Continue to Believe| Abundant Life Ministries

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Heat. Heat. N.

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Heat. Heat.

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Heat.

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Heat. Heat. Heat.

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I know

you

feel you.

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You can hear the loading, please.

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That's

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something. Heat. Heat.

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Good morning, church. Happy

Easter. Are you guys excited to be in

the house of the Lord? What a great day

to come and worship our savior on the

day that he was risen. Hallelujah. So

this morning, we're just going to come

and we're going to praise him. We're

going to sing about how he came out of

that grave and he brought us out of that

grave with him. So, we're going to

declare that this morning. Here we go.

Surely it was

through. Since when has

impossible ever stopped

you? Friday's

disappointment is Sunday's empty too.

Since when has

impossible ever stopped

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you? This is the sound of dry

bones. This is the praise. Make a dead

man walk

again. Open the grave. I'm coming out.

I'm going to live. Going to live again.

This is the sound of

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Jon.

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Yeah. Pentecostal

fire is stirring something

new. You're not going to run out of

miracles anytime soon.

The resurrection

power arrives in my veins,

too. I believe there's another miracle

here in this

room. This is the sound of

J. Come on, you believe

it. This is the make a dead man walk

again. Oh, baby, I'm coming out. I'm

going to live. going to live again.

Yeah. See the sound of

dry.

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[Applause]

Yeah. Come on. If you believe there's

power in the name of Jesus in his

resurrection life, that he overcame,

that he rose. Hallelujah. Lord, we thank

you for your

life. If you walk down the grave, I'm

walking to

you. If you are down of the grave, I'm

walking to

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you. If you walked out of the grave, I'm

walking to you.

If you are down at the grave I'm walking

to. Yes. Yes. If you are down in the

grave I'm walking

to. Yeah. If you are down in the grave

I'm walking

to. Yeah. If you walk down the grave I'm

walking to.

You walk down the grave I'm walking

to cuz there ain't no

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way that can hold my body

down and there ain't

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nobody there.

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over from this

sound. I'm going to ride down out of the

ground cuz there ain't no

grave

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nobody

down.

Hallelujah. Just say hallelujah.

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Oh

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[Applause]

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yeah. This is the sound. This is the

sound of

dr. This is the breeze. Make a dead man

walk again.

Open the grave. I'm coming out. I'm

going to live. Going to live again. Open

the grave. I'm coming out. I'm going to

live. Going to live again. Open the

grave. I'm coming out. I'm going to

live. Going to live again. Let's say

this is the sound.

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Drop. Yeah.

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My God is able to save and deliver and

heal and restore anything that he wants

to. Come on, let's confess this. My God

is able to save and deliver and heal and

restore anything. Come on. The empty

tomb is the proof. He can do anything.

My God is able to save and

deliver him and restore anything that he

wants to.

Just ask a man who

on

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the

he just as the star was lost in the

church

again we got

says I

feel it now I feel it doing it now I

Do it now. Do it now. Do it

now. This is the sound of

John. Yeah. This is the praise. Make a

dead man walk

again. Oh, the grave. I'm coming out.

I'm going to live. Going to live again.

Open the grave. I'm coming out. I'm

going to live. Going to live again. Open

your bra. I'm coming out. I'm going to

live. Going to live

again. This is the sound of

trump.

Hallelujah.

Yeah. Yeah. Oh. Hallelujah. Come on.

Give it up for the king. Give it up for

the Lord. Hallelujah. Jesus.

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and see on the hill of

Calvary my savior. Savior bled for me.

My Jesus set me

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free. And look at the ones that give me

life. Grace flowing from his side.

There's no greater

sacriice than what he's

done. What he's

done. All the glory and the honor to the

son. My sins are

forgiven. My future is

heaven. I praise

God for what he's

done. Oh, we praise

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you and sing for the freedom he has won.

Even death is dead and done. His life is

overcome. Yes, he has to speak. Say the

name above all names over every broken

place. He's risen from the

grave. What he's

done. What he's done.

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All the glory and the honor to the

son. My sins are

forgiven. My future is

heaven. I praise

God for what he's done.

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And now on the throne of

majesty, the father's wills come clean.

He reigns in

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victory. Sing hallelujah to the king. He

is worthy to receive all the worship we

can bring. Now on the throne.

Now on a throne of

majesty, the father's works complete. He

reigns in

victory. Oh, and sing hallelujah to the

king. He is worthy to receive all the

worship we can

bring. What he's

done. What he's done.

All the glory and the honor to the son.

My sins are forgiven. My sins are

for my future is

heaven. I praise

God. See what he's

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done. And what he's done.

what he's

done. All the glory and the honor to the

son. My sins are

forgiven. My future is

heaven. I praise

God for what he's

done. I praise

God for what he's done.

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I'm

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My hope is built on nothing

less than Jesus blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest

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faith but only trust in Jesus name.

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My hope is built on nothing

less than Jesus

blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest

friend. I only trust in Jesus

name. Christ

alone,

cornerstone, weak made strong in the

savior's love.

through the

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stor seems to hide its face.

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is unchanging

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gra. Heat.

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[Applause]

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Heat. Heat. Heat.

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when he shall come with trumpet sound.

Oh, may I then in him be

found. Dressed in his

righteousness

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alone. Faultless stand before the

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throne.

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Christ. Heat. Heat. Heat.

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Heat.

Heat. Heat. Heat.

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Heat. Heat.

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I was a

rich. I remember who I

was. I was lost. I was

blind. I was running out of

time.

Sin

separated. The reach was far too

wide. But from the far side of the

chasm, you had me in your

sight. So you made a

way across the great divide.

left behind heaven's

throne to build it here

inside there at the

cross. You paid the debt I

owe. Broke my chains, freed my

soul. For the first time I had home.

Thank you Jesus for the

blood of

life. Thank you Jesus you have wash me

wine. Thank you Jesus you have saved my

life. brought me from the darkness into

glorious

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light. You took my place, laid inside my

tomb of

sin. You were buried for three days, but

then you walked right out again.

mountain has no

say and life has no

way for I have been

transformed by the blood of the

lamb. Oh, thank you Jesus for the

blood of

life. Thank you Jesus. It has wash me

white.

Thank you Jesus. You have saved my

life. Brought me from the darkness into

glorious

light. There is nothing stronger than

the wonder working power of the

blood. The blood.

because sons and

daughters. We are ransomed by the father

through the

blood. The

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blood. There is nothing

stronger than no one working power of

the blood.

The

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blood he calls us sons and

daughters. We are ransom by the father

through the

blood. The

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blood. Thank you Jesus for the blood of

life.

Thank you Jesus. You have washed

me. Thank you Jesus. You have saved my

life. Brought me from the darkness into

glorious

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light.

Glory to his

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name.

Gloryy to his

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name. There to my heart was the blood

of

glory to his name. Come on, let's just

lift our hands and sing glory.

Glory to his name.

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Glory to his

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name. Then to my heart was the blood of

life.

Glory to his name.

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Amen. Lord, we give you glory on this

resurrection Sunday morning. We praise

you for the work that's been complete in

Christ's life once and for all time,

delivered to us through the blood and

the body of your son, Jesus. We're so

grateful. We receive it with gladness.

Lord, we just believe. We confess. We

recognize and we celebrate that today,

2,000 years later, there is still an

empty tomb. And we're so grateful

because the empty tomb, Lord, is the

proof that life is one. Jesus has

overcome. And so we give you glory and

praise today. Church, could you just

celebrate for a moment with me the

glorious news that Jesus is alive.

Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Jesus is alive

today. Amen. Praise the Lord. Father, we

do just honor the Lord today on this

Easter Sunday. And uh church, we invite

you to go ahead turn and tell somebody

Jesus is alive today. So I've got a

reason to

celebrate and then you can take your

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seats. Praise the Lord. Well, it's such

a wonderful time to be together. We love

Easter. We love what Easter represents.

And we're so grateful that you're here

with us. We just want to say welcome to

church. If we have anybody that's a

first-time visitor today, we are just so

so glad you're here. We're so glad you

chose to come and worship and celebrate

with us at ALM on Easter Sunday morning.

And so very special time of year.

Um here in just a minute, we're going to

receive tithes and offering. If anybody

needs an envelope for that as we

prepare, you can put your hand up and

one of our ushers will find you.

Otherwise, we'll have some online

options up in a minute. But um you know,

in a minute, we're going to give because

that's part of our worship, too. That's

part of the way we just devote and walk

in worship with our life toward the

Lord. But before we get into uh giving

this morning, I just wanted to celebrate

a couple of things with you and

acknowledge something uh for anybody who

might be visiting this morning. Uh so

first I wanted to give you all a recap

on what we did yesterday. You know, our

Easter celebrations really began

yesterday morning at 11 uh when we held

a community egg hunt. Something we've

been doing for three years now. It just

seems like every year it gets a little

bit bigger and God brings more people on

our campus and more people that we get

an opportunity to give uh just a witness

to the light and the joy that we have

because of Jesus. And so we filled up

about 2,000 eggs and people I think we

were estimating 250 to maybe 300 people

came out yesterday and kids picked up

all our eggs. We had a train ride. We

had a coloring contest and just some

other fun things. And so for a whole

hour, people were just here celebrating

with us. Whether they knew that was why

they were here or not, they were here

celebrating resurrection life. And so we

had a great opportunity to witness and

shine light into our community. And so,

um, if you're visiting today as a result

of that egg hunt, if you were there and

then you thought, I'll come back

tomorrow, uh, we just want to say

welcome. We are so glad that you are

here on this Easter Sunday. Uh, the best

part of Easter isn't the eggs. It's not

the train ride. It's Jesus and the empty

tomb. It is the living risen savior is

the reason we really celebrate. And so

uh we're glad to do that with you this

morning. And I just want to say also

thank you to all the volunteers who came

early who worked weeks ahead of time to

make everything happen. It was a great

great day. And so we give all the glory

to God. Amen. All glory to him for a

great great event on this Easter

weekend. Um one other thing because I

know we do have visitors here with us

this morning. If you are visiting or you

come here regularly and you have a young

child this morning we are not going to

have child care services available. Most

weeks we have nursery preschool and a

first through sixth grade class that

meet for service. This week because of

Easter we're going to keep everybody in

here together. But if you have a child

who's struggling to make it through the

service or needs a break or you know

they may need uh changed or something

like that, we have a mother's room

that's down that hallway on the way to

the restrooms. if you need to use the

mother's room or a restroom and can't

find it, find one of our ushers in the

blue polos and they'll direct you where

you need to go. And we also have a

nursery with, you know, toys and

different things and we'll have our

service streaming to a TV in that room.

If you have a child that um is of

nursery or preschool age and they need

to go out at some point during the

service, you can feel free to utilize

our nursery room, but you will need to

be with your child because we don't have

any any uh volunteers providing care for

them this morning. So, just those couple

of announcements for you. Um, we're

going to give this morning. We believe

giving is part of the way we worship,

part of the way we offer our life to the

Lord, something every believer in Christ

is called to do. And so, I'd like to go

to Matthew chapter 6 with you this

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

morning. One of my very favorite verses,

passages of scripture related to giving,

to offering, to tithes. And, um, Jesus

is teaching specifically about the

difference between the world's way of

living and the kingdom of heaven way of

living. And they are so different in so

many ways that when we accept Jesus, we

step into a kingdom that has a different

way of doing things. You know, Jesus

said when he was given his sermon on the

mount, wide is the path that leads to

destruction and many follow it, but

narrow is the way. Specific is the way,

the path that leads to life. And so

Jesus is that path. And he shows us how

we walk that path with him. In Matthew

6, I believe is part of that. It says in

verse 19 of Matthew chapter 6, Jesus is

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

teaching. He says, "Don't store up

treasures here on earth where moths eat

them and rust destroys them and where

thieves break in and steal." He says,

"Store your treasures in heaven where

moth and rust cannot destroy and thieves

do not break in and steal. Wherever your

treasure is, there the desires of your

heart will also be." I love about this

verse two things. First of all, Jesus

shows us a kingdom perspective when it

comes to material possessions and

giving, the things we value, the things

we accumulate. Jesus is putting our

value system into check with the

kingdom. And what he's saying is there

is a whole eternity in front of us, a

whole eternity to be lived after life on

this earth. And so don't just live,

don't just store, don't just give, don't

just spend for right now, but spend with

that eternity in mind because we're

going to spend a whole lot longer on the

other side of this life on earth than we

will spend here. And I see this this

temporariness of this life represented

by the things Jesus expresses. He says,

"Where moths eat and rust destroy and

thieves steal." What is he saying? He's

saying that it's so short. The time we

have on earth, the the time we hold on

to possessions that we have here, it's

it's so short. It's so short. It's just

a moment. And its effectiveness is so

limited because things we may have here,

you know, they're going to come and then

they're going to go. But he says there

are things that are eternal in nature.

Things that never corrode, never lose

value, never get stolen, or never taken

away. And that's the heavenly treasure.

These things that never lose their

value. And what is heavenly treasure?

Well, I believe storing up heaven he

heavenly treasure is when we do things

that give God glory. His name being

glorified is eternal treasure. No one

can ever reduce, take away, corrupt, or

steal. Glory given to his name. Can you

say amen to that? Eternal treasure.

That's souls one to the kingdom of

light. Brought out of darkness into

glorious light. Like we were just

singing a minute ago, that's eternal

treasure. The word says heaven rejoices

when one person gets saved. And so

that's an eternal treasure. lives

affected for eternity. And when we give

tithes and offerings to God, there is

something of eternal worth, an eternal

treasure, glory to God, a soul changed

for eternity stored up forever. He uses

these things to bring glory to his name

and open eyes to the light and truth. So

when we give, the reason it's storing up

eternal treasure isn't because, you

know, the church's bank account is a

heavenly bank account. It's not that.

It's what is accomplished through the

giving is something that God sees as

eternally valuable. And that's the kind

of treasure I want my life, our life,

our church's life together to store up.

And so that's part number one. And quick

with you, here's the second part I love

about this teaching. Jesus says, "Our

heart is drawn to what we give to." He

says, "Where your treasure is, there

your heart will be also." And this just

this this amazed me the first time I I

had insight to this in scripture. Jesus

is saying what you put your value in,

what you put your money in, your

treasure in, the things of worth on this

earth, where you put those things,

that's where your heart will be, what

it's going to be drawn to is the things

that you store your treasure up in. And

so I'll tell you, if you want your

heart's desire to be drawn to the Lord

and drawn to his kingdom and drawn to

eternity, then sew into eternity, sew

into his kingdom, sew into his glory.

And your heart's desire will become more

and more aligned with him. I just can

say this. I want my heart and all its

desires to be with the one who leads to

life. Can you say amen to that, church?

And so this morning as our ushers come

forward and we prepare to give tithes

and offerings, I just want to encourage

you in this this action of giving, it

brings God glory. It affects, it

ministers, it it brings gospel to

people's lives and changes their

eternities forever. And that's an

eternal treasure. And so how do we store

up eternal treasures? Well, giving is

one way we can do that. And I'll tell

you this, too. Something in your heart

will change as you give. As you give

willingly, you give obediently, you give

to the glory of God, your heart is going

to be drawn more and more to his

kingdom. And I just can tell you from my

life experiencing and maybe trying out

different things along the way, there is

no better kingdom than the kingdom of

our Lord and Savior Jesus. Can you say

amen to that, church? Let's pray over

this offering this morning and receive

it for his glory. Father, we do thank

you for your many blessings upon us this

day. We recognize such a great blessing,

new life available in Christ. But we

recognize, Lord, you provide for our

needs. You bless us in many other ways.

Your grace is sufficient for every good

work. You meet our needs over and above

so that we have our needs met, but then

we can do more and be generous also.

Lord, thank you for providing for us.

And I just ask as we give this morning

that you would be glorified and what is

given here would be used to spread your

kingdom to extend the borders of people

who know your name who praise your name

who give you glory who serve as a part

of your body. Lord I pray that lives

would be touched and forever changed

through what is given this morning and

thereby eternal treasure would be stored

up in heaven. I pray that as this

offering is given today, your name would

be glorified, thereby storing up eternal

treasure in heaven. And Lord, I pray

that for each and every person who gives

here this morning, your word which

always comes to pass would be true once

again and our hearts would be drawn

closer and deeper to you. Lord, I pray

these things in the powerful name of

Jesus. And we believe that they are so.

And so it's in Jesus name that we say.

Amen. Amen. Well, we believe it's

blessed as it's given this morning. and

Miss Julie Carlson has something to

share. Please do come up and share.

I know many of you guys are in the in

the front, but I just got overwhelmed

with the presence of God being in the

back and seeing our ushers try to find

more chairs. And I've been going to this

church since I was about 15. Um, Pastor

Dave and Becky invited me to come live

with them when I was not in a good

place. My mother had chosen to come to

this church and it made a world of

difference in my life and in her life

and I just want to welcome you if this

is your first time. I just feel like

it's a dream come true to see people

really run around and trying to get

chairs. So, this is a great place to get

to know God more. I've made a lot of

mistakes in my life and this is a

forgiving um church and I remember

Pastor David a lot of times talking

about it being like a hospital when

people are in need of being um being

whole and just finding forgiveness and

the wounds and so I know that God wants

us to prosper in all things in body,

mind and spirit. So I just welcome you

to abundant life. Donna Sutton who

usually does many welcoming is gone. So,

I just felt like the presence of God was

ushering me to welcome everybody. If

it's your first time, uh, please feel

welcome and come back more. Thank you.

Thank you,

Julie. I mean, everybody expects the

pastor to welcome you, right? But, I

mean, we really do welcome you. We're so

glad you all are here today. And, uh,

what Julie just shared, it reminds me of

something Jesus said. You know, he said,

"The the healthy are not the ones that

need a physician, but the sick." and he

said, "I am the great physician." And

so, um, healing, restoration, refreshing

life is what Jesus said he's all about.

And so, we are so glad you're here to

get some life from him today. Amen. Uh,

it's he's the one that we get our life

from. Um, I have another person I'd like

to welcome up this morning. Miss

Samantha Simmons is going to come up.

She is our missionary partner with um,

one of our international missionaries.

And so she's going to introduce them and

share a video with us with you this

morning about kingdom work going on in a

different part of the world. Thank you,

Sam. Good. Thank you. Is this on? Yes.

All right. Perfect. Um, so this uh

month's missionary spotlight is uh Kevin

and Andrea Culie and they have a

ministry over in Southeast Souththeast

Asia and they also have a local church

in Alabama. So this video um Pastor

Kevin's going to give you a little bit

of an update what he's been doing in all

those realms realms. So

enjoy. Hey Pastor Isaac and Abundant

Life Church. And I just want to pop in

and give you an update on the difference

that you've made and that you are making

in the nation of salvation. India now

the most populated nation on the planet

with pushing 1.6 billion people. Can you

imagine? And I just got back from

spending about a month in our ministry

over there. And wow, celebrating 25

years this year of ministering in India

and you have a huge part in the eternal

fruit that's coming out of Embassy of

Hope and that nation. We've got about

1,500 Bible school grads and we wanted

to do an inventory of what's the impact

that we've made. So, I interviewed four

of these grads, and we're already over a

million souls saved, hundreds of

churches planted, and thousands of

leaders trained. Wow. I just wanted to

say thank you and continue to invest in

things that have an EOI,

eternal return on investment. Where else

can you take a temporary thing like a

dollar and turn it into an eternal thing

like a soul or a local church? It's

awesome. You know, I was just there

preaching in a church that I helped

plant back in 1992. I know, right? I

must have been like 8 years old, right?

No, but it's amazing to see the ripple

effect of the influence that continues

to just to ripple out into eternity from

one act of what seemed to be small

obedience. I was ministering in a Bible

school I helped plant years ago and

they've turned out thousands of leaders

and just one step of faith, one step of

obedience and the influence that just

continues to echo and echo and create

and generate momentum for the kingdom of

God. So, we're building a Bible school

over there. We've got two out of three

levels completed. We've started the

third level. We need about 150 grand to

finish up that building project until we

move on to the next one. But I'm telling

you, I'm so proud of our Bible school

grads and I'm so thankful for people

like you that pray for us and invest

into what we're doing and to other

eternal projects. And so I just wanted

to say we love you and already over a

million souls, thousands of leaders,

hundreds of churches. Well, at least so

far. But the best is yet to come. Thank

you and we love

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you.

Awesome. Tell you there's there's great

work going on all over the world and

it's because we belong to a kingdom of

life. Amen. And Jesus proved that on uh

resurrection day about 2,000 years ago.

Uh the disciples found an empty tomb.

And uh today we still celebrate that.

And so I know you've probably already

heard it this morning, but happy Easter.

Happy resurrection day. That's what

Easter is all about. I mean, we

recognize the cross, but we celebrate

the empty tomb. Amen. We celebrate the

fact that Jesus didn't stay dead. We are

thankful that he died for our sins and

took upon himself all of our sin, all of

our unrighteousness, washed us white as

snow, bringing us forgiveness by his

blood. But uh it's it's the empty tomb

that proves there's new life for us.

Proves that he made a way for us to be

made new, born again. And so here we are

two millennia later and the grave is

still empty. Jesus is still alive. Sin

and death are still defeated. Salvation

and freedom are still ours. Can you say

hallelujah for that this morning? We're

so glad. The resurrection has changed

countless billions of lives and

eternities from darkness to life to

light. And we're so grateful for that.

You know, as I think about uh the news

of the empty grave, there's a phrase

that comes to mind for me. Too good to

be true. Have you ever heard that said?

I'm sure you have. Too good to be true.

Sometimes you hear about a way to make

money or something that happened and

somebody says, "Yeah, but it's too good

to be true." What does that mean? Well,

you really can't believe it. You really

can't believe what you're hearing

because it's just too good to be real.

You know, the news about the empty tomb,

the news about new life in Christ is too

good to be true. With man's ability,

there's no way that what Jesus did is

possible. But it reminds me of something

that Jesus said in Matthew 19:26. With

Matthew 19:26

man it's impossible, but with God all

things are possible. Amen. And so this

news that we celebrate on Easter Sunday,

resurrection day, it is too good to be

true, but we have a God who does the

impossible. We have a God who makes too

good to be true true. And so we

celebrate that today. And I'm going to

go to John chapter 20 as we get started

John 20 · chapter mention

this morning on a message titled Simply

Continue to Believe. These are words

Jesus spoke to the first people that

received this too good to be true news.

His disciples, you know, they were there

the night he was arrested. They were

there, some of them to observe his

beating, his crucifixion. Some of them

saw his body placed in the tomb. And so

they knew without a doubt Jesus had been

beaten, Jesus had been crucified, that

Jesus died, and that he had been buried

in a grave. And so when they heard this

news that Jesus was alive, it seemed too

good to be true. And the truth is many

of them at first did not believe. After

they had seen the many things Jesus took

upon himself, they were afraid. They

were without purpose. They were

hopeless. And even though Jesus had told

them all through the time they were

walking and ministering together that he

would rise again, that he would die, but

he would rise to new life, they still

doubted. I would say it to you like this

today. Even though Jesus had promised

them resurrection, all they could see

was the grave. All they could see was

the grave. All they could see was the

death. And so when they received word

that the tomb was empty, that angels

were there saying Jesus had risen, that

he was no longer there, when Mary had

seen him, and two disciples had walked

with him on the Emmas road, there was

still disbelief, doubt in some of them.

They chose not to believe what they were

hearing because it seemed too good to be

true. And I'd like to look at one

specific disciple who's been given just

the loveliest nickname through history,

doubting Thomas. Have you ever heard of

this guy before? Doubting Thomas. And

how would you like that to be the

moniker through history for you? You

know, doubting David, doubting Sam,

doubting Omega. Thank you for that very

much. No, you know, doubting Thomas or

I'm just going to call him Thomas if

that's okay with you. Because did you

know in the Bible Jesus only calls him

Thomas? There's acknowledgement that he

doubted, but Jesus never identifies him,

labels him as a doubter. And aren't you

glad Jesus doesn't do that to you?

Aren't you glad Jesus doesn't take you

at your worst moment on your worst day

and say that's how you're going to be

known through the rest of history? No.

We have a different identity and an

identity of life in Christ. And I'll say

I'll say this as well. Uh we won't go

over to Luke chapter 24, but it shows us

Luke 24 · chapter mention

Thomas wasn't the only one that was

doubting. He was just the one that was

identified in John chapter 20. And so he

John 20 · chapter mention

was singled out, but he was not the only

one in doubt after the resurrection. He

was not the only one struggling with

this news that was just too good to be

true. In John 20 24, it says, "One of

the 12 disciples, Thomas, nicknamed the

twin, was not with the others when Jesus

came." And so Jesus, he had resurrected.

He had already appeared to some. But

then he came to this room where all the

disciples except Thomas were gathered

together and he appeared and he spoke to

them. He ministered to them. And so they

believed. They had seen. They had

experienced and been with Jesus. They

they had touched and known and heard and

seen with their own eyes the

resurrection life. And so they believed.

But Thomas, who wasn't there when it

happened, he said this. When they told

him, "We have seen the Lord." He

replied, "I won't believe it unless I

see the nail wounds in his hands, put my

fingers into them, and place my hand

into the wound on his side." You see,

because Thomas wasn't there, because he

hadn't seen with his own eyes, he

resolves to the mankind reasoning in his

mind, I won't believe unless I see it.

In this moment, what Thomas was really

saying was, "I trust what I see more

than what evidence is pointing to, more

than what other Christ followers are

testifying of, more than what Jesus

himself said by his word was going to

happen." Thomas was saying, "I trust my

senses more than what the Lord said,

more than what these disciples are

testifying about, more than what

evidence of an empty tomb and angels in

the garden would point to." He's saying,

"I trust my eyes more than what God has

done." And even with overwhelming

evidence witnessing to the reality of

resurrection, he still chose to doubt.

I'd say it again. All Thomas could see

was the grave. He was missing out on the

resurrection life, missing out on the

reality of new life coming out of the

grave because his eyes were blinded,

overshadowed by the prospect of death.

It's easy to look at Thomas, and I think

we all probably do this. We look at

Thomas and we think, "Well, if I was

Thomas, I wouldn't have doubted. If I

had been Thomas, surely I would have

believed." Because we're just so much

more spiritual than the disciples were,

right? And we think that. I think that

I' I'd like to believe if I was in

Thomas's position, surely I would have

believed when I heard the word.

But you know, if I really think about

it, the reality is that most of us, and

if we're being honest, all of us at some

point have been in the position of

doubting what the Lord has said. All of

us at some point have chosen not to

believe the word because of what we're

sensing in oursel. So many people today

are are alive and living in this earth.

People that Jesus died and rose to save,

but they don't believe. They miss out on

eternal life. They miss out on hope and

joy. They miss out on the love of God

and connection to our abiding substance

of life because they're blinded by the

grave. All they can see is the grave.

All they can see is the brokenness in

the world. All they can see is their own

shortcomings or maybe their own

greatness. And they miss out on the life

of Christ because they're overwhelmed by

the grave of this world.

I know in myself there have been times

where I miss out on freedom God has in

store for me because it seems like the

control of sin is so blinding. There's

times I've missed out on healing because

I'm so focused and attentive to pain

that I miss out on the word of promise

that Jesus by his stripes healed me.

There's times where I've missed out on

the knowing of acceptance and love in my

life because the voice of rejection in

my mind was so blaringly loud. There's

times where I've missed out on the

reality of righteousness because my

awareness of self-righteousness or self

unrighteousness takes over my thoughts.

There's times I've missed out on the

heavenly plan because I've been blinded

by the distractions of the world. All of

these just another example of missing

resurrection life because I'm fixated on

the grave. See, the problem is when all

we can see is the grave, we refuse to

believe the good news because of what we

see. If we let what we see stand in the

way of the good news, we miss out on the

resurrection life that's been offered to

us. When we fixate on the lack of

freedom, the lack of righteousness, the

lack of wisdom, when we see only the

lack of life, we miss out on

experiencing and living today this kind

of life. Jesus said, "I have come that

they might have abundant life." There's

people I've heard today say, "I won't

believe unless I see. I won't believe

unless." You know, that's the same thing

Thomas who was doubting said, "I won't

believe it unless I see the nails, the

holes that they put in his hands. I

won't believe unless I I touch the hole

that the spear pierced in his side." And

you know, we might not say that today,

but I've heard so many times, you know,

I'll believe it when I see it. I'll

believe that God heals when this

happens. I'll believe that God can

really change a life when this happens.

I I believe that God really loves me

when this

happens. And what we're doing, you can

put any kind of nice word you want on

it. The truth is all that is is is

doubt. More doubt and

disbelief. And I want to tell you this

morning on Resurrection Sunday, there's

a resurrection to Thomas's story. Doubt

was not the end of Thomas's story. And

doubt does not have to be the end of the

story for any person that's in this room

today. Any person who will hear and

believe the word of the Lord. You see,

because Jesus interjected into Thomas's

life a word that brought him freedom. In

John 20, continuing into verse 26 says,

8 days later, after Thomas had doubted,

had made these statements, I won't

believe unless I see and I feel. Eight

days later, the disciples were together

again, and this time Thomas was with

them. The doors were locked. But

suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing

among them. Peace be with you, he said.

Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger

here. Look at my hands. Put your hand

into the wound in my side. Don't be

faithless any longer. Believe." Thomas

says, "My Lord and my God." And then

Jesus told him, "You believe because you

have seen me. Blessed are those who

believe without seeing me." The

disciples saw Jesus do many other

miraculous signs in additions to the one

recorded in the book of John. But these

are written so you may continue to

believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the

son of God, and that by believing in

him, you will have life by the power of

his name. So what we see through

Thomas's doubt is Jesus shows up and he

speaks to Thomas. Jesus knowing the

doubt, the fear, the hopelessness, the

disbelief in his heart, he says

something. He he commands something. He

gives instruction. And this is what he

says. Don't be faithless, but

believe. Another translation reads,

"Don't be

unbelieving, but believe." See, Jesus

word to Thomas who was doubting was to

call him to faith, call him to belief,

and for Thomas to respond. And this is

the same thing Jesus would call anybody

doubting about any part of his promise

to today. Believe. Trust him. Extend

your confidence toward him. Do not be

unbelieving, but believe. I want you to

know Jesus is calling you to believe

today. I believe the reason I'm

preaching this this morning is because

there is somebody that Jesus wants to

call to. Jesus is calling to saying,

"Believe today. Choose to trust today.

Be confident that the word is true

today. You might have gone through some

period of life thinking, you know what?

I I can't believe it. I won't believe it

unless unless unless unless I see. I

want you to hear today. Jesus is calling

out to you. Believe. Trust in him. The

word says in 2 Corinthians 6:2, "Today

2 Corinthians 6:2

is the day of salvation. Today is the

day to receive saving life to yourself.

Don't wait for another day. Don't wait

for another call. Say yes to believing

in Jesus today. Maybe for someone that's

hearing this message, saying yes to

believing in Jesus today means trusting

that he paid the ransom. He paid for my

sin and he has saved me from an eternity

in hell. There might be people you've

never believed that that's true. Believe

it today. God is calling you to trust on

that promise. But you know what? There

might be someone else. You might need

today to believe in another part of

God's promise which has been completed

in Christ. Just like we could say, you

know, don't be unbelieving, but believe

God for salvation. Well, I would say

don't be unbelieving, but believe in

Jesus for healing. Don't don't be

unbelieving, but believe in Jesus for

freedom from your sin. If you've

struggled with sin and you think,

"There's just no way out. I just can't

do it." You're probably right. You can't

do it. But you know what? Jesus made a

way for you to be set free. And so

believe on him today. Trust in him today

and see your freedom come. Don't be

unbelieving, but believe in his love for

you. Don't be unbelieving, but believe

that you've been equipped with grace for

a reason to fulfill a plan. If you

struggle with purpose, struggle with

feeling like you're just wandering

through life. Believe in Jesus today and

experience purpose of heaven, eternal

divine purpose come for your life.

says in the word, "These things are

written so that you may continue to

believe." We need to hear the story of

Jesus so that our hearts are called back

to belief. You know, the word says in

Romans 10, "Faith comes by hearing and

hearing by the word of God." When we

hear the word of God, it calls us to

believe. You know, you might think,

well, if Jesus would just show up and I

could see him like Thomas, that'd be

great. But you know what? The word says

faith comes not by Jesus coming down out

of heaven and showing up to you. It says

faith comes by hearing and hearing by

the word of God. The Holy Spirit

witnesses to the truth of these things

in your heart. You don't need a a seeing

reality. You need the inward witness of

the Holy Spirit and the confirmation of

the word of God to believe. If the Bible

says it, you need to believe it. And

that should be the end of it. Amen. This

is what we're called to live. Belief in

Christ. And the word was given to us so

that we may continue to believe. You

know, the Bible is a witness that

enables us to believe and have faith.

The word stirs us in our belief. And I

just had this thought. If we would just

remove doubt, all that would be left is

belief. You know, I think that is part

of the issue. We can sometimes get so

used to a pattern of doubting, of

trusting our eyes and our senses more

than what the word says. Maybe you've

been let down by people in your life.

And so, you don't just take people at

your word. Let me tell you, God will

never let you down. He will never fail

you. And so you can take God at his

word. Amen. You can believe God and you

will not be disappointed. If we would

remove the doubt, all that would be left

for us is to trust and to believe. I

don't want to be a doubter. I I don't

want to be looked back at in life and be

called doubting

Isaac. No, I want to be believing. I

want to be one who believed, who trusted

God. And so with the time we have left

this morning, if I could unpack this

word belief for you a little bit, I'd

like to dive into what does it mean to

believe? Because I really I think there

are some misconceptions about what

believe actually

means. I've got a couple definitions

we'll put up on the screen. These are

the Hebrew and the Greek words for

believe. The Hebrew word for believe is

aman. Sounds kind of like a word we say

at the end of prayer, doesn't it? I'm

on. And what it means is this is a sure

thing. This is something I can count on.

This is

firm. It's a connection to and a trust

in God. This is what the Hebrew word for

believe means. Pistus, which is the

Greek word for believe or faith is

another way this translates, means to

support, a conviction of truth, to put

your trust and your reliance into

something. And so what we have here is

this picture. Belief is something that

supports. It upholds. It's something

that like takes the weight of our life.

Something we put our our hope in.

Something we put our conviction in. Uh

constant connection that we have. Real

belief is when we put our trust and our

reliance fully in Christ. That's what

these words show us. Real belief is to

put our trust and our reliance in

Christ. real belief, biblical belief is

more than intellectual

agreement. And I think that's so

important to clear up because the world

I mean the world will just believe

anything. I mean I I I have like a

thousand pieces of information come

across my phone screen in a day and I

just have to choose. Am I going to

believe that or not? Am I going to

intellectually agree with that or not?

Biblical belief is different. Biblical

belief isn't just something that we

accept in our mind. It is something we

base our life on. To believe in the

biblical sense means I am going to put

the weight of my life into this thing. I

am going to rely and trust upon it. It's

faith. It's confident reliance. It's

putting our trust in God. Real belief is

when we draw on the things that he says

in the word that he does for us that he

says in the word that he gives to us.

Real belief is to act with trust and

confidence. Did you know that to be a

believer means you actually live like

you believe in Jesus? This is why

something should change. This is why our

life starts to look different when we

receive Jesus. It's not because now I

just am trying so hard. It's because

when our beliefs change, our lives

change. When our beliefs change, what we

rely on, what we trust in, what we hold

to be sure and true changes and that

changes the course of our life.

Real belief is to risk reliance. It's to

depend upon in a way where if it fails,

I could I could get hurt. I could get in

trouble. Things could go bad if it

doesn't work out. But real belief risks

relying on Jesus. Amen. Real belief

risks relying on Jesus. It's to put some

weight in his word. You know, as I was

thinking about belief this week, I

thought having a visual example would be

the best way I could explain the

difference between worldly belief and

biblical belief. And so, this is a

simple little thing, but here's two

chairs. That looks like a pretty good

chair,

right? How about this one? So, we've got

two chairs here. What I would tell you

about belief, this chair, I believe in

this chair like I believe in the word.

I'll put my weight on this chair. I will

use this chair. I will live in this

chair. I'll do something with this

chair. But you are out of your mind if

you think I'm going to sit on that this

morning. No one wants to see that

happen. You see, because the problem is,

is this a chair? Sure it

is. Am I going to use it like it's a

chair? Absolutely not. Why? Because I I

don't trust that. I can't rely on that.

I'm not going to act with this thing.

I'm not going to do with this thing.

What I would tell you is I don't really

believe in this chair. I might believe

it is a chair. I might believe it exists

on this stage. I won't deny that. But

will I risk putting my trust in that?

Will I risk sitting in that, relying in

that, standing on that, using that?

Would I give a guest in my home that?

No. because I don't really believe in

it. You get what I'm saying this

morning? Here is the difference between

worldly belief in God and in Jesus and

biblical Christlike belief in the word

and in Jesus. If I truly believe the

word, then I depend on the word. I rely

on the word. I'll put my weight into the

word. I would say it like this. I'll be

a doer of the word because doing the

word means I'm trusting what God says

above my own reasoning. Isn't that the

truth to do something that doesn't make

sense to me? You know, to to give when

it makes more sense in my mind to

keep when I'm called to forgive but it

feels a lot better to myself to hold a

grudge. What am I doing? Well, when I'm

forgiving, I'm believing that what the

Bible says is true.

When I'm giving, I'm believing it's more

blessed to give than it is to receive.

When I am feeling pain in my body and

all I want to do is is talk about the

hurt, talk about the pain, glorify the

problem, but I I believe that the word

says by Jesus stripes I'm healed. And I

I stand on that. I put my weight on

that. I trust in that. That's biblical

belief. And there's just too many people

that are satisfied with, "Yeah, I

believe it's

true. I believe in God. I believe in

what the Bible says. I believe in

Jesus, but you wouldn't know it by

looking at my

life." The Bible says this in James 2:,

"You say you have faith, for you believe

that there is one God. Good for you.

Even the demons believe this and they

tremble in terror. What does this say?

Acknowledgment of existence does not

equal biblical belief. Acknowledging

existence does not equal faith. Saying

it's true, but then I live like it's not

true. That's not belief in the biblical

sense. It's belief in the worldly sense.

But that kind of belief doesn't save.

This kind of belief doesn't bring life.

This kind of belief doesn't restore. But

I will tell you what, I have a firm

foundation in Christ that I can build my

life upon and I will never be

disappointed. Amen.

We're called to

believe. Don't doubt anymore. Don't be

faithless. Don't be unbelieving, but

believe. Believe. Jesus said,

"Believe. Continue to

believe." We're called to believe.

Not in a way that acknowledges God, but

in a way that trusts in

God. I would go so far as to say

this. Belief that does not trust in and

rely on God is

demonic. Belief that does not put trust

in

God, what that's the same kind that the

demons have. belief that doesn't rely on

God as our hope, our

life, our

forgiveness, our connection to the

father. If I'm not relying on him, then

well, I'm just doing the same thing all

the demons do. And I'm going to tell you

this, that's not the kind of belief that

saves anybody. That's not the kind of

belief that the word talks about in

Romans 10 verse 9 and 10. It says, "If

Romans 10:9

you openly declare Jesus is Lord and

believe in your heart that God raised

him from the dead, you will be saved.

For it is by believing in your heart

that you're made right with God." And

it's by openly declaring your faith that

you're

saved. This is the kind of belief that

saves. The belief that will trust God.

The belief that looks to God more than

to

myself. Not just existing. Yeah. G like

Jesus was a man. and he lived on the

earth. Yeah, Jesus, I know the Easter

story. But a belief that trusts him. A

belief that draws on his strength. A

belief that looks to his word, looks to

his promise and says that is so. That is

true. It's to fully trust, know, and

rely with our whole heart on Christ. And

then to declare him as our Lord. That's

what brings salvation life. Not just

believing in facts but trusting in the

application of truth for me. Belief is

not just agreeing with facts but it's

trusting in the application of truth for

my life. And what happens when we

believe? The word says this. Blessed are

those Jesus said this. You know you've

believed because you saw me. But he says

blessed are those who believe without

seen. The word tells us this. We are

blessed when we

believe through belief, through

trusting, through relying on Jesus. We

receive of his life, of his strength, of

his comfort, his forgiveness, and his

hope. We become

receivers when we are believers. And not

just in the mental acknowledgement. It's

it's not just

empty something. It is to believe in my

heart that this is true. to believe it

so much that that I'll risk relying on

the promise, I'm going to risk believing

Jesus. If if it's not at all a risk to

believe in Jesus, it might not be real

belief. You know, the gospel message is

free, but it costs you things to follow

Jesus. Amen. Can I can I preach that in

this church on an Easter

morning? Jesus said, "Deny yourself.

take up your cross and follow me.

There's cost to believing what Jesus

says because to believe Jesus and

receive new life in him, I have to be

willing to give up the old life that I

built on my

own. I have to be willing to to walk

away from the thing that I know and is

familiar and and I've you know, it's not

perfect, but I've learned how to sit on

it and not fall over. That's kind of

what life in the world can be like. I've

got things figured out where it's pretty

good until it's not. Things work for me

most of the time until this happens and

then it all falls apart. You know, Jesus

taught about the man who builds his life

on the word, the firm

foundation. That's when we trust him.

That's when we believe him instead of

our own wisdom, our own ways, our own

pattern of living. And so

belief, it is risky to believe in Jesus

because it is to give up myself. It's to

give up my own way, my own

wants. It's to say, "Lord, not my will,

but yours be done." That sounds kind of

risky, doesn't it? To just

wholeheartedly put your trust in someone

else. This is where we figure out who

has trust issues. Is can I say yes to

Jesus in any way for anything? Can I

believe what the word says? No questions

asked. Without any doubt, without any

unless I see, unless you prove, unless

you'll do the kind of belief that

changes our life, the kind of belief

that leads to great blessing is this

belief that confidently trusts in Jesus.

Some of the things the Bible says about

those who believe. In John chapter 3

John 3:16

verse 16 says whoever believes will not

perish but have eternal life. Says

whoever believes is not condemned.

Whoever believes has eternal life. Those

who believe have been given the right to

become children of God. Those who

believe will cast out demons, speak in

new tongues, not be hurt by snakes or

poison, lay hands on the sick, and they

will recover.

We see the blessings of belief all

through the New Testament. Many

promises, many wonderful asurances are

given to those who choose to continue to

believe in

Jesus. Jesus said this in Mark 11:22,

Mark 11:22

"Have faith in God. I tell you the

truth, you can say to this mountain, may

you be lifted up and thrown into the

sea, and it will happen." But you must

really believe it will happen and have

no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you

can pray for anything and if you believe

that you received it, it will be

yours. See, we're not just called to

intellectually agree with what the New

Testament says. We are called to base

our life on the truth of what Jesus has

done for us. We we are called to make

the decisions of our life in the

perspective of Christ. I am called to

live not just as myself, Isaac Wangler,

but I'm called to live as Isaac Wangler,

who is a child of God in Christ Jesus.

Isaac Wangler, who's been made the

righteousness of God in Christ

Jesus. This is real belief. And we're

called to continue in that belief so

that we would have life. This is the

heart of the gospel. This is the heart

of resurrection and the heart of today's

message. Believe in Jesus. Continue to

believe in Jesus so that you can

experience the power of life in your

life. Church, I have a testimony video

to share with you this morning. And this

is a testimony by Brooke Minahan of a

testimony where she chose to believe and

not just intellectual agreement, but she

chose to trust. She chose to rely. She

chose to believe on Jesus. Let's play

that testimony video. church family.

Last month at Women of Life, I was able

to share my testimony with several of

you, and I'm so blessed to be able to

share that again today. As I prepared

for Women of Life, I came across a quote

that really sums up my journey with an

autoimmune illness. Some people may say,

"She changed." But I say, "No, she

healed. She learned, she grew, she set

boundaries, she stopped settling, and

she put God first." In February of 2020,

I started experiencing a multitude of

symptoms starting with shortness of

breath, a rapid heart rate, insomnia,

hair loss, waking up in the middle of

the night with anxiety and panic

attacks, which is not my norm. And

ultimately, I ended up with tremors that

pushed me to go see my healthcare

provider. While sitting in the office,

she was able to witness my tremors and

immediately started running tests as

there was no explanation as to why I was

having my symptoms. Within a couple of

days, I received a call from my provider

informing me that I needed to see an

endocrinologist due to my thyroid

levels. My TSH, which is a thyroid

stimulating hormone, was barely

detectable. I was able to get in with

the endocrinologist rather quickly and

was diagnosed with Graves disease, which

is an autoimmune disorder that causes

the thyroid to work in overdrive. This

diagnosis led me to taking three

medications on a daily basis to treat

the symptoms. This was a journey in

itself. my levels would fluctuate from

high to low and vice versa, leaving me

feeling awful for a majority of the last

5 years. On September 22nd, 2024 is when

my life changed. Pastor Kevin Culie was

visiting our church and shared so many

wonderful testimonies about healing that

he had per personally witnessed. I

remember sitting at the back row in awe

thinking how amazing our God is. Little

did I know that would be the day that I

would personally be healed. It was

towards the end of his teaching that he

started talking about members of our

church family. I vividly remember him

saying that there's someone in this room

that has a thyroid issue and God wants

you to be healed. I thought to myself,

well, I have a thyroid issue, but I'm

sure many others do in this room also. I

really reflected on that fact that he

could possibly be talking about me. And

that's when I decided to declare it for

myself that he was talking about me and

to hand it over to God. I quietly prayed

in the back row for healing, which I had

never done in regards to this illness.

Psalms 37:5 says, "Commit your way to

Psalms 37:5

the Lord. Trust in him and he will do

this." About 20 minutes later, I felt a

distinct burning in my throat where my

thyroid is. It didn't physically feel

hot or necessarily hurt, but it got my

attention. Shortly after church ended,

as I made my way to the parking lot, I

started profusely sweating. My girls

kept asking me if I was okay, and all I

could say is, "I am healed." I had no

other

explanation. I ended up with a stomach

virus that next week. So, I stopped

taking my medication. When I attempted

to start it again, I felt awful. That's

when I felt the little nudge from the

Holy Spirit reminding me that I was

healed and I no longer needed my

medication. Just to be clear, I'm not

giving a medical advice, and I'm not

telling anyone to stop taking their

medication that is prescribed. But in my

situation, I knew I was going to be

okay. I went to the endocrinologist for

my 3-month checkup and was honest with

my nurse and provider about what had

transpired. At first, my doctor looked

at me like, "Okay, sure." But he

listened. He completed his exam and

asked me about my symptoms and

instructed me to wait 2 weeks to have my

labs drawn. At this point, he wasn't

fully convinced that I was healed, but

he was willing to entertain the idea. 2

weeks later, I had my blood work done

and it was completely normal. I am going

on 6 months of not having to take any

medication on a daily b basis. How

amazing is that? My hair is growing

back. My heart rate's controlled. I'm

not waking up with anxiety and panic

attacks. I am healed. As in Jeremiah

Jeremiah 33:6

33:6, "Nevertheless, I bring you health

and healing to it. I will heal my

people, and I will let them enjoy

abundant peace and security. I have felt

God's arms around me. I have heard God's

words, and I've seen God's work in my

life personally. No one will ever

convince me that God isn't real."

Amen. You've got glory for that.

He's still overcoming graves. Amen.

Literally and figuratively, God

overcomes the grave every day. You know

what I love about that testimony? You

can I can see in there the belief, the

belief, you know, that that moment where

she hears this word, this call. Somebody

in here with a thyroid. God wants to

heal you. And and she has that that

thought, that Thomas thought, that

doubt. Is that me or maybe it's not? He

said, what did she say? I chose that

he's talking about

me. I

believe, see, it wasn't just a mental,

sure, yeah, I believe God can heal a

thyroid. No, it's he's talking about me

today. And then she said, I was walking

out of church and my girls are asking

me, are you okay? And what did she do?

She said, I'm

healed. I believe I I'm speaking out the

truth of of what God has done. I'm

confessing this because I know it's so.

I'm relying on the promise. I'm relying

on what he's

[Music]

done. And then it's what did she say

next? She said couple weeks later, she

was looking at taking her medicine and

and she felt the Holy Spirit saying to

her, "Hey, hey, remember you're healed."

She had an opportunity there. Am I am I

going to believe or not? Am I going to

trust what the word says and act in the

way that the Holy Spirit is directing me

or am I, you know, going to Sure. I I

believe it's true,

but but I believe this is more true. The

question is this. Will we put our trust

in what God has done? Will we put our

trust in what God is promising even

today to do? What he's calling out in

your heart to do? Will you believe

today? Will you continue to believe

today so that you can see the promise of

life manifest in your life? You see, she

decided, Brooke decided that God was

talking about her, that that promise was

for her. And the truth is, you can

choose today to believe or you can walk

out of here the same. You know, if you

have a need and God has a promise,

believe the promise and see his his

supply of grace come and meet your need.

If you need healing, believe that Jesus

stripes healed you. If you need

salvation, if you've never trusted him

for the forgiveness of your sins and to

be saved from eternity in hell, trust

him today. Rely on him fully. Lord, not

at all because of me. I'm not

justifying, you know, I've been pretty

good. I've made an effort. I've tried

and so I don't need that much salvation,

but I'd like a little bit of

salvation. Don't do that. Just say,

"Lord, I need you. I am totally

dependent on you for this. I'm not

working it. I'm not making it happen. I

just I need you. And so, I believe I

trust. I rely on you and what you've

done for me." If you need freedom from

something today in your life, if if you

just have been fighting the fight and

losing, let me tell you what, there's

victory in Christ. There's freedom to be

had in Christ. But you've got to believe

to receive it. You've got to be able to

say, "Lord, I am trusting you to do

this. I am trusting you to bring me into

victory. I'm trusting you to set me

free, to make me new, to sanctify me by

the power of your

spirit, he will do it." If you need love

in your life, if if if you aren't

familiar with the love of God, say,

"Lord, I believe that you so loved me

that you sent your son, Jesus. I believe

that you first extended your love toward

me and I I believe it. I trust it. I

receive it. Today can be the day where

you believe for God to meet you, to do

what you need, to provide for you, to

heal you, free you, deliver you, save

you. And so I just say this. If you've

never believed like this before, this is

the first time you've ever heard about

believing in this way and your heart is

stirred right now to put your trust in

Jesus, just blanket statement for the

first time. Today's the day to do it.

Don't wait. Don't put it off. Don't say,

"Well, I want to see some other things

happen first." There is no one else that

can do for you what Jesus has done for

you. So, if everyone would bow your head

and close your eyes for just a moment, I

want to give an invitation, an

opportunity. If I've been talking about

belief, maybe you're one of those people

who has lived your life and said even,

"Hey, I believe in God. I believe in

Jesus, but not like I've been talking

about up here today." You say, "I I

acknowledge that he exists, but I have

never trusted in him. I have never let

go of myself and chosen to rely on him."

But today, you're ready to say, "I

believe in Jesus." Would you raise your

hand right now and say, "I believe in

Jesus. I trust in Jesus. I see your

hands. I see those hands. Praise God.

All kinds of hands coming up." Yeah. Let

let him acknowledge in you. Witness in

you to the full confidence, the full

trust you're putting in Jesus. You will

not be disappointed. He will change your

life forever. Praise the Lord for people

trusting in Jesus fully. And maybe

you're someone who you started out with

confidence in Jesus, but you've started

drifting. And today you're saying, "You

know what? I recognize where where I

haven't continued. I've believed, but I

haven't continued in belief. And you

say, "Today's the day. I'm going to

continue. This is a new day, a new

start. I am setting the po path forward

in my life following Jesus." Would you

put your hand up and just say, "I'm

going to continue with him. I'm going to

follow him wholeheartedly." I see all

those hands this morning. Praise God for

the witnessing work that he's doing in

you. Thank you, Holy Spirit, for moving

us in our heart to want to continue in

belief. And I'll say this. If you've

lived with Christ, if you've believed in

Jesus in this way, continue. Press on.

Stand fast in your faith. Fight the good

fight that God's life may continue to

work in you. I'm going to pray a prayer.

I'd like everybody here who is choosing

to continue to believe in Jesus this

morning to pray this after me and then

we're going to receive communion

together as a church family. Just repeat

this. Father God, I believe in Jesus. I

believe he is the only son. That he

lived a perfect life. That he was born

of a virgin. That he did signs and

wonders to witness to who he is. I

believe everything he said is true. I

believe his body was given to take upon

it my sins to provide for me

healing, satisfying, abundant life. I

believe his blood bought me out of

darkness, redeemed me from all my

sin, and gave me the right to be a child

of God.

So Jesus, I believe you're alive. I

believe you died, but I believe you

rose. And I believe today you're in

heaven as my

intercessor, as my representation with

the father. So Jesus, you're my Lord. I

follow you. I trust you. I serve you

with my whole heart. Thank you Jesus for

what you've done for me. I love you and

pray in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Do you

believe it church? Amen. There's no

better one to follow. Nothing better

than to continue in belief. Our ushers

are going to come forward and prepare

our communion tables. Uh once they have

gotten the table situated, we'll have

our first row come forward. Please take

a cup and a piece of bread and then

return to your seats. Once everyone in

the room has has received the elements

and return to their seats, then all

together we're going to look to the word

and together receive the elements

representative of Christ's blood and

body. So, first row, would you come

forward? And hey, while they're doing

this, our team is going to sing another

song. Would you just join us praising

God and confessing what his blood has

done for us? Come on up, first row. And

once they're back, second row, you can

go. But can wash

away my

sin. Nothing but the blood of

[Music]

Jesus. What can make me whole

again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

One can

wash away my

sin. Nothing but the blood of

Jesus. What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of

[Music]

Jesus. What can wash

away my

sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

[Music]

What can make me whole

[Music]

again? Nothing but the blood of

Jesus.

Oh,

precious is the

flow

that makes me white as snow.

[Applause]

Oh, found

a nothing but the blood of Jesus.

[Music]

Oh,

precious is the

Lord

that makes me white as

snow. Found

our nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh,

precious is the

love

that makes me white as

snow. I

know nothing but the blood of Jesus.

How precious,

how

precious is the

love

that makes me white as

snow. How I

know nothing but the blood of Jesus.

[Music]

Oh,

precious is the

flow

that makes me white as

snow.

No

other fountain I know.

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

[Music]

Amen. The word says in John 6:47, "I

John 6:47

tell you the

truth, anyone who believes has eternal

life." Does anyone in here believe this

morning? I do. I do. I believe. I trust

with my whole heart, my whole life in

Jesus for today and for

eternity. So it's this bread that

represents Jesus body that gives us life

which never ends. Life that satisi

satisfies, makes abundant and

rich. So let's just pray and thank Jesus

for his body. You can pray out your own

prayer or you can follow what I'm

saying. But Lord, I thank you for the

life that's available to us in the body

of Jesus. Thank you for sacrificing

yourself, being beaten, being crucified,

hanging there, Lord, to take upon

yourself all my sin, all my guilt, all

my shame so that Lord, I could live

free. I accept wholeheartedly. I trust

with everything I am the body of Jesus

for my life. So Lord, I thank you that

it is in the body represented by this

bread this morning that we have life.

It's in Jesus name we believe, we trust

and we pray. Amen. Can you say amen and

take the

[Music]

bread now? The cup representing the

blood of

Jesus which he gave as a payment to

purchase us, to buy us, that we would

belong to him. we would be transformed

and washed new like

him. Father, I do thank you for the

blood of Jesus which brings us

forgiveness, washes us white and

cleanses

us. That blood, Lord, which brings us

close to you, puts us in relationship

with you and acts as the seal, the sign,

the marker that we belong to you for now

and forever more. We thank you, Jesus,

for the blood and all that it's done for

us. We receive it with much praise and

thanks in Jesus' name.

Amen. Let's just thank Jesus for his

body and his blood. Would you just stand

up? We're going to close this service

out singing. Let's sing through this

song one more

time. Nothing but the blood of

Jesus. Hallelujah.

What can wash

away my

sins? Nothing but the blood of

[Music]

Jesus. What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of

Jesus can wash

away my

sins. Nothing but the blood of

Jesus can make me whole again.

Nothing but the blood of

[Music]

Jesus.

Oh,

precious is

[Music]

the