring up in your life.

And so I would ask you to add to your time of prayer if you're praying with us and any one of us can join in.

If you've forgotten, today's the day.

You can start with us.

We're seven days in, and just whatever your prayer life is, adds a little bit to it and ask the question, God, how can I show your love to somebody?

And through that, share your love.

And if you don't haven't already plans on Tuesday nights, you should come join us at prayer on Tuesday nights.

And that should be one of our prayers.

God, how can I be so confident who I am with you that I can focus on others?

And been doing that, it helps me to show your love and share Christ with everyone else.

And that's what it's like to be more like Jesus.

Look at somebody and say, more like Jesus.

I'm gonna be more like Jesus this year.

And I'm gonna do it by seeing serving as an opportunity of confident humility.

Here's the second one, and that Jesus showed us to see serving as a ministry opportunity.

As a ministry opportunity.

Look at somebody else and say, more like Jesus.

My goodness, the King of Kings served.

And if he served to show his love, then he's giving us the opportunity to do the same.

The Bible said this he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin.

And then he, y'all pray for your pastor because that's so gross to me.

But praise the Lord.

He he began to wash the disciples' feet and drying them with the towel he had around him.

Now here's the thing.

I've had people ask me this before.

So, yes, this is different, okay, from the way we live now.

Jesus didn't get in the naked, okay?

That is not what he did.

And so this was the biggest like high holy day of the year for them.

So they would have been dressed up in what we used to call your Sunday best, right?

And so he would have had an overcoat on.

And so what he would have done is he would have taken off his outer coat to make room because he was about to get down to business.

And then he would take, he would take a towel.

Don't you dare worry, I ain't washing none of y'all's feet up in here today.

All right.

And he would get that around him so that he could wash their feet.

And here's the reason why.

It's because during the time they would be getting ready for this great feast day.

And so they would have gone down and they would have, they would have got a bath, got a shower, they'd got on their best clothes, and then they would have walked to where the banquet was.

And so when they walked in, man, they're proud, man.

They got their favorite clothes on.

And from about right below their knees up, man, they look like a million bucks.

But from the knees down, it would be dirty because they're walking through the streets that were made out of bricks and blocks and just dirt, and they would they would be in a dry, arid area, and so just dust would be there.

And so Jesus looks at all of his disciples and he sees they look great.

But from there down, they're dirty.

And instead of looking at them and going, how dare they?

Instead, he says, I see a need.

I can make a difference right there.

I I'm not too great to serve.

These are my brothers, and it's an honor to be able to serve.

And that helps us to realize that everyone has the ability to make a difference.

That if you have the ability to perceive a need, then you have everything you need to do everything God has called you to do.

But the thing is, are we willing to do it?

Because this is what would happen.

That if you went into one of these special banquets, and at that banquet, you were there to be able to, you know, to serve everybody and all that, they would pick the newest hire, okay?

The lowest person, the dishwasher, the lowest person on the totem pole, and that was the one they would say, Hey, we want you to wait at the door, put on your towel, and everybody that comes through, we want you to quickly wash their feet.

It was the lowest person in the house had that job.

And the king, the king of kings, was so confident in who he was that he did not consider it robbery to humble himself down and take the lowest position, not because he thought less of himself, but because he thought so very much of others.

And he saw a need, and he wasn't too good to meet that need.

And that's one of the things I love about us here at RLC is I have seen so many people have that same idea.

They go, man, I love to make a difference.

I see a need and I want to do something about it.

It's what we talk about all the time at our RLC Connect.

We'll say, hey, we would love for you to serve with us.

And so I want to ask you two questions What do you love and what drives you crazy?

We can help you with one of those two things to make a difference.

And one of the things I want to take a moment and do is I want to celebrate a team at our church, and that is, if you saw outside, uh over the past couple of days, we've celebrated 1,000 Bible breakdown episodes.

Can we celebrate that?

It's been absolutely awesome.

That's one of the teams that we have, and it's just been a wonderful, wonderful blessing.

And I know we got a lot of people all over the place, but I want to embarrass everybody uh real quick.

If over the past couple of years, if you've had anything to do with the Bible breakdown, you've wrote devotions, you've done anything like that, you've you've helped spread the word.

Can you stand with us for just a moment so we can recognize you real quick?

Some of y'all, I see you, I'm don't make me call you out.

I see a few of you.

Can we celebrate all of them real quick and say thank you for that so much?

And you can have a seat quickly.

Um, and I also want to say a special thank you to Paige Burley, who does all this one more time.

Let's celebrate her.

So thankful.

And we've had so many people, like that extremely annoying voice you hear at the beginning.

That's Pastor Derek, okay, who who does that.

But then we have those devotions that happen, and she does so much of that stuff.

And here's the thing: that is how we're making a difference.

We saw a need and we met the need.

And it's been amazing how it's been so great.

And here's the thing for all of you who have shared the Bible breakdown with other people.

You saw a need and you met a need.

And I just want to say thank you that you're making a difference and how you go about doing that.

And in order to celebrate that, I wanted to tell you we're gonna do something.

If you notice, I've got one of our Bible breakdown shirts, okay?

You see it right here?

We've got these, and uh, you can scan the QR code, it does work, but we're gonna have these in a couple of weeks, and it's the best way I can think of that we can celebrate 1,000 episodes for the Bible breakdown, and that is that we are going to give all the proceeds above cost to a mission called Illumina Nations, not the Illuminati, okay?

Illumina Nations, and here's the reason why.

Their mission is to translate the Bible into languages that don't have either any or much of the Bible in their native language.

And what they have figured out is for every$35, they can translate one verse into a language.

There's 3,217 some odd languages that don't have the full scripture, and we can be a part of that.

And so we're gonna sell these t-shirts, go be here in a couple of weeks, and every single dime above cost, in order to celebrate God giving us the opportunity to share God's word with each other, we're gonna give all of that, and they say 100% of the proceeds go straight into making those.

And you know what I love is what if we got to be the ones?

What if we got to be the one that God used to translate John 3.16 to somebody?

That somebody in their own language for the very first time could hear, for God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only son, that whosoever, which includes them that are reading it, that whosoever would trust in him would not have to perish, but have eternal life.

What if it was the next verse, 317?

God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, pointing an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was, he came to help.

What if we got to be the ones that said nothing can separate you from the love of God?

That cast all of your anxieties on him because he cares for you.

What if we got to be the one?

I can't think of a better way to do that.

And so in a couple of weeks, you'll see them out in the lobby.

And I would encourage you, if you don't even want to wait on that, you can scan that QR code.

I love it.

An opportunity to share God's timeless word with people.

What if we got to be the one that God used us to see that?

And I love it.

And if you've been reading God's word with us, we're actually in 1 Corinthians.

And how about this?

If you don't currently read the Bible breakdown with us, you can text RLC Bible to 94,000 and you can learn about the Las Vegas of the early church.

The church of Corinth was a dumpster fire and they were learning how to grow in harmony.

And here's what I love is we're gonna read this this week when when Paul is telling them there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same spirit is the source of them all.

There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord.

God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.

A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

Somebody say help each other.

God has given you a unique gift, talent, opportunity to make a difference.

It it may not be the Bible breakdown, but what has God put in your hands?

What has God given you to do?

Can I tell you, God wants to use you to make a difference that only you can make the difference that He wants you to make?

And when you do that, when we serve and we see an opportunity all around us, when we see, we're showing them what the king did.

We're showing that I'm so confident in who I am in Christ that it is nothing for me to humble myself and to think of you.

And when I see a need, I meet it, and in doing that, I'm able to make a difference.

Here's the question What can you do to make a difference this year?

We give you a couple of ideas.

One of them would be to join a life group.

What would it look like today if you went and joined one of those life groups and then you go tell that life group leader, hey, listen, I am going to be your bestest, bestest life group person.

And then you're gonna scare them to death because you know what you're gonna say is you're gonna say, I'm gonna show up early.

Don't do that, okay?

Because usually five minutes before you get there, we're still cleaning our house, okay?

We're getting ready for you.

But you tell them, if you need me here early, I'll sweep the kitchen.

I'll do whatever.

And then you go in looking for needs to meet.

And then you stay after to make sure you kick everybody out at a good time, right?

And you you go and you make a difference.

And Pastor, I can't do anything.

Can you be a friend to somebody?

Can you pray for somebody?

Then we can show the love of Christ and make a difference.

Join the dream team.

What can you do around here that you can show the love of Christ and make a difference?

If you go to Hope Cafe and every time you get some food, you go, man, that's good.

They look like they're having fun.

They are.

You should join them and show others how we can find a need and we can meet it.

Because here's the thing: when we show the love of Christ by how we love and serve one another, we're showing people what Jesus is, what he, what he looks like.

And as we do that, we're making a difference together.

And that's how I want us to share Christ this year is share Christ by becoming more like Jesus every day.

One more time, look at somebody and say, more like Jesus.

And if you want to act like that you are from the south where I am, you got to say, I'm gonna be.

Okay.

I'm gonna be more like Jesus.

Try that on and see how that works.

I'm gonna be more like Jesus.

We don't we don't mess around with extra syllables where I come from, okay?

We just we get it done, all right?

I'm gonna be more like Jesus because I'm gonna show the love of Christ with confident humility by seeing every need as an opportunity, and then here's one more to see serving as an overflow of thankfulness, to see serving as an overflow.

I get so excited about what God has done in my life that I don't mean this bad, but it is not entirely for you.

It's because I love Jesus, and it is my honor to serve you because of my love for Him.

He said it like this He says, I have given you an example to follow.

Do as I have done to you, and I tell you the truth, now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.

Do you know?

I had someone tell me this one time before I had kids.

They said, if you really want to bless somebody, bless their kids, brag on their kids in front of them.

And I was like, No, that's ridiculous.

No, I did you bless me, okay?

Brag on me.

That's how you bless me, right?

And then I had kids of my own.

And I would I would notice how people would come up to me and they would brag on my girls, and I'd be like, Yeah, that they are kind of awesome, and I'm their dad.

You know, it was it was great.

And I started to realize, you know, the great greatest ways to bless the Lord?

Bless his children.

You want to be thankful for it?

And you want to show him that you're thankful?

Bless his kids and say, God, I'm so thankful for you that I want to show you by being your hands and feet in the lives of others.

Jesus said it like that as well.

He showed us in uh at the end of Matthew, he was giving an analogy of what it looked like at the end of time, and everybody is standing before the throne, and and the king is judging the righteous from the unrighteous.

And he says this he says that the king will say to those on the right, Come, you who are blessed by my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.

For I was hungry and you fed me.

I was thirsty and you gave me a drink.

I was a stranger and you invited me into your home.

I was naked and you gave me clothing.

I was sick and you cared for me.

I was in prison and you visited me.

Then these righteous ones will reply, Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink, or a stranger and show you hospitality, or for heaven's sake, naked and give you clothing.

When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?

And the king will say, I will tell you the truth.

When you did it to one of the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me.

Can I tell you what I've learned in my life?

You're never closer to the heart of God than when you're serving others.

Never closer to the heart of God than when you're serving others.

Because what I've noticed in my life is that when I'm worshiping God, I'm worshiping him, but the presence of God is just kind of, think of it like this, it's just kind of filling me up.

But then when I start serving somebody else, we become a conduit for God's presence.

And we got one hand with him, and we get one hand on somebody else, and now we get all of it.

Do you want to experience God's presence like never before?

Instead of just holding on to him, hold on to him and hold on to somebody else.

And watch how his power will flow through you and to somebody else.

It's one of the reasons why we tell everybody whenever you do anything to serve somebody else, do it as an act of worship and watch that it truly is more blessed to give than to receive.

And that anything you do to make a difference does just that.

It makes a difference.

And as we do that this year, my hope is that we will experience that we will do it for God, that everything we do, we will do for God.

And there's nothing too big, there's nothing too small.

But when we do it with confident humility, when we do it to see every need is an opportunity, and then when we realize that it's all an act of thankfulness, we can share Christ by showing Christ.

It reminds me of a story that I heard one time, and I got to watch the guy who was who was telling his this testimony, and he he took he was talking about the idea that sometimes we overlook the greatest miracles.

And he he was saying, We we love these great big miracles that happen.

He said, But some of the greatest miracles in my life was when somebody just simply noticed me and served.

And he tells a story about how he was going through a very difficult time in his life, and he said he was working third shift, and so he was just just his schedule was messed up, and he he would just drive by uh this neighborhood and he would see everybody having a good time, but he didn't know anybody, and he was getting more and more lonely going through the season of life, and he he finally decided he'd had enough.

He said, Nobody would miss me anyway.

And as the teenagers would say, he decided to unalive himself.

And he said that he planned it out, went and bought a firearm and was planning on at the end of his shift, at the end of the week, which happened to be a Sunday, that he was going to go home and unalive himself.

And he said that Sunday morning, on his way home, he passed by a church, a church that he had passed by a hundred times.

And he said, You know, since this is my my last day going by this church, I might as well go on in and see what they've got going on.

So he said he goes in and he walks in the front door.

And he said, when he walked in the front door, somebody from across the room was like, Hey, what's going on?

And he said, This guy ran up to him and gave him like a big hug.

Didn't even ask his permission.

He said, I didn't know this guy.

He was a complete stranger.

It reminds me of a few people that are out front of our building on Sunday mornings.

And he said, I'm so glad you're here.

Do we know each other?

Not yet, we don't.

He told him his name and he said, I am so glad you're here.

Over here we got coffee, over here we got breakfast, over here is a seat.

You're gonna sit right by me.

And after church, we're going to get waffles.

Okay, we got this.

He's like, he immediately said he was so shocked by what was going on because he's like, he said, be honest with you, he said, I hadn't been, I hadn't had anybody really talk to me in so long.

He said, I was just like, oh, okay.

And he said, before I knew it, I found myself with a cup of coffee and a Danish just sitting, waiting for church to start.

How did I get here?

You know?

And he said, he his testimony said, it hit me about halfway through the service.

That was the first time somebody looked me in the eye, smiled at me, and hugged me.

And I couldn't remember when.

He said, I grew up in a family, you didn't hug each other.

He said, the only time that you were touched was in anger.

And he said, I hadn't been hugged in maybe ever.

And he said, I didn't know it at the time, but a little bit of ice chipped off my heart.

And I thought, well, I guess I'm here.

I might as well listen to what's going on.

And he said, he got to hear about the love of Jesus and that the King of Kings died on a cross and rose again for him.

And he said, Well, I don't have anything much to do with my life.

I might as well give it to Jesus.

And he gave his life to Jesus, changed his life.

And he said, after church, he went and he threw away his stuff and found the guy.

And he said, He was just as happy.

Hey, did you have a good time at church?

You ready for waffles?

And he's like, Hey, wait, wait, wait, wait.

He said, I need you to come out to the car, I need to give you something.

And he said, He went up to the car and he opened up the glove compartment.

He gave him his firearm and he said, Hey, I don't need this anymore.

He said, I I think I think I'm gonna give this Jesus a try.

I met him five years later when he was in charge of the greeting team.

And he said, Don't you tell me that God can't do anything?

He said, A hug, looking somebody in the eye, and smiling them can change a life because God can use that because he It for me.

Can I tell you?

If you can look somebody in the eye, if you can smile at them with both of your teeth, and if you can give somebody a hug with their permission, introverts, you're welcome.

Okay.

If you can do that, so telling what God can do.

What have you got in your hands?

I don't have anything.

Have you got your attention?

You can give that to somebody and you can share Christ by showing Christ.

And here's the promise for all of us, and that is this that God is not unjust.

And that He will not forget when you decide to take that step how hard you have worked for Him and how you have shown your love to Him by caring for other believers as you still do.

And I want to use that scripture to answer the objection that I get sometimes because sometimes I get the objection and say, But Pastor, I want to serve.

But if I'm honest with you, I'm so weary.

I feel like I've I've I've constantly been serving others, but but when is it gonna be my turn?

When is somebody gonna smile back at me?

When is somebody gonna look me in the eye?

When is it finally gonna be my turn?

Can I tell you?

God is not unjust, he will not forget all that you're doing and how hard you have worked for him.

And can I tell you, when you serve others, God is doing more for you than you realize.

God is moving more than you can see.

So many times we have to look back behind us to really notice and see that God was there all the time.

And can I tell you, if there's ever been a time in our world, we need some people who are willing to get out into the harvest fields and make disciples.

I don't know what world you live in.

I live in a world where if I could, I'd run away from the news cycle.

I'm so weary of protests and for reasons for protests and for everything else that's going on.

And I get so weary, and I don't know about you, but if I'm not careful, I get jaded in my own heart.

I get I get weary in my own heart to where now when I hear of something bad happening, it doesn't bother me like it used to.

Because once you've heard it a thousand times, a thousand and one is just another pile.

And I don't know about you, but if I'm not careful, in 2025, I found myself starting to just kind of lean back and react instead of respond.

But can I tell you what I feel like God's calling us to do as a church this year?

I feel like God is calling us to get off our back foot and instead to lean in this year and go, you know what?

I personally can't make a difference out there, but I can make a difference right here.

I can know God with all of my heart.

I can grow in freedom and help somebody else take a next step, and I can share the love of Christ by showing the love of Christ.

And if I do it, and if you do it, and if the next person does it, and if we will all do it, eventually there is an avalanche of people who are sharing the love of Christ, but it's got to start with somebody.

What if it was me?

What if it was you that said, I want to be more like Jesus this year, and I want to be the one to drop a pebble in the water and watch the wave slowly reach out to somewhere like Minneapolis, somewhere like California, somewhere like Florida and Maine?

And what if it started right here?

And it wasn't through great gestures, but it was through daily serving and showing the love of God.

What is it that you can do to be more like Jesus this year?

In just a moment, we're gonna have an opportunity for the band who's gonna come and lead us in a song of worship.

And my question for you is going to be what do you need to bring to the Lord today?

Maybe where you are, you love Jesus, you have a relationship with him, and you and you want this year to be the best year of your life because it's gonna be your best year spiritually.

What if this year you just brought it to the Lord and said, God, put me in, put me into the game.

How can I best share you by showing love to others?

That's gonna have to be a very honest conversation with God because it might be putting your hands to work and sharing, it might be something deeper, and it might be extending forgiveness to somebody, it might be having a hard conversation with someone.

I don't know what that's going to be.

That's why it's up to the Holy Spirit to tell you what it is.

And in just a moment, as the band leads us in that song of worship, that could be your prayer.

God, how do you want me to share you by showing your love this year?

Maybe you're in here and you don't know about the love of God.

You've heard all about him, but you don't know him.

Can I tell you?

Jesus loves you, he is after you, he came on a rescue mission for you.

The Bible said he went all the way to the cross, died on the cross, was dead for three days, rose again for you.

Hebrews says it was the joy set before him that he endured the cross.

That joy was you.

Do you know Jesus?

He knows you.

And you've never been more loved than you are right now.

That right now, in this moment, he wants you to come home.

He wants you to experience his love.

That's what salvation is.

Salvation is saying, God, I want to go all in for you, like that guy who said, Hey, listen, I'm not doing much with my life.

I might as well give it all to you.

When he encountered the love of God, he said, I want everything that God has.

Well, that means giving everything you have to him.

We don't just give him our sin, we give him our hopes, our dreams, our worries, our fears.

We bow at the feet of Jesus.

We ask him to wash away our sin and become our Lord and our savior.

And I got just going to spoiler alert, it's the best decision you'll ever make.

Then what he actually does is he gives you more than you could ask, think, or imagine.

He gives us hope.

He gives us joy.

Is that you?

Do you need Jesus today?

Well, in just a moment, as we worship with this final song, your next best act of worship is to give your life to Jesus.

On the back of your connect card is the plan of salvation.

It says, What I just said, that salvation is going all in with Jesus.

And this is what I would love for you to do.

As soon as we begin to worship the Lord, I want you to find your way out of your seed.

I want you to meet us back at the prayer table.

It's got the prayer banner right there, and just look at us and say, I want to know Jesus, and we'll take it from there.

We'll talk to you about who Jesus is, and we want to be there with you when you pray the plan of the prayer of salvation because we want to watch you be born into the kingdom of God.

I can tell you about it, but I can't explain it because it's one thing to know about the love of God, and it's another to experience the love of God for yourself.

I want to tell you, if you don't know Jesus, it's time to come home.

It's time to let Jesus change your life.

What next step do you need to take today?

Let's pray together right now.

God, thank you so much for today.

God, thank you that you are with us and that you are for us in every way.

God, I'm so thankful that you are with us, you are for us, and you are working in us more than we realize.

God, there are for others of us.

We had no idea why we came here today, but now that we're here, we realize that you're speaking to us to take a next step.

We had been wondering if we need to take that step.

God, maybe this is that moment.

We say, Yes, serve, give, be with those people.

Take the next step.

God, we need your you to give us the courage to step into that moment.

Others of us, God, we're so weary.

Lord, we're weary of what's going on in the world, and how can we make a difference?

And you're helping us to realize we can make a difference.

One conversation at a time, one act of kindness at a time, one prayer at a time.

Help us to realize we're not doing this thing called life alone.

We're doing it with you, and we're doing it with our brothers and sisters.

Help us, Lord, to have the courage to take every next step.

And Lord, I pray for maybe somebody in here today, they don't know you, Jesus, but today's the day.

Today is the day of salvation for them.

Thank you for the honor of just even being in the same room with someone who is about to be born again.

It is our honor and privilege to be a part of what you're doing in this place.

I celebrate in advance and I pray you will silence the voice of the enemy and make your voice, Holy Spirit, the loudest thing that they can hear to remind them that they are loved, that you want a relationship with them, and that today is the day of salvation.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

And would you stand with me all over the house this morning?

I'm so thankful for the goodness of God.

I'm so thankful that He gives us the opportunity to serve, to show His love.

I'm so thankful for the goodness of God.

And I don't I don't know what next step you need to take in here today.

Maybe, maybe just where you are as we worship the Lord, you just need to just worship him and just remember the faithfulness of God.

Maybe you need to recommit your life that this year I'm going to make a difference.

Maybe you just need someone to pray with you.

The prayer table is not just for folks who want to become who want to get saved, but it's for anyone who would like to receive prayer.

Maybe you're in here today, and today's the day of salvation for you.

We want to meet you at the prayer table and we want to talk about what it is to know Jesus.

But whatever you need to do, let's take the next few moments and focus our attention on the Lord.