The Mystery of the Gospel

Hey, good morning and welcome to church.

I'm so excited.

It doesn't sound like it because I've lost my voice, but I thought you were just trying to try the like a another persona.

Yeah, yeah.

This is my new house.

Maybe I can put a filter on it.

We're so glad you're here.

My name is Brandon.

Yeah, and we got uh some fun things planned.

Uh and God has got some stuff for us today.

So we're just throwing you here and we can list wherever you're at.

Go ahead and raise your expectation level because God's gonna do something.

Uh if you've been tracking with a few node, raising your expectation level can be raised with the track.

If you've been tracking with a few nose, then uh we just started this new series called Four Generations, and this is gonna be an amazing series.

Week one was already off the charts.

Uh and for the next four weeks we're gonna be diving in today uh and what it'll look like for us as a church family to really so feed the thing that would uh bring about our harvest in the generations to come.

And so we're believing that God's gonna use this, and this is really fit and favor.

We feel like God's got it for us over the next few years of ministry.

And so make sure that you go back and check out week one if you do this, but we're gonna dive into that today with Rust has growth.

Um before we get anything, we got some things coming down the back.

Um, that's what you need.

Weekend coming up, um before generations kicked off, you know, big old thing, so just make sure that you are in the middle on that.

Like the first letter of each word.

Like if you like I Y K.

Like those little case you missed it.

Like, you're not gonna like instead of saying another word, you just take the first letter.

Yeah, anyway, then we're trying to figure out and uh you'll be able to be in the note, and you won't have to worry about the photo or missing it.

And so uh which is a great tool.

You can uh kind of prevent pressure the preventation.

You can kind of prevent the drive, you can uh take an excess, you can do a few, you can share, you can do all the things.

Does the list go on?

It continues to go on, yes, it does.

But all those events are coming up.

We do have what drive?

Yes, drive coming up on 13th, February 13th.

And uh tell the people what drive is.

We will not be there.

Yeah, we will not be there.

Because it's uh ladies in it.

And uh it's one it's an awesome gathering.

Uh we have to leave worship for a couple times and it's it's it's it's amazing.

Uh make sure you ladies, you are signed up for that.

You're gonna be doing uh a gathering of October 13th just for you at our social circle campus so you can find out the details on the app.

Um make sure you do that.

And then also uh we're gonna talk about Tunata weekend.

I mean, let's just talk about it.

Oh there's a lot to talk about.

Yes, this is one of our favorite weekends of the year.

Three days.

Three days of awesomeness where we get away with some students and God shows up.

Um, definition of the show notes.

Yes, we will.

And uh and he he works, man, every year.

So this is one of our favorite weekends of the year.

We're really believing that God's gonna move.

I just heard uh that um I just heard that little bird just told me.

I was at a conference this past weekend and they were sharing with us that across the nation right now, uh engagement with Christian college ministries is up 200%.

200% engagement.

So in case you're not good at math like me, that's uh two times a hundred.

Yes.

Yes, that's it's a huge deal.

So uh God is working in the next generation, and we are fully believing that God's gonna partner with him in there, and so United Weekend is is our one of our ways that we get to do that, and so we'll talk about it.

A couple of things we're asking you to do.

First of all, pray.

We believe in the power of prayer, uh, and so we're asking all of our church families to be in prayer over that weekend and over our students as we encounter God together and pray that God just awakens them uh and and and uh love on them this weekend uh and challenges them.

And then also uh I mean if you want to give towards that and maybe uh scholarship a kid, uh that would be awesome as well.

You can do that.

And then thirdly, we'd love for you to volunteer and be a part.

Uh part of one of the things we're talking about in this four generations series is how we can be a church family that is actively engaged in every generation, investing the gospel into the next.

And so this is a really practical way for you to do that.

Uh so come volunteer with us.

I promise you you won't regret it.

It'll be the best use of your time, and you'll walk away from that weekend uh having a cup completely filled up even more than you gave.

So, yeah, make sure you do that.

It's gonna be awesome.

Alright, yeah.

I think that's it.

That's it.

I think so.

Cut them off.

Cut them off.

So like satisfying.

Just check something off.

I'm not a big blessed Catholic.

Then I got married, didn't go to bed early, then I got married, and that's just great.

Yeah.

Alright, well we're gonna jump into the sermon.

Yeah.

So uh, or actually we're gonna jump in a worship and then the sermon.

Yep.

And then us again.

Yeah, and then we'll say bye.

Yeah.

But until then, we'll just say see you later.

It's the only way for me.

But I want to be on the road.

Take you out.

Take you back.

You said you heart, ever save me.

You say I'm saying call me yours.

You said my future of yourself, I know that you never be done.

I've seen how good it works.

I'll take you at your work.

Well, it is great to see all of you here this morning.

Um my name is Ryan had a chance to meet you yet.

And one of the half you're here at church and road, and I didn't know that all of you here this morning.

I know that many of you are part of our church family, you're regular attenders, and and you would kind of consider this home.

Some of you are in the process of deciding whether this is your home or not.

Some of you here for the first thing.

And I want to feel welcome to you if you're here for the first maybe second time.

And I hope you might have brought this book back.

If you didn't you can get one.

Um we might get.

Get them to you as you're sitting here.

But if regardless, if you want to follow along, you can turn to page 29.

We'll be in page 29.

And there's just a place for you to take some sermon notes.

If you've got your Bibles, we're going to be walking through this passage in out of Ephesians chapter 3, verses 14.

Ephesians 3:14

Verse 14 is where we're going to be today.

And I'm going to basically teach on one verse.

Maybe not even the whole verse.

But this one verse.

And here's what Paul says.

And I'm going to give you a little bit of context, hopefully, that will help you understand this.

The apostle Paul says in verse 14, it's a prayer.

He is praying for the church.

He begins the whole book of Ephesians with this lengthy prayer for the church.

And in verse 14, here's what he says.

He says, When I think of all this, and I'm reading out of the New Living Translation, he says, When I think of all this, when I think of all this, what does he mean?

What's he thinking of?

What is all this that he is thinking of?

The English Standard Version would say, for this reason.

For what reason?

For what reason?

He is referring to something that he has already talked about, that he's already discussed, that he has already been over.

And he says, when I think of all this, I fall to my knees and I pray to the Father.

And so what brings him to his knees?

Because here's what Paul is saying.

He says, when I think of all this, what is all of this?

What is all of this?

He says, because when I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father.

The ESV says, for this reason I bow my knees before the Father.

So what does he mean when I think of all this?

When I think of all this, you've got to understand what Paul has just come out of in Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

And what he has done is he has explained the gospel and how it affects us individually and how it affects us collectively.

As a body of people, as a church, as God's people.

That's what he means.

When I think of all this, he's referring back.

What is the gospel?

What is even the gospel?

What does that word mean?

The gospel is it means good news.

It is the good news of Jesus.

The gospel, and here's the big idea for this morning.

The gospel, the good news is revealed to revealed to reveal.

What is it revealed to reveal?

Jesus to all generations.

Jesus to all generations.

So when Paul says, when I think of all of this, when I think of all of this, he is speaking of the gospel and what he has taught.

What he has taught, and specifically it's this the mystery of the gospel revealed in Christ Jesus.

The mystery of the gospel revealed in Christ Jesus.

Here's verses four through six of chapter three.

He says, as you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan.

What is this plan regarding Christ?

God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.

And this is God's plan.

This is God's plan.

What is God's plan?

That both Gentiles and Jews who believe the good news share equally in the riches inherited by God's children.

Now, what do we mean by Gentile and Jew?

In the Jewish world, all people are divided into one of two groups.

You're either a Gentile, and a Gentile is simply a person who is not Jewish.

So most of us in this room, if not 100% of us in this room, are Gentiles.

And in their world, you are either a Gentile or you are Jew.

And Jew is it doesn't so much come across negative in our culture as it has in the past, but but the word Jew is not necessarily meant to be a positive reference to God's people.

They are God's people, they are Israel, they are Hebrew.

That would be the more appropriate way to refer to them, but sometimes we just I refer to Jewish because that is a common way to understand it.

So he says, both Gentiles and Jews who believe the good news share equally in the riches inherited by God's children.

Both are part of the same body and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

And so he's talking about the mystery of the gospel revealed in Christ Jesus.

It is for the Jew and it is for the Gentile.

It is, you know what?

It's for all people.

And so the mystery of the gospel brings, first of all, it brings the dead to life.

So we're going back even farther.

Let's go back to Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

So when Paul says, when I think of all of this, he is thinking about the power of the gospel revealed through Christ, and he goes back to chapter 1.

If we want to understand it fully, let's go back to chapter 1, I'm sorry, chapter 2, verse 1.

And it's a, it's a, it's a, we find ourselves in a predicament.

Because Paul says this, once you were dead, because of your disobedience and many sins.

Once you were dead, you were dead.

Does he say hurt?

Does he say kind of injured?

Does he say you're in a in a in a a little bit of a pickle?

He says, you're dead.

You're dead.

And you say, well, Russ, I'm walking around, I'm breathing.

I'm breathing, so I'm alive.

Well, you you can physically be alive, but you can spiritually be dead.

At the same time, you can physically be alive, but you can spiritually be dead.

And that means to be separated from God.

When Adam and Eve, when they disobeyed God, they were given the whole garden, and they were given the tree of life, and then they were given God put the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden, and he said, You can eat of this tree, it brings life.

Do not touch this tree, it will bring death.

And what did they do?

They listened to the temptation of the enemy and they took from that tree.

And God said, You can't stay in my presence, and he removed them from the garden, and they became spiritually dead.

They were alive physically, but they were spiritually dead.

So you can be alive physically, but you can be spiritually dead.

As a matter of fact, we're all born, we're born into sin.

We're born into spiritual death.

He says, once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins.

So dead is dead.

It is separated from God.

It is eternal, it is eternal damnation.

It is headed down this path where you will end up separated from God in eternal hell.

It is a real place, and it is for spiritually dead people.

But he doesn't leave us in the predicament.

In verse four, it said, but God.

But God.

Those are two of the most beautiful words that are in the Bible.

Because you were dead, but God.

But God intervened.

God provided.

God gave you a gift.

God offers the revelation of Jesus Christ.

He brings good news.

He says, you have victory in Jesus, but God steps in.

But God steps in.

It says, but God is so rich in mercy and he loved us so much that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead.

It is only by God's grace that you have been saved.

Amen.

Yes.

You were dead, but God.

But God came to bring you life.

God who is rich in mercy.

Thank you, God, for mercy and grace.

And then he gives you a purpose.

Verses 8 through 10, he says, it says this.

It says, God saved you by his grace when you believed.

When you believed, it's as simple as that.

When you believe, Jesus says, He says, repent and believe.

The kingdom of God has come now.

Mark 1.14.

Repent and believe.

Repent means to turn and believe means to trust.

Trust, what are we trusting in?

We're trusting in what Christ has come and brought us.

He gave us his life.

He gave us death.

His death on a cross provided for our redemption and our forgiveness.

They buried him in a tomb.

He was bodily resurrected to prove that he had power over sin and death in the grave.

That is the gospel.

That is the good news.

God saved you by his grace when you believed.

When you believed.

If you haven't believed yet, you don't have life.

If you haven't believed yet, you're still dead.

And he says, you can't take credit for this.

It is a gift from God.

Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done.

And so none of us can boast about it.

For we are God's masterpiece.

That word is the word poema in the Greek language.

Obviously, it's translated into the English as the word poem.

But it also could refer to a piece of art or a piece of pottery, something beautifully made.

So it says, we are God's.

He has created us anew in Christ Jesus so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.

Long ago.

So Paul says, He says, He says, when I think of all of this, when I think of all of this, what I just talked about, it brings me to my knees.

In prayer.

Listen, God is calling us to pray.

We're in a season of prayer.

I heard someone say recently that said that if you don't pray prayers that intimidate you, your prayers might be an insult to God.

If your prayers do not intimidate you, they might be an insult to God.

So God has brought us, He's brought us, but He doesn't finish there.

He talks about your salvation.

He talks about our individual salvation.

Then He speaks to how it impacts us collectively.

The mystery of the gospel removes the barriers of hostility between groups of people.

So as I explained to you, everything in that world, all people were divided into one of two groups, Jews or Gentiles.

But here's what God says.

God says, Jesus, the apostle Paul is teaching us that when Jesus died on the cross and he was buried and bodily resurrected, and he begins to redeem people, he redeems them to a new humanity where there are no more barriers.

What is he referring to physically?

He's referring to these dividing lines that they had literally with the temple, the physical temple of God.

And so if you see the picture here, and this is just the temple that would have been on top of the temple mount that Herod built.

But what you've got is you've got these different categories where specific people, depending on their gender or their nationality, where they can walk and where they can go.

And there's a little line just inside the exterior of this temple picture, and it has little gaps in it.

You see the little gaps?

That wall probably was about this tall.

I don't know, four to five feet tall.

And it was called it was it was the barrier between where Gentiles were allowed and not allowed to go.

It's what Paul says is the wall of hostility.

Verse 17.

Here's what he says in chapter 2 of Ephesians.

He says, He brought this good news of peace to you Gentiles.

And he's talking about you who were not Jewish, you who were not Hebrew, who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near.

So the Gentiles were not allowed to go close to the most holy place.

And even if you were Jewish, you were not allowed into the most holy place.

And so he brought this good news of peace to you, Gentiles who were far away from him, and to peace to the Jews who were near.

Now, all of us, now who?

How many?

All of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.

So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners.

Now, to all of us in this room, that ought to be good news.

Because before Jesus gave his life, you were strangers and you were foreigners.

But he says, no longer, no longer.

You are citizens along with all God's holy people.

You are members of God's family.

Amen.

Yes, hallelujah.

Y'all are a bunch of Baptists, can't clap.

Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, and the core stone is Christ Jesus Himself.

We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.

Through him, you are you through him, you Gentiles, are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his spirit.

1871, archaeologists discovered pieces of this wall.

And they had signs that were actually carved into the stones.

And so they found two stones.

Two specific stones that said, do not proceed any further for fear of death.

And it was for Gentiles to know where their place was.

And so Paul says, those of you who were once, who were once far off, can now be brought near.

There are no more lines of segregation.

There are no more barriers.

We all can come to God through Jesus Christ.

And so our heavenly reality is going to be a multi ethnic, multi-people group existence.

John writes it this in on the screen.

It says, after this, I love a great multitude that no one could count from every nation, tribe, and people and language standing before the throne and before the Lamb.

And this is what Paul says when he says, when I think of all this, when I think of all this, he is thinking of the gospel for us individually, and the gospel for us as a people.

And it crosses boundaries.

Now I want you to hear a testimony.

We're going to hear some testimonies over the next few weeks.

So I want you to hear this is this is this is a a testimony of someone who's experienced the mystery of the gospel in their life personally recently.

So I want you to listen to my friend Jennifer.

I actually didn't grow up in church.

Leading up to moving to Georgia, I always felt like something was missing in my life.

I tried to fill that void in every way possible.

Illegal substances, alcohol, relationships.

And nothing ever filled it.

It was just like, nope, that's not working on to the next thing.

So then when I started dating Caleb, um I started to realize that what I was missing was Jesus.

And so I just became more and more interested as time went on.

And um then in 2019, I was sitting in my driveway.

Um I had worship music on, and I literally could just feel like God was saying, like, just come be with me.

Like I want a relationship with you.

Like, so I really just started like crying in my car and um asked God to be a part of my life forever, and that I knew that was what was missing, what that hole was.

Then in July of 2019, I got baptized, and ever since then I've just been really invested in trying to find out more, understand more, get more involved with the church.

Um And so I started volunteering in the kids' growth because it was really important to me to see kids grow up knowing Jesus, knowing how much they're loved, knowing that, you know, before they were even born, that God knew them and loved them.

You know, I didn't have that as a kid.

And so that it's just really awesome to see that.

So volunteering in the kids' group has really helped with my relationship with God because it's nice to sometimes see like how how simple the existence of God and the love of Jesus really is, and that sometimes as adults we overcomplicate it when it's really just so simple.

He made you, he you know, created you, he loves you, he wants a relationship with you, and has a hand in every single part of your life.

I think now that I'm pregnant and expecting a child, I think a lot of my hopes and dreams for her have already started to come true of having people surround her with love and prayer and you know hoping that she'll have a relationship with God and knowing that God created her before she was even in my womb, and that He loves her, He sings over her, and all that has already been expressed to us throughout the church before I've even given birth.

She's not even here yet, and I already know that so many people love her, are excited for her, can't wait to you know see her in the kids' grove.

And it's just nice to see that people are excited to meet her and to help us, you know, feed that relationship with God.

So we give regularly, every single week we give.

And sometimes it's tough, sometimes we don't always have an adsorbent amount of money, but and there's been times where Caleb's even said to me, I don't think we can tithe this week.

Like we don't have the money, we're stretched thin.

And I always say no, because God will provide in one way or another, and when times have gotten tough, you know, uh a bill actually got double paid, or we got a credit, or we've, you know, come across an extra amount of money that helps us cover a bill.

And I've over and over again when Gill says, you know, I don't know, times are tough.

I always look him straight in the face.

I think God will provide.

And he's looked at me and said, I don't get it.

And I'm like, you don't get what?

He's like, I just don't get your like endless, never-changing, like solid faith that no matter what is going wrong or what's hard, that God is gonna provide and God's gonna make a way for us.

And I said, Because I lived 22 years of my life without him in it, and I've seen and done horrible things, and I now see what my life is like with God in it, and it's uh it's night and day, it's dark and light.

Like because I've seen that huge shift in my life, when things get hard, I don't have a doubt in my mind that it's gonna be okay and it's gonna work out.

And so I think that's why it's so easy for me to give to Church of the Girls because I know that there are way bigger plans and purposes that I can't even begin to understand that God has in the works, and so I just lay it out for him.

Isn't that great?

The power of a testimony and God working.

I want to bring you back to remind you, and remind you every week, what we are doing in this generosity initiative is not about a building.

It's not about a building.

So let's say, can we say that together?

It's not about a building.

It's about these stories.

It's about, it's about it's about what Paul tells us for this reason.

When I think of these things, what am I thinking of?

I'm thinking of these stories.

I'm thinking of how he's changed my life when I think of these things.

When I think of these things, I can't help but but to fall to my knees in prayer.

It is not about a building, it's not about a building, it's about these three three things I'm just gonna bring you back to.

It's about pressing into the person in the presence of Jesus.

When I think of these things, it is about Jesus.

It's all about Jesus, nothing but Jesus.

Pressing into the person in the presence of Jesus.

I was dead.

I was dead, but God.

But God made me alive through through his rich mercy and grace.

He made me alive and he gave me a purpose.

He says, You are a masterpiece.

When I think of these things, I fall to my knees in prayer.

And so it's first about pressing into the person in the presence of Jesus, and then it's about us together.

Everyone sows, everyone takes part.

We are all impacted, as we read in the gospel.

We who were not a people are now a people.

There are no more Gentiles and Jews, we're all God's children, we're all in Christ.

And so everybody, 100% together.

And then thirdly, the end result, if we're people of prayer and we're praying prayers, prayers that might intimidate us.

And if we don't pray prayers that intimidate, that aren't intimidating to us, they might be an insult to God.

And so, as we wrestle, as we wrestle, we gave you a commitment card.

I want you to, I want you to hopefully you put that on your kitchen table.

If you don't have one, grab one on the way out.

Today, make sure you have one of these commitment cards.

And and there there's there's on the back of the card, there's a spot that is blank and where you fill in and you wrestle with what you are giving now.

I love hearing Jennifer.

She says, we can't help but to give because of what we have been given.

I can't help but to give because of what I've been given.

And you think about what am I giving back to God now?

And then there's another little box, and it and it it's blank on your card, but it's that box that you would pray over over these next few weeks.

What am I going to give in addition to what I'm giving now?

If you're giving zero now, then the question is, God, what are you calling me to give?

If you're giving a specific amount, God, what do you want me to give that I can put in that next box?

And then you would add those two together and multiply them over two years.

And that would be your two-year commitment.

And so, but I I want to explain that, but but here's where I want to land.

We can't help but to give because of what we have been given.

Amen.

So, Father, we ask that you would work in our hearts, and that we can say with the apostle Paul, when I think of these things, when I think of these things, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father.

And so, Father, we pray to you now to work in our heart because we are thinking of how you have saved us and how you have saved us individually, but you've also saved us into a new humanity where there is no longer Jew or Gentile, white or black.

God, we are all one in Christ.

And so we as your church, as your body, we come before you in prayer and we ask, Lord, how would you speak to us?

How would you lead us?

How would you guide us to proceed?

God, reveal it to us.

Just as you have vealed Christ to us, God, may we seek your heart on our knees.

God, we come to pray big things because you are a big God.

And we thank you.

It's in Jesus' name, we thank you.

Would you hey thank you so much for worshiping with us today.

We hope that you are just challenged and encouraged around God's word and what we're talking about uh this morning, sowing seeds of gospel, uh, investing in the next generation, and sowing seeds of faith this morning.

And so uh whatever your next step looks like, we want to help you in that.

And so if you are just now deciding you want to follow Jesus or have find out more information about that, or uh if you've been following Jesus for a while and and God is calling you to something uh to another next step, we want to resource that and uh partner with you.

And so we'd love to give you some resources.

If you would text start to follow to 97000, start to follow all one word to 97000, and we would again just love to partner with you for uh whatever God is calling you to next and help you in that journey.

Yeah, so good.

All right, we're so glad that you guys spent some time with us this morning and uh we're so thankful that you're done that.

But we would love for you to come and join us.

We got plenty of services and options and campuses for you to be able to come and hang out with us.

Social Circle is at 10 a.m.

on Sunday.

Walnut Grove is 9:30 and 11 on 11.

9 and 11.

I'm not gonna go social circle.

9 and 11, and then there is also a 5 p.m.

service on Sunday night now that is evidently doing really well.

Yeah, it's awesome.

And so um, so please come and get engaged, hang out with us.

Um, but if there's anything else that we can do for you this week, please let us know.

We would love to help you and resource you in any way.

Download the app so that you can stay connected with everything that's going on.

And um, yeah, you ladies, don't forget about Thrive coming up and uh students, it's coming up in the weekend, yeah, uh first weekend of March.

So don't forget about those things, it's gonna be really powerful.

Outside of that, we hope you have a great week.

Love you guys.