What is a Christian: By Dedication

Father, we thank you for today. We are grateful, Lord, for this

opportunity to spend time in the word of the Lord.

You have allowed us this opportunity, Lord, and we are

grateful. Our prayer tonight is that you'd

open our hearts and minds to be able to behold the the beauty of

your great name and that Lord, we would understand what it is

you'd have us do as your children that we might live in

obedience to You. We are grateful Lord, for the

word of God that teaches us, that grows us, that stimulates

us, that motivates us, and that the Spirit of God uses the word

of God to move us on to maturity in Christ.

For that we are grateful and we thank you in Jesus name, Amen.

This past week I had a unique opportunity.

We had a homeless man come by the church on Monday and he came

by because he needed a place to stay.

He had been kicked out of the location he was for alcohol and

he had been there for eight months.

But because he was drinking, they they kicked him out.

And so he came by the church and of course Peggy asked if I'd

love to talk to him. And I said sure, I'd love to.

So I came down and talked to him about his situation, why things

went the way they did. And I asked him, do you live in

the area? He said, well, my wife and two

children, they, they live in West Covina.

I said, well, why don't you, why don't you go to their, their

home? So I can't because I've been

kicked out of my home. I said, well, when you, when

were you kicked out? I was kicked out two years ago

by my wife and by my father-in-law simply because of

my alcoholic problem. I said, oh, so you can't go back

there because you were kicked out.

You can't go back to the home you were in because you were

kicked out. What do you want me to do?

I mean, where do you want me to put you?

I don't know what to do. He says, well, I just need a

place to stay. So I said, well, you know, we

can find a place for you and look for a place and see if

there's someone who can take you.

And he had in his Bible, he had a beat up Bible.

He had a a place that would allow him if we call to maybe

stay. So I took out my phone and

called the place and the man said yes, we we do have a bed

and yes he could he could come tonight.

I said great, I see he goes well we need to interview him.

I said OK, so I put him on the phone.

His name is Ronnie. I sit here Ronnie, this guy

wants to interview you. So he interviewed him on the

phone and then gave the phone back to me and I said does he

pass the interview process? He says yes.

Says now our home is in Fontana. I said, well, that's a good

thing. I I live in Fontana.

That's not a problem. Where, where is the home at?

So he told me exactly where it was.

I said, what? That's right next to my house.

No problem. So I hung up with him.

I said, OK, Ronnie, we're going to get in my car and we're going

to make our way to Fontana because they have a bed for you

tonight and you can stay there for as long as you want.

He said, really? I said, yeah, so let's get your

stuff and get your coat and get in my car and off we'll go.

So we got in the car and I said, hey, you know what?

It's a it's about a 40 minute drive and I probably need

Starbucks to get me home, so how about we go by and get some

coffee? He goes, well, I don't drink

coffee, so you don't drink coffee.

He says, no, I said you drink alcohol, but you don't drink

coffee. He says, no.

I said, we need to change that around for you to help you

understand that coffee is a lot better for you than alcohol is.

He says, yeah, yeah, I know. I said, so how about if I just

get you a lemonade? He goes, OK, so I got

Frappuccino and got some lemonade and off we went.

I said, now we have a 40 minute drive and I said, so I have you

as a as a captive audience and, and I'm a preacher.

So I'm going to talk to you about the Lord Jesus Christ for

the next 40 minutes. He said, really?

I said, yeah, for the next 40 minutes I'm going to talk to you

about the Lord. And so I very succinctly went

through the gospel with him to help him understand what it

means to make a decision for Christ.

What the Bible says in Luke Chapter 9 verse #23 that if any

Luke 9 · chapter mention

man follow me, let him deny himself, take his cross and

follow me. I said, there's a decision that

you need to make based on what God says in his word.

Outside of that, you need to understand what a Christian is.

I said, do you know what a Christian is?

He says, well, somebody who who follows God.

I said, well, sort of. I said, but let me explain to

you what a Christian is. So I began to define for him

Christianity. Having defined Christianity for

him, I, I went on to describe for him exactly what a Christian

is. How he is in Christ, in Christ

is in him. I said, you need Christ in you.

I said, because the only way you can overcome your addiction, the

only way you can overcome the alcohol addiction that you have

is through the power of the Spirit of God in your life.

You can't do it on your own. You can go and you can go to

some kind of rehab center, which you have done and you were sober

for a while. It didn't last, I said, but

Jesus Christ can do a great and mighty work in your life.

So once you're in Christ and Christ is in you, then the

Spirit of God does a a marvelous work.

So I talked to him about what it means to be in Christ.

If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.

Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become

new. And I said, you need to become

new. I said, and God is just want to

reshape you. He wants to recreate you into

his image. So we talked about that for a

little bit and I asked him some questions along the way.

And and then I finally said to him, you need to understand that

to be a Christian, you must confess that Jesus Christ is the

Son of the living God, that he is the Messiah of God and that

he came to die for your sins. So it took me all of the 40

minutes on our way to Fontana to talk to him about the Gospel.

We got to the end of the our time and I said, listen, you

need to give your life to Christ because that's the only hope you

have. He said, well I'm not sure I

want to do that. I said, well, you might not be

sure you want to do that. I said, but if you die tonight

and you're really in not really good condition, but if you die

tonight, you're going to go to hell and you're going to burn in

hell forever. I said, but you can go to heaven

if you give your life to Christ. But you need to do that.

And if I was you, I wouldn't put it off much longer.

I said, because you have no guarantee how much longer you're

going to live. And I said, so you, you know

where my church is and you know what my name is and so you know

where we're at. You're more than welcome to come

anytime you you want to come, but I will let you know I'm

going to buy you buy you lunch. And then you just need to wait

right here and the the home is going to come by and pick you up

right here at Ralph's in in Fontana.

And then it'll take you to where you need to be and give you a

place to sleep. He says, OK, I said, but you

need to know that all this was providential.

So you know what Providence is? He says no.

I said, do you know what the sovereignty of God is?

He says no. I said, well let me explain to

you. So I explained it to him.

I said it was providential that you came by the church today.

It was providential that the home was in Fontana.

It was providential that that God allowed me to talk to you

about the gospel today for 40 minutes without any

interruptions. It was providential that that

God has allowed us to engaged in this conversation.

This was not an accident. This was a divine appointment.

And I'm not sure how many more divine appointments God's going

to give you to hear the gospel. He might give you more, He might

not, I said. But you need to understand that

today is the day of salvation. You can put it off for a day or

two or three or four or how long you want, but I can't guarantee

that you'll live all those days. I can only guarantee this

moment. He says I hear you, but I'm not

sure. I, I, I just want to do that.

It's OK that that choice is completely yours.

So you know my name, you know where our church is, You're

welcome anytime. Basically the whole conversation

centered around what is a Christian trying to explain to

him, the decision that a Christian makes, the definition

of a Christian, the description of a Christian, the declaration

of a Christian. I basically summed up in 4 weeks

what we talked about in 40 minutes.

And of course you're probably thinking, why can't you just do

what you did in four weeks and 40 minutes, right?

But I didn't give him the whole kit and caboodle like I'm giving

you guys. So the bottom line is, is that

you walk people through an understanding of what it means

to be a Christian. And when you get all said and

done, they they might want to respond, they might not want to

respond. And our job is not to get them

to respond. Our job is just to present the

gospel. Our job is to show them the way,

help them to understand who Christ is.

And that's all our responsibility is.

We don't save people. We just proclaim the truth to

people. God saves people.

Ronnie and I had a time of prayer together before we left.

I fed him lunch or bought him lunch.

And then I said, I trust that one day you'll give your life to

Christ. What is a Christian?

I told him. I said, you know, when you

become a Christian, you live no longer for yourself, you live

for Christ, and that's just the greatest of all lives.

I said right now you're living for yourself.

That's why you're an alcoholic and that's why you've been

kicked out of your house, and that's why you've been kicked

out of the home you're in because you're living for

yourself. But a Christian, he lives for

Christ, and that simply is the Christian and his dedication.

A Christian is dedicated to living for Christ.

Paul said it well in Philippians 121 For to me to live is Christ,

and to die is gain. That is the Christian's

dedication. He does that simply because of

what the Bible says in Second Corinthians chapter 5 verse #15

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

which says he, Christ, died for all.

So they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him

who died and rose again on their behalf.

Christ died so you would no longer live for yourself, but

you would live for Christ. So Paul says for to me, to live

is Christ and to die is gain. Paul was dedicated to living for

Christ, not living for himself. But isn't it interesting that

everybody lives for someone or something?

You you live either for money, power, prestige and fame.

You live for recognition, you live for honor, you live for

appraisal. You, you live for yourself.

Everybody lives for someone or for something.

But the Christian is unique. He doesn't do that.

He lives for Christ. For to me, to live is Christ and

to die is gain. Now do you live for Christ

perfectly? No.

But you do live for Christ progressively.

That is, you progress in Christ like this because you want to

live more and more like the Christ.

But nobody lives perfectly for Christ, this thought of

eternity. But you do progress in your life

with Christ and for Christ. And so when Paul says for to me

to live as Christ and to die as gain, he recognizes that the

premise of a great life is to live for Christ.

And the promise of a great life is nothing but gain, complete

gain. Why?

Because everything for a Christian is gained in glory.

The Christian knows that. Because the Christian doesn't

live for the here and now, because he's not of this world.

He knows that. She knows that the Christian

knows that they're aliens and strangers in a foreign land.

They know that they're only passing through.

They're living for Christ because they're living for

eternity. They have the value of eternity

in mind in all that they do. That's the Christians

dedication. He's dedicated to living for

Christ. So I ask you the question this

evening, who are you dedicated to living for?

What do you live for every single day?

What do you wake up for every single day?

What motivates you all throughout the day?

Is it the Christ or is it someone else, or something else?

Unfortunately, most of us live only for ourselves.

Solomon did. Remember Solomon, please.

Yes, he's chapter 2. This was his testimony about his

life. Listen to what he says.

Verse one I said to myself, come now, I will test you with

pleasure. Enjoy yourself.

Now we might not say it like that, but that's how Solomon

said it. Remember, this is his journal.

Those of you who with us who are studying Ecclesiastes, this is

the life journal of of Solomon. He lived for himself, it says,

and behold, it too was futility. I, I said of laughter, it is

madness and of pleasure. What does it accomplish?

I explored with my mind how to stimulate my body with wine

while my mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of

folly until I could see what good there is for the sons of

men to do under heaven the few years of their lives.

I enlarged my works. I built houses for myself, I

planted vineyards for myself, I made gardens and parks for

myself and I planted it in them all kinds of fruit trees.

I made ponds of water for myself from which to irrigate a forest

of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves,

and I had a home born slaves. Also AI possess flocks and herds

larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem.

Also I collected for myself silver and gold and the treasure

of kings and provinces. I provided for myself male and

female singers and the pleasures of men, many concubines.

Then I became great and increased more than all who

preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me.

All that my eyes desired, I did not refuse them.

I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was

pleased because of all my labor, and this was my reward for all

my labor. Thus I considered all my

activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had

exerted, and behold, all was vanity and striving after wind,

and there was no profit under the sun.

Here was the wisest man, the richest man, the king of Israel,

who could have whatever he wanted and basically obtained

all that he desired. And after it was all said and

done, he said, you know what? It's just nothing but emptiness.

There's nothing there. It's futile.

There's nothing of value here amidst all the parks and all the

ponds, amidst all the houses and all the money, amidst all the

concubines and all the slaves, amidst all the things that he

erected and created and he could erect and create anything he

desired. None of it fulfilled him.

It was all empty. None of it accomplished what he

thought it would accomplish, because the things of this world

just don't do that. But Solomon lived for himself.

And for those of us who think that living for ourselves is

going to bring us the happiness and the joy of our lives, it

does not. Oh, it might break you satisfied

for a moment or two, but it doesn't bring you lasting joy.

Only Christ can do that. That's why Paul says for to me

to live is Christ. He died that I might live for

him, that I might no longer live for myself.

You have to ask that question. If you're living for yourself,

do you really know the Christ? You have to ask that question.

If Christ died, said you would no longer live for yourself but

for him. Why is it you keep living for

yourself? That's a legit question.

Why don't you live for Christ? Why don't you live to honor him

and to please him and to and to glorify his name?

We fight this struggle all the time.

And So what does it mean to live for Christ?

And how do you know you live for Christ?

Well, let me give you a few principles that will help you,

that will guide you along the path of living for Christ.

Those who who live for Christ, number one, listen to Christ.

Now this might sound elementary or basic, but in order to live

for Christ, you got to listen to Christ.

You got to hear Him speak. That's why the Bible is replete

with commands about he who has ears to hear.

Let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Revelation 2 and three Christ would say in Luke chapter 8.

Luke 8 · chapter mention

Be careful what you hear in Mars gospel, he said Be careful how

you hear because if you have ears to hear you need to listen

well. Jesus said in John chapter 5

John 5 · chapter mention

verse #24 He who hears my words and believes in him who sent me

has eternal life. Those who live for Christ listen

to what He says they want to hear.

What Christ has said the Bible says in Luke 9 verse #35 on the

Mount of Transfiguration. Peter, James and John hear the

thundering voice out of the cloud.

This is my beloved son. Listen to him, listen to him.

Mary and Martha had their spat in Luke chapter 10 because Mary

Luke 10 · chapter mention

wanted to sit at the feet of Jesus and and listen to him

speak. But Martha wanted to do the work

in the house to prepare the meal and was upset that Mary wasn't

helping her. And Christ said to Martha, oh

Martha, you are worried about so many different things, but Mary

has chosen the good part. Mary has chosen the one thing

that's needful, just one. One thing is what's really

needed in your life, Martha. And Mary's chosen that better

part. And that is a sit at the feet of

Jesus and listen to what he has to say.

That that has always been the theme.

You can go all the way back to the book of Deuteronomy,

Deuteronomy chapter 6. It says now this is the

Deuteronomy 6 · chapter mention

commandment, the statutes of the judgments which the Lord your

God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in

the land where you are going over to possess it.

Say you and your son and your grandson might fear the Lord and

your God, and keep all the statutes and his commandments

which I command you all the days of your life, and that your days

may be prolonged. Oh, Israel, you should listen.

Listen and be careful to do that it may be well with you, and

that you may multiply greatly, just as the Lord, the God of

your Father's has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and

honey. Then the great Shema, which

means to hear, hear, O Israel, are you listening?

The Lord your God is one. Are you listening Israel later

in in the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 11 verse 26, Moses says

Deuteronomy 11:26

see I am sitting before you today a blessing and a curse.

The blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord

your God, which I commanding you today, and the curse, if you do

not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn

aside from the way which I commend you today by following

other gods which you have not known, there's a blessing and a

cursing. The blessing comes to those who

listen and obey. The cursing comes to those who

do not listen. Therefore they cannot obey it.

But it's always about listening to what God says, not not

listening superficially, not not listening with a, with a 1/2

hearted turning to God. He, he wants you to listen with

all of your heart. He wants you to listen intently.

He, he wants you to listen wholeheartedly with passion.

He wants you to hang on every word that he says.

But you know what? For the most part, we don't do

that. We go to church or we read the

Bible and and we are partially listening.

But no, no, we're not really all into listening, you know, And

the question comes, why not? In order to live for Christ, you

have to listen to what the Christ has to say.

So therefore, you're all in and on, on what he is saying.

Later in Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy chapter 18 verse #15

Deuteronomy 18 · chapter mention

the Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from

among you, from your own countrymen, and you shall listen

to him. There's coming to prophet Moses

says that that's, that's greater than I am from our own

countrymen and, and you need to listen to him.

And that's why Luke 9 is so important, because when God says

this is my beloved son, listen to him.

It was a fulfillment of the book of Deuteronomy, the 18th

chapter, that this was the prophet, the prophet, not a

prophet, but the prophet that would eventually come, the

Messiah of Israel. Solomon would say in Proverbs

chapter one verse #33 he listens to me, shall live securely.

Who doesn't want to live securely?

He listens to me, will live securely and will be at ease

from the dread of evil. Who doesn't want to be at ease

from the dread of evil? Well, it comes from listening to

what God says. Proverbs chapter 8.

Proverbs 8 · chapter mention

Solomon once again says it this way.

Heed instruction, be wise, do not neglect it.

Then he says, Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching

daily at my gates, waiting at my doorposts.

For he who finds me, finds life, and obtains favor from the Lord.

Blessed is the man who listens to me.

Blessed is the man who waits daily at the doorposts, who

can't wait to hear what God has to say.

To live for Christ begins with listening to what Christ has to

say. Again, every one of us listens

to something or someone. The question is, do you listen

to God more? Do you want to hear what God has

to say more than anyone else has to say?

That's the important thing. So to live for Christ means you

listen to the Christ #2 Those who live for Christ not only

listen to the Christ, but they love the Christ.

Notice this, If you listen to him, you will love Him.

And one of the reasons you don't love Him as you should is

because you're not listening to what He says.

The key to everything is being a good listener.

That's why. That's why Stalin says in

Ecclesiastes after 5, when you go near to the House of God, go

there. Guard your steps, because you go

there to listen. Why do you go to church?

You go to listen. That's why you come.

What is God's going to say? What does God's word say?

How is God going to speak to me today through His Word?

When you draw near to the House of God, guard your steps because

you're going there for one reason and one reason only.

You're only going there to listen because Jesus said

there's one thing that's needful and you need to hear me speak.

And God only speaks through His Word.

So God's word must be preached and proclaimed.

So you know what God says? Well, when you listen to the

Lord speak, you can't help but love the Lord who has spoken.

That's why the Bible says in First Corinthians 1622, if

anyone does not love the Lord, let him be a cursed.

Let him be a cursed. That's why Peter says in First

Peter 1/8 though you may not see me yet, you love me, may not see

the Christ, but you certainly love the Christ Philippians one.

This was Paul's prayer for the Church of Philippi.

He said, and this I pray that your love may abound still more

and more in real knowledge. OK, in real knowledge and all

discernment. In other words, I want your love

to grow. And the only way your love is

going to grow is if you grow in the knowledge of God.

And the only way you are going to get to know God is if you

listen to him speak. And so I want your love to grow.

And by the way, this should be a pattern for all of our lives

when it comes to praying for other people and for our church.

When we pray about things that are so superficial, instead of

praying for things that are truly spiritual, everyone of us

should be engaged in praying, praying that our love would

abound more and more in the knowledge of God so that we can

have the discernment to be able to decide between that which is

good and which is evil. That's what you need.

And then he says this so that you may approve the things that

are excellent in order to be sincere and blameless until the

day of Christ having been filled with the fruit of righteousness

which comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

I want you to be able to prove all things.

I want you to be blameless for that to happen.

Your love has got to abound more and more in the knowledge of

God. So important.

So let me ask you a question. Do you love the Lord?

I think everyone of us in the room would say, yeah, I love the

Lord. But the question comes, how do

you know you love the Lord? Because if you're going to live

for Christ, you got to listen to him and you must love him.

But what does it mean to love the Lord?

That's a great question. It goes way beyond the feelings

and emotions that we have for the Lord.

There is feeling and emotion in it.

But how do you know you love the Lord?

Well, let me give you a few ways.

You know that one is if you love the Lord, you're going to

meditate daily on the Word of God.

If you love the Lord, you're going to meditate daily on the

Word of God. Psalmist says this way, Psalm

119970 how I love your law. It is my meditation all the day.

You see, if you love the Lord, you love His Word, because you

can't love the Incarnate Word without loving the inspired Word

to go hand in hand. In the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was God, and the Word was with God, and the Word

became flesh and dwelled among us.

And the Word of God is the breathed Word of God.

So to love the Lord do you must love His Word.

So you will meditate daily upon His word.

It says over in verse #127 these words.

Therefore I love your commandments above gold.

Yes, above fine gold. There you go.

Do you love the commandments more than gold, more than money,

more than anything else? Verse 163 I hate in the spice

falsehood, but I but I love your law.

Verse 159 Consider how I love your precepts.

Verse 167 My soul keeps your testimonies, and I love them

exceedingly. You know you love the Lord when

you meditate daily on the word of God because you can't wait to

hear Him speak another way. You know the Lord is not only

that you meditate daily in the Word of God, but you hate fully

all that God hates. You know you love the Lord when

you hate what God hates. Hate evil.

All you who love the Lord, Psalm 97 verse #10 hate evil, you who

love the Lord. So if you love the Lord, you

hate evil. So you're going to hate fully

what God hates. Remember first John chapter 2,

1 John 2 · chapter mention

First John chapter 2 verse #15 do not love the world nor the

1 John 2 · chapter mention

things in the world. Why?

If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in

Him. You can't love the things of the

world, for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and

the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not

from the Father, but it's from the world.

And the world's passing away also its lust.

But the one who does the will of God, that person abides forever.

So in other words, you hate what God hates.

It's so important to realize this.

We we forget that our love is seen in hating what God hates.

And so we don't love the world, we don't love the things of the

world, we don't love evil. We hate evil because God hates

evil. So when you begin to get down to

brass tacks as to what it means to love the Lord, it means that

you're going to meditate daily on the law of the Lord and

you're going to hate fully the things that God himself hates #3

if you love the Lord, you're going to imitate authentically

God himself. Ephesians 5 verses one and two,

that we are to be imitators of God and walk in love.

So if you love the Lord, you're going to imitate authentically

God himself. You're going to walk in love.

This is so important. How do I know you love God?

I know you love God because you love your wife as Christ loved

the church. That's how I know you love God.

I know you. I know you love God simply

because you're forgiving, because the greatest standard

and measurement for your love is the willingness to forgive those

who have sinned against you. And so forgiveness then begins

to reign supreme in your life. For love covers a multitude of

sins, the book of Proverbs tells us, along with first Peter

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4, love. Love does not expose people's

sins. Love covers those sins love

forgives. So you want to imitate God, you

want to imitate his forgiveness. You want to imitate his love,

you want to imitate his grace and his mercy.

You want to begin to imitate authentically the God you say

you you love. You want to be like God, See

that? That's what love does.

That's how love manifests itself.

It manifests itself because I meditate daily on His law

because I want to know all there is to know about Him because I

love Him so. And then I'm going to hate what

he hates because I don't want to offend him in any way.

And then I'm going to, I'm going to imitate him daily because I

want to be like Him. That's how you know you love the

Lord. So important and #4 you, you

demonstrate. You demonstrate freely your

obedience to Christ. Listen to John chapter 14, John

John 14 · chapter mention

14 verse #15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

Verse 21. He who has my commandments and

keeps them is the one who loves me.

And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will

love him and will disclose myself to Him.

Love is always seen in obedience to the commands of God.

I'm going to do what God says. If you love me, you will keep my

commandments. If you don't love me, you could

care less about my commandments. You don't want to obey my

commands, but if you love me, you will keep my commands.

Another way is that you consecrate holy your life to God

above everything and everyone else.

So when Christ comes to Peter in John 21, it says, Peter, do you

love me more than these? And we don't know what the these

are in John 21. It could be the other disciples,

it could be his business, his fishing business, right?

The question is, do you love me more than your financial

stability? Do you love me more than your

friends? Do you love me more than

anything else? Do you love me more than these?

He says, of course I love you, Lord, then feed my sheep.

But Christ asked him three times that same question because he

wanted to make sure Peter understood that everything about

loving him centers around consecrating your life to him.

And he goes on and talks about how he's going to follow him and

how he's going to stretch out his hands where he doesn't want

to go. He's going to be crucified.

He's going to die by following Christ.

Those who love the Lord consecrate their lives fully and

freely to him. He means more to them than

everything else, than anyone else.

So ask yourself, do you love the Lord?

Peter denied the Lord, Judas denied the Lord, but Peter loved

the Savior, Judas loved himself, and Judas was the son of

perdition. Big difference there.

And so you have to ask yourself, do I love the Lord?

Why? This is why I listen to Him,

because I get to know Him, and if I listen to Him, I will love

Him. For to me, to live is Christ.

To do that I must listen to him #1 #2 I must love Him, and #3 I

must learn all I can about Him. If you love the Lord, you're

going to learn everything you can about Him, and you'll never

stop learning. You'll want to know Him deeply.

Intimately, Daniel 1132 says that people who know their God

will display strength and take action.

Let me ask you a question. Do you display strength and take

action? If you don't display strength,

you probably don't know the Lord.

If you display weakness and fragility, you probably don't

know the Lord. Daniel says if you know the

Lord, you will display strength and you will take action.

You will do great exploits for God.

Why? Because the knowledge of God

does something in your life that moves you and motivates you to

live for the glory and honor of His Kingdom.

And the power of God within the life of a person catapults them

to action. So important to realize this.

There's something about knowing God and learning about God.

It it is, it is a pursuit, a pursuit that is impenetrable.

In other words, you're, you're never going to know God fully

this side of eternity. Psalm 145 says his greatness is

unsearchable. You're never going to find it

out. So, so knowing God is

impenetrable because he's infinite and you're finite, so

you're never going to fully come to know him, but there's this

passion behind the pursuit of him to learn all you can about

him because he's your God, He's your savior.

He's the the God that you love. Knowing God is life's most

impenetrable pursuit, but it's life's most impressionable

pursuit. Nothing will change your life

more than knowing the Lord God. Listen what the Bible says Over

in the book of Colossians, Colossians chapter 1, Paul says

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

this. For this reason, since the day

we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to

ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all

spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will

walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

You can't walk in a manner worthy of the Lord unless you

know who He is. You got to learn all you can

about Him. You'll please Him in all

respects. You'll bear fruit.

You'll increase in the knowledge of God.

You'll be strengthened with all power according to His glorious

might. For the attaining of all

steadfastness and patience, joyously give me thanks to the

Father who has qualified us to share in the inheritance,

inheritance of the Saints in light.

That's what God does. There's something about it,

there's something about learning about God that that just

catapults you into another sphere of living because

everything about your life centers around living for

Christ, knowing that dying is gain.

Back in the book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah says this, and Jeremiah

Jeremiah 9 · chapter mention

Chapter 9 verse #1 Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a

fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain

of the daughter of my people. He wept for Jerusalem.

He went for Israel. Why?

Because Israel was once a strong nation.

Israel was God's people. Israel was was going to be used

by God in a great and mighty way.

But now he begins to weep bitterly over Jerusalem.

He says the verse 20 that I had in the desert a wayfarers

lodging place that I might leave my people and go from them.

He said, oh, if I, if I just had a home, if I, if I had a condo

in Palm Springs, I would go there.

If I had a house in Tahiti, I would go there.

If I had a condo in Maui, I would go.

I would go anywhere to escape what I'm facing right now.

So he says these words for all of them are adulterers and

assembly of treacherous men. They bend their tongue like

their bow. Lies and not truth prevail in

the land, for they proceed from evil to evil.

I don't want to be around evil. I don't want to be around liars.

I don't want to be around adulterers.

I don't want to be on treacherous mid.

So if I can escape and go someplace other than where I'm

at, I would do that. He couldn't, but if he could, he

would. So what was the problem that he

tells you? And they do not know me,

declares the Lord. That was a problem in Israel,

Hosea tells us. They were destroyed for lack of

knowledge. They just did not want to learn

all they could about their God. It cost them desperately.

It cost them tremendously because He would not learn all

they could about their God. To live for Christ simply means

that you listen to all that He says.

And once you listen to Him, you can't help but love Him.

And the more you love Him, the more you want to learn all you

can about Him. So you know you love Him when

you just can't get enough of Him.

Have you had enough of God? Are you bored with God?

Are you done with God? Those who want to live for

Christ, they want to live to know all they could about Him.

And know this, once you learn about Him, this is number 4.

You lean upon Him, you lean upon Him, you trust Him, right?

All your energies, your life is just thrust upon God.

You can't help but trust Him. The psalmist in Psalm 50, verse

#15 says, Call upon me in the day of trouble.

I shall rescue you, and you will honor me.

In Psalm 56, verse #3 when I'm afraid, I will put my trust in

you. I'll lean upon you in God, whose

word I praise. In God I put my trust.

I should not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?

How about this Proverbs chapter 18?

Proverbs 18 · chapter mention

Proverbs chapter 18, verse #10 The name of the Lord is a strong

Proverbs 18 · chapter mention

tower. The righteous runs into it and

is safe. The name of the Lord, the

character of God, the nature of God, is a strong tower.

It's a place of refuge, and the righteous can't wait to run into

it for safety, for protection. Verse 11 A rich man's wealth is

his strong tower. This is this, and like a high

wall in his own imagination. Oh, how wise that is.

A rich man's strong tower is his wealth, his riches, his

financial stability. The righteous have a strong

tower, and that is the name of the Lord.

They run to the strong tower and they are secure.

They they are safe, they are protected.

But the rich man, he runs to his imagination, his imaginary

tower, his finances, his stability, his strength.

What is your strong tower? What is your fortified city that

you run to, that you lean upon, that you trust in?

For some it's their their degree, their education, that's

their fortified city. For others it's their four O 1K

That's their fortified city. For others it's a friend,

husband or wife. But for the righteous it's the

name of the Lord. That's the strong tower,

Psalmist said. When I am afraid, I trust in

you. That's it.

I just lean on the Lord. Psalm 44, six says I do not

trust in my bow. What he doesn't say is

important. He doesn't say I throw my bow

away. I don't trust in my bow, so I

throw it away. No, he still has his bow.

See, you can still have riches, you just can't trust in riches.

You can still have friends, you just can't trust in your

friends. You can still be married, just

not trust in your marriage. You got to trust in the name of

the Lord. You can't lean on your own

understanding. You got to trust in what God

says and who He is and those who who love Him and have learned

all they can have. The reason you lean on Him is

because you learned about His omnipotence.

You've learned about His omnipresence, His omniscience.

You've learned about the fact that He's the mighty God, the

Almighty God. You learn about His forgiveness,

His grace, His mercy. Do you learn about Him?

You can't wait to lean on Him because of who He is and because

of what He does. That's what it means to live for

Christ. That's how Paul lived his life.

He lived the life that honored the Lord.

And those who live for Christ, they, they listen to him, they

love him, they learn about him, and they lean upon him.

JC Rile in his book on the holiness of God, says this about

those who love God. This is really good, he says.

Let it never be said that we cannot find out whether a

Christian really loves Christ. You ever wonder whether or not

people know you love Christ or not?

This year, Rao says, Let it be known never, never be said that

we cannot find out whether a Christian really loves Christ.

It can be known. It may be discovered.

The proofs are already in your hand.

You have heard them this very day.

Love to the Lord Jesus Christ is no hidden secret, no impalpable

thing. It is like light, it will be

seen. It is like sound, it will be

heard. It is like heat.

It will be felt where it exists. It cannot be hid where it cannot

be seen. You make sure, be sure that

there is no love at all. That's just so good.

If you love the Lord, like light, you see it.

Like heat, you feel it. But if you can't feel it and you

can't see it and you can't hear it, there is no love that's

there. Now.

I didn't say that JC Rile, a much smarter man than me, a much

more intelligent man to me, a much better preacher than me,

understood the love of God. People say, well, I I love the

Lord, but you don't ever see it. You don't ever hear it, but they

say it. Just because you said it means

nothing. Can you feel it?

Can you see it? Can you hear it?

That's when you know someone really truly loves the Lord.

So Paul says for to me to live is Christ and to die his game.

How do you know you live for Christ?

How you listen to everything he says.

Can't wait to hear him speak. Once you hear Him speak, you

just fall deeper and deeper in love with Him.

And the more you love Him, the more you can't wait to know

about Him. So you just keep learning all

you can about Him, and the more you learn about Him, you just

lean upon Him all the time. Just trust Him day after day

because there's nothing else you can trust in because He's

everything. To live for Christ means you

look to Him for everything and no one else.

You look to Christ, your gaze is away from everything and

everyone, and you look to Christ alone.

Looking into Jesus. Hebrews 12 the author, the

originator and finisher of our faith.

Consider him right If Hebrews tells us that that we look to

Christ, Why? Because He is the originator of

our faith, and we turn our eyes away from the things of the

world and look completely upon Him.

And once you look toward Him, you long for Him to return, just

long for Him to come back. So what Paul would say in second

grade 2nd 4 verse #8 that the crown of righteousness is for

all those who who love his appearing, who long for Him to

come back, and those who who live for Him long for him to

return. So Paul says, for to me to live

is Christ, and to die is the greatest of all gains.

How do you live for Christ? Well, you listen to what He

says, you love Him for who He is, you learn all you can about

Him, you lean upon Him, you look to Him, and you long for Him.

Why? Because if you don't, you're

lost without him. You're completely lost without

the Christ. And Paul knew that.

That's why I gave his life to Christ, because he was lost

without him. But with him you were found.

You're in Christ, you're his child.

That's the Christians dedication.

He is dedicated to living for Christ and not for himself.

He is living dedicated to living for Christ and not for the world

or anything else. He is sold out to live for

Christ. Is that you?

What is a Christian? Christian is known by his

dedication. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for tonight chance to be together to look

into Your word once again. Truly, you are a great God.

You've allowed us to have a brief moment where we can look

into the Word of God and examine our lives.

I pray for everyone in the room that Lord, they would truly live

for Christ. They'd ask themselves, who am I

living for? What am I living for?

They might examine their lives in light of what Your word says

and ask, am I, Am I living for Christ or myself?

Do I listen to all that He says? Do I listen in such a way that I

just love Him more and more? So much so I just want to learn

all I can about Him. I just can't get enough of Him.

And the more I learn about Him, I just lean completely and

totally upon Him for everything. I look to you, no one else that

long to be in Your presence one day.

May that be each and everyone of us, Lord, as we seek to do your

will and glorify your name until you come again, as you most

surely will, in Jesus name, Amen.